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Charles Proclaimed King In Historic Ceremony Seen On TV For First Time; Day Of Queen's Funeral To Be A Public Holiday In The U.K.; California's Heat, Fires, Floods Showing Small Signs Of Abating; Interview With Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D-Chicago); British Ex-Pats And Americans Gather To Remember Queen Elizabeth; Polls Asks Most Important Problem Facing The Country. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired September 10, 2022 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[18:00:29]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three cheers for His Majesty, the King. Hip, hip.
SOLDIERS: Hooray.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The oath has been taken.
KING CHARLES III: In taking up these responsibilities, I shall strive to follow the inspiring example I have been set.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Long Live the King.
ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: What we've been seeing is this incredible transition. It has been a really bittersweet feeling really, we have had tears and we have had cheers, and it's really two sides of the same coin.
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: For us to see Meghan and Harry reunite with Kate and William and I think this will be seen as a hugely respectful thing to do for Her Majesty.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I also, if I can have a hug and she hugged back. That I was just quite an amazing moment. I'm still shaking now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People here are wondering whether or not this was just a photo opportunity or whether this is truly the beginning of some kind of a reconciliation process.
PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: I'm Pamela Brown in Washington. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
In Great Britain tonight, a Royal transfer of power. King Charles III is formally named sovereign of the British monarchy.
The ancient ceremony making its own history. This is the first time the British people could turn on their actual TVs and watch the proclamation of their new Head of State.
And amid that new beginning, a final farewell. The funeral for Queen Elizabeth II now announced for a week from Monday, and her eldest son today formally proclaimed as the new King mourns the loss of his mother, who he shared with the world.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KING CHARLES III: My Lords, ladies, and gentlemen, it is my most sorrowful duty to announce to you the death of my beloved mother, the Queen.
I know how deeply you, the entire nation, and I think I may say the whole world sympathize with me in the irreparable loss we've all suffered. It is the greatest consolation to me to know the sympathy expressed by so many.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: And this moment as striking as it is surprising, Prince William and his brother, Harry joined by their wives walking among the tributes and crowds outside Windsor Castle.
A Royal source tells CNN that despite their strained relationship, they came together in "a show of unity."
CNN's Max Foster has more on this bittersweet day in British history.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Prince Charles Philip Arthur George is now by the death of our late sovereign of happy memory, become our only lawful and rightful lead Lord, Charles III, King, Head of the Commonwealth, defender of the faith.
FOSTER (voice over): King Charles III publicly declared as the new monarch of the United Kingdom, a day enshrined with language and traditions from another age, when word of a new sovereign required it to be spoken out loud on the streets of the nation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: God Save the King.
FOSTER (voice over): Gun salutes across the four nations marked the principal or first public proclamation being made.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hip, hip.
SOLDIERS: Hurray.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hip, hip.
SOLDIERS: Hurray.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hip, hip.
SOLDIERS: Hurray.
[CHEERING AND APPLAUSE]
FOSTER (voice over): This moment captured by cheering crowds on smartphones. It followed what was a traditionally private accession ceremony inside St. James' Palace.
The great and the good of the British establishment gathered. The new Prince of Wales with Queen Consort Camilla, helping to steady her as she walked onto the stage.
For the first time, the somber and solemn event televised for the world to see.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Council is assembled.
FOSTER (voice over): Rituals and proceedings carried out at the Accession Council designed to confirm and endorse the King's position as the new Head of State.
[18:05:09]
FOSTER (voice over): Former Prime Ministers, current political leaders, and heads of the church, some of the so-called privy councilors invited to witness this historic moment.
Standing in front of the most senior of the thrones, King Charles began with a tribute to his beloved mother.
KING CHARLES III: My mother's reign was unequaled in its duration, its dedication, and its devotion. Even as we grieve, we give thanks for this most faithful life.
FOSTER (voice over): Before pledging his own lifetime of service.
KING CHARLES III: And in carrying out the heavy task that has been laid upon me, and to which I now dedicate what remains to me of my life, I pray for the guidance and help of Almighty God.
FOSTER (voice over): Taking an oath to uphold the security of the Church of Scotland, which is separate from the State, unlike the Church of England, by his side stood his closest allies, his son, William, the new Prince of Wales; and wife, Camilla, his Queen Consort.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: God save the King.
