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Democrats Win Special Election in New York; Narrowing Republican Majority in the House; Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas Impeached by Republicans in the House; President Biden Criticizes Former President Trump's Remarks on NATO and Encourages Support for Ukraine; Hostage Negotiations Ongoing in Cairo Amid Fears of Israeli Offensive in Rafah; Europe Considers Securing Its Own Weapons Supply Chain Amid Concerns About Reliance on the U.S. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired February 14, 2024 - 00:00   ET

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

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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Coming up here on CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM SUOZZI (D-NY), U.S. CONGRESSMAN-ELECT: We won!

VAUSE (voice-over): A special election win for Democrats in New York narrows a razor-thin Republican majority in the House. And could be a bellwether of November's presidential election.

UNKNOWN: The resolution is adopted.

VAUSE (voice-over): Impeached, Republicans get a do-over and charge the Secretary of Homeland Security with wilfully refusing to enforce border laws and breaching the public trust.

JOSEPH BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's dumb, it's shameful, it's dangerous, it's un-American.

VAUSE (voice-over): That would be encouraging Russia to attack NATO members. The U.S. president with some of his harshest criticisms so far for Donald Trump.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Two hundred sixty-five days before US voters cast their ballot for president, the results of a special election in New York's third congressional district could be an indicator of voter sentiment on a national level.

A narrow win for Democrat Tom Suozzi defeating Republican Mazi Pilip, who conceded the race and says she called Suozzi to congratulate his win. See, the numbers there now, and Suozzi won 53 percent, almost 54 percent of the vote. About 20, 10,000 votes, or 13,000 votes ahead of Pilip.

Now that was a narrow win, a very, now narrows the very thin Republican majority in the House of Representatives. National issues like immigration and border security dominated the special election, with many seeing this outcome as a bellwether for November's presidential vote.

The special election was held to replace disgraced Republican Congressman George Santos after he was expelled from the House last year. He has pleaded not guilty to multiple federal charges, including wire fraud, money laundering and theft of public funds. More details now on the special election result from CNN's Miguel Marquez.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This was an incredible result that nobody expected to come this big and this fast. I've covered this campaign for almost two months now. Tom Suozzi felt that they had the momentum going into election day but did not think that they would be calling it this early and this big. Just a huge result for Democrats in this purple district. This is a district that Joe Biden won, and then it was won by George Santos, and then he was expelled after just a very tumultuous time in office.

Suozzi ran a --, you know, he's a three-time congressman of this district. He ran unsuccessfully for governor and then ran again. He ran a very focused, very tight campaign. And, and ran on Republican issues, immigration and taxes and crime, and tried to take that from the Republicans. In his victory speech tonight, he said there is something for Democrats and Republicans to learn about this race everywhere.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUOZZI: It's time to find common ground and start delivering for the people of the United States of America. The people are watching. They want us to start working together. So, our message is very clear. Either get on board or get out of the way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUEZ: So, one thing that worked in favor of the Democrats was the weather. The Republicans in Nassau County, like Republicans everywhere, tend to vote on election day. But there was a massive snowstorm that blew in. That may have depressed their vote some, but it was just a very, very good result for Democrats tonight. And right now, Tom Suozzi is still in the room. They are partying and feeling very good about the result tonight. Back to you.

VAUSE: Thank you, Miguel.

Ron Brownstein is CNN's senior political analyst and senior editor for The Atlantic. He joins me now from Los Angeles. Hi, Ron.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Hey, John. VAUSE: Okay, so here's a little more from the congressman-elect, Tom Suozzi. And the context here is immigration, which, as we know, is a major issue in this race, and in particular, an immigration crisis created by Democrats, which is central to the election. And the context here is immigration, which is central to Donald Trump's campaign for the White House. Here he is. Listen to this.

[00:05:09]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUOZZI: Let's send a message to our friends running the Congress these days. Stop running around for Trump and start running the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: So given his win, are there lessons here for Democrats? Can you use this election outcome as some kind of national indicator of where the country is?

BROWNSTEIN: Yeah, I think there was, and that bite may be the most important kind of signal from a messaging point of view, where this may be going. Look, Joe Biden's problems in polling are real. They are sustained and they are not erased by a special election in New York. But I take two big things out of this. The first is that Democrats keep winning races in suburban areas in the Trump era.

