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CNN Sources Say Epstein's Cell Not Monitored; Trump Spreads Conspiracy Theory On Epstein's Death; Democratic Presidential Candidates Want Tougher Gun Laws; Rep. Eric Swalwell Is Interviewed About Gun Laws, Impeachment And Epstein's Death; Erie, Pennsylvania Day Care Fire; An Unarmed Muslim Man Tackles A Gunman In A Mosque In Oslo, Norway; Elie Honig Answers Legal Questions On "Cross-Exam"; EPA Removes Protection On Bristol Bay For An Open Pit Mine; Boycott Of Equinox and SoulCycle After Owner Held A Fundraising For Trump. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired August 11, 2019 - 17:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[17:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York. Nobody was watching Jeffrey Epstein when he apparently killed himself in prison. No guards had eyes on him with regularity. He was not on suicide watch. And he didn't have a cellmate.

That's what we're learning today from a source with knowledge of Epstein's time at the Manhattan federal prison where he was found dead this weekend.

Epstein was a politically connected multimillionaire and a convicted sex offender who was awaiting trial on new federal sex trafficking charges. He reportedly tried to kill himself a couple of weeks ago.

Questions today, why was someone with Epstein's history not monitored more closely? How was he able to take his own life in this super secure federal facility? Where were the people whose job it is to keep inmates alive and safe and healthy enough to stand trial for the horrific crimes they're accused of? Who failed and who is responsible?

A source says the two guards at that special housing unit were both working overtime and that one was working his fifth extra shift of the week.

CNN's Polo Sandoval is outside that federal prison in New York City right now. It's the Metropolitan Correctional Center in lower Manhattan. And Polo, what else are you hearing about Epstein's time inside there and what protocol should have been followed for someone like him?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN HOST: Ana, those questions that you asked are certainly going to be heavy on the minds of Epstein's alleged victims here for many reasons. As you mentioned a little while ago, Ana, based on this new reporting that's coming in to CNN, it now suggests that Epstein was left alone in his cell. There are those procedures and those policies that are in place that

require an inmate that's been fresh out of suicide watch to have a cellmate in that cell with them at all times. So hearing that he was found alone yesterday -- early yesterday morning, that certainly would potentially suggest there was a possible violation there of protocol.

The other one too, is that he was being held as we now know in the special housing unit of the facility that brown facility that you see off in the distance. And it is standard procedure for all inmates there being housed in there to be checked on every 30 minutes by guard.

And that usually includes being woken up every 30 minutes to make sure that they're okay. So those are two things that are certainly going to make it onto the radar I'm sure of investigators, not just from the FBI but the Department of Justice's Office of Inspector General as they try to find out and to answer that key question.

Why would an inmate with such notoriety in a high-profile nature case be allowed the time to do what he did yesterday. That now has led to not only many questions but a lot of concern by the alleged victims of Epstein. Many of those who feel they've been robbed of justice, Ana.

CABRERA: All right, Polo Sandoval, thank you for that update.

President Trump has reacted to Epstein's death in what is sadly a very unsurprising way. He is spreading a conspiracy theory that the Clintons had Epstein killed. Let that sink in. This would be like Gerald Ford or Jimmy Carter or Ronald Reagan claiming that LBJ had Kennedy killed.

Nonetheless, because this is Donald Trump, this is what we've come to expect because this isn't the first, no it's not the second or even the third time the president has made baseless claims without regard for the consequences of his rhetoric.

He's also suggested Senator Ted Cruz's dad was involved in JFK's assassination. That Justice Antonin Scalia was murdered because a pillow was found over his face. That Joe Scarborough may have been involved in his intern's death.

That there was something fishy about the suicide of Vince Foster, a former Clinton aide. Don't forget, he started the birther movement. He went so far as to offer President Obama $5 million for his college records and passport.

Trump raised questions about Senator Marco Rubio's eligibility to be president because his parents were not born in the U.S. Trump conveniently ignored the fact that his own mother wasn't born in the U.S. Trump also raised similar eligibility questions about Senator Ted Cruz because he was born in Canada.

President Trump went on to claim that President Obama wiretapped Trump Tower. His own Justice Department publicly said this did not happen. Trump claimed he saw and read about Muslim-Americans celebrating on 9/11. Absolutely no footage or news articles have ever been found to support this.

