Return to Transcripts main page
CNN NEWSROOM
17-Year Old British Teen Becomes ISIS Suicide Bomber; Sudan President Omar al Bashir Escapes Arrest in South Africa; Jeb Bush Announces 2016 Run for Presidency; Texas Prepares for Worst as Tropical Storm Bill Takes Aim; 2 Shark Attacks at North Carolina Beaches; Raging Floodwaters Result in Animals Escaping Tbilisi Zoo in Republic of Georgia; Breaking News in Manhunt, Female Prison Employee Who Helped; The Threat of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula; Civil Rights Leader Resigns Post, Parents Baffled She Claimed to be Black; 3 More MERS Patients in South Korea Die; Thousands of Syrian Refugees Rushed to Turkish Border Fleeing Intense Fighting Against ISIS. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired June 15, 2015 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:00:00] ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news in the manhunt for two convicted killers in the U.S. and the female prison employee who may have helped them get away.
Plus, al Qaeda may have suffered a serious blow. New claims out of Yemen that a key terrorist operative has been killed.
Also coming up, a U.S. civil rights leader resigns from her post. Her parents are baffled that their daughter claimed to be black when she's actually white. That bizarre story coming up.
A big welcome to our viewers here in the U.S. and those of you tuned in all around the world. I'm Errol Barnett, and this is CNN NEWSROOM.
The trail for two killers in New York has allegedly gone cold. Details are emerging and getting more salacious. A source says the fugitives had plans to kill Joyce Mitchell's husband, though it's not clear how much she knew about that. The source also says Mitchell was having a sexual relationship with one of the men. A New York state official says investigators are looking into whether the inmates forced Mitchell into helping them break out of the maximum security prison. Richard Matt and David Sweat have been on the run now since June 6th. Hundreds of law enforcement agents are searching for them. But the fear is that they are by now long gone.
The district attorney spoke to CNN's Erin Barnett earlier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW WYLE, CLINTON COUNTY, NEW YORK, DISTRICT ATTORNEY: It's very possible they did have a plan B. We have no idea what that plan b would be if it in fact exists. Like you said, we're into this over a week and a half now, and, you know, it's getting very frustrating, not only for my office and this community that I live in and protect, but it's the law enforcement officers, the correction officers. Everybody involved is getting very frustrated, not getting our hands on these two individuals.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARNETT: Now what's interesting is that the district attorney also says he thinks Joyce Mitchell is trying to be truthful, as truthful as possible, in fact, but he says it is still possible that she's holding something back. Mitchell faced the judge again on Monday. That's her second court appearance since Friday.
Miguel Marquez has more from New York.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This morning has been -- the defendant has been arraigned on the two charges.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Joyce Mitchell pleads not guilty again of helping two convicted murderers break out of the update maximum security prison known as "Little Siberia."
(on camera): How would you describe her frame of mind?
DAVID FAVRO, SHERIFF, CLINTON COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: She's actually quite calm and she's handling things fairly well.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Did you help the prisoners escape?
MARQUEZ (voice-over): Mitchell stands accused of sneaking hacksaw blades, chisels drill bits, a punch and other contraband into the two killers' hands. Law enforcement sources say the 51-year-old developed a relationship with both David Sweat and Richard Matt, telling investigators the plan was for her to pick them up and drive and be to seven hours away by the time they were discovered missing. Mitchell backed out because she says she still loves her husband, checking herself into the hospital after suffering a nervous attack in the hours after the breakout. Her husband, Lyle, cried, says a friend, when he heard the allegations against his wife.
Tonight, Mitchell isn't on suicide watch but --
FAVRO: Obviously, anybody that's gone through this kind of risk, pressure, we're going to keep a close eye on. You don't want to wait 30 minutes to find medical issues. We want to be right there when it happens.
MARQUEZ: Favro's, whose office is involved with the search for the escaped murderers, says his gut instinct tells him Mitchell was not their escape plan A.
FAVRO: If they went through this lengthy, elaborate, time-consuming plan to get out of this facility, that they had a better plan than her picking them up at 12:30 to take them out of here. They had an actual -- she was the backup plan, not the front plan.
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: Let me start down here with our guys -- MARQUEZ: The search focusing intensely on the area near the prison.
