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Hundreds Of Thousands Flee Sudan As Situation Deteriorates; Biden And Yoon Sign Pact To Deter North Korea Nukes; Disney Sues Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. E. Jean Carroll Testifies In Civil Lawsuit Against Trump; Disney Files Suit Against DeSantis, Claiming "Retaliation"; Missouri Judge Temporarily Blocks Limits On Gender- Affirming Care For Trans People; Saving One Of The World's Most Trafficked Birds; "Ya Ya" Gets Caught Up In U.S.-China Tensions. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired April 27, 2023 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[01:00:23]
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead here on CNN Newsroom, fleeing Sudan. Thousands of civilians caught in the middle of a civil war rushed for the borders searching for safety. From diplomacy to deterrence, the U.S. and South Korea won North Korea and nuclear attack which had devastating American response, a threat backed up by U.S. nuclear armed submarines.
And the House of mouth Strikes Back suing the governor of Florida accusing the wannabe Republican presidential candidate of weaponizing his office to punish Disney for being too woke.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From CNN Center, this is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: Good to be with us this hour. The latest hour the crisis in Sudan were clashes in and around the Capitol continued despite both sides in this conflict, agreeing to a 72-hour ceasefire. The head of Sudan's army has indicated he's willing to extend the truce by another three days says he is willing to begin talks with the leader of the so called Rapid Support Forces.
So far, there's been no response from the paramilitary group. The current ceasefire is set to expire late Thursday local time. Each side has repeatedly accused the other of violating the agreement. The fighting now in its second week has already claimed more than 500 lives, according to the health ministry. Wounded nearly 4,200 people.
According to the U.N. about 20,000 Sudanese fled to neighboring Chad. Thousands more have headed to other countries in search of safety. Many more are expected to leave Sudan in the coming days and weeks.
Meanwhile, there's growing concern over who is in control of the National Public Health Laboratory in Khartoum, which stores samples of deadly diseases like TB, polio, COVID, and measles. The Rapid Support Forces has now denied seizing the facility. But experts say whoever is in charge are the most at risk of exposure to the diseases stored at the lab.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. MICHAEL RYAN, EXEC. DIR, WHO HEALTH EMERGENCIES PROGRAMME: We want to make sure that the people occupying the building know the risks to themselves. And we will try to continue to communicate those risks. But as I said the team on the ground and with our biorisk and biosafety teams here are carrying out an extensive risk assessment to the best of our capabilities.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: The WHO stresses however, the biggest danger now facing the Sudanese population is the ongoing conflict as well as severe shortages of food and medicine. Sudan's healthcare system was on the verge of collapse before the fighting, and now the WHO reports only a fraction of all hospitals and healthcare facilities in the capital are operating as normal.
And CNN's David McKenzie reports, those hospitals are struggling to treat the thousands of wounded and a warning some viewers will find the images in this report disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): A brave Sudanese doctor takes us inside a frontline hospital in Khartoum filming over several days. Dr. Howida AlHassan and her team are barely coping at El Ban Jadeed Hospital. They talk about ceasefire, but there is no ceasefire. The wounded keep coming in, she narrates.
The same staff have been here for 11 days. They're facing a deluge of civilian victims, many with multiple gunshot wounds. Wiping away the blood because the casualties never stop. My son was wounded, says this man. And it can because many hospitals aren't working.
DR. HOWIDA ALHASSAN, ALBAN GADID HOSPITAL (though translator): I'm astonished how we're able to continue we don't sleep. I wouldn't call what we do sleeping. I would call it fainting. We faint and we wake up again. I'm surprised how we are managing.
MCKENZIE: Dr. Howida says everything is running out. They're giving smaller doses of medicine to ration their supply.
We use the equipment and the instruments more than once, she says. We can't sterilize properly there are just too many wounded
ALHASSAN (through translator): Soon we'll have no bandages, no medication, no anesthetic drugs and no oxygen the situation is bad with all the meaning of the word.
MCKENZIE: Bad and it will get worse unless help come soon or the fighting stops. Sudan's Doctors Union says that more than two thirds of hospitals are shutting the Capitol. Eyewitnesses and doctors group say hospitals are being targeted with heavy weapons by both sides which they deny.
[01:05:01]
As foreign governments spirit their diplomats and nationals out of Sudan, Dr. Howida says her conscience compels her to stay.
ALHASSAN (through translator): I believe the number of casualties and wounded will increase after the foreigners are evacuated. God knows if we will be alive or dead.
MCKENZIE: Sudanese blood is one blood, she told us. I beg you to silence the sound of the rifles. David McKenzie, CNN, Johannesburg.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: For more on the dire conditions inside Sudan hospitals, earlier I spoke with the deputy director of operations for Medecins Sans Frontieres, Kate Nolan.
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KATE NOLAN, DEP. DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES: We know that many people, including healthcare workers are currently trapped and due to the ongoing violence in large parts of Sudan since the 15th of April. Due to the ongoing violence and fear that they will be risking their safety, many people cannot reach the small number of health facilities that are still functional and open.
We know that the situation in hospitals in Khartoum and other cities and in other parts of the country is extremely difficult. Hospitals are overstretched. And the few that remain open are running out of essential supplies.
