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Record Heat Tormenting Much of Western Europe; Red Extreme Heat Warning Issued for Parts of U.K.; International Energy Agency Warns of Possible Winter Gas Crisis; Uvalde Families Outraged at Police Response to Shooting; Former NSC Official Pottinger to Testify Before January 6 Committee; Jury Nearly Set in Steve Bannon Contempt Trial; Poll: Deep Discontent with Biden, Economy, State of U.S. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired July 19, 2022 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and all around the world. I'm Christina Macfarlane in for Max Foster here in London. Just ahead --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Upwards of 50 million Americans dealing with significant heat here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a choice. Collective access, or collective suicide.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Climate change wreaking havoc on our planet.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No one person here today can deny there was a massive failure on May 24.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can hold myself together now. I've done my crime. Now it's time to do my time.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just 30 percent saying that they approve of President Biden's handling of the economy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The president trying to salvage his domestic agenda or what's left of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLAND: It is Tuesday, July 19, 9:00 a.m. here in London, 4:00 a.m. on the U.S. east coast. And we begin with the U.N. chief warning that half of humanity is in the, quote, danger zone for extreme weather as heatwaves strike across the northern hemisphere.

In the U.S., tens of millions of people are under heat alerts that cover parts of some 15 states. And almost 85 percent of Americans are expecting to endure highs of above 90 degrees Fahrenheit over the next week, that's more than 32 degrees Celsius. Oklahoma and Texas are getting the worst of it with excessive heat

warnings in major cities like Dallas where highs could reach a staggering 110 degrees Fahrenheit. The organization in charge of the Texas power grid has already recorded 30 days of record demanding since early May. And the searing heat is fueling fires, like this one is central Texas, which is consuming homes and forcing evacuations.

And "The Washington Post" is reporting the U.S. president could be on the verge of declaring a national climate emergency, this is part of Joe Biden's effort to fight global warming and as his party struggles to pass key legislation.

Well meanwhile, the blistering heat is tormenting parts of Western Europe. Fires in Spain suspended service between Madrid and Galicia, passengers could see flames in the distance from both sides of this train.

And today in England, temperatures here could reach a record breaking 104 degrees Fahrenheit or 40 degrees Celsius. Monday marked the UK's third hottest day on record. A melting tarmac halted flights at Luton Airport near London, but the runway has since reopened. And temperatures set new records in Wales and Ireland, logged its worst heat in more than a century. And Prince Charles says this hot spell shows how critical it is for the world to reach net zero emissions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRINCE CHARLES: If I may say so, these commitments around net zero have never been more vitally important as we all swelter under today's alarming record temperatures across Britain and Europe. As I've tried to indicate for quite some time, the climate crisis really is a genuine emergency and tackling it is utterly essential for Cornwell, the country and the rest of the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLAND: And this heatwave really couldn't have come at a worse time for Europe just as the International Energy Agency is warning EU countries to conserve natural gas for the upcoming winter. Energy supplies could be strained this week as homes and businesses crank up their air conditioning. Supplies from Russia of course remain a big question mark due to the EU sanctions over the war in Ukraine. And the head of the IEA says the next few months will be critical to see where the EU stands in terms of winter gas supplies. Well CNN's Nada Bashir and Clare Sebastian are joining me here in London. But first let's get over to meteorologist Pedram Javaheri at the CNN Weather Center for the latest temperatures in the U.S. Pedram, tell us what you are seeing.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, Christina, this is a remarkable heatwave even for standards across the south central United States. You look at some of the high temperatures in the past 24 hours, 110 or about 45 degrees in a few spots. These excessive temperatures are exceeding and besting records that in some cases have been standing over 100 years and in other cases like Wichita Falls, standing for about two decades. [04:05:00]

But you notice widespread coverage of this record heat impacting upwards of 75 million Americans now spanning over dozens of states. And the south central region, these areas of Texas, Oklahoma and say even the Midwest really underneath the bulk of it.

But now introducing some heat advisories across portions of the Northeast which include Boston and New York City as well, where temps could feel as hot as 100 Fahrenheit for about 37 Celsius. But notice the forecast across New York City, staying about 10 degrees above average over the next few days, a few thunderstorms possible come Thursday. But generally speaking, we're in for the long haul when it comes to the excessive temperatures and really the entirety of the U.S. lower 48 states dealing with these temperatures that are really going to begin to expand farther toward the north and toward the east.

