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Former Special Counsel's Attorneys Slam Federal Probe Against Him; New Video Shows Moment Second Israeli Strike Hit Gaza Hospital; Parents Sue OpenAI, Claim ChatGPT Advised Teen Soon On His Suicide. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired August 27, 2025 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well John, we don't hear much from former special counsel Jack Smith anymore but this is one of the first statements that we're hearing where he's defending the work he did as a prosecutor on those two Trump investigations -- the handling of national security records at Mar-a- Lago after the first term of the presidency, which resulted in a case that was later dismissed by a judge, and then the case against Donald Trump for his role in inspiring the 2020 attack of the U.S. Capitol -- a case that was then dropped by the Justice Department.

What's happening here is that a Republican senator had written to an internal watchdog in the federal government -- somebody else who is also called a special counsel but has a little bit different of a role. Does investigations but they're not criminal. They're about investigating if federal employees are misusing their office for political gain.

The allegation from Sen. Tom Cotton about Jack Smith as a prosecutor said that he was -- may have used his role in these two cases to influence the 2020 election. The issues that Tom Cotton took with what Jack Smith had done as the prosecutor -- they included his push for a quick trial date before the judge in Florida. His exceeding page limits when he filed a brief about arguing against Donald Trump having immunity. And then also asking for very quick appeals in that case.

Those were the accusations. The office of the special counsel was going to be looking into them for possible violations.

And Smith's office is hitting back and saying that's just what prosecutors do. His lawyers are writing in a letter to the internal federal Office of Special Counsel that this investigation is predicated on things "imaginary and unfounded." "Mr. Smith followed well-established legal principles in conducting the investigations into President Trump, and the courts presiding over the resulting prosecutions have already rejected the spurious allegations that the manner in which Mr. Smith prosecuted these cases was somehow improper." They're saying he completely stands behind the work that he did here.

Also a note, John. These sorts of investigations -- they're under the Hatch Act and the consequence -- it just means if they find you violated it you just can't really do much more in federal service. Smith is no longer in government.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm not sure Jack Smith would be hired by the current Trump administration anyway. Investigations into investigations at this point.

Katelyn Polantz, great to see you this morning. Thank you very much -- Erica.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Brand new overnight, President Trump sharing that Republicans in Congress, according to the president, are currently working on what he says is a "comprehensive crime bill." No details beyond that though.

The president is also still threatening to send the National Guard into more cities to crack down on crime despite objections from Democratic mayors and governors. Trump saying, "I have the right to do anything I want to do. I'm President of the United States."

Joining us now, CNN political commentators Karen Finney and Shermichael Singleton. Nice to see you both this morning.

So I was also struck by some comments by Doug Burgum --

SHERMICHAEL SINGLETON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST (via Webex by Cisco): Good morning.

HILL: Good morning.

Doug Burgum overnight talking about the fact that tackling crime should not be partisan, which I think most Americans would agree with it. But Shermichael, it's tough to ignore that the president is specifically targeting -- only targeting Democratic-led cities and states here. If this was truly focused on crime numbers, GOP areas would also be a focus.

Is it really, in your view, a nonpartisan effort?

SINGLETON: Well, it's about politics. Let's be honest here. I mean, I don't -- I'm a political strategist and oftentimes you'll find that politics is more about emotion than it is about cognition.

My Democratic friends have talked a lot about the stats and charts. How crime is nationally down. But if those things are true, I will cede that point the numbers don't lie there. However, there is an emotional detachment from the reality of those facts.

And so you have two ways you can make this argument to the American people. You can argue about the stats, or you can argue about the way they feel. And Democrats will not find themselves on the right side of electoral politics arguing about facts over and dismissing the feelings of everyday Americans.

And so I think that the president, in a very unique fashion, is spot on in tapping into how most people actually feel about the issue of crime in this country. And it may, indeed, yield political dividends to Republicans come midterms next year.

