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The Situation Room

Interview With Sanders Campaign Manager, Faiz Shakir; Bernie Sanders Riding High; Interview With Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ); Dow Plunges Over 1,000 Points; New Poll Tonight Shows Biden At 27 Percent, Bernie Sanders At 23 Percent In South Carolina; Weinstein Guilty Of Criminal Sex Act And Third-Degree Rape; Kobe Bryant 1978-2020: Thousands Attend Emotional Public Memorial Service. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired February 24, 2020 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:00]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Tonight, new details on the target list and who's behind it.

Punishing Putin. Top Senate Democrats are demanding the administration slap new sanctions on Russia after revelations about interference in the 2020 election.

I will ask a senator behind the letter about the danger if the Trump team refuses to act.

Sanders unstoppable? After a blowout win in Nevada, Bernie Sanders heads into the next crucial contest as the undisputed front-runner. His Democratic rivals are getting more aggressive as they try to get in Sanders' way.

And convicted. Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein is found guilty of two sex crimes, including third-degree rape. Tonight, Weinstein is in jail facing five to 25 years behind bars.

We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

First this hour, brutal losses on Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrials plunging more than 1,000 points, wiping out all the gains made this year. Traders hit the panic button, as the number of coronavirus cases outside China surge.

Also tonight, top Senate Democrats are calling on the Trump administration to impose new sanctions on Russia, possibly including Vladimir Putin himself. The senators warning of a serious threat to America's security after intelligence officials warned Russia is actively interfering already in the 2020 election.

I will talk with one of the senators demanding new Russia sanctions, the ranking Democrat of the Foreign Relations Committee, Bob Menendez. And our correspondents and analysts are also standing by.

First, let's go to our chief White House correspondent, Jim Acosta. He's covering the president's trip to India right now. Jim, while the president is away, the Dow has tanked, there are

growing concerns about Russian election interference, but back at the White House, what, they're busy conducting a purge.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf.

President Trump is in India, where he will be making some remarks with Prime Minister Modi in just a few hours from now, but the president is once again on the world stage with another country hanging over him, namely, Russia. And yet Mr. Trump is fixated on a different matter.

That is trying to purchase government of staffers he views as disloyal. it appears the never-Trumper hunt is on.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Namaste.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

ACOSTA (voice-over): President Trump is hearing a lot of namaste as he visits India, but it's all about naming names back at the White House.

CNN has confirmed an effort is under way to identify so-called never- Trumper is working inside the administration and push them out. And top White House officials are all but endorsing the effort.

HOGAN GIDLEY, WHITE HOUSE DEPUTY PRESS SECRETARY: Look, if there are any lists, I have not seen them. But the fact is, we know there are people actively working against this president. The federal government's massive with millions of people, and there are a lot of folks out there working against this president. If we find them, we will take appropriate action.

ACOSTA: Conservative activists Ginni Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, has been gathering lists of staffers deemed to be disloyal and part of a deep state, and passing them on to the White House.

A Trump adviser tells CNN, "Many people have sent names to Ginni to make sure the right people are in her list."

The effort appears to be part of a pattern, after acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney Bashed the deep state in a speech last week, just before new presidential personnel director Johnny McEntee told aides his office was on the lookout for never-Trumpers.

The purge comes as the president has been forcing out aides who testified against him during the impeachment saga. Democrats say the notion of a deep state is pure fantasy.

REP. MIKE QUIGLEY (D-IL): If we're dealing with something that isn't the truth, we are less safe. So while the president may seem to believe in a deep state, Mr. President, there is no deep state. You are the state, and you need to hear the truth. ACOSTA: Ironically, Thomas hasn't always been a supporter of the

president, as she stumped for Ted Cruz in 2016.

GINNI THOMAS, WIFE OF SUPREME COURT CLARENCE THOMAS: Unfortunately, I hear the same kind of empty promise in another candidate who's saying make America great again.

ACOSTA: But the president is also fixated on recent revelations from the U.S. intelligence community that Russia is already interfering in the 2020 race and has shown some preference for Mr. Trump and Bernie Sanders.

