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New U.S. Travel Ban to Be Released as Early as Monday; Interview with Canada's International Trade Minister; Trump Accuses Former President Obama of Spying on Trump Tower During Election; New York Governor Gives Scathing Critique of Anti-Semetic Activity in Jerusalem. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired March 05, 2017 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:13] BECKY ANDERSON, HOST: Tonight, the bigger, stronger, faster: a new travel
ban could sweep out of Washington as soon as Monday. We're live in the American capital to break it all down for you, but it's a different story
up in Canada.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People are attracted naturally to Canada. This is a progressive nation in the world. We stand for open trade. We stand for
inclusiveness.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: The country's international trade minister telling me we are doing things a lot differently than Washington.
And then...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shortness of breath, first and second-degree burns. This is 100 person, it is a chemical gas.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: CNN takes you inside a hospital in Iraq where men, women and children are being treated for a suspected chemical by ISIS.
He will over the and welcome to Connect the World. A lot going on this hour. It's 7:00 p.m. in Abu Dhabi, 6:00 in Baghdad, 10:00 in the morning
in Washington.
And we begin tonight with some stunning news out of Washington. The new president of the United States is accusing the former man in the job of
abusing his power. And now White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has put out a series of frankly incredible tweets demanding that congress
investigate former U.S. President Barack Obama.
Well, the latest drama started more than 24 hours ago, viewers, after Donald Trump made some
stunning and unsubstantiated accusations that Obama wiretapped his phone.
CNN's Ryan Nobles is standing by in our Washington bureau. Ryan, blink and you would miss
the latest out of Washington. What do we have here, and where does it take this new U.S. administration?
RYN NOBLES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky this series of tweets, and it was followed up by an official statement from the White House from Sean
Spicer comes after a little more than 24 hours of reporters badgering the White House for more information about where Donald Trump came up with
these claims that he tweeted yesterday morning from his Mar-a-Lago estate accusing the former president, Barack Obama, of wiretapping his phones and
wiretapping Trump Tower during the las tpresidential election.
And let me read from the statement off for you from Spicer. It says, quote, reports concerning potentially politically motivated investigations
immediately ahead of the 2016 election are very troubling. President Donald J. Trump is requesting that as part of their investigation into
Russian activity the congressional intelligence committee exercise their oversight
authority to determine whether executive branch investigative powers were abused in 2016.
Neither the White House nor the president will comment further until such oversight is conducted.
Now, while the statement is that first official response from the White House, it still leaves a
lot of open questions, the most glaring being what are these reports about the politically motivated
investigations into the Trump campaign. We're not specifically sure what Sean Spicer is talking about . And what it also does, Becky, is it puts
another degree of politicism into this investigation into Russia's alleged attempts to intervene in the American election.
Both Republicans in congress have said that this is necessary, adding a component of investigating President Obama's role in this entire situation
could complicate things, and frankly from the White House's perspective, it could lead to more people calling for an independent special prosecutor to
figure out exactly what happened here in this past election.
ANDERSON: Ryan, just to back up for a moment, like I say, blink and would you miss a lot of this. This is one of tweets Mr. Trump shot off on
Saturday accusing former President Obama of tapping his phones ahead of the election. He offered no proof, and a spokesman for Obama called it flat
out false.
So, Ryan, is this just another distraction, or is there any possibility that there is truth to this claim?
NOBLES: Well, it's a great question, Beck. And frankly there is the possibility that this is just a distraction attempt by the Trump White
House. They have been known to do this before, but there is a possibility that the Trump -- that Trump Tower and Trump specifically may have been
under some sort of surveillance by the Justice Department.
Where this becomes problematic is that it's not something that President Obama could have just authorized on his own. There's a lengthy and
difficult legal process that needs to take place first before such a wiretap could be authorized, so you have two potential scenarios here: if
the surveillance happened under Obama's orders, that would be illegal. And it would be an enormous political controversy, the likes of which we
haven't seen since Watergate, or, on the other hand, you have enough evidence for a secret court, the FISA court as it's called here in the
United States, to issue the warrant that would allow for this surveillance. That is not necessarily a good thing for President Trump.
So on either side of this equation you have what amounts to a groundbreaking political scandal, and right now no one in Washington knows
enough of the specifics to really pin that down. That's why there have been calls from numerous Republican Senators for the FBI and
the Justice Department to release everything they know about this potential situation to calm the fears of many Americans who aren't sure right now
what to think about this situation.
ANDERSON: Busy times. We'll let you get on with it. Ryan, thank you for that.
