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Iraqi Troops Enter Mosul; Chicago Cubs Win World Series After 108 Years; Court Rules Parliament Must Invoke Article 50; Hulk Hogan, Gawker Reach Settlement. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired November 3, 2016 - 08:00   ET

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


[08:00:21] KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: Now, breaking news from Iraq where Iraqi troops have entered the ISIS-held city of Mosul. They are now in the

eastern suburbs, having pushed passed ISIS snipers and mortar fire.

Now, to the west, Shia militia say that they have cut off a route of retreat for ISIS. And they are advancing toward Tal Afar, a mostly ethnic

Turkmen town.

Now, Turkey, with tanks on the border, says this is definitely not a positive move.

Now, let's bring in Michael Holmes from Irbil and he joins us now on this breaking news story and more.

And Michael, Iraqi forces are finally inside Mosul. This is a dangerous new phase of the operation, isn't it?

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It is. Everybody's been waiting for this moment, I suppose, Kristie, over the last few days. We've

heard from the Iraqi defense ministry that the ninth armored division, elite forces have actually now officially ended Mosul. They came in from

the east. They went into a neighbor called al-Intersar (ph). This is a pretty industrial neighborhood, actually. And we're told that the fighting

has been fierce so far. Car bombs have been used against Iraqi forces. Sniper fire as well and the fighting is pretty fierce. It's pretty much as

you would expect -- excuse me -- it's pretty much as you would expect, however.

But, yes, officially, Iraqi forces are now inside Mosul, the east of the city, and this phase of the operation begins.

LU STOUT: The Iraqi forces, they have entered Mosul. They're in the eastern part of the city. and before this development, ISIS released a new

message claimed to be from their leader, al-Baghdadi. Does this suggest from this message that ISIS is prepared to dig in, to fight back hard, to

fight to the death?

HOLMES: Well, that's certainly what Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was saying. He was telling, exhorting his followers, his adherents, to fight and fight

hard, saying that resistance was noble and preferable to the ignominy of retreat and calling on his fighters to fight for the caliphate.

Of course, the thing is, once ISIS loses territory, that caliphate ceases quite literally. So, yeah, you could look at it, he was calling for unity

among Jihadis. It was a very sectarian message, criticizing Jews, Christians, Shia, and atheists as well. And, again, that exhortation to

hold the line, to go forward and fight.

So, you can expect resistance. We're talking with an American commander yesterday, the American commander in this country, and he said he expects

the fight for Mosul to be an extremely difficult one. And this is in the eastern part of the city.

There were reports last week that ISIS had moved and tried to consolidate a lot of their fighters across the Tigris River and into the western part of

the city, but that doesn't mean the east is going to be easy. There are plenty of ISIS fighters up there willing to do battle with Iraqi forces and

we're seeing that unfold right now.

In fact, earlier today, and one of those main bridges crossing the Tigris from east to west there was a coalition airstrike targeting some senior al

Qaeda figures as well. We've got word of that an hour or two ago.

This is going to be a complex battle. It's going to be a long battle. Taking towns and villages is difficult enough, taking a dense urban

environment, a major city like Mosul, the second biggest city in the country, along with perhaps more than a million civilians inside, it's

going to be tough going. And it's going to be slow going as well, Kristie.

LU STOUT: And you've been reporting on this operation since it began almost two weeks ago. Tell us about the symbolism of Mosul. If it falls,

what does it mean for ISIS?

HOLMES: Well, it means a lot of things. For Iraq, it means getting their country back in a way. As I said, this is the second biggest city in the

country. Losing it was frankly embarrassing when Iraqi defense forces basically turned and left when ISIS came in. And ISIS since then has had

two years to be building up defenses in Mosul.

The declaration of the caliphate it's a very literal thing. The caliphate requires territory to be a caliphate. And that is exactly what Abu Bakr

al-Baghdadi has been bragging about these last two weeks, this ISIS state that he's got that straddled Iraq and Syria and how he was going to expand

it.

Well, it's not expanding, it's shrinking. And that is a big blow for ISIS. The ideology continues, but the literal caliphate is going to vanish once

Mosul is taken, the west of the country is taken, the west of the country is taken. And then Raqqa, next stop in Syria, the de facto capital.

