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U.S. Monitoring Reports Of Russian Chemical Attack In Mariupol; Manhunt Underway After 10 Shot In New York Subway Station; Biden's Plan As U.S. Inflation Hits 40-Year High, Rising 8.5 Percent In March; Disappointment For Americans Detained In Russia. Aired 1:30-2p ET
Aired April 12, 2022 - 13:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[13:30:00]
TERRANCE GAINER, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: And if she is nervous about getting on the subway system, somehow we have to regain the trust that we have the power to limit the amount of damage that can be done to people and these shootings that can happen any place at any time.
DANA BASH, CNN HOST: OK, Terrance Gainer, former U.S. Capitol Police chief and law enforcement analyst, and, of course, Andy McCabe, the who was the deputy director of the FBI, thank you both for joining me.
We're going to continue to monitor the New York subway shooting.
We're also following the breaking news from Russia's war in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin says talks with Ukraine are at a dead end and threatening Russia will not stop the war until Moscow succeeds.
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[13:35:37]
BASH: "Talks with Ukraine are at a dead end" -- those chilling words are directly from Vladimir Putin as he vows he will not stop military operations in Ukraine until Moscow succeeds.
And today, the terrifying question, is Russia now using chemical weapons? The Ukrainian military unit in the devastated city of Mariupol is accusing Russian troops of using them.
Now, CNN cannot independently verify the claim.
The U.K. launched an urgent investigation, and the Pentagon says it is monitoring.
But if true, not only could this mean an escalation in brutality, it could also be a significant change for NATO.
Mariupol, again today, is the site of more intense shelling. One official tells CNN 20,000 to 22,000 people have died there.
CNN's Phil Black is in Lviv. Phil, what else do we know about these allegations of chemical
weapons?
PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Dana, they come directly from the Ukrainian soldiers still in Mariupol that have been cut off, surrounded for weeks now, and have really been pushed back into a very small or couple of very small patches of territory.
They are desperate. Last-stand defense is approaching a critical point.
It's at this moment, they say, that a drone delivered a weapon of some kind, which exploded and dispersed what they describe as an unknown poisonous substance.
Now it impacted a small group of people, they say, but none of them seriously. Only three people required treatment. Mostly breathing difficulties, sore eyes. So not serious.
As you say, we can't confirm this specific allegation, but that's because no one else can.
Ukrainian, U.S., U.K. officials say they're all keen to understand what took place here because of the possibility that this was a chemical weapons attack.
Which is something that U.S. officials in particular have been warning about throughout as a possibility throughout the duration of this war so far -- Dana?
BASH: Yes, and the intelligence that American and other Western officials have chosen strategically to make public, much of it has come true.
Phil Black, thank you for that report.
Up next, we go back to New York to the other breaking news we are covering this hour. A manhunt under way after 10 people were shot in a New York subway station. The very latest, next.
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[13:42:53]
BASH: We're tracking a massive manhunt under way in New York after a gunman opened fire on a Brooklyn subway shooting 10 people. Law enforcement sources tell CNN a gun was recovered in the station.
The suspect boarded a rush-hour train this morning, put on a gas mask, deployed a smoke device, and opened fire. The subway riders were trapped for those terrifying moments until the train arrived at the station.
Joining us now is CNN security correspondent, Josh Campbell.
Josh, you are a former federal agent. Your thoughts on, first of all, the way this attack went down and what might be happening inside law enforcement behind the scenes as we speak.
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Dana. One thing that stands out at the outset is that we're not talking about a particularly sophisticated attack. You have a method of distraction and a method of lethality. That's all one needs to conduct an attack and then make their escape.
We know the firearms are easy to obtain in the United States of America. We continue to talk about gun violence.
And these smoke devices are also not that difficult to obtain. Talking about something similar to what law enforcement would use to disperse a crowd.
If someone is intent on causing harm, it would not be that difficult to get your hands on a device like that.
Unfortunately, this attack here, the mechanics run head on into how public safety officials tell them to respond to active-shooter incidents.
We always hear the mantra, "run, hide, fight." Obviously, if you are inside an enclosed train, there's nowhere to run. There are very few places to hide.
And with the deployment of this smoke, that makes it difficult to fight because this is obviously disorienting people. And so that's at the outset.
To the question about, Dana, the idea of whether this is terrorism or not, I wouldn't read too much into what the police commissioner said because, for something to be an act of terrorism, they have to first identify this person.
Absent some utterance at the scene, they'll have to dig into his past. That's what's happening with a multitude of agencies trying to identify this person.
BASH: Such an important point.
Josh, thank you for that. I appreciate it.