Despite all the unease about the party's performance in some ways, this was an especially difficult district for them to win because immigration and crime are so hot in the New York metro. And concern about abortion being banned is lessened because of the extent of Democratic dominance of the state. And yet they won. They won a special election tonight even more easily outside of Philadelphia that ensured they continue to control the state health in Pennsylvania.

It's similar to what we saw in the state legislative elections last year in Virginia and the Wisconsin state Supreme Court elections and the key swing state elections in 2022. The Trump era Republican Party has a problem in suburbs, especially white-collar suburbs. And the other big thing was in that soundbite, I mean, you can begin to see how Democrats, including Biden, may be moving toward running against a do-nothing Congress, a la Harry Truman in 1948, a Congress that, because it is enthralled to Trump, is more interested in scoring political points and solving problems. Suozzi kind of ran as a Bill Clinton-era Democrat who was talking about bipartisan solutions to problems, including immigration.

VAUSE: Well, the Donald Trump losing streak featured prominently in a statement from Nikki Haley, the last challenger to Trump for the Republican Party's presidential nomination. Here's part of it.

It reads, let's just say the quiet part out loud. Donald Trump continues to be a huge weight against Republican candidates. Despite the enormous and obvious failings of Joe Biden, we just lost another winnable Republican House seat because voters overwhelmingly reject Donald Trump.

And this is the problem for the Republicans. There is this disconnect between the popularity for the former president, which doesn't seem to translate. to these local races. And what we saw back in 2022, the midterms, when all those Trump endorsed candidates fell one after the other, that's when the Republican Party became very critical of Donald Trump. You know, kids in cages and mass deportations, it was fine. But they start losing seats and start losing races. And suddenly the Republicans turned on Trump, at least for a time.

BROWNSTEIN: Yeah, it was. You know, look, this Trump is probably stronger in this district than he is in almost any suburban district north of the Mason-Dixon line. I mean, you know, I think we saw a lot of this in the U.S. And yet I think we saw again and partially for the reason that we were discussing earlier the snowstorm Trump turns out Democratic voters. I mean, I believe the number is 93 -- the best estimate is that 93 million separate human beings have come out to vote against the Trump era Republican Party at some point in the last three elections. And that is a big number.

The dynamic that you saw again in this district where Biden, as Tom Suozzi himself said, was underwater is as we saw in 2022, there were a significant and unusually large number of voters who said they disapproved of Biden. And maybe we're unhappy about the economy. Maybe we're unhappy about the border and still voted for Democrats anyway because they view the Republican alternative as too extreme. That is the pathway to a second term if there is one for Biden. And we saw that dynamic continuing to function tonight, as it did in '23 and certainly as it did in '22.

VAUSE: Also, the past few hours for the first time in 150 years, a cabinet secretary has been impeached, Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas was impeached on a vote of one, a majority of one rather in the Republican controlled lower house. His House majority leader, Republican Steve Scalise. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. STEVE SCALISE (R-LA): The Senate really ought to take seriously the message that was said that we're serious about securing the border and the secretaries failed to do his job. And the American people are disgusted by it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Okay, so there's no way that he'll be found guilty in a trial in the Senate and in many ways, impeaching Mayorkas was the kind of stunt which is loved by Trump's base. But how is it viewed sort of beyond that by, you know, God and variety Republicans, especially after Republicans in Congress killed a bipartisan deal on border security a week ago?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, that you know, that that's where it kind of circles back to what we're talking about before. And the way Suozzi, who's the president of the Republican Party, ran, there's no question that Republicans have a big lead on immigration and the border in all polls. People say they trust Trump more than Biden. They trust Republicans more than Democrats. But that doesn't mean that you can't overplay your hand.

[00:10:19] You know, Trump is talking about explicitly, as I wrote last week, deporting millions of people, a project that would require hundreds of thousands of federal law enforcement agents, National Guard, sheriffs, and the building of internment camps in Texas. The dismissal and rejection of the bipartisan border deal.

This impeachment of Mayorkas, which is obviously a political statement. Suozzi kind of, as I said, ran as a 1990s Bill Clinton Democrat who said, let's work together to solve this in a grand compromise. It is not right to say that he simply ran to the right on this issue.