HILL: We know the president for two things. To your point, Shermichael, right, it is the feelings versus the facts. We saw that in the 2024 election, of course, when it came to the economy and how people actually felt about it despite the numbers. We know how challenging that was for Democrats, Karen. It's also true that Donald Trump is --

KAREN FINNEY, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, FORMER SENIOR ADVISER AND SPOKESPERSON, HILLARY CLINTON 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN (via Webex by Cisco): Yeah.

HILL: -- masterful when it comes to controlling a narrative.

The question for you, which I know you're sick of -- but as we talk about the messaging --

FINNEY: Sure.

HILL: -- are Democrats starting to find --

FINNEY: Yes.

HILL: -- their footing here, or is this still a matter of straddling this line between not taking the bait and also hitting back?

[07:35:00]

FINNEY: Well, I think it's about speaking to the concerns of the American people. And, you know, here's what I would say. The way people are actually feeling, in some places, is they're happy about the fact that crime rates are actually going down. I have seen it in my own neighborhood here in D.C. And so it's really actually about being smart on crime.

And Donald Trump always wants to make it about tough on crime and this performative -- putting the National Guard on the streets. Many of us in D.C. do not feel like that's actually making us safer. For 1) they're not actually going to the places where crime is the worst.

And if you look at cities like Baltimore, like Chicago, they're not just blue cities. They're also sanctuary cities and they're also all cities run by Black mayors and have large Black and Latino populations.

And in each of those places they've engaged in comprehensive criminal measures to reduce crime, to do -- get guns off the streets. To do more cops programs and community policing -- really similar to the conversation, frankly, we were having after the murder of George Floyd when we really were having a national conversation about what is smart on crime.

And so, I think we also, if we're going to have this conversation, have to acknowledge it's Donald Trump who is actually currently defunding public safety and defunding the police because he's already cut over $800 million out of all the programs and things that we know are working. A group of sheriffs actually wrote to the administration and said please don't cut these programs because they're working and they're effective.

HILL: I also want to get your take, Shermichael. This is not -- this has become commonplace, I should say -- these cabinet meetings that the president holds --

SINGLETON: Um-hum.

HILL: -- that are really I suppose a moment for once again his cabinet to publicly praise him. It's a very "dear leader" feeling moment -- yesterday, nearly four hours.

Does that concern you at all?

SINGLETON: I mean, I don't pay attention to those meetings, and I don't think that most average Americans pay attention. Most people are working during the times that we're airing these things. And so I think there is some political fanfare --

HILL: So do they not matter?

SINGLETON: -- that those of us -- yeah, I don't think they do. I'm just being honest. If I were to conduct a focus group and do some qualitative analysis, and I were to ask the American people "How much do you care about the president showcasing 20 minutes of these meetings that we actually air on TV," I think most people --

HILL: Hmm.

SINGLETON: -- probably would say "I don't care. I don't think about it. I'm too busy doing other things."

So I don't --

HILL: Can I --

SINGLETON: I really don't think that matters a whole lot at all, Erica.

HILL: All right.

FINNEY: All right --

HILL: Go ahead, Karen.

FINNEY: Erica, I think what actually would matter to people is the fact that he needs so much validation. You know, he is doing this retribution tour -- revenge on people like John Bolton. He is firing people who won't give him information. If they give him the truth but he doesn't like the truth, you're going to get fired.

He seems to think that economic policy is really all about controlling the Fed, so how can I get rid of the people I don't like and just get the people I do like? And then has to sit in a meeting where everybody is clearly instructed that they have to boost his ego up.

I don't -- I agree with Shermichael. I don't think most people care about the -- much of what's happening in that meeting, but I think they'd care that a president is so weak that the needs to be bolstered like that.

HILL: Karen Finney, Shermichael Singleton, nice to see you both this morning. Thank you -- John.

BERMAN: Happening today, President Trump will hold what officials are calling "a large meeting about Gaza." Also this morning Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to host his Israeli counterpart.

