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Amodei to CNN, Independent Reviewers Would Verify A.I. Safety; Coroner Says, Pennsylvania Woman Died of Measles Complications Amid Outbreak; Oil Prices Rise as Tensions Remain High in Middle East. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired September 14, 2026 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: What? Me worry? President Trump shrugs off calls to slow down A.I. development as tech leaders sound the alarm that artificial intelligence could escape human control. Will lawmakers move to reign in the A.I. panic?

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: And a third measles-related death confirmed in Pennsylvania as the outbreak grows and spreads. The debate between federal and state officials now over how to count the number of deaths tied to this disease.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Plus, missing for more than a week and found alive but injured, the dramatic rescue of a 70-year-old missing hiker.

I'm Sara Sidner with John Berman and Kate Bolduan, this is CNN News Central.

BERMAN: And happening now, a huge A.I.-shaped shadow is looming over Washington this morning after an unprecedented call by some of the biggest names in tech sounding the alarm that A.I. capabilities are at risk of moving faster than humans can control.

In an essay that rocked the tech and political world, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei says A.I. companies need to slow the pace for improving their models, giving safety measures time to catch up. He spoke exclusively with CNN's Anderson Cooper about how this might work.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DARIO AMODEI, CEO, ANTHROPIC: There is precedent for this. If you look at how banks are regulated, right? There's all kinds of -- you know, there's all kinds of rules about, you know, how banks are allowed to do their business, right, because, you know, we don't want to have financial crises. And one of the things that are done in some cases is, I think, they're called supervisors in the financial industry, but they're folks who are independent of a company, who are embedded in the company day to day to check their practices. And I think we can do the same thing in -- I think we can do the same thing in A.I.

(END VIDEO CLIP) JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Elon Musk and Sam Altman from OpenAI, they are more or less backing this idea, but President Trump, not really. He's taking a hands-off approach, arguing the U.S. cannot afford to fall behind China in the A.I. race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I've said it from the beginning. Whoever wins A.I. -- and we're leading by a lot, whoever wins A.I. wins.

REPORTER: Have you ever used it yourself or have you been --

TRUMP: I use A.I. Yes, I do.

REPORTER: How do you use A.I.?

TRUMP: But I would say, you know, for the most part, you can use A.I. for a lot of things.

REPORTER: What do you use it for?

TRUMP: Well, I don't want to tell you that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: I want to get right to CNN's Kevin Liptak live at the White House this morning. To what extent does the White House see this as something they have to respond to based on really the incredible noise this weekend?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes. I think it's becoming clearer and clearer to a lot of White House officials that this is going to be perhaps the most dominant issue that they will have to confront for the remainder of this year. That's even though President Trump seems to be in the full steam ahead camp of all this, really downplaying the need to put any kind of check by the administration on these A.I. companies.

In fact, yesterday, he said that warnings about some of the development were coming from, quote, negative forces that he didn't identify, even though some of those voices are now the leaders of the industry itself. You also heard from David Sacks, who is the top A.I. adviser at the White House, really challenging some of what these industry leaders have said, saying that if they want to slow the pace of their own development, they are the ones who can do that. He said the easiest way not to build super intelligence is for you to agree not to build it.

Now, in a lot of ways, that position and the president's position have really kind of isolated him, including from members of his own party, including from some senior White House officials who really do express some unease at the president's unwillingness to talk about more regulations here. It certainly has opened up the president to attack from Democrats. They are really seizing upon this. In fact the former president, Barack Obama, said at a private fundraiser last week that he thinks Democrats should put this issue front and center on the midterm campaign trail this year.

And you have seen some Democrats following suit, including the Democratic senator, Jon Ossoff, from Georgia, who spoke about this last night.