They also face challenges with basic services such as water and electricity that are essential for hospitals to be able to provide life giving us life-saving assistance to patients who need it most. We also know that healthcare workers who are working are absolutely exhausted.
VAUSE: Kate, there's also this concern over who actually controls or is in charge of the national public health laboratory and the status of those deadly pathogens like TB, cholera, measles, even COVID. So, what is the risk here? Because right now, it seems if there is an outbreak of some kind of, you know, disease like measles like COVID, you know, that just seems like another way to die in Khartoum when there's already plenty of risks out there.
NOLAN: I mean, we know that Sudan's health system was already on the on the verge of collapse for decades, but the economic and political crisis has pushed it to breaking point. And we know that the escalation of the current fighting is exacerbating the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the country
We know that humanitarian needs what we have already observed are absolutely immense. And we're extremely concerned that the populations are not able to access hospitals and health facilities for life saving assistance at a time when they needed most.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Reports of new Russian missiles strike a short time ago in southern Ukraine. At least one person was killed 15 hurt and the seed Mykolaiv according to local officials, a high rise in the city was hit some areas lost power.
Meantime, the head of the U.S. European Command told U.S. lawmakers, Russia's military has plenty of firepower left despite losses in Ukraine. A recently Pentagon document apparently estimates Russians -- has lost Russia has lost at least 35,000 troops, but Moscow has been able to replace those troops with new recruits.
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GEN. CHRISTOPHER CAVOLI, COMMANDER, U.S. EUROPEAN COMMAND: Some of the work that Russia does still is with its conventional force. So the Russian Air Force -- the Russian ground force has been degenerated somewhat by this conflict. Although it is bigger today than it was at the beginning of the conflict.
The Air Force has lost very little they've lost 80 planes. They have another 1,000 fighters and fighter bombers. The Navy has lost one ship. So they still use all of that conventional power as well, and they mix them all together.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Despite his very close relationship with his dear friend Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping still try to portray China is a potential peacemaker in Ukraine. Xi spoke by phone for an hour with his Ukrainian counterpart Vladimir Zelenskyy on Wednesday. That was the first conversation since Russia invaded Ukraine 14 months ago. CNN International diplomatic editor Nic Robertson has details.
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NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (on camera): Well, this is a phone call the Ukrainians have been waiting for some time to happen. It was also longer than originally anticipated an hour long in the end, President Zelenskyy and President Xi talking about how they can improve their relations, the economy between the two countries, the diplomatic relations between the two countries. Indeed, they both agreed to exchange ambassadors.
China is sending a representative to Ukraine, an envoy to Ukraine will also talk to other regional countries about the current political situation. And Ukraine is sending a new ambassador to China to Beijing. The very fact that this was announced after the phone call really gives a strong indication that behind the scenes, there had been discussions sort of setting up this phone call.
[01:10:00]
But despite that, both President Xi and President Zelenskyy in very different positions, about the role that China might be able to play at the moment trying to bring peace in Ukraine. Of course, President Xi has a very strong and close relationship with President Putin in Russia. He visited with President Putin in Moscow just barely a month ago. He put forward a peace proposal for peace in Ukraine that didn't even mention at that stage that Russia had illegally invaded Ukraine.
And Ukraine's position, its own peace proposal says very clearly that Russia needs to withdraw out of Ukraine withdraw its forces back to the pre-1991 borders. And that did come up in the conversation in the phone conversation, President Zelenskyy saying that there can be no peace with territorial compromises.
So very clearly there a difference between where the countries stand. But I think from a Ukrainian perspective, they take this as positive, they feel that they're getting positive diplomatic indications behind the scenes from China, and that China can play a role they say very clearly and President Zelenskyy said, following the call, that any country that supports Russia, economically is really sort of enabling Russia to be able to continue with the offensive.
So, I think Ukraine's ambition here and its relationship and unequal relationship that it has with President Xi compared to the relationship President Putin has its ambition here is to really weaken Russia's narrative about the validity of the war, and push forward their narrative that any piece can only come when Russia pulls out. And that's something that President Xi will really have to substantially change his position on.
But he's also made it clear that he's not going to stand back that is willing to help but it's not going to make the war in Ukraine worse, and it's not going to try and profit from the situation. So a step forward diplomatically, I think in the views of both China and Ukraine here. Nic, Robertson, CNN, Kyiv, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Stay with story a little longer. Let's go to CNN Beijing, and our bureau chief there, Steven Jiang. You know, on the surface, this all seems to be like a lot of progress being made. But, you know, scratch the surface, you know, you get back to the fact that China continues to support Russia by importing oil, by maintaining economic ties, still will not call it a war. You know. So where does China actually stand right now? Is it's still pumping out the pro Kremlin line about what's happening in Ukraine?
STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Well, that's a good point, John, and this call obviously was symbolic is significant. And let's stay take a step back in terms of why now, you know, as Nic pointed out, this had long been rumored for months, but especially after Xi came back from Moscow, especially after that flurry of diplomatic visits to Beijing by European leaders, like Macron and von der Leyen.
