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Right-Wing Media Blames Everything But Guns For Mass Shootings; New Dominant Strain Of COVID-19; Dangerous Heat Wave Expanding Across U.S.; Abortion Activists Protest at White House, Urge Biden to Do More; Biden Signs Executive Order to Protect Women's Reproductive Health; Source: Pat Cipollone Provided "Great Deal" of New Information to 1/6 Committee; Protests Rock the Streets of Sri Lanka's Capital. Aired 8-9p ET
Aired July 09, 2022 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED CNN CORRESPONDENT: Three services were held today for some of the verdicts of the July Fourth parade victims in Highland Park.
UNIDENTIFIED CNN CORRESPONDENT: The gunman's family under scrutiny. Police records show police were called 12 times.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What makes someone this evil? I'll never have an answer to that.
(CHANTING)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's just so many things that are at stake right now so we have to fight back.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What we're looking for is an order for the public health emergency.
(SHOUTING)
VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER: Protests over Sri Lanka's worst economic crisis culminating into this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translation): We must chase them. They must go. It's time for us to think of the country.
PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: Crowds gathering to pay their respects to the former prime minister of Japan Shinzo Abe.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What happens feel like an incident that shook the foundations of Japan's safety.
UNIDENTIFIED CNN CORRESPONDENT: The funeral and services for the prime minister will be held Monday and Tuesday with attendance limited to close family and friends.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: I'm Pamela Brown in Washington. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM on this Saturday.
Hundreds of pro-choice protesters in the streets of Washington today demanding more action a day after President Biden signed an executive order to try to protect abortion rights.
Our Brian Todd has been out with the crowds -- Brian?
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pamela, an intermittent, and sometimes driving series of rainstorms didn't stop hundreds of protesters from gathering here in Franklin Square Park and marching over to the White House.
A very impassionate crowd as they gathered here and gave speeches and then marched toward the White House to protest in front of the White House.
Some were briefed that if they pressed against the White House fence. Many still did that. Some actually tied themselves to the White House fence briefly. But we didn't witness arrests.
There were police around there. Some Secret Service police in the crowds. They didn't interfere with what the protesters were doing as long as they were peaceful.
And by and large, they were peaceful all day long as the crowd mills around here and music is playing on the stage.
I can tell you some themes here about overturning of Roe v. Wade are really playing heavily on this crowd. And a couple of them are this. One is they're afraid the Supreme Court is not going to stop with the overturning of Roe.
Several protesters told us they're really concerned if the right case is before the court, the court will use that case as a reason to go after reproductive rights like Plan B pills and IUDs. They're just really concerned that Roe v. Wade will not be the end of this.
Another big concern is safety. Several protesters told us that abortion is not going to end with the overturning of Roe but it will be more unsafe. That's what they're worried about.
We talked to two young ladies who are sexual assault victims who said, for people like them, seeking an abortion, they're afraid it will be much, much more difficult from here.
What they're doing is plotting strategy. This is going to be a state- by-state issue with a lot of these battles tied up in courts. And they're starting to prepare strategies for taking it to the states now -- Pamela?
BROWN: Thanks so much, Brian. For weeks, activists begged President Biden to do something in
response to the Supreme Court's abortion decision. Yesterday, he did that. He signed an executive order aimed at protecting abortion access.
But as we heard from those protesters, it's done little to ease their concern.
CNN's Jeremy Diamond has more on the White House abortion battle.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Pam, some abortion rights groups calling this new executive order from the president an important first step.
But it's still very clear, as you look at those images of protesters outside the White House today, that many are still not satisfied and believe more decisive action is still needed.
And that's largely because this executive order which President Biden signed two weeks after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, it takes a series of steps.
But many steps are fairly vague and leave a lot of discretion up to the secretary of Health and Human Services to try and identified additional action he can take over the next 30 days, after which, he'll submit a report to the president.
This executive order directs the HHS secretary and other government officials to set up an inner agency task force that will also include the attorney general.
It directs HHS to also protect medication, to abortion and privacy and safety. But again, some abortion rights activists saying the president needs to go further.
