a dire warning. u.s. scientists call for urgent action on the zika virus, saying it could become an explosive pandemic. what you need to know, coming up. also, go home. protest leader ammon bundy tells his remaining supporters to quit the armed siege of a u.s. wildlife refuge. also ahead, trapped in norway. syrian migrants share their fears of deportation to russia. a very big welcome to our viewers in the u.s. and those of you watching all around the world. i'm errol barnett. thanks for joining me as i kick off the second hour of "cnn newsroom."

we'll get to all those stories in a moment. but we begin this hour with the escalating between u.s. presidential candidate donald trump and fox news. the republican front-runner plans to hold a fund-raising event for military veterans instead of taking part in thursday's debate. he's feuding with knock news anchor megyn kelly, who he's called biased. trump spoke with her colleague bill o'reilly, who tried to convince him not to skip the debate. watch. >> i think you should be the bigger man and say you know what, i didn't like it, and you should make that case all day long. but i'm not going to take any action against it. you know, don't you think that's the right thing to do? >> it probably is. but you know, it's called an eye for an eye i guess also. you could look at it that way. >> no. that's old testament. no, no, no, no. >> bill, you are taking it -- >> if you're a christian the eye for the eye rule goes out. here's what it is. turning the other cheek. >> you're taking this much more

seriously than i am. i'm not taking it seriously. >> who is? >> i'm going to have a wonderful time tomorrow night at 9:00 at drake university. >> but you're -- >> there you go. now, meanwhile, a new poll from monmouth university shows trump, as you see there, with a solid lead over cruz, ted cruz, in iowa. 30% to 23%. trump gained 11 points since the university's poll in december. keep that in mind. so no matter what the pundits say, trump is not back down. here's senior white house correspondent jim acosta. >> they can't toy with me like they toy with everybody else. >> reporter: it's a high-stakes game of political chicken just days before the iowa caucuses. donald trump is showing no sign of backing down from his threat to skipt fox republican debate tomorrow. >> let's see how they do with the ratings. >> reporter: asked whether the gop front-runner was keeping the door open just a crack trump's campaign manager all but slammed

it shut. trump's main rival in iowa, ted cruz, pounced. >> you know, donald is a fragile soul. >> reporter: launching a ducking donald page on his campaign website. if trump is afraid of megyn kelly, cruz crowed, let's debate one on one. cruz is also selling a new hat that reads "make trump debate again." >> you know, if she asks him mean questions, i mean, his hair might stand on end. >> reporter: trump fired back on twitter. can we do it in canada? but other gop contenders also see an opening. jeb bush told cnn's gloria borger trump's complaints show weakness. >> i think it's a little weird. life's unfair. you've got to make tough decisions. you have to challenge things. you have to deal with foreign leaders that don't agree with you. you can't take your toys and go home. >> reporter: trump blames it all on fox news for putting out a sarcastic statement suggesting the real estate tycoon was afraid of moderator megyn kelly. >> when they sent out the wise guy press releases a little while ago done by some pr person

along with roger ailes, i said bye-bye. >> reporter: trump lashed out on twitter. "i refuse to call megyn kelly a bimbo because that would not be politically correct." fox accused the trump campaign of trying to threaten kelly saying in a statement "we can't give in to terrorizations toward any of our employees." >> in many instances i identify as a democrat. >> reporter: it's a risky move. critics are recalling the times he slammed republicans for skipping a debate during the 2012 cycle, when he complimented kelly on her moderating skills. >> do you really think you're a better moderator than i am? >> no. i could never beat you. that wouldn't even be close. you have done a great job, by the way. and i mean it. >> reporter: trump is finding an ally in rush limbaugh, who said on his radio show that fox news is acting like it's been jilted at the altar and once again trump has found a new way to dominate the coverage in this race for the gop nomination. jim acosta, cnn, gilbert, south

carolina. joining me now to talk about all of this is democratic strategist joe lestangi and jeffrey lord, former reagan white house political director and donald trump supporter. he's on the right of your screen. welcome to you both. joe, i want to begin with you. we have this spectacle now of donald trump holding his counter event to the gop debate. it is adding a sense of drama to what are usually dry events. would you at least admit that trump has once again found a way to dominate the political conversation, unlike any candidate before? >> absolutely. donald trump has taken presidential politics to a whole other level. only the don could do. and he's actually proved one adage that we always talk about in politics, which is there's no such thing as bad press. we thought that went away a long time ago with scandals after scandals. but when his poll numbers lag or they start to drop or plateau he comes out with something that gets everyone talking about him again which then he sees a corresponding bump in his poll. and that's what he needs to do.

