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Trump Lawyers Asks for a Mistrial in Trump's Battery and Defamation Trial; Major North Carolina Supreme Court Reversal Could Have Huge Impact on Elections; Abortion Issue Front and Center for 2024 Election; Interview with State Sen. Sandy Senn (R-SC); Thousands of People Risking Their Lives to Get Out of Sudan; About 1,000 American Evacuated from Sudan; First Republic Bank Becomes the Third U.S. Bank to Fail Since March; JPMorgan Chase Takes Over First Republic Bank; Massive Seaweed Bloom Threatens Florida's Coastline; Search for Man Accused of Killing Five Neighbors. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired May 01, 2023 - 09:30   ET

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

[09:30:00]

MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT: This is just the very front of the protest, Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Melissa, are you doing OK, Melissa??

BELL: The tear gas is so heavy, Kate, out there, I could barely breathe. But -- sorry.

BOLDUAN: You know what --

BELL: Just to give you an idea, this is --

BOLDUAN: Yes.

BELL: -- of course, the very front of the protests. As I was saying a moment ago, this is the very front of the protest, and the idea is that the Black Bloc, as they lead things off, trying to see confrontation with the police. Now, as you can see today, that's what they've been doing that fairly successfully.

Unlawful lot of the madness strings here. 12,000 policemen out on the streets trying to keep these marches peaceful, Kate. This is also traditionally May the 1st. This is a day when people come out to protest in any case. So, the police had expected this particular day because of the pension reform protests we have seen that have gotten so violent in these last few weeks to be even better attended than some of the protests we have seen recently. And possibly, the attended May the 1st protest we have seen in many, many years. Certainly, they're proving to be some of the most animated so far and very early on in the day that we've seen in a long time, Kate.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. And, Melissa, we're going to stick with you as long as we can, and please tell me how you are feeling because everyone can understand how impossible it can be to continue to report live when you have tear gas filling your lungs. But talk to me because this -- you and I have had this conversation over -- you know, now it's over weeks of Macron proposed had this, the protesters came out, the constant -- the equivalent of the Supreme Court in France then said that this -- these reforms can go through. So, what are then -- what is going to happen now despite -- all of these flash bangs that I'm hearing behind you?

BELL: That's right, Kate. I mean, that's the point. This is happening, right? From September, the French will incrementally start working more and more each year until they reach their retirement age by 2030 of 64. Pretty low by European standards, but here in France, a very soft nerve as you can see. And the way that Emmanuel Macron carried it out, you mentioned a moment ago the Constitutional Council, by pushing it through without a parliamentary vote has really added to a lot of the anger.

Now, a lot of the people that you are seeing around me here, the Black Bloc, these are the most -- some of the most extreme elements. You're talking about the very far left, they come out to these protests seeking confrontation with the police. The vast majority of the protesters that are following in the march, I think it's important to add, the trade unions, the people who have come out here to peacefully demonstrate, are in the vast, vast majority.

But the point is that all of the people out here on the streets today, whether they are the Black Bloc, whether they are the peaceful protesters behind me, know that they are coming out to protest against the pension reform that maybe going through but that is vastly opposed by a majority of the French population. So, it is something like 62 percent of the French that are opposed to this reform.

And I think most importantly, Kate, one of the most interesting statistics is that since this began on January 19th, the protests, the strikes, they have now continued through all of those months with all of the trouble at difficulty and chaos and gridlock that that brings to the French people. The popular support in favor of this movement, in favor of this protest movement, has actually risen by 11 percent. So, that is really what the people out here on the street are hoping to tap into. The fact that the French are extremely angry about this reform, and that anger has appeared to grow.

BOLDUAN: Yes. And as we are all seeing, the police line is moving just passed Melissa and her team there. Melissa, stay safe. We are going to check back with you as these -- as we have seen. And then they rushed into kind of move the line and to move the protesters back. We've seen -- we saw this since we've been talking to Melissa over the weeks of these protests, how they can flare up really, really quickly. And we have been seeing projectiles, fireworks, tear gas being responded back and forth. Melissa, thank you so much.

