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U.S. Senators Announce Bipartisan Deal on Gun Safety; People in Texas React to U.S. Senators' Gun Deal; British Appeals Court to Rule on Deporting Asylum Seekers; Rebranded McDonald's Restaurants Unveiled in Russia. Aired 4:30-5a ET

Aired June 13, 2022 - 04:30   ET

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

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DANIELLA DIAZ, CNN CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER: Because of that 50/50 split in the Senate, 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans, if every single Democratic Senator supports this, there still needs to be 10 Republicans to break that 60 vote threshold for the filibuster.

Now, Republicans are saying an aide actually told our Dana Bash -- a Republican aide told our Dana Bash earlier today that they have not agreed yet. Once they see the legislative text, those details are going to be important. They said, quote, this is an agreement on principles, not legislative text. The details will be critical for Republicans, particularly for the firearms related provisions. One of or more of these principles could be dropped if text is not agreed to.

So really, really important as we continue to see once they start writing the text of this bill. But I do want to note that the top Republican in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, put out a statement on Sunday after this announcement on the framework praising the top negotiators John Cornyn and Chris Murphy.

He said: I appreciate their hard work on this important issue. The principles they announced today show the value of dialogue and cooperation.

So, there is some praise from the top Republican in the Senate, very, very notable. But Senator Chris Coons was actually on CNN on Sunday after this announcement and he told our Dana Bash that while they do have this framework, it's not a win yet for Democrats, for this bipartisan group, because there's still a lot more work to happen that needs to take place before they vote. Take a listen to what he said.

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: It is very delicate still.

SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): That's right. There's a lot of work still to do to take this frame work agreement and reduce it to legislative language. We shouldn't take a victory lap yet. But I'm so grateful for the leadership that Senators like Chris Murphy and John Cornyn have shown in getting us to this point and I'm optimistic that the pressure that we are all feeling from our constituents to act and to deliver real results with get us to the president's desk with legislation this time.

DIAZ: I want to emphasize that while this framework is incredibly important, that they just came out, super notable, it is narrow this its scope. But Democrats were hoping that they could at least have some sort of incremental change on gun safety reform, that was the goal in these bipartisan talks to find something -- find consensus with Republicans to make progress on this issue that has been a stalemate for more than 30 years. So that is why it is so notable that they are now doing this, but there is still a lot more work ahead for this bipartisan group to get it over the finish line.

Daniella Diaz, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ISA SOARES, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. President Joe Biden is welcoming the progress made by Senators on gun safety. In a statement he said this, quote, obviously it does not do everything that I think is needed. But it reflects important steps in the right direction and would be the most significant gun safety legislation to pass Congress in decades. Each day that passes, more children are killed in this country, the sooner it comes to my desk, the sooner I can sign it and the sooner we can use these measures to save lives.

Well, earlier we heard from CNN senior political analyst Ron Brownstein who weighed in on why even incremental measures on gun safety as seen are so significant.

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RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: It's a measure of how great an obstacle the Senate has presented to executing the will of the people on gun control. I mean you look at -- you know, you look at the polling and not only in the aftermath of terrible tragedies like the ones we've had in the last month, but pretty consistently over the last few years, there is a majority of the country that wants to go much further than this deal, you know, envisions on a whole variety of issues.

And yet, because of the Senate, the narrow apportionment of the Senate, the disproportionate influence of small, rural states where gun culture is most powerful and magnified by the filibuster, that is all off the table.

So, this is progress, as analysts have noted. This will the first bill that does anything to advance gun control since the assault weapon ban in 1994 but it is pretty meager on that front compared what there is broad public support to do.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Well, thanks CNN senior political analyst, Ron Brownstein for his prospective there.

Well, but those in Uvalde, Texas where 21 people lost their lives in a mass shooting, doubt persists that Washington has the will to make real reform in reality. CNN's Camila Bernal is in Uvalde and found out that people there are saying about a potential bipartisan gun deal.

