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Father of San Bernardino Killer Talks to Italian Newspaper, Confirms Son Shared ISIS Ideology; President Barack Obama to Address the Nation on Terrorism. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired December 6, 2015 - 15:00   ET

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


[15:00:08] FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello again, everyone, and thanks for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We are following two big stories right now.

The father of the San Bernardino killer, Syed Rizwan Farook, tells an Italian newspaper that his son shared the ideology of ISIS.

But first we are just now five hours away from President Barack Obama giving a rare address to the nation on terrorism. This comes in a crucial time four days since that mass shooting in San Bernardino and three weeks after the terror attacks in Paris. Investigators have evidence those attacks may have been inspired by ISIS.

Obama will speak from the oval office. This is very significant. He has only done it twice in his entire presidency, to announce the end of U.S. combat operations in Iraq, and then following the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Let's get to CNN's Chris Frates in Washington at the White House.

So Chris, what do we expect from the president tonight at the oval office?

CHRIS FRATES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred. I think we expect to see the president try to reassure a nation that is very much on edge. In fact, you can say how they don't think America's been this on edge since the 9/11 attacks.

The president is going to try to do three things. And one, he is going to give us an update on what has happened into the investigations in the California shootings. Of course, the FBI is investigating this as if it were an act of terrorism. It will be interesting to see if the president does, in fact, call it terrorism.

He is also going talk more broadly about the terrorism threat. He is going to talk about where we have been as a country, how the terrorism has evolved since 9/11, and he is also going to reiterate the fact that he has a conviction to defeat ISIS and expect to hear how he wants to do that.

The president also going to talk about what the government has done to make Americans safer since the Paris attacks. That is certainly something that first put Americans on edge and of course we saw the shootings in California this week. And I think he is also going to say that we are going to use all of American power to defeat ISIS. What that means, I think, is part of what we will be listening for, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Chris Frates at the White House, thank you so much.

And breaking news in the terror investigation in San Bernardino. The father of the male shooter, Syed Rizwan Farook, is speaking out. During an interview with an Italian newspaper, "La Stampa," Syed Farook Sr. said his son had told him that he was a supporter of ISIS ideology and had an obsession with Israel, telling the newspaper, and I'm quoting now, "he said he shared the ideology of al-Baghdadi to create an Islamic state and he was fixated on Israel," end quote.

CNN correspondent Polo Sandoval has the latest from San Bernardino.

Polo, what more are you learning about what this father has been saying about his son?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Who was Syed Rizwan Farook? That is a question that authorities here in San Bernardino has struggle to answer. And now, there could be some insight in an article that was published by an Italian newspaper. A reporter with "La Stampa" spoke to the father of Rizwan Farook, trying to get more insight on what kind of man he was and what may have triggered the attack we witnessed on Wednesday. And of course if this working theory that his son was radicalized is true, part of that interview or in a part of that interview his father saying quote "that his son shared the ideology of al-Baghdadi to create an Islamic state and that he was fixed on Israel." That reference to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS.

At the same time his father also going on to say that basically when his son got married they saw very little of him, if any at all. In fact, his father lives only about 30 miles from where the attacks happened and yet the father is saying that he never even met Tashfeen Malik, the woman who was behind this attack.

So I think what this article does, it really at least offers more insight into who this man was and possibly even his wife. And then we also have to remember that this comes on the heels of ISIS taking to their radio station to call these two members essentially martyrs and also calling them supporters of ISIS.

And so what we can expect is for this investigation to push forward here at what is the only active scene left in San Bernardino. You can see that really the cars are still there, the same ones that have not been moved since chose shots rang out during that holiday party -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Polo Sandoval, thank you so much.

Our special coverage of the president's address begins tonight at 7:00 eastern with Wolf Blitzer. The president speaks at 8:00 p.m. eastern time. And then at 9:00 here on CNN, an all-star tribute celebration of "CNN Heroes." All of that right here on CNN.

All right, straight ahead, we will talk to the ranking member of the house permanent select committee on intelligence about the investigation in California. Representative Adam Schiff joins us next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:08:36] WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back. And back now to our two big stories right now.

Tonight, President Barack Obama will give a rare address from the oval office on terrorism. This comes just four days since that deadly attack in San Bernardino, California.