And then you juxtapose that with China's growing desire to be seen as a global peacemaker. Following that deal, they broke her between the Saudis and Iranians. So it was in this broader context, this highly anticipated call finally took place. So, some analysts see this as a response or even a reward from Beijing to Europe so willingness to engage with China on this issue. But then let's not forget what had just happened in the past few days that as one of the country's most prominent so called wolf warrior diplomats, Chinese ambassador to France, really caused an uproar across Europe when he questioned on live television, the legality of the sovereignty of former Soviet states.
So even though China has since distanced and decel in those remarks, the damage was done. So the need for damage control, according to some observers, may finally tip the scales in favor of this rather modest gesture in the form of this phone call dealing with Xi Jinping did assures Zelenskyy about the so called strategic partnership between them but also promises to send a special envoy.
But the thing is, as you mentioned, even Chinese state media commentators acknowledge this one phone call is unlikely to change anything on the ground in the short term, given the chasm between Russia and Ukraine and their positions. And observers have also pointed out it's going to take a lot more than just one phone call to convinced China's critics and skeptics in Europe about it's been serious to play this unbiased role, as you said, because they still refuse to call this war, Russian invasion. And they're still media here continue to parrot a lot of Russian talking points on a war on a daily basis.
But what this does show, of course, is China's now at least willing to engage with the Ukraine more directly more regularly from this point onward. And it's definitely trying to show you that it's -- it wants to play the same more active and constructive role in ending this war, despite its increasingly close ties with Russia. And then John, as you know, Europe of course, is increasingly battleground in the strategic rivalry between China and the United States. John.
VAUSE: Just very quickly, we know that the It's unlikely to improve the situation with the war in Ukraine.
[01:15:04]
But if you look at deliverables here, Xi Jinping did say, they don't want to make the situation worse by pulling, you know, fuel on the fire. Also, he essentially said that basically, you know, they will step back if you like, they don't want to get involved. So they're not going to make it any better, but they're not going to make any worse as well, which seems to be a positive.
JIANG: Yes, this is sort of in a way, they're, you know, reiterating their points of being a neutral party and a lot of what you just mentioned there is also in a way a swipe at the U.S. and its NATO allies, right, saying how China does not want to stand on the other side of the fire, but also doesn't want to not want to pour more fuel to fire and does not want to profit from the fires. All of this can be seen as a swipe at the U.S. and not to mention, when you think about it, China does have some of the strategic goals here are quite sort of contradictory and not compatible. That is, it does not want to see a defeated Russia and defeated Putin but also wants to have a meaningful stake in the aftermath of Putin's war, especially when it comes to this economic and political relationship with Ukraine. I think all of them they explained why she took me this call and said what he said, John.
VAUSE: Steven, thank you. It was also an article No, he said no wins a nuclear war, which has never been more true. Steven Jiang, our Beijing bureau chief, good to see.
Josh Rogin is a columnist for the Global Opinion section of the Washington Post. Good to see you again. It's been a while.
JOSH ROGIN, WASHINGTON POST COLUMNIST: Likewise, thanks for having me.
VAUSE: OK. So on the positive side, this call actually happened. Both leaders talked, China promised not to make the conflict worse. We'll send an envoy to Kyiv to help fight a political settlement. Kyiv will send an ambassador to Beijing, the EU Secretary for Foreign Affairs was all but gushing with optimistic excitement. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSEP BORELL, EU FOREIGN POLICE CHIEF: This was awaited. It's a very good new, it's a first step. And we want to say that any meaningful initiative for a just peace for Ukraine is very much welcome.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: On the surface, it does seem to be a very productive hour long phone call. So how do you say is there any catch here was a drawback?
ROGIN: Right. Well, I think the fact that President Xi has finally reached out to President Zelenskyy more than a year into the war, is necessarily a small step in the right direction. At the same time, it's pretty clear to most observers, especially those in Washington, that the proposal that Xi is offering to Zelenskyy is a non-starter for Ukraine, and that there's still huge gaps between how China sees the war in Ukraine and how the Ukrainians in the West see it.
And first of all, the most important thing is that China is still yet to acknowledge that Russia invaded Ukraine and that Ukraine has a right to its sovereignty. And so, if you think about the actual prospects of China being an honest broker, much less a peace negotiator in this conflict, those prospects still seem very, very low.
VAUSE: But here's the follow up from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing to that phone call. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YU JUN, CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY (through translator): President Xi Jinping's call with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shows China's objective and impartial position on international affairs and its sense of responsibility as a major country. (END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: China's impartial position well, here's a sort of a little calendar of China's impartial position. Since Russia invaded Ukraine back in September, Xi met face to face with Putin head of a regional summit in Uzbekistan. They say they were both at that summit. Goes through December 30, a quick catch up with a virtual meeting, in which Xi described Russia as a global partner. Last month, of course, Xi jets off to Moscow for a four-day state visit with his dear friend, as he called him, Vladimir Putin. And so then on the Ukrainian side of the ledger, well, we had an hour long phone call on, you know, Wednesday.
