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CNN NEWSROOM

No Major Successes, Nor Failures, in Tuesday GOP Deabtes; Markets Higher Around the Globe Following Fed Rate Hike. Aired Midnight-1a ET

Aired December 17, 2015 - 00:00   ET

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


[00:00:30] JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: This is "CNN Newsroom," live from Los Angeles.

ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead this hour, (HEADLINES)

VAUSE: Hello, everybody; great to have you with us. We would like to welcome our viewers all around the world. I'm John Vause.

SESAY: And I'm Isha Sesay; "Newsroom L.A." starts right now.

The Republican U.S. Presidential Candidates are back on the campaign trail, one day after trading punches at the CNN Debate in Las Vegas.

VAUSE: Frontrunner, Donald Trump, here in Los Angeles for an appearance on the talk show, "Jimmy Kimmel live." He stopped in Arizona on Wednesday declaring victory in that Vegas debate. Jeff Zeleny begins our coverage.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump taking Air-Trump on a self-declared victory lap in Arizona.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, R-NY, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I love you! I love you folks!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: A dramatic entrance for Trump, who is standing tall after the final republican debate of the year, made clear the GOP field is clarifying. It's now Trump in a scrappy fight for his alternative.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: You know, they used to talk about the silent majority. We're not silent anymore, folks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: He didn't dominate the debate stage, but he emerged without a scratch, and showed today he is still dominating the race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: 14 of them were going to be coming at me; I was prepared. But I said this could be unpleasant in front of millions of people and out of the 14, you know, Jeb and I guess Rand Paul, who doesn't have a chance, I mean, what is he doing?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: Trump took on a more serious tone but the look on his face said it all; one priceless expression after another. This time most of his rivals ignored him; not Jeb Bush, who seemed to relish confronting the billionaire frontrunner.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEB BUSH, R-FL, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: So Donald, you know, is great at the one-liners, but he is a chaos candidate and he'd be a chaos president. He would not be the commander-in-chief we need to keep our country safe.

TRUMP: Jeb doesn't really believe I'm unhinged. He said that, very simply, because he has failed in this campaign. It's been a total disaster. Nobody cares.

BUSH: Donald, you're not going to be able to insult your way to the presidency. that's not going happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: But one of the biggest anticipated clashes never materialized with Trump and Cruz both playing nice, at least for now. in the days leading up to the debate, Cruz said Trump wasn't fit to be commander- in-chief. Trump called Cruz a maniac, but standing face-to-face they were proper gentlemen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: -- maniac one heart beat away from the presidency.

TRUMP: But I've gotten to know him over the last three or four days. he has a wonderful temperament. He is just fine; don't worry about it.

SEN. TED CRUZ, R-TX, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We will build a wall that works, and I'll get Donald Trump to pay for it.

TRUMP: I'll build it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: now one of the reasons Ted Cruz did not go after Donald Trump is he wants his supporters. Ted Cruz has been positioning himself to be the true conservative alternative to Donald Trump. But Donald Trump, of course, believes his fans are going nowhere; that was clear by the thousands who gathered here in Arizona. Also, a bit of confidence in Donald Trump: he entered this rally to the tune of "Air Force 1", that classic presidential movie. Clearly a sign he is thinking ahead to winning the republican nomination.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Mesa, Arizona.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Seema Mehta is a political writer for "The Los Angeles Times"; she joins us now. And, of course, he arrived to the tune of "Air Force 1." We know he loves that movie. We had Harrison Ford saying it's just a movie. Okay, let's start with the consensus that is coming out of this debate is that it was substantive but not much has really changed, in terms of the race. So, for mainstream republicans who are looking for that non-Trump, non-Cruz candidate to coalesce around, they're no closer to making that decision, are they?

SEEMA MEHTA, POLITICAL WRITER, I don't think any of the candidates, whether it's mainstream candidates or candidates who are more religious or more libertarian, none of them had a breakout moment that created some new energy for them and no one failed or had such a big gaffe that they are taken out of race.

VAUSE: No one bombed?

SESAY: Yes. Yes.

MEHTA: Exactly.

SESAY: As we talk about this search for the establishment candidate, which seems to boil down to Cruz or Rubio -

MEHTA: Right.

SESAY: What we did see, however, was a that head-to-head collision.

[00:05:00] MEHTA: They had the greatest fireworks of the night. This has been -- I think we've all been anticipating this for quite some time, and finally we see it. They argued about security. They argued about immigration, which a lot of people have long wondered whether Marco Rubio's past support for a pathway to legality, for those in the country illegally, whether that would come back to haunt him. I think is just the beginning of what we're going to see, in terms of the sprint to the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary.