His last, his big ad on immigration did talk about securing the border and did show razor wire, but also said that we had to open pathways to citizenship for people who are here to play by the rules and you can see a still an advantage for Republicans on this issue.

And you can see, I think, in his election, a pathway for Democrats and certainly Biden, I think, is inclined to go down this direction to basically run and saying, we want to solve the problem they are posturing because they are in thrall to Trump, who is offering extreme solutions. Are Democrats kind of advantage of the border? Probably not. As Suozzi showed, can they neutralize the deficit, reduce the deficit? Potentially.

VAUSE: Ron, great to have you with us there. We really appreciate it. Thank you.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me, John.

VAUSE: And the U.S. President lashed out at Donald Trump's recent criticism of NATO, describing it as shameful, dumb and un-American. Biden said, quote, no other president in our history has bowed down to a Russian dictator. And Biden promised he would never do that. That's after former President Trump said last weekend that he would encourage Russia to invade NATO countries that don't meet their defense spending guidelines.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: Can you imagine? A former president of the United States saying that. The whole world heard it. The worst thing is he means it. For God's sake, it's dumb. It's shameful. It's dangerous. It's un- American.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: President Biden also urged the House to immediately vote on the $95 billion foreign aid package, which the Senate passed Tuesday, that would provide desperately needed assistance for Ukraine in its war with Russia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: For Republicans in Congress who think they can oppose funding for Ukraine and not be held accountable. History is watching, history is watching, history is watching. Failure to support Ukraine at this critical moment will never be forgotten.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: There's "$60 billion" in funding for Ukraine, "$14 billion" for Israel. The rest would go to Indo-Pacific partners and humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza. When we come back, hostage talks are held in Egypt as international concerns grows over what could come next in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. We'll have more on that.

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VAUSE: Israeli officials say they have CCTV footage showing Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar inside a tunnel below the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis, with his wife, child, and an unidentified man. The IDF says the video was recorded October 10th. CNN, though, cannot verify if the video shows Sinwar or the date it was recorded. This comes as, in Cairo, negotiations continued over a possible deal to free Israeli hostages in Gaza, as well as a ceasefire. More details now from CNN's Nic Robertson.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, it appears the intelligence chiefs meeting the Israelis, the Qataris, the Egyptians, the Americans in Cairo, that is breaking up at the moment. The Israeli team is on their way home. We understand from U.S. officials that it's been productive, it's been serious, but some gaps do remain. In particular, one of those gaps is the ratio between the hostage release and Israeli prisoners of Hamas prisoners. How many Hamas prisoners should be released? That still remains an issue.

And Hamas had indicated if the tours had gone well, they'd send a delegation over to Cairo fairly quickly. The early indications from them, from Hamas, is at the moment that they aren't going to be sending a negotiating team to Cairo. In Rafah, however, the population there, 1.4 million. Some of them beginning to leave the area because they're concerned about this possible IDF ground offensive coming. The IDF has not set a date for that yet. There's growing international opposition for that. The Secretary-General of the United Nations said there would be devastating consequences. The Italian foreign minister raised concerns. The German foreign minister raised concerns as well. And of course, President Biden has said it shouldn't go ahead without proper planning to avoid civilian casualties.

The IDF, in the meantime, however, has released video showing Yahya Sinwar, the political chief of Hamas. What this tells us about where Sinwar is at the moment really isn't clear. But it's indicative of the fact that the IDF continues to gather information about where the leaders of Hamas are. And we heard as well from the army chief of staff today saying that so far they believe they've killed 10,000 members of Hamas, including commanders. But Herzi Halevi, the IDF chief of staff, said that he was expecting this to be a long war. A lot more to come. Nic Robertson, CNN, Tel Aviv, Israel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: To Hollywood, Florida, and Rob D'Amico, former deputy operations chief for the FBI's hostage rescue team. Rob, thanks for being with us.

ROB D'AMICO, FORMER DEPUTY OPERATIONS CHIEF FOR THE FBI'S HOSTAGE RESCUE TEAM: Hi, you're welcome.

VAUSE: So, talks in Cairo ended Tuesday night, the Israeli delegation on its way home. They left without closing any of the gaps on those key issues, as we just heard from Nic Robertson. Negotiations will continue, we're told, for a few more days through diplomatic and security channels. There's a lot of talk about progress and, you know, being positive, but for the time being, we're going to have to wait and see.