And also an Italian newspaper is now reporting that the male shooter in those attacks told his own father that he shared the ideology of the leader of ISIS. Let's talk about this more with democratic congressman Adam Schiff of California, ranking member on the intelligence committee.

Good to see you, Congressman.

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D), CALIFORNIA: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: What is your reaction thus far to the father of Syed Farook, who is reporting that his son, indeed, was a follower of the ISIS ideology?

SCHIFF: Well, I think it provides important clues as to who was radicalized, were they both were, when that radicalization might have taken place, but it also highlights just how much we yet have to learn about both of the shooters.

We are getting press reports out Pakistan the female shooter became increasingly observant. That may indicate she was becoming radicalized before she came to the United States. And we now hear from the father that the son was inspired by al-Baghdadi. So these are important clues. But we should also be mindful of the fact that how quickly this story has been changing.

Initially we have the press reports there was an argument at the center where the shooting took place. They may no longer be the understanding that law enforcement has. So there are still very big missing pieces. And then you look at the electronic information, which I can't go into at this point, that also is a bit perplexing, and we have a lot more to learn from electronics that are being exploited.

[15:10:21] WHITFIELD: And Congressman Schiff, how do you expect, perhaps whether it be from this reporting, from Pakistan, or perhaps from the electronic data that you speak of, how do you see that ultimately shaping whether it be the visa waiver program that this country embraces or perhaps the fiancee visa conditions? How do you see all of what we are learning about this attack and these two players, potentially shaping in the immediacy as opposed to long-term policy or privileges that are exercised in this country?

SCHIFF: Well, this is one of the cardinal reasons we need to get to the bottom of just what took place and when the radicalization happened and how they went about this awful shooting spree, because we want to take steps to prevent it from happening again. And knowing where we may have missed clues is important to make sure that doesn't happen. Knowing what reforms we need to help prevent shootings like this, we also want to undertake.

But it's important also that we not be confined by just the fact pattern here. And one of the things that we have been responding to with the Paris attacks, for example, is the need to strengthen that visa waiver program. And that is not based on the fact that people came here from Europe who had returned to the fight from the fight in Syria and Iraq to Europe, but it doesn't take much to imagine that that would be one of the easier routes to the United States for those who are radicalized.

So we will look at this case. We will look at when the female shooter was radicalized. We will have an eye to what that means in terms of reforms. But until we know the facts, we really don't want to leap to legislative conclusions.

WHITFIELD: All right. And Congressman, this evening President Barack Obama addressing the nation from the oval office, something that is very rare from this president. This will be his only third time from the oval office. This time to address terrorism and all that we have or have not yet learned about this activity, just four days ago. What specifically do you feel you need to hear from the president or do you hope to hear from the president?

SCHIFF: You know, I hope to hear the president say we are going to defeat this organization and here is how we are going to do it, that he understands the American people are concerned, that this doesn't seem to have any end in sight. But this is how we are going to rise to this challenge. And we have overcome greater challenges in the past. And we are not going to let this change the character of who we are. We are not going to slam the door on people in need. We are not going to view our neighbors with suspicion. We are going to adhere to our values, but we are going to take the fight to this enemy militarily and ideologically.

WHITFIELD: Sorry to interrupt, but haven't we already heard that from the president?

SCHIFF: Well, it's something I think frankly you can't emphasize too much. And I think the president still needs to continue to work to connect with the American people on the fears that they have and sharing his vision for how we are going to overcome this.

My district is not far from where the shooting took place, and talking to my constituent, they are really worried. They don't see an end in sight to this. They want to know how they should evaluate what just took place along with the other mass shootings and they are looking for answers. And I think the president will try to give some of those answers tonight. But it won't be a single address. As we've seen he is given many statements recently and that is going to have to continue. He is going to have to continue to share his thoughts with America about how we can defeat this scourge of terrorism.

WHITFIELD: So the language coming from whether it be the White House or even the FBI as of late has been the suspicion of terrorism. But neither one of those places has actually said this is a terrorist attack. How will it make a difference if the president -- in what manner will it make a difference if the president tonight calls it terrorism, an about of terrorism, on U.S. soil by ISIS and specifies a strategy militarily on how to go about dismantling or destroying? Because we have heard the language of the goal being dismantling or destroying ISIS, but does the White House need to say specifically how it will go about that if indeed it uses the word terrorism tonight as well?

