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CNN International: Parts of California Buried in Snow with More on the Way; At Least 38 Killed After Passenger and Freight Trains Collide in Greece; U.S. Lawmakers Warn of China Threat at Committee Hearing; Belarusian President to Meet Xi Jinping During China Visit; Russian Efforts to Take Bakhmut have Intensified. Aired 4-4:30a ET
Aired March 01, 2023 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:00:00]
MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and all around the world. I'm Max Foster in London. Bianca is off for the rest of the week. But just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The amount of snow we are seeing here in San Bernardino County is just extraordinary.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can imagine opening up your front door and seeing that snowy sight? Well, that's what some residents in California are witnessing with more snow to come.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It gives the Chinese Communist Party the ability to manipulate our social discourse.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To countries in the region, it's not a choice between Washington and Beijing, it's a choice between sovereignty and servitude.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What he did to his family, what he's did to so many people, yes, I experienced a lot of anger.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It seems to me the state's position is let no dead horse go unbeaten. This has got to stop.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Live from London, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Max Foster and Bianca Nobilo.
FOSTER: Hello, it is Wednesday, March 1. 9:00 a.m. here in London, 1:00 a.m. in California where more snow is heading for a state already enduring a treacherous winter storm. Parts of California have been buried in up to 7 feet of snow over the past few days as a freezing cold system moves inland over the United States. Residents say it's nothing like they've ever seen before.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been up here since '99 and this is the worst.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You can't even see my house. It's like all the way to the top.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Well, the storm system isn't just spreading snow, it's also spreading panic as resources grow scarce. Cities in the San Bernardino mountains are facing food and fuel shortages because of dangerous conditions on the roads.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We tried to find some stuff, especially the medication, and they didn't really have it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A lot of people are wanting eggs, milk all that good stuff. More bread, all the like the little stuff that people want. Fruit, more dog food, cat food, people are really looking for that stuff too. So, it's just anything we can get is great.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: California's Highway Patrol is warning residents to stay off the roads if possible. Visibility is so low, parts of the interstate near the Nevada border have been shut down until conditions improve. CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam has the latest forecast and where the winter weather is expected to head to next.
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, Max, it really is incredible to see what's happening in the state of California. Heavy snow has paralyzed some communities especially in the mountainous terrain with multiple feet being reported. This is a video tweeted out by the San Bernardino County sheriff, they're going from community to community to check in on how people are doing and handling the situation.
I want you to see that there's actually some abandoned vehicles on the highways here in San Bernardino County this is just north and east of the Los Angeles area and they have received so much snow that it's piling up to the tops of the first levels of their homes. Just incredible coming out of Lake Arrowhead. Can you imagine opening your door and seeing that sight?
Well, guess what, some of the ski resorts have simply seen too much snow to even open. Isn't that the purpose of a ski resort to have as much snowfall as possible? Well, how about too much of a good thing, right. Palisades for instance in and around the Lake Tahoe region has received 38 inches of snow -- that's over three feet -- in 24 hours. And that is just simply too much snow for them to handle safely, so they had to close the resort.
Now I want you to see this water vapor satellite imagery. This is what's happening now. We have another storm system entering the equation so it's going to add additional snowfall on top of what's already fallen. So, the San Bernardino Mountains winter storm warnings for you once again. Blizzard warnings across the Sierra Nevada Mountain range. There is a storm system that -- it evolves across the four corners dumping more snow from Arizona into Utah, Colorado as well as New Mexico. And then of course as it advances eastward it interacts with warmer air from the Gulf of Mexico and when you get those collision of air masses you get the severe weather outbreaks.
So the first storm system not to be confused with what's entering the West Coast right now, that's going to trigger off a few thunderstorms across the deep south today. But it's really the big show on Thursday that I'm concerned about.
[04:05:00]
The low pressure system that brought the snowfall to California is going to advance eastward and it is going to pick up some strength and create a line of severe weather on Thursday even into Friday morning for east Texas as well as portions of Louisiana into Arkansas and Mississippi. And already an enhanced risk of severe weather from Dallas to Jackson. And on top of the severe weather threat, more heavy rainfall with the potential for flash flooding across the region. We'll keep a close eye on this, Max. Back to you.
FOSTER: OK, thank you to Derek.
Now it's just after 11:00 a.m. in Greece where crews are searching for survivors after a terrible train wreck. So far more than three dozen people are confirmed dead after a passenger train collided with a freight train near the city of Larissa. We learned moments ago that they were apparently traveling on the same track for quite a while as well. Authorities are trying to identify the victims.
CNN's Eleni Giokos is tracking this live for us from Dubai. Eleni, first of all what do we know about what happened here? I mean, it's very powerful from the pictures how bad it is.
