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Sean Penn Interviewed Drug Lord Before His Recapture; New Poll: Clinton-Sanders Neck-And-Neck In Iowa; Ceremonies Remember Charlie Hebdo Victims. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired January 10, 2016 - 14:00   ET

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


[14:00:11] FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Happening right now in the NEWSROOM.

El Chapo and Sean Penn, their shocking meeting. The world's most wanted drug lord and an Oscar winner deep in a secret mountain hideaway. And now, Mexican authorities want to know where it all happened, how, and when, and who is the Mexican actress who made it all come together?

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Hello, everyone. And thanks so much for joining. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin with the stunning new details in the capture of the world's most wanted man, El Chapo Guzman, and a secret meeting with a Hollywood celebrity that may have led to the drug lord's arrest.

After years of planning, actor Sean Penn secured a confidential meeting with the drug kingpin at an undisclosed location in Mexico to write a feature-length article for "Rolling Stone" magazine. The meeting between these two men happened last October. "Rolling Stone" also obtained a two-minute video believed to be Guzman's first recorded interview in decades.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The U.S. government thinks that the Mexican government does not want to arrest you. What they want to do is kill you. What do you think?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. I think that if they find me, they will arrest me of course.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Penn's meeting was made possible by a mutual connection, this woman, Mexican actress Kate Del Castillo. Now Mexican authorities want to question both actors. It is unclear if there will be any legal fallout with their meeting with a known fugitive.

In Penn's piece for "Rolling Stone," he writes in part quote "I take no pride in keeping secrets that may be perceived as protecting criminals. As an American citizen, I'm drawn to explore what may be inconsistent with the portrayals our government and media brand upon their declared enemies."

Let's get to CNN's Nick Valencia, who is live for us in Mexico.

So, Nick, give us more detail on how this came about and whether indeed Mexican authorities knew about this meeting well before this article was published.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Earlier, Fred, I spoke to a senior Mexican law enforcement source who tells me that interestingly enough, the Mexican government was not aware of the meeting between El Chapo and Sean Penn until the article was published by "Rolling Stone." This interview comes a day and a half after the capture of El Chapo. And in it, he speaks candidly about his time in the cartels and the drug trafficking world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOAQUIN "EL CHAPO" GUZMAN, DRUG LORD (through text): I want to make clear that this interview is for the exclusive use of Miss Kate Del Castillo and Mister Sean Penn.

VALENCIA (voice-over): For the first time we hear from the drug kingpin himself. Despite being on the run, the drug world, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman agrees to an interview with actor and activist Sean Penn, a cinematic plot twist to an already surreal story.

GUZMAN (through text): Look. All I do is defend myself. Nothing more. But I do start looking for trouble? Never.

VALENCIA: In a report for "Rolling Stone," Penn writes the pair met face--to-face in October 2015 three months after El Chapo's brazen prison escape. According to Penn, the meeting happened somewhere in the middle of a Mexican jungle and included tequila and tacos. His irrational fear of being watched by armed drones and being surprised by El Chapo's, quote, "chivalry." These clips are part of relies to follow-up questions to Penn sent to a Guzman representative who asked the questions off camera.

GUZMAN (through text): Well, from the age of 15 and on, where I'm - which is the municipality of Badiraguato in that area, and up until today.

VALENCIA: The meeting, Penn says, was brokered by Mexican Kate Dell Castillo. It was 2012 when she reportedly developed a friendship with El Chapo after posting a series of tweets critical of the Mexican government while celebrating the notorious drug trafficker. Del Castillo has not commented since its publication of the "Rolling Stone" article Saturday night. CNN has reached out to her.

Their communication continued over the course of the next three years even after the 2014 arrest of El Chapo that landed him here at the (INAUDIBLE) penitentiary. They stayed in touch via blackberry messages and letters. It was that relationship between Dell Castillo and El Chapo that eventually led to the meeting between Sean Penn and the notorious drug lord. It was a month of backdoor dealings that included encrypted messages, disposable phones and even clandestine communications with El Chapo's associates.

In a two minute clip posted "Rolling Stone's" website, El Chapo talks candidly about drug trafficking, violence, and his role in it all.

