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More Than Eighty-Five Million Under Heat Alerts Across Central U.S. And Northeast; White House Doctor: Biden's COVID Symptoms Continue To Improve; Tennessee Officers Chase, Beat Man In Home After Failed Traffic Stop; Bipartisan Deal Would Make It Harder To Overturn Elections; Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) Discusses The Standard For Determining The Winner Of The Election; Uvalde Cancels Vote On School Police Chief's Job Status; Air Travel Numbers Approach Pre-Pandemic Levels. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired July 23, 2022 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:25]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We thought it was hot this week, but it is only going to get hotter.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Over 35 locations that have the potential to set some record temperatures.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yesterday was unbearable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We used to think of the elderly and pregnant women as vulnerable to heat, and now it's all of us.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The President continues to carry out his work as he is now in his second full day of isolation that is most likely that he has the BA.5 variants.

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I am doing much better than I sound.

DR. ASHISH JHA, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE COORDINATOR: He is doing very well. He has no trouble breathing at all right now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why are you taking him and hitting him?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Disturbing video showing the violent arrest of a young Black man following a failed traffic stop.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're using force. They're using a Taser. They are wrestling him. They're using a baton.

BRANDON CALLOWAY, ARRESTED BY POLICE FOR FAILED TRAFFIC STOP: I am definitely having flashbacks and nightmares.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And new Russian airstrikes on a Ukrainian port just one day after both nations approved a grain export deal.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: I am Pamela Brown in Washington, you are in the CNN NEWSROOM on this Saturday. Summer swelter, some 85 million Americans have spent the day under

heat warnings and advisories. Blistering temperatures are baking much of the nation from its midsection to the northeast, many are seeing triple digit highs. Extreme heat is helping fuel a wildfire near Yosemite National Park in California. The Oak Fire has raised across 6,500 acres in two days. There is zero containment as some rural communities have been evacuated.

And the Northeast is taking the brunt of the oppressive heat. Tomorrow's Boston triathlon has been pushed to next month. New York City's triathlon will still happen tomorrow, but there are changes to help protect the competitors.

CNN's Polo Sandoval is in New York.

Polo, the city is looking at its longest streak of 90-degree plus days in a decade. What's being done to keep people safe?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Last time we saw that Pamela was in 2013, so that's really what's fueling concerns for officials here in New York City that are really calling on New Yorkers to find any way to keep cool here, you see some of the younger New Yorkers trying to do what they can to stay cool.

And really, this is going to be a challenge again for tomorrow as temperature will continue to rise and what we do know is that there are cooling centers that have been set up throughout the city here; also throughout much of the region here, as those temperatures scorch the Southern part of the country are really going to begin to peak and really be felt tomorrow, that's when forecasters are expecting the highest temperature and by the time we finally get some relief, possibly next week, then that is when according to meteorologists, we will eventually potentially wrap up a total of about seven days with temperatures exceeding 90 degrees.

You mentioned that triathlon that is held every year here in New York City, officials yesterday, went ahead and announced that they will be scaling back the distance for the cycling and the running portion. The big concern there for heat related illness, and Boston, they said, you know what, we're just not going to mess with it this month. Instead, we'll try to hold it next month.

And then finally, at the state level, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, announcing that they are hopefully expanding access to cooling centers, and also extending those hours for some of those community pools as well.

Again, New Yorkers having to stay as cool as possible in any way they can, until we finally get that relief. And yes, people are trying to make the best of it here.

But a quick reminder, this kind of heat has already proven to be deadly in the past with Dallas, Texas recording his first heat-related death just this week of the year, and also in Arizona, officials there are already tracking close to 30 heat-related deaths since March. That is proof that this heat can definitely kill. So again, officials recommending, Pamela that people not only take

care of themselves, but also of each other, especially those elderly, those that are perhaps the most vulnerable as temperatures feel like they're in the triple digits -- Pamela.

BROWN: Very important message. Polo Sandoval, thank you.

And new satellite images show just how much water Lake Mead in Nevada and Arizona have lost. Take a look at this. The image on the left is from July of 2000, the image on the right is from this month.

Lake Mead is the country's largest reservoir and supplies water to millions of people in the West. Its levels are at their lowest since 1937. That's just after the lake was created by the Hoover Dam. Certainly alarming there.

