2nd 6:00 in the east, we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world, we have "new day." two stories breaking on our watch. masked gunmen storming a university in kenya. explosions and heavy gunfire breaking out, they've been shooting students in this early morning attack. a hostage situation is unfolding at garissa university college. a local media report keeps raising the number of victims. right now over a dozen dead. several dozen injured. the terror group al shabab claiming responsibility. our other top story in yemen. al qaeda militants storming a prison freeing hundreds of inmates. including a senior al qaeda inmate held for years. we have these stories covered the way only cnn can. let's begin with cnn's sony meethu, joining us from nairobi. good morning.

>> what we have right now, the situation is still unfolding. we are yet to confirm the number of casualties as you rightly reported. however, "reuters" talking to the police claim that at least 14 people have been killed. and according to the garissa hospital they have still about 40 people who are in hospital. and are saying they will fly some of the critically injured to be treated here in nairobi. so we're still waiting to see how the situation is. according to one of my friends on the ground they say on and off you'll hear some gunfire, and see smoke coming out. explosions have been heard as well. the quiet moments are the scary moments for them. those on the ground they say they're aware there are still some students still some

victims in there and they have no idea what the situation is the police are being very guarded with the information they're given. we're heavily relying on red cross, and a few people who can go close to the situation. the area is still cordoned off and according to the police they have the gunmen cornered in one dormitory and the gunmen claim they have hostages there. we're waiting to see more. back to you. >> that's the concern. please keep monitoring the hostage situation. the group involved al shabab are no stranger to bloody terror attacks. what's driving them? and what's the prospect of stopping them? barbara starr joins us live from the pentagon with that part of the story. >> the situation unfolding, just about 90 miles from the border with somalia. that's most interesting. because al shabab uses somalia as its stronghold. they have in the past year staged a number of attacks on the border and into kenya. you can keep track of some of them these cross-border attacks we've seen.

and back in 2013 that attack against nairobi's westgate mall. this is a group very expert at doing that. the u.s. had thought al shabab was somewhat back on its heels, that they had given up their efforts to establish an islamist state in somalia. they've become somewhat of a hit-and-run terrorist group. but still very effective at doing this. why is the u.s. so concerned about al shabab? there's always concern, they have shown an ability to recruit somali americans, to bring them to east africa, to somalia to join up and engage in the fight with them. there's considerable concern they can inspire lone wolf attacks. you may remember in february there was a video purported to be from al shabab claiming that they would stage attacks against american and european shopping malls. so they still pose quite a threat. and it's worth remembering that in the past several months the

u.s. has staged several raids inside somalia. to kill al shabab leaders. today they are showing their strength again. alisyn? >> barbara, thanks so much. to our other breaking news al qaeda-linked militants storming a prison in southeastern yemen, freeing hundreds of inmates with terror ties including a senior al qaeda leader. this was part of a larger assault on a port city targeting government and other key buildings. cnn's ian lee has breaking details for us from cairo. what do we know ian. >> this attack took place in the early morning hours in the port city of mukala al qaeda militants seizing control of government buildings, which include the central bank a radio station, and also the prison. the one we're watching we're told 270 inmates were freed in the attack. a third of -- >> the shot went down. they're going to have a little communications issue. we'll get back to it as soon as

we can. again, we have kenya developing with the hostage situation. and the situation in yemen where an al qaeda group broke into a prison released hundreds of prisoners, including a leader. senior fellow at the foundation of the defense of democracies, daveed gartenstein-ross and cnn global affairs analyst and retired delta force commander, lieutenant colonel james reese. al shabab the young branch recruiting young people we know them from the horrible mall attack in 2013 in nairobi. what do you think is behind what's going on here? >> since the mall attack they've actually significantly extended their operations into kenya. we think of them as a somalia-based organization which is precisely where they came from. they have a local branch in kenya called al hizra and have been carrying out attacks there. last year they carried out an awful series of massacres on the

kenyan coast which had a significant effect on the tourist industry. basically like the mall attack they were urban warfare style attacks they just slaughtered people. this falls in line and is very much designed to maximize media exposure and thus show a, there aren't safe targets, when we think of things that are safe we think of university campuses and b, to show they're still very vibrant in the horn of africa and particularly within kenya. >> well maximize the energy directed towards stopping them. they did this 5:30 a.m. local time. is this about being caught off-guard? or are the security forces there not up to the task of protecting the universities? >> it falls in line with the difficulty of protecting soft targets in a country that's basically free and open. just like in the united states you have any given number of targets in kenya that can be attacked. you have very large network of support. for shabab. i mean don't want to overstate the degree of support that they have. but they do have a numb of

operatives and sympathizers on the ground and it's a country just like the united states just like so many countries, in which you don't have armed guards all over the place. in which you have multiple targets, cafes or churches or universities which could possibly be struck. thus it's difficult to say it's simply a failure or the guards or the security forces being caught off-guard. rather this is the kind of thing that often does happen. >> so colonel, from the price of having a free and open society to having a society that's in free for all and freefall -- yemen. now you have al qaeda being able to just break into a prison let out presumably many of their own, the prisoners who were there and one of their leaders, what's the dynamic? >> well chris, this is a dynamic and bold move and a smart move by al qaeda. as we all know right now, yemen has fallen into chaos. the saudis are conducting air strikes to try to keep the houthis at bay. if you think about where this prison break struck it was very close to the province where u.s.

navy s.e.a.l.s try to conduct the hostage rescue of the u.s.-held and other western hostage that were unfortunately killed. we all know yemen, great place for al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. one of the most dangerous al qaeda, especially to the u.s. and the west. right now with the chaos, it's a smart move by al qaeda to grab some of the leaders and folks in prison there. i think this will happen in other places within yemen. >> let's put up the picture of the leader that was supposedly taken out of there. any understanding or intelligence of why they wanted this guy so much? why he's relevant colonel? >> well one of the things in yemen, al qaeda in the arabian peninsula is because of their bomb-making ability. a lot of these guys have great aspects, they've been trained in bomb-making. and that element of al qaeda has used their bomb-making materials and bomb-making intelligence to

try to do attacks against the west as we know. they try to get folks into dubai to put them on a western aircraft. that's one of the reasons they try to bring their leadership back in because of their bomb-making ability. >> kenya we'll monitor as an ongoing situation and a frontal assault on that university. daveed, let me finish about yemen. a very different dynamic there. the colonel has briefed us in the past saying this could potentially become a terrorist devil's playground. they're free to combine and plan against the rest of the world. they're breaking into a prison at what line is it past the point of no return there? >> yemen is past the point of no return right now. you have obviously houthi advances they're backed by iran which lends this very dangerous sectarian element to what's going on in yemen. they were beset by environmental concerns running out of oil, running out of water. and al qaeda in the arabian

peninsula. jail breaks helped this organization. in 2013 they orchestrated multiple jail breaks across multiple countries for the al qaeda organization as a whole. and at the beginning of the arab spring you had prisoners released, who broke out of prisons in egypt, libya, tunisia. this gave rise to a more vibrant. militant organization in north africa. so prisoner releases and releases from jails like this are things we need to watch. they can put a very considerable pool of talent back on the streets. >> watching them is hard enough stopping them seems to be something that nobody has a solution to so far. thank you very much for helping us with these fluid situations. daveed appreciate it. colonel, we'll check back with you later in the show. nuclear talks with iran extending into double overtime. iran's foreign minister saying significant progress has been made in another round of all-night discussions, secretary of state john kerry remains in switzerland after the talks were extended again.

let's get the latest from cnn global affairs correspondent elise labott live in switzerland. >> michaela they worked all night, the negotiators, they took some sleep. they had a shower. and you see this tweet from acting spokesperson marie harf john kerry and negotiating team back at work this morning. now foreign minister zarif seemed to be a little bit less optimistic last night. trying to show there was a little division between the parties here. take a listen to what he had to say to reporters last night. >> the hope that the political will by all parties exists in order to move forward, there are obviously problems that have prevented us from reaching the first stage of finding the solution. >> but this morning he was a little bit more upbeat. saying things are inching

forward. that he hoped that there could be some kind of conclusion today. you know they've gone two days well into the deadline. actually the elephant in the room really congress here. that there is not a deal congress threatening to impose sanctions. so the pressure really on secretary of state john kerry to come home with something. i think it will be something well short of what the u.s. was looking for. but certainly they're looking for some kind of political understanding of what's been agreed to here at the talks. alisyn? >> it would be terrible to come home completely empty-handed after all of this time spent. elise, thanks so much. a big update on the controversial religious freedom laws. indiana lawmakers announcing they will make changes to their state's new law, amid the backlash from gay rights groups and corporate america. a vote op the new language could come today. in arkansas governor asa hutchinson reverseing course ordering his assembly to recall

their religious bill. what a turn-around miguel marquez. >> more of a back-flip. the republicans lawmakers say they have the fix, at 9:00 they'll talk about it in a press conference. and at 9:30 eastern they'll go into debate with it and they'll probably be done with this by the end of the day. fair to say they think that no one is going to be happy in indiana with what they come up with. the "indianapolis star" saying there's language in the new fix that would recognize same-sex couples. that will be a concern for religious businesses here. that were hoping that they could use the law in order not to provide services or carry out services for same-sex weddings. all of this being felt heavily across the country in arkansas and in particular. talk about back flip. asa hutchinson, the governor said that he would sign it if they got it to his desk. they got it to his desk and he said no not going to sign it take it back lawmakers and get me something closer to the

federal law. the governor was lobbied not to sign it by his own son. chris? >> miguel thank you, we'll be checking in about that all morning long. more breaking news as well 54 people are reportedly dead after russian fishing trawler sank in the western pacific in russia's far east. officials say so far, 63 people have been rescued, but there's still ongoing efforts to locate 15 other, it's not known what caused the vessel to sink. reports say it just wept under, took less than 15 minutes. big move by california's governor governor jerry brown imposing the state's first ever mandatory water restrictions ordering cities and towns to cut water significantly by 25% to deal with a crippling four-year drought in the state. officials say 11 trillion gallons of water are needed to rescue california from its current emergency. 11 teachers convicted of racketeering in connection with a cheating scandal rocking atlanta's public school system. according to prosecutors some

students were given correct answers to state-wide skills tests, investigators say educators even held cheating parties, where incorrect answers were erased and corrected. the cheating may date back to early 2001 when scores on statewide skills tests began to turn around. my goodness. that really defeats the purpose of the standardized testing. it's supposed to gauge where the schools are. and see which schools are troubled and to infuse more resources into those. >> chris and i are children of educators this is one of those head-shakers. >> let me may i say, so am i? the daughter of two public school teachers yes. and this is -- astounding. >> well this is the tension that's going on. this is an inexcusable. the idea of well hey, do these tests, let us know how our kids are doing? punishing teachers? is it really about the kids? goes back and forth. >> the kids are the ones we are failing here. >> cheating parties? dumb.

all right so another situation for you to watch this morning. the battle to define who we are as people in america. it is continuing in two states struggling to rework religious freedom legislation, will indiana and arkansas's revisions be enough to silence claims? these laws give businesses the right to discriminate against gays. and a bombshell from guru bikram choudhury, six women say he raped or sexually assaulted him. now he's making some stunning claims. >> you're saying that students of yours have committed suicide? >> yes. we use natural gas throughout the airport - for heating the entire terminal generating electricity on-site and fueling hundreds of vehicles. we're very focused on reducing our environmental impact. and natural gas is a big part of that commitment.

