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CNN's Anthony Bourdain Dead At 61; Trump Heads To G7 Summit With World Leaders; Trump: Think I'm Very Well Prepared For Singapore Summit; Call For Action To Save Earth's Oceans; Trump Considering Additional Pardons. Aired at 8-9a ET
Aired June 08, 2018 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[08:00:00] ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: World renounce chef, best-selling author, and award winning host of Parts Unknown, our friend, Anthony
Bourdain has died. For the last five years on CNN, Tony traveled across the globe doing what he loved.
He uncovered little known places. He explored food, and through food he celebrated diverse cultures. CNN's Senior Media Correspondent Brian
Stelter joins us with all of the breaking details, and I know that they are just coming in. Brian, we haven't had much time to sort of adjust to this
horrible news.
BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: All of us here at CNN are experiencing this, along with our viewers at the same time. And it's just
starting to sink in. It is a heartbreaking loss for all of us. Anthony was in France. He was working on an upcoming episode of Parts Unknown.
You know, right now, the 11th season of this award winning series has been airing on CNN. He was working on an upcoming season. He was found dead in
his hotel room in Strasbourg, France; he was found by one of his close friends. The production crew was all there about to start another day's
work.
We do know that he took his own life and beyond that we don't have many more details. I can share with you a statement from CNN on behalf of the
network saying, it is with extraordinary sadness we confirm the death of our friend and colleague Anthony.
His love of great adventure, new friends, fine food, and drink, and the remarkable stories of the world made him a unique storyteller with talents
never seizes to amaze us and we will miss him very much. Our thoughts and prayers are with his daughter and his family at this incredibly difficult
time.
Obviously, we waited until we made sure his family was notified before sharing this news. You know, you think about Anthony, and what he
accomplished first as a chef, then as a best-selling author, then as an international television icon, someone who used the world of culinary arts
to tell stories about life and love, to tell stories about humanity. He both delighted viewers and challenged viewers. We both learned so much,
and laughed so much while watching Parts Unknown.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Someone put it this morning, he was a hero of human curiosity, which I think is a lovely way to put it because, you know,
his whole life he was traveling, and he was trying, and he was asking. And yes, you know he was a chef, and he wrote about food, and that was I think
the continuing thread through this, but it was about so much more.
CAMEROTA: I mean, listen, it's just a horrible, horrible shock on every level because on his show, there is a celebration of life, and all sorts of
different cultures. And we just saw him recently. He was here to talk about his upcoming season.
And he was telling me about all -- you know, listen, he always was open to learning new things. And on every single segment, every single new
episode, he did learn new things.
BERMAN: Yes.
CAMEROTA: And we did too through him, and through his experience. And, you know, the idea that he was suffering somehow is really heartbreaking.
BERMAN: How do you put it so well? I mean, what he did was to celebrate life. So how do you reconcile someone whose every fiber was a celebration
of life? How do you reconcile that with the news that it was a death by suicide?
It's very, very hard for us this morning. I know it's very hard for everyone who loved his work. From the beginning his writing, you know,
they lived...
CAMEROTA: Yes.
STELTER: Yes.
BERMAN: ... they lived what it was like to be in a New York kitchen through him. And he told us, you know?
CAMEROTA: We saw how the sausage was made. "Kitchen Confidential" became a best seller -- a runaway best seller as you put it. And it was because
he peeled back the curtain and he was so authentic. Here he is with Anderson. There are so many people that he sat down with, and had
authentic, genuine, conversations with because he was curious about them, and about their lives, Brian.
STELTER: People still read "Kitchen Confidential" 18 years later. It's that kind of book. He wrote other books as well. And you know, even on
his program on CNN, his writing came through in every episode. He was such a poet. He had such a gift with words. He was truly one of a kind.
And that's one of the reasons why he's won practically every award in the television business. In 2013, the first year his program was here on CNN,
he won the Peabody Award. He was recognized for his genius then. In his acceptance speech he talked a bit about what he tries -- what he tried to
do with questions about food, about cooking. Here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTHONY BOURDAIN, CNN ANCHOR: We ask very simple questions, what makes you happy, what do you eat, what do you like to cook, and everywhere in the
world we go, and ask these very simple questions, we tend to get some really astonishing answers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STELTER: One of the reasons why he was really one of a kind.
BERMAN: It is -- you know, so many things that Anthony has said that are indelible. Let me read you one, and I'll tell what he told was, and the
one that I'm reading right now is if I'm an advocate for anything it's to move, as far as you can, as much as you can across the ocean, or simply
across the river.
[08:05:03] Walk in someone else's shoes, or at least eat their food. It's a plus for everybody, you know. And again, you know, he was a human
contradiction, right? I mean, he loved food. He wrote about food. He lived food.
But he thought we obsessed about food too much, right? One of the things he once said to me is I wish people would stop taking pictures of food, and
have more sex. You know, because what he really wanted to do was to show people life.
STELTER: And he was able to do that when he was in, you know, Thailand, when he was halfway around the world from here In New York. Or when he was
closer to home, he was doing it all the time. He has so many memorable episodes.
One that just came to my mind was his time with President Obama when he was sitting down having a meal. It was one of the most engaging interviews of
a president I've ever seen, precisely because of the setting, and because of the question.
