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House And Senate Leaders Reach $1.59 Trillion Deal On Government Spending Levels; Lawmakers Raise Concern Over Defense Secretary Austin's Hospitalization; NTSB Walkthrough Shows Damage After Alaska Airlines Mid-Flight Incident; GOP Candidates Hit The Ground Ahead Of Iowa Caucuses; Trump Mocks Late Sen. McCain's Injuries At IA Campaign Stop; Homeland Security Secretary Set To Visit Southern Border Tomorrow; Officials: Russian Missile Attacks Kill 11, Including 5 Children; Woman In Her 90s Rescued More Than 5 Days After Japan Quake; Nearly 70 Million At Risk For Severe Weather Monday And Tuesday; "Miracle On The Hudson" Airs Tonight At 8PM ET/PT. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired January 07, 2024 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:00]
DR. GIGI EL-BAYOUMI, PROFESSOR, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: Really said, you know, this has to be a priority. So I want to give her her props.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Well, how do you hope that perhaps this might even serve as a framework potentially for other states or even on a, you know, on a federal, you know, basis so as to make some sort of debt or, you know, impact on the mortality rate that we just spoke of?
EL-BAYOUMI: Well, one thing about the package that was proposed is that also there is a focus on mental health which I think is so key and so important. You know, I come from a culture when a woman is pregnant you're supposed to treat her like a queen because there is the understanding that the mother's mental health actually affects the baby's mental health. That is really important, so beginning to tie all of these other aspects of a woman's health not just when she is pregnant, really but beforehand which is key.
WHITFIELD: Dr. Gigi El-Bayoumi, great to see you. Thank you so much. And happy new year.
EL-BAYOUMI: And to you. Thanks.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
WHITFIELD: And hello, again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, and we begin with this breaking news from Capitol Hill as House and the Senate leaders reach a deal to set spending levels which is the first step to avoiding a U.S. government shutdown, but that does not mean a government shutdown is off the table.
CNN's Arlette Saenz is in Delaware traveling with the president, and Manu Raju work in Capitol Hill is also with us on the phone.
Manu, let's begin with you.
MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this deal could avert a government shutdown, absolutely non-guaranteed, but it is significant because the Republican-led House and Democrat-led Senate have been at loggerheads for months over how to fund the federal government. The initial deadline was October 1st to avoid a government shutdown but there was not an agreement on funding levels at that point.
The then speaker of the House agreed to a short-term government extension. That actually led to his ouster as speaker because members of the far-right were not happy with the United States spending cuts. Then brought in the House speaker Mike Johnson who agreed to extend the government until January 19th for some federal agencies, February 2nd for other federal agencies.
And now with Congress set to come back this week, the questions are, can they avoid a government shutdown by January 19th, and today we got our first answer. There are signs that they could, not guaranteed but they could because of this agreement that was reached between the speaker of the House Mike Johnson and Chuck Schumer, the Senate majority leader, just saying that they agreed to $1.59 trillion with over all government spending for this current fiscal year.
That includes all government, the Defense Department, other domestic agencies as well, everything from transportation to Ag, and you name it. That's what falls under that $1.59 trillion level. We are learning some new details, too, about this agreement that was reached. There's actually $69 billion that was part of what's called a side deal that the negotiators had agreed to provide that pump that money into domestic programs.
We'll see how ultimately that plays out. But here's the big question. Even though they have reached this agreement between the two sides, now they have to actually implement it in legislation, and actually fund the federal government either through a continuing resolution or through annual funding bill, but they need legislation to implement that funding level. That is where things can get tricky.
There will be members, especially in the House, who want deeper spending cuts. There will also be House members and conservatives who want to tie in more restrictive policies along the southern border with Mexico, add that to this as leverage to enact the policy priorities. They do that, that could run into -- run into opposition from the White House and from Senate Democrats with very little time to spare to avoid a shutdown which leads to a question about whether they can actually avoid the government shutdown despite this deal being reached.
But this deal definitely a key first step to averting a shutdown. Now they are on the same page over how much money the government can spend, now they got to get into the details about the individual funding levels, but it's a long-delayed agreement, one that's been reached that could potentially avoid a catastrophe in just a matter of days. Again, no guarantees -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right, Manu. Thanks so much.
Arlette, I mean, ahead of any kind of potential, you know, government shutdown, I mean, it would mean that, you know, funding runs out for some 20 percent of the government. That would include like veterans' assistance or any kind of food and drug safety issues. What is coming from the White House that is potentially there is a deal in which they can work with?
