McMaster Says Term Radical Islamic Terrorism Is "Unhelpful"; Oscar-Nominated Film Follows Family Fleeing Syria.
HOWELL: A warm welcome back to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. It is good to have you with us. I'm George Howell with the headlines we're following for you this hour. Indonesian officials have spoken with a suspect in the purported VX nerve agent attack that killed Kim Jong-nam. She told them she was asked by people who looked Japanese or Korean to apply it on Kim inside the airport in Kuala Lumpur. Officials say she thought the substance was "a kind of oil, like baby oil." We'll continue to follow that story. In Syria, suicide attacks in the regime held city of Homs have killed at least 32 people including a military intelligence official. This is all according to Syrian state media. Reports say the bombers targeted two security centers, a Syria umbrella organization that includes the former Nusra Front, has claimed responsibility. Iraqi forces are closing in on a key part of Western Mosul, this as they continue to fight to take that city from ISIS. Dozens of militants have been killed, but others have escaped Western Mosul through tunnels. Iraqi fighter jets also bomb ISIS targets in both Iraq and Syria for the first time Friday. The White House says it did nothing wrong in asking the FBI to publicly knock down reports of contacts between Russians and the Trump campaign back in 2016. Senior Trump officials say the FBI broached the subject first, but when the White House followed up with FBI Director James Comey, he declined to comment on an ongoing investigation. The president of the United States Donald Trump was once an unlikely champion for American conservatives, but now he is a leader of that movement as he demonstrated at a major conference on Friday. Our Sarah Murray has this recap for us.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): The president leveraging his moment in front of a friendly audience to further escalate his attacks against his favorite foe.</s>TRUMP: I want you all to know that we are fighting the fake news. It's fake. Phony. Fake. A few days ago, I called the fake news the enemy of the people. And they are. They are the enemy of the people.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): After an extended opening screed against the media -</s>TRUMP: It doesn't represent the people, it never will represent the people, and we're going to do something about it.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): Donald Trump touted his presidential achievements so far.</s>TRUMP: Basically, all I've done is keep my promise.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): And defended his administration's plans to crack down on undocumented immigrants living in the</s>US. TRUMP: As we speak today, immigration officers are finding the gang members, the drug dealers and the criminal aliens and throwing them the hell out of our country.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): As Trump ticks through his top agenda items, he revived his campaign rallying cry and vowed to build a wall along the southern border.</s>TRUMP: We're building the wall. We're building the wall. In fact, it's going to start soon.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): US Customs and Border Protection announced it will soon ask for design proposals for prototype wall structures near the US-Mexico border. And after the administration's first effort to temporarily ban immigration from some Muslim-majority countries was blocked by the court, today, Trump previewed a new executive order.</s>TRUMP: We are going to keep radical Islamic terrorists the hell out of our country. We will not be deterred from this course. And in a matter of days, we will be taking brand-new action to protect our people and keep America safe.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): All of this, as Trump offered clues about his first presidential budget. The president has insisted he would cut spending. But, today, he pointed to a dramatic increase in military spending.</s>TRUMP: We're also putting in a massive budget request for our beloved military. It will be one of the greatest military buildups in American history.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): And he vowed yet again to repeal and replace Obamacare, dismissing the outcry members of Congress have seen back home in their districts.</s>TRUMP: The people that you're watching, they are not you. They are largely, many of them, are the side that lost. You know, they lost the election. It's like how many elections do we have to have. They lost the election. But I always say, Obamacare doesn't work.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): For Trump, the event today was something of a victory lap. While his 2011 speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference previewed his political ambitions, Trump snubbed the event last year. And what a difference a year makes.</s>TRUMP: You know, the dishonest media, they'll say he didn't get a standing ovation.</s>HOWELL: The president of the United States on stage at the CPAC conference. That was our White House correspondent Sarah Murray reporting for us. Mr. Trump drew applause from the Conservative Political Action Conference, but a prominent journalist says the president has some Republicans concerned. Here's what Carl Bernstein told CNN's Anderson Cooper.</s>ANDERSON COOPER, HOST, ANDERSON COOPER 360: Does it surprise you the extent to which - how much the Republican Party has embraced the sort of economic nationalism?</s>CARL BERNSTEIN, JOURNALIST AND AUTHOR: Well, I think two things are happening. The base of his victory have embraced it and we're watching at CPAC a narcissistic demagogue even going farther with his message of anger and with his message of exclusion. While on Capitol Hill, what is happening, he is scaring the hell out of a lot of movement conservatives and a lot of senators and congressmen who worry about his stability and are well aware that he is presenting all of this in a fact-free universe. There's great concern on Capitol Hill. I'm sure that others on this broadcast can attest to that. And so, we're heading in two different directions, where there's some real skepticism in his own party in Washington about his approach and whether he really is a president who knows what he's doing, while at the same time, he's energizing those who brought him to the dance.</s>HOWELL: Carl Bernstein there speaking to our Anderson Cooper. Federal authorities are investigating a possible hate crime in the United States in the State of Kansas after an Indian man was killed. The man's widow says that she was worried about violence against foreigners, but her husband said everything would be OK. Mourners held a vigil Friday night for the 32-year-old. He died Wednesday after being shot while having an after-work beer with a friend who was wounded himself in that shooting. The victim's widow spoke Friday about her husband.</s>SUNAYANA DUMALA, WIDOW OF SRINIVAS KUCHIBHOTLA: His passion was aviation. He wanted to succeed so much in this industry and do so much for this country. And he for sure - he did not - I'm sorry. He did not deserve a death like this.</s>HOWELL: Authorities later arrested this man, 50-year-old - 51-year- old. Witnesses told local media that he shouted get out of my country before returning to the bar and opening fire. Police have not corroborated that information at this point. Still ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM1, inside a groundbreaking surgery, how 56 hours changed this man's life forever. Plus, Hollywood is getting ready for Oscars. A little later, we'll look at who could win that coveted statue and who might go home empty handed. Stay with us.