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Hala Gorani Tonight
Trump Stokes Fears About Immigration Crisis Ahead of Midterm Elections; U.S. Unemployment Remains at a 49-Year Low; Iran to Face A New Round of United States Sanctions on Monday; Khashoggi's Fiancee Demands Justice; U.K. Police Investigate Allegations Against the Labour Party Over Anti-Semitism; Compromise Versus Party Politics; Trump Firmly Targets Base With Four Days To Go; Oprah And Obama Add Star Power To Democrats Rallies; Nigerian Army Posts Trump Video To Justify Crackdown; Paralyzed man Walks Again After Spinal Implant; "Bhangra" The Happiest Punjabi Folk Dance. Aired 1-2p ET
Aired November 02, 2018 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[13:00:00] HALA GORANI, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone, live from CNN London, I'm Hala Gorani. Tonight, Donald Trump takes credit for strong jobs
numbers ahead of Tuesday's crucial midterms. And continues to stoke fear with messages that the country is about to be invaded by migrants.
Also, we are live this hour inside of Iran ahead of a second round of U.S. sanctions about to hit the country. And later in the program, some good
news. A new groundbreaking implant is helping paralyzed patients walk again. I speak to one of the doctors behind an amazing medical
breakthrough.
America's "House of Cards" could be just days away from a major reshuffle. The man at the center of it all is keeping his poker face as fiercely
defiant as ever from claiming troops are allowed to fire on migrants at America's southern border, questioning the historic concept of birthrights
to lamenting the fact last week's terror attacks slowed down his, quote, momentum. Donald Trump is doubling down to make sure that as far as the
midterms go, Republicans maintain control of Congress. Let's get more. Sarah Westwood at the White House, Steven Collinson In Washington. Let's
talk about the strategy going forward because it was really good for the President and the Republican candidates running the midterm elections that
the jobs numbers came out as high as they did today.
SARAH WESTWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: That's right. The President has now on his plate the fact the unemployment rate at 3.7 percent is staying
at that 49-year low it hit last month. Wages grew and those are strong economic indicators that Trump and Republicans could use on the campaign
trail. As you mentioned, the President has been focused on immigration, focused more on the caravan of central American migrants heading for the
southern border and that concept of taking away birthright citizenship and, therefore, somehow saving the U.S. money. That's made some Republicans
running in the tight races especially in the suburban House districts where the GOP has struggled this cycle, that's made those candidates nervous
heading into election day with the President focused on such a contentious issue while there are, in their eyes, so many better options like the
economic numbers rather than something as divisive as immigration.
GORANI: Sure, the jobs numbers are good. Stocks have been down but overall there hasn't been any kind of panic on Wall Street. The President
could be focusing on the economic accomplishments of his administration or what he's taking credit for instead of something like this. Listen to what
he said yesterday about migrants at the border.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We will consider that the maximum we can consider that because they're throwing rocks vicious will I ay and
violently. We're not going to put up with that. Our military fights back. We're going to consider it. Consider it a rifle. When they throw rocks
like they did at the Mexico military and police, consider it a rifle.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Is the commander in chief telling the U.S. military that they can shoot protesters or migrants throwing rocks at them?
WESTWOOD: That's what he seems to be saying publicly. Most of the troops going down to the border, Trump has said almost perhaps as many as 15,000,
most of those troops support troops. They're not frontline. This is academic added to the fact this convoy is still about 1,000 miles from the
border.
GORANI: Stephen, if a soldier shoots an unarmed migrant at the border after what Donald Trump said he did, that, technically speaking, that
order, that basically that command, that message was sent, right?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: The message was sent but the likelihood of it actually happening appears to be low. A political
argument the President is making here. He's building up this impression the United States is under siege, is facing an invasion because he has made
a choice. He's decided those good economic numbers you were talking about are not sufficient to get Republican voters to the polls and the numbers he
needs to save the House.
[13:05:00] He has made a decision perhaps the House, those moderate Republicans in suburban districts, has gone already. His priority now is
to whip up conservative turnout with a campaign based on racial and cultural grievance to try and replicate the turnout in Trump country in
2016 that sent him to the White House and could topple some Democratic senators in the Senate election even though his rhetoric could hurt House
candidates.
GORANI: And, Sarah, he has still many rallies ahead of him until Tuesday, right? He's really going all out in certain districts, in certain states.
