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CNN NEWSROOM

Candidates Talk to CNN Ahead of Western Tuesday; Trump Continues Lead in Polls; Human Rights Raised During Obama's Historic Cuba Visit; Presidential Candidates Talks to CNN; Presidential Candidates Show Support for Israel; Israeli Response to Presidential Candidates; Former Belgium Imam Takes on ISIS Recruiters. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired March 22, 2016 - 02:00   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[02:00:35] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.

ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Errol Barnett. Thanks for joining our two-hour block. CNN NEWSROOM begins right now.

BARNETT: It's being dubbed Western Tuesday. There's a different name for each of these things. Voters in Arizona, Utah and Idaho will have their say in the latest round of the primaries and caucuses.

CHURCH: On the eve of Tuesday's electoral contest, all five candidates appeared on CNN. Donald Trump told Wolf Blitzer the U.S. should rethink its involvement in NATO.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're paying disproportionately. It's too much. And frankly, it's a different world than when we conceived of the idea and everybody got together.

I think we have to reconsider, keep NATO, but a lot less toward NATO itself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Trump is looking to extend his lead over rivals, John Kasich and Ted Cruz. Both Cruz and Kasich insisted there is no chance they would consider becoming Trump's running mate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The lie behind Donald's campaign is he will stand up to Washington. He is the system. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are flip sides of the same coin. Donald Trump has made billions buying influence in Washington. Hillary Clinton has made millions selling influence in Washington.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Are you open to being his vice presidential running mate?

CRUZ: I have zero interest whatsoever in this. If Donald Trump is the nominee, it's a disaster. Hillary wins.

GOV. JOHN KASICH (R-OH), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There's no chance that I would be with either of them.

BLITZER: No chance.

KASICH: Zero, below zero actually.

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The way he's presented himself to the country over the last many months, calling Mexican immigrants rapists and criminals. Saying that John McCain is not a war hero. Being reluctant to denounce the Ku Klux Klan and David Duke. The list goes on. For me, you have to take him at his word, how he has behaved and what he has said. If you do that, then I think people have questions that deserve answers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Democratic presidential candidate, Bernie Sanders, appeared on CNN from Salt Lake City, where he is campaigning ahead of Tuesday's caucuses there. He called for the U.S. to work with Palestinians and Israelis on the Middle East peace process.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If we're going to have to have lasting peace, we also have to work with the Palestinians. The United States, time and time again, has looked aside when Israel has done some bad things. I think, for example, that the growth of settlements in Palestinian territory is not acceptable to me and not conducive to the peace process.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Beyond speaking to CNN, all of the presidential hopefuls spoke to one of the largest pro-Israel lobby groups in the U.S. on Monday. Only Sanders didn't attend, saying his campaign schedule prevented him from doing so.

But take a look at this. Donald Trump continues to be Republican voters' top choice. The field narrowed to three candidates. The latest CNN/ORC poll shows what you see there, 47 percent of Republicans support Trump, 31 percent back Cruz, and 17 percent are pulling for John Kasich.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

We have supporters of each of the presidential front runners here at CNN Center. Theron Johnson is a Democratic strategist supporting Secretary Clinton; and Republican Amy Kramer is the chairwoman of Great America PAC 2016 supporting Donald Trump.

Welcome to you both. Thanks for being here. THERON JOHNSON, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Good to be here.

AMY KRAMER, CHAIRWOMAN, GREAT AMERICA PAC 2016: Great to be here.

CHURCH: Amy Kramer, I want to start with you.

We heard from all five presidential candidates for the CNN special. We heard John Kasich say that Republicans would go to the July convention, it would be an open, multi-ballot convention. Donald Trump said, no, he will have enough delegates.

KRAMER: Right.

CHURCH: What is going to happen if they get to that convention and he doesn't get the nomination? What will he do then?

KRAMER: Well, I think he is going to get the nomination. I think he will have enough delegates. And John Kasich I think is part of the establishment strategy trying to keep him from getting the delegates. John Kasich has won one state. And not even by double-digits. It's hard to think he's going to have an impact here. I think Donald Trump is going to have the delegates need. I think he will wrap it up in California.

