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Transcripts for CNN New Day 20131206 11:53:00

it wasn't being pompous, of course, it was his sense of purpose. that's what i want to ask for you, perspective on, we hear about his gentility, his amazing ability to forgive. talk about the fire within this man, the forcefulness, the passion, the fierceness that he brought to what he thought was right. >> it's a miracle that nelson mandela was the one who led us out of apartheid in south africa, because he was the one who said i'm not going to treat the whites as they treated us. he says we're all one, south africa. we're all south africans. and that was the greatest miracle that ever happened. his commitment was strong. if you looked and talked to him, he always talked about others in the movement. he never accepted the credit. every time i was in his presence and i would say to him how much i admired him and all the great things that he did and accomplished, he says, no, it was not me. i was not alone. there were many, many others. but the other important principle was that he believed

Transcripts for CNN EarlyStart 20131206 10:32:00

arwa? >> reporter: we are talking about a nation being in mourning but this is also, at the same time, a nation very much celebrating the man whom very few here can actually find words to describe. he has been called a hero, a legend. but for so many of the people here that really felt the profound impact of what nelson mandela, in essence, truly was. they are at a loss for words to describe how they are feeling right now. the crowd behind us gathered in front of his house in johannesburg, has been singing and chanting and just finishing singing the national anthem now. a little bit of moment of silence. tps he it was here in this house he passed away last night and his body moved to a military hospital and embalmed the next three or four days before going to a soccer stadium here in johannesburg for a public memorial. the casket will then lie in state before finally moving on to be buried in mandela's

Transcripts for CNN New Day 20131206 12:23:00

president of south africa. we thank you all for joining us to share your recks and time with mandela. we start with you, congressman. i'm curious, as a man, as a politician, tell me about the impact he had on you after meeting him. >> wow, no one has presented the question as you have. as a kid, i'm embarrassed to admit i knew very little about africa. if you wanted to insult a black kid, a colored kid, you killed him african because the world, including the united states, had allowed us to believe that africa was so underdeveloped, that the world had an attitude that they were inferior people as opposed to the europeans. when nelson mandela became a world leader and was on

Transcripts for CNN New Day 20131206 12:47:00

hardened him. one day he said to me, i came out mature. very rare, a mature man. >> i told you, he said it to more than just you, why he is adamant that i am not a saint. he said that often. >> i think there's a lesson for all of us. he wasn't a saint. what he was was -- and he was proud to call himself this -- he was a politician, a politician that managed to bridge these unbridgeable divides and he was very pragmatic. he had one unyielding, undeviating principle, freedom for his people. everything else was a tactic and everything else helped him achieve that goal. >> do you remember in 1990, the posters, the t-shirts. power to the people. >> right. >> one of the frustrations now is, he had obviously slowed down and changed. he was not the power figure that he had become. but he is gone now and now there

Transcripts for CNN New Day 20131206 12:09:00

welcome home. we love you. we love you. we love you. it says welcome home again. many south africans find a home here in harlem and today a tribute to the newspapers here -- by the newspapers here in new york city. this is "the daily news." it says farewell, dear friend, the world mourns the death of south africa's giant. kate, chris? >> beautiful headlines on many newspapers this morning. >> remember how he changed this country when he came in 1990. the t-shirts, power to the people. he was an extraordinary man. as a result he'll have an extraordinary farewell. the first public event will happen on monday when mandela will receive a memorial service in johannesburg's soccer stadium. some heads of state are likely to attend, including president obama. starting tuesday, there will be three days of lying in state in pretoria.

Transcripts for CNN New Day 20131206 12:01:00

we're live across the storm zone. this is "new day" with chris cuomo, kate bolduan and michaela pereira. it's friday, december 6th, 7:00 in the east. two major stories for you this morning. we'll get to the major winter storm brewing in the south. it's cancelling flights and making a mess of roads. >> first of course the world is mourning the loss of nelson mandela, passing away last night at the age of 95. if the reaction following his death proves anything, his life was long but his legacy will last forever. >> and what that legacy is is also, we're starting to see through the celebration of it. of course there is sorrow at this sad news but the man who liberated, who birthed a free country, there is singing and dancing for the spirit of that memory. it's been going on outside his home throughout the night as they learn of the loss of the man they knew as madiba. we'll cover mandela's death all around the world this morning.

Transcripts for CNN EarlyStart 20131206 10:09:00

college when he spoke out against apartheid. for president obama, nelson mandela was a personal hero and personal idol who struggled his earliest ambitions. >> i am one of the first who grew inspiration from nelson mandela's life. my first political action, the first thing i ever did that involved an issue of policy or politics was a protest against apartheid. >> reporter: they met in person only briefly in 2005 before obama became president. the two leaders, each standing in history as the first black president of his nation, spoke occasionally by phone. president obama penned the forward for mandela's 2010 memoir "conversations with myself." he wrote his example helped awakened me to the wider world and the obligation that we all have to stand up for what is right. through his choices, mandela made it clear that we did not have to accept the world as it is, take we could do our part to

Transcripts for CNN New Day 20131206 12:39:00

holiday ceremony. it will be hosted by actress jay lynch, of "glee" fame and will feature performances by mariah carey and aretha franklin. if you can't attend, don't worry, they'll stream it live online. we are officially in the spirit, people. >> yes. once the trees get lit, it's on. >> it's on. we'll take a break here on "new day." when we come back, people in south africa are gathering in celebration and, of course, sar row remembering nelson mandela. we talk with the former british prime minister tony blair about the leader and what it will mean going forward. >> the sun shall never set on so glorious a human achievement. let freedom be. god bless africa. we're aig. and we're here. to help secure retirements and protect financial futures. to help communities recover and rebuild. for companies going from garage to global.

Transcripts for CNN EarlyStart 20131206 10:15:15

Transcripts for CNN EarlyStart 20131206 10:34:00

going to be able to rest in piece. >> 71 coming out of prison' still becoming president after that. in fact, those sunset years for so many people were some of his most active years. >> you said something interesting. you said he changed so many minds. he also changed hearts. one of my favorite quotes from nelson mandela, he said if you can learn to hate, you can be taught to love. >> a powerful message and comes at a time when people are feeling such unrest in our world. so it will be interesting to see how his legacy, one he worked his life over to create, if you will, will be felt and translated for today's world. >> let's hope. all of the living u.s. presidents are paying their respects to nelson mandela. president obama speaking at the white house last night. >> tonight our thoughts and prayers are with the mandela family in south africa. they're grieving the loss of a man, a moral giant who embodied the dignity and courage and hope and sought to bring about