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Hala Gorani Tonight
Latest Campaign Happeneings; French Police Arrest Man Plotting Terror Attack; WHO Warns of Zika Virus; More Migrant Fatalities; Russian Economic Woes. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired January 28, 2016 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HALA GORANI, "THE WORLD RIGHT NOW" HOST: Tonight, a security scare at Disneyland Paris. Police arrest a man with weapons and a Quran at a park
hotel. The latest coming up.
Also this hour, the Zika virus is spreading "explosively" according to the World Health Organization. We'll hear from an infectious disease expert
who says they are not acting fast enough.
And, Republican standoff, Donald Trump refuses to take part in the latest debate. We'll tell you why he might win the night anyway.
Hello everyone, I'm Hala Gorani, thanks for being with us this hour, we're coming to you live from London, and this is "The World Right Now."
(MUSIC)
And we begin this evening in Paris tonight where the city is already fragile, sense of security is being shaken yet again. Police in the French
capital are holding a 28-year old man. He's in custody right now. They say he was trying to get inside this Euro Disney, Disneyland hotel outside
of Paris carrying two guns, a box of ammunition and a copy of the Quran.
Out Diana Magnay joins me now live, she's following this story here in London. So what more do we know about this man?
DIANA MAGNAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well it's quite peculiar, we've heard from police that he put his suitcase through security and that's when the
alarm went off and they've found that he had two guns and a box of cartridges in there. Where upon they arrested him, and also they told us
that he was carrying a copy of the Quran. They know that this man is a 28 year old, he's a resident of Paris, they have him in questioning now, and
they also brought a bomb disposal team to assess whether there was a problem with the car that he came in and they found nothing.
So, right now, they have him in custody, they're questioning him. They say that he's not known before to police or the intelligence service.
GORANI: Do we know if he said anything to security officials, police there?
MAGNAY: He said that these guns were there for law and security, for his own protection. But, interestingly he was with a woman who was checking
into the hotel with him. And she, when he was arrested she run off and she's still at large.
GORANI: OK. And we don't know anything more about the woman?
MAGNAY: No ...
GORANI: All right, well Diana Magnay, we're going to continue to follow the story. When more details become available we'll bring them to our
viewers.
Now to this Zika virus, there's not cure, you won't know you have it until it's too late, and the World Health Organization is warning that this virus
is "spreading explosively across the America." Between 3 and 4 million new infections expected there over the next year along.
It is thought to be inflicting debilitating defect and sometimes even death in newborns. Now despite attempts to kill the mosquitoes which usually
carries Zika, the WHO says it's already in 23 countries and territories. Its deputy director tells CNN, it is going to get worse.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE AYLWARD, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR-GENERAL, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: This virus has been on the move for some time, so a lot of people have been
exposed to this virus already in those areas, but it will continue to move would be the expectation. And just as we've seen the dengue virus, other
related viruses move, one would expect this. So we could still see a fair amount of Zika virus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: You hear him from the WHO, there are now clinical trials of a vaccine could begin this year, according to the head of a leading research
institute on infectious disease.
Let's get more on CNN's Nic Robertson, is outside the WHO's headquarters in Geneva for us. Shasta Darlington is on the ground on the outbreaks at the
center -- sorry, I should say, Pernambuco State in Brazil, in the City of Recife.
Nic, I'm going to start with you. First of all, why is the WHO using such alarming language to describe this outbreak?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: One assumes, because they're alarmed. This has been going on. The details have been becoming
known publicly for over the past week or so. But, World Health Organization says it's been working with governors in the region since the
outbreak was first spotted last year. And they've been trying to track the spread of the virus. They know how fast it spreads. They're concerned
because -- right now their plan is to have an emergency meeting on Monday to determine whether or not this is a public health emergency of global
proportions.
But, frankly, they admit that there are gaps in the information that they have, they want to get more data.
[15:05:03] They want to understand more about it. They say a vaccine is a priority. We know that from the Ebola experience that the WHO can help
accelerate not just the production of vaccines but the testing, there are hospitals here in Switzerland we've seen before, test vaccines for Ebola.
So, at the moment, what we heard from the WHO is, they're alarmed in part because there is so much they don't know about this.
GORANI: And, let me ask you Shasta Darlington, and we were just seeing there by the way a list of fact associated with this particular mosquito,
who carry and transmit the Zika virus, that they bite during the day, which means that if you use a net at night it's not going to help you much. I
mean, how concerned are authorities here that they're going to have a huge public health emergency on their hands very soon?
SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, I think here in Brazil you could say we already do. We're looking at -- the Zika virus itself has
already infected up to a million and a half people in Brazil. Because, 80 percent of a time, if they're symptomatic, it's really hard to track, those
numbers are hard to nail down. But it's pretty widespread.
