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Oil Washing Ashore On California Coast After Major Spill; Interview With Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY); NYC Teacher Vaccine Mandate Goes Into Effect Tomorrow; Woman Shot By School Officer To Be Taken Off Life Support; Democratic Infighting Threatens To Sink Biden Priorities; Lewinski Talks About Mental Health During Clinton Scandal; Overnight Explosions And Gunfire Rock Kabul. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired October 03, 2021 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:00]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: A bit of good news there. We all welcome that.

Plus President Biden gets ready to hit the road to sell his spending plans to America.

Plus surprising and very public revelations from Monica Lewinsky about her mental health struggles.

Hi, I'm Pamela Brown. You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM. And it's great to have you along with us on this Sunday evening. And we want to begin with an environmental catastrophe unfolding this hour along the coast of California.

A massive oil leak about three miles off the coast of Huntington Beach has sent thousands of barrels of oil into the Pacific Ocean and the stretch of the shoreline in Orange County is already littered with dead fish and birds. So sad. Right now divers are inspecting a 17-mile stretch of pipeline hoping to find the exact source of the spill but officials do say the leak appears to have stopped.

The NTSB also says it's sending investigators to the scene to gather information. But for now people are being asked to avoid swimming, fishing and walking the beach in affected areas.

Joining me now is Cottie Petrie-Norris. She is the member of the California State Assembly representing Huntington Beach.

Thank you so much for coming on with us. Have you witnessed any of the damage and the impact firsthand?

COTTIE PETRIE-NORRIS (D), CALIFORNIA STATE ASSEMBLY: Good evening, Pamela. Yes. This is in many ways what we are seeing on the beaches right now is our worst fears come to life. There's oil washing up on to the shore. There's an infiltration into the wet lands and our marine conservation areas and the impacts are already acute with as you said in your opening dead fish and birds washing on to the shore. It's heartbreaking.

BROWN: For people watching this right now what's playing out in California, explain why this is so heartbreaking.

PETRIE-NORRIS: Our California coast is -- it's almost 1,000 miles of absolutely breathtaking beauty. It is home to 70 percent of Californians and it is a major engine of California's economy, and what we are seeing right now is absolute destruction for our environment, for our community and for our local economy as well.

BROWN: Do we know the extent of the environmental damage at this point?

PETRIE-NORRIS: Pamela, we are still working to assess that and I expect that a full assessment is going to take some time. We know that there have been 3500 barrels released, there's 150,000 gallons of oil in the ocean right now. Containment efforts are under way. And we expect that that is going to occur over a period of weeks if not months.

BROWN: Right. Because that is a big question, the time frame for cleanup. So, you know, right now divers are inspecting the pipeline where the leak originated. Do we know anything more about how or when this leak started?

PETRIE-NORRIS: The leak was first identified yesterday morning. At 9:00 a.m. there were reports of an oil sheen along the ocean and an investigation was initiated which then identified the leak and subsequent efforts.

And I will say that we have established a unified command and all of our forces are on this. Our federal, state and county and city partners resources have been mobilized across the board and we're redirecting assets all across the marine area so that we can fight this with all of our resources.

BROWN: So you have been in touch with Governor Gavin Newsom's office or they have been heavily involved in this?

PETRIE-NORRIS: Yes. We've been working closely with the governor's office as well as with the Department of Fish and Wildlife which is playing a lead role as well as Cal OES who we had the director of the Cal OES and the director of California Department of Fish and Wildlife on the scene today inspecting the extent of the damage and working to mobilize our unified command center.

BROWN: So for now Huntington Beach residents are being asked to avoid swimming, surfing and exercising on the beach and to avoid fishing. Should people avoid Huntington Beach until further notice and what are your concerns in terms of medical issues that this could cause?

PETRIE-NORRIS: I have huge concerns about the extent of the damage that we're going to see to our environment, to the health of our communities, and right now we are urging residents to as you said please do not go into the ocean. Do not fish. We're also asking residents to -- for the time being avoid the Santa Ana River trail because we're concerned about the extent of the infiltration into wetlands and other bodies of water here in the county.