WESTWOOD: As Stephen mentioned, his focus appears to be on those states he won in 2016 where Democrat incumbents are on the ballot at stakes like
Montana states like Missouri, the President will be hitting before election day. He'll have his final rally of the midterm season in Missouri where
Republicans are hoping to pick off Claire McCaskill. The President is focused on the statewide races, the governor's race in Georgia, for
example, will take him down south. Yesterday he quipped there are so many House races it's hard to be effective. And that's accurate to a certain
extent. The truth is that Republicans are struggling in a lot of places where the President's presence wouldn't be helpful like House seats around
Los Angeles, moderate seats, swing districts where the President visiting could actually do more harm than good. The President is playing to his
strengths and his base here.
GORANI: Stephen, for all of us who cover U.S. foreign policy, I don't think we ever thought the day would come that the President of the United
States would tweet what looks like a movie poster of himself announcing sanctions are coming against Iran. There you have it, sanctions are coming
November 5th. This is just very unusual.
COLLINSON: Right. I think it shows the way in which the President and his administration have personalized and politicized foreign policy, and I
think you could also argue given the fact these sanctions will cause significant deprivation in parts of Iran, the fact that they're going to
further alienate America from its European allies and other signatories of the nuclear deal, this is not just in poor taste but counterproductive.
Four days before the midterm election, the President wants to look tough. He wants to say to his supporters that he's followed through on his hard
line promises like getting rid of the Iranian nuclear deal. And I think, frankly, this is a taste of what we're going to have to come after the
midterm elections when a number of the President's restraining influences in the cabinet and in the national security structure may well start to
leave or be ejected from the administration. This, I think, is just the start.
GORANI: Stephen Collinson and Sarah Westwood, thanks very much. These jobs numbers that are good for the Trump administration, talking up the
latest numbers. The U.S. economy added 250,000 jobs in October. Wages rose and the jobless rate stayed at 3.7 percent. Figures the President
described as incredible before urging Americans to vote Republican on Tuesday. So was this the perfect jobs report for President Trump and
Republicans at the perfect time. Paula Newton joins me now from New York with more. These are pretty stellar figures, right?
PAULA NEWTON, CNN MONEY CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. And you have to say that with a period at the end, right? There's no caveat. It's a quarter
of a million jobs throughout so many different sectors and also important, Hala, the wage growth f. You're sitting at home in the United States, not
only did you get into that job market and you were finding a job, but you were finding a job at a decent salary. That is a huge boost to consumer
confidence. Many are asking what does that have to do with Donald Trump? The numbers are great. He should be able to just run on that economy, but
he isn't. There are a lot of distractions. I'll let the conversation you just had stay where it is. You've had that. But let's move on to what his
administration is still doing just in the last hour to take away from those stellar economic numbers. It doesn't look like there is any kind of a
trade deal with China. His chief economic adviser was on TV saying there's no trade deal they know of. Of course, this is likely negotiating tactics,
but doesn't do much for the American economy that is fretting about that, in fact, to quote the movie, this is as good as it gets. And that's what
Wall Street is worried about. Whether or not Americans actually vote on these numbers remain to be seen.
[13:10:00] Hala, I don't have to remind you as many times as people go into the voting booth and you think they'll vote on that good economic feeling
and vote in fact, in their economic best interests, again, sometimes they don't. And that's why I think in terms of actually looking to these
numbers and the economic credentials of the Trump administration where you have to say, no, there is no footnote here. These are stellar numbers.
The one thing I will say is that going forward Americans will be reminded early and often about what this is costing. It's a ballooning deficit,
massive debt, and that also will be an issue. Whether or not it plays into the midterms, I don't think so at least not with the rhetoric being so loud
over things like immigration.
GORANI: Absolutely. There was stimulus injected in an economy that was doing very well, and it's leading to great numbers, no doubt about it. But
down the road what will happen is the big question. Paula Newton, will we see you on "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS."
NEWTON: In less than two hours. We will dive into the jobs numbers. Very interesting we'll be talking about intellectual property in China and where
the Trump administration now stands.
GORANI: Thank you very much. Now it's not just immigration and the economy occupying the President's mind in the leadup to the midterms,
another issue he wants to focus on, Iran, especially with the tweet he sent out. You saw the movie poster starring himself announcing a new round of
U.S. sanctions against Iran set to come into effect on Monday. These are the sanctions that had been lifted, by the way, a few years ago as part of
the nuclear agreement that Donald Trump withdrew from and is now leading to the re-imposition of sanctions, what impact will this all have? Because
the economy is struggling. This is the second set of sanctions since President Trump pulled the U.S. out of the deal in May. Fred Pleitgen is
live inside of Tehran. So that is the first question. The second round is coming. The economy is already struggling. What's the reaction inside the
country?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A lot of people think this next round of sanctions could be even worse than the last one.
