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Trump Future Cabinet Contradict Boss on Policy; Nintendo Announces Release Date, Price of Switch; President Obama Changes Cuban Immigration Policy. 8:00a-9:00a ET

Aired January 13, 2017 - 08:00:00   ET

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


[08:00:20] KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, and welcome to News Stream.

A great divide: now members of Donald Trump's future cabinet contradict their boss on

key policy. We'll break down what's been said.

Also, a big change is coming for a long-standing U.S. policy towards migrants from Cuba. What President Barack Obama has ordered in his final

days in office.

And Nintendo fans rejoice: there's finally a release date and a price on its brand new console.

At this time next week, Donald Trump will be preparing to take the oath of office, to be sworn in as the next president of the United States, and he's

playing down any contradictions in policy that have come up.

At this time next week, Donald Trump will be sworn in as the next president of the United States. And he's playing down any contradictions in policy

that have come up.

Now, many of his proposed cabinet members are appearing before Senate confirmation hearings and they aren't always agreeing with their boss-to

be. Now, we're also following two other major developments, both involve the head of the FBI and one is linked to Hillary Clinton's e-mail saga.

We've got more on that shortly. But first, the U.S. president-elect has responded to critics who say some of his cabinet nominees have contradicted

him during their confirmation hearings. And Donald Trump tweeted this moments ago, quote, "all of my cabinet nominees are looking good and

doing a great job. I want them to be themselves and express their own thoughts, not mine."

CNN's Sunlen Serfaty has more on that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the first week of confirmation hearings for key members of Donald Trump's cabinet, his

nominees breaking from some of his biggest campaign promises and policies. Like the president- elect's soft stance on Russia.

TRUMP: If Putin likes Donald Trump, I'd consider that an asset.

SERFATY: Trump's nominees for defense secretary and secretary of state taking a more adversarial stance.

JAMES MATTIS, DEFENSE SECRETARY NOMINEE: I would consider the principle threats to start with Russia. We're not likely to ever be friends.

SERFATY: If confirmed, Rex Tillerson would be America's top diplomat. But he says he hasn't even spoken to Trump about Russia.

SEN. ROBERT MENENDEZ (D), NEW JERSEY: I would have thought Russia would be at the very top of that considering all the actions that have taken place.

Did that not happen?

REX TILLERSON, SECRETARY OF STATE NOMINEE: That has not occurred yet senator.

MENENDEZ: That's pretty amazing.

SERFATY: After months of doubting the conclusions of U.S. intelligence, Trump now believes Russia was the culprit.

TRUMP: I think it was Russia.

SERFATY: CIA director Mike Pompeo says Russia cyber hacking is going to need a robust response.

MIKE POMPEO, CIA DIRECTOR NOMINEE: This was an aggressive action taken by the senior leadership inside Russia. And America has an obligation. And the

CIA has a part of that obligation to protect that information.

SERFATY: Fellow appointees also breaking from Trump's call to bring back illegal interrogations tactics.

TRUMP: Would I approve waterboarding? You bet your ass I'd approve it.

SEN. JEFF SESSIONS (R-AL), ATTORNEY GENERAL NOMINEE: Absolutely improper and illegal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely not.

GEN. JOHN F. KELLY, NOMINEE FOR SECRETARY OF DHS: I don't think we should ever come close to crossing a line that is beyond what Americans would

expect to follow in terms of interrogation techniques.

SERFATY: He's promised to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border?

TRUMP: We're going to build a wall.

KELLY: A physical barrier, in and of itself, will not do the job. It has to be, really, a layered defense.

SERFATY: Trump's vow during the campaign to temporarily ban all Muslims entering the U.S.

SESSIONS: I have no belief and do not support the idea that Muslims as a religious group should be denied admission to the United States.

KELLY: I don't think it's ever appropriate to focus on something like religion as the only factor.

TILLERSON: I do not support targeting any particular group.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now, that was Sunlen Serfaty reporting there.

Now, one area of agreement between Trump and his nominee U.S. Secretary of State is the South China Sea. And it's angering Beijing.

Rex Tillerson says China should be denied access to the islands its built. And now The Global Times, a provocative Chinese tabloid, has slammed the

former oil executive. It writes this, quote, "unless Washington plans to wage a large-scale war in the South China Sea, any other approaches to

prevent Chinese access to the islands will be foolish."