Mr. Trump seemed delighted to hear the Democratic front-runner's name come up, tweeting: "Why didn't somebody tell me this?"

But the president and Sanders had two different reactions, with Mr. Trump blaming House Democrats.

TRUMP: Adam Schiff and his group, they leaked it to the papers, and, as usual. They ought to investigate Adam Schiff for leaking that information. We should not be leaking information out of Intelligence. They ought to investigate Adam Schiff.

ACOSTA: And Sanders pointing the finger at Russia's Vladimir Putin.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Here's the message to Russia. Stay out of American elections.

ACOSTA: National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien told ABC he hasn't seen any proof that the Russians are out to help the president, even though once source presented with the intelligence told CNN that conflicts with what lawmakers heard.

[18:05:05]

ROBERT O'BRIEN, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: I haven't seen any intelligence that Russia is doing anything to attempt to get President Trump re elected. I think this is a -- the same old story that we have heard before.

ACOSTA: Now, the president who paid a visit to the Taj Mahal, faces a familiar test, whether he will warn Russia to stay out of American elections.

TRUMP: Good stuff. It's really good stuff.

QUESTION: How was the visit, sir?

TRUMP: Really incredible. An incredible place.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: And with the president here in India, something he keeps a close eye on, the stock market, is in something of a freefall, with the Dow dropping 1,000 points amid concerns over the coronavirus. The White House is expected to ask Congress for more emergency funds

as early as this week to help battle the virus back in the U.S. The president, we should point out, just tweeted about this in the last hour.

We can put this up on screen. He says: "The coronavirus is very much under control in the U.S. We're in contact with everyone in all relevant countries. CDC and World Health have been working hard and very smart. Stock market" -- he goes on to talk about the stock market -- "starting to look very good to me."

Wolf, we should point out the president is tweeting this, even though the stock market plunged over 1,000 points, the president just tweeting from a different country. He's tweeting from a different reality -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jim Acosta joining us live from India right now.

All right, Jim, thank you very much.

Let's get some more on the Russian interference in the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

Our Senior National Correspondent, Alex Marquardt, is here with me.

Alex, so, what are you learning, first of all, about the goals and the tactics of the Russians?

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: The goals, Wolf, of the Russians are clear.

They are to sow anger, to sow discord, to create this chaos in the U.S. electoral system. I was speaking to an intelligence official earlier today, who said that there is support for President Trump, there is support for Bernie Sanders in the Democratic primary.

And those things, of course, are not mutually exclusive, because those two men are extremely polarizing politicians. But it does not mean that there is active Russian support for their candidacies. This official was saying that it's simply too early.

And that's something that we saw on the 2016 election as well. It wasn't until the final months that they saw that the Russians were, in fact, in favor of Donald Trump.

Now, when it comes to the tactics, when you talk to intelligence officials, they say that there will be a new Russian playbook. We know that. They will use some of the same tactics that they have used in the past that had been successful and add new ones.

For example, something that has -- that they are already using that has been successful, misinformation, disinformation campaigns, and getting Americans on social media to share things that divide Americans, to make them angry.

Russians could hack, as we have also seen before, whether it's campaigns, candidates, parties. And then there's one new tactic that is getting a bit more attention, and that is Russians using servers here in the United States.

And as you know, well, Wolf, when you have intelligence agencies that work abroad, like the NSA and CIA, that will make it much harder for them to work here in the United States. So, we know that the Russians are actively working and they are developing new tactics.

BLITZER: Very significant developments, indeed.

Alex Marquardt, thank you very much.

Joining us now, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Bob Menendez. He signed onto this letter to the Trump administration calling for new sanctions on Russia.

Senator, thanks so much for joining us.

So you're demanding new sanctions against Russia, maybe against Putin himself, for the 2020 election interference. What do you fear are the consequences of not acting?

SEN. ROBERT MENENDEZ (D-NJ): The consequences of not acting are the same consequences that we have had under this administration, that it only emboldens Putin and Russia, and sends a global message to any other nefarious actors that you can do this and get away, undermining American elections, undermining American democracy.

