Return to Transcripts main page
Hala Gorani Tonight
President Tells Pentagon to Plan Military Parade; Planning for Military Parade Underway; CNN Goes Inside Syria with U.S. Special Forces; Steve Wynn Resigns Amid Sexual Misconduct Claims; Bird Flu is Killing the Queen`s Swans; Heavy Snowfall Blankets Paris Sparking Gridlock. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired February 07, 2018 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:00:21]
HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. Live from CNN London. I`m Hala Gorani. Tonight, President Trump has parades on his
mind. He wants a grand one in the United States similar to what he saw in France on Bastille Day. We`ll have reporting on that.
And we`ll also have exclusive reporting this hour from inside Syria as CNN gains unprecedented access to U.S. special forces on patrol in the north of
the country. I will be speaking with Nick Paton Walsh.
And this is not -- on a lighter side some slope in the Alps, this is the French capital. A blanket of snow has covered the city. We have some of
your best pictures coming up.
The clock is ticking and here we are again watching and waiting as lawmakers in Washington race to avert yet another government shutdown. The
Senate just announced a bipartisan budget agreement that would pay the bills for two more years so that technically is good news.
But it`s clear how the deal would fare in the House where the top Democrat opposes it. There`s not a lot of time left to iron out differences as the
deadline is tomorrow.
The Senate bill boosts military spending and Defense Secretary James Mattis says that money is critical for national security adding America can
afford, "survival," quote/unquote.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES MATTIS, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: I cannot overstate the negative impact toward troops and families` moral from all of this budget
uncertainty. Today`s congressional action to ensure our military can defend our way of life, preserve the promise of prosperity, and pass on the
freedoms you and I enjoy to the next generation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Also, there was widespread agreement in the Senate any way to allocate more money for the troops. But there is not widespread agreement
on something else, that is proof quite controversial in a country like the United States because it has no tradition of this.
It is the idea of a military parade rumbling through the streets of Washington, D.C. Not getting quite as much support. President Donald
Trump once one purportedly inspired by the Bastille Day celebration he attended in France last year.
And now the Pentagon says initial planning for a U.S. military parade to rival this one is underway. Supporters of the idea say it is a great way
to honor the troops. Critics are questioning a lot of things including the cost and the motive.
Let`s bring in Sunlen Serfaty live on Capitol Hill. We are also joined by CNN military and diplomatic analyst, John Kirby. Sunlen, I want to first
get the latest on this bipartisan agreement. So, are we now avoiding a government shutdown in the United States?
SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Hala, what you have now, the state of play is that the Senate has introduced their bipartisan budget
deal, big two-year deal, which includes a lot of things in addition to avoiding a government shutdown.
Likely it will pass over here in the Senate. The bigger problem is when it gets sent over to the House. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan is likely
going to (inaudible) a lot of House conservatives who are simply quite against this deal.
They say that it adds to the deficit significantly. It`s something that is not offset with spending cuts. So, they have problems with this deal.
That in essence the speaker of the House, Paul Ryan, in a dynamic where he needs House Democrats to come around and support this deal.
Many House Democrats, Hala, will not support this because it leans apart. It`s at least behind the DACA fix on immigration plan for so-called
DREAMers here in the United States. So, many House Democrats are going to have a hard time getting around that deal.
And we did see as you referenced the House minority leader, Nancy Pelosi, take to the House floor this morning and say she is against this deal.
Over the course of the next day or two, of course, we are trying to avoid a government shutdown between midnight on Thursday night over the next day or
two.
It will be up to House Democrats to see if they will come around this deal. I just spoke with the number two House Democrat, Joe Crawley (ph), and he
said essentially this is up to members to decide for themselves.
There are a lot of other things in this deal except for just a one-off issue that in reference to immigration. (Inaudible), you know, the other
things burning like the disaster relief to Texas, to Puerto Rico, to California.
That these states and notably their constituents need. That might be enough to pull some around. At this stage, many people (inaudible), but of
course, they actually have to get there before the midnight Thursday deadline -- Hala.
GORANI: All right. We`ll see if that happen. Sunlen Serfaty, thanks very much.
[15:05:00] John Kirby is with me to talk about this desire by the president of the United States to hold a military parade in Washington, D.C., John,
similar to the one he witnessed in Paris when he was the guest of Emmanuel Macron on the July 14th, 2017 Bastille Day celebrations.
But, of course, the French version dates back to 1880 as rooted in tradition. It includes foreign troops. There is a bit suspicion about the
motive here for the president, right? Could it be about his ego?
JOHN KIRBY, CNN MILITARY AND DIPLOMATIC ANALYST: Yes. That`s what worries me quite frankly, Hala, that this isn`t about honoring the troops and what
is it about honoring him and that bothers me a lot. And we do not have a strong cultural tradition in the American military of doing the sort of
ostentatious hardware displays.
Again, I am not impugning other nations that do that, and we do not do that here in the United States. The last time that was anything like it was
1991 after the Gulf War, but that was to celebrate a very quick, very concise, and very decisive victory.
