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EARLY START

ISIS Beheads Another America Hostage; Immigration Fight Looming; Deadly Snow Storms; Putin Gets A Cool Reception at G-20

Aired November 17, 2014 - 04:30   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Pure evil. The White House condemning the murder of American aid worker Peter Kassig, beheaded by ISIS. The terrorists releasing a chilling new video. We are live breaking down the latest clues and the reaction this morning.

A battle over immigration looms in Washington this morning. President Obama expected to unveil big reforms that would allow millions of people here illegally to stay. But Republican leaders of Congress, they're not ready to go down without a fight. What they could do to stop the president, ahead.

Deadly storms barreling across the country. Snow, ice, record- breaking temperatures. It's not over yet. Who will be hit next, ahead.

Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans. Thirty-one minutes past the hour. John Berman has the morning off.

This morning, the family of American aid worker Peter Kassig is coping with his death at the hands of ISIS terrorists. The militant Islamic group released a horrific he video showing Kassig's body after the beheading. Hours later, President Obama denounced the killing as, quote, "an act of pure evil."

Kassig's parents released a statement saying they are heartbroken. They are scheduled to speak to reporters this afternoon.

Joining us now from London with more, CNN's Atika Shubert.

Atika, the spokesman for ISIS on this beheading video speaks with that familiar English accent. What do we know about him?

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. It's the masked militant with the British accent that we've come to know and hear in the British press as Jihadi John. He is the same man in the apparent killings of the previous four hostages and now, Peter Kassig.

There are some very important differences with this video and other videos. The other videos featured those sort of orange jumpsuits in the style of Guantanamo Bay. The hostages spoke directly to the camera. In this case, that did not happen. All we see is the body of Peter Kassig and then a speech by his apparent killer Jihadi John.

Now, we don't know why that is exactly. But what we can say is over the weekend, there was a report here in a British tabloid that the masked militant had been wounded in an air strike and had been identified. That may be one reason why this video is coming out at this time, Christine.

ROMANS: So different, strikingly different that this is the fifth hostage execution. The third American, but you don't see sort of that into the camera anti-American or anti-Western propaganda speech before he is killed. We don't know why that didn't happen, if he refused or if there was some other exigency that happened. We don't know why, do we?

SHUBERT: No, we don't know. And I think it's also important to know that they never acknowledge for example that he converted to Islam. They don't talk about his aid work in Syria. That might be a factor into it.

There was a lot of backlash from the Muslim community around the world about these killings, saying that they were completely un-Islamic and they are condemning ISIS for them. To see now the killing of a fellow Muslim is likely to also encouraged -- be condemned widely around the world. That may be one reason why he simply wasn't allowed to speak.

ROMANS: A fellow Muslim working on behalf of the Syrian people. Part of the Syrian revolution, as one of his friends very sadly said after his death.

Thank you so much, Atika Shubert, for that.

Aid agencies say ISIS has been stealing food and other foreign aid so it can distribute it to the hungry Syrian families and then take credit. Aid groups are telling "The Wall Street Journal" that ISIS has diverted some its aid to its own fighters and their families. America's top uniformed officer says the momentum, meanwhile, in the war against ISIS is starting to turn.

Joint Chiefs Chairman Martin Dempsey making a surprise visit to Baghdad over the weekend, also telling Marines defending the U.S. embassy that victory over the Islamic terror group might take several years.

President Obama at the G-20 Summit responding to General Dempsey's earlier suggestion that he might someday have to recommend the president send in ground troops to fight ISIS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There are always circumstances in which the United States might need to deploy U.S. ground troops. If we discover that ISIL had gotten possession of a nuclear weapon and we had to run an operation to get it out of their hands, then yes, you can anticipate that not only would Chairman Dempsey recommend me sending U.S. troops to get that weapon out of their hands, but I would order it. (END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: The State Department rushing this morning to upgrade security on its email system after detecting signs of possible hacking. Department officials say only unclassified systems were affected. Officials are not saying if the apparent intrusion over the weekend was the work of a foreign government, but a senior official tells CNN it is related to an earlier attack of White House computers and Russian hackers were reportedly suspected in that case.

