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Flight Cancellations And Delays, Aggravating Travelers; Interview With Morning Consult, Travel And Hospitality Analyst Lindsey Roeschke; Update On Fatal Police Shooting Of Jayland Walker; Post-Roe America; State Court Battles Spawned By Abortion Ruling; Holiday Weekend Weather; July 4 Barbecue Prices Increased By 17 Percent From Previous Year; Impacts Of Heavy Rain On Flights And July 4 Celebrations; EPA's Capacity Limited By Supreme Court; Climate Change Crisis; Interview With Professor Of Astrophysics, University Of Rochester And Author Of "Light Of The Stars: Alien Worlds And The Fate Of The Earth" Adam Frank; Russia's War On Ukraine; WNBA Brittney Griner Detained In Russia; Interview With Wife Of Detained Wnba Star Brittney Griner, Cherelle Griner; Raining Anchovies In Bolinas Lagoon. Aired 1-2p ET

Aired July 03, 2022 - 13:00   ET

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

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[13:00:00]

ANNOUNCER: Celebrate the 4th in America. Live July 4th at 7:00 on CNN.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, everyone. And thanks so much for joining me on this Sunday, July 3rd. I'm Jessica Dean in for Fredricka Whitfield.

And it is another chaotic day at America's airports as millions of travelers try to take advantage of this long 4th of July holiday weekend.

Delays and cancellations are piling up once again all across the country, frustrating flyers, to say the least. So far today, more than 200 flights have been canceled, another 1,600 have been delayed.

And there's not much relief on the roads either. AAA is saying more Americans are taking road trips this weekend than at any other point during the COVID-19 pandemic.

And with gas prices still sky high, those trips are more expensive than ever. CNN's Nadia Romero is checking in on the situation from the world's busiest airport, Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International.

Nadia, I was there yesterday with a canceled flight, trying to fly standby. I know what that feels like for people out there. What are you hearing from passengers today?

NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, I'm sorry you were part of that big chunk of people we saw with 1,400 flights canceled over the past couple of days. And I spoke with one man who was supposed to get back to Vegas, he

spent the night here in Atlanta. He had about an 11-hour day in the airport after his flight was canceled three times. He finally ditched his first airline.

Got on a different airline to fly -- to get back to Vegas. And so, I'm glad that you finally made it to your final destination. But other people are really happy to be at the airport because they're on their way to enjoy their holiday weekend. So, it's definitely a mixed bag here.

I want you to take a look at the line here at TSA, this is the main security checkpoint, general boarding area. And it's moving pretty quickly, right? You can see people are just briskly going through in and out of these different rows to make their way to the front.

So, today we saw more than 200 flights canceled. But that has only been a very steady, small incline throughout this morning. The biggest issue today are the delays, more than 1,500 flights delayed across the country.

And that's really just the domino effect. If you have one small delay at 6:00 a.m. that's going to impact the next flight, and the next connecting flight, and so on and so forth, impacting airports across the country.

So, let's look at TSA security checkpoints. As you see, these travelers making their way through, we know we had about 2.44 million passengers make their way through TSA security checkpoints on Thursday.

And then Friday, that was the highest level, the largest amount of people making their way through the TSA since before the pandemic, since February 2020, and that number two and a half million. But then yesterday, it dipped back down to about 2.2 million passengers.

And if we're judging things just from this airport, I would expect that number to dip again today because we haven't seen as many long lines and as many frustrated passengers.

And, Jessica, the good thing for a lot of people is that it's not 1994. You're going to get a text or an e-mail that your flight has been canceled or delayed instead of arriving to the airport and having to look at the big board and seeing that big red cancel sign. Jessica.

DEAN: That is the beauty of technology. But also, I started to get anxious when I was getting text messages. Like, oh, no. Another delay. Another cancellation. All right. Nadia Romero for us in Atlanta's airport. Thanks so much. And joining us now is Travel and Hospitality Analyst from Morning Consult Lindsey Roeschke.

Lindsey, great to see you. Thanks for making time for us today. As Nadia just laid out, we know a lot --

LINDSEY ROESCHKE, TRAVEL AND HOSPITALITY ANALYST, MORNING CONSULT: Thanks for having me. DEAN: -- a lot of people are facing trouble at the airports despite many experts predicting a large number of travelers for the holiday weekend, these airlines seemingly are unprepared, stretched really thin, not able -- it's really a case of, I think, overpromising and maybe underdelivering. Not able to handle these crowds. Why are they so unprepared for this?