VAUSE: Something which I think is interesting that's coming out of this debate now, in terms of foreign policy, essentially, it's all about strength and sort of who is the most muscular.

MEHTA: Right.

VAUSE: And I this is Trump's turf.

MEHTA: Right.

VAUSE: And so we had all these guys who were trying to differentiate themselves from Trump, talking like Trump. We're going to punch Russia in the nose --

MEHTA: Right. Absolutely.

VAUSE: -- all that kind of stuff. Again, Trump is playing everybody, if you will.

MEHTA: I mean, Trump has tapped, like, this anger of - this vein of anger and fear that people are really feeling. Whether the candidates, they might not necessarily agree with every word he says but I think they are recognizing that he is connecting with voters in a way that they have not been.

VAUSE: So what I'm trying to get to though is if you are Rubio, Kasich, you know, a Christie, and you're trying to make the case that you are the guy to be the non-Trump.

MEHTA: Right.

VAUSE: If you're competing on Trump's terms, you're not doing a very good job of it.

MEHTA: I think they're emotional trying to connect with voters, in the way Trump has, while at the same time arguing hey, have I the experience. I have the gravitas in a way that Trump doesn't to do it.

SESAY: Speaking of emotion, Jeb Bush -

MEHTA: Right.

SESAY: -- take a -

MEHTA: Absolutely.

SESAY: -- at this debate and trying to be more assertive.

MEHTA: This is the feistiest Jeb Bush we've ever seen.

SESAY: I know. I read somewhere the idea of Jeb Bush is finally catching up with the reality, or vice versa.

MEHTA: He tried to do this earlier in one of the debates earlier against Marco Rubio and he was very uncomfortable with it but last night he was feeling it. You could see, he was not - he was interrupting. This is, like -- Jeb Bush is normally a fairly cerebral, calm, intellectual kind of guy. This is not the Jeb Bush we

typically see on the campaign trail.

SESAY: But has the race already solidified?

MEHTA: Right, that's the question; it is too late? Between the Super-PAC that is supporting him and his campaign they've spent $35 million and he's in the low single digits. So somebody tweeted if this had happened four months ago what would have happened? But we're getting really close.

VAUSE: $35 million spent on the most ineffective political TV campaign ever.

MEHTA: That's what somebody -

VAUSE: All right, Seema, thanks for coming in.

MEHTA: Thank you so much.

VAUSE: It's good to talk to you.

SESAY: Now, the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, will hold his big annual news conference in a few hours where hundreds of journalists get to ask him all kinds of questions.

VAUSE: Well, sort of. He'll likely talk about domestic and foreign policy. Russia has made headlines lately with its military presence in Syria; and now saying it will suspend its free trade zone with Ukraine.

SESAY: Well the Russian warplanes striking Syria take off from an air base in the western part of the country.

VAUSE: And CNN was given rare access to the base and to Russia's military. Here's our Senior International Correspondent, Matthew Chance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CORRESPONDENT)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is how the Kremlin supports its Syrian allies and battles its enemies. We gained rare access to the Syrian base at Latakia, now the military hub of Russia's air war. This really does feel like the center of a massive Russian military operation. The air is filled with the smell of jet fuel and the ground shudders with the roar of those warplanes returning from their bombing missions.

Russia's Defense Ministry says more than 200 targets have been struck in just 24 hours. 320 militants killed, it says, from Isis and other rebel groups fighting the Syrian government and its President, Bashar al Assad. so I'm joined by General Igor Kanoshenkov, who is the Chief Military Spokesperson for the Russian government, the Russian Defense Minister.

Thank you for the trip. He is escorting us here on his trip to the Latakia Military Base. let me ask you that question, that question about who you are targeting: it is ISIS or are you supporting Assad?

GEN. IGOR KANOSHENKOV, SPOKESMAN, RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY, via translator: I can answer the question with our actions. Every day we show you how Russian aviation is fighting international terrorism, destroying their infrastructure in Syria.

CHANCE: On our tour of the base, we were shown how Russia carefully arms its bombers with high-tech precision weaponry. We also saw unguided or dumb bombs being loaded. Human rights groups accuse Russia of killing civilians from the air, a charge the Kremlin strenuously denies.

Right, well, there is another plane coming in now, just touching down; it's an FC-24 that is going to be very noisy, but it's just carried out an airstrike somewhere in Syria against rebel targets, either ISIS or some other opposition group.