FOSTER (voice over): The day's pomp and pageantry continued, a second public proclamation of the new King read at London's Royal Exchange, the heart of the city's financial center.
The announcements are being sent onwards across the UK's four nations and the Kingdom's overseas realms and territories to mark a new era.
As King Charles, his car adorned by the Royal Standard, arrived at Buckingham Palace to begin what will be the task of a lifetime, his new reign.
Max Foster, CNN, Buckingham Palace, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN: And the eyes of the world now shift back to Scotland where the late Queen embarks on her last great journey tomorrow.
CNN's Nic Robertson is in Edinburgh.
So Nic, what have you learned?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: It's going to be a long journey before the Queen arrives back in London. It begins tomorrow at 10 o'clock local time in the morning. The Queen will be taken in the coffin, by hearse, on a long road journey, more than a hundred miles expected to last over six hours.
She will leave Balmoral, go through the village of Ballater, the town of Banchory, to the City of Aberdeen, and they'll turn south and go through Stonehaven and Brechin and Forfar, Dundee, and Perth before they get here to Edinburgh and pass along the streets right here, castle behind me. They'll go past the castle and then to the official residence of the monarch in Scotland, the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
The Queen will be taken, the coffin, to the throne room there where she'll rest. On Monday, she will be taken in procession to St. Giles Cathedral. There will be a service there attended by King Charles, other senior roles, the British Prime Minister Liz Truss expected to be there.
And in the coming week, there will be other similar services in Northern Ireland and in Wales, but on Tuesday, the Queen will be taken back to London, to Buckingham Palace initially and then to Westminster Hall, which is one of the oldest buildings in Westminster Abbey where she'll lay in state for four days so the people of the country will have an opportunity to pay their last respects.
And then Monday, the 19th of September, the funeral service at Westminster Abbey before the Queen begins the last part of her final journey back to Windsor Castle where she will be laid to rest.
The streets here, we expect tomorrow to be thronged with people, as well as along that six-hour journey, people from across Scotland coming out to take a last, loving, longing look at their Queen as she passes on her way to her rest.
BROWN: All right, Nic Robertson, thank you so much for that report out of Edinburgh, Scotland.
And let's continue this conversation. Joining me now is Sally Bedell Smith, CNN contributor and author of "Elizabeth, The Queen: The Life of a Modern Monarch."
Sally, great to have you here with us.
SALLY BEDELL SMITH, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Great to be back, Pamela.
I know you've been going around the clock for the last several days. I want to play more of the brothers reunited because that has been such a big talker today, to see them together. The new Prince and Princess of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, mingling with the crowds as you see right outside Windsor Castle. A source is telling CNN it was at the invitation of Prince William.
Given their public rift, what is the significance of this moment?
SMITH: Well, I think we'll find out in the days to come. It was certainly just lovely to see the four of them together and to be paying their respects to the Queen, and looking at the flowers and the messages and it was wonderful that it was a gesture from William perhaps prompted by what his father had said the night before about, you know, loving Meghan and Harry and wishing them well in new life overseas.
And, you know, I think it was -- you know, a good gesture for William, and I think we'll just have to see.
I mean, they're actually going to be sort of cheek by jowl over the next week living very near to each other since William and Kate just moved to the Windsor Home Park right next to Windsor Castle, and Harry and Meghan already have a house there. They're very nearby.
So, you know, I think we should just sort of wait and see how that plays out, if there is some common ground for reconciliation after all the rifts that have emerged in the last two years.
BROWN: It is clear that the public would love to see reconciliation, because when they walked out, there was loud applause. People love seeing them together, and you can imagine what they may have been thinking that, look, this is what the Queen would have wanted.
They want us to come be united and have this sort of this force to show the public as the four of us. And you mentioned, what the now King Charles said in his address, sending love to Harry and Meghan. Can you see them ever coming back to be working Royals? Or is it just too --
SMITH: Well, I think it's largely up to them because there are a lot of things they could do for King Charles. There are lots of things they could do as they have been doing before Meghan and Harry decided to leave.
