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DeSantis & Trump To Hold Dueling Iowa Rallies Tomorrow; Survey: U.S. Job Satisfaction Hits All-Time High; Oklahoma Gov Claims PBS "Indoctrinates" Children, Vetoes Funds; FDA Advisers To Vote On Gene Therapy For Rare Muscular Disorder; Verdict Reached In Lori Vallow Daybell Child Murder Trial. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired May 12, 2023 - 14:30   ET

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

[14:30:00]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: The battle already intensifying between the party's two frontrunners nine months before they hold the caucuses and before Ron DeSantis even declares he's running for president.

I want to bring in CNN political director, David Chalian.

David, we'll get to the question of a DeSantis announcement.

But first, what do you anticipate from these dueling rallies tomorrow?

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Well, it's a super fascinating development that Ron DeSantis is making a return trip to Iowa before he gets in.

But that Donald Trump wanted to be there at the same time as well and bracket this with his own rally.

We are in a new phase of this race. There's no doubt about that. And you saw that with the CNN town hall this week where Donald Trump clearly has Ron DeSantis in his sights.

Give a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm leading De- Sanctimonious by a lot.

(LAUGHTER)

TRUMP: By 44 points or 45 points. I think he ought to just relax and take it easy and think about the future. Because right now, his future is not looking so good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHALIAN: And Ron DeSantis' super PAC -- he doesn't have a campaign yet, but he does have a super PAC out there supporting him.

Actually put out a very aggressive statement going after Trump in response. In part, they said, quote, "After 76 years, Trump still doesn't know where he stands on important conservative issues like supporting life and the Second Amendment. How does that make America great again?"

That's the super PAC for DeSantis going straight at Trump on conservative issues. These folks look ready to getting very engaged. We'll see them in Iowa this weekend.

SANCHEZ: Notably, the spokeswoman that put out that statement used to work for Donald Trump, so there is some personal animosity there it seems.

On the question of a DeSantis announcement, you mentioned the super PAC, you mentioned his style. What is he waiting for?

CHALIAN: He was waiting for his legislative session to end. That happened last week. He wanted to rack up a bunch of conservative legislative victories so that he could take them on the campaign trail.

Now I think it's a matter of timing, looking for the best way to enter the race, to dominate, and show a lot of money coming in right away, to show a lot of political support coming in right away.

They don't want to enter on any terms other than those that they've constructed.

SANCHEZ: You mentioned political support. He's set to get two big endorsements in Iowa. How much are those going to move the needle for him?

CHALIAN: They are big endorsements. They're legislative leaders from the House and Senate. You'd rather have those endorsements than not. But endorsements are not going to be the thing that's going to win the Iowa caucuses for one candidate or the other.

Iowa comes first. It's clearly very important. But it's important to remember Donald Trump didn't win the Iowa caucuses in 2016. He became the nominee. Joe Biden didn't win the Iowa caucuses in 2020. He obviously became the nominee and president.

So it's not the be all and end all. But it's important to get your campaign through.

SANCHEZ: For Trump, in 2016, there was foreshadowing there. He claimed that it was rigged. That Ted Cruz didn't actually win, right?

Let's talk about support for Trump because this is the week he was found liable for sexual abuse. He's facing charges already, 30-plus in Manhattan. There are more potential indictments on the way.

But at least in polling, his support doesn't appear to be wavering.

CHALIAN: These are not equally matched candidates. If we look at the latest ABC News/"Washington Post" poll, among those Republicans and Republican leaners, as for presidential preference, you see Donald Trump 43 percent, Ron DeSantis 20 percent. That's less than half the support of Donald Trump.

So obviously, Donald Trump is a formidable frontrunner. But this is just getting started. And to assume that Donald Trump is going to have a clear path from here to the nomination, I think would be a mistake at this early stage.

SANCHEZ: Yes, still nine months out from Iowa, as you pointed out.

David Chalian, always appreciate your expertise.

