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Port of Baltimore: Cargo Traffic Currently Suspended; Twitch's Biggest Gamer, 32, Shares Cancer Diagnosis; Raids at Sean "Diddy" Combs' Homes Tied to Ongoing Sex Trafficking Investigation. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired March 27, 2024 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Concerns are mounting over just how big of an impact the deadly bridge collapse is going to have on the economy. Baltimore's port is a major hub, and right now nothing is moving in or out. The disaster has suspended all shipping traffic indefinitely, and it could slow down things from the auto industry, to farming, to jobs and cruises as well.

CNN's Matt Egan joins us now live. So Matt, it is still too soon to understand the full scope of the impact, but based on what we do know, what does this look like in economic terms?

MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Well, Boris, the port of Baltimore has just been totally crippled. This is a major hit to the local economy. We're talking about a port that employs more than 15,000 people directly, 140,000 jobs in related services. Now those workers, they face the prospect of having their hours cut, potentially being temporarily laid off. And this is not some tiny port. This is a major hub of economic activity.

Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary, he was at the White House earlier. He addressed this issue. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: This is an important port for both imports and exports, and it's America's largest vehicle handling port, which is important not only for car imports and exports, but also for farm equipment. No matter how quickly the channel can be reopened, we know that it can't happen overnight, and so we're going to have to manage the impacts in the meantime.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

EGAN: Now, speaking of the impacts here, we are now learning that 10 ships are stuck inside the port of Baltimore. That includes three bulk carriers, a vehicle carrier, two cargo ships, a tanker, and other vessels. That's in addition to the container ship that actually hit the bridge in the first place. So this is just another reminder of all of the impacts here.

And we're also hearing from major companies that are going to be impacted because they either relied on the port or the bridge itself, or both, including Home Depot and Under Armour, Amazon, they all have facilities nearby. Domino Sugar, that's a big one. They have a sugar cane refinery inside Baltimore Harbor. This is the biggest sugar cane refinery in the Western Hemisphere.

[15:35:02]

And Carnival, Carnival Cruise, they say that they could have a $10 million hit to their bottom line all because of this.

So listen, we know, Boris, that it's going to take months or longer to get the bridge repaired and rebuilt. But the issue of when they can reopen the port is really significant to the local economy, but also really nationally.

SANCHEZ: Yes, give us the national scope of what an extended closure could mean.

EGAN: Well, Boris, I think the saving grace here is that there are other options along the East Coast where cargo is already being diverted. When you look at the map, there is the port in Philadelphia, in Virginia, New York and New Jersey. So that could help.

Although we should note that those ports taking extra shipments, that could add to the stress there. We could be looking at delays and extra costs as well. So that's all really important.

I think that, you know, what we're hearing from economists is that, yes, the impact to Baltimore could be very significant, but nationally, hopefully the national economy is going to be spared because of some of the redundancies there.

We're not hearing economists sort of downgrade their growth forecast or warner price spikes yet. JP Morgan even said that as far as on the car price front, the impact should be minimal. But like everything else, Boris, the longer this is shut down, the greater the impact.

SANCHEZ: Yes, Matt Egan, thanks so much for that perspective.

One of the most popular names in online gaming is telling the world that he has cancer, highlighting a disturbing trend of rising cancer rates among young people. We're going to dig into the numbers and potential causes next.

[15:40:00]

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BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Major news today from the gaming world. One of the Internet's most popular gamers, Tyler Blevins, known as Ninja, says he's been diagnosed with skin cancer. The 32-year-old says doctors found it while removing a mole on his foot. His diagnosis comes as doctors investigate why cancer cases have jumped in young people here in the past 30 years.

CNN's Meg Tirrell is with us more on this. We have Princess Catherine, Chadwick Boseman, now Ninja. Obviously, those are sort of anecdotal things. But it seems like these are examples that are highlighting the rise in cancers in young people -- Meg.

MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Brianna, I mean, the data overall do support that we are seeing more cancer being diagnosed in people under the age of 50 across the globe. Melanoma actually isn't one of those cancers that's seeing an increase in younger people, although it is not uncommon necessarily to find it among younger people.