[19:05:11]

BROWN: And how concerned are you about the prolonged impact of this spill? What do you think that could look like?

PETRIE-NORRIS: As I said we know that this is going to have huge and terrible impact on our community and on our local economy. And I think that for a lot of us here in the county waking up this morning to the sight of oil washing on the shore, waking up this morning to the stories that were in the news, I think it's a real reminder just how fragile our ocean is and for me it is a call to action that we need to stop drilling off of our precious California coast.

BROWN: All right. California Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris, we appreciate you coming on the show.

PETRIE-NORRIS: Thank you, Pamela.

BROWN: Well, it looks like a gamble may have backfired after a week of public infighting and even a trip to Capitol Hill by President Biden. There is no sense the Democrats are any closer to a compromise tonight. With nearly the entire Biden agenda on the verge of collapse.

A vote on the bipartisan infrastructure deal which was delayed twice last week has now been pushed to the end of the month and progressive Democrats remain insistent today that infrastructure will not pass unless they get an even larger spending bill across the finish line, too.

But it always comes down to money, doesn't it? And we know a compromise has been floated by the White House and Democratic leaders. A top line number of $2.1 trillion but there is no indication yet if moderates such as Senator Joe Manchin who wanted $1.5 trillion are willing to go that high. Progressives who have already compromised down dismissed Manchin's offer earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: So if we're not looking at numbers, what about 1.5, like what Senator Manchin --

REP. PRAMILA JAYAPAL (D-WA): Well, that's not going to happen. So it's going to be somewhere --

BASH: But why is that -- well, why won't it add up to that number?

JAYAPAL: Because that's too small to get our priorities in. So it's going to be somewhere, you know, between $1.5 and $3.5, and I think the White House is working on that right now.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: And now CNN has learned President Biden is hitting the road traveling to Michigan this week to try and rally the American public behind both pieces of legislation.

So what exactly do moderate Democrats need to get both of these bills across the finish line? Joining me to answer that and more, Democratic Congressman Tom Suozzi of New York. He is a member of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus.

Congressman, thank you for coming on. You just heard Progressive Caucus chair Pramila Jayapal flat out reject a $1.5 trillion bill. What is your response?

REP. TOM SUOZZI (D-NY): I think the president said very clear the other day that the number is going to be somewhere between $1.9 and $2.2. So I think that there'll be debate about that and there'll be debate about what the elements of it are going to be, but I feel very good about this.

I feel very good about the president and about Chuck Schumer in the Senate and Nancy Pelosi in the House. They've all been around. They know what they're doing. They know how to get a deal done and we're going to get a deal done.

BROWN: But beyond that, beyond their history and experience, what gives you your optimism? What exactly has moved the needle for you to feel that way after this past week?

SUOZZI: You know, I honestly have felt this all along. I never thought it would be $3.5. I always thought it would be somewhere around $2 trillion. I think that the infrastructure deal at $1.2 trillion, the bipartisan infrastructure deal that the Problem Solvers helped negotiate is a great jobs program for America. Roads and bridges and sewer and broadband and electric vehicle charging stations, mass transit, buses.

Great for my district, great for districts throughout the country. Get people to work. It's jobs, jobs, jobs. And then the president's Build Back Better agenda which originally they talked about $3.5 trillion. We heard from Manchin a long time ago. It wasn't just last week that he said the $1.5 number. Joe Manchin has been around in politics for a long time. He knows how to get a deal done. And so he's going to get --

BROWN: Why were Democrats then saying that they didn't know, they didn't know until just recently? I mean, does that show that, you know, Democrats aren't on the same page with the same messaging?

SUOZZI: I think that some people hear different things and, you know, to me it was always clear that it was not going to be that $3.5 trillion number. It's really not just about the number. It's about what do you want to get done? It's about we finally have to address climate change for the first time in 40 years. Finally do something big and bold to address it.