[00:10:00] Russia says it's stopping ISIS in its tracks, striking their assets and shrinking the territory they and other rebel groups control. But after more than 4,000 sorties over Syria, this Kremlin air war shows no sign of winding down.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Latakia Air Base in Western Syria.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: When European Union leaders begin a two-day summit in Brussels on Thursday, balancing border control with the ongoing migration crisis is expected to dominate the agenda.

SESAY: The core issue, how to protect Europe's open borders. A mini- summit earlier in the day will focus on what to do with Syrian refugees in Turkey.

There has been a lot of reporting about the plight of Syrian refugees but there is another group of refugees hoping to cross over from Turkey into Europe.

CNN's Sara Sidner found the community of long forgotten Afghan migrants waiting on the Turkish coast for their chance at a better life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The universal sign for hunger. The desperation isn't just felt by the children, but the adults too. Once a day, dozens are able to get something in their stomachs only because of the kindness of strangers who live nearby. While the world focuses on Syria, these refugees seem to have been forgotten. Their war has lasted a lifetime and continues to bring death to their doors.

SAMI REZAI, AFGHAN REFUGEE: They killed everywhere, everything. They finish it everything; they killed our Afghan soldiers. They killed all our family leaders and my father and I - I don't know where is my mother or my sister.

SIDNER: Sami Rezai says the Taliban gave his family no choice. They escaped Afghanistan, hoping to find a new life in Europe; but nearly 3,000 miles and several thousand dollars later all they have found is purgatory in Turkey. And, a new struggle: finding the money to pay for the daily medication the two children must have. Their mother, Tawadi Ikari (ps) is beside herself with worry, explaining the eldest needs nine pills a day, the youngest four. They are running out.

REZAI: If we don't give him the tablets, he's especially shouting; mind is out of control.

SIDNER: This is just one family in the midst of dozens of other Afghans waiting by the sea for their last hope, a boat to Greece, the gateway to Europe. They can't stay here because in 2013 the United Nations Refugee Agency stopped accepting new asylum applications from Afghan refugees in Turkey. Their new life is just a 35-minute boat ride on the Aegean Sea. They are all aware they may never make it.

maybe we will die in the sea because the boats not standard.

SIDNER: Mirwaz Biot (ps) knows about the boats that capsize on an almost daily basis, and no one here can swim, but these families say they cannot survive in the modern day ruins they have found shelter in, on the Turkish coast. There is no running water, no electricity, no heat; so they wait for their chance to board the ill-prepared boats, hoping the current will be kind.

As we leave, Biot whispers, if you were me, you would kill yourself; that is how hard life is for those of us who wait.

Sara Sidner, CNN, Cesme, Turkey.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: So much suffering. it's quite hard to wrap your mind around it; so many people far from home.

The U.S. Central Bank makes a long-awaited move. ahead, how world markets are responding to a hike in interest rates.

VAUSE: Also ahead, calls for calm in Baltimore after a hung jury in the first Freddie Gray death trial; those details also ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Well, it's calm right now on the streets of Baltimore, Maryland; but protesters were out earlier after a judge declared a mistrial in the case of Officer William Porter.

SESAY: Porter is one of six officers charged in the death of Freddie Gray. CNN's Jean Casarez has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN LEGAL CORRESPONDENT: For prosecutors, it was all about what Baltimore City Police Officer William Porter didn't do when it came to Freddie Gray. The 25-year-old died from wounds suffered while in police custody on April 12th. Prosecutors say it was callous indifference when Porter didn't call a medic after hearing Gray in the back of a police van say "Help! I can't breathe! help me up." and "Yes", when Porter asked when he needed a medic.

The case made national headlines after Gray's arrest was captured on camera. After his death, the City of Baltimore was under siege, with protests taking over the streets. Porter is the first of six officers to go on trial in connection with Gray's death.

Prosecutors told the jury Gray's injuries were sustained after officers failed to secure him with a seat belt while transporting him to a police station. Assistant Medical Examiner, Dr. Carol Allen, testified that Gray broke his neck, describing his horrific injuries to the jury, saying, "nothing held arteries to the brain in place. Gray wouldn't have been able to breathe," she testified. Allen also telling the jury if Gray had gotten medical care at that point, when Porter spoke to him, she wouldn't have determined the death to be a homicide.

Forensic pathologist for the Defense testified that Gray's injuries happened after Porter questioned him, and that his injuries were likely the result of an accident, and accidents happen.

