Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Nearly 12M Ballots Cast in Early Voting With 16 Days to Go; Israel Launches New Strikes on Southern Beirut; Cuba Suffers Second Major Power Outage in 2 Days; Oscar is the 10th Named Hurricane of 2024 Season; Tentative Deal Announced to End Boeing Strike; Family of Missing "Hamilton" Dancer Expands Search; Liam Payne's Body to Stay in Argentina for Now. Aired 5-6 am ET

Aired October 20, 2024 - 05:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:00:33]

ANNA COREN, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. I'm Anna Coren.

Ahead on CNN Newsroom, Donald Trump making some raunchy remarks about a famous golfer during a swing state rally. That and the new attacks he had for his opponent.

Kamala Harris keeps gaining star power, welcoming two singers to join her at rallies, which Battlegrounds states she's focusing on in the last weeks of her campaign.

Plus, Georgia's early voting numbers are shattering records. What poll workers say about the unprecedented lines of voters across the state.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Hong Kong, this is CNN Newsroom with Anna Coren.

COREN: Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have just 16 days to make their case to American voters about who should become the next U.S. president. Early voting has already started in many states, nearly 12 million ballots have been cast so far. But polls show that it's still anybody's race.

The latest CNN average of national polls shows Kamala Harris and Donald Trump in a dead heat, with no daylight between them. The two candidates are expected to spend the remaining weeks of the campaign crisscrossing a handful of battleground states that will likely decide the election. Harris is set to make stops in Georgia today, with Trump slated to hold a town hall in Pennsylvania.

At a rally in suburban Pittsburgh on Saturday, Trump gave a speech his campaign called the start of his closing argument to voters. He promised a golden age in America if re-elected, slammed Kamala Harris in a vicious personal attack and spoke at length about the private parts of a beloved American golfer. Steve Contorno reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump swung through western Pennsylvania on Saturday, delivering a speech that has his campaign said was the beginning of his closing message to voters. That closing message, though, began with a rather long-winded story about his friend, the golfer Arnold Palmer, who is a local native, including a rather graphic description of the Hall of Famer in the men's locker room. From there, though, he shifted to his scripted remarks, where he talked about the race in rather stark terms, describing what would happen if he was elected versus what would happen if Vice President Harris was elected.

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: But with your support, we'll bring back our nation's strength, dominance, prosperity and pride. We're going to do it. This will be America's new golden age. One hundred years from now, the presidential election of 2024 will be looked upon as America's greatest victory. I hope that's true.

CONTORNO: Donald Trump also played for his supporters, clips of Vice President Harris saying that she would ban fracking, a critical issue in the Keystone State.

Now, these clips are all from the past, and she has since distanced herself from those remarks. However, Trump's campaign is hoping they will play out in Pennsylvania.

He also continued to attack her in deeply, deeply personal terms. Take a listen.

TRUMP: Well, she's a horrible person, but she's radical left. And crazy Bernie is radical left. And this one, Kamala, is further left than them. So you have to tell Kamala Harris that you've had enough, that you just can't take it anymore. We can't stand you. You're a (bleep) vice president.

CONTORNO: Trump on Sunday will remain in the battleground of Pennsylvania. He has a town hall plan. He also will be attending the Pittsburgh Steelers football game. And he intends to stop by a McDonald's and work the fry station.

Steve Contorno, CNN, Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: Kamala Harris hit two battleground states on Saturday. She held rallies in Michigan and in Georgia, where she again called Trump unstable and unfit to hold office, and laughed at his tendency to go off script with meandering, sometimes noncicle comments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT & DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: And when he does answer a question or speak at a rally, have you noticed he tends to go off script and ramble? And generally, for the life of him, cannot finish a thought. And he has called it the weave, but I think we here would call it nonsense. (END VIDEO CLIP)

[05:05:12]

COREN: In Atlanta, Harris slammed Georgia's restrictive abortion laws, citing the case of a woman who died after waiting 20 hours for treatment of complications from abortion medication.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Donald Trump still refuses to take accountability, to take any accountability, for the pain and the suffering he has caused, or even to just acknowledge the pain and suffering that has actually happened. It is my pledge to everybody here, when Congress passes a bill to restore reproductive freedom nationwide, as President of the United States, I will proudly sign it into law.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Harris was joined in Detroit by singer Lizzo, who encouraged voters to cast their ballots as soon as possible. Well, superstar musician Usher took a break from his own tour to join Harris in Atlanta, telling the crowd her vision for the country includes everyone.