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is bad. And you have a cargo train traveling from Thessaloniki and the passenger train was coming from Athens, head-on collision. The first two carriages catching a light and you can see the devastation, mangled metal. You've got cranes and you have metal cutting machinery to try and cut through those two first carriages. And that's the fear that more people are trapped and the death toll rising now to 38.
When I was last on air, it was 36. You've got 66 people that are injured, seven of whom are currently in intensive care. You're seeing lines of people waiting in Larissa waiting to donate blood.
So, the big question is, what happened here, how did they collide. The national broadcaster reporting that at some point the passenger train changed lanes and was traveling for quite some time on the same line as the cargo train. And then of course that resulted in a collision. The question is, is it technical fault? Is it a human error? You know, who's going to be taking responsibility for this. Investigations are currently under way.
We know that the Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is on the way to the crash area. But in the meantime, what we're hearing from the hospital is that parents, family, loved ones and people traveling on the train have gathered to try and identify the dead. The issue is that it's difficult from what we hear from authorities to identify some of the people because the injuries were absolutely so severe.
We've also heard reports from some passengers that they were being thrown around in the carriages also as the fire broke out, some people were burned. So, we're talking about a very traumatic severe experience. And as we, you know, go through search and rescue, it's almost 12 hours since the accident occurred. You are seeing major response from international communities, specifically Europeans, the European Commission are coming out and extending condolences, so too the EU. Council president as well, various countries in Europe, but in the meantime, Greeks are waiting to see how this happened, Max, and importantly why.
FOSTER: Being on the same track for such a period of time and no one realizing. Eleni, thank you so much for bringing us that.
For the first time since 1983, Chicago's elected Mayor Lightfoot conceded Tuesday after failing to secure a spot in the top two runoff. She couldn't overcome a spike in violent crime and fights with police and teachers' unions as well. Lightfoot made history by becoming the first black and openly gay person to lead Chicago. Long time public schools chief Paul Vallas is the middle -- advancing to the runoff. He is facing Brandon Johnson on the right, Cook County commissioner popular with progressives. No candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote.
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PAUL VALLAS, CHICAGO MAYORAL CANDIDATE: When people tell me that this used to be the city that works and it doesn't work anymore, I'll tell you the city has never really been the city that works for everyone. But it will be when I am mayor.
BRANDON JOHNSON, CHICAGO MAYORAL CANDIDATE: We give people a guarantee, no longer can we leave it to chance that our children will have quality schools, good paying jobs and an environment that speaks to justice. We can't leave it to chance because I believe in us, you believe in me, Chicago, we can have a better Chicago.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: A bipartisan hearing focusing on threats U.S. lawmakers believe imposed by the Chinese government wrapped up on Tuesday night at the U.S. Capitol.
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It featured first-person testimony from a Chinese human rights activists and several high profile witnesses. CNN's Jessica Dean has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JESSICA DEAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The House Select Committee on China holding a hearing on Tuesday night, it is the first primetime hearing for the GOP-led house since the GOP took over back in January. And this committee enjoys wide bipartisan support. Its formation was supported by a very wide bipartisan margin in that vote that took place earlier this year and now they're really hoping to inform Americans about the threat that China poses against the United States.
And to that end, there are several key areas they were hoping to focus in on, those include COVID-19, the Chinese spy balloon, China support of Russia in its fight against Ukraine, and then also the future of TikTok. They had a number of witnesses that were testifying during this committee hearing including two Chinese experts on China rather. The former national security advisor under former President Donald Trump HR McMaster. And then also a former deputy national security adviser and expert on China Matthew Pottinger, among others.
Again, really trying to inform and set the tone for this committee going forward. It's also worth noting that on Tuesday the Biden administration warning that any Chinese firm or person that gives lethal aid to Russia and its fight against Ukraine will be targeted by the United States, really underscoring this international rivalry.
Jessica Dean, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: As Jessica just mentioned, China's surveillance tactics were brought up by the witnesses including the suspected spy balloon which one witness said is a small part of Beijing's espionage activities.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HR MCMASTER, FORMER U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: I think the message is that, you know, that we are intending to continue a broad range of surveillance activities. The balloon I think is in many ways, you know, a metaphor for the massive effort at espionage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: The witnesses also talked about the growing concerns over WeChat and TikTok and how they could pose a cybersecurity threat.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATTHEW POTTINGER, FORMER U.S. DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: The bigger coup for the Chinese Communist Party if TikTok is permitted to continue to operate in the United States. And if WeChat -- another Chinese platform -- are allowed to continue to operate, is that it gives the Chinese Communist Party the ability to manipulate our social discourse, the news, to censor and suppress or to amplify what tens of millions of Americans see and read and experience and hear through their social media app.
It is not just dances and kids' stuff. It's becoming a major source of news for a generation of Americans.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Meanwhile the U.S. is weighing stricter measures against the Chinese owned app TikTok, the House Foreign Affairs Committee is set to vote on a bill that would allow the Biden administration to ban the app nationwide. The bill calls for penalties to be imposed if the company is determined to have knowingly shared user data with the Chinese government.