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, President Biden expressed some optimism about this funding agreement that was announced saying that it's the first step to trying to avoid a government shutdown.
[16:05:02]
But of course as Manu outlined, there are still a number of hurdles that need to be cleared for all of this to actually come to fruition, but in a statement released today, the president said that this bipartisan funding agreement, quote, "moves us one step closer to preventing a needless government shutdown and protecting important national priorities. It reflects the funding levels that I negotiated with both parties and signed into law lass spring. It rejects deep cuts to programs hardworking families count on and proves a path to passing full-year funding bills that deliver for the American people and are free of extreme policies."
He went on to add, "Now, congressional Republicans must do their job, stop threatening to shut down the government, and fulfill their basic responsibility to fund critical domestic and national security priorities including my supplement request. It's time for them to act."
Now the president, while expressing some optimism about this, there has been concern in recent days, expressed by White House official over some of the language coming from House Republicans, conservatives as Manu have noted who are pushing to potentially try to tie this government funding to trying to move forward on some stricter immigration and border policy changes.
The White House of course has also been on separate tracks negotiating with Republicans and Democrats up in the Senate potential border policy changes in order to get that supplemental funding request, not only included money for border security but also for Israel and Ukraine, and the White House has been working with these negotiators to try to see if they can reach some type of agreement.
So today the White House is expressing some hope, some optimism from the fact that House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer were able to reach an agreement on these funding levels but as we've repeatedly stressed, it still remains unclear, one, whether they will have the time and the will to get these funding bills passed before those January 19th and February 2nd deadlines and then secondly whether the conservatives will try to use this in any way to try to push forward with some stricter immigration and border policy changes.
WHITFIELD: All right. Arlette Saenz, thank you so much. And Manu Raju as well.
All right, let's talk further now about all this with Mychael Schnell, congressional reporter for "The Hill," and Alex Isenstadt, national political correspondent for "Politico."
Great to see both of you. Happy new year. What a way to get started, right?
(LAUGHTER)
WHITFIELD: OK. So, Michael, you first. You know, I mean, this is just a first step. We just heard Manu, you know, explain, you know, all of the steps that are going to get under way. How encouraging however is this?
MYCHAEL SCHNELL, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, THE HILL: Look, Fred -- Fredricka, it's a first step, but it's a significant step as Manu laid out. This was a real key need to help avert a government shutdown. I have been speaking to lawmakers over the past months about this government funding process, and a number of top appropriators have stressed that we can't do anything unless we have this top line number agreement.
This was very key to unlocking the rest of these negotiations, so today with House and Senate leaders coming out and saying that they have a deal on those top line numbers, it's significant. Now they can try to figure out the specifics within those 12 appropriations bills as these government funding deadlines creep up upon us, January 19th, the first, and February 2nd is the second one.
But also as noted, there are several other wrinkles in this process, particularly border security, As Republicans we saw they took a trip down to the border recently to kick off the new year. Some of them are saying that they will not fund the government unless there is substantive border security. And as we know, the Senate has struggled to come to a consensus on this politically prickly issue. So, you know, bottom line is that this was significant step in the right direction today, but again there are still a number of issues and hurdles to come.
WHITFIELD: Right. And Alex, do you see that border security is going to be a big issue as they proceed with negotiations here?
ALEX ISENSTADT, NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, POLITICO: For sure. This is an issue that is really important to a lot of conservative lawmakers and the problem is there's just not that much time to resolve this before government funding runs out, and so you're definitely going to see a lot of conservative lawmakers come out and say that the appropriate level -- the funding is just not enough, and that more border security needs to be addressed. It needs to be attached to whatever agreement it has. So there's a lot of challenges in terms of getting this deal done in the next 10 days or so. WHITFIELD: Right. I mean, Mychael, you have underscored, I mean, there
really are kind of two deadlines, but the first with the January 19, and then, you know, you've got early February to be concerned about, too. So just over 10 days from now, that doesn't seem like a whole lot of time. Should people feel confident that this is indeed is averting a government shutdown or a simply this is a step toward avoiding a government shutdown?
SCHNELL: I would still caution it as a step toward averting a government shutdown. I don't think that this is end of story, that there will not be a shutdown. There is always that threat on the table. Again, it's because these House Republicans have been very adamant that they want to see border security if they want to fund the government.
[16:10:05]
That is a message that we heard Republicans when they were in Eagle Pass, Texas, visiting the border. We heard them say it. There are also a few other wrinkles. The House Republicans may be pushing for some conservative policy riders in some of these bills. You know, we do have the top line numbers, but they can still try to get some of those conservative policy riders in the text. There's also the issue of actually writing the legislative text.
