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Donald Trump Doubles Down on Attacks on Hillary; Will Controversial Frontrunner Becomes Next President of The Philippines?; Protests in Athens as New Round of Austerity Being Negotiated; Iranians Lose 13 Soldiers in Fight for Aleppo Suburb. Aired 11:00a-12:00p ET
Aired May 09, 2016 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[11:00:18] FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: "We were so concerned for our daughters," this man says, "we wouldn't even let
them leave the house. But look now, we're taking them with us."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LYNDA KINKADE, HOST: Calm in the capital -- as peace talks kick off in Paris, people
in Damascus see a respite from the violence. next, a live report from the Syrian city.
Also ahead, British prime minister David Cameron makes the case to stay inside the EU while London Mayor Boris Johnson pushes for a Brexit.
Also ahead...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Tight security in the
Philippines as tens of millions of voters elect a new government following a heated campaign.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Will, a controversial frontrunner become the next president in The Philippines?
Hello and welcome to Connect the World. I'm Lynda Kinkade in for Becky Anderson.
A new effort is under way to silence the guns in Syria. But while diplomats are talking peace thousands of kilometers from the battlefield,
the war in some areas is only getting worse.
Fighting is intensifying around Aleppo despite a new truce for the city reached just days ago. Syrian troops and their allies clashed with
rebels today while war planes launched new attacks around Khan Tuman (ph), a strategic town south of Aleppo.
Islamist rebels seized that town last week, a set back for the government troops in that area.
Iranian media reported 13 of the country's fighters were killed while fighting alongside Syrian forces.
Let's get more now from CNN's Frederick Pleitgen who is live for us in Damascus. And I was just saying, that the fighting around Aleppo has
intensified. And the worst loss of life since they joined this fight.
PLEITGEN: Well, Lynda, that certainly is the first or largest loss of life for the Iranians that they've acknowledged since they've lost the
fight. It's been interesting, over the past couple months that the Iranians who were very reluctant to even acknowledge that they had any sort
of presence on the ground in Syria, then started speaking about the people that they call the martyrs. They started showing funerals inside Iran.
And now when this happened on Thursday, when the 13 Iranians there were killed, the Iranian media was pretty quickly to point out that, yes,
indeed, this happened, that yes, indeed this was a big loss of life for the Iranian forces. They also came out today with the statement saying that
apparently six revolutionary guard forces had been captured by the Islamist rebels who overran that town of
Khan Tuman (ph) there on Thursday.
Of course, some remarkable video coming out from that battle as well. The Islamists filming that with a drone including a massive suicide
explosion that happened as well.
The big question is, what's going to happen next. Are the Iranians going to draw back or are they going to try to retake that town with the
help of Syrian government forces? Are they going to intensify their efforts?
We do know that ever since this battle happened on Thursday there's been a lot of air
strikes in that area. And as you've mentioned, also, there's some shelling that's going on in Aleppo as well. So, the cease-fire there certainly very
tentative, Lynda?
KINKADE: And you, of course, now are in Damascus. You've been there several times before. How are things there right now?
PLEITGEN: Well they've changed a lot. You know, the interesting thing is that right now in Damascus there is a cease-fire that seems to be
by and large functioning. And one of the things that we've noticed, the big difference is that there's way more people out on the streets and even
more remarkable is that many, many people are taking their children out that
wouldn't have done that before.
Of course, many people very worried about the security of their children now saying this is one of the first times that they've actually
been able to breathe, to come out, to go to restaurants, to go to cafes.
Here's what we saw when we walked around central Damascus.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PLEITGEN: After a recent spike in fighting in Syria's brutal civil war, at least in some parts of the country some respite. Residents crowd
cafes and restaurants in the government-held part of Damascus, one of several cities where limited cease-fires have been agreed and put in effect
in recent days.
"We were so concerned for our daughters," this man says, "we wouldn't even let them leave the
house, but look now, we are taking them with us."
And this man adds, "things are so much better than before. I think local reconciliation, like in some neighborhoods, could be a solution."
Russia and the U.S. brokered crease fires between government forces and many rebel factions in Damascus and the Latakia region due to last
between 48 and 72 hours.
The truce has been extended to Aleppo as well, where heavy fighting killed hundreds of
civilians in the past two weeks, including one of the last pediatricians in the rebel-held part of the city during a strike on a children's hospital.
now many syrians hope this new period of relative calm could last more than just a few days.
PLEITGEN: Of course people here are discussing the prospects of political reconciliation or longer-term cease-fire, but the majority of
folks that we spoke to here in the government held part of Damascus say right now they are just enjoying this moment where they don't have to worry
about machine gunfire or mortars raining down on their heads.
But in many places, the civil war rages on. Dozens of pro-government and rebel fighters were killed in heavy fighting outside Aleppo on Friday
an Islamist group even filming the battle with a drone.
After five years of fighting many here say they're simply fed up with the violence.
[11:06:00] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My heart is broken when I hear and see what is happening there, because now Syria is -- everywhere is my
country, and everywhere is my family.
