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Several GOP Security Experts Call Trump "Dangerous" Choice for White House; Grudge Match At The Olympics; Delta Airlines Cancels and Delays More Flights After Monday Outage. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired August 9, 2016 - 03:00   ET

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


[03:00:00] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN NEWSROOM HOST: Unfit to lead. Dozens of Republican security experts called Donald Trump a dangerous choice for the White House. And he calls them a bunch of failures.

Grudge match, U.S. swimmer Lily King best Russian rival in the pool and then says the Russian shouldn't have been there in the first place.

And more trouble for Delta Airlines passengers. The airline cancels and delays hundreds of additional flights after Monday's computer power failure.

Hello and welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. And this is CNN Newsroom.

Well, Donald Trump is trying to refocus the campaign conversation on the economy. But even as the republican nominee laid out his policy plans, top national security experts from his own party came out against him.

Jim Acosta reports.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm grateful that you gave me...

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: They are former national security officials who served in republican administrations from Richard Nixon to George W. Bush. And in their letter to the nation, they say none of them will vote for Donald Trump.

From a foreign policy perspective, the former officials write, "Donald Trump is not qualified to be president and commander-in-chief. Indeed, we are convinced that he would be a dangerous president and would put at risk our country's national security and wellbeing."

Signing on to the letter, first reported by the New York Times, former director of the CIA, Michael Hayden, former Homeland Security Secretary, Michael Chertoff and Tom Ridge and the former director of National Intelligence John Negroponte. Ridge has been blunt about Trump in the past.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM RIDGE, FORMER U.S. HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: How the hell can be a commander-in-chief when he says POWS are not heroes? And then you go the whole Muslim -- every Muslim is a potential terrorist.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: The bombshell letter is hitting Trump's campaign just as it was looking for a reboot with a speech designed to jumpstart both the nation's economy and his battle against Hillary Clinton.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She is the candidate of the past. Ours is the campaign of the future.

(APPLAUSE)

ACOSTA: Interrupted more than a dozen times by protesters in Detroit.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Thank you very much. Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Trump showed some message discipline as he kept his cool.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: The Bernie Sanders people had far more energy and spirit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Trump's economic plan puts a popular stamp on a laundry list of standard GOP proposals. He would put a moratorium on new government regulations, repeal the estate tax, and pull back from global trade by withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific trade deal, and crackdown on Chinese trading practices, all while inviting Canada to restart the controversial Keystone oil pipeline project.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: When I am the president, we will start winning again big league.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Trump is also calling for a three new income tax brackets that are actually higher than his original proposal. But one of Trump's top surrogates conceded his plans would blow up the deficit.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Speaker, his numbers don't add up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Of course not. I mean, I think historically, no candidates had numbers add up.

(END VIDEO CLIP) ACOSTA: Trump's attempted resurgence comes at a critical time. The never Trump movement is introducing a new candidate, Evan McMullin. Far from a household name, he's a congressional staffer and former employee at the CIA and Goldman Sachs. The anti-Trump republicans just don't want to give their nominee a break.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you or anyone else get Mr. Trump to stop saying crazy and offensive things for the next three months.

MIKE PENCE, INDIANA GOVERNOR: Well, you know, you always hear these rumors that it just -- you know, I guess that -- I guess it makes for good fodder on the internet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And Trump issued a statement in response to the former national security officials who wrote that scathing letter saying, quote, "They are nothing more than the failed Washington elite looking to hold on to their power.

Jim Acosta, CNN, Washington.

CHURCH: And Trump responded to the republicans' letters saying this. "They are nothing more than the failed Washington elite looking to hold on to their powers." We heard there. "These insiders along with Hillary Clinton are the owners of the disastrous decisions to invade Iraq, allow Americans to die at Benghazi, and they are the ones who allowed the rise of ISIS."

So, let's turn now from national security to the economy and take a closer look at Donald Trump's speech Monday. Joining me now from Chicago, global affairs and economic analyst, Ali Velshi. Great to talk with you.

So, Donald Trump stayed on message.

ALI VELSHI, ECONOMIC ANALYST: Thank you.

CHURCH: Sticking to his script, ditching some of his own tax plan in favor of House Speaker Paul Ryan's plan, calling for large tax cuts, but increased spending.

[03:05:08] How did the numbers add up and how is he going to pay for this?

VELSHI: Well, he has an interesting explanation for this so the numbers don't add up. That's the short answer. He wants to increase spending fairly dramatically and he wants to cut taxes.

I mean, just to give you an example, the top marginal tax rate for income tax in the United States is 39.6 percent. He wants to take that to 25 percent. He wants to take corporate taxation to 50 percent.

