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Trump: Arizona Abortion Ban Will Be "Straightened Out"; Iowa Gov. Signs Bill Making Illegal Immigration A State Crime; Soon: FBI Director On Hill After GOP Blocks FISA Program; Rep. Tom Tiffany (R- WI) Discusses Surveillance Law Expiring Next Week, Dividing House GOP; DOJ: Ex-Interpreter Stole More Than $16M From Ohtani. Aired 1:30-2p ET
Aired April 11, 2024 - 13:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[13:31:01]
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Now in Arizona, Republicans are the dogs that caught the car. The car being a full abortion ban. And now some of them don't want the car and some of them do.
The result is chaos after Arizona's Supreme Court invalidated a 2022 ban on abortions after 15 weeks, forcing the state to revert back to an 1864-era total ban.
So what to do, as former President Trump clearly worries this could cost him this key state and maybe even the election in 2024.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Did Arizona go too far -
(CROSSTALK)
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Yes, they did. And they'll be straightened out and, as you know, it's all about states' rights. That'll be straightened out. And I'm sure that the governor and everybody else will bring it back into reason and that will be taken care of, I think, very quickly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Trump said that, by the way, from Georgia, a state with a six- week ban, as he wants Arizona to go back to its 15-week ban.
That aside, the answer is clear to him and his backers. The answer is Democrats doing him a solid.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEAN HANNITY, FOX HOST, "HANNITY": Trump opposes the law and this ruling. Or you can believe Joe's make-pretend Donald Trump. It doesn't exist. And you know what? Arizona's governor is a Democrat. The state's attorney general is a Democrat. The state legislature is almost evenly divided.
If Democrats, you want to get rid of the law, well, you have a chance right now to get rid of it. And I would advise you, get rid of it. They would rather use it as a political tool ahead of November.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: While Sean Hannity generally operates in a fact-free zone, he is right about one thing there, Arizona's legislature is almost evenly divided in favor of Republicans.
And when he proposed that Democrats get rid of the law, he did so disingenuously. And I'm being generous. Because a Democrat tried to do just that.
Stephanie Stahl Hamilton, back in January, and her bill never even got a hearing in committee. But Arizona doesn't need Democrats to save the day. They've got Republicans.
And one tried to get moving on a vote to overturn that 1864-era abortion ban yesterday. And six hours before Sean Hannity suggested the Arizona legislature could just make it go poof, a Republican made sure it didn't.
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STATE REP. DAVID LIVINGSTON (R-AZ): All in favor of that motion vote aye.
(SHOUTING)
LIVINGTON: All of those vote no.
(SHOUTING)
LIVINGSTON: (INAUDIBLE)
(SHOUTING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Arizona House Rep. David Livingston putting the Arizona House into recess until next Wednesday, less than one week before abortion becomes illegal in the state, all but ensuring abortion providers will stop providing abortions.
And yet, that was the point. That was the car that Trump was chasing when he set up the Supreme Court to guarantee it would allow states to ban abortion.
And he said, on Truth Social, quote, "I was able to kill Roe v. Wade."
He's proven there's a fine line between catching the car and being run over by it. So they may be 500-some miles apart, but it appears that Texas'
controversial immigration law has spread to Iowa. Governor Kim Reynolds has just signed off on a bill that's similar to Texas. It gives state law enforcement this power to remove some undocumented immigrants.
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Now Iowa's version of the law would mean up to two years in prison if someone is found in the state to have illegally re-entered the country.
CNN's Whitney Wild joins us now with the details.
Whitney, it's obviously not clear to this point if S.B.-4 in Texas is actually constitutional. That is still tied up in court. I'm wondering, what's been the reaction to Iowa's law?
WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: Well, it certainly depends on who you ask.
If you ask the Biden administration, they are turning right around and really blaming Republicans for these stalled efforts on Capitol Hill, saying it's Republicans who tanked a bipartisan deal that would have really beefed up some of the policies and procedures at the border.
[13:35:04]
So they're turning around and saying that Republicans, this is really in your court now.
Meanwhile, if you ask people who advocate for immigrants in Iowa, they say this. This is from an immigration group that has been protesting this law for about a year now. This is the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice.
And they said this: "We know that we all belong here. Iowa is home. And we will stand together as workers, families and allies to defend each other."
They went on to say, "Welcoming immigrants and refugees is the definition of what Iowa Nice should be."
The group said -- saying that Governor Reynolds is failing newly arrived and longtime Iowans.
Certainly, there is a very good chance, I would say a nearly 100 percent chance, that this law is challenged in the same way it is in Texas. Right now, that is stuck in federal court as judged their way whether or not that law is constitutional.