Look at St. Louis, 96, 98, eventually 103 degrees there as we get into Friday afternoon. And again, the Northeast kind of feels the same sort of a setup and looking ahead towards early next week even. The excessive temperatures expected to remain in place with well above average temps for just about everyone with the exception of the usual hot spot in the United States which it will be warm, but they won't be above average because the monsoons are taking place there and wet weather is expected.

But here we go, notice it does want to get cooler, but even still then, staying above average across portions of Texas on into Oklahoma.

Now severe weather is also been an issue across parts of the Eastern United States. We're going to have some significant wind gusts and some heavy rainfall as a result of it. Record rainfall to tell you about across New York City just in the past 24 hours. Almost 2 inches coming down in a matter of a few hours across that region with the coverage of the strong storms producing quite a bit of rainfall. But the big story again remains, Christina, the excessive temperatures that we expect across this region and we'll follow this this here over the next couple days because of course this is the hottest time of year climatologically speaking. But it's not just here in the U.S. it is also across Europe where these historic temperatures are being observed.

MACFARLAND: Yes, absolutely. Pedram, thank you. And I actually want to go to Europe now to get the view from London which is where Nada Bashir is joining me actually live here in London. And Nada, I don't know about you, but last night was very uncomfortable, almost impossible to sleep in these temperatures with no air con for many of us here in the United Kingdom. And of course, this is affecting services and transport across the country.

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: Yes, absolutely, Christina, that sweltering weather that we saw yesterday only set to be worse today, that is the projection from the office, expecting us in the U.K. to reach those record breaking figures once again. Of course, much of England still under that red extreme warning. The first time that's been issued here in England. Other parts of the United Kingdom under an amber warning due to the exceptional heat that we're seeing.

And as you mentioned though, it's not just about health and safety risks here, this type of weather might be typical for other parts of Europe or perhaps the Middle East during this time of the year, but here in the U.K., this is exceptionally out of the ordinary. This is way above average. And the infrastructure in the U.K. is simply not built or prepared to deal with this kind of heat.

And that is certainly what we've been seeing with the National Rail Service which has been extremely impacted by this intense weather. The message we've been hearing from National Rail is do not travel unless it is absolutely necessary. They are advising people to avoid the trains at all costs and if they are needing to travel, they are advising people to make sure that they have got a drink of water with them so that they can maintain safe at all times.

But of course, this has disrupted the infrastructure of the National Rail Service. We've seen significant delays and cancellations. If you just walk into Kings Cross today, one of the busiest stations typically here in the capital, it's actually quite quiet this morning. A number of trains have already been canceled. And between midday today and later this evening, pretty much all trains heading up north from the station have been canceled. And that's because the overhead wires and the actual steel rail tracks aren't able to cope with the intense heat. Those trains that are running are having to run at a slower pace than usual as a result of safety precautions.

So, we are seeing significant disruption here, and that is all part of the question that the government has been trying to tackle is, how is the country going to prepare for intense heat over the coming years. We heard from Kit Malthouse, a government minister who's been overseeing the government's approach to dealing with the heatwave, those emergency meetings that we saw over the weekend. He said that Monday and Tuesday will be crucial for the government to learn some key lessons about how to deal with the intense heat. Not only in terms of infrastructure, but also coping with the intense health and safety risks.

MACFARLAND: Yes, this one likely to be, Nada, a one-off event sadly. Thanks very much there, Nada, keep cool. I want to turn to clear who is joining me here in the studio. And Clare, as you were saying, this could not have come at a worse time for Europe with regard to gas supplies. What options do the EU have as we move toward the winter?

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CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, as you say, the timing is awful. There was already a looming gas crisis in Europe, this excess demand that were seen at the moment because of the rise in temperatures has pushed gas prices up. They're about 2 percent up. Benchmark of European gas prices this morning -- bear in mind they are already 7 1/2 times higher than they were at this time last year. So, these are the extreme -- are an extreme contribution to inflation that were seen across Europe.

But the situation we've got now, is that Europe is extremely worried that the gas supplies from Russia are going to stop. What we have now is a situation where the Nord Stream 1, which is a critical supplier to Europe from Russia is shut for maintenance. It's supposed to open on Thursday, just as the hot temperatures abate and there are major questions around whether it actually will.