So, setting aside the fact that Americans have never been able to come together, or at least for many years on tax reform, he wants to do all these things. And when you add it up, it looks like about a $10 trillion hold in the deficit.

Now, his rationale is that people will be so excited by the savings in taxes that businesses and people will spend that money and employ people and it will create remarkable economic growth.

The fact is, Rosemary, that hasn't happened in recent years. Growth is just not what it used to be and economic growth in a country, GDP growth, only depends so much on what a government or an administration or a president does.

Ultimately, there are external factors, as well. So, what he's done is he's thrown everything in. I like into going to a restaurant, inviting people over, ordering most of the menu and then leaving and sticking them with the bill.

There's really no viable explanation as to how he's going to pay for these proposals.

CHURCH: Yes. Interesting analogy there. And of course, Trump also talked about renegotiating trade deals. How is that going to be received by trading partners and ultimately voters?

VELSHI: Well, first of all, these trading deals take 10 or 15 years, usually, to negotiate. There are complicated legal agreements. And it shows a lack of sophistication on his part to suggest that, you know, whether it was George W. Bush or George Bush Sr. or Bill Clinton or anybody else, nobody was sophisticated enough to be able to get the deal that he can probably get.

So first of all, he's talking about pulling out of the Trans-Pacific partnership which is something that Hillary Clinton also belatedly supports. So, you've got two candidates who both say they don't want part of this deal.

But he's even talking about renegotiating the North American free trade agreement between Mexico and the United States and Canada. The U.S.-Mexican -- the U.S.-Canadian trading relationship is the biggest trading relationship in the world.

So, again, it's like the conversation about maybe not supporting NATO partners if they don't pay up. This idea of these major alliances whether they are military or global security or trade pulling out of them, this, of course, makes people very, very uncomfortable and doesn't really show a sense of sophistication about how global agreements are made.

I will say this, Rosemary. For countries like the U.K. or the United States, a high income, high wage countries, these trade deals have not been good for manufacturing workers.

That's a fact that politicians don't tend to know how to square with the fact that these deals create national prosperity, they increase GDP growth and increase corporate profitability, but for blue collar workers, they're generally not a good thing. CHURCH: Ali Velshi, always great to talk with you. I appreciate it.

VELSHI: My pleasure.

CHURCH: And Hillary Clinton is dismissing Trump's plan as nothing more than repackaged trickledown economics, and she says it would have grim results.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, (D) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Economists left, right, in the middle, all say the same thing. That Trump's policies would throw us into a recession. The last thing we need.

There is no other Donald Trump. What you see is what you get.

(APPLAUSE)

He is still the same Donald Trump who makes his shirts and his ties overseas instead of in the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Meanwhile, Clinton's supporters are wrestling with issues about her honesty and trustworthiness.

CNN's Randi Kaye has more on that.

(CROWD CHANTING)

RANDI KAYE, CNN'S INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: A warm greeting for Hillary Clinton as she swings through the swing state of Florida where she is leading her opponent by six points.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is history in the making.

KAYE: History perhaps, but what about Hillary Clinton's own history? Benghazi, her private e-mail server, false claims about landing under sniper fire in Bosnia? It's all part of the same narrative and why many voters don't trust her.

The latest CBS poll shows just 34 percent of registered voters say Clinton is honest and trustworthy, compared to 36 percent for Donald Trump. Even among her supporters at this rally in St. Petersburg there were lingering questions about her e-mails.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GLENDA WILLIAMS, FLORIDA VOTER: Of course we have concerns. We would like to know definitively. We may never know definitively.

KAYE: Voter Denise Fowler lost trust in Mrs. Clinton after the attacks in Benghazi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DENISE FOWLER, FLORIDA VOTER: I thought that was a cover-up. So, that's when my distrust really started to step up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:10:02] KAYE: Still, both of these women say they will vote for Hillary Clinton, even despite her repeated false claims that the FBI director had said she told the truth about her e-mails to the public.

The FBI director never actually said she had spoken the truth to the public, which is what she was repeating. So is that OK with you?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: That's OK with me, because you know something? The only other alternative, that is not an alternative to me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Clinton later walked back her comments saying she had short- circuited her brain in her answer, a comment her critics immediately jumped on. But voters here accepted that explanation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FOWLER: She could have backed the story to make it quick that she talks about but I think she did gave the answer. Then I think it's been beaten to a pulp.

BARBARA SOMMA, VOTING FOR HILLARY CLINTON: It's a misspoken word. And if you've ever done public speaking, I have, and you know, sometimes words just flow out. I don't think she was any attempt to lie to us.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In her heart, she knew there was no ill will on her part. And that was her perception. And I accept that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Voters we met seemed to be OK with a few untruths here and there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Politics, you have to fudge a little bit but I think on balance, she is truthful, she is honest.