And then you take a look at the birth defects that it's been linked to Microcephaly, well, more than 4,000 babies have been reported born with
Microcephaly, that compares to about 140, 150 in a normal year. So I think, we're looking at a health crisis. The thing is, it's not over,
while -- they talk about vaccines, those are still years away, they're fighting the mosquito but they have pretty much failed so far, it's the
same mosquito that carries the dengue virus. And -- well, last year, they had a record number of cases of dengue here in Brazil.
So, they've got to step up awareness, get people educated, get people fighting it. But, the reality on the ground here in Brazil is, most people
in a lot of these neighbors, they don't have air conditioning, they don't have netting in their windows, and it's hot, so they're not wearing long
sleeves either. So, I just see it as uphill battle. More education will certainly help, netting would help, really simple things, put nets in the
windows, Hala.
GORANI: Yeah. And Nic, the WHO there in Geneva, what is the WHO's plan here to try to contain this as much as possible?
ROBERTSON: Information. Learn more about the virus, learn more about it quickly. They want to gather more information. They freely admit that
there are gaps in the information that they have at the moment, they want to understand the connectivity between some of the neurological conditions.
The birth defect they want to see -- they want to sort of get a better handle on that. At the moment they seem to really starting from, you know,
from square one almost.
Obviously the WHO has a huge amount of experience with global outbreaks of disease and this sort of thing in the past. They can bring to bear
assistance to governments, that's what they say they're doing at the moment, they can bring to bear on this, the sort of help the governments
need to make the right decision so they don't, let's say close borders or overreact or underreact as well. But it's all based on having the right
information, and it seems at the moment, there are gaps in the information and that's a problem.
GORANI: All right. Well, when you hear language such as the language used by the World Health Organization, of course, it is absolutely
understandable that women, especially pregnant women would worry. Shasta, I've got to ask you of course, and it's on many people's minds that that is
the -- the Olympics this summer in Brazil. I mean is that going to impact that? I know the immediate concerns are with the people who are affected
now, but that's just a few months away.
DARLINGTON: It is Hala, I mean I think we do have to keep things in perspective. Right now, the risk according to the CDC, according to the
WHO, is for pregnant women. I don't think we need to start sparking any kind of hysterical reaction here. We're here in Recife, there are
mosquitoes and, you know, you put repellant on. Of course there are a lot of unknowns, keep that in mind, but I think that we have to treat this as
it is and not scare people from coming away either.
Brazil is concerned about that, they are expecting about half a million visitors. And what Rio officials have done is they tried to assure the
public that they're going to minimize risk, they're going to be inspecting the venues to make sure that there's no standing water, they'll be doing
that on a daily basis. If they need to, they say they'll fumigate. But they also point out, that look, when you take a closer look at the
microcephaly cases, which is what you can track, only 3 percent of them are in the whole state of Rio.
So, they're trying to, you know, let everyone know, this isn't where the real focal point of the problem is, and, it's going to be August, winter in
the southern hemisphere. So, naturally the mosquito population drops off, Hala.
GORANI: All right, thanks very much. Shasta Darlington is in Brazil, in Recife, and our Nic Robertson is at WHO headquarters in Geneva.
[15:10:07] Thanks to both of you.
The countdown is on to the Fox News Donald Trump prime time television grudge match. Hours from now Fox will host the last Republican
presidential debate before the Iowa caucuses, at the same time Trump will kickoff an event, a parallel event he hopes will steal Fox's sunder. Fox
News Host Bill O'Reilly made a final appeal to the Republican frontrunner, listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL O'REILLY, FOX NEWS HOST: Will you just consider? I want you to consider, all right? Think about it. Say look, I might come back.
Forgive, go forward, answer the questions, look out for the folks. Just want you to consider it. You owe me milkshakes. I'll take them off the
ledger, if you consider it.
DONALD TRUMP, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well even though you and I had an agreement that you wouldn't ask me that, which we did, I will
therefore forget that you asked me that, but it's up to Fox, it's not up to me Bill what they did ...
O'REILLY: You're actually telling the truth there.
TRUMP: We had an agreement. You actually did break your agreement.
O'REILLY: You're tell the truth that I said ...
TRUMP: Because I told you upfront, don't ask me that question ...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: And he asked it anyway. During that interview O'Reilly briefly defended his colleague Megyn Kelly with the center of the spout with Trump,
but he also appealed to Trump's faith (ph), saying the candidate should forgive journalist who come at him.
For more on this back and forth and what is turning into an even, you know, more and more entertaining, spectacular, remarkable and historic
presidential race. Pick your adjective (ph). CNN politics center, (ph) Mark Preston, joins me now from Des Moines, Iowa.
Mark, is this -- it's just every single day you have a new development, a new -- just spectacular as I was saying development. Is this going to help
or hurt Trump here?
