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Funeral Services Begin In Heartbroken Community of Uvalde; Bipartisan Group Of U.S. Lawmakers Discuss Gun Reform; E.U. Agrees On Partial Ban On Russian Oil Imports; Interview with Former Firearms Executive and Author "Gunfight" Ryan Busse; Storm Agatha Hits Mexico; U.S. Travel Troubles; U.S. Inflation Crisis; U.S. Economy. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired May 31, 2022 - 02:00   ET

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

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[02:00:25]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. You are watching CNN NEWSROOM and I'm Rosemary Church. Just ahead. A week after the deadly Texas school shooting funerals begin. As troubling new video reveals what police knew while they waited outside the classroom.

The E.U.'s tougher sanctions on Moscow since the invasion of Ukraine three months ago said to ban 90 percent of Russian oil imports.

Plus, a history making Hurricane Agatha slams into Mexico as a cat two storm.

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Thank you for being with us. Well, Tuesday marks one week since 21 innocent lives were cut short by a gunman who opened fire inside an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. And in the hours ahead, the first funeral will be held in the devastated community. One day after grieving families gathered for visitations for two of the young victims. More visitations and funerals are planned in the week ahead for some of the 19 students and two teachers killed in the horrific shooting.

The unimaginable heartbreak and grief in Uvalde now mixed with growing anger over the police response as new details continue to emerge. CNN's Lucy Kafanov has more.

(BEGIN VIDEORTAPE)

LUCY KAFANOV, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A chaotic scene as police rush to evacuate children.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Child on the line.

KAFANOV: Dispatch audio revealing some police were aware at some point that kids were still trapped inside.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Child is advising he is in the room full of victims. Full of victims at this mom.

KAFANOV: More devastating details from officials of at least two children calling 911 multiple times pleading for help as the gunman is still inside the school for more than an hour before police enter a classroom and kill him, frustrated at the scene by one account, the border patrol decides to go in without orders from the police chief and command.

STATE SEN. ROLAND GUTIERREZ (D-TX): What's been made clear to me is that at that point, the CBP team that went in in frustration said we're going in.

KAFANOV: The police response is now under investigation by the Department of Justice.

GUTIERREZ: At the end of the day everybody failed here. We failed these children.

ADRIAN ALONZO, UNCLE OF UVALDE SHOOTING VICTIM: There were maybe some errors that were made. I am filled with anger, but I feel no hatred towards him. We were thankful to have Ellie for nine years from her life with us.

KAFANOV: President Biden visited Uvalde on Sunday to offer support for the victims. The second time he's visited a community devastated by a mass shooting in the last two weeks. The most critically wounded were brought to San Antonio's University Health Hospital.

DR. LILLIAN LIAO, PEDIATRIC TRAUMA MEDICAL DIRECTOR, UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL: So, anesthesia is on their way, blood bank is on their way.

KAFANOV: CNN got exclusive access inside.

LIAO: This is one of the teams that we've formed. On the day of the mass casualty event.

KAFANOV: As pediatric trauma Medical Center Director Dr. Lillian Liao and her team drilled for another mass shooting.

KAFANOV (on camera): Four of the victims were brought right here to University Hospital, three little girls and the shooters grandmother. Some of the doctors and nurses say that responding to these kinds of mass shootings is taking a personal toll.

LIAO: I kind of thought back to when I was 10 years old my family immigrated to this country and my biggest challenge was learning to speak English and you just can't imagine what these children are going through and its really unfair, it's really unfair

When I was 10 years old. And so when I was 10 years old, my family immigrated to this country. And my biggest challenge was learning to speak English. And you just can't imagine what these children are going through. And it's really unfair. It's really unfair.

KAFANOV: Trauma nurse Kristell Flores recalls the agonizing wait for patients and the realization that it was too late for most.

KRISTELL FLORES, TRAUMA NURSE: It felt like forever for the next victims to come in as well. I just wish they would have been able to get to them quicker for sure.

KAFANOV: She tears up when thinking about her little ones.