It's about the child tax credit. About lifting children out of poverty. It's about paid family leave. You know, America is the only place in the world that doesn't provide maternity leave, paid maternity leave, other than Sornam and Papua New Guinea. It doesn't make any sense that we don't have that.

BROWN: Yes. As a mom of two young kids I'm aware of that. But you just laid out a ton of programs in this. So what are you willing to compromise on? What are you willing to limit cut down on?

SUOZZI: I'm willing to go along with whatever we can get passed through the Senate.

[19:10:04]

And it's going to be a lot of negotiations. I'm not going to be involved in picking this thing versus that thing. I have a big agenda item is SALT. The state and local tax deduction which is a body blow to the people of my state and many other states throughout the country. That's my big issue. No SALT, no deal.

I feel confident that when everything is said and done, we're going to fix SALT. We're going to address these important programs. We're going to do something big and bold. It's going to be popular with the American people and we're going to get it done.

BROWN: So the vote on infrastructure was delayed twice last week and originally was set as a deadline to appease moderates like yourself, now Speaker Pelosi says Congress needs to get it done by October 31st. Are you satisfied with that?

SUOZZI: Well, I want to make it clear that I wasn't part of the date setting group of people. A lot of friends of mine were involved in that and they had their agenda with that. But I never like to set dates. I think -- you know, when I was negotiating as a county executive, as a mayor, whenever I had to negotiate big deal especially with the unions, for example, the advice always was don't set a drop- dead date.

So I didn't like the idea of setting a drop-dead date. But, you know, the good news is, is that it forced everybody to bring this thing to a head and everybody got focused. And we came out clearly with a messaging from the president that this is going to be a $1.9 to $2.2 trillion deal. People have got to compromise. He said this is what happens in politics, and he knows what he's talking about. He's negotiated big deals before.

People have got to compromise. And even at this number this will be one of the most dramatic programs in the history of the country that will address real problems, and it will grow the economy. For every investment you make in this type of programs including the infrastructure, the hard infrastructure as well as the child tax credit and the climate change issues, these will generate more than you spend.

It will increase the GDP, it'll put people to work in good-paying jobs. This is good for America. We need to keep on giving that message out. We need to work together. Bring the progressives and the moderates together. Hopefully we'll bring a few Republicans along with us as well. If they don't come along it will be at their own peril. I feel good about this. It's going to happen.

BROWN: All right, Democratic Congressman Tom Suozzi of New York, we shall see. Thank you so much for coming on.

SUOZZI: Thanks, Pamela.

BROWN: And coming up tonight at least two large explosions and gun fire in Afghanistan's capital. It's an apparent Taliban operation against ISIS.

And surprising and very public revelations from Monica Lewinsky about her mental health struggles. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:16:37]

BROWN: And now some welcomed news for a pandemic weary nation. For the first time in three months Americans are seeing a notable decline in new COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations. And that suggests that new deaths will also begin to decline.

Now the U.S. is still averaging almost 1900 COVID deaths every day. That is still far too high. But earlier today Dr. Anthony Fauci says the nation appears to be turning the corner but only on this particular surge. He says vaccines remain the long-term answer.

And beginning tomorrow public school employees who have not had at least one dose of the vaccine will be suspended without pay in New York. Some teachers launched a failed legal challenge saying the mandate violates their rights.

CNN's Polo Sandoval joins me now. So, Polo, are New York school officials expecting any impact on staffing?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the head of the public school system, Pam, says that they have been preparing for this, that they do not expect that. Now when it comes to what we'll be watching tomorrow students and most school personnel will be heading back to class.

We say most because as of the last update which actually was on Friday when school officials offered that, 93 percent of New York City public school teachers had received at least one shot which means that they are adhering to that mandate that will be kicking in tomorrow after that unsuccessful attempt to try to have the city put that mandate on pause.

When you do the math, Pamela, that means about 5500 teachers who are yet to receive at least one shot on Friday. Now we have reason to believe that likely there were some of those teachers that received their shots over the week which means that they would be eligible to return to school. But nonetheless, you can expect many of those did not, so again, to answer your question, the chancellor of the Department of Education saying that they have plenty of vaccinated substitute teachers that are ready to step in. So they do not expect any issues there.

