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The Lead with Jake Tapper

Tennessee Pays Tribute To Hometown Hero Dolly Parton; FDA Gives First-Ever Clearance For Continuous A.I. Sepsis Monitor; Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), Is Interviewed About Chinese Hackers Targeted U.S. Military, Agencies, Hospitals; Trump-Backed Sen. Darline Graham Wins SC GOP Runoff. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired August 26, 2026 - 17:00   ET

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

KASIE HUNT, CNN HOST: All right. Thanks very much to my panel. Really appreciate you all joining today. Thanks to you at home for joining us as well.

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That's a separate QR code right there. You can also follow us on X and Instagram at thearenacnn. But don't go anywhere, "The Lead" anchored by Bianna Golodryga, it starts right now.

[17:00:33]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome to The Lead. I'm Bianna Golodryga in for Jake Tapper. We begin with breaking news and the disturbing images which have shocked the world today. A massive wall of water sweeping through valleys and towns along the Nepal-China border with deadly consequences. An urgent search is now underway for those killed, injured or still missing after the torrent of flash floods and mudslides tore through the region.

Terrifying video taken from the back of a bus captures the fear of passengers as floodwaters rush toward a bridge. At least 157 people are confirmed killed in Nepal and hundreds of tourists are missing, including 47 Americans.

Take a look at this. More shocking video from a hillside captured the devastating floodwaters raging through villages in Nepal, taking entire bridges with the current.

And in China, mudslides engulfed a land port that connects the Chinese and Nepali border. State media says three people were killed and more than 250 are missing. A landslide possibly caused by part of a glacier shearing off is believed to be the cause of the devastation.

Rescue helicopters are struggling to land amid the debris and high water. India, the Red Cross and the World Health Organization are sending key emergency supplies and funding, while Europe and the U.S. say they're prepared to mobilize. We'll have much more on this story ahead in the hour.

But first, the Pop Culture Lead. Millions continue to mourn the late, great Dolly Parton who died yesterday at the age of 80. Her publicist revealing that she died after a brief battle with cancer. To grasp her impact as a songwriter, a humanitarian and a human being, just look at the countless tributes from people from all ends of the political spectrum, from different generations, even from other countries. The King's Royal Guard honoring Dolly outside Buckingham palace today.

In one spot on the map, the grieving literally hits home. Dolly's home state of Tennessee. CNN's Jason Carroll is in Sevier County, Tennessee, where Dolly Parton grew up.

Jason, Dolly grew up to be larger.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The old adage, the show must go on. And here in Dollywood, the theme park that she created, nestled in Sevier County, where she grew up, it does go on. It was open today and filled with fans to share how she had touched their lives, even in the smallest of ways.

ALI GRAHAM, DOLLY PARTON FAN: My grandpa swears Dolly Parton winked at him when they saw her back in, like, the '70s. And my grandma will deny it to this day, but she'll -- behind his back, say she really did wink.

CARROLL (voice-over): It's well known Parton was a prolific songwriter and singer. But here in these parts, she is just as well known for how she gave back to her community. Not uncommon to hear from adults who remember getting free books as children, thanks to Parton's literacy program, Imagination Library, which she started in 1995.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got her books growing up as a child, so.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We all did.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Promotion of education.

CARROLL: All of you got --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Imagination Library.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

CARROLL: All of you got the books?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They give on every month.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. CARROLL: A book every month.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. I still read them.

CARROLL (voice-over): Millions of children receive books, all because Parton's father could not read or write. And Parton, who grew up very poor, wanted to make sure children learn to love reading, regardless of income. Her philanthropic efforts didn't end there. In 1991, she created a buddy program in Sevier County to improve school dropout rates.

DAVID WEAR, PIGEON FORGE CITY MANAGER: You get a buddy, you pick your buddy, and if you and your buddy make it through high school, she gives you $500 each.

CARROLL (voice-over): David Wear was one of those recipients. He later became mayor and now city manager of Pigeon Forge, the small town next to Parton's hometown, Sevierville.