FLORS: Just crying. My husband started crying and he did tell my son there's something really bad happened.

COLLEEN DAVIS, TRAUMA PATIENT CARE COORDINATOR: There was a lot of crying that day.

KAFANOV: Nurse Colleen Davis says she keeps thinking about the pain suffered by the victim's parents.

DAVIS: Most of us have children. So it's very difficult. Just trying to imagine them calling around desperately praying that their child there and us having to tell them we don't have that patient here.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:35:06]

KAFANOV: You heard the emotion from the surgeon and this is somebody who's trained to deal with human beings in their absolute worst moments. These doctors can certainly help heal the physical wounds, but they worry about the invisible emotional scars that many of these children will carry. Lucy Kafanov, CNN, Uvalde, Texas.

CHURCH: Mark Follman is a reporter for Mother Jones and is the author of Trigger Points: Inside the Mission to Stop Mass Shootings in America. And he joins me now from California's Bay Area. Thank you so much for being with us.

MARK FOLLMAN, AUTHOR, TRIGGER POINTS INSIDE THE MISSION TO STOP MASS SHOOTINGS IN AMERICA: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: We are of course, all distressed and sickened by news of yet another deadly mass shooting in this country. This time at an elementary school where an 18-year-old man was able to legally purchase weapons of war and murder young children. And we want to see some progress on gun control. Most Americans do. So in your article, you state that the epidemic of mass shootings is neither inevitable nor unsolvable. So how do we stop this from happening again?

FOLLMAN: Well, as I wrote late last week, I think that it's important for the American public to recognize that there's a lot more we can do to deal with this epidemic of mass shootings, that it's not just about the gun debate and gun policy. That, of course, is essential to this. And there is a incredibly stark disconnect between what the majority of the American public wants and what our political leaders do.

FOLLMAN: So Mark, how are you suggesting that be done?

FOLLMAN: So my focus in the book is on community-based violence prevention. I think we could use a lot more of it, it's a more proactive approach to seeing the warning signs that lead up to these attacks. We have some big myths about mass shootings. We talk about all these mass shooters as if they're crazy people who just snap and come out of nowhere. And that's just wrong.

When you look at these cases, in every single case, there's a long process leading up to them with warning signs. And so, by working to intervene more proactively, there's a lot we can do to prevent these kinds of attacks, including like the ones we've just seen, both in Texas and in Buffalo, New York.

CHURCH: And Mark, in addition to this, urgent bipartisan negotiations are underway discussing red flag laws to deny guns to individuals deemed a threat to themselves or others, expanded background checks, which most Americans support and more money for mental health and school security. Now, Senators from both parties are meeting virtually this week, and will hopefully have a bill ready to vote on next week.

But, you know, people are pretty cynical. They've seen some movement before and nothing has happened. So how likely is it that these bipartisan talks we'll see progress in stopping mass shootings?

FOLLMAN: I think the skepticism is very well warranted. The politics of this are as tough as ever and extremely difficult political environment in the United States. So again, I think there's more we do at our state and local level to deal with this problem. Building up mental health care systems, building up community-based violence prevention, dealing with political extremism that turns violent which is a growing problem in our country and has been fueling some of these mass shootings as I've written recently.

So, we can't rely on the same old political fight to continue going forward if we want to see real change in this country.

CHURCH: Yes. And I think what most people overseas find so shocking is that an 18-year-old has access to legally purchase these sorts of weapons. And, you know, that is just extraordinary, because for the most part, it's 18, 19, 20-year-old men who are committing these mass shootings. So, I want to get to the media here because it does have a role to play, to cover these stories without sensation to talk about the lives of the victims because that's important.

So, people understand who has been lost here to this gun violence and not to talk about the gunman, to pressure those in power to do something about these unacceptable mass shootings. And you've written that this is a real challenge for the media, that it's a balancing act. So are news outlets getting better at covering the shootings do you think?