The first round of sanctions, something difficult for the economy, but this new round is something today will target Iran's large hydro carbon sector
and that's something that will affect many, many people here in Iran and also, of course, quite frankly, the money Iran has. It is something where
a lot of the hard-liners here in Iran are saying they're going to fight back, that they're going to stay put, that they're going to carry on. A
lot of people we spoke to on the streets today say they're extremely concerned about their economic future. Here is what we learned. The usual
chants against America, more forceful than usual. During hardline Friday prayers in Tehran. A Revolutionary Guard general ripping into the U.S. "We
are encountering a real fight with America," he says, and they're organizing a battle against us. As the U.S. is set to hit Iran with new
crippling sanctions, defiance from religious conservatives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think these kinds of sanctions may be more powerful about the future. I think this is an opportunity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN: So far Iran's rulers not buckling under U.S. pressure. If it was the Trump administration's intention to try to weaken the Iranian
government, that certainly doesn't seem to be happening. In fact, it seems as though many Iranians are uniting behind the power structure of clergy,
military and their government in anger over Washington's policies. President Trump has already hit Iran with a flurry of sanctions.
GORANI: We are doing a big number on Iran.
PLEITGEN: Sending Iran's economy and its currency into a tailspin. Now the U.S. will target Iran's important oil and gas sector, potentially a
crushing blow to Iran's finances causing concerns in this moderate area. The economy has started getting worse and worse, this woman says, and every
day items are three to four times more expensive than before. And some even calling for talks with D.C. we need real negotiations that both
governments would be committed to, this woman says, and they shouldn't leave the table again. Defiance, anger, but also deep concern as Iran's
people once again brace for more economic hardship.
[13:15:00] GORANI: We've just lost the connection there with Fred in Tehran. A good idea how people inside Iran are reacting to the second
round of U.S. sanctions coming their way after Donald Trump pulled the country out of that nuclear deal saying this one could be more painful than
the last one and many experts in the Middle East questioning whether or not it will have the intended impact because in the end that is the most
important question, will it change Iran's behavior in terms of regional expansionism and the rest of it and there are many people who say, no, it
won't, so that it will be in the end counterproductive. We'll keep our eye on that, of course. Today marks one month since the killing of Saudi
journalist Jamal Khashoggi. His fiancee is calling on the international community to bring his killers to justice. She is criticizing the Trump
administration in an opinion piece for "The Washington Post" writing, quote, the United States should be leading the way. The country was
founded on the ideals of liberty and justice for all. She continued, but the Trump administration has taken a position that is devoid of moral
foundation. I am joined now from Istanbul with the very latest. So obviously Jamal Khashoggi's fiancee really wants to get to the bottom of
what happened to her fiance here. How closer is she and all of us to finding some answers here?
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Hala, it's been one month, as you mentioned, since Jamal Khashoggi walked into this building and never
walked back out and, still, a month on there's no body, no remains, and no grave. There are so many questions that remain unanswered. We know
there's an investigation ongoing right now, and we've heard the complaints from Turkish authorities, from Turkish officials saying they're not getting
much cooperation from the Saudis because the feeling is there are questions that need to be answered and the Saudis have the answers to those key
questions that turkey has put forward and that is where is the body of Jamal Khashoggi and who issued the orders for that hit squad that carried
out the killing and we hear that again also on a personal level coming from the fiancee of Jamal Khashoggi who is asking these questions and calling on
the international community to push for answers. Hala, I met her on October the 3rd, about 24 hours after Jamal Khashoggi went missing. She
was still sitting outside this building. She was still waiting, hoping that he was going to walk out of there. So, it took her some time to come
to grips with the fact she lost the man she loved.
Right now, like so many others, she feels the ball is in the court of the United States. That is the country that has the most leverage, that has
the strongest relationship with the Saudis, and they can push for answers. But as she mentions in that opinion piece in "The Washington Post", the
concern is there are some in Washington putting business interests, who are putting financial ties and deals with Saudi Arabia as the priority here
over pushing the Saudis and trying to get answers. And the real concern is and I've been talking to activists in the region, they say unless the
United States acts, unless it puts pressure on the Saudis and holds those behind the killing accountable, there will be many other Jamal Khashoggis.
