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Shenna Bellows, (D), Maine Secretary Of State, Discusses Trump To Appeal Maine, Colorado Primary Ballot Bans; Driver Sped Up Before Crashing Outside New Year's Eve Concert; Missing Foreign Exchange Student Found Safe In Utah; Groundbreaking Procedure Allows Heart Repairs To Grow With Kids. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired January 02, 2024 - 14:30   ET

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

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[14:31:30]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Right now, in the United States, history is on pause pending two appeals from former President Donald Trump.

Today, his lawyers are expected to formally appeal that historic decision in Maine and the one in Colorado that kicked him off the primary ballots in those states under the 14th Amendment at its Insurrectionist Act.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: We don't know how the courts will rule or if the matter will be decided by the Supreme Court. It sure looks that way.

We know that 46 percent of Americans say Trump should be disqualified for his actions related to January 6th. That is based on this new "Washington Post"/University of Maryland poll that was completed before these unprecedented bans.

The person behind one of those controversial ballot decisions is joining us now. That's Maine's Secretary of State Shenna Bellows.

Secretary, thank you for being with us here.

Tell us, do you think that your decision will survive this appeal by Trump and possibly survive the Supreme Court?

SHENNA BELLOWS, (D), MAINE SECRETARY OF STATE: Thank you for having me.

What I think is important to recognize is that this is the process in Maine. Maine is unlike other states, whereby anyone, any registered voter who challenges a candidate's qualifications must appeal the secretary of state.

I did my job that I was required to do under Maine law and the Constitution in holding a hearing and issuing a decision.

The next step under the law is this appeal to Maine's Supreme Court and Superior Judicial Court and then the U.S. Supreme Court. And I, on the last page of my decision, I suspended the effect of my

decision pending the court losses because that is what is important, the rule of law and the Constitution.

KEILAR: Do you think it will survive the Supreme Court?

BELLOWS: I am not going to -- I'm going to follow the will of the courts. I don't know what the courts will do. Whatever the courts will do, I am going to follow the law and follow the direction of the court.

I certainly welcome the United States Supreme Court to weigh in.

KEILAR: If they disagree with you, what will that mean?

BELLOWS: If they disagree with me, Trump will be on the ballot. Like I said, I stayed my decision pending the appeal because it is important that the process play out. That's what our laws require.

KEILAR: What do you think that would do to whether your decision was seen as legitimate or not?

BELLOWS: For me, my sole consideration was the oath I swore to the Constitution and my obligation as secretary of state to uphold Maine election laws.

Our laws are specific and unique. When I qualify Mr. Trump for the ballot, based on the signatures, registered Maine voters have five days to appeal my decision, challenge that decision, and request a hearing.

And indeed, five registered Maine voters, including two former Republican State Senators, did so.

I did what I was required to do by law to hold that hearing within two days and then I had to issue my decision within a week of the conclusion of the proceedings. That is how it works in Maine.

Under Article I of the Constitution, every state controls its election laws. That is why, for example, in New Hampshire, President Joseph Biden is not on the primary ballot.

There are over a dozen Democratic candidates and a dozen Republican candidates. In Maine, Mr. Chris Christie is also not on the ballot because he did not meet the signature requirements under Maine law.

[14:35:07]

So it's not uncommon for different states to have different requirements for access to the primary ballot.

KEILAR: On the flip side, if your decision is held up through the court process and Trump's kept off of the ballot, it is possible that your military and overseas ballots that are going out -- in January, that they will be different than your state's in-person balance.

Are you prepared for the confusion that could create?

BELLOWS: I want to be crystal clear that as an election administrator with my civil service staff, who are extraordinarily experienced, we are prepared to ensure that there is no confusion to the voters.

Now, certainly, it's unprecedented for a secretary of state to deprive a presidential candidate about access under Section III of the 14th Amendment. It's also unprecedented for a presidential candidate to engage in insurrection.

That being said, issues about access, issues of printing the ballots, these are the issues that my team has dealt with for many years. We are prepared for any scenario. We will uphold the law.

We will ensure that voters have appropriate ballots based on the decisions and I am confident of that.

KEILAR: If you send out ballots because it's stayed and they have his name on them, and then later send out corrected ballots that don't have his name on them, certainly there may be some instances where people turn in ballots that have his name or even cast their vote, even though they technically can't cast it, for Donald Trump.

What do you do then?

BELLOWS: You are engaging in a hypothetical that may not come to pass, especially because, under Maine law, the Supreme Court is required to issue a decision by January 17th.

Indeed, it's widely expected that the U.S. Supreme Court may intervene in that time period.

So what we are going to do is make preparations and do our job to follow the law and ensure that we protect the voters franchise. That is our job. That is what my civil service staff will do.

