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Former White House Counsel Pat Cipollone Speaks For Seven Hours With House January 6th Committee; Abortion Rights Rally Takes Place In Washington D.C. To Protest Supreme Court Overturning Roe Versus Wade; President Biden Signs Executive Order Safeguarding Access To Reproductive Services; COVID Infections Spreading Across Much Of U.S. Over Summer Due To New Subvariants; White House Continues Efforts To Increase Supply Of Baby Formula In Stores; Body Of Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Returned To Tokyo Ahead Of Funeral; Russian Artillery Hits Residential Areas Of Kharkiv, Ukraine; WNBA Star Brittney Griner Pleads Guilty In Russian Court To Carrying Small Amount Of Cannabis Oil In Luggage; Los Angeles County Fire Department And FBI Team Up To Reduce Drones Preventing Firefighting Efforts. Aired 2-3p ET.

Aired July 09, 2022 - 14:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:00:41]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Saturday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We continue to follow major new developments in the Capitol riot investigation. The panel just got key testimony from one of the most important witnesses yet, former White House counsel Pat Cipollone, testifying before the January 6th Committee for more than seven hours on Friday. A source says Cipollone provided a great deal of new information.

And we also are learning of chilling new details of alleged plans by members of the Oath Keepers to prepare for violence in Washington on January 6th.

A new Justice Department filing says at least one member of the far- right extremist group transported explosives to the D.C. area, and another member had a death list that included the name of a Georgia election official and their family member.

For more on these stunning new allegations, let's bring back Marshall Cohen. Marshall, what more can you tell us about this court filing?

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN REPORTER: Hey, Fred. It was a significant filing from the Justice Department in what very well might be the most important criminal case that has been brought so far related to January 6th.

We're talking about the seditious conspiracy case against several members of the Oath Keepers, that's the far-right extremist group that supported Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the results and had many of its members storming the Capitol that day on January 6th.

The new details shed some light on what these militants are alleged to have been doing during the transition period. What was supposed to be a peaceful transition ended up not so peaceful, according to prosecutors, thanks in part to the plans of this group.

They did training sessions. They practiced ambush style attacks. They stockpiled weapons, ammunition, and according to these new filings, even some explosives were brought to Washington, D.C.

That's in addition to everything that we've already learned from this case over the previous year about what they call a quick reaction force with weapons stashed away at a Virginia hotel just in case they needed it.

Thank goodness they never actually crossed the river into Washington, D.C. that day. But all of this bolsters what the Justice Department says is the seditious part of all this, Fred, to plan to violently disrupt the peaceful transfer of power, to stop Joe Biden from taking office by force. That's what this case is all about. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: Wow, it continues to get even more shocking as we learn more information. So Marshall, what else do we know about now Pat Cipollone's seven plus hours of testimony before the panel yesterday?

COHEN: We've learned a little bit. We're going to learn so much more in the next few days because it was a videotaped deposition seven hours long. The committee will have its first opportunity on Tuesday to publicly release some of those clips because they have a hearing coming up on Tuesday.

Cipollone is an absolutely essential piece of this puzzle. As the White House counsel, he was there for critical moments, real make or break moments when our democracy was on the line, when Donald Trump considered going to some truly extreme measures, things like sending in the military to seize voting equipment, declaring martial law, things like that.

Reports indicate that Cipollone was regularly pushing back against those crazy ideas. You can bet that the committee asked him all about that. We'll learn in the coming days how much he was able to divulge.

There's questions of executive privilege and other things like that. But the fact that he simply went in to talk was a pretty major breakthrough for this committee, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Marshall Cohen, thank you so much. Of course, we all look forward to Tuesday.

And right now, a major abortion rights rally is under way in the nation's capital. Protesters have been marching, they're also staging sit-ins. And right now many of them have gathered right outside the White House.

It comes just a day after President Biden signed an executive order to safeguard access to reproductive services following the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling which overturned Roe v. Wade.

CNN's Brian Todd is at the march in Washington while CNN's Jeremy Diamond is traveling with the president in Delaware. So Brian, you first. What's happening?

[14:05:05]

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, an intermittent but sometimes driving rainstorm has not stopped hundreds of these protesters from going from here in Franklin Square Park to the White House and then back here to Franklin Square Park.

They just marched past us on their way back to the White House and are gathering in the center of Franklin Square Park. We'll walk with them a little bit.

