Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Hope for Survivors is Fading; Mike Pence is Subpoenaed by Special Counsel; Russian War in Ukraine Continues; U.S. House Passes Resolution Condemning Use Of Balloon; Hope For Survivors Fading As Death Toll Nears 22,000; Legendary Composer, Songwriter Dead At 94. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired February 10, 2023 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[02:00:00]
KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada, and all around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber.
Ahead on "CNN Newsroom," clinging to hope that survivors can still be found trapped under the mountain of rubble in Turkey and Syria, former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence subpoenaed by the special counsel investigating Donald Trump, what we can learn from his testimony, and Russia's new offensive appears to be getting underway with Zaporizhzhia's energy infrastructure among the targets.
UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Kim Brunhuber.
BRUNHUBER: It's 10:00 a.m. across Turkey and Syria where the death toll from Monday's earthquake has now risen to more than 21,000 and hopes are fading that rescuers can find any more survivors.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNKNOWN: (INAUDIBLE).
BRUNHUBER: This is the scene in Southern Turkey. Emergency crews blow their whistles when they hear noises under debris, then call for silence. The construction is immense. Entire neighborhoods are reduced to rubble. Hundreds of thousands of families are left homeless. Many are sleeping in their cars or on the streets in freezing temperatures. Even those who still have homes are afraid to go inside for fear the buildings might collapse.
UNKNOWN (voice-over): (INAUDIBLE).
(SCREAMING)
BRUNHUBER: A miracle there. You can hear the shouts of celebration as rescue crews pull a mother and her six-year-old daughter from the wreckage.
Meanwhile, Turkey's foreign minister says his country has received offers up assistance from 95 nations and 16 international organizations. Even Turkey's longtime adversary, Greece, is sending supplies and search teams.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: But no matter how much it is getting through, it is nowhere near enough. One U.N. official says people in Turkey and Syria need more of absolutely everything.
CNN's Jomana Karadsheh reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNKNOWN: (INAUDIBLE).
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Endless lines on the road to Iskenderun, a devastated city crying for help, answered by a nation in shock, united in pain. These men told us they drove more than eight hours carrying diapers, water and bread, whatever they can do to help strangers who need all they can get.
Destruction in every corner of the city. No building spared mother nature's wrath.
(On camera): So even in this part of the city where buildings are still standing, you can see that there are cracks all over these buildings, they sustained damage. So, we are going to have to walk through here really fast. We just don't know how stable these structures are right now.
(Voice-over): In seconds, life shattered, livelihoods destroyed, a city and its people left broken.
SERVER ONEN, ISKENDERUN, TURKEY RESIDENT: I am confused. I don't know how to feel. Senseless.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): Server has been out here searching for his friend left under the wreckage of this apartment building. No professional rescuers here, just volunteers drawing floor plans for their search in the dirt.
ONEN: First day, I was really hopeful. But this is the fourth day. I'm getting out of hope.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): Even happy endings here are overshadowed by the collective grief. Burak flew back from his home in London to find his sister and other relatives. It's a miracle they made it out. They were buried under the rubble for 15 hours, he tells us.
BURAK DIK, FAMILY RESCUED: I'm speechless, to be honest. I'm in a dream. Very bad dream. I'm here in -- you know, so many of our friends died in here. So many relatives are dying. My feelings are all collapsed. I'm only breathing at the moment.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): Around the corner, we find Suheyl overseeing the search mission here. For days, he's desperately been trying to get his parents out.
SUHEYL SUMBULTEPE, EARTHQUAKE SURVIVOR: Our government helps, but it's not enough, obviously. So, we are trying to get our people by our own, and we need you. We need everyone who can come and help us.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): Suheyl tells us he saw his mother's leg under the rubble.
SUMBULTEPE: I'm not able to reach her. She is there, I see her, but I cannot touch her. I understand my mother is dead. I'm trying to get my mother.
[02:04:58]
KARADSHEH (voice-over): With every passing hour, for many here, the agonizing really (ph) ends as the gut-wrenching reality sinks in.
Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, Iskenderun, Turkey.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: The shattering scenes there. Let's head to Istanbul and CNN's Salma Abdelaziz. Salma, what is the latest there where you are in Turkey and in Syria as well?
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN REPORTER: Absolutely, Kim. We are tracking developments, particularly in Syria. Very little access there, of course, to journalists. We are relying on aid workers and volunteers on the ground to give us information. They tell us the latest death toll is nearly three and a half thousand people killed, more than 5,000 people wounded.