PLEITGEN: Despite the current calm, no side of Syria's civil war seems willing to back down, leaving many worried that the quiet, like here
in Damascus, could be all too brief.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PLEITGEN: And that's one of the big problems here that people say they have. You know, they see these international negotiations going on.
They see the negotiations between the Syrian government and between the rebels. And at this point in time, they don't believe that anybody is
really very much interested in the solution to this conflict and they believe that
civilians here in Syria are being crushed between the interest of these many factions that are involved here in the Syria conflict,
certainly the people here say that right now they are enjoying the calm that they have here in Damascus, they're thinking of other Syrians in other
parts of the country. They don't necessarily have faith in the fact that this is something that could last -- Lynda.
KINKADE: Many, many factions involved in the fighting there, but also many countries.
Turkey now confirming it's sending in special forces into Syria.
PLEITGEN: Yeah.
And the big question there is, Lynda, whether or not that means a fundamental change in Turkish strategy.
It's very remarkable for the Turks to not only conduct cross-border operations, they've done that in the past, but to also acknowledge that
they have. It seems like a signal that they're sending to the international community that they're getting tougher on groups like ISIS,
but also at home. They've had a lot of pressure, the Turkish government, because there's been so much cross-border shelling from Syrian territory on
to towns like Killis (ph) on the border area with Syria that have killed many Turks and people were putting pressure on the government, people were
lobbying the government to finally get tougher.
This also of course comes in the wake of the Turks saying that they themselves conducted some
strikes on Syrian territory where they killed some 55 ISIS fighters.
Again the big question is, does this mean that they're going to have a harder strategy towards
ISIS, is this something that is aimed at different people to show that they are more involved now in the Syria conflict.
Of course, we know that the Turks have been called on by many to get tougher on these Islamic groups to shut their border, wait and see whether
or not this is something that really changes the equation on the ground, Lynda.
KINKADE: OK. Some great reporting there. Frederick Pleitgen for us live in Damascus, Syria. Thank you ver much.
And talks are taking place right now in Paris to work towards a diplomatic solution to the
Syrian conflict. Members of the so-called friends of Syria nations began meeting about an hour ago. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is also in
Paris and will meet separately with his French counterpart to discuss the conflict.
Our senior international correspondent Jim Bittermann joins us now live from Paris. Jim, there were some questions about whether the U.S.
secretary of state would even attend today's talks, but he has arrived. Who organized the talks and what's expected to happen today?
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lynda, it's really an effort by Jean-Marc Ayrault, the French foreign minister here,
who was operating at the hands and behest of his boss Francois Hollande who are just as upset as the
people of Syria that Fred was talking about, the suffering there going on, the cease-fire apparently not
holding very well. And Ayrault wanted to give impetus to the talks that have been going on, dragging on in Geneva without
much success.
And so he called on various members of the Gulf states to come in, the foreign ministers to come in, John Kerry said at the last minute he would
also join. There's also the foreign minister of turkey as well as one of the moderate opposition groups who are meeting this afternoon.
But it's only ten of the 17 members of the Syrian support group that are here and are meeting. So, it's unlikely that there's going to be much
of a result, particularly because two of the biggest absences are the Russian foreign minister and the Iranian foreign minister, Lynda.
KINKADE: OK, we're going to have to leave it there for now. Jim Bittermann live for us in
Paris. We will wait and see if much comes out of those talks. Thank you very much.
Well, now to some other stories on our radar today. Firefighters in Alberta, Canada say their battle against the raging wildfire could soon
turn a corner. Lower temperatures have helped slow down the fire and there is a good chance of some rain this Monday.
The head of the Austrian government has resigned. His spokesman tells CNN Chancellor Werner Faymann resigned because his party performed poorly
in the first round of presidential elections last month. Faymann served as chancellor for over seven years.
Iran says it has successfully test fired a ballistic missile with the range of 2,000 kilometers. The missile was launched two weeks ago. This
video was from an earlier missile launch in March. The military says 10 percent of the country's defense budget has been allocated to research
aimed at strengthening defense.
The president of European Football Michel Platini has resigned. It comes after the court of arbitration for sport effectively rejected his
appeal to overturn a six year ban from football. Platini was banned over a $2 million payment from FIFA. He did have his suspension cut, though, from
six years to four.
Well, let's go to London now. CNN's World Sport Alex Thomas covering this story. The court of arbitration was pretty damming saying that his
behavior was not only ethical, it was also disloyal, yet he continues to deny any wrongdoing.
[11:11:37] ALEX THOMAS, CNN WORLD SPORT: He does. And he's been consistent about that throughout this process, Lynda. And maybe it's a
kind of angry reaction to how far he's fallen in such a short space of time.
Platini has said that he's disappointed by this court's decision and that he's going to try and go through the Swiss civil courts to try to get
his name cleared.
But no matter what happens in that process, the point is that Platini's football career is over and that is huge because this is a man
who in his day as a player was the best on the planet back in the 1980s, winner of the Ballon d'Or three years running, helped France win the
European football championships back in 1984. He played in three World Cups. He was a double European Cup winner with Juventus and lifted the
Italian championship Serie A twice with that famous club as well.