Well, the White House says President Biden's COVID symptoms are improving. He has a sore throat, runny nose, body aches, and a loose cough and is using an inhaler a couple of times to help with his symptoms.

CNN's Arlette Saenz is that the White House. Arlette, we're told the President as I mentioned is using an inhaler. Is that any cause for concern?

[18:05:13]

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Pamela, President Biden's physician Dr. Kevin O'Connor released a letter today outlining the President's current condition and in that letter, he noted that the President has been using an albuterol inhaler as needed for a cough. He said that that's amounted to about two to three times a day.

Now in that same letter, Dr. O'Connor said that the President is not experiencing shortness of breath, and that also, that his oxygen saturation levels remain excellent and that his lungs are clear.

Part of the reason the President has used that inhaler in the past, he had asthma when he was younger and has had some experiences when he has had colds in the past where he has had to use an inhaler.

Now, Dr. O'Connor also outlined the President's current symptoms, some of those being new and that includes a sore throat and body aches, but he said that the President's vitals otherwise remain normal.

Now, a short while ago, White House Chief of Staff Ron claims spoke to reporters here at the White House and said the President is doing pretty well. He's spent the day on the phone participating in virtual conference calls, as the White House is continuing to try to show that the President can continue with his work amid this COVID-19 diagnosis.

And take a listen to how Dr. Anthony Fauci, the President's chief medical adviser summed up the President's condition earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND

INFECTIOUS DISEASES: I spoke to Dr. O'Connor last night at 10 o'clock to get an update, and just as you've said and you've heard, the President continues to improve and we have every reason to believe that he will do very well.

Having a runny nose, having someone who has a history, when he does get colds that have nothing to do with COVID, he has a history of asthma and he uses a bronchodilator to make sure he just breathes well. He has no trouble breathing at all right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAENZ: And in his letter earlier today, Dr. Kevin O'Connor said that the initial sequencing report has come back from the President's COVID-19 tests and that it is most likely that he has the highly contagious BA.5 variant. That is the variant that the majority of Americans who are currently contracting COVID-19 are experiencing right now in this country.

Now, while the President is isolating here at the White House, his wife, First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden is spending the weekend at their home in Wilmington, Delaware. A spokesperson for Dr. Biden told me that the First Lady tested negative for COVID-19 today and she is not experiencing any symptoms, even though she was a close contact of the President.

And Dr. O'Connor says that President Biden will continue to isolate according to CDC guidelines, and they will continue that anti-viral, Paxlovid treatment as well -- Pamela.

BROWN: All right, Arlette, live for us from the White House tonight. Thank you.

The World Health Organization has now declared monkeypox a public health emergency of international concern. That is the highest alert level the group can declare and it indicates monkeypox has grown to the point where a global response might be required.

Right now, there are more than 16,000 cases reported in 74 countries. In the U.S., there are nearly 3,000 including two cases identified and children.

A Tennessee police officer is on administrative leave tonight after the violent arrest of a Black man that caused national outrage. The incident was caught on cell phone video and we want to warn you, it is disturbing.

[VIDEO CLIP PLAYS]

BROWN: State officials are investigating if officers used excessive force during this encounter with 25-year-old Brandon Calloway. As you see, they chased him through the family home, Tasing him and hitting him with batons.

This all happened after an alleged traffic violation. CNN's Nadia Romero has this story including reaction from the victim

-- Nadia.

NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Pamela. It is so hard to watch that video where you can hear the screams of 25-year-old Brandon Calloway's girlfriend as she was taking that video.

So police say that Brandon Calloway, he failed to stop at a "Stop" sign and that police officers were trying to have a traffic stop and he refused to stop. He kept going. They say he then started speeding through the neighborhood going 12 miles per hour over the speed limit until he turned into the driveway of this home and ran upstairs.

In the affidavit, the police say that they felt the need that they needed to detain him so they kicked in the door and ran up the stairs to grab him. In the video, you can see that he is being hit by a baton, he is Tased at one point, and in this video, you can also see a large gash on his forehead and blood all over his face.

I was able to speak with Brandon Calloway and ask him, you know it's been about a week since this happened, how are you healing now emotionally and physically? Take a listen.

[18:10:10]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CALLOWAY: Definitely having flashbacks and nightmares. I really feel like my life now is a nightmare. That's like a consistent thing.

I've always had a fear because of what's happened to other people like me.

