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Biden: Negotiations Over Economic Agenda At A "Stalemate"; Dems Push 10-Year Plan To Expand Education, Health And Child Care; Protests At Idaho School Board Meeting; Trump Seeks New Ways To Undermine Election Integrity; Brian Laundrie Search Intensifies After Federal Arrest Warrant; Del Rio Migrant Camp Cleared, Thousands Deported To Haiti; Jury Begins Deliberations In R. Kelly Sex Trafficking Trial. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired September 25, 2021 - 11:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:00:23]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me.

I am Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin this hour with two unknowns. How quickly will America be able to bounce back after the pandemic? And will President Biden be able to deliver on his sweeping domestic agenda?

Democrats are at work on Capitol Hill right now trying to find the best ways to move forward and agree on whether trillions of dollars need to be spent. The president admits things are not going well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Now we're at this stalemate at the moment and we're going to have to get these two pieces of legislation passed. Both need to be passed. And they'll have a profound impact according to not just Joe Biden but according to Wall Street, according to the IMF, according to international organizations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she plans to bring the infrastructure bill to the floor Monday, but right now anything could happen.

CNN's Sunlen Serfaty joins us from Capitol Hill. So what is happening this weekend or not?

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: well, as of now Fred, for Democrats things are not going well. There is no agreement and no path forward from this big divide that they've been having. And of course time, is very, very short and the stakes here are very high for Democrats. Now, at issue is still the stalemate that we've seen among the House Democrats. House moderates want Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to go ahead and hold that vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill on Monday, but House progressives are pushing back and holding firm to this moment. They say that they will tank that infrastructure bill, purposely vote against it before they can get agreement on that broader economic plan, that social spending bill that they have been calling for.

So as of now, that big divide still exists and it really threatens to derail both bills. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, she says that it is her intention to bring both bills to a vote next week, but House progressives again are pushing back on that saying if they move to a vote on infrastructure on Monday, it will only make matters worse from within their own party.

Just check out that language and the divide among House Democrats here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Speaker Pelosi, will the votes still happen for sure on Monday on the infrastructure bill?

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: The bill will come up on Monday.

REP. PRAMILA JAAYAPAL (D-WA): I don't think the vote is going to happen because I don't think the speaker is going to bring a bill to the floor that will fail. And we still have -- and actually the number is growing but we have at least 50 people who are not going to vote for that bill.

So I think what we need is to take the temperature down a bit, to have the negotiations continue. The vote is going to drive up tensions, not drag down tensions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SERFATY: Now Speaker Pelosi has been trying to project the momentum towards the progressives' needs and wants here to appease them and show some progress on that broader economic spending plan. And that is why today up here on Capitol Hill there will be a very rare session of the Budget Committee. They will start moving and marking up that budget bill. But of course this is notably before there is any agreement with the senate which is important here.

But she's trying to appease the progressives and project that they are making some progress, even though the contours of the bill have not come together.

It is really hard to overstate, Fred, how critical this next 48 hours up here on Capitol is for these bills. And of course, then you have the big deadline of midnight on Thursday, October 1st for them to get a bill to fund the government before it potentially shuts down.

WHITFIELD: A lot at stake. All right. Sunlen Serfaty, thanks so much for that.

So the -- overall, the president's massive $3.5 trillion budget bill is at the heart of a major divide within the Democratic Party. Moderates saying it is too expensive, progressives arguing it is a must.

So what's in the bill, how will the money be spent potentially? Here is CNN's Tom Foreman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): What can you buy for $3.5 trillion?

High on the deliverables list is education. The American Families Plan would puts $200 billion into universal pre-k, educating 3 and 4-year- olds affecting roughly five million kids.

They would provide two years of tuition free community college for older students but the Fed is picking up 75 percent of the tab, states covering the rest.

[11:04:52]

FOREMAN: There would be $82 billion for public school improvements. Also more money for universities that serve minority groups, including historically black colleges.

REP. DEBBIE DINGELL (D-MI): (INAUDIBLE) Democrat is deliver. We need to deliver for the American people.