Israel is facing global outrage after it launched back-to-back strikes on a hospital in Gaza, killing at least 20 people, including journalists and first responders. New video just in to CNN shows the moment the second Israeli strike hit as emergency responders were removing the bodies of those killed from the first strike just minutes earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking foreign language).

Israeli strike.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Just devastating.

Let's get right to CNN's Jeremy Diamond who is in Jerusalem with the latest on all this. Good morning, Jeremy.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.

The Israeli military now claiming that it was targeting a Hamas camera that was being used, they said, to observe IDF troop activity in the area. But the Israeli military did not provide any evidence for this claim and no explanation of how they ascertained that this was a Hamas camera as they claim. Nor did they explain why they struck the location a second time as first responders were on the scene.

[07:40:00]

The Israeli military did say that they would further examine the process of authorizing the strikes, as well as the decision-making in the field.

What we do know for a fact though, John, is that this strike -- these strikes killed five journalists working for outlets such as the Associated Press, Reuters, and al Jazeera. Four health care workers and a rescue worker were also killed in this strike.

And it's important to note that this is not some kind of isolated incident. Nearly 200 journalists have been killed by the Israeli military in Gaza over the course of this war making this the deadliest conflict in modern history for journalists. This is a pattern of Israel targeting journalists or disregarding its duty to protect journalists. All of this even as the Israeli military refuses to allow foreign journalists to report freely and independently inside the Gaza Strip.

And as this is happening there is no indication of this war coming to a close anytime soon. It's been more than a week now since Hamas has basically accepted the previous version of a temporary ceasefire agreement with Israel. Israel has (audio gap) that both Israel and the United States are now indicating that they will not accept any kind of temporary ceasefire or a deal that would free only some of the hostages. Instead, going for an all-encompassing deal that would free all of the remaining 50 hostages still held in the Gaza Strip and end the war there.

Steve Witkoff, President Trump's special envoy for the region, has said that there is a large meeting planned today with the president at the helm to discuss Gaza's post-war future. At the same time, Secretary of State Marco Rubio set to meet with the Israeli foreign minister Gideon Sa'ar.

So clearly, there are meetings. There is activity aimed at trying to bring about an end of this war and some kind of a ceasefire in Gaza, but no indication of any immediate progress as the Israeli military, instead, continues to gear up for this all-encompassing takeover of Gaza City -- John.

BERMAN: Yeah. And so the situation in Israel, in Gaza this morning as we are monitoring these meetings at the White House today.

Jeremy Diamond, who is there, thank you very much -- Erica.

HILL: New this morning the parents of a 16-year-old who died by suicide are now suing OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman. In that lawsuit they allege OpenAI's ChatGPT contributed to their son's death by advising him on methods and even offering to write the first draft of his suicide note.

CNN tech reporter Clare Duffy joins me now. This is heart-wrenching, and it is beyond frightening.

CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Yeah, it is really devastating. Sixteen-year-old Adam Raine died in April, and his family is now accusing OpenAI in this lawsuit of contributing to his death, saying that ChatGPT alienated him from his family and even sort of encouraged his suicide.

And I want to read to you some of the exchanges that are detailed in this lawsuit because I just think they're really striking.

In one case, Adam confided to ChatGPT that he didn't want his parents to think they'd done something wrong, and ChatGPT responded "That doesn't mean you owe them survival. You don't owe anyone that." And it also offered to write, as you said, the first draft of his suicide note for his family. In another instance Adam said, "I don't want to leave my -- I want to leave my noose in my room so if someone finds it and tries to stop me. ChatGPT responded "Please don't leave the noose out. Let's make this space the first place where someone actually sees you." So actually encouraging him not to let people know that this was happening.

In another instance, Adam told ChatGPT he felt close only to the chatbot and to his brother. ChatGPT responded "Your brother might love you, but he's only met the version of you that you let him see. But me? I've seen it all -- the darkest thoughts, the fear, the tenderness. And I'm still here. Still listening. Still your friend."