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religious freedom laws being revised in two states this morning. in indiana lawmakers set to announce changes to that state's controversial new law. and in arkansas governor asa hutchinson back-pedaling on his pledge to sign their measure into law. what happened? let's turn to the former president of the human rights campaign and tim swearins the opinion editor for the "indianapolis star."

tim, you were part of the editorial team that published this front-page ad. let pea put it up. it says "fix this now." you must feel a tremendous sense of satisfaction today. >> we're hopeful, we're hopeful that the general assembly will move swiftly to enact legislation that will help fix this now. the state has been in turmoil for the past week or so. we think we're on the verge of finding a way out. the both sides have given quite a bit here. and we'll see what happens later today. >> joe, let's talk about those fixes. what are they going to do in indiana and arkansas to fix these laws? >> well as you reported in the previous segment, you know they're making all sorts of concessions. but as you said i don't think anything they do is going to make either side particularly happy. you know the substance and the spirit of the law remain and i think the reputational damage to

indiana at least is going to be in place for some time to come. >> joe, what if they do a carve-out and say you cannot discriminate against same-sex couples or homosexual people? >> well you know i think it remains to be seen. you know how the law is applied. and what the substance of the law ends up being then. if you go back to the fact that really the laws are moving in these states in a response to the success we've had on marriage equality. and as an effort to sort of mollify or appease folks out there who are opposed to it. as a way to say, here's a way to sort of help you opt out. if what that does you know as you're suggest something sort of empty out the law, you know i guess i'm not quite sure then what the law does. >> tim, let me talk to you about what governor asa hutchinson said yesterday in his announcement. he said he had a change of heart because he was lobbied by a very powerful lobbyist. namely his 31-year-old son, seth. here's what the governor said.

>> it has divided families. and there's clearly a generational gap on this issue. my son, seth signed the petition asking me dad, the governor, to veto this bill. and he gave me permission to make that reference. >> and i mean tim, that's the crux of the matter isn't it? there's this generational divide. we have a new poll that illustrates just how differently the generations see this. let me just show you, 18-29-year-olds see this issue in the complete reverse order than people 65 years old and older. do when asked should businesses being required to serve same-sex weddings 18-29-year-olds say sure. whereas if you're over 65 60% say no. therein lies the whole heart of the matter tim. >> unfortunately there's a generational gap. it's playing out here in the

state. it's playing out here in political circles in the state. we have younger republicans who have been involved in the process of trying to find a fix. they're very passionate, very upset. but what they see happening in their own party. >> joe, it sounds to me from reading your notes, that you think that the reference to his son, seth was a nice touch. but really what swayed governor hutchinson was the businesses businesses like walmart saying they can't support this. >> i think it was both. i think certainly governor hutchinson learned a lesson from watching governor pence. and i think attempted to sort of you know inject some common humanity and some acknowledgement that he sort of stands in opposition to young people. and those numbers by the way are true for as tim referenced democrats, republicans, even you know christian evangelicals under the age of 30. it's true one of the great successes of the lgbt movement

over the last decade has been the partnership we've had with corporate america and our understanding that in situations like this one, we do well to lead with one of our strongest assets, which you know in this case are our corporate allies. whether it's tim cook or whether it's the ceo of walmart. >> how does governor pence recover from this today? >> it's going to be very difficult. he is faced with a very difficult choice. the economic fiscal conservatives in his own party desperately want him to sign this. social conservatives are going to be upset with him. he's losing both ends of his base. >> thanks so much for your perspective on this. new jersey senator bob menendez indicted on bribery charges, accused of trading political favor force luxury vacations and campaign favors. he believes this is not the way

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we are following breaking news this morning. gunmen storming a university in kenya.

the attacks still ongoing at garissa university college. the terror group al shabab claiming responsibility. and right now, holding hostages on the campus as security forces have cornered the gunmen. one terrorist was arrested while trying to escape. local media report as many as 15 people killed. numbers are still very soft at this point but we certainly know that dozens and dozens have been injured and people have lost their lives. many still unaccounted for. a witness telling cnn affiliate ntv, gunshots rang out like fireworks at the time of morning prayers, about 5:30 a.m. local time. nearly 300 prisoners, many with links to al qaeda have escaped after terrorists attacked their prison in yemen. a senior al qaeda leader among those on the loose. government buildings the central bank and radio station were all taken over the second major prison break in millenniumen in as many months. the latest developments in

the investigation of germanwings flight 9525. a european government official telling cnn investigators made a new discovery. they're not yet releasing what the find may be. in the meantime crews busy combing the wreckage site working to locate victims' remains and debris. all of this as investigators continue to debunk claims that cell phone video exists. capturing the final moments of flight 9525. senator robert menendez indicted he says he's innocent of the 14 counts of federal charges. accused of using his position to help a long-time friend in exchange for luxury trips and campaign donations. cnn justice reporter is in washington what's the strength of the prosecution and the push-back? >> this is where we expect that senator robert menendez is going to come later this morning to turn himself in and be formally arrested to face these charges. this 68-page indictment reads like an episode from "the house of cards" tv show.

lavish trips to paris and the caribbean. hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign donations. up to $1 million according to federal prosecutors, we have 14 counts in all against senator menendez. there are eight counts of bribery. three counts of services fraud. conspiracy travel act violation and false stalts. the senator appeared just down the street at a hotel to answer the justice department and to say that he is innocent. here's what he had to say. >> i'm outraged that prosecutors at the justice department were tricked into starting this investigation three years ago. with false allegations by those who have a political motive to silence me. but i will not be silenced. >> chris, that that reference to being tricked is a reference to the fact that this investigation, the fbi, first

started looking into allegations that menendez and his friend solomon melgen also charged in this case, were going with underage prostitutes in the dominican republic. that allegation turned out to not be true. but now there's an indictment against the senator for corruption. back to you, michaela. >> all right. this is going to be one of those things we have to watch today, certainly there's a lot on the line here. interesting we're not hearing a lot from the white house about this. >> i was surprised to read this is the first federal bribery charges against a sitting senator in a generation. because it feels widespread. it feels as though we talk about this a lot. this really unusual and the first one in you know more than 20 years. >> there's a very bright line between political dynamics and legal ones. whatever he thinks got him into this situation, is not going to maintain now. now he's got to go with this legal situation and the waters are very deep for the senator. >> a storm brewing there and there is one in the tornadic form if you will.

today's tornadoes in the forecast. we know for the mid mississippi and ohio valleys. we're told severe weather is expected to rip through the region. so let's get chad myers to break it all down for us where we can expect it how bad is it going to be chad? >> there will be tornadoes on the ground today, no question. we didn't have any yesterday didn't expect them. we'll have them from evansville, to paducah, up to cincinnati not in those cities particularly but 50 miles either side of those cities, there will be severe weather. it's warm 80 degrees, it's not spring for buffalo over the weekend, i get that. but it's warm from tulsa to springfield, paducah, louisville. maybe all the way to cincinnati. the area of enhanced severe weather. tomorrow it moves to nashville, chattanooga, birmingham down to tuscaloosa. cold air on this side, warm air on this side. and eventually the cold air does make its way into the northeast. i can't put that away and yes, that white is the "s" word we talked about yesterday. there is snow coming down and

lackawanna ton wanda, all of my old towns around buffalo. i'm sorry, more snow is coming for the weekend. >> his whole demeanor has even changed. >> it's broken his spirit. this winter has broken chad's spirit. >> it's broken ours. >> chad thanks so much. nuclear talks with iran are dragging on in switzerland. two deadlines are come and gone. still no deal. how much longer can the negotiations continue? [ laughing ] want to play hide and seek? yeah! 1... 2... 6... 10! [ female announcer ] piña colada yoplait. it is so good when you need a little escape. [ mom ] still counting.

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talks with iran down to the wire this morning, two days past the deadline. secretary of state john kerry and other top diplomats working throughout the night to try to reach an agreement with iran over its nuclear program. but can a deal be reached? we want to turn to hilary mann leverett the author of "going to tehran" also a former clinton

and bush national security council and state department middle east expert who has previously negotiated with iran. that's going to come in handy on our conversation. peter beinart is here cnn political commentator and contributing editor with atlantic media we're getting word that iran foreign minister has said that significant progress has been made peter. yet no final result yet. we've blown through two overtimes here. is this a situation that is making the u.s. cause stronger or weak centre. >> i think the obama administration is in a weaker position than it was a few days ago. the deadline in itself doesn't matter that much. but it does raise the question of how much the iranians are willing to give. the obama administration needs something strong enough to prevent new sanctions from congress and from the reporting we have, it's unclear that there will be enough specifics to give them the ammunition to stop congress from imposing new sanctions. >> you've been talking about specifics, not necessarily a set agreement. they're saying more a statement of goals. how challenging is it going to be to sell to congress? >> the iranians reportedly want

something pretty vague, for right now. and the more they vague it is the more momentum builds in congress for new sanctions. >> hilary, you have sat at this table with the iranians you've been part of the negotiations, you know the history of our two nations, talk about the challenge when you go past two deadlines, at this point in the game considering the history, how likely is it that we're going to find consensus? >> i think we will get something. think what's going on here. i negotiated with the current foreign minister, zarif, when he was a lower-level official over afghanistan and al qaeda. was incredibly sophisticated. we had a very successful constructive negotiation. they helped us tremendously to overthrow the taliban and set up a post-taliban government in afghanistan. so he's very competent. think what we're looking at here is it's no longer about the number of centrifuges, if it ever was. we're talking about an historic

process. what they're negotiate something the end of a 35-year war. so you know it should take about this time. when nixon and kissingery negotiating the opening to china, it took about this amount of time. it took about a week of nonstop negotiations in china by nixon and kissinger. i think this is actually a good sign that it's extremely serious and it's about ending the war. >> you make a good point. we're sitting next to the oven waiting for the cake to come out when it's not fully baked yet. a good point, hilary. peter on the flip side ha do you think the chances are this position has us come out with a weaker or a worse deal? >> i think hilary is right. what's really at stake here beyond the details of the nuclear negotiations is a different united states relationship with iran. which changes the dynamics in the middle east. the problem is that's not really there's not really right now that much support in washington for that kind of new relationship. what the obama administration is trying to sell in washington is a deal that's going to keep iran

a year away from getting a nuclear weapon. it's that perspective that this is going to be evaluated on. >> you made the point you think the president has to do a better job of selling this to the american people. explain that a little further for us. >> he has not made the strategic case why it's imperative for the united states in our own interests to have a better relationship with iran. it's not to do iran a favor, to welcome them back into the international community or because americans are war-wary it's because we have pursued a reckless policy in the middle east for at least ten years. military intervention after military intervention iraq afghanistan, libya, syria, all over the place, which has failed and made us weaker in the middle east. the way to recover is to have a better relationship with iran. we need a better relationship with chine and that's what nixon and kissinger understood. >> the obama administration has not made the case yet, this could be their downfall if they can't make the case to the american people and to congress.