FOLLMAN: I think there has been some improvement in recent years. And it is a big challenge with these cases, because it's very important to avoid sensationalism and excessive attention on the perpetrators of these attacks, because we know from case evidence that they seek that attention, they want notoriety. At the same time reporting on these events vigorously is very strongly in the public interest.

These attacks have enormous impact and, you know, cause profound trauma.

[02:10:02]

FOLLMAN: Not just in the communities where they happen but really throughout the country and look where we are again now just with the last couple of weeks. So, it's very important that journalists dig into what happens in these cases and report on the circumstances in Uvalde, in particular, the law enforcement response which appears to have been catastrophic. That's a very important story going forward.

But again, we have to do this in a way that does not sensationalize this kind of violence. And I also argue, does not buy into the idea that it will never end, that we're sort of resigned to this going on and on because that in and of itself is feeding into the problem, in my view at this point.

CHURCH: Yes. Sadly, there are so many parts to this story. It is just tragic. Mark Follman, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

FOLLMAN: Good talking with you. Thank you.

CHURCH: A bipartisan group of senators as we mentioned is set to meet virtually in the hours ahead to discuss gun reform in the U.S. The talks continue this week in the wake of the tragic shooting in Uvalde. Republican Senator John Cornyn says the group will try to see if they can agree on a basic framework on how to move forward. U.S. President Joe Biden is optimistic lawmakers on both sides of the aisle will agree to new gun restrictions

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The Second Amendment was never absolute. I think things have gotten so bad that everybody's getting more rational about it. At least that's my hope and prayer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is now pushing to strengthen gun control. In a news conference on Monday he introduced legislation that would place a national freeze on handgun ownership across Canada. Meaning the bill would cap sales transfers and imports. Mr. Trudeau said the fewer guns in the communities, the safer everyone will be. The new legislation would also require that long gun magazines be limited to five rounds.

Well, after weeks of back and forth negotiations, the E.U. has struck a deal on restricting Russian oil sawed off. E.U. leaders agreed to a partial ban on Russian oil imports. As a response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. The embargo is just one of many new penalties included in a new sanctions package on Russia. Though the deal has some exceptions, all E.U. leaders seem to agree on its principles. This according to European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION: Thanks to this council should now be able to finalize a ban on almost 90 percent of all Russian oil inputs by the end of the year. This is an important step forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And CNN's Ivan Watson joins me now live from Hong Kong with more on this. Good to see you, Ivan. So some may say better late than never. But despite this being a partial ban, it is very significant. How will it work exactly and how long will it likely take to have an impact on Russia's economy?

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, as these officials have put it, they say Rosemary that around two-thirds of Russian oil exports to Europe will immediately be impacted that they're going to ban shipping oil by tanker. It's going to take longer, they say for the remaining oil, which is shipped by pipelines for that to be wound down. But they say they have agreements from Germany and Poland who receive oil via a northern pipeline, the northern Druzhba pipeline that by the end of the year, that will stop completely.

The big exemption is Hungary, which gets the bulk of its oil from a southern pipeline. And that will continue to function. And they say they basically kick the can down the road. They're going to discuss that in the future. But if you want to know why this is important, and why this could have considerable impact on Russia's economy, take a look at some of these details. First of all, Russia is the second largest crude oil exporter in the world.

The most valuable single export in its economy is crude oil. That's as of 2020, about $75 billion worth of crude oil exports. Now here are the top destinations for Russian crude oil exports. China, number one, but then the next four countries, this is as recently as January of this year, are all European countries that are all either immediately going to stop buying Russian oil, or according to the agreement by the end of the year.

The European Council president is calling this a -- an important symbolic move. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLES MICHEL, EUROPEAN COUNCIL PRESIDENT: That is a very strong signal that you sent today because the recent hours, the recent days, there were speculations about the risks for a lack of unity of European Union's unity and I think it's more than ever it's important to show that we are able to be strong, that we are able to be firm, that we are able to be tough, you know, to defend our values, to defend our interest.