He said he lost the popular vote because millions of people voted illegally. A commission he put together to find this widespread fraught never found any. He's argued that global warming is a hoax created by the Chinese. The president leaves out that he sought to build a sea wall at his Scottish golf course to "protect from global warming and its effects."

[17:05:01] He claims vaccines cause autism and that noise from windmills can cause cancer. He's denied that 3,000 people died in Puerto Rico due to Hurricane Maria. And the president has adamantly denied that Russia interfered in the 2016 election. Who can forget this?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't think anybody knows it was Russia that broke into the DNC. She's saying Russia, Russia, Russia, but I don't -- maybe it was. I mean, it could be Russia, but it could also be China. It could also be lots of other people. It also could be somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds, okay? You don't know who broke in to DNC.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: We do know. It was Russia. U.S. intelligence officials have been very public about that and provided ample evidence. As for his latest conspiracy theory, though, dangerously claiming that Epstein was murdered by the Clintons? The White House is defending it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLYANNE CONWAY, COUNSELOR TO THE PRESIDENT: I think the president just wants everything to be investigated, as your reporter just revealed just the day before. There was some unsealed information implicating some people very high up.

And I'm not going to repeat their names. Jeffrey Epstein has done some very bad things over a number of years. Let's continue to investigate that.

CABRERA: Let me bring in our two guests here. "New York Times" Politics Editor, Patrick Healy and Editor and Columnist for RealClear Politics, A.B. Stoddard. Patrick, I compared earlier this to presidents Ford, Carter, or Reagan, claiming LBJ had Kennedy killed. I mean, what would the reaction have been had that happened?

PATRICK HEALY, POLITICS EDITOR, THE NEW YORK TIMES: Yes, it would have been a sort of a shock and frankly a sort of appalling reaction, but that's because those presidents, you know, followed I think, a code of conduct that we've come to expect from presidents.

Oftentimes, they don't rush to conclusions. They don't jump to conclusions, you know, as head of the government. They're usually trying to set a tone for, in the case of criminal activity or sort of a shocking suicide with questions remaining, one for kind of a thorough investigation.

But the reality is that we have a president now whose twitter feed is a chief source of disinformation in the world. I mean, this is a president who loves to trade in conspiracies and untruths like the long powerful list that you put on the screen. And he is particularly preoccupied, some might say obsessed with the Clintons.

Now, I don't know if that goes to an insecurity because if not for the Electoral College, Hillary Clinton would be president right now instead of Donald Trump. But it seems like he really is very preoccupied with her, with Bill Clinton, sort of pushing this, you know, these sort of, you know, scurrilous unfounded rumors.

And, you know, in as much as he himself was someone who had a long history with Jeffrey Epstein, you know, you have to wonder if he's just interested in, you know, showing some smoke on other people or what have you.

CABRERA: I do wonder, A.B., what the president gets out of spreading baseless claims like this over and over and over again.

A.B. STODDARD, ASSOCIATE EDITOR AND COLUMNIST, REALCLEARPOLITICS: Well, in this particular case, he gets a couple of things. I mean, I saw Kellyanne Conway was making lemonade out of lemons, insinuating that people -- a lot of people have a lot of secrets and they're very high up.

And we know that Bill Clinton was on Epstein's plane several times. And as Patrick notes, we know that there's video of Donald Trump dancing at Epstein's party. So he, I think enjoys -- he enjoys conspiracy theories which is why everyone is sort of rolling their eyes and not having this kind of, you know, unbelievable response that would follow any other president doing anything like this.

Ana, Patrick, all three of us, if we tweeted stuff like this in this reckless fashion, we would likely lose our jobs. But I do think that he likes to have this out in conservative media and amplified online. He has told his supporters that there are very bad people in the government who do very bad things.

He's used the word treason many times. He's used the word coup. No Republican elected officials have pushed back on that. And he is telling his supporters, I believe in advance of next year's election that, you know, the government is out to get him. He's been saying this really pretty much since day one.

And I think the fact that he doesn't want to tweet it himself but he re-tweets it, he knows that that gets it into the bloodstream and gets people all upset about the fact that, you know, that Bill Clinton was a very bad person and was connected to Epstein and the Clintons still have the power to do something like this in a prison.

