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CNN NEWSROOM

Cruz Gains Ground, Trump Still in Lead; Bernie Sanders Takes Two States from Hillary Clinton; Four Nuns, A Dozen Others Dead in Yemen; Philippines Acts on New U.N. Sanctions Against North Korea. Aird 3-3:30a ET

Aired March 6, 2016 - 03:00   ET

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


[03:00:08]

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NATALIE ALLEN, CNN HOST: U.S. voters in five states headed to the polls for primaries, and Donald Trump took aim at his Republican rivals and Hillary Clinton. We'll look at Saturday's race results and the latest name calling ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM.

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ALLEN: Hello everyone, we're live from Atlanta. Thank you for joining us, I'm Natalie Allen.

Our top story, Super Saturday has brought some new intrigue to a presidential race that's not been lacking for drama.

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ALLEN: Ted Cruz made a strong push against Republican frontrunner Donald Trump. Cruz won in both Maine and Kansas, while Trump took Louisiana and Kentucky. Meantime, Democratic front runner Hillary Clinton extended her lead a bit with a big win in Louisiana, but Bernie Sanders came up with wins of his own in Kansas and Nebraska. Clinton underlined her core message to a crowd in Michigan, repurposing a familiar phrase from her Republican rival in the process.

HILLARY CLINTON, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And you know, we've got work to do. But not to make America great again. America never stopped being great. We've got to make America whole. Diversity is a strength, not a weakness.

ALLEN: Naturally, Trump wasn't likely to let that slide and he responded as only he could, calling it "terrible."

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTICAL CANDIDATE: You know, I heard Hillary today and I watched her statement tonight, and her statement is, make America whole. That's a terrible statement. Make America whole. I think she means we're in a hole, we're in a deep hole and we're trying to dig our way out. We owe $19 trillion.

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ALLEN: The Republican leadership campaign to stop Trump may have found its man in Ted Cruz who tied Trump 2-2 on Saturday. Cruz has indeed gained some ground, but Trump is still firmly in the lead in the delegate count with major primaries in Michigan, Ohio, and Florida just ahead. Here's more from CNN's Jim Acosta.

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JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump declared victory at two of the four contests that were up for grabs on Super Tuesday after winning in both Louisiana and Kentucky. Donald Trump said that was a testament to the organization that he's put together in this campaign and also the movement that he's leading in this country.

As for Ted Cruz, who also won two states on this Super Saturday, Trump said the victory for Ted Cruz in Maine was due to the fact that he was born in Canada. As for his other big rival in this case, Marco Rubio, Donald Trump suggested that he should drop out. Here's what he had to say.

TRUMP: I think Marco Rubio had a very, very bad night. And personally, I'd call for him to drop out of the race. I think it's time now that he drop out of the race, I really think so. I think it's probably time. You know I don't think tonight he can get up and rant and rave and oh he did great, he comes in third, he comes in fourth, every time he comes in third or fourth, he says, you've got to be able to win. And he has not been able to win and I think it's time that he drops out.

ACOSTA: Trump also defended the level of discourse he's bringing to the campaign saying that the occasional scuffles that break out at his rallies are due to the fact that his events are larger than those of the other candidates. Jim Acosta, CNN, West Palm Beach, Florida.

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ALLEN: Let's take a closer look now at the Democratic side. Bernie Sanders took two states from Hillary Clinton, but she scored a decisive win in Louisiana, with 70% of the votes there.

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ALLEN: When it comes to delegates, Sanders did not gain on Clinton. She has more than 1100, Sanders is nearing 500. Senior political correspondent Brianna Keilar breaks down their Super Saturday.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: The contest may have been in Nebraska, Kansas, and Louisiana, but both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders here in Michigan ahead of the CNN debate Sunday, and the key primary in this state on Tuesday. Both of them attending the Michigan Democratic Party dinner, where Clinton congratulated Sanders and didn't take him on too sharply.