A little bit ago we saw several protesters press against the White House fence and some of them actually tied themselves to the White House fence. The protest leaders did brief the protesters as they marched toward the White House that they should prepare for the possibility of getting arrested, and that if they wanted to risk getting arrested, they could go up to the White House fence.

But they did go to the White House fence, and we did not witness any arrests. The protests were very peaceful. There were police in the crowd, but they were kind of letting them do their thing and not really wanting to get in the middle of it as long as it was peaceful, and it was.

Then they broke down and said they wanted to come back here. Now they're playing some music and some people I think are getting ready to speak over here, as you see them gathering near the dais here.

There are so many potential residual effects to the overturning of Roe versus Wade that we talked to people about and that people here are really concerned about, worried about, angry about. One of them is the safety of abortions.

I talked to one protester who said abortions are not going to end in the United States, they're just going to become more dangerous. That's one thing they're concerned about.

Another thing is many of them told us they believe the overturning the Roe is just the first step. Justice Clarence Thomas implied very strongly that they could, if the right court case was before them, go after other reproductive rights like IUDs or plan b pills.

A lot of protesters here are concerned about that, and they're plotting strategy to move forward. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: OK, and then Jeremy, to you there traveling with the president, the president signed the executive order, but he's also encouraging voters to make their voices heard this November.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Fredricka. As President Biden was signing that executive order yesterday at the White House, he made very clear that ultimately what needs to happen is voters need to elect more Democrats to the Senate so that they can pass a law enshrining those abortion rights into law and to push back against that Supreme Court ruling.

But the president signing this executive order under immense pressure from abortion rights activists to do more, and he did sign that executive order two weeks after the Supreme Court overturned Roe versus Wade.

This order looks to protect access to reproductive health care rights, including abortion medication, protecting patient privacy and safety, and also it establishes an inner agency taskforce that includes the Health and Health Services secretary as well as the attorney general.

It also directs the Health and Health Services Secretary Xavier Becerra to submit a report within 30 days identifying potential actions and also outlining the actions that he's already taken.

But the reality is that this executive order doesn't go nearly as far as some abortion rights activists would like it to do. And frankly, it's very vague in terms of what those steps that I just outlined actually would be and what they would actually do.

The White House official, Jen Klein, pushing back on some of those frustrations but also addressing them yesterday. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEN KLEIN, DIRECTOR, WHITE HOUSE GENDER POLICY COUNCIL: I know it feels frustrating because we're taking action and then asking for more action. You can't solve by executive action what the Supreme Court has done.

The Supreme Court has taken away a constitutional right that was precedent for nearly 50 years, and I think we all need to be mindful, he is very mindful, we are all mindful, that that can't be solved by executive action alone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: And that is ultimately the White House's bottom line position here. They are going to do what they can via executive action, via agency action, but ultimately the president urging stands. Vote, vote, vote, are the words we heard the president use yesterday so that he can get that law passed and ultimately signed. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: Jeremy Diamond, Brian Todd, thanks to both of you, appreciate it.

Let's talk more about all of this. Fatima Goss Graves, she is the president and CEO of the National Women's Law Center. Good to see you again. So your reaction to this executive order? Does the president's plan go far enough, in your view?

FATIMA GOSS GRAVES, PRESIDENT AND CEO, NATIONAL WOMEN'S LAW CENTER: It was a really important first step, for sure. What the president is doing is putting the full weight of the government behind this legal and public health crisis that we are facing.

And it will make a difference, I believe, in terms of accessing medication abortion, in terms of assuring that people's privacy rights are protected. And at the same time, it isn't going to be enough until he goes further.

[14:10:00]

We are in a situation where we are asking not just this president but everyone to do more than they ever thought they would have to do to protect our rights. And that is because the Supreme Court has unleashed such tremendous chaos in this country. So he has to stretch.

WHITFIELD: Stretch in what way? What do you mean until he goes further? How much farther can he go?

GRAVES: There are lots of things that people are waiting. Many of us have called for him to declare a public health emergency, for example. What we are seeing right now in terms of people being able to access care in their community and the chaos that's happening, we're at that stage. So I think that's one of the places that we hope he will go next.

I also think we have to see the federal government assisting the many people who are trying to be helpers in this time, helping people secure access to abortion. That takes dollars. That takes a lot of navigating our complicated legal landscape.