CHALIAN: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Of course.

Brianna?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: When we come back, first it was Florida and Disney, now it is Oklahoma's governor waging war on the state's PBS station. We'll tell you why, next.

Also ahead, Adidas has finally decided what to do with its Yeezys after ending its partnership with Kanye West over his anti-Semitic statements. We'll have details just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:38:12]

KEILAR: So American workers may have winced at going back to work in the office, but a new survey shows that most are pretty happy about their job. In fact, satisfaction overall is the highest that it has been since they started asking back in 1987.

Vanessa Yurkevich, our CNN business and politics correspondent, is here with what is driving this euphoria.

What is it?

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS & POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, 62 percent of Americans say they are satisfied with their jobs. That's up 2 percent from last year.

And there are two key drivers. One is a tight labor market, which means that folks are getting better pay and better benefits. And also this hybrid work flexibility that Americans love just so much.

And who is the happiest? The highest satisfaction was among people who had hybrid work, more so even compared to those who were fully remote.

Also people who switched jobs recently. Those folks say they were very satisfied with their jobs.

And also men, saying that they were more satisfied than women with their jobs.

And in this survey, men and women were both asked to rate their satisfaction based on 26 job components. And in all 26, men rated higher satisfaction.

So women are saying they are dissatisfied with pay, with bonuses, with promotion, with education at work, and also just upward mobility.

But if you take a step back, Brianna, and look at this number holistically, 62 percent of Americans saying they are happy with their jobs is pretty good.

And that's really showing the strength of the worker in this job market. They are capitalizing on this tight labor market. And, Brianna, people are pretty happy about it.

[14:40:00]

KEILAR: Yes, but look, women bore the brunt of the pandemic. We know that. And so it's really interesting to see those numbers and take a deep dive into how that is playing out.

Vanessa, thank you so much.

YURKEVICH: Thank you.

KEILAR: Jim?

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: Brianna, I'm satisfied working with you.

KEILAR: Why, thank you.

SCIUTTO: And Boris as well.

SANCHEZ: Thanks, Jim.

SCIUTTO: Now to other headlines we are watching this hour.

Fort Benning no more. The Georgia Army post is dropping its Confederate name. It's now officially Fort Moore, named after the late Lieutenant General Howard Moore and his wife, Julia.

Howard Moore served from 1945 to 1977 in Japan, Korea and Vietnam. Julia Moore helped change how the military cared for the widows of fallen soldiers.

Also, Adidas will sell part of its Yeezy merchandise and donate the money to charity after ending its partnership with Kanye West. The company cut ties with the rapper last year after he made anti-Semitic comments and wore a "White Lives Matter" T-shirt. Adidas says it lost more than $400 million in sales.

And Tom Brady is back, in a way. Reportedly in talks to buy a minority share of the Las Vegas Raiders. That according to a source familiar with those talks.

The seven-time Superbowl champion -- lost two of those, by the way, to the New York Giants -- who retired in February, is already part owner of the WNBA's Las Vegas team.

Boris?

SANCHEZ: The nation's bitter culture war now has America's most- watched PBS station is on the verge of going dark.

The Republican governor of Oklahoma recently vetoed a bill that would have renewed its license and provided millions in funding for his state's PBS network. It reaches more than 650,000 viewers a week.

Governor Kevin Stitt taking issue with what he claims is LGBTQ- inclusive programming.

Let's get the latest from CNN's Lucy Kafanov who joins us live.

Lucy, Kevin Stitt vetoing this bill. What is he saying now?

LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So Oklahoma's governor effectively defunded the state's PBS station when he vetoed the bill last month, which would continue funding to the station through 2026.

PBS, of course, is home to loads of educational childrens' programming, including "Sesame Street," "Mr. Rogers," "Clifford, The Big Red Dog," which does feature a gay character.