he's out there running these wind sprints to keep his numbers floating and it's working. no other candidate could do it like this, though. >> i know jeffrey would agree with you on that. but jeffrey, would you at least admit this is a huge gamble for donald trump? and it could in fact diminish this image he's built up of being a strong, successful deal maker. i mean, this kind of flies in the face of that. >> well, is it a risk that he's taking? sure. to some extent it is. but will it fly in the face of his image as being a strong, determined leader? no. absolutely not. this is exactly -- to take off on joe's point, this is exactly why so many millions of people love the guy. they look -- rush limbaugh did an excellent analysis of this today. on american radio and what he was saying in essence is that donald trump breaks all the conventional political formulas here for how you run a campaign. and in the doing of that what he

does is he makes the other guys look all too conventional. so it's a sign of strength at this point. he is immutably identified with strength. so i don't think anybody except his political opponents are going to try to make some hay out of it, are going to say that he's weak here. >> well, on that point rand paul is now using some of the most harsh language of any presidential candidate, commenting on trump's counter event. i just want you both to listen to this. >> i think donald trump's main addition that he's brought to the debate this year has been silliness, bombast and empty rhetoric and calling people names. so i don't think he's added much of substance the whole year. so i don't think he'll be missed. in fact, i really don't think donald trump's a conservative. i think he's a fake and a charlatan. >> whoa. jeff, what do you make of that? >> well, you know, i like rand paul a lot, but i have to say thus speak the words of somebody who's at 4%, 5% in the polls. i mean, this is what you've got to do. you've got to say hey, hey,

don't forget about me, i'm over here. and he's not going to be the only one who's doing, that i might add. >> who do you think benefits the most among republicans who will be on that stage? >> perhaps marco rubio. what happens, without donald trump on that stage, all the targets -- the target is going to be ted cruz. and number one, that's a problem for ted cruz. you know, marco rubio is going to try to nip at his heels. the others will zero in on him. number two, the problem for ted cruz is he's not in many respects a conventional politician either, which is why so many of these establishment types can't stand him. but standing on that stage absent donald trump with just the other guys, they're all going to look i think like a bunch of politicians in suits. and that's something in this particular election year to be avoided. >> now, joe, you're chuckling. you're nodding your head here. because really, rand paul there sounds more like a democrat. do democrats just love this? >> yes. we are eating this up. what this is going to be like.

once the convention's done and they've picked their nominee this is going to be like looking back on your high school years or college years and realizing all the mistakes you made. because they have basically opened up the sound bite trough for us to feed at. >> all right. democratic strategist low lestingi joining us from d.c. and cnn political commentator jeffrey lord in harrisburg, pennsylvania. thanks to you both for speaking with us. something both sides can enjoy. the spectacle happening in this race. >> thanks, joe. >> thanks. now, there is much more on the u.s. presidential race and all the politics involved coming up, including donald trump's supporters. who are they exactly, and why are they so firm in their belief that he should be the next president? also democratic candidate bernie sanders makes a visit to the white house. but first, a mosquito-borne virus linked to terrible birth defects is causing alarm. two u.s.-based scientists believe the zika virus has explosive potential to become a widespread outbreak, and they're

calling on the world health organization to meet and address it. a growing number of airlines, meanwhile, are offering refunds to passengers who booked flights to countries dealing with the outbreak. delta is among the latest to allow customers to get a refund or rebook their travel. the zika virus is active in at least 24 countries. currently there's no vaccine to prevent the disease or medicine to treat it. cnn's chief medical correspondent dr. sanjay gupta has more. >> reporter: so this is the blood sucker everyone's after. the female 80s egypti mosquito. she's the main carrier of several dangerous virus that's have spread around the world, including yellow fever, dengue, chickengunya and now zika. it's spreading in many top vacation spots such as the caribbean, mexico, and brazil, which is also the site of this summer's olympic games. unlike other mosquito-borne diseases zika has become of particular concern to pregnant women because brazil is now the epicenter of a zika epidemic

