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Mitt Romney Speaks out Against Trump; Terrorist Attack in Yemen Targets Home for Elderly; Super Saturday Primaries; Can Libya Put Together Anti-ISIS Unity Government? Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired March 06, 2016 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:10] LYNDA KINKADE, HOST: Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are steering ahead to clinch their party's nominations. But more states have
just weighed in, and their rivals have choked up more victories as well.
Also, ahead a deepening crisis in Libya. CNN speaks to one of the country's top officials about
what lies ahead.
And how are falling oil prices affecting the mighty petrol producer Saudi Arabia? We will take a closer look just ahead.
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center this is Connect the World.
KINKADE: Hello. I'm Lynda Kinkade. The long march in the U.S. presidential nominating process is one step further along. And the
candidates are sizing up results from Super Saturday.
Republican frontrunner Donald Trump won Louisiana and Lentucky, Ted Cruz scored victories in Kansas and Maine. He's increasingly presenting himself
as the only man in the race who can stop Trump's march towards the nomination.
Looking to narrow the field and pick up supporters Cruz is, quote, other presidential contenders, Marco Rubio chief among them, to drop out.
Mr. Rubio has an increasingly slim path to the nomination and has now turned his attention to U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, which is holding its
primary Sunday.
Now Boris Sanchez is there with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Rubio campaign definitely hoping that Puerto Rico will be a turn around for their campaign after a
lackluster Super Saturday.
There are 23 delegates at stake on the island, not a significant number when it comes to the big picture and the race for the GOP nomination, but
he could score significant some victories here in two ways. First, there are about a million Puerto Ricans that could potentially vote in the
primary in Florida, and Rubio is hoping to capture votes by showing support for the island.
His presence here could mean momentum in Florida, a state that could be crucial for him moving forward. 99 delegates at stake. They are a
winner take all state. And that could allow him to catch up to Ted Cruz and Donald Trump.
The other symbolic victory, of course, would be winning among a big Hispanic
population that would fight Trump's claim that Hispanics love him despite the potential to turn things around here things are grim for Marco Rubio
right now. We got a chance to speak with him yesterday about his less than Super Saturday. And he down played the negative momentum in his
campaign right now. Here's what he said.
SEN. MARCO RUBIO, 2016 REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Looks, these are important states. We were in Kansas yesterday. These states have a
certain profile that other candidates do better in. We recognize that. But it is proportional. What you need to understand that all of these
states are awarding delegates by proportion.
So, tonight we have more delegates than we did last night. We continue to pick up delegates. And we will continue to do so. And this map only gets
better for us as we move forward in some of the other states. Many of the states that voted tonight are states that, quite frankly, some of my
opponents just do better in.
And we recognize that going in. But we wanted to make sure that we get our fair share of delegates in this proportional process. We are soon going to
be in the winner take all process in larger states like Florida and in other places like that. And that's when we feel very confident as we move
foward.
SANCHEZ: Those comments coming at a rally for Senator Rubio Saturday night, just 30 minutes outside of San Juan, a rally where he told Puerto
Ricans that he was the best candidate to address their concerns, those concerns, of course, being the economic down turn here in Puerto Rico.
They're facing about a ten year recession on the island that has brought them to the brink of bankruptcy.
For Senator Rubio, this could mark a significant turn around in a campaign that is truly losing momentum by the day.
Boris Sanchez, San Juan, Puerto Rico, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: On the Democratic side, Super Saturday saw Hillary Clinton add to her lead in the delegate race. Clinton swept Louisiana. Bernie Sanders
won Kansas and Nebraska.
And while Sanders won two states and Clinton only got one, Clinton won more delegates. Sanders took home 50 delegates and Clinton 57 following Super
Saturday.
