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January 6 Committee Gears Up for Next Round after Explosive Prime-Time Hearing; Fox Airs Lies Instead of First Jan 6 Prime Time Hearing; March for Our Lives Rallies Push for End to Gun Violence; Gas Prices Hit National Record, Now Top $5 a Gallon; Washington Commanders Defensive Coach Fined $100K for Calling 1/6 Capitol Riot a "Dust Up". Aired 5-6p ET

Aired June 11, 2022 - 17:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:00:09]

JIM ACOSTA, CNN ANCHOR: You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington.

Follow the ego, the committee investigating January 6 says former president Donald Trump's lust for power at all costs led directly to the violent attempts to stop the certification of Joe Biden's election victory.

They say evidence will show Trump knew he had lost the 2020 election but could not handle it, orchestrating a seven-point plan to stay in office and inspiring violence against the Capitol.

Here is what we learned in the first hearing. Trump's cabinet almost pulled the plug on his presidency as they were considering invoking the 25th amendment to take him out of office. Trump's own attorney general Bill Barr told him the idea that he won the election was BS and crazy. Trump's own daughter Ivanka testified that she accepted Barr's assessment. We also learned the mob's chants of "Hang Mike Pence" erupted after a rioter broadcast a Trump tweet about Pence's decision to certify the election results. The committee revealing Trump's shocking reaction.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. LIZ CHENEY (R-WY): And aware of the rioters chants to hang Mike Pence, the president responded with this sentiment, quote, "Maybe our supporters have the right idea. Mike Pence," quote, "deserves it."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: I'm joined now by former Democratic senator from Minnesota and host of the "Al Franken Podcast", Al Franken. Senator, thanks so much for being with us. We appreciate it as always.

AL FRANKEN, FORMER DEMOCRATIC SENATOR, MINNESOTA: Thank you, Jim, for having me. (CROSSTALK)

ACOSTA: How do you think -- yes, absolutely -- how do you think the committee did in that first prime time hearing? What was your assessment?

FRANKEN: I was very impressed, especially impressed with Cheney. She gave -- I thought she did a devastating job. She laid out the case and not just the case, but the stakes of it. I think she showed that it wasn't just that one day, that this was a multiweek experience. I think the conspiracy actually goes back to before the election. You remember that Trump said before the election if I win, it's legitimate. If I don't, then it's fraudulent. So it's, you know, heads I win; tails, I lose. And I think that was his intention all along.

This has never been done as Liz Cheney pointed out. No president has ever tried to not let the peaceful transition of power happen. And this was not a spontaneous riot. It was a long-term plot.

There were 60 plus cases they took to court, his lawyers like Giuliani and Powell. Powell actually -- there was a Michigan investigation against her or judgment against her about lying in their deposition. And she said, well, no one could expect those to be legitimate.

I mean, this is -- he knows he lost, and I think that they should invite him to come there at the end of these hearings. Donald Trump got a huge rating. He loves that. He can lay out his case, what he missed or what Ivanka miss after she checked out, you know, and to set up under oath.

(CROSSTALK)

ACOSTA: Liz Cheney could do the cross examination I guess.

FRANKEN: I don't think there has to be any cross examination. He's just under oath and he gets an hour to present all the proof that the election was fraudulent, and of course, he doesn't have any, and he won't do this.

ACOSTA: I suppose that's one hour Fox would cover. Senator --

FRANKEN: Yes. It would get very good ratings all over the place.

ACOSTA: Yes, senator, Caroline Edwards, the police officer who was testifying the other night, she was defending the Capitol on January 6th, just incredible account from her.

She got knocked out by that first group that breached the defenses. Then got up and rejoined the fight, incredible bravery. She testified about the violence that day. Let's listen and we'll talk about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAROLINE EDWARDS, U.S. CAPITOL POLICE OFFICER: I was slipping in people's blood. You know, I was catching people as they fell. It was just hours of hand to hand combat, hours of dealing with things that were way beyond any law enforcement officer has ever trained for.

[17:05:01]

EDWARDS: And I just remember -- I just remember that moment of stepping behind the line and just seeing the absolute war zone that the west front had become.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Senator, you not only had the officer testifying there. You had other Capitol police officers, D.C. police officers sitting behind her lending their support. How hard it is to hear these stories from these officers and what they went through given the fact that you were there as a senator, interacted with a lot of these Capitol police officers, as we all know, great people.