linked to babies born with microcephaly. it's a devastating neurological condition where the baby's head and brain don't develop. brazilian health officials say nearly 4,200 babies have been born with this condition since october. that's compared to 146 in all of 2014. 51 of those babies have died. women living in brazil, el salvador, colombia, and jamaica are now being told not to get pregnant at this time. and in the united states the cdc is also sounding the alarm. >> pregnant women should consider deferring travel to areas where zika virus is currently circulating. >> reporter: also, if you've traveled to these destinations while pregnant, get tested because 80% of those infected have no symptoms. babies should also be screened after birth. >> it's important for them to go in because we really don't know right now whether having symptoms or not having symptoms with zika virus infection has

any impact on the possibility that there will be a birth defect in the child. >> reporter: one baby was born with microcephaly in hawaii. his mom had traveled to brazil during her pregnancy. other states are also reporting confirmed cases of zika. but officials stress they did not get the virus here. instead, all had recently traveled to countries where zika is circulating. but if or when zika is locally transmitted, for those who are not expecting, the virus is usually mild and not a danger to future births. >> they will resolve the infection and they will have immunity. and should they plan to get pregnant in years in the future, in a few years or whatever, there really is absolutely no cause for concern. >> reporter: dr. sanjay gupta, cnn, reporting. now to some other big stories we're following for you. the fbi has arrested three more people who'd been occupying a wildlife refuge in oregon. officials say they surrendered at a police checkpoint near the

refuge. they now join eight other protesters who were arrested tuesday, and all will face felony charges. the group's been protesting u.s. federal land policies which they claim are illegal. from burns, oregon here's cnn's dan simon. >> reporter: errol, things remain very tense here as you still have some armed occupiers at that refuge. and it's anyone's guess how this will come to an end. but we should point out that through his lawyer the leader of the occupation ammon bundy is now telling everyone who is still there to go home. in his words, they should go home and hug their families. obviously, no one wants to see a repeat of bloodshed after you had one of the occupiers who was killed during that traffic stop. more than three weeks after armed militia took over a federal wildlife refuge in oregon a deadly shootout between militia members and the police. >> yesterday the fbi, with our partners, took the first steps

to bring this occupation to a conclusion. >> reporter: group leader ammon bundy and seven others were arrested tuesday night after the fbi and oregon state police pulled them over on their way to a meeting with community residents. bundy's brother ryan was shot and suffered minor wounds. but a spokesman for the armed occupiers, lavoy finicum, was killed. >> it's time for everybody in this illegal occupation to move on. there doesn't have to be bloodshed in our community. >> reporter: bundy's father says his son called him from the back of a police cruiser moments after the shootout. >> my son ryan had been shot in the arm. lavoy finicum, they cold-blooded killed him. he said he was out, had his hands in the air, said he wasn't armed, he wasn't any threat, and me cold-blooded killed him. >> reporter: authorities say ryan bundy and finicum did not obey orders to surrender and shots were fired. the armed group took over the refuge on january 2nd, in part to protest the sentencing of two

ranchers and to make a stand against what they called government overreach when it comes to federal lands. >> they continued to ignore us and pushed us to the point where we felt we had to make a stand to defend our rights. >> reporter: finicum previously told reporters he was willing to give his life for the cause. >> there are things more important than your life. and freedom is one of them. >> reporter: the sheriff says he'd been trying to work with the group to find a peaceful solution but in the end he just couldn't meet their ultimatums. >> we don't arm up and rebel. we work through the appropriate channels. this can't happen anymore. this can't happen in america and it can't happen in harney county. >> reporter: well, as things remained fragile here, one particular note is that the federal complaint which was unsealed today mentions that authorities had reason to believe that the occupiers had explosives and nightvision goggles. that's the first time we've heard that. but we should point out we don't know if officials were actually able to verify the presence of explosives. errol? >> thanks for that, dan.