CABRERA: But is it clear whether Trump actually believes these claims?

STODDARD: I don't think he cares. Like Patrick said, he really weaponizes disinformation. It doesn't mean when he re-tweets something that he necessarily believes it, but he likes people to be questioning facts.

[17:10:00] And he likes people -- he loves any time that he can get anyone of his supporters upset at the Clintons or the media or the Democrats or Obama. You know, he has a bag of handy foils, and they are among his top favorites.

HEALY: Yeah, I would add to that. You know, there's a popular phrase, re-tweets don't equal endorsements. I think with him they do equal endorsements and this is -- it may not be something that he himself deep down believes, but he likes the fact that this stuff is in the bloodstream and he likes the kind of chaos that it causes.

CABRERA: But do you think it's dangerous?

HEALY: I think -- sure, of course. I mean, the degree to which some people will read this and you saw this with the pizzagate conspiracy, you saw this with the information that came out around Christine Blasey Ford. You know, real people can become targets, you know. There are plenty of deranged people out there who may say, well, the president of the United States is pushing this and avoid (ph) --

CABRERA: Well, look at Cesar Sayoc who was just sentenced this week to 20 years in prison.

HEALY: Sure -- sure. I mean, the reality is the Clintons have, you know, the best protection in the world with the Secret Service. But the reality is, when you have the president of the United States, it's not just anyone who is pushing a rumor out there. You really don't know what the unintended consequence of this is.

Donald Trump may be sitting back in New Jersey and having a good laugh at how people, you know, get so upset over re-tweets of silly things that he puts out. And then you will have an unintended consequence. Then you will have something dangerous that comes out. And that's why I feel like it's not -- we can't let ourselves become too, you know, numb and immune to these things because you don't know what effect they're going to have.

CABRERA: So he's there tweeting conspiracy theories. He's on the attack this weekend again, yesterday alone, attacking the media, U.S./South Korea joint military exercises, Bill Maher, Joe Biden and former White House press secretary Anthony Scaramucci, all these via twitter.

Scaramucci tweeting back. He wrote this, "For the last three years I have fully supported this president. Recently he has said things that divide the country in a way that's unacceptable. So I didn't pass the 100 percent litmus test. Eventually he turns on everyone and soon, it will be you and then the entire country." A.B. what do you make of that?

STODDARD: Yes, I thought that was very interesting because Anthony Scaramucci said recently when he was criticizing the president that the president might -- it might make him mad. He was talking about how the trip to El Paso was a debacle. And, you

know, I think that it was also eerily similar to the comments that Michael Cohen made in his testimony to the House about how, you know, he's going to turn on all of you and you shouldn't be loyal to him.

But I think that we've seen Republicans who will not come out tonight, upset about him re-tweeting a conspiracy theory about the Clintons killing off Jeffrey Epstein in jail.

You will see the Republicans remain as silent as they have all along because they don't want to counter him and they believe that they can retain his good favor and hold onto their seats if they don't criticize him the way that Scaramucci has.

CABRERA: A.B. Stoddard, Patrick Healy, thank you both.

HEALY: Thank you so much.

CABRERA: In the wake of back-to-back mass shootings this week, 2020 White House hopefuls are demanding action on gun control. Hear their plans for tackling gun violence. And does Congressman Eric Swalwell regret dropping out of the race? We'll ask him.

Plus, is there or isn't there an actual impeachment inquiry under way?

[17:15:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CABRERA: Well, the majority of 2020 Democratic hopefuls are in Iowa this weekend demanding action on gun control in the wake of back-to- back deadly mass shootings. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JULIAN CASTRO (D-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I would maximize the executive authority because we know that we may face a Congress, a Senate that is still led by Mitch McConnell.

PETE BUTTIGIEG (D-IN), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If more guns on the street made everybody safer, we'd be the safest country in the world.

BERNIE SANDERS (D-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Assault weapons are not weapons used by the overwhelming majority of hunters. These are weapons designed to kill human beings in a rapid way.

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Who in god's name needs a weapon that can handle 100 rounds? For god's sake.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: 2020 candidate Beto O'Rourke did not attend the Iowa gun forum in person so he could be at the funerals of shooting victims in his hometown of El Paso. He told CNN's Jake Tapper this morning that President Trump's re-tweeting of a baseless conspiracy theory on accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein's death is intended to distract.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BETO O'ROURKE (D-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's changing the conversation and if we allow him to do that, then we will never be able to focus on the true problems of which he is a part, and make sure we get to the solutions.