And then as an administrator, he really made his name organizing the World Cup in France in 1998. He became UEFA president in 2007, that's the
European governing body. And he sat on the executive committee for the world governing body FIFA for 13 years until the suspension last
year, all over this $2 million payment as you say, Lynda, from FIFa, while Sepp Blatter was president, and the court of arbitration for sport was
damming saying they couldn't understand why this payment suddenly appeared eight years after a contract they found was terminated.
The two men said it was a verbal agreement, but (inaudible) were very scathing about that, as you say, saying Platini's behavior was not ethical
or loyal and they also criticized FIFA for knowing about the payment for four years and doing nothing about it until 2015.
KINKADE: Yeah, pretty suspicious there.
So what does this mean for the future of UEFA?
THOMAS: UEFA's future and who their next president will be will be discussed at an executive committee meeting next week. Many of their top
brass at a FIFA meeting this week. But they've back Platini through his whole appeals process, so they've really not had a plan in place to kind of
come out with and to announce to us all after the ending of this CAS (ph) appeals process.
So, it's extraordinary the approaching the European championships in Platini's native France, it was going to his big thing as UEFA president.
He won't even be allowed to be there. He's banned from all football at all levels of the game and UEFA don't even know who their next leader.
It is another shambolic exercise in what's been a miserable 12 months for football administration across the world, Lynda.
KINKADE: Yeah, it certainly has. Alex Thomas for us live from London thank you very much.
Well, still to come -- fear and hope. The British prime minister is using both as he tries to convince Britons to say in the EU. Will it work?
We're live Downing Street to find out next.
And CNN is allowed inside a rare party congress in North Korea. Unprecedented access in the very secretive nation. We'll tell you what
went on just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[11:16:41] DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: The united kingdom is stronger, safer and better off by remaining a member of the European
Union.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: You're watching CNN and this is Connect the World. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Welcome back.
Well, with just 45 days until the UK holds a major referendum, David Cameron is making the case to stay inside the EU. In a speech earlier
Monday, he told Britons the country will be safer and richer if it remains, but many senior members of his party are pushing hard for a Brexit because
they say the country gives up too much for too little in return.
CNN's Phil Black is just outside 10 Downing Street to break it all down for us. Phil as the great Brexit debate rolls on, Cameron he isn't
getting an easy ride from his friends.
PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: No, Lynda, but he tried to make a case that sort of moved things away from just being an economic
debate. He talked a lot about strength, security and Britain's ability to project power and influence abroad and he made the case in his view that it
is better for Britain to do this, and Britain can do this more effectively when it is part of the European Union.
And why this is important, he said, is that it means that Britain can play a constructive leading
role in ensuring continued peace and stability on the continent, because he said what happens on the continent makes a difference here in Britain.
Atrong Europe equals strong Britain, he said roughly.
Somewhat controversially, I think, he did this in the context of raising the possibility of further armed conflict on the European continent
saying it would be rash to feel assured that peace and stability are here to stay.
Take a listen now to a little of what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAMERON: The dangerous international situation facing Britain today means that the closest possible cooperation with our European neighbors
isn't an optional extra, it's essential. We need to stand united now is a time for strength in numbers, keeping our people safe from modern terrorist
networks like Daesh and from serious crime that increasingly crosses borders means that we simply have to develop much closer means of security
cooperation between countries within Europe. Britain needs to be fully engaged with that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACK: David Cameron said this was his bold patriotic case for saying within the European
Union. He was unashamedly emotive today in a lot of the language that he used. He tried to describe Britain as a proud independent country. He
talked in detail at length about its long military history, its military interventions on the European continent. In fact, he said that
the points in history, British history, that most people here are most proud of, involve actions and sacrifice, shedding blood on
Europe itself.
All of this to try to take back some of the momentum from those favoring the Brexit argument if
you like because up until now they have really had the run of things when it comes to the love of
country debate. They're focused on the issue of sovereignty, the idea that Britain has given up too much of its power to Europe and so David Cameron
trying to take back that idea of patriotism, the fact that he believes you can be part of the European Union and still very much love your country as
well.
KINKADE: And Phil, Boris Johnson, of course, has very much it taking the opposite position, very much appealing for that sense of patriotism.
[11:20:06] BLACK: Absolutely. He says he is involved in all of this because in his view Britain has lost independence, has simply given away
too much of that sovereignty to Brussels.
He believes that the European Union as an idea, as a project has become too bloated, unwieldy and increasingly he believes less democratic,
constantly churning out rules and regulations that the British people themselves have very little say over.
He also disagrees with what David Cameron was talking about today when it comes to the idea that Britain will lose influence by leaving the EU.