FOREMAN: There would be help with child care so middle to low income families with kids under five would spend no more than 7 percent of their income on such services. It proposes to help low income families save money by making the earned income tax credit permanent. And it would pump $35 billion into child nutrition giving 9 million more children free school lunches.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're not leaving anything behind. We're not passing an infrastructure bill and then saying oh there's no urgency to taking on climate change or immigration or any of these other things.

FOREMAN: $150 billion in grants is aimed at helping electric companies provide clean energy. $9 billion to modernize the power grid. There are rebates for consumers going more green, money for electrifying the fleet of federal vehicles and for conservation in agriculture and forestry, aimed at among other things reducing the threat of wildfires.

Critics, of course, are calling it an inferno of spending.

REP. TOM REED (R-NY): That contains significant tax increases on our small businesses, on individuals. It is a policy expansion using just partisan exercise of Democratic votes only. FOREMAN: Still, there's more. The bill would expand Medicare and

reduce how much Obamacare users must pay. It would bolster affordable housing and put $190 billion into home and community services for the nation's growing senior population, the disabled, and those who work with them.

(on camera): Indeed, this is so much spending over the next ten years, it is possible that no one person knows everything that's in it.

All the more reason critics say there should be a lot of caution when looking at that whopping price tag.

Tom Foreman, CNN -- Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. With me right now to talk about all of this is Congresswoman Lois Frankel. She is a Democratic representative from Florida and a member of the House Appropriations Committee. Congresswoman, so good to see you.

REP. LOIS FRANKEL (D-FL): Good to be with you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: So House Speaker Pelosi plans to bring the infrastructure bill to the floor on Monday. Do you think it will pass?

FRANKEL: Well, you know what, I think the focus is so much on this drama. And Fredricka, let me just say this, I'm coming at this whole situation not as a politician but as a really a mother and a grandmother.

And what we're looking and trying to do is take the stress off of the working families of America, lowering their costs, lowering their taxes.

And here's what I think. I think we're going to get this done. I'm not sure the order of what it's going to be. But we're going to create millions of new jobs. We're going to be protecting our children from climate change, and especially for working families. We're going to get those costs down on child care and home care while raising the wages of the care workers.

And for families who have a sick child or parent at home, they'll be able to take care of them without losing their jobs. So --

WHITFIELD: So, I understand that is the intention but might it be delivered as early as Monday. If it is the $1 trillion package to be voted on Monday, is it your feeling that the votes are there because Representative Jayapal at least half her members would vote against that $1 trillion plan to improve the nation's bridges and Internet connections and, you know, help for families as you put it.

So if everyone is not on board, that means it is not potentially achievable on Monday. Do you feel more optimistic?

FRANKEL: Well, I know that our leadership and our budget committee is working very diligently this weekend to try to put together a package that everybody can agree on. And I believe that we're going to get there.

You know, here's the good thing is for the Democrats our values are -- you know, we're on the same track here and we really have very similar goals. So it is just a matter of timing and I do believe we're going to get there.

WHITFIELD: So there is an impasse, or there seems to be an impasse, right. I mean particularly between moderates and progressives. Lots of work to get done this weekend in order to get everyone on the same page.

You just saw, you know, some of what's in the bill in Tom Foreman's piece, $3.5 trillion bill. So if the Biden White House is reassessing how to appeal to all Dems to get them on the same page, is the case that they are needing to ask lawmakers about their priorities as opposed to focusing on the costs, as opposed to asking we realize you want to get the costs down.

[11:09:58]

WHITFIELD: Instead of going that route, is it best to look at the list of priorities and eliminate from there?

FRANKEL: Well first, let me just say that the way the programs will be paid for and we'll be making sure we have taxpayers and that's for corporations and those who make the very most money in this country are paying their fair share of taxes.

That will cover a lot of the costs as will the income that the government is going to get from creating millions and millions of jobs. So I do think that yes, you're correct, it is about priorities and what's in the package. In the end I think that's where we have to focus.

WHITFIELD: Yesterday, the Women's Health Protection act aimed at protecting abortion rights passed your chamber along nearly party lines. You're a co-lead on that legislation. Does this have a path in the Senate in your view?

