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Netanyahu Agrees To Send Israeli Officials To Washington; U.S. Voters Cast Primary Ballots In Five States; Appeals Court Puts Controversial Texas Immigration Law Back On Hold; Retired Generals Testify On U.S. Withdrawal From Afghanistan; Hong Kong Passes Second National Security Law; U.N. Report: Every Heat Record Smashed in 2023; Report: Most of the World's Most Polluted Cities are in Asia; Javier Milei's First 100 Days; Royal Photo Controversy. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired March 20, 2024 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Coming up here on CNN Newsroom.
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ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: 100 percent of the population in Gaza is at severe levels of acute food insecurity.
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VAUSE: Gaza is entirely preventable. Man made phenom, the babies and the children will die first. Some already have/
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DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: I couldn't care less. I couldn't care less.
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VAUSE: Donald Trump kicks another loyalists to the curb attacking his former Vice President Mike Pence for refusing to endorse his old boss out of good conscience.
And now gossip became scandal and scandal became crisis for Catherine, the Princess of Wales.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: When famine comes that children usually die first, especially newborns, left weak, mediated and vulnerable. And the World Health Organization is warning that a growing number of infants in Gaza and are on the brink of death from hunger.
Just today earlier, the U.N. warn unless there is a humanitarian ceasefire now not tomorrow, but now, there will be famine in northern Gaza within weeks. This is a manmade entirely preventable crisis. Convoy after convoy of trucks filled with life-saving food, water and other supplies are waiting to enter Gaza.
But a parking lot filled with good intentions will do nothing to help the people of Gaza if those trucks remain idle. According to the U.S. Secretary of State, the entire Gaza population is at severe levels of food insecurity and a warning for Israel. The U.N. human rights chief continued restrictions of a in a Gaza may amount to a war crime.
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VOLKER TURK, U.N. HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS: The extent of Israel's continued restrictions on the entry of aid into Gaza together with the manner in which it continues to conduct hostilities may amount to the use of starvation as a method of war, which is a war crime.
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VAUSE: The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seems unmoved by all of these pleas and demands from around the world. He says he is determined to fulfill the military objectives of this already five- month long war with a mass and that includes a ground offensive on the southernmost city of Rafah.
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BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): We have an argument with the Americans regarding the need to enter Rafah, not regarding the need to eliminate Hamas, but rather the need to enter Rafah. We do not see a way to eliminate Hamas militarily without destroying those remaining battalions. We are determined to do so.
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VAUSE: To be clear those comments by Netanyahu put him directly at odds with US. During a phone call just a day earlier, President Biden warn a ground offensive in Rafah would be a mistake. Other White House officials have urged restraint, saying there are alternatives to achieving the same military objective. New details now from CNN's Jeremy Diamond.
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JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Following the call between the Israeli prime minister and the American president, and Israeli delegation is set to travel to Washington in the coming week to discuss the potential for a major Israeli ground offensive into Rafah. The Israeli Prime Minister spoke with President Biden on Monday about that potential ground defensive and President Biden asked Netanyahu to send that delegation.
And so this sets the stage now for a major discussion about the merits of that ground defensive. The Israeli prime minister has said that Israeli troops must enter that city of Rafah where some one and a half million Palestinian civilians are currently sheltering, calling it Hamas's last bastion.
But American officials have been raising increasing concerns in recent weeks about the potential for that major offensive talking about the concerns of the impact that it will have on the civilians who are sheltering there, but also on the entry of humanitarian aid via that Rafah crossing from Egypt into the Gaza Strip.
Now, as these officials are set to meet to discuss that potential offensive and what Americans intends to present as potential alternatives to that ground defensive, there are still these ongoing negotiations to try and reach a temporary ceasefire and the release of dozens of Israeli hostages.
An Israeli delegation had traveled to Doha, Qatar, after a day though they returned to Israel for further consultations that doesn't spell the end of these negotiations. Though, there is clearly momentum behind these talks. There is clearly movement heading in the right direction according to the key negotiators.
The next steps now is for Israel to submit a counterproposal to Hamas's latest proposal that has been put on the table.
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Qatari mediators for their part say they are cautiously optimistic. Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Jerusalem.
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VAUSE: Another Tuesday of voting and the U.S. presidential primaries but with Donald Trump and Joe Biden, now their party's presumptive nominees down ballot races received some attention. In Ohio, CNN projects Cleveland businessman and Trump supporter Bernie Moreno will win the Republican Senate primary. He will face incumbent Democrat Sherrod Brown in November at a race which could be crucial to determining which party controls the upper house.
The former president voted Tuesday in Florida in the Republican primary. He voted for himself naturally and well, most of his former GOP rivals have now fallen in line and have endorsed Trump. Former Vice President Mike Pence has not.
In fact, Pence or Hang Mike Pence fame says he cannot out of good conscience endorse his former boss as President Trump responded by being gracious and taking the high road. No, I'm just kidding. Here's the former President.