KAYE: And while voter Derek Haynes didn't call Trump a liar, he did call him a few other things.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he's a racist, a misogynist, a xenophobe, and a homophobe.

KAYE: Most here say Clinton wins the honesty contest against Trump all day long.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't trust him with my children. I don't trust him to lead this country. I don't trust a word he's saying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Trump's latest suggestion that Clinton isn't fit to be president if her brain quote, "short-circuits," was lost on these voters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't make too much of anything that Trump says because if there's anyone that's not fit to be president, it's Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Randi Kaye, CNN, St. Petersburg, Florida.

CHURCH: The United States and Japan are celebrating some big wins at the summer Olympics in Rio. Japan took gold in the men's artistic gymnastics team competition, ending China's eight year reign as champions.

In the Olympic pool, American swimmer Lily King set an Olympic record to win gold in the women's 100-meter breastbone, beating Russian rival Yulia Efimova.

Before King's win, American Ryan Murphy also set an Olympic record, winning gold in the men's 100-meter backstroke.

Well, World Sports Christina Macfarlane joins us now from Rio. Hello there, Christina. Now as we just heard day three of the Olympics saw a great night in the pool for U.S. swimmers.

Lily King beat out Russia's Yulia Efimova, as we said to win gold, but not without a bit of drama. What happened?

CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN WORLD SPORTS ANCHOR: That's right, Rosemary. There's been a lot of trash talking in the pool going on in the last 24 hours. Yulia Efimova coming into this race had actually been banned from competing here in the Olympics until she was granted a last-minute reprieve on Saturday.

Well, on Sunday, she came out and she won her breaststroke heat. And after doing so, she waggled her finger and just titillated to Lily King in a victorious manner. Now Lily King was waiting to come out and compete in her heat stroke afterwards and she took exception to this. Took it as a direct insult on her.

And King, of course, not happy that Efimova has been able to -- been granted a reprieve to compete here because of her doping past. And excuse me. And this all played out in the pool last night. The two of them going head to head and it was King who was eventually victorious.

She took the win by just under half a second. There really wasn't that much in it. And afterwards Efimova was in floods with tears. However, she did say that she was happy with the silver medal because just a week ago, she didn't know whether she was actually going to be able to compete here in Rio.

CHURCH: Yes, absolutely. And Brazil won its first medal at the Rio games. How did that all play out?

MACFARLANE: Yes. Eventually, Brazil got off the mark and it was really exciting to see because this is such a heartwarming story. It was courtesy of Rafael Silva who took the 42-kilogram division judo gold yesterday in front of an emphatic crowd.

You know, Rafael Silva actually herald from a favela not far from a live position. It's one of the largest favelas in Rio. It's actually a favela that was areas depicted in the film "City of God."

Now she won all five of her matches. It was a faultless performance from her. And as I say, the crowd went absolutely wild.

[03:15:01] Silva saying afterwards that she hopes this will open the flood gates now for more Brazilian medals to follow. And as a host nation they are expected to finish here in the top 10.

CHURCH: Yes. That sounds great. And Christina, lots of buzz is building around Usain Bolt. CNN actually got to interview the fastest man on earth. What did he have to say?

MACFARLANE: Yes, that's absolutely right. Six Olympic titles, 11 world titles and now he's going, of course, for an unprecedented triple-triple.

I just want to show you, Rosemary, before we get to our sound bite with Bolt. A bit of video that we shot earlier today at the press conference. This was the Jamaican teen press conference.

And Usain Bolt, that we can show that he was actually dancing the samba with a team of -- look at them there. A team of samba dancers who had had come out especially to celebrate with them ahead of the -- ahead of the match or ahead of the race, rather and, you know, showing his moves there.

But whether or not he'll dance away with three gold medals, well, he spoke to our Amanda Davis earlier today saying that he wanted more than that. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

USAIN BOLT, WORLD RECORD SPRINTER: I definitely want to. I said I want to go under 19 seconds. I don't know if that will be possible, but not necessarily I'm done. So, I'm going to go and push myself.

AMANDA DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: How much time of your life are you spending thinking about?

BOLT: I don't think about him, really. I always try to run the race in my head, try to execute, but I definitely not try to sit down and think about people. I try to focus on working hard, executing, and figuring out what I need to do to get it right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, the first of his three races is the 100- meter race on Saturday, of course, and we're looking forward to that showdown with this big archrival Justin Gatlin. I can't wait.

CHURCH: Yes, absolutely. Very exciting. Christina Macfarlane there, right in front of the Copacabana Beach. Great to chat with you. Thanks so much.

