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Vermont Governor: Catastrophic Flood Is Nowhere Near Over; United Airlines Plans Fewer Flights At East Coast Hub; Companies Accused Of Breaking Promise To Leave Russia; Northwester Fires Football Coach Amid Hazing Scandal; Handwritten Will Found In Aretha Franklin's Couch Is Valid. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired July 11, 2023 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: An eerie sound, and eerie scene there in Montpelier, Vermont, after close to 48 hours of rain and flash flooding. Residents being asked to stay off of the roads so that rescue teams can help anyone who is trapped in their homes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR JACK MCCULLOUGH, MONTPELIER, VERMONT: I understand the impetus to go out and see what's going on, but as you observed it's not just water sitting in the roads, it's a rapidly flowing river through the streets of Montpelier and it's dangerous for people to be out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: More than 100 rescues have taken place across six counties and New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu just deployed Black Hawk helicopters to help those who are trying to reach higher ground in Vermont. CNN's Miguel Marquez is there witnessing what is happening there in Montpelier. Tell us what you are seeing. Just incredible scenes of flooding.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The flooding has been unbelievable all day. Look, they had a record -- they set a record for the amount of rain in a 24-hour period here in the state capital, just a massive amount. I was out in this area around 5:00 this morning trying to get to this car and see what was down here. It was flowing too fast to even get to it. I couldn't get all the way there. Now it has receded enormously. The water was up over the top of that car about three or four hours ago. Now it's about, you know, covering it up about a foot or so.

It's amazing how quickly the water has come down here, but in many parts of the state the rivers are still overflowing their banks and there is still lots of water rescues going on. Over 100 water rescues across the state so far. Amazingly, we haven't heard of anybody dying in all of this yet, but amazingly there's been nobody that was killed in any of this.

Right now, there are a lot of people starting to come out, starting to clean up, starting to look to figure out how they can put their lives back together, but this is just -- it's so widespread. The entire state was pummeled by rain for weeks. The sponge was full and then they had this deluge for about 24 hours that just -- it had nowhere to go except for over land -- Brianna.

KEILAR: Let's hope that that number stays where it is. It really is amazing considering that scene behind you there, Miguel. Thank you for the very latest from Montpelier -- Boris.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: United Airlines appears be taking responsibility for disruptions that left tens of thousands of passengers stranded across the United States. Remember when the company was blaming the FAA? CNN aviation correspondent Pete Muntean joins us now. Pete, what is the CEO of United saying? Very different tune.

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: It's a huge reversal. You kind of can't understand there's enough. This is so big from United CEO Scott Kirby in which he says that the FAA is now heroic. Think back to not only a couple weeks ago, when Kirby was really putting the blame on the airlines melting down in the last week of June, specifically on the FAA, and its staffing issues at some major air traffic control facilities in.

In fact, in a memo to his employees that was shared with us. He said: The FAA frankly failed us this weekend -- this was the weekend of June 24th and 25th.

Now Kirby saying that the FAA has really been very helpful over the last couple weeks, that they are trying to make things right again. And in this first admission since this meltdown by United Airlines, they had about 3,200 flights canceled in the last week of June which was especially important leading up to July 4th. He's now saying that FAA is trying to really help out the airline here. I want you to listen now to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT KIRBY, CEO, UNITED AIRLINES: They deserve a lot of credit for what they've been doing the last few weeks. Because, you know, they're 54 percent staffed in New York and to have that event be managed and contained, you know, was some heroic efforts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MUNTEAN: I just want you to remember back to last summer airlines canceled about 50,000 flights in total between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

[15:35:00]

That's really when this back and forth, the swipe from United CEO Scott Kirby and then answer by the FAA. So that really sort of teed up this kind of schoolyard fight and now it seems like they're burying the hatchet. Which is a good thing, especially for passengers and so many of them were left in the lurch by United as they canceled these thousands of flights that last week of June.

SANCHEZ: It's a tough argument to make that air traffic controller shortages are to blame when other airlines are not having those kinds of numbers of cancellations.

MUNTEAN: And there are a lot of layers on top of layers here. There's the weather. There's air traffic control. There's so many things at play here. The FAA really points to weather being the top issue not air traffic controllers.

SANCHEZ: Pete Muntean, thank you so much.

MUNTEAN: Any time.

SANCHEZ: Jim.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: Coming up on CNN NEWS CENTRAL, jurors have now reached a verdict in the fight over the estate of Aretha Franklin. The bizarre circumstances of that case.

And a shock firing. Northwestern University has cut ties with its longtime head football coach after an investigation uncovered years of widespread hazing.