The op-ed concludes if Trump's diplomatic team shakes future Sino-U.S. ties as it is doing so now, the two sides had better prepare for a military

clash.

Now, the Justice Department is looking at how the FBI handled the case of Hillary Clinton's private email server.

FBI Chief James Comey announced two weeks before the election that the bureau was reviewing a new batch of email. Some Democrats thought the

timing was suspicious and it contributed to Clinton's ultimate loss.

Now, a former Clinton campaign manager is still very angry about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[08:05:15] ROBBY MOOK, FRM. CLINTON CAMPAIGN MANAGER: The leaks that were coming left and right from the FBI were so slanted against Hillary Clinton.

Director Comey also claimed that he needed to send that letter to The Hill because he was

worried it would leak out. Well, we can't punish candidates because of the bad behavior, the improper and unprofessional behavior, of bureaucrats.

It's just unacceptable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Now, Comey, for his part, says he welcomes the investigation and wants the conclusions to be made public.

And some lawmakers seem to agree.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JASON CHAFFETZ, (R) CALIFORNIA: I think justice is what we all want to prevail. There are questions on both sides of the aisle about the

timing and who they met with and information that was put out, and so it's not just about Director Comey, this review.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: And CNN has learned that James Comey was the one who briefed Donald Trump on those unsubstantiated claims that russia may have

compromising information on him. And U.S. Vice President Joe Biden now says that he and President Obama were briefed about those claims as well.

Allegations came from a former British intelligence officer and a report funded by Trump's political opponents.

Now, meanwhile, Russia is calling for more respect from the United States. Let's bring in Jill Dougherty from Moscow for more.

And Jill, we've got to talk about the Trump dossier and kompromat and the allegations of his deep ties with Russia, what does the Kremlin make of

this, again, unverified report?

Well, they are certainly calling it fake and basically, you know, today when we spoke with Dmitry Peskov, who is the spokesperson for Putin. He

essentially said I'm not going to talk about this anymore. He said there are a lot of fake reports being published out there. This is not the first

one. It's of low quality. We don't need to pay so much attention to it, and then he added as we are doing amid

this emotional storm which is dominating America right now.

So they are taking a hands off on this, basically saying, you know, of course, it's fake, but they

don't want to wade into any of the details and I think you can imagine why. It's very complicated.

LU STOUT: And your thoughts on the future of relations between Russia and the U.S. under President Trump?

Trump, in a big turnaround earlier this week, he accepts Russia as behind the U.S. election hack. Tillerson during the hearing, that's of course his

pick to be chief diplomat, has been very critical about Russia and its taking of Crimea, so is it necessarily going to be a thaw, a warmer

relationship between these two countries?

DOUGHERTY: You know, this is the thing that I think the Russians really don't know. I mean, who does know because you're right there are a lot of

contradictions, internal contradictions between the people that the president wants at his advisers on foreign policy, members of his cabinet,

and what the president himself thinks.

Now, you just heard the tweet by Donald Trump, he's putting a good face on it, and maybe that is what he believes, that they have various opinions and

he'll listen to them. But there's a distinct possibility that he won't listen to them. And this is creating a fair amount of confusion here in

Moscow. So I was looking at one tweet by Alexei Pushkov, he's a member of parliament and does a lot of tweeting, and he said essentially the hearings

in congress showed that relations with Trump's administration will not be easy. But then he added the window of opportunity exists, and it's

important to take advantage of it.

So it's kind of like the same approach to the stories about, you know, kompromat, compromising material, basically a little bit of hands off by

the Russians. At this point, they don't want to get into the nitty-gritty of it. And they continue to hold out the possibility that with respect on

both sides, they can continue -- they will have a better relationship with Donald Trump than they had with

Mr. Obama.

LU STOUT: Yeah, and because of that sentiment, as President Obama is moving out of the White House, are there celebrations in Moscow?

DOUGHERTY: You know, I think you could probably say that is true. And they're certainly happy. I would say happy to see him go.

There's a lot of personal criticism even about President Obama, considering him weak, ineffective, terrible president for the United States, and, of

course, with the hope that Donald Trump who has said good things about Russia and Mr. Putin, that it will get better.

But it's really striking, Kristie, I would have to say that criticism of President Obama really goes

beyond what I've ever seen in criticizing U.S. presidents.