Here's our Brianna Keilar.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORREPSONDENT: That's exactly right. He won two states, she won one, but she won more delegates and she already has a big
lead over him. So, you are right, it was a mathematical victory for Bernie Sanders. Tonight we be seeing both Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton here
in this debate hall behind me in Flint, Michigan. Some of the questions that they will be fielding will actually come from Flint residents who of
course are very frustrated over the water crisis here over the last few years where lead has gotten into the water and affected the children of this community very negatively.
These candidates are -- we expect coming to talk about specifics because that is what the residents want. This is what the mayor of Flint, Karen
Weaver, said.
KAREN WEAVER, MAYOR OF FLINT, MICHIGAN: I really want to hear them talk about solutions to this. That is one of the things we are looking for,
because we have been dealing with this situation for such a long time that it is time to move past. We know we continue to need water and we continue
to need filters, but really have got to look at some long-term solutions and what it is the people of Flint deserve to have as a result of what's
happened to them.
[11:05:13] KEILAR: Now, Hillary Clinton's national political director said as this crisis became part of the public consciousness here in the last
couple of months, that this wouldn't have happened in a white affluent city. So, this is something, this is a chance for Bernie Sanders and for
Hillary Clinton to say not only that they are paying attention and they care about Flint, but also they are paying attention to the concerns of
African-Americans.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: That was Brianna Keilar reporting there.
And this is a live shot of the debate stage where Hillary Clinton will face off against Bernie Sanders tonight in a CNN Democratic debate. It's live
from Flint, Michigan. Anderson Cooper moderates. That's at 8:00 p.m. eastern time, 5:00 a.m. Monday in Abu Dhabi.
Tthousands of migrants and refugees remain stranded in Greece as European countries squabble over how to deal with them. More than 131,000 people
entered Europe in the first two months of this year. That record number has caused bottlenecks in Greece as Austria and some Balkan states refuse
to allow many of them to move north.
It's a decision that the Greek prime minister has said risks ruining Europe.
EU leaders are said to meet with Turkish officials on Monday to try and stop people from coming to Europe. CNN's Arwa Damon is on the Greek-
Macedonia border looking at the human impact of what is happening.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: For the youngest, this will be among the first memories: small comforting gestures as parents try to
shelter their children from their fear, not the fear of the bombs they fled, fear that
the better better life they risked so much for was just an illusion.
Upwards of 10,000 people are stuck along what was a transit point. This is the Greek side of the border with Macedonia, demarcated by a fence where
there used to be none.
In recent weeks, Macedonia has only been allowing a few dozen people a day through and only Iraqis and Syrians. The overarching logic that transit
and destination countries are maxed out. And that risks turning Greece into a massive refugee camp.
Ahmed and his family have been waiting for around two weeks, but they might never make it. His wife does not have her Syrian ID.
"When the strikes hit, we just ran away, "he says. "I happened to have my ID in my pocket, hers was in the house."
They never had a chance to go back and stricter regulations make identification many fled without mandatory. Ahmed says they had no idea.
His relatives made it to Germany in six days a few months ago.
The line for food, a sandwich is a two-hour wait.
These women, these young mothers from Aleppo were just telling us that the hardest thing about all of this -- and they can put up with about
everything -- is the uncertainty of it all, not knowing how long they have to continue living like this. They are, like the others here, aware that
there are high level meetings that will be taking place between European leaders and Turkey and it gives them the
slightest bit of hope that perhaps this misery will end.
Life does morph, as those who fled war know too well. Fadi, who went broke getting here, he reopened his Aleppo barber salon, a far cry from the
business he used to own back home.
And Hamza (ph), one of six siblings, highly entertained by our mic, has big plans for his future or so we think.
BOY (through translator): A teacher.
DAMON: A teacher.
BOY: A doctor.
DAMON: A doctor, wow.
BOY: A potato salesman.
DAMON: A potato salesman.
Who knows what will happen to these children's dreams given Europe's rising anti-immigrant stance and the reality that in the last eight months since
the refugee crisis first made major headlines, instead of viable solutions there have simply been barricades and blame games.