WHITFIELD: So this is some of what President Biden said yesterday as he signed his executive order. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The executive order directs HHS to identify ways to expand access to reproductive health services, like IUDs, birth control pills, emergency contraception. And equally important, this executive order protects patient privacy and access to information.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So the key language he's using there, he's talking about protecting women's privacy. There are some experts who say apps used to track women's fertility could pose serious risk to privacy rights in states where abortions are being banned. What are your concerns about that?

GRAVES: People should be concerned about that. These apps are not secure in terms of our data, so people have been putting in this data without understanding that. And we expect state attorney generals, local district attorneys, to be accessing that information and using it.

What we will see in the coming weeks are two types of things. We will see prosecutions of individuals that feel deeply unfair. And we will see public health type emergencies where people aren't getting the care they need. And so he is addressing the root causes of both.

WHITFIELD: And do you think there is anything that can take place to protect the people that you just laid out who potentially could be prosecuted as early as this week?

GRAVES: So here's the thing. I hope that the Department of Justice will speak more and provide clarity, clarity for providers, but also clarity that these rogue states can't undo things that are at the federal level.

And in the meantime, we are working our best to ensure that as many people are as safe as possible. The advice is to do things like delete these apps. They are not safe. Unless you have that certainty, they can be used against you.

This is a time where one in four people engage in conduct and it is suddenly and abruptly illegal. It's going to be chaotic.

WHITFIELD: All right, Fatima Goss Graves, good to see you again, thank you so much.

Still ahead, COVID infections surging across much of the U.S. this summer. The CDC now says nearly a third of the U.S. population lives in a county with a high level of COVID in the community. We'll have the latest on the coronavirus pandemic.

And the White House is working to get more formula, baby formula on the store shelves as retailers continue to limit how much people can buy. That right after this.

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[14:18:11]

WHITFIELD: There are growing concerns over a surge of COVID infections spreading across much of the U.S. this summer. The CDC says nearly a third of Americans are living in a county with a high COVID- 19 community level.

That means people in those areas of high spread should be wearing masks indoors to slow the spread, according to the agency. The CDC is also warning that official case counts no longer represent the true level of community transmission.

CNN's Polo Sandoval is here with more on all of this. So Polo, what more are we learning about the rise in COVID cases?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For starters, Fred, you made a really important point here. This is just the reported number of cases. The CDC is aware there are so many people that test at home and end up testing positive, so those aren't even considered when you look at the current numbers right now.

It really is shaping up to be the summer of subvariants, specifically BA.4 and BA.5 of the Omicron coronavirus variant. We've heard from researchers the big concern is even though vaccination continues to provide the best protection, it seems that these two subvariants seem to at least escape that initial antibody response for those who have been fully vaccinated and boosted as well as those who have recovered from COVID.

But in terms of the numbers, we have seen a significant increase. And what concerns officials are some of these numbers that I have to share with you from the CDC that's now showing BA.5 is now causing more than half of current COVID infections throughout the country right now.

And when you look at the map, you certainly see where some of those trouble spots have been seen. But again, this is only the reported number of cases here. Here in New York, for example, test positivity about 14 percent. That's the highest we've seen in months.

But what concerns health officials is right now about 32 percent of Americans are living with high COVID-19 community levels. That is the same as what we saw last week. But still, it's higher than the 23 percent that we saw about two weeks ago.

[14:20:05]

The concern so great right now that here in New York City, officials just yesterday appealed to the public, saying, if you can, wear high grade masks in crowded indoor spaces, public spaces, and particularly in outdoor spaces as well. Here is Mayor Eric Adams and some remarks that he shared this week.

All right, I can tell you that really the mayor is saying that currently we are in a good and stable place. We will try to get that sound for you a little later, but basically saying we are in a good, stable place.

We are beginning to see again what New York was like before the pandemic, but nonetheless not completely out of the woods yet. So again, issuing that recommendation, Fred. It's important that people use those masks indoors in public spaces because of these two subvariants that are showing no signs of slowing this summer.

WHITFIELD: Right, don't let your guard down as yet. Thank you so much, Polo Sandoval.

SANDOVAL: Thanks, Fred.

WHITFIELD: The White House continues its work to get more baby formula on store shelves. Just this week, President Biden announced the 15th and 16th operation fly formula missions to deliver to the U.S. around 200,000 pounds of formula from England and about 100,000 pounds of formula from Switzerland. CNN health reporter Jacqueline Howard has more on the current formula shortage. Jacqueline?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: Parents across the country still struggle to find formula. And here's what the current situation looks like. More than 20 percent of formula products have been out of stock for the past month.

