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Biden, Trump Breached Required Number of Delegates For Their Party's Nomination as U.S. President; Aid Now Reaches Gaza by Sea with No Ceasefire Talks Yet in Sight; Haiti's Transitional Committee To Set Up After the Resignation of Their PM. Former Special Counsel in Question by Lawmakers on Biden's Classified Documents; Argentina Logs Highest Inflation in the World; U.K.'s Request for Tate Brothers' Extradition Approved by a Romanian Court. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired March 13, 2024 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, the rematch many Americans don't seem to want is set. Joe Biden and Donald Trump now have the delegates needed to clinch their party's nomination for U.S. President.

Much needed aid is headed to Gaza by land, air and now sea as negotiators report little progress in ceasefire talks.

And Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a strong warning against putting U.S. troops in Ukraine.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Good to have you with us. The stage is now set for the U.S. presidential election rematch between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Both candidates swept Tuesday's primaries in three states, capturing enough delegates to win their party's nominations.

A projected win in Washington state helped put Donald Trump over the top. His last remaining Republican challenger Nikki Haley dropped out of the race last week.

And President Joe Biden wrapped things up with a win in Georgia. He will officially be nominated at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in August.

Poll shows voters are concerned about Biden's age and many in his own party disapprove of his handling of the war in Gaza.

Meanwhile, Trump is facing 91 felony charges for his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election, mishandling classified documents and covering up hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.

More now on Trump's quest to retake the White House from CNN's Kristen Holmes.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: While former President Donald Trump clinched the Republican nomination on Tuesday night, it was too much little fanfare. He didn't come out. He didn't give any remarks. He didn't even hold an event. It was almost as though he was also the incumbent. But Donald Trump's team has been focused on the general election for weeks.

They had started to pivot to try to build out their ground game operation in pivotal states, battleground states, particularly Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, states some of which Donald Trump won in 2016 and lost in 2020. They believe this matchup against Biden is going to be incredibly close. And as one senior advisor put it to me, they don't want to leave a single vote on the table.

Now, we have heard a lot about Donald Trump's struggles with suburban voters. Donald Trump's team is keenly aware of that. And the former president is not going to change and likely to not win over huge swaths of suburban voters. So part of the strategy there is going to try to offset those voters with different blocks of Democratic-leaning voters, or traditionally Democratic-leaning voters. Donald Trump's team sees an opening with black male voters in the state of Georgia. They see an opening with working class voters in the state of Michigan.

This is not all of these voters, but it is enough. They believe they can siphon off enough of these different voting demographics to try and offset what they are seeing in the suburbs, what they are seeing with independents. Now, what they are doing, they're hunkering down right now and coming up with exactly what that strategy is going to look like and what exactly their ground game is going to look like in these various states, because Donald Trump and his team, as we have reported before, believe that he has a path to the White House. But it is a very narrow one, and it is going to require them to fight again for every single vote.

So that is what they are turning their attention to right now.

Kristin Holmes, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Larry Sabato is the director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. He joins me now from Charlottesville. Great to have you with us.

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR OF CENTER FOR POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: Thank you so much, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So it is the rematch nobody wants, Super Tuesday 2 making it possible for both Joe Biden and Donald Trump to clinch their party's presidential nominations and go head-to-head in November. Out of the four primary races, Georgia is seen as a must win, of course, in the general election. What did Tuesday's results reveal about what might happen in that critical state come November?

SABATO: Well, of course, primaries really don't tell you that much about the general election.

But I did notice in a couple of places in Georgia, particularly in DeKalb County, which is a key voting area, Nikki Haley, who's already dropped out of the race, was at various points running even or even a little ahead of Donald Trump.

[03:05:03]

Now, when all the votes are in, Trump may win there too. And he certainly won the state easily. But there is still resistance for both candidates. Donald Trump has still not won over many of those never Trump voters from 2016 and 2020. And Joe Biden has the problems we've all seen because of the Middle East war.

CHURCH: Yeah. And let's look into that, because many in President Biden's own party disapprove of his support for Israel's war in Gaza. And polls show voters are still concerned about Mr. Biden's age, despite being slightly older than Trump and despite a very strong showing in his State of the Union address. What's it going to take to turn his approval ratings around? And does the Hur report hearing open up this wound or does it close it down and move on?

SABATO: I actually think we're going to move on from the Hur report because a whole day was spent on it and basically both sides were just spinning their wheels. We didn't really learn much that was new. Clearly, Hur is being criticized from both sides, legitimately so probably.

But as far as age goes, there's no way for Biden to discard that completely. There is a way for him to tailor his message so that he appears young in idea, as he likes to say, if not young in age. And that's what he's got to work on.