And only Americans should decide American elections. And that should be with a purity that does not involve any foreign entity getting engaged.

So, what does the administration do? It has laws that I helped pass, like CAATSA, Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions. It has executive orders on the books. It doesn't even need a new law. All it needs is to use the powers that we have given the president to go after Putin, to go after the nefarious actors, and make it very clear, in no equivocal terms, that, in fact, this will not be tolerated.

But that has not happened under this administration. And we see in the Senate the difficulties of getting election security legislation passed.

So, you begin to wonder, is it now OK to say that a foreign government, if it happens to be on one person's side, can be engaged in our elections? No, I don't care who they're engaged for or what they're engaged in. They need to be out.

And that's why we felt the urgency of this letter. We're only about eight months away from the election. When are we going to send a message that, don't mess with our elections?

[18:10:07]

BLITZER: Because I see you signed the letter. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader, signed it, Sherrod Brown. Any Republicans, any of your Republican colleagues in the Senate on board?

MENENDEZ: Well, not so far, although I must say that legislation that I passed with Senator Lindsey Graham out of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation, legislation called DASKA, which is specifically focused on Russia, is pending on the Senate floor.

It had bipartisan votes out of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. That's a bill that could be bought up right now, passed into law, and the House has a similar provision, send it on to the president.

Let's challenge the president, in a bipartisan way, to defend American democracy and to put up a vigorous opposition and a clear, unequivocal message that we will not permit foreign interference by Russia or any other country or actor in our elections.

BLITZER: The president's national security adviser, Robert O'Brien, said yesterday he hasn't seen any intelligence showing that Russia wants President Trump to win reelection.

Do you have reason to doubt the national security adviser?

MENENDEZ: Well, Wolf, first of all, a point on your question, and then I will get to it directly.

Number one is, regardless of whether they're pushing for Trump or Bernie Sanders or anyone else, there's no dispute as to they are engaged in trying to undermine our elections, no dispute.

And so, regardless of who they're pushing for, we should see an administration that is forcefully pushing back on that country and those nefarious actors.

Number two, I don't know. I haven't seen -- I haven't had the personal briefing on the information. So I can't tell you, other than what I have read publicly.

But I will say this. Clearly, the Russians decided -- and that was the unanimous view in terms of the last election of helping President Trump, then candidate Trump, because they thought their interests were better served with him.

I have seen nothing that has happened over the last three-plus years to tell the Russians that they're better off with someone else. So the decision they made four years ago in 2016 seems to be pretty much what they will probably do in 2020.

BLITZER: Senator Menendez, I got to leave it there. We will have you back soon. Thanks so much for joining us.

MENENDEZ: Thank you.

BLITZER: Just ahead: Would new sanctions discourage Russian election interference, even if the Trump administration is willing to go there? I will ask Andrew McCabe, who was over at the FBI at the height of Russia's meddling back in 2016.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:16:53]

BLITZER: Tonight, as the Trump administration downplays new Russian election interference, top Senate Democrats are demanding action in the form of new sanctions against Russia that might even target Vladimir Putin.

We're joined now by CNN contributor Andrew McCabe. He served as deputy and acting director over at the FBI. Also with us, CNN Senior Political Analyst, David Gergen, a former adviser to Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton.

Guys, thanks very much for joining us. ` Even if the U.S. were to enact new sanctions, Andrew, against the Russians, do you think that would actually change the Russians' calculations?

ANDREW MCCABE, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: It could.

Will it stop them in their tracks? Will it dissuade them from having some interest in the outcome of our democratic process? No. But it may cause them to think twice, certainly about taking particularly provocative steps that could be easily attributed to them.

It may cause them to step back from those most aggressive actions.

The most important thing, Wolf is, it is something that we can do that clearly communicates to them that we're tired of this kind of meddling, and it's unlikely to provoke a larger conflict with Russia.

BLITZER: What's your reaction when you hear these reports of a purge that's under way to remove career officials, intelligence officials, law enforcement officials, military, State Department, career diplomats from positions if they're deemed to be -- quote -- "anti- Trump"?