Arwa Damon, CNN, on the Greece-Macedonia border.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: And one topic that may be discussed in Monday's meeting in Brussels is re-establishing Europe's borders. It would come at a high
price, though. The European commission puts that price at nearly $20 billion a year.
Among the costs, governments would have to pay at least $1.2 billion for border control staff. The commission says 30 million tourists could be
lost at a cost of $1.3 billion and cross border workers and firms that employ them, could lose up to nearly $5 billion in lost time.
It's one of the world's biggest unsolved mysteries. Friends and loved ones of those on board Malaysian Airlines flight 370 are marking the two-year
anniversary since the flight went missing.
CNN's Saima MOhsin is in Malaysia for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[11:10:07] SAIMA MOHSIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Family, friends and well wishers are gathering here today to mark a day of remembrance for
the 239 passenger and crew members on board Flight MH370.
Kuala Lumpur, of course, is where the plane took off from bound for Beijing. It didn't arrive at its destination, it's where their loved ones
were last seen
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, today is the 6th. And I'm recalling what Patrick
did on the 6th. And then tomorrow, I remember what he did on the 7th. You know, he went for a safety course. And then I will remember on the 8th the
call coming in and all that. So, it's all replaying, it's a rewinding and now playing back. And that's tough, but I'm -- you know, I try to stay
strong.
MOHSIN: The family members are also taking this opportunity to launch a petition, search on. They're asking people to re-evaluate and re-
investigate the disappearance of flight MH370. There are concerns that once the current search zone of 120,000 kilometers in the deepest Southern
Indian Ocean ends, the search may end with it and they may never find the plane or their loved ones.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There has been talk about them stopping the search and at the end of June, early July. And we are not ready for them to stop
searching. We want the search to go on. We think that giving up right now will be premature.
So, unprecedented, so bizarre. They have to be willing to take unprecedented steps. So, they may not naturally -- normally look for a
plane for this long, but this is an unprecedented event and they need to take uncommon steps, unprecedented steps as well to recover the plane.
MOHSIN: Each of these balloons has someone on board flight MH370's name attached to them. These are for the 12 crew members, the rest for the 227
passengers on board who families are still hoping they might turn up and that is
why events like this are so important for them to raise awareness, to keep the greatest aviation mystery alive, perhaps hoping that it is a mystery no
more and they find the plane.
Saima Mohsin, CNN, Kuala Lumpus, Malaysia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, still to come, Leicester City moves one step closer to achieving what many thought was impossible. We will have a roundup of this
weekend's action from the top tier of English football.
Plus, Libya's politicians are struggling to come together to unite the country. But, can they finally do it to confront ISIS? Our interview with
one of the country's top officials just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FATHI ALI, VICE PRESIDENT, LIBYA'S PRESIDENTIAL COUNCIL: Libya has been the battlefield of various regional actors who are supporting this party or
other party and they all want to keep Libya as I said as a battlefield.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[11:15:05] KINKADE: You were just listening to the vice president of Libya's presidential council Fathi Ali telling CNN how his country ties in
with a lot of the stories we cover right here on Connect the World, be it it Syria, Europe's migrant crisis, or of course ISIS.
Now, within just the last few hours two Italian construction workers have just been rescued there after being held by the terrorist group for eight
months.
We're seeing them arrive back in Tripoli this morning.
The number and confidence of ISIS militants inside the country is growing, prompting Libya, already politically fragile and fractured, to ask for
others around the world to help its beleaguered army drive them out.
But ISIS has burrowed itself deeply. You can see how much territory it controls on this map.
All right, on the coast short trip to Europe.
You just heard a small clip from Ali. My colleague Becky Anderson spoke to him about a number of things that are pulling Libya apart right now. And,
again, he started off by reiterating the message about the fight against ISIS.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALI: I'm pretty sure that Libyans in general would support any action against ISIS, its threat not only for Libyan, but for the whole region and
the whole globe.