[14:05:17] GUZMAN (through text): Well. It is a reality that drugs destroy. Unfortunately, as I said, where I grew up there was no other way and there still isn't a way to survive. No other way to work in our economy to be able to make a living.

VALENCIA: A senior Mexican law enforcement official tells CNN they want to question both Del Castillo and Penn, specifically about the location where the meeting took place. The source adds that the Mexican government was unaware of the meeting between Penn and El Chapo until the "Rolling Stone" article but published.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VALENCIA: In order to get access to this meeting, Sean Penn said he had to agree to allow El Chapo to see the final product of this article before it was published. That's something that "Rolling Stone" agreed to. They say that nothing was changed by El Chapo - Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Nick Valencia, thank you so much.

So Mexican actress Kate Del Castillo is a key player in this secret meeting. She is best known for her dramatic performance as a leader of a drug cartel in a popular telenovela.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYING)

WHITFIELD: So she has also starred in American productions. Here's what we know about how the 43-year-old actress connected El Chapo and Sean Penn. In 2012 she wrote a series of tweets as you heard in Nick Valencia's reporting saying that she trusted El Chapo. His attorneys then contacted her because the drug lord wanted to send her a thank- you and some flowers. He eventually enlisted her help in possibly making a movie about his life and through a mutual friend she reached out to Sean Penn.

The plans for a movie script evolved into a deal to write a magazine article for "Rolling Stone." Del Castillo is also a social activist involved in humanitarian work. The 2012 tweet that started all of this reads, Mr. Chapo, wouldn't bit cool that you started trafficking with love? You would be the hero of heroes. Let's traffic with love. You know how to. Life is a business and the only thing that changes is the merchandise. Don't you agree?" Those tweets began years of confidential communications which ultimately led to that October trip.

So although the exact location is still unknown, an anonymous Mexican federal law enforcement official told the "Associated Press" that the meeting between Penn and Guzman was held in a community in (INAUDIBLE), a community in Durango state that neighbors Sinaloa, home of Guzman's drug cartel. Penn, Del Castillo, and two handlers self- financed a chartered flight from Los Angeles to this undisclosed location. And then upon landing a previously booked minivan takes them to a hotel. A convoy of improvised armored SUVs then takes them to a dirt airfield about an hour and a half away. Quite the journey. And Penn's driver was El Chapo's son. At times accelerating to speeds over 100 miles per hour. Two single-engine prop planes then fly them to a mountainous region two hours away. Two SUVs then drive seven hours through dense jungle to El Chapo's compound. So this is all about 11 miles from Los Mochis where El Chapo was captured on Friday.

All right. So let's discuss all of this now with former ATF executive Matthew Horace and criminal defense attorney and constitutional attorney Page Pate.

All right, good to see both of you.

So Matthew, let me begin with you. Let's talk about this video. Because it was the key in triangulating El Chapo's position. What do investigators look at? How do they dissect this video in order to centralize his location?

MATTHEW HORACE, FORMER ATF EXECUTIVE: Well, Fredricka, they're going to be looking to try to determine when the video was created. They are going to be use facial recognition software so that they know this is who we're dealing with. They are going to be pinging off cell phones and other communications. Let's face it, there was a lot of communication that had to happen for this interview to actually occur. And this trip sounds like something out of a movie scene. There was a lot of coordination and therefore leaves them vulnerable to be compromised.

WHITFIELD: And Page, what kind of legal trouble are we talking about for the actors? We know Mexican authorities say they want to talk to Sean Penn, presumably also Del Castillo. But who first? I imagine the U.S. wants to talk to them too. Who has jurisdiction to have those conversations first?

[14:10:09] PAGE PATE, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, I think U.S. authorities will probably defer to their Mexican counterparts at this point. It seems to be the case they're letting them take the lead in this. But eventually everybody's going to want to talk to Sean Penn. And while I think based on what we know right now he's not going to be charged with any crime, he is certainly going to have to apps a lot of questions. He went into the belly of the beast. He know where is this location is. He saw these associates. So I know that investigators are going to want to talk to him, get all of the details possible, and then maybe use him as a witness if El Chapo does come to the United States and faces trial.

WHITFIELD: And if it were to come to any kind of charging, what would be the crime?