BERMAN: It was in Hanoi, right?
STELTER: Yes, Vietnam, during the president's trip there. And you were able to see so much about both men when they sat down together this way.
CAMEROTA: Right, because when you eat with somebody, it is an intimate experience, John. I mean, that is sharing -- you know, breaking bread
together, that is a bridging of a divide, a building, you know, of a relationship. And it does end up being intimate. He saw that.
You know, he and I bonded about New Jersey, our beloved home state and province town, you know, an adopted town that we both loved, a vacation
spot -- a summer vacation spot. But you know, Anthony was interesting because I always felt that while he was a big presence on T.V., he was an
introvert.
I felt that he was a natural introvert, and that he wasn't somebody who -- he shared his passion about food. But I didn't think that he was somebody
who made a lot of sort of just random chitchat, or small talk.
STELTER: Yes, right. Right.
CAMEROTA: I think he kind assure all of that. And when I would see him on the street, and you know, bound up to him, and want to give him a big
smile, and talk with him...
STELTER: Yes.
CAMEROTA: ... he was always, you know, a little -- he was...
STELTER: A little reserved?
CAMEROTA: ... he was reserved, you know. He didn't wear all that on his sleeve. And so the idea he was able to share some of his demons, that he
had fought drug addiction, that he had fought heroin.
Everybody really appreciates out there, because to know that somebody else went through it, and came out the other side is really helpful. And
obviously, you know, I think all of us just feel like we wished that we had known whatever was happening in the past days.
BERMAN: Obviously, this comes, you know, on the heels of the news about Kate Spade. You know, just a few days after we learn that she took her own
life. Dr. Jodi Gold is with us right now. She's a psychiatrist, the director for the Gold Center for Mind Health and Wellness. It also comes
on the heels of news -- the CDC released news yesterday that the suicide rate is up by 25 percent since?
CAMEROTA: Since 1999, we have these...
BERMAN: Since 1999?
CAMEROTA: Let me read a little bit more of those. Twenty-five states have suicide rate increases of more than 30 percent. Fifty-four percent -- this
is the part that really baffled me, and I find so vexing.
Fifty-four percent of people who died by suicide didn't have a known mental health condition. In other words, it would have been hard for loved ones
to see what was coming. Jodi, what do you say to this?
DR. JODI GOLD, DIRECTOR, GOLD CENTER FOR MIND HEALTH AND WELLNESS: It's true. I'm so sorry for your loss. I feel sorry for the family, but also I
feel sorry for the CNN community. You all were close to him. You all traveled, you all worked very hard.
And I think it's important that you are taking care of yourself. As we know, this stuff is contagious. People that work hard and travel can be
isolated and it's really important at this moment you all are taking good care of yourself.
Because as we know this step is contagious, and that people that work hard, and travel can be inflated, and what's really important at this moment that
you all are really taking good care of yourself.
BERMAN: So the question -- and you had this conversation with Alisyn just the other day. You know, Kate Spade, whose life seemed so upwardly
fabulous. What could be better than to make handbags for handbags for everyone? Fabulous. Anthony Bourdain, what could be better than to travel
the world, and eat with everyone you want to eat with. So how do you explain that?
GOLD: So to be clear, success does not protect you from depression. And it doesn't protect you from suicide. I think we'd all like to. I mean,
yesterday, I think, we were speaking about the fact that what was striking people about Kate Spade is that you didn't think that she fit the bill of
someone that would kill themselves.
She was successful and glamorous, and so was Anthony. I mean, he was authentic, and real, and seemed to embrace life. So it doesn't seem like
the bill for the type of person that kills themselves. And to be honest, there isn't one type. Two thirds of people that kill themselves have a
diagnosis of depression or anxiety, but a third of them do not.
And a lot of that is because they haven't gotten the kind of help they need. I mean, the increase in suicide is so sad. One of the things that
strikes me here, and worries me is that I do think this is quite a similar suicide to Kate Spade in terms of the method of the way he killed himself.
CAMEROTA: And I want to ask you about that.
GOLD: Yes.
CAMEROTA: Because when the way you say it's contagious, do you mean suicide is contagious?
GOLD: Yes.
CAMEROTA: OK. I want to talk about that because that's part of why we don't talk about it on air. We fear copycats, and we fear contagion, so we
don't want to talk about it. But then that leads to the stigma. And so this is a really dicey area. So how should we handle this?
[08:10:00] GOLD: That's we have to talk about it in a appropriate, and thoughtful way. The solution is not to not talk about it because we
stigmatize it. But at the same time, we have to not sort of glamorize it or idealize it.
I don't love the 13 Reasons show that's on that glamorizes suicide. We have to talk about it. It's contagious in the sense that people get
obsessed and preoccupied with celebrity -- or suicides that are close to them. And it does increase the risk.
So in terms of the Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain, if you have friends or family members that really can't get over this, these suicides, of course
right now everybody is in mourning, and that's appropriate. I'm not talking about that.
I'm talking about in a few weeks, the people that really are obsessing over it. If they're talking about death all the time, that's a risk factor, and
those are the people you should be reaching out to. So it does happen in clusters.
And we it all the time, we see it in celebrities, we see it in schools, and communities. I mean at NYU there was just recently two suicides very close
together. So we really see it. So that's why we have to really talk about it, and start destigmatizing it. So the deal is, depression is real.