WEAR: And years later, here I am getting to work with her on the government.

CARROLL: Can you tell me what it was like working with her?

WEAR: She was -- so everybody knows Dolly on stage, everybody knows Dolly in the interviews. She's so wonderful. She's so charismatic, witty, gritty, resourceful, funny. She's larger than life.

[17:05:06]

CARROLL (voice-over): Folks around here say just about everyone has a Dolly story.

CHIEF RICHARD CATLETT, PIGEON FORGE POLICE: Once that I came in, she accepted me just like I'd been around her my whole career.

CARROLL (voice-over): Pigeon Ford's police chief used to help with Parton's security team. He says she was genuine, down to earth, and had a good sense of humor.

CATLETT: Tried to make best working conditions over there that she could.

CARROLL: I'm wondering how you think she might be remembered.

CATLETT: I told her one time that she's larger than Elvis.

CARROLL: Oh, you told her she was larger than Elvis.

CATLETT: And she just -- yes. She just kind of laughed that off. Said there's no way.

CARROLL (voice-over): Humor, grace, generosity in honor of her life. Flowers and cards left at a makeshift memorial at her statue in her hometown. All to honor a woman embraced by the world, but someone who never lost touch with the place that shaped who she was. (END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL (on camera): And, you know, as sad as people are out here, especially here at Dollywood, all of those that we spoke to, the minute we brought up her name, there was just a smile on everyone's face. Each person that we interviewed just started to smile when they started to remember something about Dolly Parton. And that really speaks to who Dolly Parton was and what type of impact she had on so many people. Back to you.

GOLODRYGA: How lucky we all were to have her for these 80 years. The world truly didn't deserved Dolly Parton. Jason Carroll, live from Dollywood, Tennessee, thank you.

And joining me now, Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters. He was born and raised in this area and knew Dolly Parton since grade school.

Mr. Mayor, thank you so much for joining us. I know this has got to be tough for you and your community. How are you doing today and what is the mood like as everyone is mourning their neighbor and your friend Dolly Parton?

MAYOR LARRY WATERS (R), SEVIER COUNTY, TENNESSEE: It's certainly a somber mood. I'm sitting here looking at her statue, and there's literally hundreds of people have come by and left flowers in a tribute to her. And it's somber, but a lot of good memories of Dolly. And we all know that her legacy is going to live on because of her music and as importantly, because of her generosity that -- and so many causes that she did over the years. You know, she loved these mountains and she loved the people in these mountains, and she talked about it everywhere she went.

GOLODRYGA: She never forgot where she came from and was so proud of that community. And she did so much for Sevier County through Dollywood donations. Just staying connected with the community. Talk about that impact and what else she did that we may not even know about.

WATERS: Oh, yes, she was always doing something in Sevier County. She just recently helped fund an expansion of our senior center. We have a women's unit at our local hospital. It's the Dolly Parton Center.

You know, when we had the devastating fires in 2016, it was Dolly that stepped up and said, I'm going to give the people there some money to get back on their feet and. And helped them be resilient and come back by giving them for several months and give anybody that was devastated $10,000. She did a similar thing for the Hurricane Helene victims, and she was always doing something for the community here, the community that she loved and grew up with and that she talked about the Smokies, and she had those values of mountain people that she kept with her all her life.

I knew her all her life, and she was the same three weeks ago as she was in high school. That vibrant personality, funny, loved life, loved people, and she never changed. And that's difficult to do when you get to the level of fame and -- that she did in this world. But she was able to stay grounded.

GOLODRYGA: That was her superpower. She never changed. She was so authentic.

Mr. Mayor, is there a memory that you have of Dolly Parton that sticks with you at this moment?

WATERS: Oh, yes. Growing up, her aunt and uncle lived close to where I lived. And my grandfather, who was a Baptist minister, and her grandfather was a minister as well would -- she'd go home on the school bus occasionally. And I remember when most folks would get off a school bus, my grandfather would say, Dolly, you've got to sing me a gospel song. You have a beautiful voice.