Pushing for example for clinics, abortion clinics to be set up on federal land. That's something the White House has effectively ruled out.
[20:05:07]
They're also pushing for other steps, like declaring a public health emergency, which the White House said it's still considering.
The White House's gender policy counsel, Jen Klein, addressed some frustrations just yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENNIFER 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 ultimately, that is President Biden's message as well. He is doing what he can, he says, via executive action.
But ultimately, he's going to need Congress to act to enshrine the right to privacy and the right to abortion into law. But the president doesn't have the votes that he needs right now in Congress to carve out the filibuster to pass that with a simple majority or to pass this all together.
So he says he needs voters to get out. He hopes that women will be motivated come the November midterm elections so that he can get more pro-choice Democratic Senators into office -- Pam?
BROWN: All right, thanks, Jeremy.
Let's continue this conversation. Joining me now, two CNN political commentators, Alice Stewart, a Republican strategist, and Maria Carona, a Democratic strategist.
Maria, we see these protests outside the White Houe today. Abortion rights advocates are demanding that President Biden do more. They're calling for him to take more executive action, maybe even declare a national public health emergency.
Has Joe Biden done enough, in your view?
MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Look, I totally understand the frustration and the anger of these activists because, what the supreme court did was essentially take away the rights of women that they have enjoyed for over 50 years.
It's not just frustrating. It's scary for so many women, for whom that action is -- can be a life-and-death situation. And they're not going to be able to do that anymore in many of the states. So I understand that frustration.
Joe Biden is not a dictator. He cannot just with a waving of his hand fix this the way Jennifer Klein was saying. This is something the Supreme Court did that cannot be fixed overnight.
He is doing everything that he can. And I think they will continue to look at what kinds of steps they can take.
But what I do think this does, Pam, is this continues to put this front and center for Americans, for American women, for American families who see this as an egregious overstep by an extremist Supreme Court.
And who I believe will be absolutely motivated and mobilized to go out and have this be front and center on the ballot in November. And we have seen more than five or six polls already that have the generic ballot switched from an advantage that Republicans had pre-Roe v. Wade overturning to now Democrats having an advantage.
So it's up to us to make that front and center. I agree with this White House there has something voters choose to do.
BROWN: Do you think this ruling could help Republicans in the long term?
ALICE STEWART, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: No. I don't. I have to disagree with my friend Maria in terms of the importance of this issue with voters.
The recent Monmouth poll showed what issues are going to really compel voters to get out. It is inflation, economy, jobs, gas, groceries. Abortion is down -- 5 percent of people are going to be motivated by this issue.
But, look, I think what this issue will do, this will turn out voters on both sides because the pro-life community has been fighting for this for years, and they will continue to activate those grass roots efforts and engage voters and turn them out.
This is not the end of the line for Roe. This is the beginning of the next step for the pro-life movement.
Again, I agree with Maria, the pro-abortion community will be engaged and will work to fight to try to solidify or overturn the decision to take away apportion rights at the state level.
And here is the thing. So much focus has been put on overturning Roe v. Wade and what this means for the abortion committee.
The pro-life community is using this as an opportunity to educate and teach people what this means. Educate and teach people what the pro- life community has been doing in terms of looking at what has changed since Roe came into place?
The medical advances, people are able to see the fetus and how it develops early on, and that has changed people's opinion on this.
And a large group of pro-life medical providers has done polling, as well. And they are seeing that people, once they see the life in the fetus, they're changing their perception of abortion.
And they're also educating people on the concern of medical abortions with regard to taking the pill.
DIY efforts to DIY abortion is not safe. And people need to make sure they see a medical provider and are educated on the concerns and dangers.
CARDONA: That's exactly right. It's not safe.
Guess what, Pam? Abortions are not going to go away. Abortions are not doing to go down. Women will continue to seek abortions. What will happen is abortions will go up and women will die.
[20:10:00]
This is what I don't think my friend, Alice, understands. I understand that she is very pro-life, that she's very religious. But you cannot impose that kind of morality on everyone, right?
This is not a country that is based on religion. OK? There are a lot of people that have all different kinds of beliefs.