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[02:15:16]

WATSON: And this is part of a much larger shift, Rosemary, where Europe wants to move away completely from purchasing fossil fuels from Russia. So we're already seeing that natural gas, there's been a big shift there, in part because the Kremlin is demanding being paid back in rubles which many European energy companies don't want to do. And also just days after Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24th, Germany announcing the suspension of the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline.

All of this should be of concern to Russian policymakers. Where are you going to make your money if most of your money comes from exporting oil and natural gas? Yes, there are some large economies like India and China that are filling the breach, but they're much further away from Russia than Europe has traditionally been. It poses some serious challenges. And also, those other alternative markets can bargain, can negotiate.

They end up with negotiating power with Russia. All of these are big concerns for Russia in the long term, raising the question of the cost of this terrible war that they've embarked on in Ukraine.

CHURCH: All right. Ivan Watson, many thanks. Joining us live from Hong Kong. Well, time for a short break now. But just ahead, Ukrainian fighters say the worst is yet to come. As Russia gains more territory in the Donbas region. How one city near the front line is preparing. We're back in just a moment.

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[02:20:46]

CHURCH: U.S. President Joe Biden says he will not send long range rocket systems to Ukraine that could reach Russian territory. And a top adviser to Ukraine's president says without them military victory against Russia is unlikely. On the battlefield Russian forces are gaining ground in the eastern Donbas region and moving into the city of Severodonetsk. Ukraine's Defense Ministry reports battles have reached maximum intensity with artillery strikes along much of the front line.

A spokesman says the Russians are trying to encircle Ukrainian troops in Donetsk and Luhansk. Severodonetsk is said to be in ruins with two- thirds of the properties destroyed and street fighting is underway between Ukrainian and Russian troops. Not far away, Russian forces are closing in on another key city in the Luhansk region. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR (voice over): This is the last road into Lysychansk. Britain's forces have moved with rare focus here. It may soon encircle the pocket of two cities on a river we're driving into. The Ukrainian forces we saw here mobile tense at times edgy. And this is why across the river here, the besieged city of Severodonetsk increasingly more in Russian hands, whoever you ask. We can hear the crackle of gunfire down towards the river below.

WALSH (on camera): What we were told the Russians have tried already to get into town. And it looks like we might be witnessing another attempt over there. That smoke near one of the remaining bridges into the city.

WALSH (voice over): Police escorts shout drone often used to direct artillery attacks. We are on high ground exposed and scattered. It is a tale of two desperations here. That which makes people stay and that which makes them finally flee.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (text): We've not sleep for three months.

WALSH: Leonettte (ph) is the latter.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (text): Shooting. Windows shaking. It's a catastrophe. One man told me the Germans were better.

WALSH: Some who stay are increasingly angry and what's left of a Ukrainian state here. A young woman was killed here a day earlier by a shell. And locals told us not to film saying cameras attracted shelling.

Russia's bloody persistence and unbridled firepower is bringing the kind of victory in the ruins they seem to cherish. This cinema was a bomb shelter. Local officials said it's unclear if when their huge airstrike hit the Russian military was aware it had been empty days earlier.

WALSH (on camera): Just startling how whole chunks of this cinema have been thrown into the crater there. There's just the ferocity of the airstrikes we're seeing here designed simply to get people out of this town.

WALSH (voice over): Those who stay among the shards of glass feel abandoned already.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Many, many people but there is no gas or water or power or anything. We asked the aid workers today when it will all come back. And they said there are only prostitutes junkies and alcoholics left. That means the aid workers have left here.

WALSH: Lydia is carefully picking up the pieces of the airstrike which she felt the full force of in her apartment eight floors up.

There's an old lady on the first floor and me with my disabled son, she says. He doesn't really understand the war is happening. Retreat lingers in the empty air. If Putin takes here, he may claim he's achieved some of his reduced goals and this invasion. It's now the unenviable choice of Ukraine's leaders. If this is the hill, it's men in women will die on.

Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Lysychansk, Ukraine

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:25:08]

CHURCH: You are watching CNN NEWSROOM. The company that makes one of the guns used in the Texas School shooting is facing new scrutiny over its advertising and marketing. The details just ahead.

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[02:30:08]

CHURCH: The company that makes one of the guns used in the Texas elementary school shooting is promising to cooperate with investigators. But it's already facing scrutiny over its history of controversial ads. CNN's Tom Foreman reports.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): Look at the contrast. The raw panic caused by a young man with an assault rifle and the slick promotional video from the company that made it.

MARTY DANIEL, DANIEL DEFENSE FOUNDER: We love to build great guns.

FOREMAN (voiceover): That's Marty Daniel, founder of Daniel Defense, which authorities say made one of the weapons used by the Uvalde shooter around his 18th birthday and which posted this provocative image of a toddler a week before the slaughter.

DAVID CULLEN, AUTHOR, "PARKLAND: BIRTH OF A MOVEMENT AND COLUMBINE": It's morally unconscionable. I'm shocked but not surprised, you know, that somebody is doing this. Like, of course, they are because they can and they can make money doing it. But they really -- they need to stop and they need to either, like, we either shame them into stopping or legislate or regulate them into stopping.

FOREMAN (voiceover): The company took that image down and yet Georgia-based Daniel Defense is a small firearms company with a big knack for headlines.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And my family's safety is my highest priority.

FOREMAN (voiceover): For example, when the NFL refused this Daniel's ad for the Super Bowl because it promoted guns, Marty turned the rejection into an avalanche of attention.

DANIEL: The majority of the Super Bowl fans have the same values that we have at Daniel Defense. And that is, we believe in protecting our families.

CROWD: Shame on you.

FOREMAN (voiceover): Gun control activists say that the company is clearly going after younger customers with nods to pop culture icons and video games. While Marty keeps railing about gun control for the older set as he did in this outdoor hub interview some years ago.

DANIEL: The anti-second amendment crowd just looks for any excuse to ban guns in any way they can.

FOREMAN (voiceover): Amid the anger, after Uvalde, the company pulled out of this year's NRA convention, its display replaced with a popcorn stand. The company website says we are deeply saddened by the tragic events. We will cooperate with all federal state and local law enforcement authorities in their investigations.

That pledge may be tested. Congress is asking Daniel for details about how he operates. Noting, your company continues to manufacture large quantities of assault weapons and aggressively market them to the public. The deadly impact of your products is by design. While the company keeps leaning on its message of freedom, shooting sports, and growth.

DANIEL: It's the way we do business. It's the way that we pay attention to every detail. It's the quality we put into every product.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN (on camera): We reached out to Daniel Defense for any further comments, nothing yet. And that's notable in itself for a company that's so often in the spotlight. Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.

CHURCH: Ryan Busse is a former firearms executive and the author of "Gunfight: My Battle Against the Industry that Radicalized America". And he joins me now from Kalispell, Montana. We appreciate you being with us.

RYAN BUSSE, FORMER FIREARMS EXECUTIVE AND AUTHOR, "GUNFIGHT": Thanks so much, Rosemary.

CHURCH: Now, you have said that you were born with a shotgun in one hand and a rifle in the other, ss guns have loomed large in your life. But you went from marketing these weapons to becoming so disillusioned when you saw the NRA refused to consider gun controls after mass shootings, that you decided to speak out and write a book about it, essentially revealing how America's gun industry shifted from prioritizing safety and ethics to being addicted to fear and conspiracy. So, how did the gun industry make that incredible transition and become so powerful?

BUSSE: Well, it's not unlike the trajectory of our national politics. When I first entered the industry in 1995, the industry was largely governed by a self-imposed responsibility and decency, much like our natural politics in America used to be. They were just norms. They were lines of which -- across which you did not step. And a good example that I site is the fact that tactical gear like that worn by the Buffalo shooter, the Uvalde shooter, and tactical guns like they used up until about 2006 or 2007 could not even be displayed in the firearms trade show on the floor of the show.

