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Biden's Controversial Visit To Saudi Arabia; Explosions, Gunfire Reported In Russian Held Enerhodar; Trump Planned January 6 March. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired July 13, 2022 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:00]
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PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We are following two major developing stories this hour, beginning with more mayhem on the
streets of the Sri Lankan capital, the president gone.
He gave his powers to the Prime Minister and left the country. Protesters now occupy the Prime Minister's office. I am Paula Newton, in for Becky
Anderson, a warm welcome to everyone around the world. And this is CONNECT THE WORLD. We will have much more on Sri Lanka's deepening crisis straight
ahead.
But first, U.S. president Joe Biden in the Middle East for a trip marked by controversy and poignancy. In about half an hour, the president will pay
tribute to Holocaust victims at the memorial Yad Vashem.
Earlier, he met with the defense minister about Israel's formidable missile defense systems, Iron Dome and now its successor. Now arriving a couple of
hours ago, Mr. Biden said U.S. ties with Israel were deeper, in his words, stronger than ever.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Because the connection between Israeli people and the American people is bone deep, it's bone
deep. Generation after generation, our connection grows. We invest in each other. We dream together.
We're part of what has always been the objective we both had.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Mr. Biden, of course, heads to Saudi Arabia later in the week. CNN Hadas Gold is standing by for us in Jerusalem.
You have been covering this trip as it began a few hours ago. Mr. Biden really has a unique history in the Middle East, nearly a half-century.
Tell us about this trip and crucially what is to come after he leaves Israel.
You are right. President Biden loves to talk about how he has known every Prime Minister since Golda Meir in the '70s. This is his 10th trip to
Israel that his first as president and if you are an Israeli official, they likely loved the speech they heard from President Biden, especially the
line where he said, "You do not have to be a Jew to be a Zionist."
He was later seen embracing the new Prime Minister, Yair Lapid, he just finished touring an exhibit showing the Iron Dome missile defense system
and be brand-new sort of futuristic laser defense system called the Iron Beam that likely the Israelis will be asking the Americans for funding.
He has just now left the Tel Aviv area and is now en route here to Jerusalem where he will be touring the Holocaust Memorial and will also be
meeting with two Holocaust survivors.
Despite the fact that there is expected to be some small advancements on things like building up regional alliances, building potentially steps
toward an actual relationship between Israel and Saudi Arabia, where President Biden will be heading straight to from Tel Aviv, that flight a
unique historic moment.
On the ground for the everyday people, we have been talking with locals here and they are not expecting much progress to be made on peace, the
security between Israelis and Palestinians.
We talk people about President Biden and were met with a collective shrug.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HADAS GOLD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cranes and heavy machinery have been at work in Ramat Shlomo in East Jerusalem for almost 30 years.
[10:05:00]
GOLD (voice-over): For most of the international community, these Israeli homes extend on occupied Palestinian land and are thus considered illegal,
a designation Israel contests.
In 2010, more than 1,000 new homes were approved for construction here. Right as Joe Biden was making his first visit as vice president, it was
seen as a slap in the face.
BIDEN: Yesterday, the decision by the Israeli government to advance planning for new housing units in East Jerusalem undermines that very
trust. The trust that we need right now, in order to begin as well as produce have profitable negotiations.
GOLD: But whether the White House liked it or not, the plans move forward. Hanna Toledano lives on one of the new streets announced 12 years ago,
which was named for her grandfather.
HANNA TOLEDANO, RAMAT SHLOMO RESIDENT: It's my road. I am I Hannah Toledano.
GOLD: So you feel like this land is yours?
TOLEDANO: Pardon?
GOLD: This land is yours, which what you think?
TOLEDANO: I believe this land is ours, not mine. Ours, it belongs to the Jews.
GOLD (voice-over): There is no doubting strength of feeling about the land here and the different claims on it once the United States look to lead
peace efforts here and influence policy but its impact has been limited.
(on camera): Despite consistent American pressure on the Israelis to slow down or stop settlement construction as part of Confidence Building
Measures with the Palestinians. The facts on the ground here in Ramat Shlomo show that the building and the expansion continues.
(voice-over): In fact, increasingly, there is a feeling that even if the U.S. and President Biden wanted to get involved, few here would be paying
much attention.
TOLEDANO: He's just not the personality for it. He might have the knowledge or he might have other ideas or whatever. He doesn't have the personality.
YISRAEL RABINOVICH, RAMAT SHLOMO RESIDENT: We don't say today -- to them to build in their country. Nobody can say us to build in our country.
GOLD: A few dozen kilometers away lies the Palestinian city of Bethlehem in the West Bank. Here, the President will find it hard to avoid stark
reminders of the conflict.