[08:10:10] LU STOUT: Jill Dougherty reporting. Many thanks indeed for your inside analysis. As always, take care, Jill.

And while Russia maintains its innocence about hacking, that issue of cyber warfare is now unavoidable. And it's being undertaken by the U.S. military

that is working to develop a new kind of soldier, one whose new front line soldier will be online.

Clare Sebastian has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAJOR NATALIE VANATTA, U.S. ARMY CYBER INSTITUTE:: If we talk about cryptography, it's been around for about 4,000 years.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's not even 9:00 a.m. and these cadets are

already being drilled in applied algebra with cryptology, the study of codes. It's just one of the disciplines in the West Point military

academy's cyber curriculum.

VANATTA: That's what we call a brute force attack.

When we look at doing crypanalysis on ciphers is we just try every possible key on the keyspace.

SEBASTIAN: Some of these men and women will join the army's less than 3- year-old cyber branch when they graduate..

VANATTA: When "a" is not invertible (ph), that's what I want.

SEBASTIAN: Major Natalie Vanatta is a cyber officer herself, currently on teaching assignment.

VANATTA: We explore the mathematical ideas and foundations that make encryption systems work today.

If I use a bunch of them and interweave them.

And that's really important, because it really helps these cadets develop their criticaland creative thinking skills when it comes to, well, what do

we do next?

SEBASTIAN: Steeped in tradition dating back centuries, West Point is now at the forefront of developing the army's newest and most technologically

advanced career field: combating the growing threat in cyberspace.

COL. ANDREW HALL, DIR. U.S. ARMY CYBER INSTITUTE: We need soldiers that are able to incorporate the fighting in the domain of cyber into

everything that we do in the army, that's well beyond just the setting up of the networks or the intelligence that's being collected over networks to

actually learn how to maneuver in cyberspace and to be a war-fighting element.

SEBASTIAN: Colonel Andrew Hall leads the army's cyber institute at West Point, which not only runs the education program here, but also operates as

an army think tank on cyber warfare issues.

I suppose the danger is that you are teaching something that is maybe evolving faster than you can teach it.

HALL: We're trying to teach them and educate them so they can solve problems. We're not sure yet what they are going to have to solve.

SEBASTIAN: For cadets like 22-year-old Diana Contreras, one of 15 cyber officers to be commissioned at West Point this year, it's a big

responsibility.

DIANA CONTREAS, CADET: It's something that is so vital for our country as a whole. We can't function, we can't really survive as a nation without

having backup cyber support, offense, defense.

SEBASTIAN: What does it mean, the insignia?

CONTREAS: So, the two lightning bolts represent the lightning gods who would send communications from above, and the sword represents readiness

and combat. So, communications and readiness and combat.

SEBASTIAN: Old principles for a new and unpredictable kind of warfare.

Clare Sebastian, CNN, West Point, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: You're watching News Stream. And still to come, a decades-ole policy affecting Cubans trying to get to the U.S. has ended. We'll tell

you what the changes mean for Cuban migrants.

And not a dry eye in the White House. Barack Obama's surprise honor for Joe Biden recognizing not just the vice president, but a loyal friend.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:15:40] LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, welcome back. You're watching News Stream.

Now, U.S. Republicans with pressing forward with plans to dismantle Obamacare. A vote in the House today will be the next step after Senate

Republicans had their way on Thursday.

Now, the House Speaker Paul Ryan told the CNN Town Hall that the law needs to be repealed and replaced quickly.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. PAUL RYAN, (R) WISCONSIN: Because we see this law collapsing even faster this year, because we see more insurance companies pulling out,

people with little or no choices and another round of double-digit premium increases, we really feel we need to step in and provide better choices and

better options as fast as possible so we're going to move on this as quickly as we can.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First 100 days?

RYAN: Yeah, oh, yeah -- definitely is a plan within the first 100 days to get moving on this legislation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: The Affordable Care Act provides health coverage to some 20 million Americans, and they include Jeff Jeans, who describes himself as a

lifelong Republican and small business owner. At a CNN town hall he told Speaker Ryan that Obamacare literally saved his life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF JEANS, CANCER PATIENT: We offered three times the cost of my treatment which was rejected. They required an insurance card. Thanks to

the Affordable Care Act I'm standing here today alive. Being both a small business person and someone with preexisting conditions.