[07:05:07]

Listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JON OSSOFF (D-GA): See, a capable president would move swiftly to secure and reassure the American people, rush inspectors into frontier labs, fortify the nation against bio-terrorism, demand legislation from Congress, and lead the world toward an A.I. treaty. But President Trump is compromised.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIPTAK: Now, despite the president's apparent lack of concern here, White House officials are plotting some next steps. We heard from Kevin Hassett, the top economist at the White House, who said that a meeting would likely take place with top cyber and tech officials here at the White House. You also heard Mike Johnson, the House Speaker, say that he wanted to get the president and lawmakers and top industry officials into the same room to try and determine how this would move forward.

There is another very important date coming up on this, which is the president's meeting with Xi Jinping from China. That will take place here at the White House next week. It is expected that A.I. will be a subject of discussion, but at the two men's last meeting back in May, they were unable to come up with any kind of agreement.

So, this is certainly, I think, going to test Washington's ability, but obviously right now there is no consensus on what to do or even whether to do anything going forward. And I think it's important to note, this does seem like it's an issue that many people in Washington just don't understand in a full sort of scope of what they're dealing with here.

BERMAN: Yes, it really didn't seem as if the president understood how loud the calls had grown this weekend when he responded in the way he did on Air Force One there. But we'll see. We'll see if that continues this morning once he spends a day in the United States again.

Kevin Liptak, thank you very much. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Let's talk more about this now with White House correspondent for USA Today, Francesca Chambers. It's good to see you, Francesca. Kind of where John was is kind of where we get. What are you hearing kind of behind the scenes and from your sources? Because as, as the president seems to be downplaying concerns here, the calls are coming from inside the house, so to speak.

FRANCESCA CHAMBERS, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, USA TODAY: Well, it really exploded over the weekend, Kate, as the president was peppered with questions about this multiple times, which is part of the reason why you heard him comment on it so many times and so forcefully over the weekend while he was in Ireland. This comes, as Kevin was saying, as Xi Jinping is due to visit the White House next week, the Chinese leader China, the biggest competition for the United States in the AI field.

And so as you talk about the division of where to go forward you're hearing some people say, well, we should just work with, with China to slow the pacing of this. But China hit back today and said that it's fear-mongering at this point. So, it's unclear whether the president would even propose such an idea to the Chinese when Xi Jinping is in town or if that's something that the Chinese would even be interested in as the president himself said, that this is just negative voices.

BOLDUAN: It will be interesting to see, especially when it comes to China and Xi Jinping's visit, what -- and this will come from reporting, what the public statements are and how they compare to conversations in private between the two leaders, especially on this very important issue. Because David Sacks, one of the president's top advisers when it comes to AI, kind of before this exploded, had been kind of, had been speaking out and calling out what he called doomers kind of inside the United States about A.I. and safety concerns, basically saying that doomers, they're calling out the doomers in the United States, saying, China doesn't have this. China doesn't have people, the naysayers that the United States does.

But Sam Altman himself, of OpenAI, posted on X overnight, and it seems what Sam was posting is a bit of a response to that sentiment that David Sacks was embodying, because Sam Altman posted this in part, no amount of American competitive pressure should justify recklessness or let capabilities get ahead of alignment and monitoring.

Where we will need the help of our government is for international coordination, but first we should do what we can ourselves. I mean, it kind of raises the stakes on this meeting with Xi Jinping.

CHAMBERS: Oh, absolutely. When it comes to A.I., I think we could expect that would be a major topic when president and the president, Xi, meet, of course, as well as Iran with the U.S. threatening secondary sanctions on countries that continue to do business with Iran, China the biggest importer of Iranian oil. So, there'll be multiple top issues that they'll have to discuss.

What you're hearing from David Sacks, though, isn't dissimilar from what you heard from President Trump over the weekend, which is this idea that if the U.S. pulls back, then China could win, and whoever wins A.I., as President Trump said, wins this competitive -- this competitiveness.

[07:10:03]

And so you also heard Mike Johnson over the weekend say something quite similar. He called for the White House to have this convening of lawmakers as well as the, the top in the A.I. industry. A- and you also heard Anthropic's CEO say over the weekend that essentially the government needed to convene all these people, that they're worried about violating monopolies and competitiveness here. So, it's the government that needs to pull people together.