And Kim, the need on the ground there is just enormous. People who absolutely are in dire need of help were in dire need of help even before this tragedy unfolded.
We did see yesterday the very first U.N. aid convoy able to cross into rebel-held Northern Syria. We do have some images to show you of what that place looks like. It is this tiny enclave right in the north Idlib Province, really a community of people that has had to rely on nothing but themselves. It has been absolutely devastated by this earthquake.
It is relying on this volunteer group, White Helmets, the White Helmets who have been working more than 90 hours, since the disaster began, nonstop, 24 hours, trying to pull people out from the rubble of their homes.
We understand, according to the White Helmets, again, that tens of thousands of Syrians have been made homeless by this tragedy. We have pictures to show as well of people simply living on the streets. The sidewalks now are their beds. The vehicles or whatever shelter they have, they are huddling in olive gloves in freezing cold temperatures. They are absolutely in dire need of aid.
Whereas, of course, we have seen the search and rescue operations happening and able to pull people alive out of the rubble. We have this one image of this very adorable little boy who was found alive, pulled out by these White Helmets a day and a half or so ago. Now, many days into this tragedy, there are fears that no one will be found alive.
That is a very similar story to what is happening here in Turkey. Of course, these rescue operations are soon going to turn into recovery operations. And what you're going to here from these many, many desperate families who are missing thousands, countless loved ones on the ground is they just want the dignity at this point, Kim, of being able to get their loved ones out of the rubble and bury them so they can finally say their piece.
BRUNHUBER: Yeah. Absolutely heartbreaking. Salma Abdelaziz in Istanbul, thanks so much.
An important milestone in the U.S. Justice Department's investigation into the Capitol riot and the role former President Donald Trump may have played. The DOJ has subpoenaed Trump's second-in-command, former Vice President Mike Pence. It wants testimony and documents relating to the two men's interactions in the weeks leading up to the 2020 election.
Officials also want to know about Pence's interactions with Trump on the day of the riot itself.
CNN's Evan Perez has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: A historic milestone in the Justice Department's investigation of Donald Trump and his allies for trying to overturn the 2020 election. Special Counsel Jack Smith has issued a subpoena to former Vice President Mike Pence, seeking documents and testimony in the January 6th investigation.
Prosecutors want the former vice president to testify about his interactions with Trump leading up to and after the 2020 election and the crucial days before rioters, who believe Trump's claims of vote fraud, attacked the U.S. Capitol.
This all follows months of negotiations between the Justice Department and lawyers for the former vice president. Among the issues that we expect to come up, Donald Trump's claim of executive privilege for conversations with his vice president.
Pence, who is considering a run for president, published a memoir in November in which he described some of his interactions with Trump as a former president sought to overturn the results of his election loss to President Joe Biden.
Pence's team knew that the book's publication raised the prospect that the Justice Department would likely seek information about those same interactions as part of his criminal investigation.
It's also notable that two of Pence's former aides have already testified to the grand jury, going in twice, after a judge compelled additional testimony overriding Trump's claim of executive privilege.
Evan Perez, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: All right, for more on this, I want to bring in Areva Martin, who is a civil rights attorney and legal affairs commentator. She joins us live from Los Angeles. Thanks so much for being here with us.
[02:10:00]
BRUNHUBER: So, how critical --
AREVA MARTIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY, LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Thank you.
BRUNHUBER: -- do you think this could be in terms of getting a possible indictment against Donald Trump? How big do you think this is?
MARTIN: I think this is a really big deal, Kim. We have seen presidents who have been subpoenaed. You can look back to Bill Clinton, Richard Nixon, even Thomas Jefferson.
But I don't think, in the history of this country, we have seen a former vice president subpoenaed to give testimony against a former president that he served under. And I think this move, this very aggressive move by the special counsel, signals that he is getting close to the end of this investigation.
We know that Pence would not give testimony to the January 6th Congressional Committee that was investigating the insurrection. But now, he has been issued a criminal subpoena and it will be interesting to see if he tries to fight it because we know others that have tried to use executive privilege and other tactics to delay have not been successful.
BRUNHUBER: So, what specifically then, do you think, they are hoping to learn from Pence?