Well, President Trump's first travel ban was a lot like this, a large swinging sledgehammer
that caused panic, chaos and confusion in many parts of the world. Well, by comparison, his new one could come as soon as Monday, And it is --
well, it's expected to look had a little bit more like this, sort of chiseling out a far smaller more focused immigration order that's much
harder for opponents to challenge in court.
So what will this new order say? And how will Mr. Trump make it so that it will holds up in
court? For a closer look I want to bring in CNN legal analyst and criminal defense attorney Danny
Cervallos from New York.
Just how does all of this look? Your thoughts.
DANNY CEVALLOS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: We have a new travel ban come out and there owes all kinds of speculation as to what it will contain and omit as
compared to the prior travel ban which currently is embroiled in litigation in the United States courts,
the federal district courts where it's stayed. In other words, paused pending the outcome of the
ligitgation.
This new travel ban could completely obviate or moot that case and that prior travel ban. So, this new one is going to obviously look to pentagon
outcome of the litigation. This new travel plan could completely obviate or moot that case and that prior travel ban so this new one is going to
obviously look to fix whatever was controversial about the first one, although no matter what, it
surely is going to be challenged.
Some of the things to look for are the increased rights to green card holders, more due process rights and -- and a narrowing, using your analogy
of a smaller pick hammer, a narrowing of the class of people who have no rights whatsoever to come here, no due process rights to come to the United
States. And that would typically be people from other countries, almost any other country, but who have never held a visa and never set foot in the
United States.
ANDERSON: You say this is likely to be challenged, but surely there is a swath of very well-paid lawyers and analysts picking over whatever this
executive order will look like Monday or beyond, whenever we get it, promised or expect it to come out on Monday to ensure that the Trump
administration isn't embarrassed once again, correct?
CEVALLOS: You can imagine that they are -- hopefully the Trump administration is vetting this executive order. The question is who are
they having vet it? The reason is, there are two different ways of approaching a sort of conservative Republican view of the executive order
and sort of a liberal maybe Democratic view of the executive order. One way to look at it is that the president has very expansive powers. If
you're a constitutional scholar that believes the power to order or issue an executive order banning large swaths of people from the United States
is virtually unchallengeable, then you view the president's power as so strong that you may draft an overly broad executive order.
On the other hand, if you view, as did the the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals here in the United
States, that even the great power of over immigration of the president may potentially be checked by a court for constitutionality, then you may take
a more limited view of the president's power so it really depends who, among these well healed lawyers and analysts is actually
vetting this proposed executive order.
The smart move would be have its greatest critics pick it over with a fine- tooth comb before into the official category.
ANDERSON: Briefly, one of its biggest criticisms, particularly from those who is will be viewing this show from this region, the Middle East, was
this was not just a travel ban, it was effectively a Muslim man, many will say. Is there any sense that the stage is to which countries might be part
of any new ban on traveling into the United States?
CEVALLOS: There's an indication now that Iraq may be removed from that list and the reason is that there has been a number of -- of workers,
translators in particular, whose travel has been delayed so Iraq may not be on the list. But strangely, legally, the least controversial issue is which particular countries are on the list. More
controversial is the executive order's potential to ban people of or express a preference based on religion, or to deny what we view as
constitutional due process rights for non-residents, but people who may be visa holders and people who
are green card holders which are law until permanent residents.
[10:11:37] ANDERSON: All right. We started the show very briefly, sir, with this accusation about the Obama administration tapping - wiretapping
Donald Trump. What would the court have need? What sort of issues would have prompted this wiretap?
CEVALLOS: First, FISA courts operate in a different dimension. They are highly secretive and an FBI agent or a DOJ representative would only need a
probable cause to believe that a foreign agent is operating in order to get a FISA warrant.
It's -- it's in a way a much lower standard than in our criminal courts.
Once they have that warrant, however, it's possible they were -- it's always entirely possible that they may have been listening in to somebody
at Trump Tower. However, procedurally, the president of the United States does not have the power to separately wiretap anyone using a FISA warrant
for sure.
It would come from the attorney general, or the DOJ, would make an application to that FISA judge who would then decide to issue a warrant.
However, I should say that for the most part FISA judges grant these warrants in almost all cases.
So, it is technically possible, but not for the president to have done so directly.
ANDERSON: It's fascinating, sir. We'll have you back. Thank you.
Well, Iraq's security forces say they are making a new push to drive ISIS out of western Mosul that America is key in helping out. But the Red Cross
says it's deeply alarmed by what doctors are seeing on the battlefield. Injuries that may point to a chemical attack.