We're going to stick close to Melissa and her team in Paris to see how it continues to develop over the next couple of hours, John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Obviously. Going to keep a close eye on that. Also developing this morning, lawyers for Former President Trump have asked for a mistrial in his civil battery and defamation trial. In a new legal filing, his attorneys claimed the judge has made pervasive and unfair and prejudicial rulings. E. Jean Carroll, the woman accusing Trump of sexually assaulting her in her apartment or her dressing room in the 1990s, she will be back on the witness stand in about 30 minutes. CNN's Kara Scannell is live outside the courthouse for us this morning.

Kara, this motion for a mistrial, what are the grounds?

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, John. So, this motion came in overnight and Trump's attorney, Joe Tacopina, he's asking the judge for a mistrial in this case, citing a number of different reasons. One of them is, he says, that the judge has limited his questioning of Carroll on some issues.

[09:35:00]

The one he highlights is when he was asking Carroll about her attempts to locate any security camera footage from Bergdorf Goodman's, that's the department store where she alleges she was raped. And the judge -- he had asked a number of these questions, the judge had stopped him at some point and he didn't feel like he got a fair enough shocked to explore what her efforts were to try to obtain any security camera footage.

Another area that he has raised as a concern before the judge is the judge has sustained a number of objections from Carroll's team to question, saying they were argumentative. And he said this in front of the jury. You know, among those questions, Tacopina was asking Carroll, you know, her testimony has been that there was no one on the sixth floor of the department store in the lingerie department where she says she was raped, and Tacopina was asking numerous questions about that, saying, you know, for Bergdorf Goodman store where people have testified at this trial that there was such an emphasis on client services, asking, how is it possible that there was not one representative, sales rep on the floor, and the judge sustained objections of that, finding it was argumentative.

You know, Tacopina is saying that if he won't grant a mistrial, he's asking the judge to "correct the record before the jury or to give him greater latitude in cross-examination going forward," John.

BERMAN: Yes. Hard to see a judge declaring a mistrial because of decisions that the judge himself has made to this point. But we'll see how this develops. E. Jean Carroll back on the stand. Where are we in her testimony, Kara?

SCANNELL: So, Tacopina said he -- on Thursday was the last of testimony, said he was about halfway done. That took up most of the day. So, if his math is correct, she could be on the stand with cross- examination for much of today. Then her attorneys will have an opportunity to do what's called redirect and to ask her questions for any issues that came up during cross. But otherwise, we are looking at another long day on the witness stand for E. Jean Carroll. John.

BERMAN: All right. Kara Scannell at the courthouse. Kara, keep us posted. Thank you. Sarah.

SARA SIDNER, CNN NEWS CENTRAL CO-ANCHOR: Tens of thousands of people are risking their lives and traveling hundreds of miles to get out of Sudan. Evacuees tell us the journey to safe land is just the beginning.

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[09:40:00]

SIDNER: A major North Carolina Supreme Court reversal could have a huge impact on elections. The State Supreme Court has rolled back a previous decision that struck down a congressional map that was drawn by Republicans.

Take a look at what the original map looked like. This was what was used in the 2020 election. Now, let's fast forward. Here is what the new map looks like. You can see how it split up some of the Democratic majority districts to give the GOP a much better shot at winning.

The State Supreme Court originally ruled the map was gerrymandered so great egregiously that it violated the state's constitution. Now, a GOP-led court has now swung things the other direction. CNN's Dianne Gallagher is joining us now from Charlotte.

Tell us how this happened and if there's been any reactions so far.

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Sara, this is monumental, especially in terms of voting rights. So, there were three voting rights rulings. There was the partisan gerrymandering ruling, a voter I.D. ruling, and a ruling that revoked the voting rights for people who had them restored after being convicted of felonies.

That -- two of those, that partisan gerrymandering and the voter I.D. ruling, both of those had been decided by a Democratic majority Supreme Court, just months before these rulings. But when the Republicans won control of the State Supreme Court, justices are elected in North Carolina in partisan elections, they -- the state legislator went, asked them to review these rulings, just a few months later they agreed and they reversed these rulings.

Now, when we talk about this partisan gerrymandering ruling, I cannot overstate how big of a deal this is. The new chief justice, Paul Newby, a Republican, stating in his opinion, it is not within the authority of this court to address partisan gerrymandering. He wrote that the state constitution says that the elected General Assembly, with limitations, is solely responsible for drawing their own political maps when it comes to redistricting.