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TRUMP: I couldn't care less. I couldn't care less. We need patriots. We need strong people in our country. Our country is going downhill very fast, very rapidly. Millions of people coming across the border, coming from jails, from prisons, coming from mental institutions and insane asylums terrorists. We need strong people in this country. We don't need weak people.
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VAUSE: President Biden has taken his campaign for a second term to the battleground states in Nevada and Arizona. He won both in 2020. But polling now shows a tight race for November. Biden accept any sharp support among Latino voters who were a key part of that 2020 coalition.
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JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: We have a lot more to do. A lot more to do. For us this election is so important. It's not about me. It's about the future. It's about the future. He wants to undo every single thing we've done if he gets elected, he stated trade up. But there's so much more to risk to keep and to do.
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VAUSE: More details now of the President's reelection campaign with CNN White House correspondent Arlette Saenz.
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ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Biden brought his reelection pitch here out west to the battleground states of Nevada and Arizona on Tuesday. Presidents beat former president Donald Trump here back in 2020. But tolling has shown much more narrow contests this time around. So President Biden trying to invest the time early to shore up support from voters.
Now the President traveled to Reno where he met with campaign workers and volunteers at an office there and then traveled here to Las Vegas, Nevada. His focus in Las Vegas was trying to address the cost of housing in America. White House officials are keenly aware that many Americans are facing a housing crunch amid high rental prices and also high interest rates facing homebuyers.
The President's trying to address some of the initiatives that he would propose in a second term to try to alleviate some of those costs. As officials, campaign officials are very aware that some of the feelings about the housing market are contributing to the sour economic sentiments that many Americans are feeling at this time.
Now, another focus for President Biden while out west was trying to shore up support among Latino voters. Latino voters make up a sizable portion of the electorate in both Nevada and Arizona. The president traveled down to Arizona to launch the campaign's Latinos con Biden- Harris initiative. It's an organizing program to really try to mobilize Latino voters heading into November.
The president needs to build up support with those groups at a time when former President Trump has really tried to make some inroads in the community, a coalition that typically has helped Democratic candidates to President Biden as he met with those voters, organizers in Phoenix said that he recognizes Latino voters could be here key to him security second term of the White House, and he's trying to put in the work early now to help him do that. Arlette Saenz, CNN traveling with the president in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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VAUSE: Larry Sabato is the director of the Center for politics at the University of Virginia, as well as editor of "Return to Normalcy: The 2020 Election That Almost Broke America," and we'll see didn't really last that long. Larry, thanks for being with us.
LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR POLITIFCS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: Nice to see you, John.
VAUSE: OK, so it seems the Republican presumptive presidential nominee has softened his previous policy position on NATO, which was, quote letting Russia do whatever the hell they want to NATO members, which are not fully paid up to this.
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TRUMP: I believe the United States was paying 90 percent of NATO because again, it could be 100 percent. It was the most unfair thing, and don't forget, it's more important to them than it is to us. We have an ocean in between some problems. OK. We have a nice big, beautiful ocean. And it's more important for them, they will take an advantage and they did they took advantage of us on trade and they took advantage on --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If they play fair if they start to play fair, America's there.
TRUMP: Yes. 100 percent, 100 percent.
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VAUSE: Not exactly reassuring for Europe. But one more time here. NATO is not like a private golf club or resort members do not owe dues each month, member states are expected to maintain defense spending at a minimum of 2 percent of GDP. So still, what Trump said was kind of a walk back and away. But why?
SABATO: You've got to remember the new Republican Party, which is really the Trump party is an isolationist party. Isolationism has taken over a good piece of the Republican base, which is the Trump base.
So first of all, they love this. They want him to pick a fight with various European allies. They'd love to see us save money, or maybe even exit NATO, which would be a disaster, not just for Europe, but for the United States.
And second, Trump has never learned even after having held the presidency for four years, that presidential words matter. And it applies to presidential candidates too. You can't just take one position one day and another position the next day, and then a third position the following week, because it upsets our allies, not our enemies, our allies. VAUSE: And that seems particularly surprising, given think, as you say he was president for four years. And he still seems to struggle with this idea of alliance building around the world, as well as your simple traditions and norms of the office of the presidency.
SABATO: I don't think he could pass a basic test in modern history or civics and that I'm sorry to say that, but I think there's plenty of evidence that he couldn't pass it even after a term as president.
VAUSE: OK, well, (INAUDIBLE) his brief. This is another issue of history, I guess, in many ways. He's Smith brief to the Supreme Court or the immunity case. In that brief, he argues that future presidents could be vulnerable to de facto blackmail and extortion while in office, if the Supreme Court does not accept his sweeping view of immunity from Special Counsel Jack Smith's elections diversion case or charges rather.
So as far as we know, the 44 presidents before Trump and the current one right now didn't really struggle with this issue. But this appeal is isn't really about settling a matter of war. It's more about the calendar right now.