dan simon's in burns, oregon. now, for many migrants germany is the dream land. but some iraqis are growing frustrated with what they found there. we'll hear why one woman decided to return to iraq. plus, iran's president continues his european tour, and it could end up with some lucrative business deals. a live report on this is next. and a demand for answers in flint, michigan. ahead, what the governor says is being done about the poisoned water there. the 88th southern parallel. we had traveled for over 850 miles.

my men driven nearly mad from starvation and frostbite. today we make history. >>bienvenidos! welcome to the south pole! if you're dora the explorer, you explore. it's what you do. >>what took you so long? if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. it's what you do. >>you did it, yay!

the european union says greece has "neglected its obligations" when dealing with the flood of migrants arriving on its shores. the european commission says that greece must step up border controls. the greek government says its done its best to deal with the influx of migrants and calls the accusations non-constructive. our nic robertson explains what border control actions the e.u. could take. >> reporter: this could in a matter of weeks now trigger a situation where the european commission decides that it may need to enforce border controls,

either internal border controls or essentially excluding greece, which would have the result of leaving the refugee migrant problem firmly in the lap of greece. and this is why we talk about the situation as if enough hasn't happened to greece already. of course the debt crisis that was temporarily, if you will, fixed in a way last year. now this, which could really hurt greece. >> now, some iraqi migrants frustrated with their experiences in germany are now returning home. germany is for many asylum seekers a dreamland. the country's received more than a million refugees. but the migrant influx has also strained german society. asylum seekers have faced anti-migrant attacks there and long processing of their asimon applications. a woman tells reuters she regrets even going to germany.

>> translator: the situation there was much worse than here. we have been there for about three months. we've got nothing. food was bad and very little. they used to give us a piece of cold bread and cheese and a piece of cucumber. how can one survive a cold winter on such food? and now to norway where protesters across the country are rallying in support of thousands of migrants who are stuck in a sort of legal limbo. the norwegian government has temporarily suspended plans to send them back to russia because apparently russia doesn't want them. our phil black joins us live from kirkenes in norway. phil, it's incredible to look at this from the view of a syrian refugee. you've experienced a civil war back at home. somehow if you're lucky you've made it out. but now you have to contend with the reality that your host country wants to send you back. how are they dealing with this? >> reporter: well, errol, they are understandably very anxious. they're facing enormous uncertainty. and they're quite desperate to

have a longer-term understanding of their future. most of them are staying in government-run camps. but we met three people who out of a real sense of desperation have fled that camp because they were terrified of the idea of being deported to russia. and they're now staying in a church here in the center of kirkenes in norway's arctic north. these people have sought sanctuary there, if you'd like. it's not legal sanctuary. the church can't really protect them. but they only hope that the symbolism of the church, the tradition of law enforcement not violating a church's doors in that way would stop their forced removal. so they are there waiting, hopefully, the best thing they can hope for right now is the government will either rethink their individual cases or rethink the policy of wanting to return people to russia that the norwegian government says already had legal permission to live in russia. indeed these three people staying in the church admit they had constitutionality visas in russia. they say they either have expired or were due to expire.

and they say when that happened they would have to return to their country of origin, which would be syria. they also say asylum applications in russia were unsuccessful and it was only after that that they decided they had to come to norway because they simply had no other choice. it is a very difficult time for these people. who the norwegian government seems very determined to return to russia. errol. >> now, they can at least enjoy the fact that there are groups of protesters throughout norway showing their support for the refugees but if they don't like what the government is doing now what's the alternative to deportation? what's the fix? >> reporter: the people we spoke to at protests here last night and there were others held in other parts of norway simultaneously, they don't argue, they say, for an open door policy. they just want a slightly more understanding, a sympathetic policy from the norwegian government. and the people of norway make the point that this is a country