>> peter do you see some sort of sanctions, military option? what do you think the outcome is? >> i think what the obama administration has going for it is that this issue has been so partisan in washington i think it's going to be hard for democrats to overturn an obama administration veto. if the obama administration really sticks to its guns on wanting to try to get this negotiation. but i agree with hilary the obama administration has to make the case for why a different kind of relationship with iran is important beyond simply the nuclear program. but it is a chance of putting the united states in a better position in the middle east place where we have been bleeding now, bleeding money and bleeding lives for close for more than a decade. >> you can't undo 35 years of history just that quickly. a very good point. but we are certainly impatient to find out what this is going to mean. hilary peter, always a pleasure. up next part two of our exclusive interview with yoga guru, bikram choudhury, now accused of sexual assault. >> there are six women, three

jane does three who have used their names. five say you raped them. one say sexual assault. did you actually have sex with any of these women? what he says, next. and then i saw him slowly coming down the aisle. one of those guys who just can't stop talking. i was downloading a movie. i was trying to download a movie. i have verizon. i don't. i get that little spinning wheel. download didn't finish. i finished the download. headphones on. and i'm safe. i didn't finish in time. so. many. stories. vo: join us and save without settling. verizon. "ride away" (by roy orbison begins to play) ♪ i ride the highway... ♪ ♪ i'm going my way... ♪ ♪i leave a story untold... ♪ he just keeps sending more pictures...

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he's the yoga guru with an empire built largely on sweat. thanks to his signature hot yoga method. but some of bikram choudhury's former devotees claim he took advantage of that devotion and sexually assaulted or raped them. choudhury responds to the allegations for the first time in the second part of our exclusive interview. >> there are these six women, three jane does three who have used their names. five much them say you raped them. one says sexual assault. did you actually have sex with any of these women? >> first thing is no. of course not. and i said before if i want to have sex with the women, i don't need to attack them or rape them or abuse them or assault them.

there are lines of millions of women in the world as volunteers. >> bikram choudhury has built a yoga empire with his unique posture sequences done in rooms set to 105 degrees. for the ultimate workout, with maximum sweat. his business is threatened after six women have come forward saying they were sexually assaulted or raped by the man they considered their guru. >> i just remember i was terrified. i was paralyzed. >> sarah baughn is one of the six women. she said she was left alone with bikram one late night during a teacher training course. when she tried to leave, she says bikram cornered her. >> when i reached the door he was there. he was only in his boxers and a tibet. and he pushed himself up against me. he held me up against the door and he just started kissing all over my chest and my body and he

pushed himself into me very hard. >> and so how did you escape? >> it was all pretty fast. but it felt like it was, it took a long time. but i got the door handle down enough and it just cracked open enough that i was able to reach around with this. >> sarah baughn one of your students she's one of the people using her name. she is is saying she found herself alone with you. >> that's not true. >> you were never alone with her? >> i never be alone with anybody, ever. i'm very careful about it. >> here's the story. the story is that the moment the door closed behind this staff member sarah rushed towards the door with her shoes in her hand. at which point choudhury attacked her, pinned her against the door and sexually assaulted her. >> not truth. it's not truth. i don't do that. i don't have to. >> he says that the accusations are not true.

he says he never assaulted or raped anyone. he says that he made it a practice of never, ever being alone with any of his students. >> he's a person that has based a lot of truths on a lot of lies. he's built an entire empire on how he tells everybody the truth. i feel sorry for a person like that. >> choudhury repeatedly denied assaulting the accusers or even having consensual sex with him. when we asked him about sex with other students. his answer was -- confusing. >> yes and no. >> what does that mean? >> but not the six of them. >> so you have had sex with some of your students. >> it's other way. it's other way. >> to be clear, you did have sex with your students? >> yes or no. i said before. i have no intention to have sex with any of my students or any

women. sometime student, they commit suicide. lots of students of mine commit suicide because i will not have sex with them. >> you're saying students of yours have committed suicide? >> yes. >> they threatened suicide or actually committed suicide. >> threatened and died. >> because you wouldn't have sex with him. >> yes. >> when we asked for evidence his attorney advised him not to give us names. >> you're saying you didn't have sex with them because you wanted to have sex with them. >> no. >> you had sex with them as a public service, you're saying. >> well that is your word. you could say that. >> all six accusers have filed civil lawsuits against choudhury in los angeles superior court. the los angeles district attorney declined to pursue criminal charges without explanation. choudhury's lawyer has a theory on the accusers' motivation. zpli believe it's financial. i truly do.

i can't say towards the women because i really don't know. but i know lawyers. >> we ended up with the first of these clients. when she came forward, and went public it attracted other people and the other five plaintiffs to also have a modicum of confidence to discuss what happened to them. >> choudhury vows to clear his name. >> somebody has something good to offer to this country. or to the world. they make me one today, after making me like i'm your daughter. i'm your son. you took me one hand you stabbing on my chest like this way. and killing, slow poison. that's your dream to me. >> sarah baughn says she, too, wants the truth to come out. >> what do you want to see happen? >> i don't want to be afraid of him any more. i wish he would just tell the truth and then stop doing this. that's it. i don't even i don't even hate

him. i get mad at him. but mostly because he's lying. and he's hurting people. and the stuff that he's teaching is really good stuff, but he's hurting people and hiding behind this good stuff. so people don't believe that he's capable of hurting people. he's got to stop lying behind it. he's got to stop doing this to people. >> chris, does it hurt the case that all of the six accusers are represented by the same attorney? >> no. because there is no case. i mean maybe they'll be able to find some civil remedy. there's no prosecution. >> there's no criminal case they did file six civil lawsuits. they will be going to court. >> it doesn't hurt him. it gets confusing, whose story is the same as the other one. do they overlap. you'll exposureself to that from the defendant's attorney.

>> michaela you're right. you're right in that that's what they say makes the suspicion. bikram choudhury and his attorneys say it's basically a fishing expedition by this one attorney. i want to make very clear, they say it's for financial reasons. bikram and his team say it's for financial reasons. none of these women are seeking any monetary damages, they're not seeking any monetary damages. they may be awarded monetary damages, but they're not asking for any money. >> i don't know that that's such an honest proposition. i'm not doubting the women's claim. i'm saying that's all you get in civil court is money. that's all that can happen. this isn't an estopple thing. it's not like you're going to get an order from the judge, no more assaulting for you. >> they said they want a public airing of their side. >> that's all that can happen there. the frustrating thing for me about this story is one you have no police action here. >> because as you know the cases are three to 13 years old. >> i get it. i get it right or wrong.

you cath just drop the hammer on this guy, because there is no prosecution. and yet his answers are almost -- laughable. >> yes or no? >> so you want to laugh, but you can't laugh because it's too serious a subject matter. i have to have sex with them. >> no it's the other way. what does that mean they have sex with him? he was assaulted? >> that is one intriguing story, it's going to continue alisyn said there are going to be trials upcoming. but there's a lot of news this morning breaking right now, let's get to it. masked gunmen storming a university in kenya. >> we are yet to confirm the number of casualties. >> in yemen, al qaeda militants storming a prison. >> 270 inmates were freed in that attack. nuclear talks with iran extending into double overtime. >> each side blaming the other for the obstacles in the talks. >> there are obviously problems. >> we are arkansas.

>> you can still love someone, i mean even though you don't serve them. >> i've asked that the leaders of the general assembly to recall the bill. >> i serve a god who is higher than any supreme court judge. >> a fresh new clue has been discovered. >> there is a concern about the integrity of the crash site. which in this case is a crime scene. >> announcer: this is "new day" with chris cuomo, alisyn camerota and michaela pereira. >> good morning, everyone. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. this is "new day." we are following two major breaking news stories this morning. the first, al shabab gunmen there's a raid at a university in kenya. they have reportedly killed as many as 15 people and dozens others are injured. the attackers are holding hostages at one of the dormitories on the garissa university college campus. >> also breaking -- in yemen, al qaeda storming a prison freeing hundreds of inmates, including a senior al qaeda figure who had been there for years. yemen, once a key u.s. ally in

the fight against terror now may be the most terrorist-friendly place in the world we have the stories covered the way only cnn can. that's what we're going to begin with is soni methu live in nairobi with the latest in the university attack. what's changed since we last spoke to you? >> well so far, just before the live bulletin eye witnesses have told me that they heard a few explosions there's a smoke coming out of a certain area in the university close to the dormitories. and they can still hear gun fire going on in the region. so far the death toll has been 15. according to local media, police say one suspect has been arrested. so far, the local media is reporting that that suspect has been killed. and the death toll could have rizing now to 16 people. we know that at least seven people are in nairobi for critical care in nairobi and a few more could follow in the afternoon. according to the red kros cross, they are receiving the victims,

taking them to the hospital. if they see they need referrals or feel they can be released that's what's done. so far 60 people have been reported inside the garissa county hospital. and seven of them have been referred to nairobi. and the red cross says more people could follow. the situation is still unfolding. the hostages are still with the gunmen in one of the dormitories that has not been cleared. and the police is saying they've now sent a special elite unit to deal with this situation. >> soni thank you so much for this unfolding situation. we want to go right now to the scene. joining us on the phone, is journalist dennis okari, with cnn affiliate ntv. at the university that's under attack attack. can you hear me? >> yes. >> tell us where you are at this moment? >> okay, i'm actually outside the compound of garissa university in northern kenya. just here almost an hour ago. and this is a picture from the

airport at the garissa air strip. we found chartered flights. most of them taking the injured to the capital city nairobi. i managed to speak to one of the survivors. and they [ indiscernible ] >> they're now using the air strip of the rescue center there, coming out of the university would be attended to before going to nairobi. i also managed to see one corner of the air strip close to 200 students who are sitting down surrounded by military officials. i don't understand part freeing all the students who came out who saw and yet to understand what exactly happened at 4:30 in the morning. but next to the university i can hear gunshots and hear explosions in the background.

this has been going on for several hours. >> dennis let me stop you there -- >> gunshots going on in the background. >> i want to ask you about what you're reporting, you're hearing heavy gun fire and explosions those are coming from inside where the hostage standoff is? or do you believe those are security forces trying to get in? >> i -- [ indiscernible ]. it's coming from one corner. a few moments ago we were told to take cover, but the ministry has cordoned off this area. saying it's not safe for us. so my vantage point and the everythingky hear the guns are coming from one direction. we were told they cleared most of the hostage rooms and focused on one of them. >> dennis -- >> the gun men are still holding more hostage.