SABATO: That's exactly right. It's delay, delay, delay, stretch out the legal calendar, try to get all the trial verdicts and maybe even the beginning of most of the trials after November 5th which is election day. That's what it's really about.
And it's an absurd assertion and absurd suggestion by Trump that somehow president should be protected almost completely, even this very, very conservative Supreme Court with three of his own appointees on it six conservatives, I don't think they'll go along with it because they would be lampooned for it.
VAUSE: And the Supreme Court on Monday did turn down an emergency request by former Trump adviser Peter Navarro. He wanted his jail sentence to be put on hold while he appealed one of his convictions. Still, it seems he now heads off to prison and is now their content. Listen to this.
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PETER NAVARRO, FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE AIDE: I will walk proudly and in there and do my time. They've had the greatest amount of support from Donald Trump and his team.
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VAUSE: He's the first former Trump White House staffer who will be inside a jail cell for any crime related to the January 6 insurrection on the Capitol. The first of many.
SABATO: Yes, there may be others. So in a sense, he's blazing the trail. And I kind of think he likes that. But it's just a very odd position to take for him. He knew better. All he had to do was to go into Congress and give testimony or even take the fifth, which is what some of the others did. But he was so obstinate about it and arrogant that he's ending up in prison. Good luck to him.
VAUSE: Yeah. Good luck to him. You'll need it. Larry, thank you so much. Larry Sabato there from the University of Virginia. Thank you, sir.
Federal Appeal Court has put on hold a controversial immigration law passed by the Texas State House empowering local law enforcement to arrest those suspected of crossing the border illegally. Just hours before that, though, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of this Republican back law.
Now the federal appeals court will hear arguments in the coming day. Critics fear the new law will lead to racial profiling.
We'll take a short break when we come back, enlist or die, the choice facing hundreds of men and boys recruited to fight incidents Civil War, a CNN exclusive investigation in just a moment.
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VAUSE: The situation in Haiti remains tense and volatile according to the UN. Aid deliveries have continued for much of the month. But this surge in gang violence has forced many schools, hospitals and government buildings to close. Haiti's public electricity company says several substations in the capital Port-au-Prince have been destroyed in some areas have been left without power once again.
The neighboring Dominican Republic, the Foreign Minister tells CNN the best way to control gang violence there is to provide Haitian police with well-armed international assistance.
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ROBERTO ALVAREZ, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC FOREIGN MINISTER: Armed intervention by itself does not solve the Haitian problem or any country's problem for that matter. It's only the Haitians themselves, that will eventually they will have to pull themselves up by the bootstraps eventually.
And they are the only ones who can do it. However, in order to get to that point where you can have certain level of peace, security, some basic law in order for that today, international assistance is required.
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VAUSE: Dominican Foreign Minister also says a gang -- law gang members are unemployed youth who have nothing better to do were forced to join the gangs. Or suddenly some gang members may not fight back against international security forces.
Here's CNN investigation found today and paramilitary rapid support forces have forcibly drafted hundreds of men and boys into their war against the Sudanese Armed Forces. In this exclusive report, Nima Elbagir shows us how the RSF has weaponized food amid a looming famine and gave civilians a deadly ultimatum.
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NIMA ELBAGIR, CHIEF INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Propaganda video from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, the RSF. For much of the last year they have slashed and burned their way through the country. This video shows them triumphant and entrenched in the very heart of Sudan, Al Jazira state. And they are recruiting local men in the hundreds.
But it's impossible to tell who here is a willing soldier and who has been forcibly conscripted. I witnesses have told CNN that RSF soldiers are giving civilians an ultimatum enlist or staff. Our investigation shows how almost 700 men and 65 children have been forcibly recruited to swell RSF ranks. And that's just what we've been able to verify in Jazira.
Across Sudan, reports and images like this one are children in RSF uniform. As across Sudan, millions forced from their homes by violence now face famine. CNN spoke to three dozen eyewitnesses, survivors and the families of victims. The RSF they say is weaponizing hunger, denying food to those who won't join.
Aid group say almost 4 million children in Sudan are already malnourished as the country faces mass starvation. If aid agencies can't get food to those in need. Almost a quarter of a million children could die. Jazira is Sudan's breadbasket. Its heartland.
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To control this part of Sudan is to exert control over who lives and who dies. The RSF deny they're responsible for the hunger gripping the country. Yet they control every aspect of farming this land. They control the warehouses of food and aid meant to support the most vulnerable. They control the seeds, supplies, fertilizer, pesticides, agricultural machinery and irrigation channels.
And it's not just the infrastructure. Farmers are being targeted, brutalized, degraded, and even kill them, not just to control food, but to force allegiance.
You hear shots off camera as six of the men are executed, according to survivors who spoke to CNN. Those who were spared say the eyes have threatened to starve their families if they didn't join. The RSF sit in the heart of Sudan, hoarding food meant from illness.
From here they can wait out starve out. Sudan's people and its army, fear uncertainty dishpan cascade as the months of war drags on, and the world looks away.