PATE: Well, under federal law in the United States, there are a couple of different crimes that he could be charged with. One is concealing or harboring a fugitive. Now, what that requires is, number one, you know the guy's a fugitive. No question here. Everyone well el was fugitive. WHITFIELD: But the harboring?

PATE: That's the hard part. Did Sean Penn do anything to help El Chapo avoid being arrested? And I haven't seen anything or heard anything yet to suggest that he did. And the same is true with another crime, accessory after the fact. Yes, he knew this guy committed a crime or at least had been charged with that, but did he do anything to help him avoid punishment? So far we haven't seen that.

WHITFIELD: Right. And especially if he didn't know where he was, if he's being, you know, escorted to all these locations, he may not be in a position, I imagine this would be his attorney's argument, be in a position to tell authority where is he is.

PATE: Well, there's no obligation for him to go to authorities and say I have seen El Chapo and this is where he is. He doesn't have an affirmative duty to do that. But they are going to question him because certainly, he apparently had no blindfold. He saw where he was going. And if they can find this location, perhaps they can pursue some of the other folks involved in the events.

WHITFIELD: OK. And so, Matthew, how do you see this potentially playing out in terms of U.S. and Mexico working together to get as much information as possible? I mean, after all, he is in custody and might Penn's attorneys argue he may not have inadvertently let you know where he is but inadvertently assisted in the capture.

HORACE: Sure. You would hope at this point that the United States and Mexico are all over electronic communications, some data mining. Let's face it, El Chapo was no two-bit street thug. He was one of the most notorious people wanted in the world, and therefore the U.S. is justified in extending our investigative resources to locate it and now go back to the table and re-evaluate communications, cell communications, email communications, data mining and anything it takes to determine who helped with this meeting and who helped with keeping him as a fugitive from justice.

WHITFIELD: And then Page, is the trouble different for the Mexican actress versus the American actor?

PATE: Perhaps, because it seems like she's had a longer time with more communication with El Chapo. Maybe she's done something in the past to give him some money, some assistance, help him avoid detection. If she's done any of those thing, then, yes, she could certainly face charges.

WHITFIELD: All right. Page Pate, Matthew Horace, thank you so much. Appreciate that.

All right. Coming up, we are digging more into El Chapo's capture and how this secret meeting with Sean Penn could affect what happens next.

Plus, on the road to politics, the road to the White House, Ted Cruz is firming up his front-runner status in Iowa and a new poll showing where Bernie Sanders stand might spark some concern in Hillary Clinton's campaign. That's straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:16:08] WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back. We are just 21 days away from the Iowa caucus. And the races in both political Party is in a dead heat. We start with the Democratic race, Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire today and Bernie Sanders in Iowa. They are fighting hard and here's why.

An NBC News/"Wall Street Journal"/Marist poll released this morning shows Bernie Sanders nearly tied with Hillary Clinton in Iowa. Clinton holds the lead over Sanders' 48 percent to 45 percent among likely caucus goers. In New Hampshire, Sanders remains ahead of Clinton, 50 percent to 46 percent among likely primary voters.

And on the Republican side, Texas Senator Ted Cruz holds the lead in Iowa at 28 percent to Donald Trump's 24 percent. The two are trailed by Florida Senator Marco Rubio at 13 percent and Ben Carson at 11 percent. The other candidates come in with single digits of five percent or less.

All right. Ted Cruz fighting to hold onto his lead in Iowa. Took a bus tour of the state last week and he says he won't get nasty as Election Day nears. CNN's Jake Tapper went along for the ride on the bus with him. Here's part of Jake's exclusive interview with Senator Ted Cruz.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Let's be clear, this has been my approach with regard to everybody.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: You and Rubio go back and forth sometimes.

CRUZ: Listen, Marco and I have had some disputes on policy and in particular something like the gang of eight, which was a major battle, and we disagreed on substantive policy. So I'm glad to engage on the substance there. But from the beginning of this campaign, whenever anyone has thrown rocks, has thrown insults, I have not engaged, I have not reciprocated, and I don't intend to. That's the way I've treated Donald. That's the way I treated every other candidate and it's the way I intend to approach it.

And the reason, Jake, I think most Americans, they couldn't care less about a bunch of politicians bickering like school children.

TAPPER: Well, they care if you're constitutionally eligible, right. I mean, that is something you get asked about that.