But no, I never thought anything like this would ever happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMERO: I asked him if he ever thought that he would be involved in this kind of an incident considering what we've seen in the past with Philando Castile, with George Floyd, and he said in that answer, no, I never thought I would be involved, but I feared that this could happen to me because it's happened to so many people.

At the very end of that video, before the cellphone video drops, his girlfriend is screaming "Get off of his neck. Get off of his neck," which is that eerie reminder of George Floyd.

So we did speak with Brandon Calloway's attorney about the police interaction. He says that he's hoping for a full investigation. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation continues to look at this arrest. We know that one of the officers involved from the Oakland Police Department there in Tennessee is on administrative leave.

We have reached out to multiple authorities to try to get bodycam video, dashcam video to get more information about the officer, Officer Richardson who's on administrative leave, Pamela, and we are waiting to hear back.

Our request for video has been denied, and the reason was cited is because this is still an ongoing investigation. But we don't have video right now that shows us what happened before and after that cell phone clip -- Pamela.

BROWN: Still the video we do have, very disturbing. Thank you so much, Nadia.

We have a lot of news. Ahead for you tonight, I'm going to talk to former DC Metro Police Officer Michael Fanone. He was injured in the January 6th attack and he has been at all the public hearings so far, and I'll ask him what he thought of the one Thursday in primetime and why he has chosen to attend all the hearings.

Plus, senators look to change election laws in response to January 6th, I'll talk to one who is behind a new bill.

And then later, the FCC gets more complaints about car warranty robo- calls than anything else, and now, it is trying a new approach to spare you the spam.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:16:30]

BROWN: That may man accused of trying to stab New York Congressman Lee Zeldin has been arrested on a Federal assault charge and he made his first Court appearance a short time ago.

CNN's Evan Perez has more on this developing case -- Evan.

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR U.S. JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Pamela, Federal authorities have arrested and charged a man accused of trying to assault New York Congressman Lee Zeldin on stage at a campaign event.

David Jakubonis, 43 years old is charged with assaulting a Member of Congress with a dangerous weapon.

Zeldin is a Republican running for Governor of New York. The suspect made his first appearance in Federal Court a few hours ago, on the charge that was filed by the U.S. Attorney for New York's Western District.

He was initially arrested Thursday on New York State charges and he was quickly released, which prompted criticism given the nature of the attack.

A photo of the alleged weapon shows an apparent keychain device with two sharp points that the FBI describes as a self-defense weapon. Video of the attack shows the suspect holding the object in his hand as he gets up on stage to confront Zeldin before he was tackled by people at the event.

According to the Federal criminal complaint, the suspect allegedly told the FBI that he had consumed whiskey on the day of the attack and must have checked out as he walked on stage and asked Zeldin if he was disrespecting veterans.

He told the FBI that he did not know who Zeldin was at the time. Jakubonis is an Army veteran who served in Iraq in 2008 and 2009. And Pamela, he is scheduled to appear in Court on a Federal charge again on Wednesday.

BROWN: Thanks so much to Evan. The eighth January 6 hearing on Thursday night marked the end of round one for the Committee, and it focused on President Trump's 187 minutes of inaction and the devastation that could have been prevented if he had acted sooner.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ADAM KINZINGER (R-IL): President Trump did not fail to act during the 187 minutes between leaving The Ellipse and telling the mob to go home, he chose not to act.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Several witnesses testified that the President didn't place a single call to any law enforcement or national security official, instead, he watched the chaos unfold on TV.

Joining me now to discuss is Michael Fanone. He is a former DC police officer was attacked at the Capitol on January 6th.

Hi, Michael.

So on Thursday, the Committee played some of Donald Trump's outtakes from the video that he released the day after the insurrection. Let's take a listen to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: To those who broke the law, you will pay. You do not represent our movement. You do not represent our country. And if you broke the law -- I can't say that. I'm not going to. I already said you will pay.

But this election is now over. Congress has certified the results.

I don't want to say the election is over. I just want to say Congress has certified the results without saying the elections are over, okay?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Michael, what was your reaction when you heard these outtakes knowing what you went through the day before?