But from your experience, when negotiations end this way without closing the gaps, one delegation going home and sort of no real mechanism to continue them in any formal way, is there much reason for optimism?

[00:20:19]

D'AMICO: Oh, there is. These constantly go back and forth. This one was very out in the open. They couldn't get to where they needed to go, probably because they realized this is going to be their last chance to get what Hamas's last chance to get really get what they want out of this. I mean, Israel is we want all the hostages. Hamas is trying to get as much as they can out of this one. So they're kind of playing it hard ball to get those final things.

But they go back and forth all the time. I want to worry about it. It's going to happen. The details are going to get worked out by by people that are just constantly going at this phone calls back and forth. So I still have a lot of optimism.

VAUSE: I'm just wondering if there's almost a disconnect here, what appears to be a disconnect, between what seems like a lack of urgency to make a deal on hostages. Everyone's gone home. We'll keep talking about it in the coming days. And what is an imminent Israeli offensive on Rafah, which is looming and could lead to a bloodbath, according to many.

D'AMICO: Well, I think that's Israel's stick in this, the carrot and the stick thing. That's what they're saying, trying to push Hamas to get what they want out of it is, hey, we got this offensive. And I don't think you would see a major one unless it really breaks down. I think you may start to see some targeted, some more surgical strikes in there to say, hey, we're serious about this. But I don't think you'd see a big ground offensive unless this really breaks down, because they know that would probably stop the process on the negotiations.

VAUSE: Shimon Peres, the former Israeli prime minister and president, once said to the Palestinians, his negotiators, while we're talking, we're not shooting. Is that what this case is right now? The more they continue to talk about hostages, it will hold off that major offensive.

D'AMICO: I think it slows down. I think that the hostage rescue that they did actually was a bit of a surprise with 100 casualties on Hamas's side. That was very large for a hostage rescue attempt. And I think that kind of slowed it down a bit. So, I think they're very conscious of what they're doing and how it may affect this. I think there's a lot of pressure on Netanyahu to really strike a deal on the hostages. He's getting it both from the U.S. and from the hostages' families.

VAUSE: Rob, thank you for being with us. Appreciate your insights. Rob D'amico there in Hollywood, Florida. Thank you, sir.

D'AMICO: You're welcome.

VAUSE: Well, the U.N. aid chief warns the looming Israeli offensive on Rafah could lead to a slaughter and leave humanitarian efforts, in his words, at death's door. With more than a million Palestinians taking refuge in that city, fear is clearly starting to set in. CNN's Nada Bashir tells us, and a warning. Her report contains some disturbing images.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): Seemingly endless chaos in this field hospital in Rafah. Doctors, volunteers, crammed into this small tent, delivering whatever care they are still able to provide. Overnight on Tuesday, another round of airstrikes on a city once thought to be the only safe place left for more than a million displaced civilians. Just 24 hours prior air strikes carried out by Israel as part of an operation to secure the release of two hostages killed more than a hundred, according to the Palestine Red present.

The bombardment of Rafah has left widespread destruction in its wake. And countless families in mourning. A warning of what could lie ahead for civilians here should Israel launch a full-scale ground offensive on the city. Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged safe passage for civilian evacuations, but a military plan has yet to be provided, and the prospect has heightened fears among Gaza's civilians.

The nights are so difficult here in Rafah. Where else are we supposed to go? Where else are we supposed to live? With nowhere left to turn, some families are now fleeing Rafah to return to parts of central Gaza. Whatever belongings they have left stacked above cars. Whatever belongings they have left stacked above cars.

UNKNOWN (through translator): We're tired of fleeing from one city to another. We're so tired. I just hope the world will stand with us. BASHIR (voice-over): North of Rafah the nightmare this embattled region has endured is evident. The air strikes here are still relentless. The suffering of the Palestinian people unending. Everyone has been killed. My grandchildren. Anas, look at him. He was only two years old, this grandfather says. He was the best thing in my life.

[00:25:09] So much pain in this grandfather's distraught cries. But there is little time to grieve. Funerals here are swift and constant.

UNKNOW (through translator): We are peaceful people. We were just in our homes. We have no involvement in politics. We just want the war to end.