MARTIN: Couple of things. We know that Donald Trump had private conversations with Mike Pence leading up to January 6th where he was pressuring Mike Pence to reject the electors that have been sent by each state after the November election. We know that he wanted him to decertify the votes, the legitimate votes of the people throughout the country.
So, the question is, is there information in those personal and those private phone calls between Donald Trump and Mike Pence that gives additional information to the investigators to the Department of Justice who is investigating Donald Trump, we know, for potential criminal charges?
BRUNHUBER: All right. So, he hasn't been shy about generally talking about what Trump asked him to do. But you raised the prospect of him invoking executive privilege. So, how long and how complicated a fight would that be? And also, could Donald Trump also step in here and claim executive privilege?
MARTIN: We've seen Donald Trump tried to do that, Kim, in some of the other cases where other officials from the White House have been subpoenaed to testify before the grand jury, and it has been unsuccessful tactic. In some ways, it appears to be as right out of Trump's playbook to cause delay and to obstruct investigations against him.
In this case, unlike a civil case, a criminal subpoena, the invoking of any kind of executive privilege, I think it would move very quickly through the court system because he has already tried and he has already lost.
More importantly, there are some speculations that Mike Pence, even though there's reporting that his team has been in long negotiation with the Department of Justice, some experts opine that maybe this is cover for Mike Pence, that Mike Pence wants to give testimony about what happened leading up to the January 6th insurrection, and that having to do so, under oath, before a grand jury, gives him some cover because he is running for president. He does need Trump's base to support him if he's going to be successful in his bid for president.
And we shouldn't forget, Mike Pence was a public servant. He wants to be again a public servant. He wants to be president of the United States. If you want to be president of the United States, you have information about someone who was committing criminal acts and trying to overthrow the legitimate votes of the people, you should want to give that testimony, you should have wanted to give it to the January 6 Committee and should definitely want to come forward and give it to the Department of Justice.
BRUNHUBER: Yeah, but, as you say, I guess he has been sort of covering his tracks, both trying to, you know, throw Trump under the bus but also trying to appeal to his voters because, as you say, he may plan to run.
So, you know, it has been more than two years here since January 6th. Why do you think this has all taken so long? And you seem to hint though that this might be winding down but we might see indictment soon?
MARTIN: I don't think we can overstate how unusual, how dramatic, how extreme what happened on January 6 Committee is.
We have not encountered a sitting president encouraged, galvanized a mob to attack the U.S. Capitol, and to have a former vice president, who has not voluntarily given his testimony, given information, to come forward and tell the American people and the Department of Justice what he knows about this insurrection.
So, we are in uncharted waters. The prospect of a criminal indictment of a former U.S. president, again, puts us in a very uncharted water in terms of the Justice Department, which is why we saw the Department of Justice appoint a special counsel, because of the delicate nature of this investigation, because of the political implications.
[02:14:58]
MARTIN: So, we know that Merrick Garland has been incredibly thoughtful and careful in trying to balance what this means not just legally but politically for our country.
BRUNHUBER: Yeah. Plenty of twists and turns to come, I'm sure. We really appreciate your analysis, Areva Martin. Thank you so much.
MARTIN: Thanks, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: And in the coming hours, the president of Brazil will join President Biden for talks over the jump-start relations between the two country. Lula da Silva arrived in Washington Thursday and you can see his motorcade there. Before meeting with President Biden at the White House, Lula will meet with a number of Democratic lawmakers. This is Lula's first official visit to the U.S. after narrowly defeating Jair Bolsonaro in an October runoff election.
Ukraine takes more Russian artillery fire just as President Zelenskyy makes a case for more weapons to fight back. Still ahead, the Ukrainian leader holds talks in Brussels as energy facilities back home become targets again. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BRUNHUBER: We're getting word of new Russian strikes targeting energy facilities in the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia. Ukraine says the city was hit at least 17 times in one hour on Friday morning but still unclear how much damage the strikes cost. It happened after Ukrainian officials say they're seeing the beginnings of an anticipated Russian ground offensive.
[02:19:58]
BRUNHUBER: They say Russia's escalating attacks in the Luhansk region is near the occupied city of Kreminna but Ukraine says Moscow hasn't had much success yet.
Originally, Ukrainian leaders say Russia's offensive is -- quote -- "de facto underway." CNN crews on the ground say the uptick in fighting still doesn't amount to that.