In an interview with FOX News this week, Governor Stitt said, and I quote:

"The big question is, why are we spending taxpayer dollars to prop up or compete with the private sector and run television stations?"

"And then when you go through all of the programming that's happening and the indoctrination over sexualization of our children, it's just really problematic."

Of course, there is no evidence of this claim. If anything, it's programming of shows that say it's OK for children, people to be different.

I should note that the local PBS station isn't just for childrens' programming. It also airs the only state news program that reaches every single county in Oklahoma.

State authorities also sent Amber Alerts or severe weather alerts on PBS, which is really critical in a state where tornadoes are a frequent occurrence. Last year, there were more than 200 emergency alerts.

Now, a spokesman for PBS defended its programming to CNN, saying that it provides curriculum-based content that for generations has educated and inspired children in Oklahoma and across the county.

In a statement to CNN, they said, quote, "The threat to funding puts Oklahoma families at risk of losing access to the local free content that they trust to help kids reach their full potential."

"The fundamental goal of PBS Kids remains supporting children as they learn and grow through programming that they have come to know and love. Now is not the time to take that away from any child."

And also, Boris, you referenced the nation's culture wars. That is the broader context here.

You also have Republicans like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis waging war with Disney, suggesting that it is somehow grooming children with gender ideology. Stitt similarly pulling a page from the same playbook.

A lot of Oklahoma, we should note, is rural and there are folks out there who might not have access to cable and satellite TV. It's unclear whether the station could continue programming without that funding and license -- Boris?

SANCHEZ: Did not expect that "Clifford, The Big Red Dog" might cause a fissure in the culture wars.

Lucy Kafanov, thank you so much for that reporting.

Jim?

SCIUTTO: Clifford's one of our family favorites.

[14:44:17]

Well, the FDA is meeting right now on an experimental drug therapy that could slow the progress of muscular dystrophy. Parents are pushing for it but the FDA is skeptical so far. We're going to explain why, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Right now, FDA advisers are discussing an experimental gene therapy that could provide a potential breakthrough in the fight against a rare form of muscular dystrophy.

The therapy targets a specific form of the disorder called Duchenne. With current treatments, affected children usually lose the ability to walk by the time they're teenagers.

CNN's medical correspondent, Meg Tirrell, is joining us now.

Meg, you spoke to a family whose son underwent the therapy. Tell us more.

MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Brianna, this family is convinced that this experimental gene therapy helped their son. The FDA, however, has a lot of questions about the strength of the data supporting this drug application.

Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TIRRELL (voice-over): When Brecken Kinney was about a year old, his parents noticed he wasn't keeping up with other toddlers. MARIT SIVERTSON, MOTHER OF DUCHENNE M.D. PATIENT: Getting around just seemed to be pretty difficult for him.

TIRRELL: His doctors initially didn't express concern.

SIVERTSON: Call it mom's intuition but I knew that there was something wrong.

TIRRELL: The diagnosis when Brecken was almost three was worse than almost anything they could have imagined, a disease called Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

[14:50:03]

With current treatments, kids with DMD usually lose the ability to walk before they're teenagers and, on average, don't live past 30.

JAMES KINNEY, FATHER OF DUCHENNE M.D. PATIENT: In that moment, I just -- everything changed. You know, all the thoughts we had about the future and everything like that just kind of stopped.

And I remember going into his bedroom and just like looking at him when he was taking a nap, and just like crying and sobbing.

TIRRELL: It was two years with Brecken having more and more trouble doing things like going upstairs before the family saw a glimmer of hope.

Brecken was admitted to a clinical trial of an experimental gene therapy, a new way of trying to slow the disease's progression with a one-time treatment.

JEFFREY CHAMBERLAIN, GENE THERAPY RESEARCHER, UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON: The cause of the disease is a mutation in a single gene. And the idea behind gene therapy is, if you can take a normal working version of that gene and put it back into the muscles of the kids, it should fix the problem of the disease.