There are always warning signs.
CAMEROTA: Like what? What should people be looking for?
GOLD: So they should be looking for any change in behavior. So for instance, I'm not sure if Anthony's social media history might have channel
them.
BERMAN: Four days ago were the last tweets.
GOLD: Is that unusual for him?
BERMAN: You know, hard to know. He was out, you know, he was out shooting...
STELTER: He was out shooting.
BERMAN: ... in France. You know, he could have needed, you know, to go to work instead of being on social media.
GOLD: So I think if you have a friend or family member that's on Twitter five times a day, and you're a little bit worried about them, and all of a
sudden they go to radio silence. That would be a risk factor. I'm not suggesting everyone who takes a healthy break from social media is at risk
for suicide. But what we do see is a change in behavior.
BERMAN: Brian, you know, in other obviously has to be substance abuse.
GOLD: Yes, exactly.
BERMAN: And we know -- you know, Anthony talked willingly, and openly about his battle with heroin in the 1980s. It was a -- it was big part of
his life.
STELTER: Yes, and he was candid about that. And I think on the program, obviously, we see him drinking, celebrating, having a good time. There
were certainly times in the past where he was drinking too much. I don't know if you would say that's a risk factor as well at certain points.
GOLD: Substance abuse is an absolute risk factor. I mean, the truth is that even among people that don't have a diagnosis of mental health we find
that there is always a risk factor. For instance, a loss, a trauma, getting fired, a break up, feeling bad about yourself, too much drinking,
and substance abuse, all of those things, you're going to see something. I think as we unpeel this Anthony Bourdain thing, we will see.
BERMAN: Yes. We don't know -- the death is still unknown. I mean, he did love to live. He said your body is not a temple, it's an amusement park,
enjoy the ride. You know, you can look at that a lot of different ways.
STELTER: But I was thinking about the stigma point. I don't think I've even talk or told my wife this. But I have an uncle that I never knew
because he killed himself before I was born. And it's a family secret, never talked about, and I didn't even know until I was older. I'm thinking
about that stigma issue that affects so many families. It applies to so many families. We have to be able to talk about suicide, but carefully.
GOLD: Carefully.
STELTER: Because it also seems risky.
GOLD: Yes, but talking about suicide does not cause people to kill themselves. Not talking about suicide might. So I think yesterday we were
discussing the fact that you've got to ask people. Everyone wants to respect privacy. If you're worried about a friend or family member, you
should ask them if they're not feeling good. You can say, have you thought about hurting or killing yourself.
CAMEROTA: And then if they yes, what do you do?
GOLD: Well, I think if someone said yes to that, your red flags go up, and it's time to get them more support. It doesn't mean they necessarily have
to got to the emergency room, but it does mean that you need call a therapist, you need to call a doctor, you need to call a family member. We
know that isolation and alienation is a big risk factor for suicide. And just connecting and spending time with them.
CAMEROTA: And also, I mean, I want to say that depression, obviously, is so common, OK?
GOLD: Yes.
CAMEROTA: It's so common; we need to remove the stigma from that, too.
GOLD: Yes.
CAMEROTA: Because when you're in it, you think that it will never lift. I've had dark days, I've had bouts of -- in my 20s and early 30s, I've had
a dark cloud that I thought wasn't going to lift, and sometimes it can be situational, a break up, a loss of a job, but those things do change, and
time changes. And medication helps. And therapy helps.
GOLD: Yes.
CAMEROTA: There are things out there for people who think that they are in just a downward spiral. There are things that can lift the cloud. And we
need to talk about that, also.
GOLD: Suicide is preventable. That's the -- I mean, it's one of the top 10 causes of death in our country, and it's actually preventable. One of
the things to your point is it passes. But when you're depressed, you don't think it's going to pass.
CAMEROTA: Right.
GOLD: That's why most suicides are committed -- most successful completed suicides are committed by firearms. And one of the things that concerns me
about that is the waiting time, is that you can impulsively get a gun, and hurt yourself. So if you have a friend or family member that is depressed
that just lost their job, that's drinking too much.
That might be a moment when you need to keep the firearms locked up, or in another place because it passes. But if you impulsively take your life,
there's nothing we can do. So the message out there -- the message out there is to wait, and to connect, and to call the suicide hotline, and to
know it's going to pass.
BERMAN: I want to put the hotline up one more time for people to see this. It's the suicide prevention lifeline 1800-273-8255.
[08:15:03] You know, call it. Call it. There's nothing wrong with calling and asking for help.
CAMEROTA: It's available 24 hours a day. You can call anonymously. And this morning, we are very, very sad about our friend Anthony Bourdain.
Anthony Bourdain, dead at the age of 61.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN ANCHOR: Terrible loss, a powerful conversation there with the psychologist Dr. Jodi Gold on the warning signs for suicide on the
need to destigmatize suicide. That was part of CNN's coverage of the death of our colleague and friend Anthony Bourdain.
He was 61 years old. He took his own life. It's heartbreaking to learn of the death of Bourdain, this master storyteller who traveled the world, this
master chef, and enthusiast. He's been called the hero of human curiosity.