GORANI: Thank you very much.
The Russian President, Vladimir Putin expressed unwavering solidarity. Days after Russia granted Cuba a $50 million loan to purchase Russian
weapons. A statement mentions U.S. sanctions against Cuba and comes just hours after the Kremlin said it expects a long and thorough meeting between
Mr. Putin and the U.S. President at this month's G 20 summit that is according to Russian state media.
A lot more to come on the program. Britain's top cop is looking into shocking allegations members of the Labour Party may have committed hate
crimes. And then later, crews in Indonesia have spent days sifting through human remains and debris from the crash of Lion Air flight. It is a grisly
task facing investigators as the families continue to mourn.
[13:20:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: British police opened an investigation into allegations of anti- Semitic hate crimes within the Labour Party. The move comes after a dossier detailing 45 alleged cases was given to the police by the London-
based radio station LBC. The police commissioner told the BBC the Labour Party itself is not under investigation, and Phil Black is here with more.
So, these are investigations opened by police against specific individuals?
PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's what it looks like. This dossier of evidence was given to the police commissioner about two months ago.
They've been looking at the documents, 45 cases, of allegations and some of those allegations, they say, should now be investigated formally as crimes.
They suspect crimes may have been committed. It's the Labour party, the alternative government. It's now in a place where the Jewish community
broadly sees it as a home for the base of anti-Semitism. It appears to be tolerating these sorts of ideas. It says the Labour Party has a robust
system for investigating rules by its members where someone feels they have been a victim of a crime they should report it. We asked headquarters if
they had recommended to police. Their response was no comment. There will be more questions going forward.
GORANI: But it's a radio station that gave this to the police so I'm confused. What information would they have?
BLACK: These appear to be internal Labour Party documents, we don't know where they got it from precisely. The commissioner of the metropolitan
police has a regular question and answer session on the radio station. One of the days that she was dropping by the presented it to her. I think the
radio station had already received some advice from a former police officer that pointed to these potentially being crimes. What this all means it now
just escalates what had been a really big crisis for this party.
GORANI: So, if it is internal Labour Party documents, presumably it would mean the Labour Party was aware of some of the allegations. Hate crimes
encompasses a wide array of criminal acts.
BLACK: Indeed, and anti-Semitism is a broad brush, too. We don't know many of the precise details. It appears some of them, at least, relate to
social media, some hateful language. Some of them perhaps threatening in hateful language. But I guess we just now waiting to see to find out
precisely what the police make of this.
[13:25:00] Who have any when they decide to pursue charges with. The party is under a great deal of pressure to get this right. It hasn't been able
to do so for some time.
GORANI: Is it trying to shed this and this keeps coming back again and again. Thank you very much, Phil Black, as always. Crews working to
recover the doomed Lion Air flight are pulling key evidence from the ocean floor. The plane's landing gear and part of the fuselage have been
located. Divers found the turbine from one of the plane's engines on the ocean floor. You're seeing that underwater footage. It is among the
largest pieces found so far. Ivan Watson has the latest on the recovery efforts.
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: More than four days after the crash of Lion Air, authorities are quite literally picking up the
pieces from this stricken airliner. They're picking them up from the sea bed, more than 100 feet below the surface of the java sea. There were
divers. You can see them in this footage released, scores of them involved. They have retrieved a piece of an engine from the Boeing which
had been constructed less than a year ago wrapping a rope around it. Dozens of them involved in this salvage effort. We can see how part of the
landing gear is hauled up. The divers were able to low case the flight data recorder which will help trying to figure out how the plane went down.
They're also collecting day by day remains of some of the 179 passengers and crew, victims of this disaster. The authorities announcing at least
three of them have been identified. That will bring some closure for this tragedy to some of the relatives and loved ones here. Some told us they
want to retrieve remains of their missing loved ones so they can bury them properly in a proper funeral. Ivan Watson, CNN, Jakarta.
GORANI: A horrific story out of India, a man arrested for caste-based murder after a 13-year-old girl was beheaded, obviously a barbaric crime,
it happened in the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The victim was from a lower caste than the suspect and police say the girl's family had filed a
complaint accusing the suspect of acting violently after she rejected his advances. One more instance of violence against girls and women. Still to
come --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's an unabashed moderate, centrist right down the middle. Does that appeal to you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You bet it does. We need more of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Looking for a little compromise. Many voters are just through with the extremes and the deep divisions. Will they get their way on
Tuesday? And a hard -battle for this patient who can walk after a spinal cord injury. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[13:30:25] HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Well, it's a frantic race to the finish in the United States as both political parties try to reach
voters and midterm elections now just four days away.