Boris Johnson believes that Britain can still lead on the world stage even if it goes it alone. Take a listen to that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BORIS JOHNSON, MAYOR OF LONDON: If we leave on June 23rd, we vote to leave, we can still of course provide leadership in Europe in so many of
the ways that Britain always has. We can help lead on discussions on security, counterterrorism, foreign defense policy, all of which of course
always used to be done under the old three pillar framework as an intergovernmental -- in an
intergovernmental way on a -- between nation states without the need for legal instruments enforced by the European court of justice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACK: So Boris Johnson, like David Cameron, a member of the ruling Conservative Party
here. He is seen by many to be one of the possible heirs to Cameron in the even that David Cameron one day walks away from the job of prime minister.
But he is the most high-profile campaigner on the Brexit side. And famously an an old school chum of David Cameron's.
What we were hearing from them both today is this attempt to grab a sense of patriotism, to churn up that degree of enthusiasm, the idea that
on both sides you should either -- well, both claim that they are acting out of a love for their country and encouraging others to do the same.
We're six weeks out from the vote now. And I think we can expect a lot more of this in the days and weeks ahead, Lynda.
KINKADE: No doubt we will be hearing much more on this debate from both sides.
Phil Black for us live from London, thank you very much.
North Korea's ruling party has given leader Kim Jong-un a promotion. It happened at a rare party congress meeting in the capital. CNN's Will
Ripley joins us from Pyongyang where he was given unprecedented access to that gathering.
This is a day four of that congress meeting, the final day, and you finally got access.
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. We've been pushing for it for quite a while, Lynda, and didn't really expect that it was going to happen.
We were told to dress up in suits, bring our passports and a small group of us, about 30 of us, out of the more than 130 that are here covering the
Workers Party Congress got on a bus. We thought we might be going to a press conference. We had -- we were headed to what we thought was a press
conference yesterday that was abruptly canceled. We were sent back to the hotel for the rest of the day.
But this time we went through a 90-minute security check. We had to surrender our phones, they took apart our cameras and we didn't know what
was happening. But then we got on a bus. We were given a police escort to the venue for the seventh Workers Party Congress, the most significant
political gathering in North Korea in 36 years.
We walked in and after waiting in a holding area we were allowed ten minutes in the room and the main auditorium, this room where 5,000 Workers
Party of Korea members were there and they were just kind of staring at us as we walked in. The state media was taking pictures of us. And a few
moments later, the leader, Kim Jong-un and his top leadership team walked on to the stage and they
started making the announcements about the newly elected party leadership. They also announced that Kim himself had been given that new title chairman
of the Workers Party of Korea. He was the first secretary previously.
It's hard to imagine how someone with already absolute power in this country could get even more power with this title, but it certainly is a
message from the party that they're behind him and they're ready to support his nuclear ambitions, and his plan for the
economy as well.
KINKADE: And Will, before you attended that -- the ten minutes inside that congress, a BBC reporting team got booted out of the country, what
happened?
RIPLEY: So that was a surprise press conference earlier in the day. We thought we would be talking to someone about the Workers Party Congress
and in fact they announced that Rupert Wingfield-Hayes of the BBC -- he's based in Tokyo -- had been detained for eight hours at the airport. He was
yanked as trying to board a flight out of the country. He had been filing reports over the last week that the North Korean authorities thought were
very disrespectful towards Kim Jong-un, their leader and that's something that they take more seriously than just about anything else.
I have been severely reprimanded many times for reports that we've done on CNN. And this case, however, they thought that offenses were so
severe that the BBC says he and his team had to sign letters of apology before they were allowed to get on a flight and leave the country.
Wingfield-Hayes is banned from ever re-entering North Korea.
I was just talking with him yesterday and he mentioned officials had talked to him very strongly but I don't think he was expecting this to
happen as he tried to get on his flight.
No comment yet from the BBC. They had told us that they wanted to make sure he was safely out of North Korea before they gave their side of
the story. But we certainly hope to hear from them and get their perspective on all of this. It just underscores the issues that foreign
journalists can face when working in this country, which is extremely sensitive about many things but most especially sensitive about how their
leadership is portrayed.
KINKADE: Yeah. Quite a shock, no doubt, for them. And I'm sure we will be hearing from
them and the BBC soon.
Will Ripley for us live from Pyongyang. Thank you very much for your reporting.
RIPLEY: Well, still to come the latest world news headlines are just ahead. Plus, the polls are closed and the results are trickling in. What
early vote counts show in a heated election in the Philippines.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(HEADLINES)
KINKADE: In The Philippines, early unofficial election results show controversial Mayor Rodrigo Duterte with a lead in the race for president.
Now, he is known as The Punisher for his tough stance on crime and his campaign has been filled with inflammatory comments.
CNN's Kristie Lu Sout has more on Duterte and his challenges.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[11:30:06] LU STOUT: Tight security in the Philippines as tens of millions of voters elect a new government following a heated campaign. In
the presidential race, the mayor of Davao, Rodrigo Duterte, is expected to land a big victory. Known as The Punisher, Duterte developed a fierce
reputation for cracking down on crime, rising in popularity despite international criticism for his comments, making light of rape and
proposing mass executions.
RODRIGO DUTERTE, PHILIPPINES PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There is no such thing as bloodless cleansing. I propose to get rid of the drugs within to
three to six months.