If conditions get better, though, Rosemary, what's really important for Biden is that he show he is in command and he's making progress on the things people really care about. Then age kind of falls to the side.

CHURCH: Right. And of course, you did touch on Trump's vulnerabilities because he still has to show he can expand his base and pick up Nikki Haley's supporters because right now many don't want to vote for him. So how does he turn that around?

SABATO: He's going to have to be a little more conciliatory than he normally is. That's not a word that we associate very much with Donald Trump.

At some point, it may be that Nikki Haley endorses him because she figures that's really in her interest long term. But so many of the people who voted for Nikki Haley clearly were not that interested in Nikki Haley. They simply found her an acceptable alternative to Donald Trump. They seem so determined not to vote for Donald Trump that they're

going to go elsewhere. I don't think many of them really are going to go to Biden, but they're going to look -- they're going to shop around for a third party or independent candidate.

CHURCH: And of course, we all know Trump faces 91 felony charges for his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election, his mishandling of classified documents and of course, the hush money payments to Stormy Daniels. But his legal woes have actually strengthened his support when it comes to his base. But what about those other Republican voters not impressed by his legal problems? What will they likely do?

SABATO: I think it's critical that Trump go to trial somewhere about something and not the civil cases, but the criminal cases before November. Ideally, it would be before the Republican convention. But I think that's asking too much.

If Trump either looks like he's going to be convicted on some of the counts or actually is convicted, that's when for the first time some of his support could crumble away.

And this is not me conjecturing. It's what people have been telling pollsters and party leaders all the way along. So convictions matter.

And sometimes you can look as though you're going to be convicted. That seems to be the way the trial is going. It can have that effect even without an end to the trial.

CHURCH: All right, Larry Sabato, thank you so much for joining us. I Appreciate it.

SABATO: Thank you, Rosemary, as always.

CHURCH: The U.N.'s World Food Program says it has reached northern Gaza with much needed aid in the first successful food convoy to the area in three weeks.

The WFP said it delivered enough food for 25,000 people, but says more deliveries are needed with direct entry points into the north where people are on the brink of famine.

The Israel Defense Forces says the six U.N. humanitarian trucks entered the area through a new route on Tuesday. Countries are also working to get food into northern Gaza from the air.

Jordan's air force conducted joint airdrops with the U.S., Egypt and Belgium on Tuesday. Despite all this, Israel is under growing pressure to allow more access to Gaza in an effort to get more aid in by land.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEP BORRELL, E.U. FOREIGN POLICY CHIEF: This is a humanitarian crisis which is not a natural disaster. It's not a flood. It's not an earthquake. It's man-made.

[03:10:06] And when we look for alternative ways of providing support by sea or by air, we have to remind that we have to do it because the natural way of providing support through roads is being closed, artificially closed. And starvation is being used as a war arm.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And more assistance is headed to Gaza, this time by sea. A ship carrying aid from the World Central Kitchen is now en route to the enclave after leaving Cyprus on Tuesday. On board, about 200 tons of food. One UN official said the move is highly appreciated but stressed it is not a substitute for the overland transport of food to those on the verge of famine in Gaza.

CNN's Nada Bashir has details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): On its way at last. The open arms, normally a search and rescue vessel, setting sail from Larnaca in Cyprus.

With nearly 200 tons of aid in tow, rice, flour and canned goods, enough for 500,000 meals, according to World Central Kitchen.

JUAN CAMILO ALVAREZ, WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN: It's the first thing happening in many years. And that means that we are working with different actors, different governments, different entities to make this possible.

BASHIR (voice-over): And this is where it's going. A makeshift pier in Gaza, still under construction. This, in addition to a temporary pier to be established by the U.S. military on Gaza's coast.

World Central Kitchen says it plans to distribute the food in Gaza, where a quarter of Palestinians are on the brink of famine, according to the U.N.

ANTONIO GUTERRES, U.N. SECRETARY GENERAL: My strongest appeal today is to honor the spirit of Ramadan by silencing the guns. And removing all obstacles to ensure the delivery of life-saving aid at the speed and massive scale required.

BASHIR (voice-over): Any form of celebration during this holy month is, at best, muted. With little food for Palestinians to break their fast at sunset.

We decided to come and break our fast here in our home, which was struck. Despite the destruction and the rubble, we brought our food and cooked on firewood.

Open Arms will be one of the first ships to enter the Strip in years, ever since Israel implemented a naval blockade on the territory in 2007.

Aid trucks which, on average, crossed at around 500 a day before the war began, now pile up at the Rafah border crossing in Egypt.

Only a fraction actually make it across the border every day.

Governments and other aid agencies have also taken to airdrops, though this option has proven both controversial and even risky.

Leaving the sea as one of the last remaining avenues to bring food to those so desperately in need.