BASHIR (voice-over): Diplomatic efforts to secure a prolonged truce have so far failed to deliver concrete results. The CIA's director now in Cairo for talks with the Egyptian president, Israel's intelligence chief and the Qatari prime minister. One official calling the talks, quote, difficult but nudging forward. But warnings of an expected ground offensive in Rafah could place those talks in jeopardy, as Hamas threatens to pull out if Israeli troops enter the city. Nada Bashir, CNN, Cairo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Words matter. And when we come back, how Donald Trump's words about NATO mean Europe is now looking to secure its own supply chain of weapons in case they can't count on the United States.

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VAUSE: Welcome back, everyone. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN Newsroom.

[00:30:05]

After months of congressional stalling, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has welcomed a Senate vote approving a $95 billion aid package. The bill still has to pass the lower House, and right now it's not clear if speaker Mike Johnson will call a vote on the package. Zelenskyy urging lawmakers to do the right thing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (voice-over): I thank each of the 70 senators who voted in the affirmative. Ukraine appreciates it very much. This was the first step. Next step is the House of Representatives and the vote of the congressmen there. We expect a positive decision. We hope for a principle to support, and we believe that America will continue to be a leader.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Well, Kyiv is waiting nervously to see whether the U.S. will provide more arms and ammunition. Other European leaders are coming to the conclusion that maybe they cannot rely on steadfast U.S. support in the future.

That's after former U.S. President Donald Trump said he would tell Russia to, quote, "do whatever the hell they want" to NATO states delinquent in their bills.

Now Germany ramping up its own production of arms for Ukraine and for Europe's protection. CNN's Fred Pleitgen shows us how.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A German-made Leopard 2 tank hitting Russian positions on the Eastern front. This video provided by the 21st Mechanized Brigade, showing, they say, how effective Western weapons are on the battlefield.

VEDMIN, TANK COMMANDER, UKRAINIAN ARMED FORCES (through translator): Every infantry is scared of a tank. Tanks go out and work, and they fire frightfully. They fire straight into their faces, and they don't even have time to think about what to do.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): The Ukrainians say they need a lot more Western arms and ammo, but Republicans have blocked U.S. military aid in Congress, and their likely nominee for president, Donald Trump, even suggested he might encourage Russia to attack NATO members who didn't meet military spending guidelines.

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You've got to pay.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Those comments literally have Europeans up in arms, now ramping up weapons production for Ukraine and for themselves. Germany's chancellor visiting a major arms plant with Denmark's prime minister, trying to downplay Trump's comments.

OLAF SCHOLZ, GERMAN CHANCELLOR: NATO is of essence for the United States, for Canada, for the European countries. And we cooperated so long, since World War II. And this is really something which is a good alliance for the future. We stick to it. The president of United States sticks with, and I'm sure the American people will do so.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): But Denmark's prime minister says she has no illusions. U.S. support for European NATO members no longer seems certain.

METTE FREDERIKSEN, DANISH PRIME MINISTER: No matter what will happen in U.S. in this year, I think the conclusion has been mentioned already now that Europe needs to be stronger. And we need to do -- we need to be able to do more on own.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): And ammo production is the biggest concern, as NATO allies struggled to help Ukraine make up for massive shortfalls while facing overwhelming Russian firepower.

PLEITGEN: This is one of the most important things for the Ukrainians to stay in the fight. They're not only outmanned, they're also outgunned. And the biggest problem they have is a lack of ammunition.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): They broke ground for a new ammo plant here, and the company's CEO says they will drastically increase ammo production quickly, especially for artillery.

ARMIN PAPPERGER, CEO, REINMETALL: They need 1 million to 1.2 million. And if I give them 700,000, I think there are also some other producers in Europe. We have to give them something. So 700,000 is at the moment the maximum that we can produce.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): And the Ukrainians say they need the maximum their allies can give, with or without the U.S. to keep their forces in the fight against the Russians.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Unterlas (ph), Germany.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has spoken with Paul Whelan, the former Marine detained in Russia for more than five years now, reassuring him of efforts which continue to bring him home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Our intensive efforts to bring Paul home continue every single day, and they will until he and Evan Gershkovich and every other American wrongfully detained is back with their loved ones.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: This is at least the third time Blinken has spoken with Whelan, who was detained in Moscow in 2018 on espionage charges. The U.S. State Department says Whelan has been wrongfully detained.