Porter took the stand in his own defense, telling the jury he knew Gray from patrolling the streets of West Baltimore. They had a mutual respect, but every time Gray was arrested, it was a big scene and he thought this was like all the other times. Gray having a bit of jailitis, trying to avoid a trip to Central Booking. Porter testified he never saw any external injuries.

[00:20:00] And after three days of deliberations, the jury was unable to decide if he was guilty.

Jean Casarez, CNN, Baltimore.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: And one last note on the story, the family of Freddie Gray came out and publicly appealed for calm because there were fears that the protest may turn violent because we saw violence in Baltimore, of course, when the story first came out.

SESAY: But that hasn't been the case.

VAUSE: That has not been the case, mostly -- you would imagine one of the factors playing into that is the plea for calm by Freddie Gray's family.

SESAY: We'll wait to see what happens next, what the prosecutor does next.

VAUSE: A couple more trials to go as well.

SESAY: Yes.

VAUSE: Okay, Markets around the world are heading higher after the U.S. Central Bank hiked its key interest rate.

SESAY: It is the first increase in nearly a decade, and a sign of improvement in the U.S. economy. The head of the Federal Reserve, Janet Yellen, announced the move Wednesday morning. Well, it's not a huge jump, just a quarter percentage point. Millions of Americans will fill the effects. Richard Quest, host of "Quest Means Business" breaks it all down.

(MARKET HEADLINES)

VAUSE: Big numbers there across the Asia-Pacific region. Let's go to our Asia-Pacific Editor, Andrew Stevens, live this hour in Hong Kong. Andrew, this is a very loud message from the Fed that the crisis is over; normalcy is returning. But what impact could the rate increase have on the world's second biggest economy, China?

ANDREW STEVENS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, there will be an impact. It'll be something of an indirect impact, to be honest, John. What we're going to see, and what we are actually seeing is the Chinese currency, the Yuan, along with virtually every other currency in the world, is weakening against the U.S. Dollar. The U.S. Dollar is rising because as interest rates rise investors around the world see they're going to get better returns basically if they invest in U.S. dollar assets because it's got higher interest rates, higher returns. So they take their money out of other markets, particularly the emerging markets, and put them into the dollar.

Now with China, it's a different case, because the Chinese currency is controlled by the Chinese government and the Chinese Government is choosing to let that currency weaken as the Dollar strengthens. So it's still the same result, you still see the Yuan weakening and what money can get out of China is pushing into the U.S. Dollar, which pushes up even further. So that's what we're seeing, john.

VAUSE: So now they have a legitimate reason to devalue the currency. I guess that's good news for Beijing. You know, one of the reasons for raising rates is because some assets are overvalued; there's concerns about a bubble in real estate and also that stocks are overvalued. Look at the Dow. Look at the other markets. Look at your region right now. Everyone is heading north. Explain that reaction.

[00:25:00] STEVENS: I think it's partly because Janet Yellen did what she said she'd do. She played a really good game on this. We know the Fed has been hinting very, very strongly that rates will rise and it didn't happen last time the Fed met because there is a lot of volatility, particularly in the China market. So they held their fire, but they kept on hinting very strongly that rates would rise; and they went through with it today. So they have this transparency. They did what they said they would do. Markets love that sort of transparency. They hate the uncertainty.

And there was also no nasty surprises. In fact, the opposite was true: when Janet Yellen started talking about the interest rate trajectory, as Richard was saying, the Markets saw this as the Fed

wasn't going to now put these sort of pedal to the metal on raising rates. It was going to take a long hard look at every economic indicator in the U.S. and find out what it was doing and whether it justified a further rate rise. So it is going to rise, no doubt about that, unless there's something unforeseen, but it's going to be slow, and it's going to be very, very well thought through before they pull the trigger on further rate rises.

So that's what the Market is like. It's not that sharp interest rate rise, which really does pull off stock markets.

VAUSE: Yes, slow and gentle as she goes, Andrew Stevens. Thank you for being with us.

STEVENS: Thanks, john.

VAUSE: It's all nice.