[15:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCIUTTO: Now to a CNN exclusive. After Russia launched its deadly war in Ukraine, hundreds of companies including big names such as Heineken, Unilever, Philip Morris vowed to stop doing business entirely in Russia. But researchers have now found that some companies violated that pledge. CNN's Matt Egan he's been reporting this out and has the details. I mean, Matt, they made these promises to great fanfare at the start of the invasion, got a lot of public adulation for it. What have the facts been showing?

MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Well, Jim, this new research finds that a surprising number of companies are still in Russia, even as this brutal war in Ukraine drags on past the 500-day mark. Yale Professor Jeff Sonnenfeld and his team of researchers are accusing some companies of breaking their promise to get out of Russia or at least drastically scale back their promise there. That includes major companies such as Unilever, Mondelez, WeWork, Heineken and Philip Morris International. Now Sonnenfeld is not accusing these companies of breaking the law per se, but he is saying they have broke an moral code. Listen to what Sonnenfeld told me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF SONNENFELD, PROFESSOR, YALE SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT: It's beyond disappointing to the point of shameful and unethical. They're breaking their promises. They're functioning as wartime profiteers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

EGAN: Now here's why this really matters. It undermines what has been an unprecedented corporate exodus out of Russia. An exodus that is directly aimed at pressuring Vladimir Putin and the Russian economy.

SCIUTTO: Wartime profiteers, wow, that's got echoes with the run up to World War II. How are the companies explaining this?

EGAN: Well, Heineken has been described Sonnenfeld as, quote, the poster child for this problem. Because 16 months ago Heineken promised to get out of Russia and yet today, according to the Yale research, this company still has seven breweries in the country. They still employ 1,800 employees. Heineken told CNN in statement that the war is, quote, a terrible human tragedy and the company is committed to leaving Russia. But they say their preliminary deal to sell assets in Russia has not gotten the green light from regulators in Russia, not yet. Jim, that has been a common theme from companies that even if they want to get out, Moscow has made it very hard for them to do so.

SCIUTTO: Yes, probably a little sign they will relent on that, not in their interest. Matt Egan covering this from New York, thanks so much -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: A shakeup in college football. Northwestern University has fired its long-time head football coach Pat Fitzgerald over hazing allegations. The school made the announcement yesterday after an investigation revealed that 11 players past and present had come forward claiming hazing occurred within the Wildcats football program. Fitzgerald says he was unaware of any hazing.

CNN's Jake Tapper is covering this story coming up on "THE LEAD." So, Jake, what happened here?

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR, THE LEAD: You know, it's really fascinating. So the college finds out about these allegations that the members of the Northwestern University football team had been hazed, and they launch an investigation with an independent former politician. And that politician comes forward with a recommendation and concludes that there isn't enough evidence to show anybody on the coaching staff knew. There is a slap on the wrist for the coach and the university, obviously, hoped to move on.

But for the fact that some brave former players -- former and current players on the Northwestern University football and some brave journalists with the "Daily," that's the newspaper at Northwestern University, actually had another idea and they wanted to bring their stories to the four. And so, on Saturday, the "Daily" published a story that indicated there were a lot of former and current players who actually thought that coach Fitzgerald was well aware of what was going on and that other members of the coaching staff were involved even in some of the hazing allegations. And then the university was forced to take another step.

Coming up on "THE LEAD" we're going to be talking to Ramon Diaz Jr. He is the first former player on the Northwestern football team to come forward with allegations that he went through. Experiences that he describes. And also Nicole Marcus, one of the team of these amazing student journalists that broke this story and really showed what the power of journalism is.

[15:45:03]

When an administration investigates itself, there tend to be slaps on the wrist that are issued. But when journalists get involved in a perfect scenario and the scenario that is supposed to work as set up by the founding fathers, there can actually be some real accountability.

SANCHEZ: Absolutely. Sunshine, right, on injustice. And Jake, what is the fired coach --

TAPPER: The best disinfectant, absolutely.

SANCHEZ: Right. What is the coach saying now? He sought legal representation, night?

TAPPER: Yes, he's denying that he knew anything. He is suggesting that he's surprised and that the university took the steps that it took. And in fact, the football team is actually saying that the stories that were published in the "Daily" were exaggerations. But as Ramon points out, if you're saying something is an exaggeration, then you're also tacitly acknowledging that something did actually happen. You're just taking an issue with the description of it. So we're going to dive into this issue coming up on "THE LEAD".

SANCHEZ: Some very important stories and we look forward to those conversations. Jake Tapper coming up on "THE LEAD" at 4:00 p.m. on CNN -- Brianna.

KEILAR: Just into CNN, a jury has reached a verdict in the heated court battle over Aretha Franklin's will. Specifically a handwritten will that was found in her couch after her death. We'll have details next.