Those sorts of things were in a corned-off corner. You had to have military credentials or law enforcement credentials to get in there. Today, you can guess what it looks like. It's, you know, it's like a first-person shooter game, you know, the show is just riffed with it, hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of companies. And so, that old responsibility and decency was cast off, much like it wasn't our politics. And I find that very, very troubling.

[02:35:00]

CHURCH: Yes, understandably. And is there any room, do you think, for common-sense gun controls in this country, or is the gun lobby too powerful to allow even a small legal adjustment, like stopping 18 to 21-year-old men from purchasing long guns, that age group tending to be the ones responsible for school shootings?

BUSSE: Well, after Parkland, when Florida considered the law to raise the minimum age to 21 for those sorts of rifles, the NRA predictably sued to stop that bill. So, I do not think that there's going to be any assistance or coming to common sense from the gun lobby. I do find rays of hope because I think that there are some -- you know, the response to my book tells me that there are millions of responsible gun owners who frankly have just had it with what they now see as insanity. Say, hell no to everything, is leading to some very, very heroic -- horrific events. And responsible gun owners don't want anything to do with that.

CHURCH: So, perhaps we are at a turning point, one would hope after Sandy Hook, Parkland, and now this elementary school. It's just horrifying for so many people to watch this play out. And I do want to ask you this though, what happens to someone within the gun industry, like you were, who decides to speak up and call for gun reform. Is that considered an act of treason? What are the consequences and where does this strange secret society, it's almost cult-like, where does that come from?

BUSSE: Yes, well, first off, nobody inside of the firearms industry calls for gun control. And while I was inside of the industry, I didn't publicly do it either, although I was in support of the, mentioned to me, amendment 10 years ago now, since the Sandy -- after Sandy Hook massacre.

But the industry is exceptionally, exceptionally ruthless at rooting out anybody who expresses any kind of dissent. I note in my book several examples of people that stuck their head up a little too far and, you know, metaphorically got it chopped off. They lost their careers almost instantly. I've maintained my existence. I had just enough street cred and, frankly, my company and what I helped build was just powerful enough that I could walk at knife's edge for 15 years. But there was never a day that I wasn't worried about getting fired or my wife or my kids getting attacked, either physically or online from trolls.

CHURCH: That is very disturbing. And you have said that your book, "Gunfight" offers a valuable perspective as the nation struggles to choose between armed violence or healing. How does it do that?

BUSSE: Well, I think that the first step for us, and I've gotten, as you might guess, after the last 16 or 17 days here or whatever it is of these events, so many people calling and e-mailing and direct messaging, just asking, you know, how did we get here? How did we come from a time when kids grew up on a ranch, like I did, using guns and the responsibility was, you know, in the center over lives to this where we have armed intimidation? Where we have the proliferation of these guns. Where we have, you know, the maker of the gun Daniel Defense that the Uvalde shooter used. Just days before that shooting, he posted a picture of a toddler with a gun and a bible verse. With one of those AR-15s. I mean, how did we get to that point?

And I think if we're ever going to figure a way to get out of it, we have to understand the components and sort of the methodology that got us here. And my book is, you know, the story of me and my family. But it's also the story, the wider story of our country and how it got here. So, I hope it's useful. If we're going to unwind this, we have to know how it was wound.

CHURCH: Yes, good point. Ryan Busse, thank you so much for joining us. Appreciate it.

BUSSE: Thank you. Appreciate it.

CHURCH: And nearly a week after the Uvalde school shooting, victims are being laid to rest.18 children and one teacher will be buried in custom caskets, made and donated by the Texas-based company Soul Shine Industries. The owner met with family members of the victims to discuss specific designs or themes their families wanted to appear on the caskets like softball, TikTok, or Spider-Man. He says that the caskets were finished after working nearly three days straight over the Memorial Day weekend.

Still ahead, tracking Agatha. The storm is no longer a hurricane but is still on the move in Mexico. We will have the very latest on that. Back in just a moment.