That's not an easy thing to do. It's figuring out, you know, where the money is coming from, what programs are going to be in what places. So there are still a number of hurdles, but I don't think we could take the possibility of a shutdown off the table, but, again, this is a significant step in the right direction and significantly decreases the odds of a shutdown on January 19th.
WHITFIELD: And Alex, I mean, the president is heading to Charleston, South Carolina, tomorrow, the vice president will be in Georgia. How do you see the campaign trail being influenced by all that is now taking place on Capitol Hill, trying to hammer out some sort of deal or vice versa even?
ISENSTADT: Yes, look, it's pretty clear that Biden is ramping up his campaign. It's going to be interesting to see how that interacts with the campaign. We've seen Biden try to make the case that Trump is a threat to democracy. What's also going to be interesting to see is if he can make the case that somehow Republicans on the Hill have led to widespread dysfunction. Can he wrap that up into his overall message that he is trying to push here, as he kicks off his campaign which he did a couple of days ago?
So it's going to be interesting to see how that plays out, if that works that into his overall messaging.
WHITFIELD: All right. We'll leave it there, Alex Isenstadt, Mychael Schnell. Good to see you both. Thanks so much.
All right, we're also learning more about that Alaskan Airlines flight where a part of the plane fell off in midair. Why the NTSB is asking for the public's help with the investigation. The latest straight ahead.
Plus, Hollywood glitz and glamour is back. A live report from the Golden Globes red carpet coming up.
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[16:16:04]
WHITFIELD: All right. We are following this breaking news about the growing questions surrounding Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's secretive days' long hospitalization. President Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and even the Pentagon's second in command Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks were unaware Austin was being treated at Walter Reed last week. Austin was admitted on New Year's Day for complications from an elective surgery, but President Biden learned of the events three days later, leading some to question why it took so long for the top Pentagon official to reveal his health issue.
CNN's Natasha Bertrand is joining us right now with more on this.
Natasha, what are you learning about what was happening?
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fredricka. So essentially we've learned that really no one, no senior National Security official knew immediately when Secretary Austin was admitted into the hospital on January 1st. It took at least three days for the Defense Department to notify the National Security Council that he was admitted to the hospital following complications that he had from an elective surgery earlier last week.
And so this is raising obvious questions about why there was such a lack of transparency and whether it posed any national security concerns because the president was not aware again until Thursday that his secretary of Defense was in the hospital and for a portion of that time at least he was in the intensive care unit.
Now we are told that during that time, deputy of the secretary of defense Kathleen Hicks, she was given some of the responsibilities. She was transferred some of the duties that Secretary Austin normally carries out. Some operational, you know, duties that the secretary could not conduct while he was in the hospital because he was meeting with the doctors or was otherwise unavailable.
But she was granted those authorities on January 2nd, and didn't actually find out why she was given those authorities until two days later when she discovered that Secretary Austin was in fact hospitalized. So this is continuing to raise a lot of questions within the Pentagon itself. Several Pentagon officials were not aware that the secretary was hospitalized and of course, there was a lot going on last week as well while he was in the hospital in terms of the national security space.
There was a strike, a U.S. Military strike that was carried out in Baghdad against a pro-Iran militia commander and of course, there are tensions in the Middle East that are really escalating at this moment with the Iran-backed groups attacking U.S. and coalition forces all across Iraq and Syria, in addition of course to all the threats facing commercial shipping and the U.S. Military in Red Sea.
And so it was very problematic according to many current and former National Security officials that the secretary of Defense did not make the White House or really even his second in command aware that he was in the hospital throughout this period -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And then, Natasha, as there are continuing to be, you know, questions, perhaps we have even gotten an answer as to, did he take himself to Walter Reed or did someone take him? Because often he is escorted when he is out and about.
BERTRAND: That's right. He is usually surrounded by quite a few people, by quite a few aides, intel analysts, people who can help him of course make decisions and get the information that he needs to do so. We are still unclear here on the exact timeline of just how and when exactly he went to the hospital on January 1st. We know that he had a phone call with President Biden and other members of Biden's national security team on January 1st.
We don't know whether that was before or during the time that he was in the hospital. But the White House, we should note, they released a statement just last night saying that President Biden spoke with Secretary Austin and reiterated that he has full confidence in his secretary, and that he looks forward to him returning to the Pentagon.