This is possible evidence being pulled from a stream less than a mile away. Favro says he's split nearly evenly on whether the convicts are still in the area.
Kate Gerard grew up exploring the woods she called home where the killers may now be holed up.
(on camera): What do you make of this happening in your neighborhood?
KATE GERARD, CLINTON COUNTY RESIDENT: It's really interesting. I feel so safe with so many law enforcement people around, but, then again, being in the middle of the woods is a built scary at times.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: We are joined by Miguel Marquez to talk about this.
Miguel, what more do we know about this, this woman had this relationship, Joyce Mitchell, this married woman with kids, with these men, and why her husband would now be at risk.
[01:05:10] MARQUEZ: Yeah, both of them, says a source close to the investigation, had a relationship with her. One of them had a sexual relationship with her. And what this tells us is that what started off as a friendship and a relationship, they began to manipulate her. She began to help them. And at some point during that process, she became nervous. She started to get cold feet, wanted to pull back, but they wouldn't let her. They began to basically manipulate her in a very negative way, turning the relationship into a blackmail situation, basically saying, if you don't continue to help us, we're going to tell authorities what you are doing. She then continued. At one point, apparently, it seems they threatened to kill her husband who also worked at the prison. And that's where some of the confusion comes in. And at some point, she agreed to be their get away driver. She got cold feet that night though, saying she still loved her husband. Didn't, backed out and didn't show up. The question is why she never told authorities and whether or not they had another plan all along -- Errol?
BARNETT: Wow. It is such a bizarre development. Talk to us more about the help she provided. I mean, she was part of this intricate escape plan. What was her role exactly?
MARQUEZ: Well, what authorities have said so far is that she provided them hacksaw blades, chisels, a punch, drill bits, other contraband, bringing those into the prison. It's not clear how much of this willingly brought and how much she felt she had to for fear they might expose what she was already doing for them, or that she was being threatened, her husband's life was threatened by them if she didn't continue to help them. They, then, were able to use some of these tools, perhaps others, to get down into the belly of this prison, underneath the town of Dannemora, basically, do dry runs, practice runs to figure out what manhole they have to pop out of for up to a month perhaps before putting their plan into action. Amazing -- Errol? BARNETT: And they very well may have had a plan B, other escape plans, should the initial plan to have Joyce Mitchell help them out go awry, which is what happened. Last we heard, these escaped killers may have been heading to a cabin in Vermont. Is that the last best lead so far?
MARQUEZ: That was the lead early on. Then authorities found when she didn't pick them up, they found an encampment that they believe is still the best lead they have. That encampment less than a mile from the prison itself. They've been searching heavily in those woods. Some 13-square miles they've now searched.
The sheriff here, whose department is part of this search effort, David Favro, telling us today that he's split. 50 percent of him says they've fled and gone elsewhere, 49 percent makes him think they're still in those woods. Even a guy that closely involved in the investigation isn't sure if they're still here or somewhere totally different -- Errol?
BARNETT: Miguel Marquez reporting for us.
There are so many new details, interesting angels we'd like to bring you but it would take more than an hour to do so. So head to cnn.com for more, including photos from inside the ongoing search and some sidebar stories like the spotlight on inmate/staff relationships that sometimes can cross the line and lead to pregnancies. More information for you at CNN.com
Two terrorist leaders have reportedly died in U.S. attacks but U.S. officials haven't confirmed those reports. Officials in Yemen say a suspect U.S. drone strike killed Nasir al Wuhayshi. Online comments from known operatives of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula say al Wuhayshi's replacement has already been named. And Libyan officials say a U.S. airstrike killed Mokhtar Belmokhtar, the long-time Islamist fighter affiliated with al Qaeda in North Africa. In a video from last year, Nasir al Wuhayshi made it clear that he was in fact targeting the U.S.
Brian Todd has more on the threat posed by al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (V0): If the U.S. took out Nasir al Wuhayshi, it's dealt a major blow to the leadership structure of what U.S. officials consider the most dangerous branch of al Qaeda. Wuhayshi himself has credentials that are very respected in al Qaeda. He had been Osama bin Laden's driver, one of his closest aides. And one analyst says for about four years he never left Osama bin Laden's side. In 2009, when al Qaeda branches in Yemen and Saudi Arabia merged, al Wuhayshi took control of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. His ascent was confirmed by Ayman al Zawahiri, now considered the global leader of al Qaeda. Al Wuhayshi eventually got a $10 million bounty placed on his head by the U.S. State Department. That's the same as the leader of ISIS, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi.