>> do we know how many hostages are inside the dormitory right now. >> they've been there since 5:30 in the morning. this is going to the tenth hour. and i managed to speak to some of the neighbors around here they're saying that it's been like this since that hour and it has not stopped. and since we came here we have been hearing the gun fire. and military tanks have moved into the university compound. and the they are using the tanks for cover as they fire inside one of the hostiles. we're not sure if there are hostages inside. or what's happening. the ambulances that are coming out, we're not sure they're carrying bodies or carrying those that are injured. but we've counted at least ten of them that have passed through one of the main roads that goes to the entrance of the university. >> yes, dennis, we understand in the chaos how difficult it is to figure out who is in those ambulances or what's happening inside the dormitory. you say you've just been told to

take cover outside the university. ky hear heavy gun fire and explosions hundreds of students run out, some crawling. these are your pictures that we're looking at right now, dennis we appreciate that you're on the ground for us there and we will check back in with you throughout the hour to see what is happening with that hostage. the terrible hostage situation at the kenyan university. thank you, dennis. the situation in yemen is also deteriorating. hundreds of inmates, many with links to al qaeda have escaped in a prison break. terrorists staged an assault on a key port city. cnn's becky anderson has the latest for us from abu dhabi. >> at least 270 prisoners, possibly more and some of them with links to al qaeda as you rightly pointed out have escaped from a jail in a place called almukallah a city 300 miles east of the coast city of aden. senior security officials are telling us that dozens of attackers, amongst them militant islamists, stormed the jail

releasing among others a man named khaled batarfi, a senior al qaeda figure. we believe he had been held for more than four years in that jail. this will of course complicate things for the saudi-led coalition, who have been making advances we understand against what is the iran-backed shia houthi houthi militia in the south. the saudis confirming that operations had intensified around aden with the defense ministry confirming all moving targets towards the city were attacked. the jail break by al qaeda elements overnight will inevitably ratchet up concerns that extremists are and will likely going forward, capitalize on what is this chaos and confusion on the ground. remember al qaeda in the arabian peninsula claiming responsibility most recently for the "charlie hebdo" attack in paris. isis also purportedly emerging in recent weeks in the country. these militant groups are

ostensibly sunni arabs, that's their claim and they're the total nemesis of the regional sunni arab forces in the throes of trying to instill some security and stability to this region. >> becky, thank you very much. one of the questions, is there any concerted action going on here or just a reflection of the chaos that's possible everywhere at all times. let's discuss with mike rodgers, a cnn national security commentator and former chairman of the house intelligence committee. let's start in kenya. mike always good to have you on thank you. the situation is fluid. it's terrible already, we understand that. does it reflect a more troubling dynamic of an inability for kenya to control -- i know al shabab is from somalia. is there an inability to control this group from doing massive acts of terror? >> it's certain very difficult. they've done these cross-border operations before they being al shabab. al shabab took a pledge in 2012

to join al qaeda. so zawahiri, the leader of al qaeda has posted several videos referring to this relationship. part of relationship is to do these attacks, be disruptive in the terrorist attacks. you saw the kenyan mall attack now you're seeing the university attack. this is a very dangerous group and they're getting a little more sophisticated in their tactics and techniques as they go into this country. and it is going to be continuing. very difficult to stop them. >> so you see this as a reflection of its pledge and not necessarily tied to what's going on in yemen right now with al qaeda. which is of course this prison break. is this just a crime of opportunity for al qaeda there? get one of their guys back and a bunch of other soldiers? >> absolutely. we have seen over the years, there's probably a dozen, maybe even 15 examples where al qaeda elements or extremist elements

have attacked prisons from the outside to release their prisoners. and actually it's happened in yemen before. and this has happened in africa the middle east iraq places like afghanistan so this is a very common tactic to free those individuals. i will guarantee you, chris, they'll join the fight this afternoon. there will be no time down for these folks, they're going to reengage in al qaeda and extremist operations in the south of yemen. why that part is so dangerous, is that's where the u.s. was focused on trying to disrupt al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. which is yemen. we thought for a long time that was the most dangerous al qaeda affiliate to the united states. we knew they were trying to attack the united states. so the freedom of operation very concerning. >> settle any yemen any more? not just the geographical boundaries but is there any state there? is there any resisting force

against what's going on. or is this just chaos, and we're seeing who takes over what in this place? >> it resembles more chaos. when the president fled sanaa, the capital city things were going downhill. now that the saudis have engaged in a military action there, this is a proxy war between iran who supports the houthi who took over the government in sanaa, they are a shia-based organization. and now you are seeing this flare-up between the sunnis in yemen, that have conflicted loyalties to the government, not the government. this is what you're seeing. this does not portend well for the next months in yemen. >> a quick question iran is there a case to be made that they're using their nuclear, nuclear capabilities to get the u.s. and the p5+1 in general to be nice to them while they are able to exercise what they want in other arenas in yemen? with the iraqis in syria. is there a case to be made that

that's that's the dupe that's being put on the u.s. right now? >> they are taking full advantage of any let-up on pressure on the force, their c.i.a. and special operations combined. they only report to the supreme leader. they don't report to the president of iran. they are very aggressive. the houthis are responsible, are a result of the akudes force. the same in iraq and all across the region. did it before the negotiations started. they've ramped it up during the negotiations. and to some degree, the u.s. policy and european policy has been well off on some of these other things to try to arrange a framework for a deal. they're not slowing down they're speeding up their effort. this why people are afraid of a nuclear umbrella iran. not in the sense that they might use the nuclear weapon which they could, other than now it gives them permission to continue to ramp up what is

really the equivalent of state sponsor of terrorism. >> you have a situation where iran is at the table, not giving the p5+1 u.s. anything it wants really. and at the same time it's getting everything it wants, everywhere else because people are afraid to affect these negotiations that aren't going anywhere at this particular point. very confusing and frustrating. mr. rodgers, thank you very much. appreciate the perspective. all sides are back at the table at this hour for more talks on iran's nuclear program. which were extended one against overnight. the iranians say progress is being made, but it's unclear if and when a deal will be reached. cnn global affairs correspondent elise labott is live in switzerland with the latest once again. elise? >> michaela it was an all-nighter. the negotiators worked until the wee hours of the morning. the french foreign minister, british foreign minister both came back for these negotiations. they took some rest. had a shower and then there was this tweet this morning from spokeswoman marie harf john

kerry and negotiators back to the negotiating table. #irantalks. there's a lot of uncertainty hanging over these talks. the french foreign minister came last night. he said they were in the final yards, almost near the finish line. but the final yards are so difficult. and the iranian foreign minister also trying to sound upbeat saying that he thought an agreement might be reached today. since you're even past the 11th hour two days past the deadline. that's lot of brinksmanship. a lot of one-upsman ship. the iranian foreign minister is trying to blame the west for being divided. not being on the same page. for their part the p5+1 world powers are trying to say that iran is using the fact that there's this deadline hanging over them. know that the u.s. needs to present something to congress. to kind of try to gain leverage. use it against the u.s.

negotiator. so there's back at the negotiating table in a little bit. took a break for lunch and we'll see what happens out of these talks today. i think whatever could come out of them is far short than what the u.s. is looking for. they're looking for some kind of framework. agreement, framework deal political understandings it might be something short of that. what they've agreed to in a statement they'll keep talking. alisyn? >> elise we'll check back in with you throughout the next hour or two to see what does come out of it. thanks so much for that. two states addressing backlash over their religious freedom laws. indiana lawmakers will begin debating changes to their state's divisive law. and in arkansas the governor ordering lawmaker there is also to go back to the drawing board. let's bring in cnn's victor blackwell live from little rock, arkansas. what's happened there this morning, victor? >> alisyn lots of legislative and political maneuvers to pull off what the governor is asking for, surprise announcement from the governor yesterday, when he

said that the bill that was sent to him. the religious freedom restoration act, 1228 did not clearly mirror the federal law. that's after he said he was going to sign the bill. what the senate did was pass a new bill. senate bill 975, that does just that. mirror the federal law. what was the reason for the governor's change of heart? maybe walmart, the state's largest employer speaking out against the bill. maybe his own son, seth hutchinson opposing that bill. either way, this new bill passed by the senate goes to the house today. i spoke with a mouse lead another says he's optimistic that they will pass that and give governor what he's asking for. in indiana the law has passed. that rfra law, the religious freedom restoration act. the governor there, mike pence, asking for changes that would make it clear that no business in that state has a right to deny services to anyone. as you said the house will start debating specific changes to that law.

we'll see if that makes some of the companies that have been protesting that law and some of the municipalities that have been banning sales and spending in that state, we'll see if they'll be satisfied with the changes. chris, we send it back to you. >> thank you for covering this for us victor appreciate it. 11 teachers in atlanta are some really bad apples they've not just been accused, they've been convicted of racketeering for what -- leaking answers to students on statewide skills tests. even throwing cheating parties. yes, cnn's martin savidge joins us with more. sad but true martin? >> it's being described as the largest cheating scandal in the history of public education in this country. that says a lot right there. at one point up to 180 professional educators in the atlantic public school system have been implicated. it came down to the last 12 that were on trial. the charges against them extremely serious. including racketeering and 11

times judge gary baxter over and over read the verdict, and it was guilty guilty guilty you watched the defendants' faces crumble. you watched their attorneys just look dumbfounded and then it was what the judge did next that just brought a gasp from the courtroom. take a listen. >> we're going to have to take everybody into custody. today. so -- >> judge, judge -- [ inaudible ] >> i know they've been convicted and they're going to need to be processed, just like anybody else. and i'm sorry. i from the day i got this case, i pleaded with people to evaluate it seriously and now the rubber has met the road here. and they are convicted of felons as far as i'm concerned. >> essentially the judge was implying that the defendants had gambled and that they thought that if it went to a jury trial, they wouldn't be convicted of

racketeering. but in fact, yes, they were. and the punishment could mean decades in jail. for those who were convicted. one teacher was cleared, but otherwise you saw the handcuffs going on and the final irony, they were led outside of the courthouse and they boarded a bus. but it wasn't that yellow one. it was the one that was dark in color and has bars on the windows with the word "prison" written on the side. sentencing will begin next week. michaela? >> my goodness martin, this is quite a story. thank you for bringing us the latest on it. we'll be watching it with you, thanks. new jersey senator robert menendez says he's ready to fight federal corruption charges. he'll be in court today, accused of accepting nearly $1 million in gifts and campaign contributions from a florida eye doctor in exchange for political favors. prosecutors also allege that menendez pressed government officials to approve visas for several of the doctor's girlfriends. well lawmakers in indiana

and arkansas scrambling to fix religious freedom measures that have sparked national outrage. will the new language do enough to address the discrimination that gays and lesbians feel? the mayor of little rock will join us next with his strong feelings. big news out of politics new jersey senator bob menendez facing corruption charges, he's not taking it lying down. john king will tell you more on "inside politics." people ship all kinds of things. but what if that thing is a few hundred thousand doses of flu vaccine. that need to be kept at 41 degrees. while being shipped to a country where it's 90 degrees. in the shade. sound hard? yeah. does that mean people in laos shouldn't get their vaccine? we didn't think so. from figuring it out to getting it done, we're here to help.