Senior international correspondent Ben Wedeman reports, but we have to warn you some of these images are difficult to watch.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 11- year- old Yassed lies unconscious in bed. A rocket lit outside his home Wednesday in liberated east Mosul, leaving him with a concussion and symptoms doctors
at this hospital in Erbil say point to a chemical attack.
DR. LAWAND MIRAN, DIRECTOR, IRAQ HOSPITAL: Shortness of breath. Second- degree burn.
WEDEMAN: Hospital director Dr. Lawand Miran has no doubt about what happened.
MIRAN: It is a chemical gas.
WEDEMAN: Twelve people including a month-old baby have been treated for exposure to chemical agents in the first such attack by ISIS since the
start of the Mosul offensive last October. Wisam Rashid was in his house when a rocket landed outside.
There was a rotten smell, he recalls and there was something like burnt oil. There was gas, no one can breathe in the whole area. We left the house
and the civil defense sealed it up.
The U.S. defense department has warned that ISIS has developed a primitive capacity to develop chemical weapons and has used them in Syria and Iraq.
The worry is with ISIS desperate and surrounded in western Mosul it won't hesitate to use everything in its arsenal.
The Red Cross is setting up tents in the event there are more chemical attacks. Now, in a statement related to this incident, the Red Cross
stressed that the use of chemical weapons is a war crime. Not that that makes any difference to ISIS. Indifferent as it is to the suffering of its
victims.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[10:15:16] ANDERSON: Ben Wedeman joining us in Irbil. Ben, a tragic story. Just how common, if at tall, do we believe these chemical attacks
are? And what did you see yourself?
WEDEMAN: Well, we just saw them in the hospital itself. We have not been where there have actually been chemical attacks. But U.S. officials
believe that ISIS has used chemical weapons on a variety of occasions not just here in Iraq, but also in Syria. They believe in some instances that
ISIS was able to get its hands on mustard gas when it looted Syrian military facilities, and they used that
as a result.
In fact, the doctor we spoke to in that report said that American medics had informed the Kurdish doctors that it was mustard gas that was used in
this instance. And, of course, let's keep in mind that chemical weapons have been used frequently here in the past. In 1988, Saddam Hussein used
it against the Kurds in Halabja killing thousands, and the British when they were occupying
Iraq used chemical weapons against the Kurds - Becky.
ANDERSON: Ben Wedeman in Irbil. Ben, appreciate it, thanks.
Still to come, Islam, immigration and identity. We're going to take you to a country where all of these issues are playing into a closely fought
election. That is next.
Plus, why didn't top members of the U.S. president's team disclose their links to Moscow sooner? A CNN report after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: The man who some call The Dutch Donald Trump has batted away comparisons to the U.S. president, and he insists his party is still number
one despite a slip in the polls.
Geert Wilders is the far right front-runner in The Netherlands parliamentary elections. In less than two weeks, criticized by many for
his anti-immigrant and anti-Islam rhetoric. His views are finding favor with others amid a resurgence of populism in Europe.
Well, last month Wilders temporarily stopped public appearances, citing security fears. Earlier this Sunday, he was back on the campaign trail and
senior international correspondent Atika Shubert was there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[10:20:07] ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Netherlands candidate Geert Wilders has begun public campaigning again. And today he
held a sort of press conference right next to a highway, a rather strange situation. We had a chance to ask him about why he's slipping in the
polls.
GEERT WILDERS, LEADER, PARTY FOR FREEDOM: Well in the poll from this morning, we did slip, but we are a still the number one party of Holland.
And, well, you see, just before elections as always that many parties are copying what we're intend to do. Everybody is talking about it. That's a
good thing.
As a matter of fact we won the elections before election day because everybody is talking
about immigration, national identity. You saw yesterday in the headline of the biggest morning paper in Holland that the leader of the Christian
Democratic Party, Mr. Bimersat (ph) thatwe want to have the children to sing the national anthems in schools and points that he rejected when we
proposed it in the parliament. So people, parties are copying and talking about our issues, which for Holland is a good thing. I hope at the end of
the day that on March 15, people tend to vote for the original, which is always better and not for copy.
So I can explain it. People are -- the whole campaign is about my issue, the issues of my party. Some people tend to believe that all the matters
did not talk about it in the last few years are sincere now and maybe and believe them and vote for them. I hope that on March 15 the original,
which is my party, might be still the most attractive.