Now across the country in California, remember it was just this past Friday the governor announced that all students will soon be required to actually get vaccinated before they head back to school and we're told that that could possibly happen as early as this fall. Basically what Governor Newsom said is that a COVID-19 vaccine will be added to about 10 vaccine inoculations the students have to have before they head back to school.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Biden, actually addressed that just this morning on the air and saying that obviously he does agree with those kinds of policies being put in place, but Fauci also stopping short of recommending other states to follow suit.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Should other states follow California's lead and require kids to get vaccinated for the coronavirus to go to school?

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, CHIEF MEDICAL ADVISER TO PRESIDENT BIDEN: You know, I'm not going to be recommending things to other states. I'll let the leaders of those states.

BASH: OK.

FAUCI: But I think what the governor did in California was something that was sound judgment.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: So again, we don't have any reason to believe that we could see other states but again it's too soon to say other states do something similar here, but not only are we seeing local governments implement these kinds of policies, Pamela, we're also seeing big corporations including major airlines. JetBlue announcing that they will soon be requiring all of their employees be vaccinated as well to be on the job.

American Airlines just a few days ago making a similar announcement as well, as well as Alaska there. Remember this is after President Biden made that requirement for all companies that work as government contractors require that their employees be fully vaccinated.

[19:20:05]

Still some other airlines are kind of weighing their options. But again this just speaks to more of those local governments and also big corporations taking that big significant and for some even controversial step.

BROWN: All right. Polo Sandoval, thank you so much for bringing us the latest on that front.

And meantime the family of a young mother shot by a school safety officer says she's being taken off life support this weekend. Police say 18-year-old Manuela Mona Rodriguez was shot in the head after getting into a physical altercation with a 15-year-old girl near a California high school campus.

Natasha Chen has more details on what unfolded.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 18-year-old Mona Rodriguez has lost all brain function and is being taken off life support according to her family. She leaves behind her 5-month-old baby. Her family's attorney says she was shot in the head by a school safety officer on September 27th. Investigators say 18-year-old Rodriguez and a 15-year-old were fighting outside the Millikan High School campus.

The school safety officer intervened. Then police say Rodriguez got in the front passenger seat of this gray sedan. A warning this cell phone video taken by a student can be disturbing. It shows the car is starting to leave and the school safety officer can be heard firing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He has his gun. No. Get down. No.

RAFEUL CHOWDHURY, MONA RODRIGUEZ'S BOYFRIEND MALE: I don't think my girlfriend deserved this. You know, it was all for no reason. He never told us anything. All we did is got in the car and left.

CHEN: Rodriguez's 20-year-old boyfriend who's also the father of her 5-month-old child was driving the car. His 16-year-old brother said he was in the backseat. The brother said the school safety officer had only warned about using pepper spray.

SHAHRIEAR CHOWDHURY, MONA RODRIGUEZ'S FRIEND: He said that when the two females were fighting, if they don't stop that he's going to pepper spray and which they stopped.

CHEN: A vigil was held outside Long Beach Memorial Hospital this week where Rodriguez's heartbroken family demanded justice. Long Beach Police who are not involved in the shooting are investigating along with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. Family attorney Luis Carrillo is also calling for the California attorney general to investigate.

LUIS CARRILLO, FAMILY ATTORNEY: Everybody is upset that a rogue officer did this ugly thing that he did. Shot at an 18-year-old young lady. And still walking the streets. This officer should be in jail right now.

CHEN: School safety officers are employees of the district, not of any police department, according to Long Beach Unified School District. The public information director said the safety officer have been employed since January of this year and had completed more than 600 hours of state required peace officer training and twice yearly firearms training. The officer is on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, the school district said.

ALEX VILLASENOR, MONA RODRIGUEZ'S COUSIN: She might have been doing something she wasn't supposed to, but she was unarmed and she was already fleeing. There was no reason for that cop to fire.