CRUZ: But the substance of the issue is clear and straightforward. As a legal matter, the constitution and federal law are clear that the child of a U.S. citizen born abroad is a natural born citizen. And the dynamic that's happening, you know, is interesting. Three weeks ago, almost every Republican candidate was attacking Donald Trump. Today almost every Republican candidate is attacking me. And that kind of suggests maybe something has changed in the race.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Trump is trying to cut into Cruz's lead by intensifying his attacks on the fact that Cruz was born in Canada. Trump questioning whether Cruz could legally hold office if elected. Listen to what the businessman told a crowd in Iowa last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You cannot have somebody running and have a lawsuit -- and people have already said they're going to bring the lawsuit. They said if he gets the nomination we're bringing a lawsuit as to natural born citizenship. Honestly, I don't know, because some people say you have to be born on the land. OK? You have to be born on the land nap's what I always thought before. You have to be born on the land. So he was born in Canada.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Maeve Reston is in Reno, Nevada, where Donald Trump's rally begins in about two hours from now.

So Maeve, we know when Trump goes on the attack he hardly lets up. What's the atmosphere in Reno among his supporters?

MAEVE RESTON, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER: Well, I have to tell you that on the play list a couple minutes ago was "Born in the USA." So I don't know if that's just a coincidence or not.

But we are just outside talking to voters and it is very long line waiting to see Trump. And some of them really are saying that this is an issue for them, that they didn't know this aspect of Ted Cruz's background. Others saying that it's kind of a distraction, but that they're solidly behind Trump. So, it is really interesting to see the way this is playing out.

Voters here say though that they are very focused on Trump as their potential nominee because they do feel that he is the most of an outsider the race saying that Ted Cruz has been too much of an insider even though he has gotten everyone mad at him in the Senate over the time he's been there, but there's an enthusiastic crowd for Trump.

[14:20:17] WHITFIELD: Yes. Something tells me that music play list is very intentional. "We Will Rock You," "behind you," you know, "Born in the USA," yes.

All right, Maeve Reston, thank you so much.

All right, straight ahead, we will talk to Doctors without Borders about an attack on a hospital they run in Yemen and what they are doing to keep doctors and patients safe in the war zone.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:23:20] WHITFIELD: At least five people were killed and another ten injured in an attack on a hospital in Yemen. The aid group doctors without borders said it was hit by a projectile this morning. Originally, the group said it might have been an airstrike but later backed away from that statement saying they couldn't confirm the origin of the attack. They also warned the number of casualties could rise as more people could be trapped under the rubble of the collapsed buildings.

I want to bring in Raquel Ayora. She is the director of operations for doctors without borders and she is joining us from Barcelona, Spain.

Good to see you. What are you hearing from your staff on the ground? What are they telling you about this incident and how people are doing?

RAQUEL AYORA, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS: Well, it's been a tough day for our teams. They've been mainly trying to evacuate all the wounded and injured people to another hospital, also supported by MSF. Currently what we know is what you just described. Five have been killed in the incident, among them one patient and one doctors without borders worker. There were other MSF staff also injured and referred to the hospital in critical condition. And the most -- the saddest news right now is that the hospital is not any longer functioning. So we cannot provide the essential services that we were providing up to today.

WHITFIELD: So then what happens to those patients and staff who have been at the hospital who weren't necessarily injured but they continue, you know, to have a need?

[14:25:00] AYORA: Well, we are trying to refer to all the hospitals. But as you might know also sending ambulance services to the road is also dangerous at this stage. Bombings happen and attacks happen all across the country. It's not only hitting villages or towns or military targets. They are also targeting vehicles on the road. So it's also even difficult to transport all the patients. We're running a maternity ward, an emergency wound service, standard service, and these are not normally available for people in a place that has been very, very hit by the conflict. By a population suffering from this for months now. But we cannot even assure proper care for our patients.

WHITFIELD: What will be done to try and ensure the safety of your staff that continues to work abroad, particularly in an area with a need like this and at a time that is very volatile?