And she'd sing him a gospel song. And I remember my grandfather saying, when we'd get home, he'd say, now there's somebody that's going to go far in life because she has a beautiful voice and a beautiful personality. So I cherish those days and remember -- and remember them with a smile because that was the Dolly Parton that I knew all my life.

[17:10:15]

GOLODRYGA: And boy, was he right. Your grandfather sure knew talent when he saw it.

Sevier County, Tennessee mayor, Larry Waters, thank you.

WATERS: Thank you. And like I say, her legacy will live on. And that gives us all comfort. The legacy of the beautiful song she has and the generosity and her spirit that she had of loving people. And we can all take comfort in that, no matter where we are in the world.

GOLODRYGA: Amen. Mr. Mayor, thank you.

And another devastating loss. British actor and singer Tim Curry died Tuesday, also at the age of 80. His publicist said Curry passed away peacefully at his home in Los Angeles. Curry rose to fame in the '70s with his unforgettable performance in Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the "Rocky Horror Picture Show."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. FRANK-N-FURTER, "ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW" CHARACTER: I see you shiver with anticipation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: The three time Tony nominee later played Butler Wadsworth in the 1985 murder mystery "Clue." Sprinting through the mansion hallways delivering rapid monologues, Curry said the role drove his blood pressure so high that he had to visit a company nurse. Curry also terrified audiences in 1990 as a demonic clown, Pennywise, in the miniseries based on Stephen King's horror novel "It."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) PENNYWISE, "IT" CHARACTER: Kiss me, fat boy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Two years later, Curry appeared as the suspicious hotel concierge in the holiday classic "Home Alone 2."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MR. HECTOR, "HOME ALONE 2" CHARACTER: And how are we this morning?

KEVIN MCCALLISTER, "HOME ALONE 2" CHARACTER: Fine. Is my transportation here?

MR. HECTOR: Out in front, sir. A limousine and a pizza.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Curry's cause of death was not disclosed. Although he faced health challenges and suffering a stroke in 2012. May his memory be a blessing.

And when we're back, more of the breaking news. That wall of water rushing through Nepal and China. See the very moment people seemed to sense that danger was on the way.

And later, what U.S. officials are revealing about a major cyber spy operation that tapped into hospitals, power companies and federal agencies.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:16:30]

GOLODRYGA: And we're back with the breaking news. Search and rescue efforts are continuing overnight with 11 teams in Nepal, according to the Prime Minister's office. The death toll is continuing to rise after floodwaters ripped along its border with China, engulfing entire villages, leading to a mudslide, eliminating everything in its way. CNN's Will Ripley takes us through just some of the dramatic moments.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A bridge snaps before being swept away as floodwater pours into Nepal's Trishuli River. Video shared on social media shows people running and riding away on motorbikes, realizing how little time they have to get to safety.

At this Himalayan border crossing, people on the street could probably hear the danger coming before they could see it. A recently rebuilt earthquake resistant building blocked their view of the monster wall of water until it was too late. From this view, you can see the floodwater's ferocious speed and massive scale. People desperately running for their lives have nowhere safe to go. In what appears to be about 20 seconds on video, the flood consumes everything in its path. A row of buses, a four story building, a bridge gone buried beneath a black wall of water. From the air, a helicopter pilot watches the disaster race through the valleys below, sweeping away homes, trees and roads.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The whole scenario, it was horrendous. It was uncanny. Anything like you've never seen before.

RIPLEY (voice-over): On this bus in Nepal, passengers spot the giant waves crashing into the bridge behind them. The streets are full of people trying to get away. Panic fills the bus as passengers look out the windows at the horror unfolding. In the same town from the safety of a hillside temple, people watch helplessly as the deluge of dark water breaks apart a bridge like a toy, dragging it downstream. This video from the Nepal Red Cross captures the speed and strength of the water whipping around cars and tearing down power lines in its path.

The flood came crashing down from high in the Himalayas. Scientists at Kathmandu University believe an avalanche of ice and rock may have blocked a river until the water broke through. A torrent of water, mud and debris forcing its way downstream, submerging or destroying buildings, tearing villages apart. Mile after mile of these majestic mountain valleys, a dark scar carved into the landscape. Foreign tourists, including Americans, are among the missing at this vital land gateway between China and Nepal.