It was showing equipment and troops actually fought in that war. So, it was a different purpose. This is not the celebrated victory. This is I
think to satiate the president`s desire for pomp and circumstance, and I just have a real problem with that.
Now that said, Hala, the Pentagon is looking at options and we`ll see what they come back with. I have a suspicion that they are going to -- as they
look at these options, they will certainly give the president what he`s asked for, but I suspect he`ll also provide other ways in which this can be
done that are perhaps a less ostentatious.
GORANI: This is last year what the president said about the French parade and how he would like to see something similar in America.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: It`s one of the greatest parades I`ve ever seen. It was two hours long and it was military
might. To a large extent because of what I witness, we may do something like that on July 4th in Washington down Pennsylvania Avenue -- I don`t
know. We`re going to have to try and top it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: So, what`s interesting is top military brass, generals, someone we have on the show often, Mark Hertling, others have said this is
inappropriate. I mean -- and what I found interesting was General Michael Hayden said, I used to watch them in Bulgaria referencing essentially
Soviet era military parade. This is coming from some high-level people here.
KIRBY: Yes. Men I deeply respect, and I absolutely agree with him on this. It is inappropriate is just again a part of our cultural tradition.
But, look, I mean, the supporters of it will tell you, this is a way to honor and thank the troops.
And look, I`m all about that and the American people do love and support the troops, but the way to help close a civil military gap in this country,
and there is a gap, is to find ways to support them where they need it most.
They do not need a parade. You don`t need to take them out of whatever they are doing to march down Pennsylvania Avenue to thank them, what they
want to know is that the American people are there for them when they reintegrate back into society.
Twenty two veterans commit suicide in this country every single day. Veterans are still homeless rates in some places are much higher than the
rest of the country. There are mental health issues. Spouse employment issues. There are all kinds of ways that we can honor the troops and thank
them --
GORANI: But I mean, it a drop in the bucket, though, John, that the money we are talking about a few million -- what I`m saying the supporters of
this will say we are talking what -- you are not hearing me, John?
KIRBY: I got you now, Hala.
GORANI: Supporters of this will say do not talk about money. I mean, the military budget we are talking hundreds of billions of dollars. What is
20, 30 million for a parade?
KIRBY: Yes. I mean, it sounds kind of silly, right, to say anything -- you know, millions of dollars is a drop in the bucket, but OK, in
proportion to the defense budget, I get that. But think about what that money could do whatever the cost is going to be.
Think about what it could do elsewhere applied to training, applied to maintenance, applied to the spouse education and employment programs or
children`s programs on bases or just base housing for crying out loud. I mean, there is all kinds of ways again that that money could be better
spent --
GORANI: But is it more about the concern here and we have a president who wants a big shiny military parade that he can preside over so that his
image that his -- sort of the image of leadership that he portrays around the world had this kind of grandiosity attached to it. Is that the main
concern rather than the money?
KIRBY: I think there are a lot of people that have that concern and I have to admit that I`m one of them. I`m worried about the motivation here and
more critically, Hala, I`m worried about the potential politicization of the military as a result of that potential motivation that we are not
political pawns.
We serve the Constitution not the White House, not any branch of government, and I`m worried about how -- the message that this might send
not just to the troops but to the American people about what their military stands.
GORANI: John Kirby, thanks very much. Great having on the program as always.
I want to show you some incredible pictures out of Taiwan. Part of this building was ripped from the ground by a powerful earthquake and right now,
dozens of people are believed to be inside.
[15:10:04] You see it, it`s tilted on its side. People inside still need rescuing we understand. And here`s the issue to the quake struck in the
middle of the night on Tuesday, killing at least seven people.
So many people were in bed sleeping. There have been numerous aftershocks, some of which have been strong. Those aftershocks are making for another
terrifying night for people there.
Our Alexandra Field has been following this for us and she joins me now live. I see you right in front of that titled building. I imagine rescue
operations currently underway.
ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Exactly, Hala. And we continue to feel the aftershocks even as we stand out here. We`ll get the
alerts on our phone. We`ll feel them underneath our feet and that, of course, makes this all the more precarious in situations.
That is an apartment building and a hotel. It is a place where authorities said more than 40 people were unaccounted for. That`s why they focus so
much the search and rescue operations right here.
At this point, they believe that at least six of those people are with great likelihood inside that building and that`s why they continue to work
through, get another night and work through these continued aftershocks trying to reach the people who still be trapped inside.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FIELD (voice-over): In a real view from above shows a building perilously tilting, shaken off its foundation by the quake. Rescue workers across the
city of (inaudible) are searching for dozens of people still missing. Many possibly trapped in the rubble.
(on camera): This apartment building, which is also a hotel is just one of several across the city that has either shifted off its foundation or
collapsed entirely. You can see those enormous beams are actually holding it in place.