FRANKEN: Great people, you know, I'd see them every day, go by their names, especially the ones who were there, you know, when I came in in the morning. They were not trained for this, of course.

Every once in a while there'd be -- something would happen. There might be a lockdown because of a shooter or something like that, but they were not trained for this.

And think about this. First of all, she got a traumatic brain injury right away. She was knocked out right away. Then she kept fighting for three plus hours.

And during that time Donald Trump didn't do anything, ands that says everything to me that they're begging -- people were begging him in the White House to end this, and he wouldn't, and he enjoyed it and there are five Capitol police who are dead because of that day. Officer Sicknick who died the next day or later that day, and then four who committed suicide.

This is -- this guy really needs to be indicted and tried. And I think that after these hearings his only defense will be insanity because this will be proven without a doubt that he knew what was going on and he's responsible for all of this.

ACOSTA: Do you have confidence that he is going to be prosecuted? Do you think that will happen?

FRANKEN: Well, I don't know that for sure. I'm sure that Merrick Garland has been investigating all of this quietly. I'm assuming he's been doing this, and I don't see how there isn't a case.

Just the Raffensperger tape alone, you know, "just find me 11,780 votes'. Again, the only defense there is insanity. Because that's just asking an election official to commit fraud, and then he trends in that tape too, people don't play that part of the tape.

ACOSTA: It sounds a suspicious, yes.

FRANKEN: A little suspicious, yes. Well played, well played. ACOSTA: Yes. And Senator, Congresswoman Liz Cheney laid out a very stark look into the mind-set of Trump as the Capitol attack played out saying he was angry at advisers who were urging him to take action. I know from some of my own reporting that he did not want to call for peace during some of what was unfolding there at the Capitol that day. Hearing that --

FRANKEN: He was enjoying it.

ACOSTA: He was enjoying it, and that's what our sources have told us as well. What is your message to the Republican senators, former colleagues of yours, who voted to acquit Trump in his second impeachment trial?

FRANKEN: Well, I've talked to some of them. I'm still friendly with some of my -- even my former Republican colleagues. They don't have a role in prosecuting him, so -- but I would -- I would hope that they would say to their constituents, their Republican constituents the election was not stolen. Let's move on. The election was not stolen.

I think that's an incredibly important message to be telling the American people. Almost two-thirds of Republican voters believe it was. It wasn't. And I think that if you're a leader and I know that I have former Republican colleagues who know that it wasn't stolen who won't say it, and I wish they would.

ACOSTA: All right. Former Senator Al Franken, always great to have you on. Appreciate the straight talk. Thanks so much for your time.

FRANKEN: Thank you, Jim.

ACOSTA: And you can catch Senator Franken on the only former senator currently on tour-tour. That's "Al Franken's Tour". You can get those details at alfranken.com. Appreciate this time.

Coming up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHENEY: As Americans we all have a duty to ensure that what happened on January 6th never happens again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And how can we do that when that message isn't reaching millions of Americans watching Fox? We'll discuss that with a former Fox News correspondent next.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

[17:09:53]

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ACOSTA: As the January 6th committee prepares for its second public hearing, vice chair Liz Cheney offered some insight into where the evidence has led the committee so far and what the rest of us can expect going forward.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHENEY: What President Trump demanded that Mike Pence do wasn't just wrong. It was illegal, and it was unconstitutional. President Trump's efforts to pressure Vice President Pence to act illegally by refusing to count electoral votes likely violated two federal criminal statutes.

You will hear how President Trump summoned a violent mob and directed them illegally to march on the United States' Capitol.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[17:14:46]

ACOSTA: And joining me now former federal prosecutor and CNN's senior legal analyst, Elie Honig. Elie, thanks so much for being with us.

Cheney saying multiple times that Trump's actions in the wake of the 2020 election were illegal. What do you think lies ahead in these hearings? She sounds like a prosecutor trying to make a case here.

ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: She does, Jim. Well, first of all, I think this week we're going to see the committee take aim squarely at the big lie because Representative Cheney and the committee have made clear that in their view everything that led up to January 6th, the Capitol attack itself, and everything that has come after all come from the same polluted wellspring of unadulterated BS that is the big lie. They're going to go right after that this week.