Nada Bashir, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And CNN's Paula Hancocks is following developments for us. She joins us live from Abu Dhabi. Good to see you again, Paula. So what is the latest on efforts to get a ceasefire and hostage release deal in place?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, we have heard from the CIA director Bill Burns in the United States saying that there is still the possibility, but it will be a very tough process.

Now he has also said that there is no guarantee at this point that it will work. The only guarantee is that the alternatives are far worse for the people in Gaza and also for the families of the hostages.

Now we also spoke to the Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson speaking to CNN. He did point out that they are very far from a deal at the moment, but constructive dialogue is ongoing. So it hasn't completely finished.

And there are talks back and forth through the mediators, Qatar being one of the main mediators. He pointed out there are some significant gaps between the two sides, between Hamas and Israel.

For example, Hamas would like all Israeli military to leave Gaza at a ceasefire, something that Israel is not willing to do. Hamas wants the displaced to be able to move back to northern Gaza or the areas they were pushed from.

And also there is a question of how long it would last of aid, how much humanitarian aid can get in and how it would get in. So there are some significant gaps still to be reached. But let's listen to the foreign ministry spokesperson.

[03:14:57]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJED AL-ANSARI, QATARI FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESPERSON: There are those, including Netanyahu, who have the keys to securing a deal right now. We urge them to consider doing a deal right now, because every day that goes by is a risk to the life of the hostages, is a risk to the life of civilians in Gaza. And it's not in anybody's interest, especially the people of Israel, the security of Israel, for this war to continue. (END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: So although optimism is far less than it was just one week ago, Rosemary, there are still hopes. Bill Burns saying it is still a possibility.

CHURCH: And Paula, tragically, we learned about the death of another hostage, Israeli-American Itai Hinn. What more are you learning about the sad news for his family, clearly?

HANCOCKS: So this is a 19-year-old. He was serving on the Gaza border at the time of the October 7th attacks by Hamas. The IDF, the Israeli military, now saying that they believe he was, in fact, killed on that day and then his body was taken into Gaza. Now, he was believed to be one of six U.S. citizens. He's a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen to still be in Gaza. But he is now believed to be one of at least four dual citizens whose remains are in Gaza at this point.

Now, his family had been very vocal. His father and his brother just back in December had gone to the White House to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden. Joe Biden responding as well, saying he was devastated to learn of this and said that no family should have to endure even one day of what that family has gone through. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Yeah, it is just such sad news. Paula Hancocks, joining us live from Abu Dhabi. Many thanks.

Still to come, a deadly explosion in China. The powerful blast at a restaurant rattled the neighborhood early Wednesday morning. What we know about that incident.

Plus, unexpected military aid for Ukraine. The U.S. announces $300 million worth of assistance. But much more is needed. A report from the Pentagon next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: New video shows the moment of a suspected gas explosion in northern China. State media says it happened at a restaurant on the ground floor of a four-story building in Hebei province, east of Beijing. The powerful blast killed one person and injured 22 others. As you can see in these images from social media, the explosion destroyed the building and damaged other buildings and cars nearby.

Russia's president says that from a military and technical standpoint, his country is prepared for nuclear war. Vladimir Putin spoke to Russian state media in an interview published Wednesday. He tells them nuclear conflict is not imminent, but he says he is ready to use nuclear weapons to deal with any threat to the existence of the Russian state.

[03:20:06]

He's also trying to stoke fear about Polish troops entering Ukraine, saying they may be tempted to retake land they consider theirs historically. And President Putin is warning the United States to keep its soldiers out of Ukraine. Not that there are any plans for the U.S. to send its troops into combat.

Ukrainian officials say at least three people were killed by a Russian attack in southern Ukraine on Tuesday. At least 40 people were injured, including 10 children, after Russian missiles struck multi- story buildings in the city of Kryvyi Rih. Officials say the missiles started fires in residential buildings and rescue workers had to dig through rubble to save people.

The U.S. announced a surprise package of $300 million in new military aid to Ukraine on Tuesday after months of warning there was no money left. But President Joe Biden says it's not nearly enough and again called on the U.S. House of Representatives to pass a much larger supplemental bill. CNN's Oren Liebermann has more on the US aid package from the Pentagon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: This $300 million aid package to Ukraine includes some of the most needed arms and equipment for Ukrainian forces as they try to hold the line against Russia, which is gradually advancing in the face of, effectively, a lack of U.S.-supplied ammunition and equipment.

So take a look at the list of what's in here. Crucially, 155 mm artillery ammunition. This is some of the most needed basic weaponry to hold the line against the Russians.

Russia able to fire a far greater amount of artillery ammunition because of its supply lines and its ability to put its economy on a wartime footing. Ukraine has had to rely on US supplies and the last U.S. aid package was back on December 27th.

