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Dangerous Storms Kill Two in Oklahoma; SpaceX Launch Ends with Explosion; IRS Agent Seeks Whistleblower Protections in What May Be Hunter Biden Probe; Boy Scouts to Begin Compensating Abuse Victims. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired April 20, 2023 - 11:00   ET

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

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KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): The most powerful rocket ever built explodes after takeoff. What went right and what went wrong with the SpaceX Starship launch. CNN is on the ground with new details.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): "Why did you shoot my daddy and me?"

Heartbreaking words from a 6 year old North Carolina girl after neighbors say she and her father were shot over a basketball.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We're tracking a major threat in the skies. More than 50 million people from Texas to Wisconsin could be hit with severe weather after deadly tornadoes tore through Oklahoma overnight.

We're following these major developing stories and many more, all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

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SIDNER: Right now, crews are searching through debris in Oklahoma for survivors after a deadly tornado touched down just south of Oklahoma City. At least two people were killed. Officials fear they could find more victims as they comb through destroyed homes, looking for survivors.

Several tornadoes tore through the strait (ph). This is aerial video that shows heavy damage to a neighborhood in Oklahoma City, homes, they're completely flattened in some cases. And here we're going to show you some severe damage to a Lowe's (ph) in the city, the roof literally collapsing in on itself and then debris littering the parking lot.

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BOLDUAN: Look at that. The SpaceX Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built, taking off from Boca Chica, Texas. Now take a look at this. We're going to show you the engines. These are the engines. There are 33 of these on the rockets booster.

And it became evident during launch that at least three and, at times, others even more did not ignite at the time of liftoff.

How mission critical was that?

We don't know quite yet. But here is how it all ended this morning.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We should have had separation by now. Obviously this is -- does not appear to be a nominal situation.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it does appear to be spinning but I do want to remind everyone that everything after clearing the tower was icing on the cake.

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BOLDUAN: Not a nominal situation but also icing on the cake. This is where something went wrong very clearly and the rocket exploded. No people, no satellites on board this test, of course. So now there's so much to learn from this spectacular show this morning.

CNN's Ed Lavandera, he had a front row seat for it all. He's back with us this hour.

And what more are you learning?

What more details are coming in about what will happen this morning?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're not expecting to hear on camera from SpaceX officials. That hasn't happened yet or may not happen.

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LAVANDERA: But Elon Musk has tweeted just a short while ago that they learned a lot from today's launch and that they will prepare for another test launch in the coming months. So that timeframe seems to be rather quick.

But Elon Musk was, several days before this launch, was putting really, like dampening expectations as to what might happen. Even thinking there might be some catastrophic failure on the launch pad as it launched.

But it was a stunning, thunderous site here as the Starship rocket cleared the launch pad and then started traveling east for several minutes. You can see this long, giant smoke trail.

And then just about the three minute mark, at the time that we thought that the booster was going to separate from the rocket ship, we heard another loud, thunderous explosion and bright orange light below that smoke trail. I'm assuming now at this point, given what we know now, that that was

the failure of the rocket ship exploding there over the Gulf of Mexico. Ideally, if everything had gone right, this ship was supposed to travel almost around the Earth, falling into the Pacific Ocean around the state of Hawaii.

But that clearly didn't happen, so they are -- we'll continue working here. And of course, all of this significant because this is the rocket ships -- rocket ship system that will eventually partner with NASA as it returns to the moon and eventually trying to create human travel to Mars.

So all of this intertwined with what NASA is doing and that's why so many people are paying such close attention to this.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely, Ed. Thank you so much for that update.

Now let's get NASA's perspective on this. Joining us right now is the NASA administrator, Bill Nelson.

Administrator, I know you were watching and your team was watching this closely this morning.

What's your reaction to this test today?

BILL NELSON, NASA ADMINISTRATOR: It's a good first step. SpaceX's modus operandi is to work it and work it until it works. It looks like they got through the first stage of this big monster rocket. That's a real accomplishment. We'll get a report on what happened to the second stage.

But I'm very encouraged that they've gotten along this far. Remember this is a big rocket but it goes into orbit and then it's got to refuel. And you're going to have to have eight tanker lights to low Earth orbit with fuel, to fuel up the Starship to go to the moon. So they have a long way to go. But this is a good start.

BOLDUAN: It is remarkable to hear how many -- how far things have come and still how far -- how many more steps there still are.

You tweeted and I've been quoting tweets from you all morning, Administrator. You tweeted back in February that the Starship is, quote, "integral to NASA's moon to Mars architecture and helping us land astronauts on the moon."

Can you describe how critical SpaceX and this particular rocket is to NASA's missions, to NASA's goals?

NELSON: SpaceX won the competition for the first lander. We have another competition going right now that, this summer, we will select a second lander. But SpaceX has the opportunity to be the first.