And I am very confident that if we follow the Constitution and the rule of law, we have to set aside all concerns of politics or partisan considerations.

As elected officials, we swear an oath to uphold the Constitution. That is what is required of us.

KEILAR: I heard what you said on that. We're talking obviously logistics here.

And it is a hypothetical, but it's entirely one that would happen if the Supreme Court does not act as quickly as you are hoping that they will.

But that is something -- I mean, you are pretty confident they will have this settled before that would become an issue.

BELLOWS: I am pretty confident that we are prepared to make sure that there is clarity in the process here in Maine and to do right by Maine voters as we always have done, even during difficult, complex, controversial decisions about that in the past.

KEILAR: Secretary, we very much appreciate your time. All eyes on Maine and Colorado as we get into this critical point in the race.

Thank you so much.

BELLOWS: Thank you.

KEILAR: The suspect in a fiery crash outside a New Year's Eve concert in Upstate New York sped up, we are learning, before barreling toward a cross walk, slamming into another vehicle, then plowing into the crowd.

This is what investigators are saying. The crash killed two people and injured nine others. Police say the suspect, Michael Avery, also died.

SANCHEZ: Days before the crash, officials say Avery rented a car and bought gasoline and several gasoline containers. Police say at least a dozen were found at the scene.

CNN's Brynn Gingras has been following this story.

Brynn, police say there is no evidence to this point of terrorism. What more are they learning about his possible motives?

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, it definitely seems there was some sort of intention here, right? Authorities can be clear about that.

What's not clear is why this location, why this timing, why this method of doing this act. That's what authorities with the Joint Terrorism Task Force, the FBI, and local police there in Rochester, New York, are really trying to get a handle on.

They know a little bit about the suspect. As you guys said, Michael Avery, 35 years old, actually from Syracuse, New York. According to police, he traveled from Syracuse to Rochester several days before this concert on December 31st.

He traveled several days before that, rented a hotel room, rented a car. And then, as you guys mentioned, has also been seen in several places buying cans of gasoline and filling them up with gasoline. That is what caused, those gasoline cans, a huge explosion at the scene.

[14:40:06]

What authorities say is that they believe he purposely sped up, drove into this crowd of concert goers who were leaving the concert at the Kodak Center on New Year's Eve, really only an hour into New Year's Day.

And two people who were in an opposite car in a rideshare were killed in that crash. Nine other people were injured as well. And one person has critical injuries from the explosion and crash.

Again, a lot of questions here as to the motive. That's really what everyone wants answered at this point. There does seem to be some intent here.

It's also important to note, according to the mayor, there are a lot of heroes in this incident.

I want you to hear what he has to say about that.

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MAYOR MALIK EVANS (D-ROCHESTER): It should be noted that there were Rochester police officers that sprung into action to try to render aid to the individual that was responsible for this heinous act, not even thinking about their own safety.

Even in the midst of this despicable tragedy, there is a reminder that there is still goodness in this world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GINGRAS: Yes, just a tragic incident. Peoples' lives altered and two people lost their lives, not even an hour, as I said, into the new year.

As far as Avery, as you guys mentioned, he later died at a hospital. Police are conducted or have conducted search warrants at several different locations. Also talked to his family members who had hinted at the fact that he might have been suffering from some sort of mental illness.

But again, no clear motive as to why this incident took place -- guys?

SANCHEZ: Brynn Gingras, thank you so much for the update.

Still to come, police tracking down a 17-year-old exchange student who they say was a victim of cyber kidnapping. Details on the bizarre plot that law enforcement says is a familiar scam -- becoming a more familiar scam.

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[14:46:01]

KEILAR: A missing foreign exchange student has been found safe in Utah, thank goodness, but the details of his disappearance are shedding light on a new scam that targets other students just like him.

SANCHEZ: Yes, police found 17-year-old Kai Zhuang on Sunday alone and cold camping in the mountains near Brigham City. He said he was the victim of cyber kidnapping.

Zhuang's parents, back in China, even received a ransom photo after he vanished last week.

CNN's David Culver has been tracking all of this.

David, what more are investigators saying about the whole ordeal? DAVID CULVER, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey guys. Police say

scammers manipulated and controlled this young exchange student, Kai Zhuang, for more than a week.

They threatened his family back in China and convinced the 17-year-old to leave his host family in Utah and to go camp out alone in the snow and below-freezing temperatures, what you can see right there.

That's when police in Riverdale, Utah, found Shuang. It was on a Sunday. They said he was cold and scared but alive.

With him, several cell phones. That's how police say these virtual captors manipulated and controlled the teen, likely from thousands of miles away.

They call this, as you point out, cyber kidnapping. They warn scammers are increasingly targeting foreign exchange students, like Zhuang, threatening them and their loved ones back in China.