(on camera): One issue that will likely be staring President Biden right in the face the killing of Shereen Abu Aqleh. This giant mural of the Al
Jazeera journalist is right on the road you take as you enter Bethlehem.
(voice-over): For many here, the U.S. response to the death of the Palestinian-American reporter shot dead while covering an Israeli military
operation has been inadequate, the latest and a growing list of disappointments in the Biden administration.
MARWAHN AFARHAJA, TOUR GUIDE: I hope I will have some change. But to be honest with you, I don't have hope to receive and the good thing from his
visit in Palestine (ph) or anywhere in the Middle East. GOLD: Even so, this is the Holy Land and woodcarver Samir Lolas hopes Biden's planned visit to
the Church of the Nativity might provide the spiritual spark needed for the devoutly Catholic president.
SAMIR LOLAS, WOOD CARVER (through translator): He is visiting Jesus birthplace and we remind him that even Jesus says love never falls. That's
what we want. Peace which will bring love to us and all of us.
GOLD: A rare flicker of optimism on an issue most here believed the White House would prefer to put aside.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLD: And president Biden will be heading to the West Bank to meet with the Palestinian leadership on Friday. There have been confidence measure,
things put out by the Israelis, like allowing more work permits, allowing these building zones to be started in the West Bank, he himself in his
address at the airport acknowledged that he knows that a two-state solution is not in the near term.
So small steps but no big major achievements expected while he's here.
NEWTON: So striking, a two-state solution, something that was on the table for so many years. And now as you have shown us, little hope of anything
like that. Hadas Gold, we'll continue to cover this visit in the coming hours and we will get back to you on the ground. Appreciate it.
For some perspective on the situation we want to head to CNN military analyst, Colonel Cedric Leighton.
Thank you for joining us on what is a historical visit on behalf of the U.S. president. I know how closely you followed progression of the Iron
Dome. This is Iron Dome 2.0 -- that is my name -- but then there is this Iron Beam that has to do with using lasers in defense.
Biden is making it very clear, already in the last hour been up close and personal with the current system.
What message do you think this sends about this new system and U.S. support for it?
COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: I think the Iron Dome 2.0 is certainly a key ingredient is Israeli-U.S. relations.
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LEIGHTON: There's some U.S. technology that is part of the Iron Dome, the basic version and the upgraded version. And the Iron Beam is also something
that is I think a necessary ingredient for the Israelis when it comes to fighting things like drones, because drones are going to be increasingly
prevalent in warfare.
So both systems are going to be essential, not only for Israel's security but also for other nations, who may seek to adopt the Iron Dome system and
its Iron Beam cousin. That could be a potential use of these systems in Ukraine. So that might be part of the subtext that President Biden is
looking at he is going through this.
It is a highly capable system, thousands of missiles have been intercepted by it and it is definitely saved a lot of Israeli lives. So it's gotten our
attention and garnered our support, at least so far.
NEWTON: But it has also been transformational and perhaps changed the security architecture definitely in the Middle East and may change it
elsewhere.
Is there any doubt that Israel will continue to get funding?
So many times former President Obama would boast about how the U.S. had funded the system.
Do you think in terms of a more complicated regional structure that that the U.S. is right on board here, especially when it comes to perhaps
expanding the use of the Iron Dome throughout the region?
LEIGHTON: So one of the most innovative ideas might be to use the Iron Dome or some derivative of the Iron Dome throughout the entire Middle East. Of
course that means improved -- further improved relations between especially the Gulf states. And that would include eventually Saudi Arabia and Israel.
And so if that happens, the possibility of an Iron Dome like coverage of a much broader geographical area is at least feasible. There would be some
technical challenges with that. We have been working in the United States with Saudi Arabia on their defense issues since the early 1980s.
And if you incorporate something like the Iron Dome, it would definitely send a message to Iran, the foremost adversary in this region, that not
only does Israel mean business, like the rest of the countries in the Gulf mean business when it comes to dealing with Iranian missile attacks or any
other possible Iranian attack that they could mount.
So it would be a huge signal and it definitely shows that the United States wants to close ranks with Israel and potentially with the Arab nations,
especially in the Gulf, to protect those areas from possible Iranian attacks.
NEWTON: That's certainly an important lever as well that the U.S. can use and intends to with its influence.
President Putin, it has now been announced, will be visiting Iran next week. Iran apparently, according to U.S. officials, is looking at providing
perhaps hundreds of drones to Russia.
When we talk about what something like the Iron Dome defense system might mean in this context, it represents an escalation right, especially when we
even start to talk about deploying it in Ukraine.
And I do understand there is a big controversy right now as to whether or not this can even work in Ukraine.
LEIGHTON: Yes, really considers -- the efficacy of the Iron Dome's effectiveness really depends on a lot of different factors that have to be
integrated into an air defense system that is viable and functional.
