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U.S. Government on the Brink of a Government Shutdown; Russian Sympathizer Is Leading Candidate for Slovakia PM; Russia Marks One Year Since Annexing Parts of Ukraine; Philippines Vows to Defend Territory in South China Sea. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired September 30, 2023 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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LAILA HARRAK, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Laila Harrak.
The U.S. government less than 24 hours away from shutting down. That's if Congress doesn't reach a funding deal.
Another election in Slovakia, where people are voting for their fifth prime minister in just four years. How the outcome could affect the war in Ukraine.
And dozens of people were killed in Pakistan after suicide attacks. Details on the government's response.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Laila Harrak.
HARRAK: The U.S. government is down to its final day of operation before it must shut down, beginning at midnight, Sunday, Eastern time. On Friday, rebellious Republicans roundly rejected U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's latest attempts to gain their support.
Unless there is a breakthrough this weekend, active duty troops and border agents may soon have to work without pay. Food assistance for millions could be at risk. Government loans to farmers, students and small businesses wouldn't be processed.
And air travel could be disrupted if unpaid TSA workers don't show up, as has happened before. And the list keeps going. Well, after his failed vote on Friday, McCarthy emerged from his conference suggesting a new option.
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REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA), HOUSE SPEAKER: I think if we had a clean one without Ukraine on it, we could probably be able to move that through. I think if the Senate puts Ukraine on there and focuses Ukraine over America, I think that could cause real problems.
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HARRAK: We get the latest now from CNN's Melanie Zanona on Capitol Hill.
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MELANIE ZANONA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: House Republicans are scrambling to come up with a plan to avoid a government shutdown. Even after Republicans huddled for nearly two hours on Friday evening to discuss their limited options.
And at this, point there is still no clear consensus about what, if anything, they are going to bring to the House floor on Saturday. But Kevin McCarthy did emerge from that meeting with a slightly new message.
He said he could be open to a stopgap spending bill as long as it doesn't have money for Ukraine. That is a slightly different position for the Speaker, because, up until this point, he has said that any bill to fund the government needs to include border security provisions.
So clearly a last-minute shift in strategy after his efforts to work with Republicans have come up short. And that failure to rally around a Republican plan has created some tensions in the ranks. Let's take a listen.
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REP. STEVE WOMACK (R-AR): We're the governing majority. This is what we're supposed to do as a governing majority. We're supposed to lead. And it's kind of hard to lead when you got a significant number of people that are on the wrong snap count when you call the play. So that's where we are.
REP. DANIEL CRENSHAW (R-TX): They killed the most conservative position we could take and then called themselves the real conservatives, which is like, make that make sense.
REP. ANDY OGLES (R-TN): In January, we promised 12 appropriations bills. We should have stayed here in August. I didn't set the calendar; someone else did.
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ZANONA: Now over in the Senate, they are working on a bipartisan plan to fund the government that includes $6 billion in Ukraine money and disaster aid. They will take a procedural vote on Saturday.
But because of the way the Senate rules work, they will not be able to take a final passage vote until potentially as late as Monday. So bottom line here is Congress nowhere closer to averting a government shutdown, midnight on Saturday -- Melanie Zanona, CNN, Capitol Hill.
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HARRAK: The Biden administration warns that a government shutdown could lead to significant delays at airports and longer wait times for travelers. And it could also force tens of thousands of transportation staffers to work without pay. Earlier, CNN spoke about that with the U.S. Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg.
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PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION: The longer it goes, on the more disruptive gets. Now let me be clear. Our air traffic controllers, they're going to keep going in to work. They are required to work --
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WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: They're going to work, even though they're not going to get paid?
BUTTIGIEG: Exactly. And think about the stress. Think about the intensity of that job on the best of days. These are professionals, who keep 16 million flights a year getting to where they're going safely.
And when they get to that position, put on that headset and get ready to direct those flights, they would now be coming in with the added stress of coming from a household, where they don't know where their next paycheck is going to come from. They've got families, they've got kids, they deserve better.
The same is happening for TSA officers. That's another department. But obviously, I'm very concerned about that.
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BUTTIGIEG: Because, again, we're expecting them, requiring them to come into work but not paying them.
And there are others in the air traffic organization who would not be able to come in. You know, we're racing to deal with these staffing shortages that have built up over many years.
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HARRAK: Joining me now is Eric Swanson, a professor of economics at the University of California/Irvine.
Sir, thank you so much for joining us. So glad you could be with us.
If it comes to a shutdown, how would the consequences be felt?
What impact does it have on the American economy?
ERIC SWANSON, ECONOMICS DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA/IRVINE: So for the aggregate economy, it is probably not a major effect because, although these workers do not get paid for a week or two or however long the shutdown lasts, they do get back pay when the agreement on the budget is finally passed.
So there is a timing shift in terms of when the pay is paid to the workers. But it's not like that money is lost. That money will be spent eventually.
HARRAK: And what about investors, are they closely watching this?
How have markets reacted as we approach to a possible shutdown?