SHUBERT: Now, other parties have said that even if Geert Wilders is able to gather votes, they are likely to form a coalition against him preventing
him from becoming prime minister. So in order for him to secure the prime ministership he would need to get more than 50 percent of the vote
outright. That seems unlikely.
With the most recent polls, we have about a week to go before voters in The Netherlands decide.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Atika Shubert has also been looking into how Wilders' message is been heard in Rotterdam where the mayor is immensely popular and thoroughly
Muslim.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHUBERT: This is the Netherlands: quaint canals and windmills, a pragmatic easy-going country famed for liberal thinking.
And this is also The Netherlands, home to one of the biggest Muslim populations in Europe. Islamization, or the fear of a growing Muslim
minority, is the buzzword of the upcoming election.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I find Islamizationto be a word that people use with one goal, and that is only to spread angst.
WILDERS: Look at the Islamization of our country. Scum in Holland. And once again not all our scum, but there is a lot Moroccan scum in Holland
who make the streets unsafe.
SHUBERT: Anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders is ahead in the polls, campaigning to ban
the Koran, halt migration and return to what he calls Dutch values.
Voters are asking themselves what does it mean to be Dutch? The port city of Rotterdam is in
a unique position to answer that question. Muslims make up nearly 20 percent of the population other.
Is this an election on identity and Dutch values basically?
AHMED ABOUTALEB, ROTTERDAM MAYOR: Yeah. The answer is yes. The -- the elections will be the most central theme and that's the identity of The
Netherlands. It will not be about the economy. It will not be about jobs.
SHUBERT: Ahmed Aboutaleb, the mayor of Rotterdam is a walking, talking example of the multi-cultural identity of The Netherlands.
Born in Morocco, raised in The Netherlands, Aboutaleb identifies himself as both Muslim and Dutch. And he presents me with a true Netherlands
tradition, raw herrings and onions served to us by Moroccan fish mongers.
He bolstered his reputation as a Dutch truth-teller after the attack on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris.
ABOUTALEB (through translator): If you don't see yourself here because you don't like seeing humorists who make newspaper then yeah, I can say it is
like this - get lost.
When you come to The Netherlands or to any country in the world and you migrate, it's your free choice. So it's up to you to make the choice to be
part of that society. There is kind of a mixed feeling among citizens thinking maybe that the fact that a lot of immigrants and a lot of
immigrants are still coming, the refugee crisis in the Middle East and are concerned about their own future. And these people are always on other end
maybe also losers when it comes to the economy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I saw that there was no integration whatsoever.
SHUBERT: Ronald Sorensen spent 30 years teaching minority kids in inner city schools, but what he saw spurred him to start the conservative Livable
Rotterdam Political Party. It launched the career of another anti-Islam politician, the late (inaudible) and laid the groundwork for Geert Wilders.
Do you think that Islam is incompatible with Dutch values or is there some sort of a ground in between?
RONALD SORENSEN, LIVEABLE ROTTERDAM FOUNDER: No, I don't think something...
(through translator): I don't think there's something in between. It's very clear. I, of course, as (inaudible) against European, western values.
SHUBERT: The imam at Rotterdam's Essalam mosque sees no such contradiction.
IMAM AZZEDINE KARRAT, ESSALAM MOSQUE, ROTTERDAM (through translator): I try to be a practicing Muslim, but I've never had a problem with Dutch
norms and values or with the Dutch law.
SHUBERT: Or Imam Karrat, talk of Islamization is simply stoking fears. He says anyone is welcome to attend prayers here and the mosque preaches a
message of friendship and tolerance, which is why it was such a shock to receive these threatening neo-Nazi letters
just a few weeks before, says Imam Karrat.
KARRAT (through translator): after the attack on the mosque in Canada, I found myself thinking during prayer what if someone came in now?
SHUBERT: Mayor Aboutaleb, however, is not worried at all.
ABOUTALEB: The best cleaning machine we know in our system is democracy. We have nothing with extremes to the left or the extremes to the right.
They never entered the power in The Netherlands. It's always the power in the center that created such a great nation and I believe Muslims
believe also in it's the people in the middle
SHUBERT: The Dutch pride themselves on compromise, centuries of coming together to fight water, their common enemy. How much of that moderation
survives this extreme election remains to be seen.