Certainly, a similar legal path is highly likely in Iowa.
Back to you.
SANCHEZ: Whitney Wild, thanks so much for the update.
Still ahead on CNN NEWS CENTRAL, the fight over FISA. The controversial surveillance program exposing another fault line in Republican politics. And it is the latest problem that will throw Congress into chaos.
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[13:40:43]
KEILAR: Minutes from now, FBI Director Christopher Wray will be testifying at a high-stakes hearing on Capitol Hill. And he's expected to tell lawmakers why it is critical to renew Section 702 of FISA, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act before it expires next week.
Wray calls the law, quote, "absolutely indispensable" when it comes to avoiding terrorist attacks on America, because it lets U.S. intelligence monitor foreign nationals overseas.
But the law also sometimes allows Americans' communications to be collected. And critics from both parties want more done to protect civil liberties.
Yesterday, after former President Trump called on the GOP to kill FISA, 19 House Republicans blocked a key vote on it, revolting against Speaker Mike Johnson.
Joining us now to discuss is Republican Congressman Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin.
Sir, thanks for being with us.
You'd posted on X, formerly Twitter, that the federal government should not be spying on U.S. citizens without a warrant, get a warrant. Obviously, you have concerns here.
You seem to be against Section 702 as it stands. You did not, though, join your colleagues in tanking what was a rule vote, a procedural vote yesterday? Can you tell us why?
REP. TOM TIFFANY (R-WI): Yes, that's correct. I just wanted to get to a vote. That's why I voted yes on that procedural rule vote.
Because I want to be able to hold on the amendment that stops these warrantless searches. And I believe we have the votes in the House to be able to pass this.
I mean, look at the Judiciary Committee, which I sit on. We passed that, our version of the bill, out of Judiciary, 35 to 2. I think there's broad bipartisan support for these reforms to 702.
KEILAR: And I want to talk about some of the politics of this. But first, let's talk about the substance. What is the most important reform to you in your opinion?
TIFFANY: It's -- it's the amendment that prevents warrantless searches. I mean, that really is the amendment that's at the heart of it. And that was contained in the Judiciary bill. I was disappointed that that's not the base feel that we got. But anyhow, that was the negotiations that went on through the House.
We have the amendment before us. I do think we have the votes. And that's why I voted yes on this.
Hopefully, leadership and the recalcitrant 19, at this point, that voted no, hopefully, they're working out their differences and we can get this to the floor and be able to vote on it.
Because I know Speaker Johnson really wants to get this done by the deadline of April 19th.
KEILAR: Would a warrant preclude the government from surveilling a foreign citizen in this foreign communication if there was an American citizen in the communication?
TIFFANY: Yes, I don't believe that this would preclude us from being able to access information in regard to a foreign individual. I mean, think about it. FISA, it starts out with foreign, foreign intelligence surveillance. There'll be able to continue to do that.
This is, in large part, a failure by our intelligence agencies in doing their job. While they're talking consistently about going after Americans? And we have seen it regularly over the last few years. They should be focused on the real threats to America.
KEILAR: What are you talking specifically about?
TIFFANY: I'm talking about when they go after Catholics in their Richmond Diocese, when they go after people that go to school board meetings, when they -- when they work hand in glove with the social media companies to deny people or throttle people from being able to share information.
(CROSSTALK)
TIFFANY: They should be protected --
(CROSSTALK)
KEILAR: I don't think that's 702. I don't think that's 702. Right?
I want to stick to -- I don't think --
(CROSSTALK)
TIFFANY: But they're diverting -- they're diverting -- they're diverting --
(CROSSTALK)
KEILAR: We need -- we need to --
TIFFANY: -- away from the work that they should be doing.
KEILAR: We need to talk about 702. This is very important.
(CROSSTALK)
KEILAR: That's the topic at hand here.
According to the U.S. intel community, 60 percent of the president's daily brief articles in 2023 stemmed from FISA Section 702 data.
Bill Barr, who was former President Trump's A.G., says, if there's a terror attack, anyone who votes against FISA is going to have blood on their hands.
What is your reaction to that?
TIFFANY: So we don't have to compromise peoples' Fourth Amendment rights here. And plus, we put an exception, including in the Judiciary bill, if it is so time sensitive, the intelligence agencies get an exception.
[13:45:04]
It is written into the bill. They're able to continue to do their work. If they need to do it, and if they need to get an immediate stop for somebody that is seeking to do America harm.