Well, battleground Georgia kicked off early voting this week, and more than a million people have already cast their ballots. While Kamala Harris is campaigning here this weekend, Donald Trump will make his way back to Georgia later in the week. CNN's Rafael Romo has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Some voters have been standing in line for over an hour at polling sites here in Gwinnett County and other locations across the state of Georgia. Gwinnett County is not only the most ethnically diverse in the entire state of Georgia, but it has also had great population growth in the last few years, surpassing the one million mark over the summer. President Biden carried Gwinnett County in 2020, and it is in counties like this one in battleground states like Georgia where the 2024 election may be decided.

People are very motivated. By Friday, voters had already cast more than a million ballots here in Georgia since early voting started Tuesday. Some poll workers say they had never seen this level of interest from voters and are working extra hard to make sure the process runs smoothly, given the unprecedented number of people voting early.

ANITA REDD, GWINNETT COUNTY POLL MANAGER: Yesterday was the highest voter count I've ever had in my career with elections. I worked my legs off. We had over 1,200 voters here in 12 hours.

ROMO: Some voters are motivated by how convenient it is to find the time when the lines are not too long and cast the ballot instead of doing it on election day when many people have to work. But other voters told us they are motivated by issues that they deeply care about, like the economy, abortion rights and taxes.

OLGA HICKS, GWINNETT COUNTY EARLY VOTER: The country is being headed in one way, and I just want to see people getting along. And the negativity that's out there is just too much. It's too much. We have to learn to work together.

ROMO: That may be easier said than done. Here in Georgia, a state judge overturned seven new rules passed by the Republican-led state election board that, according to Democrats, would have allowed local officials to delay or decline certification of election results. Both the top lawyer for Georgia's Secretary of State and the chairman of the state election board have directed all state and local election officials to ignore those seven rules.

Rafael Romo, CNN, Gwinnett County, Georgia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: Officials in Minnesota fired an election worker who left several boxes of mail-in ballots unattended on Friday. They say the worker ignored protocol while bringing ballots from drop boxes to an election office near Minneapolis. Some Republicans are using the incident to question the security of mail-in voting.

Donald Trump has made numerous false claims that the mail-in system is widely fraudulent. But experts say it is reliable, and officials in Minnesota add that nobody tried to open the ballots or change anyone's votes. They shared nearly 20 minutes of surveillance footage to prove it.

Oklahoma parents and teachers are suing to stop a mandate forcing them to teach from the Bible. They also want the court to stop the Republican state school superintendent from spending three million dollars to buy Bibles. The suit notes that the purchase guidelines were specifically written to line up with Bibles endorsed by Donald Trump. All that was later amended.

Superintendent Ryan Walters is trying to force schools to incorporate the Bible into lesson plans. Walters is a former teacher who promised to fight the, quote, "woke ideology." He also vowed to ban books from school libraries and get rid of what he called radical leftists. This is the second lawsuit filed in Oklahoma to challenge the mandate.

Lebanon's capital is taking more fire from Israel as the fighting in the Middle East shows no signs of subsiding. We received this video over the past hour showing a huge plume of smoke over southern Beirut after a new round of Israeli strikes. The IDF says the targets included a Hezbollah intelligence headquarters and a weapons workshop.

[05:10:13]

Over in Israel, Prime Minister Netanyahu is under pressure at home and abroad to bring the war to an end. Protesters in Tel Aviv urged him to reach a hostage deal in Gaza as he faced similar calls from U.S. and British leaders. But Mr. Netanyahu says he's not ready to stop fighting. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Prime Minister, how is it going?

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: Well, two days ago we took out Yahya Sinwar, the terrorist mastermind whose goons beheaded our men, raped our women, burned babies alive. We took him out and we're continuing our battle with Iran's other terrorist proxies. We're going to win this war.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So will something deter you?