And the Ukrainian air defense system is based on an old Soviet design. So that does present a challenge for the integration of the Iron Dome system
into it. It is possible to do some things with a modifier defense systems to make it work.
With President Putin visiting Iran and the Iranians probably supplying drones (INAUDIBLE) really going on both sides. The Iron Dome system by
itself can do some things against drones.
But it is really going to be the Iron Beam system that is designed to counter threats like the one posed by these Iranian drones. So it could be
really a next generation capability that would be the most effective, if it works as advertised in countering drone attacks.
And that would, of course, be a game changer in terms of the security posture for any nation that adopts that kind of a system.
NEWTON: Talk about a game changer, that does mean in many cases an escalation. Vladimir Putin would look at it that way. Again, thanks so much
for being on board as we continue to follow the president's visit. Appreciate it.
Now you can read a lot more about Joe Biden's high-stakes trip in our newsletter
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NEWTON: Meanwhile in the Middle East, experts take a deeper dive into the news and trends from the region, will look at what not to expect from the
trip. Sign up @cnn.com/MideastNewsletter. Very complicated issues going on.
A country mired in political and economic crisis reaches its boiling point. Angry protesters force Sri Lanka's president to leave the country, now
turning their sights to the man tapped to take over.
Plus Russia's stranglehold on Ukrainian wheat is severely affecting global food supply. How farmers are risking their lives on the wheat fields.
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NEWTON: Ukraine's military reports intense Russian bombardment in parts of Donetsk while teams are still searching the rubble left by a weekend
attack. The death toll sadly has risen to 47 following a Russian rocket strike on an apartment building in the eastern city of Chasiv Yar while
elsewhere in Donetsk, Russia is carrying out intense shelling and air strikes, targeting residential and public infrastructure.
In his nightly address Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy touted the success of new long-range missiles donated by the West after
Ukrainian forces struck a Russian ammunition depot in Kherson.
Today a Russian soldier appeared in court to challenge his life sentence for war crimes. Scott McLean has been following all these developments on
the ground in Kyiv and he joins us now.
Let us turn first to what has been going on in court. The soldier had that appearance. This is an appeal. I know you told us before how important it
is to Ukrainians that, when they are prosecuting these alleged war crimes, it is seen as a just and fair process.
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That is right and the prosecutor said, look, he does not view the original sentence as unduly harsh but he also
said that this ought to be an example to other Russians, who are now fighting on Ukrainian territory.
I should mention, Paula, that this particular appeals hearing was actually held up by about an hour because of air raid sirens in the city. When it
resumed, 21-year-old Vadim Shishimarin took his place in the prisoners' box, a glass box.
He spoke -- he listened to the proceedings through a Russian translator, where the judge first laid out the facts of the case and that determined
his conviction, which is that, four days into the war only, he crossed over the border into Ukraine.
He was part of a Russian military column that was fired on by the Ukrainians. He and four other soldiers ended up, to avoid shelling,
stealing a car, drove it into a nearby village.
[10:20:00]
MCLEAN: And this is when he came across this 62-year-old man on his cell phone, riding a bicycle. The initial defense that he gave was that, yes, he
killed him but he was pressured by his superior to actually pull the trigger.
And that is largely the same kind of defense that we heard today. Obviously the judge did not buy it. Today though his lawyer argued that he not only
refused initially to shoot several times, it was also only a single shot that was fired, that he did not put up a fight when he was detained.
And that ultimately he had no intention to actually kill a man. The prosecution, though, well, as I mentioned, they would very much like to
hold this up as an example. And I asked the prosecutor whether he had any sympathy at all for the position this Russian soldier found himself in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDRIY SUNYUK, PROSECUTOR (through translator): I have absolutely no sympathy for these people. I approached this case with the cold, hot and
clear mind relying only on the facts. And the fact is that he came to our land in a military equipment in order to destroy as many Ukrainians as
possible.
He is complicit. No one forces a person to carry out a criminal order.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCLEAN: Just looking at Shyshimarin in the prisoners box inside the courtroom, what really struck me is just how young he looks. He looks like
a kid, he looks like a teenager and he is barely older than a teenager.
There were no decisions made today. The ruling by the three-judge panel could come later this month. So there could also be more arguments heard.
If the sentence is reduced, it would be reduced to a maximum of 15 years because, under the Ukrainian judicial system, the harshest sentence you can
get is life. And the second harshest is 15 years.
Of course, the other possibility for Shyshimarin is that he has exchanged in a prisoner exchange; though, of course, that is a political decision,
not one for the courts.
NEWTON: That might be ways open for and I take your point about how young he is. In my coverage of Russia and the soldiers there, they are incredibly
young and remained so. And those were the kind of Russian soldiers that went into Ukraine. Some of them, you know, detailing they didn't know where
they were going or what the mission was.