I mean, there was a whole wonderful Commonwealth portfolio that the Queen had very sort of made it a sort of bespoke portfolio for them to have that would have enabled them to be representatives, her representatives around the world and there is no reason why they couldn't do it for King Charles, and they could really perform an enormous service for the monarchy if they were to do that.
But it is really up to them, I think. I don't think they could be half in and half out. I think they would have to either, you know, recommit to the monarchy as Charles remakes it, redraws the contours of the family. And, you know, it's certainly possible, but I think the ball is sort of in their court.
BROWN: That's interesting. You know, as I watch the videos of King Charles now, you have to think, look, yes, the Commonwealth has lost its Queen, but he just lost his mother.
SMITH: Oh, I know.
BROWN: Losing a mother is so, so hard. How is he balancing the weight of responsibility he now has while balancing the weight of grief he must feel?
SMITH: Well, the Queen was always very good at compartmentalizing things. I'm not sure Charles does that as easily. We could see his grief, you know, it was -- you could really see more evidence of his grief when he was speaking last night. Not so much today, but last night was a very personal speech. It was one that he really wrote.
He has probably been writing it over and over for a long time, and so I think he knows -- I mean, he is a professional. He's been working at being Prince of Wales for many years, and he's been training for it. He has been spending a lot more time over the past summer with his mother up in Scotland.
I think it's so striking. This is slightly off point, but I think it's so striking that she is going to be lying in state in Scotland, which is a first. The monarch's beau is laying in state at Westminster, where she will be eventually, but the fact that she died at Balmoral and there are some people I've spoken to who said she wanted to die in Balmoral, and ...
BROWN: That was her favorite -- her favorite --
SMITH: Well, it really was and there so much happened there. It was such a place of solace for her and that she is going to Holyroodhouse, that she's going to St. Giles, I think is hugely significant, and it speaks to her abiding love of Scotland.
Princess Margaret was born in Scotland, her mother grew up in Scotland. It is very, deep and very significant that that is where she will be she will be lying in state before London.
[18:15:11]
BROWN: It's a special place. I lived there for a while.
You know, I want to talk about as we look ahead with King Charles, of course, he's not going to be able to avoid the comparisons, right? I mean, that is the sad reality.
His mother strived to stay out of politics.
SMITH: Yes. She was brilliant at it, and that's why she was called the light above politics, and it is an essential function of the monarch not to get entangled in politics, because the primary purpose of -- or a very important purpose of a monarch is to unify, not to divide. And once you get involved in politics with one party or another, you will inevitably divide.
Now, Charles has talked about using his convening power, and he has had some initiatives that are, you know, for example, youth unemployment, youth job training, and where he has been able to bring in the three parties in the UK and have them work with nonprofits and do initiatives.
And I think those are the kinds of things that we will see him do, which is a little bit more activism than his mother did and that be more than his style, and yet he could do it without being partisan.
BROWN: Crossing that line.
SMITH: Yes.
BROWN: Because he, I know people had said previously he maybe had been meddling in areas where he shouldn't have because as a Royal --
SMITH: He was definitely meddling in a lot of areas. He had much more freedom.
BROWN: Yes. Exactly.
SMITH: As Prince of Wales.
BROWN: And now that --
SMITH: He could be what he called a charitable entrepreneur, and now as he said --
BROWN: As he said in his -- exactly.
SMITH: For my causes and my charities, and leaves them to the capable hands of others.
BROWN: Yes.
SMITH: And now I will devote myself to the considerable duties of the monarch.
BROWN: Yes, that was a striking moment.
SMITH: Yes.
BROWN: Sally, great to have you on.
SMITH: Great to be here.
BROWN: I hope you can finally get some rest.
And we have a lot more ahead for you tonight.
The Queen was famous for her love of dogs and the dozens of Corgi she had during her lifetime. We're going to talk to the man who helped train some of them.
Also, the Mayor of Chicago is going to be joining us as she takes on the Texas Governor and opens her city to migrants sent there by Governor Greg Abbott of Texas.
Plus, first, it was heat, now, California deals with the threat of flooding and more wildfires. We are live. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:21:56]
BROWN: California has more extreme weather on its hands, but this time it may actually bring some benefits.
After weeks of record-breaking temperatures, Tropical Storm Kay has brought life-threatening floods and powerful winds, but it is also bringing some much needed rain and it is helping firefighters contain at least one of the wildfires burning in the southern part of the State.