President Trump is crisscrossing the country is in full campaign mode. Four Republican candidates in West Virginia, Indiana, Montana and others
and he's stoking fears about immigration from claiming that troops are allowed to fire on migrants at America's southern border to promising to
restrict rules for asylum seekers.
Let's bring in our senior political analyst, David Gergen, for some insight. David, the president got some amazing economic numbers today.
It's hard to find any fault with them. And yet, I mean, apart from a tweet, he's focusing more on immigration and on the notion that America is
about to be invaded by migrants then on the economy. What's his calculation?
DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, his calculation is to play on the fears rather than the hopes of so many people and he may well
be right. He was -- he surprised everybody the last time. It looked like he was so far behind, he never win the presidency surprise. It looked like
he would never win the House of Representatives or keep the House of Representatives in this election.
And we better wait until the votes are counted to be sure of that. I do want to say, Hala, the economic news was excellent for him. The number of
people with jobs has gone up quite substantially, 250,000 in one month.
Very importantly, wages are up about three percent over the course of the year. That's where the new inflation is still in pretty good check. All
of that, you would think, would be the dream of any president who's running in re-election territory in the midterms. And this president has moved by
impulse and by his own sense to psyche guys and he's moving just the opposite direction.
GORANI: But what he's doing work to the first time around, will it work for the second time around? Because now in the opposition, you have
certainly perhaps more enthusiasm from voters as well who might be more motivated, more mobilized this time.
GERGEN: Well, that's a good question. I don't think we really know the answer to that. The conventional wisdom is, of course, that the president
will keep the Senate indeed and probably and largely the majority of Republicans there but will lose the house.
But after the Kavanaugh hearings of the Supreme Court, it was a sense that a moment was moving toward the president moving in favor of Republicans and
he might do better than expected.
I must tell you in the last 10 days or so where these pipe bombs and the shootings of black people in Kentucky and especially a horrifying shooting
of Jews in Pittsburgh and this drumbeat, the president has about on the heads of these pro-migrants trying to trudging up here. They're 900 miles
from the border. And he's sending in the troops this weekend, just before the elections. That's pretty obvious signal. Everybody's playing politics
with it and it's a stunt.
My sense is, Hala, very importantly that the race is drifting back into Democrats' favor. It hasn't broken open but I think there's a definite
change in the air, definitely change of mood in the country.
GORANI: And what's happening this time around is you have superstars, I mean, basically the queen of talk shows, Oprah Winfrey, and others. But
someone like Oprah campaigning in Georgia for Stacey Abrams who's running for governor. This is what she told people who come to hear her speak in
Marietta.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OPRAH WINFREY, MEDIA MOGUL: For anybody here who has an ancestor who didn't have the right to vote and you are choosing not to vote where ever
you are in this state, in this country, you are dishonoring your family.
So honor your legacy. Honor your legacy. Honor your right to citizenship in this which is the greatest country in the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: And this is important in a state like Georgia. Turnout is really what's going to determine the outcome of so many of these races, David.
GERGEN: Absolutely. And we know there's been a surge in voting. And early voting as it's called, I, myself, going to vote this afternoon. I
need to do that because I'm not here on Tuesday.
But it's unclear what that surge means. It appears to favor the Democrats because there are a lot more women voting causing women voting in these
early days before Tuesday. Early voting it's called. And there's a real surge in women.
[13:35:00] But there's also a surge among older Americans. We don't know how to read that. The older Americans typically have engaged in a lot more
early voting than anybody else. And so we've seen surges on their side before. They do tend to vote Republican.
So are we seeing -- are there equal surges for Democrats and Republicans or is the Democratic surge bigger? Nobody is quite sure of that yet. And
that's why I think there is a great deal of tension resting on this election. Because the outcome is still very, very hard to read.
GORANI: All right. Well, the older I get, the more I plan ahead and usually do things like -- which I wouldn't have done in my 20s. But here's
one thing that caught my eye. I mean, we cover U.S. foreign policy and its impact around the world. And the president tweeted out this just
remarkable movie poster like tweet of himself walking against this kind of dramatic cloudy backdrop with sanctions are coming November 5th, as if he's
-- it's sort of promo for a Hollywood blockbuster. What do you make of that?
