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At Least 133 Killed, 100 Plus Injured In Concert Hall Attack In Russia; Catherine, Princess Of Wales, Diagnosed With Cancer; Trump Races To Secure $464 Million Bond Before Monday; Biden Signs Funding Bill To Avert Government Shutdown; Fulton County DA Fani Willis Speaks Out; Royal Biographer On Princess Kate's Cancer Diagnosis; White House Condemns Terror Attacks In Russia; Mega Millions Jackpot Rises To Estimated $1.1 Billion. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired March 23, 2024 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:00]

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But just a day after that interview, Mizuhara walked back much of those revelations saying instead that Ohtani didn't know about the gambling activities or the debts, and said Ohtani didn't make the payments.

(Voice-over): Best friends, one day and out the next, but Ohtani's fans still unwaveringly faithful to the star.

Hanako Montgomery, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Hanako, thank you so much for that report.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

WHITFIELD: All right. Hello, again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin with the breaking news out of Russia. State media there publishing a report of a purported confession from one of the 11 suspects arrested in connection with the deadly terror attack on a concert venue near Moscow. CNN cannot independently verify the veracity of the report or the statements made by the alleged attacker, which may have been made under duress.

Friday's massacre killed more than 150. I'm sorry. More than 130 people now and injured more than 100 others. ISIS is claiming responsibility.

CNN's senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen is tracking all of it from Berlin.

Fred, what are people in Russia saying in the wake of this rampage?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Fredricka. Well, certainly it's a fast moving investigation the Russians seem to be conducting there. They said that they have 11 people in custody, four of them apparently were the actual shooters they say who went inside the building and shot people at point blank, and at the end, set the building on fire.

Now the search and rescue crews and the firefighters are actually still on hand at the Crocus City Hall, which is just on the outskirts of Moscow, trying to put out the remnants of the blaze, which is apparently still smoldering.

Here's what we're learning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (voice-over): The burnt-out shell of the Crocus City Hall just outside Moscow. Even half a day after the attacks, parts of the rubble still smoldering. The local governor surveying the places where gunmen killed so many.

Two here and three there, Governor Andrey Vorobyov asks. Three here, they say.

Hundreds of firefighters still on the scene of what Russian President Vladimir Putin called, quote, "a bloody and barbaric attack." His security services on high alert.

PRES. VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIA (through translator): In all regions of the country, additional antiterrorists and antisabotage measures have been introduced. The main thing now is to prevent those who are behind this bloodbath from committing a new crime.

PLEITGEN: It was Friday evening when the attackers went on their rampage, firing at people point blank, eyewitnesses say, killing men, women, and children, then setting the concert hall ablaze. Friends and family standing by hoping for news of their loved ones. Authorities searching for the many still missing.

I don't know what to do, this man says, desperate for news of his wife. I feel completely hopeless.

Moscow's hospitals flooded with dozens of injured. Russian authorities say the death toll will likely continue to rise.

JOHN KIRBY, NSC STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR: Thank you in advance for your patience.

PLEITGEN: The U.S. said it had warned Moscow about the threat of a terror attack and ISIS has claimed responsibility. But Russian authorities seem intent on blaming someone else. After several arrests overnight, the Kremlin pointing the finger at Kyiv.

PUTIN (through translator): All four direct perpetrators of the terrorist attack, all those who shot and killed people were found and detained. They tried to hide and moved towards Ukraine where according to preliminary data a window was prepared for them on the Ukrainian side to cross the state border. PLEITGEN: Ukraine denies the allegations. Kyiv saying they had nothing

to do with the attack. Near the scene of the attack, many are laying flowers in memory of the victims. Vladimir Putin has declared Sunday a day of mourning, promising a Russia united in grief, and retribution and oblivion for those behind the attack.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (on-camera): And again, Fredricka, the Russians say that they have 11 people in custody right now. The Russians also saying that they believe that the attackers had, quote, "relevant contacts" in Ukraine. Of course, the interrogations are already ongoing. The Russians also saying that none of the people that they have apprehended so far have Russian citizenship -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: OK. Fred Pleitgen in Berlin. Thanks so much.

All right. Messages of support are pouring in after Princess Kate's cancer diagnosis.

[15:05:04]

The Princess of Wales revealed in a video message that she is in the early stages of chemotherapy.

CNN's Richard Quest has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATE MIDDLETON, PRINCESS OF WALES: It has been an incredibly tough couple of months for our entire family.

RICHARD QUEST, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): After weeks of speculation, the Princess of Wales dispelled the rumors and gave us the facts.

PRINCESS CATHERINE: In January, I underwent major abdominal surgery in London. And at the time, it was thought that my condition was non- cancerous. The surgery was successful. However, tests after the operation found cancer had been present. My medical team, therefore, advised that I should undergo a course of preventative chemotherapy and I'm now in the early stages of that treatment.

QUEST: Suddenly, so clear why Kate's recovery, after leaving the London Clinic had taken so long, and why she'd avoided the public eye.

PRINCESS CATHERINE: This, of course, came as a huge shock. And William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family.

QUEST: The diagnosis is still visibly raw. But CNN understands the princess is and has been in good spirits. Kate and Prince William are focusing on how to explain the diagnosis to their young children. The three last seen with their mother in the now infamous and doctored Mother's Day photo. The many edits fueling the rumors about the princess' health, that all seems irrelevant now. With King Charles also recovering from cancer, the princess' PR

nightmare came at a delicate time for the royal family. It left William and Queen Camilla to hold the fort. Now as she heals, Princess Catherine is asking for privacy and time.

PRINCESS CATHERINE: My work has always brought me a deep sense of joy. And I look forward to being back when I'm able. But for now, I must focus on making a full recovery.

QUEST: Britain has seemingly rallied behind its princess. Prince Charles saying he was proud, praising Kate's courage. And the British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wishing her a speedy recovery, promising the love and support of the entire country.

PRINCESS CATHERINE: I am well and getting stronger every day by focusing on the things that will help me heal, in my mind, body and spirit.

QUEST: And now the princess of Wales hopes to be left alone to focus on her family and her recovery.

Richard Quest, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: CNN anchor and royal correspondent Max Foster remains outside Buckingham Palace at nightfall now. And are there still people who will appear there, if anything, you know, just to, you know, kind of exude well-wishes being sent to her?

MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. It becomes the focal point, doesn't it, of any story, even though, you know, the Wales is based in Windsor right now and even the king doesn't sort of live here. But it just becomes almost a pilgrimage. When people want to express something, they just wonder down to the palace. Lots of tourists as well here because it's the weekend. And that really expresses what a global story it is because it is the only talking point.

But, you know, I think the sentiment around this story has changed completely. You know, I'm not being constantly asked where is Kate at the moment. It's more sympathy and statements around, you know, I feel so sorry for her, feel sorry for the kids, and definitely, you know, not those prying questions as being asked last week. Much more, you know, let's give them some space.

WHITFIELD: Yes. And we know that she in her video even talked about how this is going to be, you know, tender time, the timing of which when she decided to go public really, you know, weighed greatly on her children, wanting to make sure that they hear the message from her. You know, they're on their two-week break now for the Easter holiday.

Do we know anything about -- you know, we know life is not very normal right now for the royal family, but what is it going to be like for the kids even after, you know, the holiday break? Do we know anything about, you know, the comforts for the family? FOSTER: Well, they've always had this view. I mean, the kids have

always been a priority and, you know, that is, you know, Kate's upbringing as well. She's brought up in a very regular family out in the countryside. William, the completely opposite, a broken family and a huge amount of media intrusion. But they certainly meet around the idea that they know that their kids aren't going to have a normal life.

[15:10:05]

But whilst they're children they want to give them as normal a life as possible. They're very hands-on at school, they always at the school, they're doing as much as they can themselves. They live actually in a quiet small house in term time in Windsor. And there's no room for staff in that house. And that's deliberate. They want to be normal parents. Obviously they're never going to be normal. But they can create as much normality as possible.

And that is the absolute focus right now to shield the kids from all of the talk out there. They've been upset it's pretty clear by all the online speculation in recent weeks, but, you know, I think as adults there, you know, they know that they're big enough and tough enough to handle it. They just want to protect the kids from that, so they are going to be out and about. They're not saying they're going to hunker down and lock themselves in.

They're just making the request to everyone out there, members of the public and the media, not to film them and not to share that footage to give them that space. And I think, you know, the princess gave it the best shot that she could in that video by making it deeply personal and by really appealing to people's better sides, I think.

WHITFIELD: Yes, you're right. All right. Max Foster, thank you so much.

Coming up, there are just two days left for former president Donald Trump to pay the half billion-dollar bond in his civil fraud case in New York and the New York attorney general has already taking steps to seize his assets.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:16:14]

WHITFIELD: Former president Donald Trump is now just two days away from the deadline to post nearly a half billion-dollar bond in his New York civil fraud trial. This week, Trump claimed he has nearly $500 million in cash to cover the sum. But his lawyer has since clarified that, saying he doesn't actually have that much money on hand.

Here with this now former federal prosecutor Ankush Khardori. He's a senior writer for "Politico" magazine.

All right, Ankush. Thank you. Now I'm going to take a drink of water. Sorry. OK. So Trump does not come up with the money by Monday. How quickly will the attorney general seize the assets? ANKUSH KHARDORI, SENIOR WRITER, POLITICO MAGAZINE: So I think this --

if things move that way, this is going to be a more protracted process, and I think maybe a lot of people are believing based on the coverage over the last week. It's not as if, you know, the attorney general's office is going to show up at 40 Wall Street and put like a big chain around the building or something like that, right?

They need to, like, go through a process that involves a lot of paperwork, potentially a lot of litigation and a lot of court supervision as well. I imagine if they're going down this path, there would be a pretty broad effort to try to sort of lay hands on, not just the properties, but more beneficial for them would be any cash or cash equivalents that they can attach that are under Trump's possession.

So this wouldn't be something that would just happen like quickly on Monday. I think it would be a little bit more of a protracted affair.

WHITFIELD: So doesn't the attorney general already know what kind of liquid assets he has? I mean, if they're going to -- if he doesn't make the deadline, likely go to, you know, his bank accounts first. Don't they know what is already there? Have they already kind of done that homework to know then? Do they move on to the personal items and then with the last round, be seizing real estate?

KHARDORI: That's a really good point because you're right. I would expect that the attorney general's office has a pretty substantial amount of information on Trump's business and the various financial relationships among them and him. However, there may be particulars about his financial situation that will be highly relevant that they don't yet know. For instance, he may have some cash on paper somewhere, maybe on a particular account. Part of that cash may be pledged as security or collateral against something else. So --

WHITFIELD: All right.

KHARDORI: Right. So merely having the -- like he has said, he has all this money, right. But of course his lawyers had to say, well, he kind of doesn't have all that money or at least not all that money in a form that he can just put up a bond immediately. So I think the financial elements around this maybe a little bit more complicated than those of us on the outside appreciates.

WHITFIELD: Right. Because it also is the case where he does have other loans, right. And it may be required from various banks or institutions that he keeps tens of million dollars, you know, in cash because of those loans. So that's money that really cannot be touched. So this weekend might his attorney's be trying to work on something kind backdoor negotiations with the AG or is it just too late for that?

KHARDORI: Well, I mean, if he has not already figured this out some way or another and it hasn't become public yet. I would fully expect competent lawyers to be doing precisely that. Now, I do not know whether Trump's lawyers are -- the relationship with the AG's office is on firm enough footing for them to actually be having contacts like that. But they absolutely should be because they need the attorney general's office to be of some help to them if they are going to need more time starting on Monday.

They might want the attorney general's office to consent to additional time for Trump to try to get the funds, for instance. Unfortunately, you know, the relationship between these two parties hasn't been great, which is why I say competent lawyers ought to be doing this. I do not know if Trump has the caliber of lawyers that are sort of capable of pivoting in that way, but it would be to his benefit if he did.

[15:20:07]

WHITFIELD: OK. All right. Ankush Khardori, thank you so much for that, but we're not done with you because we've got something else we want to talk to you about. We're going to take a short break for now. But when we come back, just in to CNN, we are hearing from Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis in Georgia for the time since she was allowed to stay on the case of the Trump election interference case. What she had to say to CNN next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, new today, President Biden signed the government funding bill that the Senate passed in the wee hours of the morning, avoiding a potential catastrophic U.S. government shutdown.

[15:25:09]

The $1.2 trillion package funds nearly three quarters of the government for the next six months.

Let's bring in CNN senior White House reporter Kevin Liptak in Washington.

Kevin, so what are you learning from the White House?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the president's signature really punctuating what had been kind of a tortured saga over the last several months to try and come up with a funding deal for the federal government, for the fiscal year 2024. President Biden saying today that this bill keeps the government open, it invests in the American people, and it strengthens the economy and national security. Of course, the bill passed in the wee hours of this morning.

The president signed it this afternoon, and both sides are highlighting what they say they got out of this bill. And that's the president says it's a compromise which means not everyone got what they want. But it does include 2,000 new Border Patrol agents, 8,000 more detention beds for migrants, and those are measures that Republicans are touting. Certainly they want to emphasize the strength of this bill has on the southern border

Democrats want to emphasize the billion dollars in new federal childcare and education programs like Head Start, also the $120 million for cancer research. There's also money in there for Alzheimer's research.

The other thing that this measure does is cut aid to the U.N. agency that provides funding aid to the Palestinians. And of course, the Biden administration has said that that agency had workers who were helping Hamas. And so they cut aid to that.

Now President Biden in a statement today also pointing to the next funding battle on Capitol Hill, which is this battle over more Ukraine funding. His proposal for $60 billion has gone nowhere so far. The House now is on a two-week recess, so certainly that funding a won't be secured in the next two weeks, but you are hearing ever more urgent calls from the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who says Ukraine could lose this war if more funding isn't more forthcoming -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Yes, very urgent. All right. Kevin Liptak, thanks so much.

All right. And this just in to CNN, we are hearing from Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis for the first time since she was allowed by a judge to stay in the Trump subversion case. What she had to say to CNN next.

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[15:32:06]

WHITFIELD: All right, this CNN exclusive. Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis is defending herself, her reputation, and her team's work in her first public comments since Judge Scott McAfee's decision to keep her on the election subversion case.

CNN's Rafael Romo is with us now on how CNN caught up with Willis and what she had to say today.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I have to give credit to our very dynamic producer, Jaide Timm-Garcia, who managed to get this interview. Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis spent her Saturday at an Easter egg hunt. The event was put together by Wave, an organization of law enforcement officers dedicated to helping children and the homeless throughout the year.

Willis was surprisingly candid, Fred, regarding questions about the last few months of her life, including her Georgia election interference case against Donald Trump and the scandal brought about by her prior romantic relationship with special prosecutor she appointed for the case. We wanted to know if she feels like she needs to reclaim her reputation and this was her reply.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FANI WILLS, FULTON COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: I don't feel like my reputation needs to be reclaimed. Let's say it for the record, I'm not embarrassed about anything I've done. You know, I guess my greatest crime is I had a relationship with a man, but that's not something that I find embarrassing in any way and I know that I have not done anything that's illegal. (END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: The racketeering case was delayed by two months, so let's remember following the revelations about her personal life, her decision-making credibility was also damaged in the eyes of Judge Scott McAfee. But the embattled Fulton County district attorney said the main case was not delayed because her team never stopped working on it. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIS: No, my team has been continuing to work in, and I think the media and especially organizations like you are all been paying attention, all while that was going on we were writing responses and briefs. We were still doing the case in the way that it needed to be done. I don't feel like we've been slowed down at all. I do think that there are efforts to slow down this train, but the train is coming.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: The train is coming, she said, Fred, if you didn't hear that.

WHITFIELD: I heard it.

ROMO: And CNN reported exclusively on Thursday Willis plans to press ahead with her goal of putting Donald Trump on trial before the November election. According to three people familiar with her plans, she also intends to ask the judge presiding over the Georgia criminal case to schedule a trial date as soon as this summer. And finally, and this is very important, Fred. Let's remember that Willis is seeking to get reelected in November. So she's got a lot on her plate, to say the least.

WHITFIELD: That is a lot, but she sounds very confident about being prepared to carry on.

ROMO: That's right.

WHITFIELD: All right. Rafael Romo, thank you so much to you and Jaide for bringing this to us.

All right. Back with us right now, former federal prosecutor Ankush Khardori. He is now a senior writer for "Politico" magazine.

So, Ankush, you heard from Fani Willis there, and she is unwavering.

[15:35:02]

She says they have continued to do the work even though there was that two-month delay while, you know, her behavior was under investigation. So should the trial get underway this summer? She says her team is ready.

KHARDORI: Well, I mean, look, if it can be done this summer, right, and her team is ready and all the defendants are ready and the judge is ready, that would be a perfectly appropriate thing to do. The problem is that it is not entirely up to her. Last summer, this case was filed and it was already going to be ambitious, even at that point in time, to bring a case like this, 19 defendants, complicated issues, high-profile issues, novel issues to trial in a year.

So that was already going to be a very, very heavy lift. Where we are now there's still a bunch of pending issues, significant pretrial issues. And of course, there are still the defendants' intended appeal from Judge McAfee's decision allowing Willis and her office to stay on the case. And the reason why that one is particularly important is a very practical reason. I'm sure folks will immediately recognize the judge is not going to want to have a trial if the verdict from that trial later needs to be thrown out because the prosecutor on the case was disqualified in the interim, right.

So he's not going to want to have a trial before that is fully resolved at the appeal level because it will be a waste of time and it would be bad for him personally if he got reversed and the trial was meaningless.

WHITFIELD: Did you feel that a Judge McAfee's decision was appeal- proof? I've heard some define it that way because he went beyond his explanation as to why he believes she should stay on the case yet at the same time reprimanded her. Did that essentially protect his decision to keep her on the case so that as the Trump team says, it wants to appeal, they may not really have any thing in which to appeal it on.

KHARDORI: Yes, I do think their odds of a success are quite low because I thought the judge's opinion was well-constructed. He made detailed factual findings, including as to credibility, which are very difficult for appeals courts to second guess. But even if it's a low probability, even if you're the judge, it's a 5 percent, it's one out of 20 chance that he'll eventually be reversed. I mean, he's going to be thinking about the practicalities of putting the country through a trial that may be upended even on a small percentage chance.

WHITFIELD: And would it also seem -- because you get the same judge who would be overseeing the election subversion case, wouldn't it also seem that he would feel almost an obligation to try to honor a speedy trial because there was this two-month delay because the co-defendants had filed this complaint, you know, against the prosecutor? And now that his decision has been rendered, does the judge feel compelled to get on with the case, so to speak?

KHARDORI: I would think that the judge is very happy to turn the page and keep this moving. The question is whether it can move that quickly, right? And I think the closest analogue that particularly folks in the Atlanta area will be familiar with is the Young Thug trial, right, which involves a lot of people in and around the entertainment industry. That case has been going on for a couple of years. It's still going on and it's the closest compared to just in the scale, the number of defendants, the complexity of the case. And that's gone on for years, right.

So -- and I would just one last point I guess I would make which is relevant to that, the judge should relatively highly critical opinion, let's put it that way, of the D.A. and question her credibility. On a very practical, psychological, human level, we should not expect him to be in the mood to do any favors for her now.

WHITFIELD: And then, I mean, I guess my last question was, you know, how might a further delay impair the readiness of the team that Will says they have right now?

KHARDORI: The government is very good at maintaining continuity of the people working cases, particularly very important cases. There'll be attorneys who we will never even hear about who I'm sure are working on the case. Investigators that way, too. So I wouldn't expect the delay itself. I think we should all take Willis fully at her word when she says the office is doing everything it can to move this case along as expeditiously as possible.

WHITFIELD: Yes. Also, her words were the train is coming to underscore her and her team's readiness to take on the case. All right. Thank you so much. Ankush Khardori. Appreciate it.

KHARDORI: Thanks for having me.

WHITFIELD: All right, coming up. Our team is live at Buckingham Palace where the country is, and the world for that matter, was rallying behind the Princess Wales who revealed she has been diagnosed with cancer. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Messages of support are pouring in after Princess Kate's cancer diagnosis. The princess of Wales revealed in a video message that she is in the early stages of chemotherapy.

CNN anchor and royal corresponding Max Foster has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER (voice-over): A devastating announcement from the princess of Wales.

PRINCESS CATHERINE: In January, I underwent major abdominal surgery in London. And at the time, it was thought that my condition was non- cancerous. The surgery was successful. However, tests after the operation found cancer had been present.

[15:45:01]

My medical team therefore advised that I should undergo a course of preventative chemotherapy, and I'm now in the early stages of that treatment.

FOSTER: In a recorded message, the royal said she had begun chemotherapy to treat an unspecified cancer. After weeks of speculation about Catherine's well-being, this is her first official appearance filmed by BBC Studios on Wednesday on the grounds of Windsor Castle, according to a royal source. She explained why it had taken some time to go public with the news. PRINCESS CATHERINE: It has taken us time to explain everything to

George, Charlotte, and Louis in a way that's appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I'm going to be OK. As I've said to them, I am well. and getting stronger every day by focusing on the things that will help me heal in my mind, body and spirits.

FOSTER (voice-over): A royal source telling CNN Kate and William had been waiting until their children began their school holidays to share the diagnosis publicly, to try to shield them from the news coverage.

Catherine hadn't been seen at any official public appearances since Christmas, off work and out of the public eye since then. In January, the princess underwent an unspecified abdominal surgery and was in hospital for two weeks. A frenzy of conspiracy theories emerging on social media, but few guessed the princess could have been dealing with such a serious diagnosis at the age of 42.

The princess' announcement comes just weeks after the royal family announced King Charles himself had cancer. The king today is saying he's so proud of Catherine for her courage in speaking as she did, according to Buckingham Palace.

KATE WILLIAMS, CNN ROYAL HISTORIAN: I think we are moving into a new royal world. It's totally unprecedented. The king was open, Kate is open, and I think it really makes us think about the royal family. We can't always imagine they're super humans going on forever.

FOSTER: Prince Harry and wife Meghan sent their wishes too, saying, we wish health and healing for Kate and the family, and hope they're able to do so privately and in peace.

Despite Catherine's unprecedented openness, it's unlikely any further details will be shared by the princess about her illness, and she's asked to be given privacy at this time. Catherine has said she's in good spirits, but a royal source said that she won't return to full- time duties until cleared by her doctors.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Max Foster, thank you so much.

I'd like bring in royal biographer Mark Saunders to discuss.

Mark, good to see you. What were your impressions when you saw her video announcement?

MARK SAUNDERS, ROYAL BIOGRAPHER: I think like most people like I was terribly saddened by it. I think it was very, very good move on her problem on the part of Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace. I did feel she was a little bit forced into doing it. She did explain that they wanted to wait until the Easter holidays and so they could be with the children first. And also, remember, Easter holidays, (INAUDIBLE), the schools in England are broken up. So the kids won't have to listen to anything at school, which is one of the things that both Charles and Diana were very concerned about with their own children William and Harry. So the time and probably they were a little bit forced into it which

is I think grotesquely unfair. And it also makes a mockery of the nonsense we've been listening to over the past two weeks from people that really should have known better.

WHITFIELD: But then when you say forced into it, forced into it because the messaging had gotten out of hand, forced in it because she is a member of the royal family, and there is a, you know, a level of expectation of sharing even the most private, you know, of moments. I mean help me understand what you mean by forced.

SAUNDERS: Yes. OK. I need to be very careful of my words here because I'm -- I don't want to do what other people have been doing which is talking nonsense. When I say forced into it, I think it probably would have been better if they could have another week. It's a two-week break, the Easter holiday, it's the children, (INAUDIBLE). But we've had speculation from respected broadcasters. The other day on the BBC, they were talking about that video we all saw (INAUDIBLE). They were talking about there had been some collusion between the "Sun" newspaper and Buckingham Palace, which is just absolute nonsense.

And we've had non respected broadcasters talking about the lack of a wedding ring on the edited photograph. By we, I don't know, did we all laugh? I think --

WHITFIELD: Yes. So also under the microscope you're saying, is, you know, those who are conveying information, speculating and, you know, and now learning how serious her situation is. I mean, you know, I think there were some headlines that talked about shame.

[15:50:03]

You know, a lot of tabloids and publications ought to feel, you know, shameful because of being irresponsible I guess with their assessments or how they were looking at her situation. So now we're learning a little bit more about Princess Kate, but we still don't know a whole lot about the king and his condition.