CNN's Camila Bernal joins us from the town of Hemet where the deadly Fairview Fire has been burning since Monday. What are you learning?
CAMILA BERNAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Pam.
So, what we're learning is that between yesterday and today, firefighters have made significant progress. Look, everyone here was worried about too much rain in a short period of time, because that's what causes the flooding and the mudslides, especially in areas like this one affected by the flames.
But what happened here was essentially a best case scenario. What CalFire was telling me was that they got consistent steady rain throughout the day Friday, and that led to 40 percent containment.
There are many people being allowed back into their homes, evacuation orders being lifted. But unfortunately, the fire did destroy at least 13 structures. So, many of these families are going to come back to areas like the one you see here behind me where nothing is left because of the flames.
And look, we've covered enough fires to know that it is going to be a very difficult process for the people that come back to these destroyed homes and it is also really important to point out that the flames are still burning, there is still a lot of work to be done.
CalFire is saying that they need at least until Monday to get this fire contained, and so, there is still some work to be done, but they are hoping that the weather continues to cooperate because what they say is that the cloud cover here has been extremely beneficial for this area, but not necessarily for other parts of the State.
Here's how CalFire described it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD CORDOVA, CALFIRE RIVERSIDE COUNTY: It's kind of an odd situation where we're dealing with especially in the last couple of days, where Southern California as we've gotten this cloud cover, it has helped us on this fire.
But we have major fires going on in Northern California and Central California, because they don't have this cloud cover. They have the extreme temperatures up there. They're dealing with low humidity.
So, firefighters have their hands full in Northern California with multiple fires in that area.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERNAL: And one of those fires in Northern California, the Mosquito Fire growing significantly. Firefighters saying that they just don't think the situation is going to get any better because of the ongoing drought here in the State of California -- Pam.
BROWN: All right, Camila Bernal, thank you so much for reporting the latest there in California.
Well, the States of Texas and Arizona are sending thousands of migrants to big cities outside of their states. And now, those cities are scrambling to take care of the surprise arrivals.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot joins us next to explain how her city is dealing with it.
You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:29:14]
BROWN: Washington, DC declared a public health emergency this week because the Governors of Texas in Arizona are busing thousands of migrants to other parts of the country.
This is one of those buses arriving in Washington and you can see the Capitol Building in the background of this image.
Now so far, Texas has sent more than 7,900 migrants to DC, more than 2,200 to New York City, and more than 300 to Chicago; and Arizona, for its part has sent more than 1,600 migrants to Washington.
Texas when it comes to the price tag here, it has spent millions of dollars on these cross country bus trips. More than $12 million as of August 9th, and since then, that number has likely grown quite a bit.
[18:30:06]
CNN obtained this figure by following the freedom of information request with the State of Texas.
When it comes to reaction, here's what the cities are doing to cope with the situation. Chicago, like others, is providing food, clothing, shelter and medical care for its new arrivals. New York sent a fact finding delegation to Texas this week. And, as I mentioned, Washington declared a public health emergency.
Now, the city will spend $10 million to set up a new office of migrant services. The mayors of Chicago and New York say Texas governor, Greg Abbott, is using the migrants as political pawns. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR ERIC ADAMS (D), NEW YORK CITY: It's just a mean and cruel thing that he's doing. He's just totally disregarding the human part of this. There's a humanitarian part of being an American and I think that there's nothing more anti-American than what he's displaying right now.
MAYOR LORI LIGHTFOOT (D), CHICAGO: This is not a governor who wants to collaborate and cooperate with us. There's a way to do it, it's real simple, pick up the phone, send me an email. That to me would show that he's - importantly, that he's regarding these folks as human beings who are deserving of respect and dignity and not treating them just like freight to be shipped across the country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot who you just saw there, she joins us now. Mayor Lightfoot, thank you for coming on the show. So we want to note that clip we just played was from Tuesday. Have you heard from Governor Abbott or anyone from his administration since then?
LIGHTFOOT: No, unfortunately, I have not and frankly I don't expect to. Gov. Abbott is obviously playing to the lowest common denominator in his Republican Party and not acting like an American and a patriot. And frankly, not acting like a person of faith.
