Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
CNN International: Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis Testifies in Misconduct Hearing; Ugandan Renewable Energy Company Brings Biofuel to Farmers. Aired 4:30-5a ET
Aired February 16, 2024 - 04:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:30:00]
BIANCA NOBILO, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. If you're just joining us, here are some of today's top stories.
A significant blow to House Republicans' efforts to impeach President Joe Biden. The special counsel investigating Hunter Biden has charged a former FBI informant with making up claims about the president and Hunter Biden's involvement with the Ukrainian company, undercutting a major aspect of Republicans' impeachment inquiry into the president.
Plus, the date is set for the unprecedented criminal trial of a former president of the United States now running to return to the White House. The judge in Donald Trump's hush money case in New York ordering jury selection to begin on March 25th after refusing to dismiss the charges.
And Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis will return to the witness stand in the coming hours for day two of a hearing on a motion to disqualify her in the Georgia election subversion case against Donald Trump. At the center of it all, as you may know, her former romantic relationship with lead prosecutor Nathan Wade.
FOSTER: Willis is accused of financially benefiting from that relationship and defense lawyers for Trump and his co-defendants have accused her of misconduct and having a conflict of interest.
CNN's Tom Foreman reports on the fiery and combative testimony.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A stunning and fiery day in court as Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis took the stand to defend herself and her case.
FANI WILLIS, FULTON COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: You're confused. You think I'm on trial. These people are on trial for trying to steal an election in 2020.
FOREMAN (voice-over): In one explosive exchange after another, she explained her romantic relationship with the prosecutor she hired to lead the election fraud case. And she tore into the legal team around former President Trump and his allies. WILLIS: It's highly offensive when someone lies on you and it's highly offensive when they try to implicate that you slept with somebody the first day you met with them. And I take exception to it.
FOREMAN (voice-over): At issue in the hearing were two key questions. First, when did her romantic relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade begin?
NATHAN WADE, SPECIAL PROSECUTOR IN TRUMP'S GEORGIA ELECTION INTERFERENCE CASE: Let's be clear, 2022 was the start of any intimate, sexual relationship with the district attorney.
[04:35:00]
FOREMAN (voice-over): While Wade testified that the romance started when the investigation of Trump and his co-defendants was well underway. A one-time mutual friend, Robin Yeartie, insisted it started way back in 2019.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you observe them do things that are common among people having a romantic relationship?
ROBIN YEARTIE, FANI WILLIS' FORMER FRIEND: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Such as, can you give us an example?
YEARTIE: Hugging, kissing, affection.
FOREMAN (voice-over): Willis's take at that time she and Wade were friends, nothing more. And as for that contrary testimony --
WILLIS: I have not spoken to Robin in over a year. I certainly do not consider her a friend now.
FOREMAN (voice-over): The second key question, did the district attorney financially benefit by choosing her romantic partner to lead the election fraud case? Team Trump came in saying Wade used money from that appointment to take Willis on trips to California, Aruba, Belis, the Bahamas and more. But hold on Wade said, Willis paid him back in cash for all that travel.
WADE: What I allege is that our travel was split roughly evenly.
FOREMAN (voice-over): A line he held even as Team Trump drilled in.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sure you probably have the deposit slips, where you took the cash and deposited the cash in your account, don't you?
WADE: I did not deposit the cash in my account.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You don't have a single solitary deposit slip to corroborate or support any of your allegations that you were paid by Mrs. Willis in cash, do you?
WADE: No, sir.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not a single solitary one?
WADE: Not a one.
FOREMAN (voice-over): And Willis was right there with him dismissing the claims of financial shenanigans.
WILLIS: I mean I paid for the hotel, I paid for the flights. I had a birthday luncheon for him. I paid for massages. I paid for everything.
FOREMAN (voice-over): And as for always repaying in cash.
WILLIS: I have money in my house.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have money in your house, so it was just money that was there?
WILLIS: When you meet my father, he's going to tell you as a woman, you should always have, which I don't have. So let's don't tell him that. You should have at least six months in cash at your house at all time.
FOREMAN (voice-over): She also batted down questions about sensitive personal matters.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The characterization.
WILLIS: I'm not going to emasculate a black man, but I'm just telling you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sorry, what?
WILLIS: I'm not going to emasculate a black man. Did you understand that?
FOREMAN (voice-over): And slapped away so much of what Team Trump said.
Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Now in 2022, about 990 million people across sub-Saharan Africa lacked access to clean cooking options. Instead, they turned to kerosene, coal, charcoal or wood for cooking fuel. But in doing so, they often expose themselves to household air pollution.