[02:05:20] CHURCH: What will he do if he doesn't?

KRAMER: I can't speak to that because I'm not part of his campaign. I don't know what they're thinking. But I know the American people are going to be upset. If they change the rules, they're averting the will of the people. And that's a problem.

CHURCH: You have a similar situation on the Democrat side. Bernie Sanders hasn't dropped out of this race. He has half of the delegate count of Hillary Clinton. What about his supporters? They are enthusiastic about a Bernie presidency. Are the Democrats headed towards an issue at their convention?

JOHNSON: Absolutely not. I mean, it's pretty much a done deal on the Democratic side. Hillary Clinton has an 800-delegate lead. All she has to do is to continue to be positive, talk about creating more jobs for American people, continue to work toward quality health care and make sure we have good public education for our kids.

You have to be careful with this election to not be arrogant, like, we were seeing on the Republican side. But continue to show some grace and respect to the Bernie Sanders campaign. It is very true that Bernie Sanders has created a movement in this country. He has a voice. He has a great deal of people that are supporting him. I think what you will see, when we get to our convention, you will see a united Democratic party, and take care of the Republicans in November.

CHURCH: What's interesting is that we heard from Donald Trump saying, that Hillary Clinton -- and you're a Hillary Clinton supporter --

JOHNSON: Absolutely. CHURCH: -- that she doesn't have the strength. She lacks the

strength to be president. How do you counter that? If they do go head-to-head, if we look at a competition between Trump and Clinton, what will they discuss once the personal issues are out of the way? How will that go?

JOHNSON: I think that's disingenuous to say that he would beat Hillary Clinton in a November contest. Every poll shows that Donald Trump loses to Hillary Clinton if the election was held today. The challenge for Donald Trump is going to be this. You see an attempt by him to be more of a statesman. When he spoke at the AIPAC conference, he had teleprompters. This is the most disciplined Donald Trump we've seen. We had almost a year of divisive and destructive rhetoric from Donald Trump. What the Clinton campaign is going to do when it comes election time is to remind people that this is a man that disrespects women. He doesn't want Muslims and thinks they're all terrorists. He calls Mexicans rapists and criminals. And this is the type of divisiveness he has to be prepared to answer to in the general election. She was the former secretary of state. She has the most foreign policy experience of anybody in the room.

KRAMER: But look at the foreign policy right now. It's a mess. This world is a mess.

(CROSSTALK)

JOHNSON: But you have Donald Trump that's never held elected office --

KRAMER: That's a good thing.

JOHNSON: -- who switched his position three times when asked did he support Iran -- did he support the Palestinian/Israeli truce. He said he would be neutral. On Wednesday, he said he would support Israel. Who knows what he's going to say by the time --

(CROSSTALK)

KRAMER: He's always been an Israel supporter.

(CROSSTALK)

BARNETT: Despite the things you said, the enthusiasm for Donald Trump on the Republican side is huge. We have the CNN/ORC poll showing 40 percent of Republicans are enthusiastic about Donald Trump. None of the other candidates come close, despite some of the things you've mentioned.

And to you, Amy, Donald Trump has the unique situation where he's going to come in with enthusiasm, with the highest delegate count.

KRAMER: Absolutely.

BARNETT: However, we have seen a series of violent events at his rallies. How will he -- how should he control that and temper those -- that heightened anger we see? KRAMER: He has said he doesn't condone the violence. But there's

professional agitators out there doing this. They are doing it intentionally because they are afraid of Donald Trump. They're afraid of how high he is in the polls. And Donald Trump is speaking for millions of Americans. He is having Democrats and independents vote for him. It's across party lines. And Bernie's candidacy shows this, too. Bottom line, the American people are fed up with Washington. It's become the ruling class versus the working class. And regardless of if Hillary Clinton wins or one of these Republicans wins that are already in office or have been in office, it's the establishment. Nothing is going to change. Nothing is going to change.

(CROSSTALK)

KRAMER: They're all run by lobbyists. And that's what the -- it's Hillary, too. It is Hillary, too.