And whether that means legislation that keeps guns out of the hands of those who shouldn't have it or focusing on domestic terrorism of white supremacists that his own FBI director warned us about.

And then you reported this week that his Department of Homeland Security has been begging the president to focus on the kinds of threats that we saw in El Paso and he's ignored them or willfully suppressed action on those ideas and those programs and those policies that could have saved lives in El Paso and across the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: I want to bring in a former member of the crowded 2020 Democratic field, California Congressman Eric Swalwell.

Congressman, good to see you. Thanks for being here.

REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA): You too. Good afternoon, Ana. Thanks for having me back.

CABRERA: You just heard what a lot of your former rivals are saying about gun control. Here's what you told me back in June when you were still running for president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SWALWELL: And I stood today in front of gun violence survivors, trauma surgeons, community leaders, people from Chicago, Houston, Indiana and from all over our country who are saying enough is enough.

Not only are we going to ban and buy back assault weapons under my plan. I'm the only candidate calling for that. We're also going to invest in the root causes of gun violence in many of our cities like just a lack of education and jobs or gang violence prevention programs.

But also put in place a licensing requirement and an insurance requirement. Again, we believe we're the only campaign calling for an insurance requirement on all firearm purchases in America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[17:19:58] CABRERA: Congressman, I know how passionate you are about this issue. You built your campaign on the issue of gun violence and what to do about it. Do you feel like you may have dropped out of the 2020 race too early given this renewed focus now on this issue?

SWALWELL: No, I feel great being out of the race. I'm sorry that, you know, I did have to leave it, but when there was no longer a path and it was only about, you know, just making the debate stage and not about winning, it didn't seem right to stay in.

But the issue persists and I want to tell you that clip you just showed was before the Democratic debate. And at the Democratic debate, I was able to get Vice President Biden and Senator Sanders to agree that we should have, not just a ban on assault weapons, but a buyback.

But a moment occurred on the commercial break during the debate that I'll never forget and I think says everything about this. My guest was Fred Guttenberg whose daughter Jamie died at Parkland. And he sat there holding my wife's hand as she nervously watched.

And on the last commercial break when guns have not been brought up yet, I saw Fred jump out of his seat and run over to Rachel Maddow and Chuck Todd and he was shouting something and security tackled him and took him back to his seat.

And I walked to the end of the stage and said, Fred, what the hell is going on? What are you doing over there? And he said, Eric, they're not talking about guns. They need to ask you guys a question about guns.

And fortunately, they did, but I think Fred represents all of us that this debate for the presidential campaign has to be about guns. It has to be a top tier issue. And, sadly, because of what continues to happen, it finally is.

CABRERA: Well, which of the 2020 candidates currently running has the best plan to address gun violence?

SWALWELL: I really admire, you know, Cory Booker for putting out a comprehensive plan. Elizabeth Warren just in the last 48 hours put out a plan. The vice president has called for a ban and also a buyback.

I think it's important to have the buyback component. And then Kamala Harris who I've worked with in the same district attorney's office, Alameda County District Attorney's Office, she gets this issue and has a good plan.

But the buyback is an important component because it recognizes that if we ban assault weapons, that only bans future sales, but a buyback would take the 15 million that are on our streets off our streets immediately and keep us all safe where we gather.

CABRERA: Are you ready to endorse anybody yet in the 2020 race?

SWALWELL: No, I'm still watching. I enjoy watching as a member of Congress who will work with the next president and also as a father who worries about his own children.

I have a son in preschool and, you know, I think about things that my parents did not think about when I dress my son and send him off to school every day. And that's, you know, whether he's going to be safe, whether he's going to come home.

You get that call from the school now and you no longer worry that, you know, he had like a small accident on the playground. You worry that a shooter may have come to the school. And that's every parent's real right now in America. And we don't have to live that way.