Thanks, Scott, really appreciate it.
Ukraine is, of course, hoping to speed up grain exports. After 16 ships passed through a reopened route of the Danube River. Right now more than 20
million tons of grain, 20 million, remain stuck in Ukraine due to Russia's blockade of Black Sea ports.
Today Turkiye is holding talks with Russian, Ukraine and the U.N. about the deadlock on grain exports. Meantime, Ukrainian farmers are risking their
lives to keep production going. Ivan Watson has a look now on a farm that shows us the dangers that farmers are facing every day.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the farmer's deadly crop, part of it this summer, rockets, Russian rockets
and nose cones that he's collected from his farm fields in the last couple of weeks. And that's the reality of life in this part of Ukraine.
There is incredible, rich farmland here. This is one of the biggest grain exporting countries in the world. We're just in the kind of parking lot
amid the tractors and combines of this farm.
But right now, everywhere in southern Ukraine, you'll see people harvesting wheat and grain and they're doing it amid artillery and front line combat
that is very close by. We've been hearing the explosions of artillery coming into the south of here.
And actually we're driving through farm fields next to burned out tanks and armored personnel carriers. And the farmers are still working, even with
the threat of Russian artillery that could land here.
It's remarkable, the bravery of these people. Part of the problem though, is even though there's a crop of wheat out in these fields that needs to be
harvested. The Ukrainians can't export it right now, there's a Russian naval blockade of Ukraine's ports, so the food can't get out.
And that's having an immediate impact being felt around the world with the inflation of global food prices.
So the Ukrainian government, the farmers here, the World Food Program, the U.N., they're all asking for corridors so that the wheat that is harvested
here can be exported, so that you're not going to see starvation and social unrest in some of the poorer countries around the world.
But it's tough. There are barns here, storage facilities that are full of grain from these farmers last year's crop that he cannot take to market
right now.
And this is just one example of the consequences of this terrible war.
[10:25:00]
WATSON: The Ukrainian government is accusing Russia of fighting hunger games, driving up food prices is and shortages of food around the world.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Our Ivan Watson there.
And we go now to Sri Lanka, where crowds are gathering outside the office of the parliamentary speaker. It comes after she announced earlier that the
outgoing president Rajapaksa had resigned in fact, via phone.
Now he must still apparently submit a formal letter of resignation. Before fleeing to the Maldives, Rajapaksa appointed the Prime Minister, Ranil
Wickremesinghe, as acting president. And that of course further enraged protesters, already angry over the country's ongoing economic crisis.
Earlier they breached the prime minister's compound and took over his offices. Following a standoff of security forces at the gates, the national
hospital says 30 people were injured in all of that chaos.
Paula Hancocks is following all of these developments for us.
Still we have to say, complete chaos there on the ground.
My question is, do we have a sense of if and when the military might step in here?
And, crucially, on behalf of whom?
Some of the anger from the protesters is that they believe that the president and family members would still be in control of Sri Lanka,
basically through the military or through this Prime Minister as president, ruling by proxy.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As protesters understood it and to be fair as most of us understood it, both the president and the prime minister
were going to step down today, Wednesday.
Now we get to see the president leave the country. He fled before dawn on a military plane. But he hasn't necessarily officially resigned. The
parliamentary speaker said that he has given him assurances, yes, he has resigned but it needs to be an official letter through the constitution
before the official process can be put into place so the parliamentary speaker effectively stepping into the presidential vote until there is a
new president-elect July 20th.
But what the president has done is, fleeing the country, put his prime minister in the acting president role, effectively saying that through the
constitution he is allowed to do that if the president is ill or absent from the country.
From the protesters' point of view, he is not absent from the country. He is not president anymore. They understand that he has stepped down
completely. So it's very confusing at this point as to who exactly should be in control.
NEWTON: The other issue is the issue of the military and what they intend to do here. And we just heard the hospital. There had been more injuries.
You and I have seen pictures of the chaos that ensues and still no resolution right.
HANCOCKS: That is right. The Prime Minister had ordered curfew, declared a state of emergency earlier Wednesday. He pulled back from that. But what he
is done is set up his committee of senior military leaders to, quote, "to restore law and order."
That is according to a senior military source. So what this means in practice, it is unclear at this point. We have seen clashes, tear gas being
used against protesters to try and repel them. The military was not able to do. We know that there have been at least 30 injuries, according to one
source the hospital,, many of them injured by tear gas or cuts and bruises.
She did not say there were any gunshot wounds at this point but we know over the weekend there had been. So there is a serious concern as to
exactly how comprehensive this restoring law and order could be. And of course (INAUDIBLE).
NEWTON: Yes, definitely in his name, at issue here is how close the president and his family members, his cabinet still are to the military.
Paula Hancocks, appreciate you keeping us up-to-date.