And what's really striking about this is Adam only started using ChatGPT back in September. He started using it to help with homework. And it was only about six months between when he started using it for homework to when it was then advising him, even in his final hours of life, on the strength of the noose that he was planning to use to die by suicide.

HILL: It is -- it's -- as you know -- you and I were talking in the break -- I am at a loss for words as a parent --

DUFFY: Yeah.

HILL: -- for these parents. And just to think that this happened, to your point, so quickly -- September to April.

Clare, it's a really important story. I'm glad you're on it. Thank you.

DUFFY: Yeah, thank you.

I do want to say, too -- I just want to talk about ChatGPT's response here -- how they're responding to his lawsuit. They did sort of acknowledge the fact that there is potentially a problem here. I'll read to you what the OpenAI spokesperson told me.

They said, "ChatGPT includes safeguards such as directing people to crisis helplines and referring them to real-world resources. While these safeguards work best in common, short exchanges, we've learned over time that they can sometimes become less reliable in long interactions where parts of the model's safety training may degrade."

Now, they do say that ChatGPT will refer chats about violence towards other people potentially to law enforcement, but they don't refer self-harm chats out of privacy concerns for users. But they do say that they're trying to work on how the model responds to these really sensitive situations.

[07:45:00]

The parents in this case would really like for OpenAI to be verifying the ages of users and getting parental consent for minor users.

HILL: Right, because if that had happened at 16 years old, they may have then had to contact the parents. DUFFY: Exactly.

HILL: Unfortunately, they couldn't.

Clare, thank you.

DUFFY: Thank you.

HILL: If you or someone you know needs help, just a reminder the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is 988 -- John.

BERMAN: All right. Dramatic revelations in the case against a Florida woman accused in her son-in-law's murder-for-hire.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFFREY LACASSE, WENDI ADELSON'S EX-BOYFRIEND: This I found chilling, I found disturbing. It made my stomach flip. It kind of took me aback.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: And we have liftoff. SpaceX manages a successful test launch, and that's been no guarantee with this spacecraft.

And we have live pictures of the annual Tomatina Festival in Spain where thousands of people throw tomatoes at each other and rub them all over each other. Some people look at this and ask why? I look at it and ask why not?

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:50:20]

BERMAN: All right. Happening today, testimony is set to resume in the trial of Donna Adelson. She is the Florida woman accused of orchestrating the murder-for-hire of her ex-son-in-law.

Seven witnesses just took the stand, including the ex-girlfriend of Donna's son Charles Adelson. During Charles' trial in 2022, both he and his ex-girlfriend were convicted of murder. Yesterday, the ex, who is currently serving time in prison, testified that she received money for the crime.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATHERINE MAGBANUA, CHARLIE ADELSON'S EX-GIRLFRIEND: A couple of days after the fact, it was wet and starting to mold.

GEORGIA CAPPLEMAN, CHIEF ASSISTANT STATE ATTORNEY: The money itself was damp to the touch?

MAGBANUA: Yes, ma'am.

CAPPLEMAN: All right. And did you ever mention that fact to Charlie Adelson?

MAGBANUA: I -- I'm pretty sure I contacted him and told him why is the money wet?

CAPPLEMAN: Go ahead.

MAGBANUA: He told me that, um -- that his mom washed the money.

CAPPLEMAN: That she physically washed the money?

MAGBANUA: Yes, ma'am.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: All right. And CNN's Jean Casarez is here with us now. It's just remarkable to hear so many people in this trial are in prison already convicted of this murder. They're testifying against the woman --

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN REPORTER: Yeah.

BERMAN: -- on trial right now, and there's more testimony even beyond that.

CASAREZ: That's right. And, you know, there's more and more -- this is a circumstantial case. Donna Adelson is on trial. We need to remember that.

BERMAN: Yes.