So it is, it's a blow to ISIS. It doesn't mean they go away. Most analysts think ISIS is going to morph from what it is now into an

insurgency, much as we saw over the last decade, really, and they will strike inside Iraq and outside Iraq wherever they can in an opportunistic

and very violent way, Kristie.

[08:05:33] LU STOUT: Yeah, and the mood among Iraqis, especially we reach this critical juncture with Iraqi forces now inside Mosul, because we know

that ISIS has been driven out already, driven out of Tikrit, driven out of Ramadi, driven out of Fallujah, all eyes on this battle to retake Mosul.

Is there a feeling among Iraqis that the days of ISIS rule are numbered here?

HOLMES: Yeah, we were actually in a town called al-Falfaliyah (ph) just the other day which

had been just four days earlier ISIS had been forced out. And there was a palpable joy there among the people who were telling us they were delighted

to be wearing clothes that would have got them whipped under ISIS rule.

The simple things of having a shave, having a cigarette, you know, unhealthy perhaps, but boy that was a sign of freedom for a lot of people

that we saw in that town. And that was sort of emblematic of a lot of -- the dozens of towns and villages liberated so far.

I think it's fair to say you talk to most Iraqis, they don't like ISIS. They don't like the ideology. There was a measure of support for ISIS in

some places, in places like Mosul, other towns and villages, because there was an antipathy toward the Shia-dominated government, the Shia-dominated

armed forces as well. They didn't feel they were being treated fairly.

And along comes ISIS and says, well, we'll look after you. We're on your side. It didn't really work out the way that ISIS promised it would, that

brutal rule. People tired of it very quickly -- beheadings, brutal, brutal punishments for minor infractions of ridiculous rules. And some of those

rules only now are becoming -- coming to light with documents being found. A woman, for example, who wasn't covered enough, perhaps some little sliver

of skin was showing, her punishment was to squeeze her cheeks with a pair of pliers. I mean, can you imagine?

So it has worn very thin. And you talk to most Iraqis, they want these guys out. And, you know, it appears that is going to happen. It's going

to take time though.

Nobody expects Mosul to fall tomorrow, next week. It could be several weeks. It's going to be a long, hard battle, but their days are certainly

numbered when it comes to Mosul. They're not going to win. But it's at what cost, the victory for Iraq.

LU STOUT: And it's important to note an Iraqi-led fight to retake this city from ISIS. And they have made significant advances on the road to

Mosul, liberating a number of villages along the way with the assistance of U.S. forces.

You spoke to them. What are their thoughts on the battle and what happens next?

HOLMES: Yeah, we were out with Lieutenant General Steven Townsend (ph). He is the senior U.S. commander in Iraq. He was doing a battlefield

circulation, as they called it. We were flying around in a couple of Blackhawks, visiting U.S. advise and assist teams in a couple places,

including Mosul dam.

He was very keen to emphasize this is the fight of the Iraqis. This is an Iraqi fight and the

U.S. is there to just assist and advise. We are in on a meeting between the general and Iraqi commanders, looking at the maps, working out what the

tactics would be.

Also in Iraq, there is other assistance too. Of course, it's no secret there are special forces on the ground here, but also we've seen with our

own eyes and ears U.S. artillery being used, mortar fire in support of Iraqi troops on the ground. And not just Iraqi troops, got to give a lot

of credit to the Kurdish Peshmerga who have been on a number of fronts on their own and having their own remarkable successes in moving forward.

And we were with Peshmerga fighters on Bashika Mountain (ph) as they surrounded a town just

20 kilometers from Mosul.

It's been a complex fight, but it's gone remarkably to plan. And General Townsend was reinforcing this too. When it all began, the Iraqi

government, the Kurdish political leadership, too, said they hope to be at Mosul within two weeks.

It was almost two weeks to the day when Mosul was in sight and they were knocking on the door and now of course in the last hour or so word from the

defense ministry that they've opened that door just a crack and are stepping inside.

LU STOUT: And now we have breaking news that Iraqi forces have entered Mosul. They're in the eastern part of the city, as you mentioned, assisted

by coalition forces, that includes Kurdish Peshmerga forces. And if we can bring up some live video of civilians leaving Mosul -- and this was

something that humanitarian aid groups have been warning, that this was going to happen, just waves of people leaving the city, new displaced

refugees, a new refugee crisis.