You don't treat people with this lack of respect, lack of dignity, putting them on buses, to an unknown destination with very little food, very little water. They have very little that they need when they're on these multiple hour cross country bus trips. But we are going to take care of them as we have welcomed immigrants to our city from our earliest days.
But this is clearly not the way to get things done. This is a national problem, we need a national solution. I was just in Washington, spoke very candidly with Customs and Border Patrol and DHS and told them about what they needed to do to step up and collaborate and cooperate with us. But I'm not ever going to treat another human being, one of God's children as anything other than someone who's ultimately deserving of our respect and dignity as a human being.
BROWN: So do the administration offer any help or assurances to you?
LIGHTFOOT: Well, I think we had a very candid conversation, we've agreed that there's got to be better collaboration, and communication with cities like Chicago, New York and Washington, D.C. I've talked at length with my fellow mayors from both of those cities and we are doing everything that we can to make sure that we address the needs of the migrants that are coming to our respective cities.
But of course, we expect the federal government to step up and provide us with resources. We had a very, I think, productive series of conversations with folks from FEMA and it's my expectation that we will get resources from there. But the thing about this is, this is a manufactured crisis on the part of Gov. Abbott. We can all do our part and I believe that we all must do our part.
But we've got to do it with collaboration with cooperation. It's a lot of logistics that are entailed to make sure that we're meeting these folks' need. But what I don't like to see is people taking these cross country trips, getting off the bus and being immediately taken to the hospital because they were put on the buses with delicate medical conditions that no one in Texas seem to care anything about. That is simply not right and it's unAmerican.
BROWN: If there were better conditions, if there was more coordination, as you have said you wanted, would you be okay with a Gov. Abbott doing this? I mean, if there was more in terms of providing them what they need.
LIGHTFOOT: Well, unilateral political stunts, I'm never going to be okay with. I don't care if it's Gov. Abbott or anybody else. And what he's trying to do is play to the lowest common denominator in his party to burnish his credentials when - as a candidate for president in 2024. But I think Americans see him for what exactly what he is and frankly I hope Texans see him when it comes to the polls in November.
But meanwhile, we will do our part to step up and welcome these migrants into (inaudible) city as we have immigrants and refugees from all across the world for centuries in my city of Chicago.
[18:34:56]
We are a city of immigrants and refugees, whether it's the Irish, whether it's Ukrainians, whether it's the Germans, more recently the Afghanis, Ukrainians, we are going to make sure we step up and do the right thing because that's who we are as Chicagoans.
BROWN: Gov. Abbott we should know for his part that says that you should be putting the blame on President Biden and not on him. This is what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. GREG ABBOTT (R) TEXAS: They were seeing the chaos that has been caused by the Biden administration. Well, I got news for New York, I got news for Washington, D.C. as well as the rest of the country, we're not done yet. There are more cities on our list.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: What is your reaction to that?
LIGHTFOOT: So I'm just going to ask you, does that sound like a reasonable, rational human being? It doesn't to me. That sounds like somebody who is holding a pep rally. But meanwhile, he is treating migrants, human beings, babies, children, elders, he's treating them like freight, like a political pawns.
There's nothing of goodwill about what this man is doing. So you asked me before if there was more communication, where I started to say, Governor, respect these people as human beings, start with that. Show them the dignity that you want to be shown, anyone in your family members.
And when he embraces that very basic American ideology, when he embraces that as a person of faith that he says he is, then we can have a different conversation. But I don't expect that from someone like him.
BROWN: What do you think the solution is then to the migrant problem that Texas is trying to pass on to Chicago and other cities in the United States?
LIGHTFOOT: Well, look, (inaudible) as you well know, this is not a new one and it's a complicated problem. It starts with what's going on in their home countries and making sure that they are safe, that there's economic opportunity, and that they're not facing political oppression.
That's something obviously that the diplomats and the State Department must continue to work on at the highest level of urgency. But when these folks do come to our shores, we've got to treat them with dignity and respect. International and national laws say that they are entitled to asylum once they pass the screening, but there's got to be better coordination on the ground in states like Texas and Arizona.