Criminals, well I go after them. As long as I do it in accordance with the rules of law, I will continue to kill criminals.
LU STOUT: Human rights groups are calling for investigations into his use of alleged death
squads and his controversial comments have divided the country into diehard supporters and outspoken critics.
The other candidates for the top job are Senator Grace Poe, interior minister Mar Roxas, the current Vice President Jejomar Binay, and veteran
lawmakers Miriam Santiago.
In the battle for vice president, another controversial character has dominated the campaign -- Ferdinand Marcos Jr., known as Bangbang (ph).
He's the son of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, whose decades-long rule was tainted by widespread corruption and violence.
About half the country's 100 million strong population are eligible to vote in today's poll. Alongside the leadership vote, half the senate, the
entire house of representatives and thousands of local posts elected. Polls have now closed and voters already have a clear idea of the winners,
but the official result won't be revealed until early June.
Kristie Lu Stout, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Those elections in the Philippines are not the only ones we're keeping an eye
on. Voters in Lebanon cast ballots for the first time in six years in Beirut's municipal elections. We are still awaiting the final results, but
the leader of a list backed by mainstream parties is claiming victory.
It was challenged by an independent movement born out of protests about a trash crisis in the city last summer.
With no Republican competitors left in the race, U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump is taking a break from the campaign trail today.
But he still has a lot on his plate as he gets ready for a high stakes meeting later this week. Trump is in a very public battle with Republican
House speaker Paul Ryan who so far is refusing to support him.
As Phil Mattingly reports, party unity will be on the line when they finally come face to face.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TRUMP: I'm going to do what I have to do. I have millions of people that voted for me.
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump, upping the ante in his battle with the GOP, escalating tensions with House Speaker
Paul Ryan.
TRUMP: I will give you a very solid answer, if that happens, about one minute after that happens. OK?
MATTINGLY: Trump, suggesting that, if the nation's highest-ranking Republican doesn't endorse him, the presumptive nominee may try to remove
Ryan as chairman of the Republican National Convention. TRUMP: I'd like to have his support. But if he doesn't want to support me that's fine, and we
have to go about it.
MATTINGLY: Former vice-presidential nominee and Trump top supporter Sarah Palin going further, pledging to help defeat Ryan in the race for his
Wisconsin seat.
SARAH PALIN (R), FORMER VICE-PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I think Paul Ryan is soon to be Cantored as an arid Cantor. His political career is over, but
for a miracle, because he has so disrespected the will of the people.
MATTINGLY: Trump saying he won't just go rogue with Ryan but with the entire party.
TRUMP: Does the party have to be together? Does it have to be unified? I'm very different than anybody else, perhaps, that's ever run for office.
I actually don't think so.
MATTINGLY: Trump's fiery words setting the stage for a face-to-face meeting with Ryan on Thursday as the GOP riff widens between those who
support him...
JAN BREWER (R), FORMER ARIZONA GOVERNOR: I'm willing to serve in any capacity if I can be of help with Donald on.
MATTINGLY: And those who don't.
TRUMP: Jeb Bush is not an honorable person. Lindsey Graham is not an honorable person.
MATTINGLY: Some drawing a hard line, vowing to skip the convention or not vote.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R) ARIZONA: You have to listen to people that have chosen the nominee. I think it would be foolish to ignore them.
MATTINGLY: Senator John McCain, who once called Trump's statements " "uninformed and, indeed, dangerous," says he'll now support him, with
conditions.
MCCAIN: I think it's important for Donald Trump to express his appreciation for veterans.
MATTINGLY: Others pressing feverishly for a third-party option, including one group, Conservatives Against Trump. Their concern: that Trump
isn't conservative enough to carry the party torch.
TRUMP: This is called the Republican Party. Not called the conservative party.
MATTINGLY: This as Trump continues to change his tune on tax hikes for wealthy Americans...
[11:35:14] TRUMP: I've come up with the biggest tax cut by far of any candidate, anybody, and I put it in. When it comes time to negotiate, I
feel less concerned with the rich than I do with the middle class.
MATTINGLY: ... and on minimum wage.
TRUMP: I like the idea of, let the states decide, but I think people should get more.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Trump speaking out again today about Hillary Clinton, his rift with the Republican Party and much more.
Phil Mattingly is covering all of that and joins us now live.
Phil, a lot riding on this meeting between Paul Ryan and Donald Trump. Given the threats that he's already made against Ryan, it doesn't sound
like Trump will go out of his way to win over his support.
MATTINGLY: No, not at all. And I think this is the interesting element of this, Lynda, that maybe we weren't all expecting. We assumed
when Paul Ryan came out last week and threw a little bit of a brushback towards Donald Trump, that Trump would take it, look at it and come to the
center, come meet Paul Ryan in the middle, at least that's what Paul ryan's aides wanted.