Meanwhile, President Zelenskyy met with E.U. leaders in Brussels on Thursday as he called for the delivery of western fighter jets to Kyiv. In his speech, he said Ukraine is fighting Europe's battle. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translator): We are protecting Europe from a regime that has proven that it only has one desire, to destroy the freedom of Europe, to be an authoritarian master on the continent.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: All right, for more, Scott McLean joins us from London. So, Scott, what's the latest on these attacks and the Ukrainian warnings of more to come?
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, Kim. Yes, so, Ukrainian officials say that the air raid alert is in effect for the entire country right now. They are warning about a potentially widespread Russian missile attack in the country. There have already been explosions reported in the city of Kharkiv and also in Zaporizhzhia.
Remember, these are not places that are on the frontlines, but they are cities that Ukraine's top national security official warned earlier this week could be part of a renewed Russian offensive. These are cities that the Russians have never held before.
Of course, during these types of missile attacks, the Russians are typically going after energy infrastructure, though, we've also seen them hit very clearly civilian targets as well.
In anticipation of these potential strikes on energy infrastructure, there have already been preemptive power cuts in the Kyiv region to take into an account for that.
In Zaporizhzhia region, the local city officials there say that there were 17 strikes in the space of just one hour. That is the most that they have seen since this full-scale invasion actually began. They're just trying to assess at this point what kind of damage they're actually looking at.
Yesterday, there were sort of sporadic missile attacks, there were attacks incoming with the Iranian-made drones, potentially a Russian tactic to sort of wear out the air defense system in anticipation of something a little bit more substantial today. That, I think, is what the Ukrainians are concerned about.
This seems to make the point for the Ukrainians that they need more in the way of their own long-range missiles, their own fighter jets, and that's what President Zelenskyy, who was in Europe yesterday, try to get.
And while his chief of staff said that the issue of fighter jets and long-range missiles was resolved, based on what the European leaders actually said, it is difficult to see how anything has actually been resolved.
Of course, he has managed to chip away a little bit. He managed to get the Brits earlier this week to commit to training Ukrainian pilots on NATO standard fighter jets. But beyond that, no one is promising any actual jets.
The polls have gone for this saying that, look, if they were deciding on behalf of NATO that they would provide them yesterday, you had the Polish ambassador to the U.S. saying that it would be a turning point even if Europe and NATO just decided to send them, even though it would be months and months before they could potentially actually reach the front lines.
Beyond that, you are seeing plenty in the way of broad gestures of support for Ukraine, Kim, but you weren't seeing a lot in terms of specific promises.
There were some hopeful signs, though. For instance, the Portuguese prime minister saying that, look, there is no red lines around sending jets. But, frankly, they just don't have any to send. And obviously, European leaders made clear as well that they are discussing continually this issue of fighter jets.
But obviously, the Russians, they are listening as well. President Zelenskyy said that, look, we need to do this faster than the Russians. Well, the Russians announced that they'll be stepping up their production of their own weapons in response to this tour of Zelenskyy, in their words, begging for weapons from the west. Kim?
BRUNHUBER: All right. Thank you so much, Scott McLean, in London.
While Russian casualties mounting, the Wagner mercenary group made a surprise announcement, they will no longer recruit Russian prisoners to fight in the invasion. Tens of thousands have already been sent to the front lines and it's not clear why the strategy is shifting. CNN's Frederik Pleitgen reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Wagner mercenaries in brutal battles around Bakhmut in Eastern Ukraine. Among the assault force, convict, charging in waves, suffering devastating losses.
Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin praises his group's battlefield efficiency. But now, a sudden about-face.
We have completely discontinued the recruitment of prisoners into Wagner PMC, he writes. Those who work for us now are fulfilling all their obligations.
Ukrainian intelligence recently gave CNN access to two convicts recruited by Wagner who the Ukrainians captured on the front line.
[02:25:00]
PLEITGEN (voice-over): They said, they were speaking with us willingly, but we're disguising their identity for their own safety. There were 90 of us in our first assault, he says. Sixty died in the first assault, killed by mortar fire. A handful remained wounded. The men say they were essentially cannon fodder, but retreating was not allowed.
We were given the task of taking a place and we had to take it at any cost, he says. We couldn't retreat with orders because if we didn't comply, we'd be killed.
For months, Prigozhin personally went to Russian jails with this offer, even for murderers and rapists, fight six months in Ukraine and if you survive, you'll be free.
Only a handful in my unit came for money, he says. Most came because they had long jail sentences. But there were also some who had only 12 days of their sentence remaining and they went anyway.