that knows warfare and occupation because that is what it experienced during world war ii. nazi occupation and a bitter fight to liberate it from nazi control, particularly here in kirkenes they say. the town was pretty much flattened. very little left. it was one of the most bombed buildings in europe during that war. so they say that as norwegians they should know better, they should behave in a slightly more honorable way. they're just not quite happy with the balance the norwegian government is striking at the moment. errol. >> phil black. and those refugees and migrants are dealing with that bitter cold there in kirkenes, norway. just half past 9:00 there. phil, thank you. now, in a matter of hours iranian president hassan rouhani will meet with french president francois hollande. mr. rouhani is on a european tour to boost his country's reputation following last year's nuclear deal and maybe forge some business deals along the way. he told french business leaders thursday that iran was open for investment. but keep in mind france took a

very hard line against iran during the nuclear negotiation ppz so what's happening now? cnn senior international correspondent frederick pleitgen joins us live from tehran this morning. fred, tell us about president rouhani's european tour and some of the new business deals he's shoring up. >> reporter: yeah, you know, errol, france is actually a very significant country for the iranians as well. and we're looking for some pretty big deals that could potentially be signed on this day. one thing analysts are looking for is potentially a huge deal with airbus for some 114 new aircraft. the iranians of course have identified their airline industry as one that definitely needs a lot of upgrades. right now they're flying very old planes, having trouble getting spare parts because of the years of sanctions. so certainly that is something they want to sort out as fast as possible. also, the french are actually in a very good position here in iran. you look at for instance iran's automotive industry. until a couple of years ago there was a lot of cooperation with peugeot and renault, the iranians making those kind of

cars under license. so it should only be a matter of time before the french get into that market once again as well. and i actually spoke to one of hassan rouhani's main economic advisers just yesterday and he said yes, iran does want foreign direct investment but iran also wants technology transfer. they have a lot of young, very educated people and they want those people working with the newest technology and they want foreign firms to teach the people here those technologies. so certainly iran is trying to take a very sustainable approach to this but they also of course want direct investment very, very quickly because that's what the population here is yearning for, errol. >> and this is a very important time for the population for the country. iran's relationship with the outside world is changing, but there may be an effort to return to older values inside the country. what's happening as far as that relates to the upcoming election and the disqualification of some of the candidates. >> reporter: you're absolutely right. these are certainly very decisive times for iran. the people here in iran, many of

them are very happy about the fact that there is this nuclear agreement, but they want to see the benefits of that as fast as possible as well. and the upcoming election, which is due to be held on february 6th, is a very significant one because it not only elects the parliament but it also elects the body here that is going to choose iran's next supreme leader, who is of course -- has of course the final say in any sort of political and societal matters here in this country. so it's going to be very important elections. there's a lot of moderates who say that a disproportionate amount of moderate candidates have been disqualified by the body that vets the candidates. now, conservatives here deny that, but there certainly is a lot of controversy leading up to the vote. and if you talk to people here on the streets they will tell you yes, absolutely this election is very important and it's important because it's also a referendum by the people on whether or not they believe that the current course that iran is on is successful, errol. >> fred pleitgen live for us in iran's capital. thank you, fred. donald trump is maintaining his lead in the polls thanks to

his very loyal supporters. you'll hear why some young people are eager to vote for him next.

a big welcome back to our viewers watching here in the states and those of you tuned in from around the world. this is "cnn newsroom." i'm errol barnett. my last half hour with you today. let's check the headlines. two u.s.-based scientists believe a mosquito-borne virus has the explosive potential to become a widespread outbreak, and they're calling on the world health organization to meet and address it. the zika virus is linked to terrible and potentially deadly birth defects and is active in at least 24 countries.

recent satellite images of a secretive site in north korea are raising concerns about a possible rocket test. the images show movement of personnel, rocket-related equipment, and fuel to a satellite launching station. south korea's defense ministry says it's prepared for, and i'm quoting here, "various types of north korean provocation." the fbi has arrested three additional people who'd been occupying a wildlife refuge in oregon. officials say they turned themselves in at a checkpoint, a police checkpoint near that refuge. they join eight other protesters who were arrested tuesday, and all face felony charges. the group's been protesting u.s. federal land policies, which they claim are unfair. let's return now to one of our top stories, this feud going on between donald trump and fox news. the presidential candidate is standing by his decision to just