SWANSON: So the markets are cautious, a little bit. But as I mentioned, the economic effects are probably not that major for the U.S. economy, for U.S. corporations and the stock market. There's other issues that are bigger, like oil prices, interest rates, the United Auto Workers' strike. Those are probably all more important.
HARRAK: They're more important, OK.
Do you feel like the country can afford the shutdown?
What happens if this goes on for more than a couple of weeks, if it's a prolonged shutdown?
What are the long terms a cost associated with?
SWANSON: If this drags on for more than two or three or four weeks then you'll start to see more of an effect on GDP this quarter. I mean, nobody thinks it's going to drag on for much more than a month. But if it were to start going into a second month, then, yes, it would start to have a more serious effect on the economy.
HARRAK: Now we spoke about people not being paid; how long do you think those impacted by the shutdown will be willing to go without pay?
SWANSON: Yes, so if you're one of those workers who is not getting paid, that could be a big deal for you. It gets hard to make rent, gets hard to pay utilities, buy food. So it's very stressful on families involved.
And these include military families, TSA agents, federal law enforcement. So if you are one of those government workers, it's a big deal. It's just for the rest of economy it's probably not a major factor.
HARRAK: What could be some unintended consequences?
Will this affect potentially the debt rating for the U.S., for example?
SWANSON: It's possible. I think Moody's mentioned that they might use that as one of the many factors that would cause them to downgrade the U.S. credit rating. It just shows a general lack of -- a general dysfunction on Capitol Hill. And so, when there's more and more evidence of that, then it does hurt
the U.S. credit rating -- only a little but it does hurt it.
HARRAK: And what makes this potential shutdown different from past shutdowns, from an economic point of view?
SWANSON: Well, it's not too different from past shutdowns. Past shutdowns, none of them have been thought to have had a very large effect on the economy.
This one's happening right at the very beginning of the quarter. So in some of the past shutdowns, they happened at a different point of the year, so you might have had a little more shifting of the income from one quarter to another.
In this case, the shifting of the income will just be from the beginning of the fourth quarter to the middle of the fourth quarter. It won't have much of an effect on the fourth quarter overall economically.
HARRAK: So you feel this is going to be inconsequential for the American economy?
SWANSON: For the aggregate U.S. economy, it should be a minor effect. I think there's much bigger, more important things that are impacting the U.S. economy right now. But if you're one of those workers who are affected, it's a big deal for you.
HARRAK: Eric Swanson, thank you so much for joining us.
SWANSON: Sure, thank you.
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HARRAK: Now the outcome of Slovakia's general election could determine whether or not Ukraine loses a key ally. Voting is now underway as Slovaks choose their fifth prime minister in just four years. And Kremlin sympathizer Robert Fico has been leading in the polls. CNN's Scott McLean takes a closer look at what's at stake.
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SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Slovakia is a NATO member, an E.U. member. It borders Ukraine and it has been one of its strongest allies since the outset of the war. It has sent helicopters, air defense and artillery systems but that may soon stop.
That's because the leading candidate for prime minister of Slovakia is a man named Robert Fico. He has been prime minister twice before. He is a well known quantity in the country. He is also openly sympathetic to Moscow, claiming that it was "Ukrainian Nazis and fascists," in his words, who provoked Russia into war.
He says that sending weapons to Ukraine only prolongs the conflict.
[03:10:00] MCLEAN (voice-over): So he says that if he takes office, he will not send Ukraine even one more round of ammunition. He is framing this as a Peace Initiative, especially in light of rising inflation, rising cost of living that is squeezing people's budgets.
Slovakia has also taken in more than a hundred thousand Ukrainian refugees, which is further straining the public purse. And there's also this, FICO doesn't think that Ukraine can win. Listen.
ROBERT FICO, SLOVAKIAN PRIME MINISTERIAL CANDIDATE (through translator): Please, can someone explain to me why tens, maybe hundreds of thousands of soldiers should be dying on either side of this conflict?
They will have to sit down anyway and find an agreement because Russia will never leave Crimea, never leave the territories that it controls in Ukraine.
So what is this conflict good for?
MCLEAN: What is especially remarkable is that Fico was forced out of office by scandal in 2018 but because of, at least in part, political chaos and infighting in recent years, Fico has managed to not only rehabilitate his image, he is now the frontrunner.
Slovakia, though, has a lot of political parties and it is very likely that he will need the support of another to govern as a coalition and while FICO may pair with a more moderate party, he hasn't ruled out the possibility of pairing with a far-right party with even more extreme views on Russia and Ukraine -- Scott McLean, CNN, London.
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HARRAK: Kyiv says Russia has launched at least 50 drones and a new wave of attacks in southern Ukraine overnight. Ukraine says 30 of the drones were shot down. But an infrastructure facility in the region was hit, causing a massive fire.
Meanwhile, Russian president Vladimir Putin stuck to his standard script as Russia marked one year since declaring an annexation of four occupied regions in Ukraine.
He addressed the nation in this video released on Friday, claiming again that the annexation reflected the will of the people and complied with international norms, which is not true, of course.