I spoke with analyst, Brian Fishman, about the kind of role al Wuhayshi has running AQAP.
[01:10:10] BRIAN FISHMAN, NEW AMERICA FOUNDATION: He's not the operational guy. He's the CEO. He's the guy ultimately responsible for all of this fundraising. He's recruiting. He's setting the policy guidelines for this organization as a whole. But he's got other folks that are doing some of the key operations.
TODD (on camera): And the other people running operations for AQAP are very dangerous, including the master bomb maker, Ibrahim al Asiri, still alive according to U.S. intelligence officials. He is so devoted to the cause of attacking the U.S. and its allies that he once placed a bomb inside the body of his own brother for a 2009 attack on the Saudi interior minister. That bombing killed his brother but failed to kill the minister. It's his work that leads officials to call this branch of al Qaeda to be the most dangerous branch to America. Ibrahim al Asiri is believed to be behind the 2009 plot to bomb an airliner heading to Detroit that was placed in the under wear of an AQAP operative. That attack happened on Christmas Day of that year. That bomb came very close to exploding. The following year he placed bombs in printer cartridges shipped in planes bound for the U.S. Again, that plot came very close to working but was disrupted. It's his ability to get bombs on planes bound for the United States and get them past security which makes him and this group so dangerous to America.
He is believed to be still alive. And intelligence officials believe Asiri may have trained others how to do what he does in case he's killed.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Now we wanted to get more perspective on how big a blow this would be to al Qaeda. CNN spoke with military analyst, Rick Francona, about that and why U.S. officials are refusing to confirm the Libyan and Yemeni reports at this stage.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LT. COL. RICK FRANCONA, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: They don't want to go out and say he's dead and then him pop up later. You know, we've had numerous reports of the death of both of these guys before. So they're erring on the side of caution. They don't want to, you know, take their victory lap before they're sure.
The problem is, it's going to be very, very difficult to confirm these deaths, because we don't have boots on the ground in either one of the locations. We can't get into the Benghazi area. We cannot get into these areas of Yemen now. It's going to be very difficult. We're going to have to rely on the locals to tell us.
This is a win/win for the United States if this is in fact true. But as I say, we want to make sure this is the truth before we go out and take our victory lap.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Now both France and the U.S. have been hunting Belmokhtar for years, offering a $5 million award leading for information to his capture.
Now after days of mounting pressure, Rachel Dolezal has stepped down as president of the Spokane, Washington, chapter of the NAACP. Apparently, her parents say she lied about her race for years, claiming to be black. But her parents say they're white, so she's white. They sent out images of her when she was young as proof. The controversy may have led to her resignation, but she's not talking publicly about it.
CNN's Stephanie Elam has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While Rachel Dolezal still didn't answer the burning question about her race --
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Are your parents, are they white?
ELAM: -- the president of the Spokane NAACP chapter is stepping down, writing in this letter, quote, "I have waited in deference while others have expressed their feelings, absent the full story. It is with complete allegiance to the cause of racial and social justice that I step aside. I will never stop fighting for human rights."
That resignation changing tonight's planned protest into a rally for healing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're going to make a conscious decision to forgive Rachel, forget all the things that have happened.
ELAM: Yet the national conservation continues to brew, with Dolezal's adopted brother calling his sister's behavior "black face."
Here he is on ABC.
UNIDENTIFIED ADOPTED BROTHER OF RACHEL DOLEZAL: She took me aside when I was over there and told me to make sure that no one found out where she was actually from and for me not to blow her cover.
RACHEL DOLEZAL, FORMER NAACP CHAPTER PRESIDENT, SPOKANE, WASHINGTON: This is what we have. We have older white men on our currency.
ELAM: But this revelation is giving fuel to some of her critics who now see Dolezal's actions as deliberate and calculating.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a hurtful thing for me because I believed in somebody that I thought was somebody else.