SCHIFF: Well, I think the president is going to need to once again lay out his vision for how to defeat this terrorist threat that we face. I think he will call it terrorism. I think plainly there is a terror motivation here, although there may have been a number of factors involved and a number of influences besides ISIS.

But I think it's not going to stop the political attacks. We are in the middle of a presidential cycle so you can expect to hear maybe the GOP candidates attack him regardless of what he says. But I think it's important for the president to try to tune out the political attacks and talk directly instead to the American people to al lay the concerns they have and basically to let the American people know we are not going to accept this, we are going to go after it with everything we can. This is not going to become something Americans just have to acclimate to living with even though this is going to be a significant challenge and one that can't be defeated in the very near term.

[15:15:18] WHITFIELD: All right, Congressman Adam Schiff, thank you so much.

Again, the president's address from the oval office tonight 8:00 p.m. eastern time. CNN coverage begins at 7:00 eastern time with our Wolf Blitzer.

And we will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:14:12] WHITFIELD: Welcome back. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. ISI is claiming responsibility for a car bomb that killed the governor of Yemen's Aden province. Ja'far Sayed and six bodyguards died in the blast. Aden has acted as Yemen's capital since Houthi rebels ousted the country's president from Sanaa in March. Al-Qaeda, ISIS and the Houthi are all battling for control in Yemen.

British police are investigating a London subway stabbing as an act of terror. A bystander captured the incident on camera.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Drop it! Drop it! Drop it, you fool.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Police say a 29-year-old man stabbed two passengers with a knife. Both are expected to recover. He was arrested after police took him down with a stun gun. And there are reports the suspect yelled "this is for Syria" during the attack. This comes after British planes began launching airstrikes against ISIS in Syria last week.

All right. Those are just the latest attacks that will be the backdrop for President Barack Obama's oval office address tonight. The frequency and intensity of global attacks seems to have reached a fever pitch. Paris, the Russian airliner over Egypt, the ISIS bombing in Beirut, and San Bernardino now. Can the president reassure Americans that he and other world leaders are on top of the situation?

This is how national security adviser Susan Rice put it today on CNN's Fareed Zakaria.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[15:20:47] SUSAN RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: We have been on top of the threat since the summer of 2014 when ISIL made a significant move to take territory in Iraq. And from that point on we have acted militarily but not just militarily. We have built diplomatically a coalition of 65 countries. We have worked to cut off ISIL's source of revenue and financing through an active counter-financing campaign, and now through trying to take out their oil production and distribution.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's bring in CNN national security analyst Juliette Kayyem and Jeff Parks, a retired IED expert with the U.S. army.

All right. Good to see both of you.

So Jeff, let me begin with you. What do you want to hear from the president in terms of specificity, the mission without jeopardizing the mission, the strategy?

JEFF PARKS (RET.), U.S. ARMY COUNTER IED EXPERT: I think it's time we define it for what it is, and it's a terrorist threat. Not calling it that is not helping --

WHITFIELD: You are talking about San Bernardino or just in general?

PARKS: In general. In general. Across the board. San Bernardino specifically is a terrorist attack. Let's put it in that box. It's a terrorist attack. And then let's treat ISIS as a state. They want to be a state actor. What do you do with a state as aggressive? One of the options on the table could be a declaration of war. But we need to be in front of this, not behind it. WHITFIELD: And then Juliette, how will that make a difference in

terms of national security, the arsenal for intelligence if the president comes out, calls it terrorism, an act of terrorism? How does that change the land came of how the nation moves forward in protecting America against attacks against that -- from terrorists?

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, I have no doubt he is going to call it terrorism, and that is fine and appropriate and realistic. I think the more important thing is the president needs to make clear that until a country like ours there is no such thing as zero risk.

And so this idea that every time there is an attack it means we are losing the war against ISIS is just -- every president will lose, not just Obama. And so part of what his message is, and we heard from one of your reporters talk about that he is going to discuss the American fabric, is to engage people in their own safety and security, whether it is see something, say something, whether it is having response plans, whether it is supporting first responders.