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CAMILA BERNAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There are two things that stood out when I talked to people -- hope and skepticism. A lot of people hoping that this shooting here in Uvalde is the one that generates change. Many of them saying they agree with the review process for buyers under the age of 21. They also pointed to mental health resources.

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But the bottom line is that everybody I talked to told me that they do not think that anything will happen in Washington despite this agreement. Here is what some of those Texans told me.

JOY FLORES, SAN ANTONIO RESIDENT: I mean, there's a lot of talking about it, but there is no actually actions. So, I mean, they can say that this for years and this is never going to like die down or anything. And I don't see anything -- I personally, don't think is going to change.

SYLVIA LEOS, DALLAS RESIDENT: With politics, nothing is -- I mean, that's just people talking. And unfortunately, we live in a world where money is what makes the decisions. And I don't know, it would surprise me. Unfortunately, I wish it would, but I don't know.

BERNAL: And people also told me, look, we should be able to defend ourselves. There was one man who told me I wanted an AR-15 but decided against it after Sandy Hook. So, no matter where they stood on the gun issue, they all pretty much said that we should be able to come together, that lawmakers should be able to come to an agreement to prevent this from happening again.

Camila Bernal, CNN, Uvalde, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Well, those who survived the Pulse Night Club shooting in Orlando, Florida are among those calling for action. Six years ago, if you remember, a gunman murdered 49 people and injured more than 50 in an attack on the LGBTQ+ community. Well, on Sunday a remembrance ceremony was held in Orlando to honor the victims of the 2016 tragedy. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis ordered flags flown at half-staff and asked residents to pause for a moment of silence. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris remembered the tragedy during a pride event in Washington, D.C.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No one should fear going to a night club for fear that terrorist might three to take them down. No one should fear going to a pride celebration because of a white supremacist. No one should fear --

(END VIDEO CLIP) SOARES: The vice president also slammed legislative attacks on the

LGBTQ+ community in states like Texas as well as Florida. And if you would like to provide financial support or blood donations to victims as well as communities impacted by mass shootings, including the Texas school shooting, please go to CNN.com/impact. And there you'll find several ways that you can help.

A last minute attempt to stop the British deportations to Rwanda. Coming up how an appeals court here in London could decide the fate of migrants very soon. We'll bring you that story next.

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SOARES: Former Alaska governor and vice president nominee Sarah Palin is working on a political comeback. Palin will advance to the August general election to fill Alaska's empty House seat. After finishing in the top four in the state's special primary election. Under Alaska's new election systems, candidates of all party and those with no party affiliation run on the same primary ballot. The top four vote getters advance regardless of party. The general special election vote will be held in August.

French President Emmanuel Macron alliance won a narrow victory in the first round of parliamentary elections on Sunday, but he faces a tough battle to win the 289 seats he needs to keep a majority. Mr. Macron's alliance got about 2 million votes more than a leftist coalition led by Jean-Luc Melenchon, but that could change in the next round of balloting. If Mr. Macron loses an absolute majority, he would be the first reining President to not win a parliamentary majority since the 2000 electoral reform.

The British court of appeal is expected to issue a ruling next hour on an asylum policy that could see migrants deported to Rwanda. On Friday the high court ruled that a deportation could go ahead after denying an attempt by human rights groups to get an injunction. If the appeal fails, the first scheduled flight could leave as early as tomorrow Tuesday.

Under the controversial government plan, anyone who arrived in Britain illegally this year could be relocated to Rwanda. I'm joined now by CNN's Nada Bashir who is live from Paris with more on this story for us. And Nada, you know, the government clearly here having another fight on its hands with this legal challenge which may not be the last. What are we expecting today?

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: Well, this is a deeply controversial issue and we do expect further legal challenges on the policy as a whole. What these legal challenges that we've seen on Friday and that we're seeing today are focusing on is that flight tomorrow and the other flights expected to take place this week. They are calling for an emergency injunction to prevent these deportation flights from taking off. They are saying that there needs to be time for the legal assessments to be carried out, for the legal assessments for individuals too to be carried out. And there are huge concerns from human rights organizations and even

within government around the human rights situation in Rwanda. Now as you mentioned there, those arriving in the U.K. illegally from the first of January, many of them I have to say arriving across the English channel from northern France to the U.K., they could be liable to deportation to Rwanda.