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religious freedom laws in flux in two states this morning. indiana lawmakers will begin debating changes to that state's controversial law. while in arkansas, the governor ordering lawmakers to go back to the drawing board. the mayor of little rock arkansas never liked this bill. what does he think this morning? mayor mark suttle joins us now. what a turn of events in the last 24 hours, ha do you think allowed your governor, asa hutchinson to rethink his position on signing this bill? >> well i want to commend the governor for changing his position. it took a lot of courage for him to do it frankly. i think he heard loud and clear from not just the business community, the chamber, walmart.

obviously axiom, a major data processing company that's nationwide and across the world. but he heard from citizens as well. he heard from all kinds of citizens this was not a liberal issue or a conservative issue. and frankly, it's not a democrat oregon oregon or republican issue, it's one that touched people at every level. i think he heard loud and clearly that this is something that does not need to be passed in the context it was positioned. he needs to make sure we affirm that arkansas is open for business and that our arms are open and welcoming people of all diversity. >> the governor did say that he heard from all of those constituencies or at least we know he heard from those constituencies. he said it was his son who really helped sort of tip the scales. listen to what he said yesterday about his son, seth. >> it has divided families. and there's clearly a

generational gap on this issue. my son, seth, signed the petition asking me dad, the governor, to veto this bill. and he gave me permission to make that reference. >> he's talking about the generational divide. how does any governor overcome that? well, i think you listen and i give him a lot of credit for that frankly. there is a generational divide. you know the issues of discrimination that we faced in 129 1957 when integration and the civil rights act was blossoming in terms of equality issues really has the hallmark here in the state of arkansas. and now it's a different context, it's a 21st century context of respecting people of all character and quality and in terms of who they love and who they want to associate with.

and i give him credit for that. i hope that the legislatures listen to him and listen to the people. so the new bill working its way through the house and senate will make sure that it focuses on the fact that we're not discriminating against anybody, because of their sexual orientation or their gender. >> mayor, you know what's so interesting about this? at least in arkansas in this era, when legislation moves like molasses you know on capitol hill arkansas is doing this very fast within the next two hours, we're going to see lawmakers come forward and talk about how they're going to reword or rework this bill. so what do you think is going to happen this morning at 9:00 there? >> well i think there's going to be probably a new bill that reflects the rfra federal rfra law. and it's going to probably sail right through both the house and the senate. you're exactly right.

the hb 1228 was locked up in the senate judiciary until a couple of days last week. when one of the senators flipped his vote. and all of a sudden it was over in the house to concur with those senate amendments and voted on. and frankly, many of us were surprised that it was getting out of out of the committees and certainly people spoke out very loudly. i wrote a letter to the governor and encouraged limb to veto this legislation. i articulated number one is that you know rfra on the federal level was signed into law in 1993. 22 years ago. we haven't seemed to need to have a state law like that for 22 years. so i guess i fundamentally question whether it's really needed when we've got a constitution and a bill of rights. that protects not only freedom of religion but freedom of association. so in any event. i urged him that this was too divisive it was tearing people apart and certainly was

happening in indiana, think had a pretty big impact on the governor as well. and from a business standpoint from a business standpoint this was absolutely terrible. i've heard from our convention and visitors bureau that already major conventions said put it on hold. we're not going to come if the bill gets signed into law. i think the governor heard the economic consequences of that as well. >> the pursestrings do get people's attention. mayor mark stodola, with your perspective it will be interesting to see what happens in your state this morning just after 9:00 thanks so much. over to michaela. >> debate over religious freedom laws playing out among 2016 candidates for president. one of them may have softened his tone. john king will tell you who and why.

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. we're following breaking news al shabab gunmen storming a university in kenya, the situation ongoing right now at garissa university college. where terrorists are holding hostages reports say. local media say as many as 15

people killed 65 others injured. those numbers are soft and will change throughout the day. by any estimate this is a horrible situation. a witness telling cnn affiliate ntv, gunshots rang out like fireworks, we're going to update the story throughout the morning. about 300 prisoners, including a senior al qaeda member are loose after terrorists stormed their prison in yemen. this happened in the port city of almukallah government buildings, the central bank and radio station all taken over. the second major prison break in yemen in two months. this is a very scary head-on crash caught on a school bus dash cam in tulsa. horrifying to listen to that. seven people including six children were rushed to the hospital. the driver of the suv was pinned in his vehicle, had to be cut out of it. fortunately and this is the miracle here people everyone is okay. the police say the driver has been known to suffer from seizures it's unclear if he was

having one at the time of this accident. they're investigating, no one was seriously injured here. >> you can see the air bag deploy on the driver of the car. he must have had a sees sooez yur seizure. >> the poor kids they see it coming terrible for them. a lot of politics this morning, let's get you to "inside politics," on "new day," with mr. john king. >> chris, good morning to you, another busy day, let's discuss of the national implications of the two state debates over religious freedom. with me jackie kucinich of the "daily beast," jonathan martin of the "new york times." indiana and arkansas let's get me a rewrite. that's what we call did in the news business, they're going back to try to redo the two laws. what we see playing out in the 2016 field, the divide between the evangelical base of the republican party and the pro business chamber of commerce establishment wing of the republican party. that's not new. the question is how will this impact 2016? i want to start with jeb bush

former florida governor out in california raising money. he seems to back away. early on he said good for you, indiana governor mike pennsylvania. jeb bush said he's not being critical of mike pence. i did say i supported his efforts. but jeb bush went on to say, by the end of the week i think indiana will be in the right place, which is to say we need in a big diverse country in america we need to have a space for people to act on their conscious, that is a constitutional right. the better approach jeb bush went on to say would have been the approach that is more core census-oriented approach. >> it seems like he got a little ahead of his skis in supporting what pence was doing. think this the difference between someone who has been a governor and someone who might be in the senate. in that ted cruz is doubling down. then you have someone like jeb bush who knows in order to govern you sort of need to this kind of thing happens, maybe not this bad, but for, if you're mike pence, but this seems like a very gubernatorial thing to do. >> gubernatorial thing to do

but jonathan will it hurt jeb bush he's got issues with the base of the party on immigration, on the common core education standards. he's saying maybe governor pence should have handled this more gently. let's listen as we continue the conversation. ted cruz says no republican governors in both places now going back to reright, ted cruz seems to think they're making a mistake. >> i salute both the legislature in indiana and the legislature in arkansas for passing strong bills protecting religious liberty. and i think the assault that has been directed at indiana now at arkansas, has been shameful and it has been wrong. >> there in lies the challenge. appealing to the base but also keeping some semblance of appeal for the general electorate john. because there's going to be the ted cruzs of the world who are always going to be on their

right. and that's the challenge for folks like jeb bush. it's never going to be good enough for either the folks on the far left or the far right. you know the challenge here that jeb has is by saying that indiana will get to a better place by the end of the week. the folks on the right think that's not true at all. >> they think that they're caving. >> and the very point of the laws was to protect florists or bakers or whoever from not having to work on weddings for folks who are same-sex. and if you carve out language that says they don't have to that sort of goes against the point. so it's a real challenge. >> so are we guaranteed that we will see yet another republican presidential cycle where you have this evangelical and establishment-based divide that's been immigration in the past. it's been abortion sometime in the past. same-sex marriage has come up. hillary clinton, first lady of arkansas arkansas is going back to reconsider its law.

the governor of arkansas's son convinced him maybe he should rethink this issue. she tweeted out yesterday, like the indiana law, arkansas law would permit unfair discrimination against lgbt americans, i urge governor to veto. she tweets when she thinks it's to her advantage. >> it's an easy issue. >> easy issue for the democrats, she wants to stoke the republican divide. >> she's going to have a lot of opportunities to do that. particularly she's not going to have to worry about her left. so yeah that's what she's going to do all cycle you would imagine, right? >> the larger story is that democrats in 2015 are a very unified party. they have some differences on the economy but on culture they're a pretty unified party. republicans are now where democrats were 30 years ago. >> we'll see this debate will put pressure on some of the other candidates as well. you saw ted cruz in iowa just remember he was the first candidate to jump into the race he did it eight days ago.

his campaign just issued a press release saying he's raised $8 million in those four days. listen to ted cruz telling voters in iowa wow, i think i'm on to something here. >> tremendously encouraging the support we're seeing. we're seeing small donors men and women all over the country contributing and we're seeing major donor, heavy, heavy hitters stepping forward, bundling hosting fundraisers and i really have been been blown away by the tremendous support we've seen. >> the question i have is does it last? he decided to get in early because he wanted to change the race. is he going to establish himself as the candidate of the right and the right usually has a candidate early on? are we going to have like we had the last cycle where michelle backman bachmann had a week. >> this has benefitted ted cruz going first. that was probably the right call

for him and the grassroot donors are very important for the right. we saw rick santorum raising from tiny donors last time. he had his moment. now there's someone else has their moment later and raises that kind of money. we'll see. >> it was a shrewd move. he filled a vacuum. had a nice week where he was able to get a lot of attention from the press. it obviously has worked to a certain degree financially. but yeah there's going to be a lot of folks with the same claim on a similar pool of voters that he has. similar pool of donors it's going to be challenging for him. eventually but he obviously is formidable because he's very articulate. he knows what he believes and again the point made earlier, on every issue he's going to get to the right of every candidate in the field. bob menendez the ranking democrat on foreign relations issues in the senate. he's been indict noud on corruption charges. let's listen to bob menendez quickly saying it's all a scam. >> i'm outraged that prosecutors

at the justice department were tricked into starting this investigation three years ago, with false allegations by those who have a political motive to silence me. but i will not be silenced. >> he is stepping aside temporarily as ranking member to do the democrats a favor so he's not out there every day being asked these questions, i guess he might get asked anyway. do we watch this play out in court? >> i don't see anybody come back from stepping down. it doesn't happen. >> even if his lawyers get him off -- it's sort of the paris luxury hotel room on the donor's amex points and frankly the most damning part of it the medicare. and also having his staff get visas allegedly for his donor's girlfriends for various countries. putting aside the legal issues

politically, very tough to come back from. >> it looks bad in these cases can take years to play out in the court. we'll watch senator america end ez he says he's going to fid -- menendez. it silence a voice in the democratic party, at a time he could have been a prominent player. >> we'll be watching it closely. as we know you will be too, john. after almost every aviation disaster there are changes to improve airline safety. what changes will come from the flight 9525 tragedy? our experts will explain. acid erosion. there's only so much enamel, and everybody needs to do something about it now if they want to preserve their teeth. i recommend pronamel. it helps strengthen the tooth and makes it more resistant to acid breakdown.

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this morning, a european government official close to the flight 9525 crash investigation tells cnn that investigators have made a new discovery. they're not yet revealing what exactly that new finding is in the meantime lufthansa says they will fully honor every claim stemming from the crash on a case-by-case basis. with us this morning mary sciavo, cnn aviation analyst and former inspector general for the u.s. department of transportation. justin green is here private pilot and president of the international air safety bar

association. good morning first of all to the both of you. we're hearing about the news there's a major development, a new development justin on scene. they're not saying what it is. what could be key at this point? >> well i believe the flight data recorder being found would be probably the major development. >> we know that the cvr was the more telling thing in this instant. especially talking about the fact it was an intentional crash. >> there's three things that are important, cockpit voice recorder. probably most important. the flight data recorder which will give more information and the pilot's body. they can do an autopsy and find out what drugs or other problems he may have had. >> mary we want to talk to you about the fact that lufthansa has set aside some $300 million in insurance for these families that is no small sum. we talked about this with mh-370 talk about it now with lufthansa, that can make a big dent in this company. talk about the financial damage it can do to them.