CLINTON: Today, Democrats caucused and voted in Louisiana, Kansas, and Nebraska. I want to congratulate Senator Sanders for running a strong campaign. I am thrilled we're adding to our pledge delegate count. I'm grateful to everyone who turned out to support us. But now all eyes turn to Michigan. [applause] And I can tell you this, we're going to work for every vote.

[03:05:00] KEILAR: And as secretary Clinton referenced there, she and her campaign are stressing her delegate lead over Bernie Sanders, that he may have picked up more states than her on this Super Saturday, two to her one. But she picked up more delegates. They're also stressing that her margin over Bernie Sanders is bigger than anyone that Barack Obama had in 2008. Implicit in that, they're asserting that Bernie Sanders cannot best her.

Brianna Keilar, CNN, Detroit.

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ALLEN: I spoke a short time ago with Scott Lucas, he's a Professor of International Politics at the University in Birmingham in England here's what he had to say about the state of the Republican party.

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SCOTT LUCAS, PROFESSOR OF INTERNATIONAL POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM: The only way to stop Trump is going to be a brokered convention. And that actually is the strategy that Mitt Romney called for this past week. But to do that you've got to stop Trump in the next two weeks.

ALLEN: Do you think that -

LUCAS: You've got to -

ALLEN: Do you think any part of Cruz's win tonight was the fact that Romney came out and warned America, or tried to, away from Donald Trump?

LUCAS: Well, I think, you know, you can make that general call. But there's a problem there still for the Republican accomplishment. And Mitt Romney, and that is, they don't like Ted Cruz that much. They like him a little bit better than Donald Trump. But the fact is, you have got two what you might would call insurgent candidates both running against that establishment. So the establishment doesn't want a Cruz victory and they don't want a Trump victory. And so, although he might have got a slight bump from Romney, the strategy is, let's take it to the convention and find some alternative, pull it out of the hat by the time this summer.

ALLEN: So, what's happening here? What do you think's going on with this race, as far as the Republican side? Some Republicans are saying that the party is imploding right before our eyes.

LUCAS: I mean, I think the Republican party has been - has been divided for a generation. I mean you've got more centrist Republicans on economic issues, on social issues. And then what you might call the red meat Republicans. The type of people that Cruz plays to, the evangelicals, the people who want very hard lines on social issues. Sometimes hard lines on immigration. And Trump plays to the red meat Republican, as well despite his supposed moderate tag.

The beauty of Ronald Reagan and to an extent, George W. Bush, was that their teams could hold the Republican party together. But you've got no figure like a Reagan now to put up against Trump and Cruz. Rubio didn't do it. I don't think John Kasich could do it. And so the Republican party is facing not just a short-term but a long-term division going into November's election.

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ALLEN: While out on the campaign trail, Donald Trump has been referring to captive army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl as a traitor.

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TRUMP: Six beautiful, young people were killed looking for Sergeant Bergdahl right? So -- and we knew that he was a traitor because we had a General and a Colonel, interviewing all of the people that he worked with.

ALLEN: Well now, as a Trump's statements, Bergdahl's attorney is asking to meet with the Republican frontrunner. The lawyer says the interview would allow the soldier's defense team to determine whether or not Trump should be deposed. Bergdahl is currently facing court martial on charges of desertion.

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ALLEN: We turn to Flint, Michigan, where service crews have begun to replace pipes contaminated with lead that has been leeching into the city's drinking water.

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ALLEN: Much of the city suffered degrees of lead poisoning because of the contaminated water. Families have been relying on bottle water as the city works to fix the problem. And you might see some familiar faces here because this is CNN helping to distribute 500,000 bottles of water Saturday. They certainly need lots of support there in Flint.

Here's some background on what's been happening. In April of 2014, the State of Michigan changed Flint's water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River to save money. Shortly after the change residents complained of brown water. Reports said tap water containing lead started surfacing in 2015. By September, a pediatrician was detecting high lead levels in children.