And we've heard from those advocacy groups that have put forward this legal challenge, that many people that they are in touch have already received notices to be deported are coming from countries like Afghanistan, Syria and Iran where they could face a serious risk if they are returned home.

Now under the government policy, once deported to Rwanda, they can either take part in a five year resettlement program, they can also apply for asylum elsewhere which is of course extremely difficult, or they can have the option of returning home. None of these options seem like an ideal option for asylum seekers who so desperately want the security that the U.K. can offer.

Home Secretary Priti Patel has said that Rwanda has a long history of accepting refugees and migrants and that it is safe for asylum- seekers. But really, we've heard from human rights organizations bringing this into question. Human Rights Watch has also criticized the government's own human rights assessment of Rwanda. Saying that the government has cherrypicked and ignored facts on the ground. The UNHCR, the UN's refugee agency actually interjected on Friday's high court hearing giving a statement saying that they believe the policy is unlawful and actually criticizing the government for what they say is misleading asylum-seekers in those notice letters telling them they'll be sent to Rwanda. According to the government, they've been working closely with UNHCR, but they refuted the claim.

So, there are some serious concerns around the human rights situation there. Today we expect that the second legal challenge calling for an injunction as well as the appeal. But I have to say on the second legal challenge, it is being heard by the same high court judge that heard Friday's legal challenge.

[04:45:02]

So, it's not expected to move the needle that much. But there is still hope that we could perhaps see further individual cases, those individual notices that people will be sent to Rwanda canceled. We've seen some. There is hope that more will come today -- Isa.

SOARES: Nada, I know you'll stay on top of it. Nada Bashir for us live from Paris. Thanks very much, Nada, good to see you.

And coming up right here in the show, inside Russia's answer to McDonald's, it has a snappy new name and a familiar menu. We'll explain.

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SOARES: Welcome back everyone. Moscow resurrects an American fast food giant giving it a distinctly Russian makeover. On Monday more than a dozen former McDonald's restaurants reopened in the Russian capital but under a new name and with a new logo. McDonald's was among many Western brands that pulled out of Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. Fred Pleitgen has more.

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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So, Russia now has its own version of McDonald's, it comes under a different name here. It's called Vkusno & Tochka and essentially means tasty and that's it. Also has a different label or a different logo. You can see it right there. It's supposed to symbolize the company says, fries and a hamburger. Other than that, a lot of things are actually very similar to McDonald's.

However, there is no Big Mac and there also is no Happy Meal either. As you can see, this place is pretty much jam packed. There's really a lot of people who came here. We spoke to some of the customers including some actually wearing the symbols of Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine, which of course the Russian has called a special military operation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Food and politics have nothing in common like come on, man keep things separate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Basically, it's important for me to have at McDonald's fuel.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's not a good idea because McDonald's, it's a history, it's a brand, it's great idea. It's not classical McDonald's.

PLEITGEN: As you can see the Russian version of McDonald's looks a lot like McDonald's. You have the double cheeseburger here, fries and this is a nine piece, hot McNuggets, it's nuggets and some sort of soft drinks, see how it tastes.

So, the packaging is also very, very similar to McDonald's. You can see the cup here, everything except the branding. Same goes for the fries. And if you look carefully, you can see the sauces, even seem to have the McDonald's logo blacked out and see looks -- McNuggets look like nuggets. So, it's pretty much exactly the same as McDonald's.

This is a very historic place. Also, this is where in 1998, back then during the Soviet Union, the first McDonald's restaurant was opened. Now, that of course led to a huge success story of McDonald's here in Russia. And the Russian company that's now bought these franchises from McDonald's say they hope they'll be able to replicate that success.