We delude ourselves, every expert, every presidential candidate deludes ourselves if we think that given the threat today, given how quickly people are becoming radicalized and given the multiple motives that are likely to be animating various people that we are going to get the risk to zero. So what we can do is minimize the risk. And I think it's important that the president say that.

WHITFIELD: Jeff, don't people already have the message of see something, say something?

PARKS: Well, they do. But I think that in the current context when we talk about terrorism you need to take it to another level.

WHITFIELD: What do you mean?

PARKS: Whether it be with first responders and they think terrorism first and eliminate that threat, also it's not just your typical workplace violence. It could be something more. So, again, make sure you have a plan. Make sure you know what your surroundings are and be prepared. And we just can't say that enough.

WHITFIELD: And Juliette, but isn't that part of the problem, saying the examples of the two in San Bernardino, very few people are able to say that they saw anything that was suspicious, felt the need to report anything in hind sight there may have been, you know, something after they thought about it a little bit more. But it seems as though what we are also seeing is an evolution of those who are suspected terrorists or suspected of carrying out, you know, terrorist activity. And so how does the approach to that evolve as well so that all of us can identify, you know, what somebody's up to?

KAYYEM: Right. I think it is a lot of lessons learned at this stage in terms of what do family members know as you are now reporting and could they have come forward, did they feel comfortable coming forward to law enforcement? What kind of engagement is there between government and these communities or workforces and workplaces and their employees?

So I think it's very important that people at this stage not lose their heads, not think, you know, the sky is falling, but understand that given the threat that we have today, how quickly people are becoming radicalized. It's not a formal process. They don't have to go to Afghanistan or Syria to train. That part of this is us engaging in our own security. And that should make people feel empowered in a very scary time. I have three kids. You know, I get it. People are nervous. But we also have to sort of own it in some ways.

[15:25:36] WHITFIELD: Jeff?

PARKS: Senator Johnson came out overnight and spoke about I think one of the things that is going to come out is a better effort to engage the Muslim community. I think that is important to open that communication up because we talk about see something, say something. There were people there as we have seen on CNN who did see something, they don't say something. And we have to make it an open discussion, absolutely.

WHITFIELD: Jeff Parks, Juliette Kayyem, thanks to both of you. Appreciate it.

All right. Still ahead, more on the San Bernardino mass shooting investigation.

But first new information about President Jimmy Carter's health, a stunning announcement that he made his Sunday school today. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:29:25] WHITFIELD: All right. Hello again, everyone. Thanks for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

Ahead, more on our top story. The San Bernardino mass shooting investigation. And President Barack Obama's oval office address tonight on terrorism.

But now our other top story. In Plains, Georgia, today, former president Jimmy Carter stunning the congregation at his church announcing he is cancer-free. It was just four months ago that he revealed cancer had spread to his brain.

Our Nick Valencia has been speaking to members of the congregation who heard it firsthand.

So, Nick, they must be shocked.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They are shocked. It was an unexpected announcement. They are elated. They say they are on cloud nine. President Jimmy Carter, former U.S. president, taking the start of the Sunday school church service at the (INAUDIBLE) Baptist church to announce that he is cancer-free.

NBC News was there at the service and just a short time ago they posted the clip of Carter making this announcement.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[15:30:20] JIMMY CARTER, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I went for an MRI of my brain. The four places were still there, but they were responding to the treatment and when I went this week, they didn't find any cancer at all, so -- so that is good news.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: You hear that applause. We hear parishioners burst into applause there. They were just elated at the news. A lot of people were concerned earlier this summer when the president did make this announcement saying that he was diagnosed with cancer. They found a small mass on his liver that they removed, but then the cancer spread to his brain. Four small spots of melanoma on his brain about two millimeters in diameter. And this concerned a lot of people as I mentioned, Fred, because of the history of his family. His father died of cancer, siblings died of pancreatic cancer and then of course his age. He was 90 at the time, now 91. Now saying he is cancer- free.

WHITFIELD: Did he review any detail, you know, something that attributes to this?

VALENCIA: Yes, sure. You know, you remember when he had a press conference earlier at the Carter center this year. He was saying he was taking an experimental drug intravenously, that drug called pembrolizumab. But he mentioned earlier at the church service when he made this cancer-free announcement. The FDA approved this drug back in 2014. It is actually specific for melanoma that can be cannot be removed surgically. It's a very focused treatment. And we have reached out to doctors there at Emory involved in Carter's treatment. They have not responded to us. They are not talking about it right now but we are reaching out to get context to exactly what could have led to this miracle.