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Oh, there's no questions in the short-term it has helped Trump. Hala, right now the focus should be on
this debate tonight where we're going to see the Republican candidates for president appear, try to make their final pitch to the Iowa voters. Now
Donald Trump, with his decision not to attend, he's the frontrunner, he is sucking all of the oxygen now to him.
By holding this competing rally, all the focus is now shifting to what Donald Trump is going to say when he takes the stage and raises money for
veterans, as he says he's going to do tonight. Now, we expect there will be around 600 people in that audience. The irony is, is that he'll be on
the same stage Hala, where the Democrats just a few days ago appeared during a town hall that was broadcast internationally on CNN.
So, Donald Trump tonight certainly has taken all of the wind out of this -- the sales (ph) of this debate Hala.
GORANI: And he says, basically he's going to get, you know, that Fox ratings are going to suffer because people will be paying attention to his
event. I mean, what are Iowan voters, what are they making of this fact (ph), when you speak to just ordinary voters?
PRESTON: Well, couple of things. I think Donald Trump is a again being Donald Trump and overplaying a little bit by saying that, the ratings are
going to be hurt tonight. That remains to be seen, I mean Fox is very well liked and established within the conservative circles. And I do think
you're going to see people tune in. However, Donald Trump is going to dominate the conversation leading into the debate, he will dominate the
conversation during the debate, and more importantly Hala, tomorrow he will dominate the conversation.
Now, here on Iowa, it all depends who you talk to, if you talk to some folks, they say that this is going to hurt Donald Trump, but right now I
just don't see that happening because what he's doing is, he's picking a fight with Fox, he's not picking a fight with Iowa. He's still going to be
in the state, he's still going to be campaigning here. And look, it remains to be seen what's going to happen but there are only a few days
left before we get those first votes, and we'll see what happens if Donald Trump can get all of the supporters, these thousands of people who go to
his rallies, will they actually go out and vote for him on Monday.
GORANI: But the lower polling candidates, I mean, for a change they have the stage themselves. I mean essentially, all those sort of -- all of
those polling in the upper tier are going to be hoping right now that this might be a breakout moment for them. Here's the latest poll by the Wall
Street Journal/NBC. Trump at 32 percent, Cruz 25, Rubio 18, Carson 8 and Bush 4 percent. So what's their strategy here?
PRESTON: Well, two of them have decided they're going to join Trump after they debate, after they do what's called under card debate, the first
debate of the night. After they're finished, they're going to leave the debate hall and they're going to go over to Drake University where Trump is
holding his rally and they're going to join him here.
Actually a brilliant move on their part in many ways because, Hala, it allows them to get more exposure and they certain need it. Now those two
candidates Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor and Rick Santorum the former Pennsylvania senator are really grasping right now to stay
relevant in this race, and they see this as an opportunity to stay relevant.
[15:15:13] GORANI: Mark Preston in Iowa, thanks very much. Always a pleasure, great having you on. And later in the show I'll be speaking to
the editor of the Des Moines Register to ask how Trump's decision to duck out of the debate will affect his standing with the people in Iowa. We
heard a little bit from Mark on that particular point.
Plus, we'll see how voters there actually how well they know their candidates. Also ahead, this evening, another tragic accident in the
Mediterranean, and once again, several children are among the dead. We are live in Greece with the tragic detail.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
Another heartbreaking day on the Mediterranean where migrant fatalities are becoming routine. At least 24 people including 10 children have drowned in
the waters between Turkey and Greece. The Greek coast guard says their boat capsized on Wednesday evening.
Let's go right to our Senior Internal Correspondent Arwa Damon, she's been covering this migrant crisis across the continent. Tonight, she's on the
Greek island of Lesbos. Tell us more about these deaths because there were predictions initially that when the weather cools there would be fewer
crossing attempts, but it doesn't seem like this is certainly having a great impact on the death toll, Arwa.
ARWA DAMON, SENIOR INTERNAL CORRESPONDENT: Thanks right Hala, and I think that's caught everyone by surprise, the fact that these boats just keep on
coming despite the reality that the waters have gone significantly more treacherous. Today's incident was brought to light when one of the men who
was on that dinghy that capsized managed to get to Greek shores setting off the alarm. Rescue teams were immediately dispatched but sadly at least 24
people died, among them as you were mentioning there are at least 10 children.
And this is not just a byproduct of the sea being very different to navigate, the byproduct of the smugglers capitalizing on the refugee's
misery, continuously sending them out in this barely ship-worthy, seaworthy dinghy. Often times sending them out with life jacket that don't even have
proper flotation device, and it really just goes to underscore over and over again, as we have been saying up until now the sheer desperation that
people continue to feel in terms of wanting to get to Europe and that quest for, that they hope will be a better life, Hala.