Meanwhile --
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HARRAK (voice-over): -- crowds were cheering for Russia at a large concert in Moscow that marked the anniversary on Friday.
Despite Mr. Putin's words, the annexation did violate international law and was widely condemned. The referendums that preceded the annexation were largely dismissed as shams. And it represented the largest forcible land grab in Europe since World War II. For more, Katie Polglase joins us now from London.
Good day, Katie. Little reason for a celebration, yet the Russian leader still found a way to claim victory.
KATIE POLGLASE, CNN INVESTIGATIVE RESEARCHER: Absolutely. These areas are still very much close to the front lines. These are contested areas. But this is about framing the narrative for President Putin.
You mentioned that this is a cause of celebration but he's also mentioned that this is an area that really wanted to become part of Russia, that these are areas that are voluntarily reunified with Russia, rather than being illegally annexed, as the West frames it.
And areas that are effectively under military occupation. Instead, President Putin has been saying that these areas really have received threats from the Ukrainian side and have been stopped from expressing their will to join the Russian motherland. Have a listen to what he said.
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VLADIMIR PUTIN, PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA (through translator): There were attempts to scare them, strip them of their right to decide their own future, their fate, to take away things that are dear to every person -- culture, traditions, mother tongue.
All the things that were so hated by nationalists and their Western patrons, who organized a coup in Kyiv in 2014.
People of Russia supported the free and unequivocal choice of our brothers and sisters wholeheartedly. People of Russia understood it and deeply felt the main thing: by protecting our compatriots in Donbas and Zaporizhzhya (ph), we protect Russia itself.
We fight together for the motherland, our sovereignty, spiritual values and unity, our victory.
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POLGLASE: Now it's worth noting that areas such as Kherson, which are also being part of these annexed regions, are still been heavily shelled by the Russian side. This is an area that is still heavily contested. It's very close to the southern front line, where Ukraine is still conducting its counteroffensive.
These areas are not completely considered under Russian control, certainly not by some of the citizens that live there. But of course, this is what the president of Russia, President Putin, wants to declare, that these areas are very much under Russian control and will continue to be so.
With that in mind, we're also hearing now reports that the Russian Federation will be making these areas also considered for military conscription, beginning in October. These areas are going to have conscription for joining the Russian army.
Again, this is about presenting a degree of certainty that these areas are not disputed anymore and are part of the Russian Federation.
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POLGLASE: And if you look back to the results of the time, it's hardly surprising that these areas are considered and the elections are considered a sham. If we look back a year ago, the elections in Donetsk had a 99 percent in favor of unifying with Russia.
In Luhansk, it was nearly universal; in Zaporizhzhya, nearly universal as well; Kherson, 87 percent. These areas have been heavily shelled. Civilians, we are hearing reports, are attempting to flee, to leave these areas.
Yet from the Russian perspective, they're considered, universally in some cases, supportive of joining the Russian Federation. So you can see clearly that the narrative from the Russian side and the narrative from the Ukrainian side and the Western allies' side is very, very different.
But as we go into winter and we look at the broader context here of what President Putin is trying to achieve, there are clearly concerns around Ukraine's counteroffensive, supplies of ammunition for both sides in this war.
It's going to be difficult to make any particular land progress as we head into winter. And so, for Putin, a lot of this is about presenting success, certainty about the areas that he's already annexed, that he has already claimed as his.
And these areas of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhya. But as I said, worth bearing in mind that these areas are still receiving shelling. There's still a lot of suffering for civilians. And these areas continue to be contested by the Ukrainian side -- Laila.
HARRAK: All right, Katie Polglase, reporting in London. Thank you so much.
We now want to tell you an amazing story about bravery and persistence, involving a Ukrainian soldier who lost his leg in battle. But despite that and other injuries, he's back on the front lines, fighting Russian troops the best he can. We have to warn you that some images in this next report are graphic. Here's CNN's Fred Pleitgen.
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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): It was a race against time after Danylo stepped on a land mine while on a mission behind enemy lines.
DANYLO, UKRAINIAN ARMED FORCES (through translator): The mine blew me up and my brothers carried me for seven.5 kilometers. They gave me first aid and carried me.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): They saved his life but his injuries were catastrophic.
DANYLO (through translator): One leg was gone. It was blown away and the other was hanging, all broken.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): But that isn't holding Danylo back. He is hiding his face for safety reasons but his story is remarkable. After the incident, he recovered, traveled all the way to Mexico to get an artificial limb, learned to walk again and is now back on the battlefield.
DANYLO (through translator): I can't just sit at home and just watch what's happening. In a country under attack, every man has to stand up from the couch and defend his home. I have to do it and I'm good at it.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): He's contributing to Ukraine's massive counteroffensive in the south, where Kyiv says its forces have been making increasing progress. Danylo right on the front lines.
DANYLO (through translator): I'm in charge of mortar, grenade launcher and anti-tank squads. The platoon commander and I choose the right positions, targets and plan the operations.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): Russian minefields and artillery are still causing a lot of casualties on the Ukrainian side and while Kyiv won't disclose exact numbers, they acknowledge the going is tough.