FRANKEL: Well Fredricka, you know, the decision of whether and if to become a parent is one of the most personal decisions a person can make, and it's a decision that should be between a patient and the people that they trust, not by a politician or by a nosey neighbor or vigilante, stranger in the state, which is what Texas -- the new Texas law lays out.

I'm very proud of the Democrats in the House because we -- I think we passed the bill with every Democrat except for one. And it is a landmark act because it is going to prohibit states from blocking -- banning abortion, safe legal abortion and creating unnecessary medical restrictions.

What's going to happen in the Senate I can't tell you. I hope that there is a ground swell in the public to put pressure on the Senate. I know that the overwhelming majority of Americans believe that safe, legal abortion should be available, regardless of zip code.

WHITFIELD: All right. Congresswoman Lois Frankel, thanks so much for being with us today. I know you all have a big plate and a lot of work to do this weekend.

FRANKEL: Good to be with you.

WHITFIELD: Thank you.

All right. Coming up, angry and fighting back. Parents so upset about a temporary mask mandate, a school meeting had to be cancelled because of security concerns.

This as a new study finds schools with mandates are seeing fewer outbreaks, meaning kids get to stay in school.

Also ahead, former President Trump is giving new life to his big election lie but county officials in Texas say they're in the dark about a so-called "audit".

[11:12:50]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Get a load of this. A school board meeting to discuss a temporary mask mandate was called off in Idaho last night after an unruly, large crowd gathered to protest it. The group was chanting "no more masks" and "my child, my choice".

The protesters began banging on the doors, and police actually had to be called in to get the school board members safely to their cars. The school district of Coeur d'Alene which is where all of this happened does not currently have a mask mandate.

All right. Joining me right now to discuss, dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and CNN medical analyst. She's also a former Baltimore health commissioner. So good to see you, Dr. Wen. So how do you combat this kind of outrage?

DR. LEANA WEN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: It's really hard, Fred, because all parents I believe want the best thing for our children. It just becomes really heartbreaking when there are some parents who believe the disinformation and misinformation so much that they think that masks are harming their kids as opposed to protecting their kids and others.

And I think that's the key point that this is not just something that affects your child. I mean, maybe you can make a decision about what's best for your kid, but it is also affecting others as well.

And I think at this point when we don't yet have vaccines available for kids under 12, we really need all the tools available to protect our kids, including indoor masks.

WHITFIELD: So the CDC just came out with data that establishing masks in schools do, in fact, work. One study showing that schools with no masks -- no rules on masks are 3.5 times more likely to have an outbreak than schools that require masks. And we know masks work for kids.

So is it an issue of there will be more deaths in order to overcome this sense of denial that many people have, people just simply want to deny that that can't be the case that masks are protecting kids in school.

DR. WEN: Right. We're seeing that kind of denialism on many levels. We're seeing people not getting vaccinated, even though vaccines will save their life. We're seeing people who are still fighting mask mandates and mask requirements, even in places where there are cramped classrooms or indoor public spaces.

I think it is really unfortunate because at this point the data are so clear, the evidence is so overwhelming. And you're right, that there will be more preventable deaths as a result of this disinformation.

WHITFIELD: New York City's vaccine mandate for educators is set to take effect on Tuesday, and some 10,000 teachers may be at risk of losing their jobs because they have yet to show proof that they have had at least one vaccine dose. What kind of concerns do you have?

[11:19:58]

DR. WEN: Well, I want people to recall the study that was published in the CDC of one unmasked, unvaccinated teacher in the northern California area who was infected with COVID and went to school while symptomatic. She was teaching elementary school and half of her class -- I believe it was 12 out of 24 students -- ended up getting infected because of this one teacher.

So there are reasons why we have vaccine requirements is to protect the individual but also vaccination is not just an individual choice. It is just wrong for teachers to infect unvaccinated children -- kids who are too young to even be eligible to get the vaccine.

And this is why it is so important for teachers, health care workers, nursing home staff and so many other occupations where they're around vulnerable individuals, that's the reason why there are vaccine requirements in these cases.