CABRERA: You sit on the House Judiciary Committee where the question of impeachment still looms. Here's what Chairman Jerry Nadler had to say just a few days ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JERRY NADLER (D-NY), CHAIRMAN, HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: This is formal impeachment proceedings. We are investigating all the evidence. We're gathering the evidence. And we will, at the conclusion of this, hopefully by the end of the year, vote to -- vote Articles of Impeachment to the House floor, or we won't. That's a decision that we'll have to make. But that's exactly the process we're in right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: And here's reaction from Gerry Connolly, a member of the House Oversight and Reform Committee. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

REP. GERRY CONNOLLY (D-VA): I'm not quite sure what Chairman Nadler meant because we have not launched a formal impeachment inquiry in the United States Congress.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Congressman, are you aware of a formal impeachment inquiry or proceeding?

SWALWELL: Well, the House Judiciary Committee is undergoing an impeachment investigation. And, you know, what's clear here is that there are a number of remedies for the president's lawless conduct. The most extraordinary remedy of course is impeachment.

There could be censure. There could be other remedies that we put forward. But the only way to recommend a remedy to the whole House would be for us to undergo what we're doing right now.

You know, there's only been three other an impeachment inquiry or investigations in the history of our country. They all occurred in different ways, you know. And so this is, as far as I'm concerned and as far as the chairman is concerned, an investigation and impeachment is one of the remedies that we may recommend.

CABRERA: Well, why not make it official and call it a formal impeachment inquiry? I mean, Jerry Nadler seemed to go there, but it hasn't been announced in that way.

SWALWELL: Well, we're calling it an impeachment investigation. You know, the constitution doesn't provide any mechanism for undergoing the investigation that we're doing. There's no prescription that you have to follow or that is laid out. Each congress has done it in a different way.

The most important thing here, though, is that this president's conduct is no longer going unchecked. And doing nothing as far as I'm concerned and others are concerned would only see more lawlessness, and it would set a low are standard for future presidents. And we don't want either of those to occur.

[17:24:05] CABRERA: Finally, I know you're there in Las Vegas for DEF CON this weekend. I want to ask you about something you talked about earlier today when you weighed in about the conspiracy theory and those that are being spread about Jeffrey Epstein's death on social media. You said it reminds you of third world countries. Congressman, was your comment referring to President Trump?

SWALWELL: My comment was certainly referring to President Trump re- tweeting a conspiracy theory, but this president has really, I think, diminished the faith that people have in institutions and he's really peddling conspiracy theories.

And I actually think your colleague, Jim Sciutto, characterized it best yesterday in a tweet that he put out that said, you know, this reminded him of the Middle East where there was a lack of trust in government, and every time an event happened, people always questioned whether the government was really telling them the truth.

And I think that's where the president has really reduced the debate to in our country. And it also is -- Congressman O'Rourke has noted, he's trying to take our eyes off of what is really important, like gun violence.

You see that he tweeted at Anthony Scaramucci yesterday. You know, he continues to tweet at Vice President Biden about, you know, just nonsense. And he's tweeting about conspiracy theories. It really leaves you with the question of, who is leading the country.

CABRERA: Congressman Eric Swalwell, we'll leave it there. Thank you very much.

SWALWELL: Thanks, Ana.

CABRERA: New details on how an unarmed 65-year-old man tackled a gunman who opened fire inside a mosque in Norway, next.

[17:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CABRERA: Five children have been killed and one adult injured in a fire overnight in Erie, Pennsylvania. It happened at a day care. Police say the fire erupted at around 1:00 in the morning at the Harris Family Day Care which is listed as providing 24-hour, seven days a week child care services. Police say they are treating this area as a crime scene right now while the cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Now, to an amazing story of bravery and heroism. This is out of Oslo, Norway, after a man opened fire inside a mosque as Muslims were gathering to pray. The gunman got into the mosque by shooting through a locked door. 65-year-old Mohamed Rafiq who was inside the mosque wasted no time before tackling him, as his lawyer explained earlier today. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABDUL SATAR ALI, COUNSELOR FOR MOHAMED RAFIQ (through translator): Mohamed acted immediately when the shooter entered the room. He toppled the shooter and pinned him to the floor, sat on top of him. After awhile, board member Mushtaq came and helped hold him down. Then police arrived and arrested the man. That is all I can say now due to the investigation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Rafiq sustained minor injuries during that confrontation. Officials say the suspect is a Norwegian man who has expressed right wing sympathies online. Police say they also found the body of the suspect's 17-year-old stepsister inside his home.