[15:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: This just into CNN. A jury has reached a verdict in the battle over Aretha Franklin's estate. Her sons have been fighting over whether a hand written will found in her couch is valid. Let's go now to CNN entertainment reporter Chloe Melas. Chloe, this was really the discussion that the jury had to figure out here, the 2010 will or the 2014 will.

CHLOE MELAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: Yes, so Brianna, Aretha Franklin has four sons. And three of those sons had a lot of infighting over the last several years since their mother's death in 2018. So, one of Aretha Franklin's nieces in 2019 she found two wills that you mentioned. One in 2010 that she allegedly wrote and one in 2014. So this is over two sons versus one son wanting a jury to decide which will was valid.

So the jury deliberated for just about an hour and they have decided the 2014 will that was signed by Aretha Franklin is indeed valid and it showed intent. And something that was very interesting is it was signed with her signature that had a little smiley face on it, and that was very common as to how Aretha Franklin would sign her name. But this was not notarized, right, it was found in her couch under a cushion. So there was a lot of debate over this.

And look, Aretha Franklin -- you might be thinking to yourself, wow, I mean, this person is so famous and millions of dollars and a huge estate, how could they not have a will? But look -- look at Prince, look at Bob Marly. So many famous people they end up dying perhaps too soon and never having gotten their will and their affairs in order. So, it's definitely a cautionary tale and obviously a resolution in the favor of two of Aretha Franklin's sons that her 2014 will stands. So it'll be interesting to see how all the assets and everything are divided up and when that will happen. But again, there is a decision finally.

KEILAR: Worth pointing out it's not like anyone was written out of either will. I think that's important to note. It's just a slight distribution change between the two wills here. Chloe Melas, thank you very much for the very latest on these really interesting developments.

I do also want to say, as I bring in Joey Jackson, our CNN legal analyst, we actually have a picture of this will so that people can see what it looks like, this hand written will that was found in a notebook in Aretha Franklin's couch, from 2014, found by her niece that a jury decides here, Joey, this is going to stand. Did that surprise you at all?

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: So it didn't and here's why, Brianna. What happens is that a will is nothing more than an evidence and intent, right? Intent with respect to what the person who provides for the will, how they want to distribute their assets, their income, et cetera, anything that comes in. And so, normally, yes, right, you would think of a will as a document prepared very professionally by lawyers perhaps with appendixes and indexes and exhibits, right, with respect to any distribution. But at the end of the day I think the jury simply made a determination, that listen, this was written by Aretha Franklin. When you write something you have to be intentional and purposeful about it. It was ultimately signed by her with the signature smiley face and they found that persuasive with respect with evidencing the intent that she wished in terms of the distribution of her assets.

And so, the other learning tale is while you should see a lawyer and certainly you want to get your affairs together (INAUDIBLE) if there's a dispute, at the end of the day if the jury finds intent, that's exactly what they will do, they will give it value and that's what happened here, Brianna.

KEILAR: Yes, and you look at this will, you read through it, and it's hand written which makes it very interesting, her intent pretty clear there. Joey Jackson, thank you so much for your insights -- Jim.

SCIUTTO: Coming up next on CNN NEWS CENTRAL, why a zoo is now asking visitors to stop showing their cellphones to its gorillas. Want a hint? Apes, they're more like us than you know. That's next.

[15:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: All right, so it's a pretty unique warning here, but the Toronto Zoo is urging guests to stop showing cellphone videos to its gorillas. The official there at the zoo saying that one of its apes in particular, a 14-year-old named Nassir has just become enthralled with these videos that guests are showing him, and obviously they have a lot of concerns.

SCIUTTO: It'd have to be a 14-year-old, by the way.

SANCHEZ: He is truly a teenager. His bio on the zoo's website actually reads, quote, Nassir is truly the epitome of a teenager, fascinated by videos and screen time would dominate his life if he had his way.

SCIUTTO: So they need basically screen time controls like our kids, is that what they're saying?

[16:00:00]

SANCHEZ: Very similar, I guess. I wonder what they're looking at, though? Is it TikTok videos? Is it Instagram stuff?

SCIUTTO: It could be CNN NEWS CENTRAL dance videos.

SANCHEZ: Fair.

SCIUTTO: These people have that very --

KEILAR: Very popular.

SCIUTTO: Popular taste, yes.

KEILAR: Well, I'm going to --

SANCHEZ: Is it bananas do you think?

KEILAR: Right, probably dancing bananas. I'm going to tell my kids, listen, they even don't want animals at the zoo watching x, y, z, so you can't either.

SCIUTTO: And they're gorillas.

"THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper. He's no gorilla. Starts right now.