And now that Iraqi forces are inside Mosul, Michael. The battle, urban warfare truly gets under way. I mean, more civilians could leave en masse,

what is in place to support Iraqis forced to leave the city?

HOLMES: Yeah, we were talking to international organizations for migration earlier today. And they were saying that so far in the last five days or

so, perhaps 20,000 civilians have gotten out of Mosul or surrounding areas of Mosul, on the outskirts, if you like. That is a drop in the ocean.

There could be perhaps 1.2 million civilians inside the city, many of them on the western side because ISIS has pushed them across into that western

side as human shields.

There are reports of literally truckloads of civilians being herded into the center of Mosul, west of the Tigris River, and basically dumped there.

And we're talking about women, children, the elderly dumped, left there, no food, no water, and told to fend for themselves. And they are there as

human shields.

I say, the IOM saying 20,000 people in the last five days, that's nothing. Arwa Damon was down near Gojali (ph) which has been recently secured by

Iraqi military and she had some remarkable images down there earlier today as people were crossing out in their hundreds getting out of that part of

town.

But again, Gojali (ph) is not actually inside Mosul. It's very close, it's the last population

district before the outskirts of Mosul. But you saw those people coming out, talking about how they had walked for hours, how intense the fighting

had been, how they had watched ISIS plant IEDs in their front yards quite literally and put snipers on their very roofs

before they were able to get out themselves -- women, children, the elderly walking for hours to get out.

But as I say, you know, those images are stark and they're sobering and they're emotional in so

many ways. But it really is a drop in the ocean when you're talking about a million people. There's been talk of humanitarian corridors.

Well, ISIS isn't allowing that to happen. You can say humanitarian corridor all you like. Let's see one from the center of Mosul. It's not

likely to happen any time soon.

The Iraqi forces who just went into this eastern district, they are saying they're trying to open up a way for civilians to get out. It's very hard

to do that when there's active and brutal combat going on. Most civilians, most of them just hunkering down.

Some of those who got out and talked to Arwa were saying that was the worst thing. They're in their house, in their basements, they're hearing this

fightinggoing on, the shelling, the gunfire, absolutely terrifying before they were able to make their way out this morning.

And you're going to see scenes like this repeated and repeated for days and perhaps weeks to come.

LU STOUT; And the fate of the civilian population inside Mosul is of course what Iraqi forces

have to factor in, now that they have entered this city of Mosul. Michael Holmes reporting for us live from Irbil. Thank you, Michael.

Now let's go straight to the front line near Mosul. Our senior international correspondent Arwa Damon is there. And Arwa, again, Iraqi

forces have finally entered the city. This is when the urban warfare begins. Tell us what's next.

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what's next is arguably the most difficult phase of this battle. Now, we just spoke to a senior

official with the ninth Iraqi army that is the unit that made that push into the city, into the neighborhood of Intifan (ph). According to him,

they've so far managed to capture just two blocks, describing the fighting as being incredibly intense and moving forward very, very slow, also

because of concerns because of the civilian population.

But yes, right now the Iraqi army has finally, at least from one point, managed to make that

initial entry into the city. What lies ahead is going to be one of the most challenging battles of all, especially for these Iraqi forces that

need to prove themselves to the population on multiple fronts.

This is not just about eliminating ISIS's presence from Mosul and the rest of Iraq, it's also about rebuilding the country at the end of the day,

bearing in mind that the last time that the civilian population inside Mosul came across the Iraqi security forces was over two years ago when

they put their weapons down and fled the ISIS onslaught.

We can presumably anticipate that they will be coming across some of the tactics that we've been seeing them encountering on the outskirts, numerous

suicide car bombs, underground tunnels, ISIS fighters popping out from different directions, hiding, keeping a low profile until they feel as if

the Iraqis have set up more fixed positions and then coming in and trying to launch surprised attacks from these various different front lines where

other forces, the counterterrorism forces for example, have managed to get very close to Mosul. There's already been very intense fighting reported

as well.

We are also hearing that the civilian population will be allowed safe passage should they choose to leave. But as Michael just was saying there,

the bulk of the population at this stage will not be allowed to leave by ISIS.

And we were talking to some of those who were fleeing the fighting on the edge Gojali (ph) earlier today. And one woman said that she had spoken to

her relatives inside Mosul itself. They tried to flee and ISIS shot at them and forced them to go back into their homes, Kristie.