AYORA: Clearly, beyond what we are doing, which is really trying to negotiate, to explain to all the working parties, to keep them informed of the position of our makeup facilities. We can do little else. I mean, the point is that we are running ten hospitals across the country, and we keep getting the assurances from all the parties involved in the conflicts on them knowing that we are there, where we are, and then inspecting our work, but still those incidents keep happening. So at this stage we cannot find an explanation and we are in a very tough position. And (INAUDIBLE). The problem is the level of services currently provided to the civilian population during this conflict are very, very low.

WHITFIELD: All right. We'll leave it there.

Raquel Ayora, thank you so much. Our best to you and your staff with Doctors without Borders. Continued safety.

AYORA: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Next, back to our top story. El Chapo's secret meeting with actor Sean Penn set up by a Mexican actress. What we're learning about her next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Hello again and thanks so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

Mexican authorities now want to question actor, Sean Penn, on the heels of their recapture of El Chapo Guzman. Penn revealed that last October he secretly met with the drug kingpin after years of planning.

Actor Sean Penn secured a confidential interview with the cartel leader at an undisclosed location in Mexico to write a feature-length article for "Rolling Stone" magazine. This is believed to be Guzman's first recorded interview in decades, right there.

An anonymous Mexican law enforcement official says this meeting could have been what led to his capture on Friday. Penn's meeting was made possible by a mutual connection, Mexican actress, Kate Del Castillo.

The two chartered a plane to an undisclosed location. Officials saying the site was near Tamazula in the Durango State of Mexico. In Penn's piece for "Rolling Stone," he writes, he details the circumstances of this secret meeting.

Penn says El Chapo hugged him upon arrival. They ate catered Mexican food, drank tequila and talked for several hours. It's unclear if there will be any legal fallout for Penn's meeting with a known fugitive, however.

Joining me right now to talk more about this is CNN's senior Latin- American affairs editor, Rafael Romo. All right, good to see you. So some conflicting information about whether Mexican authorities knew about this meeting or not.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: We have two different sources, one telling us that this meeting indeed led Mexican authorities to find El Chapo on Friday. The other source telling us that it had absolutely nothing to do.

On the record Mexican Attorney General Arely Gomez said on Friday that El Chapo wanted to make a movie about himself and that who his associates, attorneys, and others started making phone calls to filmmakers and producers as well as actresses.

Now Kate Del Castillo is a very famous, very successful actress in Mexico known for, guess what, Fred, she was the star in a series about a drug queen, very, very popular here for --

WHITFIELD: Wasn't it called a narco novella?

ROMO: That was more of a series but yes, there are several narco novellas as well. This particular series was produced by the U.S./Spanish language TV network, Telemundo, and it aired in 2011, Very successful. She was the star and she played a drug queen.

And listen to this, it was after a true-life story. Sean Penn in the "Rolling Stone" article says that Kate Del Castillo was the link between him and El Chapo.

WHITFIELD: So does that speak to the relationship -- we had already reported she forged kind of a relationship with El Chapo through these tweets. But also because of her celebrity and the type of role that she is known for, does that give her kind of license, you know, to have interactions with drug cartel or somebody like El Chapo unlike anybody else?

ROMO: It all started back in 2012. All of a sudden out of the blue she posts a tweet on her Twitter account saying I trust El Chapo more than some of our politicians. When she was asked later what she meant by that she says she meant to say it could have been El Chapo or any other drug lord.

It was more criticism about the Mexican political class than a compliment to El Chapo. But through the years she's been playing all these roles and somehow she established a connection with El Chapo's people maybe because they reached out to her, you know.

We talked about the fact that El Chapo wanted to make a movie so, maybe they reached out to her and that's how she acted as liaison, go- between El Chapo and Sean Penn. The thing is that she's played a number of characters in which she's at odds with the law. Now she may be in trouble for real because of her role.

WHITFIELD: All right, can't wait to talk more to you about this because, I mean, just seems every hour something new is popping up as this story evolves. It's absolutely fascinating. Rafael, thank you so much.

ROMO: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, coming up, 21 days and counting to the Iowa caucus and the race between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, well, it's tightening. The results of a brand-new poll out of that key state next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:37:57]

WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The race between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders is intensifying and getting more contentious as the candidates battle it out for support in two states that has a potential to make or break a campaign. Hillary Clinton is the first primary state -- is in the first primary state of New Hampshire today picking up an endorsement from Planned Parenthood and Bernie Sanders is campaigning at Iowa as a new poll shows the race there tightening, just 21 days ahead of the nation's first caucus.