GERGEN: Yes. Listen, I've almost runout of things I find peculiar. How many more can there be? He's used the last 24-36 hours not only on the
sanctions, but re-tweeted a video that is of a Latino apparently undocumented who kills a couple of people and he's sort of frothing at the
mouth, and it's a very scary -- in this country we used to have something called a Willie Horton ad which was used against Democrats back in the late
'80s. And it was very racist in nature but it worked.
The Trump tweet has struck many as extremely racist. And by the way, the gloves are off. He is not being subtle anymore about race. He's appealing
directly to whites over and over again. And we are in danger of becoming narrowly politically polarized but racially polarized.
GORANI: David Gergen, as always, thanks so much for joining us. Have a great weekend.
GERGEN: Thanks, Hala.
GORANI: Now, if you need proof that words matter, well, listen to this story. The president's words have real-life consequences. In Nigeria, the
army there is picking up on Donald Trump's remarks that U.S. troops could shoot Central American migrants if they throw stones.
Look at this new tweet by Nigeria's army. It shows a video of Mr. Trump's comments apparently to justify their own deadly crackdown on protesters.
Troops in Abuja fired live bullets at Shia demonstrators this week. Amnesty international says at least 45 protesters were killed, and it's
after that that the Nigerian army essentially tweeted out that video of the president saying that the U.S. could be justified in shooting migrants
throwing stones. It's after that the Nigerian army sent out this tweet.
Back to the U.S. We've been speaking about these midterm elections in broad terms, whether voters will lean to more moderate candidates or fall
along those deep party lines that politicians, like the president, have drawn in the sand.
Martin Savidge is in Tennessee talking to voters about one Senate race that exemplifies that choice.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Even as the new CNN poll shows a slight Republican lead, with less than a week ago, Tennessee Senate race is still
remarkably close.
PHIL BREDESEN (D), SENATE CANDIDATE, TENNESSEE: Hi, Phil Bredesen. How are you?
SAVIDGE: But how has a Democrat managed to be so competitive in such a conservative state? Where President Trump won 60 percent of the vote.
Phil Bredesen is not your typical Democrat. Widely known and popular as mayor of Nashville, he's credited with bringing professional sports teams
to town.
As a two-term governor, he sent National Guard troops to the border with Mexico.
BREDESEN: Nobody's going to tell me how to vote.
SAVIDGE: He's rejected national democratic leadership, says he agrees with President Trump on some things, and pledges to do what's best for Tennessee
not the Democratic Party.
BREDESEN: So I think if you ask people for characteristics about me, they'll say moderate. But they'll also say he gets things done and that's
what's really letting me be competitive in a state like this.
SAVIDGE: His centrist message has turned what should have been an easy victory for Republican Marsha Blackburn into a struggle. Blackburn is a
fiery conservative who has served in Congress since 2003. She's not as popular as Bredesen but knows someone who is.
REP. MARSHA BLACKBURN (R), TENNESSEE: We love the president in Tennessee.
SAVIDGE: Blackburn is a staunch Trump supporter. The president's twice come to Tennessee to campaign on her behalf and he'll be back this weekend.
Blackburn's campaign has largely adopted the Trump playbook. Just this week as the president railed against the caravan of Central American
migrants headed for the U.S., Blackburn put the issue front and center in her own campaign.
[13:40:05] BLACKBURN: Gang members, known criminals, people from the Middle East, possibly even terrorists.
SAVIDGE: We reached out multiple times to the Blackburn campaign for an interview but never got a response. Some political watchers suggest
Blackburn is relying too heavily on Trump voters.
TOM INGRAM, TENNESSEE POLITICAL CONSULTANT: Trump is still very popular in the state. But I'm not sure that it's a good assumption that every Trump
voter is a very conservative or even Republican voter.
SAVIDGE: Being too Trump could turn off independence and moderate Republicans voters Blackburn's still needs. We found several Republicans
who say they voted for Bredesen.
HEATHER LYNCH, REPUBLICAN WHO VOTED FOR BREDESEN: He the -- policy issues that I am interested in and much more alliance with my beliefs and I don't
see that from the other candidates.
SAVIDGE: He's an unabashed moderate, centrist, right down the middle. Does that appeal to you?
