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Confusion, Delays as RFK's Handpicked Vaccine Advisers Meet; Deluge Leads to Damage in Southern California; Protesters Gather Outside ABC Offices, Demand Kimmel's Return; Senate Rejects House Stopgap Spending Bills; Intel Officials Split After Russia Flew Drones Into Poland; NATO Intercepts Russian Jets Over Estonia's Airspace; Former VP Kamala Harris Opens Up About 2024 Defeat in Her Book, Describes a Tense Pre-debate Call From Biden. Aired 2-2:30p ET

Aired September 19, 2025 - 14:00   ET

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

[14:00:00]

MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, absolutely. And so the vote yesterday for the measles, mumps, rubella and varicella or chickenpox vaccine, it doesn't change things extremely dramatically. Those vaccines will still be available, but now chickenpox is recommended to be given separately from the MMR vaccine for the first dose under the age of four. But this, all these implications, these votes have implications for insurance coverage, often for state policy, and for what doctor's offices do.

And so, what we're hearing now is a discussion about COVID vaccines. They are planning on voting on this, this afternoon, and that could really change how people access COVID vaccines and potentially how they're paid for. Although we have heard pledges from health insurers to cover COVID and flu vaccines, at least until the end of 2026, Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CO-ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWS CENTRAL": All right, Meg Tirrell, thank you so much for being at this very important meeting for us. And our next hour of "CNN News Central" starts right now.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CO-ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWS CENTRAL": A united front, late night hosts come to Jimmy Kimmel's defense after he's benched by ABC. But, are they potentially next? And call me, but maybe not. Minutes before my first debate with Donald Trump, former Vice President Kamala Harris revealing new details about a phone call she says she got from President Joe Biden minutes before she stepped on stage, why she might've wished that she had sent that call to voicemail.

And homes damaged, roads closed, downpours leading to scenes like this across Southern California. The latest on the thunderstorms causing mayhem across the region. We're following these major developing stories and many more, all coming in right here to "CNN News Central."

KEILAR: Jimmy Kimmel's late night limbo creating an off-air firestorm. Just a short time ago, this was the scene outside of the ABC offices in New York. Members of the Writer's Guild of America protesting Kimmel's suspension, their demands today following a late night show of support. This was Stephen Colbert.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST OF "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT", CBS: After threats from Trump's FCC Chair, ABC yanked Kimmel off the air indefinitely. That is blatant censorship and it always starts small. Remember, like in week one of his presidency, Gulf of America, call it Gulf of America. Sure, seems harmless, but with an autocrat, you cannot give an inch. If ABC thinks that this is going to satisfy the regime, they are woefully naive and clearly they've never read the children's book, " If You Give a Mouse a Kimmel."

(LAUGH)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Just last hour, the former CEO of Disney, Michael Eisner posted this. Where has all the leadership gone? If not for university presidents, law firm managing partners and corporate chief executives standing up against bullies, who then will step up for the First Amendment? The suspending indefinitely of Jimmy Kimmel immediately after the Chairman of the FCC's aggressive, yet hollow threatening of the Disney company, is yet another example of out of control intimidation.

By the way, for the record, this ex-CEO finds Jimmy Kimmel very talented and funny. Joined now by actor and director, Rob Reiner, his new movie, "Spinal Tap II: The End Continues" is out now. And his new book, " A Fine Line Between Stupid and Clever: The Story of Spinal Tap" is also out.

And you actually were just on Kimmel, Rob, and I wonder how you're reflecting on that.

ROB REINER, ACTOR AND DIRECTOR: Yep.

KEILAR: You were promoting "Spinal Tap II: The End Continues." What's your message to Jimmy Kimmel today?

REINER: Well, first of all, I mean, I'm a friend of Jimmy's and what happened to him is unconscionable. It just can't happen. And what's happening now, it goes way beyond Jimmy Kimmel. We're in a war. We're in a war right now for our democracy. We -- Trump has declared war on this democracy. I mean, first of all, he throws people out of the country without due process. He takes funds that were appropriated by Congress, refuses to distribute them in clear contradiction to the Constitution, separation of powers. He's browbeating businesses and universities and law firms.

I mean, this is way beyond just Jimmy Kimmel. We are fighting 200 -- this is a man who's a convicted felon, an adjudicated sex offender and fraud, a business fraud. And he has decided that our 250 years of American democracy is going to be wiped out within the -- and he is doing it within the last eight months.

Well, there's a lot of people, not just the show business community. There are a lot of people all over this country that is not going to stand for this. And we're going to start organizing. You have to understand, this is, to me, is a very personal thing. Aside from the fact that I'm in show business, I'm already a libtard. I'm already a pariah. I understand with the Trump administration, but this is way, way beyond, that for me.