[02:10:16] JOHNSON: No. The problem with Donald Trump is this. He missed a unique opportunity to be a statesman and be presidential. He could have come out after what we saw in Chicago, where peaceful protesters were taunted, were yelled, there were racial slurs and escorted out of the building. He could have come out and repudiated those events in Chicago. Instead, he landed his big plane in the next state and encouraged his supporters to be more and more radical.

But I want to go back to an earlier point.

(CROSSTALK)

KRAMER: That's not true. That's not true.

(CROSSTALK)

JOHNSON: I want to go back to the point you made, Errol. Hillary Clinton has the most votes out of anyone that's running for president right now. 8.6 million votes. That's more than Donald Trump and Kasich.

KRAMER: People don't trust her.

JOHNSON: But to say she doesn't have momentum, I think that's inaccurate. She has the most votes.

(CROSSTALK)

KRAMER: Because of the super delegates. That's subverting the will of the people.

(CROSSTALK)

CHURCH: We have to wrap it here, unfortunately.

Amy Kramer, thank you so much.

Theron Johnson, thank you.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

KRAMER: Thank you.

CHURCH: Thank you to both of you. A lot to discuss.

KRAMER: Thank you.

CHURCH: Definitely.

(CROSSTALK)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: On the final day of his historic visit to Cuba, U.S. President Barack Obama will deliver his human rights message in a televised address Monday night. President Raul Castro hosted Mr. Obama at a state dinner. It followed a sometimes awkward joint news conference where the issue of political detainees came up.

BARNETT: A human right activist says about 20 dissidents were arrested on Monday.

But as Jim Acosta reports, Mr. Castro denies he is holding political prisoners.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(MUSIC)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a sign that decades-old enemies can one day change their tune. That's the U.S. national anthem being played on Cuban soil --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

ACOSTA: -- as President Obama joined Raul Castro in Havana, to close out this final chapter of the Cold War.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'll have to come back when I'm no longer president and I don't have so many obligations.

ACOSTA: While there were the usual diplomatic gestures, as Obama signed a book to remember the pre-Castro revolutionary Jose Marti, the president delivered a touch message to the Cubans to being respecting basic human freedoms.

OBAMA: We continue to have serious differences, including on democracy and human rights. And President Castro and I have had very frank and candid conversation on these subjects.

ACOSTA: But Castro had his own set of grievances, and right at the top, the U.S. embargo strangling the Cuban economy that still stands. But he did not answer the question why his country holds political prisoners.

(on camera): Why do you have political prisoners? RAUL CASTRO, CUBAN PRESIDENT (through translation): Give me a list of

the prisoners so I can release them. What political prisoners? Give me the names.

ACOSTA (voice-over): The president is going around Congress to weaken the embargo, loosening travel restrictions on Americans who want to see the island, and bringing with them, big hotel companies CEOs, who want to turn Cuban mojitos into money.

Jose Daniele Verrer (ph), a former political prisoner, said the president's visit can provide a much-needed push. Freed under the Obama administration's diplomatic breakthrough with Cuba, he's calling on the president to think of Reagan.

RONALD REAGAN, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.

(CHEERING)

ACOSTA: And command that age-old barriers start coming down in Cuba.

"We have to tear down many walls," he tells me, "so that the Cuban people can live with dignity."

At the end of the news conference, Castro tried to hold up President Obama's hand to show off their budding friendship, but Mr. Obama didn't seem to share the enthusiasm.

(on camera): Next, the president will deliver an address to the Cuban people and meet with Cuban dissidents here in Havana. The White House says Obama will, once again, call for expansion of human rights in Cuba. Then he will try to wind down his trip with a pastime shared by both the U.S. and Cuba, a baseball game between the Cuban national team and the Tampa Bay Rays.

Jim Acosta, CNN, Havana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: A U.S. official says 53 prisoners were released after normalization talks.

CHURCH: U.S. Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes says the real issue is Cuba does not consider its prisoners to be political. But Washington believes when someone is detained for a nonviolent political offense, they are inherently unjustly imprisoned.

BARNETT: More coming up. President Obama said U.S. tourism will be good for ordinary Cubans, but not everyone is convinced.

[02:14:49] CHURCH: Plus, a major hearing in the U.S. government case against Apple postponed. Why it could mean trouble for the tech giant's security measures.