MCCABE: You know, it's incredibly -- it's incredibly concerning and disheartening.

Look, at the end of the day, the American people have a strong interest in maintaining a capable, professional staff in these positions that demand essentially lifelong commitment to public service.

And those are the very folks that are being penalized now for expressing conclusions and assessments about intelligence, intelligence critical to our national security, that happens to be uncomfortable for the president and the administration.

BLITZER: David, you worked for four presidents, got a lot of experience.

Do you remember a time when a purge like this was unfolding?

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: No.

The only comparable time perhaps was just after the 1972 elections, when Richard Nixon was reelected, and he demanded the resignations of almost everybody in his government, the political appointees.

And then only after the White House sorted it out could you get back on the team after that. And that was an extremely, I think, crazy kind of a process, didn't serve the president well.

But here, I must say, listen, we entrust enormous power to the president of the United States in international affairs. And we expect in return that he has a duty to the country to surround himself with world-class people, to ask those people to give him the information without the bark on. You have got to give it to him straight, so he understands how the world is going, and then for him to exercise informed judgment, informed judgment.

This president, in my judgment, is in a dereliction of duty, because he's walked away from these kind of things. He's firing these people, as Andrew McCabe just said. And he's losing some of the best people who are in today's government, but it also is discouraging a lot of good people who might want to work in the government tomorrow.

They don't want to get involved with things -- messes like this.

BLITZER: As you know, you have seen these stories.

[18:20:00]

Ginni Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas, she apparently is putting together, leading the charge in putting together this purge list. What do you think about that?

Because some are wondering, how does that reflect on the Supreme Court?

GERGEN: I'm sorry. I didn't understand who that was directed to you.

BLITZER: To you, David.

GERGEN: Oh. Oh, OK. Thank you.

Well, I'm uncomfortable with it. I must say, though, we have had so many instances of husband-and-wife teams now who have had -- been in positions of power, like the Clintons or like the Cheneys. You can go through that.

I think what's sort of disturbing here is, I don't have any problem with her collecting names. It is the fact that she's so closely tied to her husband. And it does -- it raises questions about whether he's able to exercise independent judgment on cases or whether he's under a lot of pressure from the political right. BLITZER: All right, we will leave it on that note.

Guys, stick around. There's more news we're following.

Just ahead, I will ask Bernie Sanders' campaign manager about the growing criticism of the senator now that he's the clear Democratic front-runner heading into a crucial round of primaries.

And the very moving memorial for Kobe Bryant. His widow honors the NBA legend and their daughter, Gigi, after they were both killed in that horrific helicopter crash.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VANESSA BRYANT, WIDOW OF KOBE BRYANT: God knew they couldn't be on this earth without each other. He had to bring them home to heaven together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:26:15]

BLITZER: The Democratic presidential candidates, they are converging on South Carolina tonight, just out of a CNN town hall event, and the state's pivotal primary coming up this Saturday.

After Bernie Sanders' big win in Nevada, there's one question dominating the race. Will any of Sanders' rivals be able to stop him from clinching the Democratic presidential nomination?

CNN's Jessica Dean is joining us from Charleston right now.

Jessica, the more success Sanders has, the more he's also coming under scrutiny.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's exactly right, Wolf.

And as we turn now to these nine critical days in this Democratic primary, all the other Democratic candidates are focusing their attacks on one person, and that is front-runner Bernie Sanders.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN (voice-over): Democratic front-runner Senator Bernie Sanders riding high after a blowout win in Nevada.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Now, I have been hearing the establishment is getting a little bit nervous about our campaign.

DEAN: With a recent CBS News/YouGov polls showing Sanders in striking distance of former Vice President Joe Biden in South Carolina, the Vermont senator is looking to build on his momentum in the Palmetto State and beyond into Super Tuesday. Biden is hoping to halt Sanders' progress.

JOSEPH BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: As I said all along, it's not just, can you beat Donald Trump? Can you bring along, can you keep a Democratic House of Representatives in the United States Congress, and can you bring along a Democratic Senate?