And when we asked the Pentagon press secretary whether Austin has any plans to resign over this incident because of all of the uproar it has caused not only among critics, but also among lawmakers, the Pentagon press secretary said that currently Austin has no plans to resign -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: OK. Natasha Bertrand, thank you so much.
[16:20:02]
We're also learning new details about the Alaska Airlines plane involved in a midair scare over Oregon. A part fell off of the Boeing 737 MAX-9 jet Friday night leaving a gaping hole as you see right here on the side of the plane. The National Transportation Safety Board now says the sudden depressurization from that accident was so strong that head rests and cushions were torn from nearby seats.
And now investigators are asking for the public's help to recover the large section of the plane that fell to the ground likely as it could provide key clues as to what went wrong.
CNN's Mike Valerio is in Portland still with that plane behind you. How are they zeroing in on what happened?
MIKE VALERIO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Fredricka, through a combination of the flight path, velocity and radar, they have narrowed it down to one neighborhood, Cedar Hills, which is an incorporated community in Washington County, about a 15-minute drive from where we are at the airport. So there are two theatres of activity. There is that in Cedar Hills and then across two runways in the background as you observed. There is the plane in question, that MAX-9 aircraft. Now the hole
where the door plug should be, it's facing away from us. But, Fredricka, what should be happening throughout the day, the NTSB has told us that they're going to have a media team walking up and down the aisle of the aircraft capturing on video what you described, the oxygen masks that are still dangling from the ceiling, headrests that are missing, and sharing that video on their YouTube page and with us as well.
So that's happening across two runways. Back to Cedar Hills, it is still in an atmosphere of astonishment, Fredricka, from the people that we see. Families who are walking their dogs on this crisp Sunday afternoon coming to terms with it. They are a part of this story that there is still, according to the Washington County sheriff, courtesy of our friend Joe Sutton who's collecting all this information, no reports of sightings of any kind of debris from this plane.
So it's a very densely populated suburban neighborhood. Not a stretch of force. Hundreds of homes with people still asking themselves, where the heck could this portion of the plane be? So there is that human dimension. We also have the passengers who experienced this harrowing event. You're going to hear from a few seconds from now in addition to the chair of the NTSB. Listen to what they told us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EVAN SMITH, PASSENGER, ALASKA AIRLINES FLIGHT 1282: You heard a big loud bang from the left rear, like in row 20, and a whooshing sound and all of the oxygen masks deployed. We could see later that there was a two-window section panel that blew out. It's about as wide as a refrigerator.
JENNIFER HOMENDY, CHAIR, NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD: We're on 26A and 25A, the headrests are gone. part of the seat was gone, and the back of the seat is gone. On 26A part of the seats -- back of the seat is gone. There's some clothing items in the area.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VALERIO: So, Fred, we have one more news conference set for today. TBD when that timing is, but I thought it was notable when we were at the news conference 8:00 p.m. local time yesterday, the chair of the NTSB who you heard from right there, she was asked the question, should we, all of us flying so often, be concerned about the greater fleet of MAX-9 aircraft, and she said, not at this time.
The evidence that they have seen so far is not pointing from her estimation toward an overall design flaw. It is not pointing towards an overall design flaw in the greater fleet. Their attention right now is on that one single aircraft across the runway from us right now, so that is where things stand. We'll update you as we get more information throughout the day, though, Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right. We look forward to that. Thank you so much, Mike Valerio.
VALERIO: You bet.
WHITFIELD: All right. Nearly 70 million Americans could experience severe weather in the next 48 hours. Where it could hit coming up in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:28:27]
WHITFIELD: All right. We're just over a week away from the Iowa caucuses and Republican presidential candidates are making their pitches to voters across the Hawkeye State. Ron DeSantis and Asa Hutchinson have meet-and-greet today, while Vivek Ramaswamy is making several campaign stops.
The latest polls showed Donald Trump with a commanding lead leaving Nikki Haley and DeSantis vying for second place.
CNN's Alayna Treene has the latest on Trump's campaign in Iowa.
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, former president Donald Trump spent the weekend delivering his closing arguments to Iowa voters in the final week before the January 15th caucuses, and a key part of that messaging was warning voters not to get complacent and not to assume that Trump has Iowa in the bag just because he is doing so well in the polls.
And I can tell you, Fred, from my conversations with many of Donald Trump's advisers, that this is a bit of a concern for them, a key part of their ground game strategy here in the state is to turn out as many caucus-goers as possible. And I think that's why you've been seeing them show a lot of presentations, effectively teaching Iowa voters how to caucus.