ROESCHKE: Well, a lot of it is down to staffing issues. So, throughout the pandemic, folks at the airlines were either furloughed or let go, or offered early retirement. And so, they haven't yet staffed back up.

That's, you know, one thing when you're talking about gate agents, customer agents, and support. But there's also pilots, and when you're short on pilots, you can't just, kind of, restaff easily.

It takes a lot of training to get pilots back in the air again. So, unfortunately, the staffing issues look like they're going to have some, kind of, longtail results in this phase.

DEAN: Right, and so that's what I wanted to ask you about because I think people are saying, oh, it's the summer travel season. Maybe it's just the 4th of July weekend.

[13:05:00]

Do you anticipate that we're going to continue to see these types of issues for a while? They're going to linger?

ROESCHKE: I actually think they're not going to. So, we've been tracking comfort levels in various aspects of travel since March of 2020 and they're at pandemic-era highs right now.

So, what you're seeing is a lot of pent-up demand, this idea of, kind of, revenge travel. People getting back out there. But what we're also seeing now is that 43 percent of Americans say they're going to travel less this summer because of price concerns. So, you know, high airfares, high gas prices.

And so, and what we're really thinking is going to happen is that there's this beginning of summer surge. Everyone is getting back out there. And then we're probably going to see a quieter late summer compared to previous years.

DEAN: Oh, that's so -- that's interesting because what I wanted to ask you about next is kind of this counterintuitive thing that we're seeing where people are dealing with severe inflation.

Americans are sour on the economic situation on a lot of fronts. But we're seeing these record numbers of people traveling. And how do you, kind of, make sense of all of that?

ROESCHKE: Yes, I mean, what we see in our data is that it's not that fewer people are traveling. The same number of people say they're traveling this year as compared to last year. It's that people are taking fewer trips. So, the number of people that

say that they were going to travel multiple times is down five points year over year. And among those who are traveling multiple times, they say they're taking fewer trips. So, less of the kind of three, four trips a summer and more of maybe one or two.

So, I think that's really what we're seeing now is that heavy volume at the beginning of the summer is everybody trying to get back out there after two and a half years of, you know, not being able to travel or not feeling as comfortable traveling.

But once they get it out of their system, they may tighten the belts a little bit for the rest of the summer.

DEAN: And say that's kind of it for the summer.

ROESCHKE: Yes.

DEAN: We know that a lot of Americans are also driving this holiday weekend. We know that AAA is saying that a record number of them are traveling 50 miles or more over this weekend, that is despite near record-high gas prices.

Do you think this is going to be kind of a similar situation where, it's like, OK, it's the July 4th holiday weekend, let's go do our trip now? But they may not travel as much during the rest of the summer on the road?

ROESCHKE: Yes, I think that's -- absolutely, I think that's going to be the case. I mean, the number of folks that say that they're going to travel by car was pretty similar year over year.

But I think we're probably going to see some of that same pattern of it cooling down later in the summer. As it is right now, travelers feel like they're, kind of, in a no-win situation because gas prices are high.

Airfare is high. And so, they're trying to, kind of, make those difficult tradeoffs. But when they are going on road trips, you know, we may see them calming down with some of their spendings in other areas.

They may be spending a little bit less on accommodation. A little bit less on food and beverage and entertainment while they are on road trips to kind of makeup for the high gas prices.

DEAN: Yes, for the price at the pump. And a lot of people have felt cooped up over the last two years, as you've been talking about. They didn't feel as comfortable traveling or they couldn't travel.

And so now, maybe they are getting back out there for the first time. For those people who are just starting to travel again, what's your advice to them? Should they be tempering their expectations as they make these travel plans?

ROESCHKE: I mean, I always like to say. go in with low expectations and be happy when nothing goes wrong.

DEAN: Right.

ROESCHKE: You know, we can't expect things to go perfectly smoothly these days. For those who haven't booked their flights yet, I mean, I think there are, certainly, things that travelers can do.

Booking direct where possible, trying to book a flight earlier in the morning because as delays mount throughout the day, your kind of later in the day flight is less likely to be delayed -- oh, sorry, your earlier in the morning flight is less likely to be delayed.