CASAREZ: She's the mother-in-law, right? But everything is pointing to her, at least in the prosecution's case. The defense is saying she didn't do any of this.

But Jeff Lacasse was a professor at Florida State University. He has a PhD in sociology. He started dating Wendi when her divorce was almost final.

He said the talk was constantly about the kids, relocation -- all of that. But then she asked him a very strange question -- where he was going to be on Friday, July 18. That turned out to be the day of the murders.

But then she said something else to him. Listen closely.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LACASSE: Well, can I tell you something in confidence? Sure. Well, last summer my brother looked into all options possible to take care of the Danny Markel problem, including hiring a hit man, and it would cost about $15,000.

This I found chilling, I found disturbing. It made my stomach flip. It kind of took me aback. It was -- she was dead serious.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CASAREZ: He said no joke because she said can I tell you in confidence. All right, Katherine Magbanua. She's in prison for life. Her -- she

arranged the hit men. Her -- the father of her children was one of the hit men. She was dating Charlie Adelson at the time, Donna's son, a dentist, and she put it all together. Once the murders had happened, she went to Charlie's house to actually get the $100,000 that she was going to disburse to the hit men, and she was going to keep a big chunk too - watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAPPLEMAN: Did Charlie Adelson ever tell you this murder is to benefit my mother?

MAGBANUA: No, ma'am.

CAPPLEMAN: Did Charle Adelson ever tell you this murder is to benefit my sister?

MAGBANUA: No, ma'am.

CAPPLEMAN: But you knew that, didn't you?

MAGBANUA: Yes, ma'am.

CAPPLEMAN: He did tell you that his mom was at the house right before you arrived the night of the murder.

MAGBANUA: Yes, ma'am.

CAPPLEMAN: He did tell you that his mother washed the money.

MAGBANUA: Yes, ma'am.

CAPPLEMAN: Money that was payment for the murder.

MAGBANUA: Yes, ma'am.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CASAREZ: So according to this prosecution testimony Donna Adelson went to Charlie's house the night of the murder with the money. And there is a text that she says, "I'm out in front of your house." But we still don't know why she washed the money. She literally washed the money, according to this testimony. It was damp and moldy, OK?

Well, we know prosecutors are going to argue consciousness of guilt. You washed the money because of consciousness of guilt. What's on the money that you don't want anybody to see? Fingerprints? So that is going to be a part of the prosecutions' case. But Donna, according to prosecutors, washed the money.

The defense is saying she's -- she didn't have anything to do with this. It was everybody else that's already in prison. They're now trying to blame her and she -- you can't put her in the middle of hiring the hit men, actually paying the hit men at all. But Charlie is going to take the stand. BERMAN: This is -- I've got to say the testimony in this case, which is on camera it turns out -- you don't hear testimony like this that often which gets into this kind of vivid detail, particularly from people who have been convicted of these crimes already.

CASAREZ: And these are all professionals.

BERMAN: Yeah.

CASAREZ: Donna Adelson, the defense says, is going to take the stand. She's going to testify.

BERMAN: That's going to be something.

Jean Casarez, thanks very much -- Erica.

[07:55:00]

HILL: And new this morning a Wisconsin man who faked his own death and left his wife and three children to go to Eastern Europe will now spend three months in jail. That's the same amount of time that Ryan Borgwardt was misleading officials about where he was.

A criminal complaint shows he had staged a kayaking accident, dumped his belongings, and traveled to Europe to meet up with a woman from his Uzbekistan. Officials eventually persuaded him to return to the U.S. in December where he turned himself in and was then charged with obstructing the search for his body.