The German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck has warned his country to prepare for the worst. We got an ominous signal from Gazprom on Monday, Christina, where Germany utility said they got a letter from Gazprom declaring a force majeure on current and past gas supplies. That sort of a bit of contractual device were essentially they are absolved from responsibility for their supply disruptions. So, that is an ominous signal going forward.

And look, if the Nord Stream 1 is not switched on, that in fact potential storage level going into the winter, Germany might have to move to its next stage of alert when it comes to gas supplies and start rationing -- industry would be rationed first. That then rises the likelihood of a recession. They are looking for alternative suppliers, Azerbaijan, the UAE was meeting with the French this week, but it won't be fast enough if Russia cuts off the gas.

MACFARLAND: Yes, that being becoming all the more acute as the year goes on. Clare, thanks very much.

Well, multiple agencies that responded to the Uvalde school shooting are launching internal reviews to find out what went wrong that day. The Texas Department of Public Safety is conducting a criminal investigation to examine the actions of every member of law enforcement. And the U.S. Customs and Border Protection is reviewing the actions of its agents. Meanwhile the superintendent of the school district says they are considering virtual classes as an option as students seek reassurances that they will be safe in school.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAZMIN CAZARE, SISTER OF UVALDE SHOOTING VICTIM: I'm going to be a senior. How am I supposed to come back to this school? What are you guys going to do to make sure I don't have to watch my friends die? What are you going to do to make sure I don't have to wait 77 minutes bleeding out on my classroom floor just like my little sister did? My daughter has something to say.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This was the last dress that all my friends saw me on. Most of those kids were my friends. And that is not good. And I don't want to go to you guys' school if we don't have protection.

TINA QUINTANILLA-TAYLOR, UVALDE RESIDENT: And she's encouraging for her friends not to go to school too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLAND: Now this comes after the release of a scathing preliminary report investigating the shooting and police body cam footage shows how law enforcement responded that day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CORONADO: But chief was making contact with him, right?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no one's made contact with him.

CORONADO: What are we doing here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do we have anyone that's hit on this side? Huh. Any kids or anyone hit?

CORONADO: No, we don't know anything about that, no kids.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLAND: Now Uvalde parents are calling for district police chief Pete Arredondo to be fired. He's they're going to break a window right now seen in the body cam footage trying to negotiate with the shooter. Remember this was after more gunshots were heard.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE ARREDONDO, UVALDE CONSOLIDATED INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT CHIEF OF POLICE: Sir, if you can hear me, please put your firearm down, sir, we don't want anyone else hurt.

I know, I know.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's what we're doing, we're trying to get him out. They're going to break a window right now.

ARREDONDO: Sir, if you can hear me, please put your gun down. We don't want anybody else hurt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLAND: The families of the 19 students and two teachers are outraged over the handling of the shooting and the investigation. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRETT CROSS, UVALDE VICTIM'S PARENT: Those are our babies. Those are our teachers. And they are no longer here. And what y'all have been lacking to do even to this point is be accountable for y'all's mess ups. That is not a -- it's just fact. Nobody has accepted accountability. So, we're going to force y'all to for y'all's efforts in this. You just said we should have done it a month ago in hindsight and everything like that. Yes, it happened with the security for our kids because y'all didn't verify that door is locked. We had people telling you that the doors didn't lock and y'all didn't do a damn thing about it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: want to add more security officers to your current staff yet the current staff isn't competent and liable for the already massive failure. You need to clean house. You need to start from zero.

[04:15:00]

Hire experienced, trained officers who are prepared to take on the responsibility to protect our children.

ANGEL GARZA, STEP-DAUGHTER AMERIE JO GARZA KILLED IN UVALDE SHOOTING: Highland Park happened after us and we already know everything about that, we know everything at all happening, we know everything. So, it makes no sense that there's still things that I mean, we know everything. So, it makes no sense that there's still things that aren't answered about this. It's humiliating to us. It makes us feel like our kids can't rest in peace.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLAND: Now the families of Uvalde victims are turning their grief into advocacy. CNN's Shimon Prokupecz explains.