Back in a moment.

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(SPORTS REPORT)

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CHURCH: Now, to a possible turning point in the legal saga between Apple and the U.S. government. They were set to face off in court Tuesday. But the judge has postponed the hearing at the Justice Department's request.

BARNETT: That's right. The DOJ has been demanding that Apple unlock an iPhone belonging to the San Bernardino shooter. Apple has refused. Now, an official says an outside party is offering to unlock the phone without the company's help.

CHURCH: French and Belgium police are looking for a new suspect in connection with November's Paris terrorist attacks. He's 24-year-old Najim Laachroui (ph). Police believe he traveled with Salah Abdeslam.

BARNETT: Abdeslam was captured in Brussels on Friday. Officials believe he was preparing for fresh attacks and had a large network of supporters helping him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translation): Five foreign fighters with weapons in the house, I don't think they're there to have a picnic. We had reasons to be worried by that. I don't know if they want to know what. That depends on the discovery material elements and the statements we will have in the case.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[02:20:16] BARNETT: Now, President Obama is stressing the business benefits of American capitalism arriving in Cuba, benefits he says will reach everyday Cubans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: More Americans coming to Cuba means more customers for your businesses. More Americans using the dollar will mean that they will spend more, as well. There will be more channels for you to import supplies and equipment. More Americans will be able to buy your arts, crafts, food, Cuban-origin software.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: But critics say the prosperity won't go any further than the Cuban government.

BARNETT: Republican presidential candidate, Ted Cruz, who is of Cuban descent, said the visit legitimizes a corrupt and oppressive regime.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Joining me now to talk about the impact of President Obama's historic visit to Cuba and what it means for the region is Jorge Benitez. He is a U.S. national security expert in Washington, D.C.

Thank you, sir, for being with us.

JORGE BENITEZ, NATIONAL SECURITY EXPERT: Thank you.

CHURCH: You're against the easing of restrictions against Cuba and the normalizing of relations. Why?

BENITEZ: I think there's several reasons for it. I think it's morally wrong to be siding with the oppressive regime in Havana and providing them with political legitimacy through the efforts. I think it's bad economics sense. The Castro regime is a dead beat dictator. He relies on debt. He continues to not pay them. He defaults on them, defaulted on hundreds of millions of debts to Mexico, to the E.U., to Canada. And because he defaulted on so many of them, Cuba's credit rating in the international market is at the junk bond status.

CHURCH: President Obama says it's time to change a policy that hasn't worked for decades. And he put Raul Castro on the spot, by taking questions from reporters and insisting Mr. Castro do the same. Isn't that a move in the right direction? It also exposed the Cuban leader's approach to political prisoners.

BENITEZ: I think it was very telling, though. It was the American press and the journalist that asked the hard questions about human rights to Raul Castro. And it was not President Obama who addressed this very important issue.

CHURCH: Isn't the fact, this opening up that, maybe the legitimizing, in a sense, the lifting of embargo, we know people inside and outside Cuba want to see the normalization. It should be good for the country, good for the people there and for the region. What do you say to them when they say they want to see this happen?

BENITEZ: I agree with you. It should be good for the people and the region. But what you have in Cuba is corrupt trade, not free trade. The Europeans, the Canadians, the Mexicans, 99 percent of the world trades with Cuba. But it trades with Castro's government on its terms. That's the only trade the Castro government allows. If the United States participates in this, what would happen is, for, say -- for example, your wages were $100 a month. The foreign investors cannot pay you directly. They have to pay the Cuban government the $100. And the Cuban government would pay you in 100 Cuban pesos, which is roughly $10 U.S. dollars. So your wages are $100 but you're only getting 10 percent of that. That's the corrupt trade we shouldn't be participating in. That's the only kind of trade that the Castro government allows because that's what they done with everybody else.

CHURCH: We'll be watching closely to see what happens in the days, weeks and months ahead.

Thank you, Jorge Benitez, for sharing your unique perspective. We appreciate it.

BENITEZ: Thank you. (END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: President Obama will wrap up his visit with nine innings of baseball diplomacy. The lead hitter of the Tampa Bay Rays defected from Cuba in 2013. He feared he wouldn't see his family for decades.