The poll from NBC News and "The Wall Street Journal" showing Sanders gaining ground in Iowa, trailing Clinton by just 3-percentage points. And in New Hampshire, Sanders remains ahead of Clinton 50 percent to 46 percent.

The numbers raise the possibility that Clinton, despite her national frontrunner status, could lose one or perhaps even both of those critical contests.

CNN's Chris Frates is in Washington covering this neck and neck race for us. Chris, what are you discovering?

CHRIS FRATES, CNN INVESTIGATIONS CORRESPONDENT: Fred, as you point out, those are some pretty remarkable numbers. I think some context is important here because Sanders has led Clinton in most New Hampshire polls recently, but Clinton's slide in Iowa is pretty new.

She's held a strong lead there for the last month or so and that's very concerning news for the Clinton camp to see this slide. They spent a lot of time, money, energy in Iowa to bring out her supporters and organize them and try to avoid a repeat of 2008 when you -- you might remember, she faced a humiliating third-place loss to Barack Obama.

But Sanders has also been assembling a pretty robust crown game ahead of the February 1st caucuses. So this race seems to be tightening at just the right time for Sanders. Both candidates were asked this morning about the new polling. Here's what they said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When you consider how far we have come over the last eight months, it really is incredible. We started at national polls at about 3 percent. I think most of the recent polls have us ahead in New Hampshire. I think we're gaining steam here in Iowa. I think we have an excellent chance to win here.

[14:40:00]HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You know, these polls go up, they go down. I stay pretty focused as I think we all should on what we have to do to build on the progress of the Obama administration but go even further.

And that's why I've outlined a very significant agenda to raise wages and to take on the gun lobby and to be, you know, making America safe in every way that I can.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRATES: So Clinton trying to downplay her sliding poll numbers there and no surprise she went right to the gun issue, an issue she hopes will help her with the Democratic base.

In that same interview, she again slammed Sanders for voting to give immunity to gun manufacturers and dealers whose guns are used in a crime. She points out that was an NRA priority.

Sanders has since walked back his support of that bill saying he'd revise the law. Clinton said that's enough. She voted against the bill, President Barack Obama voted against the bill when he was in the Senate and Sanders should have too.

She also won, Clinton did, some support of an influential gun control advocate with the news breaking today that Gabby Giffords is endorsing Clinton. Giffords, of course, was the congresswoman who was shot in the head in her district at an event five years ago. She survived.

She's become a very high-profile gun rights advocate. That's a pretty influential voice for Clinton. So Clinton's camp obviously thinks they have a winning issue here, drawing a distinction between her and Sanders, who, as a senator from Vermont, has been more favor to believe gun rights over his career.

But, you know, Fred, as we see these polls tightening in Iowa, both Sanders and Clinton are going to be in the state tomorrow so we'll see if they clash a little more over this issue tomorrow -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Interesting, Chris. Let's broaden out the conversation and invite now Democratic columnist, Ellis Henican, and Brian Morganstern, who is a Republican strategist.

Ellis, you first, so these brand-new polls showing Hillary is slipping and you heard from Chris there. What has happened that Hillary Clinton would lose her frontrunner status particularly in Iowa so quickly and now, you know, have Bernie Sanders nipping at her heels?

ELLIS HENICAN, DEMOCRATIC COLUMNIST: She's always had some vulnerability on the left, right? When you think about the way that the mainstream Republican candidates have gotten slammed by the super righties, you know, this is just the parallel of that.

Bernie on a bunch of issues, Wall Street and foreign policy, is probably closer really to where the Democratic base is and that's reflecting itself in these Iowa polls.

WHITFIELD: So, Brian, of course her camp wants to say we can turn it around, but can they?

BRIAN MORGANSTERN, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Well, if past is prologue, they've got a challenge. The Iowans were not a big fan of hers the last time around. So she has to win people over.

But I think that there is something underneath this that is a big problem for the Clinton camp because elections as much as we cover the candidates, they're really about voters and reflect the mood of the country.

The country is seeking reassurances that we'll be safe with a strong foreign policy and that our economy isn't rigged in favor of the elite. Well, Hillary Clinton is associated with the Obama foreign policy, which voters view as failing.