In terms of what else is in this package, it also includes anti- aircraft missiles. Those are needed to repel Russian air assaults, as well as more of the necessary weapons and equipment. But the U.S. made it clear this is only a tiny fraction of what Ukraine needs. And this may only be able to help Ukraine for a matter of weeks, perhaps as little as a couple of weeks, according to the White House.

And that is why the U.S. pushed both the White House and the Pentagon to put forward a need for the supplemental $90 billion that's already gotten through the Senate, but it's stuck in the House. Critically, it includes $60 billion for Ukraine. That, the White House, the Pentagon and Ukraine have made clear, is much needed, especially at this point in the fight, when Ukrainian forces are having to ration some of their ammunition to make sure it doesn't run out. They need U.S.-supplied weapons, essentially, to be able to push back against these Russian advances.

Some of the other countries in Europe have stepped up and tried to fill that gap, but it is the US that has been the bulk of the provider here, and it is the US that is still very much needed in this case.

Oren Liebermann, CNN, in the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Several groups of pro-Ukrainian Russian fighters claim to have launched attacks across Ukraine's border into Russia on Tuesday. One group claims it took full control of a Russian village and destroyed an armored personnel carrier. The attack reportedly happened in the Kursk and Belgorod regions of Russia. The Russian defense ministry says its forces killed 60 Ukrainian troops as they tried to cross into Russia. The ministry also says it thwarted Ukrainian, quote, "terrorist formations from multiple directions". The incursions come hours after a wave of Ukrainian drones attacked targets in Russia.

Alexei Navalny's former chief of staff has survived an attack in Lithuania, and a warning the images we're about to show of him after the attack are graphic.

According to Navalny's spokesperson, someone struck Leonard Volkov with a hammer and sprayed him with tear gas outside his home. The Russian opposition activist was taken to hospital. He says he has a broken arm and was also hit in the leg and head, but he says it will not stop him from his work. The attack comes less than a month after Alexei Navalny's death in a Russian prison. Volkov served as the chairman of his anti-corruption foundation until last year.

Haiti is hoping to have a transitional council in place after the country's prime minister resigned following widespread gang violence in the country. But a powerful gang leader says his coalition of gangs will not recognize any government put in place by the new council, and it's the responsibility of Haitians to choose their leaders. The council will be tasked with appointing an interim prime minister and establishing a provisional electoral council to facilitate elections.

The U.N. welcomed the new developments, but says it's hard to predict if it will help end the violence.

[03:25:02]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHANE DUJARRIC, U.N. SPOKESPERSON: What is clear is that a political solution cannot be imposed on the Haitian people from the outside. This is a way forward.

UNKNOWN: Does the S.G. have any message to gangs and gang leaders in Haiti right now because they are threatening a bloodbath?

DUJARRIC: Silence the guns.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: CNN's Patrick Oppmann has more now on the political situation in Haiti.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For more than a week, Haiti's marauding gangs prevented Prime Minister Ariel Henry from returning to the country he was supposed to lead, until finally Henry reached a breaking point and agreed on Monday night to resign.

ARIEL HENRY, HAITIAN PRIME MINISTER (through translator): My government will leave immediately after the integration of the council. We will be a caretaker government until they name a prime minister and a new cabinet. Haiti needs peace. Haiti needs stability.

OPPMANN (through translator): Henry had traveled from Haiti to Kenya to sign an agreement with the government there to provide troops to fight the out-of-control gangs terrorizing his beleaguered nation.

Once he left, the gangs united to further batter the Haitian government in a series of coordinated attacks. The latest explosion of violence leading to a massive jailbreak that freed thousands of prisoners closed the country's main airport indefinitely and forced the United States and other embassies to evacuate diplomats by helicopter.

The news of Henry's impending resignation is not placating the leaders of gangs, though, who have threatened an all-out civil war.

JIMMY CHERIZIER, HAITI GANG LEADER (through translator): We in Vivasan are demanding that the Haitian people must choose the person who will lead the country.

OPPMANN (through translator): But it is the Haitian people who are suffering the most. More than 300,000 have been displaced by the violence, the U.N. says.

Gangs block access to food, water and hospitals, using hunger and sexual violence as weapons of war. Bodies of their victims lie uncollected on streets.

On Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with regional leaders in Jamaica. And announced an increase in U.S. funding to the security mission to be led by Kenyan troops.

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: I'm announcing today that the United States Department of Defense is doubling its approved support for the mission from $100 million to $200 million. And that brings the total U.S. support to $300 million for this effort.

OPPMANN (through translator): Following the announcement that Henry will resign, Kenyan officials now saying a government needs to be in place in Haiti before their troops can deploy, creating more doubt of when exactly they will have boots on the ground to begin fighting the heavily armed local gang.