Erin Burnett spoke with Dayron Varona about his unexpected and emotional homecoming.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR, OUTFRONT: 20-year-old Dayron Varona have gone to bat many times here in Cuba's largest baseball stadium, but the Cuba-born center fielder he never dreamed he would be a major league hitter playing against the Cuban national team.

"Wow," he tells me. "It's amazing to be back here."

This morning, Cuban fans showed up to watch him practice. He's the Tampa Bay Rays' only Cuban player. He left the country with his mother three years ago, on a 12-hour boat ride with four other people.

"It was a decision I made. And I got to the U.S. and I'm making my dreams come true."

An emotional Varona seeing his sister for the first time since he defected. When I asked what it was like to see her kid brother again, she lost control. "I can't. I'm sorry. I can't."

[02:25:19] (on camera): Baseball is a national obsession here. More than 50,000 people fit in Havana's main stadium.

But there's a dark side. Players end up like Dayron Varona end up defecting to the United States. And often they do it in dangerous circumstances, even smuggled in by drug cartels.

(voice-over): The players are leaving Cuba and giving up citizenship in exchange for opportunity.

Varona, who once made $4 a month, reportedly signed a multi-year deal with the Rays.

But in a major breakthrough, the U.S. and Cuba have signed a new agreement, one that means that players no longer have to defect to play ball in America.

Varona's teammates said they're proud to be part of this moment in history.

JAMES LONEY, TAMPA BAYS PLAYER: He's great. He's a great teammate. He loves the game.

BURNETT: First baseman, James Loney, predicts there will be a lot of emotion in this stadium when Varona walks on to the field.

(on camera): You have a tear in your eye? LONEY: I think so. I think a lot of guys will.

BURNETT (voice-over): As Varona gets ready to leave Cuba, he says he won't stay away for long.

(on camera): Do you think you will come home, if this is home?

(voice-over): Yes, I think I will. When it's a possible, yes, I will come back."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: All right. More news for you now from the world of sport. Just the past few hours, we found out that tennis executive, Raymond Moore, is stepping down as tournament protector of the BNP Paribas Open in California. Just yesterday, we reported on him making sexist comments about female tennis players.

CHURCH: Moore told reporters Sunday that women players ride on the coattails of men. And that Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have carried the sport. The comments drew sharp criticism from Serena Williams and Billie Jean King.

Coming up, the final five. The Democratic and Republican White House hopefuls make their case to the voters, right here on CNN. Don't go anywhere.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:30:27] BARNETT: Welcome back. All five U.S. presidential candidates spoke to CNN on Monday.

CHURCH: They addressed a wide range of issues, everything from NATO to Cuba, to the protests at Donald Trump's rallies, and even Hillary Clinton being told to smile more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CRUZ: Not interested in playing the media gotcha game.

KASICH: My message of hope is a vital message.

CLINTON: He has been engaging in bigotry and bluster and bullying.

TRUMP: I'm the least racist person you'll ever meet.

SANDERS: This guy will not be elected president of the United States.

CLINTON: When I have a job, I really work hard to do it to the best of my capacity.

SANDERS: Secretary Clinton and I look at foreign policy in very different ways.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: You don't want any violence to emerge, right? TRUMP: Of course, I don't --

BLITZER: Because you used the word riots twice.

TRUMP: I didn't use it.

CLINTON: I think his incitement of violence raises very serious questions.

BLITZER: Do you think the United States needs to rethink U.S. involvement in NATO?

TRUMP: Yes. It's costing us too much money.

KASICH: No. That's silly.

(CROSSTALK)

KASICH: No, no, no. We're going to have to strengthen it.

SANDERS: Have some good things been done in Cuba? Yes. Should the United States go around overthrowing governments we don't like? I don't think so.

TRUMP: Nobody respects women more than I do. Nobody takes care of women -- and they take care of me.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: I've seen people on television saying, you should smile more. Is that sexist?

CLINTON: I don't hear anybody say that about men?

BLITZER: Is it realistic if you get the nomination, you could call on this man, lying Ted, to be your vice presidential running mate?