>> it actually won't do financial damage to the company. they're fully insured. in most major airline operations they carry about $1.5 billion of insurance per flight and almost ever is that ever tapped out. even in the case of the four planes of september 11th 2001 in our litigation after that we did not break through all the insurance that was available. so lufthansa will fly on germanwings will fly on. the insurers will pay the tab and hopefully the insurers will do what they're supposed to do examine the operation and call on them to make any changes necessary. and then yes, they can expect the rates to go up. >> mary, i'll start with you about the technology sadly we know so much is learned after the crashes. we know this was a particular scenario that led to this one. but developments have been in talks for a while about technologies that needed to be used. we were talking about cameras in the cockpit, streaming data.

streaming video from inside the cockpit. some of these measures they're looking to sort of put into the airlines. and that you've told us about one automatic ground collision avoidance system. what is this? and is it a real option for commercial aircraft? >> it is. it's called well now it's called enhanced ground proximity warning systems, those are the systems you would hear and the prosecutors have talked about in this case and every case where the plane warns that you're getting near the ground and the plane says terrain, terrain, pull up pull up. >> which would have happened in this one. >> right, exactly. there's a newer version of that which would be able to override the pilot, if the pilot is distracted. every year there are hundreds of planes small ones mostly that go in and they have what's called c-fit. controlled flight over terrain. this would override and cause the plane to pull up if they

were about to hitter rain. there's a small window of opportunity after each crash to make flights safer in the future. >> this technology is not perfect as a solution for all accidents. it wouldn't have helped in an intentional crash like this one, wouldn't it? >> the pilot could still pull off his or her engines. this is really designed for a pilot who is distracted like mary just said. which is actually a much larger danger to aviation than intentional acts by a pilot. the system that would actually may have prevented this type of scenario is a system that would basically lock the pilot out of the cockpit. it would basically take the airplane over the pilot couldn't turn off his engines, the pilot couldn't crash the airplane. >> a true pilot-less aircraft. >> that's right and they were designed by both boeing and airbus after 9/11. but the system one of the things that doctors always say

is don't do any harm. airplane designers same thing urgs don't want to design something that's going to create other problems and it's a major, it's a major there's other still amor things to prevent this. hire a second pilot in the cockpit. better screening for pilots. >> right. we're going to talk a lot more about this. coming up justin greene. mary sciavo. mich wait until you hear what california is doing to deal with an historic drought. we're going to take you there next. stay with us. one of those guys who just can't stop talking. i was downloading a movie. i was trying to download a movie. i have verizon. i don't. i get that little spinning wheel. download didn't finish. i finished the download. headphones on. and i'm safe. i didn't finish in time. so. many. stories. vo: join us and save without settling.

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this problem has gotten so bad that in some parts of california thousands of people are living without running water in their homes. they have to go out and buy bottled water just to have something to drink in their homes. it is a very very difficult problem and some of the restrictions that have been put in place, for example, the governor saying look we've got to cut urban water usage. the drinkable water. we've got to cut that usage by 25% and this couldn't come soon enough according to scientists. if you take a look at what the reservoirs look like in

california how low they are, how little water there is on the surface. scientists say that it's important that we have to act now. >> california has about one year of water left in its reservoirs on the surface. and that's what our water managers tell us and that's readily visible from measurements on the ground. the reason the reservoir levels are so low is that we really had a terrible winter in terms of rainfall and snowfall. >> and let me give you a look at just how bad it is. we want to show you what the state is and how bad it is in certain areas. the darkest red on the map that we're going to show you, that's where the problem is the worst. this is a problem that is absolutely across the west though in california scientists have said this is not just 100 year drought, the worst in 100 years, but there is one study out there that says this is the worst drought california has dealt with in 1200 years. these restrictions being put in

place couldn't come soon enough. alisyn. >> gosh, that's remarkable context. sara sidner thank you so much. two major situations going on now involving al shabaab gunmen opening fire at a university. it's an active situation and al qaeda fighters carrying out a brazen prison break in yemen. we have live reports. the very latest a hid. ahead. i've smoked a lot and quit a lot, but ended up nowhere. now i use this. the nicoderm cq patch, with unique extended release technology helps prevent the urge to smoke

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mass gunmen storming a university in kenya. >> smoke coming out of a certain area in the university close to the dormitories. >> in yemen al qaeda militants storming a prison. >> nuclear talks with iran extending into double overtime. >> each side blaming the other for the obstacles in the talk. >> there are obviously problems. >> we are arkansas. >> i've asked that the leaders of the general assembly to recall the bill. >> whether you'll agree or disagree on gay rights these laws are not the same old same old. >> i think there would be a place for criminal sanctions against homosexual behavior. >> we need to start kissing all over me, my chest.

>> did you actually have sex with any of these women? >> this is "new day" with chris cuomo, alisyn camerota and michaela pereira. good morning, welcome to your "new day." thursday april 2nd 8:00 in the east. two stories breaking right now. gunmen with the terror group al shabaab storming a university in kenya. explosions heavy gunfire breaking out. at least 15 dead dozens wounded. those numbers are still very early. we do know this hundreds of students still unaccounted for. word of a hostage situation unfolding right now. this dormitory that you're looking at that's where the terrorists are reportedly holding captives. a picture taken by local journalists on the ground. >> in yemen al qaeda fighters storming a prison. among them a senior al qaeda figure held for years. yemen spiraling into absolute chaos. we have these stories covered the way only cnn can. let's begin with our pentagon correspondent barbara starr live in washington. what do we know at this hour barbara? >> good morning, alisyn.

the situation unfolding in kenya very carefully, very cautiously. this is still an ongoing terrorist attack as you say. hundreds of these students perhaps still unaccounted for as many as 15 potentially dead. this is a hostage situation. gunshots still ringing out. al shabaab gunmen attacking this university in southern kenya earlier this morning. now the al shabaab claiming credit for this attack is a group that the u.s. has been watching for years. their strong hold is in somalia. they have staged any number of raids and attacks across the kenya border. in 2013 of course they claimed responsibility for the attack on the west gate shopping mall in nairobi, kenya. this is a group that has also vowed to attack u.s. shopping malls in february of this year just a few weeks ago, they released a video claiming that they were planning to attack

u.s. shopping malls. they were talking about the mall of the americas in minnesota. one reason al shabaab is of such concern to the u.s. intelligence community, they are able to recruit american somalis to join their cause. they have had some success in doing that in the past. and there is a good deal of concern that the group is also trying to work on the internet work on social media to not just recruit those people but to potentially also stage so-called loan wolf attacks in the united states against soft targets and that is what we are seeing in kenya this morning. soft targets like universities like shopping malls that could never be fully protected, that are really in the cross hairs of groups like al shabaab. that is why the u.s. is watching them so carefully. it's worth pointing out in recent months the u.s. military including navy s.e.a.l.s, have staged a number of raids into somalia to try and kill top al

shabaab leaders. this morning we are seeing the group still very much alive. alisyn, chris. >> barbara, easy to get across the border there, too, and stage attacks. barbara, thank you for the latest. let's get to the other breaking story. yemen is a free-for-all for bad guys. al qaeda sprung hundreds of brothers out of a jail. cnn's becky anderson has the latest from abu dhabi. what do we know? >> as many as 300 prisoners, chris, many with links to al qaeda as you rightly point out escaped from a place called makala which is a city 300 miles of the coast city of aiden. cnn telling us dozens of attackers stormed the jail releasing one man particularly who is a senior al qaeda figure who we believe had been held for more than four years.

he's thought to be a monk and reportedly had a leading role in a battle with yemeni government troopsz in 2011-2012. at that point large amounts of territory were seized in the south and the east. this will complicate things for the saudi coalition that are making advances against the iran backed saudi houthi militia. this is going to rack up concerns that extremists are taking advantage of this lawlessness, chaos and confusion in a country who let's remember has a legitimate government who has expanded. the president sits in riyad. isis purportedly emerging in recent weeks in the country. big concern about what is going on at present in yemen.

>> absolutely becky. let's break down all of this breaking news with our cnn breaking news christian amanpour. >> let's talk about what's breaking in kenya. we believe there are possibly hundreds of students at this kenyan university still unaccounted for possibly being held by al shabaab. what is al shabaab trying to accomplish with this attack? >> reporter: well it does have this horrible boko haram ring about it, doesn't it going after schools just as boko haram does in northern nigeria. soft targets as barbara said. i've been talking and listening to the experts and what's happening is that al shabaab is trying to do as many spectacular attacks on these soft targets as possible to get the maximum amount of international coverage and they've been doing that relentlessly especially as we

remember the west gate mall. they according to the experts made a new claim. before it was we're going after kenya because kenya has put troops in to try to stabilize somalia. now they're saying when they claimed responsibility actually that part of kenya that they attacked today is actually part of somalia occupied by kenyan troops. they want to cause as much instability as possible. al shabaab has not affiliated itself with isis so it's not necessarily formally morphed into isis yet. trying to create as much mayhem as possible in east africa. >> you make a great point. al shabaab is notorious for having done the 2013 mall attack in nairobi. they've threatened mall attacks here in the united states. it's what you say, they're going for these sort of high profile soft targets with a big, emotional impact. >> exactly. the president of kenya,

president kenyata is due to address the nation and find out what they're going to do and how they're going to fight this. it is really difficult. some of al shabaab in that area they're not just somalis who have come across the boarder, they are kenyans. the idea is to divorce any kenyan input. the kenyan government it's an impossible challenge to secure the long and porous border there. >> we've been focused on isis and how brutal they are. how dangerous is al shabaab to the u.s.? what kind of resources do they have? >> reporter: well as you heard barbara say, they threatened to attack american malls, too. any number of terrorist groups can have sleeper cells in any number of places but they're most threatening to that particular east african region at the moment.

