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Interview with Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI): Average Gas Price Hits Record High for 13th Straight Day; U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Rise, But Labor Market Remains Strong; Biden Unveils Climate Focus at Day 2 of Summit of the Americas; 14-year-old Turns Fear of School Shootings into Activism. Aired 2:30-3p ET
Aired June 09, 2022 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:30:00]
REP. DEBBIE DINGELL (D-MI): But I had a father who I had to keep from killing my mother, who, when his temper flipped, I would hide in the closet and, literally, with my brothers and sisters. And we didn't know if we'd live until the next morning.
He should never have had access to a gun. He's like that pilot we should never let in the seat of the airplane.
I don't want to take guns away from responsible gun owners. But there are people that should not have guns that are getting access to them that are a danger.
And we've got to work together. We have to work together. No other country in the world is seeing as many mass shootings or as many violent deaths as we are seeing by guns.
So, let's not take people's guns away. But let's take them away from people or not let them get access to those that shouldn't have them.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, of Michigan's 12th, we always appreciate your time. Thank you very much.
DINGELL: Thank you, Victor.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST: Well, gas prices are not the only thing going up. So are mortgage rates. What that means for the housing market, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:35:33]
CAMEROTA: Gas prices continue to rise. The national average now $4.97 a gallon, marking the 13th straight day of record highs.
BLACKWELL: CNN's Gabe Cohen is at a gas station in Virginia.
Gabe, several states are now over $5.00 a gallon.
GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Victor, Alisyn, that's right. Virginia is not one of those states, Although, we just watched this gas station raise their price four cents in just the past hour.
And that national average could easily hit $5.00 a gallon for the first time ever in the coming days, given that it's been rising much faster since Memorial Day, up a quarter in just the past week.
There are now 21 states that are over $5.00 a gallon. Five states joining that list overnight. The most expensive by a mile is California, followed by Nevada, Illinois, Washington State, and Alaska.
And bear in mind, that $5.00 mark is significant. AAA surveyed drivers, asking them, at what price point do they change their habits, their driving behavior.
And there's a huge spike, a significant one at the $5.00 mark. And 75 percent of drivers say, at that price point, they're going to change the way they drive, from canceling travel to carpooling to combining errands.
Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We try to condense everything. And maybe we should have been doing those things all along but it's really extreme.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I still have to go to my jobs so it's not really negotiable. I do look for the least expensive in my -- wherever I am.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to stop driving, you know? I have to find some other means of getting around.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COHEN: And experts expect these prices are only going to get worse.
Oil prices rose again to a three-month high yesterday. The folks at GasBuddy telling me that they expect gas prices are going to follow, that there won't be much relief.
At least until July and then we're getting into hurricane season, potentially, more disruptions because of that. So don't be surprised if we hit the $6 a gallon mark later in the summer -- Victor, Alisyn?
CAMEROTA: OK. Gabe Cohen, thank you for the warning. Great to see you.
It's not just gas prices on the rise. The new jobless claims numbers are out today, and they've reached their highest level in nearly five months.
BLACKWELL: CNN's Matt Egan is with us now with the latest.
This necessarily isn't bad news about the labor market.
MATT EGAN, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: That's right. I mean, firing remains pretty rare. Companies are still struggling to find workers. But unemployment claims have started to creep higher. And normally,
that could be a cause for concern. But you know, we're not in normal times. This is a weird place for the economy.
Inflation is so high that the jobs market probably needs to slow down. I mean, it would be like, if the three of us were on a run, on a hot day and, say, we're cruising along, going really fast, but it's really hot out. It might not be the worst thing for all of us to slow down.
Similarly, Moody's economist, Mark Zandi, told me that he --
(CROSSTALK)
CAMEROTA: This is why I don't run.
But go on.
EGAN: Exactly. He told me that he thinks that jobless claims actually do have to rise from here. Otherwise, we're not going to be able to get inflation under control.
We've seen a more pronounced slowdown in the housing market. That is because mortgage rates have come up. We saw another increase today. Mortgage rates up to 5.2 percent. That is a big increase from 3 percent a year ago.
And the higher they go, I mean, that means the less house that you can afford, unless you're paying in all cash.
Not surprisingly, we've also seen mortgage demand come down. It actually is down to the lowest level in 22 years. And that's because borrowing costs are up.
Tomorrow, we get a big number on the inflation front. The consumer price index comes out tomorrow. Hopefully, it shows some signs that inflation is peaking, that maybe the worst is behind us.
New numbers today out on online prices, showing that prices in May only rose 2 percent year over year. That is actually an improvement from almost 3 percent in April, a record high 3.6 percent in March.
So perhaps another good sign ahead of tomorrow's very important inflation report.
CAMEROTA: Great. I don't see the three of us running anywhere unless there's free food in the cafeteria next week.
BLACKWELL: No, no.
CAMEROTA: Then we would.
BLACKWELL: Thank you, man.
(LAUGHTER)
EGAN: I'm going to hold you to that, Alisyn. CAMEROTA: Thank you very much.
[14:39:45]
BLACKWELL: All right, President Biden is hosting the Summit of the Americas today in Los Angeles. How he's addressing those leaders who chose not to attend. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
On day two of the Summit of the Americas forum in Los Angeles, President Biden is focusing on the climate crisis.
CNN chief White House correspondent, Kaitlan Collins, is in L.A.
So, Kaitlan, give us the latest from out there.