However, such intervention to be very helpful and meaningful, also, has to be with entry action, or with agreement with a Libyan government, a united
government.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Who is the international community? Who is Washington coordinating with on the ground when they
conduct or suggest they will conduct perhaps more military strikes going forward? Who are they coordinating with?
ALI: There has been talks and communication between the international community and the presidential council. However, I'm not a military
person, and I'm not aware of any other communications on the ground.
ANDERSON: Let me push you on this slightly because the international community may have support and communications for coordination with the
government in the east, in Tabruk, the internationally recognized government, but there is a myriad of groups, for example, working on the ground, militia on
the ground in the west and in the east and in the south.
So, it would be fair to say, surely, that the international community will need to be coordinating with some of these Islamist groups on the ground if
it were to want to conduct further air strikes, correct?
ALI: Yes, that's what I meant when I said we need the GNA to be approved, because we don't want these air strikes and interventions to happen like in
an unorganized way, or unordered way. We are not only about fighting ISIS here, we are about uniting the country because at the end of the day you
need to have a united command for Libyan forces, or Libyan armored forces, in order to
defeat ISIS.
ANDERSON: Let's assume that this government is to be formed, this national unity government. Where would it be run from -- Tripoli, Tabruk, Benghazi?
ALI: Basically, and it's the very nature for this government to work from Tripoli. And according to the agreement, signed in...
ALI: Is that feasible at this point? Would it be -- sorry? Would it be feasible for this government to work from Tripoli without further
appeasement, as it were, with the Islamists?
ALI: Yes, well we know it's not going to be an easy task. However, we are not going to compromise our principles. We are going to work in Tripoli as
far as we can work with a free will principle. We are not going to be under the threat
of militia. If we couldn't get into Tripoli because of that, we are going to work from Benghazi, who -- the city that has been almost liberalized now
where we have an official army there and the government can work from Benghazi until we deal with the militia in Tripoli.
ANDERSON: Whether agreement is reached or not about a new unity government the bargaining power lies almost exclusively, as things stand, with the
Islamists in Tripoli and with the numerous militia on the ground around the country in the west, east and to the south.
If those militia aren't at the table, what is the point? Isn't this is doomed project from the start?
[11:20:01] ALI: Things in Tripoli are changing. We are not in the same classification of Islamists and non-Islamists in Libya. Now more and more
Libyans and political actors, political parties, came to understand that there is no
future for Libya unless we have and establish the government of national accord and they are accepting it in the east and the west and the south.
And the full spectrum of...
ANDERSON: Really? I mean, that would be great to hear if that were true. But really? Do you really believe that?
ALI: Yeah, I really believe it. We are in direct contact with them and so many of them are accepting this concept.
I know there are small minorities in the east and in the west, they want to keep Libya divided as I said.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, still to come, Leicester City moves one step closer to achieving what many thought was impossible. We'll have a roundup of this
weekend's action from the top tier of English football.
Plus, Libya's politicians are struggling to come together to unite the country, but can they finally do it?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: You're watching Connect the World live from the CNN Center. Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade.
In English football, Leicester City's remarkable season continues. The Foxes moved five points clear at the top of the Premier League with a 1-0
win at up. Arsenal and Tottenham both failed to close the gap. They faced each other in the North London derby, but the game ending in a draw.
For more, World Sport's Patrick Snell joins me now live. Thanks for being with us, Patrick.
Now, given Leicester City's performance so far this season, perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that they are continuing with their amazing run.
PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: They really are, Lynda. Yes. So, Claudio Ranieri is getting the best out of this already talented squad of players.
But what I like most about them is that they continue to prove the doubters wrong.
This is a team, just to remind our viewers worldwide, that many in the game felt would fall away, particularly during and after the Christmas period.
But that hasn't happened. Yes, they have been blessed with a reasonably good front and clean bill of health in terms of injuries, but you look at
their core to their side. They have wonderful, wonderful staying power. They have Kasper Schmeicel in goal, Robert Huth, the big German, in
defense. And the goals, of course of Jamie Vardy.