For too many Haitians living in a country where there is no longer a functioning government, no escape from the violence, it is already too late.

Patrick Oppmann, CNN Havana. (END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Up next, the former special counsel behind the report that called Joe Biden an elderly man with a poor memory, defends himself on Capitol Hill. The latest on the investigation into the president's handling of classified documents.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back everyone. The White House has responded to testimony by former special counsel Robert Hur about Joe Biden's handling of classified documents.

Hur said his assessment of the president's memory and cognitive skills was necessary and fair. After his report concluded the president was forgetful and lax around sensitive information. But the White House says the case is now closed since President Biden has not been charged.

CNN's Paula Reid has more now from Capitol Hill.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN SR. LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Former special counsel Robert Hur grilled by lawmakers from both sides of the aisle today about his investigation into President Biden's mishandling of classified documents.

REP. JIM JORDAN (R-OH), HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: Mr. Hur, why'd he do it? Why did Joe Biden, in your words, willfully retain and disclose classified materials? I mean, he knew the law. Been in office like 50 years.

REP. PRAMILA JAYAPAL (D-WA): You exonerated him. I know that the term willful retention has a -- Mr. Hur, it's my time.

REID (voice-over): Biden's memory took center stage as Hur said in his report that he did not charge Biden because he believed a jury would see him as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory.

REP. MATT GAETZ (R-FL): You find in your report that the elements of a federal criminal violation are met, but then you apply this senile cooperator theory that because Joe Biden cooperated and the elevator doesn't go to the top floor, you don't get a conviction.

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): You understood when you made that decision, didn't you, Mr. Hur, that you would ignite a political firestorm with that language, didn't you?

ROBERT HUR, FORMER SPECIAL COUNSEL: Congressman, politics played no part whatsoever in my investigative steps.

SCHIFF: You cannot tell me you're so naive as to think you created a political firestorm. You understood that.

REID (voice-over): Hur told the committee he stood by the words in his report.

HUR: My assessment in the report about the relevance of the president's memory was necessary and accurate and fair.

REID (voice-over): Both sides using the issue to try to score political points.

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: Have a good memory and all that stuff, like a great memory.

REID (voice-over): Showing dueling videos featuring gaffes by Trump and Biden.

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: My memory is so bad I let you speak.

REID (voice-over): Hur was also pressed on the differences between Biden's case and that of former President Trump, those being that Biden returned the documents. He allowed for searches of various properties and even sat for a voluntary interview with the special counsel.

REP. TED LIEU (D-CA): Did you find that President Biden engaged in a conspiracy to obstruct justice?

HUR: No.

LIEU: Did you find that President Biden engaged in a scheme to conceal?

HUR: No.

REID (voice-over): And while Hur explained that he did not have enough evidence to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt, he made it clear that his report does not absolve the president.

REP. KEVIN KILEY (R-CA): Mr. Hur, did you completely exonerate President Biden?

HUR: That is not what my report does.

REID (voice-over): Hur also emphasized that he was making a legal conclusion about Biden's mental state, not a medical one.

REP. SCOTT FITZGERALD (R-WI): Mr. Hur, based on your report, did you find that the president was senile?

HUR: I did not. That conclusion does not appear in my report.

REID (voice-over): A transcript of Biden's interview with Hur was released just a few hours before the hearing, causing Republicans to cry foul.

REP. JAMES COMER (R-KY): The timing is not coincidental. REID (voice-over): And after the hearing wrapped, the White House

responded, saying the hearing should put the classified documents investigation against Biden to rest.

IAN SAMS, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESPERSON: The conclusion was simple, that there is no case here. The case is closed. It's time to move on.

REID (voice-over): Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Joey Jackson joins me now from New York. He is a CNN legal analyst and criminal defense attorney. Appreciate you being with us.

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Absolutely, Rosemary. Good to be here.

CHURCH: So in the hot seat for his report on President Biden's classified documents probe, former special counsel Robert Hur defended his decision not to pursue charges against the president, answered by his characterization of the president's age and memory after being attacked by both parties in a politically charged hearing. I want to start with the transcripts released earlier Tuesday of the president's interviews with Hur. How do they compare with the actual report?

JACKSON: Yeah, you know, that's the critical inquiry. And I think the next shoe to drop is whether or not the actual tapes are released. And so a transcript, when you look through it, right, it's -- it's sort of a cold, hard transcript.

[03:35:06]

You don't get the intonations. You don't get the reflections. You don't get to understand and have a sense of the nuances that might occur in an interview. But I think it's pretty straightforward with respect to the report. And I think in writing the report, the special counsel, Rosemary, had an obligation to stay true to A, the law; and B, the facts. Right? And so the ultimate assignment was to make a determination as to whether the former vice president, now president, had engaged in any type of legal violations as it related to classified documents.