Near the top of the president's inbox as he returns from the G-20 Summit this morning, immigration. President Obama pushing back hard against Republican claims that he lacks the authority to take executive action on immigration if Congress doesn't do anything.

CNN's Erin McPike is at the White House with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERIN MCPIKE, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: President Obama has long said that once he returned from this swing through Asia, he would say the kind of executive action that he will take on immigration. Now that he's back, we should see something from him. We are now hearing that we could hear something by the end of the week.

And over the weekend, both sides of the political aisle drew lines in the sand on what kind of thing they want to see on immigration reform.

Listen here to Oklahoma Senator-elect James Lankford on "FOX News Sunday".

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JAMES LANKFORD (R), OKLAHOMA SENATOR-ELECT: The American people really do believe in the rule of law. They don't have a problem with immigration. They have a problem with illegal immigration. And for the president to step up and say I'm just going to remove the word "illegal" and to be able to transition this and ignore the law, a lot of people have a problem with that, Republicans and Democrats alike.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCPIKE: And while overseas, President Obama also said what he would like to see in a bill from Congress that could then nullify the actions that he will take on immigration reform with those executive actions. Listen here to those comments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: If Congress passes a law that solves our border problems, improves our immigration system and provides a pathway for the 11 million people who are here working in our kitchens, working in farms, making beds in hotels, everybody knows they're there, we're not going to deport all of them. We'd like to see them being able -- out in the open pay their taxes, pay a penalty, get right with the law.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCPIKE: And over the weekend, a number of mainstream Republicans said on a number of public affairs programs that they do not think that Republicans should try to shut down the government to force President Obama's hand on immigration reform, but we should see something this week from them on what kind of bill they can end up passing -- Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: Erin, thank you, at the White House this morning.

Veterans Affairs patients still waiting for improvements to the V.A. health system. New data obtained by "USA Today" shows more than 10 percent of V.A. patients wait more than a month for appointments. Sixty-four facilities have averaged wait times longer than two months. But the V.A. has made some improvements. The number of patients waiting the longest, more than four months, dropped sharply from 120,000 in May to 23,000 in October.

So far so good for Obamacare 2.0. The White House says some 100,000 people signed up for health insurance on the first day of open enrollment -- compare that to just six on day one last year.

The president defending his signature achievement from conservatives brandishing a quote from White House health care adviser Jonathan Gruber. Gruber said the White House got Obamacare passed because of voters', quote, "stupidity" and a lack of transparency by those advocating for it. The president responding that he completely disagrees with Gruber and that the bill was extensively debated with no lack of transparency.

This morning, the U.S. Senate is bracing for the debate over the Keystone XL oil pipeline. After bottling up legislation for six years, the Senate leaders will allow a vote on the pipeline Tuesday. Keystone, a major issue in the Louisiana Senate runoff set for December 6th. Democratic incumbent Mary Landrieu wants a chance to vote for the pipeline to show her clout in the Senate.

Time for an early start on your money.

Tough day so far for stocks. Asian stocks ended the day down. Look at Japan's benchmark, down about 3 percent on surprising news Japan's economy is in recession. GDP, the economy there shrank by 1.6 percent in the third quarter. European stocks are also lower, so are U.S. stock futures. It looks like a lower open after last week's record.

On Friday, the S&P inched up to close a high. It was the S&P's 41st record high close this year. Also, the fourth week in a row gains for stocks.

Stocks are having a great year. The Dow is up 6.4 percent so far. The S&P is up 10 percent. The NASDAQ up more than 12 percent, the third year in a row of double digit gains. If this holds for S&P 500.

Happening now, a new round of snow storms set to hit millions. The Northeast bracing for impact. What you need to know for today ahead.