Here's what Riverdale police have to say. Quote, "They tell the victims to isolate themselves and they monitor them through Facetime calls and/or Skype.

"The cyber kidnappers convince the victim, under duress to take photos of themselves that make it appear they are being held captive and send the photos to their parents."

In China, Zhuang's parents were equally terrified, unable to get a hold of their son. Reportedly getting these ransom letters and photos and ultimately calling the school in Utah to report their son missing. But only after transferring the equivalent of roughly $80,000 into Chinese bank accounts.

In recent months, police across China have been warning international students, in particular, Chinese students who are either in China or outside studying, that these scammers are impersonating officials.

They claim the students when they call them are under investigation so as to scare them to comply.

There have been similar cases targeting folks across the U.S. in recent years. It has the FBI now warning scammers are becoming more and more convincing.

This is because of technology. A.I. is allowing people to more precisely impersonate the voices of loved ones.

As for Zhuang, when they found him on Sunday, officials say he wanted two things, guys. He wanted to talk to his family in China to make sure that they were OK. And then he asked if he could eat a warm cheeseburger. He's still a kid. He did get both of those things.

But it's terrifying thinking that these scammers took advantage of the family being in different country, different time zones, coercing them into handing over so much money.

SANCHEZ: It's unsettling. And $80,000 is no joke. Are his parents going to be able to get back any of it?

CULVER: Investigators say in these cases it's really difficult if not impossible to do that, especially when you think there are multiple bank accounts involved. A lot of these are within China.

It will be interesting, Boris, and I'm intrigued to see how Chinese officials will be approaching this going forward, because, as we know, police in a Shanghai, Guangzhou, in very large cities across China have been issuing warnings about this.

But we are interested to see how exactly they are going to go after it. Because they tend to be very good, having lived in China for three years, of tracking things down, individuals and money transfers.

So in this case, if it is still in China and if those scammers are still in China, it's possible that they could track it down, but a challenge, nonetheless.

KEILAR: We will see. Let's hope so.

David Culver, thank you for that. Luckily, a positive ending or that story that that young man is OK. It could have been different. It was very cold out there in those below-freezing temperatures.

Up next, a groundbreaking procedure allowing heart repairs to grow with children. We are talking about replaced valves in their heart. How could this change the medical landscape with these types of procedures?

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[14:53:56]

KEILAR: An 18-day-old baby made history when he became the first person in the world to receive a partial heart transplant. Now at 20- months-old, Owen Monroe is making history again, because the tissue used to fix his heart is growing along with his heart.

SANCHEZ: At the time of his first operation, Owen's heart was the size of a strawberry. Today, it's about the size of an apricot. This type of growth was a long-sought-after goal for this type of repair.

Let's bring in CNN's medical correspondent, Meg Tirrell.

Meg, walk us through this groundbreaking procedure.

MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This is a great example of real good news. This baby, of course, was born with a genetic heart defect and he needed immediate care.

The previous option would have been to use nonfunctioning donor heart valves and vessels. The issue with those, as you pointed out, is they don't grow along with the child.

So as they get bigger, they need to have more surgeries to get bigger valves and replacement parts. There is also only a 50 percent chance of survival with that approach.

[14:55:00]

And so with this partial heart transplant, you are actually donating functioning valves and vessels. And the goal, of course, is that those will grow along with the baby.

In this case, that is exactly what has happened. We saw this new paper published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association," now going out at this time.

Owen Monroe went through the surgery successfully, and is now 20 months old, 20 months out from this happening and meeting all of his development milestones, according to his family, and he's doing great.

KEILAR: That is fantastic that he's meeting all of his milestones.

So is this how they expect it to keep going, Meg? Is he going to perhaps need some other surgeries once he does get a little older?

TIRRELL: The hope is that he won't. The hope really is that the donor parts will keep growing along with him.

Of course, it's important to be able to keep following this and see it done many more times to see how well it continues to work.

But he will need immunosuppressive drugs because he has these donated parts, but the hope is that it won't be the way it was before, where he would have to get multiple surgeries.

SANCHEZ: Meg, any question of this getting replicated, have there been other kids that have gotten the same kind of transplant?

TIRRELL: There have now. Owen was the first, but, since, there have been 12 more of these procedures, including nine at Duke Health, where this was pioneered, and where the doctor who pioneered this worked.

When Owen's parents asked the doctor, how many times have you done this before? He said, I have done it five times on piglets. Owen and his family are really true pioneers.

SANCHEZ: Good for him. I hope nothing but health for his future.

KEILAR: Yes, what a beautiful kid.

SANCHEZ: Meg Tirrell, thank you so much.

So the president of Harvard says that she is resigning. The very latest on our top story, when we come back.

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