But instead Donald Trump has taken another perspective on things and it all really starts with this, take a listen to what he said this morning
on CNN's New Day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We have group of people that's great. This group of people has given me -- and it's them, it's a group, I'm like a messenger, but
they've given me a number that no other president, not Ronald Reagan, nobody has ever gotten, OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MATTINGLY: Now, what he's referring to there is the number of Republican votes he's gotten in this primary, more than any other candidate
in the history of the Republican Party. And how Donald Ttrump reads that very clearly is as a mandate.
And after he was not informed that Paul Ryan was going to do this, their staffs did not talk beforehand, Donald Trump has instead of taking
the position where I need to come to the center. I need to make amends with the Republican leadership, has gone the exact opposite way and what
that really does is to the only does it set huge stakes for this meeting on Thursday, but it also raises the question is it possible to bridge the
divide right now that exists between Donald Trump and Republican leadership, between Donald Trump and Paul Ryan.
A lot of people think the answer, Lynda, is no.
KINKADE: Right.
And there is, of course, a lot of concern also about whether Trump really represents the Republican conservative. He's already backing down
on his promise to reduce taxes for all Americans.
MATTINGLY: Yeah, that's right. In his tax proposal, which had the largest tax cut of any
Republican candidate, that was actually put out during the primary, he seems to be walking away from that.
Now he's putting it this way, that this is all part of a negotiation. His initial proposal would be that tax plan and then they would work from
there. But Republicans are looking at this right now. Those Republicans who have long been skeptical of where Donald Trump stands ideologically and
saying this is what we are concerned about. And it also underscores not to bring everything back to Paul Ryan, but really kind of you talk about the
politics here, you talk about the tone, these are two areas where Paul Ryan has serious concerns related to Donald Trump.
But Lynda, if you want to talk about the major concerns Paul Ryan has, it's on policy, whether it's on taxes, whether it's on entitlement
reform, whether it's on immigration policy, or even trade, all of these areas are areas where Paul Ryan and Donald Trump are on opposite sides of
the spectrum.
So, you talk about getting into a room in a one-on-one meeting and being able to figure out some way to agree to earn that Paul Ryan
endorsement. When you look at the policy side of things, all you have to do is question how and if it's even going to happen at all, Lynda.
KINKADE: Yeah. It's a fair point. And of course Trump is also going after Hillary Clinton. He's continuing to ramp up his attacks on former
President Bill Clinton and his infidelity. How does that line of attack play out with voters?
MATTINGLY: It's a really open question. I think this is a really interesting thing. As you watch the Trump campaign go after this -- and
they've made clear they telegraphed it this was going to be a line of attack that they were going to use, how voters respond is really unknown.
Now take a listen to what Donald Trump had to say this weekend.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: She is playing the women's card to the hilt. She is going -- I mean, watched over the weekend everything is about women and Donald Trump
raised his voice and, you know, it's all nonsense. and you know what, women understand it better than anybody and watch how well I do with women
when it counts when the election comes. Watch how well. Because women want to see strong security, they want to see strong military, they want
to see borders where people just can't come crossing walking across a border like it's Swiss cheese.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MATTINGLY: Now, that actually from this morning. Sorry, Donald Trump attacked Hillary
Clinton repeatedly on the campaign trail this weekend and it's an interesting thing here, Lynda because you -- look, in terms of the general
electorate, Donald Trump's unfavorability amongst women is at about 70 percent right now, and Hillary Clinton's team believes they can take full
advantage of this. But Donald Trump not wavering on the fact that this is a line of attack, attacking Hillary Clinton on her role in, quote, enabling
Bill Clinton during his infidelities is something they're going to continue.
And their rationale is this, at least according to his advisers, there is a segment of the electorate that does not remember the 1990s, was not
paying attention in the 1990s, maybe was hardly born in the 1990s that they believe they can persuade that this is a narrative that works, that Hillary
Clinton was attacking women, Hillary Clinton was anti-women.
Obviously, Lynda, the Clinton campaign pushes back very hard on this, most of them believe that it's a completely ridiculous narrative, but it's
one that the Trump campaign is willing to try out here. Nobody really knows how it's going to end up, but it's one that they're going to go after
and it's going to raise a lot of controversy, no question about it.
KINKADE: Absolutely. And we'll see if it does backfire for the Trump camp. Phil Mattingly, thank you very much.
Well, Hillary Clinton can't focus all her energy on counter DonaldTrump, because she's still in a
primary battle with Bernie Sanders. Her Democratic rival addressed a cheering crowd in New Jersey today. He's hoping to keep his momentum alive
with a win in West Virginia's primary on Tuesday, but that still would leave him behind in the delegate race.
Clinton says Sanders can play a great role in shaping progressive goals to the Democratic Party.
And CNN's team of political reporters there covering every angle of the race for the White
House for you, but as full of intrigue as it is getting into the Oval Office isn't exactly a Game of Thrones.
So, our journalists turned they're attention from Washington to Westeros.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Hi. I'm Jake Tapper from CNN, focusing on places such as Iowa, and New Hampshire, most recently Indiana in recent
days and months, but there is one incredibly competitive campaign going on that is not getting much attention here at CNN and that's the battle for
control of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros on HBO's Game of Thrones.