ELBAGIR: The RSF did not respond to sin and his request for comment. We shared our findings with the U.N. Special Rapporteur for Contemporary Slavery who says that the evidence we uncovered, the evidence you saw that a forced enlistment is tantamount to contemporary slavery. Nima Elbagir, CNN, New York.
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VAUSE: During a hearing on Capitol Hill over the U.S. chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, two senior generals, who oversaw that fallout have thrown the State Department under the bus, retired General Mark Milley and retired General Kenneth McKenzie. Both blamed the State Department in testimony for not ordering the evacuation of non-combatant U.S. citizens sooner.
Republican Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee is calling for accountability on how the withdrawal played out slamming the administration over the bombing which killed 13 U.S. service members in the final day so that withdrawal. One general is blaming -- who's blaming policy decisions.
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GEN. KENNETH MCKENZIE, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND (RET.): It remains my opinion that if there is culpability in this attack, it lies in policy decisions that created the environment of August 2021 in Kabul. If there's fault, it lies in a policy decision that placed the joint force in this situation and expose the force overtime to the possibility of these kinds of attacks.
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VAUSE: Democrats only say this hearing is a political show, meant to attack the Biden administration and not find real answers.
When we get back, a new national security law in Hong Kong feeling fresh concerns over what this will mean for the city. Details in a live report just a moment.
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VAUSE: Welcome back, everyone. I'm John Vause, you're watching CNN Newsroom. Let's go to Article 23 Hong Kong Second National Security Law, with even more sweeping new powers the first, which according to critics, will align the city more closely with Mainland China.
The bill was approved Tuesday after being rushed through the Legislative Council debated over just 11 days. Under this law, there are now new -- introduces new categories of crimes, national security crimes, and that sparking fears that an ongoing crackdown on dissent will not let up anytime soon and may in fact get a lot worse.
CNN's Kristie Lu Stout live for us in Hong Kong. I guess overall, what impact will is it actually expected to have on Hong Kong?
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the impact that this is going to have on Hong Kong this 212 page safeguarding national security bill that was fast tracked through Hong Kong's legislature at the behest of its top leader John Lee, it was debated for just over 11 days. It introduces 39 new national security crimes and it adds on to the already sweeping and powerful national security law that was imposed by Beijing in 2020.
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LU STOUT (voice-over): On the streets of Hong Kong, we asked a simple question, do you support or not support Article 23?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have no idea.
LU STOUT: No idea? Yes or no?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah, no. I have to go.
LU STOUT (voice-over): We asked an English. We asking Cantonese. No comment.
LU STOUT: Article 23 is Hong Kong's controversial new homegrown security legislation. It includes a range of new national security crimes including treason, espionage, external interference and disclosure of state secrets.
LU STOUT (voice-over): It carries sentences of 10 years for crimes linked to state secrets and sedition. 20 years for espionage, and up to life in prison for treason, insurrection, sabotage and mutiny.
Officials point out that many Western countries have similar legislation and say it will fill loopholes and a sweeping National Security Law imposed by Beijing and 2020 after mass anti-government protests.
JOHN LEE, HONG KONG CHIEF EXECUTIVE: We still have to watch out for potential sabotage undercurrents that tried to create troubles.
LU STOUT (voice-over): In 2003, Article 23 was shelved after an attempt to enact it drew half a million residents onto the streets in protest. No such scenes of opposition are expected this time around.
Beijing's national security crackdown has transformed Hong Kong. Dozens of political opponents have been arrested, civil society groups disbanded and outspoken media outlets shut down.
Former opposition lawmaker Emily Lau was among the protesters in 2003. She's no longer marching but has a message for Beijing.
EMILY LAU, FORMER OPPOSITION LAWMAKER: I just want to tell Beijing this no need for such stern treatment. I don't think Hong Kong will go back to the turbulent past. And I think people want to look forward to a safe and peaceful and free future.
We want Hong Kong to prosper. We are part of China. I've never disputed that. But we are different from the rest of China. But the difference is getting less and less, which is very sad.
LU STOUT (voice-over): Critics say the law could have deep ramifications for the city status as a global business hub. The U.S. State Department says it is concerned by the quote, broad and vague definitions of state secrets and external interference that could be used to eliminate dissent through the fear of arrest and detention. The Hong Kong government rejects that criticism as biased and misleading. Was Security Secretary Chris Tang pointing out there is strong public support.
CHRIST TANG, HONG KONG SECRETARY OF SECURITY: We received 98.6 percent support and positive feedback.
LU STOUT (voice-over): But on the streets, it's hard to tell.
UNIDENITIFIED FEMALE: We don't discuss these things, very sensitive.
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LU STOUT: Now after the bill's passage, the U.S. State Department expressed concern and alarm about the legislations vague wording and according to the deputy spokesperson of the State Department, Vedant Patel, he said that this bill has quote the potential to accelerate the closing of Hong Kong's once open society unquote.