DEAN: Sanders pushed back against questions about his electability, going so far as to read his own poll numbers at a rally in Texas, a Super Tuesday contest.

SANDERS: General election, CBS, Sanders 47, Trump 44.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

SANDERS: In the key battleground states, Michigan, Sanders 48, Trump 41.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

DEAN: Still, Sanders' rivals now even more aggressive in their attacks, former Mayor Pete Buttigieg saying the Democratic nominee should be -- quote -- "galvanizing," not polarizing.

PETE BUTTIGIEG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: But I also believe that the way we will build the movement to defeat Donald Trump is to call people into our tents, not to call them names online.

SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR (D-MN), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I want to have someone heading up this ticket who's going to lead our party, so that we win not just the presidency, but the House of Representatives, as well as the U.S. Senate.

DEAN: As Sanders strengthens his position in the primary, he's facing backlash from some Democrats, including his rivals Biden and Buttigieg and former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, his comments to "60 Minutes" offering a partial defense of Fidel Castro's Cuban revolution.

SANDERS: We're very opposed to the authoritarian nature of Cuba.

But you got -- it's unfair to simply say everything is bad. When Fidel Castro came into office, you know what he did? He had a massive literacy program. Is that a bad thing, even though Fidel Castro did it?

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: A lot of dissidents in prison didn't.

SANDERS: That's right. And we condemn that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: We have got some new polling from NBC/Marist of likely Democratic voters here in South Carolina, and you will see Biden leading at 27 percent to Sanders' 23 percent.

But what is interesting to note is, this is the third such poll that shows Sanders within striking distance of Biden here in South Carolina. It's a state that Biden and his campaign have long considered his firewall in this process -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Yes, Biden predicted the other day that they -- that he would win South Carolina. We will see what happens on Saturday.

Jessica Dean, thank you very much.

Joining us now, Bernie Sanders' campaign manager, Faiz Shakir.

Faiz, thanks so much for joining us. I know you guys are very busy right now.

Senator Sanders is facing, clearly, as you just heard in Jessica's report, an uptick in criticism from his fellow Democratic candidates.

You escaped the last debate largely unscathed.

[18:30:01]

Is your campaign ready to be the target tomorrow night in the next debate?

FAIZ SHAKIR, SANDERS CAMPAIGN MANAGER: Well, yes. Our opponents are employing that famous strategy, Wolf, of the kitchen sink strategy, which is to throw everything at us in a moment of desperation. That's okay. That's what the frontrunner has to take on. And we're under no illusions that if you're going to go take on Donald Trump, you've got to be ready to take the criticisms.

But I would say about a lot of these that they're very specious, they're very thin, in their efforts to flail at Bernie Sanders. As you mentioned, the last debate, he took a fair amount of criticism, but he dealt with them head on and with the integrity and the honesty and that he's always employed as a politician. And that's why he's one of the most popular Democrats in the country.

BLITZER: We also heard, as you know, over the past day or so, the senator offered at least a very partial defense of Fidel Castro. Do you worry those comments are going to alienate some of these so-called moderate democrats?

SHAKIR: Wolf, Senator Sanders doesn't play political games with issues. You ask him a direct question, he's going to give you a direct response and he's going to give it to you with honesty and integrity. And, again, I think on that issue, you saw him say, this was an authoritarian regime engaged in brutal human rights abuses.

However, does that mean they didn't also maybe do something positive? You know who else said that? Barack Obama, when he was president of the United States, and he loosened ties with Cuba, lifted travel embargo. He talked about the fact that the Cuban regime had done some positive things for its people. Is it a crime to have suggested that? No. I mean, you have to call a spade a spade..If they're engaging human rights abuses, you can say that, and if they happen to do something positive, you can say that. And, by the way, that's why I think Bernie Sanders is a different kind of politician. He's just going to be honest with you. He's not going to play political games with these matters.

BLITZER: So, be honest with us. Who do you see as Senator Sanders' main Democratic presidential threat right now?