In fact, Anthony Bourdain was just here in Hong Kong sampling bowls of hot noodles, and doing a boat ride to the fishing village of Tai O. Our
thoughts go out to his friends, and to his family, and also to his fans all over the world. We will return after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, welcome back. You are watching News Stream. Now U.S. President Donald Trump is up against two
challenging back to back summits. He is scheduled to leave any minute now from what will likely be a contentious meeting with U.S. allies at the G7
summit in Canada.
But again this morning, he is tweeting about how unfair he feels trade deals with other member countries are. Mr. Trump also has less than four
days to make final preparations for his face-to-face meeting with Kim Jong- un.
He seems pretty confident about that when in fact he is leaving Canada of early to head to Singapore skipping several sessions on climate change,
oceans, and the environment. CNN's Boris Sanchez has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: President Trump cutting his time at the G7 Summit short amid a public war of words with the leaders of two of
America's closest allies.
One source selling CNN that as late as Thursday afternoon, President Trump was questioning why to even attend the summit at all, asking aides what the
point would be after President Macron sent this pointed message, quote, the American President may not mind being isolated, but neither do we mind
signing a six country agreement if need be.
The President's advisers told him that canceling the trip entirely would like he was backing away from a fight that he started. And one source says
Mr. Trump told aides he will enter the talks swinging.
A short time later, President Trump firing off a number of tweets writing, quote, please tell Prime Minister Trudeau and President Macron, but they
are charging the U.S. massive tariffs, and create non-monetary barriers before noting look forward to seeing them tomorrow.
LARRY KUDLOW, WHITE HOUSE ECONOMIC ADVISOR: We're talking everything through. There may be disagreements.
[08:20:02] I regard this as much like a family quarrel. I'm always the optimist. I believe it can be worked out.
SANCHEZ: President Trump also calling Trudeau indignant after the Canadian Prime Minister vowed to confront Mr. Trump over tariffs.
JUSTIN TRUDEAU, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER (through a translator): His unacceptable actions are hurting his own citizens. It is American jobs.
This will be lost because of the action of the United States, and its Administration.
SANCHEZ: The harsh rhetoric in stark contrast of the optimism President Trump is expressing ahead of the summit with North Korean dictator Kim
Jong-un.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think I'm very well prepared. I don't think I have to prepare very much. It's about the
attitude. It's about the willingness to get things done.
SANCHEZ: But President Trump also reiterating that he's willing to walk away from negotiations.
TRUMP: If they don't denuclearize, that will not be accepted. We cannot take sanctions off. Maximum pressure is absolutely in effect. We don't
use the term anymore because we're going into a friendly negotiation. You hear me saying we're going to use maximum pressure. You'll know the
negotiation did not do well rightly.
SANCHEZ: The President suggesting that the summit could be extended, and that he would not hesitate to invite Kim to the White House if the talks go
well.
TRUMP: And I think it would be well received. I think he would look at it very favorably, so I think that could happen.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: And because he is leaving early, President Trump is set to skip a number of sessions at the G7 related to climate change on the environment,
perhaps not surprising for a president that has claimed that climate change is a hoax being perpetrated by the Chinese. Once he leaves here, he is set
to head directly to Singapore for that historic Summit with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. Kristie.
LU STOUT: Boris, thank you. So much is at stake with that summit in Singapore. Let's bring in Anna Coren. She joins me now from Tokyo. And,
Anna, we are just days away from this big summit. And said it's about attitude, not preparation. Is he just going to wing it?
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that certainly what he alluded to when he address the press yesterday in Washington that he doesn't need to
do a lot of preparation. Let's hope that he was just bluffing, and that in fact he is doing his research.
You would have to think that the people around him, his close advisers are bringing him up-to-date on everything North Korea -- I mean, there is so
much at stake here, and there is so much history. You know, the world has been down this path twice before under the Clinton administration, and
under the Bush administration with the six party talks.
And both times, North Korea lied, they've cheated, they were still developing their nuclear weapons program, and those talks broke down. So
there really is a feeling, Kristie, that Donald Trump needs to going to go in this summit, taking it very seriously that he can't just swing it, that
he can't just have good chemistry with King Jong-un, which by all accounts is what he is assuming.
We know that carries a lot of weight with Donald Trump that it's going to take a lot more than just chemistry to get this moving forward for them to
be full denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, Kristie.
LU STOUT: Yes. And what this summit will ultimately achieve here. You know, yes, we have heard early on that demand from denuclearization on the
U.S. side that seems to have been going down a bit, replaced by this hope for like a friendly negotiation between both sides. What does North Korea
want from it?
COREN: Yes, there has certainly been at softening tone from the United States but North Korea wants to be taken seriously. They want respect.
They want to be an equal partner on the international stage. They obviously want those sanctions that have been hurting them to be lifted.
They want economic aid to pour in for there to the development and growth. You know, for the last how many decades, North Korea has been, you know,
solely focused on developing its nuclear weapons program. And its people have suffered, they're impoverished.
So, no doubt there are people within North Korea saying, OK, it's about time that we've all -- that we develop, that we do no longer -- we're no
longer that third world hermit kingdom. But there are conditions, and as you look to, Kristie, you know, denuclearization is one of them.
Well, there are many experts certainly in this part of the world who have a very healthy dose of cynicism when it comes to dealing with North Korea.