GORANI: And Arwa we've -- you've reported as well from Denmark and Sweden as well, we've head a lot about laws that authorize government officials to
confiscate valuables, et cetera, et cetera. But there's one community you visited that is going above and beyond to try to make some of these asylum
seekers feel welcome, tell us about that.
DAMON: Yeah. In Denmark you have that new law that was just passed that effectively authorizes the police to search migrants and refugees
confiscating things.
[15:20:10] But cross the border over into Sweden, and it's a fairly different atmosphere. Take look at what we saw.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
When Jama (ph) Almish married his wife Anbara he promised that one take her to Scandinavia. But it was supposed to be a dream holiday, not a one-way
trip brought on by Syria's war that forced the whole family to flee.
Going to school was scary, 13-year old Ina (ph) says. She wants to be a doctor. Her two older brothers already made the journey to Sweden on their
own.
(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
You don't know the state I was in Damascus Anbara remembers. I told my son, I'm going to lose you, if you stay here you will die. I'm sending you
off. I'm sending you to god.
One of her sons Ala'a, arrives at the transit center just before the family is moved on. He him self is still struggling to adjust to life in Sweden.
(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
Everything is strange when you don't speak the language, you feel really lost he says, but he's learning.
This is one of the first transit centers that Asylum seekers find themselves in, a Best Western hotel, rented out by the Swedish migration
agency for the next six years.
TOBIAS AKERMARK, SWEDISH MIGRATION AGENCY: Right now we are seeing -- we are registering 800 people per week.
DAMON: Last year Sweden had 160,000 people register for asylum. The country has taken in the highest number of refugees per capita of any
European Union country. But it is causing a strain.
AKERMARK: A huge headache (ph) for us right now is to find accommodations for everyone that's coming, so that's a huge challenge for the Swedish
system, yes it is.
DAMON: In some instances, frustration among those waiting has led to unrest. And in the most recent incident, death, a 15 year old male
allegedly stabbed and killed a female volunteer. He's being held on suspicion, but police say, it might have been an accident.
Sweden has had to divert police to secure asylum centers, to set up identification controls where there were not (ph), along its border with
Denmark and other areas.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need more police officers and there is -- since all the police are here, we are missing other things that we have to do
normally, like drugs and everything. It's not possible for us to do everything here.
DAMON: Leaving Sweden's National Police Commissioner to call for additional recruitment.
Unlike its neighbors, Sweden is not actually discouraging asylum seekers from coming here. But there is a growing sense that perhaps they are
helping too much, while other European nations try to insulate themselves from the growing crisis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Now, Hala, not everyone who arrived in Sweden is granted permanent residency. And the country does estimate that around 60,000 to 80,000
asylum seekers will be turned away, they're looking into the option of even chartering deaths to try to get them back to their home country. This may
seem like a high number but it pretty mush is inline with the percentages, about 50 percent of those who do seek asylum in Sweden are rejected.
But we were told while we were there that Syrians are automatically granted permanent residency and therefore do not risk themselves being deported
Hala.
GORANI: All right, Arwa Damon, thanks very much with the latest, she's in the island of Lesbos, Greece.
It was just over a week ago that Rezaian returned to the United States after 18 months in an Iranian prison. He was convicted spy by freed in a
secretive prisoner swap. Just a short time ago he expressed an emotional thanks to him fellow journalist with the Washington Post, listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JASON REZAIAN, WASHINGTON POST REPORTER: For much of the 18 months I was in prison, my Iranian interrogators told me that the Washington Post did
not exist, that no one knew of my plight and that the United States government would not lift a finger for my release. Today, I'm here in this
room with the very people who helped prove the Iranians wrong in so many ways.
Each day since my release, I learned more about the efforts to gain our freedom, which begun the moment Yegi and I were taken from our home, and
continue on in support of our reintroduction into the world.
There's so many people to thank.
JOHN KERRY, UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF STATE: Despite all of that effort, for everybody, this gnawed at us. Because we sensed the wrongfulness. And
we knew that Jason and others were living the consequences, 545 days.
So I will tell you, frankly, that a week ago on Saturday was really one of the days that I enjoyed the most as Secretary of State.
[15:25:13] It was also perhaps the most nerve-wracking.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: All right, you heard from John Kerry the U.S. Secretary of State. A little bit later he also become emotional. And we've heard from Jason
Rezaian as well, understandably emotional as well. The release of Rezaian and three other Americans came just as the U.N. certified Iran's compliance
with this international nuclear agreement.
A lot more coming up on the program. Russians are starting to feel the very bitter repercussions of a falling ruble. We'll tell you what those
who took part in this rare angry protest, having coming (ph). Stay with us
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
Now, international sanctions, falling wages and rising inflation are all crippling the Russian economy, there's no doubt about that. And thousands
of Russians are struggling to pay their mortgages right now. With a weaker ruble the loans they borrowed based on foreign currency are now too
expensive to pay back. And people are getting very angry about that.