Plus, surprise drug inspections for the NFL. The DEA targeting teams with a sudden raid. What we are learning this morning, next.

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ROMANS: A deadly blast of winter weather paralyzing communities in many parts of the country. Six more people were killed in weather- related accidents as ice and snow froze roadways. Snow is hitting as far south as Texas. Four people died in Lubbock. Police there reported dozens of accidents on icy roads. At least 17 states from Arkansas to New England remain under winter weather advisories.

Look at this. This is Oklahoma. Snow-packed and icy roads are hampering the commute for residents there. Slick roadways have caused a number of accidents. Oklahoma crews have warned of black ice conditions on highways and interstates. They are urging drivers to use extreme caution out there.

In New Mexico, temperatures plummeted to single digits following a massive snow storms. Snowfall causing difficult driving conditions throughout most of the state. As much as 13 inches of snow fell near a ski resort in Angel Fire.

And in Colorado, residents are digging out from the second snowstorm of the week. Another round of ice, snow, and cold hit Colorado Springs, surrounding areas. Several inches of snow-covered streets and roadways disrupting the commute for thousands.

How long will drivers have to contend with this mess? Let's get an early look at our weather this morning with Jennifer Gray.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Christine, we are looking at very cold temperatures still across much of the country, covering about two-thirds of the country and breaking records left and right. We're seeing frigid temperatures dipping down to the South. We still have lake-effect snow as we go through the afternoon, around the Great Lakes and also rain expected for the Northeast for today.

So, high temperatures today in the Northeast really not so bad, temperatures around 60 degrees. But look at these temperatures. These are highs today, 19 in Minneapolis. They are in the middle of about two-week stretch of temperatures below freezing, 31 in Billings, 32 in Denver, 21 in Kansas City.

Tomorrow, same thing. That cold air will sink even further down to the South, getting into those Southern states. Lake-effect snow continues. High pressure across the Rockies. High temperatures, wow, we'll be feeling it.

Look at these high temperatures tomorrow -- 36 in Atlanta. Highs in Memphis, 35, Kansas City, the same; 17 in Minneapolis; 24 in Chicago. This is when the Northeast starts to dip. Tomorrow, high temperatures will only be in the 30s -- Christine. (END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Jennifer Gray, thanks for that. Thanks for that news.

All right. The surgeon diagnosed with Ebola in Sierra Leone is in extremely critical condition this morning and he may be the sickest person yet to be treated in the U.S. Initially, Dr. Martin Salia's Ebola test came back negative, and friends and colleagues celebrated with him. Now, that a later test confirmed Ebola, they are under quarantine.

His wife and son are holding out hope that he'll recover.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't want him to be laid over there. I'm worried for him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We should keep calm. Everything will be OK. So far, he is very responding well to treatment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: The medical director of the hospital's bio containment unit says Dr. Salia's status is, quote, "an hour by hour situation."

Tension rising in Ferguson as we wait to hear if a grand jury will indict Officer Darren Wilson. Protests and marches over the weekend, some Michael Brown supporters marking the 100th day since the shooting by staging a die-in, laying down and blocking major intersections and the entrance to a theater. Those protesters calling for Officer Wilson's arrest. Other protesters supported Officer Wilson who they believe was forced to shoot.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We want to again declare that we steadfastly believe that Officer Darren Wilson's actions on August 9th were warranted and justified.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not here to try to validate the justice system because there's a lot of changes that need to occur. But the indictment of Darren Wilson is the first step of many that needs to take place.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

ROMANS: The organizer of Sunday's protests and support of Brown said he couldn't rule out violence if the grand jury finds Wilson without fault.

The Drug Enforcement Administration taking a very close look at the NFL. Several teams were subjected to surprise inspections following after their games on Sunday. Agents questioning trainers, questioning doctors about allegations of illegal prescription drug use. The San Francisco 49ers, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers training staff were among those targeted. A lawsuit filed in May by more than 1,000 retired NFL players alleges rampant distribution of illegal painkillers by medical personnel.