WHITFIELD: It will be incredible to hear from them specifically, those doctors.

All right. Thanks so much. We have a medical expert right now who might be able to weigh in. Maybe you can stick around just in case I can incorporate you in this.

Dr. Len Lichtenfeld is with the American Cancer Society. He is joining us right now on the phone.

So, Doctor, How does this news sit with you that the former president is now cancer this-free he says?

DR. LEN LICHTENFELD, AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY (on the phone): Fredricka, it's obviously wonderful news. I'm sure the president's family, his friends, his followers are all very excited at the news. And in a difficult situation. Clearly the best possible outcome that one could expect. So it is good news. And the president frankly is very fortunate. We do see more patients who are responding to treatment for melanoma. And that appears to be the case here as well.

WHITFIELD: OK. So my colleague, Nick Valencia, is with me here. And you can better pronounce this type of experimental drug for me.

VALENCIA: Pembrolizumab. Pembrolizumab.

LICHTENFELD: It's a tongue twister. It's called pembrolizumab. The trade name is Keytruda. And it is one of the drugs that had been approved recently for the treatment of patients with metastatic melanoma.

But we have to remember that President Cater also had that liver tumor resected. And he did get radiation therapy to the brain. But the purpose of this drug is to perhaps help with those -- sort of mop up those lesions, but perhaps more importantly it's designed to help treat cancer cells wherever they may be in his body.

So again, excellent news, best possible outcome. As to what precisely caused this, whether it was the surgery and the radiation? How much did the pembrolizumab help? We can't say for certain. And we are certainly hopeful that it is effective in treating other areas of cancer or cancer cells that may be in his body.

WHITFIELD: And doctor, it seems like a very short, you know, span of time for this treatment. I mean, Nick, you were reporting on the fact that Mr. Carter said that the spots that were there are no longer and there is no sign of any new spots.

VALENCIA: That is right.

WHITFIELD: So, doctor, does that seem on par with the results that could come from this kind of treatment in such a short amount of time?

LICHTENFELD: Well, I actually think it's consistent with the positive response to treatment. Let's remember that the president actually started in the spring of this year with this. We didn't know much about it until, if I recall, around August when they had the press conference, August and September.

So this is a disease that has progressed perhaps more slowly than president carter than it does in some other patients. We cannot ignore the fact that unfortunately too many patients with metastatic melanoma, the kind of cancer the president has, don't do as well as the president. And so this good fortune and good news.

But the president's course, even from the time that he first knew he was ill until he had surgery, this cancer did not spread rapidly during that time. So the reality is that with the radiation that he had, now two or three months into the treatment course, that is not inconsistent with what we would have expected if he was, in fact, responding to his treatment.

[15:35:05] WHITFIELD: And, doctor, I would love you to weigh in on Nick's early reporting about the speed, the rate of growth based on his age. Earlier you were reporting that experts had told you that may be a factor, too, that it may grow slower? VALENCIA: That it was not as aggressive in elderly people. Doctor,

we would love for you to weigh in on how much Carter's age, he is 91 years old, how much that played into his recovery and his announcement he is cancer-free.

LICHTENFELD: Well, let's understand that certainly the president is an exceptional but not completely unique 91-year-old man. I mean, he is obviously led a healthy lifestyle that has helped him. He is mentally and physically capable. So that is been a positive.

But, you know, cancer -- each individual's cancer is in fact somewhat unique. We have to remember, though, from a medical standpoint, the biology of a person's cancer is unique. So some cancers can grow very rapidly. Some more slowly. And I believe what you have heard is not dissimilar to what I have said also, that sometimes when you see older patients, their cancers do grow more slowly, and clearly the president's, in the present situation, that has been the case. But that still does not negate the fact that he is had an excellent response. And the reality is that they can no longer find any visible evidence of cancer. And in the situation with metastatic melanoma, as I mentioned earlier, that is the best possible outcome that one could ask for.

So our thoughts, our prayers with the president and his family and everyone who wishes him well. This is -- this is excellent news and we hope that it continues for many months and hopefully for many years.