The mudslide ripped apart roads, knocking out power and communications, leaving communities on both sides of the border cut off. On the ground, people get their first look at what little the flood left behind. And amid the horror, hope a helicopter makes a daring rooftop rescue, one of many in the hours and days ahead.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RIPLEY (on camera): Rescues are particularly difficult in some of these areas because of how treacherous it is -- it is to get there. Of course, so many roads are cut off, you can only reach certain areas by air. It is probably optimistic. Sources on the ground are saying that the number of missing will remain only in the hundreds. Just by looking at the video beyond and just seeing how ferocious those waves were, how huge they were in comparison to those buildings, you know, a helicopter pilot above was saying they were at least 50 to 20 feet high.

[17:20:10]

But then when you put in all that debris in the mud and the rock and the cars and the buildings that were kind of accumulating as it was just pummeling through the canyons there, you can see how the -- how the water just got higher and higher and higher going over those buildings. Scientists are looking into the possible connection to a 4.4 magnitude earthquake in the area that may have had something to do with this ice and rock avalanche. But obviously a lot of unanswered questions and most importantly, a lot of people missing at this hour. GOLODRYGA: I've never seen anything like that. Those poor, poor people.

Will Ripley, thank you.

Well, breaking news, why a judge today is refusing to step into a legal fight between Minnesota and Texas all over the fate of an ICE agent accused of shooting an immigrant in Minneapolis. And the moment setting the tone for tomorrow's closing arguments in the Lindsay Clancy trial. CNN reporter who was in the courtroom will join me next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:25:14]

GOLODRYGA: Breaking news in our Law and Justice Lead, the state of Texas does not need to hand over an ICE agent in its custody to Minnesota. A federal judge today said he lacked authority in a lawsuit brought by Minnesota to force Texas Governor Greg Abbott to extradite Christian Castro. Castro faces charges in Minnesota over the shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis during an ICE operation in Minneapolis earlier this year. The judge said since Abbott has not yet decided whether to hand Agent Castro over to Minnesota, he can't make him do so. Castro is eligible to be released from Texas custody as early as tomorrow.

And Minnesota officials have said he could be a flight risk.

And in our Law and Justice Lead, closing arguments are expected tomorrow in the trial of Lindsay Clancy, the Massachusetts mother accused of deliberately killing her three children in 2023. Clancy's defense argues she's not criminally responsible for the deaths because she was suffering from postpartum psychosis. CNN's Jean Casarez was in the courtroom again today.

Jean, what stood out as testimony came to a close?

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think in the courtroom, it was the jury. They were so focused after so many hours of testimony, so many hours of expert testimony. They just -- their focus was on the witness, the final witness for the prosecution. I think also that it's now really, I think, solidified. The defense is going to focus on the big picture, the big picture of postpartum depression, which went into -- from anxiety to ultimately a bipolar disorder and then finally psychosis on that day.

But the prosecution is going to be narrowly focused on the actions, the definitive and demonstrative action she did on that day. The witness today, the final witness, is from the FBI. The behavioral analysis unit focused in on the fact that when the commanding voice told her to kill her children, they did not describe how to do it, where to do it, when to do it. Those were the decisions of Lindsay Clancy. I want you to listen to his testimony about the decisions she made on January 24, 2023.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DR. GREGORY SAATHOFF, FORENSIC PSYCHIATRIST: She was able to drive to the pediatrician's office and then back. And the day was really one of significant control. The activities that she engaged in that day. Spending time with her children with Play-Doh, taking them outside to build a snowman, sending photographs of the children to her mother, to her husband on Instagram, fixing lunch and also fixing dinner for the children. So the activities of that day were controlled.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CASAREZ: The defense focused in on many things. But one thing was when Patrick Clancy got home that night, found his wife on the ground, his testimony was, he said, what happened? She said, I tried to commit suicide. The defense questioned on cross, saying, you heard the 911 tape, didn't you? You listened to it.