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[02:40:00]

We are tracking severe weather in the U.S. Midwest. You're looking at the aftermath of a possible tornado in Douglas County, Minnesota. It hit near a small town of less than 200 people. But the storm took down power lines and damaged as many as 100 homes. And in Mexico, hurricane Agatha remains a threat after becoming a tropical storm. Agatha made landfall on Monday on the Pacific Coast. But there's still more rain and heavy wind to come.

So, let's go to CNN meteorologist Karen Maginnis. She has the latest. Karen good to see. So, what are you seeing there?

KAREN MAGINNIS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, the National Hurricane Center gave us an advisory just about 40 minutes ago. It continues to weaken slightly, but do not be misled when we said weakened, meaning the winds are just a little bit less, they are around 60 miles an hour. Take a look at this, this is what -- the area right around Puerto Escondido along that Pacific Coast, the South Coast of Mexico. There you can see the strong winds, kind of, the heavy surf. What you don't see are those mudslides and landslides. But those will be occurring because of the substantial rainfall associated with this.

[02:45:00]

Right now, there is the latest information, 60 miles per hour or just about 100 kilometers per hour. Some higher gusts. It looks like most of the convective activity where the stronger thunderstorms are, are along the Eastern edge of this particular tropical storm. There are still tropical storm warnings which have been issued along the coastline. But this is expected to move to the Bay of Campeche. It's going to be remnants. And these remnants are still going to be able to produce significant rainfall.

Now, this did make landfall as a hurricane, a category two right around the early afternoon hours. It had 105-mile an hour winds or nearly 170 kilometers per hour.

All right. So, we'll continue to monitor this, probably a tropical storm intensity. Here's the Bay of Campeche. It looks like it has a fairly good chance of developing possibly into something tropical about a 60 percent likelihood according to the National Hurricane Center. It looks like a broad area of convection, maybe some moisture aimed at the Florida Peninsula. Rosemary, is still fairly far out. So, we'll still have to continue to monitor it.

CHURCH: Absolutely. I know you'll do that. To Karen Maginnis, many thanks.

Well, the death toll keeps rising from severe weather in Northeastern Brazil. At least 91 people are confirmed dead after heavy rain triggered landslides and floods. And dozens of others are still missing. Emergency crews have been working around the clock. Nearly 4,000 people have lost their homes since the downpours began last week. And people in the region are bracing for more rain in the coming days.

Well, still to come, a disastrous start to the summer for airlines across the United States. We will explain why more than 2,000 flights were canceled over the holiday weekend.

Plus, a look at President Joe Biden's next effort to tackle his number one economic problem, soaring inflation in the U.S. You're watching CNN Newsroom.

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JONAS ASTRUP, CHIEF TECHNICAL ADVISOR, ILO: Forced labor looks different in different countries and different sectors. My name is Jonas Astrup. I'm the chief technical adviser for the ILO third-party monitoring project in Uzbekistan. And I have been based in Toshkent for the last four years.

Uzbekistan is the sixth-largest producer of cotton in the world. But the cotton harvest in Uzbekistan is the world's largest recruitment effort. With approximately two million people picking cotton every year from September to November. And ILO has been monitoring the cotton harvest in Uzbekistan for child labor since 2013. And for child labor and forced labor since 2015 under an agreement with the World Bank. We have witnessed incredible changes during that time. Two million children out of child labor, and half a million adults out of forced labor. We have seen wages increase by over 600 percent.

[02:50:00]

We have seen the number of labor inspectors doubled and perpetrators punished. Forced labor and child labor is now a criminal offense in Uzbekistan. We've seen awareness-raising campaigns to make sure that people are aware of their rights. And we have seen a liberalization and privatization of the agricultural system. There's still work to do in Uzbekistan. But I think it's fair to say that Uzbekistan is a success story in the world of work.

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CHURCH: We are following a positive development in the baby formula shortage threatening the health and well-being of infants across the United States. Nestle says part of a shipment of Alfamino baby formula from Europe has passed through its quality clearance process and entered the system. That formula is intended for hospitals, doctors' offices, homes, health care facilities, and pharmacies. And 40 percent of the Gerber Good Start Extensive HA formula was reportedly stocked over the weekend, that product is designed for babies with milk allergies.