[14:05:00]

It's very personal. My wife, her mother was in Auschwitz. Her whole family died there. Her mother was the only one that survived. My Uncle Charlie was part of the D-Day invasion. My second father, Norman Lear flew 52 bomb emissions over Nazi Germany, so that we would -- and millions of people died, so that we would never, ever have what we are seeing happen now here in America. It's unconscionable.

You are not going to take 250 years, that shining city on a Hill, that -- the beacon to the rest of the world, which is now looked down upon by our allies, and destroy it. We're just not going to stand for it. And there's a lot of people that are going to be standing up in the near future. And you're going to see a big pushback. There's no question about it. He's declared war on the First Amendment, on the Constitution, and we're not going to take it.

KEILAR: You heard what Michael Eisner said, former Chief of Disney, right? Very supportive of Jimmy Kimmel. But you also see how the Trump administration is pulling on certain levers of government, and not just in the case of Jimmy Kimmel, right? But other cases as well, in a way that's extraordinary. And these big companies, if they have business that requires some kind of sign off, regulators, the Trump administration has discretion there. And you see how some of these companies are responding. What do you think about that?

REINER: Well, they're scared. There's no question, they're scared. I mean, we in Hollywood, we know what this idea of browbeating people and intimidating people, we know what this is. We had it back in the 1950s with the McCarthy era where people were blacklisted. People couldn't get work. People were thrown in jail and we fought back. The committee for the -- to protect the First Amendment was founded by people like Henry Fonda who fought back.

And when people unite and they are united and there is strength in numbers, we know that. And it's not going to just be the Hollywood community. It's going to be -- we're going to have to reach out to business. We're going to have to reach out to the universities and the law firms, and everybody who is affected by this because, ultimately, yes, they're going to cave now. But if they cave and if everybody starts to cave, within a very short period of time, something that we've built for 250 years will no longer exist.

KEILAR: The FCC Chair, Brendan Carr was on Fox yesterday and he said, "I don't think this is the last shoe to drop. This is a massive shift in the media ecosystem, and I think the consequences are going to continue to flow." What's the sense of late night TV now, and this moving in a bigger way into the film industry?

REINER: Well, it's moving into every form of communication. We're seeing it. This is 1a (ph), 1.a (ph), whatever in the authoritarians' playbook. Control the media, control the message, make sure that only what we have to say and only what we believe will get out to the public. That goes and flies 180 degrees against the First Amendment of the Constitution. So what you're saying is basically, destroy the Constitution.

And Trump even said, you know, I don't know if I have to pay attention or believe, and listen to everything in the Constitution. It can't happen. If it does happen, Brianna, you're not going to be speaking the way you -- you're not going to be having this program. You're not going to let somebody like me come on and talk. It'll be state-run media, and that's going to be for all television. They're making a big investment in TikTok when you're seeing that's coming from Paramount and now Skydance, all of this will now start to be controlled by state media, and that is the basis for authoritarian rule. You see it in every country who has it.

KEILAR: Well, Rob Reiner, thank you for joining us today. We really appreciate you being here.

REINER: And by the way, this may be the last time you ever see me because I'm -- there's only a couple of us that are speaking out in this hard way. And we hope and we know that there will be others. And so, I don't think you can destroy a whole industry if you have the right kind of message that we have coming out and we're within our rights. And you're going to see, I mean, if I'm Jimmy Kimmel, I'm suing the Trump administration, I'm suing them for abandoning my First Amendment rights.

[14:10:00]

KEILAR: Yeah. We're going to see what recourse he has and where this goes. Rob Reiner, thank you so much.

REINER: Thank you. Thanks for having me.

KEILAR: Boris?

SANCHEZ: So, President Trump says his phone call today with China's leader Xi Jinping made progress toward a deal to keep popular social media app, TikTok alive in the United States. The deal would sell most of TikTok's U.S. assets to American investors and conclude this years- long effort that began in President Trump's first term. Plus, we have Breaking News into CNN. The Senate has just rejected a short-term government funding measure that the House passed a few hours ago. That bill would've kept the government funded until mid-November, giving lawmakers some breathing room.

Senators also rejected a Democratic alternative version. The Senate leaves this afternoon for a week-long recess. That means they return to Capitol Hill with fewer than 48 hours to avert a shutdown if the current schedule holds. Still plenty more news to come on "News Central." Signs that Vladimir Putin may be getting more aggressive according to intelligence officials, provocation from the Kremlin over Estonia, another NATO country. Plus, new revelations from Kamala Harris' book including a campaign moment that led her to call Donald Trump a "conman."