Kevin Hassett, of course, suggesting there'll be some White House meetings, but we'll see if we see some sort of big convening like we're now hearing multiple people over the weekend call for the White House and the government to do.

BOLDUAN: Yes. I mean, loud calls, but you and I are old enough to have seen many a time a lot of meetings and convenings and a lot of commissions in, no matter if they're partisan or bipartisan, have come together, which also can be read as slow-moving progress often when it comes to an urgent issue like this.

It's good to see you, Francesca. Thank you. Sara?

SIDNER: All right. Thank you so much, Kate.

A third person is dead in a fast-growing measles outbreak in Pennsylvania, while state and federal officials are clashing over what they consider a measles-related death.

And oil prices surging after a key pipeline in Saudi Arabia was struck by drones as President Trump blames Ukraine's President Zelenskyy for high fuel prices.

And a family pleading for your help after a mother vanished from her home more than a week ago. What was left behind at the home that makes the family believe she was in grave danger?

Those stories and more ahead.

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[07:15:00]

SIDNER: New development in the measles outbreak sweeping Pennsylvania. State officials now report a third death, a 40-year-old woman, they say, who died from complications associated with the virus. Meanwhile, tensions still high between officials in the Commonwealth and HHS Secretary RFK Jr., who has questioned the validity of the deadly measles outbreak.

Joining me now, CNN's Jacqueline Howard. Jacqueline, what are you learning about this latest death who happens to be an adult a, a younger adult?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: That's right, Sara. You know, when people typically think of measles, they think of it as a childhood illness, but this latest death is a reminder that adults can be severely impacted, too.

And what we know about this woman who sadly died, we know that she was not vaccinated and, like you said, she did have underlying health conditions. She had COPD and asthma, and we hear that she was taking supplemental oxygen before getting measles. And in a post on Facebook over the weekend, the Jefferson County coroner, Greg Furlong, said in a quote, this is a heartbreaking loss for the family and an unfortunate reminder that measles can be a serious and potentially life-threatening disease, end quote.

So, this now means, Sara, there have been three deaths total as part of this ongoing outbreak. The other two deaths were in infants. And in total so far, at least 676 people have gotten sick with measles from this outbreak, and 124 people have been hospitalized.

And while this outbreak is statewide, the epicenter is really in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. And this is the first measles outbreak in the state in 35 years. Keep in mind, in the year 2000, the U.S. eliminated measles, but we are seeing these outbreaks emerge in unvaccinated pockets of communities. And, Sara, we know the best way to protect yourself against the measles virus is to get vaccinated.

SIDNER: Yes. And we saw this happen it was deadly in Texas. Now we're seeing it occur in Pennsylvania this year. Can you give us some sense about this, this argument from the HHS secretary where he blasted the governor of Pennsylvania accusing him of making up data? Is the CDC still reviewing the, the other two deaths which RFK Jr. is disputing somehow?

HOWARD: Yes. Well, there is this tension between state health officials in Pennsylvania and federal health officials. And just to take a step back, this tension first emerged when the first deaths were reported as part of this outbreak.

At that time, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, who is a Democrat, he said that he declined HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s offer to send help because Shapiro said the secretary's actions and rhetoric around vaccines have included spreading misinformation and have harmed communities.

Now, in response, Kennedy shot back on social media saying that Shapiro was fear-mongering and using the moment for political gain. Kennedy also suggested that the measles deaths may have even been fabricated.

So, if you fast-forward to now, Sara, what we're hearing from the CDC, the newly confirmed CDC director, Dr. Erica Schwartz, says in a statement now, quote, CDC was not notified by Pennsylvania officials of this death. She's talking about the third death. Despite repeated offers of assistance, Pennsylvania has not requested a CDC Epi-Aid, which would deploy epidemiologists and provide on-the-ground measles outbreak support.

So, like you said, Sara, there's this back-and-forth tension going on, but that is the latest that we've heard from CDC at this moment.