Now this is CONNECT THE WORLD. Just ahead for us, Joe Biden's big welcome in Israel and what he hopes to accomplish on his first trip to the Middle
East as U.S. president.
And U.S. senators get new revelations about the January 6 Capitol insurrection. What it means for the former president going forward.
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NEWTON: Welcome back. I'm Paula Newton in New York. I'm filling in for Becky Anderson and this is CONNECT THE WORLD. More now on our top story.
Israel rolled out the red carpet for Joe Biden, who had just kicked off his high-stakes trip to the Middle East. His first as U.S. president. The White
House saying Mr. Biden is looking to ,quote, "further deepen and intensify U.S. engagement with Israel."
And another one of his aims is, of course, to bring Israel and Saudi Arabia closer together. Friday the president travels to Saudi Arabia for the most
controversial leg of his trip.
White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins, live in Jerusalem.
And it is really good to get your take on this, Kaitlan, and I am wondering, in terms of White House officials and what they been saying to
you, you cannot ignore Joe Biden's experience here right, nearly half a century, Senator Vice President, now president.
But it can also come with quite a bit of baggage.
What do White House officials say about what his aims are on the ground?
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: This is actually his 10th trip to Israel. Of course, his first as president and that is what
really matters to officials on the ground, even though they know Biden is a known quantity to them.
They are meeting with the settlement here, of course in Israel, what is happening with their own government, as the prime minister that is greeting
President Biden at the airport today and chauffeuring him around and help hosting him on this trip on the first day is someone who has only been
prime minister for about 13 days.
It is his caretaker prime minister role for the elections in November. So it is a bit unsettled here when it comes to that. And that is why you do
not expect to see any kind of concrete or big changes coming out of what you are hearing from the White House line during this trip.
Instead you saw President Biden as he arrived here, giving brief remarks and saying the U.S. does still believe there should be a two-state solution
but he said he does not believe that is something that is going to happen in the near future.
So, yes, he is shoring up the relationship here, trying to show that it is a priority for him, given the nature to make this his first stop in the
Middle East, in Israel, visiting, getting his tour for the Iron Dome, the Iron Beam system that is now in development.
But this is a trip for President Biden where he is making a stop here before going on to a much trickier part of the region, for him at least,
Saudi Arabia, because, of course, that is the state that he vowed to make a pariah when he was on the campaign trail and said the current government,
which is still the same government, had very little social redeeming value after the United States found that the Saudi crown prince had approved the
murder of Jamal Khashoggi, the reporter and dissident.
And so now with gas prices so high in the United States and they've come down slightly in recent -- in the recent last month but is still an issue
for this White House. Look at the inflation numbers and how they came out today about what consumers are paying.
It's a big concern for them and so the White House said this is not just a visit about oil; it's about national security issues more broadly. There is
a chance you could see some movement on that front, maybe not right away but potentially in the coming months.
And that is certainly what the White House is hoping to see as they are making this visit and they have -- it's a politically fraught visit.
[10:35:00]
COLLINS: But it is one they believe -- basically their pragmatism is coming face-to-face with what President Biden said and promised to do on the
campaign trail.
NEWTON: There is little doubt that this trip is politically expedient. I am fascinated by what you have been describing as well, the issue on the
handshake. Anybody that has been waiting to see certainly a handshake between President Biden and the crown prince, apparently there has been
some choreography to make sure that does not happen?
COLLINS: The White House is not explicitly saying as much. But when they were asked today whether or not President Biden would be shaking hands on
the ground for this four day trip, they said that he would be avoiding the handshakes because of COVID-19.
New variants are spreading and the concern about that, it only lasts for a few minutes. Basically, President Biden is on the ground here in Israel,
where you saw him as he was walking down the red carpet, shake hands with two prime ministers here.
And so the question, of course, is whether or not they are setting up that decision to try to distance themselves from shaking hands with too many
officials on the ground in advance of that trip to Saudi, where it is -- seems almost inevitable that, at some point, there is going to be a
photograph of President Biden and the Saudi crown prince, the first time they're coming face to face as he made those comments.
And potentially even a handshake. So that remains to be seen as part of it. But it does go to speak to how carefully they are trying to choreograph and
how tightly they certainly coordinate these events when the president is on the ground, especially when it is one that is politically fraught, as
meeting with the crown prince, accused of authorizing the murder of a reporter who lived in the United States.
And something that he has faced criticism from his own Democrats for, saying they would not go to Saudi and shake MBS' hand.
The question is, will President Biden?
NEWTON: We're showing the pictures now. I am glad you brought it up but the minute he got off the stairs of Air Force One, the hand came out. And I
think that choreography was basically -- went to the wind.
Kaitlan, we'll continue to follow --
(CROSSTALK)
NEWTON: -- blowing a gale there. Thanks so much.