And the reason being -- with being down this path before, they also feel that Kim Jong-un is never going to fully give up his nuclear weapons. The
reason being is that they are vital to the legitimacy of the North Korean regime, as well as to Kim's own leadership, Kristie.
LU STOUT: Yes, will he give up his nukes in Singapore at this moment? It does not seem likely at all. Anna Coren reporting live for us from Tokyo,
thank you.
You are watching News Stream. And still to come on the program, we're going to head to Australia to learn how a site has hope to save the Great
Barrier Reef which has lost around half of its coral in just the past few years.
[08:25:05] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You are watching News Stream, and these are your world headlines.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: A world renowned chef, best-selling author, and the award winning host of "Parts Unknown," Anthony Bourdain has died at age 61. He
was in France. He was working on an episode of the CNN show "Parts Unknown" where we are told he took his own life. His close friend Eric
Ripert found him unresponsive in his hotel room on Friday morning.
For the past five years here on CNN, Tony traveled the globe to what he'd loved most on covering little known places, exploring food, and celebrating
diverse cultures.
Protesters in -- are marching in Quebec City as the G7 summit gets underway. Now the atmosphere inside could also be heated with President
Donald Trump set the clash with allies over the issues of trade and tariffs. Now the White House says Mr. Trump will leave the summit a few
hours early on Saturday, skipping talks on climate change, and the environment.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is in Beijing, meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Now, the three-day visit underscores growing
cooperation between the two countries. Earlier, they signed an agreement setting up an investment fund for joint projects. North Korea is also on
the agenda ahead of that summit between U.S. President Trump and Kim Jong- un.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Today is World Oceans Day, a call for action to clean up some of our most precious environments. And this week, CNN has been looking at
threats to our planet's oceans from microplastics found in the frigid of isolated waters of Antarctica to another danger, climate change.
It is already hitting Australia's Great Barrier Reef hard. This home to the world's largest collection of coral reefs has been badly damaged in a
phenomenon known as coral bleaching.
Now let's go live to Australia. CNN's Ivan Watson is there where he got a firsthand look at what is happening. And, Ivan, tell us how is climate
change killing off our oceans. What are we seeing there?
IVAN WATSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I'm broadcasting from Cairns in Queensland, Australia. It's an unofficial gateway to the Great Barrier
Reef though that is such a massive marine habitat; 2,300 kilometers long, larger than many countries.
It is just a massive place, and back to back marine heat waves killed off in the last two years. What scientists estimate is some 50 percent of the
coral that makes up a backbone of the Great Barrier Reef. So we have been looking for the last week at what Australia is doing in the race to try to
save what's left at the reef...
[08:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: -- what scientist estimate is some 50 percent of the coral that makes up the backbone of the
Great Barrier Reef. So we've been looking for the last week at what Australia is doing in the race to try to save what's left of the reef.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WATSON (voice-over): In aquamarine waters off the coast of Australia there is a world so fantastic that words cannot do it justice. A sprawling marine
habitat of coral reefs that's larger than Italy.
I'm at the Great Barrier Reef. It's one of the natural wonders of the world, and it's in trouble.
CHARLIE VARON, MARINE BIOLOGIST: This is the beginning of a (inaudible) catastrophe (ph).
WATSON (voice-over): Charlie Varon is the world's leading authority on the Great Barrier Reef. In a career spanning nearly half a century, he's
discovered a quarter of the world's coral.
Do you still remember the first time you came out and saw some of this?
VARON: I'll never forget the first time I did it. It made the endless impression on me. I was absolutely -- my life started.
WATSON (voice-over): The 73-year-old godfather of coral gives me a guided tour. With a few short strokes, we dive into a vibrant underwater universe,
a place where living corals some of it centuries old provide shelter and food for countless species of marine life. But then Varon takes me to a
nearby patch where the coral is dead as far as the eye can see. These coral forests cooked to death by record marine heat waves in 2016 and 2017.
VARON: If it's that hot to all the corals of the Great Barrier Reef (inaudible).
WATSON: In just two years?
VARON: In just two years.
WATSON: Australia is now in race to save what's left of the reef.
That's a sea turtle down there. Oh my god.
In April, the government pledged around $400 million to come up with ways to protect it.
LINA BAY, SENIOR RESEARCH SCIENTIST: All our pilot studies are suggesting that it's all possible to help the reef help itself.
WATSON (voice-over): Dr. Lina Bay is one of the scientists at a government research center trying to genetically engineer heat resistant coral. This
is an example of plating coral from the Great Barrier Reef but born and bred here in the laboratory four years ago and you can see how much it's
grown in that time.
Scientists are also experimenting with a kind of IVF treatment to boost reproduction in the wild. In this lab, they test what they call a sun
shield thinner than a human hair. It could theoretically protect corals from the sun. This inventor demonstrates a submersible drone called the
"Rangerbot."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And when press start ignition, it's all by itself.
WATSON (voice-over): Guided artificial intelligence, it's designed to one day patrol the reef and protect the coral from predators. So far, these are
just pilot projects that could get funding from the government's new reef protection program.
BAY: There are still options available to us if we start looking at it now. We just can't wait 20 years and start thinking about this.
WATSON: Can $400 million save this reef?
VARON: No.
WATSON: Why not?
VARON: Because water is warming.