Did you hear her say any words? He admitted that he didn't.

GOLODRYGA: And, Jean, what should we expect from closing arguments?

CASAREZ: Well, we know there's going to be first degree murder, second degree murder charge, manslaughter charge going to the jury, and that would be a conviction, even though it's manslaughter, and then also not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility. But there are three victims in this case. They cannot be forgotten. These lives are important. We're talking about Cora, Dawson, Callan.

And the jury will have to take each charge and select guilty, not guilty for each child individually.

GOLODRYGA: Such a heartbreaking story. You'll be in the courtroom for the closing arguments.

Jean Casarez, thank you.

[17:29:21]

Up next, a first of its kind for AI getting a sign off from the FDA. How AI technology could save thousands of lives lost every year to sepsis.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GOLODRYGA: Now to our series, A.I., friend or foe? And a remarkable new technology that could save the lives of thousands of Americans suffering from sepsis, a dangerous medical emergency caused by the body's extreme response to an infection. It impacts nearly 2 million Americans every year. Jake Tapper spoke with a developer of the first continuous A.I. sepsis monitor granted FDA clearance.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Inside the University of Rochester's Strong Memorial Hospital, a groundbreaking new artificial intelligence is giving doctors and nurses a new early warning that a patient is developing sepsis. A serious medical emergency that can turn deadly in just hours, and takes the lives of more than 350,000 people in the United States every year.

DR. GREGG NICANDRI, UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER MEDICINE: It's a leading cause of hospital admission, a leading cause of hospital readmission, and we know about 80 percent of cases are likely preventable.

J. TAPPER (voice-over): Dr. Gregg Nicandri is the chief medical information officer at Strong Memorial, one of more than 40 hospitals now utilizing the technology.

NICANDRI: What we've learned with this tool is that it actually identifies the potential for sepsis before the clinician kind of is cued into that.

[17:35:05]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These patients codify for sepsis, so.

J. TAPPER (voice-over): The A.I. reads constantly changing patient data in real time to alert swamped medical staff as to subtle warning signs of sepsis.

SUCHI SARIA, BAYESIAN HEALTH, FOUNDER & CEO: It's hard to be 24/7 paying attention to every patient, when -- and what's hard about sepsis is there's a lot of other things that mimic individual markers.

J. TAPPER (voice-over): This is Suchi Saria, a Johns Hopkins professor and the developer of the A.I. system.

SARIA: The A.I. is running in the background for every patient, analyzing all of the data, so not just the text data or the text notes, but their labs, their vitals, their clinical history, their medications, their treatments. We were able to show at Hopkins patients who died over a multi-year period across several of our hospitals.

In the background, when we ran the system, more than half the patients were being identified 5.7 hours earlier. These were patients who were the system who died.

J. TAPPER: Is that right, 5.7 hours is life or death?

SARIA: More than half, yes, exactly.

J. TAPPER: Do you know that it has saved lives?

SARIA: Oh, yes, absolutely. We've shown in sepsis 20, 30 percent relative reduction in mortality. That's huge.

J. TAPPER (voice-over): Saving lives that would otherwise be lost to sepsis is a deeply personal mission for Suchi. In 2017, while just beginning her research, she lost her nephew Nikunj to sepsis.

J. TAPPER: Tell me about your nephew.

SARIA: That one's so sad because he was young, like 20s, recently married, had just gone out at night for a party with his wife and comes back the next day not feeling well in the hospital. And a few days later, I get a call saying they're in the hospital and the doctor mentioned sepsis. They didn't even know anything about sepsis. They were like, you do a lot of work in sepsis, you should know something about it. But he was already, you know, it was unfortunately already very, very late. Like, he was in deep septic shock and then he didn't survive.

J. TAPPER: But that tragedy pushed you towards sepsis?

SARIA: That tragedy is what got me to go from my research to forming Bayesian.

J. TAPPER (voice-over): Bayesian Health is the Johns Hopkins University spinoff enterprise that's now trying to bring this lifesaving technology to hospitals across the country.