FIELD: Taiwan`s president is warning the clock is ticking.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We are racing against time and now it`s still the crucial time. We hope that we can quickly put the steel
frame up and prop up the whole building so that our rescuers can go inside the site and rescue people who are now trapped inside.
FIELD: Another area where people are trapped the Marshall Hotel which partially collapsed. Among the hundreds injured a group of Japanese
tourists. This man still in shock is an employee at the hotel. His coworker didn`t survive.
Rescues took place in the dark of night. Children were carried out of the windows of this damaged building just some of more than 200 rescues across
the city. During the chaos, one shop owner was no telling helping people escape.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): When the quake happened, we took the children and ran. My shop was still open at that time. My wife told
me the opposite building has collapsed so we quickly took the flashlights and went over to save the people.
FIELD: In this motorcycle shop, you can see the moment the earth began to shake and the horror on the shop (inaudible). The family told CNN they are
used to earthquakes, but this one was particularly frightening.
Looking inside this woman`s apartment shows the damage. You can see where the dinnerware crashed onto the floor. Many personal belongings smashed
into pieces. Watch this man who was filming a sales pitch with a tremor struck then ran for cover.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FIELD: And Hala, these searches have been going methodically through building. They tell us they went from the top floor down to the third
floor clearing those apartments to make sure that no one was left inside.
They totally haven`t found anyone in there, but they are focused heavily on the first and the second floors of the building. Those are the buildings
that sustained the most damage when that building just tipped right over.
We spoke to a woman who said that she was at the fifth floor apartment and fell almost essentially to the ground. She was able to actually crawl out
the window of her fifth floor apartment.
That will give you some idea of just how far she was thrown. Just sort of terrifying experience it was, and Hala, the search teams are not giving up.
They are working through the night here.
We can see them out here. They got dogs trying to locate people. They are also out here, of course, in hard hats, with light on their helmets and
mask. That`s because of the threats these aftershocks pose. (Inaudible) this evening of a death toll climbing through seven up to eight after
authorities out here tell us that they have recovered a body of a woman inside that building -- Hala.
GORANI: All right. Alexandra Field, thanks very much. She is in Taiwan with the very latest on the aftermath of that earthquake, and as Alexander
was mentioning, aftershocks as well.
When a building looks like that and there`s an aftershock, you really do not want to be anywhere near it. So, we are going to keep our eye on that
story and make sure we keep you updated.
Let`s turn our attention to Poland now. It`s facing some international backlash today over a new law that could send people to jail for making
certain comments about the Holocaust. The president, Andrzej Duda, signed a bill that makes it illegal to accuse Poland of being complicit in Nazi
crimes.
The law also bans terms like, quote, "Polish death camps" used to reference Nazi-run concentration camps that were on Polish soil. Poland says the law
protects historical truth. Critics say it distorts it.
[15:15:07] Listen to the chairman of the European Jewish Association explaining why his group is going to court to fight the new law.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RABBI MENACHEM MARGOLIN, CHAIRMAN EUROPEAN JEWISH ASSOCIATION: Because we see a rise of nationalism and we know very well that nationalism led to the
Holocaust. We see a rise of nationalism in Poland. The rise of (inaudible) in Poland and now to see how Poland even ready to touch
Holocaust and try to wash away history, this is something that the entire world has to fight against.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Well, we are joined now by former Polish foreign minister, Radoslaw Sikorski. He signed an open letter in "The Guardian" that says
the new law, quote, "denies the reality of the Holocaust."
The former minister is now a senior fellow at Harvard University. Thanks for being with us, sir. So, this letter that you signed with a group of
other people saying that this new law denies the reality of the Holocaust. What reality is it denying?
Well, I`m not sure about the translation. The proposed law is a very rough and the wrong solution to a problem that does exist. When I was foreign
minister, we intervened a thousand times against a phrase that the Polish people find offensive.
GORANI: Which is?
RADOSLAW SIKORSKI, FORMER POLISH FOREIGN MINISTER: Extermination camps in occupied Poland where the creation Nazi Germany, and you know, even the
president of the United States, Barack Obama, is one of the (inaudible) of trying to rescue the Jews of Poland and uses that phrase during his
citation.
There`s a widespread feeling that we need to clarify, but we have a government a little bit like yours that likes to play rough and they found
a solution that just doesn`t do that job that it`s meant to do.
GORANI: So, what you are saying is the term that so offends Poles and has since the end of World War II is Polish death camps that they are not
Polish. They were on Polish soil, but they were Nazi-German run camps. That`s what this law -- but that is what the people who support this law
would say this now outlaws the use of terms like that.
SIKORSKI: Well, except that it`s not in the law. I mean, you know, it`s like calling one town a Cuban base. I mean, it`s physically (inaudible),
but you know, somebody else controls it.
So, we want people to know that it was -- because Poland was first to fight Hitler, but unfortunately, it was too weak to resist, and 6 million Polish
citizens died, half of them Jewish. Horrible things happened. Some people were heroics. Some people were criminal.
But the holocaust as a state operation was the work of Nazi-Germany and we don`t want anybody to forget that.