Atika Shubert, CNN, Rotterdam.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: And we'll get you up to speed on the latest world news headlines in just a moment, and then we'll also look into meetings between Trump team
advisers and Moscow's ambassador to the United States. This man, and why they weren't disclosed. The details after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(HEADLINES)
[10:30:53] ANDERSON: Well, staying with president Donald Trump and his tweets, they coincide with mounting questions over why some of his advisers
met with Russia's ambassador during the election campaign. Among them was Jeff Sessions, for example, now the countries top law enforcement official.
And Mr. Trump sources tell CNN that Mr. Trump is getting frustrated with all of this controversy.
CNN's Randi Kaye with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have nothing to do with Russia. To the best of knowledge no person that I deal with does.
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That was President Donald Trump last month brushing off any connection to Russia. But since he made that statement
it's become clear that five of his advisors did indeed have contact with a Russian, this man, the Russian ambassador U.S. intelligence officials
consider a top level spy. Attorney General Jeff Sessions met with Ambassador Sergey Kislyak in July and September and is now having to
explain why he didn't share that during his confirmation hearings.
JEFF SESSIONS, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: In retrospect, I should have slowed down and said but I did meet one Russian official a couple of times. That
would be the ambassador.
KAYE: On the heels of that, more undisclosed meetings, this time at Trump Tower. That's where Donald Trump's son-in-law and senior advisor Jared
Kushner met with the Russian ambassador in December. Also in on that meeting, the former head of the NSA, Michael Flynn, who was fired for
misleading the administration about his conversations with the ambassador. A senior administration official tells CNN Kushner's meeting lasted about
10 minutes and characterized it as an introductory meeting, an inconsequential hello.
Why does any of this matter? Because at least some of those meeting with the Russian ambassador occurred while the Trump administration's
relationship with Russia was under close scrutiny. And despite pushback from the White House, there are still some questions about whether or not
Russia influenced the U.S. presidential election.
SEAN SPICER, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I think that Russia's involvement and activity has been investigated up and down. So the question becomes at
some point if there's nothing to further investigate, what are you asking people to investigate?
TRUMP: How many times do I have to answer this question? Russia is a ruse. I know you have to get up and ask a question, so important. Russia is a
ruse. I have nothing to do with Russia.
KAYE: So what about that growing list of private meetings with the Russian ambassador? Trump campaign national security advisor J.D. Gordon has
disclosed that he too met with Kislyak at the Republican National Convention in July. He emphasized there wasn't any inappropriate chatter
with the Russians to help the Trump campaign. And there's more. He says two other national security advisors were also part of that meeting, Walid
Phares and Carter Page. More meetings and more denials only leads to more questions.
TRUMP: If Putin likes Donald Trump, I consider that an asset, not a liability.
KAYE: Randi Kaye, CNN, Norfolk, Virginia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Let's do more on this, shall we? I'm joined by Errol Lewis, who is in New York. He's a CNN political commentator and a political anchor at
Spectrum News.
Russia is a ruse, says Trump. Washington, or his opponents, at least, using it to sort of, you know, hit him over the head, do him in. It's all
hysteria. Isn't it? That's certainly what he thinks, sir.
ERROL LEWIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I'm afraid not. When Donald Trump says that, he's harkening back to Candidate Trump in which in a polarized,
politicized environment anything you can pick up and throw at the candidates, sure, that's what Democrats will do if there's a Republican
nominee for president.
The problem for President Trump is that we're way past that now. And there are enough echoes out there of the old Cold War and the days when we faced
off against he Soviet Union that for a lot of people it is ingrained our politics that somebody like a Vladimir Putin, the former head of the KGB
who has ordered men to their deaths, who has conducted hostile operations against the United States for most of his adult life, that this is not
somebody to be trusted and that there are no inconsequential contacts with an adversary regime like Russia.
[10:35:13] ANDERSON: How do you think all of this is likely to impact the possible Russia/U.S. reset at this point.
LEWIS: Well, the reset is probably dead and buried, or if not it's certainly on its death bed. The reset was supposed to be as then candidate
trump campaigned for it, was -- was to be a matter of creating an alliance that would help say wipe out ISIS and Syria and in other places around the
globe, that might help trade relations, especially due to the oil and gas that are plentiful
in Russia.
Those are not even on the agenda now, because all of this has really gotten in the way. And to
the extent that this White House is now saddled with this burden. And he hopes he had a redrawing the map diplomatically, economically, politically,
it's just not in the cards right now.
I guess finally there is the question of NATO and that's really where this conversation began which was Trump suggesting as a candidate that better
relations with Russia would be in order was, of course, chilling news to members of the NATO alliance because at the same time Trump was bashing the
alliance and calling for a greater financial contributions and suggesting that U.S. troops might not be needed in Europe so we've got a state of
uncertainty now that's going to overshadow a personality of a reset.