But I also want to turn your attention to something I found really interesting during his remarks at his speech in Newton, Iowa, yesterday. He vowed to find an alternative to Obamacare if elected in 2024 and part of that messaging was criticizing the late Senator John McCain, blaming him really for Republicans' failure to repeal and replace the law in 2017, and as part of that delivery, Fred, Trump mocked McCain's injuries. Take a listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[16:30:07]
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to fight for much better health care than Obamacare. Obamacare is a catastrophe. Nobody talks about it. You know, without John McCain, we would have had it done. But John McCain, for some reason, couldn't get his arm up that day. Remember, he goes like that. That was the end of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TREENE: Now, Fred, I have to point out here that McCain sustained a series of injuries while serving in the Vietnam War, and many of those injuries stemmed from his time being held as a prisoner of war for five years. But, look, I think the broader context around those comments is really important to point out here.
Trump has really revived messaging on healthcare and wanting to find an alternative to the Affordable Care Act in recent months and it's something that has alarmed a lot of Republicans. Many people in the party are still scarred by their failure to deliver on their promise to dismantle the law while Trump was still in office.
And they really, you know, see this issue as a political loser. But that's something or advice, I should say, that Trump is not heating while on the campaign trail. Fred?
WHITFIELD: All right, Alayna Treene, thank you so much, in Iowa.
All right, make sure to watch the CNN Republican Presidential Debate moderated by Jake Tapper and Dana Bash live from Iowa. That's Wednesday at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
All right, a top issue on the campaign trail, the southern border. And tomorrow, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is headed to Eagle Pass, Texas.
Joining me right now is CNN National Correspondent Rafael Romo. You were just there recently. Talk to me about what this trip is going to be like for him.
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's a very important trip at a very pivotal moment, Fred. And it was a year ago tomorrow that President Joe Biden went to the border with his Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas by his side. At the time, the administration was talking about a $600 million in funding for border infrastructure and an increase of 100 Border Patrol agents after a migrant search.
What will Monday's trip to the border by Mayorkas entail? The Department of Homeland Security calls this trip an operational visit regarding ongoing Southwest Border Enforcement efforts. They also say Mayorkas will meet with Customs and Border Enforcement Protection personnel, including Border Patrol leadership, as well as local officials.
And as divided as Democrats and Republicans are when it comes to immigration, something both agree on, is that urgent measures are needed to address the situation at the border. That's what a local sheriff, a Democrat told me just before Christmas in Eagle Pass, and that's also what Denver Mayor Michael Johnston, also a Democrat, said earlier today. Let's take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR MIKE JOHNSTON (D), DENVER: We have folks that arrive in Denver and their court dates are 2029. It's five years out because the courts are so backlogged. If you could put capacity at the border to administer these asylum claims in 30 or 60 days, decide who has a valid claim, and then send them to the interior cities with work authorization, even while they're waiting to hear that claim, we could put them to work, we could solve this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMO: Meanwhile, Fred, Mexican and U.S. officials are planning to meet in Washington again next month to discuss curbing the influx of migrants into the U.S. A high level U.S. delegation visited Mexico City just last week, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Fred.
WHITFIELD: And the Republican Senator James Lankford, he's one of the negotiators for a border security bill between Congress and the White House, said he expect to see -- expects to see some real tech, some real language on this.
ROMO: Yes, it's a very good sign right there, Fred, and both Democrats and Republicans realize that the border crisis is a problem that needs to be addressed immediately. And some members of Congress are taking steps to come up with an agreement with that goal.
There's no agreement yet, but this issue is tied with a larger supplemental package that would include funding for Ukraine and Israel, a package the President would very much like to deliver to those countries, Fred.
WHITFIELD: And then there's Texas Governor Greg Abbott. I mean, he has put into place, making it illegal for illegal crossings into his state. But then the Biden administration is legally challenging that. What's the latest?
ROMO: It's a big legal fight, Fred. And Abbott essentially says that because in his view, the federal government is not enforcing immigration law. The state of Texas is obligated to do so. This is how he explained it earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. GREG ABBOTT (R), TEXAS: They rely upon what's called field preemption. And what that means is that the laws passed by Congress preempt the field or the totality of the ability for states to do something different. However, that field preemption that the federal government is relying upon presumes that the federal government will be enforcing the law passed by Congress.
In this case, the federal government is not enforcing the laws passed by Congress. In fact, they're acting contrary to the laws passed by Congress. That creates the opening for Texas to be able to enact a law that simply enforces the very same laws passed by the United States Congress.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[16:35:07]
ROMO: The new law signed by Governor Abbott last Monday makes it a state crime in Texas to enter the state illegally. Last month, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters the law will not and does not make the communities in Texas safer. And, Fred, civil rights organizations fear it will lead to racial profiling in a state where Latinos are 40 percent of the population.