A French tourist hauled off in handcuffs after police say he scaled the Brooklyn Bridge to take photos. We're told Yonathan Souid climbed over a fence on the pedestrian walkway just after noon to reach a cable beam connected to the tower on the Manhattan side. The 23-year- old had been staying with friends for a couple of days and slated to leave Sunday.

An icy reception for Russian President Vladimir Putin accused of fueling the fighting in Eastern Ukraine. Armed rebels and moving his military in. We are live with what world leaders are saying this morning, next.

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ROMANS: Shocking video this morning that shows how close Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 came to smashing into houses in the Ukrainian village. The amateur footage shows flaming wreckage just yards from homes. Now four months after the jetliner shot out of the sky, the wreckage is now being recovered.

About two-thirds of 300 passengers and crew killed were Dutch. The Dutch government is paying for the recovery operation. It is happening in war-torn Eastern Ukraine. Wreckage eventually will be sent to the Netherlands.

The battle for Eastern Ukraine was the behind the frosty reception for Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G-20 Summit in Australia over the weekend. Western leaders blasted Russian aggression against Ukraine, though, Russia has steadfastly denied it has any troops or military hardware there.

CNN's Matthew Chance is in Moscow for us this morning.

Matthew, sort through it for us, there's the diplomatic reception in Australia. Then, there are these developments over the video. Walk us through it.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, starting off in Brisbane where the G-20 Summit that's just been held. Very frosty reception certainly for western leaders, as you mentioned for Vladimir Putin, the Russian leader, though evenly lining up to lambast him for his alleged role, Russia's alleged role inside Ukraine.

President Obama saying that he was not living up to the cease-fire agreement that's been enforced since September 5th. Other Western leaders as well. The Canadian prime minister also agreeing to shake Vladimir Putin's hand, but telling him, look, get out of Ukraine.

So, some very blunt exchanges took place between the British prime minister, the U.S. leadership, others as well, when it came to Vladimir Putin. And there was a sense at the end he was feeling very uncomfortable. He wasn't front and center of the group photograph, which is so important in these diplomatic occasions. He was often pushed off to one side.

So, there's a sense of which you've shunned by the host as well, Tony Abbott, the Australian prime minister, and for good reason, because Tony Abbott said that he was going to confront Vladimir Putin aggressively over the role that Russia played in the downing of MH17, that Malaysian airliner shot down in July over Eastern Ukraine. Thirty-eight Australians were among the 298 people killed onboard. And Tony Abbott, obviously, for political reasons extremely worried about that and determined to have a full investigation.

That happening as Dutch experts on the ground now actually in eastern Ukraine. You see the amazing video put out. It is astonishing. That black plume of smoke showing just how close to Hrabove, the village in Eastern Ukraine where the plane went down. Burning wreckage, black smoke, Dutch officials on the ground right now trying to retrieve wreckage. Still, there's lots of wreckage there. They can get to the bottom of what happened and who is responsible for it.

ROMANS: All right. Matthew Chance, thanks for walking us through it, Matthew.

Gas prices keep falling. That means savings for you. I've got an early start on your money, next.

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ROMANS: All right. Let's get an early start on your money this morning.

Tough day for global stocks so far. Asian stocks ended down. Look at Japan's benchmark, down about 3 percent today. That's on surprising news that Japan's economy is in recession. The economy there shrank by 1.6 percent in the third quarter. European also stocks also down. So, are U.S. stock futures. Looks like a lower open after last week's record high. On Friday, the S&P inched up to the 41st record high close of the year.

Gas prices keep falling. The average price for a gallon of regular now $2.88, down also 30 cents from a month ago, and about 80 cents from summer highs. Falling fuel prices could put an extra $400 a year in your pocket. Businesses are hoping that translates into more holiday spending and prices, gas prices, expected to stay low all next year.

All right. EARLY START continues right now.