So that's the first important objective and impartial position. It seems like she obviously is a little more partial towards Putin than Zelenskyy. So, you know, you touched on this when you look at the actual runs on the board, you know, Beijing has a pretty hard road here to convince anyone it's impartial.
ROGIN: Right, I want to add a few more -- few more points to that excellent list. One is that China is undermining international sanctions against Russia by purchasing Russian gas and by helping you the Russian war machine in every way except for military aid. And they're helping Russia evade financial sanctions. They're supporting Russia diplomatically. They're also the Chinese state media is pushing Russian propaganda on Ukraine 24/7 and all over the world.
So the claims by the Chinese foreign ministry that it could be an impartial actor in the Russia, Ukraine are just simply not matched by China's actions.
VAUSE: Thanks for interpreting the Kabuki Theater of international diplomacy. Josh, good to have you with us. Thank you.
ROGIN: Anytime.
VAUSE: Meanwhile, the U.S. and the Philippines are wrapping up the show military drills in the South China Sea.
[01:20:00]
On Wednesday, a mock enemy warship was targeted as the Philippine President looked on, close to 18,000 personnel taking part in these joint military exercises, the biggest ever between these two longtime allies, which have had a mutual defense treaty since 1951.
Still ahead, fine dining and a little nuclear deterrence on the side. The U.S. and South Korean presidents agreed to extend the nuclear umbrella to counter a growing threat from Beijing -- from both Pyongyang I should say. And then comes the steak dinner ribs and crabcakes.
But not one but potentially two major trials ahead for Alexei Navalny, Russia now accusing the outspoken Putin critic of extremism and terrorism.
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VAUSE: At the White House Wednesday, U.S. President Joe Biden hosted South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol for the second state visit of Biden's presidency. And amid the pomp and the pageantry and ribs and crabcakes, they announced a new heightened deterrence in the face of growing threats from North Korea.
The President attended a glitzy steak dinner earlier with the decor and menu highlighting the ties between both countries. The U.S. also agreed to deploy nuclear submarine to South Korea the first time in more than 40 years. And President Biden delivered a stark warning to Pyongyang.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: Nuclear attack by North Korea against the United States or its allies or partisan --- partners is unacceptable and will result in the end of whatever regime we're to take such an action.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: CNN's Kristie Lu Stout live for us to get this out in Hong Kong. You know, ending the regime will this tough talk. It's sounding almost like Donald Trump esque fire and fury, that kind of stuff. But it is a definite shift in the way these two allies have dealt with North Korea in the past.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. As you brought up in the last hour, this is a remarkable turn from diplomacy to deterrence and what was unveiled on Wednesday is this key new agreement aimed at deterring North Korea. The U.S. has pledged to give South Korea more insight into its nuclear planning including tabletop exercises, and also has offered this new U.S. commitment to deploy nuclear armed submarines in South Korea for the first time since the early 1980s.
A very symbolic show of force here and in return, South Korea has agreed to not pursue its own nuclear arsenal. The details were announced the Rose Garden the White House on Wednesday by both Presidents listen to this from the South Korean president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YOON SUK YEOL, SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT (through translator): President Biden has reaffirmed his ironclad commitment to extended deterrence toward the Republic of Korea. Our two countries have agreed to immediate Bilateral Presidential consultations in the event of North Korea's nuclear attack and a promise to respond swiftly, overwhelmingly and decisively using the full force of the Alliance including the United States nuclear weapons.
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LU STOUT: The deal has the buy in of President Yoon but will the deal reassure South Korea so opinion polls show majority of South Koreans support their country having their own nuclear weapons. [01:25:00]
So analysts say it remains to be seen whether they're going to be satisfied with this deal. And also the very critical question here. Will the deal deter North Korea? Last year, North Korea fired a record number of rockets and missiles. It has continued to do so this year, including introducing new technologies like a solid fuel ICBM. And even though Biden repeated the U.S. offer to North Korea for talks, he also offered that stark warning to Pyongyang vowing the end of whatever regime that launches a nuclear attack on the U.S. or its allies. Very tough talk been directed squarely at the North Korean leader. We are still awaiting comment from Pyongyang to that.
I should add that the two leaders he also addressed other issues new deals on cyber, on EVs, on batteries tech, economic investment. Looking ahead, President Yoon will soon address the U.S. Congress. Back to you,
VAUSE: Kristie, thank you. Kristie Lu Stout there live for us in Hong Kong. Thanks.
Well, jury has found rapper Pras Michel guilty of taking part in an international conspiracy to try and influence the U.S. government. The Grammy winning artist and former member of the Fugees accused of accepting more than $100 million to help Malaysian businessman Jho Low and the Chinese government gain access to American officials.
Low, who was charged along with Michel is believed to be China.
Jailed Putin critical Alexei Navalny may soon be facing life behind bars. He says he's now being investigated on terrorism charges. And when he's almost certainly found guilty, his prison sentence will be extended by decades. Navalny was on court Wednesday for another extremism case, and CNN Fred Pleitgen has more now on Nirvana's legal troubles.
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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): The Moscow court literally silencing a Kremlin critic as Alexei Navalny speaks via video link. His sound is abruptly cut off. It looks like they will limit the time for me to go through the court documents he was able to say then the audio is muted.