Now Hong Kong's top leader says that the laws meet international standards that they protect Hong Kong's rights and freedoms and John Lee call the passage of Article 23 a, quote, historic moment and it all comes into effect this weekend on Saturday, March of 23rd. John.
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But probably not reasons he thinks. It seems to me the vague wording that you have on the mainland when it comes to these sort of criminal offenses, it's just one way of, you know, keeping everything sort of fuzzy and administrating it at a time of your choosing for the officials.
But what is interesting about this bill is that surely they'd want input from the community. Why was it rushed through?
STOUT: It was rushed through very fast. That was a public consultation period that happens through the debate before the debate at the legislative council, which is now without an opposition because of what's happened since 2020.
It just took over a week to pass through the LegCo and John Lee said that this needed to be fast-tracked. It needed to be passed quickly because it would allow the government to focus on arguably its top priority right now, reviving the economy.
This is what John Lee said in a speech right after the passage of the bill. Let's bring it up for you. He said, "We will be able to effectively safeguard national security, allowing Hong Kong to move forward without worry or burden and focus on developing the economy and improving people's livelihoods."
But when we speak to business figures in Hong Kong and they are worried about the harsh penalties and they're worried about the vague, broad definitions in the new law.
You know, one question is, what constitutes a state secret? Would a risk assessment in an IPO prospectus be considered that? What about works of journalism without the potential disclosures, of state secrets.
We know Mainland China that there has been a crackdown as security laws have expanded, cracking down on local businesses, on foreign businesses, including those raids last year on consulting firms, including Bane, Mince (ph), Cap Vision.
So little wonder why a number of people here in Hong Kong are wondering whether businesses here in this city could be next, John.
VAUSE: Kristie, as always, thanks so much. A good report there outlining everything that's happening in Hong Kong. Thank you.
Well, the U.N. State of the Global Climate report is painting what perhaps is the bleakest picture yet of the climate crisis. The World Meteorological Organization says every major global climate record was broken in 2023. Average temperatures have reached the highest level in 174 years, nearly 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels are crucial level.
And the WMO's climate monitoring chief says, its likely 2024 will set even more records.
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CELESTE SAULO, SECRETARY-GENERAL, WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION: The scientific knowledge about climate change has existed for more than five decades. And yet we missed an entire generation of opportunity.
It is imperative that our actions today are based on the welfare of future generations rather than short-term economic interests.
As secretary general of the World Meteorological Organization, I am now sounding the red alert about the state of the climate.
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VAUSE: Rising ocean temperatures is one of the biggest concerns among climate scientists. 90 percent of the seas are experiencing heat wave conditions, which could be almost irreversible, taking a millennia to go back to what is considered normal.
Joining us now from Stanford, California is climate activist Henna Hundal, host of her own syndicated radio program, and a delegate to COP27 the annual U.N. climate change conference. Thank you for being with us.
HENNA HUNDAL, CLIMATE ACTIVIST: Thank you for having me, John.
VAUSE: OK. So this report, it's depressing. It's grim reading.
So here's a little more now from the Secretary General of the WMO. Listen to this.
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SAULO: These annual report shows that the climate crisis is the defining challenge that humanity faces it is closely intertwined with inequality crisis as witnessed by growing food insecurity, population displacement, and biodiversity loss.
It is an existential threat to vulnerable populations everywhere. And particularly in the (INAUDIBLE) states.
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VAUSE: What it seems to this report is that where you live and the color of your skin are two very big factors in determining how bad this crisis will be.
HUNDAL: Well, that's right, John, unfortunately, climate change is not impacting all communities equally. And the really unfortunate component to that is its often the communities that did very little historically to contribute to the emissions that are undergirding (ph) this crisis, that are actually bearing the brunt of the impacts.
That's why at the U.N. climate change conferences, we've tried to push for a loss and damage fund, which is the idea that those communities that have had so little to actually contribute to climate change that are now dealing with so much destruction as a result of it should have some money to be able to rebuild their communities.
But unfortunately, private (ph) injustice will have to be a very key component of the climate crisis fight in order to make sure that the most vulnerable populations are taken care of.
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VAUSE: Those who did the least will suffer the most, it seems incredibly unfair. Any report on the climate crisis, though, would not be complete without the U.N. secretary general warning us, you know, about the end times are coming. Here he is.
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ANTONIO GUTERRES, U.N. SECRETARY GENERAL: Fossil fuel pollution is sending climate chaos off the charts. Sirens are blaring across all major indicators.
Last year saw record heat, record sea levels, and record ocean surface temperatures. Glaciers likely lost more ice than ever before. Some records are just chart topping, they're charts-busting and changes as speeding up.
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VAUSE: Yes. I feel sorry for Antonio Guterres and any other one, any other leader who is trying to convey the magnitude of this crisis because there just doesn't seem to be enough words or right words to describe what the world is actually facing. And messaging has been one of the biggest problems here from the
beginning, you know, with climate scientist quite rightly predict global warming as opposed to what we now say is a climate crisis.