ELAM: Though Dolezal is stepping down she says she's not backing down from her social activism, a stance some in Spokane honor despite the dramatic turn. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It doesn't change how we feel about Rachel, and
it doesn't discredit her work and everything she has built and accomplished since -- as long as we've all known her.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: That was our Stephanie Elam reporting from Spokane, Washington.
A lot of forgiveness there, in fact. But something to keep in mind, this controversy began with Rachel Dolezal's estranged parents who spoke to the media about her supposed misrepresentation. Earlier, Ruth Ann and Larry Dolezal talked to CNN's Don Lemon about their daughter's behavior. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[01:15:12] LARRY DOLEZAL, FATHER OF RACHEL DOLEZAL: I'm puzzled. It's a baffling thing. Until she explains it.
DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: My question for you, when this all started, why are you guys doing this? Why did you do it?
LARRY DOLEZAL: Well, we called about a week ago by a reporter from cure delaine press, and I guess we had the option of -- when they asked you are you Rachel Dolezal's parents, we had the option of hanging up, saying no comment, telling a lie or telling the truth.
LEMON: Why do you think she's doing it? Do you think that she believes she's black?
RUTH ANN DOLEZAL, MOTHER OF RACHEL DOLEZAL: I think Rachel has somehow, in her mind, come to the conclusion that in order to be an advocate for African-Americans she needs to be hostile to whites. And so to try and establish her identity or her relating to the African- Americans, she felt that she needed to reject her family and be accusatory towards them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Dolezal's family has shared copies of her birth certificate, which says that she was born to two parents who say they are Caucasian.
Now more death in South Korea from the MERS outbreak. We'll get you the latest as health officials plan to hold an emergency meeting.
Plus, our Arwa Damon speaks to Syrian refugees who crossed the Turkish border to flee the fighting of ISIS. Stay with us on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:20:57] BARNETT: Welcome back, everybody. In South Korea, three more people infected with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome have died. 19 people have died as a result of this outbreak. More than a dozen people receiving treatment are said to be in unstable condition. Thousands of people remain under quarantine.
Kathy Novak brings us the latest from Seoul.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHY NOVAK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The World Health Organization warned that because this outbreak is so large and complex, more cases are to be anticipated. And that was the case again today. More people have been diagnosed, and the death toll has risen further. The public is still being told to take extra precautions. Businesses are doing more to protect their customers. Places like Internet cafes are sanitizing more often. So far, it has not spread to the public, and authorities want to keep it that way.
The other good news is that some have recovered from MERS and have been released from the hospital. One is a member of the South Korean Air Force. He's stationed at the U.S. Air Base. And 70 people who had been quarantined from having contact with him have been released, too.
Kathy Novak, CNN, Seoul.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARNETT: More news from the peninsula now. New images from North Korea show an apparent naval drill. According to state media, Kim Jong-Un observed the nighttime drill. Afterwards, the leader praised them for providing a successful defense of territorial waters. To quote highly intelligent rockets were tested in the early hours of Tuesday morning just as they announced they were ready to hold talks with South Korea if certain conditions are met.
Amnesty International is criticizing what it calls a dismal response to the Syrian human rights crisis. The organization says key host countries are closing their borders after taking in more than four million Syrians since the conflict began in 2011. Amnesty is calling on the international community to do more to fund the refugees' humanitarian needs.
Our Arwa Damon spoke to some of the thousands who rushed to the Turkish border fleeing some of the most intense fighting against ISIS.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Through the haze of the heat, a glimpse of a few of those who are waiting for Turkish authorities to allow them through, the majority barely visible behind the berm, arms raising frantically the moment water arrives. Many have been here for hours if not days.
They are finally let through. A desperate scene the world has witnessed too many times, yet has done little to stop. Some parents lugging their children. Others laden with all they have left in life.
(on camera): (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
DAMON: Exhausted, angry and dehydrated. Most just want to keep going. Some have relatives that already made it to Turkey.
(on camera): This is a family that's just been reunited. But they don't want to stop and talk, which is very understandable, given everything that they have been through.
A lot of people in those moments when the gate was opened were just phoning relatives they had on the other side saying it's open, come, cross quickly, worried that it would close once again, and they would continue to have to wait on the other side.