[08:16:06] LU STOUT: And we are looking on our screens, a live video feed from the eastern part of Mosul, that is where Iraqi forces have just

entered the city in this operation to retake the city from ISIS. We saw earlier footage of a few people on the road there. We can see it right now

on our screens, leaving the city. And as you mentioned just then, Arwa, you've

been reporting on what you witnessed on the road to Mosul, the beginnings of a new, an additional

refugee crisis inside Iraq now that we have Iraqi forces inside the city.

I mean, this is really going to ramp up the urban warfare, ISIS' use of human shields, many, many more civilians are going to be leaving, and all

this is taking place ahead of the winter season.

What is needed to support Iraqis who are forced to flee?

DAMON: Well, they need a lot of the basics. Those who we have come across have, as one would expect, only been carrying what they can. In some

instances, they're grabbing a few blankets. If they're lucky enough to have vehicles, they're piling whatever they can inside their vehicles.

But bearing in mind, those civilians who are fleeing are not fleeing from the city of Mosul itself. As I was saying ISIS, they are not allowing

civilians to flee just yet, and that is why you have been having for quite some time now humanitarian organizations trying to emphasize and re-

emphasize the need to protect the civilian population, but also prepare for them.

They have camps that have been set up farther away from the battlefield, but it's been quite difficult for those fleeing the fighting to reach those

camps.

Earlier today we did, yes, see the Iraqi army sending trucks and buses to pick up those who had fled from the Gojali (ph) area. We're going to need

to see a much more intensified effort on that front. And of course, these are people that are going to need shelter, food, water, medicine, perhaps

other additional medical support, because we've come across quite a few individuals that have also been wounded in this fighting, including a

little girl who we met yesterday who was wounded when a mortar round struck her and her family as they were trying to flee the fighting, moving

towards the Iraqi security forces, a mortar round presumably fired by ISIS.

But at this point, everything, all of the horrors, the nightmares that we have seen up until this

point, all of that, Kristie, is going to become significantly worse as this push into Mosul continues.

LU STOUT: Yeah, the humanitarian need is going to be massive as we enter this dangerous new phase of the operation to retake Mosul. Arwa Damon

reporting live from the front lines. Thank you, Arwa, and take care.

You're watching News Stream. We'll be back right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:20:53] LU STOUT: All right, coming to you live from Hong Kong. You're back watching News Stream.

Let's recap our breaking news from Iraq, where Iraqi troops have entered the ISIS-held city

of Mosul. They are now in the eastern suburbs, having pushed past ISIS snipers and mortar fire. Now, that came after ISIS released a new audio

message. It says that it's from leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, calling on militants to hold their ground.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABU BAKR AL-BAGHDADI, ISIS LEADER (through translator): God's enemies from the Jews, Christians, Atheists, Shiites, apostates, and all of the world's

infidels have dedicated their media, money, armies, and munitions to fight Muslims and jihadists in the state of Ninevah after they witnessed it

become one of the basis of Islam and one of its minarets under the caliphate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Now, CNN cannot determine the authenticity of the recording. We will have more on the battle for Mosul a little bit later this hour.

Now, plans for Britain to leave the European Union are now uncertain after a British high

court ruled against the government. The court says Prime Minister Theresa May can't start the formal process of leaving the EU without consulting

parliament first. The government says it will appeal the decision.

Diana Magnay is monitoring all this from 10 Downing Street. She joins us now. And Diana, this is a huge setback for Theresa May. What does it mean

for the Brexit process?

DIANA MAGNAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the government has said that they don't want this ruling to derail the Brexit process. And as

you know, Theresa May has made it clear that she wants to invoke Article 50, which begins the process of Britain leaving the

European Union at the end of March. But because of this ruling, the case will now go before the Supreme Court.

The government has said that it will appeal. The Supreme Court knows that this is politically so important and constitutionally so important that it

has to be seen to be moving fast. Normally judgments can take a couple of months at the Supreme Court, but you can probably anticipate the Supreme

Court judges trying to move fast on this particular case.

They've tabled a hearing in the first week of December to hear the case. If the judgment is upheld, what you can expect then is probably a bill will

come before the parliament where MPs will be given the right to vote on triggering Article 50. Possibly, amendments

will be put on that bill, safeguards about the process.