While some were chuckling the situation for Alexei Navalny has become even more serious. The court ruled Navalny only has 10 days to review hundreds of documents from an extremism case against him and his supporters say and Navalny has now learned he will also be charged with terrorism.
Now Alexei will have two large trials, his spokeswoman tweeted, first on extremism in total for all episodes up to 30 years, most likely it will begin before the end of May, then on terrorism up to 35 years. Navalny's health is also deteriorating in part because he's limited in the amount of food he can get in prison. His daughter told CNN. DARIA NAVALNAYA, DAUGTHER OF ALEXEI NAVALNY: The situation has gotten so ridiculous that he buys the food which is, you know, oats. It's nothing, it's nothing I'm sure it is and he bites the oats. The oats are brought to him, shown to him and then are just destroyed.
PLEITEGEN: Navalny's supporters say it's all part of a massive crackdown against the opposition figure and his anti-corruption foundation, which has been banned and declared an extremist organization in Russia they believe at the behest of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Navalny has called on Russians to protest Putin's invasion of Ukraine, where Moscow's forces are making virtually no progress and Ukraine says it's preparing for a major counter offensive.
Yevgeny Prigozhin of Russia's Wagner private military company saying his forces feel abandoned by the Russian army.
The Ukrainian army is fully ready to move and cut our flanks, he says, nobody has ever covered our flanks all those stories about preventing the Ukrainian reserves from entering Bakhmut are total crap. Not aa single shot was fired by the Russian army.
While Russia's forces struggle on the battlefield in Ukraine, the attrition against the Russian opposition continues. After Alexei Navalny hearing, he was sent straight back into solitary confinement his supporters say. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: A senior Iranian cleric and former representative of the Supreme Leader has reportedly been shot and killed. Ayatollah Abbas Ali Soleimani was killed in a bank in northern Iran and our area where anti-government have been held. Three other people were injured. Our suspect has been arrested.
The Ayatollah was part of the assembly that were helped select the next Supreme Leader, some state affiliated media calling the shooting and assassination.
The feud between Walt Disney and the governor of Florida is heating up as the company files a lawsuit against Ron DeSantis by Disney is accusing DeSantis of weaponizing his power to silence them and at what cost?
Also, new restrictions on gender affirming medical care in Missouri. Put on hold for now. We'll meet to people crossing state lines to get the help they need.
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[01:32:21]
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN Newsroom. Well, there could be more dramatic testimony in the coming hours from a woman who accuses Donald Trump of sexually assaulting her decades ago in a department store dressing room. E. Jean Carroll is suing the former president for battery and defamation in a civil case.
Wednesday, she began her dramatic testimony describing in chilling detail the alleged rape. Under direct examination by her attorney, Carroll said she is not settling a political score, but a personal one. She said during testimony, quote, "I'm here because Donald Trump raped me, and when I wrote about it, he said it didn't happen. He lied and shattered my reputation, and I'm here to try and get my life back."
Carroll is expected to face cross examination by Trump's legal team on Thursday. The former president has denied the allegations and had this response in 2019.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, THEN-U.S. PRESIDENT: I have no idea who this woman is. This is a woman who's also accused other men of things as you know. It is a totally false accusation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: On Wednesday, Trump took to his social media site, Truth Social, and called the suit a scam. Following that, the judge issued a warning to the former president's attorney that any statements about the case could open Trump up to, quote, a new source of potential liability.
Well, man versus mouse took a major escalation Wednesday with Walt Disney Parks and Resorts filing a lawsuit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a potential Republican presidential candidate. The legal action is centered on an oversight board made up of members handpicked by the governor, which recently ended Disney's decades long control of a special tax district.
The House of Mouse accuses DeSantis of weaponizing his political power after the corporation spoke out against the so-called Don't Say Gay laws in Florida.
Now Steve Contorno has more now reporting in.
STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: Walt Disney Parks and Resorts filed a lawsuit on Wednesday in federal court against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. The 77-page lawsuit alleges that DeSantis engaged in a yearlong effort to punish the company for its opposition to a state law that bans the teaching of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools.
According to the lawsuit, the company's First Amendment rights were violated by Governor DeSantis and there was, quote, "a targeted campaign of government retaliation orchestrated at every step by Governor DeSantis as punishment for Disney's protected speech." In a statement to CNN, DeSantis's office criticized Disney and said, quote, "We are unaware of any legal rights that a company has to operate its own government or maintain special privileges not held by other businesses in the state."
[01:35:01]
The lawsuit is the latest escalation in a yearlong fight between DeSantis and Disney, one of his state's largest companies, and it now heads to a federal court where a judge will decide who is the victor.
For CNN in St. Petersburg, Florida, I'm Steve Contorno.
VAUSE: Richard Foglesong is a historian and political scientist who focuses on Florida and the politics of urban development. He's also the author of, "Married to the Mouse: Walt Disney World and Orlando." Welcome to the show. It's great to have you with us.
RICHARD FOGLESONG, ROLLINS COLLEGE, PROFESSOR EMERITUS: Nice to be with you.