The State Department says the U.S. has also been trying to secure the release of Whelan and Evan Gershkovich, a "Wall Street Journal" reporter who is also detained in Russia on spying charges.

Ahead here on CNN, word of a coalition government in Pakistan. Why supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan will not be pleased.

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VAUSE: With no clear winner from last week's general election in Pakistan, two major political parties are forming a coalition government.

But the party of former Prime Minister Imran Khan has been shut out, even though candidates affiliated with his PTI Party won the most votes.

CNN's Sophia Saifi is covering this live from Islamabad. So quite the snub for Imran Khan's party, or at least the politicians who won those seats. But essentially, he's been banned from politics. So there's no role for him to play in any of this.

SOPHIA SAIFI, CNN INTERNATIONAL PRODUCER: Hi, John. Yes. I mean, Imran Khan himself actually came out yesterday and sent a statement through his family, which was shared with the media.

And it was basically that any coalition that would be made would be daylight robbery.

Khan's party has said the PTI that there was widespread rigging. There was manipulation in this election. And they are going to the courts.

Now what's happened is, is that none of the parties actually including the PTI, according to the official results that were released by the election commission of Pakistan, are being contested.

However, it showed that none of the three major parties in the country received a majority to form a government. So what we have seen over the past couple of days after the election results were finally announced, after much delay, is that everybody has been cobbling together to form a coalition.

So what was announced last night is potentially that Shehbaz Sharif is going to be the candidate for the PMLN, which is former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's party. Shehbaz Sharif was actually the prime minister of this country the past two years.

And the party of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, which is -- who is the son of slain former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, they've come out and said that they will support the PMLN's candidate for prime minister.

So that's the two major parties, aside from the PTI, but they've also allied with four other major parties. So they've confidently got enough seats now to form that government.

So we just have to wait and see what happens with the -- with the PTI and with the independent candidates affiliated with them -- John.

[00:40:07]

VAUSE: In the run-up to this election, there was, you know, a lot of violence, bombings, and some candidates were killed, at least one. So with this coalition government coming to power, it is expected to bring some stability, or can they do that without the support of, you know, the PTI?

SAIFI: Well, John, I think that is something that is of concern to domestic analysts, as well as international observers, is that Pakistan, along with the militant crisis that's brewing in this country, has a terrible economic crisis.

There has been record inflation across the country. And that's something that former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who's potentially the upcoming prime minister, also said that he was trying to show a tone of reconciliation.

And I think that, according to what we're hearing from Imran Khan's party, as well, is that they have already been at the hands of a crackdown of their party. They couldn't run with their electoral symbol. However, they did win the most seats.

They don't want at the moment to have violent protests across the country. They say their supporters are angry. That mandate has been stolen. But however, for the sake of this country, which we're potentially

going to see is a strong opposition, with Imran Khan's party leading that -- John.

VAUSE: Sophia Saifi in Islamabad. We appreciate the update and the analysis. Thank you.

I'm John Vause. Please stay with us. WORLD SPORT is next for our viewers watching on CNN Max, as well as CNN International. More news for everyone else, including this.

TikTok has a controversial new user: U.S. President Joe Biden. Why many are accusing him of hypocrisy.

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[00:45:40]

VAUSE: A powerful Nor'easter blanketed parts of Northern United States in snow on Tuesday.

It was New York's snowiest day in two years, more than eight centimeters falling in Central Park. Other areas around the city saw even more buildup.

Thousands of customers in Connecticut, New Jersey, and beyond lost power. Schools in multiple states canceled classes due to the snow.

Conditions made travel difficult, with more than 250 car accidents reported in New Jersey, according to the state's governor. More than 1,000 flights canceled across the United States, with the majority out of airports in New York, Boston, and New Jersey according to Flight Aware.

Well, a stubborn inflation report has rattled Wall Street. The Dow fell more than 500 points Tuesday with fears the U.S. Federal Reserve might have to wait a while longer before lowering interest rates.

The selloff comes just a day after the Dow closed at a record high. The consumer price index, the first real measure of inflation this year, came in at 3.1 percent for January, a slight drop from December, but still hotter than expected, as CNN's Richard Quest explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR: The market is unusually sensitive at the moment, very febrile for any suggestion that a rate cut might be pushed off further into the future.