And later a moment in the courtroom goes viral. A shackled inmate tries to rush a judge. We have the video and the story in just moments.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:16:11]

SANCHEZ: Three Russian fighter jets entered into Estonia's airspace without permission earlier today. According to the country's foreign ministry, officials say the jets stayed in their airspace for about 12 minutes. A NATO spokesperson said the Alliance responded immediately and intercepted the Russian aircraft. Estonia, of course, borders Russia and is a member of NATO. The incursion comes as U.S. and Western intelligence officials are still trying to determine whether Russia intentionally flew drones into Polish airspace earlier this month. CNN's Katie Bo Lillis joins us now. So Katie, walk us through your new reporting.

KATIE BO LILLIS, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yeah, Boris. Well, look, we're just over a week since 19 Russian drones fly into NATO ally Poland's airspace, and U.S. and Western officials still really struggling to come to a consensus judgment about whether they think this was perhaps an intentional effort to test Western air defenses or whether it was completely accidental.

And the problem is that the intelligence that they've been able to gather, the sort of technical specifications from the drones that they were able to shoot down in Poland, as well as information about kind of the flight pattern that these drones took, how they flew when they were in Polish airspace, all of that information could be interpreted both ways, right? You could make a case either direction. In fact, one senior U.S. military official in the region put it to me as, the odds are 50/50, right, either way, intentional or accidental.

So an example of that is Ukrainian officials will say, look, we've seen Russian drones be disrupted by our jamming, before by our electronic warfare defenses fly off course like in onsies and twosies though.

SANCHEZ: Yeah.

BO LILLIS: They say, we've never seen an incursion of this size, 19 drones, right? We spoke to some senior western intelligence officials who said, well, look, these drones are actually programmed en mass, right? And so when you have 400 of them in the air, as has been the case on multiple occasions including this particular attack, it's not necessarily surprising that if 20 of them run into the same jamming right space, that they might be diverted in such numbers. Huge disagreement about this in public. Obviously, you've seen some European nations including Poland, come out and say, yeah, it was definitely intentional.

You've seen the president of the United States say, well, it could have been a mistake. Right? U.S. intelligence officials still really kind of hashing this question out. The problem of course for NATO is, if you don't know whether it was accidental or intentional, how do you respond? What we do hear across the board is whether it was an accident, whether it was intentional, it still shows a worrying increased tolerance for risk by Russia.

SANCHEZ: Yeah. And especially in light of the report that their jets flew into Estonian airspace. Katie Bo Lillis, thanks so much.

BO LILLIS: Thanks so much, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Still to come. Parents and kids getting caught in the middle of a political firestorm over vaccines. What surprised Kamala Harris about Donald Trump's campaign style? That and much more coming your way.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:23:20]

KEILAR: Former Vice President Kamala Harris is not holding back in her new book. Candidly opening up about how devastated she felt after losing the 2024 election to Donald Trump, writing that she could barely breathe after the loss. CNN's Eva McKend is with us now. And those are just some of the admissions in this book. It is kind of a chock-full of bombshells. What are you learning?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: It is indeed, Brianna. You know what emerges here is an inside look at the tension that the vice president had between being loyal, respectful to President Biden. Ultimately, she was his vice president, and then also doing everything that she needed to do to win. And sometimes those things were not compatible. But now, with the benefit of hindsight, she recognizes that she probably should have done more to distance herself from him. And she has great regrets around some of these episodes, where it was clear that she was not ready to do that.

I remember being on the campaign trail with her when she said, historically, it has been in poor taste for vice presidents to talk bad about their presidents and she was not willing to go there. But we also saw that President Biden, in her view, was continuing to hang on in ways that she characterized as harmful. She says that during the critical debate that she had with President Trump, just before it, she gets a phone call from President Biden, in which he is talking about how he's hearing from his brother that she is badmouthing him to Pennsylvania power brokers. And she said that she had to kind of tune that out, so that she could prepare for this momentous moment.

[14:25:00]

KEILAR: Yeah, that was pretty stunning. Right? Maybe take it up after the debate, because a lot was hanging on that one debate. She describes President Trump's ability to really turn on the charm. Tell us about this.

MCKEND: You know, I found this interesting because this is consistent with what we hear about President Trump. That he sort of shifts based on who he is in front of at the time. And so, she said that when they had these personal phone calls, one was after the second assassination attempt and then the other was when she conceded after she lost the contest, that he was always very gracious to her and very kind to her. But she said that she was not going to be duped by that, that she believes that he is a con man.

KEILAR: All right, Eva McKend, thank you so much.

Still to come, a look at the conflicting messages from the White House and tamping down on certain speech, but also fighting so-called cancel culture.

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