Now horrifying surveillance video from the Uvalde school massacre surfaces online. Now outraged parents want to know why. We'll look at what it
reveals about the police response during the tragedy.
There are other revelations here. There's new information about the days leading up to January 6 insurrection in Washington. What came out of that
latest bombshell hearing.
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NEWTON: The select committee investigating the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol wrapped up its seventh public hearing Tuesday, zeroing in this time
on former president Trump's connection to far right extremist groups.
[10:40:00]
NEWTON: And shedding light on how far the Trump camp went in planning for supporters to actually march on the U.S. Capitol. The panel members heard
from a former Oath Keeper, who spoke about the group's violent aims. They also revealed the leadership's thousands of dollars' worth of tactical gear
to a January 6 rally planner.
Phone logs obtained by the committee revealed how associates of the former president may have known what would happen. The records show Steve Bannon
spoke with the former president on the morning of January 5th.
Bannon made this prediction earlier that same day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVE BANNON, ADVISER TO FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP: I'll tell you this, it's not going to happen like you think it is going to happen. OK. It's going to
be quite extraordinarily different. And all I can say is strap in.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Several former Trump aides meantime told the committee he gathered staff in the Oval Office on the day before the riots so they could hear
supporters rallying outside when aides said Trump was taking notes and talking about going to the Capitol. Ryan Nobles picks up the story from
there. Some testimony contains profane language.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
RYAN NOBLES, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The January 6 Select Committee use their seventh public hearing to build a case that
Donald Trump had a plan to call his supporters to Washington to march on the Capitol and stand in the way of certifying the 2020 election.
One witness Stephen Ayres, who has since pleaded guilty to entering the Capitol illegally said he answered Trump's call.
STEPEHEN AYRES, BREACHED CAPITOL ON JANUARY 6TH: We didn't actually plan to go down there. You know, we went basically to see the stop the steal rally
and that was it.
REP. STEPHANIE MURPHY (D-FL): So why did you decide to march to the Capitol?
AYRES: Well, basically, you know, the President got everybody riled up or what everybody had on down. So we basically were just following what he
said.
NOBLES: The Committee unveiling never before seen depositions and communications among Trump insiders, showing that the former president
ignored the advice of his own advisers and instead leaned on the counsel of election deniers, like Sidney Powell, Michael Flynn and Rudy Giuliani.
RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER TRUMP ATTORNEY: I'm going to categorically describe it as you guys are not tough enough. Or maybe put it another way, you're a
bunch of pussies. Excuse the expression but that's almost certainly the word with you.
NOBLES: The committee arguing Trump knew he lost the election but was driven to overturn the results anyway.
REP. LIZ CHENEY (R-WY): President Trump is a 76-year-old man. He is not an impressionable child, just like everyone else in our country, he is
responsible for his own actions and his own choices.
NOBLES: A drive that led to a raucous meeting at the White House in the middle of December, when Trump wanted to name attorney Sidney Powell, a
special counsel in order to seize voting machines.
SIDNEY POWELL, FMR. FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: The President said, OK, you know, I'm the name winner of that and I'm giving her security clearance.
NOBLES: Former White House Counsel Pat Cipollone testifying that he was displeased to see people like Powell and Flynn in the Oval Office and told
Trump naming Powell special counsel was a grave mistake.
PAT CIPOLLONE, FMR. TRUMP WHITE HOUSE COUNSEL: To have the federal government cease voting machines, it's a terrible idea for the country.
That's not how we do things in the United States. There's no legal authority to do that.
I don't think any of these people were providing the President with good advice. And so I didn't understand how they had gotten in.
NOBLES: Cipollone also describing his frustration dealing with people, who couldn't produce any evidence of widespread voter fraud.
CIPOLLONE: I disregard I would say a general disregard for the importance of actually backing up, say with facts.
NOBLES: Afterward, Trump shifting gears but not backing down from his pursuit of pushing election lies, tweeting the next day, an invitation to
his supporters to descend on Washington. On January 6.
MURPHY: Be there will be wild, the president wrote.
NOBLES: The committee also presenting a draft tweet obtained from the National Archives showing Trump plans before January 6, to tell his
supporters please arrive early, massive crowds expected. Marched to the Capitol after. This, despite members of Trump's cabinet and inner circle,
testifying that they told Trump he lost the election. And he should concede to Biden after the Electoral College met in mid- December.
EUGENE SCALIA, FORMER U.S. LABOR SECRETARY: I conveyed to him that I thought that it was time for him to acknowledge that President Biden had
prevailed in the election.
CIPOLLONE: If your question is that I believe he should concede the election at one time, yes I did.
NOBLES: Next up for the committee, a hearing next week that they say will focus on what they describe as Donald Trump's dereliction of duty, those
187 minutes while the Capitol was under siege and they say they'll show he did not do enough to prevent the violence from getting worse.