WHITFIELD: The CDC has diverged from a recommendation from the agency's independent group of vaccine advisers to allow vaccine boosters for people who are at increased risk of COVID because of where they work.

You commended this decision after writing a piece calling for the CDC to let Americans decide for themselves if their risk warrants getting a booster shot. Explain.

DR. WEN: I think there are two very important things to discuss here. One is that there is a difference between the CDC recommending something and allowing something. And what I mean here is in this case, we know that the vaccines protect you very well against severe disease, even over time. Maybe there's a little bit of waning especially in people who are older or with chronic medical issues, but they still protect you very well against severe disease.

However, it does stops protecting you as well against symptomatic, milder infections. We know that that immunity wanes over time. So there are going to be people who say hey, as long as I'm am protected against severe disease, I am fine. Versus there are others who are really worried about even getting a mild infection. Maybe they don't want to bring it home to their family, maybe they just don't want to get any breakthrough infection.

I think we should really let people decide. And so the CDC breaking into two categories, one of these are the individuals who should get the vaccine, people over the age of 65 or over the age of 50 who have chronic medical conditions. They need to be vaccinated.

And then there are those who should choose whether they want to get that additional booster dose. And those are the individuals who are 18, who have high risk occupations. And people should decide for themselves if they want to get that booster.

One thing is clear which is that everybody who is unvaccinated needs to get vaccinated. That is the top priority, however I think it is just wrong to deny individuals who want an additional level of protection, especially when we have so many millions of doses of the vaccine that are going to waste.

WHITFIELD: All right. All good points.

Dr. Leana Wen, thank you so much. Good to see you. Continue to be safe.

All right. Coming up next, a sham election audit in Arizona delivers a major blow to former President Trump. We'll have more on the growing fallout next.

[11:23:05]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Welcome back.

Four counties in Texas say they have been left in the dark after hearing through a press release new plans for a 2020 election audit in their state. Despite that announcement from the Texas secretary of state's office, officials in Dallas, Harris, Tarrant, Collin Counties said they haven't received any requests for information or materials that would be relevant for any audits.

The news comes after a partisan audit in Arizona was finally completed, confirming Biden's victory in that state.

CNN's Paula Reid has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In his quest to spread the big lie, Trump has focused on the vote count in Arizona. His allies paid a company to find fraud.

But five months and more than $5 million later, the results are in. They found none. In fact, a hand recount actually found more votes for Joe Biden.

Late last night, Trump posted a statement online calling the firm reviewing the Arizona results highly respected auditors. But after the results confirming his loss were widely reported, the statement was deleted from his Web site.

The sham process was conducted by the Florida based company Cyber Ninjas, which has no experience in auditing but a hand recount by the company showed Biden got 99 more votes than Maricopa County originally reported, and Trump received 261 fewer votes.

Maricopa County supervisor, Republican Bill Gates bucked his own party to reject the sham process.

BILL GATES (R), MARICOPA COUNTY SUPERVISOR: Those behind this, they don't have reverence for democracy. They are trying to sow doubt so that down the road they can again question elections if they don't turn out the way they wanted them to.

REID: But the former president continues to spread the big lie. On Thursday, Trump published a letter to the Republican governor of Texas, a state he won by more than five points demanding an election audit while making baseless allegations.

"Texans know voting fraud occurred in some of their counties. Let's get to the bottom of the 2020 presidential election scam."

Hours later, the secretary of state announced that Texas would carry out audits in four of the state's largest counties.

[11:29:58]

REID: Trump's efforts to undermine confidence in the system is being embraced by Republicans. In a recent CNN poll, most Republicans said they want Trump to remain their party's leader. And most Republicans also consider support for Trump and his false claim to have won the 2020 election to be an important part of their own partisan identity alongside support for conservative principles.

Nearly ten months after the 2020 election the former president continues to trash even his closest allies if they don't support the big lie.

In a new book "Peril", authors Bob Woodward and Robert Costa document how Senators Lindsey Graham and Mike Lee questioned Trump's claim that the election was stolen.