SHAKIR: Well, we're here in South Carolina, Wolf, and it's no surprise you mentioned some polls that have Biden doing very well in the state. He's got a long track record of support amongst African- American, particularly older African-American supporters. I think it will be a formidable and very difficult opponent, but we're going to fight with everything we've got.

And, obviously, we've got a lot of momentum at our backs right now. It's going to be a challenge here, but we're going to give it everything we've got to try to win.

BLITZER: You say Biden is the major threat. What about Bloomberg right now, because he's not on the ballot in South Carolina, but he on the ballot is a week from tomorrow in all those Super Tuesday states, including California, Texas, other major states.

SHAKIR: Well from the perspective of this campaign, obviously, anytime you have a billionaire, multibillionaire, you're talking about somebody with $60 billion plus and he's essentially willing to spend a billion of it on this effort to try to get himself elected, it's formidable. I mean, you can spend $500 million on T.V. ads, it's going to have an impact.

However, I think when people look at his record, as we saw in the last debate, we're not too worried about it. I mean, Donald Trump would have a field day with Michael Bloomberg's record. You have somebody who's been all over the map.

I mean, you have a billionaire who's opposed to raising the minimum wage. You have a billionaire who's advocated for cuts to social security and Medicaid. I mean, when people learn about who Michael Bloomberg is, we'll all realize this is not the candidate who will generate enthusiasm and excitement at the top of the ticket. And so I think it's just really a matter of people learning more about Michael Bloomberg.

BLITZER: I suspect it's going to be another rather fiery debate tomorrow night. Faiz Shakir, thank you so much for joining us. I know you guys are very, very busy.

SHAKIR: Thank you u, Wolf. I appreciate it.

BLITZER: All right. Stay with CNN for a presidential town hall event live from Charleston, South Carolina. We're going to hear from seven Democratic presidential candidates over two nights. It all starts later tonight, 9:00 P.M. Eastern here on CNN.

And just ahead, a watershed moment as Harvey Weinstein is found guilty. We'll break down the verdict and the reaction from his victims.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:35:00]

BLITZER: Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein is behind bars tonight at Rikers Island in New York, Jurors convicting him today on two sex crime charges, including third degree rape.

CNN's Jean Casarez has been covering the Weinstein trial for us in New York.

Jean, Weinstein was found guilty of two of the five counts against him. Update our viewers.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That is correct, and it was a long deliberation, 26.5 hours. There is even a note on Friday that they might be hung on some of the counts, but in the end, they found him guilty on two of the five, criminal sexual act in the first degree and rape in the third degree. They found him not guilty of the most serious charges, predatory sexual assault, which potentially could lead to a life term.

Now, the district attorney for New York, Cyrus Vance, said in a press conference after the verdict that this is a new landscape for survivors of sexual assault in America. I asked the lead defense attorneys how they felt about that comment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONNA ROTUNNO, WEINSTEIN DEFENSE ATTORNEY: It's frightening to think about a new dawn in a criminal justice system that doesn't have changes, right? Our criminal justice system is steeped in our rights as citizens and our rights to due process and our rights to the presumption of innocence. And if this notion that we should just start to believing people just because they make claims, I think that challenges the criminal justice system as we know it.

DAMON CHERONIS, WEINSTEIN DEFENSE ATTORNEY: I think clearly throughout the course of this trial, through the cross-examination, through the evidence we put forward, there's a reasonable doubt, a grave reasonable doubt as to whether or not these crimes were proven.

[18:40:10]

So in that regard, it does scare me a little bit when you have outside influences that may affect a jury.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CASAREZ: And Harvey Weinstein will be sentenced on March 11th here in New York City. But it's not over yet because on the first day of jury selection here in New York City, the district attorney in Los Angeles announced criminal charges against Harvey Weinstein. He will have to face that after this case is concluded. Wolf?

BLITZER: All right. Jean, thank you very much. Jean Casarez reporting for us.

Let's bring in CNN Legal Analyst, the former New Jersey Attorney General, Anne Milgram. Anne, thanks so much for joining us. The jury, as you know, didn't find Weinstein guilty of the more serious charges. What factors were at play here?