SARIA: A lot of my early research was funded by National Science Foundation and if it weren't for their funding, this wouldn't have happened.

J. TAPPER (voice-over): That early funding now has the potential to benefit thousands of American families. Families like my own.

ALICE TAPPER, SEPSIS SURVIVOR: I was left for 32 hours in the hospital without a sepsis diagnosis. I ended up in the ICU.

J. TAPPER (voice-over): In November 2021, my then 14-year-old daughter Alice nearly died because she was misdiagnosed.

J. TAPPER: Ultimately, she developed sepsis and her body started going into, I think it's called anaphylactic shock, where the organs in her body started shutting down because of sepsis. Now, how would this A.I. have helped her back in 2021 if it had existed?

SARIA: In her case, it sounds like there were a whole set of signs that easily the system would have caught. Her temperature was rising, her heart rate was rising, she was breathing heavily.

J. TAPPER: Her white blood cell count was very high.

SARIA: Her white blood cell count was very high. And I'm so happy that she's fine.

J. TAPPER: Yes.

SARIA: But there were just so many signs. I think it was almost, in her case, it seemed like almost 14 to 18 hours earlier would be obvious to the machine.

J. TAPPER (voice-over): Suchi gave me a demonstration of how her A.I. program works.

SARIA: Doctors and nurses are always looking at this thing called the patient list. They want to know who are the patients in the unit, where are they, what's happening, some high-level information, and then we embed information within it. And you can see this patient. J. TAPPER: Oh, there's the sepsis flag chart.

SARIA: Yes.

J. TAPPER: OK.

SARIA: There are different views they can go to that gives a sense for what's going on with this patient, why this patient was flagged, what's anomalous, culling data from this encounter, past encounter, looking at it over time, looking at all sorts of other events that are related, which then makes it very easy in 30 seconds they can look at it and either disagree or agree.

J. TAPPER: And these in red are the reasons why the sepsis alert has gone off?

SARIA: Yes, we flagged reasons for concern, that we want them to look at it more carefully.

J. TAPPER: OK. How often does a sepsis alert go off and they don't have sepsis?

SARIA: Sepsis is like what's called a needle in a haystack condition, which means in about 100 patients, maybe two patients will have sepsis. What our system shows is that in that very, very difficult scenario, we basically flag one out of every two or one out of every three flags are correct. And that's extremely hard to do.

J. TAPPER (voice-over): For Suchi, she's driven by her determination to make it so that another family doesn't have to lose a loved one to sepsis.

SARIA: It took everything out of me to get here. And it's been so rewarding to know that like, at least I'm doing my little bit to make a difference. A common thing I tell my team is people will ask me, well, why are you doing this? And I'm like, well, I need this to be in every hospital in America. The second it's in every hospital in America, I can take a vacation and that'll feel so good.

[17:40:08]

J. TAPPER (voice-over): Jake Tapper, CNN, Baltimore, Maryland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOLODRYGA: Our thanks to Jake Tapper for that fascinating report.

Up next, a big win for Republican Senator Darline Graham and President Trump, who endorsed her. So what's the argument now from Republicans who did not? I'll ask one after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GOLODRYGA: In our World Lead, U.S. officials say they exposed and disrupted a major Chinese cyber espionage campaign. Chinese hackers infiltrated the U.S. military, hospitals, power companies, and federal agencies, including NASA, the Federal Reserve, and the Departments of Justice and Energy, and even the Senate. The Justice Department says hackers hid behind a Chinese tech firm to cover their tracks, infecting thousands of devices connected to WiFi or Bluetooth.

[17:45:05]

Joining us now is Democratic Senator Chris Coons from Delaware. He's on the Foreign Relations, Appropriations, and Judiciary Committee. Senator, good to have you on. This is quite alarming, and an analyst tells CNN that he guarantees China will try to hack U.S. agencies or businesses again. Is the U.S. behind the eight ball on cyber security?

SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE), FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: Yes, we need to be doing more to invest in protecting our national infrastructure. And frankly, while alarming, this is in no way surprising. China has over and over infiltrated our core infrastructure. There was a major attack months ago now that's known under the name Salt Typhoon, through which they got into most of the core of our telecommunications systems. And this latest attack is just another example of how the Chinese Communist Party, the People's Liberation Army, and the PRC government is over and over attempting to infiltrate our systems, sometimes successfully.

GOLODRYGA: And the hack, as I noted, apparently targeted the U.S. Senate as well. Has the Justice Department contacted you or your office with steps to secure your own cyber operations?

COONS: No, they have not, at least not that I'm aware of. And you would think I'd be aware of that. I do regularly get phishing attacks, texts or e-mails that seem to be from friends of mine but aren't, that are from an area code similar to my hometown, that are from an e-mail that seems like it's a bank I know or a friend of mine. But frankly, I think millions of Americans face similar attacks every day. We need to be on the cutting edge of protecting our nation from these and other attacks.

And frankly, with our President and our national security leadership distracted by the war of choice that they've launched against Iran six months ago, I suspect they see us as a more easy target now. So it's important that we focus on our most significant adversary in the world, which is the PRC, and I would certainly expect that President Trump, as he is seeking a meeting with Xi Jinping, raises this issue, pushes back on it and cautions Xi Jinping, the leader of China, that they need to stop these relentless attacks on the United States.

GOLODRYGA: So you don't know if you've been attacked at all?

COONS: I don't. I haven't received any notice personally, directly or that I'm aware of to my office.

GOLODRYGA: Hopefully someone will be in touch with you soon. I want to turn to the Department of Defense because I know you and your colleague, Senator Patty Murray, sent a letter to Secretary Pete Hegseth and Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao, urging transparency and an investigation into the USS Lincoln, the USS Ford, and the USS Benfold deployments. The Benfold experienced a previously undisclosed days- long power outage. Your deadline for answers is September 1st. Have you heard anything back on this issue?

COONS: I have not. And frankly, I'm not surprised. Secretary Hegseth and the leadership of the Department have not been particularly responsive to a number of my requests for them to be transparent about the operational issues that the Pentagon and our Armed Forces are having under his leadership. As many of your viewers know, the sailors of the USS Lincoln have gone more than eight months without any port leave, and their parents and family members complained publicly about sailors on that aircraft carrier attempting to leap off because the conditions were so bad.

And as you just mentioned, there are other press accounts of a loss of power on the South China Sea and other conditions on the other aircraft carrier that I think deserve a prompt and full airing so that the families and loved ones of those who are serving our nation in our Armed Forces, in this case in our Navy, know that we are working together to provide them the support, the resources, and the conditions they need to serve admirably and well in defense of our nation.

GOLODRYGA: Senator Chris Coons, keep us posted if you hear from the DOJ or the Defense Department on both issues we just discussed. Thank you.

COONS: Yes.

GOLODRYGA: Well, now to our Politics Lead, a significant win for President Trump and his endorsement power out of South Carolina's Republican Senate runoff. Senator Darline Graham securing the nomination, defeating Congressman Ralph Norman by more than 18,000 votes. The sister of the late Senator Lindsey Graham will now face Democratic nominee Dr. Annie Andrews in November.

Joining us now is a former Republican candidate in this race, former Congressman and Governor of South Carolina, Mark Sanford. Thanks for joining us. So you endorsed Graham's opponent, Ralph Norman, just days before this runoff. Will you now throw your support behind Senator Darline Graham since she's won?

[17:50:12]

MARK SANFORD (R), FORMER SOUTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR: Yes, I mean, all of us signed a pledge in getting into the race that we would support whoever the eventual Republican nominee turned out to be. So I'll certainly honor my pledge. But I think it's a decidedly weird race, the likes of which I've never seen during my time in politics in South Carolina.

GOLODRYGA: How so? Other than the fact that, sadly, her brother died unexpectedly.