Now, there's been a notable shift in the rhetoric here. We are hearing members of the committee explicitly say that Donald Trump's conduct was illegal, was a conspiracy. Now, in the ordinary conversational use of those terms, conspiracy, I think it's clear. We're already there, an evil plot.

Now, the question is will it meet the legal standard, which means a specific meeting of the mind to commit some other crime. I think in this case it would be fraud or sedition. That's really a question that I think is pointed up the street from the Capitol building at the United States Justice Department.

ACOSTA: No question. And at least four Trump aides including then attorney general Bill Barr and the Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller testified to the committee that they told Trump and his team that he lost re-election. Let's listen to what they had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL BARR, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: I made it clear I did not agree with the idea of saying the election was stolen and putting out this stuff, which I told the president was bullshit.

JASON MILLER, FORMER TRUMP CAMPAIGN SPOKESMAN: I was in the Oval Office and at some point in the consideration, (INAUDIBLE), who is the lead data person was brought on and I remember he delivered to the president pretty blunt terms that he was going to lose.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: You know, Elie, one of Trump's biggest arguments this whole time is that he truly believed he won the election. But Bill Barr and Jason Miller tell a different story.

HONIG: Yes, Jim. So legally here in order to show a fraud, you have to show that the person either knew the underlying truth or was what we call willfully blind to the underlying truth, meaning essentially buried his head in the sand like an ostrich.

That's the analogy we used to use in court. And I think when you take that testimony from Bill Barr, from Jason Miller, these statements of the heads of DHS, DOJ, the FBI, the rejection of the theory by dozens and dozens of courts, I think the committee is making a compelling argument that Donald Trump had to either have known or remained willfully blind to the fact that he truly did lose this election. I think that's a key focus, and I think they're driving home that point quite effectively.

ACOSTA: And Elie, the committee also played testimony from the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff Mark Milley saying Vice President Pence, not Trump was the one who ordered National Guard troops to respond to the violence unfolding that day. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. MARK MILLEY, CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: So two or three calls with Vice President Pence. He was very animated, and he issued very explicit, very direct, unambiguous orders. Get the military down here. Get the Guard down here. Put down this situation, et cetera.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Just remarkable testimony. He also testified that he was told by the White House to say Trump was the one calling the shots, calling the National Guard for help. What does that tell you?

HONIG: Well, it's quite a contrast, isn't it? You see the vice president here doing the things that you would want and expect the president to be doing. Being prepared, taking steps to make sure people didn't get hurt.

On the other hand, you have the president not just doing nothing but only worried about the appearance, the narrative behind it.

And it's really interesting. I checked this with General Mark Hertling, our colleague, and he confirmed the vice president has no role in the military chain of command. Of course, the president is the commander in chief, and here you see a president who was absolutely derelict in those duties and a vice president who did his best to try to make sure that basic safety needs were met.

ACOSTA: Right, just a bizarre situation, and there was also the emotional testimony from the U.S. Capitol police officer, Caroline Edwards. How useful do you think this testimony will be?

HONIG: You know, Jim, if you look at it purely analytically in a coldhearted way, we already knew this. There's no mystery that many officers were injured. We heard from Michael Fanone and other officers in fact last year.

But that said, her testimony was so compelling, so important because this is a story that needs to be told. She is a hero straight up, And what happened to those officers is something that has to be recorded in history. And it has to be something that we never get numb to or take for granted.

So all praise to Officer Edwards. I think she's a true hero and she deserved to be heard.

ACOSTA: She is absolutely a hero, all of those officers who responded that day and put their lives on the line are heroes. We're very grateful for what they did.

Elie Honig, thank you so much. We appreciate it.

HONIG: Thanks, Jim.

[17:19:50]

ACOSTA: All right. And while Fox News refused to air Thursday's prime time hearing, a former employee is set to be a key witness. Chris Stirewalt, who has appeared many times on this program and was fired from his job as Fox's political editor after he called the State of Arizona for Joe Biden early on election night, has announced that the January 6th committee has called him to testify and that he will do so at the committee's next public hearing on Monday.

Another former Fox employee, the legendary Carl Cameron joins me now. Campaign Carl as we know him all too well.

Carl, you were there with Fox for more than two decades before leaving your role as the chief political correspondent in 2017. You also worked with Chris Stirewalt. I mean we all know he's a pro at all of this.