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SOARES: And Fred Pleitgen is joining me now. And Fred, I suspect it's a test perhaps of whether Russia's economy can become kind of self- sufficient and withstand sanctions. Talk us through how businesses there have really faced these sanctions from right around the world.

PLEITGEN (on camera): Yes, you're absolutely right, I think it's a test but it's also a message from the Russians saying that they are not going to have their economy completely be crippled by the sanctions at least in their current form. And it's really quite interesting when you're here on the ground in Moscow, you do see that obviously there is some economic suffering. There are actually a lot of people who also lost their jobs. There was big inflation also, especially as the war in Ukraine started and those sanctions initially really took hold.

But it certainly does appear as though when you are here on the ground that the Russians really have somewhat settled in, the economy has somewhat settled in, the stores for instance are still filled with items, people are able to buy them as well. It certainly seems as though Russia's economy is not insulated. Its businesses are suffering, it's economy is suffering and certainly there's long term suffering.

If you look at for instance the automobile industry where it's really difficult to get spare parts. They're now making new cars that for instance don't have air bags or antilock braking systems. But the Russians are saying that their economy is not completely crippled. They are settling in for the long run. And one of the things that Vladimir Putin said late last week, is he also says he believes that inflation is under control as well. So, it certainly seems clear if anything is going to make the Russians change course in Ukraine, doesn't appear as though it will be the sanctions in their current form -- Isa.

SOARES: And meanwhile on that point, Fred, we heard President Putin kind of invoking Peter the Great to try and justify Ukraine -- the invasion of Ukraine. What exactly did he say, Fred?

PLEITGEN: Yes, you're absolutely right, and I think it's something that's really important and really marked a fundamental change in the way that all of this is being portrayed here in Russia. Essentially what Vladimir Putin said is that he believes that Peter the Great -- who obviously took the region around St. Petersburg and also many other places in northeastern Europe as well -- that he was not taking land but that he was returning land and strengthening it.

Which obviously means that Vladimir Putin believes that that land was intrinsically land that belonged to Russia. He then said that it falls to the lot, the current lot -- obviously meaning his government -- to do the same thing. So obviously likening what's going on in Ukraine right now to the Russians taking back territory.

And sense that happened, there has really been a big difference in messaging here in this country. I was watching a lot of the state media over the course of the weekend and that seems to be the new mantra that's being portrayed here on Russian state TV, that essentially what they are doing in Ukraine, the war in Ukraine is then taking back territory.

[04:55:00] Which is of course a fundamental change to what Russia said at the beginning of when this war started when they said that this was a short term special military operation, that Russia did not intend to occupy Ukrainian territory. Certainly, looks as though that message has really fundamentally changed -- Isa.

SOARES: Important perspective there from our Fred Pleitgen in Moscow for us. Thanks very much, Fred.

Now American country music star Toby Keith says he has been battling stomach cancer since last year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOBY KEITH, COUNTY MUSIC STAR: I'll bear that cross with honor because freedom don't come free. I'm an American soldier and an American ...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Keith has had numerous hits since his debut album in 1993 that includes this song American Soldier as well as Red Solo Cup and I Want To Talk About Me. The singer says he has spent the last six months receiving chemotherapy. He tweeted, he's doing well and will soon see fans. In 2021 then President Donald Trump awarded Keith the National Medal of Arts highlighting his support for the U.S. military.

In golf, Rory McIlroy successfully defended his title at the RBC Canadian Open on Sunday. McIlroy held on for a two shot victory taking home $1.5 million. This was his second consecutive win at the tournament, which was last played in 2019 due to the coronavirus pandemic. However much of the focus in golf this week has been on the Saudi backed LIV golf series which teed off here in England. The PGA tour suspended more than a dozen players, if you remember, for joining the rival league.

And that does it for me here on CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Isa Soares in London. Thank you very much for your company. Our coverage continues on "EARLY START" with Christine Romans and Laura Jarrett. I shall see you tomorrow. Have a wonderful day, bye-bye.

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