WHITFIELD: All right, Rafael Romo, good to see you. Thanks so much.
All right, five days after a massive earthquake in Japan, a woman in her 90s has been found alive. More in this incredible rescue from the rubble next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:40:04]
WHITFIELD: Russia is mounting new air assaults in parts of Ukraine, as CNN's Fred Pleitgen explains it's part of a week of intensifying attacks.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): As the New Year begins, Russia's aerial assault on Ukraine continues. At least 11 civilians, including five children, killed by missile strikes around Pokrovsk in the east of the country, authorities say. The buildings they were in reduced to nothing more than rubble.
Two houses have been destroyed to the ground, this official says. 134 private houses and 15 apartment buildings have been damaged. Search operations are ongoing.
Ukraine says Russia has stepped up attacks both on the ground and in the air in the past weeks, killing nearly 120 civilians and wounding almost 500 more since December 29th, according to the U.S. The U.S. claims Russia has even used missiles procured from North Korea to attack Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine.
Moscow hasn't commented so far, and Ukrainian authorities investigating the wreckage say they haven't yet come to a final conclusion about the missile's origin. Most likely, this missile was either supplied by North Korea or was produced recently using blueprints and technology supplied by Russia to third countries or to North Korea, this official says.
Russian President Vladimir Putin celebrating Orthodox Christmas as he escalates his assault against Ukraine. Meeting with families of Russian soldiers killed on the battlefield and vowing to support the loved ones of all those he sends to the war zone.
You know that many of our men, our courageous, heroic guys, Russian warriors, even now, on this holiday, defend the interests of our country with arms in hand, he says. I want to assure you, we will always have your back.
But Kyiv says the Russian army is suffering catastrophic losses as it tries to push forward in several sectors along the front lines. Ukraine's ground force is releasing this video purporting to show Russian troops retreating after losing several tanks and armored vehicles in a failed assault.
CNN cannot independently verify the date and location of the video. An angry Ukrainian president condemning Putin's renewed onslaught.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: In the New Year, Russia tried again to bring Ukraine to its knees with airstrikes, large scale attacks, special combined attacks, aimed at overloading our air defense and striking critical infrastructure.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): And Russia's leadership shows no signs of backing off as Ukrainians gear up to defend their land in what could be another year of tough, protracted warfare.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Kyiv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And then there's this, astonishing rescue this weekend in Japan. A woman in her 90s was pulled from the rubble of a two-story house more than five days after a powerful earthquake struck the country. Rescuers found the woman in Suzu City, 124 hours after the quake hit. She was rushed to the hospital where doctors say her legs were injured, but she is well enough to talk.
Officials say 128 people died following the 7.5 magnitude quake and another 195 people are still missing. We'll be right back.
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[16:47:55]
WHITFIELD: All right, it could be a dicey week ahead for millions of Americans as another winter storm targets large sections of the U.S. Let's go now to Elisa Raffa in the CNN Weather Center. Elisa?
ELISA RAFFA, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We're not even done with one storm yet, Fred, and we already have the next one on its heels, and that one is multi-hazard. So here's the one we were tracking for you yesterday. Dumped up to a foot of snow in a couple of locations in New England, still snowing in Boston, and now there's one already behind it.
You can see it's starting to develop and deepen over the Four Corners region here, and it will continue to strengthen as we go through the next storm 24 to 48 hours. It doesn't look like much now, but it's going to pack a ton of moisture, especially for this time of year and a ton of spin.
You can see in the orange where we have blizzard warnings in effect for parts of Kansas, the Oklahoma Panhandle and then northern Texas as well. That's where heavy snow is going to get coupled with gusty winds and dropping visibility. You've got a winter storm warning in effect even into Omaha.
So here's a look at the winds. Like I said, it's the winds that makes the blizzard and those winds really pop here in that area that we have the blizzard warning as we go into the day tomorrow. Then as we head into Tuesday, it takes those winds with us, rain and snow as well.
Some of these winds will twist along the Gulf Coast. That's going to give us a severe threat. And then the wind gusts take it into the Northeast, into New England, where we could have some 60 mile per hour gusts, maybe even 70 mile per hour along the coast at the tips of the Appalachian Mountains, and we're looking at 40 mile per hour gusts pretty widespread inland, and that could cause some power problems.