WATSON: Research shows record heat is killing coral at an increasingly frequent rate all across the planet. Australia alone cannot stop global
warming caused by the burning of fossil fuels. Scientists here warn unless that changes, this incredible reef stands little chance of surviving.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WATSON: Now Kristie, fortunately, 2018 has been more temperate than 2016 and 2017. And so actually when I went out on this very memorable dive trip
with Charlie Varon, he pointed out growths, clusters of coral, baby coral that is growing back. It illustrates kind of the power of Mother Nature
red, but despite that bit of hope, scientists say the broader trends are not very good, that this kind of bleaching incident takes place much more
frequently now than it did 30 years ago.
Not only here off the coast of Australia, but all around the world in coral reefs that we're seeing this die offs all around the world and that it has
been increasing in frequency since the 1980's and when these heat waves come more frequently, it gives less and less time for the reefs to rebound
and grow back and that's where the sense of urgency comes in here. Kristie.
[08:35:05] KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN NEWS STREAM SHOW HOST: Absolutely. There needs to be a sense of urgency so we can save these breathtaking coral
reefs as we saw in your video report just then. Sad to imagine them just being slowly strangled off by climate change. Ivan Watson reporting live
for us. Thank you so much. Take care, Ivan.
U.S. President Donald Trump, he is set to depart Washington for the G7 Summit in Quebec. And in fact, he spoke just a few ago.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is the Comey report going to be your birthday present?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, it seems that it's coming out on my birthday. Maybe that's appropriate. Let's see it is. Look,
he's a very dishonest man. I've been saying it for a long time. I think I did our country a great fire, a really great favor when I fired him, and
we'll see what happens. We'll see what the report says, but I guess it just got announced it's coming out on June 14th. Well that will be -- maybe a
nice birthday present. Who knows?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you glad they caught a leaker?
TRUMP: We're going to deal with the unfair trade practices. If you look at what Canada and Mexico, the European Union, all of them have been doing to
us for many, many decades, we have to change it and they understand it's going to happen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What are you going to do if they form an agreement without you?
TRUMP: We are going to do very well. Now, if we're only able to make a deal, we'll terminate NAFTA. We'll have a better deal. If we are unable to
make a deal, we will be better off. Right now, we are not going to live with the deals the way they are. European Union treats us very unfairly,
Canada very unfairly, Mexico very unfairly. With that being said, I think we'll probably very easily make a deal.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why are you (inaudible).
TRUMP: Go ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Were you serious about really not needing to prepare for the Kim? Or were you --
TRUMP: No, I didn't say that. I said I've been preparing all my life. I always believe in preparation, but I've been preparing all my life. You
know, these one-week preparations, they don't work. Just ask Hillary what happened to her in the debates. So, I've been preparing for this all my
life.
And frankly, it's really just the fake news, because if you run, Peter, just a little bit longer, the clip, you would see I've really been
preparing all my life. I said that, but of course, you know, the news doesn't pick that up because it's fake news.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you glad they caught a leaker?
TRUMP: It's very interesting that they caught a leaker and a very important -- it's a very important leaker. So, it's very interesting. I'm
getting information on it now, happened last night. It could be a terrific thing. I know -- I believe strongly in freedom of the press. I'm a big, big
believer in freedom of the press, but I'm also a believer in classified information has to remain classified.
And that includes Comey and his band of thieves who leaked classified information all over the place. So, I'm a very big believer in freedom of
the press, but I'm also a believer that you cannot leak classified information.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you have a reaction to Anthony Bourdain's death this morning?
TRUMP: Yes, I think it's very sad. In fact, I want to extend to his family my heartfelt condolences. That was very shocking when I woke up this
morning, Anthony Bourdain is dead. And I enjoyed his show. He was quite a character, I will say. But I just want to extend my condolences and also to
the family of Kate Spade.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible) G6 plus one.
TRUMP: It may be. You can call it anything you want. It doesn't --
(TECHNICAL DIFFICULTY)
TRUMP: -- matter. It doesn't matter what you call it. It used to be the G8 because Russia was in it, and now it Russia is not in it. Now, I love our
country. I have been Russia's worst nightmare. If Hillary got in, I think Putin is probably going, man, I wish Hillary won, because you see what I
do. But with that being said, Russia should be in this meeting.
Why are we having a meeting without Russia being in the meeting? And I would recommend, and it's up to them, but Russia should be in the meeting.
They should be part of it. You know, whether you like it or not, and it may not be politically correct, but we have world to run, and in the G7, which
used to be the G8, they threw Russia out.
[08:40:05] They should let Russia come back in because we should have Russia at the negotiating table.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, why did you decide to cut (inaudible) short?
TRUMP: Say it? What?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You are leaving early for the summit. Why did you decide (inaudible)?
TRUMP: I may leave a little bit early. It depends on the timing, but I may leave a little bit early. And it depends what happens here. Look, all of
these countries have been taking advantage of the United States on trade. You saw where Canada charges our dairy farmers 270 percent tariffs. We
don't charge them, or if we do, it's like a tiny percentage.
So, we have to straighten it out. We have massive trade deficits with almost every country. We will straighten that out. And I'll tell you what,
it's what I do; it won't even be hard. An in the end, we'll all get along. But they understand, and you know, they're trying to act like, well, we
fought with you in the war.