And here to break it down for us all is on his magic wall is our own John King. Avala Margulis (ph), John.
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Bala Dohiris (ph), Jake.
TAPPER: So, lots of wild politics in Westeros, and many, many wild cards -- there are dragons, there are wild links, but specifically three
intense campaigns going on right now in Westeros. Let's start with the Iron Islands.
KING: That's a fair question, Jake, given the history why anyone would want to try to rule the Iron Islands, but that doesn't stop people
from trying.
As you know, the King Baylon Grayjoy (ph), easily defeated recently by his estranged brother.
TAPPER: Yeah, that's right. He threw him over a bridge.
KING: Well, that's defeated, but it does open up the Island of Pike for new leadership.
TAPPER: That's right. What we have here is a two person race between Baylon's daughter, Yara, who is ruthless and his estranged brother Ourron
(ph) who is frankly murderous.
Now, the Iron Islands have never had a female leader before, so it's unclear whether or not they would be willing to embrace him. But on the
other hand Ourron (ph) is something of a carpetbagger, they haven't seen him in years.
KING: See how that one plays out.
And there's more drama, Jake, if you come down here into the south.
All right, we're going to zoom in here on Doren (ph), come all the way in, Sunspear (ph), then all the way in onto the Water Gardens. The
political landscape is changing dramatically as you know.
Prince Duran (ph) recently defeated again in what you would consider a tough contest.
TAPPER: Tough contest. He was stabbed to death by a very, very strong female candidate. She accused him of having low energy.
KING: That's a line we've heard used effectively before.
TAPPER: Indeed. And what's going on in the all-important north, in Winterfell.
KING: That's up here, Jake, if you take a look at the map. A very chaotic situation right there. Once a major Stark family stronghold, I'm
sure you'll remember, but now controlled by Ramsey Bolton (ph) who you might say is someone who doesn't always adhere to traditional tactics.
TAPPER: You could probably say that about a guy willing to feed his step-mother and baby brother to dogs.
KING: A controversial candidate is the way I'd put it. Questions about whether he can united the north.
TAPPER: I don't think he could murder everyone in the north so he is going to have to put on some sort of charm offensive.
KING: A charm offesnsive.
And then, Jake, let's not forget this, way up here, way up here, up in Castle Black, right, ready for this unconfirmed reports, still unconfirmed,
but John Snow possibly rising from the dead.
TAPPER: Unconfirmed reports, but if he has been resurrected that could really change the landscape of the politics of Westeros.
Look out, John, there's a dire wolf coming.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, guys. What the hell are you talking about?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKAE: And even after that, you may be surprised by some of the political story lines back in
the U.S. election, including the growing clash in the Republican Party that some are calling a civil war as its establishment wrestles with whether to
back Donald Trump. You can read the ins and outs of that and much, more on CNNpolitics.com.
We're following breaking news out of Brazil now. The acting speaker of Brazil's lower house of congresses has annulled the impeachment process
against President Dilma Rousseff, that's according to a post on his Facebook page, it was posted on Monday. We will bring you more on that
story as it comes to hands.
Stay with us, we're going to take a quick break and we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:47:58] KINKADE: You're watching CNN. And this is Connect the World. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Welcome back.
European finance ministers are meeting right now to discuss Greece's financial crisis. It comes just hours after the country's parliament voted
through some unpopular reforms, notably pension cuts and tax hikes.
Now, does this sound familiar? Well, don't be surprised. Here's Claire Sebastian with a look at Greece's new but old debt crisis.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLAIRE SEBASTIAN, CNN MONEY: Both of these images show protests in Athens over planned pension reforms. Spot the difference. The faces and
banners, of course, but there's more.
This photo was from April 2015 when pension reform was a major obstacle to unlocking the final Greek's second bailout. And this one was
taken a year later in April 2016. And we're now talking about unlocking part of the third bailout.
VICKY PRYCE, CENTRE FOR ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS RESEARCH: Pensions have been cut back very, very severely already through the whole of the
bailout period. And you have also got, of course, huge unemployment in Greece at present. The two have combined in such a way to make it very,
very difficult to pass this particular law.
SEBASTIAN: Greece's creditors want assurances Greece can meet its budget targets before they will release more bailout money.
And Greece has billions of dollars in existing loans coming due this summer.
Sound familiar? Just like last year, the IMF still wants one extra element to any deal.
CHRISTINE LAGARDE, MANAGING DIRECTOR, IMF: There has to be sustainability of the debt, significant reform, debt relief.
SEBASTIAN: Some say what happens next hinges on the ruling party Syriza's waning popularity. This was last September's election result.
And this a recent poll.
MICHAEL JABODES, LONDON BUSINESS SCHOOL: Syriza no longer dominates Greece. A year ago, Syriza literally had the command of the entire
population. Right now, looking at the polls, Syriza comes with a substantial difference behind New Democracy.