NETANYAHU: No.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Mr. Netanyahu also said Saturday's drone attack on his home in central Israel was a bitter mistake. He's blaming what he calls Iranian agents for it. And Tehran says it was the work of Hezbollah. The group has not claimed responsibility for the attack, which did not cause any casualties.

In the U.S., investigators are trying to find out how classified information about Israel's expected strikes on Iran ended up posted on social media. For more, we're joined by Nada Bashir in London.

Nada, what more are you learning about the leak?

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we've heard from three sources familiar with the matter that the U.S. is currently investigating what is said to have been the release of highly classified documents, which appear to show that the U.S. was essentially spying on Israel's military preparations for an eventual response to Iran's attack on Israel on October 1st. There has, of course, been a lot of speculation as to what that attack, that response would look like, when that might take place.

Of course, assumptions that the U.S. is in close coordination with the Israeli military on this. We know that there has been mounting pressure from the Biden administration for Israel to be measured in its response. But these documents, which began circulating online after being posted on Telegram on Friday, appear to show that the U.S. has been trying to gain intelligence on how Israel is preparing to respond. This has been described by one U.S. official as deeply concerning.

Another source, of course, confirming the authenticity of these documents, which are dated October 15th and 16th. They are, of course, marked top secret and outlined on the document. Of course, CNN is not showing any excerpts of this document, not quoting it directly. But it does appear to show that this was for the attention of the U.S.'s key allies, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

And among the preparations that have been listed in these documents is the movement and reorganization of munitions by the Israeli military. They've also described CNN appearing to prepare for a strike against Iran with air force preparations as well.

Again, CNN is not directly quoting from this. It is more of a broad assessment of what is featured in these documents. But this has triggered immense concern within the U.S. government. Of course, investigations are taking place. This has, of course, triggered an FBI investigation as well, though they have not yet commented on this.

But that speculation and questions around how Israel will respond to continue to remain, particularly now, as you heard there from Prime Minister Netanyahu, saying that Israel will not be deterred despite the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, clearly the intention there still to focus on Iran, on its proxies in the region and, of course, Hamas in Gaza.

COREN: Now, let's now turn our attention to the worsening situation in northern Gaza with the Israeli blockade and renewed airstrikes. What more are you learning?

BASHIR: Well, that's right. We have seen continued airstrikes in parts of northern Gaza, particularly surrounding the Jabalia refugee camp area. We've been hearing from Gaza's civil defense and health officials saying that there has been a large number of casualties as a result.

One official reporting that the majority were believed to be women and children. Dozens more said to be injured or perhaps missing, buried under the rubble, as is so often the case following these airstrikes. So a deeply troubling situation as Israel deepens its military operations in northern Gaza, both in terms of airstrikes and, of course, ground operations.

We had previously heard from the U.N. warning that Israel was sealing off northern Gaza essentially. And, of course, there has been suggestions that Israel is implementing what has been described as a surrender or starve strategy, essentially telling civilians to get out of northern Gaza, leaving behind Hamas militants to essentially starve. But, of course, what we know is that there are still thousands of civilians essentially trapped in northern Gaza.

Officials say that in the first two weeks of Israel's military operations, which began earlier this month, at least 400 people have so far been killed as a result. And, of course, there has been concern around the humanitarian situation, the lack of aid getting into Gaza. Northern Gaza, of course, has been essentially blocked off from aid getting in.

[05:15:14]

We have heard from the U.N. saying they believe at least a dozen trucks carrying flour have now entered Gaza City, moving further north. But whether this is enough to alleviate the dire humanitarian situation, of course, is unlikely.

And, of course, we have heard from the U.N. saying some 20,000 people have now fled northern Gaza. But, again, where they're going to, that is, of course, a question. The humanitarians, though, they have been told to flee to the Al-Mawasi coastal area, has of course been targeted in the past. So the security and safety of these civilians, of course, is no guarantee.

COREN: Nada Bashir, as always, we appreciate your reporting. Thank you.