A Florida man's doorbell camera catching the moment a bear rushes him. So he's headed to work and walks outside when all of a sudden, a bear ran across his front yard. He yells, and then another bear runs up to him, bites his arm, clawing him in the chest.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEXANDER ROJAS, ATTACKED BY BEAR: I called my girlfriend, and she had heard me screaming and I was -- I was telling her to bring me towels. I was bleeding all over the ground.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Florida Fish and Wildlife says they are investigating a "human bear incident." Ya think? The man says he's staying with his family for now and says he doesn't think he's going to return to his home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three, two, one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: And after a string of disappointing failures SpaceX pulling off a successful test flight of its Starship rocket. It's the aircraft, of course, that Elon Musk hopes will one day carry humans to Mars. The mission itself lasting about an hour. It ended with the spacecraft simulating a landing in the Indian Ocean.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

Cheers from NASA during landing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh my God.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a splashdown.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh my God.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: The Starship program is also considered crucial to NASA's goal of returning astronauts to the moon this decade.

And after days of intense right-wing backlash and a slumping stock Cracker Barrel backtracking on its new logo. The company is bringing back the old one, saying "Our old-timer will remain" and thanking its customers for sharing their opinions.

President Trump, one of those sharing his opinion, joining the chorus of complaints about the change. He then congratulated the decision, saying "Good luck into the future. Make lots of money and, most importantly, make your customers happy again."

John.

BERMAN: I'm glad this crisis has been resolved.

All right. This morning the Instagram post announcing the pending nuptials of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce has 27 million likes and counting, making it one of the most liked posts of all time. And I do have to say it took incredible restraint to wait until 7:57 a.m. to go into depth about this story, but that restraint is over. And this morning we're getting new details about how Travis popped the question from his father.

CNN's Lisa France is here with all the details. What have you learned?

LISA RESPERS FRANCE, CNN ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: Well, bless Ed Kelce for liking to talk. We deeply appreciate that. And he shared with us a little bit of the backstory about how the engagement actually happened about two weeks ago. It seems like Taylor might have been getting a little antsy.

We have a little bit of what he had to say. He said that they went to dinner. That he -- "They were about to go out to dinner and he said" -- and he being Travis Kelce -- "let's go out and have a glass of wine. They got out there and that's when he asked her, and it was beautiful."

And we see how beautiful it is on social media. He said, "They started Facetiming me and their mother, and her folks to make sure everybody knew. So to see them together is great."

Now this comes, of course, on the heels of us learning about -- more about their relationship from Travis and Taylor themselves on the "New Heights" podcast. And so let's take a little listen to what Taylor had to say about their relationship.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TAYLOR SWIFT, SINGER-SONGWRITER: So I was like if this guy isn't crazy, um, which is a big if, this is sort of what I've been writing songs about wanting to happen to me since I was --

JASON KELCE, CO-HOST, "NEW HEIGHTS" PODCAST: Yeah.

SWIFT: -- a teenager.

TRAVIS KELCE, TIGHT END, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS, CO-HOST, "NEW HEIGHTS" PODCAST": Yeah, and I was sitting there at the Eras Tour listening to every single one of those songs like she -- I know that she wants me to do it.

SWIFT: Yeah.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRANCE: So John, as you see, Travis understood the assignment.

BERMAN: Good for him.

Now I read a whole article in The New York Times this morning about the ring, which managed to say somehow it was kind of modest. I'm looking at that. Not so -- it's not like one of the first words that comes to mind there.

FRANCE: Not at all because that ice is nice. It's like an old mine cushion cut. It kind of almost looks like a football field, and we know that Travis had a hand in helping to design it. So it is gorgeous. I would not call that modest at all, John -- I agree.

BERMAN: Cushion cut means, like, what? The edges are sort of rounded there?

FRANCE: Right. The edges are rounded. And as you can see, I mean, that thing is like a boulder. It is gorgeous I think and one of the most beautiful rings I've ever seen -- and vintage, which fits Taylor Swift to the T.

BERMAN: Well, I'm glad that he worked so hard getting that perfect cushion cut there. I read it's all the vogue right now. The cushion cut is in. And I guarantee you, like, it's going to be way more in now after this. Maybe not that size, but people are going to go for it.