But it is still possible that Article 50 will be invoked if the government wants at the end of March, just that Parliamentarians will have a say on

it, which is what the people who took this case to the high court want.

Let's have a listen to Gina Miller. She's a philanthropist. She's a businesswoman. And was the lead plaintiff in this case. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINA MILLER, CHAIRMAN, PEOPLE'S CHALLENGE: The result today is about all of us, it's not about me or my team, it's about our United Kingdom and all

our futures. It's not about how anyone voted. Every one of us voted for the best country and best future. This case was about process, not

politics.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MAGNAY: The high court made very clear that their decision was a legal decision, it had nothing to do with their judgment on leaving the EU or

not, that that is a political decision, that they were really simply focusing on what matters and British constitutional law.

And as you know, Kristie, the constitution here is unwritten, but what they were saying is that

parliamentary sovereignty is absolutely fundamental here. And when matters of EU law impinge on UK domestic law, which triggering Article 50 will,

then government can't overrule the parliament. And that is why they held in favor of the opponents of the government in this case, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, and that's the thinking behind the ruling. Now, it's up to the MPs, not just the prime minister. Diana Magnay reporting for us

live. Thank you and take care.

Now, they waited 108 years for this: the Chicago Cubs have finally won the World Series again. The Cubs defeated the Cleveland Indians 8-7 in extra

innings, a dramatic end to an incredible series.

The Indians led by 3-1, but the Cubs, they came back to sweep the final three games and to make history. Now, our own Andy Scholes was in the

clubhouse for the celebration.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THEO EPSTEIN, CUBS PRESIDENT: A hundred and eight years. I've been waiting for a team like you, boys.

JAKE ARRIETA, CUBS PITCHER: 108 years doesn't mean anything. It is the start of something new, a new chapter for the Cubs, for the entire city.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What do you say about the team the way you came back from 3- 1 to win this?

DEXTER FOWLER, CUBS CENTER FIELDER: We never quit. It's never over until it's over now. Well, it's over now, we're on top.

KRIS BRYANT, CUBS THIRD BASEMAN: This is what you dream for as a kid. I'm 24 years old. I'm the luckiest guy on the planet, man.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[08:25:56] LU STOUT: Did you see all that champagne on camera lens there?

Now, the world has changed a lot in the last 108 years. But until yesterday, one thing remained constant: the Chicago Cubs always fell short

of winning the World Series. Nations rose, empires fell, humanity fought two brutal world wars, and through it all the Cubs still lost.

1908 was the last time the Cubs were world champions, the Wright Brothers' aircraft was just a few years old, TV was decades away. Back then, there

were around 1.7 billion people on Earth. And now there are 1.7 billion people on Facebook.

Now let's bring in CNN's Brynn Gingras, she joins us live from the Cubs home turf. Of course, the U.S. city of Chicago. And Brynn, wow, 108

years. How have the fans been celebrating there?

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I can tell you this, Kristie, if you happen to be sleeping in Chicago overnight, you were quickly woken up

when news -- really, when that final out was made, because this place erupted.

I mean, you could hear sirens. You could hear horns. You could hear fireworks. I mean, streets were filled, and everybody was just celebrating

together. It was really an incredible scene, I've got to tell you.

And you talk about all that drama leading up to this major, historic win. One woman I talked to who was in the streets celebrating, really into 2:00

in the morning with her two young girls, because it was that important to her. She says she got a manicure right before the game started, and she

had bitten off all of her fingernails because she was so nervous about this

game and that outcome.

It was really a dramatic win. And you couldn't even write the script for it, it was that good, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, after the victory, I mean, fans were just delirious with joy. And this is a victory that has made grown men weep. I mean, when you

talk to the fans, why? Why was this win so important for them?

GINGRAS: Well, you know, it's because -- one man described it to me as it's generational. You know, he said that he grew up watching the Chicago

Cubs with his grandfather, who passed it down to his father, and they would watch them all through -- you know, until he

was young, and how he's an older man.

And he said a year and a half ago, his father actually passed away, didn't get to see the Cubs win. And tonight, or last night rather, when they won,

I mean, he was in tears. He just couldn't describe it other than that.