ANNE MILGRAM, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes. I mean, the way I see this, Wolf, is that this was a really important conviction in a really high profile and important criminal case. There were two victims that the jury found criminal convictions against Weinstein on. And so I understand that we're talking a lot about the predatory sexual assault, but I think it's a mistake in many ways.

When I was in the Manhattan D.A.'s Office, I was a sex crimes prosecutor and conviction is a conviction. And here, those two charges, the predatory sexual assault, they were charged, in my view, to get in the testimony of Annabella Sciorra, who had alleged rape back in 1993, 1994, a very, very old case. And so what I think you saw the injury do was make a decision to go with the charges that related to the other victims in this case, Miriam Haley and Jessica Mann, and to find Weinstein guilty on those counts.

And so again, I think it's a really significant day. It's really important and I should add that I did represent a witness in the Weinstein case. The witness was not called at trial, but I have been following it very closely for that reason.

BLITZER: I'm sure you have. what do you expect at Weinstein's sentencing? I understand he could face somewhere between 5 and 25 years.

MILGRAM: That's right. So on the Count Criminal Sexual Act in the first degree, that's a B violent felony. He faces between 5 and 25 years. Remember, this judge presided over the trial and will be the judge to sentence him. And then what's really important is you also have a second victim. So this isn't just a one-victim case. It's a two-victim case. And on the second, the rape three conviction, that carries a sentence of anywhere from probation up to four years.

And I would expect that the judge will sentence Weinstein to incarceration on both of those conviction counts. And so I think we're looking at -- at a minimum, we would be looking probably at five or six years, but I think we'll look at a higher number than that.

BLITZER: Yes. He's what, 67, 68 years old.

His team, as you know, is planning to appeal. But for now, he's over at Rikers Island, a notorious prison in New York. Tell us about the conditions he's probably facing right now.

MILGRAM: Yes. So I would expect his lawyers to appeal. Most criminal defendants do, and so it's pretty standard practice in something like this. Rikers Island, no matter, I think, sort of how badly people imagine it to be, is probably worse. It's a really tough place for all defendants who go there. And, you know, it's been report that he'll be in a medical infirmary potentially, but this will be obviously devastating for him like it is for all criminal defendants who are incarcerated.

And so, you know, Rikers is not an easy place to be and, frankly, neither is any other state prison or jail.

BLITZER: Yes, that's an important point. This is clearly, Anne, a watershed moment for the Me Too movement. It's the result of many victims speaking out. What impact will this case have on future cases?

MILGRAM: I think that this is such an important case. And, you know, again, as someone who's prosecuted sex crimes and human trafficking cases, I can say this -- and domestic violence cases -- it is really hard for victims to come forward and cooperate.

And they are often subject to really tough cross-examination because these are really complicated. Here, we had testimony from the victims that they continued to have relationships with Weinstein after they communicated with him and emailed them. And so a lot of victims are afraid to come forward. They're afraid that they'll be blamed.

And this verdict to me says loud and clear that victims can and should come forward and that prosecutors are willing to take the tough cases and to basically go to trial, which in my view, is what needs to happen.

BLITZER: Anne Milgram, thanks so much for joining us.

MILGRAM: Thank you.

BLITZER: Just ahead, emotional tributes to Kobe Bryant and his daughter. We'll go live to Los Angeles for details of the memorial service.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL JORDAN, FORMER NBA PLAYER: In the game of basketball, in life, as a parent, Kobe left nothing in the table. He left it all on the floor.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:49:29]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: In a very emotional star-studded service, Vanessa Bryant gave a very moving tribute to her last husband and daughter Gianna as thousands of mourners gathered in the arena Kobe Bryant played in as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Joining us now, basketball Hall of Famer Grant Hill who attended today's very public and moving memorial.

Grant, thanks so much for joining us.