And this is a decision that is so intimate to the woman, to the family, to how she wants to manage her own reproductive future that she should be the only one with that family, and if she's religious, with her god and with her doctor to be able to make that decision.
Nobody else should be able to make that decision for her.
And it is so hypocritical of my Republican friends when they talk about freedom and they talk about parental choice when, in fact, what Roe v. Wade, the overturning of it has done, is taken away that choice from all American women.
BROWN: What do you say to that argument that this is a violation of the separation of church and state?
STEWART: No, what this does, is it, most importantly, takes this decision of apportion and pro-life out of the hands of nine unelected justices and put it in the hands of elected representatives in the states.
This puts this important policy, which this is -- this is a policy -- closer to the people.
And if the Democrats don't like this policy, then as the president said, get out there and vote. Elect pro-abortion candidates at the state level. Because they will be the ones determining policy.
And I appreciate the fact that Democrats are now lighting their hair on fire and locking themselves to the fence at the White House. But they should have been doing this for the last 50 years when Roe was enacted to codify this as a national law.
Also, we knew about this leak two months ago. Why, all of a sudden, are now Democrats trying to come to the surface and take action now?
BROWN: Yes.
STEWART: They've known this is coming and this is too little, too late.
BROWN: That has been a topic we've been hearing a lot about. This should have opinion codified by Democrats, those who want the return of Roe v. Wade.
Kamala Harris, the vice president, was asked about this on CBS and this is what she said. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED CBS NEWS ANCHOR: Did Democrats fail past Democratic presidents, congressional leaders to not codify Roe v. Wade over the past five decades?
KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think that, to be very honest with you, I do believe that we should have rightly believed but we certainly believe that certain issues are just settled. Certain issues are just settled.
UNIDENTIFIED CBS NEWS ANCHOR: Clearly, we're not.
HARRIS: No, that's right. That's why I believe we're living, sadly, in real unsettled times.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: How do you respond to that?
CARDONA: I agree Democrats have been asleep at the switch at not making judges, the Supreme Court, the federal courts, a huge mobilizing issue for voters.
I agree that we have completely failed on that. And now, we have woken up.
On this, I'll say, sure, shame on us for believing conservative radical extreme Supreme Court judges during their confirmation hearings when they said that they would -- that they would respect precedent, that they believed Roe was settled law, that they believed Roe was the law of the land.
I guess shame on us for believing them while they lied through their teeth to Congress, while they lied through their teeth to the American people.
I guess shame on us, fool us once, shame on us, fool us twice - or, no, fool us once, shame on them, fool us twice, shame on us. That's why we'll make this a huge issue going into the midterm elections.
STEWART: I don't know what you're talking about lying through the teeth to the American people. The justices --
CARDONA: They all said it was settled law.
STEWART: They said they could not judge a case they had not heard. They had not heard Dobbs yet so they couldn't make a statement on a case they didn't hear.
Once they heard Dobbs, they reviewed the law, and realized and recognized that Roe was egregiously wrong from the start.
(CROSSTALK)
BROWN: They never said they wouldn't overturn it. But there are some in your camp that feel like they were misleading saying it was settled law and that they respect the president.
I want to ask you about another topic, very different from what we were talking about. Because we could go on and on all day about that of course.
This is about Pat Cipollone, the former White House counsel under Trump. I'm told by sources he testified for nearly eight hours yesterday.
And I'm wondering what you think he has to offer, Alice. He talked about how he didn't believe the election was stolen but he believes Donald Trump did think the election was stolen and still does.
He was asked about pardons, about Trump wanting to pardon himself and the Trump family pardons. He was asked about the Mike Pence pressure campaign for Pence to overturn the elections.
[20:15:10]
How concerning do you think this is to Donald Trump?
STEWART: What I -- based on what we've heard and reporting is that he really just solidified and responded to a lot of what we already know. I don't expect he broke new ground.
I know Pat. I've worked with him before. He is solid. He is concise.
He's one, in the midst of a storm, he's the calm in the storm and will still provide a quiet and proper counsel to the person that he is working for regardless of the blow back.