But they have opened up a five point lead again atop the table. And this is what is incredible. When you look at them this time last season, they
were rock bottom, Lynda of the Premiere League. They were seven points from safety. It really is quite incredible.
But if you add up their last 38 Premier League matches, including the tail end of last season, they actually have a staggering tally of 82 points,
which is right up there with amongst even the European elite.
Quite incredible. They have a five point lea. And their next couple of games look rather nice as well.
So, they will be confident of building upon this. This don't want to get to the last three games of the season with just a slight lead, because
they've got to go to Chelsea on the last day of the season, where of course Claudio Ranieri used to be head coach. They face Everton as well. And
they also face Manchester United.
But Leicester City, the Cinderella story of the English Premier League. And every neutral out there would love to see them go on and win their
first ever top flight crown over there in England, Lynda.
[11:25:00] KINKADE: Absolutely. No doubt they've been boosted by the fact that their
closest challengers dropped points.
SNELL: Yeah, does anyone want to seriously challenge Leicester City for title? I imagine that is just fine by the Foxes and Claudio Ranieri
himself, but the so-called challengers dropping points left, right and center. Look what happened in that big North London derby on Saturday
between Tottenham and Arsenal.
It was billed as perhaps the biggest North London derby in living memory. Well, I tell you what, the worst possible result really for both of these
teams at the end of the day, because neither could get the win they badly needed to reel in the Foxes.
Credit to Arsenal for the way they came back, their resilience. They were down to ten men for up to 45 minutes of that second half if you include
stoppage time at the end of the game after Francis Coquelin was sent off.
Spurs, you know, I want to question, perhaps -- some might question their psychological power and strength. And they had two chances, you know,
Tottenham to go top of the Premiere League this past week and on both occasions they blew chances. They lost at West Ham during the week by 1-
nil at Upton Park. And once again, failed to get the victory over Arsenal.
Arsenal themselves throwing away points left, right and center. You know, The Gunners are now winless in five in all competitions. And Spurs have
just taken one point from the last six.
So, it is all falling rather nicely into hand for Leicester City.
But, I want to remind our viewers this is far from done, as Claudio Ranieri himself said after the big match on Saturday. There is still a long way to
go before Leicester can be crowned champions of England. They have nine more matches to go. There's still 27 points up for grabs, 30 points
available to Manchester City who are not yet totally out of it under Manuel Pellegrini, a fascinating run to come, but Leicester City look to be, dare
I say it, look to be favorites to go on and win it, but you know, football is a funny game. We shall see, Lynda.
KINKADE: We certainly shall. Patrick Snell, always great to have you. Thanks so much.
The latest world headlines just ahead, plus Donald Trump is taking aim at Chinese trade policies yet again. CNN goes inside a factory in southern
China where one businessman says Trump has it all wrong.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(HEADLINES)
[11:31:18] KINKADE: The Vatican has condemned a Friday attack on a nursing home in Aden, Yemen. At least 16 people were killed, including four Indian
nuns. India says an Indian priest was also kidnapped.
the editor-in-chief of the Yemen Post Newspaper told CNN ISIS may be behind the attack.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HAKIM ALIMASMARI, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, YEMEN POST: They were helping these elderly citizens for the last couple of years, for many years to come, and
were very much loved. This attack was so tragic that even al Qaeda condemned this attack and denied any responsibility.
According to the governor of Aden, this attack hold the hallmarks of ISIS, and this is not something new to us, because it is not a secret that ISIS
has strong control over many parts Aden right now and many checkpoints today are even
controlled by ISIS themselves.
So this is all because of the political turmoil that has happening in the country due to nonstop Saudi war in Yemen that has basically left no
government in many part of the country and caused many civilian deaths over the last 11 months.
The UN has told us over 2,800, while government tolls here are exceeding (inaudible) killed over the last 11 months. This is causing a huge crisis
politically, economically and also a hunger crisis in Yemen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Turning back to U.S. politics now. Presidential candidates are looking ahead to Tuesday's big primary in Michigan after Saturday's
contests.