WHITFIELD: Indeed. Our thoughts and prayers are indeed with the former president and his family. And this really is incredible news that all of us can celebrate and embrace.

Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, and Nick Valencia, thanks so much on your reporting as well. Appreciate it.

All right. Straight ahead, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump says some people many the U.S. need to be tracked after the Paris and California attacks. You will hear who he is talking about next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:40:56] WHITFIELD: The mass shootings in Paris and San Bernardino are being called wake-up calls by some politicians. And ISIS has become a major concern for U.S. security. But many Muslim-Americans are now fearing for their own safety.

Today Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump told CBS' "Face the Nation" that some people just quote "need to be tracked."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We are having a problem with radicals in the Muslim group. Let's not kid ourselves. And you can say it or you don't have to say it, and maybe you won't even want to. But I have been saying it loud and strong. So if you have people coming out of mosques with hatred and with death in their eyes and on their minds, we have to do something, John. We can't just say we are not going to look at it.

Now, I made that statement a number of weeks ago. It took a lot of for whatever. A lot of people were not exactly thrilled with it, and now everybody seems to agree with me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This idea of tracking Muslims in America. That is the thing. Where are you on this?

TRUMP: You have people that have to be tracked. If they are Muslims, they are Muslims. But you have people that have to be tracked. And we better be -- I use the word vigilance. We have to show vigilance. We have to have it. And if we don't, we are foolish people.

You know, we are really - we are being led by people that don't know what's happening. When you have President Obama talking about global warming is our biggest problem, we have a president that is not with it at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Joining me right now is Anushay Hossain. She is a journalist and editor in-chief of Anushayspoint.com. Good to see you.

ANUSHAY HOSSAIN, EDITOR IN-CHIEF, ANUSHAYSPOINT.COM: Thanks for having me.

WHITFIELD: So what are your thoughts about what Donald Trump just had to say? He just said people need to be tracked.

HOSSAIN: I think he needs a reality check. You know, it's a very terrifying time to be a Muslim in America. The anti-Muslim rhetoric is at an all-time high. So there is a tangible anti-Muslim environment in the country right now. It's depressing. It is terrifying. And the last thing we need is people like Trump who are exploiting the national fear and anxiety that currently people have in this country for his own political gain.

We cannot forget that the majority of ISIS' victims are Muslims and that Muslims hate ISIS. We are united against this fight against ISIS. We are not the terrorists.

WHITFIELD: Then what about the challenge that many are giving to members of the Muslim community to say the Muslim community has to take the lead or a lead in trying to weed out, identify those who have become radicalized, those who are using the faith as a mask to carry out harm?

HOSSAIN: Well, we definitely have a responsibility, but all of us have a responsibility. We are Muslims and we are Americans. This kind of approach that this issue is happening in our communities and we don't care about it isn't correct and it doesn't make any sense.

I mean, Muslims make up over 99 percent of terrorism victims. These are people that we don't want in our communities as well. But at the same time, Muslims are consistently and constantly condoning these acts of terrorism. And I don't feel like the media always wants to go with that story. I feel like how much louder are we supposed to -- are we supposed to condone -- condemn, sorry, these terrorist attacks?

You know, I saw some stats the other day. And over 406,000 Americans have died because of gun violence, and 33,380 approximately Americans have died because of terrorism. So we really need to shift our priorities. But when it comes to fighting ISIS, defeating ISIS, I mean, Muslim-Americans are very much with the rest of Americans. We are united in this fight.

WHITFIELD: Do you feel there is a greater responsibility among Muslim leader, particularly in this country, to reach, to help weed out, to identify those who have gone astray?

HOSSAIN: Yes and no. I mean, you have seen with this recent San Bernardino shooter. I mean, his own family didn't even know. His father is speaking out today, but, I mean, his brother had no idea, his sister had no idea that he was becoming radicalized. So it's really all of us.

Look at the shooter that shot out the Planned Parenthood in Colorado last week. Do all white males have a responsibility in America to shoot out the potential mass shooters in their communities? I mean, come on. This is exactly what ISIS wants, to have Americans turn against their Muslim-American brothers and sisters. We need to flip this narrative. It's not Americans against is. It is all of us against is.