[11:50:02] SEBASTIAN: Greece may, though, have a stronger hand in Europe. The EU's management of its migrant crisis depends on the stability
of Greece. And of course Grexit is no longer the biggest fear.
PRYCE: The last thing the Europeans want is to have Britain exiting and also greece leaving as well, because that would lead to a serious
reconfiguration of what the EU is all about.
SEBASTIAN: One thing just as true last year as it is this year, the longer you're in a debt crisis
the harder it is to get out.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: And our Claire Sebastian joins us now for more on this.
That was a great package you put together. Now the talks have started in Brussels. Given the fact that Greece hasn't changed its position
muchsince last year is there much optimism?
SEBASTIAN: Well, the message, Lynda is don't expect a miracle. That's the noise we're getting at the moment from Brussels. We expect that
they won't reach a deal today and it will be restarted at a later date, whether that's on May 24 when the next scheduled
euro group meeting is said to happen or before that if they decide to schedule another emergency
one.
Having said that, there was some cautious optimism from some parties going in. They say
that Greece should be recognized for the enormous effort that went into parsing those very difficult pension and tax reforms overnight that that
was an extremely important step, the words of the EU economic affairs commissioner.
They said that it was an important step as well that Greece came to the table with a proposal on a contingency mechanism, this is a new part of
the deal, this is extra austerity that the creditors are demanding if Greece does not meet its budget targets this year. That would kick in as
an automatic trigger.
Having said that, this is an extremely complicated process. They're making good progress on the reforms and on the contingency measures but
there's still the issue of debt relief and they're being very clear that this day one on that and that they have not reached an agreement yet.
KINKADE: We did, of course, see demonstrators outside parliament in Athens yesterday throwing petrol bombs at police. Can we expect more of
that today and more of that anger?
SEBASTIAN: it's much quieter on the streets today in Athens, Lynda, not nearly the scenes that we saw last night, those familiar scenes that we
saw much of last year with tear gas and clashes between police and protesters.
The labor minister, the country's labor minister, making the point on our air earlier that actually the numbers on the streets last night were
much smaller than what we saw at the heart of the crisis.
He attributed that to the fact that the people recognize the predicament the government finds
itself in and that they are doing everything they can not to just cave to the creditor's demands, but to bring something back in return for Greece,
namely, of course, debt relief.
So -- but there is, of course, you saw in the piece there was a lot of waning support for Syriza. A lot of people are disappointed that this pro-
austerity government -- this anti-austerity government, rather, has not managed to avoid the serious cuts to pension and tax rises. So, you know,
hardship is still a very real fact of life for these people in Greece.
KINKADE: Absolutely. A lot of back-tracking on their promises.
Claire Sebastian for us live from London. Thank you very much.
SEBASTIAN: Well, live from the CNN Center, this is Connect the World. Coming up, we'll meet an athlete going to the paralympics who will be
relying on a leg that was made using a 3D printer. We'll explain that story just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINADE: You're watching CNN and this is Connect the World. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Welcome back.
The Olympics in Rio are almost upon us, but all the political scandal and the deepening economic trouble in Brazil has been distracting us from
the athletes, especially those taking part in the Paralympic games just after the main event.
So, your Parting Shots, our Patrick Snell introduces us to a German cyclist who is planning to use a 3D printed leg.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Denise Schindler didn't let the loss of her lower right leg as a young girl prevent her from becoming a world
champion athlee. The German cyclist won a silver medal at the 2012 London Paralympics. Now she's getting ready for Rio later on this year.
And for this event, Schindler plans to compete using a new leg prosthesis made with a 3D printer.
DENISE SCHINDLER, GERMAN PARALYMPIC CYCLIST (through translator): We are currently testing the 3D printed prosthesis and whether its quality
reaches that of the the traditional handmade prosthesis.
SNELL: Experts say the prosthesis is quicker and cheaper to produce than traditional plastic casting. Schindler is working with the U.S.
company on the innovative project, which they recently showed to U.S. President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel at a technology
trade fair.
SCHINDLER (through translator): I was, of course, very proud to present this project, because it means a lot to me. Mr. Obama and
Chancellor Merkel were very interested and I was surprised to see how informed the president was about the issue. He was very positive about it.
SNELL: Schindler says she worked with engineers going through 52 versions before settling on a final model that's comfortable, but doesn't
compromise on performance.
SCHINDLER (through translator): It feels different when I cycle due to its quality, but we're on the right path to reach the right stiffness
and aerodynamics. The new prosthesis is also lighter and that's an advantage when competing.
SNELL: And Schindler she hopes ultimately 3D printing will makes sports prosthesis less expensive and more accessible to athletes all over
the world.
Patrick Snell CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: And we are following breaking news out of Brazil. The acting speaker of Brazil lower house of congress has annulled a vote by
lawmakers last month to launch the impeachment process against the President Dilma Rousseff, that's according to a post on his Facebook page
posted Monday.
Stay with CNN for more on this story. We will go live to Brazil at the top of the hour for the
International Desk with Robyn Curnow.
Well, I'm Lynda Kinkade, that was Connect the World. Thanks very much for watching.
END