CAMPBELL: Thanks.
[13:44:53]
And a key inflation report today revealing more bad news for your wallet. And what President Biden is planning to do about it. We'll talk about that next.
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BASH: Today, we're seeing more evidence of what most Americans already know. Inflation in the U.S. is skyrocketing. It hit a 40-year high in March as prices rose more than 8.5 percent from this time last year.
CNN's chief White House correspondent, Kaitlan Collins, joins me now.
Kaitlan, in just a little while, the president will be in Iowa. What are we expecting to hear from him on this issue?
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, he's going to be at this ethanol plant in Iowa, Dana, and he's going to announce they're going to lift a suspension on the normal summertime ban of those higher ethanol gas sales.
[13:50:02]
The White House is hoping that that is going to help bring gas prices down.
You've seen industry experts kind of waiver on what kind of effect they think it will have, how long that effect will have.
But the White House is saying they believe, by taking this step, that it's going to help cut down gas prices by about 10 cents per gallon over these next sever month until September, Dana, when normally that ban would be into effect.
And this is coming on the day that the White House got these bruising inflation numbers where you're seeing that the inflation rate is the highest since 1981, up over 8 since last March.
The president has been under a lot of pretty call pressure to bring gas prices down since they are helping drive those numbers. This is the first report they are seeing since you have seen those gas price numbers go up since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began.
So this is another step that President Biden is taking given that pressure that he's been facing.
And it also comes after he announced they will be tapping into the strategic reserves to release about a million barrels a day for the next six months.
All of these steps they are taking because they know what they are facing with prices, with the inflation numbers, which, we should note, it's not just being driven by gas, but by other things, food prices as well.
This is really a main pressure point for the White House. So President Biden will be announcing this at this ethanol plant today.
We should note the White House has been bracing for this report. They believe these numbers were going to be extraordinarily elevated. And they are elevated today.
That's really going to be a focus of the White House. I would expect to hear the president say Putin's price tag once or twice during this speech, given that has been the way they have been talking about this since the invasion started.
Of course, gas prices had been going up before this. But it's become even more so since the invasion began -- Dana?
BASH: Yes. Seven months from Election Day, I'm hearing from people on the ballot, as I'm sure you are, too, that they want to see more Democrats, see more events like this and announcements like this from the president.
COLLINS: Yes.
BASH: Kaitlan, thank you so much for that report.
Still to come, an update on two Americans detained in Russia, Brittany Griner and Trevor Reed. What officials and their families are saying about their conditions and what's being done to bring them home.
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[13:56:58]
BASH: There's disappointment and frustration today for the family of a former U.S. Marine held this Russia. At an appeal hearing, Trevor Reed's case was sent to a lower court for review.
The U.S. ambassador, who attended the hearing, says, quote, "The justice that Trevor deserves has been denied."
Reid's parents say they believe their son is being held in Russia as the trade, that the only way he will be able to come home is a negotiation between governments.
We're also learning about another American being held in Russia, Brittany Griner. She was arrested at a Moscow airport in February accused of smuggling significant amounts of narcotic substances.
The WNBA world is urging for her release.
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CATHY ENGELBERT, WNBA COMMISSIONER: Obviously, we're getting a ton of support from the government, from specialists, from -- and her representation are able to visit with Brittney. We know she's safe. But we want to get her home. And we're following the advice.
NNEKA OGWUMIKE, WNBA PLAYERS ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT: It's tough. B.G. is -- B.G., you know, that could have been us. We're really most concerned about her health and safety, especially her mental health. We're hearing that she's, in that respect, she's OK, but we want her home.
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BASH: Also new this morning, Oklahoma's Republican governor, Kevin Stitt, has just signed a bill that makes performing an abortion a felony punishable up to 10 years in prison and a $100,000 fine. There are no exceptions in this for rape or incest. The only exceptions would be to save a woman's life. In the meantime, Maryland lawmakers have moved to expand access to
abortions. The new law in Maryland allows trained medical professionals other than physicians to perform abortions and requires insurance providers to cover more costs. Midwifes, nurses and physician assistants are authorized to perform abortions after lawmakers voted to override a veto by Larry Hogan.
Thank you so much for joining me this hour. I'm Dana Bash in Washington.
The news will continue next with Alisyn and Victor.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone. I'm Alisyn Camerota. Welcome to CNN NEWSROOM.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: I'm Victor Blackwell, live in Brooklyn, New York, at the scene of a mass shooting on the New York City subway.
[13:59:51]
CAMEROTA: So this was the scene there just after 8:24 a.m. This was inside the subway car. It was approaching the 36th Street station. This was the M Line in Brooklyn.
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