And so at the end of '25 or early '26, after we have flown our crew of four astronauts that we announced, on a flight around the moon in late next year, '24, so about a year later, we put four astronauts on Orion going to lunar orbit. And then they will transfer into the SpaceX lander, the Starship that you see there in the pictures that you had, that top part of the stack that launched. And two of the four astronauts will go to the moon and the first woman and the next man will walk on the surface of the moon.

BOLDUAN: NASA has said, I mean, if you mentioned kind of the timetable, whichever one of course, wants to hear more about that timetable, when humans are going to be back on the moon, 20 in 2025, maybe 2026, does this test and what we've seen today does that change NASA's timetable at all?

NELSON: No, it doesn't. This is the way SpaceX goes about. They test this stuff. They run it hard. Sometimes it blows up. Remember, they're very successful. A Falcon 9 rocket that launches our astronauts to the International Space Station, several of them blew up to begin with.

And now it's become a workhorse for commercial, for government, for NASA.

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NELSON: So this is their modus operandi.

BOLDUAN: When people see this explosion, I mean, some might be discouraged to think, it didn't work. They called it icing on the cake after it cleared the launch pad. You called it encouraging.

But just from your background in all of this, is that -- you know, I almost called you senator again, Administrator, what did you think when you saw this all take off this morning?

NELSON: Well, I was cheering as that rocket rose. Naturally, you want to see it continue. But as President Kennedy said, when he spoke in Rice Stadium 60 years ago, he said, we go to the moon not because it's easy but because it's hard.

And space is hard. And they'll overcome this and we'll be on the way and we'll be landing on the moon late '25, early '26.

BOLDUAN: And I promise you we will be here to watch this and that. And thank you so much, Administrator, for coming on, for your first reaction to this. It's a really special day to see this all play out and see science and the progress all along the way and happening live. Thank you, Administrator.

NELSON: Thanks.

BOLDUAN: It's good to see him.

All right, John.

BERMAN: This morning with stitches in her face, a 6 year old North Carolina girl is asking why.

Police say Kinsley White was playing in her yard when her basketball rolled into the neighbor's yard. And then the neighbor began shooting, hitting the girl and her father and grazing her mother.

Police say the suspect is Robert Singletary. Right now, Singletary is on the run. He is considered armed and dangerous. CNN's Dianne Gallagher joins us live from Gaston County.

Dianne, I do understand you have an update on the condition of this family.

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, John. In fact, about three minutes ago, I just spoke with the mother of William Jamie White. That's the father of Kinsley White. He is still in the hospital in Charlotte.

His mother told me that he was shot through the back and that the bullet actually came out the front of his torso. She said he remains in pain but he's getting good care. And right now he's concerned because the shooter is still on the loose.

He was protecting his 6 year old daughter, Kinsley. Neighbors tell us that they were -- she was playing with other kids, all ages in the neighborhood, at this basketball hoop right here in the street. And the ball rolled down into the yard of Robert Singletary. And that's when he seems to get upset and started running and shooting.

Kinsley, with the permission of her mother and grandmother, spoke with local media after the shooting and just seeming -- of course, she's 6 years old -- couldn't understand why this happened.

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KINSLEY WHITE, SHOOTING VICTIM: Why did he shoot my daddy and me?

Why did he shoot a kid's dad?

ASHLEY HILDERBRAND, KINSLEY'S MOTHER: I looked at my husband and my daughter and told him, I'm going to kill you.

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GALLAGHER: Now there is a manhunt underway right now. Gaston County police, they've used the assistance of Charlotte police and their helicopters as well as U.S. Marshals to find 24 year old Robert Singletary. We are told that -- again, they're still looking.

I talked to neighbors out here a few moments ago, who told me they didn't get any sleep last night, that they were very scared. They're concerned. They also told me, John, that he had just moved to the neighborhood about two weeks ago.

They didn't know him very well at all but seemingly was upset with all the kids that would be running through his yard and in the neighborhood. The police chief put out a statement in letting people know about it.

Telling them that, "I want to say to the people of Gaston County, this sort of violence will not stand." Again, John, that shooter is still on the loose here and a manhunt

continuously underway.

BERMAN: Incredible, just incredible to see all of that happening in the yard just right behind you. Dianne Gallagher, thank you so much -- Sara.

SIDNER: Huge hassle in Florida. Fuel shortages are happening. More than half of all stations in Miami-Ft. Lauderdale area reportedly out of gas. The mayor of Miami-Dade County joins us in just a few minutes.

Plus an IRS agent is asking for whistleblower protection, claiming to have information on what his lawyer says is mishandling of the ongoing criminal probe into a high profile person. A source tells us that person: Hunter Biden.

And an ultra runner is disqualified after using a car on part of a 50 mile race. She says it wasn't malicious, just a miscommunication. That's ahead.

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SIDNER: An IRS employee who claims to have information regarding the investigation into a high profile person, who, CNN sources say, may be Hunter Biden, is now seeking whistleblower protections from Congress, according to a letter obtained by CNN.