And also, just kind of, you know, looking for opportunities to take on your baggage instead of checking it in case there are any issues of that getting lost. There are ways that you can, kind of, minimize the disruptions or challenges that you might have.

But I think we can expect at least for the near future that there are going to be little hiccups at the very least for everybody on the road.

DEAN: All right. Those are some good tips. Lindsey Roeschke, thanks so much. We appreciate it.

ROESCHKE: Thanks for having me.

DEAN: Right now, police in Akron, Ohio are giving an update on the investigation into the fatal officer-involved shooting of Jayland Walker, a 25-year-old black man. They are also expected to release the body-cam video from that incident.

Local media affiliates reporting, Walker was shot multiple times during a police chase on Monday, and members of the community, including the local chapter of the NAACP, are demanding answers.

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JUDI HILL, CHAPTER PRESIDENT, NAACP OF AKRON, OHIO: Please help us understand why, for any reason, anyone would have to be shot that many times by that many officers. I don't even think the video will capture how many. I think what it will capture is the scene.

[13:10:00]

And when you look at, from my understanding, when you look at a video like that, there's no way you can justify killing a man 60 times who was running away from a scene.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: CNN does have a crew there at the press briefing. And of course, we're going to keep an eye on that. We'll give you an update as soon as we get more information.

Still ahead today, it's not just travel delays that may get in the way of your 4th of July plans. Possible storms and the rising cost of some barbecue staples are also causing headaches for people all across the country. We're going to have more on that ahead, straight ahead.

Plus, many States are scrambling to set their own abortion policies resulting in a patchwork of laws across the nation. Which States are looking to restrict access? Which are preparing for an influx of patients? We'll talk more about that next.

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[13:15:00]

The Texas Supreme Court has now cleared the way for the civil enforcement of a nearly 100-year-old abortion ban to take effect. They reversed a lower court order that temporarily blocked that law, which meant for a short time abortions up to six weeks were allowed, but not anymore. For more on this, let's bring in Camila Bernal.

Camila, Texas is just one of many States where this abortion fight is now playing out in the courts in the aftermath of Roe V. Wade being overturned by the Supreme Court. Where do things stand right now?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, look, the reality is that every State is doing things differently. So, some of these so-called trigger laws went into effect immediately, while others are still taking some time.

But restrictive abortion laws are in effect in at least six different States, including Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and in Mississippi where there is a trigger law that was certified on Monday by the State's attorney general and then abortions will be prohibited 10 days after that certification.

Now, there are a number of States that are awaiting State or court action that includes Wyoming, North Dakota, Idaho, Tennessee, and Texas. And in more than a dozen States, there are legal fights that are underway over abortion bans and extreme limits on the procedure. So, some of these States include Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Utah.

And then finally, in addition to the trigger laws, there are a number of States that have dissolved court orders blocking the enforcement of restrictive abortion laws.

That includes, as you mentioned, Texas, Alabama, Ohio, and South Carolina. In some cases, if abortions are not already banned, the reality is that it's just a matter of time.

But on the other hand, you have States, like here in California, where legislators, the governor, really doing everything they can to protect the right to an abortion and getting ready for more and more women coming to this State to possibly seek an abortion. But, Jessica, the reality is that all of this is divided along party lines.

DEAN: All right. Camila Bernal with the update for us there. Thanks so much.

And still ahead, rain and storms on the radar for parts of the country, it could impact your holiday plans tomorrow. Also of concern, the rising price for food and any sort of goodies you may want at your barbecue. We'll tell you what's costing more, plus the latest on your forecast, that's next.

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[13:20:00]

Staying home and cooking out this holiday weekend may not be your cheapest option to celebrate. A new survey finds July 4th barbecues will cost substantially more than last year. Experts say the higher prices come from a mix of constant supply chain issues, inflation, and the war in Ukraine. CNN's Christine Romans has more.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN'S CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: That annual ritual, celebrating American independence. From the gas in the car to the fireworks in the sky, everything costs more this year, and the barbecue is no exception.

The American Farm Bureau estimates this year's barbecue feast, on average, will cost you $10 more this year, up 17 percent from a year ago. $69 to feed 10 people, this covers 12 barbecue items.

The Farm Bureau tracks the price of the barbecue fell from 2020 to 2021 and has now roared back. Beef and rib prices up sharply. Beef, 36 percent more expensive than last year. Chicken breast, up 33 percent.