ANDERSON: Adding a further layer to what some describe as the chaos and confusion in Washington, what we've had just in the past hour or so, what
do you make of the latest salvos from Trump Saturday and his adviser or his spokesman Sean Spicer in the past hour. So accusing the
former U.S. president of abusing his power?
LEWIS: Yeah, it's remarkable. And, you know, I know it's overdone to say that this is reminiscent of Watergate, but I'm old enough to remember
Watergate. It was a big part of my -- my formation as a child and helped lead me into journalism and one of the
things that echos of Watergate frankly, Becky, is that you've got a White House that is doing itself in. Every time the president tweets
about Russia, every time his spokesman demands an investigation, what they are doing is undermining their own agenda and focusing attention on an area
that is very problematic and for which they don't have a lot of good answers.
ANDESON: With that, sir, we're going to leave it there. On a Sunday, we appreciate you joining us. Thank you.
LEWIS: Thank you.
ANDERSON: Well, another issue on - thank you - President Trump's plate, allegations of playing to anti-semetic elements in his support base during
the campaign and after inauguration. Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and daughter Ivanka are practicing Jews, but the new administration is
accused of not respondingfirmly enough to a spate of threats and vandalism against Jewish targets.
Well, New York governor Andrew Cuomo is in Jerusalem this Sunday. He laid a wreath at the Museum commemorating the Holocaust and spoke alongside the
Israeli president about anti-Semitism in the U.S.
Well, let's get you to Jerusalem where Oren Liebermann is standing by for us.
Cuomo, well he had some strong words. What did he say?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That was a very quick visit for New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, but a very significant one. He
started his visit at Yad Vashem, the Israeli Holocaust museum - memorial, where he paid tribute to 6 million Jews killed in the Holocaust. And he
said the lessons of the past are especially relevant today with a wave of anti-Semetic and other hate attacks spreading across the U.S. in the form
of bomb threats called in to JCCs as well as vandalism at Jewish cemeteries.
And that was specifically what he wanted to talk about, especially as on his flight over here, there was another wave of anti-Semitic act when
tombstones in a Jewish cemetery in Brooklyn were knocked over. He spoke out forcefully and said that any attempt to drive the Israel and the U.S.
apart will only serve to strengthen the ties between the two. Here's part of
what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW CUOMO, GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK: It is disgusting. It is reprehensible. It violates every tenet of the New York State tradition.
New York State by its definition is a celebration of diversity. It accepts all who believe in the spirit of inclusion. And we live by discrimination
of none.
New York's principals are built on a rock. They will not change and the political winds will not change them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIEBERMANN: The New York State Police have put out a reward to find the people responsible for these anti-Semitic acts and set up a special unit in
the New York State Police, again, and find those responsible.
But Governor Cuomo acknowledged that finding those responsible for the acts is one thing actually ending anti-Semitism and hatred is entirely
different. And that isn't a question of security, it's a question of education - Becky.
[10:40:25] ANDERSON: 5:40 p.m. in Jerusalem. Oren, thank you for that. 7:40 here in the UAE.
This is Connect the World. I'm Becky Anderson. Coming up as the Trump administration considers tighter immigration rules, some are seeking
sanctuary in America's neighbor to the north. That after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: This is CNN. And Connect the World. I'm Becky Anderson for you. Welcome back to our show.
And if you're just joining us you're very welcome. We started this hour talking about the new travel ban. U.S. President Donald Trump is expected
to roll out in the coming hours or day, but there's alReddy rising pressure on undocumented immigrants in the U.S. and that is leading to scenes like
this, people so fearful they will be denied refuge and they will be crossing into Canada in the severe winter cold hoping for what would be a
warmer welcome there. In his sober hall of just who will be allowed into the country, Mr. Trump says he is considering reforms that could grant
legal status to millions of undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. Inspiration for the change: America's neighbor to the north.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Nations around the world like Canada, Australia and many others have a merit-based
immigration system. It's a basic principle that those seeking to enter a country ought to be able to support themselves financial.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, for more I sat down with Canada's minister of international trade, Francois-Philippe Champagne. And I began by asking
him about campaign and i asked him about Canada's policy and the people fleeing U.S. for his country. This is our
conversation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANCOIS-PHILIPPE CHAMPAGNE, CANADIAN MINISTER OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE: There's two things there, Becky. We try to be generous, because that's in
the Canadian DNA, generous nation to welcome these people, but this needs to be orderly. I mean, there's a process to
enter Canada. There's a process to enter Canada legally. And we want to insist on that.