And now for a quick look at the medal count after the third day of competition. The United States and China are tied with five gold medals each. Australia is close behind with four. And Italy, Japan and Hungary round out the top six with three gold medals each. The U.S. leads right now in total medals with 19.

And looking forward to Tuesday's action, 15 gold medals will be awarded in nine sports. Here are some events to keep your eye on. Katie Ledecky will be chasing another gold in the women's 200-meter freestyle.

Refugee swimmer Rami Anis who is Syrian will make his Olympic debut in the 100- meter freestyle. And team USA led by Simone Biles looks to defend a title in the women's gymnastics team final. Very exciting.

And you can keep up with all the news out of Rio on our web site. It has the latest on the athletes, the venues and, of course, the competition. That's all at cnn.com/olympics. Check it out.

All right. To more serious news now, an especially ruthless suicide bombings strikes a hospital in Pakistan. The aftermath and who says they're behind it, that's still to come.

And Delta P.R. disaster continues to balloon with more and more flights cancelled. Why thousands of passengers are stranded around the world.

We're back in a moment with that.

[03:20:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's weather watch time for the Americas. I'm Pedram Javaheri on to CNN.

And you take a look at what's happening across the United States at this point. Still watching a couple different areas. Here is what's left of Javier.

A tropical storm impacting portions of Northern Mexico while a tropical feature at least resemble some tropical characteristics producing some heavy rainfall down around the Gulf Coast states.

And a lot of moisture locked in place across this region the last couple of days. And you continue to watch the pattern really be favorable for southerly flow.

This is not only great for increasing the humidity but also increasingly the possibility of thunderstorms. Especially if there's a trigger mechanism which is the stalled frontal boundary that's sitting across this region. So, you take a look offshore indicated in light, that's a half of

meter of rainfall that come just off shore the Florida, Panhandle region there.

But generally speaking, a widespread area of 200 to 300 millimeters of rainfall has come down. Unfortunately, the pattern right now looks like it will want to shift a little to the north along this region.

Could see another half a meter of rainfall over the next week or so. So, certainly it's the story we're following inside the next couple of days.

And the national perspective into southern Canada will go with Winnipeg at 22 degrees, Chicago around 31. Atlanta around 30 degrees. Here is Javier again, very disorganized area of convection right now.

And watching the storm system that will work its way up to Baja and eventually fall apart before it makes its way towards Southern California with some scattered showers across this region.

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, in Afghanistan, investigators are searching for an American and an Australian who were kidnapped in western Kabul. The two men are lecturers at the American University of Afghanistan.

The kidnapping have prompted administrators to temporarily close the school. A security official tells CNN a gunman smashed their vehicle's window with his gun and abducted both men. A driver and bodyguard in the car were not hurt.

Well, the Pakistani City of Quetta is in mourning after a suicide blast at a hospital that killed more than 70 people.

Pakistan's Prime Minister visited some of the many wounded victims. ISIS and an off-shoot of the Pakistan Taliban are both claiming responsibility for the attack.

CNN's Michael Holmes has more.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Chaos in the City of Quetta after a suicide bombing at a busy hospital. This man says there were bodies and blood everywhere. After the blast ripped through the crowded emergency ward.

And it appears this was a carefully targeted attack. Many lawyers and journalists were gathered at the hospital when the bomb went off. They were there to mourn the death of a prominent local lawyer who had been killed in a shooting earlier in the day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAEED SHAH, WALL STREET JOURNAL REPORTER: The scene of the attack was utter horror. I mean, they assassinated a lawyer. Then they waited for lawyers to gather at the hospital to receive his body from the mortuary before sending a suicide bomber.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Dozens were killed. More than 100 injured. And the death toll is expected to climb. According to local officials, Pakistan's prime minister among the many to strongly condemn the attack.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHAH: This really is the terrorists saying we're still here. Despite all these counterterrorism operations over the last couple of years, which have had a big effect, the terrorist are very much saying with this market that we're still around and we can still hit you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Several lawyers have been targeted during a recent waves of killings in Quetta. This latest attack a reminder that the militant groups like the Taliban are far from being defeated in Pakistan.

Michael Holmes, CNN, London.

CHURCH: Dozens of Philippine officials are turning themselves in after being accused by the country's new president of links to the drug trade.

On Sunday, President Duterte accused and named more than 150 officials as part of his aggressive and often violent anti-drug campaign. He gave them 24 hours to report to the Philippine National Police. That deadline has expired.

[03:25:01] Police say 18 mayors and 31 police officials have surrendered so far and more are expected.