And Chris has said he's not going to get into what he's going to be saying in his testimony, but what do you think he's going to talk about? I suppose he's going to be getting into what happened with that Arizona call.

CARL CAMERON, FORMER FOX NEWS CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: One would think. I also suspect that he'll take the time to point out that Fox's calls in presidential and in midterm races have always been very, very strong, and they took it really seriously.

I think that there is -- this is entirely conjecture, but it's not out of the realm of possibility that he knew that what was going to happen was that the data would show Trump losing and simply wasn't going to bend to those that wanted to cook the books. ACOSTA: And Carl, some 20 million people watched this hearing live.

It's remarkable, but not if they were watching Fox, which as we said, chose not to air it like the other major networks you can see on screen there. The other networks showing the hearings and then you see Tucker Carlson just sort of ranting and raving. And they heard things like this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TUCKER CARLSON, FOX NEWS HOST: Tells you a lot about the priorities of our ruling class that the rest of us are getting yet another lecture about January 6th tonight from our moral inferiors no less.

An outbreak of mob violence, a forgettably minor outbreak by recent standards that took place more than a year and a half ago. But they've never stopped talking about it.

The whole thing is insulting, in fact, it's deranged. And we're not playing along. This is the only hour on an American news channel that will not be carrying their propaganda live. They are lying and we are not going to help them do it.

SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS HOST: The dullest, the most boring. There's absolutely nothing new, multi-hour Democratic fundraiser masquerading as a January 6 hearing. And by the sounds of it, they're going to do hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of hours of this produced by a former ABC executive, 100 percent Hollywood production with all the creative license that would go along with that.

But make no mistake, tonight's so-called hearing is not in good faith. It is not an honest probe into the security breakdown on that fateful day. And we will prove that to you tonight.

LAURA INGRAHAM, FOX NEWS HOST: In the end, this was nearly two hours of an unsuccessful laborious attempt to connect the dots back to Trump. So Trump to a coup that never happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: You know, Carl, these hosts called the hearing propaganda, but then they spent multiple hours pushing disinformation. They weren't pushing commercial breaks.

What was going through your mind when you -- I guess maybe you didn't watch it because you saw the hearings or you saw the hearing that night, but I mean looking back and seeing what they were trying to pull off Thursday night, what's your response?

CAMERON: I mean, I didn't watch. I have seen clips, and the only thing that they left out was Benghazi, Benghazi, Benghazi -- complete nonsense throughout and an example of a party or at least in this case journalists working with a party that just doesn't have any ideas anymore.

It's really sad. And one of the things that I think really bears a lot of -- a lot of investigation is the idea that the president and his allies at the White House, in Congress and elsewhere in the country had a seven-point plan to win and that they were somehow prepared to use some sort of a device to stop the election and keep him in office.

That to me is absolutely mind-blowing. and to the extent that we're going to see more of that coming forward, guys like Chris Stirewalt become pretty small. I will say that he was always a really, really tough political reporter on both sides and knows his stuff.

And he's right. This is all baloney. It's just -- it is a shame that Fox that was once dominant in political news has become this farce.

[17:24:51]

CAMERON: I mean, the 20 million people who saw this, Fox's numbers were about 3 million, and that's an average evening, so they missed the boat on the ratings that particular evening.

ACOSTA: Yes. And last hour I spoke with the Democratic Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren who is on the January 6th committee about Fox's decision not to air it, and here's what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ZOE LOFGREN (D-CA): Isn't it ironic that the Fox News commentators are constantly talking about so-called cancel culture and what they're trying to do is make sure that the American people don't actually see the committee's work. Cancel culture on steroids.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Yes, they're always talking about cancel culture.

CAMERON: Well, exactly. Again, things that don't really exist except in the fearful minds of people who are being misled by misinformation, disinformation, and down right BS. I guess we can say "bullshit" now on cable if the president and others can do it too.

ACOSTA: I think you're right.

And I want to get your sense of this, Carl, because I thought this was interesting. Two Murdoch family newspapers had one scathing message essentially for Trump in the wake of these hearings.

The "New York Post" editorial board writing reports that Trump was pleased that the January 6th crowd chanted for vice president Mike Pence to be hanged, a truly reprehensible statement or sentiment, makes him unworthy for the office. Trump can't live past 2020, let him remain there."