CHEN: Long Beach Unified School District shared its use of force policy with us. It says school safety officers have the duty to use firearms only for self defense or defense of others to prevent death or great bodily injury. It also says officers shall not fire warning shots, shall not fire at a fleeing person, at a moving vehicle or through a vehicle window unless, quote, "circumstances clearly warrant the use of a firearm as a final means of defense."

Cheryl Dorsey, a retired Los Angeles police officer, saw the witness video and noted that there were many children around who could have inadvertently been harmed by the gun fire.

CHERYL DORSEY, RETIRED LAPD POLICE SERGEANT: There is no imminent threat to that officer or anyone else as they're seated in a vehicle and driving away. Get a license plate number. There were so many other options. Tactically available.

CHEN: Instead now a baby is left without his mother and her family is left seeking answers.

Natasha Chen, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Well, up next President Biden plays traveling salesman hitting the road to sell America on his two-pronged spending plan. I'll be discussing that and much more with Maria Cardona and Alice Stewart, and we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:28:50]

BROWN: Everybody is frustrated. That is what President Biden said this past weekend after the Democrats planned to quickly pass two huge pieces of his agenda collapsed but he insists the setback is temporary.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm telling you we're going to get this done. It doesn't matter when. It doesn't matter whether it's in six minutes, six days or six weeks. We're going to get it done.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: President Biden hits the road this week to sell his plans and Speaker Pelosi says the new deadline for passing the bipartisan infrastructure bill is October 31st. Still it remains unclear whether Democrats can unite behind both or either plan before time runs out.

Joining me now to discuss is Democratic strategist Maria Cardona and former communications director for Senator Ted Cruz, Alice Stewart. The dream team otherwise known as the dream team.

MARIA CARDONA, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: There you go.

BROWN: Great to see you both. So I'm going to kick it off with you here, Maria. You have Pramila Jayapal telling CNN that progressives will not accept Manchin's ceiling of $1.5 trillion for those social spending plan. I mean, I know Democrats keep saying we're going to get it done, we're going to get it done.

[19:30:00]

But that's not a sure bet. So if it doesn't get done, if Biden's agenda sinks, will the progressives be to blame for that?

CARDONA: That's not going to happen. Because guess what, Pamela, we're going to get it done.

And look, Jayapal has been very clear. This is Biden's agenda. It's not just the progressive agenda. This is where I think the media has gotten it really wrong. This is what Joe Biden ran on.

And look, if it was easy, we would have done this a long time ago. But the fact of the matter is, is that where I see things is that you have every Democrat on the Hill in the Senate, and then the House, prioritizing and focused and committed to passing out historic investments that will be transformational for the lives of working class families, middle class families.

Those who have not enjoyed a level playing field, in what should be the greatest country in the world where the American Dream should be available to everyone. So what I see is Joe Biden's agenda is actually in progress, because that is what negotiation is.

That is what Joe Biden said, it may not happen tomorrow, it may not happen in six days, or -- but it is going to happen, hopefully sooner than six weeks, but it is going to happen.

These deadlines weren't really real. They just push people to try to get to the point where we can agree on something so Pamela, it will get done.

ALICE STEWART, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: It will absolutely be the progressives fault if this doesn't work out. They have hijacked Joe Biden's agenda, and what has happened is that this massive spending package that's on the table, they've overplayed their hands.

That is not what the Biden agenda was when he ran for office. He ran as being a moderate. He ran on unity. Right now, we have the progressives running the show and we have no unity.

And here's the thing, I remember, it was, I think a week ago, we had Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer out saying we have an a framework for an agreement, agreement on a framework. Here we are, a week later, we have no agreement on what kind of dollar figure we have, no agreement on the timeline.

Everyone says, oh, time is not of the essence. We really don't know the Democratic agenda. I think there are more -- there should be more Democrats like the Congressman you just had on with the Problem Solvers Caucus, who agrees that we need to look at a more scaled down version of this. Let's do what we can do. Let's pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill and get that moving, and that off the table.