So what can they do about this messaging? How could they get this actually out across for people to understand what's going on?
HUNDAL: You know, that's such an important point, John. I often think of that quote from Steve Jobs, the storyteller is the most powerful person because the storyteller sets the values, the vision, and the agenda for an entire generation.
And when I think about climate change, I wonder what story have we told. What narrative have we constructed. And how we actually connect to the people to the crisis. I fear that sometimes we've sort of made it a distant phenomenon, kind of disconnected people from what's actually going on.
And unfortunately now as we're seeing heatwaves increase in intensity and frequency and duration as we're seeing a greater proportion of tropical cyclones, in category 4 and 5 as we're seeing greater food insecurity as a result of climate change, those effects are being brought to people's doorstep.
And I fear that we didn't quite prepare them for understanding just how much climate change will impact our daily lives.
Look, there was a study done just a couple of years ago, interviewing 10,000 young people across ten countries and nearly half said that their emotions around climate change impact their daily lives.
This is a real toll and I fear that we haven't quite gotten the messaging right. We've sort of bungled that and as a result, people are quite surprised by these climate impacts and then in turn, realizing their governments are actually doing quite little about it.
VAUSE: Or worse, making the situation so much worse at the same time.
There are a lot of things happening around the world right now. There is unprecedented number of major crises at once. We have two active hot wars. The Russia-Ukraine war, the other in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, a declaration of famine in Gaza is almost weeks away. South Sudan also facing extreme hunger. Commercial shipping is under attack in the Red Sea by Houthi fighters. In Haiti, they're spiraling downwards and criminal gangs now vying for power in Port-au-Prince.
All this is of our own creation. They are not natural disasters, but rather man-made disasters.
Here's the thing. We can only focus on so much at any given time. So against that backdrop, how do you get the world again to pay attention to the biggest man-made crisis that were facing of all time, which is climate?
HUNDAL: Well, I think you put it perfectly, John. And there is never a shortage of issues. And unfortunately, climate change is one of those issues that's sort of at baseline and in a legislative sense can very easily be kicked down the road, kicking the can down the road so to speak. But that bill comes due. That check needs to be cashed, you know.
The earth, the planet is keeping score and I think that particularly in this past year when we saw heatwaves and tropical cyclones and droughts and food insecurity. And really these kinds of crises impacting people directly.
That's when we realized that check is being cashed. And so I think we don't have much longer are we can actually kick the can down the road with regard to climate change.
VAUSE: Henna, we're out of time but you know, the other side of this equation too is that there's so much good news about climate too where it's renewables and how we can end this crisis. But that doesn't seem to get out there either as much.
Henna Hundal, Thank you so much for being with us.
HUNDAL: Thank you.
VAUSE: Well, a new report finds most of the world is suffering from air pollution; many cities in Asia, especially India, seeing the worst of it.
Here's CNN's Vedika Sud reporting in from New Delhi.
VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER: In 2023, 83 of the 100 most polluted cities in the world were from India. A report by IQAir, which tracks air quality guidelines worldwide, says these cities, including capital New Delhi where I am exceeded the World Health Organization guidelines 10 times over.
Begusarai, a city of half a million people in northern India's Bihar state, was the world's most polluted city last year. Its air quality was 23 times the WHO guidelines, followed by high IQAir rankings are the Indian cities of Guwahati, Delhi, and Mullanpur.
The study looked specifically at fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, which is the tiniest pollutant, but also the most dangerous. And it's linked to asthma, heart and lung disease and cancer. In Delhi, PM 2.5 levels rose by 10 percent in 2023, with levels peaking in the month of November.
[01:39:46]
SUD: Northern India struggled with smoke from crop burning, vehicle emissions, coal burning and other toxic emissions. Every year, annual crop burning pushes Delhi and neighboring areas into emergency level air quality days.
People suffer from acute respiratory related issues for weeks. According to the report, millions of people die each year from air pollution-related health issues. Air pollution from fossil fuels is killing 5.1 million people worldwide every year, according to a study published in the British Medical Journal in November.
Meanwhile, the WHO says 6.7 million people die annually from the combined effects of ambient and household air pollution.
Vedika Sud, CNN, New Delhi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Back here in a moment on CNN. We'll have an update on Argentina's new president, 100 days in office now and pushing radical reform to try and kickstart the economy.
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VAUSE: A new indictment is adding to the mounting legal challenges for former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, now accused of falsifying COVID vaccination data for himself and his daughter while he was still in office. Bolsonaro was widely criticized for downplaying the severity of the pandemic and discouraging people from being vaccinated.
Authorities are also investigating his role in alleged coup plots or attempts after he lost the 2022 presidential election.
To Argentina now where the president has been in office for just over 100 days. Javier Milei was elected on a promise of a new political era. But a new report shows that for the third month in a row, the nation has recorded the highest inflation in the world.