SESAY: Okay, time for a quick break. Muslim-Americans are speaking out against Donald Trump. CNN talked with a group that watched Tuesday's debate. We'll see what they have to say just ahead.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It gives ISIS propaganda. ISIS wants to make it seem like the West does not want Muslims, that it is fighting a war against Islam and that they represent Islam and therefore they're the only refuge we have.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone; you're watching "CNN Newsroom," live from Los Angeles. I'm Isha Sesay.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks for staying with us; I'm John Vause. Let's check the headlines this hour. (HEADLINES)

Donald Trump is on the campaign trail, right here in Los Angeles, after declaring victory in Tuesday's Republican Presidential Debate. He also stopped for a rally on Wednesday in Arizona. Trump is standing firm on his plan to temporarily ban Muslims from entering the United States if he's elected.

SESAY: Now Muslim-Americans say Donald Trump's campaign rhetoric is to blame for backlash against their community.

VAUSE: A group of Muslims who gathered in Florida to watch Tuesday's Debate spoke with CNN's Randi Kaye.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MODERATOR: Mr. Trump?

DONALD TRUMP, R-NY, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you. I began this journey -

[BOOING]

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That was the reaction when Donald Trump first appeared during the CNN Republican Debate. This group of mostly Republican and Independent Muslim-Americans found little reason to cheer for him.

TRUMP: Radical Islamic terrorism came into effect even more so than it has been in the past, and we've opened up a very big discussion that need to be opened up.

KAYE: A discussion those here believe puts them at risk. In fact, at this school in southern Florida where we watched the debate, someone spray painted the words "f Muslims" in bright red letters on the wall, just days after Trump's call to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. SHABBIR MATORWALA, INDEPENDENT VOTER: The first time that Muslims are for their life, for there children.

KAYE: This woman says some of her Muslim friends have been called terrorists and spit on in public.

NANDEE SHABAZZ, INDEPENDENT VOTER: Whenever there is anti-Islamic rhetoric in the country there is always a huge backlash.

AISHA SUBHARI, INDEPENDENT VOTER: It's very easy for women who wear the scarf to be identified as Muslims. It puts a lot of attention on Muslim women. So there's definitely there is an air of anxiety.

KAYE: During the debate, Mr. Trump once again defended his call to ban Muslims, saying it's about safety and security, not religion. This group doesn't buy that.

MUHAMMAD NASIMUL GHANI, INDEPENDENT VOTER: It gives ISIS propaganda. ISIS wants to make it seem like the West does not want Muslims, that it is fighting a war against Islam, and that they represent Islam and therefore they're the only refuge we have.

KAYE: This Independent voter likes Jeb Bush and agrees with him that the U.S. instead must engage the Arab World in order to defeat ISIS.

KAYE: Why is this election so important for the Muslim community?

DR. DOURED DAGHISTANI, INDEPENDENT VOTER: Because unfortunately, the Muslim community is thrown in the middle as a political tool. What is a cheap shot like Trump is doing and saying things so he can look tough, like he's in show business but this is not show business.

KAYE: This group isn't only turned off by Trump, but also by Ted Cruz and his idea to, "carpet bomb ISIS territories."

Watching this debate, was there anything that offended you?

SUBHARI: Just the idea of, like, we're just going to carpet bomb people and I think that's a very barbaric and primitive way to look at how to address a situation.

KAYE: Does this make you angry watching this debate?

MATORWALA: Yes, it does because none of the candidates has talked about diplomatic solution for what is going on around the world. All they're doing is talking about carpet bombing, killing the families of the terrorists or just go after the regular Muslim community, and that is not a solution.

KAYE: This community is hopeful whatever the strategy is, it won't point the finger at them.

Randi Kaye, CNN, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

(END VIDEO REPORT) SESAY: Away from the U.S. presidential race now. The U.S. and Cuba are reportedly closer to restoring commercial flight service between the two countries.

VAUSE: There is a formal deal, at least not yet, but a Cuban official has told the Reuters News Agency the two sides have made some important progress. U.S. airlines have not had regularly scheduled flights to Cuba since the 1960s when a travel embargo went into effect. Right now American travelers can only fly directly to Cuba on charter flights.

[00:35:00] SESAY: Meanwhile, Major League Baseball officials in the U.S. want to make it easier for Cuban ballplayers to emigrate. Ultimately, they would like to negotiate with Cuba so the players could enter the U.S. legally without defecting.

VAUSE: Right now some of the star players who left Cuba illegally in the past have been given special permission to return. They're on a Goodwill Tour and that will last until Friday. Now, before a player transfer system can actually be a reality the U.S. needs to lift the Cuban Trade Embargo or the Obama Administration would have to give special permission.

SESAY: We'll see what happens with that. Well, the wait is over for "Star Wars" fans as "The Force Awakens" premiers in movies theaters around the world this week. A preview of the film is just ahead.