He has been charged with her murder and with attempted murder in the mosque attack. They are investigating this as a possible act of terrorism.

Coming up -- the fallout over Jeffrey Epstein's apparent suicide. We'll answer your legal questions about what this means for the charges against him and those implicated in his crime, next.

[17:35:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CABRERA: More on our top story. Now, the fallout from Jeffrey Epstein's unexpected death by apparent suicide. He was awaiting trial in charges of sex trafficking involving underage girls. This case brings us to our weekly segment, "Cross-Exam" with CNN Legal Analyst, Elie Honig. His is former federal and state prosecutor and he is here to answer your questions about legal news.

Elie, a lot of questions surrounding the death of Jeffrey Epstein and one of them is now that Jeffrey Epstein has died, what happens to the various cases against him, and how do the victims get justice?

ELIE HONIG, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: So many questions, Ana. And really, that's the most important one of all. What do the victims do now? How do they get justice? So, the Southern District's criminal prosecution against Jeffrey Epstein is over.

A lot of our viewers asked, is there any way to try someone after they've died? No. Not in our system. But the Southern District went out of its way yesterday to point out this is a conspiracy case. Meaning, there are others involved and we are carrying on with our investigation.

So, the victims will not get that moment which can be really important to a victim, of taking the witness stand in court and pointing at the person and saying he's the one who did it to Jeffrey Epstein. But, I believe they'll still get that opportunity when it comes to the other people who were involved in this ring. They will still get justice in that sense.

Now, there are various civil claims, lawsuits for money damages that were brought against Jeffrey Epstein. Those will survive. They'll just become against Epstein's estate. Now, the last point is, of course, there are investigations going on into the circumstances of Epstein's death right now.

Now, I've spent a lot of time inside the Metropolitan Correctional Center, the jail where Jeffrey Epstein died. It's connected to the -- physically connected to the Southern District of New York office where I used to work, and we would go in there to interview people who were trying to cooperate so I know what it's like in there.

And I'll tell you, there is no more tightly monitored and recorded and overseen building in the planet than the MCC. Virtually everything that happens in there is recorded somehow or other.

So there are answers out there that need to be found. We owe it to the American people. The DOJ owes it most of all to the victims. They need to get those answers. They can get them if they look.

CABRERA: You think there's a tape?

HONIG: Yes, I do. Virtually every square inch of the MCC is surveilled by videotape. There should be a videotape. Start right there if you're investigating this.

CABRERA: OK, let's move on to our next viewer question and it has to do with these mass shootings. I mean, the country is still reeling from the back-to-back mass shootings that happened in Dayton and El Paso last weekend. One viewer wants to know what new legal tools could help prevent mass shootings before they happen.

HONIG: Now Ana, so there's no one magic solution to all of this but there really are things that can be done and Representative Swalwell was just talking about some of them a minute ago. So let's talk about some legislation that can make a difference.

First of all, an assault weapons ban. That would ban certain military- style semiautomatic firearms and high capacity magazines. These are the types of weapons that have been used in lots of the most high- profile shootings we have seen -- Orlando, Las Vegas, Newtown, the two we saw last week.

Now, there was a federal firearms -- a federal assault rifle ban on the books from 1994 to 2004. But it expired so we haven't had one since then. About seven states have some version of a ban but a federal law would of course make it mandatory nationwide.

Next, universal background checks. Any time there's a purchase where a buyer buys a firearm from a licensed firearm dealer, that dealer has to run a background check -- criminal history, mental health history. The problem is that it only covers about three quarters, a little bit more than three quarters of all the sales.

All other sales including gun show sales, that's what people mean when they talk about the loophole, are not subject to this background check. So again, about 12 states have some sort of background check law. Twenty-one have laws that approach universal. But again, federal legislation would make it mandatory across the country.

And last is Red Flag Laws. Those are laws that allow a police officer or family members to go to a judge and get an order to confiscate a firearm from a person who poses a danger to himself or others. Again, about 17 states have those laws, but federal legislation can make it mandatory nationwide. There really are things that can be done to make a difference.

CABRERA: And as the debate rages right now about gun control laws, we know Congress is on recess. They're not going to do anything about it until perhaps when they come back in September. But there are some lawsuits from Democrats to enforce the subpoenas of Trump administration officials that are now making their way through the courts. This is an ongoing thing. One viewer asks just how long could this take.