skip the fox presidential debate. this isn't the first time trump and the network have had a falling out. our senior media correspondent brian stelter takes a look at their bumpy relationship. >> reporter: hey, errol, this feud between fox news and donald trum is in some ways a clash between two of the most powerful men in awful media and politics. you have donald trump on one side and then his fellow new yorker roger ailes on the other. ailes is the powerful chairman and ceo of fox news. and it seems he's met his match. hamilton and burr. the hatfields and the mccoys. to the list of history's most famous feuds add donald trump and fox news? it could have been a match in media heaven. trump and fox news boss roger ailes are old friends. both are successful conservative businessmen who know how to put on a show. >> i have the most loyal people. did you ever see that? where i could stand in the middle of 5th avenue and shoot somebody and i wouldn't lose any voters. okay? >> reporter: but their relationship is tortured. and now at a breaking point with

trump boycotting fox's debate. this fight unprecedented for a tv news network. >> i don't know what games roger ailes is playing. >> reporter: for years ailes helped build trump up and trump brought ailes big ratings but now the two men are at loggerheads with some even comparing this to a monster movie. trump as frankenstein. megyn kelly is call the in the controversy. as she prepares to moderate a trump-free debate. >> i'll be there. the debate will go on with or without mr. trump. >> reporter: she famously clashed with trump at the first debate of the season, causing trump to threaten a fox boycott, and insult kelly personally. >> she gets out and she starts asking me all sorts of ridiculous questions. and you know, you could see there was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever. >> reporter: ailes was furious, and fox said "trump doesn't seem to grass than candidates telling journalists what to ask is not how the media works in this country." later ailes and trump struck a tenuous truce, then broke it,

then got back together again. and maybe they'll make up this time too. but right now feelings are raw and trump is the butt of jokes. >> this is the first gorgeous blond that he can't wrap around his finger. >> reporter: people are now choosing sides, with influential conservative radio host rush limbaugh siding with trump, saying fox is acting jilted. >> donald trump knows that by not showing up he's owning the entire event. some guy not even present will end up owning the entire event. >> reporter: so who needs whom more? fox or trum s&p thursday's ratings might start to answer that key question. now there, have been new developments in the past few hours. trump went on fox news. he was interviewed by bill o'reilly. and o'reilly essentially begged, lobbied him to actually decide to come to the debate rather than skipping it. but trump is holding his ground, saying he will hold his competing event instead to raise money for veterans and competing channels will probably air it while fox is airing the debate.

this is a very strange situation for both fox and trump. it's unclear who's going to come out ahead. errol, back to you. >> brian, thanks very much for that. many of you may be wondering what is donald trump's support all about? well, the cnn politics team talked to more than 150 americans in 31 cities and we asked them one simple question. why are you voting for trump? here's what some first-time voters had to say. >> 18-year-olds, we really value action and who's going to -- who's going to come through. and to us that's trump. i mean, he walked out to "we're not gonna take it." ♪ no, we ain't gonna take it >> tate moyer. >> brody book. >> look at all these kids. i've got kids in -- no, it's crazy. look at them. >> being an 18-year-old, being younger, the fact that donald

trump doesn't care about the, quote unquote, political correctness -- >> she was favored to win and she got schlonged. >> ordinary citizens say stuff like that. and i wouldn't say that any of us are sexist for using any of those terms or making those comments. but that's -- if you take that away, then you lose the authenticity, you lose the fact that he's speaking from his heart. >> there's a movement going on which is totally beautiful. >> politics is supposed to be boring. so when three 18-year-old kids are driving out 30 minutes to go to a trump rally, i mean, that's a movement. >> i love it. >> at first i did like rubio too because he has good ideas too and he's really good at public speaking. but when it gets down to the nitty-gritty and who i actually want to support and who i agree with all their policies it's trump. >> i'm more solidified i'm going to vote for donald trump. i don't know what it would take for me to not vote for him but