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the president is pressing ahead with the summit despite the snubs we were talking about that are looming over it.
He's hosting this, but several of the key leaders that he invited, including the president of Mexico, chose not to attend. And so it's raised a lot of questions in the White House about really what they can accomplish while they are here on the ground with President Biden.
[14:45:04]
And the White House has insisted that they still can make some substantive achievements while they're here on the ground.
So he just delivered these opening remarks. And the president hasn't really shied away from the fact that some of the leaders aren't here.
He talked about what a big diverse group they are. He said they don't always see eye to eye, the leaders of these nations.
But he said that when he thinks they do disagree. They still disagree in a respectable manner. They still can do so respectfully and still continue to have that dialogue.
But as the president was opening this up for those who were in attendance, he talked about the instability that has been facing so many of these nations here at the Summit of the Americas.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a global economic crisis that we're still digging out of. And now Putin's brutal unprovoked war in Ukraine has created economic disruptions that are affecting the entire globe. And that's not hyperbole.
And these won't be the only shocks we're going to have to navigate. Climate change is increasing the pace and intensity of natural disasters. Rising inequity in food insecurity around the world can fuel political instability.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Now, on the sidelines of this, the president is going to be meeting with a lot of world leaders.
The White House says a lot of those conversations are going to be focused on potential investments they could do to get private financing for things like infrastructure, like clean energy.
Obviously, the COVID-19 pandemic has also been a big factor of these conversations, as the president said he believes it's not a matter of if another pandemic happens, it's a matter of when.
He's about to meet with the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in a few moments so we'll let you guys know what they say.
BLACKWELL: All right. Kaitlan, thank you very much.
CAMEROTA: So you have to see our next segment. School shootings have become such a part of American life that school children regularly have to practice active shooter drills. What effect does that have on kids?
We have an expert next. A 14-year-old expert. And wait until you hear what she has to say to adults.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:51:41]
CAMEROTA: A young girl from southern California lived through so many active shooter drills, she's become an expert in the subject.
It's an experience she never wanted. But she had to use it to teach adults what it's like for school kids, as she did in this public service announcement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We'll learn what to do in the event of an expert shooter.
I won't be leading the exercise myself. We actually brought in an expert to help us.
(CROSSTALK)
KAYLEIGH WEBB-SANCHEZ, ANTI-GUN VIOLENCE ADVOCATE: If he was an active shooter, you would all be dead. When you talk out loud, the shooter can tell where you are. And you can't cry. It gives away your position and your hiding spot.
Try to listen to things that can help the police. For example, if you hear a lot of bangs, like bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, the shooter might be down the hall. Or if you hear louder ones like, bang, bang, bang, he could be right
outside your door.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAMEROTA: And 14-year-old Kayleigh Webb-Sanchez joins us now.
Kayleigh, I appreciate you coming on here.
I've been really looking forward to talking to you because that PSA is so powerful.
What was that like? You're 14 now. You were 11 when you shot that. What's it like teaching adults about active shooter drills?
WEBB-SANCHEZ: It was really empowering to know that I was able to teach these people who are a lot older than me about things that children go through every other day.
CAMEROTA: Yes, well --
WEBB-SANCHEZ: Drills have gotten --
CAMEROTA: I mean, I want to know about that.
WEBB-SANCHEZ: Sorry.
CAMEROTA: How often did you have to live through active shooter drills at your school?
WEBB-SANCHEZ: The drills happened at least once a month. Or three times a year at the absolute minimum.
CAMEROTA: And did they make you feel safer doing all those drills?
WEBB-SANCHEZ: Not really. It just showed us that it was something that we could only prepare for a little bit. It was horrifying to the younger children who did not know if it was a drill or not.
CAMEROTA: I mean, I can't imagine having to live through that every month or every other month.
And I know you learned some things that you carried with you for years, such as what kind of shoes should you never wear?
WEBB-SANCHEZ: Yes, you can't wear things that would drag attention or would make you a sitting duck or target.
CAMEROTA: Right. Like sneakers that make -- that light up or make sounds.
And I understand you learned not to have to go to the bathroom because that could make you vulnerable.
[14:55:02] WEBB-SANCHEZ: Yes, getting stuck in the stalls isn't necessarily something you would want to do. You would have to pull your legs up and sit up on the seat and try to not be seen. And it's not the safest place you can be in that situation.
CAMEROTA: And I understand you started having to do these drills when you were in kindergarten. And there's a song you sang in the PSA that I just want to tell our viewers because it's so arresting.
The song you learned in your afterschool program is: "Lockdown, lockdown, let's all hide, lock the doors and stay inside. Crouch on down, don't make a sound, and don't cry or you'll be found."
You really had to sing that?
WEBB-SANCHEZ: The teachers started to sing it to us, especially at the younger kids, in an attempt to keep them calm. It grew to be more disturbing as it went on as the older kids knew the meaning to it.
CAMEROTA: It's disturbing even for adults to have to hear that that's the new, you know, schoolyard song that's being taught to little kids.
Kayleigh, it's really great to talk to you.
And your PSA, as I said, I hope everybody gets to watch it. It's so powerful to know what our young people are going through in school. And I really appreciate you being here and giving us some insight into it.
Thank you very much for being on with us today.
WEBB-SANCHEZ: Thank you.
BLACKWELL: All right. We're hours now, just hours away from the highly anticipated primetime hearing on Capitol Hill. We'll tell you what to watch for, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