That includes powder, ready to drink, and liquid formula. And to try to help inventory, this week retailers continued to limit how much people can buy at stores. Kroger said it was limiting purchases to four containers per person.

Target and CVS both confirmed to CNN they had limits in place. And Walgreens was limiting customers to three items per transaction for all infant and toddler formula. And of course, the demand for formula remains high. So we'll continue to keep an eye on this situation as it develops. Back to you.

WHITFIELD: Jacqueline Howard, thank you so much.

Coming up, the body of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is back in Tokyo following his assassination in western Japan. The latest on the investigation, straight ahead.

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[14:26:58]

WHITFIELD: The body of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe was returned to Tokyo today ahead of his funeral next week. The former statesman was assassinated Friday while making a campaign speech in Nara, Japan. CNN's Blake Essig has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

BLAKE ESSIG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: One of Japan's most high-profile figures, although controversial at times, Shinzo Abe was respected and beloved by many. In the wake of his death, condolences have been pouring in from around the world.

JOE BIDEN, (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I would like to say just a very few words about the horrific, shocking killing of my friend, Japanese Prime Minister Abe. Service to his country and his people was in his bones. Even after he stepped down from public office to focus on his hotel, he stayed engaged. He cared deeply, and I hold him in great respect.

ESSIG: Here in Japan, people are saddened and stunned. A country with one of the lowest gun crime rates shaken by Abe's violent death.

KAORI YOSHIDA, TOKYO RESIDENT (through translator): People thought Japan was safe. We never imagined he would lose his life in that way. What happened feels like an incident that shook the foundations of Japan's safety.

RYUJI TESHIMA, SAGA PREFECTURE RESIDENT (through translator): In all honesty, I don't think this is a security issue. The person who did this is in the wrong. So then how can we build a society where these kinds of things don't happen? That's what I want.

ESSIG: In Tokyo, hundreds gathered in the streets close to Abe's home, mourning a leader who left a strong legacy.

TESHIMA (through translator): Really, when I remember all the things Abe did for Japan, I feel like I'm going to get teary-eyed. I wanted to pay my final respects to him.

ESSIG: Japan's prime minister also mourning his former colleague and friend.

FUMIO KISHIDA, JAPAN PRIME MINISTER (through translator): As a colleague and a cabinet member supporting the Abe cabinet, he was a good friend of mine who I spent a lot of time with. I have no words. I would like to express my condolences from the bottom of my heart.

ESSIG: The funeral and memorial service for the former prime minister will be held on Monday and Tuesday with attendance limited to close family and friends. But the entire nation will be grieving. Feelings of sadness, anger and shock still settling in.

Blake Essig, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

WHITFIELD: Here to discuss the implications of Abe's assassination, Atlantic council senior fellow Jamie Metzl. He is also a former executive vice president of the Asia Society and a former national security council staff member in the Clinton administration. So good to see you, Jamie. So even though he had stepped down as prime minister, Abe was still a towering figure in Japanese politics. So how might this assassination reshape the country?

[14:30:00]

JAMIE METZL, SENIOR FELLOW, ATLANTIC COUNCIL: Prime Minister Abe wasn't just a towering figure. He was one of the most important political figures in all of post-war Japan. And he represented the idea that Japan has earned the right to be a normal country like any other country with its own military, able to function like any other military.

And he is going to be in many ways more powerful alive, through his legacy, than even he was just a week ago. It's almost like Obi-Wan Kenobi, because this idea that Japan has earned this right to be normal, I think that's taken root. And we're going to see a very, very different Japan going forward.

WHITFIELD: And then under Abe relations with China and South Korea were seen by many as rather chilly. So will his influence over those relationships change now that he is gone?

METZL: We need to differentiate between Japan's relation with China and with Korea. Korea has had a lot of tension with Japan. Japan, as you know, is Korea's former colonial overlord, and there's still a lot of bad feeling and sensitivity. And people on both sides are trying in good faith to improve that relationship.

China is totally different. There was a very brutal history of Japan's occupation and role in China during the Second World War. But the Chinese government has been absolutely manipulative in its relationship with Japan, has fully distorted the history. And certainly about 7.5 million Chinese people died under Japanese

occupation in the Second World War, and obviously that's horrific, but China continually harps on that without referencing that 47 million Chinese people died under Mao and the Chinese Communist Party, which is in many ways responsible for all of those deaths, never mentions it.