They don't mention the fact that they have trade barriers against our farmers. They don't mention the fact that they're charging almost 300
percent tariffs. When it all straightens out, we'll all be in love again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will there be more pardons?
TRUMP: There will be more pardons. I thought Alice yesterday was beautiful. I thought Jack Johnson, which was recommended by Sylvester
Stallone and some great boxers, I thought Jack Johnson was a great one. I'm thinking about somebody that you all know very well and he went through a
lot, and he wasn't very popular then.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is it O.J.?
TRUMP: And he wasn't very popular then. No, I'm not thinking about O.J. But he's not -- only you could say O.J. But he was -- look, he was not very
popular then. He's, certainly -- his memory is very popular now. I'm thinking about Muhammad Ali. I'm thinking about that very seriously and
some others and some folks that have sentences that aren't fair. But I am thinking about Muhammad Ali.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What will it take for you to fire --
TRUMP: In fact, we're doing right now recommendations on, you know, frankly, we're doing recommendations on Muhammad Ali.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible).
TRUMP: Say it, Peter. What?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible) that you are above the law?
TRUMP: No, no. No, I'm not above the law. I'd never want anybody to be above the law, but the pardons are very positive thing for a president. I
think you see the way I'm using them. And yes, I do have an absolute right to pardon myself but I'll never have to do it because I didn't do anything
wrong. And everybody knows it. There's been no collusion. There's been no obstruction.
It's all a made up fantasy. It's a witch hunt. No collusion, no obstruction, no nothing. Now, the Democrats have had massive collusion,
massive obstruction, and they should be investigated. We'll see what's happening. Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: Oh, I haven't even -- I haven't even thought about it. I haven't even thought -- I haven't thought about any of it. It certainly is far too
early to be thinking about that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: They haven't been convicted of anything. There's nothing to pardon. It is far too early to be -- it is far too early to be thinking about it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, what will it take for you to actually get tired of Scott Pruitt and say, enough?
TRUMP: Well, Scott Pruitt is doing a great job within the walls of the EPA. I mean, we're setting records. Outside, he's being attacked very
viciously by the press. And I'm not saying that he's blameless, but we'll see what happens.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But he's an embarrassment. Are you not tired of him?
TRUMP: That's what I want to do. We have 3,000 names. We're looking at them. Of the 3,000 names, many of those names really have been treated
unfairly. You know, this is a group of 3,000 that we've assembled. And I would get more thrill out of pardoning people that nobody knows like Alice
yesterday. I thought Kim Kardashian was great because she brought Alice to my attention.
Alice was so great. And the way she left that jail and the tears and the love that she has with her family, I mean, to me that that was better than
any celebrity that I could pardon. So, we're looking at it. But we are looking at literally thousands of names of people that have come to our
attention that have been treated unfairly or where their sentence is far too long.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yesterday, both Lebron James and Steph Curry say, if they win, they're not going to the White House.
TRUMP: I didn't invite them. No, I didn't invite Lebron James, and I didn't invite Steph Curry. We're not going to invite either team. But we
have other teams that are coming. You know, if you look, we had Alabama, national champion.
[08:45:02] We had Clemson, national champion. We had the New England Patriots. We had the Pittsburgh Penguins last year.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What about the Caps?
TRUMP: I think we'll have the Caps. I mean, we'll see. You know my attitude, if they want to be here, it's the greatest place on Earth. I'm
here. If they don't want to be here, I don't want them.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's your response to Paul Ryan saying the FBI did the right thing (inaudible)?
TRUMP: I think if you look at what Paul Ryan is saying, it didn't come out that way. The fact is, they had people in our campaign. They had people
doing things that have never been done in the history of this country, and it really is a disgrace. And frankly, that stuff is just starting to come
out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible) Mitt Romney (inaudible)
TRUMP: Fire who?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: We'll see what happens. We'll see what happens.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you think about Mitt Romney now saying you're a shoe-in to win again?
TRUMP: Mitt Romney said what?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mitt Romney said you're going to find it easy to win again.
TRUMP: Well, we're doing well. Look, Mitt's a straight shooter. Whether people love him or don't love him --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, he called you a con man last time.
TRUMP: Mitt Romney is a straight shooter. And yes, that's a very nice thing to say. I appreciate that. That's good.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, what do you have to say to Canada? (Inaudible)
TRUMP: I love Canada, but they treat us very unfairly on trade; very, very unfairly. You see the numbers -- almost 300 percent on dairy. So, they
treat us very unfairly. Are you guys all going? You better get going, Peter. We'll leave without you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: I would only do a deal if I get it through Congress. I wouldn't do like Obama did. And fortunately, he wasn't able to get it through. You
know, he tried to get it through -- the Iran deal. He tried to get it through Congress, failed. So he just did it without, which is why I was
able to break it up so easy. And Iran is now a different country. They're not looking to the Mediterranean anymore. Iran is now a much different
country since I did -- since I signed that out, Iran is a much different country.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you support Senator Gardner's marijuana federalism bill?
TRUMP: I really do. I support Senator Gardner. I know exactly what he's doing. We're looking at it, but I probably will end up supporting that,
yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: The First Lady is great. Right there. She has to -- and she wanted to go -- can't fly for one month.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why not?