Meanwhile, Israel is trying to send a message to the people in Gaza with a newly released video of the slain Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar. Israel's military says the footage shows him just hours before Hamas went on its killing spree on October 7th last year. And according to the IDF, the footage reveals his real priority was to save himself. Matthew Chance explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Israel has released new footage. It says shows the Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, underground in Hamas tunnels just hours before the October 7th attacks last year, talking over the grainy black and white images of what the IDF says are Sinwar and his children. The Israeli military spokesman, Daniel Hagari, said the Hamas leader was hiding alone with his family all night in tunnels below Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip.

Well, this was a luxury the people of Gaza did not have, he said, as Sinwar always prioritized himself, his money and Hamas terrorists over the people of Gaza, Hagari added. Well, Sinwar, who's seen as the architect of the October 7th attacks on Israel, was killed by Israeli troops in Gaza on Wednesday after more than a year of devastating Israeli pounding of the territory. The final moments of the Hamas leader captured on a drone camera showed him sitting alone in a wrecked building before lashing out at the drone with a stick.

Hamas, which is reeling from the killing, has accused the Israeli military of blatant lies and a failed theatrical performance in its portrayal of Sinwar during that past 12 months.

In a statement, the group said the Israeli army was humiliated by the man, the statement calls Commander Sinwar and his brothers. The organization says Sinwar was killed while engaging in the battlefield after having spent the past year moving across various combat fronts in Gaza at the forefront of, quote, "our brave people's resistance."

Matthew Chance, CNN Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: And we should note the IDF did not provide any evidence about Sinwar's whereabouts on October 7th or afterwards.

Well, Cuba has been hit with a second countrywide power blackout and concern about food supplies and running water is growing. Those details when we come back.

And weather across the Western U.S. is getting serious. Just ahead, an update on wind whipped fires in California and flooding in the Pacific Northwest. And a scary close call at a busy airport in Texas prompts a federal

investigation. That story and much more after the break. Stay with CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:22:28]

COREN: Cuba has been hit by an extended nationwide blackout after its power grid failed for the second time in two days. It happened Saturday morning, just hours after officials said power was being restored from the first blackout on Friday. Millions are without power and there's worry that food spoilage and lack of running water.

CNN's Patrick Oppmann has more now from Havana.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So even though it's been raining on and off throughout the day, you can see people are outside here waiting for bread. It goes all the way to the front of the store, dozens and dozens of people, and then down the block. And this is one of the few establishments we've seen selling food, and that is why people are waiting in line because they know how difficult it is to get food right now as Cuba enters its second day of a total blackout.

Earlier on Saturday, officials had said they had restored some of the electrical service here, but that quickly was again extinguished. The power plants simply could not keep up with the limited demand that they were able to actually provide.

So people are calm. There is some concern, though, that this could go on longer and longer. It's a somewhat unprecedented situation, even for Cubans, that they've now gone almost two full days without power. It comes on in certain areas, but then it quickly flickers out because these power plants, they are old, they are poorly maintained.

The Cuban government says they are subject to U.S. sanctions, and that makes it impossible for them to keep running. But at this point, there is growing concern as people are having a harder time finding food, keeping their food from spoiling, and almost this entire island is now spent more than a day getting on to the second full day without power.

Patrick Oppmann, CNN Havana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: As Cuba grapples with the power crisis, it's also on the path of Hurricane Oscar. The storm made landfall on Great Inagua island. Maximum winds have slowed to around 130 kilometers, or 80 miles per hour.

This is the tenth named hurricane for the 2024 Atlantic season. It's headed for Cuba's far eastern provinces. Hurricane watches and warnings also are in effect for parts of the Bahamas. Forecasters say the storm could get stronger over the next few days. [05:25:00]

Well, Hurricane Oscar is unlikely to hit the U.S. mainland, but there are other weather systems to worry about. Strong autumn gusts, nicknamed Diablo winds, drove a fast-moving fire in California.

Well, crews worked into the night to quell hotspots. Some homes in Oakland were damaged, and at least 500 people had to get out. In other parts of the western states, snow is in the forecast.

Well, CNN Meteorologist Tyler Mauldin has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TYLER MAULDIN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: There are three big weather stories across the country right now. Number one, this high pressure controlling the eastern seaboard, leading to very tranquil weather east of the Rockies. Then you've got a stubborn weather system meandering over the central Rockies and the southern plains, creating some not just heavy rain but also some wintry mischief here. And then yes, our first atmospheric river event is coming to the Pacific Northwest.