He says this is something that, you know, I wanted my kids to witness. I wanted to witness. I mean, so many people just had high hopes. And you

know one of my friends just actually texted me and he's like, I'm a Mets fan, but I'm so happy for those Chicago fans, especially the older ones,

because you know, they never thought that they would actually see it.

Kristie, actually, we're going to zoom in. This is what they never thought they would see, that board, that historic Wrigley Field, home of the

Chicago Cubs, they never thought they'd see under that World Series Champions, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Oh, that's a beautiful sight there. And you don't have to be a Cubs fan or even a baseball fan to appreciate that because this is history.

Brynn, thank you so much for your reporting and take care.

Now, you're watching News Stream. And coming up, we'll go back to our top news story. Iraq says its troops have entered Mosul. We'll get the latest

from Michael Holmes, who's in Iraq after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[08:32:34] LU STOUT: Now, let's bring in Michael Holmes from Irbil, east of Mosul, for more on our breaking news story. Iraqi forces have now

entered the city of Mosul. They're on the eastern part of the city. And Michael, after two weeks on the road to Mosul, they're finally there inside

the city. Tell us what's next in this operation.

HOLMES: Yeah, it's a symbolic moment, that's for sure. The fighting is only just beginning for Mosul, of course. And a lot of fighting and

resistance has already taken place to get us here.

What we heard maybe half an hour, 45 minutes ago from the Iraqi defense ministry was that

the ninth armored division had punched through into one of the outer neighborhoods on the eastern side of Mosul. Ot's an industrial al-Intersan

(ph). Now, this is an industrial neighborhood, which would be ideal for ISIS to defend from.

We are hearing of some very fierce fighting going on. There have been car bombs used, snipers. There's been heavy weaponry as well. This is not

going to be an easy fight overall, and this opening salvo getting into the city limits is already showing that.

One of the big fears, of course, civilians. We've already seen civilians coming out of another area where, Gojali (ph), where Arwa Damon has been

reporting from. But we're also hearing from the Iraqi military. They're trying to open up a corridor of some sort to get civilians out of this

area.

It's not going to be easy because of how heavy the fighting is, but they're trying to wedge their way in there now and at least allow some of the

civilians to get out, obviously an incredibly difficult and dangerous thing for those civilians to do, to try to escape during fighting like this.

But as I say, a symbolic moment, the fight for Mosul has literally just begun in terms of Iraqi military units entering the city itself, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, the fight for Mosul effectively begins at this very moment. Michael Holmes reporting live for us. Thank you, Michael.

Now, with the U.S. presidential election now only five days away, both Hillary Clinton and

Donald Trump have ramped up their campaigning, and they are stepping up their attacks.

The latest polls show that the race is tightening in several swing states. In New Hampshire, one new poll shows that Trump now has this razor-thin

lead over Clinton, who was ahead just a few weeks ago.

Joe Johns reports on how both candidates are making their closing arguments.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump reminding himself to stay on message.

[08:35:05] TRUMP: We've got to be nice and cool. Nice and cool. Stay on point, Donald. Stay on point.

JOHNS: Making his big push in battleground Florida as new CNN polls show the race tightening in several swing states.

TRUMP: I've been watching Hillary the last few days. She's totally unhinged.

JOHNS: Clinton striking a grave tone, targeting minority voters in Nevada by using Trump's own words against him.

CLINTON: Someone who demeans women, mocks the disabled, insults Latinos and African-Americans.

JOHNS: Clinton also setting her sights on the red state of Arizona where Trump holds a five-point lead.

CLINTON: If Donald Trump s were to win this election, we would have a commander in chief who is completely out of his depth and whose ideas are

incredibly dangerous, or maybe heaven forbids, start a real war instead of just a Twitter war.

JOHNS: Both candidates ramping up attacks. Clinton calling Trump dark and divisive.

CLINTON: We know that the presidency doesn't change who you are. It reveals who you are.

JOHNS: As Trump hits her on trustworthiness and on Obamacare.

TRUMP: Real change begins with immediately repealing and replacing Obamacare. You think Hillary is going to restore honesty in government? I

don't think so, folks.

JOHNS: And hammering away at the recent FBI scrutiny over the e-mail server.

TRUMP: They just found 650,000 e-mails. I have a feeling those e- mails are going to be -- oh, there are going to be some beauties in there.