(SHOUTING)
DAMON: "We are normal civilians who have nothing to do with anyone. Whoever governs us, we just obey them," he says. "We just had to leave because of the clashes."
Many had chosen ISIS rule over losing the little they have in life, a choice they no longer have.
Arwa Damon, CNN, on the Turkey/Syria border.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[01:25:04] BARNETT: More of the world's biggest stories coming up. A British teenager becomes a suicide bomber for ISIS. Next, how this tight-knit neighborhood is reacting to the news that a boy knew well turned into a killer.
Plus, a relaxing day at the beach takes a terrifying turn after two teens suffer a shark attack on the same day and possibly by the same shark.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BARNETT: Welcome back to our viewers in the U.S. and those of you tuned in from all around the world. This is CNN NEWSROOM. Thanks for staying with me. I'm Errol Barnett.
Here are our top headlines.
Officials in Yemen say the leader of al Qaeda in Arabian Peninsula has been killed in a suspected U.S. drone strike. U.S. officials have not confirmed the death of Nasir al Wuhayshi. Known ASAP operations have posted online that al Wuhayshi's replacement has already been named.
The unsealed pleas agreement for former FIFA official, Chuck Blazer, shows that he was under cover for U.S. federal prosecutors. The investigation led to the indictment of several football officials and business executives.
A New York state official says the search for two escaped killers has now gone cold. And there are more questions about a prison workers' alleged role in the plans. The official says Joyce Mitchell may have been threatened into helping the men. A source familiar with the investigation says the convicts had plans to murder Mitchell's husband.
[01:30:00] Now it's feared 12 members of the British family have traveled to Syria with their children, including one as young as 3 years old. Police say they're looking for three sisters in their 30s, as well as their nine kids. According to the press association, the group left for Saudi Arabia last month. But there are concerns they traveled on to Syria to join another family member fighting for an extremist group.
All this comes one day after it was revealed a 17-year-old from Britain had apparently committed a suicide attack in Iraq over the weekend. Talha Asmal is believed to be the U.K.'s youngest-ever suicide bomber. The Asmal family says they were devastated when they found out what happened. They say ISIS exploited the boy and that his handlers are cowards.
Senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, went to the family's home in England.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dead, age 17, Talha Asmal thought to be Britain's youngest suicide bomber. At his family's house in northern England, mourners were streaming in and out through the day. Family bringing tea to reporters but declining interviews, letting their finely-worded statement stand: "Talha fell under the spell of individuals who continued to prey on his innocence and vulnerability to the point where if the press reports are accurate, he was ordered to his death by so-called ISIS handlers and leaders, too cowardly to do their own dirty work."
Even family friends, even those with strong opinions reflecting the family's blame of ISIS on online radicalizing, preferring not to share their thoughts publicly.
(on camera): In this reasonably well-off tight-knit community, few here it seems want to speak out, in part out of respect for the family, in part, also, because they feel under scrutiny and pressure.
At the mosque at the street end that neither Talha or his family attended, the imam spoke of his shock and concerns.
UNIDENTIFIED IMAM (through translation): I would request everyone in the community to take care of their children and to also take care of who they send their children to study under. It matters that the right knowledge is imparted. And we live in this community in a peaceful manner.
ROBERTSON: According to neighbors, Talha grew up playing on these streets, the oldest of four children. When he first went missing in March, his family contacted the police. This photo was part of their appeal for help. But it was too late. His family said, "Completely unbeknown to us, his family, and entirely against our wishes, he ended up traveling, it seems to Iraq."
It took ISIS just two months to destroy everything his parents nurtured and turn him into a suicide bomber.
Nic Robertson, CNN, England.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Now a South African court was just moments from ordering the president of Sudan arrested, but Omar al Bashir slipped out of the country, hastily flying out of a military base. He arrived home to a hero's welcome. The South African government was being asked to detain him for the International Criminal Court. It wants to try Mr. al Bashir on war crimes charges stemming from the conflict in Darfur.