Combat medics gave us this video showing the trauma they deal with every day. Medic Vlad tells me sometimes they simply can't save their comrades' limbs or even their lives because the wounds are too severe.
VLAD, COMBAT MEDIC, UKRAINIAN ARMED FORCES (through translator): We had around 10 cases where the limb is dramatically amputated and there was no chance to save. Compared to the number of people in the brigade, it's not much. But it is a terrible sacrifice.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): A sacrifice that changed Danylo's life but he's adapted, learning to move and fight effectively, even though his artificial limb limits his mobility.
DANYLO (through translator): We don't have a choice. We can't lose this war. This counteroffensive can't fail. We don't have this right. We are defending our home. It is victory or death for us.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine.
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HARRAK: Still ahead, religious ceremonies in Pakistan become scenes of tragedy as worshippers are killed in separate bombings. How authorities are responding to the attacks.
Plus, the Philippines vows to stand up against China, accusing it of acting like a bully in the South China Sea. Details on that story and more when we return.
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HARRAK: Officials in Pakistan say at least 56 people were killed in separate suicide bombings on Friday. The attacks happened in the middle of two religious ceremonies as worshippers marked the birth of the prophet Muhammad. CNN's Sophia Saifi has the details.
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SOPHIA SAIFI, CNN PRODUCER: It's been a tragic day here in Pakistan. It was a public holiday of Friday that was a celebration of the life, of the birth of the Prophet Muhammad in the Islamic calendar.
We see in the south, in the province of Balochistan, where a religion procession was targeted and led to a high number of dead and even more injured. We've seen that there was a procession that took place, a suicide bomber attacked that.
In the north of the country, another double suicide bombing, with far less number of people dead but an entire mosque demolished with the roof caving in. There has been a lot of condemnation from the government, from the prime minister.
Pakistan's interior minister said there is a zero tolerance policy for militancy in this country, which has seen many similar attacks over the past two decades. This entire year has seen an increase in militancy in Pakistan, starting from January all the way up now toward the end of the year.
The Pakistani Taliban, who have previously been responsible for many similar attacks, have come out and said that they are not responsible for these two attacks that took place.
The Pakistani army, in fact, just this morning, before these incidents had taken place, released a statement, saying that there were skirmishes on the border in which the Pakistani military had been successful at pushing back militants that had been trying to come into the country through the border.
Again, a day of joyousness, a day of celebration, which has, unfortunately, ended in tragedy -- Sophia Saifi, CNN, Islamabad.
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HARRAK: Saturday marks the first anniversary of Bloody Friday, when Iranian security forces killed dozens of marchers, protesting the death of Mahsa Amini while she was in morality police custody. Activists say their memorials on Friday were met with gunfire.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking foreign language).
HARRAK (voice-over): This was the scene in Zahedan, where, last year, Iranian security forces fired at demonstrators, killing at least 82 and injuring hundreds. Activists said authorities had beefed up their presence but government-run news said security forces are present every week in the city.
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HARRAK: Well, next we go to the Philippines, which is vowing to defend its territory in the South China Sea amid escalated tensions with Beijing. The Philippine president visited an island in the region on Friday.
And said his country's, quote, "not looking for trouble but will stand up for the rights of its people."
His remarks follow weeks of confrontations between China and the Philippines, a key regional ally of the United States. CNN's Ivan Watson has more now from Manila.
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IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The Philippines may be vastly outnumbered by China when it comes to this ongoing maritime territorial dispute.
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WATSON: China has a much larger coast guard and navy than anything that the Philippines can really put out to sea. But officials here are saying they will not back down. They will not surrender an inch of territory in this ongoing and escalating disagreement.
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WATSON (voice-over): An act of defiance at sea. A Coast Guard officer from the Philippines armed with a knife and an order from his president, slices through a rope laid by China, part of a barrier placed by the Chinese Coast Guard.
WATSON: You're facing off against literally the largest navy in the world.
GILBERTO TEODORO JR., SECRETARY OF NATIONAL DEFENSE, PHILIPPINES: We don't want to face off with them. We just want them out of our territory.
WATSON (voice-over): China and the Philippines are locked in an angry maritime territorial dispute. The standoff taking place at a shoal here in the South China Sea, some 124 miles from the Philippines and around 528 miles from Mainland China.
China claims virtually all of this busy body of water as its own, ignoring competing claims from the Philippines and several other countries.
WATSON: The Philippines has thrown away a previous policy of accommodation with China. Though much poorer and smaller, this island nation is now standing up to Beijing in what appears to be a David and Goliath faceoff at sea.
WATSON (voice-over): Officials in the Philippines have released images of a Chinese Coast Guard ship blasting at a much smaller Philippines vessel with a water cannon, just some of China's bullying tactics, says the Philippines' defense chief.
TEODORO: Shadowing, harassment, dangerous maneuvers, water cannoning and military-grade lasers being used on the vessels.
WATSON: Is that how you feel, as if China is bullying you?
TEODORO: Oh, you bet. I cannot think of any clearer case of bullying than this.