as of now absolutely. >> there you have it. that's what the teens think. turning now to the democratic presidential race, bernie sanders met u.s. president barack obama at the white house on wednesday. and for the first time the former senate colleagues have talked extensively since sanders started his presidential run. sanders said mr. obama is evenhanded in his views of the democratic candidates and called their get-together constructive. >> the president and i discussed this morning a number of issues, foreign policy issues. domestic issues. occasionally a little bit of politics. but i enjoyed the meeting and i thought it was a very positive and constructive meeting. >> tough to hear him there. meanwhile, hillary clinton is stepping up the pressure on bernie sanders ahead of the iowa caucuses. at a campaign stop wednesday she criticized his proposal for a single-payer health care system. listen. >> he has a different idea. and i fear it would lead to

gridlock, not action. it would throw us into a contentious national debate that would not move us forward, and i don't think the people i've met in iowa can wait. >> clinton is also calling on sanders to attend an unsanctioned democratic debate next week in new hampshire. the sanders campaign has not committed to that event so far. now, to another story we're following for you. activists and national organizations are filing suit demanding more water testing and replacement of all lead pipes in flint, michigan. the state switched the city's water source to save money about two years ago. high levels of lead were found and an outraged community is demanding action. and they have been for some time. governor rick snyder told cnbc poppy harlow it's too soon to know how many children have been harmed by this. >> that's the problem here is, we know the ones that have higher levels to do appropriate follow-up care.

it's really we need to establish the right medical protocols. the public health pieces, the educational process things. to watch these kids for years that didn't have higher blood levels in terms of a blood test because they could be affected. >> so you're saying there's 100 children as of now who have tested for these high levels of lead. >> yeah. >> but because it's harder to test for it after an extended period of time there may be many, many more. >> there could be many more and we're assuming that. >> you're assuming many more. >> yes. >> so say, we're sitting back here in five years. >> mm-hmm. >> will those lead pipes be replaced? >> well, i hope a lot of work has been done on that topic. it's too soon to tell because i can't tell you how many pipes and where they are. but as a practical matter we should be working on that very clearly. >> but isn't it the safest thing, governor, given what they've been through? >> it's the safest thing. it's a question of how to work lu it in the best fashion to make sure we're getting all the resources because i view this -- >> what would stand in the way of that other than money? what would stand in the way of replacing them? >> well, we've got a statewide issue too in terms of lead

pipes. >> now, filmmaker and flint native michael moore says snyder should be arrested. >> the fact that he hasn't replaced a single lead pipe, not a single lead pipe since this came to light, he's known about this, we know of at least, since last february. this is a cover-up. it's fraud. it's a version of manslaughter now because we have ten people that have died from legionnaire's disease. >> the governor has appointed a committee of health and environmental experts to find a long-term solution to the ongoing water crisis there. now, thousands rally in italy's capital before a battle over same-sex unions begins in parliament. we'll have details and a live report. much more on that after this. growing up, we were german. we danced in a german dance group. i wore lederhosen. when i first got on ancestry i was really surprised that i wasn't finding all of these germans in my tree. i decided to have my dna tested through ancestry dna. the big surprise was we're not german at all.

52% of my dna comes from scotland and ireland. so, i traded in my lederhosen for a kilt. ancestry has many paths to discovering your story. get started for free at ancestry.com.

we can show you live pictures from parliament in

rome. italy is the only country in western europe that doesn't recognize civil unions or gay marriage. thursday's debate follows protests last weekend where thousands rallied for change. cnn contributor barbie nadeau joins me now live from rome with details on this. barbie, you've got a groundswell of support from one set of people and a counterdemonstration coming up. what are the arguments each side is making? >> well, it's very, very divisive. of course the catholic church or the vatican is in support of the traditional family. they don't want to see same-sex unions being able to adopt and have children. that's the big issue in this. those who support it want basic rights, basic inheritance rights, basic tax breaks. we did find one family who's living a very different reality from what the law states as it is right now, errol. >> reporter: andrea rubera and dario de gregorio are a happy family. but they want more.