BOB WOORDWARD, AUTHOR: These two Trump supporters come up with a conclusion it is bogus. There is nothing there.

REID: Now Trump is taking aim at the two lawmakers who were staunch allies and frequently seen by his side while in office. "I spent virtually no time with them," Trump wrote in a statement. "Lindsey and Mike should be ashamed of themselves for not putting up the fight necessary to win."

This comes as the House Select Committee fired off its first round of subpoenas in its investigation into January 6th to four Trump loyalists. Investigators want to know what Trump and those around him did to try to overturn results of the 2020 election, in addition to what was known in Trump's orbit about the planning leading up to the insurrection and how the administration responded.

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): We are moving with great alacrity and essentially no one is off the table.

REID: The committee has specifically targeted individuals they believe would be uncooperative. They include Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, former deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino, former adviser Steve Bannon, and Kash Patel a former chief of staff to then acting secretary of defense Christopher Miller.

SCHIFF: These are four important witnesses. They're all very close to the former president. Some were in direct communication with him on January 5th, on January 6th, they're reportedly in communication about how to overturn the results of the election.

REID: On January 5th, Bannon predicted on his podcast.

STEVE BANNON, FORMER TRUMP ADVISER: All hell is going to break loose.

REID: In a letter to Meadows, the committee noted he was allegedly communicating with the president on January 6th and they also want to know more about his efforts to plan and prepare to contest the presidential election and delay counting of electoral votes.

The committee is looking for a quick turnaround and all four Trump associates are directed to produce relevant documents by October 7th and appear for depositions the following week.

CNN has reached out to Meadows, Scavino and Bannon for comment. Patel said in a statement late Thursday that he was disappointed but not surprised that the committee had subpoenaed him before seeking voluntary cooperation.

(on camera): Now that President Biden appears unwilling to assert executive privilege to block these requests if these Trump allies still refuse to comply with the committee requests, lawmakers could try to get this into court, arguing potentially criminal contempt that could cause delays.

But even if these allies eventually appear, it is unclear if lawmakers will actually get any answers because each has the right to invoke the Fifth Amendment, of course, protecting them from self-incrimination.

Paula Reid, CNN -- Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: All right. Coming up. What happened to Gabby Petito? The man last seen with her, Brian Laundrie, is still missing. Details on a new witness account that further narrows the search.

[11:33:51]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A driver who gave Brian Laundrie a ride in Wyoming might be able to provide some clues about the hours or days leading up to the disappearance of his fiancee, Gabby Petito. Norma Jean Jalovec tells CNN that she picked Laundrie as a hitchhiker on August 29th in the early evening. Jalovec says she then gave him a ride to the same camping area where Petito's remains were later found.

CNN's Nadia Romero joining us live from now Venice, Florida where authorities are still searching for Laundrie in a swampy nature preserve where his parents said he might be.

So Nadia, what are we learning today?

NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well Fredricka, that's what everyone is going off of. what Brian Laundrie's parents said that last week, last Tuesday that he was coming to the Carlton Nature Preserve behind me and that they were concerned that he may harm himself.

So now there's been this massive search effort here for the 25,000 acres that is this preserve. And it is swampy, it's hot, it's humid, and there are flood waters that still remain waist high for some of those search and rescue teams. As they go through, they're finding alligators and snakes. So this is a very dangerous operation to try to find Brian Laundrie.

But there are others who are very skeptical who say that maybe the parents are just trying to throw off investigators, maybe he's not here at all.

[11:39:50]

ROMERO: And that's just one of the many twists and turns we've seen because of this case that started weeks ago with the disappearance of Gabby Petito. That happening in Wyoming where authorities found her body.

And you just mentioned yet another person now saying that they gave Brian Laundrie a ride. He was hitchhiking around the same area where they found her body. And the timeline here becomes so important as investigators try to piece together exactly what happened.

So we know that those search efforts are going to continue this weekend. But there hasn't been a lot of police activity today, especially not compared to earlier this week where we saw plenty of different cars and vehicles behind us.

Now we're mostly seeing looky-loos, people who live in the neighborhood who are driving around, just seeing what's happening. Not a lot of police presence.