Now, there has been a number of people crossing the border. I think we have taken steps in consultation with our U.S. colleagues, but i think
what this does tells you is that people have been look up at Canada. Those who have been refugees, we have been a welcoming nation, as you know, with
the Syrian refugees. Canada has been standing out there in the world to say that refugees are welcome
and we have done our part.
I think in that respect we just need to insist that people who want to enter our country, they need to enter it in the proper way. I mean, you've
seen some of the image. People have risked their lives in the winter. We don't want that to happen. We want people to obviously enter our country
legally and to the normal procedure.
But Canada remains an open nation and that's why you see people I think being very much attracted to our country.
ANDERSON: This open-door policy that we've seen discussed was evident last year with Angela Merkel's very generous attitude towards what was a
significant amount of migrants moving through Europe. She has been burnt by that. Is there, or do you worry
about, the negatives here? Are you concerned that the prime minister could get burned like Angela Merkel could?
CHAMPAGNE: Well, I think, you know, let's go back to the Syrian refugee, Becky. I mean, this has not been a whole government effort. This has been
a hole of Canada effort. I mean, actually what you saw, this was tremendous in Canada is that municipalities have been asking for more
refugees.
You know, when we were trying to match up the refugees, Canada being a huge country, what we saw actually was an intake where municipalities say we're
capable of welcoming these people, please let them come to our community. So for me even in my own and even a rural community in Canada. We have
been willing and able to welcome these people, not just when they enter Canada, but making sure that we give them the opportunity to prosper and
live in our country.
I think this says a lot about Canada being this inclusive society, once which believed that diversity is a strength and I must commend Prime
Minister Trudeau as being at the forefront in the world as you know talking about making sure that Canada does what's right.
ANDERSON: Let me just push you on this though. How many immigrants is too many immigrants? How quickly could this become a problem?
CHAMPAGNE: Well, I would say depending on the countries, I think Canada as a number, which is about 250,000 per year. But, you know, what you need to
make sure and what we've -- I think we've been doing in Canada is not only welcoming people, but making sure we
give them the tools to succeed in our society. I mean, it's making sure that people - you know, we have two languages so people learn the language,
people offer the opportunity to engage in civil society, engage in communities to welcome them and making sure that we can find work. So
there is a number but there's also an attitude. And I think the Canadian attitude has been
making sure that we give them the tools to succeed and feel at home in Canada.
ANDERSON: Let's talk trade. you have been on what sounds like an exhausting trip, not least in this region looking to bilateral trade
agreements. Before we talk those, I want to talk multilateral deals. And I want to talk NAFTA. What do you understand the discussions to have been
to date on what happens with the North American Free Trade Agreement? And how will it affect what is going on in Canada? Are you optimistic or
pessimistic that that deal will continue?
CHAMPAGNE: Well, I mean, you know, I was optimistic. Look at the visit of our prime minister and President Trump. I think this was a very, very
successful visit. I think there's an acknowledgment understanding nature and understanding and breadth of our relationship, not just on trade, but
also on security.
So, let me - so, the bilateral trade between Canada and the U.S. is $2.4 billion a day. We have 400,000 people crossing the border every day, you
have 35 states in the United States which have Canada as their primary export market. And you have 9 million middle class jobs in the U.S. which
depend on trade with Canada. So we start from a strong base. And that's why the comment of President Trump for me were an acknowledgment of this
very, very strong relationship.
ANDERSON: And his bombastic remarks about NAFTA generally as a candidate tended towards the issue with Mexico, but when he says the NAFTA deal is a
bad deal, what you're saying is, firstly, it isn't and secondly you expect it to continue.
CHAMPAGNE: You know, what we said is that first there's an acknowledgment that Canada is the largest customers to the United States. We are the
largest energy supplier to the United States, whether it's oil, gas or electricity. As we know, much of New York's electricity comes from Quebec,
actually, where I'm from. So I think there was this acknowledgment, this understanding. And, you know, you can look at that.
The NAFTA agreement, as you know is two decades old, has been amended from time to time, I think 11 times since it's been implemented. So what Prime
Minister Trudeau said from the beginning, we're willing to set at the table.
Let me give you an example, you know, when this was negotiated, e-commerce did not even exist. So it didn't make sense to sit down and see what can
be done surely, but we start from a very strong base because there's an understanding that this agreement has created millions, millions of middle
class jobs on both sides of the border, and that goods that have been purchased - you know, good you find on the shelf would sometimes cross the
border five to six times.