>> in canada we are married, and we are -- we had our children. our children were born through surrogacy in canada legally. and we are both parents of a 3-year-old. nine hours of flight we jump into italy and we become two single fathers living together occasionally, sharing the same flat. >> reporter: same-sex couples like andrea and dario want italy to now respect their marriage. they and tens of thousands of others have taken to the streets across italy to demand equality and basic rights like tax breaks and inheritance rights. the italian parliament is now dablting a bill that would recognize those rights for same-sex couples. under pressure from the european court of human rights it deemed that italy was in breach of human rights by denying them. it's an issue highly influenced in italy by the vatican. the most contentious aspect of

the law is what to do with the kids. >> they say that children have no choice. >> reporter: massimo franco is a political analyst. >> the very sensitive issue is stepchild option. this is the problem. i can't see just a division between catholics and non-catholics. there are catholics who tend to agree and non-catholics who don't agree on this law. >> reporter: italians are divided. >> we believe that no one of whatever sexual orientation has the right to have children. on the other hand, children have rights. and the first and fundamental right is the right to have a father and a mother. >> reporter: the italian bishops and many associations that stand against this bill are organizing a family day march this weekend to make their point. they expect as big a turnout as the demonstration they held last june when tens of thousands of people participated.

the parliament debate would take weeks before a vote, and even if the law passes it could eventually end in a referendum. in the meantime families like andrea and dario represent the reality of same-sex couples in italy. divided and treated differently while trying to stay the same. well, you have it right there. just really the situation. you know, the law is not going to change anything for families who are living with same-sex couples as children. and that's what the church and opposition doesn't want. they don't want that recognition. and that's where the divide is. >> all right. we'll continue to watch this closely. cnn contributor barbie nadeau joining us from a very foggy morning there in rome. barbie, thank you. the former president of ivory coast is set to go on trial at the international criminal court on thursday. gbagbo faces crimes against humanity charge. he is the highest-ranking

politician to stand trial at the tribunal. robin kreel joins us live from the treb na'll in kenya. this conflict split cote d'ivoire in two. stability has since returned. what exactly will the former president face when he enters the criminal court? some worry this could stir up all the old grievances. >> reporter: well, the trial has just begun 15 minutes ago at 8:30 greenwich mean time. as you said it could stir up old grievances on the ground in cote d'ivoire. but in the courtroom itself he is facing four crimes against humanity charges including murder, attempted murder, rape and persecution. this will really be a litmus test for the international criminal court. he is as you say the highest profile person facing trial at the tribunal. he is the first former president who is facing trial at the tribunal. and as i said, this could be a litmus test, a very important litmus test for the icc, which is sometimes said to have very

little teeth. >> and what about reactions of the current president? human rights watch is saying that some budget constraints and stonewalling has prevented investigations of his actions. >> reporter: well, yes, that's a question a number of people are asking and it's often an accusation leveled at the international criminal court-s how can they just try one side of a civil war? in this case one side of civil unrest. from 2010 to 2011. former president laurent gbagbo lost those elections in 2010, but atrocities were committed by both sides and investigations need to continue on both sides at the moment just people from former president gbagbo's side are being tried including charles blagoday, his former youth minister and as of yet we have not seen anyone from president -- current president atara's side being tried. and as you said, there have also

been allegations of stonewalling. the icc is still looking. they say they are still investigating and will try to bring anyone they can to justice for those crimes. >> very interesting. robyn kriel live in nairobi for us. thank you. "cnn newsroom" continues after this short break.

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after intelligence created by google researchers has solved the game of go a decade earlier than expected. this ancient chinese game is considered one of the most difficult board games ever. but the computer, named alpha go, was able to beat european human champion. experts say the technology could have other real-life applications like medical research. very cool. well, actually, no. this is probably the coolest thing you will see all day. a spanish acrobat paragliding in norway with the northern lights as a backdrop. he put this on his instagram page. this fantastical flight is courtesy of beverage company red bull and it took a lot more than energy drink to complete. the paraglider needed a wet suit and battery-heated gloves to fight the subzero temps and bring us that very cool video. nice. i'm errol's window on instagram, errol barnett in real life, errol cnn on twitter.

early start is next for those of you in the states. for everyone else there's more "cnn newsroom." i'll see you all next week. . . .

in just hours, republicans running for president face-off on the debate stage except for the frontrunner. and bernie sanders and hillary clinton in a dead heat in iowa. strategies to bring in undecided voters. breaking news. new arrests in the oregon standoff. we welcome to "e