Milei though vowing to push ahead with economic reforms even though the country now faces a surge in poverty.
CNN's Stefano Pozzebon has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN JOURNALIST: It's still the afternoon when the soup kitchen in Buenos Aires opens for dinner. And for many, including children, this is their only meal of the day.
Walter Torus is a regular. He comes here every night, he says, since he lost his unemployment benefit last year.
"Look how many we are. These people had a job or some plan. And now there are queuing for food. Our salary is worth nothing."
This charity was born as a shelter for the homeless with the capacity for 50 people. But most of the over 200 meals handed out today are taken away and eaten at home.
Volunteers asking for IDs to make sure nobody hordes on food which is scarce for everyone. Inside, the kitchen is in full motion some of the guests are our own neighbor who would have never imagined they needed charity, says this volunteer.
And next to the kitchen, a clothing bank. This is another aspect of the new poverty crisis here in Argentina.
When this service was started, it was mostly for homeless people, adults while instead here you see the sizes of four years old, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 years old.
[01:44:52]
POZZEBON: Meaning that the families can no longer afford to buy the clothes for their little ones.
Argentina's poverty rate was already rising before President Javier Milei took office in December.
Since then, his focus has been on no steric to drive to bring inflation down.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Argentine economy.
POZZEBON: His reforms like devaluing the Argentinian peso over 50 percent were uploaded abroad but punished many in Argentina, who have seen their salaries collapse and can no longer afford to buy food.
Getting today's fare at the supermarket out of the question for this worker. While the analysts' verdict is still open --
MACARENA MICHIENZI, LEAD SPECIALIST, CEFEIDAS GROUP: I think we have to see how much the people will need to give him the benefit of the doubt and to maybe adjust their budget.
POZZEBON: Milei's interior minister pleading for patients in an interview with CNN.
"What we want is for people to receive their benefits themselves and stop relying on food kitchens. But changing the system takes time."
Who doesn't have time, is Torres who was able to eat today, but he's not sure about tomorrow. For him change couldn't come soon enough.
Stefano Pozzebon, CNN -- Buenos Aires.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: When we come back here on CNN, the Queen always said to the royal family, you must be seen to be believed. But what happens when those photos appear to be digitally altered? Another question of trust and at the center of it all Princess Catherine.
Back in a moment.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you think is as happening to Kate Middleton?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I reckon can she's had a Brazilian butt-lift.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's not in agreement with sending them children to Eaton.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's having a divorce.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's chatter she might be in a coma. There's definitely something fishy. It's not abdominal surgery.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Nature abhors a vacuum and so too it seems social media. And with very little official information from Kensington Palace about Princess Catherine, there's been no shortage from the rumor mill about what is happening to Kate.
Theres also been the controversy over doctored photos. How can the public completely believe any update now issued by Kensington Palace?
Here's Max Foster.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Smiling, happy and seemingly healthy. New video, not sanctioned by the palace, but reassuring royalists that the couple are well.
British tabloids also celebrating Kate's re-emergence and apparent recovery from surgery.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So it's good to see that she's back and hopefully she's doing well.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm sure that it will be quite nice for her to walk around, shopping with her husband.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't really have any doubts. That was a weird one, isn't it.
FOSTER: Weird because of the conspiracy theories that have swamped social media in recent weeks, filling a void of information from the palace. And the video did nothing to quell them as it was accused of being fake. Trust in any royal imagery undermined in part by Kensington Palace itself after it sent out, not one but two doctored photos to the news media, both taken by the Princess, Kate's edited Mother's day photo, manipulated in several places. And now this one released last year, which Getty Images has now labeled digitally enhanced.
[01:49:50]
FOSTER: CNN found inconsistencies in several spots, such as a misalignment on the queen's skirt and blanket, strands of Princess Charlottes hair appear to have been cloned, and Prince Louis' shoulder is blurred, overlapping the background. Getty told CNN in a statement it's reviewing all so-called royal handout images and placing where relevant an editor's note saying it could have been digitally-enhanced.
KATE WILLIAMS, CNN ROYAL HISTORIAN: William and Kate, Kensington Palace was so trusted at Christmas and now three months later, we have a situation in which whatever photo is put out, people don't believe it.
FOSTER: The lack of information coming from the palace about the Princess has created conspiracy theories, often wild ones, which get worse when the palace has been found to be manipulating images.
WILLIAMS: Either they should have said nothing and kept with that just as they said, they were not going to say anything until there was significant updates or they should have put out a few little statements, perhaps a little statement from Kate saying, thank you for the lovely cards and kept people updated to a degree.
FOSTER: Seemingly unfazed and in good spirits, royals refusing to be distracted in public. Prince William making a long-planned visit to a homelessness project in Sheffield.
No lack of support there or from the papers as the rumors continue online.
Max Foster, CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Royal historian Kate Williams is joining us now from London for more on Kate Gate -- that's the other Kate.