And that's essentially what this inflation number suggested. By being higher than expected, although not out of the ballpark by any means, it's sort of solidified the view that the Fed won't change rates, won't begin cutting at its next meeting.

And it might be until May or beyond before they get round to it. Because the fact is inflation is still running hot. And the Fed chair

said again and again until they see a sustained fall in inflation, one that does not look like it's going to reignite if they start cutting rates, then they're going to keep holding rates where they are.

And we shouldn't put too much store by today's sharp fall. The market has rallied dramatically on the prospect of future rate cuts. And at the very best, we are talking about a delay of merely a few months.

Rate cuts are the direction of the future. It's now only a question of when.

Richard Quest, CNN, Dubai.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: The U.S. defense secretary is out-of-hospital and now working from home. Lloyd Austin was admitted for a bladder issue on Sunday and treated without surgery. He's expected to return to the Pentagon later this week.

Austin had surgery for prostate cancer in December without informing the president. This time, the White House was informed.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may change COVID guidance for this spring. According to "The Washington Post," potential new guidelines would say those with mild symptoms and no fever do not have to isolate themselves for 24 hours.

CNN health reporter Jacqueline Howard has details.

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JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH CORRESPONDENT: We're hearing that the CDC's COVID-19 isolation guidance could be updated this spring to focus more so on a patient's symptoms, rather than giving a blanket recommendation to isolate for a certain number of of days.

HOWARD (voice-over): Now, currently, if you test positive for COVID- 19, the CDC recommends to isolate for at least five days. But we're hearing the agency may loosen that recommendation to be that, if you haven't had a fever for at least 24 hours without the help of medication.

And your symptoms are generally mild or they're improving, then you don't have to isolate.

Now, these are just discussions that are happening as we're now living in a world where there is some community immunity. But the head of the CDC says right now, quote, "There are no updates to COVID guidelines to announce at this time," end quote.

If this shift in guidance does happen, it would align with what some states like California and Oregon already recommend on a local level. HOWARD: And it would align with what was already recommended for people who have other types of respiratory illnesses, like the flu or RSV.

So this will be interesting to -- to watch in the coming months.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Our thanks to Jacqueline Howard for that report.

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The U.S. Supreme Court wants to hear from Special Counsel Jack Smith regarding Donald Trump's claim that he is immune from criminal prosecution.

Chief Justice John Roberts has asked Smith for a response by next week to Trump's appeal of a lower court ruling denying him presidential immunity.

The former president is hoping to delay his election subversion trial until after November's presidential vote. Smith is eager to speed up proceedings and will likely file his response before the February 20 deadline.

The high court could decide to take up the immunity issue, let the lower court ruling stand, or send it back to the full appeals court.

U.S. President Joe Biden facing backlash for his campaign joining TikTok over the weekend, even though the Chinese-owned app is banned on many government devices and considered a national security threat by many.

It's a move, though, to reach out to the young voters. Critics say it's a security risk and are accusing the president of hypocrisy.

More details now from CNN's Brian Todd.

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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): National security hawks ramping up their criticism of President Biden's reelection campaign for launching a TikTok account and posting its first video on Sunday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jason Kelce or Travis Kelce?

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Mama Kelce. I understand she makes great chocolate chip cookies.

TODD (voice-over): In the lighthearted Super Bowl themed video, the president dodges some questions about the game and jokingly evades one on whether whether he had rigged the NFL season.

BIDEN: I'd get in trouble if I told you.

TODD (voice-over): It finished with an inside joke, a Dark Brandon meme. The video quick to rack up more than 7 million views and the ire of critics. Republican Senator Josh Hawley posting on X, "Biden campaign bragging about using a Chinese spy app, even though Biden signed a law banning it on all federal devices."

President Biden did sign that law in December of 2022.

MARGARET TALEV, DIRECTOR, DEMOCRACY, JOURNALISM AND CITIZENSHIP INSTITUTE, SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY: I do think they're going to face some cries of hypocrisy.

TODD (voice-over): The campaign video was not created or posted using government devices. Republican Senator Tom Cotton still called it shameful.