JOHNS: In an interview with "People" magazine, Clinton calling the FBI email review just noise and distraction, while remaining confident in the

final stretch.

CLINTON: Everything he has said and done both in his career and in this campaign is a pretty good preview of what's to come.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Joe Johns reporting there.

Now, Hulk Hogan and the remnants of Gawker media, they have reached an agreement after a four-year-long legal saga. We'll tell you what's in the

deal next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back. A four-year legal saga in the U.S. has finally come to a close. Retired wrestler Hulk Hogan and Gawker media have struck

a confidential settlement. And Hogan will receive $31 million.

Now, the case was an invasion of privacy suit. And Gawker had posted a nearly two-minute segment of a Hogan sex tape back in 2012. The media

company filed for bankruptcy earlier this year after Hogan won a $140 million judgment from a Florida jury.

Now, CNN Money's Brian Stelter joins me now from New York with more on the story.

And Brian, just walk us through the settlement and also why you've been covering it. Why was this case so significant?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN MONEY: $31 million for Hulk Hogan, the founder of Gawker, Nick Denton says Hulk will have a comfortable retirement thanks to

this settlement, which now ends years of legal wrangling.

There are also two very small settlements to two other people that were suing Gawker media.

All three of these suits had one thing in common, and that is Peter Thiel, the billionaire tech entrepreneur who had been secretly bankrolling

lawsuits designed to take down Gawker. He says he's not against all journalism. He says these were not real journalists, so they needed to be

taken down.

Bottom line, this case was about press freedom. It was about whether some billionaire with big, deep pockets can try to sue a news organization out

of existence, because he doesn't like the material that news website publisher.

In this case, Peter Thiel seemed to succeeded, and that may have a chilling effect on media more broadly.

LU STOUT: Yeah, and it was all about this feud. A feud between Peter Thiel and Gawker. And it stirred up, as you mentioned, this huge debate

over freedom of speech. What are your thoughts about what could happen in the future about the use of lawsuits to challenge and even shut down a

media outlet. Could it happen again?

STELTER: That is the big question. and the answer is yes. You could see other cases like

this in the future, other billionaires or multimillionaires taking legal action designed to really undermine a news organization to try to really

bleed it out. It will be hard to do to a worldwide massive news organization, but easier to do to a company like Gawker, which had dozens

of employees, had six or seven different websites, but which was vulnerable to this kind of suit.

Now Gawker is owned by Univision. The flagship website is gone, its other sites exist and it's owned by Univision, but the same kind of legal

challenges could face other sites in the future.

LU STOUT: All right, Brian Stelter, as always, thank you.

STELTER: Thank you.

LU STOUT: Now, this could well be the prank of the year. These two Australians who say

that they're terrible golfers bluffed their way into playing in North Korea's premier amateur golf tournament. They decided to email officials

on a whim after a polo event in China. And to their surprise were quickly invited with organizers thinking that they were part of Australia's

national team.

The pair found a tailor in Beijing who made two very official looking blazers and inscribed the words Polo and Golf Grand Slam Tour the Orient

2016. As you can see, North Koreans thought that these two were the real deal until they teed off.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And big shank. Big shank.

MORGAN RUIG, AUSTRALIAN "GOLFER": We thought, you know, why be a single international when you can be a dual international and we got really good

going on random sports close by. And we were looking at the two options between the Mongolian Eagle Racing, which was just a little bit too far

away, and this one.

So after a long lunch, we got online and they quickly came back to us, actually, which was a

surprise. We were greeted at a train station by a few of the ambassadors who (inaudible) made it. And we stopped at a number of monuments and

iconic places, you know, around the town. They gave us the royal tour of the city. Everyone was actually one of the (inaudible) for the competition

(inaudible). And I think they knew pretty quickly after we dropped three balls into the river adjacent to the course that it wasn't all we talked it

up to be.

But I know, it was very funny. They knew pretty much straightaway from there it was a laugh. And we got a good round of applause when we finally

after eight shots on a par 5 finished the hole.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: As pranks go, it was pretty impressive.

They shot a miserable 120 and 126, only beating the 15-year-old daughter of Nepal's ambassador. Now, both returned safely to Australia. They did say

that they found out the National Golf Open in Somalia is in March.

And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout. But go anywhere. World Sport with Alex Thomas is next.

END