TRUMP: The doctors say. She had a big operation That was a -- close to a four hour operation. And she's doing great. Right there. And you know what?
She is a great First Lady.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible) with sonic devices?
TRUMP: Terrible.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: We'll be talking to them, but that's terrible. OK, any other questions?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How do you feel about the fact that (inaudible)?
TRUMP: Was one of my lawyers. Incredible that you can break into a lawyer's office. That's one thing I can say. And I think that was
unfortunate that they broke into a lawyer's office. Not a good practice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: Well the Democrats -- this is a Democrat bill. The Democrats can end that very quickly. All they have to do is sit down with us and
negotiate a real bill that allows us to keep criminals out of this country. It's very easy. You know, Schumer is a guy -- he complains, but he doesn't
do anything. Schumer is a guy who is an obstructer. He can't do anything. All he can do is obstruct.
All they have to do is call us and we'll draw a bill that gives us great border safety and security and is fair because I don't like the children
being separated from the parents. I don't like it. I hate it. But that's a Democrat bill that we're enforcing. We can change it in one day. All they
have to do is come and see us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: I can't hear your question, darling. Too much competition. Go ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: You're not prepared. I can't believe she's not prepared. See, they're shocked, right?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you prepared to bring up (inaudible)?
TRUMP: We'll bring it up, yes. We'll bring it up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What are you going to do for five hours on the plane?
TRUMP: I have work. I have about 15 boxes of work. I will be able to work without being bothered by phone calls where you people are writing fake
stories about me and we have to respond. Now, seriously, I mean, I have a lot of work that's on the plane so that will be good.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you worried at all about the things that Rudy is saying in Israel? Is he giving you any headaches?
TRUMP: Look, Rudy is great. But Rudy is Rudy. But Rudy is doing a very good job, actually doing a very good job.
TRUMP: Is being a pornstar respectable work? He said it's not.
[08:50:00] TRUMP: He said what?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He said that being a pornstar is not respectable work.
TRUMP: I'm not going to disagree with him on that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible)
TRUMP: I can't hear a word he's saying.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was Dennis Rodman invited to North Korea?
TRUMP: No, he wasn't, but I like Dennis; a great rebounder. You know when you think, Dennis was a great rebounder and he wasn't, relatively speaking,
that tall. So that tells you. You know, there's a rebounding -- there's a genius to that. Dennis Rodman was a great rebounder. One thing we are
thinking about, speaking of sports stars, the power to pardon is a beautiful thing. You got to get it right. You got to get the right people.
I am looking at Muhammad Ali, but those are the famous people. And in one way, it's easier and people find it fascinating. But I want to do people
that are unfairly treated like an Alice where she comes out and there's something beautiful. What I am thinking to do -- you have a lot of people
in the NFL, in particular, but unfortunately they're not proud enough to stand for our national anthem. I don't like that.
What I'm going to do is I'm going to say to them -- instead of talk. It's all talk, talk, talks. We have a great country. You should stand for our
national anthem. You shouldn't go in a locker room when our national anthem is played. I am going to ask all of those people to recommend to me --
because that's what they are protesting -- people that they think were unfairly treated by the justice system. And I understand that.
And I'm going to ask them to recommend to me people that were unfairly treated -- friends of theirs or people that they know about -- and I'm
going to take a look at those applications. And if I find, and my committee finds that they're unfairly treated, then we will pardon them or at least
let them out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Will you invite them to the White House for a roundtable about social --
TRUMP: You know, I don't have to do that. I'm not looking to grandstand. We got enough grandstanders in this town. I'm just saying, for the leagues,
if they have people -- if the players, if the athletes have friends of theirs or people that they know about that have been unfairly treated by
the system, let me know.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So do you need a celebrity advocate to get a pardon?
TRUMP: well, you know, if you think about it, that's really -- that becomes celebrity advocates. But they know a lot of things that we're not
going to know. They've seen a lot of abuse and they've seen a lot of unfairness. So if they have, how do you like that idea, David?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll leave it to you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why does (inaudible)?
TRUMP: Oh, no. I have the absolute right. I don't have to do it. Never did anything wrong. And you know that better than anybody.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you concerned about reporters leaking to their sources?
TRUMP: I think you have a double edge. Reporters can't leak. You cannot leak classified information. At the same time, we need freedom of the
press. But you cannot leak like Hillary Clinton did, like Comey did, you cannot leak classified information.
If you look at the young sailor -- Saucier -- I mean he went to jail over not classified, a much lower level. And it's very unfair that he goes to
jail and that Comey is allowed to do it all over. It's very fair. Thank you much. I'll see you in Canada.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: U.S. President Donald Trump there speaking moments ago in Washington, D.C. on a variety of topics including the presidential pardon,
which he described as a beautiful thing. He also said, quote, I have the absolute right to pardon myself, but don't need to do it. He is en route to
the G7 summit where trade is going to be front and center in that meeting in Quebec.
He also addressed the other big summit that's coming up on June 12th, the Singapore summit with Kim Jong-un. When asked the question about how
prepared he was for that event, the U.S. president said this, quote, I don't believe in preparing, but have been preparing all my life. That is
"News Stream." I'm Kristie Lu Stout. "World Sport" is next.
[08:54:13] (WORLD SPORT)
END