GORANI: What is your concern now that this law has been signed by the president? That it does what exactly. What is your primary concern?
SIKORSKI: Well, look, that they`ve used an RPG, where a sniper rifle would do, and they didn`t listen, very amateurish, very aggressive. And it`s the
opposite objective --
GORANI: But what do you mean they used an RPG where a sniper rifle would do? So, you are OK with the intent, with the intention behind it, just you
think it`s too aggressive?
SIKORSKI: If the law simply said it is forbidden to use the phrase Polish concentration camps, I don`t think many would object to that including
Israeli and Jewish friends who helped us to persuade UNESCO to change the name of (inaudible) to Nazi German concentration camp and examination camp.
GORANI: But your issue is that it`s too vague. That it --
SIKORSKI: (Inaudible) misinterpretation and it`s clearly offended and along with many people and Poland should be in the business of honoring the
victims of Second World War, which we were one instead of making them afraid of discussing the horrible past.
GORANI: Do you think it`s the government just trying to score some political points then? I`m getting the sense that`s part of your issue
with it.
SIKORSKI: Well, you know, I mean, the position -- I don`t like this nationalistic government and this kind of things that they do here.
GORANI: Radoslaw Sikorski, thanks so much for joining us. Appreciate it.
Still to come tonight, we`ll take a look at U.S. markets and see how they are doing after those wild couple of days. Hold onto your hats for that
one. We`ll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:20:02]
GORANI: Welcome back. The House minority leader, Nancy Pelosi, has been giving a marathon speech in Washington, D.C. She`s been going apparently I
understand since 10 a.m. So, she is using her right as a minority leader to speak basically for as long as she wants, and she`s been now doing it
there for five hours and 20 minutes, give or take.
She wants to pressure the Republican Party to legalize the status of young immigrant DREAMers as they are called. Let`s listen for a moment to
Pelosi.
REPRESENTATIVE NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), MINORITY LEADER: -- into English for those who didn`t speak Spanish and he cleaned up the church and before and
after Sunday service. Because of his outstanding record in high school, Luis was admitted to Georgetown University. He is currently a sophomore.
He is majoring in American Studies minor in governance.
And Luis continues to use his spare time really to give back to the community. He is a member the (inaudible) Committee for Diversity and co-
chair of the (inaudible), a program that bring students from underrepresented communities to visit Georgetown.
And Luis is a leader of Strive for College, a program that mentors students at local inner-city high schools. (Inaudible) high school teacher, which
is not surprising given the strong commitment he`s already shown to helping young people.
Luis wrote in his letter, "DACA gave me the confidence and the security I had not had before (inaudible) and in the shadows. (Inaudible) DACA, I
wasn`t able to do things that otherwise wouldn`t be able to do like traveling through an airport or working on a campus.
I`ve always felt that I`m an American but having DACA allowed me to stop living in constant fear and uncertainty. Now those fears have come back
again.
GORANI: Nancy Pelosi there on the floor of the House. As a minority leader in the United States, she`s allowed to speak for as long as she
wants, and she is very much exercising that right.
She`s been speaking for almost five and a half hours on DREAMers, those immigrants, who were brought to the U.S. as children by their undocumented
parents.
All right. What`s going on, on Wall Street, you asked, stocks were down 100 points then up 100 points, and that was all on the first half hour of
trading. It was another day of swings although not as wild as we`ve been seeing. Here`s where we are now in our final 36 minutes of trading, up
189.
CNN`s Richard Quest has been following all of these point swings. So, what is going on and it seems like we are going to end on a positive note again?
RICHARD QUEST, CNN ANCHOR, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": Well, it`s looking that way provided they don`t touch any buttons and (inaudible) turtle. The
reality is the note I took when I was down at the exchange, two things.
Firstly, volatility by the Vix Index has dropped by 30 percent. Secondly, volume has started to come back to more normal levels say, 400 million to
500 million shares, not the 1.4 billion we saw on Monday.
And finally, you will see gold is going back down again. They tell me that whether this is over, a correction, (inaudible) has stopped at 5 percent.
[15:25:12] I don`t really know, nobody really knows, and we can`t know -- until we are looking in the rear view, but the violence of the moves seems
to have abated for the time being.
GORANI: Right. And what does that tell us then. It was just a very quick blip it looks like if this trend now continues.
QUEST: It tells us two things --
GORANI: What was -- because the thing is it was wild and it was a very painful couple of sessions.
QUEST: Right. It goes off the back of that warning about inflation, wage inflation, and it`s to be expected that the computers will respond like
this when interest rates are going up.
You then you have this odd thing with the Vix futures index which took a turn for the worst. I think you`re absolutely right, Hala. I think that
we have to understand what caused this, but it does seem to have at least settled down for the time being.
GORANI: All right. Richard, we`ll see you at the top of the hour on "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS." See you then.
The Winter Olympics are just days away in South Korea and North Korea is sending athletes and performers along with the surprise VIP guest. CNN`s
Ivan Watson tells us who it is.