TikTok is owned by a Chinese company that analysts say could be beholden to the communist government in Beijing.

LINDSAY GORMAN, FORMER WHITE HOUSE SENIOR ADVISOR FOR TECHNOLOGY AND NATIONAL SECURITY: I think it's a very concerning national security move. We are normalizing a platform that is essentially accountable, ultimately, to the Chinese Communist Party.

TODD (voice-over): A federal security review of TikTok's foreign ownership is underway. And U.S. government employees are barred from having the app on their work devices for fear of malware, spying, or --

JAMES LEWIS, CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES: They can collect your personal data. They can put it into their huge databases, and they can figure out what they want to do with it later.

TODD (voice-over): TikTok rejects those concerns.

SHOU CHEW, CEO, TIKTOK: We will protect the U.S. user data and fire it all from all unwanted foreign access.

TODD (voice-over): TikTok says more than half of Americans use the popular app for sharing short videos of everything from goofy stunts to food recipes and dance challenges.

But could the Chinese communist government secretly use it to try to influence elections in the U.S.?

GORMAN: A foreign actor could place its thumb on the scale and maybe promote certain content that's favorable to a candidate that it wants to see in the White House and demode (ph) content that's favorable to a candidate it doesn't want to see.

TODD (voice-over): But many TikTok users are young millennials who an 81-year-old candidate might need to reach.

TALEV: If you are trying to turn out young voters, and you're trying to message around issues that they are not getting from other news sources and you're not on it, it's a lost opportunity. And so that's what Biden and his team are balancing. TODD: White House officials would not address criticism of the

president doing the TikTok video, referring all questions on that to the Biden campaign.

The Biden campaign said using TikTok is proof of the campaign's commitment to using new, innovative ways to reach voters. It did add that it's taking extra security precautions, but so far the campaign has not addressed criticism of hypocrisy.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Officials in Austin, Texas, say a car crashed into a hotel emergency room Tuesday evening, killing the driver and injuring at least five others. Some images show people running to escape the danger.

Smoke filled the building as the vehicle's tires continue to spin and screech.

Austin Police say the incident does not appear to be an intentional act, and there is no threat to the general public.

A tiny robot could create a world of possibilities for surgery in space: the patient in orbit and doctors operating remotely from Earth. Their first trial run in zero gravity was a success as CNN's Kristin Fisher reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTIN FISHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sitting on top of this SpaceX rocket when it launched in January was the first surgical robot bound for outer space.

So mirror is a small surgical robot, MIRA, made by a company called Virtual Incision, arrived at the International Space Station in February. And on Saturday, it did something that's never been done before.

SHANE FARRITOR, PH.D., CHIEF TECHNICAL OFFICER, VIRTUAL INCISION: Saturday was the first time that a surgical robot in space was controlled by surgeons on earth to perform simulated surgical activities.

FISHER (voice-over): Virtual Incision provided CNN with exclusive video as six surgeons at the company's headquarters in Lincoln, Nebraska, took turns operating the robot after it was powered up by NASA astronauts, roughly 250 miles above.

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DR. MICHAEL JOBST, SURGEON: The adrenaline was pumping, and you know, I could feel my heart pounding. It was -- it was really exhilarating, but at the same time, once I saw that, you know, robotic device doing the things that I'm used to it doing, settled down. FISHER (voice-over): Dr. Michael Jobst says he's already performed 15 surgeries with MIRA during clinical trials on human patients here on Earth. But he's never had to contend with zero gravity or a time delay of about half a second.

JOBST: A split second or half a second is going to be significant, so this was a big challenge.

FARRITOR: You can see a left hand with a grasper and a right hand with a pair of scissors. And we use rubber bands here to simulate surgical tissue.

JOBST: So you could think of those rubber bands as perhaps, you know, blood vessels or tendons or other connective tissue that has elasticity, were able to, you know, grab hold of the rubber bands and then take the scissors and just basically to cut them.

All right. I'm going for it. That was one small rubber band. But a great leap for surgery.

FISHER: Now, in addition to someday performing remote surgeries on people in space, they also want to use this type of technology here on Earth in places where it may be tough to find a surgeon, places like really remote rural areas, or maybe even war zones.

Kristin Fisher, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause. Please stay with us. I'll be back with more news after a very short break. See you soon.

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