And separately the "Wall Street Journal" editorial board concluded with this quote, "Mr. Trump betrayed his supporters by conning them on January 6th, and he's still doing it."

Why is it that we can see the Murdoch-run papers run editorials in this fashion, their editorial boards can make these scathing statements about the former president and yet Tucker and Hannity and Laura Ingraham are, you know, obviously working off of different talking points?

CAMERON: Business is business. There's money to be made at Fox with lying to the American people, and there's money to be made by telling the truth, particularly in things like the "Wall Street Journal", which get read all over the world, and Murdoch's recognizing that. And one would think that the rest of the world has already seen some of these -- some of the things that have come out of the Murdoch properties have been a hassle for a long, long time.

ACOSTA: And Carl, I mean you're such an astute observer of the political scene, I have to ask you, what were your expectations going into this? Were they fairly mild about how things might go? And how do you feel about how Liz Cheney and Bennie Thompson, the rest of the committee delivered and what that tells us about perhaps how these other hearings are going to go?

CAMERON: It was a start. We'll see if the numbers stay up high and the audience around the country shows that they care. We can already acknowledge that folks who are supporting the president -- the former president Trump and that type of so-called politics, they're not going to be watching. So it's difficult.

Again, I think that there is really some very, very important information to be learned as to how it was that there came to be a seven-point plan to undo the election and how it got to the president's desk and whether or not he wrote part of it or all of it or it was just simply his henchmen, and that could include senators, congressmen, and activists.

It's -- that to me seems to be something that they have to finish in the next couple of days of these hearings and make it clear what they're talking about because it's a big statement.

ACOSTA: You're right about that. And it goes back to I think the fact that, you know, not only do we have to get to the bottom of what happened on January 6th but there was so much leading up to January 6th, we just don't have all the answers about it. And the American people deserve those answers. They have a right to know.

Hopefully we'll get to the bottom of that. Carl Cameron, great to see you as always. Thank you so much.

CAMERON: Thanks, Jim.

ACOSTA: All right. And a quick programming note. The Watergate scandal heats up when the "CNN ORIGINAL SERIES: WATERGATE -- BLUEPRINT FOR A SCANDAL" continues tomorrow night at 9:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN. You don't want to miss that.

Coming up, students demanding change, rallying nationwide for gun reform, hundreds of marches taking place all over the country. We'll speak to a woman who survived the Parkland school shooting and her message to lawmakers. That's next.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

[17:29:32]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ACOSTA: Demands for tougher gun control echoed across the country today as people took to the streets for march for our lives demonstrations in more than 400 cities in nearly every U.S. state.

High-profile mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York, are reigniting outrage and sparking fresh calls for lawmakers to finally address the violence.

The March for Our Lives movement was born in the wake of the deadly high school shooting in Parkland, Florida, in 2018.

Jaclyn Corin is one of the founders of the student-led group and is survivor of the Parkland massacre.

Thank you so much for being here.

You attended the rally in D.C. Today. You were telling me beforehand thousands -- it seemed like 40,000, 45,000 people were down there on the national mall today. Given the weather here in D.C. Today, that's pretty remarkable.

What was it like? How did things go down there?

JACLYN CORNIN, CO-FOUNDER, MARCH FOR OUR LIVES: I think it was really inspiring. I hope that the event today served as a reminder to folks, both everyday Americans and politicians alike that the gun violence prevention movement truly does have momentum.

It has the momentum that it had in 2018 because it has to, right? Because people still continue to die every single day in this country. Over 45,000 people die from gun violence every single year in the United States.

[17:35:18]

So we have to keep pushing until our elected officials actually do something about this.

ACOSTA: And the House did pass a gun reform package this past week. It's being mulled in the Senate. It doesn't sound like it's going to go well for that piece of legislation in the Senate.

But you have said that you believe this is a turning point. What do you make of the legislation that's being considered right now? And we know that there are these bipartisan talks that are going on about other ideas.

Do you think that's going to go anywhere?

CORNIN: You know, I think Senator Chris Murphy is doing a great job pushing for legislation in the Senate. Ultimately, you know, I would love to see universal background checks, extreme risk protection orders or Red Flag laws. Beyond that, there has to be more. I'm glad there's a group working to find a compromise. And I hope at

least something comes out of it, whether it's raising the age from 18 to 21 to buy a firearm. We just need something.