Delta Airlines and its passengers are looking for answers after more than 1,000 flights were canceled Monday. Another 100 cancellations have just been announced for Tuesday along with delays to still more flights.

Delta says a power outage triggered a computer system failure, but it still doesn't know why its backup system did not take over. The CEO has apologized to customers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EDWARD H. BASTIAN, DELTA AIRLINES CEO: I apologize for the challenges this has created for you with your travel experience. The Delta team is working very, very hard to restore and get these systems back as quickly as possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The airline is offering vouchers worth $200 to any passengers who have been delayed at least three hours.

We are keeping an eye on Turkey's president as he meets with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg in the coming hours and we will see what's on their agenda. That's next. And later, how an American man says his self-driving car saved his

life.

You're watching CNN Newsroom. Back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: And a warm welcome back to our viewers all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.

I want to update you now on the main stories we've been watching this hour.

Fifteen prominent republicans are publicly denouncing Donald Trump. The foreign policy and national security experts say Trump would be the most reckless president in American history.

[03:30:02] Trump says they are members of a failed Washington elite that has made the world a dangerous place.

On day three of the Rio Games, American Lily King set an Olympic record to win the 100-meter Brea stroke, beating out Russian rival Yulia Efimova. And the host country is celebrating its first gold of these games. Brazil's Rafaela Silva won it in women's judo.

Well, Delta is canceling 100 flights for Tuesday, that's on top of at least 1,000 that never took off Monday. The airlines says a power outage took out its computer system. It can't explain why a backup system did not take over.

Well, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg in the coming hours. They are working to repair relations after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet last year.

And Erdogan wants the two countries to work together to end the fighting in Syria.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, TURKISH PRESIDENT (TRANSLATED): Let me express this loud and clear. Russia is the most important actor in bringing peace to Syria. I believe that Russia and Turkey should solve this problem by taking joint steps.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And repairing the leadership between Turkey and Russia might not be easy.

CNN's senior international correspondent, Matthew Chance has more now on that from St. Petersburg.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the moment Turkey intercepted and blasted a Russian war plane after the skies over the Turkish Syrian border last November. As it plunged in a fireball, relations between Moscow and Ankara also crashed in flames.

Russia's infuriated president could barely contain his anger.

"Today's loss for us was like a stab in the back delivered by the accomplices of terrorists," he said at the time. It will have serious consequences, he promised, for Russia's relations with Turkey.

And he wasn't kidding. As well as blocking trade ties with Ankara, halting charter flights and banning Turkish workers, the Russian Defense Ministry also released this video saying it proves the Turkish leader and his family profited from the sale of ISIS oil in Syria and Iraq. An allegation President Erdogan denies.

For months, it seemed the bitterness between Putin and Erdogan, his Turkish counterpart would never heal. The two were at odds over Syria. But it became personal, too. A battle of wills between two autocratic hardliners.

But then, suddenly something changed. Perhaps it was economic necessity. But the Turkish president unexpectedly moved to heal the rift with the Kremlin, expressing regret to the families of the pilot who was killed in the shooting.

Putin quickly responded by lifting sanctions and beginning what he said was a process of normalizing trade ties. This summer in St. Petersburg is meant to cement that rekindled partnership.

But its timing, after a failed military coup against President Erdogan last month has given the meeting extra significance. Amid the Turkish crackdown on opponents relations with the west are strained, presenting the Kremlin with an opportunity.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHANCE: Is it also about Putin trying to prize Turkey away from the west, away from NATO, away from the Europeans and bring Turkey into Russia's orbit?

ALEXANDER SHUMILIN, RUSSIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES DIRECTOR: Absolutely, absolutely. But not, I don't think that he is so much hopeful to get into the Russian orbit, but to increase the divisions within the western community, within the NATO. And it is one of the purposes, one of the goals designed by Russia.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHANCE: Turkish officials denied the Russian visit means they are turning their backs on the west. But this roller coaster Putin/Erdogan relationship from bitter enemies to best of friends, making Turkey's allies pause for talks.

Matthew Chance, CNN, St. Petersburg.

CHURCH: The United Nations is calling for a humanitarian pause in the fighting in Aleppo so water and electricity can be restored to some 250,000 people trapped inside. The city has been under a government siege, but Syrian rebels say they

have broken through and taken one district. The rebels are vowing to win what they call the great battle for Aleppo. But they are facing heavy air strikes from government forces.

[03:34:59] And close by in northern Syria, U.S.-backed militia are said to be close to clearing the city of Manbij of all ISIS militants. It's a crucial hub for the terror group and losing it would be a major setback.

Our Fred Pleitgen explains what makes the city so important.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: These are America's most important allies in the war against ISIS in Syria. The Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF, have been pushing the terror group back for months.