A top ICC prosecutor says the court is disappointed al Bashir got away.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES STEWART, DEPUTY PROSECUTOR, ICC PROSECUTOR: Reaction internationally, the anger, if you will, about what has happened, I believe, actually strengthens the position of the court. It is clear from what happened over the last few days and especially today in the court in South Africa that an ICC warrant of arrest actually means something. President Bashir did not leave in quite the way I expect he thought he would, and certainly not in the way he arrived.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARNETT: Mr. al Bashir was in Johannesburg attending an African Union summit. The South African judge was furious about his departure. He accused the government of not preventing it and said that violated the constitution.
Now Jeb Bush is officially in the running to become the next U.S. president, entering a very crowded field of Republican candidates. The former Florida governor formally announced his 2016 bid for the White House at a rally in Miami on Monday, vowing to make America into, quote, "an economic super power." He is the son of former President George H.W. Bush and the brother of George W. Bush. He's trying to convince voters that he offers more than just a famous last name.
CNN's Suzanne Malveaux has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(CHEERING)
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The first name slogan says it all, simply, Jeb.
JEB BUSH, (R), FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I've decided I'm a candidate for president of the United States of America.
(CHEERING)
[01:35:12] MALVEAUX: The 11th Republican to jump in, Jeb Bush acknowledged his famous family.
BUSH: Take that from a guy who met his first president on the day he was born --
(LAUGHTER)
BUSH: -- and his second on the day he was brought home from the hospital.
(LAUGHTER)
MALVEAUX: But he took pains not to appear entitled.
BUSH: And not one of us deserves the job by right of resume, party, seniority, family or family narrative. It's nobody's turn.
MALVEAUX: The two eldest sons of President George H.W. Bush and Barbara are similar in some ways. Both deeply religious men, graduates of Philips Academy, who love sports and worship their father. But those close to the family say they have never been close.
GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have no clue where his head is now.
MALVEAUX: Bush 43 admitted in 2014 when asked if his brother would run. Jeb has also drawn distinct policy-line differences.
BUSH: I would not have engaged. I would not have gone into Iraq.
MALVEAUX: And that's not where the differences end. George, the extroverted, self-deprecating Ivy League C student.
GEORGE W. BUSH: I've kind of surprised people in parts of our country that I can write much less read.
(LAUGHTER)
MALVEAUX: Referred to as the family clown, leaving no one safe from his humor, including me.
GEORGE W. BUSH: You used to be known as "Suzanne." Now you're "Suzahn."
MALVEAUX (on camera): Suzanne, thank you.
(LAUGHTER)
GEORGE W. BUSH: I'm "Gauj."
(LAUGHTER)
MALVEAUX (voice-over): While Jeb is admittantly the introvert, a policy wonk fluent in Spanish.
BUSH: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
MALVEAUX: It was Jeb who was expected to follow in his father's political footsteps to avenge H.W.'s loss to Bill Clinton in 1992. But in '94, the Bush brothers surprised nearly everyone when Jeb lost the governor's race in Florida while George won it in Texas. An upset that even a dozen years later brought their father to tears.
GEORGE H.W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Floridians it goes to the governor. But they took note of his defeated opponent who showed not merely with words but with his action what decency --
(APPLAUSE)
MALVEAUX: Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Now Jeb Bush spoke to our Dana Bash about his plan to win the nomination on his own merit.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: Jeb is different than George. And Jeb is who he is. My life story is different.
I don't have to disassociate myself from my family. I love them. But I know that for me to be successful, I'm going to have to show my heart, tell my story.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BARNETT: And Jeb is the second presidential candidate from Florida. He's completing against Senator Marco Rubio, who announced his bid earlier this year.
Now First Lady Michelle Obama is in the U.K. to promote her "Let Girls Learn" initiative. Her goal is to expand access to girl's education around the world. Ms. Obama arrived Monday with her mother and two daughters. The first lady is expected to speak at a school in London on Tuesday. She's also scheduled to meet with Prince Harry and have tea with British Prime Minister David Cameron. The ladies will travel to Italy later in the week.
And once again, the Stanley Cup is back in Chicago. The Blackhawks shut out the Tampa Bay Lightning Monday night, 2-0, in the game, I should say, the sixth game of the Stanley Cup finals. It's Chicago's third championship since 2010, and it's the first time the Blackhawks have won the Stanley Cup at home in 77 years.
Now after devastating flooding back in May, people in the U.S. state of Texas are preparing for the worst.