Officials denied the claims at first, but later admitted the claims were correct. In October of last year, Flint's water source was switched back to Lake Huron. In November, Flint's residents filed a federal class action lawsuit against city and state officials and others. And by January of this year, the water crisis had gotten so bad, Governor Rick Snyder declared a state of emergency in Flint and requested federal assistance. Flint, Michigan will host Democratic candidates, Hillary Clinton and

Bernie Sanders as they face off once again in the next CNN, Democratic debate. That's at 1:00 a.m. Monday London time.

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[03:10:00] ALLEN: The Vatican is shocked by what it calls a senseless and diabolical killing of several missionaries in Yemen.

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ALLEN: We'll have a live report on what happened there coming up here.

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ALLEN: Welcome book to CNN NEWSROOM. In Yemen, four nuns and a dozen other people are dead after gunmen stormed an elderly home in the port city of Aden.

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ALLEN: A Vatican official said the killers burst into the facility, then went room to room, handcuffing victims before shooting all 16 in the head. The Pope swiftly rebuked the attack as senseless and diabolical.

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ALLEN: Let's get more on this senseless act from Journalist Hakim Almasmari, he joins us live from Sana'a, Yemen. Hakim it's good to see you, thank you for joining us. What more do we know about this attack, and who might have been behind it?

HAKIM ALMASMARI, JOURNALIST: It's a very sad day in Yemen, especially Aden where this attack happened. The entire city is mourning. These are Christian nuns who were very helpful and were part of the Yemeni family in Aden.

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ALMASMARI: Now, why would people or terrorists attack these innocent people is what people maybe cannot understand. As of now, the government officials in Aden are blaming ISIS to stand behind this attack, it's the hallmarks of ISIS. Even Al Qaeda has denounced attacks. So such attack is only could be seen as done by ISIS.

Right now in Aden, it's very tense. Turmoil in Aden where ISIS has dozens of checkpoints inside the city itself. This is the cause of the current ongoing war in Yemen, where ISIS is growing very strongly in southern provinces. And the attack yesterday on these nuns that killed innocent people is the reason why terrorism is hurting Yemen more than ever before.

ALLEN: ISIS is certainly unfortunately making its way into countries that yes, have had a breakdown in their government systems and certainly Yemen has been right there struggling for some time, Hakim. And we know that so many citizens had been caught in the middle there in Yemen and hunger has been a big problem, as well. What's the concern as this war continues, this conflict, that ISIS will continue to move across that country?

ALMASMARI: It's easier right now, Natalie, for ISIS to spread and be more active in Yemen due to two reasons. Number one, the war is causing political turmoil. Number two, the poverty rate is high. So it's a very easy recruitment tool for ISIS or terrorist groups in Yemen to recruit where there's heavy poverty rates.

Right now 80% of the population sleep hungry. That's 20 million people. These are all targets for ISIS recruitment. Over 2,000 children have been killed over the last month. 8,000 civilians killed. All these actions are forcing lack of government visibility and a chance for ISIS to expand and spread. And this is where casualties that civilians got killed whether Muslim or Christian as we saw yesterday in Aden.

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ALLEN: Such a desperate situation there in Yemen, and now this horror of an attack. We really appreciate your reporting for us. Hakim Almasmari there in Sana'a, Yemen. Thank you Hakim.

The Philippines has acted on new U.N. sanctions against North Korea, impounding a ship flying a Sierra Leone flag.

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ALLEN: Documents show all 21 crew members are North Korean nationals. Philippine authorities plan to deport the crew. Among the new U.N. sanctions, all countries will be required to inspect cargo going to and from North Korea. There's also a complete ban on small arms going into the country. And the sanctions call for the expulsion of North Korean diplomats who engage in illicit activities. Sanctions further include a ban on luxury items like watches, jet skis and recreational vehicles. Aviation fuel would be banned as well because it could be converted for weapons production.

The sanctions limit imports of North Korean coal and iron ore, if it can be shown that the sale would support illicit activities.