But this could be their most important victory yet. Fighters say they've all but liberated the strategic town of Manbij.

(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

"We have taken these areas away from ISIS."

PLEITGEN: This video obtained exclusively by CNN shows the Syrian Democratic Forces in house to house combat. The group is made up mostly of Syrian Kurds, many of them women, but includes Arabs and foreigners like Damian from France.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (TRANSLATED): First of all, I came to fight. I came to fight ISIS because they're also in France. Because they are a common enemy. This is an enemy that we also have in France.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: Manbij is a strategic logistics hub for ISIS. Lies about halfway between the Turkish border and the extremist self-declared capital Raqqa. Taking it means choking off much of the group's supply of weapons and fighters.

The U.S. is providing aerial support for the SDF fighters. Strikes that have made a major difference on the battlefield, but there are also reports of more than a hundred civilian casualties.

The U.S. military is investigating the deaths. And even with American air power, the going has been tough. ISIS booby trapped much of Manbij, some of its bomb making factories later discovered.

"Mostly, they used hand-made mines. Because we have surrounded them they had no manufactured materials left, they had nothing left. They even used teapots to make mines. This is also a belt for explosive materials. They fasten the belt filled with explosives to themselves."

The SDF fighters had to battle snipers and determined ISIS foot soldiers. ISIS released this video showing its militants on the front lines, using suicide truck bombs to try and haul the U.S. advancing back force.

The U.S. has called Manbij, quote, "A fight like we haven't seen before." Many of the civilians are simply happy to escape with their lives.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (TRANSLATED): We were afraid of ISIS. But today, we are free. When we were in Mambij, they were four snipers above our house. And when we tried to leave, the snipers shot at us. Their bullets came down like rain. ISIS didn't allow us to leave. If they capture us and see us, they will kill us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: Some of the women saved from ISIS grasp, burned the abayas they were forced to wear in celebration. But while these civilians rejoice for now, the SDF will have to fight many more tough battles before ISIS is destroyed.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.

CHURCH: A nuclear scientist accused of spying for the United States is executed in Iran. How it's becoming an issue in the race for the White House. That's still to come. Stay with us.

[03:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: The parents of two Americans killed in the Benghazi attacks are suing Hillary Clinton. She was Secretary of State at the time of the 2012 attacks.

Her campaign spokesman said there have been nine different investigations into Clinton's handling of Benghazi and none found evidence of wrongdoing.

Nevertheless, the parents of Sean Smith and Tyrone Woods are seeking damages for wrongful death, the defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Iran says it has executed a nuclear scientist for treason. He was tried in secret, accused of spying for the U.S. and revealing Iran's nuclear secrets.

Our Elise Labott reports.

ELISE LABOTT, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Shahram Amiri was greeted as a hero when the Iranian nuclear scientist returned home to Iran six years ago claiming he fled his American captors, turning down millions of dollars to spy on behalf of the U.S.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHAHRAM AMIRI, IRANIAN SCIENTIST (TRANSLATED): I was facing psychological warfare and pressure, much worse than being in prison.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LABOTT: But on Sunday, he was executed for treason. Iran's judiciary ministry announced Amiri was hanged for sharing Iran's nuclear secrets with the enemy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GHOLAM-HOSSEIN MOHSENI-EJE'I, IRANIAN JUDICIARY SPOKESMAN (TRANSLATED): After due process, he received his punishment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LABOTT: Amiri disappeared in 2009 in Saudi Arabia on a religious pilgrimage. He mysteriously ended up in Arizona where he made a video that aired on Iranian state television, claiming he was kidnapped and taken to the U.S. where he was allegedly drugged and tortured.

U.S. Officials say Amiri defected and willingly provided useful information about Iran's nuclear program. And in a subsequent video produced by the CIA, had Amiri contradicted his claims.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMIRI (TRANSLATED): I am free here and want to assure everyone that I am free

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LABOTT: But 2010, officials claimed Amiri changed his mind and wanted to go home. Iranian television aired a third video in which Amiri returned to his kidnapping story saying he escaped his captors. A claim publicly disputed by then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, (D) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's free to go. He was free to come. These decisions are his alone to make.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LABOTT: Amiri demanded to be sent home when he arrived at the Iranian intersection at the Pakistani embassy in Washington. Officials believed he feared for his family's safety.

Clinton aides made veiled references to his request and e-mails over her private server. One saying, quote, "Our friend has to be given a way out. If he has to leave, so be it."