It is a form of skin cancer. It's actually not the most common form of skin cancer, but it does unfortunately contribute to the highest number of deaths from skin cancer, because if it's not found early, it can spread very quickly. The average age of diagnosis with melanoma is 66, but you do see it even in younger people. The highest risk factors for it include things like sun exposure or UV light through other things like tanning beds.

Now, overall, in terms of the incidence of cancer among people under the age of 50, we have been seeing an increase up to almost 80 percent between 1990 and 2019 globally in the incidence of cancer, so the number of cases of cancer. Deaths from cancer in people under the age of 50 have also been rising globally, up almost 30 percent in that time period. We mostly hear about cancers like colorectal cancer, pancreatic cancer increasing in these younger age groups.

Researchers say it could be things like our diet, alcohol intake, tobacco intake, perhaps environmental factors. It's still a bit of a mystery exactly what is driving this, but there's a lot of research being done to try to home in on these things.

Now, in terms of melanoma specifically, we know that prevention is very important, things like wearing sunscreen, being careful in the sun, but also being really vigilant.

I mean, Ninja said he caught this because he went in for a skin cancer check. He had a mole on his foot, and it was caught during a check. Doctors say you can follow something for melanoma called ABCDE.

Those are the characteristics of the mole, if it's asymmetrical, if it's got a natural border, if the color's different, if it's bigger than a pencil eraser in diameter, and if it's evolving or changing over time. Those are things to look out for, guys.

KEILAR: Very good advice. Meg Tirrell, thank you for that information -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: Now to some of the other headlines we're watching this hour.

Russia is denying allegations that it fueled social media conspiracies about the Princess of Wales in the days before she revealed her cancer diagnosis. The denial follows British media citing security researchers reporting on hallmark signs of a coordinated campaign from a Russian-based disinformation group.

Russia says, quote, lively interest across the country should not be maliciously interpreted, end quote.

Plus, a new report showing Medicare spending on Ozempic for diabetes has ballooned to $4.6 billion in 2022 compared to $2.6 billion the year before. A KFF analysis predicts that could put pressure on Medicare's budget, although it could cut those costs if it's negotiating lower prices starting next year.

And in Alabama, CNN is projecting that Democrat Marilyn Lands has flipped a Republican-held state House seat.

[15:45:00]

Democrats are touting her victory as another sign that reproductive rights could be a winning issue in November, even in that deep ruby red South. Lands made abortion access central to her campaign and was outspoken against the state's recent ban on IVF treatment.

Still to come this afternoon, actor Cuba Gooding Jr. was just named as a defendant in a lawsuit against hip-hop mogul Sean Diddy Combs. What we're learning about the allegations in just a moment.

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[15:50:00]

KEILAR: New today, a source close to Sean Diddy Combs telling CNN the music mogul was briefly stopped by law enforcement while preparing to leave Miami on Monday for a spring break vacation with his daughters. It reportedly happened around the same time heavily armed federal agents raided his homes in California and Florida.

Combs is the target of an investigation carried out by a human trafficking team within the Department of Homeland Security.

We have CNN legal analyst Joey Jackson joining us to talk a little bit more about this. And Joey, Combs' attorney, says he was never detained by authorities. None of his family members have been arrested and their travel has not been restricted.

But what does that tell you and what we know about him being stopped, about the nature of this investigation.

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, Brianna, good to be with you. It tells us that it's very preliminary at this point, right? Remember that in order to get into someone's home or homes, in this case, dealing with California, Miami, you need to have probable cause.

That is, a judge has to give the indication based on sworn statements that there could be evidence of criminality at whatever location. And so if there was evidence of a crime and that involved Mr. Combs, they would have arrested him. That's a different type of a warrant, an arrest warrant.

In this particular case, apparently allegations are such that there could be criminal activity. And as a result of that, it tells us, since no one was arrested but simply detained, as happens when a search warrant is executed, that they're looking for, they being authorities, the Homeland Security Investigations Unit and agency, in addition to federal prosecutors, will see what, if anything, is unearthed in the way of criminal evidence that relates to Mr. Combs or does not relate to him. We'll have to wait and see.