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yeah, Errol, it's the last thing you want to see what's ahead of us. Tropical Storm Bill ahead of us across portions of Texas. Tremendous rainfall. We'll touch on exactly what could happen here, not just with flooding but after the storm makes landfall, coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:42:28] BARNETT: Whoa, this 178-foot-tall water tower coming down with a thundering crash on Sunday. A demolition team in Plano, Texas, brought the structure down by cutting it away at the base and allowing it to tip over. Similar to cow tipping, I believe. The tower was built some 30 years ago but hasn't been used since 2010.
We want to get a bit more serious here because Texas is bracing for more heavy rain just weeks after suffering major flooding. A tropical storm is gaining steam in the Gulf of Mexico, and it's expected to bring four to eight inches of rain or more to eastern parts of Texas. The state already saw record rainfall in May. So the ground is still soaked in many areas. The governor warns this could lead to dangerous flash flooding. Several school districts have canceled classes and some activities due to this storm.
For more on those Texas floods, let's bring in our meteorologist, Pedram Javaheri, who just spent hours explaining to me that because the ground is so saturated, it could fuel the storm on its way.
JAVAHERI: Absolutely. A very unusual scenario because you need a tremendous amount of soil moisture. And we're about 140 percent above normal in the state of Texas and also the state of Oklahoma. So you get this storm system over land instead of weakening, it mimics the ocean when it comes to fueling or keeping its strength even over land, sometimes strengthening as we saw it in 2007 when a storm named Aaron made landfall across this region. We know some 32 rivers from the state of Texas on into Oklahoma, the majority of them in Texas, at or above flooding stage. Of course you consider what has occurred here, the wettest month on record, in 121 years of data in the United States for weather. You see 20-plus inches come down. This has never happened. And we know, again, with the moisture content in the soil being so high, rainfall two to three inches in one hour will cause extensive flash flooding. It took several days and weeks to lead to devastating floods. This particular storm makes landfall notice next six to eight hours. And once that happens, we'll begin to see the rainfall intensity pick up quite rapidly. And within a couple hours flash flooding will be sparked across the region. So 20 million people in Texas and Oklahoma and parts of Louisiana as well under flood orders at this point, with the storm coming ashore. Once it interacts with land, weakening, it may not happen because of how much moisture is left in place. The models indicate anywhere from San Antonio to Houston, possibility of six inches, maybe 10 inches of rainfall.
Taking you to the southwest of the United States because excessive heat in place, temperatures as hot as 115 in portions of the southwest, the average in Phoenix, 104. Notice the temperature trend remains quite hot over the next three to five days with 111. Even in Anchorage, Alaska, Errol, there's a wildfire in this area north of Anchorage. The heat on 20 degrees above average in portions of Alaska with this heat wave that's taking place in the western U.S. [01:45:43] BARNETT: Wow. Those numbers in Phoenix, it's usually hot
anyway, but to see it in Anchorage is surprising.
(CROSSTALK)
BARNETT: Pedram Javaheri, thanks very much.
Now a fire breaks out in a 19th century basilica in western France just after morning Mass. We can show it to you. You'll be able to see the flames and smoke there billowing from the rooftop. Good news here, everyone did get out safely. A local newspaper says the fire was sparked accidently by workers on the roof. The bad news is that the structure did suffer major damage.
A popular holiday state in the U.S. state of North Carolina is reeling today from two shark attacks. The beach became a makeshift trauma ward. Bystanders in bathing suits scrambling, as you to see, to help the young victims. We've all heard the statistics that shark attacks are rare, and it's true, they are, but when they happen, they are terrifying.
Our Tom Foreman was there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At 4:40, the first call came in. A 13 year old girl attacked by a shark while swimming at the Oak Island Beach.
(BEGIN AUDIO FEED)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The left arm is completely missing and also a bite to the left leg. 13 years old, weak pulse.
911 OPERATOR: OK, OK, her left arm is completely missing?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Also a bite to the left leg.
(END AUDIO FEED)
FOREMAN: Terrified beachgoers tried to help the young victim after she's brought to shore.
FOREMAN: One onlooker borrows a cell phone from a family member to call 911, the family too distraught to call themselves.