But we're not going to end gun violence by doing those one or two policies. We need so many policies across the board. We're going to, again, keep pushing. But I hope we can see something passed for now.

ACOSTA: And opponents of gun safety legislation will say, well, this one particular provision would not have stopped, you know, a mass shooting from happening and this particular provision might not stop a mass shooting from happening.

But we had Fred Guttenberg on last week, and he said, you know, he said, straight up, that if the age for buying an assault weapon or an A.R.-15 were raised from 18 to 21, his daughter would be alive today.

CORNIN: Yes, exactly.

ACOSTA: How do you get that message across finally --

CORNIN: You know --

ACOSTA: -- to make it happen?

CORNIN: It's tough. I think ultimately we need to look to the American people and prove to them that they have the power to change things because our elected officials ultimately aren't representing our desires.

Almost 90 percent of people in this country believe that we should have universal background checks. Over 83 percent of gun owners believe the same thing.

So the fact that it's not happening clearly they're not representing our values so we need to change something come this November in the midterms.

ACOSTA: And I know you speak to lawmakers from time to time, and you and others in this movement.

Do you ever run across a Republican lawmaker, an opponent of gun safety legislation, who will acknowledge privately we know we need to do something?

CORNIN: You know --

ACOSTA: Or they just don't let down their guard in that way?

CORNIN: I personally have never experienced that. But I'm sure that they know behind closed doors what the right thing to do here is. But they're prioritizing NRA money in their pockets, which is incredibly disappointing and selfish.

So we need to replace them with folks that actually care about ending this pandemic that is in our country of gun violence and stop innocent children and people from dying.

ACOSTA: And you survived Parkland at a young age. When you think about these young kids in Uvalde who will have to grow up their entire life with the trauma of living through this sort of thing.

I keep thinking about the little girl talking about how she picked up the blood from one of the other kids and put it on herself so she could somehow make it through -- that kind of trauma that's being inflicted on these kids is -- it's unimaginable. You can't get your head around it.

What is your message to some of these kids in terms of how you get through this, how you keep going? Is it getting out there and fighting on the Mall like you did today and that sort of thing? What would you tell those kids?

CORNIN: I think the pathway toward healing is different for everyone. For me, it was definitely pushing and advocating for change. You know, I definitely think turning to a lot of mental health resources, talking about the trauma is going to be helpful.

But, yes, I mean, this is going to affect them for the rest of their lives. Trauma from gun violence really does stick with you. I live with PTSD every single day.

And I feel for them because also this is going to change their entire academic careers, right? They're going to look at school differently for the rest of their lives.

They're going to always fear that someone's behind them with a gun wherever they go in the same way I do. It's really devastating that so many people in this country have to deal with that fear too.

ACOSTA: That's what it is? That's what it's like?

CORNIN: Uh, huh.

ACOSTA: You think when you're at the mall or the grocery store you could be a victim again?

CORNIN: Yes, it's always there.

ACOSTA: All right. Jaclyn Cornin, thank you so much. Good work on the Mall today.

CORNIN: Thank you.

ACOSTA: We appreciate your time.

CORNIN: Thank you.

ACOSTA: Coming up, the average price of gas hits a never before seen high. And prices are expected to keep climbing. We'll have a live report next.

[17:39:58] You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ACOSTA: Gas prices in the United States are now the highest they've ever been. Across the country, regular gas will now run you about $5 a gallon. That's nearly $2 higher than the average a year ago and almost 20 cents more than it was just last week.

CNN's Paul Vercammen is at a gas station in Los Angeles.

Paul, Californians, they're supposed to be laid back, but they're not about these gas prices.

[17:45:02]

PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, they are not, Jim. And in fact, they're feeling it right in the pit of their stomachs and in the folds of their wallets.

Look behind me, this is considered a good gas price here in Los Angeles. $6.42 is the average here in California. This is $6.09.

Why is it so high? California has a legendarily high gas tax, $0.51 per gallon. This tax used to improve those roads and infrastructure. And Californians almost look at it as a birthright to go on weekend road trips once the weather heats up.