And then let's look at more of a package that does address some of these issues in the larger package that people do agree on and get away with the progressive wish list that is really clogging out this process.

BROWN: I mean, of course progressives would worried they would lose their leverage, if that happened, but I want to ask you, too, because my CNN colleague, John Harwood pointed this out that one of the potential problems with the larger progressive spending plan is that Democrats haven't sort of agreed what to call it.

You know, we keep hearing, Build Back Better, American Families Plan, the human infrastructure package. I mean, when a bill lacks a clear definition, does that make it harder to promote, and maybe even easier to attack?

CARDONA: I think that's probably true, and so, I think that what Joe Biden is doing is super important because less important than the name is actually communicating to the American people what is in it? And Joe Biden actually did run on all of these things.

Let's talk about what's in the bill. What is in the bill is an extension of the child tax credit. What is in the bill is help for child care. You and I are moms. We know that that is something that families all over the country desperately need, especially now that so many women were so hurt by the pandemic and haven't even gone back to work because they can't get somebody to take care of their kid.

There is elderly care in there right now. That is super important. I just brought my mother over from Colombia. This is something that so many families are dealing with now as well.

Money for climate change, an existential threat to all of our wellbeing.

So there are things in there that, you know, Republicans love to call it the progressive wish list, because it makes it easier to attack. But the fact of the matter is, it is an American necessity list.

And let's look at the polls. The majority of the American people are for so many of the things that are in there, and frankly, a quarter of Republicans are for it as well. And ironically, a majority of Trump supporters would benefit massively from when these spending bills go through because they are -- they will be policies, and they will be things that will absolutely help every single one of them.

STEWART: And again, the hold up on this massive plan is Democrats, Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, who say we don't need to spend this kind of money. This is way too much money.

And look, there are so many programs in there that many people do agree with. Let's sign off on those and let's scale back and cut out the rest. A lot of these climate change policies, tree equities, a lot of these gender identity programs -- a lot of that can be done down the road and some of these 10-year programs, let's scale them down to five and trim the fat and we can certainly get this thing done.

So, the fact that saying that it's Republicans that are the hold up -- CARDONA: I think you're for it, Alice. She is helping us negotiate.

That's what negotiation is. Thank you.

STEWART: It's the numbers game between 1.5 that Joe Manchin wants and 3.5 that the progressives want.

CARDONA: That's right.

[19:35:07]

STEWART: Maybe $2 trillion is more of a sweet spot, but I think we should go much lower than that, and that's the only way we're going to get out of it.

BROWN: And one way, they're talking about is maybe limiting from 10 years to five years trying to find creative workarounds. But as this is going on, which is clearly taking the President's attention this week, he heads to Michigan to promote these bills. You have the immigration issue ongoing.

In fact, Panama's Foreign Minister tells AXIOS that some 60,000 Haitians are on the way to the U.S. border right now. So Maria, how does the Biden the administration get this immigration crisis under control?

CARDONA: Well, ideally, it would be by passing comprehensive immigration reform, but that would actually take Republicans understanding the problem that is immigration and wanting to work for a solution as opposed to just trying to blanket all Democrats as wanting open borders because we know that's what they're saying now.

If they would help us pass comprehensive immigration reform, it would be a big step --

BROWN: Well, that's not going to help and we know it.

CARDONA: Well, no, it's not going to -- and you're absolutely right.

BROWN: I mean, it's not going to happen.

CARDONA: It is not going to happen.

BROWN: What realistically can they do?

CARDONA: So, realistically, what will happen, which is what happened with the 12,000 Haitians that came here is that they will process those that can be processed. They will send back those that need to be sent back under the law, and they will try to figure out what working with Haiti and with all of the other countries that will hopefully accept them as well, in in addition to the United States.

This is not just a problem for the United States. This is a global and hemispheric problem. That's why the Vice President has been focused on trying to look at the root causes, the long-term causes of immigration, because Pam, you can sit here and ask me all of these things every time there is a surge, and there will be surges. But until we focus on the long-term solutions, one of which is

comprehensive immigration reform, this will continue to happen. And Republicans, we had a huge opportunity to pass comprehensive immigration reform back in 2013, they said no.