MICHAEL FANONE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: I didn't find it surprising at all. Trump was performing. Just like many of the members of his party and his administration did in the -- on January 6th and then in the weeks and months after January 6th. He did the bare minimum and he was walking a fine line between condemning the violence to avoid the appearance of any criminal culpability, and still showing support for his followers and their actions on January 6th. [18:20:19]

BROWN: I want to talk to you about Senator Josh Hawley. On January 6th, he infamously pumped his fist to the crowd, we learned that shortly after he was caught on film running from the crowds. I want to get your take on what he said to a Turning Point USA crowd yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOSH HAWLEY (R-MO): I objected on January 6th last year, to the state of Pennsylvania, and I just want to say to all of those liberals out there and the liberal media, just in case you haven't gotten the message yet, I do not regret it and I am not backing down.

I'm not going to apologize. I'm not going to cower. I'm not going to run from you. I'm not going to bend the knee.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: What is your message to him?

FANONE: Josh Hawley, you are a coward. You showed your true character on January 6th by coming down to the battlefield, showing your support for an insurrectionist mob who attacked police officers, beat police officers, myself included.

And then after showing your support for those insurrectionists, you ran from the battlefield, like a coward. You literally ran away. Like you described to the crowd, I guess it was yesterday, you literally did exactly what you said you were not going to do.

So I think it's very clear or should be clear to everyone in America, the type of person and character or lack thereof that Josh Hawley is.

BROWN: I'm curious because during the Committee hearing, we heard testimony from a Capitol police officer, it was relayed from an officer that they had interviewed who said that this person believed that his fist bump galvanized the crowd, and then you see him running in the hallway and under the protection of law enforcement, right? You see the law enforcement staying in the hallway, and I'm wondering if you feel like he appreciates the sacrifices that you and other law enforcement made on that day.

FANONE: I think it's obvious that he does not appreciate that nor do I care. I'm not looking for his appreciation. Josh Hawley chose his side, you know, just like many members of our government did in the Civil War. (AUDIO GAP), and so I don't believe that he is fit to hold office. He has betrayed the American people and he has betrayed his oath.

BROWN: We had a lot of damning moments shown to us throughout all eight hearings. You have attended all of them. I imagine it has been very difficult for you. What has been the most emotionally gutting part so far for you as you sat there?

FANONE: I mean, it is difficult to hear the evidence and to see how many members of our government participated in rhetoric lies that led to January 6, and to see that they continue to support those lies.

It's difficult to see witnesses come forward, some under subpoena, and be hailed as heroes. When they are, like I said earlier, doing the bare minimum.

My presence there was really to remind the American people or at least I hoped it would remind the American people that it was American police officers who fought and were responsible for our victory against the insurrectionists on January 6th.

I also wanted to show my support for the (AUDIO GAP) and I mean, because I am so personally invested in in the fight for accountability. I wanted to be there, I wanted to hear the evidence firsthand.

BROWN: It's been more than a year and a half since January 6th riot. I'm wondering how you're doing now.

[18:25:09]

FANONE: I miss my job. I miss being a police officer. You know, I am greatly appreciative of everyone at CNN, having this job, having a job, but it'll never be anything more than a novelty to me.

I am a police officer, and I always will be.

BROWN: Final question for you. Do you get the sense as you are out and about, you know, right now you're in California that these public hearings are shaping the public opinion about Donald Trump and the insurrection? Can you get any sense at all?

FANONE: I don't believe it is moving the needle as people say with regards to public opinion. I think people are pretty firm in their beliefs as to the justification for January 6th, whether it was a great day in American history or an awful day in American history.

But I was never looking for that from the Select Committee or the presentation of this evidence. I want criminal accountability. I want to see people who broke the law regardless of who they are to be tried and if they are found guilty to go to prison.

BROWN: All right, Michael Fanone, thank you so much for joining the show. We appreciate it.

FANONE: Thank you.

BROWN: Well, tomorrow on CNN, Jake Tapper sits down with the January 6 Committee Vice Chair Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney. That's at 9:00 AM Eastern right here on CNN.

A bipartisan group of senators is working on a new bill that would clarify the Vice President's role in the electoral vote count. Senator Ben Cardin is part of that group and he will join me live next to discuss the bill.

We'll be right back. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:31:23]

BROWN: A bipartisan group of senators has cut a deal that would make it much tougher to pull off former President Trump's scheme to overturn the election. One of the reforms would modernize the Electoral Count Act, making it clear that the Vice President's role in counting Electoral College votes is purely ceremonial. And another would increase federal penalties for threatening or intimidating election officials.