And potato salad, up big, too. Maybe load up on the chips and strawberries here, these prices a bit lower.

Overall, inflation is running the hottest in 40 years because of supply chain glitches, huge demand as people gather again, and the war in Ukraine hurting food and gas supplies. In New York, I'm Christine Romans.

DEAN: Christine, thank you.

And this holiday weekend, much of the U.S., we'll see chances of rain through tomorrow, that could add to travel chaos or disrupt outdoor celebrations.

Heavy rainfall may develop over parts of the Midwest with a severe storm threat there tomorrow. Plus, we're seeing critical fire conditions continue in the Southwest and Alaska. Meteorologist Tom Sater is here with the latest forecast.

Tom, how are things looking?

TOM SATER, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, overall, Jessica, this map has a bark worse than its bite. I mean, when you look at the areas of green where there's rain, there are some key things you got to understand.

In the Southeast, it's scattered. That is the main word, they're pop- up. We're in the middle of summer where these storms have little movement. So, they develop in this high humidity, tremendous heights, and then they just rain themselves out without moving. So, it's like throwing a dart. If it happens to land over an airport, sure, that could cause a slight delay. Monsoon storms, monsoon just means seasonal. It's not as widespread as it looks. And even the severe storms up to the North, I mean, yes, but it's regional flights that will be affected.

This is what you want to see, green. Can we just talk about the weather -- the element -- the elephant in the terminal, is what I'm trying to say? These airlines, no doubt, have problems with staffing, with pilot shortages, with getting the aircraft where they need to be.

But they're fast to throw out, weather's an issue because the flying public thinks that. And says, oh, it must be the weather issue. Overall, it has not been a weather issue.

We had a few storms in the Northeast yesterday with some damaging winds. LaGuardia, sure, a slight delay. But that is all offshore today. We have a little delay in Orlando, 15, 30 minutes notice.

Out around Las Vegas, not much of a weather issue. When you look at these scattered storms, and again, it's like throwing a dart. Could one come over at Hartsfield? Absolutely.

The storm system we had yesterday that did have some damage with it with the winds causing slight delays, but then again, that moves off. It only takes one storm though in LaGuardia, or (INAUDIBLE), or Newark to cause some issues.

But our storm Collin, which was a tropical storm for only 24 hours, that's not affecting anyone. That's offshore. Be careful of rip currents and those on the beach as lifeguards will be busy.

[13:25:00]

But even down to the South, regional flights, for the most part. Could one pop up around Hartsfield? Absolutely. But again, they don't last long.

The threat today is mainly up parts of Montana and the Dakotas. So, regional flights, maybe more for those traveling by car just trying to get to some of the national landmarks, such as, let's say -- you know, parts of around the Badlands, around Mount Rushmore over toward Yosemite.

But again, the heat is on and with this type of heat, again, I cannot stress enough scattered.

Now, tomorrow could become an issue because our threat, it's only a level two but starts to slide toward Minneapolis and Chicago later in the day. So, again, it only takes one airport to kind of throw a wrench in the entire wheel.

But overall, if you're looking at the 4th of July, there's going to be a lot of clearing in parts of the Ohio Valley up toward the Northeast. No storm threat really today. Obviously, some thunderstorms around Atlanta. Pop up mainly clear in parts of the Midwest. It really is not a good

thing to be working with fireworks if you're from the Mississippi River Westward. Many communities are not allowing the fireworks and for good reason, Jessica, last year they learned their lesson.

Many neighborhoods and some, in fact, caught fire. We did have some damage. It'll be clearing overall. But again, the weather is not the biggest issue. And this looks like more rain that we'll probably have across much of the U.S.

DEAN: All right. Hopefully, it cooperates for everyone. Tom Sater, thanks so much.

And make sure to tune in to CNN tomorrow night, July 4th, as we celebrate the 4th in America with some of music's biggest stars. You can catch it all tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. Eastern only on CNN.

Still ahead today, the Supreme Court hands a major blow to the EPA just as scientists are sounding the alarm about global warming. We're going to discuss that next.

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[13:30:00]

The Supreme Court handed down a seismic decision on climate change, Thursday, curbing the federal government's ability to regulate carbon emissions from power plants.