We're having vigils and candle light vigils that are happening for Gabby Petito. One happened in Salt Lake City earlier this week, another happened last night in Long Island. And we do expect to have a memorial service for Gabby Petito in Long Island, remember that's where she's from, that's where her family lives, to have another service that is open to the public to honor her life and celebrate her legacy as so many people in this country are wrapped up in this story, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Right. And that's tomorrow in Long Island. All right. Nadia Romero, thank you so much.

All right. Still ahead, Haitian migrants flown back to their country after desperately trying to enter the United States. CNN is live in Port-au-Prince next.

[11:41:17]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The U.S. special envoy to Haiti resigned over what he called the inhumane decision to deport thousands of migrants back to Haiti. Those Haitians were part of the encampment under a bridge in Del Rio, Texas which has now -- that area has been completely cleared.

Those being deported back to Haiti, many of them are returning to a country in turmoil years after leaving in search of a better life.

CNN correspondent Melissa Bell has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Junior, his wife Elianne and their two-year-old were deported to Port-au-Prince from Tuesday, seven years after the couple said they left in search of a better life.

They're now staying with friends. The three sharing a single bed. Not much, but more comfort than they've known for several months.

When work dried up in Brazil in June where they've been given asylum, the family headed north through ten countries, some of it by bus, but much of it on foot.

Elianne though says that the worst was arriving in the United States. As they arrived, she says everything they had, including toothpaste and soap was taken so that as they got into the prison they had only the clothes on their backs.

She says when they were called up, they thought they would be freed. Instead, she says we were shackled. Seeing my husband shackled was the worst, she explains. Then they handcuff women, and then put us on the plane. My baby was crying and I couldn't even hold him. And that was what made me cry.

The family gives us a tour of the neighborhood they find themselves back in. Junior says that Port-au-Prince is worse now than when they left. I asked him if it is the insecurity that has worsened. He laughs and tells me there is no security in Haiti.

The assassination of the country's president and the aftermath of a 7.2 earthquake in August, just some of the dismal conditions forcing families to embark on the grueling trek to the U.S. border with Mexico.

(on camera): And yet the flights keep coming. Seven in all arriving here in Haiti just this Friday. Some here at Port-au-Prince, others at the airport in (INAUDIBLE) in the very north of the country. The logistics almost impossible to deal with says the International Office for Migration given the sheer number of people being deported.

(voice over): Back in the place they desperately wanted to leave, the dream of finding a better life in America ends here, back on Haitian soil with a handout of $100, a hot meal, and a ride to the bus station.

FRANKLY JEAN, DEPORTEE: People are going to suffer now. There are no jobs and there's nothing here. What are those people going to do?

BELL: That's the dilemma facing thousands of migrants forced to return to a country the U.S. special envoy to Haiti called a collapsed state before he resigned on Thursday.

A small group of people turned out in Port-au-Prince to protest the deportations, a show of dissent but little help to the migrants still being flown back to Haiti, returning to the many problems they thought they left behind.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BELL: Fredricka, those flights are due to continue this Saturday and over the coming days. Although the camp under Del Rio Bridge has been cleared, there are still several thousand Haitians in U.S. custody and we expect them to be deported.

The International Office for Migration says they expect more flights in the coming days. And I think it is worth noting that on Friday the U.S. Coast Guard said it had intercepted two full boats tat are carrying 260 Haitian migrants between the two of them, two at sea interdictions that they carried out they say to prevent people taking risks for their life but a reminder really that even though the story of the returns, the deportations of these Haitians before they'd been able to claim for asylum in the United States to Haiti has been covered extensively this week, has dominated the news.

[11:49:59]

BELL: Still on Friday there were Haitians trying to leave the country and I think it's an indication of just how bad that insecurity has become and just how desperate Haitians are to go, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Indeed it is representative of the desperation.

All right. Melissa Bell in Haiti, thank you so much.

All right. Flights to and from the Canary Islands are being grounded as volcanic eruptions continue spewing ash on the Spanish island of La Palma.