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Just two days before the opening ceremony of the Winter games here in Pyongcheng, the North
Koreans announced to the South Korean government that their high-level delegation to be attending the games would include the sister of the North
Korean leader, Kim Jong-un. Her name is Kim Yo-Jung.
One of her titles is first vice director of the Central Committee of the Workers Party. She is also a member of the ruling Politburo and if she
does in fact come, she would be the first member of the ruling Kim dynasty to have traveled south of the demilitarized zone here into South Korea.
So, that is significant, the South Korean government has said that this high-level delegation, it shows the willingness of the North Korean
government to try to reduce tensions here on the Korean Peninsula.
Worth noting, however, that in January of 2017, the U.S. Treasury Department impose sanctions on this sibling by singling her out and saying
that if they could get a hold of any of her assets that they would be frozen for alleged human rights abuses.
Meanwhile, the U.S. delegation, the leader of it, the U.S. Vice President Mike pence is approaching South Korea and that a stop in Japan alongside
the Japanese Prime Minister, he had more very tough words for the North Korean regime.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: To that end, I am announcing today that the United States of America will soon unveil the
toughest and most aggressive round of economic sanctions on North Korea ever. And we will continue to isolate North Korea until it abandons its
nuclear and ballistic missile program once and for all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATSON: Vice President Pence was backed up by Shinzo Abe, the Japanese Prime Minister, who said it would be meaningless to engage in dialogue with
the North Korean government until they begin dis-arming their nuclear weapons.
It will be interesting to see how the South Korean president handles this kind of new pressure coming from his Japanese and American allies. It will
also be important to see how Pence deals potentially with being in the same stadium during the opening ceremony with the North Korean delegation.
Worth noting also that Pence has not ruled out the possibility of talking to the North Koreans when he does come to Pyongcheng. He says the U.S.
side has not formally requested a meeting here. Ivan Watson, CNN, Pyongcheng, South Korea.
GORANI: Still to come, explicit and unprecedented access, CNN goes inside Northern Syria with U.S. special forces. We are live ahead.
Soldiers marching and tanks rolling down Pennsylvania Avenue, Trump`s dream of a grand military parade are met with the fair dose of skepticism. We`ll
get the opinion from both sides after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:30:00] HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well, it`s been done before, obviously, but It`s definitely not something you see every day or
even every year on the streets of Washington D.C.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: This was the last military parade in America. It was back in 1991. After the U.S. declared victory in the Gulf War. I should say Gulf
War I, obviously there was Gulf War II. There hasn`t been a similar parade since, but President Donald Trump has now asked for one and the Pentagon is
preparing some options. The administration says it`s a way to show pride and respect for the U.S. armed forces. Critics though say you could show
respect in many other ways that won`t cost millions of dollars and won`t be a display for Donald Trump to project a certain image of his presidency.
Let`s about this with CNN contributor Jack Kingston. He`s a former Republican congressman. We`re also joined by Larry Sabato director of the
Center for Politics at the University of Virginia.
Larry, what is your take on this? Donald Trump`s request for the Pentagon to organize a big military parade at some point this year?
LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER FOR POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: I think it`s silly and embarrassing and it`s being widely panned over here
even maybe, especially by the military. The military has been -- the military leaders who have spoken out, at least the ones who are retired and
some who are active who have been able to get their message across, had made it clear that this is a waste of their time and a waste of good money.
I`ve seen estimates already that it`s going to cost more than $20 million. And if President Trump actually wants to make bigger and better than
Bastille Day, it`s probably going to be 50 million.
GORANI: Jack Kingston, your thoughts?
JACK KINGSTON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well obviously, I agree with my friend Larry says. I don`t know about 90 percent of everything he says. But on
this one -- let me say this, an opportunity --
GORANI: But you disagree with him on?
KINGSTON: I disagree with him on this. International messaging, for example. How many times have we seen film clips of North Korea or Russian
military marching? Maybe it`s time that they see our military on display in such a manner.
Secondly, education. I come from a part of the country where many people are in the military and Congress. I had the honor of representing five
major military installations. Our friends, our neighbors go to Iraq and Afghanistan and sometimes we sadly go to their funerals. However, there`s
a big gap between private citizens in America and the professional soldier out there. I think this would give them an opportunity to see the military
and to talk about it.
And then thirdly, I think the president is right. Lower pride, the old- fashioned patriotism. You can`t beat it. And so to me, the cost which Larry is right, it would be millions of dollars. But the benefits of
people thinking about their military and appreciate that more and just showing some muscle, I think it could pay for itself.
GORANI: Larry, does Jack have a point here? North Korea does it, Russia does it. Why not show American military on display on Pennsylvania Avenue
in Washington D.C.?
[15:35:52] SABATO: Well, Jack always has a good point. He was elected to the House of Representatives repeatedly. So I give him full credit for
that. But Jack knows very well that the vast majority of Americans have a deep wellspring of respect and admiration for our armed forces. We don`t
need a parade in Washington to reinforce that.