And I think the transcript of the interviews were pretty consistent with the report itself. Again, if the actual tapes are released, we'll get to see really what kind of differences there are. And finally, I say that because truly, when you hear the tapes and the voice intonations and the expressions, et cetera, it'll give you an assessment as to whether or not his overall view, that is Mr. Hur, the special counsel, was true and accurate. But I think it was pretty clear that the transcripts did have, in fact, a connection and a close relationship to reality, which was in the 369-page report.

CHURCH: And Democrats accuse Hur of political motive for references to President Biden's age and memory. But Hur insists politics played no part in his report and said those references were necessary and accurate. Were they legally necessary? JACKSON: You know, so minds will differ. And I have to say, Rosemary,

I'm in the minority on this and I'll tell you why.

What happens is taking a step back. First of all, this is a person who's in a no win situation. Why do I say that? Number one, you're in an election year and in an election year, people want their candidate to win. The political parties want their candidate to win.

And so if you're Republican, you're hoping that the special counsel indicts the former vice president, then vice president, now the president, right, Biden, with respect to the classified documents. And if you don't do that, that -- that is indict. The Republicans are upset about that.

So now you're before the committee with a whole bunch of upset Republicans saying, why wouldn't you indict at the same time that you don't indict? But you call out the president by speaking to him, being elderly and having memory loss. The Democrats are going to go wild. Why? OK, you didn't indict him, but you impugned his character.

And here's why I come full circle of why I'm in the minority, Rosemary, in terms of why it was appropriate for him to say that most legal analysts will tell you it was not appropriate.

If you are rendering findings of fact and drawing conclusions of law and essentially what Hur said is that there was a willful retention of documents, classified documents, and there was even a sharing of those documents. But you're not indicting.

The critical question becomes, well, why not? And then I think the answer has to be because I've made the determination that a jury would conclude that we can't prove our case.

Well, why would a jury make such a conclusion? Then Hur goes on to say it's because a jury could in fact conclude that it was because Biden was elderly. Biden had potential memory problems. And as a result of that, they would not be willing to convict him.

CHURCH: And as you point out, Republicans were angry, blasting Hur decision not to charge President Biden. What did you make of Hur's legal reasoning for not charging him and still saying he did not exonerate President Biden? Is that legally correct?

JACKSON: You know, it's very interesting. It's sort of like the way it happens in our legal system is, say, for example, you do get charged and you go before a jury and you're found not guilty.

One could make the argument that you're not exonerated there. Why do I say that? Why I say it is because a jury doesn't make a finding and a determination as to innocence. They make a finding and determination as to you not being guilty.

Same reasoning applies here. What Hur is saying is that he didn't indict, not to say that the former vice president and now President Biden didn't do anything wrong, but he didn't find that it met the legal standard. And so technically, it's not an exoneration. It's just an indication that he could not prove his case.

CHURCH: Joey Jackson, always great to get your legal analysis. Many thanks.

JACKSON: Thank you.

CHURCH: Boeing officials could be subpoenaed to testify before U.S. investigators in the coming months in a rare public hearing over the door plug blowout on an Alaska Airlines flight back in January. On Tuesday, the airline released new information on the Boeing plane involved, revealing it was scheduled to be taken out of service for maintenance on the night of the incident, but it didn't specify why.

[03:40:00]

The National Transportation Safety Board was aware the plane had pressurization issues prior to the door plug incident, but believes those issues were unrelated.

We are hearing from more of the passengers on a LATAM Airlines flight, which experienced a sudden drop mid-air on Monday. It was headed from Australia to New Zealand at the time. Medical officials in Auckland, where the plane landed, said about 50 people on the flight were treated for injuries. Some of the passengers returned to Chile on Tuesday.

CNN's Marc Stewart has their reaction to the frightening ordeal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ambulances waited on the tarmac at the Auckland airport on Monday to help the injured on board a Boeing 787 just in from Sydney. Pictures from inside the jet show some of those injuries after passengers on LATAM Airlines flight 800 were suddenly thrown around inside.

UNKNOWN: And it felt like, you know, when you are in a roller coaster and you just go like this, that sensation.

STEWART (voice-over): LATAM Airlines calling what happened a technical event in a statement, but did not elaborate. A description prompting more questions from the safety analyst.

DAVID SOUCIE, FORMER FAA SAFETY INSPECTOR: Had it been a mechanical failure, they would have called it a mechanical failure and they would have turned around and gone back or they would have gone to a maintenance base. But that's not what they did. They said it was a technical event. So I just wish we had more information right now as to what happened here.

STEWART (voice-over): Uncertain moments for the passengers aboard.