TRUMP: Crazier things have happened in politics.

CRUZ: I have zero interest whatsoever.

CLINTON: This is like a big, giant job interview.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Just a little taste there. We will bring you much more from the final five presidential candidates talking to CNN. International viewers can catch a special highlight show at 7:00 p.m. Hong Kong time, 11:00 a.m. in London, right here on CNN.

BARNETT: Four of the U.S. presidential candidates addressed one of the country's pro-Israel lobbying groups on Monday.

CHURCH: Each of the candidates spelled out how they would support the alliance between the two countries.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: We will never allow Israelis adversaries to think a wedge can be driven between us.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: When we have differences, as any friends do, we will work to resolve them quickly and respectfully.

KASICH: We can best advance stability in the region by providing Israel our support. We can make sure that Israel has what it needs to defend itself with weapons, information, technology, political solidarity, and working quietly to facilitate Palestinian and Israeli efforts of reconciliation.

TRUMP: In Palestinian text books and mosques, you have a culture of hatred that's been fermenting there for years. And if we want to achieve peace, they have to go out and they have to start this educational process. They have to end education of hatred. They have to end it and now.

CRUZ: In a mockery of this Iranian nuclear deal, Iran has continued with missile tests. Including launching a missile with the words on it in Hebrew and Farsi, "Israel should be wiped from the earth." Hear my words, Ayatollah, if I am president, and Iran launches a missile test, we will shoot that missile down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Democrat Bernie Sanders said he could not attend the conference due to scheduling issues. While campaigning in Utah, the only Jewish candidate did weigh in on the Middle East.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANDERS: To be successful, we have to be a friend, not only to Israel, but to the Palestinian people.

(CHEERING)

SANDERS: When we talk about Israel and Palestinian areas, it is important to understand that today there is a whole lot of suffering among Palestinians. And that cannot be ignored. You can't have good policy that results in peace if you ignore one side.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Israelis have been listening to what candidates have to say.

CNN's Oren Liebermann joins us from Jerusalem with that angle of the story.

Oren, what is the response to most of the candidates backing Israel on Monday, and Senator Sanders, the only Jewish candidate, openly criticizing the country?

[02:35:19] OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: At terms of what was said, there wasn't much of a surprise of the Israeli response. The Republicans said they would move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem.

Cancel the Iran deal. That's what the Israeli and the American Jewish public to hear. No one really expects that to happen. But that's the message that Republicans wanted to get across.

Sanders is viewed the candidate most willing to be critical of Israel. And he was. No surprise there.

It's perhaps no surprise that Trump made most of the headlines here. But not for what he said at AIPAC. There, the message was what was expected. Trump made headlines for what was said before AIPAC, when he suggested that Israel should pay back the military aid it gets from the U.S. That totals $3 billion. The public will pick up on that. That military aid is essential to American/Israel relations.

Hillary Clinton also made some headlines here. Again, her message was what was expected. A strong pro-Israel message right at the top. Seemed to distance herself from the Iran deal. It's what Israelis expected to hear from the candidates. No surprises there, perhaps.

Trump making most of the headlines. Cruz and Kasich, not really figuring into the Israeli opinion of the race -- Errol?

BARNETT: It would seem that the front runners, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, are absorbing most of the attention. You said that economic issues are really the subject that American-Israelis care about. Which candidate is best in that regard?

LIEBERMANN: That's the irony of all of this. Pitching yourself as the most pro candidate. American Jews vote on the economy, health care, security, on the normal issues that other people vote on. That message didn't come across. And to some extent, it won't shift American-Jewish votes because of that. There, Clinton does well. American Jews overwhelmingly vote Democrat. I suspect we won't see that change because of the speeches.

BARNETT: And despite Donald Trump rolling back his comments, the fact he suggested Israel pay back to the U.S. the billions it gets in aid, will be remembered by those there for a long time.

LIEBERMANN: Absolutely.

BARNETT: Oren Liebermann live for us in Jerusalem. 8:37 in Jerusalem.

Thanks, Oren.