Let's hone in on the southern weather system moving over the Rockies right now. You're going to see plenty of rainfall over the same areas across eastern New Mexico. That could spark the potential for flash flooding because this area has a massive burn scar. Then you get up into the higher elevations, and we could be seeing snowfall above two feet in some areas.

Oh, yeah, and the season is just beginning with the atmospheric rivers. It's only October. We've got our first one coming our way to the Pacific Northwest. This pipeline of moisture, which can be rated on a scale of one to five, this one's going to be sitting at a four. Very beneficial rainfall coming this way in this area. However, we could see some impacts due to this strong atmospheric river.

Higher elevations, cascades, you could see snowfall, but then closer to the shoreline you're going to be seeing some heavier rainfalls. Notice the orange is a red here. That means some areas near Seattle could see rainfall amounts above six inches.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: A deadly accident on a barrier island off the coast of Georgia. Details ahead on the collapse of a ferry dock that sent dozens of people plunging into the water.

Plus, a deal is on the table to put some 33,000 striking Boeing employees back to work. That story and much more ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:30:33]

COREN: At least seven people are dead and several others have been injured after part of a ferry dock collapsed on Sapelo Island in the U.S. state of Georgia on Saturday. At least 20 people plunged into the water when a gangway collapsed. Crowds had gathered on the island for a celebration of its community of black slave descendants.

Sapelo is a barrier island off the coast of the state and home to about 70 people. It suffered serious damage from Hurricane Helene. The cause of the dock collapse has not yet been determined.

The Federal Aviation Administration is looking into a previously unreported in-flight close call near Austin, Texas. It's the latest near miss that took place near the International Airport in Austin. Well, CNN's Pete Muntean has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Near collisions involving commercial flights have been making headlines since the start of last year and have had regulators and investigators on high alert. But most have involved flights on or near the runways of a major airport. Rarely are these close calls in midair.

This incident was on Wednesday but is just now coming to light after new data from flight tracking site Flightradar24. It shows an American Airlines flight lining up to land at Austin Bergstrom International Airport in Texas when a private Cessna 182 started to turn toward the commercial flight putting the planes nose to nose. Flightradar24 says the American flight passed over the Cessna separated by only 400 feet.

We're talking a little more than the length of a football field. The air traffic control recording from LiveATC.Net details that the American pilots received an in-cockpit alert of an impending collision called a resolution advisory which requires immediate action by the pilots.

Now, this investigation is just beginning but the FAA says the Cessna was operating under visual flight rules. That does not require constant communication with air traffic control. You may remember that Austin was the site of another near collision. In February of last year, a FedEx flight nearly landed on top of a departing Southwest flight that was obscured by dense fog.

Investigators said the quick reaction of the FedEx crew saved the day and the lone air traffic controller in the tower simply could not see the problem playing out in front of him.

Pete Muntean, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: After more than a month on the picket line, some Boeing workers may soon be back to work. The machinists union announced to its 33,000 striking employees that a tentative deal is on the table. Rank-and- file members still have to vote on the agreement.

If the deal is approved, it would give workers a 35% pay raise over the next four years. The strike has been a huge blow to the already struggling company. Boeing has been losing nearly a billion dollars a month due to the strike. The aircraft manufacturer recently announced it would cut about 10% of its global staff. That's about 17,000 jobs.

Well, for more on this, I want to bring in CNN Legal Analyst, Joey Jackson, who's in Suffolk County, New York. Joey, good to see you. So it would seem that Boeing has struck a deal, a tentative deal with workers. I mean, how crucial was it for Boeing to get this done?

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yeah, it was a big deal, Anna, good to be with you. And the reason for that is the impact upon the economy. You could imagine a company like Boeing in the United States employing so many workers, having 171,000 upwards of that employees and just being so vital to the economy.

And you mentioned certainly the billion-dollar loss per month, certainly something they don't want to have to deal with the company nor employees. And so what happens in the United States is unions are a real vital part of organizing labor. And that is the leverage that employees have with respect to management.