Meanwhile, the European Parliament has banned TikTok from staff devices over cybersecurity concerns. Now the app is being and in all three of the EU's main institutions. But Parliament also strongly recommended that its member and staff remove the app from their personal devices.
Another U.S. federal agency is showing its opinion about the origins of the coronavirus. Here's what the FBI director said to Fox News on Tuesday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: The FBI has for quite some time now assessed that the origins of the pandemic are most likely a potential lab incident in Wuhan. So here you are talking about a potential leak from a Chinese government-controlled lab that killed millions of Americans. And that's precisely what that capability was designed for.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Those comments from FBI Director Christopher Wray come just days after news of the same assessment by the U.S. Department of Energy in a classified report which drew negative reaction from Beijing claiming a lab leak was, quote, highly unlikely.
Meanwhile, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is in Beijing to meet with Chinese leaders including President Xi Jinping. It comes after Lukashenko talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin over the weekend. And amid growing speculation that China might consider sending lethal aid to Moscow for its war effort. The U.S. State Department says China's engagement with Belarus is just another sign of Beijing's growing relationship with Russia.
CNN's Kristie Lu Stout is in Hong Kong with more on this. This is Russia's closest ally, Putin's closest ally in China. So the optics are worrying for some in the West.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely. Especially what's happening right now.
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According to Belarus state media, we know Alexander Lukashenko is right now meeting with the Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing during this state visit with the red carpet rolled out for this key Putin ally. Earlier, according to state media, the two are to discuss economic
issues, investment, trade, humanitarian cooperation as well as something termed as acute international challenges, believed to be code for the conflict in Ukraine. This is again a state visit and it wraps up tomorrow on March 2.
Now previously earlier this afternoon, Lukashenko already met with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. And the Belarus government released a statement with a quote of the Li Keqiang of the Chinese premier hailing the long term relationship between these two countries. We have this quote for you.
This cited from the premier saying, quote: Our relations are built on the basis of cooperation and mutual benefit. Our relations have very broad prospects for development. I'm sure Chinese-Belarusian relations are developing with a long-term friendship -- unquote.
This visit comes as tensions intensify between China and the United States. With the U.S. saying that China is considering sending lethal support to Russia, China continues to push back on that allegation. And accuses the U.S. of pouring lethal weapons into Ukraine. China considers itself a neutral actor despite its no-limits relations with Russia.
Last week on Friday they released that 12-point piece position paper that was roundly criticized by Western officials who said, look, China is firmly on side of Russia and that view is likely to be very much strengthened when the optics of this visit comes out, just the rolling out of the red carpet for again a key Putin ally. Back to you -- Max.
FOSTER: OK, Kristi in Hong Kong, thank you.
And the top U.S. House Republican is giving security footage from the January 6 attack on the Capitol to the lawyers of the defendants facing charges in the insurrection. Speaker Kevin McCarthy was already under fire for giving right wing Fox News host Tucker Carlson access to the video before it's widely released. Our Manu Raju pressed McCarthy on that earlier on.
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MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Are you concerned about the fact that Carlson downplayed this attack? You called it a very serious attack on the U.S. Capitol. And why give it to someone who is downplaying it?
REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA) U.S. HOUSE SPEAKER: Because I think sunshine matters. So I don't care what side of the issue you are on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: It appears that by sunshine he means transparency. McCarthy went on to suggest that CNN might misuse the video and show exit routes. CNN and other news outlets have also requested access to the 42,000 hours of footage. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration investigating another close
call at an airport, it says air traffic controllers at Boston Logan stopped a departing private jet from running in to a JetBlue flight as it was coming into land. CNN's aviation correspondent Pete Muntean has the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: The good news is the safety system worked, but the bad news and be disturbing news is that these runway incursions, near collisions of an airplane at U.S. major airports have happened five times this year in JFK, in Austin, at Honolulu, in Burbank and now in Boston on Monday night.
The FAA says a JetBlue flight 206 was coming into land on Boston Logan's Runway 4-right as a private Learjet took off across the runway in front of it, Runway 9. Worse yet the FAA says that private jet did not have clearance to take off. It was told to line up and wait on that crossing runway and not take off. This is the statement from the FAA.
It says, quote, a Learjet pilot read back the instructions clearly but began a takeoff roll instead. The pilot of the JetBlue aircraft took evasive action and initiated a climb-out as the Learjet cross the intersection.
The good news here nobody hurt, but flight radar 24 and preliminary review of data says that these flights came within about 565 feet of colliding. The FAA will determine how close these airplanes actually came the agency says. The NTSB not investigating this incident just yet, although it is investigating those four others.