KEILAR: Tell us a little bit more about your impressions of these raids on his homes.

JACKSON: Yes, you know, it's very early, obviously, but I think a lot of it could have indeed stemmed from what have been these lawsuits. We know that there was a lawsuit last November, Bianna, involving Cassie, someone who apparently was involved with Mr. Combs. It was a lawsuit that was unleashed. And then apparently a day later it was settled. I think the better course of action might have been not to allow that to come into the public domain.

Once it's in the public domain and has all of these explosive allegations, it may have gotten the attention of federal prosecutors.

In addition to that lawsuit, there were other lawsuits against Mr. Combs that followed. And so there you go. And if ever there's some indication of some criminality involving sex trafficking, involving drugs, involving, you know, commercial types of illicit activities, federal prosecutors want to have a look.

And at this point, we know that that look does not include a grand jury indictment, but it includes looking for computer data and other allegations concerning what evidence may be out there. Were these things taped? Who were they with? Who was involved? And I think they, as in authorities and prosecutors, might have some inner circle access to get information. And so we'll see what happens as a result of this information they've gleaned.

But it could only tell me, based upon these lawsuits, that that may be something that they're tracking, authorities, again, and prosecutors, giving them a roadmap to get to what, if any, crimes were committed.

KEILAR: You mentioned computers. During the raids, law enforcement tells CNN they had search warrants for documents, phones, yes, computers, other electronic devices that hold data or video.

You know, what -- I guess you said what they could be looking for to see, obviously, if there is some evidence. But just tell us a little bit more about why they were looking for these things and what we may expect to learn about what they may or may not have found.

JACKSON: Yes, sure, Brianna. So any case, right, is predicated upon facts and is predicated upon evidence. I alluded before to these lawsuits, right? Lawsuits include allegations aplenty. Those allegations, it doesn't mean because you're sued that you did anything wrong. It simply means that there's evidence that you may have.

And so what it tells us in looking for the information you talked about, computer data, documents and everything else, is that perhaps that information can lead to information which is suggestive of a crime. And so we'll see whether that's enough to go to a grand jury, enough to go to an indictment, and enough to lead to a prosecution. That remains to be seen. We're early in the investigation at this point.

KEILAR: All right, Joey Jackson, much more, obviously, on this ahead. Thank you for taking us through that.

It's probably one of the most widely debated doors in modern history. We've debated it here on the show. You know the one. Boris and I differ on this. Well, it has a new owner. Are there some new answers, though?

[15:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come back. I'll never let go. I promise.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Oh, but she did let go, indeed. Here on CNN NEWS CENTRAL, we believe it's one of the most controversial movie scenes in history. Could Rose have saved Jack in the Titanic?

SANCHEZ: Our producers don't know the can of worms that they just opened between the two of us. That infamous door, the one that saved Rose and notably not Jack, just sold at auction for more than $700,000. Maybe the new owners are going to test that theory.

KEILAR: That's right. Well, back in 2022, Titanic director James Cameron, he did just that. He commissioned this scientific study, complete with stunt people and freezing cold water. Turns out only one of them could have been saved. The door was not big enough for both.

[16:00:00]

SANCHEZ: I don't buy it at all. I think it's clear that it's big enough for both of them. I don't buy this James Cameron thing. He's also said that for the story, Jack had to die.

I get the sense that Rose saw those sketches he was drawing and she's like, yes, it's not going to cut in the real world. She was like, all right, buddy.

KEILAR: You think that he just confirmed what he wanted to confirm?

SANCHEZ: Confirmation bias. Yes, correct.

KEILAR: Confirmation bias. Well, now it's someone else's door.

SANCHEZ: We can test it. We should try it out.

KEILAR: That's right. It looks like two people would fit, I think, right?

SANCHEZ: I think so.

KEILAR: Here we go. All right, we're going to float away --

SANCHEZ: Congratulations to the lucky bidder.

KEILAR: -- to "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper.