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Forensic Scientist Testifies About Blood Evidence At Murdaugh Trial; U.S. Shoots Down 3 Unidentified Objects In 3 Days Over North America; States Look To Loosen Child Labor Laws Amid Worker Shortages. Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired February 13, 2023 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIMOTHY PARLATORE, ATTORNEY FOR DONALD TRUMP: Found that about that, we call that DOJ to let them know and immediately provided them access to it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Not a great defense for why someone would have access to classified materials. She will likely be getting a subpoena herself from the special counsel. Now, they also handed over an empty folder that was labeled classified evening briefing.

And I asked him about that folder, and he explained that the former president had been using it to block the blue light emitting from a phone in his bedroom. And the Justice Department found out about it and a report that was given to them by the Trump legal team and asked -- demanded -- subpoenaed that folder.

But look, Kate, he -- the former president, he's under investigation for possibly mishandling classified material. So, if all the things to use to block the blue light in your phone, I said to Tim -- I said, look, it really suggests kind of a flippant attitude to this whole issue. Now, he denied that. He said it's just stationary. But I will say a similar folder is also on display at the Trump Tower bar.

Now, another big issue out there is the fact that Jack Smith has subpoenaed former Vice President Mike Pence and Tim told me that they do intend to try to block some of that testimony by raising executive privilege, those unclear how successful that will be.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, or -- and how long that would -- will necessarily drag out. When it --

REID: Exactly.

BOLDUAN: If and when that happens. It's good to see you, Paula. Great reporting. Thank you.

Let's turn now to the double murder trial of Alex Murdaugh. The jury is hearing testimony from a forensic scientist who says human blood was found on the steering wheel of Alex Murdaugh's car. And in another twist in the courtroom earlier today, two jurors have tested positive for COVID and have now had to be replaced by alternates.

Let's get over to Randi Kaye, once again, tracking all of this for us in South Carolina. Randi, what's been happening? They're winding up for another big week of this. What are you hearing from there?

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely. First, let's touch on that human blood on the steering wheel. That is yet another confirmation of that. That is from the night of the murders, Kate.

And that is really because according to the defense, Alex Murdaugh had touched his family's bodies when he saw them so did get blood on him and then got his car, drove up to the main house on the property to get a shotgun, he said for his own protection. So, that, according to the defense, would explain to human blood on the steering wheel.

There's also this new information we're getting that we could be learning more about the GPS data from his car that night. The state had just got a call from General Motors over the weekend, saying that they can now provide GPS location that they weren't able to provide earlier.

The state had reached out to them back in March of last year asking for this information. And then a witness testified on Friday that they looked at the OnStar system for his car but could not get the GPS data. So, that should be coming this week as well.

We also have been hearing from the Murdaugh's former housekeeper. She told the court that Alex Murdaugh had wanted Paul and Maggie Murdaugh and asked them both to come to Moselle, the property where the murders happened on the day of the murder. She also said she knew what he was wearing that day.

And she suggested that he hinted to her that she should tell investigators if asked, or anyone if asked that he was wearing something different. And that Maggie Murdaugh, she said in a private conversation, told her that she was concerned about money. And the fact that they were being sued in this boat crash. Listen to what she told the court.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLANCA TURRUBIATE-SIMPSON, MARDAUGH HOUSEKEEPER: Maggie was crying. Maggie said I -- we don't have that kind of money, Blanc. And that's what she used to call me. She said we don't have that. She said she knew the amount of money that they were asking, but she felt that Alex was not being truthful to her with regard to what exactly was going on with that lawsuit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: And according to the state, that speaks to motive because they believe that Alex Murdaugh was under financial pressure. His alleged financial schemes were going to be exposed and that's why he had allegedly killed his wife and son. The state is expected, Kate, to wrap up their case on Wednesday and the defense will take over from there.

BOLDUAN: All right. Randi, thank you so much. So, three unidentified objects shot down out of the sky over the last three days, and the White House facing questions over what's going on, what they know, and why they're shooting them down. A member of House Intelligence joins us next.

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[11:38:32]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MIKE TURNER, (R-OH): They do appear somewhat trigger-happy, although this is certainly preferable to the permissive environment that they showed when the Chinese spy balloon was coming over some of our most sensitive sites.

REP. JIM HIMES, (D-CT): I have real concerns about why the administration is not being more forthcoming with everything that it knows.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Lawmakers from both parties there, they want answers, questioning why they haven't heard more quite yet from the administration about the so far unidentified objects deemed suspicious enough to be shot out of the sky over the weekend. Three objects brought down in the last three days.

Joining me now is Democratic Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, a ranking member in the new Select Committee on China as well as a member of the House Intelligence Committee. Congressman, thank you for coming in.

You just heard from one of your Democratic colleagues, Jim Himes, saying that he has real concerns about why the administration is not being more forthcoming about what it knows here. Do you think the Biden administration should be sharing more?

REP. RAJA KRISHNAMOORTHI, (D-IL): I think they have been. We've just received a classified briefing about the CCP balloon before we left town. We're going to be receiving briefings about the latest shootdowns pretty soon.

I think that the administration is taking the responsible position that they need to examine the wreckage as well before they are able to give us answers to all of our questions. And for that matter, the Canadians are doing the same. So, I think that we're going to receive information we need in short order.

[11:40:02]

BOLDUAN: Real quick, you mentioned you're going to get a briefing soon. My colleague, Manu Raju, is reporting that senators are going to be receiving a classified briefing on Wednesday. Do you have a date when you all will be receiving the same?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: I don't think we received the exact date and time, but we are in constant communication with the administration at this point about what's happening. And I expect we'll receive a classified briefing in due course, as well.

BOLDUAN: Do you think -- and you said, you think that the administration is -- what I hear from you is taking appropriate time to figure out what they have before they come out and speak. But do you want to hear from the president on this? I mean, after three shoot downs in the weekend, do you think he should come out and say something?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: I think he will. But I mean, at the -- at -- the bottom line is this, which is that, before they have the information about the wreckage, I think that, you know, us speculating about what that wreckage is or what actually came down is premature.

What we do know is what the DOD has said, which is that they've intensified the nature of their radar to pick up even smaller objects than they have in the past. And so now, what we need to figure out and what they're going to answer for us is, whether these are nefarious objects in the sky from adversaries or whether they might even be drones that are flown by research institutions or private companies for non-nefarious purposes, or something else.

And so, let's let them examine the wreckage, tell us the answers, and then we can make judgments at that point.

BOLDUAN: You're -- yes, another one of your colleagues, Jason Crow. He was on CNN this morning. And I'm going to play for you how he characterized what he sees what happened over the weekend. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JASON CROW, (D-CO): These are not posing a threat to the United States or to Americans, you know. These are benign objects from what we can tell. And again, this is not a new phenomenon, either. You -- we've had UAPs come in within the United States for years now. But it's this is a different dynamic now, and we're deciding to take these objects down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Congressman, it sounds like he is downplaying the concern of a threat here, saying that they're benign and something -- and not new. What do you think?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: Well, I think that what the administration said was that with regard to those two or three objects that they shot down, they were within civilian airspace, so above 20,000 feet, which would pose a potential hazard to civilian aircraft, and so I think it's appropriate to take them down. But as to the nature -- the exact nature of what they are, I think we have to look at the wreckage at this point, and then come to conclusions.

BOLDUAN: Do you think -- do you think people are making too much of these objects in the air and objects that are now being shot down? I mean, Congressman Turner said the administration now seems to be getting trigger-happy.

KRISHNAMOORTHI: No, I don't think that we are you know overly concerned. I think we should be concerned about these particular objects. I think that the question is, what's the nature of those objects? I think that's where we need to, again, let the administration do its homework, and then provide us with the correct information before we make further judgments.

One thing is for sure. The CCP surveillance balloon was different in kind from the other UAPs that we saw over the weekend. And that clearly was a threat to our national security, in my opinion.

And I think the administration is looking at the wreckage now to assess what was collected and the intelligence capabilities of the CCP. And then the next step is obviously taking countermeasures to prevent this from happening again.

BOLDUAN: On that first Chinese surveillance balloon, the chair of your new Select Committee on China said this weekend that he doesn't think it's a coincidence that the balloon appeared just before Secretary Blinken's trip to Beijing. I hear then I wonder if you share that belief and if you think that the relationship has fundamentally shifted in any way off because of this.

KRISHNAMOORTHI: I don't know the answer to that question. You know, there's still an assessment being done as to whether the top leadership of the politburo or the People's Liberation Army actually knew about this balloon or the Foreign Ministry knew about this balloon at the same time that Secretary Blinken was coming to Beijing.

In which case, we would question the sincerity of their diplomatic overtures, or whether this particular program was kind of running on autopilot, and -- so to speak, or lower levels of the leadership knew about it, but not the top leadership.

Either way, it's a problem, as you know, because the CCP has massive, I guess, surveillance capabilities, and has the -- you know -- if any -- if there's any miscalculation, it could have grave consequences regardless of whether it's intentional or unintentional.

BOLDUAN: Yes. Congressman, thank you for coming in. Clearly, a lot of questions still to be asked. Let's see what you get in these briefings hopefully, sometime this week. Appreciate your time.

KRISHNAMOORTHI: Thank you.

BOLDUAN: So, too young to drive but not too young for some potentially dangerous jobs. What some states are trying to do now to roll back some child labor laws? The details next.

But first, for us, there's a new formula for maximizing your health. It's called the five-a-day challenge. Here's Dr. Sanjay Gupta with today's "CHASING LIFE."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, I'm Dr. Sanjay Gupta, host of CNN's "CHASING LIFE" podcast. Here's a number to keep in mind every day. Five turns out five is the magic number, two servings of fruit, three servings of vegetables to live a longer life.

A study released by the American Heart Association found that eating five servings a day offered the most benefit in terms of preventing the major chronic diseases.

Do remember though, that not all fruits and vegetables are created equal here. Starchy vegetables like potatoes, peas, corn, didn't seem to add as much longevity. Instead, think about those leafy green veggies. Those are great. The spinach, green lettuce, kale, they're all rich in beta-carotene and vitamin C. Carrots can also be a good choice.

As for fruit, berries are your nutritional powerhouses as our citrus fruits. But pass on the juice here, doesn't offer the same benefits because you lose some of the fiber. And research shows that fiber in Whole Foods is really the key to its nutritional punch.

You can hear more about how to optimize your health and chase life wherever you get your podcast.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:52:06]

BOLDUAN: Some states are now considering some pretty drastic action to make up for the worker shortages really being seen across the country, even moving to allow children as young as 14 to work in places like meatpacking plants. Tom Foreman has been looking into this. He joins us now. It's good to see you, Tom. Tom, where is this happening?

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, some versions of it are happening in a lot of places. But let's look at Iowa and Minnesota right now where there's active legislation being considered. In Iowa, they want to open up certain meatpacking jobs to people as young as 14 years old.

And once you move to 15-year-olds, they want some light assembly work -- lifeguard work to be open up to those people to do this and accommodate this. They would like to expand the number of hours kids can work during the week and the lateness of the hours even in school times.

One of the other really controversial parts of this is they want liability protections for the employers. They basically want to say yes, you can hire a 15-year-old but if he loses a hand or gets badly injured or gets killed on the job, you're going to have to have something really egregious before you will be held legally accountable for that. So, people are concerned about that.

In Minnesota, one of the provisions up there would allow 16 and 17- year-olds to work in construction, which is an area that OSHA considers one of the most dangerous types of jobs out there. Now, obviously, people would say they want to keep it safe but the Department of Labor has said in the past few years, the number of incidents where children are being hired illegally has been rising anyway.

And they've been investigating accidents including construction accidents, one in Tennessee less than a year ago where a 16-year-old fell 160 feet to his death. So, you can understand there's a lot of concern about this movement, Kate.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. All right, Tom, well, a lot of -- yes, a lot of concern and a lot of criticism coming out. Let's see where this all moves as this moves through their legislature. Thank you, Tom.

FOREMAN: See you.

BOLDUAN: Let's talk though now, about last night. Super Bowl LVII is in the books. The Kansas City Chiefs lifting the Lombardi trophy for the second time in four seasons. They defeated the Philadelphia Eagles and what ended up being a close game that came down to the final seconds.

Coy Wire was there. He joins us now from Glendale, Arizona. So, Coy, that Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, he just held another press conference. What did he have to say today?

COT WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes, Kate, this game represented the takeover for Patrick Mahomes. Tom Brady retires and now it's Mahomes's league at 27 years old. He's now the youngest quarterback ever to start in three Super Bowls, two wins, two MVPs. And being around him this week, Kate, he emanates positivity. He's wise beyond his years.

And he told me how being a dad of an almost one-year-old daughter and a two-month-old son has given him a perspective and greater purpose. So, it's no surprise to hear his answer this morning, Kate, before flying to Disneyland with his family, what he's most excited about ahead of the celebratory parade in Kansas City on Wednesday. Here he is.

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PATRICK MAHOMES, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS QUARTERBACK: I'm -- so spend that time with my family. I haven't got to even see my son yet because he was asleep by the time I got home yesterday. So, spend that time with them and my daughter and enjoy it with them. And then it's going to be prayed Wednesday and we'll enjoy it as a team I'm sure and I'm sure the Chiefs kingdom will be out there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[11:55:17] WIRE: All right, this game was bittersweet, Kate, for the Kelce brothers. Jason of the Eagles, Travis of the Chiefs. Mom Donna had to console Jason, of course, but also celebrate them the moment with Travis. They are the first two brothers to ever face each other in a Super Bowl as players. Incredible stuff.

And finally, there was one person in the stadium last night who was shining bright like a diamond. Rihanna returning the stage to perform for the first time in seven years. She had a baby just nine months ago.

Her most recent album, Kate, was released when Obama was president but she is back, she's reportedly pregnant again performing on the biggest stage in American sports. Incredible night all around in what was one of the most exciting Super Bowls ever.

BOLDUAN: Yes. It was really -- it was a really fun one to watch. And that was a great halftime show. I'm glad you're there, Coy. Thank you so much. Appreciate it, my friend.

WIRE: Thank you, Kate.

BOLDUAN: And thank you all so much for watching today. I'm Kate Bolduan. "INSIDE POLITICS WITH JOHN KING" starts after this break.

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