So here's a look at that severe threat. We have two days of that enhanced risk. It's a level three out of five. Tomorrow, the bullseye is along the Gulf Coast, including cities like New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama. And then by Tuesday, it shifts to the panhandle of Florida, Panama City. We're looking at a couple of tornadoes, likely some of which could be strong and some damaging wind gusts.
Now on top of this, like I said, it's going to have a lot of moisture with this system, especially considering it's January. So we're looking at multiple inches of snow getting close to a foot for parts of the central plains here. Rain widespread, 2 to 4 inches.
[16:50:04]
Some of those rainfall rates can be up to 2.5 inches per hour as this thing just squeezes out and that's going to cause a flood threat by Tuesday, especially up in the New Jersey area. They're already saturated from the last one. And remember, you got a lot of snow up here too now. So snow melt will be a problem as well, Fred.
WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness. All right, Elisa Raffa, thank you so much. Thanks for the warnings.
All right, it is hard to believe, but 15 years ago this month, Captain Chesley Sullenberger executed one of the most famous emergency landings in modern aviation history when he landed U.S. Airways Flight 1549 in the middle of the Hudson River.
Well, tonight on The Whole Story, we look back on the harrowing details of that fateful day and in exclusive interviews with the crew and passengers look at how their lives were forever changed. Here's a preview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VALLIE COLLINS, PASSENGER, FLIGHT 1549: About 10 years before, I'd been on a really, really turbulent flight. And when I was on that flight, there was a pilot who was a passenger. He leaned over to me and he said, Ma'am, do not worry about turbulence. He said, all we worry about in the cockpit are birds and fire.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The birds had been just completely consumed by the engines.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And that burning smell came into the airplane.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For whatever stupid reason, I took off my seatbelt, and I went over and I looked out the window. The engine's still there, but it's not running.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What was most frightening to me was the silence. There was no engine noise.
C.B. "SULLY" SULLENBERGER, CAPTAIN, FLIGHT 1549: We could feel our blood pressure shoot up. Our pulse spike. Our perceptual field narrow in tunnel vision because of the stress.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I knew without a shadow of a doubt that life was over.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I honestly thought that I was going to die.
COLLINS: I thought this was it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Joining us right now, Barry Leonard. He was a passenger on Flight 1549. You were the one who just said you felt like you were going to die. And that you took off your seatbelt to take a look. I want to hear more about, you know, what you experienced and remember on that day because this was a flight you were very familiar with, right? New York to Charlotte, nearly daily.
BARRY LEONARD, PASSENGER ON FLIGHT 1549: Yes, I was -- I commuted back and forth between Charlotte and New York. I was turning around companies and I was CEO over three companies in New York. And what I did was I had a deal with my wife to where I would actually fly up to New York on Mondays and then fly home on Thursdays in time for me to be there for dinner. So I'd be home for four nights a week.
WHITFIELD: Wow.
LEONARD: And on that, I remember getting up and the wind chill factor was around 10 degrees. It was snowing, and I actually put on jeans, which I never did. I always wore a suit to work. And when I went into the office that day, some people started clapping. I couldn't believe they did that. You know, they --
WHITFIELD: They were like, finally, we got the relaxed Barry. Is that it?
LEONARD: Finally, finally, he comes into the 21st century.
WHITFIELD: But isn't that interesting because in a way, it ended up serving you, to what degree? I mean, we all know the story, but we love hearing the reflections and that once that emergency landing happened, you were all standing there on the wings, you know, for rescue. But in a strange way, how did, you know, I guess your attire even end up helping you?
LEONARD: Yes, it did. I actually still have all the clothes that I was wearing that day.
WHITFIELD: Wow. LEONARD: Some of it was in up above, but I still have all of those. And I actually am thinking about wearing them when we have our reunion this coming Friday night.
WHITFIELD: Yes, you should. I mean, you've memorialized it. Yes, you've memorialized it, and then, I mean, hey, you are all here to tell the story. I mean, this is your survival story. It's remarkable.
LEONARD: We have 15 years of bonus life, and let me tell you, Fredricka, it's just amazing. You know, I've gotten to see my children graduate from college. I've gotten to see them get married. I was just, the last two days, have been spending with my grandson, but I have grandchildren I spend a lot of time with. I would have gotten to do none of that.
WHITFIELD: Wow, but you find yourself counting your blessings all the time. Isn't that a beautiful thing? I mean, isn't that a beautiful, magical lesson that everyone really can take from it?