VAUSE: OK, I want you to listen to Governor Ron DeSantis trying to explain or justify why he tried to cancel Disney's control over a special tax district known as Reedy Creek, home to Disney World. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RON DESANTIS (R), FLORIDA GOVERNOR: The state of Florida has gifted them their own government, living under a special set of rules, partially because they were viewed as the All American company. But what do they do? They take that and they use it offensively against the state. So the state was, in effect, subsidizing woke activism.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: That's about as confusing as the man had his Tea Party. So explain exactly what's going on here. What is DeSantis's point? And how does this tie to the legal action which Disney is now taking?
FOGLESONG: Yes, hearing that quote again leaves me scratching my head a little bit because it was Disney that put Florida on the map. It was Disney that really made Florida the tourist mecca that it is today. And so why would a governor -- especially Republican governor, Republicans are normally pro-business -- want to go after the most important business in the state of Florida?
And the short answer is because when Governor DeSantis decided to go after the teaching of equality and wokeness in schools saying that there was something wrong about that, that Disney spoke out against him and criticized him. And so now it seems that the governor wants to punish Disney.
VAUSE: Well, you mentioned that the Disney CEO, Bob Iger, spoke out about the, you know, Don't Say Gay law in Florida. So I want you to listen to Bob Iger. He was talking to CNN's Chris Wallace. This was back in March last year. This is when he was, you know, retired, before he returned to the top job recently.
So here he is. Here's Bob Iger.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOB IGER, CEO, DISNEY: A lot of these issues are not necessarily political. It's about right and wrong. So I happen to feel and I tweeted an opinion about this Don't Say Gay bill in Florida. To me, it wasn't politics, it was what is right and what is wrong. And that just seemed wrong. It seemed potentially harmful to kids.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Which seems to be the opinion which is shared by most Americans. And Governor DeSantis is in Israel right now, which has nothing to do with the possible White House bid in 2024. But if this fight is all driven by political motives, has he picked a fight here he cannot win?
FOGLESONG: Well, I don't see how he's going to win, especially as a Republican. Republicans are historically pro-business, and here he is going after the leading business in the state of Florida at a time when many big corporations are of the same viewpoint and mindset and using the same kind of advertising as the Walt Disney Company.
VAUSE: Well, you mentioned the Republicans and how they pro-business, and I want you to listen to a few of them on how they see this fight that DeSantis has got himself into. Listen to this.
FOGLESONG: Yes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS CHRISTIE, FORMER NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR: I don't think Ron DeSantis is a conservative based on his access towards Disney.
ASA HUTCHINSON, FORMER ARKANSAS GOVERNOR: Do we want the conservative government to tell businesses what you can and can't do or what you can't speak out on and not speak out on?
CHRIS SUNUNU, NEW HAMPSHIRE GOVERNOR: This has gone from kind of going after a headline to something that has devolved into an issue and it convolutes the entire Republican message.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: So clearly, the message doesn't appeal to mainstream Republicans. So who is DeSantis trying to win over here? Who's he's trying to impress?
FOGLESONG: Well, American politics has changed. It's changed since Donald Trump was president. The base that Governor DeSantis seems to have consists of people who have high school education and come from small communities. Nothing wrong with that per se, but the enemy of that constituency are elites. And elites are better educated people. And somehow that's associated with Disney in the mind of the governor, despite the fact that the Walt Disney Company has always been a kind of Middle America company that pitches its products and its theme parks and its movies and its cartoons towards Middle America. Not wealthy people and not a lower economic class either, but some people somehow in the middle, and the governor seems to have associated that with the elitism somehow.
[01:40:15]
VAUSE: Richard, we really appreciate you being with us. Really appreciate your insights into all of this. It's one of those stories which is going to go on for quite some time, but great to have you with us. Thank you.
FOGLESONG: All right. You're welcome.
VAUSE: New restrictions intended to limit treatment for transgender people in the U.S. State of Missouri have been temporarily blocked by judges ruling. The now on hold restrictions would apply not only to minors, but adults as well.
CNN's Kyung Lah reports now from Kansas City.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're hoping to get as many people established for care as possible because we're really feeling that deadline.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll be doing your intake today.
KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): And the clock is ticking for patients like 19-year-old Kharri, a Missouri resident crossing state lines to Kansas because of the battle over gender affirming care.
(on-camera): How long have you not felt like you.
KHARRI, MISSOURI PATIENT: Since I was like 14 is when I first was like, you're not correct.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, some of the side effects of testosterone are permanent.
LAH (voice-over): All patients in this Planned Parenthood clinic today are beginning gender transitions. A pop up clinic to beat the deadline set by Missouri's attorney general in an emergency rule. Established patients could continue care once the order goes into effect. But new patients face a slew of requirements that would widely limit access. That's why Kharri is here before the state imposed deadline.
(on-camera): How do you view this executive order?
KHARRI: I view it as someone is afraid of something, so they're trying to eradicate people. We are terrified. I've been afraid since I was like 15. The world is terrifying. It's talk with us. Like, just sit there and talk. Listen to what we're saying.
We're not trying to indoctrinate anyone. We're just saying, hey, this is us.
LAH (voice-over): In another exam room, 20-year-old Andi moved up a May appointment to beat the impending order.