The ruling comes at a time when scientists are sounding the alarm on the pace of global warming. Adam Frank is a professor of astrophysics at the University of Rochester and author of the book "Light of the Stars: Alien Worlds and the Fate of the Earth".

Adam, it's great to have you. Thanks for making time for us today. I just want to start by getting your reaction to the Supreme Court ruling and explain to us why this decision matters, and how it might impact the country's ability to fight climate change.

ADAM FRANK, PROFESSOR OF ASTROPHYSICS, UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER, AUTHOR, "LIGHT OF THE STARS: ALIEN WORLDS AND THE FATE OF THE EARTH": Well, first of all, thank you for having me on, Jessica. It's good to see you again and Happy Independence Day.

This is a terrible decision, right? I mean, what scientists -- as you said, what scientists are recognizing, we've known for decades now that climate change is coming.

We now see it's happening faster than we expected. And what we need is as many tools and as many flexible adaptive tools to make the change that we need to make as possible. And the Supreme Court just took a huge one off the table.

The ability of the EPA to regulate power plants and the amount of carbon dioxide they pump into the atmosphere. And this was just really the coal companies, you know, keeping us all from being able to have this tool, another tool in our toolkit to dealing with climate change.

DEAN: And we know that, historically, the U.S. has been one of the world's biggest contributors to greenhouse gases.

And so, if the U.S. isn't leading the global fight to get these sorts of emissions under control, what type of message, do you think, that sends to the rest of the world? And does it put the fight to curb climate change in jeopardy?

FRANK: Well, you know, if -- there's actually two parts to climate change. One is the enormous amount of human suffering which is going to be generated unless we take care of it.

But the other story is the story of infrastructure and technology. Human beings have gone through many kinds of, you know, energy sources in their life. There used to be cow poop, right?

DEAN: Right.

FRANK: And then it was water and wind, and now -- you know, about, you know, 100 years ago we discovered fossil fuels. And now, the fossil fuel era is ending. And whether it's the United States or somebody else, we're moving onto -- we're moving somewhere else.

And so really what this ruling does is it sort of tells the world that the United States is willing to lose the 21st century. Like, we're not interested in winning the, you know, the competition to build the next kind of energy infrastructure.

And it just means that China or Europe or someone else is going to take that and while we're still trying to win the 20th Century, you know, with old technology, it's as if -- like, typewriter companies in 1980 were not able to pass legislation to keep us from getting a personal computer, like, that's the analogy.

DEAN: So, what you're saying is not only does it curb fighting climate change, it's also preventing the U.S. from really actively leading the way into the technology of the 21st century?

FRANK: Yes, this change is happening. Absolutely. If you look now BlackRock, which is one of the largest asset managers, has already labeled for all of the assets they hold that climate risk is financial risk, right.

The markets are already moving onward. More than 90 percent of the world's economy already has some kind of pledge to become carbon neutral by 2050.

So, what this ruling really does is just, sort of, helps ensure that the United States has its feet stuck in cement while everyone else moves forward and builds the next -- the world's next technologies, energy technologies.

DEAN: And you recently worked with the U.N. to help develop some alternative ways to think about fighting climate change. What did you tell them? What are you hoping to see? FRANK: Well, you know, the main thing is -- you know, planet change is not a technology problem. We, basically -- you know, the amazing changes that have happened in renewables over the last 10 years really show that you know, with more research, we can really solve this problem.

It's a culture, a human culture problem. And the reason they asked me is, I'm an astronomer. And so, what I could give is this perspective on life and planets. Because really, we have the wrong story about climate change.

[13:35:00]

Often, we tell ourselves that, you know, human beings are like a virus. We suck, you know, we're terrible. The earth can't wait to get rid of us. But really, what I could provide was an understanding that the earth has had life on it for three billion years or more.

And the life and the planet have been undergoing evolution together. And this -- what's happening with climate change now has happened before. There have been other times in earth's history where a new form of life emerged and changed the climate that's why there is oxygen, for example, in the atmosphere.

And usually, it doesn't work out very for that new form of life that changes the climate. But what we are, because we have intelligence, we are like cosmic teenagers right now.

And this new story now, it's really -- it's true, right? Because we just -- you know, when we discovered fossil fuels, it wasn't like we purposely trying to destroy the earth, right?

The story that we have to tell is not that we're trying to save the earth, because the earth will be fine. The earth has had worse than us to deal with.