WATSON (voice-over): In 2016, an international tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines, concluding China has no historic rights to these disputed shoals. But Beijing refuses to accept the court's decision and claims the U.S. is behind the current tensions.
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WU QIAN, SPOKESPERSON, CHINESE DEFENSE MINISTRY (through translator): South China Sea was in peace until the U.S. came to disrupt it.
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WATSON: Is the Philippines acting upon the behest of its treaty ally, the U.S.?
TEODORO: No. No. And it's --
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WATSON: That's what China says.
TEODORO: -- yes, and we're going to stand up more because it's an insult to our integrity, an insult to our intellect and an insult to our common sense.
WATSON: To suggest that you're American puppets?
TEODORO: Yes.
WATSON (voice-over): The Biden administration reminding that any attack on a Philippines ship while playing (ph) in the South China Sea would demand a U.S. response under a mutual defense pact. That raises the stakes in this high sea confrontation.
After cutting the Chinese barrier, the Philippines Coast Guard brought home a Chinese anchor, a trophy and a symbol, officials here say, that they won't surrender a single inch of their territory. WATSON: The Philippines Coast Guard says they only have three ships
capable of making it out the distance to these contested areas where the confrontations are taking place with the Chinese Coast Guard. But they say they are not going to back down.
They are going to keep pushing for what they call transparency, trying to reveal what they describe as China's aggressive tactics. And they are relying on international sympathy and on expanding their partnerships with long-time allies like the U.S.
So there's an agreement to expand U.S. access to a number of bases and facilities across the Philippines in the coming months -- Ivan Watson, CNN, Manila.
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HARRAK: Another day, another failed vote in the Republican-controlled House to avoid a government shutdown. Well now, the GOP leader is pitching one more idea he thinks could pass the House. But time is not on his side. Those details, just ahead.
Plus, Wagner's operations keep ongoing, despite the death of its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin. CNN tracks down the people who took charge of the mercenaries' business in the Central African Republic.
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HARRAK: Welcome back to our viewers all around the world. I'm Laila Harrak and you're watching CNN NEWSROOM.
U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is now suggesting a new option to avoid a government shutdown. But he's almost out of time. Less than 21 hours remain before the government is officially out of money.
On Friday, McCarthy tried but failed to get a short term measure through the House of Representatives. Well now, McCarthy is proposing taking up the Senate's bill but without the additional aid to Ukraine.
The Senate is expected to hold a procedural vote on that stopgap bill later today. The Speaker said he thinks he might get enough Republicans on board to support the Senate legislation if the aid to Ukraine is taken out.
A senior U.S. Defense official says it has not seen a withdrawal of Wagner forces from Africa in any substantial or meaningful numbers after former Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a plane crash last month.
But as the Kremlin tries to get its arms around Wagner's sprawling commercial network on the continent, it's still unclear who is heading the operations there. CNN's Clarissa Ward reports on the man who may be the new Wagner leader in the Central African Republic.
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CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Behind this door, we are expecting to find Dmitry Sytii, one of Wagner's bosses in the Central African Republic. Access strictly forbidden to all people who don't work here, the sign warns. Our knock goes unanswered and shortly after we are told to leave the building.
We came back to the heart of Yevgeny Prigozhin's empire in Africa to see how his death had changed things and found two of his lieutenants still running the show.
Vitaliy Perfiliev is in charge of the security piece, while Sytii runs the commercial side. Sytii likes to keep a low profile these days, which is not surprising given that he survived a mail bomb attack here in December 2022.
After the attack, locals began to wear T-shirts in support of him, a sign of Wagner's entrenched popularity here.
We first met Sytii back in 2019. Officially, he was acting as a translator. But documents showed he was the head of a now-defunct Wagner-owned company called Lobaye Invest and that he had started working with Prigozhin to influence U.S. elections in the so-called troll factory back in 2016.
Educated in Paris and fluent in French, English and Spanish, Sytii later created the Russian Cultural Center in Bangui, which investigative group The Century says Wagner uses as a front to sell its gold and diamonds to VIPs and manage its timber and alcohol operations.
The center is one of the last places Prigozhin was photographed alive, seen here, with Sytii standing by him. We filmed covertly at the cultural center --
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WARD (voice-over): -- where a woman who called herself Nafisa Kiryanova told us that Prigozhin's death has not changed the status quo.
NAFISA KIRYANOVA, HEAD OF RUSSIAN CULTURAL CENTER, BANGUI: So the mission continues to be the Russian cultural house continues to be.
WARD: So Dmitry does not have that job anymore?
KIRYANOVA: Why not?
He is responsible for the whole mission, he runs this job, he runs some other directions.
WARD: OK. OK. So it's all the same people basically?
KIRYANOVA: Basically, yes. WARD (voice-over): In a rare and recent interview with Russian media, Sytii says he hopes the mission will not change.
DMITRY SYTII, WAGNER DIRECTOR (through translator): If we start to retreat, then everything that has been built will also crumble. This is our chance. We are now looking for new friends, partners, new markets. Africa is a chance for Russia.
