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CNN International: Trump Asks for Stay of Ruling Denying Him Immunity; Nor'easter Set to Blast Northeastern U.S. with Snow; Biden, Jordan's King Abdullah Discuss Situation in Gaza; CBS: 123 Million People Tuned In for Super Bowl LVIII, Breaking TV Record. Aired 4- 4:30a ET

Aired February 13, 2024 - 04:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[04:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): He always thought he was above the law. He's trying to make that a case. That's not what our founders had in mind.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The strategy here is really delay.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We ask that you avoid traveling during the storm. Plan ahead, use extreme care if you do need to go out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm all about growing football and Taylor's a great role model of someone who is great at her profession and I'm glad that she loves football as much as everybody else now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Live from London, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Max Foster and Bianca Nobilo.

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the U.S. and around the world. I'm Max Foster.

BIANCA NOBILO, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Bianca Nobilo. It's Tuesday, February 13th, 9 a.m. here in London, at 4 a.m. in Washington where Donald Trump wants the U.S. Supreme Court to put on hold a lower court ruling that he does not have a blanket immunity from prosecution.

It's the latest move in his effort to delay his election subversion trial until after this year's presidential vote. Trump says a month- long trial would radically disrupt his campaign and deny voters the chance to hear his message.

FOSTER: One of Trump's former attorneys is predicting the court will take up the case but former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is voicing her concerns about some of the justices.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM TRUSTY, FORMER TRUMP ATTORNEY: I think the Supreme Court will end up taking it and I think they'll be very interested in the idea of essentially qualified immunity. I mean, it's absolute immunity but it's still tempered by the idea of official duties and I think that's something that they need to rule on prior to him going to trial on either of these cases.

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): I think that he is on trial for certain things. I think the Supreme Court is on trial as well to see if they will uphold the decision of the D.C. District Court and, well, four votes to hear it, five votes for a stay. How could they possibly give a stay for justice to proceed? How could they possibly give a stay? So this is really, again, he always thought he was above the law. He's trying to make that a case. That's not what our founders had in mind. They knew there could be a rogue president. I don't think they thought there could be a rogue Supreme Court as well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Well, more now from CNN's Senior Legal Affairs Correspondent, Paula Reid.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: On Monday, the Trump legal team asked the Supreme Court to pause a scathing, unanimous D.C. Appeals Court ruling from last week holding that Trump does not have immunity that would shield him from the federal election subversion case brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith.

Now, as part of the brief, they rehashed a lot of the arguments that they've already made, arguments that have already been rejected by four federal judges arguing that their client has absolute immunity from criminal prosecution.

But we know in addition to the legal arguments, the strategy here is really delay. Try to use anything they possibly can to get this trial pushed until after the 2024 presidential race. And here they're asking the Supreme Court to pause that appeals court ruling while they exercise some of their options.

They said they'd like to go to the Supreme Court formally and ask for an appeal. They might go back down to the appeals court, seek a full panel review down there. Anything they can do to push this back a few days, a few weeks, in the hopes that Jack Smith will not be able to bring this case before the presidential contest because if former President Trump is reelected, he, through his attorney general, could fire Jack Smith and make this case as well as the Mar-a-Lago classified documents prosecution go away.

Now what happens next? Well, the Supreme Court can do pretty much anything they want. They have a lot of options here, but it's widely expected that the Chief Justice will set out a schedule allowing both sides to weigh in. The special counsel is expected to weigh in pretty quickly because they're trying to move this along.

But legal experts, sources in and around the Trump legal team say they would be surprised if the Supreme Court were to actually take up this case. They're already contemplating a historic case covering ballot eligibility and whether Trump can appear on the ballot. They say they'd be surprised if they took up this case too.

[04:05:00]

This is also expected not to be as strong for the former president, not as likely to succeed at the high court. So, as is the mantra for 2024, all eyes on the Supreme Court, not just for how they handle this, but for how quickly they weigh in and move this along.

Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NOBILO: A brief but intense storm is expected to bring the most snow New York City has seen in years, up to 20 centimeters, that's nearly 8 inches. The National Weather Service has placed New York under a winter storm warning until 6 p.m. tonight because of a nor'easter set to sweep up and down the East Coast.

FOSTER: In preparation, nearly 1,000 U.S. flights have been cancelled, all according to flight tracking website FlightAware. Some cities have even preemptively closed schools and declared a weather emergency. CNN's Emily Schmidt has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EMILY SCHMIDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Leading up to Valentine's Day, Tuesday's northeast winter storm warnings, watches and alerts boast a color palette that matches the holiday. The 400- mile mess this storm could cause is less rosy.

MICHELLE WU, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS MAYOR: Thank you for joining us in the final countdown until the first major snowstorm of this year and the largest one I think that we'll have seen in a little while.

ERIC ADAMS, NEW YORK CITY MAYOR: This is not our call, this is Mother Nature's call.

GOV. DAN MCKEE, (D) RHODE ISLAND: Our message to Rhode Island is to prepare now.

SCHMIDT (voice-over): The storm heading up the Atlantic coast already soaked millions along the Gulf Coast and southeast over the weekend.

What was rain there will turn to heavy snowfall late Monday into Tuesday, ranging from a predicted inch or two in Philadelphia to 8 to 12 inches in Boston and Hartford. New York City's 5 to 8 inches would be the most in two years, but public school students there won't get a snow day as learning will be remote.

ADAMS: We need to minimize how many days our children are just sitting at home making snowmen like I did, and they need to catch up.

SCHMIDT (voice-over): The storm's timing may be one of its biggest threats.

MCKEE: Nine o'clock to three o'clock is about as bad of a timing as you can get for a storm.

SCHMIDT (voice-over): Rhode Island's governor says that state has 250 salt trucks ready. Boston has 38,000 tons of salt. The storm is also expected to bring high winds, low visibility, and heavy surf.

GOV. MAURA HEALEY, (D) MASSACHUSETTS: It is expected to cause hazardous travel conditions, potential power outages, and coastal flooding.

SCHMIDT (voice-over): The advice, stay home to wait out the kind of storm people here have seen before, but haven't seen for a while.

I'm Emily Schmidt reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: The U.S. Senate is expected to vote in the coming hours on a $95 billion foreign aid bill with assistance for Ukraine and Israel. These are live pictures right now from the Senate floor. Republican Rand Paul leading a filibuster to block the vote, claiming he's concerned about the impact on U.S. debt.

NOBILO: Meanwhile, over in the House, Speaker Mike Johnson is signaling he will ignore the aid package, citing the lack of U.S. border security measures.

Last week, the Senate voted down the most conservative border deal in decades because Donald Trump wanted to use this issue in his presidential campaign.

Now, as Israel prepares for an expected ground offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, U.S. President Joe Biden says he discussed a potential hostage deal between Israel and Hamas with Jordan's King Abdullah at the White House on Monday. That deal would include a six-week pause in fighting in Gaza, not the lasting ceasefire that King Abdullah has been pushing for.

FOSTER: President Biden says they're working day and night to get something done. He also expressed concerns about Israel's planned military operation.

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JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Major military operation in Rafah should not proceed without a credible plan, a credible plan for ensuring the safety and support of more than one million people sheltering there.

Many people there have been displaced, displaced multiple times, fleeing the violence to the north, and now they're packed into Rafah, exposed and vulnerable. They need to be protected.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, civilians in Rafah are already dealing with the impact of the war. Deadly airstrikes hit the city as Israeli forces launched a rescue operation to free two hostages. The men were reunited with family members at a hospital in Israel after more than four months in Hamas captivity.

NOBILO: The IDF has released this video showing the hostages with Israeli troops after they were freed and before they boarded the helicopter. Benjamin Netanyahu is praising the soldiers involved in this rescue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): A perfect operation, a perfect execution, and I want to tell you how proud I am of you. I'm proud of you, of the Shin Bet, the IDF. You work together like an oiled machine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBILO: But that operation came as Rafah was bombarded. The Palestine Red Crescent Society says more than 100 people were killed in those strikes, including children.