And so it's been the first strike in terms of, you know, the machinist union, 16 years. So to have the ability to put together a deal that makes workers happier, gives them a 35% increase in pay over four years, sweetens pension benefits, gives them a bonus of $7,000 is very significant. It gets everyone back to work. It allows Boeing to manufacture its aircrafts. And I think it's good for the economy. And so it's very important.

Although, of course, the rank and file have to ratify that. And what that means in English essentially is that they have to vote on whether or not it's appropriate and whether the deal is, of course, in keeping with their wishes as employees to come back to work, move forward and just generally get back to their jobs.

[05:35:05]

COREN: A lot has been made about declining union membership in the U.S. But this strike and I guess others that involve giant companies or crucial sectors in logistics chains, I show they still wield a great deal of influence. Is that fair to say, or is Boeing somehow unique?

JACKSON: I don't think it is unique. I think, you know, listen, employers generally control the cards because employers are the ones who employ people, right? And you have to, based upon the fact that you're an employer, an employee and an organization have to follow certain rules.

However, having said that, I think unions are still very significant. And what they do, unions, is they have collective bargaining agreements. What does that mean? They have agreements which affect the terms and conditions of their employment. But to the extent that labor organizes, gets together and makes decisions in terms of whether or not their dealings with the company are fair.

Employees have families. Employees are not CEOs and executives where they're making millions of dollars a year. They're trying to support their children, trying to make payments, trying to buy homes, trying to, you know, give them the best quality of life possible.

And so to the extent that a union can organize, in this instance, 33,000 members, but in other instances, far fewer, but still very strong. And so when you have employees that come together and really use their muscle to say we're not working unless we think the benefits are fair and appropriate to our families, it makes a difference.

And it made a difference here and it continues to make a difference in companies and in governmental sectors throughout the United States economy with respect to unions getting together, organizing, flexing their muscle, by saying make deals fair, allow us to have terms and conditions of employment where we can certainly live the lives and quality of lives that we want to live. And we will continue to make you as an employer money and make a company fruitful.

COREN: Joey, we are describing this as a tentative deal, which, as you say, needs to be ratified by the union membership. But is there any reason to think that that they won't back it?

JACKSON: So, you know, Anna, you never know until you know, right? And so the bottom line is that it's come a long way. What -- what do I mean by that? Of course, they wanted -- the employees wanted 40%. They got 35%. We should hasten to add that, of course, in this strike that's been over a month. There was a prior deal that included, I believe, a 30% increase and a six-thousand-dollar bonus that was rejected by the membership.

And so this sweetening it, although they wanted 40%, they get 35%. It's now moved to $7,000, which is the bonus. They've sweetened the retirement benefits because remember, people can't work forever. So to the extent that you're not working forever, you need something to retire upon.

The pension benefit has been really increased, although one was taken away, you know, years ago that employees were not happy about it. So, yes, it's still tentative and we should describe it as that as we have. And it still needs ratification, which means the members will vote and they'll say whether it's fair.

But I think people are believing that is the employees and the company that since they've come such a long way, they bridge this gap that this may be the deal that moves the company forward, get people back to work. And we will find out on Wednesday whether or not that happens.

COREN: Power to the workers. Joey Jackson in New York. Good to see you. Thank you.

JACKSON: Thanks.

COREN: Well, the search for a missing Broadway dancer is expanding. Just ahead, his family in South Carolina say Zelig Williams was an experienced hiker, but they now believe he is in danger. We have the latest on the investigation into the death of the British

singer Liam Payne. Just ahead, how grieving fans of the musician, his One Direction bandmates and his father are coping.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:42:05]

COREN: A jury in Oregon handed down guilty verdicts for a man who kidnapped a woman and held her in a makeshift prison in his garage. That's according to federal officials who say Negasi Zuberi posed as a police officer to abduct the woman in Seattle last year. She escaped after banging on her cell door until it broke open, which was weeks after investigators say Zuberi kidnapped and sexually assaulted another victim. He was found guilty on kidnapping, sex crimes and weapons charges and faces up to life in prison.