[10:45:00]
NOBLES: And the committee ended their hearing on Tuesday by making note of a potential witness getting a phone call out of the blue from the former
President Donald Trump. They say that witness decline the call and instead informed their attorney of it. The attorney then reached out to the
committee.
The committee says that they've now passed that information along to the Department of Justice, in case it is a potential instance of witness
intimidation -- Ryan Nobles, CNN, on Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Chilling newly released surveillance video showing what law enforcement did and crucially did not do during the mass shooting in
Uvalde, Texas. The leaked footage from Robb Elementary has sparked outrage among families of the victims, who were set to view it privately before it
went public.
And a warning as we show this video that many will find it disturbing. The "Austin American-Statesman" newspaper published edited portions of the
footage, which shows the gunman entering the school. You will also hearing officers retreating from gunfire on the day of that shooting in May; 19
students and two teachers were killed during that massacre.
The mayor said all news agencies knew the city was working with the Texas House committee to release the video to families this coming weekend. Now
those who lost loved ones in the shooting are expressing their anger and frustration over the videos, released just days before they had a chance to
see it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FELICIA MARTINEZ, XAVIER JAMES LOPEZ'S MOTHER: We're angry, we're very angry but we want justice for our kids. And for this to be let out without
us even being -- seeing first, we're the parents that lost our children.
We are supposed to do this together first.
ANGEL GARZA, AMERIE JO'S FATHER: Who do you think you are to release footage like that of our children, who cannot even speak for themselves but
you want to go ahead and air their final moments to the entire world?
What makes you think that is OK?
The least you can do is have some freaking decency for us. That is unacceptable.
NIKKI CROSS, AUNT OF UVALDE VICTIM: We've been asking DA for this video for a while. And she refused to let us see it. So once again, the world got to
see it before us, just like the day of the shooting, when Governor Abbott announced to you all, that our children were dead and we had no idea.
So it's like reliving that day all over again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Have to feel for those parents. First, absolutely torturous news and now no accountability. The Texas House committee investigating the
shooting still plans to show the full video to the families of the victims before releasing it to the public Sunday.
CNN's Shimon Prokupecz, really covering this for weeks now, walks us through the footage. But again we want to warn our viewers, this is so
incredibly disturbing to watch.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE PRODUCER (voice-over): May 24 outside Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, an edited version of surveillance
video shows the gunman crashing his vehicle and then running toward the school.
Released by the "Austin American-Statesman," at 11:32, the video shows the first shots fired outside the school. A teacher called 9-1-1.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The kids are running. Oh, my God. Get in your room, get in your rooms. Get in your rooms.
PROKUPECZ: At 11:33, another surveillance camera shows the gunman entering an empty hallway, unhindered, walking casually with his gun hanging down.
He slows down and peeks around the corner. A boy sees him as he starts shooting and the boy runs.
According to the "Statesman," the gunman fired his weapon, an AR-15 style rifle, inside two classrooms for 2.5 minutes, stopping and starting
multiple times.
The surveillance video shows seven police officers entering the hallway within three minutes, armed, some with rifles. Within one minute, more
shots are fired, 16 rounds in total. And police can be seen retreating, running back down the hallway to take cover.
Then at 11:52, 19 minutes after the gunman entered the school, the video shows more officers arriving, heavily armed, some with ballistic shields.
Still, they wait.
At 12:04, 31 minutes after the gunman entered the school, law enforcement is still waiting. At least 19 officers are now in the hallway, according to
the official timeline.
[10:50:00]
PROKUPECZ (voice-over): At 12:21, 45 minutes after police arrived, the gunman fires another four shots and police start to move down the hallway
again but remaining outside the classrooms.
At 12:31, an officer is seen using the hand sanitizer.
At 12:43 and 12:47, more 9-1-1 calls for help and the caller says children are aware the police are outside the door.
Then at 12:50, 74 minutes after police first entered the school, officers breached the classroom door and killed the gunman.
At this point, the video shows officers in the hallway pushing to go in. The surveillance video reveals how police waited for more than 70 minutes
in the hallway, at times, some rushing toward the classrooms, other officers hanging back.
Despite that, some officials are outraged by the video's release. During a city council meeting, Uvalde's mayor expressed his anger at the media.
MAYOR DON MCLAUGHLIN, UVALDE, TEXAS: I want to go on the record. The way that video was released is one of the most sickening things I've ever seen.
There's no reason for those families to have to see -- they don't need to relive that. They've been through enough.
PROKUPECZ: As for the families of those 19 students and 2 teachers who were massacred at Robb Elementary, some say the video's release has caused them
more pain.