These after his heartwarming airport reunion with his son aired on Iranian state TV. Amiri disappeared. Clinton's critics seized on the e-mails, suggesting they put Amiri's life at risk.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) TOM COTTON, ARKANSAS STATE SENATOR: That goes to show just how reckless and careless her decisions was to put that kind of highly classified information on a private server. And I think her judgment is not -- is not suited to keep this country safe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LABOTT: And Donald Trump took to Twitter to point out that many people are saying that Mr. Amiri was killed because of Hillary Clinton's hacked e-mails. The Clinton campaign shot back, saying that "Trump never met a conspiracy theory it doesn't like," calling the accusations baseless and absurd.

Elise Labott, CNN, New York.

[03:44:59] CHURCH: Storms are brewing near Rio and could impact play for some of the events over the next several days. Our meteorologist Pedram Javaheri joins us now with details on that.

Plus, we saw all the visuals of the winds...

JAVAHERI: Yes.

CHURCH: ... that came through. They disburse, but now rain is on the way, right?

JAVAHERI: There is rain on the way. Could be a lot of it on Wednesday. Mainly tomorrow night, Rosie, into Wednesday. We know some tennis matches, some beach volleyball matches expect to be getting underway tomorrow. So, that's something we'll watch carefully especially on Wednesday.

And we'll show exactly what's happening because it is persistent, very pesky storm, it is a stationary frontal boundary that's parked right across this region, just south of Rio, in fact. And it's meandered a little to the north, a little to the south the past couple of days.

Brought in some cloud of showers. The vast majority of which are going to be locked in around Sao Paulo, but still Rio could get in on the action later on until say Tuesday night, especially Wednesday.

Again, you notice the heaviest does stretch well out towards Bolivia and points westward. Your Tuesday forecast, we'll keep it generally sunny. Again, the clouds increase into the evening hours.

Look at Wednesday could be a washout mainly into the morning hours. And the temperatures really cool off significantly with the cloud cover and also rainfall expected here over the next couple of days.

But switching the pattern here, taking towards portions of Pakistan, we want to show some video coming out of Bannu which is just south of Islamabad in Pakistan. Significant flooding in place in this region. They saw almost a month's worth of rainfall just since yesterday.

Of course, some damage left in place. It is the heart of the monsoon season. And we'll put the maps back in motion for you showing exactly what accumulated. Because about 64 millimeters came down, 74 is what is considered normal for the entire month.

Islamabad also is seeing a lot of rainfall in recent days. And notice weather on Karak point just on the north and east. A lot of people surprise of the rainiest place on our planet, Cherrapunji, India right across that corner, gets 12,000 millimeters of rainfall every year.

That's about 40 feet of rainfall every single year. So, the monsoon certainly in full swing across this region. And it just lights up on opposite corners of the subcontinent there with heavy rainfall over the next couple of days.

Speaking of heavy rainfall, a big story developing across the southern U.S. The Gulf moisture is still slated to stream right on in towards the Gulf Coast states. In fact, a flood watch now has been issued across this region of the big bend of Florida.

See the indication right there in the purples, some white. Look at the top of the charts there. That's as high as you can get on these maps as far as how much rain has already come down. Fortunately, that's been over the water, about half a meter of rainfall has come down in the past couple of days.

Unfortunately, we think the storm system that has produced all that rainfall is going to want to scoot farther to the north.

So, the Florida Panhandle region, a very population destination for vacationers, of course, a lot of beautiful beaches among the highest rated beaches in the United States are right across there, Rosemary.

And the rainfall there is going to be very heavy in the next couple of days. It could be dangerous if people are not taking them seriously. So, in some case...

(CROSSTALK)

CHURCH: Yes. Of course, as you have always told us, it doesn't take much rain to cause some problems.

JAVAHERI: Absolutely. And water is far more deadly than the wind element when it comes to storm.

CHURCH: Yes. Always. Thanks so much, Pedram.

JAVAHERI: Thanks.

CHURCH: Good to talk with you.

Well, a man from the U.S. State of Missouri says he is lucky to be alive, thanks to his Tesla Model X. Joshua Neally was driving home from his daughter's birthday when he felt extreme pain and had trouble breathing.

It turns out he was having a potentially life threating pulmonary embolism. That's a blockage in a lung artery. Neely says he trusted the Tesla's autopilot feature to stay on the road until he got close to a hospital. Then he drove himself the rest of the way. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSHUA NEALLY, TESLA VEHICLE OWNER: If something like that happens where I become unconscious or incapacitated while I'm driving, I'm not going to cross of the interstate and slam into somebody or slam into one of the big rock walls.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Wow. Neally says he has recovered from the embolism. Back in May, though, a man driving a Tesla on auto pilot was killed in a crash involving a lorry in Florida.

Tesla says it regrets the loss of life, but has no plans to disable the auto pilot feature. Two very different outcomes there.