The measures still need to pass both chambers of Congress, but my next guest is one of the lawmakers behind this push, Sen. Ben Cardin, a Democrat from Maryland and a member of that bipartisan group of negotiators. Hi, Sen. Cardin. Thanks for coming on.

SEN. BEN CARDIN (D-MD): Pamela, it's good to be with you, thanks.

BROWN: So I want to ask you, I was just going through the fact sheet about this bill and it says that once there is a clear winner of the election, one candidate will be eligible for transition resources. But there was a clear winner of this last election and look what happened. I mean, half the country or majority of Republicans still believe the election was stolen, what will be the standard for determining the clear winner of the election moving forward?

CARDIN: Well, it's a great question. The change we're suggesting in the Transition Act would be to allow Joe Biden to get that information, so that if there is not a concession that the candidate that is competitive would be able to also get the information during this period of time so they're not delayed in the transition.

So we don't really affect that type of a definition, but we do allow, in that case, both candidates to be able to get the information they need in order to take off because obviously of an incumbent president, it was Joe Biden who was at a disadvantage.

BROWN: I'm just curious, because I know a lot of this is making sure that the VP's role is purely ceremonial and so forth. But why doesn't it do more to clearly define when a candidate is a clear winner, given the fact that this election was stolen, message has taken such a stronghold on this country?

CARDIN: Well, let me be clear, our current laws are adequate and that what President Trump did is outrageous and against the law. That's in regards to what he tried to do on January the 6th with the vice president, intimidating the Vice President, as well as denying President-elect Biden the access to the information he needed for a smooth transition.

What we're doing is clarifying it to make it clear that there is no ambiguity. In regards to the Electoral Count Act, it was enacted in the 1800s, so it needs to be updated and modernized. We want to remove any argument about the role of the vice president or who makes the certified electors to the Congress, what are the grounds for objection, the right of court review, et cetera.

That is very clear in the bill that we're recommending, even though we think current law was clear on January 6th. It was President Trump who tried to abuse that law.

BROWN: Why is this seemingly been slow road? Why not bring it to the Senate floor now before the lame duck session begins and another election rolls around?

CARDIN: We do hope that it'll be brought up before November's election. We're hoping that leader Schumer will bring it to the floor in September. We have bipartisan support. We think we have enough support to pass this bill. We've already talked to our colleagues in the House and I think they're ready to take it up as soon as we pass it in the Senate. So we do hope that this bill would be enacted prior to the November elections, so let's get this done.

[18:35:01]

Let's make it very clear and I am very proud of the fact that this is bipartisan. We have Democrats and Republicans working together that recognize that Electoral Count Act, particularly needs to be enacted immediately.

BROWN: How much do you think the January 6 hearings played a role in this, putting that pressure for bipartisan support or did it in your view?

CARDIN: I think what happened on January the 6th put an explanation point on the need for Congress to be very clear about what the role of the Vice President is, in regards to opening the votes. What are the - what the state legislatures could do after the election won.

Of the important things that we make clear when our revision of the Electoral Count Act is the state cannot change the rules after the election. So it's the laws that are in effect before the election are what - are used in order to who certifies the electors and how that process moves forward.

So clearly, these most recent hearings point out what happened on January 6th. We want to make sure that never happens again and one of the things we can do is clarify our election laws.

BROWN: I'm going to ask you about what happened, this past week, the House passed in the Respect for Marriage Act codifying federal protections for same sex couples. It now needs just 10 Republican votes in the Senate to pass. Do you have a sense of whether this has a real chance of becoming law?

CARDIN: Well, Pamela, we're going to find out because leader Schumer has already started the process to bring this bill to the floor of the United States Senate. We need 10 Republicans to join us and allowing this bill to move forward. We'll see where the votes are. I certainly hope that we had the votes.

This is a matter in which most of my colleagues have expressed their views in favor of major - marriage equality. So now we'll have a chance to do that. And with the Dobbs' decision affecting a women's right of choice in regards to reproductive rights, it's very clear that we need now to protect by federal statute rights such as marriage equality.

BROWN: All right. Sen. Ben Cardin, thank you so much.

CARDIN: Thank you.

BROWN: Families in Uvalde, Texas want the school's police chief fired. He was in charge during the massacre at Robb Elementary. Up next, why they say firing him should be just the beginning of change.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:41:27]

BROWN: Uvalde families who want the schools police chief fired will have to wait. A special school board meeting to consider firing Peter Arredondo set for today was cancelled. He is on administrative leave and facing intense criticism over his handling of the Robb Elementary School massacre.