And that's exactly what happened here. We understand he was candid. He was concise. He was honest. I wouldn't expect anything different from him.
But what we do know, he did encourage the former president not to go down to the riots. That was good advice.
He also had concerns with the nonsense of the fake electors in the state of Georgia.
And I believe he's able to show the president did have proper legal counsel in the midst of the storm and he gave the former president the right advice.
Donald Trump had a lot of bad legal advice on January 6th but it wasn't from Pat Cipollone.
BROWN: Very quickly. I'm in an odd mood going back to the topic we were talking about, abortion.
My producer, Evan, described this statement given to "The Washington Post" from Kate Bedingfield, the White House communications director.
Talking about the activists out there saying, "Joe Biden's goal responding to Dobbs is not to satisfy some activists who have been consistently out of step with the mainstream of the Democratic Party."
It seems, though, in a sense, she is effectively trashing or criticizing the left and response to the handling.
CARDONA: I think what she's saying -- and I've been on calls with the White House about this as they have tried to guide what it is that the White House is trying to do.
Is that, because the overturning of Roe v. Wade was so egregious in its effect, the White House can't fix it all from one day to the next.
And in fact, some abortion activists, not all of them, but some abortion activists, the same way they're activists on the other side, sometimes they go too far.
What I think she's saying and the White House says is, look, we'll do everything in our power to continue to protect women. And if you look at what the president did in his executive order, that is exactly what he's dictating HHS and the secretary to do.
To look at everything in the full scope of government to make sure, for example, the activists on the other side, who are focused on making, on criminalizing women and doctors, who may have abortions or who may travel over state lines to have abortions, they're going to protect that kind of privacy.
They're going to protect the ability of women to continue to get FDA regulated approved medications that focus on abortion care.
All of those types of things are going to be things that the White House is going to continue to focus on.
And by the way, this is just the first step. They will be looking at other options, as well.
BROWN: OK. Alice Stewart, Maria Cardona, thank you so much.
CARDONA: Thanks, Pam.
STEWART: Thank you.
BROWN: Up next, chaotic scenes in Sri Lanka where many people are struggling to buy food, medicine and fuel, and protesters taking their anger out on the people in charge.
Also ahead for you tonight, calling out conservative media for blaming everything except guns for mass shootings.
And never too late to learn. A south Florida woman graduates from college at the grand age of 96.
You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
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[20:22:54] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
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BROWN: Fire, protests and anger as the Sri Lankans prime minister's private resident burned. The fire was set hours after the president said he would resign when a new government is formed.
Sri Lankan people also stormed the presidential compound, beyond angry over their country's severe economic crisis. Millions are struggling to buy food, medicine and fuel.
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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN (voice-over): Months of anger and protests over Sri Lanka's worst economic crisis culminating into this.
(SHOUTING)
BROWN: Unprecedented scenes outside the home of the embattled Sri Lankan president. More than 100,000 demonstrators converged in Colombo Saturday morning.
(SHOUTING)
BROWN: Chants of "Gota, go home," a slogan now synonymous with the anti-government sentiment reverberating through the heart of Sri Lanka's capital.
UNIDENTIFIED MAKLE (through translation): We must chase them. They must go. It's time to think of the country. We left everything and came for the sake of the people. We on the road.
(SHOUTING)
BROWN: Police fired tear gas to control the crowds with the sheer volume of people was far too large for authorities to push back.
(SHOUTING)
BROWN: They soon broke police barriers and stormed into the president's House, hanging banners from the balcony. Even jumping into the pool.
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BROWN: Security sources say, by the time this all happened, the president was no longer in the building.
Sri Lanka is facing the worst financial cry sustained in years. The value of the Sri Lankan money has plunged and brought the country to its knees. There are long lines for fuel, which is limited to only essential
services and relentless power outages.
[20:25:00]
Analysts say the current crisis is a result of the government's poor economic decisions.
And now these people have had enough. They want change and accountability from those they believe plunged their nation into a dark crisis.
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BROWN: And Sri Lanka's parliament will elect a new president within 30 days from one its members who will hold the office for the remaining two years of the current term.