WARD (voice-over): Over the weekend, video emerged of a ceremony to commemorate the death of Prigozhin. Prigozhin, best friend of Central Africans, a banner reads, as Wagner's security chief Vitaly Perfiliev looks on. One month after his death, Prigozhin's lieutenants are still standing, watching over his empire -- Clarissa Ward, CNN, Bangui.
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HARRAK: Still ahead, one of Donald Trump's codefendants in the Georgia election case takes a plea deal. What bail bondsman Scott Hall agreed to in order to avoid jail time.
Plus people in the northeastern U.S. are trying to dry out after a day of record-setting torrential rain that overwhelmed the region. A report from New York City after the break.
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HARRAK: A man charged alongside former U.S. President Donald Trump in the Georgia election subversion case has pleaded guilty. As part of the plea deal, Scott Hall will have to testify now against his fellow defendants. CNN's Katelyn Polantz reports.
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KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Pieces are falling into place as the first trial related to January 6th and accusations against Donald Trump is set to go forward in a little less than a month.
And the first piece that fell into place on Friday is that a defendant in that 19 defendant case in Fulton County, Georgia, has pleaded guilty. His name is Scott Hall. He's a bail bondsman in Georgia. He's pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor charges, conspiracy counts related to interfering in elections.
And Scott Hall, you might not have heard his name before; he isn't a minor player, though. He is a person in Georgia that was very well connected after the 2020 election. He was in touch with a top official at Donald Trump's Justice Department, named Jeffrey Clark, who is now also a codefendant with him.
He was also in touch with people who were leaders in the Republican Party, who became fake electors for Donald Trump, additional codefendants.
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POLANTZ: And he was part of that effort where people are accused of hacking into voting machines or systems in Coffee County, Georgia, a rural county, after the election. So Scott Hall's plea deal, it does include him already being sentenced, getting five years of probation, community service and a few thousand dollars in fines.
But on top of, that he must testify at upcoming trials if he's called by prosecutors. And that trial, that is set to go in October, when jury selection will begin in Fulton County, Georgia, that is currently against two of the 19 defendants in this case, Sydney Powell and Ken Chesebro, both attorneys who worked around Donald Trump after the election.
Donald Trump is not set to be a defendant at that trial but both Powell and Chesebro, as they get ready for trial, they're are going to have to make decisions just like other defendants in this case.
There were attorneys, prosecutors in this case in Georgia on Friday who indicated that they are going to be offering plea deals to them and to potentially other people in this case. That's very expected and there is very likely to be others that would be taking plea deals, just as Scott Hall did in this case.
But Ken Chesebro and Sidney Powell, they'll have to make their decisions first since they're going to trial first. At the same, time there are other pieces coming into play here, where the case is not being moved, it's not been split up further, after several people who had affiliations with the federal government in some way, those fake electors, as well as Jeffrey Clark, that Justice Department official.
They had all tried to move their case to federal court and a trial judge said, no, that's not going to happen; it's all going to be staying together in state court.
So right now, we have two sets of people going to trial, first in October and then the rest later on. And we're going to be watching for more possible guilty pleas in the near future -- Katelyn Polantz, CNN, Washington.
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HARRAK: A trailblazer in American politics has died. Dianne Feinstein was the longest serving woman in the history of the U.S. Senate. Elected in 1992, the Democrat was also the longest serving senator from California.
She chaired the Senate Intelligence Committee and led a review of the CIA's detention and interrogation program following 9/11.
Feinstein was a strong advocate of gun control measures and was behind the assault weapons ban that Bill Clinton signed into law in 1994. Feinstein announced earlier this year that she would retire at the end of her term. She was the oldest member of the Senate. Fellow Democrat Chuck Schumer eulogized her on the Senate floor.
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SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY), MAJORITY LEADER: So today, we grieve. We look at that desk and we know what we have lost. But we also give thanks, thanks to someone so rarefied, so brave, so graceful a presence served in this chamber for -- that someone like that served in this chamber for so many years.
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HARRAK: Dianne Feinstein was 90 years old.
There is more rain in the forecast for the northeastern United States in the coming hours.
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HARRAK (voice-over): But nothing like the torrential downpours that brought life-threatening flooding on Friday, overwhelming homes, businesses, streets, subways across New York and surrounding areas.
This video is from inside New York's LaGuardia Airport. CNN's Polo Sandoval has the story.
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POLO SANDOVAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Chaos in New York City, as heavy rain pounded the five boroughs in the surrounding areas and more is yet to come.
Brooklyn saw a month's worth, some 4.5 inches in only three hours.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is unbelievable. I've never seen this situation happen, this is crazy. I don't know how they're going to get this water out.
SANDOVAL: Knee-deep water flooded streets.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In about 10 minutes, it was waist high.
SANDOVAL: Forcing some citizens to abandon their cars and others to create makeshift failures to protect their homes and businesses. Flooded subway stations in Brooklyn, had at least 10 lines suspended and even buses taking on water while still in service.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my goodness.