But as CNN's Rosa Flores reports, Uvalde families also want the superintendent and the whole school board to step down.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That door I bet you is unlocked, I bet you it's unlocked.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It's moments like these that have the families of the victims of the Uvalde school massacre outraged and demanding that disgraced Uvalde School Police Chief, Pete Arredondo lose his job. After surveillance video and a Texas House report showed he and hundreds of law enforcement officers responded to the scene ...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cover me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES (voice over): ... with some waiting for 77 minutes to stop the shooter. Arredondo told The Texas Tribune that he didn't instruct officers not to reach the classrooms.

Uziyah Garcia who went by Uzi was among the 19 students and two teachers massacred.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BRETT CROSS, UNCLE OF UZIYAH GARCIA: Spider Man was it his favorite

superhero.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES (voice over): His uncle, Brett Cross, who was raising him like a son carries his ashes on a bracelet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROSS: It's a part of him but it's not his laugh, it's not his smile, it's not his energy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES (voice over): This photo of Uzi was taken in room 111 earlier this year, the same classroom where he and his classmates were slaughtered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROSS: You miss the love. You miss the interactions, the hugs, the - everything.

FLORES (on camera): How do you do it every day?

CROSS: I have to, I have kids. I have Lucy's brothers and sisters that are devastated, that are terrified to go to school, to go out and do things.

Those are our babies, those are our teachers and they're no longer here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES (voice over): With the new school year fast approaching, Cross went before the school board and gave them a deadline to fire Arredondo who was placed on administrative leave last month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROSS: If he's not fired by noon tomorrow, then I want your resignation and every single one of you board members because you do not give a damn about our children or us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES (voice over): That was Cross on Monday. So the school board missed its deadline. The school board was scheduled to meet Saturday regarding Arredondo's termination. But at his attorney's request, the meeting will be held at a later date.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROSS: It's too little too late, so therefore we're going to start at the top and clean the house. (END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES (voice over): Cross and many in the community are calling for the superintendent, the school board and the entire school police department to be replaced.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROSS: My kids are terrified to go to school. They're hurt. They're devastated. They post questions that I can't answer.

FLORES (off camera): What do they ask you?

CROSS: Why. I mean they asked me why, why, why, my other son said because he wasn't there at school that day said he wished he would have gone and he could have traded in places. No kid should have to feel that way. He said I'm bigger than him. He can't - I mean, he's broken. His broken. I cannot take away his heartache, I can't take away his paint.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[18:45:03]

FLORES (voice over): Murals of Uzi and the other victims are going up around town as the community tries to find ways to heal, cope and remember.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROSS: It's Spider Man saying I love you in sign language.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES (voice over): Cross got a tattoo in Uzi's honor with 21 birds in the sky, one for each of the victims.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROSS: Hug your kids a little extra longer. You'll never know when's the last time you're going to get to see them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES (on camera): CNN has reached out to Arredondo's attorney and to the school district about this story and has not heard back. The school district has previously said that they were waiting for the Texas House investigative report to make a determination or Arredondo.

Rosa Flores, CNN, Uvalde, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: And our thanks to Rosa. Tomorrow night on CNN, an old new episode at Patagonia: Life on the Edge of the World airs at 9 Eastern and Pacific right here on CNN. And you were in the CNN NEWSROOM on this Saturday. Up next--

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: Hey, Pam and CNN audience. Can you guess where I am right now? Is the answer A; Puerto Rico, B; Aruba, C; Bermuda or D; none of the above as this is all just a mirage and I'm standing with a green screen behind me?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:50:44]

BROWN: President Biden's approval rating has hit a new low and it's even lower than Donald Trump's at one of the lowest points of his presidency. CNN Senior Data Reporter Harry Enten joins us to run the numbers. Hi, Harry. You're looking awfully tan, side note. Just how bad the - let's talk about Biden's ratings. Tell us just how bad are they compared to his predecessor?

ENTEN: Yes, I'm not even wearing makeup. That's how tan I am. I didn't even need the assist.

BROWN: Wow.

ENTEN: There you go. Look, we all need some help sometime. But look, when it gets to Joe Biden's approval rating, right now he's standing at a 37 percent approval rating in my average of polls. If you look at Donald Trump at this point in his first term, it was 42 percent, so Joe Biden's well below that.