Well, the family of a missing Broadway dancer is expanding the area that they're searching for him. 28-year-old Zelig Williams danced in Hamilton and the MJ the Musical. He was last seen October 3rd in Columbia, South Carolina. His car was found near the start of a hiking trail.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIEOKI CORBETT, COUSIN OF MISSING BROADWAY DANCER: There's a family we've been searching. And we've searched that area and our cells on foot more than once. And now we're looking to expand our search because it's a rural area. So we're going to expand our search out both ways of where that trail is. They lead to major roads to go when you're traveling. So we're going to start searching.

KATHY WILLIAMS, MOTHER OF MISSING BROADWAY DANCER: And he is an awesome dancer, amazing dancer. And that's what he loves doing. So that keeps him going.

CORBETT: I would tell Zelig and will tell Zelig to hold on. Hold on to God. Hold on to your faith. And find your way home. We will not stop looking for you until you're found.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Well, Zelig's mother says her son loved to hike, but she now believes he is in danger.

Well, now the latest on the death of Liam Payne. A source tells CNN his family won't be able to take the body of the English singer home until clinical tests are completed in Argentina. The former boy band member died on Wednesday in a fall from his hotel balcony in Buenos Aires. The remaining members of his One Direction band are grieving, along with Payne's family and friends.

Well, bandmate Zayn Malik announced Saturday he is postponing the U.S. leg of his latest tour. Payne's fans are still gathering to mourn outside of the hotel. CNN's Dario Klein is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DARIO KLEIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The front of this hotel in Palermo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is becoming now a sanctuary for Liam Payne. This sanctuary is growing every minute with the fans of One Direction, with the so-called directioners that are coming here, like, for the minute, all the time, thousands of mainly girls over their 20s and 30s. They are leaving their letters, their poems, their flowers, candles, and singing its songs, asking Liam for forgiveness for not being able to help him when he needed them, that's what they say in those letters, and thanking him for being able to help them with his music.

[05:45:15]

In this sanctuary, Liam's father, Geoff, was here on Friday afternoon. He was able to see this, to see this sanctuary, to pay tribute to his son with his fans. He also tried to go to Liam's room where he spent the last hours of his life. He wasn't able to get inside because the room is sealed by the justice. Before that, he was able to see his body in the local morgue.

The prosecutor's office confirmed that he has to see the body, but also the justice, the sources told CNN that he won't be able to recover the body until they have all the analysis in hand, and that won't happen, they say, probably before next week.

Those analyses will give light to what happened to Liam's pain before his death, and that's the answer everybody's looking for right now. Dario Klein, CNN, Buenos Aires.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: Well, coming up here on CNN Newsroom. Lionel Messi sets a new record, Formula One revs up in Austin, Texas, and the New York Yankees advance to the World Series. All those sports stories and more when we return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:50:27]

COREN: Well, the hit Netflix series Emily in Paris dropped a bombshell at the end of Season 4. The main character, who went from Chicago to Paris, is moving to Rome.

Actress Lily Collins stars as the American who relocated for her marketing job. Well, now the show is the subject of a turf war between two European capitals. CNN Senior Correspondent Melissa Bell explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Now, if you happen to be one of the very many addicts of the series Emily in Paris, you'll know exactly where it is. I'm standing here on the left bank of the French capital, a square made famous by the Netflix series. What you'll also know if you watch it is that the end of Season 4

brought a shock that Emily herself may be leaving Paris entirely, something that was put to the French president himself in an interview with Variety.

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT: And I think it's good for the image of France. I mean, Emily in Paris is super positive in terms of attractiveness for the country. So for my own business, it's a very good initiative. Emily in Paris in Rome doesn't make sense.

BELL: Emmanuel Macron goes on to point out how good for business and for France this series has been, even if Parisians themselves see a great deal of cliches in the series not all of them are terribly happy about. For Emmanuel Macron, though, the connection is also a personal one, thanks to the cameo appearance made by his wife earlier in Season 4.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Emily, it's you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): I follow her on Instagram.

EMILY: Wait, wait, oh yes, I love your country.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And my country loves you, Emily.

EMILY: Thank you.

BELL: The mayor of Rome has now responded to what the French president had to say, saying that Italians are delighted that Emily is heading their way and that she should be allowed to choose where her heart leads her. A small war of words, then, between the French and the Italians about exactly where Emily should be considering herself at home. Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: Paris, Rome, what does it matter?