HONIG: Yes. So we just saw the clip of Representative Nadler talking about there is informal impeachment inquiries. Representative Nadler said we expect to have court decisions by the end of October. He's right but that's not the end of the story.

He's talking about the district court, which is the trial level courts, the lowest of the three levels of federal court. Yes, there could be a district court decision by the end of October.

[17:40:00] The problem is, whoever loses automatically gets to appeal up to the next level, the Court of Appeals. That's going to take several months. You're talking now December, January 2020, and whoever loses there can try to get the Supreme Court to take the case.

They don't have to take any case. They take a very low percentage of cases, usually around two percent to three percent. But even that takes several more months. So realistically here, we're going to be looking at final decisions until well into 2020.

CABRERA: And quickly, your top question this week?

HONIG: Yes, a lot of big questions. The big one is what more are we going to learn about Jeffrey Epstein's death. I think a lot of facts are going to be coming out this week.

Second of all, will the NYPD commissioner fire the officer who was involved in the Eric Garner death? That decision should be coming very soon. Let's not lose sight of that. That's an important decision. It could be this week.

And finally, will Congress pass or at least seriously consider some of this gun control legislation? It is there to be had. There's a difference to be made. It's simply a question of political will.

CABRERA: Elie Honig, always a pleasure. Thank you. Good to see you. Make sure you read Elie's column on CNN.com/opinion.

Pristine waterway in danger thanks to a snap decision by the Trump EPA. Up next, how plans for a gold and copper mine in Alaska have at least one Republican sounding the alarm. [17:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CABRERA: Tonight we're learning that a major new reversal on U.S. environmental policy may have involved President Trump. CNN has exclusive details of an Air Force One meeting that could throw out more than a decade of scientific warnings about a controversial copper and gold mine. CNN's Senior Investigative Correspondent, Drew Griffin reports.

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DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The meeting took place on the tarmac during an Air Force One stopover, June 26th. Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy, a pro-mining, pro-business, anti-EPA governor met with Donald Trump for nearly a half hour.

GOV. MIKE DUNLEAVY (R-AK): Just got off of Air Force One with being with President Trump.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Dunleavy has been pushing for approval of a massive gold and copper mine known as the Pebble Mine, planned for Alaska's Bristol Bay watershed, home to the breeding grounds for one of the world's largest and most pristine sockeye salmon fisheries. And after his meeting aboard Air Force One, Dunleavy said this about the president.

DUNLEAVY: He really believes in the opportunities here in Alaska and he's doing everything he can to work with us on our mining concerns.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Inside EPA sources now tell CNN the very next day, June 27th, top EPA officials in Washington held an internal video conference with Seattle and told the staff the EPA was removing a special protection for Bristol Bay and in essence, clearing the way for what could be one of the largest open pit mines in the world.

That internal announcement was a total shock to top EPA scientists, sources told CNN, because their environmental concerns were overruled by Trump political appointees. Bristol Bay and its tributaries are regarded as one of the world's most important salmon fisheries. Roughly half of the world's sockeye salmon come from here.

It's been protected since 2014 when, after three years of study, the Obama-era EPA used a rare provision of the Clean Water Act, to basically veto any mining that could pose a threat. EPA scientists writing, a mine would result in complete loss of fish habitat that was irreversible.

CHRISTINE TODD WHITMAN, FORMER GOVERNOR OF NEW JERSEY: It's mind- boggling that it's still being considered at all.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Christine Todd Whitman is a Republican, a former New Jersey governor and under President George W. Bush, ran the EPA. She has joined several other former EPA chiefs to publicly oppose the mine.

WHITMAN: The potential damage is so overwhelming. The opposition to it up there is amazing. Over 80 miles of streams, thousands of acres, could be damaged from this project.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): This is the second time during the Trump administration the political appointees at the EPA have decided to remove special protections for Bristol Bay to pave the way for this huge mine.

In 2017, President Trump's first EPA administrator, scandal-plagued Scott Pruitt canceled the protections after a private meeting with the mine company CEO. After a CNN report exposed the meeting and the lack of scientific debate behind the reversal, Pruitt backed down and put the protections back in place.

Now, another private meeting, this time with the president himself, has led to yet another win for the mine and removal of environmental protections for this pristine watershed.