RYAN: Right.

JEANS: I rely on the Affordable Care Act to be able to purchase my own insurance. Why would you repeal the Affordable Care Act without a

replacement?

RYAN: Oh, we -- we wouldn't do that. We want to replace it with something better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Now, a quick reminder of what the Affordable Care Act is all about, and why it's so controversial. It has been one of these most

contentious and partisan issues in Washington since it became law in 2010. It has seen millions of Americans obtain health coverage and prevents

insurance companies from denying coverage to those with preexisting conditions. It requires everyone to have coverage or pay a fine.

Young adults can stay on a parents' plan until age 26, but critics say that Obamacare has done

nothing to stop the rising cost of health care in the U.S.

Now, Republicans in congress are slowly getting rid of the Obama administration's flagship policy, but on Thursday Mr. Obama was the one

ending a decades old policy, this one on Cuba.

The Cuban Adjustment Act, it's otherwise known as the wet foot, dry foot policy, is over. Now, the act allowed Cubans who managed to get on home

soil and the U.S. to become permanent residents.

Now, the White House says the change won't affect migrants who are already all in the U.S.

Now Patrick Oppmann is in Havana with more on the story. And Patrick, what has been the general reaction across Cuba to this big policy turnaround?

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the Cuban government who has long criticized this law saying that it encouraged

Cubans to make the illegal entry into the United States celebrated the repeal of it yesterday, President Obama ending the wet foot, dry foot

policy, but for many Cubans who dreamed of going to the United States and for some who came so close to making it, it's nothing short of

heartbreaking.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The 24 Cubans who arrived by a makeshift boat to a lighthouse nearly seven miles from the

coast of Florida in 2016 thought they had made it.

Cubans who reach the U.S. got to stay under a law known as wet foot, dry foot. After the U.S. and Cuba restored diplomatic relations in 2015 a

surge of Cubans, fearing a change in the law, left island.

"We thought we were on land. They say if it belongs to the United States it must be part of

the United States," says Leland Concepcion (ph), one of the Cubans to reach the lighthouse.

But instead of bringing them to the U.S., the coast guard took the Cubans to a cutter where they waited and waited for 42 days. The issue was

whether the lighthouse was really a dry land.

Aboard the cutter, the four Cubans we talked to said they slept on the ship's deck, the U.S. just out of reach on the horizon.

"For asking for water they (inaudible) my arms and a foot behind me for a whole day, he says. "That isn't humane. I don't think those people were

humane."

Growing increasingly desperate, the Cubans asked the coast guard for scores from recent football matches, but what they really wanted was paper to

write about their alleged mistreatment, then they put the paper in a water bottle with an inflated plastic glove tied to the top so the message in the

bottle would float.

The message, they said, was their last chance to let the world know about their plight.

"We waited for the boat to get close to the coast and we threw it," he says. "It was our last resort."

We are in hell, the letter reads. Please, whoever finds this letter, make this paper arrive to a

lawyer of the case, or someone who can help us, please.

A fisherman in Florida found the lighthouse Cuban's message in the bottle and did just that.

The coast guard said in a statement, the migrants were well-treated, but promised to investigate their allegations of abuse.

A U.S. federal court judge hearing their case ruled the lighthouse Cubans did not reach dry land, since even at low tide, the lighthouse stands in

the water.

But 20 of the migrants were sent to the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo, Cuba, while their case continues to be investigated.

The remaining four Cubans told us they were overwhelmed by the ordeal and chose to return here to Porte Padre, their hometown in Cuba, but one of the

men, Walter Bareiro (ph) says he doesn't plan on staying long in Cuba.

"If the opportunity comes up, I would probably do it again, he says. Every other way of leaving here is too difficult."

Contacted by CNN, members of the lighthouse Cubans said they would still try to reach the

U.S. no matter the law, they said. They do not see a future in Cuba.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

OPPMANN: And Kristie, the White House says this change in law takes immediate effect. They didn't want to see a last-minute surge in

immigration. Already, we're hearing reports of Cubans on the U.S.-Mexican border that are being turned away.

LU STOUT: Yeah, as you reported, I mean, this policy turnaround a nightmare for those

four individuals whose fate have also been overturned. And Patrick, before you go, this decision is likely to be President Obama's last move after

years of historic dealings with Cuba.