(on-camera): Why is it important for you to have access to this care?
ANDI, MISSOURI PATIENT: It's a constant disconnect from my own body, my own being. I look in the mirror, I feel like an imposter, a stranger. I always have. I'm going through a personal journey now and hopefully can start to feel comfortable in my own skin and maybe feel like I recognize as a person in the mirror after I start to see these changes.
LAH (voice-over): Across Missouri, advocates say it's uncertainty and panic among patients.
ANGELA HUNTINGTON, PLANNED PARENTHOOD GREAT PLAINS: This is Angela. I'm calling from Planned Parenthood.
LAH (voice-over): Angela Huntington is a patient navigator for Planned Parenthood.
HUNTINGTON: I was just calling to confirm your appointment.
LAH (voice-over): Scheduling patients across Missouri.
HUNTINGTON: I think we have a fight. I think we have a fight in front of us.
LAH (on-camera): What kind of pain are you hearing on the other side of the phone line?
HUNTINGTON: I've got patients calling me from all over Missouri that are just scared. They just don't know where they're going to get their care.
LAH (voice-over): Especially in a shifting battleground of politics and legal orders, say the doctors and nurses.
ASHLEY MILLER, PLANNED PARENTHOOD GREAT PLAINS: You want to believe people when they tell you who they are or what they want for their life, and you don't want to say, well, you know, I believe you, that you are transgender, but maybe we should phone your local politician to see if they agree. It's hard not to feel like your local politician is in the room with you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So next, what I'm going to do is go over some screening questions with you.
LAH (voice-over): Kharri established gender affirming care in this visit. Rejected by some family members, Kharri says he fled Tennessee a year ago and is ready to move again, unsure of what happens next in Missouri. KHARRI: I can't live in any state that won't let me be who I am. I have a 24-hour plan of, well, if they do this, you have to leave in those 24 hours. Like clothes already packed up in the trunk, type of things.
Makes for like a refugee in my own state, in my own country.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAH: The emergency rule was scheduled to go into effect at the stroke of midnight, but this ruling from a state judge, a late ruling from this judge, essentially resets the clock. The judge says she wants time to consider more arguments, read over more briefings. The new deadline is Monday evening in Missouri.
Kyung Lah, CNN, Kansas City.
VAUSE: Ya Ya is heading home. Bye-bye, Ya Ya.
Once a symbol of warm diplomatic relations between China and the U.S., the giant panda now caught up in a frenzy of anti-American sentiment across mainland China. And we'll explain why in a moment.
Plus in our Call to Earth series, Call to Earth. See our conservationists for helping to save one of the world's most trafficked birds.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:46:47]
VAUSE: According to the worldwide fund for nature, wildlife trafficking, which includes both plants and animals, is the second largest direct threat to species after habitat destruction. While much of the trade is legal, a substantial portion of it is not can especially threaten the survival of endangered species.
Today on Call to Earth, we visit a rescue center in Cameroon, where caretakers are giving an animal coveted as a household pet, another shot at life in the wild.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Parrots are one of the most intelligent species of bird on the planet, with some capable of doing math, using tools, and, of course, mimicking human speech.
And the African gray parrot, the largest parrot in Africa, is known to be the greatest imitator among the species. That skill is one reason they're one of the most trafficked birds in the world.
JERRY AYLMER, DIRECTOR, THE LIMBE WILDLIFE CENTER: They're really popular as pets. I think the most popular parrot to have as a pet, certainly, in some parts of the world, sadly.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): According to the National Audubon Society, more than 1.3 million were exported from west African nations between 1975 and 2013. But despite being declared endangered in 2016 and their global trade since outlawed, they remain a trendy pet even as their wild populations continue to dwindle.
The Limbe Wildlife Center in Cameroon takes in African grays recovered from illegal traders with the aim of reintroducing them to the wild.
AYLMER: Often, we rescue them in terrible conditions, so they're dehydrated, starving, maybe have injuries. So we have an excellent vet team here on site that looks after the parrots when they come in. And they may have injuries. Their wings have been clipped, and they may be glue traps that have been used to catch them.
So they're often in a very bad state. So a big challenge is saving their lives to start with.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): The rehabilitation process involves medical care, special diets, and socialization. Because many were confined to small faces, they also have to learn to fly again.
PIERRE EMMANUEL ALIGUENA, ZOOKEEPER, THE LIMBE WILDLIFE CENTER: After the rehabilitation in the quarantine area where we receive them, they spend 90 days. After the health check, we can bring them to our aviary cage. After -- when they are able to fly, we can send them back to the forest.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): A successful reintroduction not only benefits the bird population, but also the environment.
AYLMER: It's a really important conservation action because, I mean, the gray parrots themselves, they form a crucial part of the ecosystem. For example, seed dispersal. They'll eat fruits, and then they excrete the seeds at a different spots, and they move seeds. In that way, help the forest to health and growth.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): To assess survival rates, migration patterns, and possible recaptures, the center also plans to start fitting trackers onto the birds they release.
AYLMER: Hopefully, we can keep expanding that program and maybe track some of the parrots as well in the future and find more data or expand our scientific knowledge of what's happening out there and what's happening to the parrots release.