WHITMAN: One of the most troubling things about this administration on the environmental side is this disregard of science. They're gutting science across the agencies, across the departments, across the government.

GRIFFIN (on camera): Even if scientists at the EPA are advising you, Mr. President, this is very dangerous to the environment, to the fisheries, to the state of Alaska, if the president decides, that's the decision?

WHITMAN: That's the decision.

GRIFFIN (on camera): And the only recourse then is for environmental groups to sue?

WHITMAN: Environmental groups, native Alaskans. You'll have a host of lawsuits. I am convinced.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Alaska's Governor Mike Dunleavy elected last fall is a huge Trump supporter. He's met with President Trump multiple times. Sent this letter to the president asking for a long list of EPA reversals, including what he called the Clean Water 404 veto, a direct reference to Pebble Mine.

A member of his staff used to work on the Pebble project in public relations. And at EPA headquarters, Andrew Wheeler, the former coal company lobbyist who now runs the agency, has a tie to Pebble Mine, too. He has recused himself from decision-making on the project because his former law firm represents the mine.

(on camera): In response to this report, the EPA said those Obama-era protections were outdated and this mine would still have to go through approval process. Our sources are telling us it's really a done deal. And when we asked the EPA about that internal meeting on June 27th, at first the EPA denied it even happened.

[17:49:58] But then we presented them with our evidence. They admitted the meeting took place and our sources say that is when officials told scientists at the EPA the decision on Bristol Bay was made and their work was not needed. Drew Griffin, CNN, Atlanta. (END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: Just when you needed another reason to not go to the gym. Hear why some voters fed up with President Trump, are done with two popular gym chains.

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CABRERA: Bye-bye, Equinox and see you later SoulCycle. Some people are breaking up with their favorite fitness chains. They are furious that the chairman of the company that owns them, controlling the stakes in Equinox and SoulCycle held a big fund-raiser for President Trump on Friday. CNN's Jeanne Moos show us just how political sweat can be.

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JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Everybody out of the pool. Okay, not everybody. Just the ones who say they're boycotting Equinox and SoulCycle. It can be soul wrenching.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The gym is like a second home to many of us.

MOOS (voice-over): But because Stephen Ross, the man who's company owns Equinox and SoulCycle, is throwing a fund-raiser for President Trump, a boycott has some trying to decide how to break up with their gym.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But I'm really bummed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not going to quit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm leaving the club.

MOOS (voice-over): Leaving it with an upraised finger or a new name, Equinot.

[17:55:00] Celebrities led the exit, Chrissy Teigen tweeted rough day at Equinox, posting the auto-reply her friend got when he cancelled his membership. "At the moment we are experiencing extremely high volumes of e-mails."

We're not sure if Michael Moore was serious, "That's it, just canceled my SoulCycle membership." This conservative didn't buy it. "Yeah, because we know you're a regular on the front row at SoulCycle." Andy Cohen equivocated about Equinox.

ANDY COHEN, RADIO PERSONALITY: I still have time left on my membership. I'll probably be there doing cardio today. I don't know.

MOOS (voice-over): No equivocation from comedian Billy Eichner. "Hey, Equinox, what's your policy for canceling memberships once a member finds out your owner is enabling racism and mass murder?"

(on camera): But one person's boycott is another person's opportunity to slack off. MOOS (voice-over): "Thank you, God, for giving me another excuse to

not go to the gym." "See these muffin tops? They're political." This equinox member seemed prepared to sacrifice his feet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would rather have plantar fascitis without treatment than having to support in any way anything affiliated with Trump supporters.

MOOS (voice-over): As for that Equinox pool in the sky, someone tweeted, "Nice pool. Too bad about all the blood in it." And all those slogan SoulCycle spins.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Find your happy place.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Find your soul.

MOOS (voice-over): Find the door is the line boycotters are pedaling, Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

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CABRERA: Quick programming note now, make sure you tune in tonight to the CNN Original Series "THE MOVIES." It's back taking a look at the '60s from "Psycho" to "Dr. Strangelove" to "2001: Space Odyssey." Hear from the actors, directors and people who brought you your favorite scenes to life. Get the stories behind the movies you love.

"THE MOVIES" airs tonight at 9:00 p.m. on CNN. We'll be right back.

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