(BEGIN AUDIO FEED)
911 OPERATOR: Do you know, are any of the finger it is completes completely amputated?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It looks like her entire hand is gone.
911 OPERATOR: OK, if you can, just make sure they take a clean, dry cloth and wrap it around the wound and place pressure on it.
(END AUDIO FEED)
FOREMAN: And the nightmare didn't end there. Less than 90 minutes after the first attack, another one at the same beach, this victim a 16-year-old boy.
(BEGIN AUDIO FEED)
911 OPERATOR: What is it? A shark?
(SHOUTING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's got three people around him that's holding pressure to his arm.
911 OPERATOR: OK, listen, tell them do not use a tourniquet. I'm going to tell you how to stop the bleeding. Listen carefully to make sure they do it right. Tell them to make sure they have a clean, dry cloth or towel and place it right on the wound. OK. If you can, just tell them to let him rest in the most comfortable position and keep reassuring him that help is on the way to him, OK?
(END AUDIO FEED)
FOREMAN: Both victims were airlifted to a local hospital, both in critical condition.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They said the head was about that big, I think the kid said, and estimated six to eight foot -- no seven to eight. Blood in the water, coming over with the whitewash. The kid was in shock. He was still coherent. Lost, took it clean off.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: You saw that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I saw what was left of what he had.
FOREMAN (on camera): This beach is not only a popular swimming spot but also the site of a busy fishing pier. That means a lot of bait in the water and a lot of fish to draw sharks in. Authorities believe one shark was responsible for both of these attacks, although they don't yet know what kind it was.
(voice-over): Both victims are out of surgery, each lost a limb. The 13 year old lost her arm below the elbow and also suffered damage to her leg. The 16 year old lost his arm below the shoulder.
UNIDENTIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: I've been here 16 years. This is the first time something as major as this has happened.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Tom Foreman there reporting from North Carolina.
Now devastating flooding in Georgia's capital damaged a zoo, setting wild animals free. We're going to bring you the latest on the aftermath of the rising water in Tbilisi after this short break.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:53:22] BARNETT: This is what the massive flooding left behind in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia. Today, cleanup efforts will resume in Tbilisi after those floods devastated the city over the weekend. At least 12 people are dead and several others are still missing. On Monday, the country observed a day of mourning. Volunteers showed up to help with the massive cleanup.
The Tbilisi Zoo was hit hard with the raging floodwaters, and as a result, hundreds of wild animals escaped. Some were captured, but some met with a dangerous end.
CNN's Jeanne Moos has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A lion loose on the highway. A hippo roaming the streets. A bear perched above an air conditioner. Sights we're not conditioned to see in a city like Tbilisi, the capitol of the former Soviet Republic of Georgia. It was as if Noah's Ark emptied out after flash flooding destroyed much of Tbilisi Zoo, leaving it feeling like a ghost zoo.
The zebras were all right. But the bears? Seemed to bear the brunt.
(on camera): The zoo says half of its 600 animals were missing from their enclosures.
(voice-over): A zoo spokesperson called it a hellish whirlpool. It only got more hellish as more bodies surfaced.
The death toll for people at the zoo was three.
There were a few happy endings. The hippo was tranquilized and returned to the zoo, as was this crocodile.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One man is reported to have found a hyena on his balcony when he got up in the morning.
[01:55:01] MOOS: An unknown number of animals were shot. So many that the zoo posted on its Facebook page, "We beg, if somewhere you see an animal, don't kill it, just call us."
(on camera): The zoo's director said some policemen exceeded their authority, while officials say some of the animals were too aggressive to be captured and had to be shot.
(voice-over): Among the casualties, one of the most beloved animals, Shumba (ph), the white lion. Last year, he was just a cub. His body was found on the zoo grounds, enraging some. He was shot in the head by emergency forces.
"There's no excuse for that. I am disgusted." But another tweeted, "Animals were posing a threat for people, and this is the last thing to worry about, because many people died."
When the flood came, man and beast ended up in the same boat.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BARNETT: Thanks so much for watching CNN NEWSROOM, everyone. I'm Errol Barnett.
For our viewers in the United States, "Forensic Files" are next.
For everyone else, Rosemary Church has key updates of events around the world after the break. And I'll join her one hour from now.
You're watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