KEILAR: All right. let's talk now about some of the politics of this. Because, as we said, Republicans tanked this rule vote. I think that doesn't mean much to a lot of people.
But that's actually -- as you know, that -- that's a big deal. That doesn't happen very often. But it's been happening increasingly with this sort of cadre of House Republicans.
How should we -- you can help us. How should we understand this vote? Was it actually about opposition to FISA Section 702 or was it a protest vote against Speaker Johnson? Because the failed rule votes under Speaker McCarthy were a bit of a harbinger of his fate.
TIFFANY: Yes, I can't speak to is this some effort to undermine Speaker Johnson because I have not heard that.
I think it's a group of people that want to have a better bill. We're going to find out now, probably in the next 24 hours or so, if that is actually the case, if we see a bill come back to the floor.
And I think that there's some negotiations that are going on behind the scenes between leadership and some of those 19 to try to get the bill to the floor. I sure hope that that's the case.
KEILAR: It does so happen that many of the people who you think want a better bill are also the people who ousted Kevin McCarthy. There's quite an overlap in the Venn (ph) diagram there.
Do you -- do you personally have confidence in Speaker Johnson's leadership?
TIFFANY: Yes. I think, if he gets this bill to the floor, he's trying to work his way through it. And I mean, we're going to find out. Leadership is a tough thing. He's stepped into a very difficult job. And he's just trying to work his way through it and try to get to the best place.
Now those of us that sit on Judiciary, that believe in this bill and making sure that we don't have warrantless searches, we're going to fight as hard as we can to make sure that that happens.
KEILAR: Congressman Tom Tiffany, thank you so much. We appreciate your time today.
TIFFANY: Good to join you, Brianna.
KEILAR: And next, he's accused of stealing millions of dollars from Dodgers star, Shohei Ohtani. But the DOJ just revealed he took a whole lot more than originally thought.
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SANCHEZ: This just into CNN. New developments in a gambling scandal that shook Major League Baseball during its opening week. The Department of Justice just announcing charges against the former interpreter for Dodgers superstar, Shohei Ohtani.
KEILAR: Yes. This came after accusations that he'd stolen millions of dollars from Ohtani to pay gambling debts.
We have CNN national correspondent, Nick Watt, joining us live from Los Angeles.
Nick, pretty interesting here. Tell us what you're learning.
NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, a couple of bombshells in this press conference, which is still ongoing. They're taking questions right now.
Now, initially, everybody's been reporting that it was about $4.5 million that Ippei Mizuhara, the interpreter, allegedly stole from his friend and boss, the baseball star, Shohei Ohtani.
We have not been told that, in fact, it is over $16 million that was stolen between 2021 and just recently.
The money allegedly stolen in order to finance the interpreter's gambling habit and, apparently, I've been told by people connected to the case, he was not a very good gambler. So to finance his habit and to finance the losses that he made.
One interesting little nugget that we were given is that the money used to place the bets and pay off the debts, that came from Shohei Ohtani's account. But when there were any winnings, those went into the interpreter's account.
Now, one of the questions that's really been unanswered is, how on earth could this interpreter actually access this money from Shohei Ohtani's account without being noticed?
Well, we have just been given an insight into how that happened. Apparently, the interpreter set up the bank account for Shohei Ohtani, denied access to that account to any of Ohtani's other advisors, claiming that Ohtani wanted that account to be kept private.
And we were just told in this press conference that the interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, would also impersonate Shohei Ohtani in dealings with bank officials in order to get these massive transfers of money approved.
So he is being charged with bank fraud. We are told that that carries a sentence -- maximum sentence of 30 years.
Now, "The New York Times" has been reporting that Ippei Mizuhara is already in negotiations for some kind of plea deal here. We have not confirmed that as yet -- guys?
SANCHEZ: And, Nick, have we heard from Ohtani and all of this?
WATT: Well, we heard from Ohtani a couple of weeks ago. He gave a very strident press conference in which he called Ippei Mizuhara his -- listen, I mean, these guys we're friends. They worked together, but they were friends.
[13:55:05]
And actually, the interpreter was just described, not just as an interpreter, but as a de facto manager.
Now, Shohei Ohtani in that press conference called Mizuhara a gambler, a thief and a liar. And he vehemently denied any connection at all, said he had not placed bets on baseball ever.
One other thing to note, by the way, apparently, the interpreter never gambled on baseball. Other sports only -- guys?
SANCHEZ: Wow, some interesting details there.
Nick Watt, thanks so much for that.
Up next, back to the breaking news. Former football star and acquitted murderer, O.J. Simpson, dead after a battle with prostate cancer. We'll be right back.
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