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What's Next for Democrats After Losing Elections; Populist Ideas Spread Across the West; How Aleppo's People Survive Amidst War. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired December 1, 2016 - 13:59   ET

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


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[13:31:11] WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Democrats have been doing a lot of soul searching since Donald Trump's stunning victory in the presidential election. The House Minority Leader Pelosi did survive a challenge by Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan. So, what's next for the Democrats in Washington?

Representative Steve Israel, of New York, is joining us now to talk about that.

Congressman, thanks very much for joining us.

REP. STEVE ISRAEL, (D), NEW YORK: Thank you, Wolf.

BLITZER: I know you're retiring from Congress, you only have a few more days left. Do you want to tell us who you voted for in this leadership battle?

ISRAEL: I didn't have a vote. As an outgoing member of Congress, I did not participate in that election. There's no secrets here. I have been a top lieutenant and friend of Nancy Pelosi's. I was urging my colleagues to support her. She did a terrific job. She had a decisive win yesterday. Now we have to move on to the battles that are going to be waged in the new Trump administration.

BLITZER: What does it say that 63 House Democrats voted for Tim Ryan over Nancy Pelosi, and that the Republicans are celebrating her win?

ISRAEL: Well, it says that she won over two-thirds of the caucus, which is as decisive a win as you can get. But beyond that, Wolf, she has made the necessary changes to bring in a new generation of House Democrats. She's expanded her leadership team. She's diversified it. She listened very carefully to those younger members who said we need to make sure we are replenishing and revitalizing our caucus. She's done that.

We're moving ahead to some tough battles. We're looking at a two- pronged war on Capitol Hill. Number one, the first thing House Republicans will try and do is repeal Obamacare. And number two, they're going to try to privatize Medicare. Those are the opening salvos. We've got to be united as Democrats in order to withstand those salvos and defend Medicare and health care in the United States. BLITZER: You're the minority, a significant minority in the House of

Representatives. You're going to fail in that effort, assuming the Republicans stay united.

ISRAEL: Well, I'm not so sure. One of the real skills and talents of Pelosi has been, despite the fact we've been in the minority, every time the Republicans try to bring us over a fiscal cliff or shut down the government, it was Democrats who worked with Paul Ryan to do the right thing. Ad our priorities were always reflected in the final results of those bills. And so, I think we're looking at that again. The Republicans look united today, but they've proven that they divide very quickly. You've got a Freedom Caucus that continues to lurch their party further to the right. So, I'm not so sure they're going to be as united later as they are now. And that gives us opportunities as Democrats to make sure that our priorities, defending Medicare and making sure that people have health care, are reflected in public policy going forward.

BLITZER: Why did the Democrats do so badly this time around in the House of Representatives? Really couldn't score any major victories.

ISRAEL: You know, I think -- people are saying what kind of country could elect Donald Trump. I think that's the wrong question. The issue is, what kind of time could elect Donald Trump. And we're in a unique time, a convergence of anxieties from middle class voters, working class voters. I think it's paramount on us to figure out why those voters turned on us. There are too many voters who supported Barack Obama in 2012 and did not support Hillary Clinton in 2016. We've got to do a real assessment, real analysis, on what went wrong, and how to get those voters back.

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BLITZER: Forget about the -- Congressman, forget about the presidential election for a second. The House of Representatives, the Democrats trying to get a majority or at least decrease the number of Republican seats that the Republicans have. They had every opportunity. They failed miserably in the House of Representatives. Why?

ISRAEL: Well, I'll give you one very specific reason and that is redistricting. The Republicans were smart in 2010. They built themselves a redistricting firewall so, no matter how bad it got for then, they had too many safe seats. We made a mistake in not making investments in state and local races, winning state legislatures, winning governors. And we've got to go back to basics and fundamentals, and start doing it now. And so, build so that we can win those states back in 2020, take control of redistricting in 2022, and secure our seats into 2030. That's exactly the playbook the Republicans used between 2010 and 2012. We've got to use the same playbook.

[13:35:35] BLITZER: Who would you like to see emerge as the new chair of the Democratic National Committee?

ISRAEL: There are plenty of people in this race. I'm not endorsing any of them. To me, quite bluntly, it's less important that -- who runs the DNC than where we are going. I think we've got to have a conversation as a party on what happened with those middle-class voters in Pennsylvania and Ohio and elsewhere. We've got to make sure we're tapping into that anxiety, figuring out how to get those voters back. Who runs that operation is less important to me, quite bluntly.

BLITZER: You're giving up your seat. Are you interested in being the chair of the DNC?

ISRAEL: No. So many gray hairs on my head, Wolf, I don't have room for another one. I chaired the DCCC for four years. No more gray hair to give

BLITZER: The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

All right, Congressman, thank you very much for joining us.

ISRAEL: Thank you.

BLITZER: Good luck with the next chapter of your career.