JIM TUERFF, REPUBLICAN WHO VOTED FOR BREDESEN: You bet it does. We need more of that.
SAVIDGE: David Belew is a pharmacist, as well as a Republican.
DAVID BELEW, REPUBLICAN VOTER: This was an extremely difficult decision for me to make.
SAVIDGE: He's a fan of Trump's economy and worries about losing control of the senate. He just couldn't vote Democrat.
BELEW: It's an extremely close race. I believe, in the end, Blackburn will take this race. That's my gut feeling on it anyway.
SAVIDGE: Ultimately for Tennessee voters in today's polarized political climate, how they vote may hinge on what matters more, a chance for
moderation or party loyalty.
Martin Savidge, CNN, Knoxville, Tennessee.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Check out our Facebook page, facebook.com/halagoranicnn for the very latest. And I'm Twitter as well, @HalaGorani.
Still to come tonight, formerly wheelchair bound, now taking steps toward a new life. We look at a groundbreaking new implant that is helping
paralyzed patients walk again. I'll speak to one of the doctors behind this breakthrough.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Well, so often on this show we bring you stories of sadness, people who have lost someone or something from their lives. But today, I
wanted to highlight a story that offers hope, in particular, new hope for people who are paralyzed. It's a new technology. It's being hailed as a
medical miracle. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: While these steps may be small and shaky, they could represent a giant leap forward for science. David Mzee was left paralyzed from a
trampolining accident in 2010 and destined for life in a wheelchair. But against the odds, he is relearning how to walk, thanks to a new spinal
implant developed by Swiss doctors.
GREGOIRE COURTINE, SWISS FEDERAL INSTITUTE TECHNOLOGY LAUSANNE: This electronic ray (ph) is inserted between the bone and the spinal cord and
the lumbar to stimulate the region of the spinal cord that normally control like movements.
[13:45:10] GORANI: This pulse generator inserted just below the skin allows Mzee to control the electrical stimulations in real time.
COURTINE: And what we do is that we amplify some more the (INAUDIBLE) coming from the brain to trigger the intended movement so you can inhibit
it or he can enhance the effect of the stimulation. I mean, it really restore voluntary control over the activity of the paralyzed muscles.
GORANI: The five months of therapy with the implant haven't been easy for Mzee.
DAVID MZEE, SPINAL IMPLANT PATIENT: It's like running a marathon and holding eggs in your hands and you're trying not to squeeze them. And at
the same time, you're pushing as hard as you can.
GORANI: But the hard work is paying off.
MZEE: It's one of the key moments, I would say was when I started walking hands free on the treadmill.
Yes, yes. Three steps.
Really letting the bars go and one, two, three steps without using my hand was really crazy.
GORANI: And it is these awkward steps which perhaps provide most cause for hope. Here, Mzee moves unaided with no electrical stimulation. Scientists
think his spinal nerves have been triggered to regrow in response to the therapy.
Two other men who also took part in the experimental treatment have seen similar results. An exciting prospect for science, raising hopes that
spinal injuries thought to be permanent may, in fact, be reversible.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Well, the team of Swiss doctors behind this groundbreaking implant was led by Dr. and he joins me now from San Antonio, Texas. Thanks so much
for joining us.
Describe why this works but other electrical stimulating strategies or devices didn't work in the past. What's different about this one?
COURTINE: Well, I've seen that previous of course did well. What is maybe different in this scenario that we really spent 10 years to understand the
science behind electrical spinal stimulation, which really allows (INAUDIBLE) like the most targeted approach.
GORANI: Yes.
COURTINE: It's not only enable walking but also really trigger the growth of this new nerve connections and I think that was key. This I would say
Swiss precision in the timing of the stimulation. That's what changed everything in the recovery outcome.
GORANI: And how do the patients control when these electrical impulses are delivered?
COURTINE: Well, what we actually do that we configure the stimulation of one to two weeks, actually. And then the patient really learned to
synchronize their working movement to the stimulation. They become very natural just your command to the natural movement of the legs.
GORANI: Oh, OK. So now, David Mzee, and there's three men, I understand, who took part in this -- in this trial and this study can walk unaided. In
other words, he doesn't have -- he doesn't have to hold the bars and he doesn't need the stimulator. How did that happen?
COURTINE: Well, this was really an unexpected finding for us, indeed. It seems -- evidence, of course, in human, it seems that we are really
triggering the growth of new nerve connection. That's been able really the brain to regain control over the previously balance (INAUDIBLE) up to seven
years of paralysis.