Well, a popular online marketplace is cashing in on the Rio Olympics and residents across the city are earning money while providing affordable accommodations to tourists.

We'll explain when we come back. Stay with us.

[03:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JAVAHERI: It's weather watch time for the Americas. I'm Pedram Javaheri on to CNN.

And you take a look at what's happening across the United States at this point. Still watching a couple different areas. Here is what's left of Javier.

A tropical storm impacting portions of Northern Mexico while a tropical feature at least resemble some tropical characteristics producing some heavy rainfall down around the Gulf Coast states.

And a lot of moisture locked in place across this region the last couple of days. And you continue to watch the pattern really be favorable for southerly flow.

This is not only great for increasing the humidity but also increasingly the possibility of thunderstorms. Especially if there's a trigger mechanism which is the stalled frontal boundary that's sitting across this region.

So, you take a look offshore indicated in light, that's a half of meter of rainfall that come just off shore the Florida, Panhandle region there.

But generally speaking, a widespread area of 200 to 300 millimeters of rainfall has come down. Unfortunately, the pattern right now looks like it will want to shift a little to the north along this region.

Could see another half a meter of rainfall over the next week or so. So, certainly it's the story we're following inside the next couple of days. And the national perspective into southern Canada will go with

Winnipeg at 22 degrees, Chicago around 31. Atlanta around 30 degrees. Here is Javier again, very disorganized area of convection right now.

And watching the storm system that will work its way up to Baja and eventually fall apart before it makes its way towards Southern California with some scattered showers across this region.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: OK. Car lovers may want to turn away from your screens right now. The driver of a Mercedes-Benz ended up on top of a $300,000 Ferrari on Saturday. There it is. It happened in the U.S. State of Virginia as a group of car enthusiasts were gathering for a weekly meeting.

Of course, the Mercedes driver tried to fix things by accelerating forward, but that only made it worse. At least no one was hurt in the accident. But, ouch. All the same.

Well, the Rio Games are the first Olympics officially sponsored by Airbnb. The online marketplace is providing alternate accommodation to thousands of tourists and athletes. And that's generating income for people living all over the city.

Shasta Darlington has the details.

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the place to be in Rio de Janeiro if you want to spend at least $500 a night. If you don't, head away from the beaches to Yada's house, one of the Airbnb's 40,000 listings in the city.

Fresh fruit for breakfast, dorm room beds for $30 a night. And for Yada, a full-time job.

"I used to sell newspapers," she says. I had a car accident and while I was recovering, I started surfing the web and got a message that said 'want to be my host?'"

Her house now fully booked during the summer games, many of the guests Olympic volunteers.

"During the games, prices go way up," she says. So, when a place like this opens its doors, it's great." Especially in the middle of a prolonged recession. Airbnb says its hosts will make about $25 million during the Olympics.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[03:55:00] LEO TRISTAO, AIRBNB COUNTRY MANAGER: Listings are spread out across the city. That means, we're also spreading out the economic impact in neighborhoods that are not touristic destination.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DARLINGTON: The hilltop neighborhood of Santa Teresa may not be close to the Olympic park, but for those who want to splash out, there are some pretty good options like this vintage chic villa.

Anna Kahn has rented her six bedroom home for the Olympics to a group from Finland for a total of $15,000. Income that she says helps supporters and artist and single mom while having fun.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANNA KAHN, ARTIST HOST: Going to make some money, nice money. But, you know, then you're going to share and then you're going to party with them, get to know them, get to know lots of people. And that's the beauty.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DARLINGTON: And not a bad back drop for those postgame parties.

Shasta Darlington, CNN, Rio de Janeiro.

CHURCH: And here is a very touching story. When a bride in Pennsylvania walked down the aisle over the weekend, she didn't have her father by her side, but she did have his heart.

Jeni Stepien's father was brutally murdered 10 years ago, and his organs were donated after his death. In an emotional ceremony, the bride was escorted down the aisle by the man who received her father's heart.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENI STEPIEN, DAUGHTER OF A HEART DONOR: Thank you so much for coming.

ARTHUR THOMAS, HEART RECIPIENT: Are you kidding? Me?

ISTEPIEN: Yes. So, I was just so thankful that my dad could be with us here today in spirit and in a piece of his physical being, as well. That was really, really special for us.

THOMAS: What greater honor could a person have than walking the daughter of the man who has given his heart to him? I can't imagine a greater honor.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And the two families kept in touch through letters and calls over the past 10 years. But it wasn't until the eve of her wedding day that Jeni finally met the man in person. How about that?

I'm Rosemary Church. There's more news after the break with Max Foster in London. And you have yourself a great day.

[04:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)