ISRAEL: Thank you, sir.

BLITZER: Up next, the global effect of Donald Trump's win. I'll also our unflinching international correspondents how the Trump bravado is playing overseas. Stay with us.

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[13:40:00] BLITZER: A rejection of the established governments, strict immigration laws and free trade, these are all populist ideas that arguably won Donald Trump the election here in the United States. That same wave is responsible for the Brexit vote where Britain decided to leave the European Union. Now Europe is poised to make even more anti-establishment decisions. Just one example, this Sunday, Italy holds a referendum that would allow some constitutional changes. If others say no, the prime minister, he has vowed to resign.

Let's talk more about the seemingly global populist movement under way. Joining us, our senior international correspondents, Arwa Damon, Clarissa Ward and Nick Paton Walsh.

It's a rarity to have all them in New York at the same time but it's great to have all of you here.

Nick, this is amazing, what happened with Brexit, what is happening in the United States, potentially could spread to other countries in Europe. You're watching this very closely.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNTIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. Unpredictable to some degree, but if you look at the underlying causes, not actually that surprising.

Let's take Brexit, because that's an established thing. I suppose if you look at Britain, for years, we've had governments that weren't different in the policies that were offering, but they had overseen this huge change from rural communities, where all the money and all the focus the economies were in the major cities, leaving behind large communities, meaning education for many Britain's wasn't exactly where it should have been. And I think some blame that perhaps on the level of ill-informed debate around Brexit, some of the lies that were told about the idea of pushing the idea of leaving the union. And I think that's left Britain now with the moment where people had a chance to destroy the established order. They had not seen anything getting better. They were told to blame foreigners, told to blame things that maybe weren't at the heart of the problem. But still, they've made this sea change now. They're struggling to put it through into legislation and actually get Brexit to mean something. In reality, though, there are constitutional court challenges, you name it. But still, the message was clear and that's like we haven't liked what we have been seeing in our own country for the past couple of decades and we want a change, no matter how destructive it is.

BLITZER: We may see some of this develop very soon in France, for example.

CLARISSA WARD, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, so, in France, we already saw a major surprise. We had the center right party had its primary. This was supposed to be the former French President Nicolas Sarkozy's big comeback. Instead, we saw Francois Fillon win.

We're seeing now this referendum taking place in Italy that you mentioned. Prime Minister Renzi has said if it doesn't go through he will resign. That leaves the space for potentially Pepi Degreo (ph), who's the leader of the opposition, an entertainer, a populist. Does it sound familiar?

This is a narrative we're seeing playing out over and over again. We have an important election coming up in Austria. Again, it looks like someone quite far to the right, a populist, may also seize the momentum.

The European Union is facing its most serious existential crisis since its inception. And what it speaks to on a broader scale, I think, is what we saw here in the United States, as well, which is a ground swell movement, a shift in the Zeitgeist, and it is a tectonic shift in the way people feel about the establishment and their unhappiness in the way their country is moving.

BLITZER: Arwa, you're based in Istanbul but you're traveling the Middle East all the time. What was the reaction when the people you're working with heard that Donald Trump would be the next president of the United States?

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONALC CORRSEPONDENT: I think everyone was very, very surprised. People were quite shocked. The reaction is very mixed. You have some governments, such as the government in Turkey, of President Erdogan, they, to a certain degree, say they're looking forward to this because they had such a strained relationship with the Obama administration and they're hoping Trump will give them more support, when it comes to things like the war with Syria and their own internal war with the separatist group the PPK.

A lot of Syrian activists we've been talking to amongst the population in turkey and in Iraq as well, there's a lot of fear about what this is going to mean because people already feel as though the U.S. Has abandoned them, especially in Syria. When they hear Trump's rhetoric, especially towards Muslims and the Middle East, it does cause genuine fear amongst populations. They don't know what this is going to mean for them.

[13:45:16] BLITZER: What was the reaction you saw, Nick?

PATON WALSH: I think consternation, surprise, overturning all the different models. The problem about Trump he's sort of, to many people, a blank canvas. He's what you feel he may want to be. So, some, for example, consider the idea of him talking tough as maybe a little more intervention, maybe he will finally do something in Syria perhaps. We simply don't know. And at the same time, on a separate hand, he's talking about Russia, which potentially gives the Assad regime a lot of assistance in that area, too. I think it's thrown a lot of people. Possibly, the strong man like the idea of this man doing mano-to-mano deals with them maybe. But I think there's a blank canvas people are seeing a quite scary images of.

BLITZER: Clarissa, they're looking closely at the people he's surrounding himself with when it comes to international affairs.