Our Matthew Chance is in Moscow with more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They're victims of Russia's economic crisis, determined to be heard.
Protest like this one against crippling dollar denominated mortgages have been erupting nationally (inaudible) storming banks demanding the harsh
terms of their loans be reviewed.
Across Russia there are tens of thousands of people that took out (ph) dollar mortgages thinking they would be cheaper. But because of the
plunging oil price and the devaluing ruble, they've all been left in desperate strikes (ph), now with repayments that they quite simply unable
to afford, and they're serious (ph) about it.
Curious (ph) but like (inaudible) helpless too in the face of ever rising repayments.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My payment was 32,000 rubles per month.
CHANCE: Right.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And, the highest payment per month which was during this crisis was 120.
CHANCE: 120,000?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, nearly four times. Yes, exactly.
CHANCE: Incredible.
So far the President appears unmoved. President Putin's popularity remains sky high but his official spokesman has dismissed the problems that those
stung by dollar mortgages.
But, as Russia's economic crisis continues there are growing signs patience is running out.
Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: A lot more to come. We'll take you inside a lab right here in the United Kingdom to see a very surprising method the scientist are trying to
use to stop the Zika virus.
Also, I'll ask an expert why he thinks the World Health Organization has been too slow to act. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:32:07]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
HALA GORANI, HOST: Welcome back. A look at our top stories this hour.
In France police have arrested a 28-year-old man who was trying to enter a hotel at Disneyland Paris.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: They say he was carrying two guns, a box of ammunition, inside his luggage, as well as police say a copy of the Quran. They're still looking
for a woman who was with the man they arrested.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Also among our top stories the World Health Organization will hold an emergency meeting on the Zika virus Monday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: It says the mosquito borne disease is, "spreading explosively through the Americas" and that there could be up to 4 million cases there
in the next 12 months. Zika is linked to dangerous sometimes even deadly birth defects but the vast majority of people who contract it do not show
symptoms.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: And at least 24 people including ten children have drowned today in the waters between Greece and Turkey.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: The Greece coastguard says the migrants boat capsized on Wednesday, it had 45 people on board, 11 are still missing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: And we continue to follow the U.S. Presidential campaign, Donald Trump is standing firm on his decision to boycott the debate that was
scheduled a few hours from now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: He will host a fundraising event instead. They will run in parallel. That threatens to draw attention away from the last Republican
Presidential debate on Fox before the Iowa caucuses.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
GORANI: Let's refocus now on the Zika virus and its massive spread. I've heard many people even here in the United Kingdom talk about it. People all
around the world wondering should I defer travel, people are worried, you see some of the countries affected there.
Zika is now in 23 countries and territories in the Americas according to the World Health Organization. It started in Brazil, it confirmed its first
case in May of last year. Now since then it has reached far and wide, as far north as the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico this December. And it may
keep on going, becoming a, "explosive pandemic" according to the WHO.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Now Daniel Lucey is a senior scholar at Georgetown University and an expert in infectious and contagious diseases. He joins us now live from
Washington. Thanks for joining us.
Is this WHO guidance, is it -- do you think it's coming too late?
DANIEL LUCEY, SENIOR SCHOLAR, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY: No. No. I think it ideally would have come earlier, several weeks earlier, but it's not come
as late as unfortunately the Ebola epidemic emergency committee being convened occurred in August of 2014.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LUCEY: So, no, it's not too late, but now specific actions have to occur quickly.
GORANI: Okay. So what when they -- because explain to us the term explosive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: I mean, that just sounds like something very frightening, something that's going to spread very quickly. I mean, should women who are pregnant
be really concerned if they are in one of those countries?
[15:35:05]
LUCEY: So, yes, I think that women should be concerned and I think personally that the travel advisories that have been put out by a small
number of countries so far, Australia, Taiwan, Canada and the United States over the last two weeks are appropriate to advise women who are pregnant to
consider postponing the travel.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: What -- you say -- you said a little bit earlier that you think at this point the guidance is coming maybe a little late, but it's good that
it's coming certainly earlier than during the Ebola outbreak. What needs to happen now so that it's contained?
LUCEY: So first of all there's special emergency committee which will meet on Monday, February 1st, to decide whether or not to advise the Director
General of the World Health Organization whether the Zika epidemic is what is called a public health emergency of international concern. And that has
very specific medical and legal implications. But most importantly I'd say the World Health Organization headquarters in Geneva and the Director
General Dr. Chan now can and should and I have every reason to think that she and they will coordinate the global response. Because, as you said, the
virus is spreading across the Americas, but also West Africa, also in the Pacific Islands.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LUCEY: And o I'd say at least three things need to be done and coordinated better. That is risk communication information about what is the virus, how
is it spread, should pregnant women be concerned so that there's really a harmonized voice for the whole world. Secondly, better measures to control
the type of mosquitos that spread the virus, the so called aedes mosquitos which spread other viruses as well like dengue.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LUCEY: And finally to accelerate research and development to develop vaccines, treatment and better diagnostic tests for Zika virus.