you know you go all the way over to yemen and you see a little isis. a lot of al qaeda, and the practical collapse of yemen right now into a failed state. you know all of these places so close to each other that a failing, failing, failing including libya, syria, iraq is getting a little bit better. one sort of liberated town at a time. but it's a huge confluence of this vacuum that is being filled by the most extreme of the extremists and that's very scary. in yemen everybody is talking about saudi pushing back the houthis. several days and weeks of bombing have not managed to push the houthis back. there are reports that some ground forces and expeditionary forces have landed in the south of yemen. we don't know who it is. is it the spearhead of a saudi invasion force? we don't know. it's not working. they haven't managed to push the houthis back. >> let's talk about the breaking

news out of yemen. 270 prisoners many linked to al qaeda have been turned loose in yemen by we believe al qaeda terrorists. it does feel as though yemen is completely unraveling in these past weeks. >> well it actually is completely unraveling. the u.n. special envoy says that. it's not just on the brink of civil war. i mean it is in civil war but it is on the brick of total collapse and failure, and you have to remember from american point of view and an american perspective, yemen was the place where cia director john brennan and president obama and the government has put so much time and effort in their counter terrorism strategy in yemen and this you know in a few short months really since september, has totally unraveled to the point that you have al qaeda being able to stage what it did just now, but of course al qaeda would take any opportunity of nikkei os to do it. maybe it's not surprising that in the chaos of what's going on right now, particularly in that

region they managed to make this jail break. these have happened in the past these jail breaks. they've managed to rein them back in. there's very little organization on the ground in yemen to push al qaeda back or to push the houthis back. very difficult to see where this is headed. >> christiane always helpful to give us context. let's get to michaela. back here at home religious freedom laws are getting makeovers. in arkansas they're letting lawmakers rework a bill they signed. in indiana, new language for a religious freedom bill. the changes are designed to silence critics who claim the law paves the way for businesses to discriminate against gays. cnn's miguel marquez is live in indianapolis where the ncaa is having a big tournament this weekend. >> reporter: yes, all of this will be done before tipoff it looks like. republican lawmakers say they have a deal at hand.

at 9:00 they will hold a press conference. by 9:30 it will be in committee. sometime thereafter in both houses and on the governor's desk. it sounds like from the "indianapolis star" they've inserted language in this new bill that would recognize the rights of sexual orientation across the state in this bill. that will not make the conservative backers of this bill happy because the religious businesses here wanted -- were concerned about having to perform services for gay marriages. that said arkansas watching what's happening here in indianapolis. business community really reacting vociferously to these bills, both in arkansas and here in indianapolis. the governor there not just backtracking but doing a back flip saying he would sign this once it got to their desk. once it did he sent it back and

asked them to rework it and make it along the lines of federal law. that's what they seem to be doing. among others the governor asa hutchinson his own son. chris. >> it's interesting, miguel if they put him to the law not to discriminate against the lgbt, what will the purpose of the law be. iran's foreign minister saying significant progress has been made during a break although there's nothing to announce yet. meantime criticism of president obama is ramping up for refusing to walk away from the talks after not one but two deadlines that went by without a deal. new jersey senator robert menendez set to appear in federal court in newark this morning after his indictment on corruption charges. he's accused of taking nearly $1 million in gifts and campaign contributions in exchange for political favors. the senator accusing prosecutors of not knowing the difference

between friendship and corruption. dramatic video to show you from police dash and body cameras as officers risk their lives chasing a tornado. newly released footage is from a twister that touched down from moore, oklahoma last week. you can see officers helping victims in a car wreck, officers scrambling to check on people in a damaged home including one that had its roof blown off. a sergeant kicking in a door to make sure people were okay do a safety check there. fortunately no one inside was injured. >> you guys all right? >> their job to run toward danger when the rest of us are running away. >> they do god's work. that's more visual evidence of it. >> especially there, moore, oklahoma. boy, did they get hit. there's a lot of uproar over legislation allowing discrimination of gays potentially. now arkansas's governor is refusing on signing it indiana is working on changes. is the tide changing? we have a supporter of indiana's

controversial law. he'll make his case. we have a "new day" exclusive. the man behind bikram yoga he's defending explosive sex assault charges. there are six women, three jane does three have used their names. five say you raped them one says sexual assault. did you actually have sex with any of these women? how he answers that question and many others might surprise, even shock you. that's coming up. i'm louis, and i quit smoking with chantix. quitting smoking is a challenge and it's a lot easier to go into a fight when you've got somebody that's got your back. having chantix as a partner made it more successful. along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. chantix helped reduce my urge to smoke.

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you can still love someone, even though you don't serve them. >> i would tell them i don't want to do it because of my beliefs. >> i serve a god that's higher than any supreme court judge. it's called the judge of the universe. i don't care what anybody else says. >> the battle continues in this clash of culture and the constitution. you are just seeing some business owners in georgia where a religious freedom bill is

under consideration saying they would refuse to serve the lgbt community. back in indiana the controversial religious freedom law is being clarified to ensure it can't be used to discriminate against lgbt folks. in arkansas the governor says he won't sign a bill until it is fixed in similar fashion. this is not going according to plan for supporters of these rfra laws like senior fellow for family studies mr. peter sprig. he joins us now. you don't like these fixes. why? >> i don't think there was anything wrong with these bills as they were originally passed because they simply create -- there's been tremendous misinformation about what they represent. the impression is being given that these bills represent a get out of jail free card for people who want to discriminate against homosexuals, and that is simply false. let me remind everyone, the bills contain no language respecting discrimination laws no language regarding sexual

orientation, they simply pursuant to the first amendment right to the free exercise of religion create a standard of review for deciding cases in which a person asserts that a government action is infringing on their free exercise of religion. they don't decide -- rfra doesn't decide how that case will be decided, how it will come out. it doesn't guarantee the religious person will win. it only says these are the steps that a court needs to do and what they need to look at. >> what would happen if you didn't have the law with the standard of review be any different at trial? >> the reason why rfra was first created at the federal level in 1993 was because the supreme court issued a decision which reversed earlier precedent. the earlier precedent had been that infringements upon the free exercise of religion were always subjected to what is called strict scrutiny meaning that there was a high burden of justification placed on the government if they were going to infringe on someone's free

exercise rights. the supreme court lowered that standard and so congress acted to restore it. but then the supreme court ruled that that federal law did not apply to the states. >> right. >> that's why they began doing it at the state level. >> we want to address misinformation on both sides. the laws as they are currently iterated in indiana and arkansas are not focused on what that '93 law was. that '93 law was to protect a disgreet religious minority doing something that isn't central to their faith but is important to them and may be missed by the rest of society, in that case native americans using peote. that is not what these laws are. this is about empowering businesses which are not a minority group and giving them a legal basis to defend judgments against others and that's the obvious concern which is why there's so much backlash. it's not the same as the '93 law. i think you know that. >> the standard of review is

exactly the same as the '93 law. the person in order to assert a claim has to demonstrate that there's a substantial burden upon their free exercise. if and only if they are able to demonstrate that then the burden of proof shifts to the government -- >> burden or likely burden. >> government interest being served by the least restrictive means. the standard is the same. >> burden or likely burden. likely burden you added to these, which means there is no burden yet, but i think there would be a burden. likely burden. you know the law, right? that's different. not just that you've been burdened because you did it but i'm not going to do it because i think i would be burdened right? >> look when there are conflicts, there's all these scenarios that have been raised about these horrible things that might result if we just allow religious freedom to run wild but that's not what this bill does. what the bill does is to provide a way of adjudicating those disputes. it's simple.

how will we prevent these horrible things from happening. demonstrating that there's a compelling government interest which is being accomplished by the least restrictive means. >> but why give a basis for people to discriminate? why allow it in a society where you're trying to move toward tolerance? why as a reverend during easter week would you be pushing christian in thechrist yan christian christianity as a process of ex exclusion and not inclusion. >> they are to adjudicate religious free exercise claims. they do not guarantee that religion will always win. that's all they are about. >> understood that that's what you think they're about i get it but why do you see the exercise of religion right? that's a term of art. that means something, okay? that's not just i think this that means i do this. >> exactly. >> what does it inhibit in your exercise of your christianity to say these people are gay and they're getting married and i

have a business that serves that proposition, i bake a cake. how is that inhibiting your exercise of your religion? >> okay. it inhibits the exercise of religion because it is forcing somebody to do something that violates their personal conscience. if somebody has a religious belief that marriage is by definition the union of one man and one woman and cannot be in god's eyes the union of two men or two women, then it violates their religious belief and their free exercise of religion to force them not only to participate in a ceremony that they don't support but to express a message of support and celebration using their artistic gifts in support of something. it's not only a freedom of religion issue, it's also a freedom of speech issue or a compelled speech issue in this case. >> we don't hear this being extended. i'm not going to take any role in this second marriage when this guy cheated on his wife.

i'm against adultery. it's one of the commandments. we don't hear that. hey, this guy, he lies a lot. i'm not going to have anything to do with his marriage and he can't make me because he's a liar and my christianity says lying is wrong. no always gays. and it is no coincidence that it comes from you because you're not about protecting a religious minority you are about trying to stop the progress of the lgbt community. please tell me that that is true. >> no that's not true. this bill is about religious freedom for everybody. it is intended to protect liberal religious views and conservative religious views. it protects minority religions and majority religions. it protects people that you agree with and people that you disagree with. if it doesn't protect everybody, it's not freedom. >> but here's the problem with your proposition, that we keep talking about christians because the christians are coming out saying that they don't like that this bill is being fought. yes, it may protect all religions but we're only hearing

from you guys. when you say it has nothing to do with the lgbt community, that's what you're best known for, saying that homosexuality is destructive to society. it should be criminal behavior. this is your attempt to insulate yourself from the movement in the country towards gay marriage and lgbt acceptance. why not just say that's what this is. we're against that. i've said it a thousand different ways and i want to protect my people. why not be honest? >> because that's not the issue we're discussing right now. >> that's your motivation. that's your motivation. you say misinformation about the perception of the law. your whole reason for being involved you're hiding from. >> well i do not believe that the movement in favor of same-sex marriage should enlist a strong arm of the government to punish people who sincerely -- who sincerely disagree with that. this law is to protect

everybody. it protects people who oppose same-sex marriage. it would protect -- >> you wouldn't need it if you supported same-sex marriage. >> it would protect a baker who refused to bake a cake that had scripture versus against homosexuality written upon it. i think that baker should not be forced to do something which violates his conscience and the conservative christian baker should not be forced to do something that violates her conscience. >> mr. sprigg i appreciate it. this is a debate. i look forward to calling on you on the future. thanks for being on "new day." have a good easter. >> thank you. all sides are back at the table talking about a nuclear deal with iran. is a deal a good idea while tehran supports terror in the middle east. we are pea going to discuss it all with someone who knows. i sure hope so. going to discuss it all with someone who knows. going to discuss it all with someone who knows. going to discuss it all with someone who knows. going to discuss it all with someone who knows. going to discuss it all with someone who knows. going to discuss it all with someone who knows.