[04:10:00]

CNN's Paula Hancocks is following these developments from Abu Dhabi, and Elliott Gotkine is standing by for us here in London. Let's begin with you, Paula, on this meeting between King Abdullah and President Joe Biden. Tell us about the importance of the relationship between the United States and Jordan when it comes to the potential for brokering a deal between Hamas and Israel.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Bianca, King Abdullah was the first Arab leader to travel to the White House to meet with the U.S. president since the war in Gaza began. So that in itself shows how significant the relationship between the two countries is.

But it's worth pointing out that there was a fair gap between what the two leaders were saying. We heard from President Biden saying that he wanted this potential six week pause in fighting to be able to have a hostage deal.

What we heard from Jordan's president was far more. Saying that he wanted a ceasefire immediately.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KING ABDULLAH II, KING OF JORDAN: We cannot afford an Israeli attack on Rafah. It is certain to produce another humanitarian catastrophe.

The situation is already unbearable for over a million people who have been pushed into Rafah since the war started. We cannot stand by and let this continue. We need a lasting ceasefire.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: Jordan's King Abdullah there misspoke earlier, showing just what a delicate diplomatic balance there is for President Biden at this point. But we have heard from a number of countries, the U.S., the EU, U.K., Qatar, Jordan, a number of Arab countries all warning Israel against this incursion that they have said would come in Rafah.

Now, we know that that the prime minister, Netanyahu in Israel, has called for some kind of plan from the military. We understand that hasn't been given yet. But there are serious concerns about what this could do for some 1.3 million Palestinians that are currently in Rafah. Many of them have been moved a number of times. They have been displaced for months. There are concerns about a lack of food, of water, also of protection for them. There is a sprawling tent city in this area that is growing because people have been moved from other areas in Gaza.

Now, we have heard from the Israeli side saying that they would be evacuated to a safer area. But we have also heard really from the very beginning of this this war in Gaza that nowhere is safe in Gaza. We're having warnings as well from the United Nations.

The one of the human rights chiefs, Volker Turk, saying that the offensive risks, quote, atrocity crimes being committed by Israel.

Pointing out that the civilian casualties would be devastating specifically for women and children who are sheltering in this particular area.

Now, the Biden administration saying that they want to make sure that there is a credible plan in place to make sure that they can move civilians away from the area to a less dangerous area. But there are serious concerns among many countries around the world that the civilian casualties would simply be devastating if this incursion were to take place -- Max, Bianca.

FOSTER: OK, Paula, thank you so much for that. Let's bring in Elliott then.

Elliott, looking ahead, you know, what sort of -- what does this mean in terms of the Israeli strategy? Are they definitely going in? Are they still focusing on getting hostages out in the way that they did yesterday? And also, I'm seeing that CNN has learned that President Biden is growing increasingly frustrated with Benjamin Netanyahu. And you are getting a sense of that, aren't you, from the White House?

ELLIOTT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: Yes, as far as the frustration goes, Max, I mean, this has been bubbling for a while that the White House, we've heard from Secretary of State Antony Blinken, we've heard from President Biden himself saying that Israel wasn't doing and taking enough care with to avoid civilian casualties.

We've had that line from I think it was President Biden deriding or decrying Israel's, in his words, indiscriminate bombing. Israel has put back on those and constantly said that it does its utmost to avoid civilian casualties and that these civilian casualties are just a product of the fact that Hamas embeds itself with the civilian population and uses civilians as human shields. So that's, but he's also frustrated --

FOSTER: Is that frustration going the other way, would you say? Or is that just sort of clarifying their position?

GOTKINE: Well, look, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Biden have long had a friendly relationship on the one hand, but at the same time have had their disagreements. And there's this famous photo, I think, that Biden wrote upon saying, you know, you know, I love you, but I don't agree with a damn word that you say.

So they've had their differences of opinion over the years. But President Biden has certainly before October the 7th and the Hamas terrorist attack described Prime Minister Netanyahu as a friend. But clearly, there is a divergence of opinion as to the best way to deal with Hamas.