GORANI: But there are no fears here that people who travel who have been infected with this virus can transmit it to other people, right? It's not
contagious person to person?
LUCEY: It's not contagious person to person as far as we know. As far as we know it's almost always transmitted by these aedes mosquitos. But there is
a concern that, for example, if I go to an area where there's Zika and I get infected, even if I don't get sick, then I could have the Zika virus in
my blood for a short period of time and then if I came back to a different part of the world or here, for example, in southern parts of the United
States, there are these aedes mosquitos and a mosquito bites me and takes my blood and has the virus in it and then goes and bites someone else,
could infect them with the Zika virus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: I get it. So, yes, there are some concerns out there. Daniel Lucey, thanks very much of Georgetown University for joining us for your thoughts
on this -- first of all, the WHO guidance and also some of the dangers associated with the Zika virus. We really appreciate your time.
LUCEY: It's a pleasure, thank you.
GORANI: Now, looking to fight fire to fire, a small group of scientists are trying to genetically engineer mosquitos to try and kill other mosquitos
which are carrying the virus and infecting people. Erin McLaughlin has more on that story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They look like glowing globules, these larvae represent ground zero in the fight against mosquito
borne disease. The virus known as Zika continues to spread throughout South America and beyond, linked to thousands of babies being born with shrunken
brains. Authorities don't know exactly what to do about it. There's no vaccine and fumigation is limited.
A company here in England says the key to solving the mosquito problem is more mosquitos like these.
Here at Oxford Tech Labs, they've been genetically modified to produce offspring that die before growing into mature adults. Only males are
mosquitoes are introduced into the wild.
ANDY MCKERNEY, HEAD OF OPERATIONS: And I just wanted to show you the males because we only release males as they don't bite.
MCLAUGHLIN: Oh, OK.
MCKERNEY: It's actually the female mosquitos which bite and the problem is they transmit the disease. So as you can see because it's only the males I
can put my hand in here without sort of worrying that I'm going to get bitten.
MCLAUGHLIN: It's essentially death by sex, once the genetically modified male mates with the female it passes on the deadly gene, that gene then
spreads to the larvae. The larvae are then unable to grow into adults. For tracking purposes they also glow in the dark.
MCKERNEY: So here we can see six -- six of these mosquitos, three at the top and three at the bottom under normal light. But if I turn down the
white light you can see the ones at the top there is a glow around the eye. Now, that glow is due to a genetic marker.
MCLAUGHLIN: And why is that important?
MCKERNEY: What we can do is look at the proportion of the mosquitos we get back from the field and see what proportion have the gene, which means that
they are not going to develop to adults, as opposed to the proportion of wild type ones. And based on that ratio we can adjust the release rate of
our males.
[15:40:14]
MCLAUGHLIN: So far the tracking shows promising results. One study done in the Brazilian city of Eldorado showed an 82% reduction in mosquito larvae
compared to a non-treated area 1.5km away. Scientists warn that the spread of Zika could spread into a global pandemic. Who would have thought that
the key to stopping it could be a glowing mutant mosquito.
Erin McLaughlin, CNN, Oxford, England.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Coming up it's a race for the ratings between Donald Trump and Fox News.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: And the Republican front runner is now getting some unexpected support from a rival. We will have the latest from Iowa.
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GORANI: Could Fox News be outfoxed by Donald Trump? We'll find out when ratings are revealed for Thursday's prime time match up.
The Republican front runner is picking a fight with the cable news channel. He's standing by his plan to hold an event at the same time as the last
Republican debate before the Iowa caucuses. Trump is betting that the T.V. viewing public will side with him in his spat with Fox.
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GORANI: The new poll puts Trump 7 points above Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio is next at 18%, followed by Carson and Bush. Not making the cut for the main
debate, Mike Huckabee, who offered himself by the way, he said hey I'll take that empty podium.
His plans for tonight hit the undercard debate, then attend Trump's rally. Huckabee explained his decision to CNN.
MIKE HUCKABEE, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, it's to honor the troops, you know, it's not an endorsement of Donald Trump's candidacy,
I'm still running for President, we've got the caucuses Monday night but I'm delighted to join with Donald Trump in an effort to salute veterans.
And you know what, I didn't have anything going on at 8:00 o'clock, tonight, I'll be done. So I figured why not? Let's show the veterans our
support.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: All right. And there will be many cameras there as well. Mike Huckabee will be getting twice the exposure tonight. But let's focus back
on Trump is he finally courting more controversy than his campaign can stand?
Emily Nash is the editor of the Des Moines Register, she joins me now from Des Moines, via Skype to give us a better sense of what voters in Iowa are
thinking.