On the Republican side, Ted Cruz and Donald Trump each won two states on Saturday. This just days after former Republican presidential nominee Mitt
Romney delivered a scathing speech against Trump, calling him a phony and a fraud. CNN chief political analyst Glorida Borger talked with Romney about
what drove him to speak out and who he would vote for in November.
(BEGIN VIDOE CLIP)
ROMNEY: Well, I can't imagine supporting Donald Trump for president or Hillary Clinton for president, either one. I will hopefully be able to find
a conservative on the ballot who I can vote for.
GLORIA BORGER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Did party leaders, looking back -- and I guess yourself included -- misread their own voters in the Republican base
by betting on the fact that perhaps Donald Trump would simply implode of his own free will?
ROMNEY: Oh, I don't know about other people. I certainly paid attention to Donald Trump.
I didn't expect him to do so well.
BORGER: Right.
ROMNEY: But he has tapped into an anger which is very much understood.
What he's done with that anger, however, is not to build it into resolve a high purpose, but instead to take it down a very dark alley, and that, I
think, is unfortunate. But I don't think you can write off any candidate. I thought Jeb Bush would do better than he did. I like Jeb a lot, thought he
would be able to gain a lot of momentum, but that didn't happen.
Donald Trump has. And at this stage, we say, all right, he could easily become the nominee, probably most likely to be the Republican nominee at
this point. But I think there's a better choice out there.
BORGER: Who is it?
ROMNEY: Well, Marco Rubio is the right person in Florida. John Kasich is the right person in...
BORGER: Oh, here we go.
(LAUGHTER)
ROMNEY: ... in Ohio, and Ted Cruz is right anywhere where he's leading right now or where he's closest to Donald Trump.
BORGER: When are you going to choose one?
ROMNEY: Well, it depends in part on how the process continues.
I expect that, after March 15, it may be clearer who is going to be the -- if you will, the person who opposes Donald Trump most effectively. And so I
would anticipate endorsing at that time. But let's say all three are doing about the same.
[11:35:07] BORGER: Right. Then what?
ROMNEY: Well, then I would probably, again, encourage whoever is doing best in a particular state to get the support there and do that state by state,
and that would lead to an open convention, where you would see the delegates elected make the final decision.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: For a closer look now, I wanted to bring in Mark Preston, executive editor of CNN Politics. He joins us from Flint, Michigan. Great
to have you with us, Mark, as always.
Now, despite Mitt Romney saying he was glad he didn't run when he saw the debate stage the other night because he said it was so degrading and so
demeaning. He continues to give his opinion from the sidelines. Does his opinion carry much weight?
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICS EDITOR: In some ways it does.
Listen, at this point, Lynda, there has not been a unifying voice here in the United States for the Republican Party, certainly one that opposes
Donald Trump. So, then you go to the second part of that, does he have a whole lot of influence? And because there are so many people that are so frustrated with how Mitt Romney ran his campaign against
Barack Obama, many thought it was lackluster, it was full of errors, that they don't think that necessarily he is the voice to carry it.
But what he did tell Glorida, and has been saying over and over again, is something very interesting. He is willing to back anybody that can take on
Donald Trump, but in order to get to that point he wants to deny Trump the ability to become the Republican nominee.
And how do you do that? You do that by keeping the three remaining candidates against Trump in the race to deny him delegates.
It is an interesting game of mathematics, but it's something that Romney and other establishment Republicans are trying to do now, Lynda.
KINKADE: And in the votes we've seen so far, Republicans have had a record turnout. Kansas, for example, had more than double the number of voters
compared to 2012. Should the Democrats be concerned about an enthusiasm gap?
PRESTON: They should, absolutely. No question about that as should the Republican establishment. And let me just say that on two fronts. If you
are a Democrat right now, you need to have your party energized. It is still fractured, because you have
Bernie Sanders, the Vermont Senator, who is running a very strong campaign against Hillary Clinton, the former secretary of
state.