How will the U.S. president be remembered there?

OPPMANN: There's not been any president that has been so engaged. Of course, the first president since the Cuban revolution to visit Cuban and

interact with Cubans. So, I think most Cubans here will remember him very positively.

But there's a lot of worry now, Kristie, with this change in law. People are afraid that the most

desperate Cubans, Cubans who are eager to leave this country because of its failing economy, will now

stay here and that could lead to social unrest and people perhaps acting out against the government. So a lot of concern today as Cubans, after

many, many years lose their privilege status.

LU STOUT: Yeah. A big change in U.S. policy for Cuban migrants. Patrick Oppmann joining us live from Havana. Thank you.

Now, everything -- not everything that President Obama is doing in his final few days in office is as politically significant as that decision.

He's also just done something of huge personal importance: surprising his friend, Vice President Joe Biden, with America's highest civilian honor.

Here's Michelle Kosinski.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHELLE KOSINSKI, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With humor and a crowd gathered in the State dining room.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This also gives the Internet one last chance to...

(LAUGHTER)

OBAMA: Talk about our bromance.

KOSINSKI: This thank you and good-bye was a surprise in itself.

OBAMA: It is as Joe once said a big deal. To know Joe Biden is to know love without pretense, service without self-regard, and to live life fully.

KOSINSKI: And then the real surprise. The vice president taken completely off guard as a member of the military was called forward.

OBAMA: For the final time as president, I am pleased to award our nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

KOSINSKI: And taking it a step further, awarding it with distinction. Only ever bestowed upon Pope John Paul II, Ronald Reagan and Colin Powell. Now

to Joe Biden for nearly a half century of public service, for fighting for the middle class, a fair judiciary and against crime, violence against

women and cancer.

(On camera): White House sources say President Obama planned this himself. He came up with the idea. He wanted it to be a surprise. And so he worked

with a very small group of staffers to make it happen.

(Voice-over): And Biden, true to character, made his acceptance all about those he says he has leaned on. Those he loves most. His family and the

president.

JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I just hope that the asterisk in history that is attached to my name when they talk about this

presidency is that I can say I was part of -- part of the journey of a remarkable man who did remarkable things for this country.

KOSINSKI: Out of this candid emotion and all the memories one last Biden joke.

BIDEN: President looked at me and said, you know, Joe, you know what surprised me? How we have become such good friends.

(LAUGHTER)

[08:25:06] BIDEN: And I said surprised you? Mr. President, you know as long as there's breath in me I'll be there for you and my whole family will be,

and I know, I know it is reciprocal. I -- and I wanted to thank you all so very, very, very much. All of you.

KOSINSKI: Michelle Kosinski, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now the United States is send is its most expensive weapon ever, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to Japan. Now, 16 of these are headed for

Marine Corps station on the island of Honshu. The planes have vertical takeoff and landing capability. And allowing them to operate from assault

ships. The defense ministry says the deployment is part of the Obama administration's pivot to Asia.

Now meanwhile, Japan has reaffirmed ties with The Philippines during a visit by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. He is the first head of government to

go to the Phillipines under President Rodrigo Duterte. And this is the pair taking part in a ceremony in Mr. Duterte's hometown.

During the trip, the leaders reiterated their commitment to promote peace in the region.

Now, this is News Stream. Still to come on the program, from Twitter diplomacy to a

comparison with Elon Musk, Donald Trump's billionaire tech backer talks about his views of the incoming president.

And it is a late Christmas for Nintendo fans. We got fresh game titles, all beloved characters, it's all coming with a brand new console in just a

couple of weeks. We will have more on Nintendo's big Switch event.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[08:30:37] LU STOUT: Now, you know the saying, a picture tells 1,000 words and this image is no exception. Now, the woman you see here is far right

French politician Marie Le Pen, but it is where the leader of the National Front was sitting on Thursday that is causing a stir.

Le Pen is in Trump Tower, and Donald Trump's team says that they didn't meet with Le Pen and neither did the president-elect. Le Pen has publicly

welcomed Trump's election and is one of the leading candidates for the French presidency this year. And this

sighting happened as France' left-wing candidates held their first debate.