SANDOVAL: As they tried to wade through the floods. New York's airport wasn't spared either. LaGuardia's historic air terminal flooded. In the Bronx, the National Weather Service warning that the Bronx River reached major flood stage with the levels hovering close to five feet. Mayor Eric Adams declaring a state of emergency for the city. MAYOR ERIC ADAMS (D-NY), NEW YORK CITY: This is time for heightened alertness and extreme caution. As your home, stay home. If you are at work or school, shelter in place for now.
SANDOVAL: The mayor facing criticism for taking so long to clear the state of emergency and to address the public.
ADAMS: This administration operates as a team.
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ADAMS: And I want my commissioners, my deputy commissioners, the leaders of this team who are closest to the ground of the situation to communicate throughout this administration, we have good team leaders that are confident, that understand the subject matter and they know how to lead.
Leadership is not only the mayor, it is all those who are placed in those positions. That's what you saw.
SANDOVAL: According to "The New York Times," Adams attended a campaign fundraiser Thursday to celebrate his 63rd birthday earlier this month. He did not declare a state of emergency until shortly before noon on Friday just before the press conference, hours after the deluge of rain that begun.
Officials said Friday the wettest day on record in the city since Hurricane Ida two years ago. They warned it's not over yet.
GOV. KATHY HOCHUL (D-NY): Our priority once the immediate and -- the immediate aftermath of the first wave of this storm, it could come back again.
SANDERS: During the height of the storm, one New York City official said that what was experienced on Friday offers a window into the future, saying that climate change is moving much faster than the infrastructure can respond. It is why we saw many roads flooding in New York City -- Polo Sandoval, CNN, Brooklyn, New York.
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HARRAK: The president of the United Auto Workers says there's still a long way to go before the union reaches a possible deal with carmaker Ford, despite Ford saying earlier in the day that the two sides were making significant progress toward a deal.
The union chief says they are far apart on core economic proposals around wage increases, retirement, health care and job security amid the industry's transition to electric vehicles.
The UAW again expanded its strike against GM and Ford on Friday, with thousands more workers joining the picket lines at factories in Illinois and Michigan.
Meanwhile, the union says negotiations are progressing with Stellantis. In total, more than 25,000 workers are striking across all three automakers.
Now after nearly three decades, an arrest in the killing of rapper Tupac Shakur. Duane Keith Davis actually told police about his role in Shakur's death back in 2009.
But that confession was part of what's called a proffer agreement and could not be used against him. But that all changed when Davis started talking publicly about his involvement in Shakur's death. CNN's Brian Todd picks up the story.
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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After 27 years of enduring mystery and arrest in the 1996 murder of rapper Tupac Shakur.
SHERIFF KEVIN MCMAHILL, LAS VEGAS POLICE DEPARTMENT: Twenty-seven years. For 27 years, the family of Tupac Shakur has been waiting for justice.
Well, I know there's been many people who did not believe that the murder of Tupac Shakur was important to this police department. I'm here to tell you, that was simply not the case. It was not the case back then and it is not the case today.
TODD: Las Vegas police today arrested 60-year-old Duane Keith Davis, also known as Keefe D, for Shakur's murder.
Keefe D's wife's home in Henderson, Nevada, had been searched in July as part of the investigation.
Davis had long placed himself at the state of the crime in downtown Las Vegas. Once telling BET he was in the front seat of a white Cadillac that was next to Shakur's car, when shots were fired from the backseat.
QUESTION: You said the shots came from the back?
Who shot Tupac?
DUANE KEITH, SUSPECT: It just came from the back seat.
TODD: Shakur was shot four times and died six days later.
LT. JASON JOHANSSON, HOMICIDE DIVISION, LAS VEGAS POLICE DEPARTMENT: Duane Davis was a shot caller for this group of individuals that committed this crime. And he orchestrated to plan that was carried out to commit this crime.
TODD: Shakur was shot on September 7th, 1996, after leaving the Mike Tyson fight at the MGM Grand on the Vegas Strip. Police say Shakur and Marion "Suge" Knight, then CEO of Shakur's record label, have been in a feud with Duane Davis and a gang that Davis was affiliated with, the South Side Compton Crips.
JOEY JACKSON, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: The penalties will be stiff in terms of life in prison without a possibility of parole, particularly with that gang enhancement, if the prosecutors pursuit it.
TODD: Today, police played surveillance footage from inside the MGM Grand before the shooting, showing what they say it was Shakur, Knight and others punching and kicking a man named Orlando Anderson, who was Duane Davis' nephew, by an elevator bank.
JOHANSSON: Little did anyone know, it was this incident right here of the ultimately led to the retaliatory shooting and death of Tupac Shakur.
TODD: Police say after the beating inside the MGM Grand, Davis devised a plan to retaliate, that he obtained a gun and got into a white Cadillac with Anderson and two other men.
Police don't say that Davis was the trigger man but that he passed the gun to someone in the backseat who shot at Shakur and Knight after they pulled up next to them.
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TODD (voice-over): Knight was wounded in the attack.
As for the others in Davis' car?
JOHANSSON: The only living suspect related to this investigation is Duane Davis. All other three suspects are deceased.
TODD: Tupac Shakur's stepbrother, Mopreme Shakur, called Duane Davis' arrest bittersweet.