WARD: They are, and they're trying desperately to read the tea leaves and put the puzzle together and get a broader picture, and they're not seeing much. Because, ultimately, I think the greatest fear factor with President-elect Trump is less about his policies than it is about the fact that he is such an unknown commodity. There is this erratic element, that he's clearly dispensing with traditional protocol, with traditional diplomatic means, that he's just, you know, reinventing the whole office and the way he does business and the way he engages other countries. And that's left a lot of leaders on the backfoot, sort of rethinking, how do we engage here, how do we go forward, how do we pursue this relationship.

PATON WALSH: A European security, frankly, such as Norway, seeing how they're very nervous about the idea of Trump reshaping NATO alliance, what it means for them in terms of their quite unruly neighbor, Russia.

BLITZER: He wants the NATO allies to pay more to meet that 2 percent threshold that only, what, Britain, maybe Canada, the United States, are doing. He's laid down his views on NATO.

Arwa, you have an important project that you're working on right now, because we see these pictures coming out of Aleppo, Syria, these children who are starving now. Tell our viewers here in the United States and around the world what you're working on.

DAMON: I started this nonprofit called INARA, and basically, what we do is we deal with war-wounded children or children somehow impacted by the war and they need medical attention. What we actually do is we go out and we see what's already being provided. We map out what's needed. We map out the gaps. And then we provide the children specifically with that catered medical assistance, targeting specifically what it is they're dealing with. Because in all honesty, sometimes you go out and tell the story and you can make an impact and a difference, and sometimes it's just not enough. Sometimes the stories you're telling are not making the changes, especially when it comes to Syria and Iraq and these war-torn countries, that you have to go out and do something else. You see a problem and you see a capacity to fix it. And I have to say, like, all my colleagues have been absolutely amazing in helping us get it up and going and --

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BLITZER: Tell our viewers how they can learn more about INARA.

DAMON: Our website is www.inara.org. You see it up there on your screen. You can go, you can donate, you can help spread the word. We have a Christmas campaign going on now. We're looking to expand our reach at this stage.

BLITZER: Thank you very much for all of that good work.

And thanks to all of you. Three very, very courageous journalists who help all of us appreciate what's going on in the world. We're grateful to all of you.

Welcome to the United States.

WARD: Thank you, Wolf.

DAMON: Thank you.

BLITZER: Now, get back to work.

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Syria clearly a major issue on the plate of the president-elect of the United States. Up next, the devastation of Aleppo's people, how they are surviving, at least trying to, as they wait for help and hope.

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[13:52:49] BLITZER: "Aleppo is on a descent into hell," that's how the United Nations is describing the utterly dire situation in Syria's largest city right now. They're pleading for help before it becomes, in their words, "one giant graveyard." More than 27,000 people have fled heavy fighting in eastern Aleppo in recent days, but an estimated 200,000 people are still there.

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BLITZER: There's intense fighting on the ground between the Syrian government and rebel fighters as air strikes pound the city from above. At least 40 people were killed today in shelling.

Our senior international correspondent, Fred Pleitgen, is covering the story from Beirut.

Fred, you've spent time in Syria. What's is the latest? What's happening on the ground right now?

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What's happening is the Syrian government believes it might be able to take all of eastern Aleppo away from the rebels. It's launched a massive large-scale offensive. It's been remarkable to the see over the past couple days the gains the Syrian military has been making. They took about 20 to 25 percent of an area where they haven't been able to make inroads over the past four years. They were able to take that within about 24 to 48 hours. Now, one thing going on over the past 48 hours is it's been bad weather over the Aleppo area. That curbed the strikes of the Syrian air force. But it makes the situation for the civilians on the ground even worse.

Now the Syrian government says it's still advancing, however, the rebels say they've banded together to form a unified front and they're trying to hold the Syrian government up. However, it seems as though, at this point in time, judging by the momentum, it's not sure how much longer the rebels will be able to hold up in Aleppo -- Wolf?

BLITZER: How much help is the Syrian army, Fred, getting from the Russians, for example, Iranian troops, Lebanese Hezbollah?

PLEITGEN: Well, the Russians are a huge factor in the battle for Syria, if you will. But they are carrying out bombing campaigns that relieve the Syrian air force as well. It's not clear whether or not the Russians are completely staying out of the airspace over the city of Aleppo.

[13:55:16] The other thing that is highly significant is the amount of Iranian, especially Revolutionary Guard troops on the ground, and Hezbollah forces as well. We have heard there have been reinforcements for Assad's military coming from both the Revolutionary Guards and the Iranians as well as Hezbollah over the past couple of weeks. The past couple months, you'll recall, about a month and a half ago, the rebels were able to break the siege of Aleppo, and it was after that that major reinforcements came in to bolster Bashar al Assad's forces -- Wolf?

BLITZER: Fred Pleitgen, be careful over there. Thanks for joining us.

That's it for me. I'll be back 5:00 p.m. eastern in "The Situation Room."

For our international viewers, "Amanpour" is coming up next.

For our viewers in North America, NEWSROOM with Brooke Baldwin starts right after a break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [14:00:11] ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.