And let`s be perfectly honest here, especially because this originated while President Trump was watching the troops parade in France. This is
about his glorification. Every bit as much is about the troop`s glorification. Jack knows, while Trump has positive attributes, he also
has a gigantic ego, and this is part of the stroking of it.
GORANI: Jack, does Larry has a point here? No other president in the United States felt the need or the desire for a grandiose military parade
costing millions of dollars in Washington. It`s not on the American culture to do that. If you compare it to Bastille Day, Jack, Bastille Day
is rooted deeply in French history. It started in 1880. It celebrates the storming of Bastille. The French Resolution is a certain set of
enlightenment ideals. This would be entirely different and out of place, wouldn`t it?
KINGSTON: Well, you know, it`s interesting that you bring that up, because the origination of military parades is quite European, it goes back to the
16th century. It`s an Old Dutch term called drilling, which was started by Maurice of Orange. And then Baron Von Steuben at Fort Valley taught our
soldiers the musket drills which they showed the rest of the continental soldiers. And so there is a great origin in this and the idea behind it
was military precision equals more than the individual parts when soldiers act together and marching, left, right, left, right, advance.
GORANI: But that`s -- precisely, Jack, the kind of thing that frighten some people. Why are we modeling ourselves after nations? Because to your
point, Jack, North Korea does it, why don`t we do it? The critics have this request. That would be the exact reason not to do it.
KINGSTON: Let me say the reality of being a soldier. Being a soldier is to go on dark corners of the world to fight very, very evil people and do
violent things that most Americans, most people can`t do and won`t do themselves. And so I think it is - it is important for us to know. Look,
preserving freedom is a very violent and unpleasant task which has to be done. And it gives us this opportunity as we were having now to talk about
it.
GORANI: Larry, obviously, I know based on what you said before that you won`t agree with this. Those who support it will say France does it,
France isn`t functioning democracy. It`s not just totalitarian regime who display their military hardware to glorify their leaders.
SABATO: Yes. But of course, we all think about North Korea and the old Soviet Union. I found some wonderful examples on YouTube last night that I
posted on Twitter. Look, let me put it to you this way. There isn`t a leader of any country around the globe including the dear leader in North
Korea, who doesn`t know the tremendous capacity of the American military. That doesn`t know that we have more weapons than all of the other nations
in the world put together. We don`t need to display them. We have displayed them in ways that matter much more than afraid.
GORANI: Jack, lastly to you. I want to ask you this because I think a broad critics of the United States will say this militaristic approach to
solving problems, to trying to negotiate sort of the agreements, the threat of military intervention, that there was a time when America was much more
of a soft power, sort of diplomatic country. That now we`re going even further with a parade like this in the direction of saying, America is
defined by its military above all else. This is criticism you hear from abroad.
KINGSTON: I think we`ll be arguing what`s the best form of diplomacy for many years to come. But we do know this that ISIS is on the run under this
president because he let the military lead the fighting and make the decisions in the field rather than dictate them out of Washington D.C. We
also know that North Korea is starting to move in a better direction after years of thumbing their nose at us. So I can`t say for sure which is the
best round of diplomacy.
But I do think it`s important for Americans to know what an F-22 does and what the difference in that as in a C-130 is and why you might need certain
kind of rifles and RFPs for certain types of battle. I don`t think it`s a bad thing for Americans to be a little bit closer to the process of war,
which in turn is preserving the peace.
GORANI: All right. We have to leave it there. Jack Kingston, Larry Sabato, thanks to both of you for discussing this with us on CNN this
evening. Thank you.
[15:40:56.1] Now, a never before seen story. CNN has gained unprecedented access to U.S. special operations forces on patrol inside northern Syria,
speaking of the U.S. military. Nick Paton Walsh and his team were embedded with troops in the region, and Nick joins me now live from inside Syria.
Tell us about your reporting, Nick.
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Hala, we`ve had very rare access to U.S. special operations forces here in
Northern Syria. And we always knew really that the post-ISIS scramble for territory here, once the so-called caliphate collapsed would be a bit of a
scramble, but of a mess to some degree. But these U.S. troops have found themselves in an extraordinary situation really where the Syrian Kurds who
they backed great success to defeat ISIS have in fact found themselves now under attack from America`s NATO ally, Turkey, it was always derogatory
towards that Kurdish force. And we`ve just been to a front line where Syrian rebel forces backed by Turkey often find themselves firing upon the
Syrian Kurds who were backed by the United States. And an extraordinary standoff that just shows you the kind of geopolitical forces at play here
in carving up post-ISIS Syria. Here`s our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WALSH: They`ve been trying to stay out of the dust and chaos here for years, but it hasn`t worked. And now American special give us the first
access to their daily risky patrols in Syria. They`re here despite an unprecedented threat from a supposed friend, Turkey, whose forces are just
over the hill. A NATO ally whose president has demanded only hours earlier that the U.S. withdraw immediately.