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SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: I'm certainly noticing a difference with the families, is that they're becoming -- they're kind of finding their voice. They're starting to really speak out. They're starting to organize. They're starting to voice their opinions, their unhappiness. They want accountability. They want Chief Peter Arredondo fired. He is the school police chief. He's been on administrative leave. But the central theme here tonight was we want him fired.

I've been to other meetings here with the parents, this is a school board meeting, they usually don't speak out as much. But you know, the difference is noticeable. And I think it is this report that came out, listing all of the problems, some of the deficiencies in the school security and some of the failures on the part of the school. And I really do think seeing images now from inside the school, the body camera footage that we obtained and that the mayor ultimately released, as well as the other images from inside the school, they're starting to get information. They are starting to see things and they are starting to become angrier and angrier because they have been keeping all this information from them.

And it is obvious why, you know, they were not being told the truth. And so, they're starting to voice their opinions. They're scared. They're scared to send their children to school. So, the school has to come up with some solutions.

But the one thing I think people should know is that this community is starting to stand up for itself. This community is starting to have a voice and that is a good thing. Because you know, there was a time when they didn't want to say anything. But now they are starting to speak. And it's impactful and I do believe it's going to make a difference.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLAND: Well meanwhile, other communities are learning hard lessons from the Uvalde school shooting. The Dallas School District will require students to carry clear or mesh backpacks in class, the rule applies to 6 through 12 grade students and will take effect at the start of the upcoming school year in August.

A first on CNN, new details about what to expect from Thursday's primetime hearing by the U.S. House January 6 Committee. We've learned former Trump White House national -- deputy national security adviser Matthew Pottinger will testify in public. He's slated to be joined by former White House Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Matthews. Both resigned from the Trump administration in the immediate aftermath of the January 6 insurrection. Another former Trump official laid out what could Pottinger's testimony mean for their old boss.

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MILES TAYLOR, FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY: I think the ex-president is really sweating this. Because unlike other people that have testified where ex-President Trump has said this was a low level aide, I've never seen this person, let's be clear, Matt Pottinger was the deputy national security adviser to the president of the United States. He went on trips with him, he sat with him in the White House Situation Room. He was often where the president was when the national security advisor wasn't. He was in the Oval Office on calls with foreign leaders. This is a very close insider.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLAND: And be sure to catch Thursday's hearing here on CNN, it's set to begin at 8:00 p.m. in New York and Washington. That's 1:00 a.m. Friday here in London.

Well meanwhile, jury selection is now under way for Steve Bannon's trial for contempt of Congress. The longtime ally to former President Trump is now willing to testify to the January 6 Committee, but he still faces criminal charges for his failure to comply with an earlier subpoena. CNN's Jessica Schneider has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Steve Bannon's criminal trial for contempt of Congress finally beginning with jury selection after his lawyers tried repeatedly to delay and Bannon made a last-minute offer to testify before the January 6th committee. Prosecutors saying his late offer would not make up for the near year he's refused to comply with the committee's subpoena. The trial will likely last just a few days. Bannon has pleaded not guilty to two counts of criminal contempt of Congress, but if he is convicted, Trump's former chief strategist would face a mandatory minimum of 30 days in jail for each count.

CAROLINE POLISI, FEDERAL AND WHITE COLLAR CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: It will set the precedent that, look, you know, they can hold this up as an example if you just continue to flout us, we will prosecute you.

SCHNEIDER (voice-over): Bannon's defense options are limited. The judge won't let his legal team call members of Congress to testify and Bannon will be restricted from bringing up claims of executive privilege. The judge's strict parameters even prompted Bannon attorney David Schoen to exclaim, what's the point of going to trial here if there's no defense.

[04:20:00]

And his lawyers won't say whether Bannon will take the stand in his own defense.

SHAN WU, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: There is little to be gained. Defense lawyers don't like their clients to testify, but he likes to have a platform.

SCHNEIDER (voice-over): Bannon's trial is especially important for the January 6 committee as they negotiate with additional witnesses to testify. The latest public hearing will happen Thursday night in prime time and it's expected to focus President Trump's alleged dereliction of duty and the three-plus hours during the Capitol attack when he was at the White House but didn't call for the violence to stop.

REP. ELAINE LURIA (D-VA): We'll go through pretty much minute by minute during that timeframe from the time he left the stage at The Ellipse, came back to the White House and really sat in the White House, in the dining room, you know, with his advisers urging him continuously to take action, to take more action.