The supervisory special agent alleges that the investigation is being mishandled. And this morning, we're learning that the agent is also claiming to have information that directly contradicts sworn testimony from attorney general Merrick Garland. CNN's Paula Reid is live with us in Washington with details.

What do you know about this agent?

And what makes us think this is about Hunter Biden?

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Sara, we know from our sources that this agent allegedly oversaw the investigation into Hunter Biden.

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REID: And this letter describes this person as someone who oversaw that probe. And now they're going through the steps, the proper channels to seek whistleblower protections because IRS agents cannot share tax information.

And investigators working on criminal probes also cannot share details of that work. But if you are able to get this kind of protection, that is one way you can share what you know within this case.

Congress, of course, federal investigators have been investigating the president's son since around 2018. We know from our reporting that they have contemplated bringing charges that include tax crimes and even a possible false statements charge related to the purchase of a weapon.

But as of now, no charges have been filed. This agent says that he has, among other things, evidence that would contradict the sworn testimony of attorney general Merrick Garland, who testified before Congress that he would not interfere in that investigation.

According to this letter that was sent to lawmakers, this person says they can share, quote, "information related to a failure to mitigate clear conflicts of interest in the ultimate disposition of this case and examples of preferential treatment and politics, improperly infecting decisions and protocols that would normally be followed."

But Sara, we have no specific information about exactly what this person would say. Republicans on the Hill, while the federal criminal investigation hasn't yielded any charges, they have launched their own investigations into the Biden family. They would shortly like to see lots of headlines about a whistleblower and Hunter Biden.

But at this point, it's really unclear from this letter exactly what this person has, what they would say and what, if anything, it will mean. So far, the IRS, the Justice Department, the White House and representatives for Hunter Biden have all declined to comment.

SIDNER: I was just going to ask you if there's any response at all to these new allegations, because this, of course, is going to be huge fodder for fundraising for Republicans for, you know, coming up in the 2020 election.

Nothing at all from the White House yet?

REID: So they were asked about this actually this morning on "CNN THIS MORNING," and they kicked it to the Justice Department. They said that it's going to be their practice not to comment on matters related to Hunter Biden. And they defer to the Justice Department, which also declined to comment.

So it's going to be interesting, Sara, to see, like you said, how Republicans use this, if this person is able to secure these protections and, ultimately, what exactly is it that they have to say?

And how are they able to back it up?

SIDNER: All right, Paula Reed. Thank you so much for all that reporting -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: The NATO secretary general is in Ukraine today for the first time since the start of the war. What he is saying and what this means for Ukraine. That's next.

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BOLDUAN: Here's what's on our radar this hour. The Boy Scouts of America will begin to pay out to thousands of victims of sexual abuse. It's all part of a settlement with more than 82,000 survivors of abuse and comes from a $2.4 billion victims compensation trust.

It was established by the court during its bankruptcy reorganization and Boy Scouts of America just emerged from bankruptcy yesterday.

Tiger Woods will be out of action for the foreseeable future. The five time Masters champion announced that he had ankle surgery yesterday after withdrawing from this year's Masters less than two weeks ago because of foot injury. Woods has not offered up a timetable, though, for his return to golf.

And "The Twilight Saga" will live on into eternity actually, it appears. A source telling CNN, a television series based on the wildly popular Stephenie Meyer fantasy romance novels is in early development with Lionsgate TV.

Meyer is expected to be involved in this series. When asked about it all, Lionsgate spokesperson declined to comment -- John.

BERMAN: So romantic. All right.

This morning, where is the gas in southern Florida?

GasBuddy is reporting that nearly 60 percent of all stations in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale area are out of gas now. This is partly being attributed to panic buying after last week's major storm that dumped 20 inches of rain on the area. Widespread flooding did disrupt operations of fuel terminals in Port Everglades.

Mayor Daniella Levine Cava of Miami-Dade County joins me now.

Mayor, thanks so much for being with us.

Where's the gas?

MAYOR DANIELLA LEVINE CAVA (D-FL), MIAMI-DADE COUNTY: Thanks so much, John. We've been working hard with the residents. We know they've had some real challenges.

But the gas is coming. It is now coming fully through Port Everglades. We've also got shipments coming from other parts of the state. So we know it's heading to the gas stations.

And we need help from our residents to only purchase what they need. What happens is people go in and they might be topping off the tank more frequently than they need to. And that, unfortunately, is making it harder for folks that don't have any gas. So we're hearing good news. More and more people are getting the gas that they need.

And we ask all of our residents to please only take what you need.

BERMAN: You know, it's interesting. The senior senator from Florida, Marco Rubio, was sort of talking about that, this plea that is being made to consumers to not panic and not buy gas.

But he's sort of seems to be saying I understand why people are doing this. Listen.

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SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R-FL): And they're blaming it on consumer panic. Yes, people are panicked because they got to get to work. They got places to go. And you either can't find gas or you have to wait in line for, like, two hours down the street where you're probably going to run out of gas while you're waiting.