Officials say this is just the beginning of the rollout. But relief will not come immediately to families. Meaning parents will continue to struggle to find formula for the time being.

Well, now to another consumer crisis plaguing Americans. More than 2,000 flights were canceled over the Memorial Day weekend causing tremendous frustration for travelers. CNN's Pete Muntean explains why there were so many issues.

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Travelers and the airlines are facing a huge test right now. Not only is it the first major travel rush since the end of the transportation mask mandate, but airlines are being forced to cancel flights because they do not have enough workers. FlightAware says airlines in the U.S. canceled hundreds more flights on Monday. More than 2,000 flights in total canceled in the U.S. since Friday, as so many people are coming back to traveling.

The TSA screened 2.1 million people at airports across the country on Sunday. It anticipates when it's all said and done, screening more than 2.2 million people on Monday. These numbers amount to 90 percent of where we were back in 2019. And the TSA says as summer travel ramps up, we could see those numbers actually exceed pre-pandemic levels.

I want you to listen now to an interview I did with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg where I asked him whether or not airlines are up for this big challenge.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION: We saw a lot of airlines during the pandemic thinning out their schedules and thinning out their workforce, not knowing when demand was going to return. Now, faster than expected, the demand has come roaring back and they are struggling to keep up. That's true whether we're talking about flight attendant crews, whether we're talking about pilots. And so, we've got to make sure that we have short-term and long-term approaches.

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MUNTEAN: One of those short-term solutions, airlines proactively canceling flights. Delta Airlines is one of the latest to make such an announcement saying it will shut about 100 flights a day from its schedule during the month of July.

Memorial Day is so much about driving. And AAA anticipated 34.9 million people would drive 50 miles or more over the five days surrounding Memorial Day when gas prices are so sky-high. When you adjust those for inflation, the last time we saw gas prices this high was during Memorial Day 2012, a 10-year high. Pete Muntean, CNN, Reagan National Airport.

CHURCH: So, let's take a closer look now at U.S. gas prices. The national average for regular gasoline rose to a new record of $4.62 a gallon on Monday. According to the American Automobile Association, that is 44 cents higher than a month ago and $1.57 higher than a year ago. Seven States are now averaging $5 a gallon.

And in the coming hours, U.S. President Joe Biden plans to discuss soaring inflation with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. The meeting comes as the U.S. battles its highest rates of rising prices in decades.

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The Federal Reserve is under pressure to combat inflation and cool down the economy without pushing the country into a recession. In an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal, President Biden promises not to meddle with the Fed. But he calls fighting inflation has number one economic priority and outlined a three-pronged strategy. First, he says, the Federal Reserve has a primary responsibility to control inflation. Next, Mr. Biden says we need to take every practical step to make things more affordable for families during this moment of economic uncertainty and to boost the productive capacity of our economy over time. And finally, the President says, we need to keep reducing the federal deficit, which will help ease price pressures.

I want to thank you for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. I'll be back with more news in just a moment. You are watching CNN. Do stay with us.

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BADR JAFAR, CEO, CRESCENT ENTERPRISES: The regions of post-pandemic or mid-pandemic, I should say, performance is as you go across the 20 or so countries that make up the Middle East and North Africa is as diverse as the 500 million people or so that live in it. We've been saying for a long time that the only way we can address, as a sort of silver bullet, the youth unemployment crisis and socioeconomic problems that we have and the challenge we have across the region is by nurturing small businesses. To create jobs. To create opportunities and pursue innovation.

The problem is no one was investing in small businesses. But I see that changing. We need to create businesses as change agents who can in turn create solutions both on a social and economic objective. One of the other trends we're seeing is where businesses are aligning with their social and environmental impact. In addition to their of course financial impact as being one and the same in terms of stakeholder returns. So, that I think is a positive trend we have to nurture.

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