The Ukrainians believe Wagner has so far sent around 50,000 convicts to Ukraine with a massive attrition rate. As high as 80% killed, wounded, captured or deserted.
Progozhin, though, seems unfazed by the losses. Their contracts have ended, they're going home, he just said. But why would Prigozhin say he has changed what he feels is a winning formula? He didn't give any reason but one possibility might be that the Russian defense ministry has sidelined Wagner and is now fully taking control of recruiting convicts. At least that is the view of prisoner advocacy group Russia Behind Bars.
OLGA ROMANOVA, RUSSIAN BEHIND BARS (through translator): Prisoners are difficult to deal with. Some Russian soldiers might not like fighting alongside prisoners and trenches. But there is big potential and it is easy to recruit masses.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): Russia's defense ministry didn't reply to our request for comment, but Ukrainian military intelligence believes there is a power struggle unfolding.
UNKNOWN (through translator): The leadership of the Russian armed forces is going to belittle Prigozhin's role, he says, so that he cannot strengthen his position in the Kremlin hierarchy.
PLEITGEN (on camera): Now, of course, there could be various other reasons why Yevgeny Prigozhin seems to be changing his strategy here in Ukraine and now says that he's no longer going to be using convicts on the front line. He could simply be running out of people willing to go. Even in the Russian jails, certainly, it seems as the word is spreading, that the attrition rate for convicts recruited by Wagner is extremely high.
It could also be a shift in Russia's strategy that makes that kind of warfare less effective on the front lines. It is really unclear and certainly, we're not hearing from Moscow as to what the reasons could be.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Kyiv, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: All right, still ahead, the latest on that massive earthquake in Turkey and Syria. They are digging through the rubble by hand to find more than two dozen relatives. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:30:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to all of you watching us here in the U.S., Canada, and around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
The U.S. House has unanimously passed a resolution that symbolically rebukes China over its suspected spy balloon. A source tells CNN that it's believed that the Chinese president was unaware of its deployment. Meanwhile, there's still a deep divide between lawmakers over the shootdown of the balloon with many Republicans outraged that it didn't happen sooner. And we're also learning new details about the balloon's capabilities as the FBI examines its components.
CNN's Alex Marquardt has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): The Biden administration and Pentagon is facing a bipartisan barrage of questions today on Capitol Hill over the Chinese surveillance balloon.
SEN. JON TESTER, (D-MT): You guys have to help me understand why this baby wasn't taken out long before.
MARQUARDT: Accused of a lack of alarm, and criticism over their decision to not shoot down the balloon sooner when it was near Alaska.
SEN. LISA MURKOWSKI, (R-AK): The fact of the matter is, Alaska is the first line of defense for America.
MARQUARDT: In four different often tense hearings, administration officials stood by their argument that it was safer to let the balloon cross the country while also gathering intelligence on Chinese capabilities. Many Democrats satisfied, many Republicans still rejecting the White House and Pentagon's positions.
SEN. DAN SULLIVAN, (R-AK): Next time, you know, we're not going to wait for it to trend go all across my state, all across the lower 48, and then shoot it down.
MARQUARDT: Officials now tell CNN there was a warning from the Defense Intelligence Agency the day before the balloon entered U.S. airspace near Alaska. When it did on January 28, fighter jets were sent up to ID the balloon but it was decided to let it fly on, on a northern trajectory, and collect intelligence on it. Suddenly, an official said, it took a strange turn south towards the lower 48 states crossing into Idaho on January 31 and eastwards across the country. After it was decided to not shoot the balloon down over land, U-2 spy planes were sent up to monitor it.
The administration determining that the balloon was no longer sending information back to China, sources say, as the U.S. tried to block it from gathering more intelligence on sensitive U.S. military sites. This balloon just a small part of a broader years-long Chinese balloon program whose fleet the State Department says flew over more than 40 countries. ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: The United States was not the only target of this broader program, which has violated the sovereignty of countries across five continents.
MARQUARDT: The balloon program run by China's military officials say in part out of Hainan province, the southernmost tip of China.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking in a foreign language)
MARQUARDT: China outraged at the shutdown, demanding the return of the remnants of the balloon The U.S. refusing, instead sending the recovered pieces from the ocean to an FBI lab where analysis has begun. So far, that includes the canopy, wiring, and some electronics.