VAUSE: With no spoilers; don't worry. Tune in; we're not going to give anything away.

SESAY: No spoilers here.

VAUSE: Promise.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Well, the force is back. Fans have been eagerly awaiting "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" and this week they finally get to see it. Some already have.

SESAY: Well this is video we want to show you from the red carpet at the London premier on Wednesday. Here is a look at what to expect from the latest addition to the cult classic franchise.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: After a decade in theatrical slumber, "Star Wars" has reawakened.

The popular movie franchise is back with its highly anticipated seventh installment, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." Taking place 30 years after the defeat of The Empire, a new threat emerges from the Dark Side, in the form of Kylo Ren.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) [00:40:00] ADAM DRIVER, KYLO REN, "STAR WARS": He is very unfinished,

I'd say, and not polished, in a way that I think people normally associate with "Star Wars." There is something familiar and at the same time kind of unsettled about him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: it's a movie filled with firsts: the first to blend old and new casts.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRISON FORD, HAN SOLO, "STAR WARS": They're talented performers, and they have a real wonderful opportunity here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Yes, space smuggler Han Solo is back in action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FORD: Never tell me the odds.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Over the years Harrison Ford has grumbled about the character, but this time around he has voiced no regrets.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FORD: Part of it is that muscle memory but you put on the clothes of the character, you remember the gait of the character, the swagger of the character. it comes back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Solo is joined by fan favorites Chewbacca, Princess Leia, and Luke Skywalker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK HAMILL, LUKE SKYWALKER, "STAR WARS": "Star Wars" was my very first film. I didn't know what I was doing. See the movie and I'll prove my point.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: But it may be newcomer actress Daisy Ridley who steals the Galactic spotlight in her first feature film.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAISY RIDLEY, REY, "STAR WARS": I'm incredibly proud and pleased to be part of this thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SESAY: Ridley's character, Rey, finds herself wielding light sabers and piloting the Millennium Falcon just like the veterans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RIDLEY: The energy between everyone was fantastic and because Harrison and Mark and Carrie were so excited to come back, that really influenced us also because we were, like, oh, my gosh, this is really like a good thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: And the ladies are making strides on multiple fronts. This is also the first "Star Wars" film featuring a female villain.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GWENDOLINE CHRISTIE, CAPTAIN PHASMA, "STAR WARS": On my first day, I had to sit in the car. I had to sit on my hands and stop myself from screaming, because, you know, it's a film that I've loved; that so many millions of people have loved, and the idea of you being in that film is mind-blowing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Another fan of the franchise, J.J. Abrams, making his debut as director.

J.J. ABRAMS, DIRECTOR, "STAR WARS": There are moments where I think what the hell was I thinking? I had to put my being a fan aside somewhat because that wasn't the job. You know, I couldn't just be a cheerleader for this thing.

SESAY: For Disney, it acquired Lucasfilm in 2012, for $4 billion, expectations are high for a show of force at the box office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB IGER, CHAIRMAN & CEO, THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY: I want fans to love it, that's the most important. Whether it's commercial or critically successful, that's not what it's about.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Eager fans hoping to avoid spoilers are steering clear of social media ahead of the release; and we won't be giving away any secrets here. What is going to surprise viewers? What is going to surprise when they watch this film?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN BOYEGA, FINN, "STAR WARS": What is going to surprise viewers will no longer make it a surprise.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: One thing that won't surprise anyone, Disney is planning two more films; Episode 8, blasting off in 2017.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Well, he had you with the surprise, didn't he?

SESAY: He is so good.

VAUSE: You couldn't trick him.

SESAY: it is so good.

VAUSE: Chewbacca looked good. He has aged well.

SESAY: And we spoke to Peter Mayhew, who plays Chewbacca, on the red carpet at the premier Monday. He told me some secrets about how he goes to the bathroom. I'm just saying, it's one of the things I learned when I spoke to Chewbacca.

VAUSE: I don't think we can go there.

SESAY: No, we can't. Keep moving. I think it's my turn now.

VAUSE: it is; over to you.

SESAY: All right, well, Jimmy Fallon, host of "The Tonight Show," paid tribute to "Star Wars" with an a cappella medley of the movie's memorable score.

VAUSE: He was joined by the Roots and the cast of "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." it's really cool.

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VAUSE: Like a Brady Bunch version of it; okay. You've been watching "CNN Newsroom", live from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause.

SESAY: And I'm Isha Sesay; "World Sports" starts after the break.

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