And she is the ultimate insider with, you know, D.C. and Wall Street. So there is something fundamental there that she's going to have to confront that challenge.

And the left, as Alex said, is looking for an alternative. The problem is they can't draft Joe Biden anymore. They're stuck with Bernie. We'll see how that shakes out.

WHITFIELD: You have to wonder, Chris, you know, how effective might her fight against Bernie Sanders -- she's being a lot more vocal against him now particularly as it pertains to guns and, you know, the right to bear arms and, you know, imposing more restrictions, et cetera, and even pointing out some hypocrisies.

But when just as Brian said, voters seem to want kind of the antithesis of how politics has been played out, does that serve her well to do that right now?

FRATES: Well, I think that's her place. She needs to tack left because Bernie is seeing the base come out for him. He's energizing voters. In particular, if you look deeper into these polls that are out today, he's energizing independent voters much more so than Hillary Clinton is.

And he even will tell you that he's getting more Republicans to come his way than a lot of Hillary Clinton's folks are. So I think what Sanders is trying to do here is to play to an energized base who's looking for that change. That electorate is very angry right now.

If you look at polls, they will show you that, you know, 75 percent of people don't agree with the way the country is being governed. Bernie Sanders is out there saying he we need to shake up the establishment, I'm the guy on the left who can do that.

Donald Trump certainly is his doppelganger in some ways on the right, tapping into that anger. That's what I think Hillary Clinton is trying to protect against. She's certainly very favorable with Democrats, people who identify themselves as Democrats.

But she needs to worry that the turnout would swamp her and the new voters, independents in particular, would come out and caucus and vote for Bernie Sanders. She's trying to prevent that.

WHITFIELD: Chris, talking about Republicans, this GOP poll in Iowa showing Cruz leading. Not by much, 28 percent to 24 percent over Donald Trump.

[14:45:09]But, you know, I wonder, you know, Brian, when we hear Chris talk about Bernie Sanders picking up a lot of GOP support, not happy with what, you know, what they're seeing in the 12 candidates there, who is throwing their support behind a Ted Cruz over Donald Trump among the GOP? MORGANSTERN: Well, Ted Cruz is more credible in terms of evangelical voters. He's always been that sort of candidate and Trump is not as comfortable in that territory. So I think that is why Cruz is doing so well in Iowa.

But the issue that Chris has pointed out, I just saw recently there's a similar situation with democrats saying something like 20 percent of Democrats saying they are open to defecting to Trump.

So that anger that is among a lot of sort of lower middle class, Midwestern folks who have been -- felt ignored by the Democrats and out of touch with the Republicans are looking for these outsider blustery grandfathers from Brooklyn, Bernie and Trump, seem to be the guys who are channeling their angst the best.

WHITFIELD: Ellis?

HENICAN: Listen, do not forget -- I don't think Donald Trump will -- no. Trump is basically the El Chapo of the GOP race at this point, right? He's just causing a death and destruction everywhere he goes.

And really, it's probably a whole lot more about his effectiveness in that realm than it has anything to do with any future policy issues or political trends.

WHITFIELD: All right, Ellis Henican, Brian Morganstern, Chris Frates, thanks so much. See you all a bit later. Thank you so much.

All right, overseas, France remembering the victims in the "Charlie Hebdo" and other terror attacks. Straight ahead, we'll talk to a French senator and ask what's changed in the last year and what's being done to stop the next terror attack from happening there.

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[11:50:03]

WHITFIELD: A solemn day in France -- French President Francois Hollande among those honoring victims of two major terror attack one year ago in France. Twelve people were killed in an attack on the offices of "Charlie Hebdo" magazine last January and then four more people were killed at a Jewish supermarket.

Officials unveiled a plaque in honor of the victims and lit a memory tree. The scene in Paris almost exactly one year ago today. A rally where world leaders stood hand in hand in defiance of terrorism.

Nathalie Goulet is a member of the French Senate and head of the Commission of Inquiry into Jihadi Networks in Europe. Good to see you.

Well, tell me how people there are feeling. If the French are feeling rather weary at this one-year marker or if they're feeling there is greater resolve.