So, obviously our supply chain is integrated. And you said it from the beginning, Becky, it's people to people.
ANDERSON: Where have you seen the opportunities finally on the trip that you are currently on?
CHAMPAGNE: Well, I -- I said, you know, let's be ambitious. This is a place in the world...
ANDERSON: And you will be?
CHAMPAGNE: Yeah, I have been. And I say that to all my colleagues. You know, when I look at the trade between Canada and this region, there's so
much more we can do. As you know, we've finalized the free trade agreement with Europe two weeks ago, which gives, you know, a market access to about
1.1 billion consumers, in you include Canada, Mexico and the European countries.
ANDERSON: ...should eventually come off, of course.
CHAMPAGNE: Yeah, this is, you know, we're expecting provisional application in spring, but Canada is also a Pacific nation, but now my job
is to make sure to make trade real for people and making sure that we plant the seed for the decades to come. And obviously when you're looking at the
map, you're saying where can we have a hub, where can - which base can we use, obviously, and the market, the GCC market and obviously the Emirates,
it's an interesting market. But also it's regional market, and obviously you were talking about infrastructure that comes to mind. There's no doubt
education, you know, that's something that Canada exports very well.
We talked about the aerospace sector, you know. We have a lot of opportunities in this part of the world. And oil and gas, you know.
Canada is very much a natural resources nation and we want to see this partnership.
But what I was telling to the ministers and the investment fund here, let's be ambitious. Let's be
strategic. Let's not look at what one, two projects can we do. Let's think, what can we do in 10 years from now. You know, this country has
been built by people who were visionary, so let's be visionary in our trade relationship.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: An ambitious narrative from Canada's minister of international trade.
You are watching Connect the World. Up next, it started as a plan to trick their teacher and it ended up capturing the hearts of people around the
world. Their story is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC)
ANDERSON: Well, I'm sure you remember that song from Michael Jackson released more than 25 years ago. A powerful message then and still today.
Two little boys in the U.S. are now living out its true spirit. Your Parting Shots tonight. (inaudible) of our affiliate WAZE has their story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOY: Hello.
BOY: Stop it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Reddy Weldon (ph) is helping his best friend Jackson Rosebush
pass the time as they wait for Jackson's haircut. The preschoolers are a ball of energy.
BOY: Very cute.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Today, Jackson has a particular cut in mind.
[10:55:10] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How are you getting your hair done today?
BOY: Like Reddy (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And the transformation begins.
BOY: My hair it is falling off.
BOY: It is falling off. You're going to be bald.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I it's all part of boy's master plan to trick their teacher.
BOY: Jackson's me and Jackson's - and I'm Jackson, and Jackson's me.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They hope the teacher won't be able to tell them apart because they will have the same haircut. Jackson filled his mother
in on the prank.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was like, yeah, we can trick the teacher because we'll look just alike. No, she won't be able to tell the difference
between the two of us.
I was like, okay.
Again, I know what Reddy (ph) looks like, so that made me chuckle
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The boys completely ignoring the obvious: their race.
Jackson's mother posted her son's plan on Facebook to a few hundred friends and it took off,
shared thousands of times around the world.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm glad that people can see, you know, what little kids see.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think you look like that guy.
UNIDENTIFIED FAMEL: The boys are getting a kick out of the whole thing, but it's a much deeper meaning for their families. Reddy was adopted from
the Congo and although he may look different from his parents they taught him to love everyone the same.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's really cool to see that move on an innocence that children have that we can lose and so if we can get some of that back I
think it would be amazing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: How cool is that? Incredibly encouraging story. And so is this, March 14th is my freedom date. CNN teamed me up with youngsters
around the globe for a unique student-led day of action against modern day slavery. These students right here in Abu Dhabi and elsewhere in the
Middle East told us what freedom means to them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Freedom, to me, is the ability to express anything you want any way you want.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Freedom to me means having a choice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Freedom means being able to express my individuality whenever I want.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Freedom to me is the ability to move around and express yourself and giving all those rights without the risk of persecution.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: What does freedom mean to you? Well, post a photo or video using the #myfreedomday and do tune in March 14 when we broadcast live from
schools around the world to hear from students, from kids who are making a huge difference.
That is Connect the World for you for today. I'm Becky Andersson from the team here, it's a very good evening. Thanks a lot for joining us and it's
a good night from Abu Dhabi.
END