These Syrian Kurdish fighters are the reason why. America fought with them to defeat ISIS across northern Syria, but Turkey thinks they are terrorists
linked to Turkish Kurd fighters. So here they are barrel to barrel.
This is a strange new world in Syria in the end game of the fight against ISIS. NATO ally facing NATO ally here, American troops very much on the
front line after years, you might say, of trying to stay out of this messy civil war. A new chapter of which is now beginning.
This is the scramble for the land ISIS built and lost. In fact, in the last hour, the rebels from over there have fired on a nearby checkpoint as
if they heard the Turkish demand the U.S. leave. But still, the Americans send their highest ranking officer yet. The message, we`re not going
anywhere. You take fire from this direction three, four times a week we`re being told.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Uh-huh.
WALSH: And that`s from forces supported by your NATO ally, Turkey.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right.
WALSH: Which is, by definition, bizarre, right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Absolutely. You said that. That`s exactly right. It is bizarre. I would say that the people that fought to take
Raqqa back from ISIS, no matter what nationality they were, no matter what their beliefs, were heroes.
WALSH: Turkey says some of them are terrorists.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, OK.
WALSH: And that`s the complexity of where we are right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is. That`s exactly right.
WALSH: What`s your biggest worry about what`s going on here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Miscalculation. Could be anybody`s.
WALSH: And if these two sides end up in open conflict, what do you about that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We de-escalate.
WALSH: But don`t pretend this buffer role for America goes anywhere good fast. Turkish and Kurd hate each other perhaps more than they did ISIS.
And they won`t fight ISIS if they`re fighting each other.
The coalition`s goal, this commander says was to finish ISIS in the area but Turkey, with the actions and statements giving life to ISIS again. And
this is just the beginning. We drive past a huge convoy in support of Kurdish fighters in nearby Kurdish enclave to the west called Afrin, that
Turkey has invaded despite American pleas they don`t. In a nearby town of Manbij, America`s special forces commander strolls around a market
liberated from ISIS 18 months ago where life is just about becoming life again, where hotels are trying to open. But where businesses hamstrung by
the fear Turkey will make good on its threat to send its NATO-equipped army to invade here too. They thought they were getting over the war here but
it looms again another possible ugly chapter. An ally against erstwhile ally is nothing new to brutalize Syria.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[15:45:41] WALSH: Now, Hala, you could argue really that a NATO ally like Turkey could perhaps take some comfort that U.S. troops were here in such
presence perhaps focusing the Syrian Kurds on the fight against ISIS and preventing them through that alliance from perhaps turning the guns towards
Turkey which is always being sort of an existential foe. Turkish Kurds and the Syrian Kurds, they`re allies considered terrorists by Turkey and those
Kurds themselves fighting for their own sort of separate land.
But it isn`t where we are right now. President Erdogan literally 24 hours ago demanding that the U.S. leave here. That`s clearly not happening.
Many say that President Erdogan is talking to a Turkish electorate there with elections ahead, but still, that`s just raising the temperature here.
And we are entering kind of a new potentially complex chapter here for U.S. involvement. I`ve said on that report. For years the Obama administration
and its successor were criticized for not militarily perhaps getting more involved in this Syrian civilian war. They`re desperate to stay out to
that kind of quagmire. But it`s in this final moment perhaps where maybe they see a debt of gratitude towards the Syrian Kurds that they`re sticking
around, trying perhaps to de-escalate the situation. But still, that presence and that alliance does risk their protracted presence here as this
struggle does appear to be continuing and even escalating. Hala.
GORANI: Nick Paton Walsh with that exclusive reporting from inside Syria. Thanks very much. A lot more to come this evening.
Another business titan toppled by sexual harassment allegations. This time it`s this man, casino king Steve Wynn. More on that coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Casino mogul Steve Wynn has resigned as chairman and chief executive of the company he founded, Wynn Resorts. It comes after a raft
of sexual harassment allegations against him. Wynn has denied the allegations but the reports basically shook investor confidence. At one
point, the company`s stock was down more than 18 percent.
Hadas Gold joins us from Washington with more. And irrationally when this story first broke, Hadas, it was his connection to the Republican national
committee, to Donald Trump that interested people. Why, though, is he resigning from his own company? Who forced him out at this stage?
HADAS GOLD, CNN EUROPEAN POLITICS, MEDIA AND GLOBAL BUSINESS REPORTER: Well, he tendered the resignation, actually. The board said they`re
reluctantly accepting this resignation. But it became clear, as you said, with the stock prices just falling, that it was untenable for them to keep
him on with all these allegations. And in fact, more allegations have been surfacing this week from a local newspaper in Las Vegas about some sort of
tamped down allegations in an early 1990s court case. So clearly they just thought it was untenable anymore to have Steve Wynn on. The president Matt
Maddox is now taking over CEO.