In her scathing dissent, Justice Anita Earls, who was once a voting rights attorney herself, noted that this is not how democracy should function, saying that it basically allows Republicans in power to draw maps so they can stay in power regardless of the people's will. She added that the court shows that its own will is more powerful than the voices of the North Carolina voters. Now, look, North Carolina's congressional map is currently split seven-seven. That is likely going to change. Something that, on a national level, Democrats are concerned about. On a state level, looking at legislative maps, there was concern there as well. Sara, this has got a lot of fallout still to go.

SIDNER: It could be very significant in the upcoming couple of years. Diane Gallagher, thank you so much. Kate.

BOLDUAN: Another major political story that we are tracking. The chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, Ronna McDaniel's, she's now telling Republicans that they need to put the issue of abortion front and center for 2024. Here she is yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RONNA MCDANIEL, RNC CHAIRWOMAN: Abortion was a big issue in key states like Michigan and Pennsylvania. And so, the guidance we're going to give to our candidates is, you have to address this head on. The Democrats spent 360 million on this, and many of our candidates across the board refused to talk about it, thinking, oh, we can just talk about the economy and ignore this big issue and they can't.

[09:45:00]

BOLDUAN: Abortion emerged as a key issue, of course, in the midterm elections after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last summer. McDaniel's warning really comes after Republican dominated states across the country, but including Nebraska and South Carolina, that failed to pass near-total bans on abortion last week with conservatives helping to block those abortion bans.

Joining us right now is South Carolina Republican State Senator Sandy Senn. She was one of five women legislators in the State Senate that joined together to stop a proposed near-total ban on abortion from passing.

State Senator, thank you very much for coming in.

I wanted to ask you what you thought when you heard Ronna McDaniel say that yesterday, her take that she thinks that abortion is going to be a key issue in 2024 and Republican candidates need to make it front and center.

STATE SEN. SANDY SENN (R-SC): I think that must be the advice she has given the governor, I think he was from Nebraska, which I think is going to be a very losing strategy for our Republican candidates.

I know that in my state we have two presidential candidates, Senator Tim Scott and Former Governor and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. They have softened on the issue of abortion. Whereas, in my state, generally, you had to be very hard and strong on it in order to win election. They have softened, as has Lindsey Graham and Nancy Mace, as they should, because that's the only winning strategy.

Certainly -- I mean, in my state, we are 51 percent female. BOLDUAN: And I want to ask you about that. And first, I want to play

for everyone what you said on the Senate floor last week. When I saw that, I said -- I was struck by it -- I know a lot of folks were when you stood up during your filibuster against the near-total ban that was proposed in South Carolina.

Let me play this for everybody.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENN: Abortion laws have always been, each and every one of them, about control. It's always about control, plain and simple. And in the Senate, the males all have control. We, the women, have not asked for, as the senator from Orangeburg pointed out yesterday, nor do we want your protection. We don't need it. We don't need it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: You sure don't because the five senators, Republican and Democrat, came together, and with the help of others, you blocked that near-total ban on abortion when it came up last week.

What have you heard from constituents since, Senator, since you guys were able to this?

SENN: Oh, my constituents absolutely love it. And I'm talking young and old, and really, a lot of independents and a lot of Republican women. I have been getting, you know, $20 here, $20 there, from older ladies telling me, of course, they remember the days of the knitting needles and the coat hangers, and, you know, the definition of insanity is repeating yourself.

So, I'm really getting very positive feedback. Not many negatives. But I do already have two Republican males with political credentials against abortion who have already indicated they plan to run against me.

BOLDUAN: I was actually going to ask you about that, because the -- your party's leader -- your party's leader in the State Senate has made no secret that he's going to go after you now. He told reporters --

SENN: Right.

BOLDUAN: -- the response to Senator Senn will be in 2024. Do you think you could lose your seat over this?

SENN: I could, but then I can still look myself in the mirror. But I can tell you that in my district, which is Charleston, it's been polled, and my leader even has polled it, and 70 percent of the people, Republican voters, agree with me. And statewide, Republican voters, 53 percent, agree with me.

So, I don't think I'm going to lose on that issue. And, you know, they may think it's a misstep. I don't. But I have two daughters and I'm -- you know, I'm not going to give in on this. BOLDUAN: Where do you think this all goes from here? What's going to

be the big decider in this? This is a -- the conversation going on in South Carolina is one that is happening in state legislatures from coast to coast.

SENN: Right. If you look at the map that everybody keeps showing, they've been showing me a map that is not correct because Florida needs to go ahead and be painted in as deep red after DeSantis has signed for the six-week ban.