NATHALIE GOULET, FRENCH SENATOR: No. I don't think anybody feels greater resolve at all especially after November. One year ago it's something, but (inaudible) the "Charlie Hebdo" attack last November '13.

So I don't think that people gather too much around the celebration because the threat is still very high and then also we are under state of emergency.

WHITFIELD: And then, you know, in reference to "Charlie Hebdo," the magazine periodical is still in the business of satirical coverage. And on the new cover with this anniversary shows this kind of spiritual leader with an assault weapon strapped to his back.

At least that's what I'm hearing from many who say that's the interpretation and the text on it saying "one year on the killer is still at large."

Is this, you know, cover kind of representative of the feeling there or does it in any way make some people nervous about, you know, the state of expression and any potential response to it?

GOULET: Well, you know, recognition must be international. We need a lot of new regulations especially involving the borders. French borders, European borders are like Swiss cheese and we know that from November '13. So the people are very aware about that and whatever the government are doing can affect them.

WHITFIELD: Just last week Belgian police raided an apartment they believe may have been the bomb factory where the explosives were made and used in the attacks there. What do you know about that investigation and what has this done between the relationship of, you know, Belgium and France?

GOULET: Yes. First of all, a lot. We try to improve exchange of intelligence, but you see it's a good example what is missing. What is missing is exchange of data. It's more police, it's more control.

It's to cross the data and information which is absolutely forbidden regarding our regulation. We do not have anything close to patriot act at all and somehow we need something close to patriot act, especially this case.

So we have to increase all these cooperation and right now it's very, very slow between European country despite the fact that people are really, really on the verge of understanding that we need more.

But, you know, we have this freedom committee, we have this very special way and stage, and we don't want to move that. It's why we apply this state of emergency, which allowed the policemen to have more action, judicial control.

WHITFIELD: All right. Nathalie Goulet, thank you so much for your time. Appreciate it.

GOULET: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Coming up, a secret meeting in the Mexican jungle between drug lord, El Chapo and actor, Sean Penn. The details from Penn's firsthand account are stunning. What El Chapo said to him as they met for nearly seven hours.

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[14:57:50]

WHITFIELD: The University of Alabama and Clemson are ready to face- off for the College Football Playoffs national championship plus there are some pretty big NFL games today. Coy Wire is live for us in Glendale, Arizona with our "Bleacher Report." Coy, I guess, you're ready for some football.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: I am enjoying my little slice of football heaven, Fred. I'm here in Glendale, Arizona, where Clemson and Alabama will go toe to toe to see who will be crowned kings of college football in 2016.

One of these two coaches will get to take home that trophy tomorrow night. It will be a first title for Clemson's Dabo Swinney and an incredible fifth one for Alabama's Nick Saban.

Now Dabo Swinney who actually won a national title as a player at Alabama can lead his Tigers to become the first team in college football history to finish a perfect 15-0 and win Clemson's first national title since 1981.

So Alabama, they're riding this tidal wave created by Heisman winning running back, Derrick Henry, and their quarterback, Jake Coker, he played the game of his life in Alabama's 38-0 beat down of Michigan State in their semifinal game. It will be awe awesome. Kickoffs tomorrow at 8:30 tomorrow Eastern and this place will be rocking.

The sports world still buzzing today over the wild ending last night between the Steelers and Bengals. Final minutes of the game, a personal foul for this hit on Antonio Brown. But while Brown is still down, Steelers linebacker coach, Joey Porter, comes out onto the field, exchanges words with some of the Bengals players, including Pacman Jones, who's called for unsportsmanlike conduct.

That's two 15-yard penalties, moving the Steelers into field goal range. Chris Boswell connects and the Steelers win 18-16. OK, right now the Seahawks are trailing the Vikings in Minnesota 6-0. Temperatures minus 1 with a windchill of minus 13.

I played six years in Buffalo for the Bills, and let me tell you what these players are dealing with in this cold, we used to use a special thick lotion that would help block the wind and prevent frostbite.

We would wear latex surgeon gloves underneath our football gloves to try to prevent heat loss. And on the sidelines trainers would actually replace Gatorade dispensers with hot chicken broth.

I'll never forget walking over to see one of my teammates holding his hands under the dispenser while another player poured out hot broth to warm him up no matter what.