Polls are open in Japan's Upper House elections two days after the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Abe was shot dead Friday during a campaign stop in central Japan. Police this weekend are admitting there were, quote, "problems" with security during his stop.
The assassination of Japan's best-known politician has rattled the country and sent shock waves around the world.
CNN's Blake Essig reports.
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(APPLAUSE)
BLAKE ESSIG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One of Japan's most high-profile figures, although controversial at times, Shinzo Abe was respected and beloved by many.
(CRYING)
ESSIG: In the wake of his death, condolences have been pouring in from around the world.
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I 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, his focus on his health, he stayed engaged. He cared deeply. And I hold him in greater respect.
ESSIG (voice over): Here in Japan, people are saddened and stunned. A country with one of the lowest gun crime rates shaken by Abe's violent death.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through interpretation): 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.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through interpretation): 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, morning a leader who left a strong legacy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through interpretation): 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 respect to him.
ESSIG: Japan's Prime Minister also mourning his former colleague and friend.
FUMIO KISHIDA, JAPAN PRIME MINISTER (through interpretation): As a colleague and a cabinet member supporting the Abe cabinet, he was a good friend of mine who I spend 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 VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN: Well, as mourners in Highland Park, Illinois, bury loved ones, some members of the right-wing media are twisting themselves into knots. They're blaming everything but guns for the mass shooting. We'll take a closer look for the record, next.
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BROWN: The horrific events in Highland Park Illinois on the Fourth of July brought contortionism from some and conservative media, blaming everything except easy access to lethal firepower for mass shootings. Here's a sampling.
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TUCKER CARLSON, FOX NEWS HOST: The authorities in their lives, mostly women, never stops lecturing them about their so-called privileged, you're male, you're privileged. Imagine that. Try to imagine an unhealthier, unhappier life than that. So a lot of young men in America are going nuts. Are you surprised?
LAURA INGRAHAM, FOX NEWS HOST: In the mass shooting in Illinois indications are that Robert Crimo was a regular pot user. Now, one look at him and to the untrained eye, he looks like a complete psychotic if you've ever seen anyone looking like him. And what can regular pot use trigger in young men in particular, psychosis and other violent personality changes? Not everyone but a significant percentage.
JESSE WATTERS, FOX NEWS HOST: Police had seized weapons from his house including swords and guns. And officials in Illinois still didn't stuff this kid into a straitjacket. Anyone with facial tattoos and a track record like that is screaming, please, put me in an insane asylum.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Women, marijuana, facial tattoos. Some conservative politicians are diverting as well, apparently. They cannot bring themselves to explain why the country needs the kinds of killing machines favored by mass shooters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): I think yesterday's shooting is another example of what the problem is. The problem is mental health and these young men who seem to be inspired to commit these atrocities. So I think the bill that we passed targeted the problem.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: For the record, the bipartisan gun bill did not include any regulation of assault weapons used in so many of these mass shootings or it would have not passed by its slim majority.
And joining us now with more is Paul Waldman, a progressive liberal opinion columnist with The Washington Post. Hi, Paul. So you wrote this op-ed, that was a springboard for this conversation. You say you think starts with cognitive dissonance. Explain.
[20:35:30]
PAUL WALDMAN, PROGRESSIVE LIBERAL OPINION COLUMNIST: Well, cognitive dissonance is when you have two ideas or beliefs that come into conflict. And that's what happens every time there's a mass shooting to people who are advocates of unfettered gun rights, right? They don't want mass shootings, they don't want people to be killed. But they also favor the maintenance of a legal regime that makes that possible.
[20:35:24]
So whenever anyone is confronted with cognitive dissonance, you have to find a way to resolve it. And so in their case, they resolve it by coming up with all kinds of reasons why the guns have nothing to do with the fact of the mass shooting. And I think that it has gotten sort of ratcheted up recently. We heard there Mitch McConnell say, oh, it's mental health, and that, for a long time, has been this kind of standard response from Republican politicians.
Now, there's a couple of problems with that. First of all, for the most part, they don't really favor putting a lot more resources into mental health in general, because they're conservative, and they don't think it's government's job to provide a lot of social services. And so you often find the same people saying, oh, well, the real problem is mental health, when in fact, they don't actually support expanding mental health services.