I want you and our viewers to listen to at least some words of remembrance from Kobe's widow, Vanessa Bryant, and his longtime friend, Michael Jordan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[18:50:01]

MICHAEL JORDAN, CHARLOTTE HORNETS OWNER & FORMER NBA PLAYER: I wanted to be the best big brother that I could be.

(APPLAUSE)

To do that, he had to put up with the aggravation, the late-night calls, or the dumb questions. I took great pride as I got to know Kobe Bryant that he was just trying to be a better person.

VANESSA BRYANT, KOBE BRYANT'S WIDOW: Babe, you take care of our Gigi, and I got Noni, BB, and Coco. We're still the best team.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Grant, what was it like inside?

GRANT HILL, FORMER NBA PLAYER: Wolf, you know, it was incredible. You could feel the love. You could feel the sadness. You could feel the inspiration that Kobe embodied throughout his career as a player. You could feel him as a mentor, as a friend. There was just a gamut of emotions in the building.

And I think everyone obviously was emotional. Everyone was touched. And just that relationship that you saw between Kobe and his wife, you could really feel that love. I thought Vanessa was just amazing in terms of under these type of conditions and circumstances, to get up there in front of the world and talk about her relationship with Kobe, with her daughter, Gianna.

Then, of course, Michael Jordan as well. You know, talking about being a big brother and being inspired by his younger brother, Kobe, and showing his emotions. It was -- it was a beautiful, beautiful ceremony, but also terribly sad at the same time.

BLITZER: You could see the tears on Michael Jordan's face. Vanessa's face, and everyone else, I think, was beginning to cry as well. You played against Kobe many times throughout your career. You've described him as a relentless player who inspired an entire generation. What will you remember most about Kobe as an athlete and as a man?

HILL: Well, yes. I'm old enough to remember when Kobe came in the league, and I was a few years older than him. And early on, you could -- you could see that he wanted to be great. That he loved the game, and he was a student of the game. He was passionate about basketball.

And then sort of to watch his evolution, his growth, and him becoming an adult, becoming a husband, a father, and really a mentor and a big brother for a whole generation that he inspired, really a beautiful story from start to finish. Obviously, sad at the ending there, but my memories obviously competing against him, early in my career when we both were, you know, at a certain level. And then -- and then some of the things off the court -- you know,

spending time with him at the all-star games. Playing, you know, back in the '90s, one-on-one, we were both young, and trying to ascend to new heights and playing one-on-one at UCLA multiple times. I mean, then later on, you know, later on, as I'm an older player and he was more seasoned as a vet, competing against each other, so those were just great memories and great moments.

And I always knew with him that you had to be prepared. You had to be on your game because he was simply the best. And so, it was -- it was an honor and a privilege to compete against him, Wolf, but it was even more of an honor and a privilege to have some moments with him away from basketball and get to know and understand who and what he was about. He was really -- he was bigger than basketball.

And I think that's certainly been shown here as a husband, as a filmmaker, as a businessman, as a coach, as a father. There were so many gifts and so many things to admire about what Kobe Bryant was.

BLITZER: He was special. I met him on a few occasions myself. And he was always amazing in so many ways. And today's moving memorial was so, so powerful.

Grant Hill, thanks so much for sharing a few moments with us.

HILL: All right. Thank you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Just ahead, we're going to continue our coverage. We're going to remember the life of NASA trail blazer and mathematician, Katherine Johnson, whose work helped put the first American astronauts in space and on the moon.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:59:15]

BLITZER: Famed NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson whose contributions to the American space program were celebrated in Academy Award nominated film "Hidden Figures" has died at the age of 101. She was part of a group of pioneering black women mathematicians working behind the scenes at NASA who made America's first space missions possible.

President Obama awarded Johnson the Presidential Medal of Freedom back in 2015. NASA's administrator remembered Johnson as an American hero who opened doors for women and people of color.

May she rest in peace, and may her memory be a blessing.

Once again, stay with CNN for presidential town hall event live from Charleston, South Carolina. We'll hear tonight from seven, tonight -- and Wednesday night, seven Democratic presidential candidates over two nights. It all starts later tonight, 9:00 p.m. Eastern.

"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.