So I think we need to differentiate Korean-Japanese relationships, and that is, I think, on the mend, and maybe this will create an opportunity, and Japan's relationship with China, where China has been manipulative, ruthless, and Japan has realized that there is no possible partnership with China, and that's why it needs a stronger relationship with the United States, with Korea, with Australia, India, and others.

WHITFIELD: OK, and now let's zero in on this alleged shooter. When police searched this confessed shooter's house, they found multiple homemade guns. So will this force Japan to reexamine its belief that there is no gun culture in that country? Obviously, this is still an anomaly, but how do you see this incident, this assassination reshaping their feeling of safety and guns?

METZL: Well, there's an intangible feeling of safety. And so if you feel unsafe, you feel unsafe regardless of the statistics. But Japan was and is one of the safest countries in the world. They have one of the lowest incidents of gun violence in the world.

And really, this is not a case like we have here in the United States where everybody has a gun. This was somebody who made their own gun. And so I don't think this will have much of an implication on the story of guns in Japan.

But Japan also has a question, not nearly as strong as we do in the United States, is what constitutes a culture? How do we come together, how do we make sure we have the level of diversity that's healthy in any democracy, but also the level, the right amount of coming together around shared goals?

And that's why not just the opportunity of grieving around this terrible loss of Prime Minister Abe, but this is a moment of soul searching for Japan about what Japan wants the next century, its next century to look like.

And as I said earlier, what Prime Minister Abe represented is that Japan has the right to be a normal country with a normal military.

And Japan deserves to celebrate its incredible record over the past 70 plus years of leading the world in humanitarian aid, in helping the most vulnerable populations around the world. Prime Minister Abe in many ways was committed to that future, and I believe that Japan has a very bright future ahead.

WHITFIELD: All right, Jamie Metzl, a pleasure to have you. Thank you very much.

METZL: My pleasure, any time. WHITFIELD: A Ukrainian official says Russia launched six missile

strikes on a residential area of the city of Mykolaiv in southern Ukraine earlier today. And then in Kharkiv, Russian artillery hit residential areas of that city as well.

At least four civilians were hospitalized, including one child, according to Ukrainian military officials. And video shows extensive damage to an apartment block on the city's outskirts. Russian forces have intensified their attacks in the area in recent weeks.

CNN's Alex Marquardt is in Kharkiv. So Alex, what more can you tell us as you are now in nightfall?

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, the city was rocked by that attack in downtown Kharkiv earlier today. And it was particularly unnerving for this city because it was in the center of the city, and it was during daylight when many of the strikes tend to take place at night and farther from the city center.

Now, we did hear from the regional military administration that said that the Russians are acting unpredictably, trying to intimidate the civilian population. Fred, we visited the site of the strike from earlier today. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

MARQUARDT: This is what it looks and feels like these days to live in Ukraine's second biggest city. It was a beautiful Saturday morning here in Kharkiv until 10:00 when the sound of a huge explosion just tore across this city.

And this is where that Russian strike happened. Just look at the size of this missile strike. It left a huge crater in one of the most central areas of the city. This is one of the most central strikes in recent weeks.

We are in the inside courtyard of a two-story residential building. The force of the blast taking down the two floors of that house right there. We're told by a neighbor that the family that lives there, thankfully, had left.

They now live in Germany. And the authorities are saying that no one was killed in the strike. There are, however, several wounded. One of them who was a woman who lived right over there, she was caught under the rubble.

And she actually called her daughter from under that rubble before she was taken away by rescuers to the hospital.

We met her daughter when we got here to the scene. She was understandably very troubled. She was on the phone with her mother. She was picking up things for her mother to take to the hospital, her wheelchair, some clothes, and her pet bird.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

MARQUARDT: So Fredricka, local officials are asking people to stay off the streets, to stay in safe places. But violence is also flaring up in the southern part of this country, particularly around the cities of Kherson and Mykolaiv.

Kherson, which is controlled by the Russians, has an airport just to the north of the city that was hit by the Ukrainians today. There was a military stockpile there. It has been hit repeatedly by the Ukrainian side.