GORANI: Yes.
COURTINE: And it's still not normally working. We need to take in six steps between (INAUDIBLE) but I think it shows the potential of these kind
of treatments.
GORANI: So, can this -- does this potentially, this would work on people who have spinal cord injuries, not fully severed spinal cords, correct?
COURTINE: Well, it is essential that there are some residual anatomical connection indeed, you know, to restore this kind of working barrier.
GORANI: And could this be applied to a wider population? And, if so, how soon?
COURTINE: Well, this is where we really have to calibrate expectations. And we often pour principle but there's many obstacle to the widely
available treatment. And I really want to emphasize that it's critical to combine our (INAUDIBLE) biological interventions.
GORANI: So --
COURTINE: I mean --
GORANI: But what about the -- sorry. We've overlapped. There's a bit of a delay with the -- with the Skype connection. What about the future for
those patients you were dealing with this study here? They can walk the three, four steps unaided. How much progress will they eventually make?
COURTINE: Well, it's difficult to predict the future. They all committed to additional three years extension because they see that they continue
progressing and we are seeing continuing progress in all of them. And the future will say how far we can push their recovery.
[13:50:02] GORANI: Dr. Gregoire Courtine, thanks very much. Just an amazing story. And as you said, we need to calibrate expectations. But
when we see something so hopeful, we can't help but take notice and highlight the work of yours and your team's study and accomplishments.
Thanks so much.
We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back. You're watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Dancing, it is a form of celebration. And in India, a folkdance that was once a way for farmers to celebrate harvest is now spreading
across the world. Here is CNN's Amara walker with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: In the north Indian city of Chandigarh, a riot of color and happiness.
In one of India's most energetic dances, Bhangra.
ISHPREET SINGH BEDI, COACH, CHANDIGARH BHANGRA (through translator): No celebration is complete without Bhangra.
WALKER: Ishpreet Singh Bedi coaches the Chandigarh Bhangra club. He started dancing Bhangra when he was 15 and considers it a stress buster.
Bedi says the folk dance was started by farmers in the 1800s to celebrate the harvest season.
Today, Bhangra has become synonymous with Punjab, a state in northern India.
In Bhangra, dancers wear loose fitting clothes to allow for explosive movements. The different colors of the Bhangra outfits reflect feelings of
joy and celebration. While the turbans worn by the male dancers symbolize Punjab's religious and cultural heritage. The turban usually tied using
five meters of fabric to which a fan like adornment called a turla is attached like a crown.
SINGH BEDI (through translator): Now, every single person in Punjab is very fond of Bhangra. It has spread all over the world because of Punjabi
families migrating to countries like the U.K., U.S., Australia and New Zealand.
WALKER: On the wave of diaspora, the high-energy moves of Bhangra have spread beyond the farmlands of Punjab to reach the dance floors of weddings
and night clubs and to announce to anyone who's watching that the party has begun.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: It's tough being a teenager. There is school pressure, family drama and of course that feeling when you're put on trial for being half
witch.
OK. So the last one is a bit niche but not for Netflix's new "Sabrina." Alas, the show is now facing legal trouble in the mortar realm from
followers of Satan himself.
I kid you not. And when I say kid, I mean, the goat kind. The satanic temple says the statue here of the deity, Baphomet, breaches the temple's
copyright.
"The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina" is a revamp of the 90's version in which Sabrina must choose between life as a witch or life as a mortal.
Well, Sabrina, whatever you decide. Here's some advice from a familiar friend, advice we all need sometimes. Just be a queen, honey.
And we are almost done with this hour. Almost done with the show on this Friday. If it is your weekend, I hope you have a great one.
[13:55:05] A quick recap of the story we're going to be following over the coming hours and that is, of course, the last few days until crucial
midterm elections. Donald Trump has continued to tweet largely anti- immigrant messages focusing very much on stoking fears against immigration and migrants just as his administration and his party have gotten some good
news.
Because the department of labor in the United States has released pretty stellar jobs numbers, an increase of 250,000 in the last month. The
president is not focusing so much on that but instead continuing to drive home those messages that foreigners and migrants are to be feared and even
saying that up to 15,000 U.S. troops could be heading to the border to defend against them. So still making those statements hoping that
politically it will help the candidates from his party.
I'm Hala Gorani. Thanks very much for watching the program. Do stay with CNN "Amanpour" is next.
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