The real question here is not, you know, angering the earth. The earth has so much power that it will shrug us off like fleas on a dog, as they say.

And so, this really understanding, what actually is happening with climate change in terms of the long history of life and the planet and putting ourselves back into the biosphere.

That's the cultural story that we have to -- the new story we have to learn how to tell ourselves. The new story that's actually true about the earth and the planet. And that's one of the fundamental shifts that has to happen.

DEAN: It's fascinating. All right. Adam Frank, thanks so much for your insight. We appreciate it.

FRANK: It was a real pleasure. Thank you.

DEAN: Thanks. Russia says it has taken control of another key city in Eastern Ukraine. We're going to go live to Ukraine to find out why this could take Russia a big step closer to its military goal in that region.

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[13:40:00]

Russian military officials say they've taken control of a key city in the Luhansk region of Eastern Ukraine as fighting intensifies in the area. A takeover would move Russia closer to full control of the Donbas region. CNN Correspondent Scott McLean joining us now live from Kyiv.

Scott, what more can you tell us about this fighting in the Donbas?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Jessica.

The Russians have essentially declared mission accomplished, at least part of their mission. The Russian defense minister says that the Russians have liberated, in their words, the entire Luhansk region.

They have managed to take the City of Lysychansk, this was the last major city in that region. Beyond it to the West were only a few minor settlements between it and the administrative border or boundary, which they say they now control.

But the Russians are not content to stop there. They have been shelling the City of Sloviansk. Local officials there say that six people have died, at least six people have died. There's also been missile strikes reported in Kramatorsk nearby, both of these cities are in the Donetsk region.

Now earlier, the Ukrainians had disputed the characterization that they had lost control of that city. They said that the Russians were actually taking heavy losses.

But about an hour ago, they conceded that, yes, in fact, they did have to withdraw from Lysychansk and pull the troops back. They say that they could have kept fighting but they wanted to preserve the lives of their troops and, obviously, their manpower from a military standpoint.

So, that's why they chose to pull back. They say that they are simply outgunned. They are outmanned, both on land and in the sky. And they said specifically, steel will and patriotism are not enough for success. Material and technical resources are needed.

Now, of course, as we know, the Ukrainians have long been calling for more weapons, more ammunition from their partners in the West. Just this week, they got a new shipment of weapons.

Announced that it is on the way from the United States. Plenty more has been pledged but the Ukrainians say that it's not reaching the front lines quickly enough. The problem is so acute, at least in the minds of ordinary Ukrainians, that many of them are now holding fundraisers for the Ukrainian military, not for humanitarian aid, but they're holding these small- scale fundraisers to buy heavy weapons and ammunition for the troops, Jessica.

DEAN: How much -- how great the need is, they think. Scott, we know Russian officials are also claiming that Ukrainian forces struck inside Russia. What do we know about that?

MCLEAN: Yes, so the Russians say that this happened around 3:00, 3:30 in the morning local time in the Belgorod Region, that's just over the border from Ukraine.

And they say that the Ukrainians fired on a residential area with a missile that also had cluster bombs involved as well. Now, the Russians say that they managed to shoot down that missile and the remnants ended up in that residential area.

But they say that there were no military targets in that area. And so, they're accusing the Ukrainians are targeting civilian sites.

Now, explosions in the Belgorod region and in Russia, in general, are actually not that uncommon over the last couple of months. There have been many of them reported, usually against military installations, fuel depots, and things like that.

But the Ukrainians have never actually officially taken responsibility for them, neither have they taken responsibility for these latest ones either, Jessica.

DEAN: All right. Scott McLean in Ukraine for us. Thanks so much.

Basketball star Brittney Griner's trial in Moscow is expected to resume later this week. The trial began Friday for drug smuggling charges. Prosecutors there say she had less than a gram of cannabis oil in her luggage when she was arrested at a Moscow airport in February.

U.S. officials have said she was wrongfully detained. And her supporters say, she is being used as a political pawn as tensions rise with Russia.

CNN's Abby Phillip spoke exclusively with Griner's wife who hasn't seen Griner since before she was detained. Here is that conversation.

[13:45:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Tell me about what you've been able to hear from Brittney in this time. There was the call that didn't happen. What have you been able to hear from her while she's been in detention?