We are absolutely going to step up and do our part. We've shown that and we'll continue to do that. But we've got to make sure that there are resources that they're housing, that there's opportunities for these families to be able to integrate themselves into the communities that are ultimate destination and it cannot be a manufactured crisis by ambush what we're seeing now. Someone needs to step in and intercede to stop this madness that has been manufactured at the expense of these human beings by Gov. Abbott.
BROWN: I want to just ask you before we let you go about some of these reports that are coming out of - some of these migrants being sent - that are being sent to Chicago, being housed outside the city and some local officials are saying they weren't notified in advance.
Here's what the Mayor of Burr Ridge told the Chicago Sun-Times. He said the Mayor of Chicago complained that she wasn't given any information by the Governor of Texas, which he has the right to get information and I agree with her. She should have or somebody from the city who made this decision should have reached out to me or the Village of Burr Ridge and let me know, just because I'm just as frustrated at her as she is with Gov. Abbott."
And Mayor, you were just talking about how coordination is so important, I'm wondering what do you say to that.
LIGHTFOOT: Well, I agree the coordination is important. This was a decision that was made by the state, not the city of Chicago. But we will be reaching out to our partners in the metropolitan area to make sure that they are up to speed as well. But that decision was made by the state, not the city of Chicago.
We have asked our state government as well as our county government and our federal partners to step up and do more. The state decided that there were resources that were available outside of the City of Chicago to house some of these migrants and we certainly welcome that. But we will make sure that on a going forward basis that wherever folks are going with the state steps up and make sure that they are reading the local mayors into those decisions and I'm going to do my part to make sure that that happens as well.
No one needs to be caught by surprise. There shouldn't be a crisis. We should all be collaborative and communicating with each other.
BROWN: All right. Chicago Mayor, Lori Lightfoot, thanks for your time tonight, we appreciate it.
LIGHTFOOT: Thank you.
BROWN: And you were in the CNN NEWSROOM. Tributes are pouring in tonight from near and far to honor Queen Elizabeth, how her legacy is being remembered here in the states up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:43:57]
BROWN: It's the end of a long historic era in Great Britain and the beginning of a new reign. Even here across the pond, Americans and British ex-pats alike of remembering Queen Elizabeth and looking ahead to a new era for the U.K. with King Charles. CNN's Polo Sandoval reports from a British tea house in New York. Polo?
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pamela, a lot has been said about Queen Elizabeth as a global monarch. It isn't until you spend some time here in the streets of New York City in the West Village outside of a quaint little tea shop that you really get to understand that. You see for the last couple of days, the owner of this place telling me that folks have been stopping by and they've paying their respects with Queen Elizabeth II here in one way, shape or form.
But like what we've seen here from New Yorkers, Pamela, and ex-pats as well, really a desire to come together to reflect on the legacy that she leaves behind, but also asking a key question of what may be next for the institution under King Charles III.
[18:45:01]
This is how Sean Kavanagh-Dowsett, the owner of this lower Manhattan establishment lays it all out for us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEAN KAVANAGH-DOWSETT, OWNER, TEA & SYMPATHY: It's just been a constant stream of people coming by dropping off flowers to show that they're supporting us and feeling the sense of loss. I can't but hope that the love that - just even a proportion of the love that was - for the Queen carries on with Charles and I think he has every chance to do that. I think - I thought his speech was really great.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SANDOVAL: So Queen Elizabeth embraced internationally, it's certainly
no surprise to many people hear that there are folks very much interested in what's happening across the pond especially as we get closer to the funeral in the next few days, (inaudible) ...
BROWN: Right. Polo Sandoval, thanks so much for that.
Well, the new poll asks Americans what they think is the country's most pressing problem, Harry Enten is going to join us with the answer to that up next as he runs the numbers or as we run the numbers, run, runs, you know.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:50:30]
BROWN: Polish tennis star, Iga Swiatek, won the U.S. Open Women's Singles final today. The world number one defeated Tunisia's Ons Jabeur in straight sets at Arthur Ashe Stadium. This is Swiatek's third career grand slam title. The 21-year-old won the French Open in 2020 and earlier this year. She wore a ribbon on her hat in support of Ukraine during today's final.
Well, as we inch closer to the midterm elections, we're getting a better view of what Americans are most concerned about, so who better to turn to, to find out what that is than CNN Senior Data Reporter Harry Enten. He joins us now to run the numbers. What tops the list, Harry?