The other problem, of course, is that there are people with mental health problems everywhere in the world. It's not like we're the only country that has people with mental health problems. The difference in America, of course, is the guns.
And I think that even among Republican politicians, they've gotten ridiculed for making that argument so much, that they are a little bit more reluctant to make it or at least some of the maybe. And so you find, especially in conservative media, this time around these kind of more elaborate and extravagant arguments about how it's something else. It's not the guns, and it also happens to be whatever that TV hosts particular hobby horses.
So, you know, we see with Tucker Carlson, he's been on this crusade about the decline of masculinity. And he has this special where people seem to be advised -- men seem to be advised to tan their testicles, that's going to restore their manly vigor. And so he blames it on women who are nagging, and men who don't feel like they're masculine enough. And Laura Ingram has been on a long crusade against marijuana. And so for her, the problem must be marijuana, whatever it is, that you're already mad about, and is your particular kind of the thing that gets you angry, that's what must be to blame for the latest mass shooting.
BROWN: And it's interesting, because these elaborate explanations featured in conservative media, they are attended to provide the base with arguments, but they don't actually need to make sense, right, to resonate with people.
WALDMAN: Yes. I think that's, that's something important too, you know, especially if you're in kind of a something of a media silo, and you get all your information from one side, you know, maybe you don't actually have a lot of occasions to get into a real substantive argument where you're really trying to persuade somebody else, you know, maybe at Thanksgiving, your -- you know, you're a 70-year-old Fox News viewer, and your 25-year-old niece is there and you get into a fight with her and your -- the two of you are arguing, but most of the time, you know, you've talked to people who kind of think like you, and you watch media that -- where your -- where your ideas are reinforced.
But one of the things that the media do, whenever there's a new controversy is, they tell us kind of how to think about it. And they also tell us some arguments we can even use just when we're speaking to ourselves. And I think that in a situation like this one, where if you're a supporter of gun rights, you know, you see on a daily, weekly basis, and more and more mass shootings, and you really might have doubts about whether this particular system that you're in favor of is actually a good thing, or is hurting a lot of people, you need something you can tell yourself.
And if it's not all that persuasive, that doesn't even matter. What matters is that when there's the next mass shooting, you can say, oh, well, you know, obviously, this just shows how we have too much marijuana, or that there's this crisis of masculinity, or that people aren't paying enough attention to mental health than somebody who just needs to set these kids straight.
Whatever it is, you need have something you can tell yourself so that you don't begin to kind of panic and question your own beliefs. And therefore, you know, question the whole system under which you -- you're living and the people that you like -- and the politicians you like you've created.
BROWN: Yes. Well, it's so much a part of your identity, right? All right. Paul Waldman, thank you. Really interesting conversation.
WALDMAN: My pleasure. Thanks.
BROWN: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. And when we come back on the Saturday, growing concerns about the new dominant strain of COVID-19. A look at how best to protect yourself, next.
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BROWN: Well, there are growing concerns over a surge of COVID infection spreading across much of the U.S. this summer. The Omicron Offshoot BA.5 is now the dominant strain. CNN's Jacqueline Howard has more on the threat many will be facing.
JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pamela, I can tell you, as the coronavirus spreads, we can expect to see more variants and sub- variants like BA.5 emerge. According to the latest CDC data, BA.5 is causing more than half, 53.6 percent of COVID-19 infections here in the United States and other Omicron sub-variants circulating right now are BA.2.12.1, causing 27.2 percent of infections, BA.4 causing 16.5 percent, and BA.2 causing 2.8 percent. And these sub-variants, Pamela, are circulating at a time when nearly a third of the U.S. population lives in a county with COVID-19 community levels that the CDC considers to be high.
Those counties with a high-level are spread across many major U.S. regions like New York City, Houston's Harris County, Miami Dade County, and Las Vegas's Clark County. So even though our lives are returning to normal, this is just a reminder that the virus is still out there. Pamela.
[20:45:04] BROWN: It very much is. Jacqueline Howard, thank you.