CHERELLE GRINER, WIFE OF DETAINED WNBA STAR BRITTNEY GRINER: So, I haven't really been able to hear anything that brings me the most assurance about her well-being to that degree because the call would have given me that. So, I don't know how well she's doing.

PHILLIP: Do you trust that the maximum amount of effort is being put forward to bring BG home?

GRINER: No, I don't. And I hate to say that because I do trust that they're -- that the persons working on this are very genuine people, that I do believe. But I don't think the maximum amount of effort is being done because, again, the rhetoric and the actions don't match.

You know, when you have a situation where BG can call our government, the embassy, 11 times and that phone call don't get answered, you don't have my trust at that point until I see actions that are in BG's best interest.

It would have been in her best interest for her phone calls to have been answered. It would be in her best interest for her to be back on U.S. soil. So, until I see things like that, no.

PHILLIP: I know that you've had some conversations with the Secretary of State and with other officials. But you want to talk to President Biden, right?

GRINER: The most beneficial thing that I've been told is, you know, you meet with President Biden. You know, he has that power.

He is a person, you know, that ultimately will make that decision for BG to come home. And so, while everybody else wants to tell me they care, I would love for him to tell me he cares.

PHILLIP: What do you want to tell him? If you were to sit in front of him, what would you say, speaking directly to him?

GRINER: Well, honestly, the first thing is I want to humanize my wife to him.

PHILLIP: There's talk of prisoner swaps being the thing that needs to happen. Is that what you think should be done? Do you think that the administration should say, we will swap who you want for Brittney and bring her home?

GRINER: To be very honest with you, I don't really listen to much of the talk about the how, in measures of, you know, what is necessary to get her home. But if that's what's necessary, then, yes, do it.

PHILLIP: What do you want the world to know that your wife is facing in this so-called trial that she's about to face?

GRINER: Well, that's a really good question. Honestly, I want people to try and just put themselves in her shoes, you know. And just think about the fact that, you know, this is not our typical system.

So, BG is not walking into a situation where there is a balance of justice. She's walking into a situation where their judicial system has a 99 percent conviction rate. So, in their system, there is no innocent. In their system, is guilty.

PHILLIP: Have you seen any of the pictures that have been released this week of her?

GRINER: I have. I have.

PHILLIP: What did you think?

GRINER: It was very disheartening, you know. And honestly, I told you I like to, you know, be very frank with my wife, you know, and authentic when I do write her, you know. And I told her, I said, I saw a picture and honestly, for a second, I thought you were insane.

I said, you know, and it kind of -- you know, took me aback. And so, I told her, I was like, you know, I just want to tell you one thing. I said, if you are losing your mind, just be gracious with yourself because you're human and that's OK. And then when you come back, you know, we will love you back whole.

And I said, if you aren't going insane, you know, just do me a favor and, you know, just try and keep whatever integrity you can control by not allowing them to depict you in ways that are not really, you know, your current state.

I said, so you got to put a hoodie on and cover your head to let -- you know, don't allow them to try and strip you completely to that degree because at the end of the day, they're controlling the media over there, so I try not to take it as just truth. But it did make me worry.

PHILLIP: Has she had a chance to respond?

GRINER: She did.

PHILLIP: OK. What did she say?

GRINER: Well, she laughed. She did. She said, babe, I promise, I'm not a lunatic yet. She said, I haven't completely gone crazy. She said, but I was very shocked because when I turned that corner, it was over 100 news outlets with cameras waiting right there. And she told me that she was also very exhausted because, again, this is not a normal process.

[13:50:00]

So, BG is having to travel over five hours round trip when she goes to court in a very, very, very tiny cage with her knees bent, feet up to the ground because it's not big enough for her to fit in.

So, she is experiencing a lot the days before she walks into court. And so, she was just like -- it was just a lot. I was in a terrible mood. My body was hurting. And just -- I was shocked when I turned that corner.

PHILLIP: Yes. When she first disappeared back in February, when did you first know that something was wrong? GRINER: It was the minute I woke up. You know, it was just too many messages. And the minute that I clicked on the e-mail, she's like, babe, wake up. Wake up. Wake up.

Wake up. And I'm just like, what is going on? And she's like, they have me in this room. I don't know what's going on. You know, I'm like, who are they? Like, what room?

PHILLIP: Your lawyer hat went on.

GRINER: Yes, my lawyer hat went on. I'm like, they? You never use they. Like, who are they? Like -- and that was my first question to her. Who are they? And what room, you know.