[01:50:07]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Since 1993, the Limbe Wildlife Center says they've released over 3,000 African gray parrots from black market poachers. In addition to rehabilitation, their education initiatives and community outreach are helping to raise awareness about the illegal wildlife trade.
AYLMER: On the one hand, it's very sad that that's happening, but it makes me quite excited and proud that we can be involved in such a key way. And it is such an important program to just make that bit of difference, to get some parrots that have been poached, give them a second chance. Hopefully get them back out into the wild.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Let us know what you're doing to answer the call with hashtag CallToEarth. Hashtag CallToEarth.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: After two decades at the Memphis Zoo in Tennessee, Ya Ya, the giant panda is now heading back home. On Wednesday, the loan agreement between Washington and Beijing expired, which means Ya Ya will now live out her golden years somewhere in China.
But as Selina Wang reports, Ya Ya now the center of a growing anti- U.S. sentiment across China.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Once a symbol of Beijing's goodwill, now the center of angry debate in China. This panda in Memphis, Tennessee, has become the latest victim in worsening U.S.-China tensions.
Ya Ya arrived in America with her playmate Lor Lo two decades ago as an emblem of growing bilateral friendship. But recent videos showing the once fluffy panda, now looking skinny with scraggly fur, has sparked outrage in China. Many Chinese people and some animal advocates accusing the zoo of mistreatment.
Videos on Chinese social media claiming the pandas are being abused, quickly went viral against the backdrop of growing anti-American sentiment. The rumors often fanned by state propaganda. And meanwhile, Chinese social media users are praising these viral videos of this panda in Russia.
Wu Yi claiming videos of the active and playful panda prove Russia is taking excellent care of the Chinese bear. State TV saying the pandas are helping the Russia-China relationship.
Chinese and American scientists launched a joint investigation, concluding that Ya Ya has a genetic fur and skin condition that does not impact her quality of life and has received excellent care. But that message is not getting through.
Outside the panda exhibit at the Beijing Zoo, I ask people if they've heard of Ya Ya the Panda. This man says, yes, she's abused in America. An 11-year-old boy tells me, I heard the U.S. is treating the panda poorly. This man says, isn't Russia taking good care of pandas? Pandas are happy over there, not like in the U.S.
And this man with his granddaughter tells me, pandas and Russia are very happy. Why? Russians and Chinese are friends. At least Russia is not sanctioning China. (on-camera): Ya Ya will soon settle in this Beijing Zoo. Now, China has long used its pandas as a diplomatic tool. Currently, its pandas are on loan to about 20 countries. The United States has not received one since Ya Ya and Lor Lo 20 years ago.
[01:55:06]
Now, these pandas are normally loaned on these 10-year leases and they cost a million dollars annually.
(voice-over): The Memphis Zoo had already planned to send Ya Ya and Lor Lo back to Beijing this spring because their lease is expiring. But Lor Lo died of heart disease two months ago at the age of 24. The average lifespan for pandas is usually under 30 years. Yet that didn't stop rampant speculation and led to an explosion of accusations about Ya Ya's treatment, too, accelerating calls to bring Ya Ya back to China.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ya Ya, come back home.
WANG (voice-over): The message even featured on billboards from New York City to major cities across China. In 1972, during U.S. President Richard Nixon's historic trip to China, his wife visited pandas in Beijing.
PAT NIXON, RICHARD NIXON'S WIFE: On behalf of the people of the United States, I am pleased to be here and accept the precious gift.
WANG (voice-over): Months later, China sent a pair of pandas to the national zoo in Washington, D.C. Now, decades later, this pandas return from the U.S. to China symbolic not a growing friendship, but growing animosity between two global superpowers.
Selina Wang, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: China's foreign ministry has issued a statement saying Ya Ya was treated just fine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAO NING, SPOKESPERSON, CHINESE FOREIGN AFFAIRS MINISTRY (through translator): The Memphis Zoo has a relatively sound management system and operation procedures, and Ya Ya has been under good care throughout her stay at the Memphis Zoo. She is deeply loved by the American people.
The cooperative research on giant pandas has facilitated the protection of the animal, public education and people to pupil exchanges. China is willing to continue working with other partners, the U.S. side included, to make contribution to the conservation of endangered species.
(END VIDEO CLIP) VAUSE: Looks like a busy year. Coming up, Mount Everest, Nepal says it's issued a record number of permits to climbers looking to scale the world's tallest mountain this coming spring. 463 climbers from 65 countries have, so far, received permission, with American and Chinese mountaineers topping that list.
But this comes amid concerns about overcrowding. Too many climbers has led to traffic jams in the past, with hundreds left waiting in line to reach the top.
And before we go, a little more from the White House state dinner for the South Korean president, who is not only guest of honor, but also provided the entertainment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YOON SUK YEOL, SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT: How that music used to make me smile.
(APPLAUSE)
And I knew if I had my chance, that I could make those people dance and maybe they'd be happy for a while.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Everybody now.
Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause.
CNN Newsroom continues by my friend and colleague Rosemary Church. See you right back here tomorrow.
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