Well, let's now turn to sport. Baseball's New York Yankees are heading to the championship round for the first time in 15 years. CNN Sports Anchor Andy Scholes joins me from Atlanta. Andy, it was a dramatic ending to what had been a dramatic series against Cleveland.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yeah, Anna, I mean, this series, it just had so much drama. But in the end, it's the Yankees making it back to the World Series for the first time since 2009. Now, New York was down 2-0 in the sixth inning of this game when Giancarlo Stanton comes to the plate, and he just continues to be one of the best postseason sluggers of all time.

He homered again. This was a two-run shot to tie it. It was his fifth home run of the playoffs. Stanton was named the ALCS MVP. We go to extra innings, two on for Juan Soto, and this is why the Yankees traded for him. He comes through in the clutch with the three-run home run. Yankees would then get the final three outs to clinch the pennant. Here was Soto afterwards on getting the Yankees back to the World Series.

JUAN SOTO, NEW YORK YANKEES OUTFIELDER: Whenever you're winning and taking your team to the World Series, I mean, it's the best feeling you can ever have. I mean, that's what we play for. That's why we came since day one. We grind every day. We're here, and we accomplished. I mean, we have all the talent. We have all the talent that we need to go all the way.

Right now, we're feeling really good. We're really sticking together. We're pushing each other. We're feeling really good. Right now, we're going to the World Series and see. We've got another series to win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Yeah, so Yankees now await the winner between the Dodgers and Mets. Game 6 of that series is tonight in L.A., Dodgers leading three games to two.

All right, Messi, meanwhile, putting on a show in Miami's regular season finale. He came on as a sub in the 58th minute, and he would score three goals in an 11-minute span. And with those goals, Messi becoming the team's all-time leading goal scorer with 33.

And on top of that, with a 6-2 win, Miami breaking the MLS's points record for a season, finishing with 74, earning them the one seed when the playoffs kick off on Friday.

All right, Austin, Texas, very busy sports day because after F1 finished, it was time for number one, Texas, to host fifth-ranked Georgia in college football. This was hyped as a national championship-caliber game, but for the most part, it was pretty one- sided. Trevor Etienne scored three touchdowns on the ground.

The Bulldogs led 23 to nothing at halftime. Texas tried to make things interesting in the second half. Their fans, though, throwing stuff on the field here after a flag was thrown for pass interference, but they ended up picking up that flag, which made Georgia head coach Kirby Smart quite upset. But Georgia would still end up winning this one, 30 to 15, handing Texas their first loss of the season.

[05:55:14]

All right, finally, Arizona State missed two field goals in their loss to Cincinnati yesterday, and head coach Kenny Dillingham is so unhappy with their kicking game that he's made a plea to their entire student body.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KENNY DILLINGHAM, ARIZONA STATE HEAD COACH: Our kicking game's atrocious, so if you can kick and you're at Arizona State, email me, right? We're going to have kicking tryouts on Monday, so bring it on, kicking tryouts Monday. Let's go. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seriously?

DILLINGHAM: Yeah, I'm dead serious. We're going to put it out on our social. We're going to have a kicking tryout on Monday. We got to find somebody who can make a field goal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Hey, so if you go to Arizona State, Anna, and you got a pretty good leg, you could kick. You could maybe end up on the football team.

COREN: Yeah, that's me for sure. I'm heading there. I love it. Kicking game atrocious. Wow. Let's -- yeah, he's not messing with words. Andy Scholes, great to see you. Thank you.

SCHOLES: All right.

COREN: Well, before we go, from Cinderella to rapper to fries and ketchup, dress up dogs flooded New York's East Village Saturday for the annual Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade. The volunteer-run annual event had more treats than tricks. Many owners joined in the fun, matching their dogs' outfits, while some furry friends attempted to be a totally different creature for the day.

One owner went so far as to put their dog in a hot dog and onto a hot dog cart next to a baby dressed like a hot dog vendor. Thousands turned out to watch the celebration of New York dog culture, now in its 34th year. Lots of fun.

Well, that wraps up this hour of CNN Newsroom. I'm Anna Coren. Thank you so much for your company.

For those of you watching in North America, "CNN This Morning" is coming up. For the rest of the world, "Decoded" is next. Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)