Mopreme Shakur said the family has been through decades of pain, that authorities have known about Duane Davis for years, that Davis has been, quote, "running his mouth" and, quote, "so why now?"
Mopreme Shakur said, for the family, this is not over yet and they want to know if there were more accomplices -- Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
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HARRAK: Still to come, another arrest after vandals cut down a legendary tree in England. We'll tell you why the Sycamore Gap, as the tree was called, was so revered.
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HARRAK: Police in England have now arrested a second suspect, a man in his 60s, after an historic tree was chopped down. A 16 year old boy arrested earlier is now said to be assisting in the investigation. And as ITV's Rachel Townsend tells us, the sycamore was a beloved landmark, full of precious memories for many people.
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RACHEL TOWNSEND, ITV CORRESPONDENT: What possible motive could there be to destroy such a thing of beauty?
Sycamore Gap was part of the landscape here for over 300 years but it was also integral to those who lived in its shadow.
CATHERINE CAPE, LOCAL RESIDENT: You know, our children, it's part of them. It's relative, the ties to it (ph). That was the angle to see the tree.
TOWNSEND (voice-over): To Catherine Kay (ph), the tree was a focal point in both the happiest and saddest of times. Her daughter took her first steps here. And when Catherine lost loved ones through COVID, this is the place they came.
CAPE: The fact that it's gone now is heartbreaking.
TOWNSEND: Can you put into words how it feels?
CAPE: It feels like a grief, it's a trauma. In my case, I lost my mom and my sister during the pandemic and we couldn't meet in each other's houses. We weren't allowed to funeral for my mom. So it was a way of gathering and we would walk to the tree and it was a place of solace for us.
And now the tree is gone. And we have all those memories of that place. We don't know quite what to do with those memories.
TOWNSEND (voice-over): And that sense of loss is felt by everyone, with those here today asking why.
TOWNSEND: The National Trust are now considering future options. They say the stump is healthy and, if nurtured, could potentially grow fresh shoots. But the fact is that nothing at all comparable could possibly grow back in our lifetime.
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HARRAK: CNN has confirmed that French billionaire Bernard Arnault is being investigated for alleged money laundering. Prosecutors are looking into questionable real estate transactions involving Arnault and a Russian oligarch.
The French publication, "Le Monde," cited a person close to Arnault, who said the transaction was in compliance with the law. Arnault is the world's second richest person behind Elon Musk. He owns LVMH, a luxury goods giant with 75 labels, including Louis Vuitton.
Mexico has opened an exhibit of rare Aztec artifacts that haven't been seen publicly since they were buried more than 500 years ago. The remarkably well preserved wood carvings include masks, scepters --
[03:55:00]
HARRAK: -- and ancient weapons, such as spear throwers. Most were excavated from the ruins of the Aztecs' holiest shrine. They're now on display at the adjacent museum in Mexico City. The curator says they give us a rare glimpse into previous Hispanic arts and religious practices.
Now to the Rugby World Cup, where New Zealand's All Blacks jumped into second place in Pool A (ph) after resounding win against Italy on Friday. CNN's Patrick Snell has the highlights.
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PATRICK SNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A huge game for Rugby World Cup powerhouse New Zealand, who faced Italy on Friday night in Lyon. The All Blacks are looking to win the tournament by a record fourth time.
But they're up against a Missou (ph) team that knew that if they could seal the famous win, they would be through to the quarterfinals with the Kiwis on their way home. That's easier said than done, of course.
And sure enough, with just 6 minutes on the clock, it would be Will Jordan who puts New Zealand ahead. It's a stunning try. Beauden Barrett (ph) landing his cross field kick, just perfectly for Jordan. And the flying winner taking the ball in his stride, brilliantly somehow managing to ground the ball cleanly with the rest of his body in the air.
How is that even possible?
He gets the job done. New Zealand would leave nothing to chance in this game, going on to score a total of 14 tries, really one-sided victory, some stunning tries, though. We showed you just one there from Jordan.
And this superb, free-flowing move that culminates in Mark Telea (ph) going over in style for his team. A massive victory for the three-time world champions. As I said, leaving nothing to chance.
The match also featuring a 33-minute hat-trick from scrum-half Aaron Smith as the New Zealand run out, very easy winners 96 points to 17. New Zealand will seal their spot in the last eight with a victory over Uruguay in their final pool game. That's on Thursday. The Italians have to beat the host nation France if they are to get to the quarterfinals.
After just one game on Friday, a full slate later Saturday with three matches in France, Scotland will be seeking a second victory in Pool b as they take on Romania. Fiji will do the same against Georgia. That's in Pool c. A win for Fiji will be bad news for Australia.
Argentina's Pumas still in the mix, having played the game less. They take on struggling Chile. And that one in Pool D will be all over the rugby action. You can count on it this weekend on CNN's "WORLD SPORT." But for now, it's right back to you.
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HARRAK: Our thanks to Patrick Snell. I'm Laila Harrak. I'll be back with more CNN NEWSROOM right after the break. Stick around.