BRIAN JOKAT, LATAM AIRLINES FLIGHT 800 PASSENGER: The plane basically stopped like it almost the best way to describe it is it just it's dropped out of the air.

STEWART (voice-over): Approximately 50 people were treated for injuries, adults and children.

UNKNOWN: There was a 2.5 year old sleeping on the seat next to us on the other side. He went up in the air and landed on the ground. But his mother was nursing a one year old, so she couldn't control both.

UNKNOWN: We were in the back row. The girl in front of my girlfriend, she was pretty much on the roof of the cabin. The girl next to me hit her head on the cabin.

STEWART (voice-over): This isn't the only recent attention getting case involving a Boeing jet. On Monday, a Boeing 777-300 operated by United heading to San Francisco was rerouted back to Sydney for an emergency landing due to a maintenance issue.

Earlier this year, a door plug on a 737 Max blew out mid-flight.

As for the passengers on this flight, a sense of relief to be back on the ground.

JOKAT: So we had about 45 minutes to fly to get to Auckland. So we hit the ground, we landed, everyone applauded. And then they said, right, everyone sit tight. We're going to get the injured off the plane first.

STEWART (voice-over): Investigators in New Zealand have seized the plane's black boxes. The cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder may hold the explanation to this latest scary mishap aboard a Boeing passenger plane.

Marc Stewart, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: An alarming new indicator about the cost of living in Argentina. It has recorded the highest inflation in the world for the third month in a row. Prices jumped by an average of 13 percent last month. It puts Argentina's overall inflation rate above that of countries like Lebanon and Venezuela. Stefano Pozzebon has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEFANO POZZEBON, JOURNALIST: For the third month in a row, Argentina recorded the highest inflation rate in the world. According to new data released on Tuesday, prices grew approximately 13 percent on average here in Buenos Aires in the month of February from the previous month.

Yearly, that is an inflation rate of over 270 percent. And particularly for young people, the prospect of prices growing week after week is particularly daunting.

UNKNOWN: I go to the UAU university, that is Universidad Buenos Aires, and it's a public university. But well, taxes always are growing. So well, we have to we have to adapt in order to, to stay here, because well, we want to stay here. UNKNOWN: I saw my grandparents coming here from Italy, both of them,

both trying to escape either from the war, from poverty, and trying to, like, you know, there was like two, two ships, one to New York, one, one to Argentina, they choose Argentina, and here I am, and they tried, they, they always hope for the best, it never came. Same for my parents, they try to stay, hope for the best, never happened. And I'm not, I don't think I'm willing to hope much.

UNKNOWN (translated): It's tough. You go to the market and you can afford something one day, and the following day everything is much expensive.

POZZEBON: Now, the country's president, Javier Milei, entered office in December, specifically on the promise of keeping inflation under control.

[03:45:00]

His government has dramatically cut public spending and has devalued the Argentinean peso in order to try stem the price growth.

These policies have already brought some impact because, for example, in February, Argentina, for the first time in months, collected more taxes than it spent. But that also meant that more and more people are falling below the poverty line. According to data released by the Catholic University of Buenos Aires, the poverty rate in Argentina for January was over 50 percent.

And many of Milei's critics are arguing that these measures to try and keep inflation under control are actually hurting the economy even more than is necessary.

For CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Buenos Aires.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Still to come, paying an unimaginable price for a gourmet product, how the harvesting of acai berries in the Amazon is putting children at enormous risk.

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CHURCH: It is a superfood you might find in high-end grocery stores or juice bars. The acai berry is said to benefit everything from heart health to the effects of aging. But the story of how the fruit is harvested might leave you with a horrid taste in your mouth. As part of CNN's Freedom Project, Julia Vargas-Jones ventured into the Amazon rainforest, where young children are risking their lives just to be able to make a living.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JULIA VARGAS-JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the middle of the night on the banks of the Amazon River. But the young workers of the Fa Zeng Jinyi village are already loading up for a day's work. They don't bring much, machetes, tarp bags and a dry change of clothes.

But first, their small boat needs to cross this massive river.

Inside, the smell of diesel is nauseating. But Lucas, at 13 years old, is still waking up.

On top of school, he says he's been picking acai for two years now, helping his older brother Wengelson feed their seven siblings.

By dawn, we reach the Marajo archipelago in the far north of Brazil, crossing state lines to Para, the world capital of acai.

VARGAS-JONES: Amidst this lush vegetation are hundreds and hundreds of acai trees. These are these tall palms that can get up to 70 feet tall. Right now, these guys are looking closely to see which ones are ripe and have fruit ready for the picking.

VARGAS-JONES (voice-over): In Brazilian culture, acai has been called the guardian of the Amazonian population. Those who can harvest it, they say, will never go hungry. And 90 percent of the superfruit comes from this northern state.