Emily, thanks for joining us. First of all, just ordinary Iowa voter voters, what are they making of this pretty remarkable election campaign so
far?
EMILY NASH, EDITOR, DES MOINES REGISTER: Sure. Well, it's obviously been very busy on the ground here, but the interesting thing is that I don't
know that this is really swaying people's opinions of Donald Trump one way or another.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NASH: So what we've seen in our comments and what we've heard from people, people who support him are saying, good for him, you know, good for him for
not backing down from this fight for taking this on and then people who didn't support him to start with are saying, you know, this was the wrong
move, why would he do that? His ego has sort of taken the best of him. So I don't know that it's actually influencing what people think four days ahead
of the caucuses but it's certainly something people are talking about around town.
[15:45:15]
GORANI: Well, sure. And - but it seems from what you're describing that people who have already made their minds up it's basically hardening their
positions.
NASH: That's what it seems to be. That's what we've been hearing. I haven't heard anyone saying that this has influenced their decision, suddenly now
I'm not going to caucus for him or I'm going to.
GORANI: Now, The Des Moines Register has endorsed on the Republican side Marco Rubio. Why Marco Rubio?
NASH: Well, that was a tough decision, there's obviously 11 candidates in the field and so we spent a lot of time going over their positions, talking
about her strengths and weaknesses, talking to the candidates themselves. And we sort of landed on Marco Rubio because we think he represents sort of
the future of the Republican party, that the party really needs someone who can help unite them and help reach across the aisle and based on what we
heard and saw from him we felt like he was in the best position to do that.
GORANI: And just to remind our viewers he's polling currently third behind Trump at 32%, this is in the latest "Wall Street Journal" NBC news poll and
Cruz at 25%. But on the Democratic side it's Hillary Clinton for the Des Moines register. Why that choice in particular?
NASH: We also endorsed her back in 2007/2008 and it came down to sort of her experience level.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NASH: We did like a lot of the things that we heard from Bernie Sanders, his discussion of income inequality, college affordability, he's bringing a
lot of these issues to the public consciousness. But at the end of the day we didn't feel like he had the specificity of his plans and essentially
just needed a political revolution to get that done and can he actually do that. And so as the nation focuses so much on foreign affairs and some of
the things that Secretary Clinton has really excelled in we felt like she stood out just for her depth and breadth of experience.
GORANI: And by the way we want to show our viewers live footage here in Mt. Vernon, Iowa, of Bill Clinton, the former President, campaigning for his
wife.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: We understand Hillary Clinton is in Newton, Iowa, and there's Bill Clinton wearing a sweater with an American flag on the front there. What
about -- you mentioned Bernie Sanders because Bernie Sanders I mean is polling extremely well in Iowa, in New Hampshire, et cetera. What's his
appeal, do you think for voters in your state?
NASH: He's definitely appealing to people who feel like he's speaking to the issues they care about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NASH: You know, helping to get them out of, you know, lower income into middle class, helping them talk about important things like college
affordability.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NASH: And so, you know, he's really appealing to sort of a younger generation and a in a lot of cases first time caucus goers and that's true
also of Donald Trump. And so the two of them seem to be attracting more people who haven't caucused before so the interesting thing will be can
they get those people actually out on Monday night to caucus?
GORANI: Let's get back to Trump because of course it's not just in the United States but here on CNN International our viewers very interested in
this story.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Trump is holding this parallel rival event to raise funds for veterans. Are Iowa voters tempted to -- and you said that it's not --
probably not going to change voting plans of any of the voters, but are there people who are -- do you think going to pay more attention to the
Trump event than to the Fox debate?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Will Trump get what he wants in that - what he wants in that regard?
NASH: I certainly think he has a chance to do that. I mean, I think people want to see what's that going to look like, what's it going to be about?
You know people obviously support veterans and so I think people will pay close attention to it and I think that some people will watch the debate
wondering how much of a presence he will be even though he won't be there, how much is he going to be discussed and how much of the conversation is
going to focus on him and also the fact that he's not there.
But you know, he's holding this event at Drake University tonight, which is a popular you know University right here in downtown Des Moines right
outside of downtown. And so I think he will get a crowd over there, people want to see the spectacle and what he's going to say and do over there. So
I certainly think it's going to capture a lot of attention.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: But I do wonder also, Emily, that because he's not participating in the debate it will give the other candidates an opportunity to have the
stage for themselves and their strategy right now has to be to get as much attention as possible.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: You know, without having Donald Trump, you know, sort of get all the attention, take all the attention away from them.
NASH: Yes, that's certainly the case. I think you will see some of them really trying to capitalize on trying to get some extra air time and to get
their positions made.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NASH: And so it will be interesting to see if they're trying to differentiate themselves and talk about the fact that he's not there and
attack him although he is not on stage or simply focus on their own campaigns and policies and sort of treat him as a nonentity since he is not
there.