REP. ADAM KINZINGER (R-IL): The president didn't do very much but gleefully watched television during this timeframe. We are going to present a lot more than that.

SCHNEIDER (voice-over): The committee is also expecting to hear more from the Secret Service about the missing text messages from January 5th and 6th. The committee issued a subpoena to the Secret Service late Friday night after the inspector general met with committee members to complain that the Secret Service had erased texts from those two dates.

The Secret Service has disputed that the erasure was malicious and instead chocked it up to a routine phone replacement program, but the committee is pressing for more answers.

KINZINGER: It is quite crazy that the Secret Service would actually end up deleting anything related to one of the more infamous days in American history, particularly when it comes to the role of the Secret Service.

SCHNEIDER: And there still are a lot of questions about those missing text messages and if they'll even be able to be recovered. Committee member Kinzinger said they aren't 100 percent sure if the texts till exist from January 5 and 6, especially because the IG gotten accessed to them. But the Secret Service is expected to at least respond to the subpoena giving some explanation or them possibly producing the texts sometimes Tuesday.

Jessica Schneider, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLAND: OK, still ahead, sky high inflation and worries over the U.S. economy are taking a serious toll on President Biden's approval rating. We'll break down the results of a new CNN poll after the break.

But a bit of a bright news for Americans at the gas pump. Prices are slowly dropping. More on that next. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

[04:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MACFARLAND: Hi, welcome back. All eyes will be on Netflix today as the media company reveals its second quarter earnings for 2022. Now to say it's been a bad year would be putting it lightly for the streaming giant who reported the loss of customers for the first time in more than a decade. Lost billions in revenue and laid off hundreds of employees and that was just by April. Netflix is predicting a loss but is putting all its energy into a cheaper ad driven offering to lure new customers.

Meantime Twitter has accused Elon Musk of trying to stall the company's lawsuit against him. It came as part of the court filing on Monday asking for an expediated trial as soon as September. Twitter sued Musk last week in an effort to make him complete his $44 billion purchase of the company. Musk withdrew from the deal claiming Twitter wasn't transparent about the amount of spam accounts on the service.

Now U.S. President Joe Biden is in political free fall. A new CNN poll finds his approval rating is at a new low -- just 38 percent of Americans approve of the way he's handling the job. And the public's outlook on the state of the economy and the country as a whole are even more grim. CNN's MJ Lee reports from the White House.

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MJ LEE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Biden has repeatedly said that tackling inflation is his number one domestic priority. And a new CNN poll out showing that he is in a lot of trouble when it comes to this issue. Look at the overall approval rating.

This CNN poll shows that only 38 percent of the people polled said that they approve of his handling of the presidency, around six in ten people saying that they disapprove of the job that President Biden is doing. And when you dig into the details and look at the economic numbers, just 30 percent of people saying that they approve of his role in handling of the economy, whereas only 25 percent say that they approve of his handling of inflation specifically.

Now it is not just the president's poll numbers that inflation has been hurting, it's also hurting his domestic agenda as we saw over the weekend. Senator Joe Manchin effectively saying that he is a no on the climate deal that Democrats have been working on for some time at least for now because he is concerned about what that deal could do to inflationary pressures. Now the White House today has been really highlighting some good news

on the inflation front pointing out that gas prices have been dropping steadily over the last month or so. This is of course a trend that the White House hopes will continue in the coming weeks.

MJ Lee, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLAND: And AAA says that steady drop in gas prices is largely due to the low demand at the pump as well as lower oil prices. The current national average now stands at $4.50 a gallon. That's down more than 50 cents from last month's record high.

Meanwhile U.S. markets fell on Monday over growing fears of a potential application slowdown and recession. Here's CNN's business correspondent Rahel Solomon in New York.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: It's now filed a report that claim Apple will slow hiring and spending on growth next year to prepare for a possible recession. We've also heard from many of the big Wall Street banks who are reporting second quarter earnings and they too say they are preparing for the potential of an economic downturn as they set aside more cash for the potential of loan delinquencies. But what's down the road is still a mystery. As for right now, bank CEOs say they are not seeing any signs of a recession.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLAND: Well, here's a look at the U.S. futures right now. The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq looking to open all in the green.

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