SIDNER: Jacqueline Howard, it's an important story that you keep tracking it for us.

[07:20:00]

Thank you so much. I appreciate it. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Breaking overnight, AAA reports the price of diesel has hit a new high. Today it's $6.23 a gallon, leaving farmers among so many others to wonder how long they can hold on.

And an emu on the lam, what happened when a feathered fugitive led police on a wild goose chase, and also is that a mixed metaphor?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: New this morning, oil prices are rising. The U.S. benchmark is now over $102 a barrel. The global benchmark nearly $108 a barrel now. And a new problem to contend with, Saudi Arabia shut down a critical oil pipeline over the weekend after a drone attack that were launched from Iraq.

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The East West Pipeline, it's been key for Saudi Arabia, especially to, in bypassing the Strait of Hormuz, where shipping traffic is still only trickling through. Reports are it could take weeks to repair.

CNN's Matt Egan has much more on this. A lot of people talking about this. What are you hearing?

MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Well, Kate, this is a significant setback, and it's one that could cost consumers really around the world. So East-West Pipeline, it's not a household name, but it has been absolutely critical in trying to minimize the damage from the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, which you can see on the right side of the map.

Now, this pipeline was carrying crude out from the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea, and the problem is that not only is the Strait of Hormuz shut down, but now this East-West Pipeline has a significant outage as well. This would be like if the bridge that you normally take out of the city every day was shut down, forcing you to rely on a tunnel, but then the tunnel gets knocked offline too, right? You're kind of out of luck. And so that's where we are right now.

The East-West Pipeline, every single day it can carry up to 7 million barrels of crude oil. That's significant, right? That's about 7 percent of world supply. Now, most of it was getting exported out from the Port of Yanbu to the Red Sea, out to the rest of the world. Some of it was also going to some refineries along the, the Red Sea as well. Now, that supply is not coming.

Now, the question is how long is it going to be shut down? Saudi Arabia has confirmed that it's shut down, but they have not announced any sort of timetable yet. Reuters is reporting that this could take up to five to six weeks to repair all of the damage, and that the Port of Yanbu only has maybe a week of supplies to continue their exports.

BOLDUAN: This could get bad.

EGAN: Yes. Oil market veteran Bob McNally, he told me if this is a prolonged shutdown, he said it would be, quote, truly calamitous.

Now, the oil market is reacting in a negative way, driving up prices here, right, 3 percent increase for both WTI and Brent approaching the highest levels that we've seen in the last few months. In some ways, I'm surprised the market is not reacting even more negatively here, and I think that's because there's just a lot of -- we don't have a lot of clarity, right? We just don't know how long it's going to be shut down.

Now, obviously gas prices continue to move up, $4.32 a gallon. That is a fresh three-month high for gas. That's also, Kate, the highest level that gas has ever been during the month of September. Look at this, 17 cent increase just from a week ago, and obviously a massive increase from before the war.

And then you and I talked about this a lot last week, but diesel too, right? So, diesel, fresh all-time high. Before last week, diesel was never above $6 a gallon. Look at this, now $6.23 a gallon, dramatically higher than before the war. And n- very few of our viewers use diesel in their passenger car, right? But this is used everywhere else, right?

BOLDUAN: Everyone's a consumer of diesel though in some way, right?

EGAN: Exactly, right? I mean, all the stuff that we buy online comes on trucks that are powered by diesel, and ships and trains.

And so, look, we're seeing prices go higher and higher. They're already too high, and the fact that we have this pipeline shut down, that could make matters even worse. Kate?

BOLDUAN: And we're going to talk to a farmer, and is going to be joining the show in just a minute about what this means in real time and in real effect.

Thanks so much, Matt.

EGAN: Thank you, Kate.

BOLDUAN: John?

BERMAN: All right, the first edition of the new 60 Minutes is in, new reporting that the U.S. airmen involved in one story had reservations about doing the segment.

And then the frantic search for a mother who vanished without a trace, her phone, wallet, car, and dog all left behind.

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