Pete Muntean, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Consumer warning today for owners of Nissan Rogue and Rogue Sport certain models of the SUVs are being recalled. This impacts Rogues made from 2016 to 2020 and the Rogue Sport made from 2017 to 2022. The metal key in the plastic fob can break and if this happens whilst driving the car may accidentally turn off. Nissan hasn't yet said how it will fix the problem but once a solution is available, the fix will be free to owners. This problem impacts about 700,000 vehicles.
Now still ahead, political appointees of Florida Republican governor took over a small liberal arts college and they aren't wasting anytime making big changes.
[04:20:00]
Plus, contentious testimony in the Alex Murdaugh double murder trial as the jury gets ready for a field trip.
And the battle for Bakhmut intensifies, constant Russian shelling and airstrikes are raising fears there may be nothing left of the Ukrainian city when the fighting eventually stops.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Ohio Governor Mike DeWine will return to East Palestine in the coming hours where a train carrying hazardous materials derailed earlier this month. He will visit the contaminated areas for an update on the water testing and soil washing. On Tuesday U.S. Environmental Protection Agency chief Michael Regan visited the crash site again. His trip came as Indiana's governor complained that he didn't know some of the hazardous waste was being moved to a infacility in his state. Regan was asked about that by CNN's Miguel Marquez.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL REGAN, EPA ADMINISTRATOR: What I do want to do is be on the same page with all of our elected officials and for those who feel responsible for answering some of these questions.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, you'll be talking to the governor of Indiana. He says he's heard third hand that this waste is coming to his state and just has questions. Not saying he's going to rejected but has questions.
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REGAN: Any governor, any mayor that wants to have a conversation with me, I welcome those conversations. We want this to be fully transparent and for folks to understand that we are experienced in this, these facilities are experienced in receiving this waste and that transparency is key.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: And now the long battle for Bakhmut appears to be reaching a crescendo as Ukraine's military says Russian forces have intensified their assault on that small city. Ukraine's president says the city presents the most difficult challenge across the front lines. One of the president's advisors tells CNN Ukraine's military will weigh all options including strategically pulling back if needed. Ukraine says the city isn't surrounded. Several thousand civilians are believed to be largely cut off from humanitarian aid. Ukrainian soldiers say the situation is hellish and much worse than officially reported.
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COL. YURII MADYAR, COMMANDER OF UKRAINE'S 28TH BRIGADE (through translator): Over the past 24 hours, the enemy is raging. Shelling with all they have. They don't really have success on the ground. Hence they are making it up from the skies. They are just breaking this city into molecules.
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FOSTER: Salma's been following all of this. You said before that this isn't a strategically important city but it is clearly very symbolically important to both sides. SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely symbolically important.
And President Zelenskyy went to Bakhmut just before his visit to D.C. in December. And in that visit, he pledged that every single inch of Ukrainian land would be won back, that no blood would be lost in vain. In some ways Russian officials say Bakhmut is important Russia because Russia made it important.
Because Russian forces are trying so hard to win that they're throwing they can. And an Ukrainian officials saying, the most experienced Wagner operatives are on the ground. Again, lobbing everything that they can at this Ukrainian line, this Ukrainian line of resistance that's been withstanding attacks now from Russian forces for over six months.
I want to pull up a map -- again, I said it's not strategically important but I want to show you where it is, it's just this 36 miles of territory that lies between Donetsk and Luhansk -- the separatist regions, of course, Russian backed regions.
So, for President Zelenskyy, he feels it is important to win this territory symbolically of course, because he's promised to win everything back but also he feels that if Russian forces are able to enter Bakhmut, that gives them an opportunity to expand in those Russian controlled areas.
Now Western officials have been saying a very different thing. We understand from sources, Western sources including in D.C. that U.S. officials, U.S. partners, the Western allies that are providing the weapons to President Zelenskyy say that maybe he should back down from Bakhmut again because it is not strategically important.
They want to see President Zelenskyy focus on the south of the country. They feel there's an opportunity there particularly as we think about --
FOSTER: To regain ground.
ABDELAZIZ: -- offensive, to regain ground. Remember that important victory in Kherson to the south. We have the spring offensive coming. There is an opportunity there according to Western officials for President Zelenskyy to gain ground, to make more use of the weapons he's being given by Western officials and to have a bigger victory if you will in the spring offensive. But again, President Zelenskyy not backing down from Bakhmut. He says whatever it takes, he's going to keep fighting for it.
FOSTER: He wants his whole country back, doesn't he. Salma, thank you very much.
Dramatic moments in the double murder trial of a South Carolina lawyer. Experts debate the height of the killer and what's known about the fatal shots.
A small liberal arts college in Florida is ground zero for the culture wars as the Sunshine State as the governor prepares for widely expected presidential run. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RON DESANTIS (R) FLORIDA GOVERNOR: There is a whole host of ways in which the woke agenda is being imposed on society.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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