SANFORD: No, Lindsey was a friend. I've known him for years. We started in politics together. That part's tragic. But I just think that it was sort of a barometer on two fronts, both of which are unsettling. One was in every other race I've been around, you have an agenda. I'm running for these three reasons or these two reasons or this is the bee in my bonnet that really bothers me. And you didn't hear that in this race.

It was just absolute silence on that front, other than that she would again be an ally of the President's. The other part I think is unsettling is what you see I guess with all these midterm turnouts in special elections, which is a very low turnout, and the fact that, you know, roughly 10 percent or so of all the voter pool out there turns out whether that is in New York City was a mayor or whether it's here in South Carolina.

I think it leads to basically saying something about the populace, which is a lot of people are so sort of downtrodden and turned out from politics that they say, I can't make a difference. I'm not going to bother voting. And so we end up with some again, unusual situations.

GOLODRYGA: Well, in her victory speech last night, Graham thanked one particular person. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. DARLINE GRAHAM (R-SC): I want to thank President Trump for all of his support and his endorsement. Our victory would not have been possible without you, and we are truly grateful. South Carolina is truly Trump country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Now, as we've noted, Graham did defeat Ralph Norman by more than 18,000 votes. But is she right? Is South Carolina right now truly Trump country? And is he the reason she won?

SANFORD: I think she's definitely the reason that she won. He's definitely the reason that she won. I mean, he did something very unusual for him, which is to unload $800,000 in this race. There are roughly about $6 million worth of different, you know, special interest groups honing in on this race and spending a lot of money.

So it was a well-spent, well-contested race. And yes, I mean, there's no way that she would have made it without him. Are we Trump territory? That's still -- I mean, as it relates to this race, yes, absolutely. But I think that the bigger point is the one I made earlier, which is most people just feel that Washington does not have the answers and they've given up.

And so you look at the crisis of affordability, a young person's ability to buy a home or put gas in the car or food on the table. A lot of people are just saying, you know, I give up. And I find that very, very unsettling in terms of our Democratic traditions and process.

GOLODRYGA: Do you think that applies, that sentiment applies to both Republicans and Democrats? Does that sentiment favor Democrats or the Democrat in this race in the general election?

SANFORD: I don't know. I mean, it's a decidedly red state that I live in and call home. So I don't think it favors the Democrat in this instance. I just think it's an observation of how I think we end up away from where the sort of vast majority of folks are, whether that's, again, with the mayor in New York or in this case with sort of an unusual election. I mean, whether you like Ralph or not, he absolutely had the normal conservative credentials that typically in the past have mattered in a Republican primary. That ultimately did not prevail in this instance.

GOLODRYGA: Former South Carolina Congressman and Governor Mark Sanford, thank you for the time.

SANFORD: Anytime.

[17:54:29]

GOLODRYGA: Ahead, Ben Sasse and his terminal cancer diagnosis. What the former Senator recently told Jake Tapper about an experimental drug that is now FDA approved.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GOLODRYGA: In the Health Lead, the FDA approving what some call a miracle drug for adults with metastatic pancreatic cancer. It's made by Revolution Medicine and comes in a once-daily pill form. It's the same drug former U.S. Senator Ben Sasse used in its clinical trial. Sasse recently spoke with Jake Tapper about how it works.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEN SASSE, FORMER U.S. SENATOR: This rock star researcher who, you know, was one of the co-founders of Revolutions Medicine, had the idea that maybe you find a way to take molecular glue and glue your chaperone molecule to the pancreatic cancer, and you create a crevice and you lock the drug in there. And then they experimented with 500 molecules and they found one, this Daraxonrasib drug. And all of a sudden, pancreatic cancer is a little bit responsive.

TAPPER: The drug you're taking, it's essentially poisoning the cancer in you?

SASSE: Right. And so over the course of the five months I've been on this drug, my tumors have shrunk by 80 percent.

TAPPER: Wow. Now this is great news, but not, you know, ultimate news, because tumors find a way to work their way around chemo over time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[17:59:59]

GOLODRYGA: The American Cancer Society puts a survival rate for pancreatic cancer at just 13 percent, one of the lowest among major cancers.