[04:15:02]

Now, the U.S. is now pushing Israel to get back to the negotiating table as far as getting some kind of hostage deal done. And to that end, Hebrew media today is reporting that a delegation from Israel will be joining senior officials from Qatar and from Egypt and the United States in Cairo to try to see if they can move forward with some kind of compromise.

You'll recall, of course, that Hamas came back from this framework agreement that had been reached between those mediating parties in Paris and came forward with a proposal that demanded effectively Israel release thousands of Palestinian prisoners, including many that have been convicted of killing Israelis or being involved in killing of Israelis, a demand that Prime Minister Netanyahu said was delusional. But Israel is now, it seems, being pressured to go back to negotiations to try to find some kind of compromise. The U.S. pushing for this six-week pause.

Israel is adamant that it's not going to do anything. It's not going to stop the war if it means withdrawing from Gaza or leaving Hamas in place to carry out what it says it will do, which is more and more October the 7th in the future.

NOBILO: And in terms of frustrations, other than the obvious imperative to save as many lives as possible and the frustrations there, we know that Biden's support of Israel is making him take knocks politically in the lead up to the election. It's harming his view in key constituencies, like among Arab Americans, for example, progressive Democrats. So I'm sure the frustration is also rooted there.

FOSTER: Yes. A difficult year.

Now, 16,000 sheep and cattle are finally disembarking in Australia after spending at least six weeks stranded at sea. The process will take several days. The animals originally set sail from Western Australia for Israel, but were diverted and turned back because of Houthi missile attacks in the Red Sea.

NOBILO: Four cattle and 60 sheep have died on the ship, according to Australia's Agricultural Ministry, but they say that that's not an extreme number. Now the animals will quarantine on shore as the Israeli company that owns the livestock considers its options.

Its official Sunday's Super Bowl made television ratings history. 123 million people tuned in to watch the Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers in an overtime thriller. That's the biggest TV audience since the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969.

FOSTER: TV is not dead. It comes on the heels of an already record- breaking season for NFL viewership. And of course, adding to all the drama and excitement, the love story between Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and pop star Taylor Swift. The story that I feel that we've owned pretty much in recent months.

Here's Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the big star, with his thoughts on what they're calling the Taylor Swift effect.

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PATRICK MAHOMES, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS QUARTERBACK: I think it's been cool, honestly. I think it's extremely cool. I mean, to see the support that comes with the Swifties and how they really embraced us in Chase Kingdom and they kind of combined together.

I'm all about growing football and Taylor's a great role model of someone who does is great at her profession. And I'm glad that she loves football as much as everybody else. Now we brought a new fan base to the Chiefs kingdom.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: I mean, we're Taylor Swift fans, aren't we? You know, and what she's achieved. But as a sports fan, does it frustrate you that Mahomes, you know, having such an incredible sporting performance and a defining sporting historic and he's sitting there talking about Taylor Swift. He probably didn't top her.

NOBILO: Well, as I quipped to you yesterday, I think that frustration that uniform across both genders should be present.

However, as I said to you, this is often how women feel is that they're always associated with the success of the man or the man that they're with rather than what they do.

FOSTER: And you like the way it's turned around.

NOBILO: I don't necessarily like it, but I think it's an interesting reversal of a formula that we've seen played out many times in the other direction. But I mean, ideally, people should be recognized appropriately for what they contribute. And Patrick Mahomes is just a massive superstar.

FOSTER: Yes, absolutely.

NOBILO: But he clearly didn't mind and just saw the positive side of it, which is that she's bringing in a new fan base.

FOSTER: Yes. She was booed, wasn't she, at one point? NOBILO: I don't know.

FOSTER: So there's a split fan base, I think.

President Biden's campaign posted on TikTok, even though the app is banned on many government devices. We'll find out why.

NOBILO: Plus, a major oil spill in Trinidad and Tobago is nowhere near contained. What the nation's leader is asking for as this cleanup continues.

And we're learning more about the woman who opened fire in one of the United States' largest churches on Sunday when we come back.