CHURCH: A Belgium imam risks his life to keep Belgians from ISIS recruiting. Our CNN exclusive series "Frontline Belgium" next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:41:22] CHURCH: Mali officials say one attacker has been killed and two suspects arrested, after an assault on a hotel in the capital city. BARNETT: The target was the European Union's military training

mission, which is headquartered in that building. The mission says no one was hurt.

CHURCH: This is the second attack in recent months. 19 people were killed last November, after a terror attack at another hotel.

BARNETT: Now, Australian police say they've arrested two people suspected of transferring money to ISIS.

CHURCH: The 20-year-old man and 16-year-old girl were arrested west of Sydney in an ongoing counter-terror operation. The charge of financing terrorism can carry 25 years in prison.

BARNETT: A prominent imam in Brussels is taking on ISIS recruiters, even though he says he may be risking his life.

CHURCH: He tells Nima Elbagir, why he has to stand up and speak out in our exclusive series, "Frontline Belgium."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Residents winding their way home through the streets of a Belgium suburb. On nights like this, it's easy to forget this is a country facing real threats.

We've come here to meet with a potential interviewee. He agrees only to a neutral location.

(on camera): (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

(voice-over): Imam Sulayman Van Ael is the one of the most outspoken, anti-ISIS figures. He arrives with a bodyguard, but determined to speak.

SULAYMAN VAN AEL, FORMER IMAM: We live in an era where everybody who speaks out, and stands up for the truth, he will find people trying to stop him and refraining him from doing so.

ELBAGIR (on camera): People in a European capitol city, who speak out against what they believe are dangerous, extremist threats, yourself included, with very credible threats from ISIS. And that is horrifying.

VAN AEL: I believe it's part of our Islam, that we protect the country that we were raised in. And we try to make the country that we lived in prosper. And the problem is the misunderstanding of this youth, they think when I attribute myself to a non-Muslim country, it makes me a non-Muslim. That doesn't make any sense.

ELBAGIR (voice-over): Belgium security sources tell CNN, through 2015, an average of five to six Belgians a month left to join ISIS. And it's a pipeline that flows both ways, with some of the number successfully retracing their steps home.

For the families and the communities they return to, it only exacerbates the fear.

Geraldine Hidagan (ph) and Veronik Qootes (ph). These women are from the mothers collective. Both have sons who left Belgium to join ISIS. Geraldine's was 18. To her, still a boy, but old enough to buy fighting in Syria. She received the news in a text from the Syrian front line.

Both women are trying to weave their pain into something bigger than their loss, trying to keep other parents from experiencing their suffering.

GERALDINE HIDAGAN (ph), MOTHER LOST SON TO ISIS (through translation): Every sign, every case is different. When you look at them separately, they don't look like signs of radicalization. You look at the picture, you realize these are science of radicalization. They're part of the recruitment process.

ELBAGIR: In the aftermath of the horror that swept through the streets of Paris late last year, the Brussels suburb of Molenbeek emerged as the nexus of the plot. It's there that the mothers collective are working with the de-radicalization center.

The center counselor agrees to speak to us to describe some of their work. But asks we conceal her identity.

[02:45:18] (on camera): The youngest patient that you see, is 12 years old. And her parents have given you permission to share her story with us today.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): It's been three weeks now, wearing the long skirt and everything. I tried to understand her motivations. Is someone telling her to do this? Not so long ago, one of her sisters left for Syria. And since then, this little girl feels completely overwhelmed. She's so young. The mother is devastated with worry.

ELBAGIR (voice-over): Geraldine has a stark warning for the parents who come to her.

HIDAGAN (ph) (through translation): We need to make people realize, if you do not act right away, it can very quickly be too late.

ELBAGIR: Since the Paris attacks, the ministry of interior says the laws have been changed to give the police greater powers over minors seeking to travel and those over 18 already on watch lists.

But the families and the communities at the heart of this say, ultimately, they know this is their battle in spite of the threats that have become a reality of life here.

HIDAGAN (ph) (through translation): Is there anything else I can lose? I already lost my son. So, there's nothing else they can do to me.

ELBAGIR: Nima Elbagir, CNN, Molenbeek.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: On Wednesday, Nima Elbagir introduces you to a Belgian man who lost his brothers to ISIS. And others who say the hunt for homegrown terrorists has gone too far.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELBAGIR (voice-over): Ali's brothers were the first to travel to Syria.