At some point, though, you have to assume that Hillary Clinton is going to eventually become the nominee and she is going to need all of the Sanders
supporters to come her way.
Perhaps we will, then, see the enthusiasm gap rise behind one candidate, but that remains to be seen. We have seen Donald Trump, though, on the
Republican side really energize voters, specifically voters have not participated in past elections.
So the Republican establishment has to be worried about that because it might be those voters
who actually give Donald Trump the Republican nomination in July in Cleveland, Ohio.
And now, despite the fact that Donald Trump is well in front, he does need 1,200 delegates to secure the nomination for the Republican Party.
Failing that, it could go through to the Republican National Convention in July.
Just stay with us a moment while I take us through some of the history. A contested convention is an extreme rarity in the U.S. presidential race.
The last time it happened, it nearly happened, was 1976, then President Gerald Ford did not have the majority of delegates needed before the
Republican convention, but he narrowly defeated Ronald Reagan, winning enough votes on the first ballot to secure his party's nomination.
Mark, what do you think is the likelihood that the Republican Party will make a decision that could deny Trump the chance to run as their nominee?
PRESTON: It's certainly something that's on the table right now. Two ways that they could potentially do that. Well, actually one way they could
potentially do that, and two ways to potentially deny him the presidency.
The first way is to keep these additional candidates in the race. He needs, as you said, 1,237 delegates. For our international viewers, that's
basically votes. He needs 1,237 votes.
The way that it is set up -- the process is set up, is that if all these candidates stay in and they keep on winning a couple votes here, a couple
votes there, Trump could be denied that number.
And if that is the case, that's when you go into a contested convention and that's where you have
the first ballot, second ballot scenarios.
In addition to that, they're also thinking of running a conservative candidate against Donald Trump, a third party candidate. By doing that,
though, they could potentially be handing the presidency to the Democratic nominee because you would be siphoning votes, you would be splitting
the Republican Party.
No option is very good right now for the Republican Party as it is fractured and splintered and shattered over this ascendancy of Donald
Trump, but they are trying to figure things out, certainly those anti-Trump forces, they just don't have a great answer at this hour.
KINKADE: Mark Preston in Flint, Michigan, thanks so much for being with us. We appreciate it.
PRESTON: Thanks, Lynda.
KINKADE: Well, Democratic hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are getting ready for their CNN debate later today. It's taking place in
Flint, Michigan where a toxic water crisis sparked another debate against potentially negligent lawmakers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[11:40:07] SANDERS: I have never -- I don't think I have ever met -- left a room as shattered as I was listening to the pain of what was going on in
Flint. And really what I felt, what I felt is I could not believe that I was listening to people who are living in the United
States of America in the year 2016 -- I think the governor should do the right thing and resign.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, Flint residents are forced to rely on bottled water for their every day needs. Lawmakers are pointing fingers over who should pay
to get the lead out of Flint's tap water.
CNN's Manu Raju shows us the conflict over the expensive fix.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAREN WEAVER, FLINT, MICHIGAN MAYOR: So far what we have had is band aid fixes.
MANU RAJU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The mayor of Flint, Michigan made a desperate plea last December, federal help to deal with the city's toxic
water crisis.
WEAVER: I, Karen W. Weaver, mayor of the city of Flint, declare a state of emergency in the city of Flint.
RAJU: For congress, lending a hand has turned into hand wringing. A bipartisan bill making its way through the senate has stalled amid
objections from some conservatives about government overreach.
Still, supporters are optimistic that congress will help Flint and say the time to act is now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, the residents of Flint are hurting and are hurting in a significant way.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is as much a national crisis as a hurricane or a tornado or a flood or anything else.
RAJU: In February, Republicans offered their own plan but Democrats shot it down, disagreeing with how it was structured. Democrats are now holding
up a separate energy bill unless a more sweeping proposal to help Flint and other communities passes at the same time.