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ALLEN: The United Nations is warning that Europe faces an imminent humanitarian crisis due to the massive influx of refugees and migrants.

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ALLEN: It says thousands of asylum seekers are stranded in Greece, as more countries impose border restrictions. European and Turkish leaders will meet on the migrant crisis in Brussels Monday. The European commission warns reestablishing Europe's boarders would

cost nearly $20 billion a year. It says governments would have to pay at least $1.2 billion for border control staff. It predicts tourism would decrease at a cost of $1.3 billion and cross border workers and their firms would lose nearly $5 billion in lost time alone.

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ALLEN: A gay poet who fears persecution in his native Iran is seeking asylum in a country where he feels accepted. But it's a place his homeland considers an enemy. CNN's Oren Liebermann reports from Tel Aviv.

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OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Payam Feili no longer needs to hide. On the streets of Tel Aviv, he is open, he is out. An unlikely transplant who found a new home when he says his country became his prison.

PAYAM FEILI, POET: (As Translated) My life came to a blind alley, it was empty, I couldn't anymore. Under the circumstances I had, with who I am, I couldn't survive in that country.

LIEBERMANN: The openly gay Feili, left his family and his native Iran two years ago. A victim of persecution he says, in a country where homosexuality is illegal. The book you see him I will grow, I will bear fruit, figs, has passages about homosexuality. When he published it in Hebrew, he says he was held captive in Iran for 44 days. Upon his release, he says he fled through Turkey to Israel. He arrived the day his writings were featured during a performance in Tel Aviv. Ido Dagan arranged his visa.

IDO DAGAN, FEILI'S FRIEND: It felt like it was a warm, welcoming of one big family.

LIEBERMANN: We meet Feili on Rothchild Street, one of the most popular streets in this progressive city.

It's almost bizarre in a way to sit here in Tel Aviv here in Israel holding a passport that says Islamic Republic of Iran. And you open it, there are a few stamps in here, there are a few Turkey stamps and then right at the back it says, the holder of this passport is not entitled to travel to the occupied Palestine.

It's a beautiful day in the chic city and Feili is relaxed. In the city that hosts the largest gay pride celebration in the Middle East, he says he feels safe here. He considers himself an atheist, sporting blue nail polish, a cannabis earring and a Jewish star on his neck.

FEILI: (via translator) when you talk about Israel and Iran as enemies, you're talking about governments, not people. Many people in Iran really love Israel and would like to visit just like Israeli's who talk to me about Iran.

LIEBERMANN: Feili's three-month visa was about to run out when it was extended until November. But he has no permanent home. A stranger seeking asylum in a country where he says he feels like a native son.

Oren Liebermann, CNN, Tel Aviv.

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ALLEN: A man in Florida is lucky to be alive after he got sucked into a nuclear power plant pipe while scuba diving.

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[03:20:05] ALLEN: We'll have his story next.

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ALLEN: Well far, far away in space, Pluto may have something we recognize from earth.

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ALLEN: These images released by NASA show snow-covered mountains on Pluto. But the snow isn't made of water. Scientists say it's methane, similar to the natural gas found on our planet. The icy methane may act like water in earth's atmosphere, freezing at high altitudes. Methane.

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ALLEN: A man says he found himself swimming with tons of fish at a nuclear power plant get this, after he got sucked into an intake pipe while scuba diving off the east coast of Florida.

Christopher Le Cun told CNN the initial moments were so turbulent, it was unbelievable.

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CHRISTOPHER LE CUN, SCUBA DIVER: It kind of felt like I got sucked over a waterfall, and just instantly complete darkness, just getting tumbled around and around, I'm trying to hang on to my mask and my regulator. I finally get ahold of my light, and I'm trying to look around and as far as you can see just black.

ALLEN: Le Cun, is suing the power company saying the intake pipe was not marked with any warning signs. The power company though said there is a large buoy there which reads stay back 100 feet. This incident has happened at least once before in 1989. And that is just south of Jacksonville, Florida.