NOBILO: Burning these fuels in the home is linked to some 700,000 premature deaths each year. Connecting Africa's Eleni Giokos reports from Uganda on a company that's trying to address that challenge.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Lively, illuminated streets, the hum of a convenience store and the buzz of a late-night haircut. This rural village in northern Uganda is shining bright with opportunities thanks to an alternative form of energy, biofuel.
PETER BENHUR NYEKO, FOUNDER AND CEO, MANDULIS ENERGY: Africa is a continent that at the moment has well over half a billion people without access to electricity. And the majority of those are farmers. And for those farmers, no access to electricity means they cannot process their crops.
GIOKOS (voice-over): In addition to using solar energy, the company breaks down agricultural waste into a synthetically produced gas called syngas. They then take the green hydrogen that is released during this process to create electricity.
NYEKO: We're working right now in Uganda with over 10,000 farming families. Farmers bring their crops to be processed to high-value products. And once that is done, they're able to sell them and improve their income. The waste that's left behind is what we utilize to generate our electricity and generate our clean cooking fuel.
GIOKOS (voice-over): Mandulis Energy says their relationship with local farmers fosters a circular economy.
NYEKO: We need those farmers to be cooking with our briquettes and pellets. We need them to be selling us agricultural waste. So that's how we work really closely with them.
GIOKOS (voice-over): While profits for these businesses are in the green, Mandulis Energy says the economic potential of biofuel goes beyond local business owners.
NYEKO: Delivering renewable energy will make a massive difference positively on the balance of trade within Uganda, within East Africa, and within the region and globally.
GIOKOS (voice-over): The company says it's already taking steps to further expand beyond Uganda's borders.
NYEKO: Africa and within the region and globally.
GIOKOS (voice-over): The company says it's already taking steps to further expand beyond Uganda's borders.
NYEKO: Mandulis Energy has already completed feasibility studies for projects in Botswana, South Africa, and already completed development of projects in Zambia and Nigeria and Cambodia. With additional sites coming up in Kenya, in Guinea, in the United Kingdom, and Spain.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NOBILO: Still to come, a landmark victory for the LGBTQ plus community in Greece. We'll bring you the latest on this historic vote.
FOSTER: Plus, it's the end of the line for one of the biggest names in soccer. Why South Korea has sacked national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) NOBILO: A cause for celebration in Athens Thursday night as the Greek parliament voted to legalize same-sex marriage. Greece is the first majority Orthodox Christian country to establish marriage equality, giving same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexual couples.
FOSTER: They'll be able to adopt and receive full parental rights. The prime minister hailed the legislation as a quote, milestone for human rights reflecting today's Greece.
Hear one couple's reaction to the long-awaited bill.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're very happy with this result. We've been waiting for it for a very long time. I'm so happy that me and my partner can finally get married legally. Love wins everything, every hatred, everything. And yes, we hope that everyone can find their missing piece in this world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[04:45:00]
FOSTER: The new trading day getting underway in the U.S. in a little less than five hours. Here's where the stock futures stand right now. The S&P, another record. There are records being hit on markets around the world when there's so much of a problem with cost of living. But anyway, that is the world we live in.
Meanwhile, the European markets are up and running and they're all positive too.
Here's a look at how markets across Asia fare today. The Nikkei was at a record as well.
NOBILO: Well, investors are probably hoping for some momentum after the good day that U.S. stocks had on Thursday. U.S. stocks bouncing back from steep losses earlier on in the week. The S&P 500 closed at another record high on Thursday. The Dow and Nasdaq also higher. The market rebounded after U.S. Fed officials appeared to calm anxious nerves across Wall Street.
Investors had been worried that the Fed would keep rates higher for longer than expected after a disappointing inflation report on Tuesday.
U.S. mortgage rates rose on Thursday on the heels of the latest economic reports. Mortgage giant Freddie Mac says the 30-year-old fixed rate mortgage hit 6.77 percent as of February 15th, up from 6.64 percent the previous week. Freddie Mac speculates that rates may continue to stay higher and could impede home buying this spring.
NOBILO: Turning now to the Caribbean, where the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago is describing a recent oil spill as a national emergency. He's promised to provide federal financial support to those affected. You might know that a ship overturned off the coast last week.
FOSTER: Authorities say about nine miles of coastline is, quote, blackened and residents report constant smell. Officials add that they still don't know who owns the ship or exactly what it contains.
South Korea's football association shaking things up as part of the national team's loss in the Asian Cup semifinals.
NOBILO: The KFA has fired head coach Jurgen Klinsmann after what they call a comprehensive review. It comes in the wake of a fight between the team's captain and one of its midfielders the night before the match.