GORANI: All right. It's going to be anyway fascinating. Thanks very much, Emily Nash of the Des Moines Register for joining us from Des Moines, Iowa,
on this little pre debate chat, pre Donald Trump event conversation.
And don't forget you can get all the latest news and analysis on our Facebook page. Facebook.com/halagoranicnn.
[15:50:14]
GORANI: Coming up, how well do you know your American presidential candidates?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: With such a crowded Presidential race voters are bound together a bit confused. We asked people in Iowa if they even recognized everyone
running for the White House. Stay with us.
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(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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GORANI: Returning to U.S. politics, after so much campaigning one would think that voters should at least recognize the people running for
President. Our Randy Kaye played a round of trivia with some Iowans who may need to brush up on who is in the running.
RANDY KAYE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Drake diner in the heart of Des Moines, Iowa, served as our test kitchen. All we needed was our camera
and an iPad loaded with photos of all the Presidential candidates to west Iowans knowledge. Some were certainly more recognizable. Who is that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hillary Clinton.
KAYE: Who is that guy?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Jeb Bush.
KAYE: Where is he from?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Florida.
KAYE: Does he have any famous family members.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, two Presidents.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bernie Sanders.
KAYE:Is he Republican or Democrat?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Democrat.
KAYE: This guy, everyone knew. Who is that?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Donald trump.
KAYE: OK. Do you know anything about him?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Too much.
KAYE: Oh, everybody reacts like that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's the Donald.
KAYE: And do you know anything else about him?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We know everything about him.
KAYE: Do you know anything that he stands for?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He wants to build a big wall.
KAYE: Impressed? Not so fast. Beyond that let's just say it wasn't pretty. Look what happened when I showed these guys a picture of Marco Rubio.
You're stumped.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know the face.
KAYE: Can you guess?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm thinking that's Ted Cruz.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know it's not Ted Cruz.
KAYE: Oh, guys, come on. Really?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Really, yeah.
KAYE: OK, No.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's an attempt.
KAYE: How about I give you the initials.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, that would help.
KAYE: M. R.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, that's Marco Rubio.
KAYE: I gave them another chance with Rick Santorum.
Who is this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to withhold my answer to start with.
KAYE: OK. That means he doesn't know. Do you know?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know.
KAYE: You have no idea.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. Sorry.
KAYE: He is a Presidential candidate.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's that?
KAYE: Do you guys want to phone a friend? Do you want some help.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How about some initials again.
KAYE: R. S
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is that Rick Santorum?
KAYE: That is. Do you have any idea what State he's from?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
KAYE: Rick Santorum was a challenge for her, too. Let's see if you know who this is.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I do but I don't know if I can pronounce it -- Santorum.
KAYE: Is she telling you names on here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I told her to.
KAYE: That's not allowed. That is not allowed.
The candidate that seemed to stump our group the most was Republican John Kasich.
Who is that?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is that that Kasich guy?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is that that Kasich guy. I always have trouble with his name.
KAYE: All right, you got some points there. You definitely got some points there. Did you know that?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.
KAYE: Who did you think it was?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have no idea.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is with the Republican candidates of the many, I have no idea.
KAYE: So he is not a Hollywood actor, he's definitely a Republican candidate.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
KAYE: Are you sure?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think so.
KAYE: You think so? But you have no idea what his name is.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No idea.
[15:55:12]
KAYE: Democrat Martin O'Malley was tough for many, too.
Do you know anything about this guy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is it Rand Paul?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, that's not Rand Paul. That's -- O'Malley.
KAYE: O'Malley. There you go. Do you know where he's from?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.
KAYE: Did he ever hold political office before, do you know?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Was he a senator?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I couldn't tell you.
KAYE: And this slip up, priceless. Who is this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's Jeb.
KAYE: OK.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jeb Bush.
KAYE: He just said it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, he just said it OK.
KAYE: And you still don't know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I was going to guess Chris Christie..
KAYE: That's Jeb Bush.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's Jeb Bush. OK. Well, they're easily forgotten in my book.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: All right. And this just into CNN. Democratic Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have agreed to a new debate,
it is set for February 4th ahead of the New Hampshire Primary. MSNBC is set to moderate that particular debate so that information just coming into us.
Well, if you'd like to know more about the crowded Presidential race just head over to our website. We have a new quiz to help you decide which
candidate is right for you, if you happen to be a U.S. citizen and if you happen to be able to vote.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: And finally tonight I want to leave you with this view. A Spanish acrobat went paragliding with a motor deep inside the arctic circle with
the Northern Lights above him. As you might expect it was freezing cold, temperatures plummeting to minus 15 degrees, but clearly that did not
discourage Horacio Lawrence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORAI: I'm Hala Gorani. "Quest Means Business" is next.
END