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DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Looks like I'll be canceling my scuba lessons this weekend.

ALLEN: So creepy. So terrifying. VAN DAM: It is terrifying.

ALLEN: You're out scuba diving and the next thing you know you're sucked into -

VAN DAM: That will catch you off guard bad day at the office.

ALLEN: All right, Derek Van Dam is here and he's going to tell us more. A snow story that will get our mind off of scuba diving.

VAN DAM: Yes, full disclosure you're a skier, I'm a snowboarder, we like snow and we like it when it comes late in the season at least in the Northern Hemisphere, and that is exactly what California is getting at this very moment in time.

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VAN DAM: You're looking at -- that's where I want to be. No, I want to be right here with you Natalie and with the viewers. I love seeing pictures of this though, keep it coming mother nature. We like to see the fresh snow. That is the Sierra Mountain range in California. And just outside of Sacramento and San Francisco, beautiful, huge white flakes and it's going to continue overnight and for the next several days.

Here's the latest radar. We have got a barrage of just heavy rainfall moving through California and the Pacific Northwest. Of course that shading of white running North and South into California, that is the Sierra Nevada mountain range. It's thanks to this phenomena meteorologists refer to as the "pineapple express."

Let me explain to you what that is. We've got these large low pressures that develop across the Aleutian Islands near Alaska, there's also a strong polar jet that dips way south and it starts to picks up on moisture that's got a tropical influence, meaning it's coming from let's say the Hawaiian Islands for instance. And we pull that moisture in and that's where it starts to impact land, including the U.S. state of California.

[03:25:10] VAN DAM: We have been in a well-advertised drought across this region, so we will continue to take this rain as much as we can and the snowfall, of course. Because lots of the cities in California, including San Francisco, Sacramento and Los Angeles rely on the snow melt as we head into the summer months, especially across the Sierra Nevada.

So we're talking about over three feet of snow. That is just through Monday alone. And potentially for some of the foothills leading up to the Sierra Nevada mountain range, potentially up to 6 to 10 inches of rainfall.

Here's San Francisco specifically. We'll take you through the seven days, it is possible that we receive 3 to 3 1/2 inches of rainfall. That is good news, perhaps some records broken across that region. Anywhere you see that shading of green throughout California, that is flood watches that are in effect. And that is aligning quite well with the climate prediction center's forecast going over the next 6 to 10 days. We have above average rainfall for the western half of the United States and that will continue.

Look at this, it's not only a rain threat it's also the potential for strong winds. Hey, I mentioned earlier that I'm a snowboarder, so Natalie I'm going to take you -- oh, i wish that was me. Goodness, that's Shaun White, I believe, winning the Burton U.S. Open in Vail this weekend. Wow, he won a gold medal there and (inaudible).

ALLEN: He's won a few gold medals.

VAN DAM: He has won a few gold medals, including the Olympics. But look at that star, what an athlete.

ALLEN: Can you imagine if that was your career right there, that's what you did that for a living?

VAN DAM: Here's the female winner as well.

ALLEN: All right.

VAN DAM: I was out west recently snowboarding and the snow is extremely hard right now, they need a refresh so if they were to fall, that would hurt very bad.

ALLEN: She's good.

VAN DAM: She is, extremely.

ALLEN: Thank you, Derek. All right.

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ALLEN: Well we have this for you. A previously unknown species of octopod may have been found. Look at that little thing. U.S. scientists say they spotted this one by chance near Hawaii. It's not very muscular and it doesn't have much color, so people on social media have named it "Casper the friendly ghost." It was found about four kilometers underwater. Biologists say they have never seen an octopod one that lacks fins and filaments this deep below the surface.

VAN DAM: Strange little creature that -

ALLEN: I like it.

VAN DAM: But, rather cute.

ALLEN: I know thanks for watching.

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ALLEN: Up next here is CNN Business Traveler that delves into the lounge wars. See you soon.