The KFA criticized Klinsmann for his lack of leadership and not spending enough time in South Korea since he took on the job.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHUNG MONG-GYU, CHAIRMAN, KOREA FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION (through translator): Coach Klinsmann fell short of the people's expectations and public sentiments over competitiveness and attitude as a head coach. He was deemed unlikely to improve, so he decided to replace the head coach at the second stage of the 2026 World Cup qualifying round.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: The KFA confirms the fight happened on February the 5th during a team dinner in Qatar. A lawyer for Lee Kang-in, shown here on the right, says his client deeply regrets the incident.
Women's college basketball has a new top scorer, the latest on this historic sports moment after the break.
[04:50:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NOBILO: Women's college basketball has a new all-time leading scorer. The University of Iowa's Caitlin Clark beat the previous record of 3,527 career points.
FOSTER: Wow!
NOBILO: Just wow, indeed. Just minutes into the game, the 22-year-old Hawkeye achieved the feat by dropping a long three-pointer against the Michigan Wolverines. The game stopped as Clark celebrated with teammates and the crowd gave her a rousing ovation. Here's her humble reaction to that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAITLIN CLARK, UNIVERSITY OF IOWA: Honestly, like warming up, like my shot just felt good. So I knew it was going to be kind of one of those nights and kind of played with a little bit more pep in my step. And I knew that's what this team needed after coming off of a loss. And just lucky, like my teammates, I'm just so thankful. They let me be me and I wouldn't be where I am if it wasn't for them. So, yeah, I'm just really thankful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: To golf now, where Tiger Woods finished one over par in the first round whilst hosting the Genesis Invitational. The 15-time major champion wasn't at his sharpest on Thursday.
Not my judgment, the writers. Obviously, much better than me.
NOBILO: I think it's objective though.
FOSTER: Tallying six bogeys, five birdies and a shank in the 18th hole.
NOBILO: It's a volatile round.
FOSTER: The 48-year-old who has undergone a number of surgeries over the years, says he was dealing with back spasms. This is his first official PGA Tour event since the Masters 10 months ago.
NOBILO: Max having a Newtonian moment.
FOSTER: I want to blame it on you, but it's entirely my fault.
Woods is tied for 49th, heading into the second round later today.
NOBILO: Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka has reached her first quarterfinal in almost two years after her opponent at the Qatar Open withdrew with an elbow injury. Osaka returned to tennis last month after more than a year away from it.
During that time, the 26-year-old former world number one welcomed a baby girl. Osaka told CNN's Becky Anderson that becoming a mother has changed her perspective on life. She'll face Karolina Pliskova, another former world number one in the quarterfinals.
And some stories in the spotlight this hour. Fashion's biggest night of the year is just around the corner and we have new details for you about the Met Gala. The theme for this year is the Garden of Time, which is sure to inspire some outrageous outfits.
It comes from a 1962 short story by British author J.G. Ballard about translucent, time-manipulating flowers.
FOSTER: We also know the four co-chairs for the May 6th event, Jennifer Lopez, Bad Bunny, Chris Hemsworth and Zendaya.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Speaking of whom? You've been fighting the Harkonnens for decades. My family's been fighting them for centuries.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Your blood comes from dukes.
(END VIDEO CLIP) FOSTER: The star of Dune, part two, reaffirmed her style icon status, proving once again she's more than worthy of the Met Gala co-chair title.
NOBILO: At the film's world premiere on Thursday, Zendaya and her longtime image architect, Law Roach, pulled out all of the stops.
You should check out this outfit --
FOSTER: Oh, my god!
NOBILO: -- because I'm sure you haven't seen it. Wowing in an out-of- this-world look courtesy of archival Thierry Mugler. The robotic suit is from the French designer's fall-winter 1995 couture collection.
What's that? What was a style architect? Image architect?
NOBILO: Yes.
FOSTER: We need to get one.
NOBILO: Yes, we do.
FOSTER: The day after Valentine's Day -- this is your script, but I don't know, I'm just going to do it. A dozen dogs of various breeds tied the knot in Peru, naturally.
NOBILO: I mean, I don't know if this is depressing or nice that the dogs are having a better romantic life than me.
I think I'm happy for them. Oh dear, that was slightly creepy, that human with the dog mask.
FOSTER: Poodles Coco and Dolly were dressed as groom and bride. Not sure about the human's attire.
NOBILO: Yes.
FOSTER: You can get the sense that they may be a little more excited about this event than the actual dogs. It's always the case.
NOBILO: I think I might run the other direction if I saw a human in a dog mask coming towards me. But we're told that the pups stamped their paws on marriage certificates. These mass dog weddings have apparently become a popular tradition in Peru.
Now you have dogs, would you marry them to each other?
FOSTER: No, it's weird.
NOBILO: OK.
FOSTER: Thanks for joining us here on CNN NEWSROOM, I'm Max Foster.
NOBILO: And I'm Bianca Nobilo. "EARLY START" is next right here on CNN. Have a wonderful weekend.