[03:50:01]

From 2012 to 2022, acai exports grew 21,000 percent, according to industry data. More than 8,000 tons were exported in 2022, moving more than $26 million. But Lucas will only get a fraction of that number. And to earn it, he will do grueling work and face the dangers of the jungle.

Hiding in the forest are deadly snakes, scorpions and jaguars. And then there's the climb. With no harness, Lucas will climb dozens of acai trees on a single day in search of ripe berries.

VARGAS-JONES: He makes this look easy, but actually these are quite heavy. Each one of these is about 10 pounds. These are dense fruit. And he comes down with two, sometimes three, or even four of these bushels just sliding down the tree.

VARGAS-JONES (voice-over): In these remote areas of the jungle, rescue can be hours away.

The stories of harvesters who've fallen from trees are numerous. Some have never walked again, or worse.

VARGAS-JONES: When was the first time you get up on an acai tree?

VARGAS-JONES (voice-over): He was 11 years old, he says. The money he makes, he says, he gives to his mom, who in turn gives him back a smaller portion.

What do you use your money for, I asked.

To buy my school supplies, he said.

Families are risking their children's lives to get a paycheck, community leader Nerivan Da Silva says.

NERIVAN DA SILVA, NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT (through translator): It's out of need and not having food on the table. This practice is inherited, passed down from father to son. But it's too dangerous. At the same time, it's our tradition that we've been doing for more than 100 years.

VARGAS-JONES: So it seems to me like there is a clash between both the tradition of the community and the education of the children.

There is, he says, but it doesn't have to be this way.

The cycle of child labor here can be broken, he says. But they need help, incentives to get children to stay in school.

Allan Bruno is a prosecutor investigating individual complaints of forced labor across the region.

One of the biggest challenges, he says, is educating workers and children of their rights.

ALLAN BRUNO, PROSECUTOR, MINISTRY OF LABOR (through translator); This is a reality of the rural work.

VARGAS-JONES (voice-over): Some of them can't read, write or even count. Their needs are so basic, it's almost unfathomable.

DA SILVA (through translator): Come see the culture where the acai comes from. Because more often than not, people have no idea how much work it is for us to get it to your table.

VARGAS-JONES (voice-over): Julia Vargas-Jones, CNN, Marajo Islands, Brazil.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And be sure to join us this coming Thursday for My Freedom Day, a student-driven event to raise awareness of modern-day slavery.

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CHURCH: Romania's president officially launched his bid to be the next NATO secretary-general on Tuesday. Klaus Johannes is calling for greater representation from Eastern Europe, and he's touting his experience in leading a country near Russia. He's got an uphill battle, though. The U.S., U.K., France and Germany have already backed the Dutch prime minister to become NATO chief.

[03:55:10]

A Romanian court has approved a request from the U.K. to extradite a controversial internet personality and his brother, but not until after their trial in Bucharest wraps up.

Andrew and Tristan Tate are facing sex-offense charges in the U.K., charges that they deny. CNN's Bianca Nobilo has more. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BIANCA NOBILO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Controversial internet personality Andrew Tate made headlines again on Tuesday, after the 37-year-old was arrested alongside his brother Tristan on sex-offense charges in Romania.

Criminal investigators were carrying out two arrest warrants that were issued by U.K. judicial authorities for the quote "commission of sexual offenses and exploitation of persons in Great Britain", according to a police statement which was obtained by CNN affiliate Antenna 3.

Tate's spokesperson responded swiftly to the arrests, calling them bewildering and saying that they had left the brothers quote "dismayed and deeply troubled". Both brothers categorically reject all charges, the spokesperson added.

The pair appeared before a Bucharest court on Tuesday, with Andrew telling the judge he wanted to quote "remain in Romania and clean up his reputation rather than be extradited to the U.K."

Tate, who previously had his social media accounts suspended on several occasions, also made a typically cryptic post after the news broke, saying, The Matrix is afraid, but I only fear God.

The former kickboxer turned social media influencer built up his fame and loyal following online, drawing attention for his posts encouraging young men to engage in money-making schemes.

Long accused of promoting misogynist views to impressionable audiences, things took a darker turn when Andrew and his brother were arrested in Romania in 2022 on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal group to sexually exploit women.

Little has been heard from the brothers since their release from house arrest last August. Their lawyers are now set to be kept busy with these fresh charges, with a Romanian court hearing still looming on the cards for later on this year.

Bianca Nobilo, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Disappointment for a private Japanese space company after its Kairos rocket exploded seconds after liftoff. The company behind it, Space One, had been hoping to become the first Japanese firm to put a satellite into orbit. It's now trying to determine what went wrong.

Thanks so much for spending part of your day with me. I'm Rosemary Church. CNN NEWSROOM continues next, with Max Foster.

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