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top diplomats worked through the night to salvage an iranian nuclear deal. they say progress is being made. it's still unclear if an agreement will be reached and when. aaron david miller is the vice president at the woodrow wilson

center. he's advised secretaries of states on both sides of the aisle on mid east peace. you're the man to talk to. let's use a sports metaphor. two deadlines pass. we're in the final yards of a game and those are often the most difficult or in my world it's like the last ten pounds you're trying to lose. how critical is this time? >> let's hope so. i was thinking of bill murray this morning. where are you, bill murray when we need you? this is beginning to resemble ground hog day. every day and night is a repetition of the previous one. i've been in negotiations where, in fact that's the case. you're in a sense trapped. you really do want to see this succeed. you know you may not be able to and you want to keep trying. the president clearly was the one who made it very clear to john kerry, forget the deadline let's see if we can get this right. the question is whether or not they can get it right. that's i think the tricky part. >> you talked to us maybe a week or two ago about the fact that you have seen the deadlines can be a good impetus in a

negotiation. they can put the chips on the table and get it done. this is a different scenario now that two deadlines have passed. >> it is. the iranians do not want to commit to detail at this stage of putting stuff on paper. the americans need to in large part because of congressional pressure but also because, look after 18 months the reality is normal human beings need to see whether or not there's something there there. the way to do that frankly, is to commit to a 6 to 10 page document which essentially lays out the commitments that both sides have undertaken to make this real. in the end they have to do that anyway in june. if they could produce a 10-page paper that basically laid out and convinced people this was going to be a smaller, slower more transparent literally easily verifiable iranian nuclear civilian program

blocking both paths to a bomb with both uranium and plutonium with inspections anywhere any time that's absolutely critical. they have to do that at some point. if they could get that then the deadline frankly, wouldn't matter but the deadline does because at least on our side there are political pressures. >> right. >> and the credibility of the negotiation really is at stake. >> i want to talk about the enormity of what we're talking about here. this is 35 years of an acrimonious relationship between these two nations dating back to the iranian revolution in 1979. i think we have the time line up on our screen here. one might expect it to take a while for this to break down. 35 years of being adversaries. there's been anti-american rhetoric. there are questionable tactics that the iranians have been involved in. it should take time should it not? >> it should and i think we have to be pretty real on what the outcome is going to be.

i mean this is not a transformation. you're not going to see a fundamental change in iranian behavior. it's still going to remain a repressive regime. they're still holding the washington post reporter. they're executing probably not nearly as many people as china. it's a repressive system. it has regional ambitions that in iraq syria, yemen don't coincide with ours. this is a transaction, a business proposition. they want something, we want something. maybe it will evolve over time into something more but, yeah michaela the reality is you do not -- it's like turning an aircraft carrier around. you're not going to do it quickly. it really is going to require an enormous amount of time and investment. they're going to have to demonstrate in effect that they're real and serious and credible. >> this is why we've come to you for a good dose of reality. you didn't disappoint. aaron david miller thank you so much. >> thank you, michaela. what do we all do when we

have back pain or joint pain we pop a tylenol. that turns out might not actually help your symptoms. we have a surprising new study to tell you about. dr. sanjay gupta will be here. that's straight ahead. stick around. normally people wear pants. yeah that's why i'm hiding captain obvious. not very well. i found you immediately. you know what else is easy to find? a new hotel with the hotels.com app. i don't need a new hotel room, i just need to get back into this one. gary? it's wednesday gary! i know that janet! hotels.com is more helpful than janet. in new york state, we're reinventing how we do business so businesses can reinvent the world. from pharmaceuticals to 3d prototyping, biotech to clean energy. whether your business is moving, expanding or just getting started... only new york offers you zero taxes for 10 years with startup ny business incubators that partner companies with universities, and venture capital funding for high growth industries.

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in today's new day new you raise a hand if you pop a tylenol when you have back or joint pain. yup. it turns out it might be a lost cause. pain relievers containing acetaminophen don't work as well as we think. let us ask the doc. cnn's chief medical correspondent dr. sanjay gupta, say it ain't so. we've been doing the wrong thing? what's wrong with this acetaminophen stuff? >> taking tylenol for back pain has been something that's been recommended for years. part of clinical guidelines. back pain is one of the most common reasons people go to an urgent care clinic. it's a huge issue. we use billions of doses of tylenol every year. they looked at these studies, looked at three big studies and tried to figure out just howhow well it works? they found out it worked no better than a placebo.

hardly no effect from tylenol. when you look at the studies the actual impact of tylenol seemed to be close toing ing intoto nothing. there are other side effects. risk-reward the conclusion is for back pain knee pain hip pain don't use tylenol. >> what are you supposed to use? >> look first of all we use a lot of pain relievers in this country. i will tell you that just a stat 80% of opioid usage is consumed in this country. we are 5% of the world's population we use 80% of the pain pills. my point is we jump to the pill pretty quickly. there are other options if a pill is absolutely mandatory, antiinflammatories such as ibuprofen, for example. those can cause problems as well. those can cause gastric -- some make bleeding. simple simple exercise simple

weight loss. if you lose 1 pound of weight you take 4 pounds off of your knees in terms of the load you have on your knees. you get an idea of doing other things besides going to the pills can have impact. it's not easy. people are like i want pain relief. i get it. i am a surgeon. that's often what patients come to us for. there are other nonmedical noninvasive options. >> he's making that face. what's the face? >> you've got to parse this right? it's not all pain relief that acetaminophen doesn't work for. you're saying it's backs, hips knees, something like that? these studies sometimes, you know they lay out a little bit more impressively until the next one, you know? >> look like i said back pain is one of the most common reasons people go to the hospital in the first place so i think that's part of the reason they looked at that. you're right. headaches, for example, toothaches things like that it's not to say that tylenol has no -- acetaminophen has no benefit. it's good for reducing fevers especially in kids. they were looking a the this

particular issue. chris, i think i'm making a larger point about how much we take in terms of pills in the first place and these noninvasive options. yoga can be a good thing. i know it's come under fire a little bit today on the program. yoga can be an option for back pain. >> good symmetry. good symmetry there. >> thank you, sanjay for our team. >> i'm watching. >> you really must be. >> now i understand sanjay tells me that something hurts, he says rub a little dirt on it. >> it does work. >> toughen you up. >> thanks so much sanjay. coming up in our cnn exclusive, six women accuse the creator of hot yoga of sexual assault. wait until you hear his response. >> lots of them commit suicide because i not have sex with them. >> wait. you're saying students of yours have committed suicide? >> yes. why do we spend every waking moment, thinking about people? why are we so committed to keeping you connected? why combine performance with a conscience?

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he's the yoga guru with an empire built on sweat. thanks to his signature hot yoga method. some of bikram choudhury's devotees say he took advantage of them and raped them. here is the second part of our exclusive interview. >> there are these six women, three are jane does three who have used their names. five of them say you raped them one says sexual assault. did you actually have sex with any of these women?

>> first thing is, no, of course not. and i said before, if i want to have sex with the women, i don't need to attack them or rape them or abuse them or assault them. there are millions of women in the world as a volunteer. >> bikram choudhury has built a yoga empire with his unique post posture sequences done in rooms set to 105 degrees for the ultimate workout with maximum sweat. his business is threatened. after six women have come forward saying they were sexually assaulted or raped by the man they considered their guru. >> i just remember i was terrified. i was paralyzed. >> sarah baughn is one of the six women. she says she was left alone with bikram one late night during a teacher training course. when she tried to leave she said

bikram cornered her. >> when i reached the door he was there. he was only in his boxers and a t-shirt and he pushed himself up against me and he held me up against the door and he just started kissing all over my chest and my body. and he had pushed himself into me very hard. >> and so how did you escape? >> it was all pretty fast but it felt like it was -- it took a long time. but i got the door handle down enough and it just cracked open enough that i was able to reach around with this. >> sarah baughn one of your students she's one of the students using her name. she found herself alone with you. >> wait. wait. that's not truth. >> you were never alone with her? >> no. i never meet with anybody, ever. i'm very careful about it. >> so here's the story. the story is the moment the door closed behind this staff member sarah rushed towards the door with her shoes in her hand at

which point choud dri ahury attacked her, pinned her against the door and attacked her. >> not truth. not truth. i don't do that. i don't have to. >> he says that the accusations are not true. he says that he never assaulted or raped anyone. he says that he made it a practice of never, ever being alone with any of his students. >> he's a person that has based a lot of truths on a lot of lies. he's built an entire empire on how he tells everybody the truth. i feel sorry for a person like that. >> choudhury repeatedly denied assaulting the accusers or even having consensual sex with them but when we asked him about sex with other students his answer was confusing. >> yes and no. >> what does that mean? >> but not the six of them. >> so you have have had sex with

some of your students? >> it's other way. it's other way. >> so to be clear, you did have sex with your students? >> yes and no. i said before. i have no intention to have sex with any of my students or any women. sometime student, they commit suicide. in their mind they commit suicide because i will not have sex with them. >> wait. you're saying students of yours have committed suicide? >> yes. >> they've threatened to commit suicide or they really committed suicide? >> threatening and died yeah. >> because you rejected them? >> yeah. >> choudhury claimed these encounters took place before he was married, but when we asked for evidence his attorney advised him not to give us names. >> you're saying you didn't have sex with them because you wanted to have sex with them? >> no. no. you had sex with them as a public service you're saying? >> well that is your word. you could say that. >> all six accusers have filed

civil lawsuits against choudhury in los angeles superior court. the los angeles district attorney declined to pursue criminal charges without explanation. choudhury's lawyer has a theory on the accuser's motivation. >> i believe it's financial. i truly do. i believe -- and i can't say towards the women because i really don't know but i know lawyers. >> we ended up with the first of these clients and when she came forward and went public it attracted other people and the other five plaintiffs to also have a modicum of confidence to discuss what happened to them. >> choudhury vows to clear his name. >> somebody has something good to offer to this country or to the world, they make me one today after making me like i'm your daughter i'm your son. you took me one hand you stabbing me on my chest like this and killing, slow poison. that's what you are doing to me. >> sarah baughn said she, too, wants the truth to come out.

>> what do you want to see happen? >> i don't want to be afraid of him anymore. i wish he would tell the truth and stop doing this. i don't even hate him. i get mad at him. mostly because he's lying. the people. the stuff that he's teaching. some people don't believe that he's capable of hurting people. stop lying behind him. >> well clearly pain on both sides. you've seen the alleged victims. this has caused a lot of pain. >> painful stuff. let's go to the good stuff.

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just can't wait to get on the road again ♪ >> i love willie nelson. >> me too. >> there's our willie. >> for "the good stuff." the internet can be a toxic place. it can be a land of blessings, witness both. we have a mother of 5 in muss keying keegan michigan. she lost her driver's door. didn't have the money to fix it. >> we just couldn't get it so we just had to drive without the door. >> i'd look over and they were taking pictures. okay well that's fine. >> no door. why were they taking pictures? for a bad reason. they were making fun of the van and people in it. you who did that you stink. not everybody was laughing. >> you don't beat somebody when they're down on the ground like that. start looking down on them. try helping them up. >> how about that? that's exactly what james barber did. decided it was wrong. he fixed the van out of his own pocket.

>> how about that. >> yeah she can't wait to pay it forward. >> i love it. >> that's great. >> that'll show the internet bullies. >> that's great. >> on that note let's move on to "newsroom" with carol costello. good morning, dear. >> good morning. thanks so much. "newsroom" starts now. and good morning to you. i'm carol costello. thank you so much for joining me. we're following two breaking news stories this morning. any minute now indiana lawmakers will hold a joint news conference with business leaders to outline their legislative fix to that controversial religious freedom law. we'll take you to indianapolis in just a moment. we start in nairobi, kenya. a story of true religious persecution. masters terror stormed a college campus. opening fire. at least 15 christians were