TIRRELL: The goal is to help kids muscles create a version of a protein called dystrophin.

CHAMBERLAIN: So it's kind of like the two by fours that make up your house, it's really important for just holding everything together.

BRECKEN KINNEY, DUCHENNE M.D. PATIENT: Look at him go, down the field. No one can get them.

TIRRELL: In trials, it did that. And families like Brecken's are convinced it's helped their kids walk better and stay stronger for years longer than they would have.

But a key clinical trial run by the drugs maker, Sarepta Therapeutics, didn't meet one of its main goals, evidence of a clear benefit on muscle function, leading to an uncertain path to FDA approval.

In documents released this week, FDA reviewers said that, "Studies do not provide unambiguous evidence that the therapy SRP-9001 is likely beneficial for some patients."

They also said the FDA has, quote, "safety concerns about the possibility of administering an ineffective gene therapy."

Today, a group of outside advisors to the agency is meeting to discuss whether the therapy should get accelerated approval.

Brecken's mom, Marit, is among many parents speaking at the meeting.

SIVERTSON: We've seen the incredible changes with our son. You know, he's not just walking around. He's running, he's swimming, he's diving.

(SHOUTING)

SIVERTSON: He's truly living the life that every nine-year-old boy ought to be living.

(SHOUTING)

(END VIDEO TAPE)

TIRRELL: And, Brianna, we are expecting this vote from the advisers to the FDA within the next three hours or so. This will just be a recommendation to the agency, which is expected to make the decision by the end of the month.

It's been a very emotional day so far hearing from many similar families. The FDA now presenting its take on the evidence coming down with a lot of scrutiny, so we will see how this one goes -- Brianna?

KEILAR: It is amazing to see him walking up the stairs and how it's changed over time.

Meg, thank you for the report.

Jim?

SCIUTTO: This is new. The jury has reached a verdict in the case we've been telling you about, the murder trial of Lori Vallow Daybell. We will hear share that verdict any moment. This is, of course, the Idaho mother accused of kill her two children and conspiring to kill her husband's first wife.

CNN's Camila Bernal has been covering this trial.

Camila, what do we know and how quickly will we get the results, get the verdict itself?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, it should be any minute now. Everyone is on pins and needles waiting for the verdict.

If convicted, she could be facing life in prison. These are very serious charges. It is a very awful case.

Her children went missing in September of 2019. These were two children, a 16-year-old Tylee Ryan and the 7-year-old J.J.

Just weeks after the children go missing, she marries another man. This man's wife also died just weeks before the two got married in Hawaii.

And so, of course, everyone was watching and waiting and trying to figure out exactly where these children were. The whole country was looking for the two children.

Unfortunately, they were found in her new husband's property. Their remains were found in the property. And investigators have spent years trying to piece everything together.

This is a complicated case when it comes to a number of family deaths and also this strange ideology in terms of religion and then believing that they were religious figures.

And that prosecutors say that, essentially, it was a way for them to justify the killings, because they used to rate the children and other people in terms of being in the light or being dark.

So that is what the prosecutors argued over essentially a month as they put about 60 people on the stand to go over this very complicated case.

Now, we are just waiting for the verdict that -- you can see her right there.

SCIUTTO: That is right. This is a live picture from the courtroom as we are preparing for the verdict to be read.

CNN's Camila Bernal, she has been following. The moment we have that verdict, we'll update you.

Boris?

[14:54:59]

SANCHEZ: Up next, preparing for the unknown. Those words from the El Paso mayor as the city says they have not yet seen an expected surge in migrant. He said they're still bracing themselves after the expiration of Title 42. We're going to take you live to the border in just minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:59:50]

SANCHEZ: Title 42 is officially over. The Covid-era boarder policy that allowed for the near-instant expulsion of migrants has expired. So what comes next? It remains unclear. We're going to take you live to the border.

KEILAR: A Marine veteran charged in the death of a homeless street artist on a New York subway appears in court.