STEWART: We need to do away with a comprehensive plan and what can we agree on, on immigration? We can agree on protections for DREAMers. DACA, let's look at a more narrowed version that we can agree on that will help some aspect of immigration and this talk of comprehensive immigration like many things that Democrats like to do in a comprehensive fashion, that's not the way to do it. More incremental policies are the way to do it.

BROWN: And as we know, immigration could go on and on and on, but before we let you go, I've got to ask you about last night's "SNL" returning for this new season and they even debuted a new Joe Biden. Have you seen it? Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How's everybody's summer? Mine was bad.

[LAUGHTER]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No Cuomo bad, but definitely not Afghanistan good.

[LAUGHTER]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everyone keeps harassing me about that drone strike, but on the bright side, I went the entire summer without falling down the stairs once.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: All right, quick hot take, Maria.

CARDONA: It was brilliant. We need humor especially these days, Pam.

BROWN: Yes. How does he compare you think to the past Biden's in the show?

STEWART: He was excellent. He had all the mannerisms down to the tone and tenor, but I'll tell you what, the person that played Kyrsten Sinema, spot on. That was very good.

BROWN: Very good. I always like to end the discussion on a light note. So thank you so much, ladies.

CARDONA: Absolutely. We need to laugh.

BROWN: Of course, we do. All right, thank you so much.

STEWART: Thank you, Pam.

BROWN: Great to see you both. Alice Stewart and Maria Cardona.

Well, Monica Lewinsky was front page fodder for years after the Clinton affair scandal in the 90s. Remember that?

Well now, she is speaking out about how that relentless public shaming impacted her mental health. We're going to have more on that ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:43:15]

BROWN: Well, 23 years ago, Monica Lewinsky was front page news in the morning, the top story on the news at night, and late night comedies' punch line. When her affair within President Bill Clinton went public, Lewinsky was just an intern in her 20s. But she took a huge share of the blame and a huge beating in the court of public opinion.

CNN's Brian Todd has more as she goes public about her private mental health battles, and how they led her to consider the most drastic measures.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A jarring new narrative from Monica Lewinsky, who sheds new light on the struggles she endured while the Clinton impeachment scandal swirled around her.

The former White House intern is reflecting openly about the mental health problems she experienced during that period in the 1990s telling CNN's David Axelrod in his podcast that she had suicidal ideations at the time, and even asked the Office of Independent Counsel, Ken Starr, who was investigating about it.

Lewinsky referring to Starr's office as the OIC.

MONICA LEWINSKY, AMERICAN ACTIVIST: I just couldn't see a way out, and -- and I thought that maybe -- maybe that was a solution and had even asked, you know, which is this is also an interesting point of just, I had to ask the OIC lawyers about what happens if I die.

TODD (voice over): The clinical psychologist sheds light on the trauma Lewinsky likely went through, which could have led her to think about suicide.

RUTH WITTERSGREEN, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Not only was it the legal situation, hanging over her head, the threats, her having no idea what might happen to her and to her life ahead, it was the public shaming. It was incredibly intense and what it meant to be called a sexual predator.

See was accused of the one, you know, causing this trouble for Clinton and being a narcissist.

[19:45:06]

TODD (voice over): Lewinsky addressed the issues of shaming and bullying in a 2015 TED Talk.

LEWINSKY: Public shaming as a blood sport has to stop and it's time for an intervention on the internet and in our culture.

TODD (voice over): The latest podcast interview comes as new attention is being focused on Lewinsky who is now 48, but was in her early 20s during the Clinton affair and the investigation.

She is a producer for a new drama series on FX titled "Impeachment: American Crime Story."

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sorry. I'm so nervous. I have a huge crush on you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's really flattering.

TODD (voice over): Lewinsky told "The Today Show" recently that project has taken its own emotional toll.