Do you believe that the reception of Kate's video might compel the king to be a little bit more forthright with what he is going through, thereby sharing with the world, you know, this entire family is its dealing with some very serious health matters.

SAUNDERS: Yes. I think it kind of goes the other way. I think Charles and Camilla and Buckingham Palace made their decisions early on to let us know about the Kate's condition They kind of influenced what William and Catherine do. So no matter what the whoever made the decision for catherine to come forward, it would have been spoken to intensely with Buckingham Palace. They would all have been in agreement.

And as Charles made -- I think it was brave. I've always, you know, Charles his Charles. When I was a kid at school, we've always told that add next king was a great man and it's changed a bit. I think old Charles is still Charles. And I felt that he was very honest. And then Catherine, I kind of felt it was in the same sort area they -- what William has gone through I don't know. His wife and his dad fighting cancer must be very, very hard and also having to read the nonsense in the newspapers and all it that he was promised 25 years ago wouldn't ever happen again.

So I -- well, not really mentioning William, but I think he's like his dad, stoic and will be a great king.

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, yes, it's a lot on all of their shoulders. Mark Saunders, glad you could bring with us your point of view. Thank you.

SAUNDERS: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: And well be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:56:59]

WHITFIELD: All right. This just in to CNN. The White House press secretary has just released a statement on the attack at a concert venue complex near Moscow.

CNN senior White House reporter Kevin Liptak is joining us now with more on this -- Kevin.

LIPTAK: Yes, Karine Jean-Pierre, the press secretary, saying that the United States strongly condemns the heinous attack in Moscow. She goes on to say we extend our deepest condolences to those who lost loved ones and to those who were injured or affected by these unconscionable attacks against innocent civilians. And she says, ISIS is a common terrorist enemy that must be defeated everywhere.

So you see here, there, and you have seen the United States formerly pinned blame on this ISIS offshoot, ISIS-K, that's based in Afghanistan. The U.S. has said that it was gathering intelligence that would suggest that ISIS-K was planning an attack in Russia. They went public with some of those warnings earlier this month and we're also told that they issued warnings privately to their Russian counterparts.

And so certainly you see the us very much expressing its condolences of but also making clear that the threat from ISIS remains very much present.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thank you so much, Kevin Liptak in Washington.

All right, let's talk about something fun, helpful here. The Mega Millions jackpot. Well, it's climbed to more than $1 billion dollars after no grand prize winner in last night's drawing, the last time it hit a billion was back in August topping 1.6 6 billion. It was the largest mega millions jackpot ever won.

Well, joining me right now is CNN correspondent Polo Sandoval, who's hoping that he's lucky because when is the next drawing? POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's going to be on Tuesday, Fred.

And look, this $1 billion jackpots, they used to be rare but not anymore, especially if you take a look at an analysis that has been put out by the folks at NerdWallet.com. When you see the numbers that they have put together, we want to share those with you, you can see that according to them eight of the 10 largest lotto jackpots in history they've been reached in just the last three years, and half of those, four, those happened just last year. So that's certainly telling.

So the question is why? Well, for starters, both major lotteries, both the Mega Millions and Powerball, they basically tweaked their rolls, making it harder for people to win. So fewer people are winning then that means that that amount continues to you accumulate, right? Interests also has something to do with it. And then finally, this is also really interesting, the folks at NerdWallet found that every time that the jackpot either meets or exceeds $1 billion that now makes those people who aren't usual lottery players think twice about and actually buy a ticket, which means there are more people that are essentially contributing to that big jackpot.

But ultimately, it may not necessarily matter how many people are playing because of just those awful odds of actually coming out the winner on Tuesday. I'll leave you with this number, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

SANDOVAL: According to Mega Millions, they're estimating that the chances of actually winning that $1.1 billion before taxes.

WHITFIELD: My gosh.

SANDOVAL: Read it for yourself. One in over 300 mil.

WHITFIELD: That is insane. Hey, but you got to play to win.

SANDOVAL: But there is chance, right?

WHITFIELD: You got to have at least one ticket to be that one in 300,000. Oh, boy. All right, well, fingers for both of us.

Polo Sandoval, thank you so much.