But your producer Brian got in touch with me and he said, where was Trump after the January 6 insurrection because I heard that Biden's numbers are even lower now than Trump's were after one of the lowest points in his presidency. And in fact, Joe Biden's approval rating is below Donald Trump's after the January 6 insurrection. You see in your screen, Trump was at 39 percent. Biden right now is at 37 percent, so clearly, the President of the United States is greatly struggling.

BROWN: Yes. And you're seeing some real decline among the pivotal group for Democrats, right?

ENTEN: Yes. One of the reasons why Joe Biden's approval rating is so low is because of his support among voters of color who are traditionally a bedrock of Democratic support, especially if you're President of the United States. And back in the 2020 election, Joe Biden's vote share among voters of color, average 72 percent across a bunch of different surveys.

Look at where he is now with his approval rating, it's just 50 percent. Obviously, that's higher than his overall approval rating. But when you're averaging just 50 percent approval rating among voters of color and you're a Democratic president, that's clearly a sign that you're losing support and losing support among groups that you traditionally would do very, very well amongst and it's just as a sign that Joe Biden's presidency, at least at this point, is in a lot of trouble.

BROWN: So is this weakness among voters of color translating into how people say they're going to vote this fall?

ENTEN: This to me is a fascinating question, right? Because you may not like President Biden, but you still may, in fact, support Democratic candidates. And what we see here is among voters of color, their preference for congressional control, they still favor the Democrats, right? They favor them by an average of about 30 points on the generic congressional ballot.

But look at - compare that to where the - what voters of color, how they voted back in the 2020 election for congressional control, they supported Democratic candidates by 46 point. Forty-six points, you go back to 2018, they supported Democrats by 55 points. In fact, that 30 point lead right now that Democrats have among voters of color would be the worst democratic performance this century. So it's not just Biden, voters of color are actually turning against Democrats overall as well.

BROWN: All right. I got to switch topics. I've mentioned your tan at the top there. You just got back from vacation. It turns out a lot more people are getting away this summer compared to the last couple of summers during the pandemic, right?

ENTEN: That's absolutely right. And the way we can see that, and I love this stuff, because just in the raw numbers, right, the TSA essentially measures how many people are going past security and you can see on July 17th which was actually when I left, back - this year, 2.45 million Americans went through or passengers went through security.

That's up from 2021. That is way up from where we were in 2020 when it was 747,000. So we've really seen a real recovery. We're not quite at the levels that we were at, at 2019 with 2.73 million, but clearly, more and more Americans are going out and vacationing.

BROWN: Okay. So where did you go? Did you enjoy it? Bring us the goods, come on.

ENTEN: So the answer was C to the trivia.

BROWN: Okay.

ENTEN: The answer was C.

BROWN: So not the green screen.

ENTEN: It was Bermuda.

BROWN: Which I knew it wasn't green screen because you're so tan, but go ahead.

ENTEN: That's exactly right. I may be a good actor, but I'm not that good of an actor. I also had one from the ocean, but the sound was a little bit fuzzy on that, so we did one from the pool, but I really enjoyed it. My girlfriend said you really should go on vacation. It was my first vacation.

There's a picture of me in the ocean right there. I really, really enjoyed it. It was fantastic. I'd do it all over again and maybe in the future I'll go in some more vacations.

BROWN: Yes. I'm with you.

[18:55:00]

I just got back myself from California. I went to La Jolla in San Diego with my family.

ENTEN: Oh.

BROWN: And it was - yes, happy face. It was beautiful, beautiful weather. And it really is rejuvenating to get away for a little bit. You come back and you just have a renewed energy. I wonder how long that's going to stick around. We'll have to wait and see on that.

ENTEN: Well, I'm going to try and make sure your energy stays up on Saturday nights.

BROWN: Please do.

ENTEN: The only thing I'll add is that it's important also to go away with people that you care about because they truly make the vacation. It's both where you are and the people you're with that make the experience complete.

BROWN: That is so true. That's so true. Harry Enten, great to have you on. Good to see you.

ENTEN: Bye, Pam. I'll see you next week.

BROWN: Let's how long we can hang on to this post vacation glow. Be sure to check out Harry's podcast Margins of Error on your favorite podcast app or at cnn.com/audio.

Well, new information tonight about President Biden's battle with COVID. We're going to check in with the White House up next.

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