And then over in Mykolaiv, the mayor says that six missiles from the Russian side hit that city, targeting both residential and business buildings. Thankfully, the mayor says, no one was hurt. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: All right, Alex Marquardt, thank you so much.

And we'll be right back.

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[14:41:56]

WHITFIELD: And this just into CNN. Oprah Winfrey has announced the death of her father. Earlier today Oprah said Vernon Winfrey passed away Friday after battling cancer. Vernon was a well-known barber in his community and served on the Metro Nashville Council for 16 years.

On her personal Instagram, Oprah wrote a tribute to her dad, writing, "Yesterday, with family surrounding his bedside, I had the sacred honor of witnessing the man responsible for my life take his last breath. We could feel peace enter the room at his passing." Vernon Winfrey was 89 years old. Our condolences.

As pressure builds to bring detained Americans home from Russia, President Biden surprised Paul Whelan's family with a phone call. A White House official says the president connected with Paul's sister Elizabeth after she questioned his concern for her brother's situation.

Whelan was accused of spying in 2018 and has been detained since. A statement issued on the family's behalf says they were touched by Biden's empathy for their distress and are confident in the administration's efforts to bring Paul home.

And WNBA superstar and Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner has pleaded guilty to drug smuggling charges in Russian court. Her lawyers say it was her own choice to do so and they hope Russian prosecutors will give Griner some leniency. CNN's Brian Todd reports on how this may help expedite a potential release.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

TODD: Brittney Griner doesn't speak as she's led in handcuffs outside the courtroom. But inside, the American basketball star's words were captured in an audio recording. BRITTNEY GRINER, WNBA PLAYER: I would like to plead guilty on the

charges. But I had no intention on breaking any Russian laws.

TODD: Griner told the judge she wants to give her testimony later.

After the hearing, Griner's lawyers gave more detail on the less than one gram of cannabis oil Russian officials said Griner was carrying when she was apprehended at a Moscow airport in February.

ALEXANDER BOIKOV, ATTORNEY FOR BRITTNEY GRINER: She admitted that it was hers. But she said that it was unintentionally brought to Russia because she was in a hurry as she was packing, and it was just by accident that it ended up in her luggage.

TODD: Why would Griner plead guilty? Experts say one reason is that an estimated 99 percent of all criminal cases in Russia end up in convictions anyway.

TOM FIRESTONE, FORMER RESIDENT LEGAL ADVISER, U.S. EMBASSY IN MOSCOW: The good, the smart move is to admit guilt and try to get a lesser sentence. The Russian government has made noises recently about saying that there can't be an exchange until she is convicted. So this may expedite that process.

TODD: The White House responded to Griner's guilty plea by saying they're working aggressively to bring her home.

[14:45:02]

And Secretary of State Antony Blinken tweeted "We will not relent until Brittney, Paul Whelan, and all other wrongfully detained Americans are reunited with loved ones."

One of America's top diplomats in Russia said she was able to speak to Griner in court and shared detail on her condition.

ELIZABETH ROOD, DEPUTY CHIEF OF MISSION, U.S. EMBASSY, MOSCOW: She said that she's eating well. She's able to read books. And under the circumstances she's doing well. Most important, I was able to share with Ms. Griner a letter from President Biden, and Ms. Griner was able to read that letter.

TODD: President Biden's letter to Griner, following her letter to him pleading for her release, part of a ramped-up pressure campaign on the Biden administration by Griner's family and advocates, including a rally on Wednesday night in Phoenix.

CHERELLE GRINER, BRITTNEY GRINER'S WIFE: I'm frustrated that my wife is not going to get justice.

TODD: Has her family's pressure and the Biden administration's reaction to it raised the asking price for Brittney Griner in a trade?

SUSAN GLASSER, STAFF WRITER, "THE NEW YORKER": Well, that's an interesting question. The Russians are nothing if not mercenary. So the more prominent the person that they've managed to detain, the hostage, if you will, obviously the more they think they can get for that. And that, really, I think people should understand, this is essentially a hostage-taking.

TODD: Meanwhile, U.S. officials and outside analysts remain concerned about the conditions in which Brittany Griner is being held. Her lawyers have just revealed that Griner and her wife Cherelle have not been able to speak on the phone since her arrest on February.