So, if you look at the map, it's really scary, because people that live in Miami have to get all the way to South Carolina.

So, if we fall in -- you know, next year, probably, then you're going to see North Carolina falls -- the Carolinas both go. I hate to see that.

But then people from Miami or, you know, suburbs, especially the poor women that can't get a plane ticket, what are they going to do? I mean, it would be easier for them to get on a boat and go to another country to get an abortion where it might not be safe than it would be for them to figure out how to get themselves far northeast in order to get what is medical care.

Now, keep in mind, Kate, I do not support late term abortion. I don't even support abortion passed first trimester. That's just where I have landed. I want to stay in the center on this issue, and really, a lot of other issues that, you know, it's just common sense, and stop with the far-right, the far-left and everybody just trying to outdo each other on crazy bills.

[09:50:00]

BOLDUAN: And, Senator, and that's why I wanted -- we wanted to have you on, because you are a conservative through and through. Your credentials in your -- and the way you voted shows that, and it's very important that your voice and the voices of the only five women in the State Senate have come together and speak up in this way.

Senator Senn, thanks for coming on.

SENN: Thank you.

BOLDUAN: John.

BERMAN: Great discussion. In the meantime, a seaweed invasion targeting your summer vacation. A historically large pile -- piles of brown seaweed, known as sargassum, it is taking over Florida's coastline, and scientists are warning this is just the beginning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: This morning, 100 Americans who evacuated from war-torn Sudan have reached port in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. They left Port Sudan on the USNS Brunswick and they -- that's where the American service members guided the boarding process, you could see that right there. The U.S. consul general in Jeddah says that about 1,000 Americans have been evacuated since the beginning of the conflict. They are among the tens of thousands of people who have fled.

[09:55:00]

Satellite images show buses lined up at the Sudanese border with Egypt. Look at that. More had to travel hundreds of miles just to get to Port Sudan, which is the country's key evacuation hub. And from there, you can see on this map here, you can see Port Sudan. From there, they travel across the Red Sea, and many of them have arrived in Jeddah. That is where CNN's Larry Madowo is right now.

And, Larry, you've spoken to some of the people who have left Port Sudan and now arrived where you are. What have they been telling you?

LARRY MADOWO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John, we've heard such heartbreaking stories of people who had to leave everything, who encountered bodies on the streets of Khartoum who endured that journey. It's more than 500 miles from the capital of Khartoum to the Port Sudan and had to wait a couple of hours, sometimes days until they could get on a ship across the Red Sea to get here to Jeddah.

When they get here, this is what happens. This is the Jeddah Islamic Port. They are getting processed and they were received by U.S. embassy officials, and they just finished the process, they are about to leave here and go and get their accommodation.

You see U.S. embassy officials there. The U.S. consul general in Jeddah was among those on hand to receive them, getting them off the USNS Brunswick and making sure they are protected, they're -- everything they need. A lot of kids in this process had to live through some of the most difficult times. This is what it is like for one family member that traveled that journey from Khartoum to the Port Sudan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMEL HAMIMY, EVACUATED FROM SUDAN: I had to take a bus about like 15 hours. And then, I have to stay in Port Sudan, which is like crowded now, because all people in there. We cannot find like apartment to rent. So, we had all of us like to stay in one bedroom in the hotel. And then, to find -- the good -- the one good thing that I find another hotel to, you know, put my name in the evacuation list so that the U.S. ship can evacuate the U.S. citizens.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MADOWO: They are the lucky ones that got out. There's still so many Americans who remain in the Port Sudan or across the country who want to leave but haven't had that chance yet, John.

BERMAN: It is such a difficult journey. As you said, 15 hours by land from Khartoum to the Port Sudan and then, somehow over the Red Sea. Larry Madowo, great to have you there. Thank you so much.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: It has happened again. First Republic Bank becomes the third U.S. bank to fail since March. And in a move to stabilize the banking industry, federal regulators sold the regional bank off to JPMorgan Chase. What's JPMorgan's CEO saying this morning, we have that for you.

And the search is on for a gunman who killed five people, including a nine-year-old. This is who they're looking for right here. This tragedy happened after neighbors say that they simply asked him to stop shooting his weapons so close to their house while their baby was trying to sleep in the middle of the night. We will be right back.

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