[15:45:39] WHITFIELD: So what is on answer, because the status quo, you know, clearly is not enough, and if it means everyone has to, you know, step it up a level or two in terms of vigilance, whether it's a community as a whole, whether it's national security, whether it's the intelligence community, perhaps even the Muslim community, then what is an answer particularly as it pertains to the Muslim community in your view? Because you did mention Farook, and not everyone in his family admitting to knowing. The father has admitted to noticing something that Farook was pledging allegiance, you know, to ISIS. And even one of the members of the mosques that he stopped going about three weeks ago and noticed something was different.

HOSSAIN: I think that there are mentally crazy people across the country and across the world. What we need to do right now in America in addition to -- this can't just be a responsibility that a Muslim community has. We have to think about our foreign policy. We have to think about our global standing. But we also have to think about how easy it is to get firearms in this country and just blow up anything or commit a shoot-out and tag it on to a much larger --

WHITFIELD: But I don't know if I'm hearing people say it's only the Muslim community. It's in addition, and it is in addition asking for more. And what does more look like in your view?

HOSSAIN: More -- more action, more condemnation?

WHITFIELD: No. More vigilance or more assistance in trying to identify those who have gone astray.

HOSSAIN: I don't know. I mean, Fredricka, we are all in this -- we are all in this together. These are people that are trying to destroy our way of life. They are trying to destroy the very fabric that makes America so great, which is our diversity. And our freedom to practice our faith.

So I don't know what would look more vigilant but I know that we have to stand together and have a very united message that we won't tolerate this kind of terrorism. This is not the life we want to live.

WHITFIELD: Anushay Hossain, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

And a reminder, our special coverage of the president's address on ISIS and terrorism beginning tonight at 7:00 eastern time with Wolf Blitzer. The president speaking at 8:00 eastern.

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[15:53:11] WHITFIELD: A church just outside of San Bernardino, California, is grieving. One of the inland medical center shooting victims was a regular at St. Catherine church.

Our Dan Simon attended the service there this morning. He is joining us right now from Rialto, California. How are they doing there?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, hi Fredricka. As you can imagine, people are still very emotional. You had some people who were openly weeping in the church today. As you can imagine, what people do is they rely on faith during times of crisis, during times of tragedy. That is exactly what is happening here at the St. Catherine church in Rialto, California. This church only about ten minutes away from where the shooting took place.

Now, one of the victims who died was 27-year-old Yvette Valasco. Her family remembered her as somebody who is beautiful and intelligent, motivated. They say everybody who knew her loved her. And church clergy today talking about her and also talking about the feeling of homelessness that people are feeling and how to deal with the anger and grief that so many people are feeling today. Have a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This week we had been witness of how evil can touch anyone anywhere any given moment. There is questions how can something like this take place? How can I reconcile my faith with what's happening? Why will God allow something like this to take place?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is hard for me to do this because I'm angry at the moment, but it's hard for me to do this. But the thing I'm saying to them and I'm saying it to myself as well is that even the Muslims are our brothers around sisters. We must love the Muslim people as much as we love catholic people or even Atheist people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIMON: And no doubt those words are echoing throughout churches, throughout this community.

Fredricka, one interesting twist to all of this as we found out this morning the shooter Syed Farook who as we know worked as a restaurant inspector inspected the kitchen facilities of this church. This took place back in October. Gave the church the highest rating, an "A" rating. And I asked the pastor here if there was anything that stood out in the interactions with Farook, they said absolutely not. They were just as surprised as anybody that he could be capable of committing such horrible act.

WHITFIELD: What a devastating connection.

All right, thank you so much. Dan Simon.

All right, the next CNN NEWSROOM begins after a short break.

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[15:59:32] WHITFIELD: Hello, everyone. And thanks so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We are following two big stories right now. The father of San Bernardino killer Syed Rizwan Farook tells an Italian newspapers that his son shared the ideology of ISIS.

But first, we are just now four hours away from President Barack Obama giving a rare address to the nation on terrorism from the oval office. This comes at a crucial time four days since the mass shooting in San Bernardino and three weeks after the terror attacks in Paris. Investigators have evidence those attacks may have been inspired by ISIS indeed. The president will speak from the oval office. It is a very significant location. He has only done this twice in his entire time in office to announce that end of U.S. combat operations in Iraq.