And if you take a look at the stock price now, it seemed to recover just a little bit. It`s clear that investors feel a little bit better with Matt
Maddox in charge. But there`s still a lot of questions left for the company including how the board handled this because they were clearly
reluctantly accepting Steve Wynn`s resignation. And there are now investigations going on in at least three different states of the United
States about how the company handled these allegations.
GORANI: All right. Hadas Gold, thanks very much. We`ll keep our eye on that story.
[15:50:57] A lot more to come including this hour from the city of light to the city of snow. Nice pictures. An unusually heavy snowfall creates
magic, but also a bit of mayhem in Paris. We`ll have some of your images that you sent me after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Well, Paris in the spring, yes, sure, but check out the picture behind me. Wintertime can be spectacular as well, especially this year.
Right now the city of light looks like a winter wonderland. For others, though, it`s an icy nightmare. Melissa Bell has that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: One of Paris` most famous views obscured by heavy snow. From high above it`s an inconvenience. No rides to the top
of the Eiffel Tower today for tourists. Down on the ground, it`s causing chaos for commuters. More than 15 centimeters of snow has fallen in the
Paris area, the most there in decades. And that has caught the residents off guard. Hundreds of people were stranded in their cars overnight when
roads became too dangerous to drive. Emergency shelters were quickly set up for others who were stranded. Police are urging people to keep off the
roads to avoid further traffic problems.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I tried to get my car out, but there was too much snow. And since we`re not very well equipped for snow
on the road, it was impossible for me to get my vehicle out of my garage.
BELL: Public transportation also slowed to a crawl. Regional train services and metro lines were disrupted, inner-city bus routes were stopped
and some flights were canceled. Some blame city officials for the delays.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It`s winter, so it`s normal that it`s snowing. It`s expected. However, I feel the authorities did not
prepare enough. It`s not normal that buses are unable to run. There are a number of people who are having trouble getting to work, and that`s the
worst.
BELL: But some residents are taking the bad weather in stride. Breaking out their skis to get around the city or just embracing the snow as yet
another one of the city`s attractions.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): It`s a pleasure. It`s a chance we have to ski in the most beautiful city in the world. There`s nothing more
beautiful.
BELL: Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: You know, with snow, it`s beautiful at first. It snowed here London. I was in Atlanta, it snowed in Atlanta. I have a bunch of family
members including a mother, a sister, all taking beautiful pictures. You`ll see that in a moment. Because I asked you on Twitter to send me
your best pics of the snow. And we got this from (INAUDIBLE). It was taken on one of the bridges across the River Seine and you can see the back
of Notre Dame Cathedral covered in snow. And then Alexandra, thanks very much, a family member pitching in. It`s of the Tuileries Garden outside
the Louvre. If you`ve been to Paris, you`ve probably been there but probably haven`t seen it look like this.
Check us out on Twitter, @halagorani, for more. And on Facebook, facebook.com/halagoranicnn.
We want to end with this a case of bird flu in the U.K. It`s now have killed more than 20 of the Queen`s owned swans. The monarch who owns all
unmarked swans in England and Wales is said to be receiving regular updates on the situation. Phil Black went to Windsor to find out more.
[15:55:02] PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The people who looked after the swans here in Windsor quickly realized that something wasn`t right. There
was a cluster of deaths. Many other birds were looking tired and behaving strangely. Tests soon proved that this was an outbreak of avian influenza
or bird flu. It`s moved through the local population with incredible speed. It`s highly contagious among the swans and it can kill within 48
hours. Dozens of them have since died. Under centuries-old British law, all swans on open water still belong to the monarchy. It goes back to when
they were a much-loved course at every royal feast. Now, the Queens official swan market is responsible for counting them and looking after
them. David Barber says he`s been doing this for decades and he`s never seen anything like this.
DAVID BARBER, QUEEN`S SWAN MARKER: I`m probably the flock hero of Windsor, a bird or duck or has flown in and transmitted the disease to the swans
here. The necks on the swans you get like a kink in them. And the swan`s eyes go very watery, and they sit on the bank and don`t move and they don`t
want food when you feed them.
It`s very upsetting. The swans here let`s say in Windsor are very special. It`s Windsor. It`s the castle. It`s royalty. And the swans here are part
of the local scene here. And for them to start dying, the public are really wanting to know what`s going on.
BLACK: British health officials say there`s no risk to humans from this virus, but the impact on the swans will be significant. Out of a local
population of around 200 birds, it`s feared as many as a third could be lost in the coming days. Phil Black, CNN, Windsor, England.
GORANI: All right. A quick look at the Big Board for you. Because after those wild sessions the Dow Jones lost a lot, Friday and Monday have
bounced back about 500 yesterday. And it`s been going -- it`s been in positive territory throughout. It started out, as you can see on the graph
there, that little spot of red, down a hundred, but overall, it`s recovered and it looks like it`s going to end in positive territory.
I`m Hala Gorani. I`ll see you same time, same place tomorrow with a lot more in what`s happening on the Dow Jones and all your business news. Do
stay with CNN. Richard Quest is up next with "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