[02:35:00]
(on camera) We have learned that the balloon was carrying sophisticated electronics that are capable of surveillance of signals like communications and radar. So far, what the FBI has collected has just been what was on the surface of the water off of South Carolina and FBI officials said they haven't yet seen the payload where most of the surveillance equipment would be. This is the first time that the FBI has investigated a spy balloon like this one and officials say that they're analyzing the components for possible criminal charges.
Alex Marquardt, CNN Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: U.S. President brought his State of the Union arguments and momentum to a key battleground state ahead of his likely bid for reelection. Joe Biden visited Florida, a state filled with senior citizens, and highlighted his support for two programs they love, Social Security and Medicare. He also took some strong swipes at one of Florida's Republican senators. CNN's Priscilla Alvarez has details from Tampa.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: President Joe Biden visited the state of Florida on Thursday where he sought to drive home the message that he wants to protect Social Security and Medicare, an issue that through the fiercest reaction during the State of the Union address this week. It's also a place where Biden sought to seize on the opportunity to come to the home state of Florida Senator Rick Scott, who is the architect of a proposal that would sunset federal legislation including Social Security and Medicare in five years. Now, the president, of course, also came to a state that is the home of two potential GOP challengers in 2024.
But in his remarks on Thursday, he focused on that proposal from Scott and he referenced the spirited debate from the State of the Union. He called Scott's plan "outrageous" and said quite simply, that he would veto it. Now, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has said that this is a plan that would not gain traction. Scott himself on CNN pushed back on claims that he wants to cut Social Security and Medicare.
But it's clear that the White House sees this as an opportunity to seize on a key issue coming up to 2024 and potentially make up some ground with senior voters in Florida. Again, all of this is in a state where there are two potential GOP challengers and as we await a potential reelection announcement from President Biden.
Priscilla Alvarez, CNN, Tampa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: All right, coming up here on CNN NEWSROOM. The Southwest meltdown, millions of customers left stranded over the holidays, one airline executive said when he was grilled by Congress, please stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:41:42]
BRUNHUBER: The death toll is now close to 22,000 in Turkey and Syria, and survivors say the earthquake didn't kill them but the freezing cold might. More than four days on, there's still life beneath the rubble. Now, the emergency crews say the chances of finding more survivors are slim. One man in Syria has been digging through the debris for two days straight without sleep, looking for members of his family. He says he's been able to retrieve 10 bodies but 20 others are buried in the wreckage. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MALIK IBRAHIM, LOST 30 RELATIVES: (Speaking in a foreign language)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have survived airstrikes and now we are killed in an earthquake. There is no power back from God. We do not oppose God's will. But we are truly a distressed people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: No matter how much aid is getting through, it's nowhere near enough. Still, many families are hoping against hope their loved ones are still alive. CNN's Becky Anderson reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR (voiceover): A miraculous moment of survival, a father and his two sons rescued 76 hours after that massive earthquake struck Turkey and Syria on Monday morning. Omer is one of their cousins. He helped to dig them out.
OMER KOCAK, RELATIVE OF EARTHQUAKE VICTIMS: We are trying to reach them and we have contact with them. We had -- we had a call by mobile phone.
ANDERSON: More than one hundred people lived inside according to the residence, and its Omer's love for family that drove him to assist the rescuers sifting through the rubble, painstaking work. First, the rescuers and volunteers must dig and then plead for silence to hear any sign of life, repeating the process until they get closer. Neighbors, friends, relatives, and bystanders all joining together in the freezing cold to pray, hope, and wish for a miracle until finally, almost 56 hours on, contact was made with one of them in the rubble. But it still took many more hours to finally free them. Omer says while his uncle and two cousins survived with no injuries, his aunt didn't make it.
KOCAK: This is our responsibility because they do the same if we were in the same situation.
ANDERSON: One family story giving hope to a grieving country. Becky Anderson, CNN, Gaziantep.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: Now first to UN, aid convoy crossed into northern Syria on Thursday carrying desperately needed supplies for earthquake victims. The Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing is the only humanitarian corridor approved by the UN between Turkey and rebel-held areas of Syria. Delivery is critical for Syrians living in those territories, not under the government's control. The UN Secretary-General says more help is on the way but much more is needed. Initially, Antonio Guterres says aid groups need more than one way into northern Syria. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTONIO GUTERRES, UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY-GENERAL: This is the moment of unity. It's not the moment to politicize or to divide. But it is obvious that we need massive supports. And so, I would be, of course, very happy if the Security Council could reach a consensus to allow for more crossings to be used.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[02:45:08]
BRUNHUBER: So, if you're looking for information on how to help earthquake survivors, you can go to cnn.com/impact and there, you can find a list of organizations working on rescue and relief efforts.