Kate, this is going be complicated but good to see you. Thank you for being with us.
WILLIAMS: Good to see you.
VAUSE: Ok. So it seems almost at every turn this story just goes from bad to worse after Catherine the princess of Wales. "The Washington Post" headline from almost 24 hours ago read, "Will Princess Kate video put an end to royal communications mess?
11 hours later, "Time" reports "Why a new video of Kate Middleton isn't quelling concerns".
So just to give you an example of the coverage here. What seems odd though is that the royals have dealt with far worse before. This isn't their first rodeo.
Did they create this mess simply by misjudging the amount of information that was released about Kate and was it enough at the end of the day to keep all the conspiracy theories at bay or is there more to this than just that.
WILLIAMS: I think that's exactly the point, John. This is not a crisis, this isn't like the death of Diana. This isn't like the breakdown of the Windsor marriages. This was a lady having abdominal surgery and wishing to recover. Perfectly straightforward.
What's happened is a disaster of their own making. And that's really happened due to this lack of managing the PR.
Normally the royals either give a few updates or they say nothing and just carry on smiling and waving.
In this case, we didn't get any updates. William withdrew from engagements and the Internet erupted into conspiracy. I've never seen such crazy conspiracy theories as there were in this case.
I mean, I've never seen anything like it. And the Mother's Day photo didn't quell them.
And now this latest photo that the farm-shopped photo in what's been called Farm-Shop Gate, that set people off all over again.
So really this is, I think a moment when the royals have to look back and say, we can never do this again. A simple operation has been turned into chaos.
VAUSE: And if this saga had a theme song. They might sound something like this.
(MUSIC)
VAUSE: For everyone playing along at home, that is the theme music from the cartoon "Scooby-Doo: Where Are You".
So it's one of the issues that the royal PR machine hasn't really gone up to speed with how to deal with social media, whereas you say, there was some crazy ridiculous conspiracy theories which have covered almost everything about what could possibly have happened to Kate.
WILLIAMS: Well, there are these conspiracy theories and normally they stay in a small corner of the internet about the royals. But this time they've really come mainstream and you have mainstream newspapers, mainstreamed shows referring to them. And people are all talking about them. It's an international story.
I mean -- and you've got a situation when Kim Kardashian saying she's out there looking for Kate. You've got other foreign royals making jokes about it.
I mean, this is not what the royals want. They don't want to be a meme. They don't want to be a Scooby-Doo theme tune. They want to be taken seriously for their constitutional role and their charity role. This isn't what's happening at the moment.
In fact, I think what we've got here, I think is certainly a strategy that the royals haven't tried before. And this is one I think that wouldn't really have washed during the Queen's reign and it does seem to me as if either William and Kate had been probably advised or perhaps this was William's idea. [01:54:44]
WILLIAMS: And I think really it's one that he won't be repeating because what's happened is -- what they need to do was protect Kate, she probably had a tough, tough surgery. She needs time to recover. Surgery is tough on the body and the mind.
And instead of that, she wasn't protected and there's been all this chaos of conversation about her, which I think she would have had to be aware of.
VAUSE: All this could be resolved, couldn't it by an appearance somewhere, an official function for Kate, a wave from a car perhaps?
WILLIAMS: Yes, an official function and you know Charles the King, apart from Russian media, no one said the king is dead even though we haven't seen him. And everyone quickly said the King isn't dead.
But what Charles is done as the old little update and he did a little video at the end of February thanking people for all the lovely cards and presents and get well soon messages.
And that's quite often we see the royals do that. So I do think that we probably should see Kate doing some kind of little engagement perhaps after Easter or perhaps a photo or a thank you letter.
But certainly this is also on William. William has to go out there and smile and he has to talk about Kate. And we've seen him doing that in the last couple of engagements.
Today, he was at a -- yesterday, I mean, he was at an engagement and he said my wife needs to be here to hear this about homelessness. And he also said my wife is the arty one in engagement last week.
So although Kate doesn't need to do something, I think the big responsibility here is on William to go out there, talk about Kate. Do some updates. He's the one who not recuperating. This is his responsibility now.
VAUSE: Other (ph) than him.
OK. Kate, thank you so much for being with us. Kate Williams there in London. Thank you.
Before we go, Finland has been deemed the happiest country on earth for the seventh year in a row. Happiness report is based on data from 140 countries, coincides with the U.N. International Day of Happiness, which is Wednesday right now. Happy -- happiness, everyone's so happy.
The report looks at factors like GDP per capita, freedom, social support, and generosity. Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden having the other top spots, all neighboring Finland. Israel came in fifth. The report uses data from the three preceding years and is in partnership with Gallup, the U.N. and the Oxford Well-Being Research Center.
The United States did not crack the top 20 for the first time ever, coming in at number 23. It's still kind of a happy place.
Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause.
The news continues with Rosemary Church, my friend and colleague after a short a break.
See you back here tomorrow.
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