SEN. JOHN CORNYN, (R) TEXAS: This is about trying to embarrass Republicans and to try
to make us look bad and portray us as having no compassion for the poor people of Flint, which is exactly the opposite of true.
RAJU: 13 senators from both parties are now pushing a bill that would provide $250 million to Flint and other communities to fix water systems
that are falling apart.
But there is a problem. Senator Mike Lee, a Tea Party favorite, is holding up the bill because he disagrees with how it would be funded.
Lee and some conservatives don't believe federal aid is needed because Michigan has a rainy day fund. In a statement, Lee said, quote, what is
really happening here is that Washington politicians are using the crisis in Flint as an excuse to funnel taxpayer money to their home states and
trying to sneak it through the Senate without proper debate and amendment.
DAN HOLLER, HERITAGE ACTION FOR AMERICA: There a systemic failure of government at pretty much every level. And what you always see in
Washington is the response is how do we spend more money to solve the problem? That ignores that the
state of Michigan actually has the resources to solve the problem.
RAJU: Yet other conservatives who support the plan believe Lee ultimate will relent.
JIM INHOFE, U.S. SENATE REPUBLICAN: It has been highly publicized. So, I think it his (inaudible) to his political advantage as well as to doing the
right thing to do that. And so I think that will happen. That is the kind of guy he is.
RAJU: For now, patience is wearing thin and the political pressure to act is mounting.
Manu Raju, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: And if you are looking for a quick political recap for the weekend head to CNNPolitics.com right now for five key takeaways from Super
Saturday.
Our political team breaks down Trump's latest wins and what youshould know about the rivals
nipping at the heels. We also decipher which demographics are loving Clinton and who is favoring Bernie Sanders. You can read the piece and be
sure to let us know what you think.
Well, Trump's winning streak in the presidential race has been producing big laughs on late night sketch show Saturday Night Live. This weekend's
opening skit spoofed a CNN broadcast of a Trump rally highlighting criticism that some of Trump supporters are openly racist.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIIFED MALE: What a great, great night. I really am running the best campaign, aren't I? The media is saying they haven't seen anything
like this not since Germany in the 1930s.
I mean, everyone loves me -- racist, ugly racists, people who didn't know they were racist., people whose eyes are like this, and this guy loves me,
don't you. Wait, what's that? Get him out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: CNN dubbed Trump throughout the show. It also worked Hillary Clinton into the satire.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[11:00:00] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ...they are strong, they're beautiful and they have all been punched
in the nose at a Trump rally.
And speaking of Trump, he is on track to become the Republican nominee. So to all of you voters who have thought for years I hate Hillary, I could
never vote for her, to you, I say welcome. Because I have got clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right and here you are stuck in the
middle with me!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: A lot of fodder for the comedians.
We are going to take a quick break. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Some breaking news just in to CNN, Nancy Reagan, the wife of late U.S. President Ronald Reagan, has died at the age of 94, that's according
to the executive director of Reagan Presidential Libary speaking to CNN.
As first lady, she was perhaps best known for pioneering the anti-drug Just Say No campaign.
Again, Nancy Reagan has died at the age of 94.
We will have much more on this later throughout the day.
Now, to other news. Very rich and very conservative, that is how many of us see Saudi Arabia but that may be changing now and fast. You can see on
this graph, how the price of oil, the kingdom's main export, has been plummeting over the last year. The drop is forcing it to invest big and
new projects to help pay its bills in the future.
And that may be starting to lift the veil on social changes. CNN's Nic Robertson has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Beneath Riyadh, we are being shown a revolution taking shape.
So each one is five tons?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Each one is five tons, and there's eight...
ROBERTSON: The Saudi capital's first ever public transport network under construction.
35 kilometers of tunneling, more more than half of it complete already. This machine drills through the dirt at about 25 meters a day, their best
month so far, 990 meters.
The total vision, 176 kilometer rail network, 85 stations, driverless trains, integrate...
(SIMULCAST WITH CNN USA)
END