And once I got the answers to those questions, that they were TSA agents, I think that's what you call them. And so, you know, I called her agent and I'm like, I need you to get somebody there now. Like, wherever my wife is at, you need to get somebody there now.

PHILLIP: Do you think she's being used as a political pawn by Russia?

GRINER: Honestly, all of this stuff is so new to me. I didn't even understand what a political pawn was for a minute. And you know --

PHILLIP: But I mean, she's a --

GRINER: -- somebody else may see it that way.

PHILLIP: -- she's an American. She's a black woman. She's a lesbian woman. All those things, I mean, when you realized, kind of, the context around that, what did you think?

GRINER: It was a big pill to swallow. I just didn't understand it. Like, it felt like a movie for me. You know, I didn't understand these terms and these words. And my mind, BG is just my best friend, you know.

So, I know she's a big deal, but did I ever think that she could be big enough to where somebody would want to use her to get something else? No. You know, so it was really hard for me to grasp that, you know.

But then I realized, like, the answer to that question is, yes, you know. Like, yes, can they get something in return for BG? Yes, they can. Are they willing to do that? Yes. And at this point I want them to. Whatever you want, please ask.

PHILLIP: There are a lot of families who are going through what you are going through. Paul Whelan is still in Russia. Trevor Reed just returned. What has your connection been like with those other families of wrongfully detained Americans?

GRINER: They were so loving. I just met, you know, some very genuine broken people. And they were, you know, arms wide open for me for support in any type of way throughout the process. And the first thing they said was, you know, do not be quiet about

this. Do not let them forget about your loved one. They will forget about your loved one. We are three years in. We are four years in.

And my heart was breaking here, you know because I prayed to God, you know, three years does not pass by and BG is till wrongfully detained in Russia.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: All right. Our thanks to Abby Phillip for that exclusive interview.

Still ahead this afternoon, anchovies. Yes, anchovies reportedly raining down from the sky across San Francisco. We're going to tell you why the shores in the bay are covered with the fish, ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:55:00]

ANNOUNCER: Celebrate the Fourth in America. Live July 4th at 7:00 on CNN.

DEAN: In California, a massive die-off event has a lagoon lying with thousands of anchovies. While scientists are still determining what brought them ashore, one thing is for sure, the seagulls there are having quite a feast.

And that's leading to a bizarre phenomenon of fish falling out of the sky. CNN affiliate KGO reports.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMANDA DEL CASTILLO, CNN AFFILIATE, KGO: The Bolinas Lagoon shore, seemingly painted silver by a school of anchovy. This photo showing the mass die-off event that happened earlier this week in Marin County.

MAX KORTEN, DIRECTOR, MARIN COUNTY PARKS: This is just one of those times where we kind of get to see just the sheer number of -- the size of these schools of fish. So, it's kind of amazing.

DEL CASTILLO: Amazing and a mystery. There's still uncertainty about why the thousands of fish ended up here. Here is County Parks Director, Max Korten.

KORTEN: What likely happened is, you know, some kind of predator out in the ocean encountered a school of anchovy somewhere near the mouth of Bolinas Lagoon.

DEL CASTILLO: Possibly drawing the anchovy into shallow water where they sucked up the limited oxygen and suffocated. Researcher, Jim Ervin, says that ending is likely, though he believes something else may have attracted the anchovy to the lagoon.

JIM ERVIN, VOLUNTEER RESEARCHER, UC DAVIS, OTOLITH GEOCHEMISTRY AND FISH ECOLOGY LAB: Hungry anchovies go where the food is.

DEL CASTILLO: A volunteer at UC Davis's Otolith Geochemistry and Fish Ecology Lab, he says this La Nina year is generating more food production and the foraging fish follow.

Ervin says, the cool water is bringing in more anchovy than we've seen in the last 10 years off our coast than in the bay. The abundance is good news for seabirds. Interesting news for anyone seeing anchovy far from water.

ERVIN: People might not want to visualize this, but I think they're barfing. I think they're flying over and -- I can't take it anymore. I got to release -- I would imagine but, yes, they're feasting so much. They -- yes, there's more fish than they know what to do with.

DEL CASTILLO: As more is done to determine what led to the mass die- off, experts say don't panic, this has happened several times over the last few decades.