Concerns are intensifying after infrared images of the volcanic activity show lava pouring out of two new vents. The lava has already destroyed hundreds of businesses and homes along with crops. Nearly 6,000 people have already been forced from their homes and officials say more evacuations may be needed.

All right. Straight ahead, the fate of R. Kelly is now in the hands of a jury. We'll take a look at the damning evidence presented during the trial.

But first, Zion National Park was the third most visited national park last year. Here is how you can see its grandeur and avoid its grand crowds in this week's "Off the Beaten Path".

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMANDA ROWLAND, PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER, ZION NATIONAL PARK: Zion National Park is one of the most visited national parks in the country.

Take breaks, take pictures.

However, if you want to come up the scenic drive you need to take our shuttle. We do have e bikes that are in town and available for rent.

(INAUDIBLE) is going to be your cuddle (ph) assist. It tops at about 20 miles per hour.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The bicycle experience at Zion National Park is really unique. As you're pedaling the canyon is kind of growing around you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With this it makes it unbelievably easy and cool and fun.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And the nice thing is you can stop anyplace you want to. You get to see so much more of the park.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. Looks like we're all geared up. So let's start our canyoning (ph).

MARK WADE, DIRECTOR OF MARKETING, EAST ZION ADVENTURES: So welcome to the east side of Zion National Park. We are actually outside the park boundaries and in a place called the Slot Canyon. We're rappelling off of high cliffs into narrow spaces. We actually walk down through these convoluted curvy walls and enjoying the reflected light that we see down in there and rappel down into a deeper spot in the canyon.

Very good.

And as you go down through there, you're touching your hands against the grains of sand of this sandstone cliff. The light from the sun is bouncing off the high canyon walls and down into the ethereal basement of the Slot Canyon.

It almost feels like you are in this different world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[11:52:30]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Jury deliberation in R. Kelly's federal trial will resume on Monday. He is accused of exploiting girls, women and boys for decades, and is facing racketeering and sex trafficking charges. The jury deliberated about four hours before they broke for the weekend. CNN's Sonia Moghe has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

SONIA MOGHE, CNN REPORTER: The jurors have already been deliberating for four hours starting Friday afternoon. They have the task of wading through evidence and testimony from 50 witnesses from the first 21 days of this trial. Some of the testimony they have heard has been disturbing.

They have heard witnesses testify about sexual abuse and physical abuse and being directed to film videos of sexual encounters and humiliating acts by Kelly on his iPads and cameras. Some of which were seized by federal agents. Some of those recordings which jurors saw in court as part of this trial. Now, multiple women testified that they were sexually abused by the singer when they were minors, young girls.

They've testified that Kelly knew their ages and had sex with them anyway and even in some cases recorded these sexual encounters. Now, multiple women also testified about physical abuse at the hands of Kelly. One woman said she was just 16 years old when Kelly choked her to the point of passing out and several women testified about chastise mts or spankings that often left them bruised or even bleeding that they said were punishments.

Former employees of the singer and former live-in girlfriends testified about something they called Rob's rules, strict rules in place for his female guests and for dealing with his female guests. Multiple women testified that they were directed to stay in rooms at R. Kelly's homes and had to get permission from the singer himself or his associates before leaving the rooms, even to do something like get food or go to the bathroom.

Now, R. Kelly's defense attorneys say those rules were in place because his home was also his recording studio and he liked to record music at all hours of the night and needed to keep the studio secure, but prosecutors say these rules were actually methods of coercion used to control his victims and to keep members of his enterprise in line, that enterprise, prosecutors say, enabled the singer to exploit girls, boys and young women for decades.

We expect these jurors to return here to Brooklyn federal court Monday morning to resume those deliberations. Sonia Moghe, Brooklyn.

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WHITFIELD: Hello again, thank you so much for joining me, I'm Fredricka Whitfield. We begin this hour with encouraging news on the coronavirus pandemic. The rate of cases is slowing. New infections are at the lowest rate the nation has seen since august 10th. The U.S. Is averaging more than 122,000 new coronavirus infections a day, that's down more than 16 percent from last week. Despite that positive trend, experts say the coronavirus may be here to stay.