LEWINSKY: I'm nervous for people to see some of the worst moments of my life and a lot of behavior that I regret. And if you remember your 20s, it is not that long ago, it's pretty cringe worthy.

TODD (voice over): Lewinsky withdrew from the public eye for years after the Clinton scandal, rarely speaking about it, building a wall around her personal life. Analysts say she now seems to be owning her story more, reclaiming the narrative as a survivor.

MARGARET TALEV, MANAGING EDITOR FOR POLITICS, AXIOS: After more than two decades, largely in the wilderness. I mean, her ability to have a normal life was sidetracked her ability to have a career that she was in control of was sidetracked. This relationship with the President defined her life and she couldn't get away from it.

And now she sees an opportunity to use that in a way that allows her to take more control and that's what she's doing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: CNN's Brian Todd reporting there. And we want to make sure that we once again convey, if you or a loved one have contemplated suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or text TALK to 741741. Help is out there.

Well, tonight, incredible pictures out of the Canary Islands where a volcano is erupting, forcing thousands to evacuate. We're going to have more on that just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:51:40]

BROWN: Breaking news tonight out of Afghanistan, at least two large explosions and gunfire rocked Kabul overnight, Sunday in what appears to have been a Taliban operation against an ISIS cell there.

Now, this comes less than a day after a blast ripped through a crowd gathered outside a mosque in Kabul, killing a number of civilians. People were there for a funeral commemorating the mother of a Taliban spokesman. It's not yet clear who carried out the attack. Clarissa Ward has the very latest from the scene.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the most significant explosion that we have seen here in Kabul for quite some time now, certainly, since that horrific airport blast at the end of August. We believe that it was targeting senior Taliban leadership who were attending the funeral prayers of the group spokesperson's mother.

Now, we don't know exactly how many Taliban leaders may or may not have been killed or injured in that attack. They are being quite tight lipped about that at the scene. Journalists who tried to gain access were pushed back ostensibly for security measures, and we also don't yet know who is in fact responsible.

The obvious candidate would certainly be ISIS-K, they were behind the airport bombing that I mentioned previously, but they've also claimed responsibility for a number of smaller scale attacks, particularly in the City of Jalalabad.

So the question now becomes, how much of a challenge is the Taliban going to face if ISIS-K does claim responsibility and if they continue to wage an insurgency against this new foundering government.

Clarissa Ward, CNN, Kabul.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: And our thanks to Clarissa there.

Well, volcanic eruption and the Canary Islands is still making stunning scenes like this on your screen, nearly two weeks after the initial burst. Lava snaking its way down the dark mountain side overnight. But the good news is, officials are lifting stay-at-home orders in several towns around that volcano.

Poor air quality has been an issue since the eruption began. And to date, more than 6,000 people have had to evacuate their homes.

Well CNN Heroes is marking its 15th Anniversary. And here's Maria Rose Belding explaining how becoming a Top 10 Hero back in 2018 helped her mission to combat hunger.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIA ROSE BELDING, CNN HERO: I was 14 when I started building MEANS. I was 23 when we were honored and to get this award and to have our work and shown in its full breadth was just so incredible. And it really changed the narrative that we'd been up against that we were just kids, this was just a club, that no, our entire hearts and souls were poured into what we were doing at MEANS and that we were having this large scale national impact.

Since then, our budget has more than quadrupled. We were able to -- thanks to pretty great grants -- invest more than $4.1 million in small restaurants across nine U.S. cities. And I'm so grateful for all the opportunities that Heroes opened up for all of us, so thank you and congratulations on 15 incredible years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Man, how inspiring is that? Go to CNNheroes.com for more.

[19:55:09]

BROWN: And we're following breaking news tonight, Facebook's whistleblower comes forward publicly for the first time and we're going to tell you what she has to say, up next.

Also ahead, thousands of gallons of oil spilled off the coast of Southern California, and the ecological consequences are already on full display.

When we come back, I'll speak to Congresswoman Michelle Steel who represents Huntington Beach.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Three thousand barrels of oil spills off Huntington Beach, California.

[20:00:03]