Jim Bittermann is following all of this from Paris. He joins us now. Jim, so Le Pen was spotted at Trump Tower. No word on whether she actually met

with Donald Trump or his team, so what are we supposed to take away from this?

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORREPSONDENT: Well, in fact, Le Pen's people say that she did not meet with Donald Trump, and Donald Trump people

say the same thing. So there apparently was not a meeting, but there was was a meeting between Le Pen and somebody who lives three floors below

Donald Trump, and that is this Italian businessman who has been kind of an intermediary between populist movements in Europe and the Trump campaign in

the United States. And it's very possible that they did talk about a potential meeting with Trump down the line.

It's also very possible that they were talking about fund-raising, because Le Pen has made no bones about the fact that she needs more money for her

election campaign and that she's not hesitant to consult with banks in the United States, or she said in Europe or even in Russia if necessary to find

the money.

One of the things, though, is that she and Donald Trump see eye to eye on a lot of different issues. Here's what she told my Melissa Bell, colleague,

here in Paris just a few weeks ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARINE LE PEN, NATIONAL FRONT LEADER (through translator): His willingness to

break with the idea that USA has to police the world and the dramatic consequences this brings about in terms of migration flows, which we are

suffering from. Also, his vision of an economy that will be more protectionist and his stance against the Transatlantic free trade

agreement, which I'm also opposed to.

He is the anti-system candidate. The entire system was against him and wanted Hillary Clinton. This victory shows that the people are taking

their future back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BITTERMANN: So, in fact a lot of convergence of views there, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, absolutely.

Now on the other side of the French political spectrum, we know that left wing candidates, they had their first debate on Thursday. How did that go?

Which candidate performed the strongest?

BITTERMANN: Well, there's little contradiction in the polls on that. There were some instant polls right after last night's televised debates.

It's the first of four debates that are going to take place. And there are seven candidates, five of whom are known to the French voters, because they

have served in -- in various capacities in French governments, but perhaps the one who did the best, according to most of the polls is Manuel Valls,

who is the former prime minister here, and he came in the strongest on a number of different issues.

But people said in general that the debate last night was kind of lame, basically, that the candidates were too well behaved and there were no

punchups or anything or kind of contradictions that were really very strong. They will have another chance on Sunday night to correct that.

It should be said, too, that the Socialist candidate, the best Socialist candidate in the national polling, this would be Manuel Valls, in the

national polling when he's pitted against the other candidates that are running nationally, only comes in at fifth place. So the Socialists really

have a lot of work to do here between now and the elections three and a half months from now, mainly because of the five years of President

Hollande -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: All right. And we'll see if there's going to be fireworks at the next debate on

Sunday. Jim Bittermann reporting, thank you.

The U.S. president-elect has the firm support of a powerful support in the tech industry, billionaire investor Peter Thiel joined the transition team

just days after the election, and recently he opened up to The New York Times about his thoughts on the incoming president.

Now, here are a couple of standout quotes from the piece. Now, when asked if Trump is similar

to the founder of SpaceX and Tesla Elon Musk, Thiel said this, quote, they are similar, actually. They are both grandmaster level salespeople. And

these are very much larger than life figures."

Now, next he talked about Donald Trump's use of Twitter, so-called Twitter diplomacy and whether he worries an intemperate tweet could spark a war

with North Korea. Now, on that matter, Thiel said this, quote, "a Twitter war is not a real war."

Now, turning from politics to a scandal engulfing one of the world's largest car companies. Fiat Chrysler is the latest maker to be accused of

cheating on emissions tests. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says the company used hidden software that allowed diesel emissions to exceed

legal levels. More than 100,000 vehicles made between 2014 and 2016 are in question. Fiat Chrysler says it will fight those allegations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[08:35:33] SERGIO MARCHIONNE, CEO, FIAT CHRYSLER: We have had discussions now

with the EPA on this matter since September of 2015, so it's been more than a year and a half. We have made tons of material available to them. We

continue to discuss the issue, and were in the process now of presenting a more complete set of control strategies that will remedy all of their

concerns. So the issue could have been settled and should have been settled I think in my view in -- in a more efficient way and a more

business like manner as opposed to elevating this to suggestions that we're trying to defraud anybody.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Now, just this week Volkswagen paid $4.3 billion to settle charges of cheating on

emissions tests with more than half a million diesel cars in the U.S.