(on camera): Why do you think your brothers went to Syria?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (through translation): Honestly, I always asked them. But I never understood why. But it is as if they felt rejected. The Belgian state rejected children and young people. They say we're all foreigners. Why should we give them a job?

ELBAGIR: This 18-year-old says he was surrounded by police officers at a local supermarket and pushed to the ground at gunpoint.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translation): First, I was in shock. What's happening? What's happening? Already commanded me, get on your knees now. And I went to my knees.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: These stories and more all part of our special coverage "Frontline Belgium," only here on CNN. Nima joins us live next hour.

CHURCH: Jurors in the Hulk Hogan sex tape case have added $25 million to the damages awarded to the former wrestler. He was already awarded $115 million from "Gawker Media," its founder and a former editor were ordered to pay up to $115 million.

BARNETT: A massive payout. The site published part of a sex tape featuring Hogan, who sued for violation of privacy. "Gawker" says it will appeal the decision. Its founder implying there is more to the case. Stay tuned for that.

We will be back after a very short break. Please do stay with us.

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(WEATHER REPORT)

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[02:52:16] BARNETT: It happens to most presidential candidates sooner or later. They end up having to show their dance moves.

CHURCH: It's no surprise that Donald Trump is getting los of attention for his moves during a campaign event Monday.

CNN's Jeanne Moos reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If having people sing "Happy Birthday" to you --

(SINGING)

MOOS: --, makes you squirm, put yourself in Donald Trump's shoes.

(SINGING)

MOOS: Standing and swaying on stage with Dr. Ben Carson, as they were serenaded by Bo Davidson.

(SINGING)

MOOS: "The Daily Mail" called it toe-curling dad dancing, a three- minute cringe-fest.

(SINGING)

MOOS (on camera): There's nothing easy standing by somebody who is singing "Stand by Me" to you.

(voice-over): Clapping in unison is more challenging.

Ben Carson's movements are under intense scrutiny.

(SINGING)

MOOS: By the folks at "SNL."

At one point, the Donald sang along, mouthing his own name.

(SINGING)

MOOS: Maybe this wasn't as uncomfortable as it must have been for Hillary, to have a Hillary imitator serenading voters.

(SINGING)

MOOS: The Donald was a good sport.

(SINGING)

MOOS: "SNL" called on him to dance to Drake's hotline bling.

When it comes to politicians doing their thing, they all dance to the beat --

(MUSIC)

MOOS: -- of a different drummer or make their own beat.

Jeanne Moos, CNN --

(MUSIC) (APPLAUSE)

MOOS: -- New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(LAUGHER)

CHURCH: It's good to see them loosening up a little bit.

BARNETT: I love it. It's good to see them in an awkward moment.

CHURCH: Yeah, we love those.

(CROSSTALK)

CHURCH: A British organization may be regretting a public relations decision.

BARNETT: They had the bright idea of having the Internet name a new ship.

As Jeremy Roth explains, they got more than they expected.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is why we can't have nice things. The U.K.'s National Environment Research Council, or NERC, is asking the public for name suggestions for their newest research vessel, a $288 million ship, years in the making. If the Internet gets its way, it will be called Boaty McBoatface.

That's right. The council is learning when you ask the Internet for something serious, you will get something snarky in return.

McBoatface is the front-runner, among, "The RRS," "It's Bloody Cold Here" and "Usain Boat."

NERC have specified the names are suggestions only. There is a chance it will be named something boring, which will earn a collective --

(FOG HORN)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(LAUGHTER)

[02:55:28] CHURCH: And the man who came up with Boaty McBoatface said he's sorry for the fuss.

I like the name.

BARNETT: He stands by the brilliance of the name. And so do we, sir. Boaty McBoatface, all the way.

I like Usain boat. (LAUGHTER)

(CROSSTALK)

CHURCH: They need to go with that.

BARNETT: Remember to reach out to us on social media. It's good to hear from you, all.

CHURCH: Next hour, we will discuss sexism in tennis with a guest from Australia. Stay with us for that and a whole lot more.

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