Well, a massive fire may have destroyed the historic landmark in Nantucket. It is a hotel that dates back to the 17th century. That story is up next.
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BROWN: A historic hotel in Nantucket, Massachusetts went up in flames today. The Veranda House Bed and Breakfast dates back to the 17th century. As fire crews were responding to the call, an off duty fire captain and bystanders reportedly ran inside to help get guests and stuff out. The blaze was so big that it spread to several homes nearby. The fire department tells the current that they believe all staff and guests were able to evacuate but much of the hotel collapsed in the fire and the cause of fire is still under investigation.
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Well, a brutal summer heat wave continues tonight. More than 50 million Americans on alert for dangerous heat this weekend with triple digit temperatures in more than a dozen states. Meteorologist Gene Norman joins me now from the CNN Weather Center. Gene, where are the major hotspots right now?
GENE NORMAN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, Pamela, believe it or not --
BROWN: There's a lot of red.
NORMAN: -- you know, it's just about eight o'clock at night in central time zone, and it's still 100 degrees. Look at that, Dallas, San Angelo, San Antonio. Houston feels like 105. New Orleans feels like 101. Atlanta is getting a break. I'll show you why in just a second. It's because of some storms.
But let's focus on that heat because tomorrow, it will shift to Louisiana and Texas actually stay there as it has been for the past couple of days. Again, we're looking at heat index values climbing as high as 115. The excessive heat warning indicated by that purple color and notice up toward Nebraska, they're also dealing with high heat. Heat advisory in effect for them, again, tomorrow with the heat index between 105 and 110 degrees.
And then as we take a look at some records for today, in Nebraska, two were set Chadron and Scottsbluff. Waco smashed their previous record of 104 climbing to 108. And Denver broke their record that they just set a year ago by hitting 100 degrees.
Now, the triple digits will remain primarily in Texas, Dallas, and Houston, you see them over 100 degrees. But then Phoenix gets into the act. They're going to be under an excessive heat warning as well starting on Monday. It could climb to 115. And at least in Scottsbluff, it will die down, the heat that is, after tomorrow.
A good part of the southeast has been getting some heat relief in the form of strong thunderstorms that are slowly moving their way through the South. You see all that lightning there about 30,000 people without power in a central Alabama in and around the Birmingham area primarily. That's where a severe thunderstorm watch is in effect until 10 o'clock.
Also sections of Central Mississippi because we've got some storms that are blowing through there with some damaging winds already a couple of reports of mainly some downed trees. And the heavy rain, these are slow moving storms has resulted in some flash flooding in and around the Birmingham area just east of Charlotte and around Raleigh where we've seen a lot of rain in those spots anywhere from four to six inches, where you see the yellow shading here. And again a heavy rain day up in the D.C. area, but everybody else dealing with the heat, some folks getting relief.
BROWN: All right. Gene Norman, thanks so much.
Well, new allegations from the January 6 Capital riot. Federal investigators say one member of the Oath Keepers had explosives and another had a death list. The startling details are just ahead.
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BROWN: Welcome back, everyone. Live look here at the Capitol building, all lit up here at 8:58 p.m. Eastern time, 72 degrees in our nation's capital.
Well, Steph Curry is proving his skills aren't limited to just sinking threes on the basketball court. The NBA star hit another golf shot from net 97 yards out. Curry was competing in the American Century championship and Lake Tahoe yesterday. His second shot on one of the holes hit the green and rolled in. The star studded tournament brings together celebrity players from across the sports and entertainment world. And despite that insane shot, Steph Curry finished the day tied for 10th place.
I love this story. A South Florida woman is proving that you are never too old to chase a dream. This is Violet Edwards. Just last month, she graduated from Mercy College at the age of 96. Look at her smile. While in your final year of school, she battled breast cancer, but surgery and radiation treatments never deterred her. She thrived and she had a 4.0 GPA to go along with it.
Violet started her academic journey back in the '80s but left to help her daughter through medical school. And then over the next few decades she worked at her daughter's medical practice and helped raise her grandkids, but the itch to finish her degree never faded.
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