LEONARD: It's the afterlife of a near death experience. And this last 15 years, there's just been stages of that.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
LEONARD: But I can tell you that 15 years later, I just -- I feel blessed every day for all the wonderfulness I've got in my life.
[16:55:07]
WHITFIELD: Wow. Do you make plans differently now, you think?
LEONARD: Yes, I mean, I guess so. I mean, every morning, when I wake up, I've got a picture on the wall that I actually look at which was a picture of the plane with the hands of God underneath it.
WHITFIELD: Oh, we just saw that. Yes, that's your picture. OK.
LEONARD: Yes. So Rex Babin did that. And, I mean, every day to me is just a blessing and I've gotten this -- and I think probably some of that will be on the show tonight.
WHITFIELD: Yes. Well, Barry Leonard, we're so grateful and glad that you're able to share your account, your experiences as we have been as -- as we will also be hearing on tonight's special involving other passengers and crew.
Thank you so much, Barry. All the best.
LEONARD: Absolutely. Thank you.
WHITFIELD: And The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper, "Miracle on the Hudson: 15 Years Later", airs tonight at 8:00 p.m. right here on CNN.
All right, the 81st Golden Globe Awards is taking place tonight in Los Angeles. The show will broadcast live from the Beverly Hilton Hotel where comedian Jo Koy will be hosting major nominees for the film categories, including Barbie and Oppenheimer and the final season of succession which is a front runner for the television categories.
All that being honored tonight. Joining us live right now from the red carpet in Beverly Hills is Elizabeth Wagmeister. Elizabeth, great to see you in beautiful emerald green. What's it like on the red carpet right now?
ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you and happy Golden Globes Sunday. As you see, I am right here at the start of the red carpet right behind me is where all of the stars are going to be arriving in just about an hour. Now, this is one of the most -- golden globes that I can remember.
You look at the list of nominees. You've Margot Robbie, Leonardo DiCaprio, Meryl Streep, Selena Gomez, even Taylor Swift. Now I got a chance to speak with the show's producers and comedian Jo Koy who was hosting the show. They gave us a little preview of what to expect tonight. Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): From big stars --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What are you doing here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm coming with you.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): -- to big blockbuster nominees.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know if we can be trusted with such a weapon.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): It's the most star studded Golden Globes in years.
TAYLOR SWIFT, SINGER: It's going to be called The Eras Tour. See you there.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Even Taylor Swift is nominated in a new category honoring box office achievement.
GLENN WEISS, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS: It's really representing what people out there want to see, not just what the industry is selecting, and I think that's really important.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Who's not as big of a star, yet.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I need more legs.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The show's host, comedian Jo Koy.
JO KOY, COMEDIAN: That's my nickname you guys.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Koy is known for his Netflix specials and sold out comedy tours, but the Globes gig thrust him into primetime.
WAGMEISTER: Now you are the first Filipino host. KOY: I think I'm the first solo Asian overall. That's the kind of weight that I have on my shoulders, and I want to make a lot of people proud.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): Last year's host, Jerrod Carmichael, leaned into controversies surrounding the Globes' governing body. But Koy says he'll stick to what he knows best.
KOY: Just get rid of the curse words and have fun. Just do me. Be me.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): As the Globes move to CBS this year, they hope to shed the past scandals of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which previously ran the Globes, and lacked a single black member until it was exposed in the press. The HFPA has been disbanded and the Globes are now under new ownership with a voting body of mostly paid staffers.
STEPHEN BATTAGLIO, LA TIMES MEDIA WRITER: So there's greater control and certainly they have added some black members. I just think that they know that there's a lot of scrutiny on them and anything that looks a little hinky is probably going to be shut down pretty quickly. But we just don't know yet.
WAGMEISTER (voice-over): The Globes is the first major award show since the writers and actor strikes ended. It's reputation as one big party has never been more welcome, with A-list stars back on the red carpet and champagne once again flowing.
WEISS: People at the end of the day do want to invest in seeing celebrities not acting but being themselves. This is the one room where boy are they themselves.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WAGMEISTER: It really is true. The Golden Globes is the party of award season. I have covered everything from the Oscars to the Emmys, and the Golden Globes is really where these stars let loose. Now, we know that there has been this trend in declining viewership for award shows across the board, but I've got to tell you, the excitement is really buzzing here on the red carpet.
Everyone's excited and I'm excited for the show. Fred?
WHITFIELD: Hey, I'm excited too and I'm not even there. You sold it.
Elizabeth Wagmeister, thank you so much there in Beverly Hills.
And thank you everyone for joining me this weekend. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The CNN Newsroom continues with Jim Acosta right now.