HARRY ENTEN, CNN REPORTER: I mean, this will not surprise a lot of people, it's the economy, So this is Gallup's numbers and essentially any mentioned the economy tops the list at this particular point 37 percent. But here's the thing - a few things I'll point out, number one, you would think, okay, Republicans are more trusted on the economy by about 20 points in the average poll and you say, okay, most of the plurality of people say the economy is the most in problem, they trust the GOP more on the economy than they do the Democrats by a wide margin. Why aren't Republicans running away with this?
And the thing I'll note here is that 66 percent of poll respondents actually named something other than the economy as the most important issue. So yes, the economy tops the list but the other issues combined, actually top the economy.
BROWN: Interesting. So how did the results of this poll compared to those done ahead of previous midterm elections?
ENTEN: Yes. So this gets at this point that I was just driving at, right? So you say, okay, 37 percent, it tops the list. But let's put this in a historical perspective, right? If you look back at election since 1988, you go through 2020, what do you see? The average percentage of people who say the economy is the most important problem is 39 percent, 2022 is about average.
So despite all of this inflation that's going on, despite the fact that real disposable income, the money that people have on their pockets to spend in the real world is down year-over-year. Americans as a whole are not listing the economy as more importantly they do on average. This is not 2012 when 72 percent said the economy was the most important issue.
Now, it's not 2018 either when it was just 13 percent, but this election is about on average and that is why these polls are so close to the generic congressional ballot, despite the fact that Republicans are overwhelmingly trusting the economy. There are more issues than just the economy, according to voters.
BROWN: Yes. And it's just so interesting that the inflation isn't having more of an impact on people saying the economy is our number one issue. So I want to turn to something else that's been going on that we can talk about and that is this settlement between e-cigarette maker Juul and over 30 states this week for illegal marketing to teenagers. And this just raises the overall question just how bad is the vaping problem among teens?
ENTEN: Yes. So this is something in which oftentimes we have public campaigns, public health campaigns and I think that they're not necessarily working. I think this is an instance where a public health campaign actually has been working. So if you go back to 2011, just 2 percent of high schoolers said that they used e-cigarettes in the past 20 days. If you then jump forward to 2019, it jumped all the way to 28 percent, that is a huge number. That's nearly a third of high schoolers who said they had smoked an e-cigarette in the past 30 days.
But look at the trend line since 2019, it dropped to 20 percent in 2020 and then just 11 percent in 2021. Pam, I look at numbers all the time. This is the one of the weirdest, oddest trend lines. But to me, it's pretty clear that this public health campaign that's been run by a number of organizations has clearly worked to curb what was a rising trend among teenagers to use e-cigarette. It's still too wide, 11 percent, but clearly on the way down.
BROWN: It is and has that lowering support paved the way for tougher laws on e-cigarettes?
ENTEN: Americans certainly want it Pam. They certainly want it and it's one of the issues in which there's clear bipartisan support, laws covering e-cigarette should be made stricter, 61 percent overall, 69 percent of Democrats, 60 percent of independents, 53 percent of Republicans. Pam, you know I look at poll numbers all the time, I'm not sure I ever saw Democrats and Republicans agree as much on one issue as they do about e-cigarettes that the laws should in fact be made stricter.
[18:55:01]
BROWN: Yes. That's a really good point. All right. Before I let you go, I ran into our buddy, Wolf Blitzer, yesterday and he had to make the point that his beloved Buffalo Bills had a good week. But the big burning question for us tonight is, are they still the favorite to win the Super Bowl?
ENTEN: Yes, they are. They were 10 percent before crushing the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night. They're now up to 16 percent, that's nearly double. The next closest team, the Tampa Bay Bucs at 9 percent, of course, there's an 84 percent chance the Buffalo Bills won't win the Super Bowl, Pam. But I will point out that if they perform as they did on Thursday night, my lungs may in fact collapse upon themselves because I was yelling so loud when they won.
BROWN: You and Wolf Blitzer, both. All right. Harry Enten, thanks so much. Always great to see you. And be sure to check out Harry's podcast Margins of Error. You can find it on your favorite podcast app or at cnn.com/audio.
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