Now, if you are a Nintendo fan, remember to mark your calendar. The Nintendo Switch is going on around the world on March 3 for $300. It is

the company's latest handheld system that can turn into a home console.

And fans got a sneak peek at the incredible lineup of games designed for it on Friday. The beloved Mario and Zelda franchises are getting brand new

entries, and there are also fresh titles that showed off the console's hardware.

The reveal got fans all over the world hyped up, but Rob Fahey, from Gameindustry.biz told us what Nintendo needs to do to make sure the Switch

is a success.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROB FAHEY, GAMEINDUSTRY.BOZ: Probably the strongest lineup that Nintendo has had for a console launch really since I can remember. The fact is well

that they have focused an awful lot on the controllers and the capabilities of the controllers really harks back to the Wii and what they did right

with the Wii.

I thought that, again, that they were going to talk more about the screen and the portability of it, but that actually seems now just to be a thing

that the console does rather than its primary selling point and that's probably a very good move on their part. I think the problem that they

have is that their hardare is generally not seen as being as premium as something that Sony or a Microsoft might release, and they are going to be

trying to sell it for around the same price point.

It won't hurt their launch. Their launch is going go out to a crowd of people who are very dedicated to Nintendo and who would buy this regardless

of price, but I think that they might have to try to reduce that price point a little bit, maybe even by the end of this year, but certainly

coming into next year.

LU STOUT: Got you. So the controller is a key feature but selling point, the pricetag could be a little bit too high, that was according to Rob

Fahey from Gameindustry.biz.

You're watching News Stream right here on CNN. And straight ahead, forgiveness for the most

unspeakable of crimes: a holocaust survivor's brave an selfless act. We reflect on her story as part of CNN's new series called "My Hero."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:40:00] LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Now, this week CNN is kicking off a new series, it's called "My Hero" where our anchors and

correspondents look back on those they have met who have left lasting impressions.

Up first, up first is our Max Foster who reflects on a touching interview he did with a survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp. It's one that

he considers his most memorable.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAX FOSTER, CNN INTERNAITONAL CORRESPONDENT: There was an extraordinary interview that I did earlier in the year which absolutely sticks in my mind

and in everyone's mind who was there, I think, and that was with someone called Eva Kohr.

Now, she was at the Auschwitz concentration camp.

You were only saved because you're a twin, right? That's the only reason you're here.

EVA KOHR, HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR: That correct, because they noticed that Miriam and I looked alike.

FOSTER: There's this a remarkable point in her story where she 50 years later goes back to Auschwitz, which must have been very hard in itself and

she's standing next to a Nazi doctor. And she asked him to document everything that he knew about the gas chamber. So

this for the first time was firsthand evidence what have happened in there and she used it against the holocaust deniers.

But then she wanted to thank him for that because that was a very big thing for him to do.

KOHR: Hereby give amnesty.

FOSTER: And she decided to write him a letter and took her four years to write, because it was this forgiveness letter.

KOHR: I ultimately came up with a gift of forgiving him. That was my gift to him, but it became a gift to me, too.

I was finally free what of happened in Auschwitz emotionally. I was in charge of my own feelings.

FOSTER: The fact that she was so willing to open up and talk about something so horrific is one thing, but then to do it for a reason, which

isn't just to tell her story. It's absolutely not a selfish process. And it can't be easy for her doing what she's doing, but she's doing it to give

her something back to the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Wow. The gift of forgiveness after such an unspeakable crime. What an amazing woman there.

Now, happening right now, high above the Earth, we've got two astronauts that are performing a spacewalk outside the International Space Station to

upgrade its power system. NASA says this space walk is scheduled to last about six-and-a-half hours. And what they are doing is installing adapter

plates and hooking up the remaining three of six new lithium ion batteries. Now, these batteries store electrical energy generated by the station's

solar panels.

Now, back here on Earth but inspired by a galaxy far, far away scientists are naming a new

species of primate after a Star Wars character.

The Skywalker Hulak Gibbon was discovered in China nine years ago but researchers only confirmed it as a new species recently. It is endangered

and facing extinction with fewer than 200 of them in the wild. And the ape is named after Star Wars hero Luke Skywalker, because of the way the

gibbons move through the treetops.

And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout. World Sport with Amanda Davies is next.

END