We were talking to a 72-year-old woman. She works as a career counselor. Her husband is retired, and those 100, 200-mile day trips, they are starting to disappear for this couple.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're curtailing a lot of what we're doing, not taking any even short trips like going up north or down south to San Diego.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's crazy. It literally went up a dollar I think within a week, went from 5.39 to 6.09 right now, I think is what it is, and we only filled it with a quarter tank.

And it's probably going to last us for the rest of the day. If not, we're going to have to fill up later on today again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERCAMMEN: And that's significant because he runs a rental delivery company for parties. He says they have to pass the costs on to the consumers, and this is the season of graduations as you well know.

We're also seeing a lot of weddings in California so it's rippling across.

Another person told me off camera he was expecting a delivery of some bar stools. This is from another party delivery company, and they had to hit him with an extra $50.

So where's the relief? At one point, the governor had floated an idea, and that is giving each California driver $400 in a rebate up to two cars per household. Right now, no real world on where that is going.

California has a budget surplus. If you talk to the people here at this gas station, all of them are asking if there's any possibility of that rebate in sight.

Reporting from Los Angeles, I'm Paul Vercammen.

Back to you -- Jim?

ACOSTA: Paul, I was wondering, I suppose that proposal is pretty popular out there right now in California.

VERCAMMEN: Extremely popular. These people are looking for relief in any way possible. And they need to find partners in the legislature to draft this.

But right now, it seems to be stalled at best, but these people are absolutely shocked by what has happened to gas prices.

ACOSTA: All right, we're all feeling a bit stalled these days with the prices so high.

Paul Vercammen, thanks so much. We appreciate it.

All right. And we'll be right back.

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[17:52:16]

ACOSTA: A senior member of the Washington Commanders coaching staff facing a hefty fine this weekend for his take on the January 6th insurrection.

Jack Del Rio is ordered to pay 100,000 dollars after he minimized the capital insurrection, calling it a dust up and comparing it to the racially charged protests following the murder of George Floyd.

Let's get details from CNN's Coy Wire.

Hey, Coy.

COY WIRE, CNN: Hey, Jim. Jack Del Rio, defensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders, who was also head coach in NFL for 12 seasons, exercised his First Amendment rights but it came at a price.

He was fined $100,000 for the, quote, "hurtful comments" Del Rio made, comparing the capitol attack to the protests following George Floyd's murder.

Rivera saying in a statement that the comments do not reflect the organization's views. Calling what happened on January 6th an act of domestic terrorism.

He went onto say while he has the constitutional right to voice his opinion, quote, "words have consequences and his words hurt a lot of people in our community," unquote.

Here was the original comments tweeting on Monday. "Would love to understand the whole story about why the summer of riots, looting, burning and the destruction of personal property is never discussed but this is?

Now, he didn't back down when asked about this either, Jim, on Wednesday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACK DEL RIO, DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR, WASHINGTON COMMANDERS; People's livelihoods are being destroyed. Businesses are being burned down. No problem. Then we have a dust up at the capitol, nothing burned down and we're going to make that a major deal.

I just think -- it's kind of two standards.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COY: Del Rio later apologized for referring to January 6th as a dust up but stood by his comments condemning violence and expressing support for peaceful protest.

Jim, Coach Rivera, who grew up in a military household, says the $100,000 is being donated to the capitol police memorial fund.

ACOSTA: All right. Thanks for that.

This week's "CNN Hero" works to provide a necessary yet often overlooked item for financially struggling kids across America.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RABBI AMY WEISS, CNN HERO: Underwear is just an overlooked item. And it's super expensive. So the parents who are struggling financially tend to think, you can't see the underwear, so it will be OK.

There's a crisis for this very essential need that really makes a big difference in their social and academic world.

Kids who need underwear don't want used underwear, right? That's gross, isn't it?

UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: Yes.

WEISS: We only give away new underwear.

Kids, they want what all of us want, security and dignity.

[17:55:01] We want to increase these kids' self-esteem and confidence. That's really what it is all about, helping fill that gap when no one else is doing it.

And to keep them in school, when they've got underwear, it's just easier to be a kid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: You can find more at CNN.com. And nominate someone you think should be a "CNN Hero."

That's the news. Reporting from Washington, I'm Jim Acosta. I'll see you back here tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. Eastern.

Pamela Brown takes over live after a quick break.

Have a good night.

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