In South Africa, the ongoing electricity crisis have prompted President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare a national state of disaster. South Africans have been experiencing severe power outages due to a lack of maintenance at power plants, and corruption forcing people businesses, even essential services like hospitals and funeral homes to arrange their work around scheduled blackouts known as load shedding. Ramaphosa outlined anti-corruption reforms during his State of the Nation Address and he says he would appoint the minister of electricity to oversee all aspects of the country's electricity response.
Well, remembering the music legend. Just ahead, the legacy in the music of Burt Bacharach. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:50:25]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Well, that is the sound of aerospace history, SpaceX testing the engines of what's expected to become the most powerful rocket ever built. The company founded by Elon Musk conducted what's known as a static fire on Thursday. Its super heavy rocket boosters simultaneously ignited 31 of its 33 engines, which is enough to reach orbit. Now, the test lasted only a few seconds, but it's one of the last major hurdles before SpaceX tries to launch the nearly 400-foot- tall starship rocket into space possibly in a month or two.
Southwest Airlines is promising to fix the problems that led to the airline's holiday meltdown. The December debacle sought more than 16,000 flights canceled across the U.S., millions of customers stranded, and mountains of lost luggage. The airline says faulty crew scheduling software lead to chaos. Southwest's chief operating officer testified before a U.S. Senate committee in Washington on Thursday. His message was simple. It's our fault. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW WATTERSON, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, SOUTHWEST AIRLINES: I want to sincerely and humbly apologize to those impacted by the disruption caused a tremendous amount of anguish, inconvenience, and missed opportunities for our customers and our employees. Let me be clear, we messed up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Southwest says it has upgraded the crew scheduling software and returned nearly all of lost luggage to the proper owners, is also refunding passengers for canceled flights and reimbursing travelers for out-of-pocket expenses.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BURT BACHARACH, COMPOSER: What the world needs now, is love, sweet love.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Oh, beautiful song. Burt Bacharach there singing one of his timeless songs in one of the Austin Powers movies. Bacharach's signature melodies made him one of the most important contributors to the American Songbook. The composer died on Wednesday at the age of 94. CNN's Stephanie Elam looks back his life and his career.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): Legendary Tunesmith Burt Bacharach was one of the 20th century's most accomplished composers. His music spanned generations providing signature hits for acts like the Carpenters, Dusty Springfield, Luther Vandross, Tom Jones, and Dionne Warwick.
Bacharach collaborated with other songwriters including Carole Bayer Sager, the third of his four wives. His second wife was actress Angie Dickinson. Their high-profile marriage lasted 15 years. Bacharach was born on May 12, 1928, in Kansas City, Missouri. As a young man, he won a scholarship to the Music Academy of the West and had a short stint in the army before becoming the music director for actress Marlene Dietrich, a prophetic sign for his career, where music and movies would intertwine.
Bacharach won an Oscar for Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head, the theme song from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and another for the movie Score. He took home his third Oscar for the theme song from the film, Arthur. He also won six Grammys.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Burt Bacharach and Mr. Elvis Costello.
ELAM: Bacharach's career experienced a resurgence in the late 90s. His music is heard in the Austin Powers movies and My Best Friend's Wedding and he teamed up with artists like R&B crooner, Ron Isley. He also paired with British rocker Elvis Costello on a song for the film Grace Of My Heart. In 2012, President Obama pay tribute to the songwriting duo, Bacharach and Hal David with the nation's highest award for popular music, the Gershwin Prize.
BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, it began as an occasional collaboration in the late 50s, quickly became a partnership that produced dozens of top 40 hits. Burt and Hal have never been limited to one genre or even one generation.
ELAM: Some criticized Bacharach's music as easy listening. He didn't seem to mind.
BACHARACH: There was a cartoon once that I saw was sent to me, three guys waiting for the elevators. One elevator was listed as Manzini (PH), the other was Manilow and the other was Bacharach. So, I thought that's very flattering.
[02:55:09]
ELAM: Bacharach said his songs came from what moved him and it was his music that over decades moved so many.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: Well, a great life well lived. That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. I'll be back with more news after the break. Please do stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