[04:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NOBILO: Voters go to the polls today in one New York district. It's a special election to fill the seat of disgraced former Congressman George Santos. Santos was expelled from Congress over personal lies, misconduct, and alleged crimes.

FOSTER: Here you can see two candidates vying for his seat. On the left, Republican Mazi Pilip, a 44-year-old Jewish Ethiopian-born Israeli-American county lawmaker.

Now on the right, you can see Tom Suozzi, a former House member and former mayor. The race is widely considered a toss-up and a bellwether really for U.S. elections in the fall. Santos says he's not going to vote today.

At least one person was killed and five others injured in a shooting at a subway station in New York. Police say it happened after a dispute between two groups of teenagers turned violent.

They say one person pulled out a gun and began firing at a train pulling into a station in the Bronx.

NOBILO: People ran off the train and more shots were fired on the platform. A source tells CNN that the shooter then fled the scene wearing a red jacket and ski mask. The head of the transit police emphasized that it was not a random crime.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL KEMPER, CHIEF OF TRANSIT, NY POLICE DEPARTMENT: We do not believe that this was an individual indiscriminately firing into a train or in a train station. This incident today occurred or was as a result of two groups that started fighting while on a train.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBILO: Police have identified the person who opened fire in televangelist Joel Osteen's Texas megachurch on Sunday.

[04:25:00]

Officials say that the shooter was a 36-year-old woman with a history of mental illness and legal troubles.

FOSTER: Investigators are searching for clues to understand why she targeted the church and why she brought her 7-year-old son with her. Ed Lavandera walks us through the thwarted attack.

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ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Gunfire blasts ring out just before a Spanish language service was about to begin at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church in Houston Sunday afternoon.

Police say a 36-year-old woman entered the prominent megachurch with her 7-year-old child. She was wearing a trench coat, carrying a bag, two rifles, including the AR-15 she used to unleash the barrage of gunfire.

That firearm the shooter used in the attack had a sticker with the word Palestine written on it. Police say she started firing the AR-15 the moment she walked into the Lakewood Church building.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My mom was screaming and then my mom said, come, come, and we ducked.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Two off-duty officers working security for the church responded to the gunfire.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Two people down. We need an ambulance.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): The suspect was shot and killed at the scene and her child was shot in the head and is in critical condition.

CHIEF TROY FINNER, HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT: I want to ask for prayers for a 7-year-old kid who's fighting for his life.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): The second victim was a 57-year-old man who was hit in the leg by gunfire. He's been released from the hospital.

One of the off-duty officers who shot and killed the shooter is an agent with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission who had just recently finished training in active shooter response.

KEVIN LILLY, CHAIRMAN, TEXAS ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE COMMISSION: These two officers held their ground. They held their ground in the face of rifle fire at point-blank range.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Police say after she was shot, the suspect said she had a bomb, though no explosives were found in her backpack or the car she drove to the church.

Investigators also carried out an extensive search of the shooter's home in the city of Conroe, about 40 miles north of the Lakewood Church, as they continue to dig into a more clear motive of this shooting attack. The shooter has used multiple aliases, including both male and female

names, has a criminal history and has been previously convicted of assault and unlawful carrying of a weapon, among other charges. Police say they found antisemitic writings connected to the shooter.

CHRISTINA RODRIGUEZ, WITNESS: We're all still pretty shook up and we're pretty scared, but I mean, like, we're not going to allow that, you know, this fear to be in us, because, like, this is our church and this is a place of prayer and worship, and we still want to come back and we still want to pray and worship here.

LAVANDERA: Investigators say Moreno has a history of mental health issues that have been documented by the police department and that they also discovered antisemitic writings belonging to her. Police also say Moreno has been involved in a dispute with her ex-husband's family. Some of those relatives, investigators say, are Jewish.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, Houston.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Now ahead, Trump takes aim at a familiar target, why his newest comments about NATO have allies on edge.

Plus, Indonesia's presidential candidates are fighting for the youth vote. We'll take a look at who stands the greatest chance of winning Wednesday's election when we come back.

END