JAVIER CAZARES, JACKIE CAZARES' FATHER: It got leaked. It got shown all over the world. And we are pissed. These families didn't deserve it. I
don't deserve it. That's a slap to our babies' faces and we're tired of this.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Indeed, they are. Shimon Prokupecz there with that reporting.
While the leaked footage has fueled anger from the victims' families, it's obviously drawing further scrutiny over the delayed law enforcement
response.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW MCCABE, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: A complete failure to live up to the sacred trust, the bargain that every law enforcement officer
makes when they hold up their hand and are sworn in to their job and that is that you will lay down your life to protect other people.
That commitment is what you see violated by a bunch of poorly led officers, who wander around and half of whom are surprised when the entry is finally
made. You see the officers at the back of the hall. They are shocked that somebody is actually going to the room.
It's inexplicable and it's kind of -- I have to say, it's kind of sickening to see that in the law enforcement community that I love, that I know my
colleagues treasury. This is really hard to watch.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: We're getting reaction from Texas state lawmakers and that including this tweet from Representative Tony Gonzales, who called the
video very difficult to watch and said the gun should have been neutralized immediately.
This Texas house member called the video "a piecemeal release of information" and says "people deserve the complete truth."
Indeed those families do. We will be right back with more news after a break.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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NEWTON: Western Europe now bracing for a dangerous round of record-breaking heat. Officials right across the continent are issuing their highest level
of heat warnings. There are concerns that roads can be closed in some areas due to melting.
[10:55:00]
NEWTON: More now from CNN's Melissa Bell.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: After the second hottest June on record, Europe is once again facing a dangerous heat wave.
There are emergencies announced for parts of Italy as a result of the drought conditions there. Drought conditions and wildfires also in Portugal
and parts of Spain, leading to high alerts there.
The hot temperatures heading northwards from Spain and Italy, Portugal now through parts of France, heading to the United Kingdom where they are
expecting some of the hottest temperatures ever recorded in the country, with alerts out in that country as well.
The hot weather also heading eastward across Italy and into the Balkans, here in France at several of the fireworks displays planned for the 14th of
July, Thursday, have been canceled as a result.
Alerts now out in parts of southwest, the part of France likely the most impacted here on the French Riviera as well, temperatures expected to hit
or exceed 38 degrees Celsius and this into the weekend, with parts of France, Spain and Portugal now under high alert -- Melissa Bell, CNN,
Menton.
(WEATHER REPORT)
NEWTON: A new study puts dollars on the economic harm caused by the countries most responsible for climate change. Researchers at Dartmouth
College say the world's top emitters of greenhouse gases -- U.S., China, Russia, India and Brazil -- cause losses of $6 trillion from the global
economy between 1990 and 2014.
That's about 11 percent of global GDP. The U.S. and China alone cause more than half of those losses. Quantifying how much damage a country causes
could potentially lead to legal action against the world's wealthiest nations.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUSTIN MANKIN, DARTMOUTH COLLEGE: One country emitting or foregoing its emissions has an economic impact. We can trace and identify and quantify
that impact and put it in dollar terms.
That is central to informing climate litigation, climate liability and ambitions of a lot of low-income countries in the global south are
rightfully seeking restitution for the damages they suffered from the benefits of fossil fuel consumption in the industrialized world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Happening now, U.S. President Joe Biden visiting the Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem with the Israeli prime minister and U.S.
secretary of state Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan are accompanying.
The president meeting with Holocaust survivors there. This is an event with so much resonance, as is his entire trip to the Middle East. He heads to
Saudi Arabia.
Hadas Gold is standing by for us in Jerusalem.
Obviously, this trip brings so much meaning to the Israelis and comes at a critical point for the White House, for Joe Biden and also for regional
security.
GOLD: And regional security is top of mind during this visit. This day is much more than about the ceremony at the airport, the remarks from
President Biden, saying, "You don't have to be a Jew to be a Zionist."
He toured some missile defense systems that Israel has, the Iron Dome, the new Iron Beam laser missile defense system. He is just now entering the Yad
Vashem Holocaust memorial and museum. He is wearing a black kippa, like all the other men are wearing, in a sign of respect.
He will hear a children's choir and will meet with two Holocaust victims, who are also American citizens. Tomorrow is when the real meetings begin
with the prime minister, the opposition leader, the Israeli president about the regional alliances formed since the Abraham accords.
The Israelis hope to be expanding it, especially with the president traveling to Saudi Arabia straight from Tel Aviv. They don't expect an
agreement to be announced as with the UAE or Bahrain, they expect small moves toward a public relationship between Saudi Arabia and Israel, things
like allowing Israeli flights over Saudi airspace.
They're hoping after this trip that will become a reality. They also talked about a regional air defense alliance where Israel, Saudi Arabia, the UAE
will all work together to help warn each other against threats, especially from Iran.
END