They say Russian officials have granted permission for a call, but because of logistical issues and an arranged call that was botched by the U.S. embassy, it hasn't happened. The couple has been able to exchange letters.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

WHITFIELD: Still ahead, a battle to bring down rogue drones in California. How the L.A. County Fire Department and the FBI are teaming up to take down offenders standing in the way of efforts to put out wildfires.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:51:22]

WHITFIELD: A section of Yosemite National Park is currently engulfed in flames as the Washburn fire burns toward the home of over 500 mature giant sequoia trees. But while firefighters work to extinguish a growing number of fires across the west, just one unauthorized drone is all it takes to bring the efforts to a standstill.

CNN's Stephanie Elam has the exclusive story on a first of its kind program in California to get drones out of the danger zone.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just one rogue drone --

CAPT. DAVID LAUB, LOS ANGELES COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT: It makes our aircraft divert or land.

ELAM (voice-over): -- is all it takes to ground a firefight from the sky.

LAUB: It's in mandatory stop operations when we see drones operating in our emergency locations. We don't know what the operators going to do, so the potential damage to our helicopters or our fixed wing is extensive.

ELAM (voice-over): Let alone the danger to firefighters on the ground. Yet while unauthorized drones can stop aircraft from dropping crucial water or fire retardant on a blaze, that blaze churns on.

LAUB: It continues to burn, it continues to get bigger, it threatens people's homes, property, the environment.

ELAM (voice-over): But Los Angeles County Fire is now going on the offensive, partnering with the FBI in a first of its kind drone deterrent program that can hone-in on offending drones in seconds.

JAMES PEACO III, WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION COORDINATOR, FBI: When the detection equipment finds a drone and identifies the operator's location, we can very rapidly get that information to a ground intercept team who can then go make contact with that drone operator.

LAUB: I set this up so that I would be notified if a drone crosses within the location, and it is very accurate. Speed, direction, elevation, where he took off from, and where he's standing.

ELAM (on-camera): What happens when they do get to whoever's operating the drone?

PEACO: The first thing we do is order them to bring the drone back, explain to him that there's a wildfire and flying that drone during a wildland fire is actually a federal felony.

We break the violators into three categories -- clueless, careless, and criminal. And if it's just clueless or careless, we'll either issue a citation, or even just warn them off and tell them not to do it. The overwhelming majority of people are happy to comply.

CAPT. MICHAEL NARDONE, LOS ANGELES COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT: Oh, it's been a great game changer.

ELAM (voice-over): Los Angeles County Fire also deploys its own drones to battle structure fires and wildland blazes.

NARDONE: They can get a bird's eye view.

ELAM (voice-over): Helping first responders scout fires and target hotspots.

NARDONE: We can do a 360-degree lap around the entire fire and really pinpoint where the fire is without having to put firefighters in harm's way.

ELAM (voice-over): Optimally from 50 to 200 feet away, watching this demonstration for CNN, as the drones' high-definition camera detects the temperature of the fire and any people nearby.

NARDONE: I can switch from regular video screen to infrared screen so you can see where the hotspots are in the building. So we can see pretty much anything and everything we'd like to see.

ELAM (voice-over): Putting eyes in the sky where they need them and keeping them away from places where they shouldn't be.

Stephanie Elam, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: Thanks so much for joining me today. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The CNN Newsroom with Phil Mattingly continues right after this.

But first, this quick programming note. "United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell" is back with lucky season seven tomorrow night at 10:00 here on CNN. Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

W. KAMAU BELL, HOST, "UNITED SHADES OF AMERICA": Are you ready?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, yes, I came ready.

BELL: On the new season of "United Shades of America," I'm back on the road --

[14:55:02]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know what they say. Safety third.

BELL: -- and back in the conversation.

I think you've had an a-wokening.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have.

BELL: I feel good about this.

How would you define woke?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is that a question.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sort of afraid to ask it now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We often look at athletes as machines, not humans.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All my nightmares are happening right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can either accept a narrative, or you can get to know somebody.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If I'm telling you my lived experience, acknowledge and believe me even if you have never lived that experience.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are lucky to live here, but there's a whole other side of the story.

BELL: Does that mean at the core of it, land back, we want the whole country back?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's a big question.

(LAUGHTER)

BELL: I'm here to ask the big questions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The idea is not that we're never going to have fire here again. But when we do, it won't be hot enough to kill all these trees.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First time lighting a fire and not being yelled at by my mom.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is kind of cool.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The new season of "United Shades of America" with W. Kamau Bell premiers tomorrow night at 10:00 on CNN.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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