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Biden To Extend Pause On Paying Back Student Loan By Six Months; Some European Captains Told Not To Wear "OneLove" Armband; Cristiano Ronaldo To Leave Manchester United Immediately. Aired 3:30- 4p ET
Aired November 22, 2022 - 15:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[15:33:00]
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: All right, major news for those saddled with student debt. President Biden is going to extend the freeze on paying back student loans.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN HOST: You'll recall, Biden has a plan to forgive millions in loans, but the relief program has yet to be executed since it is now tied up in the courts. So let's go to CNN White House Correspondent Jeremy Diamond with more on this. Give us more details on this extension, Jeremy?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well Bianna, federal court last week blocked the Biden administration from implementing this student loan forgiveness plan. That had been approved for about 16 million Americans who are going to see as much as $10,000 or $20,000 in student debt relief, depending on their circumstances.
Now, today we've learned that President Biden has decided to extend the repayment moratorium that freeze on all student loan payments for all federal student loan debt holders while those court challenges continue to play out. That moratorium was set to expire at the end of this year. Here's the President explaining his decision.
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JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're not going to back down, though, on our fight to give families breathing room. That's why the Department of Justice is asking the Supreme Court of the United States to rule on the case.
But it isn't fair to ask tens of millions of borrowers eligible for relief to resume their student debt payments while the courts considered a lawsuit. For that reason, the sector of education is extending the pause on student loan payments while we seek relief from the courts, but no later than June 30, 2023.
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DIAMOND: That he is, quote, complete confidence that this student debt relief forgiveness program is completely legal. And he, as you said, as you heard there, the President is saying that he's going to continue to fight this tooth and nail. But there are at least some answers for those facing uncertainty heading into this holiday season about whether or not they were going to have to resume those repayments. Bianna, Victor?
BLACKWELL: Jeremy Diamond at the White House, thank you.
GOLODRYGA: The World Cup host country says everyone is welcome, but maybe not if you're wearing an armband or even a t-shirt with a rainbow flag promoting inclusion of the LTBGQ community. The latest controversy, straight ahead.
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[15:39:41]
GOLODRYGA: Well, it was quite a stunning day for not one, but two of the world's biggest soccer stars. Argentina star player Lionel Messi and his team lost to Saudi Arabia in what would be his final World Cup tournament before retiring. And Manchester United just terminated Cristiano Ronaldo's contract immediately citing mutual agreement.
[15:40:02]
BLACKWELL: Ronaldo accused the club last week of betraying him in an explosive television interview, and he added he held no respect for the coach. In a statement, the club thanked him for scoring 145 goals and wished him well. Ronaldo is in Qatar, playing for the Portugal National Team.
And Qatar's human rights issues are under intense scrutiny by Western critics.
GOLODRYGA: Grant Wahl, a sports reporter covering the U.S. men's team, said he was initially denied entry into a stadium wearing a rainbow shirt in support of the LGBTQ community.
GRANT WAHL, REPORTER DETAINED FOR WEARING RAINBOW SHIRT AT A WORLD CUP: So I was told explicitly, you need to take off your shirt. That's a political statement, and you cannot enter. They forcibly took my phone out of my hands for 30 minutes. They made me stand in front of a CCTV camera.
They continued to try to get me to take off my shirt. They stood above me as I sat and angrily yelled at me. Only after about 30 minutes did a commander comedown and let me through wearing my shirt. And he apologized, as did FIFA.
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GOLODRYGA: Joining us now is Briana Scurry, she's a U.S. Goalkeeper, two-time Olympic gold medalist and World Cup champion. Thank you so much for joining us, Briana. So, I just have to ask you, as one of the first out LGBTQ players, what's your take on what you just heard, and what, if any, responsibility does FIFA hold here? BRIANA SCURRY, WORLD CUP SOCCER CHAMPION: I'm very upset, actually. I'm astonished. I know Grant very well, and I know he's an ally for soccer, for inclusion, for the beautiful game, and that is alarming, what just happened to him. I mean, I'm sure he was scared, I'm sure -- you know, because he's in a foreign country and he doesn't know what's going to happen.
I mean, I can't imagine having to go through that. And it bothers me a lot because I know him. And so, it's very unsettling, very unsettling. And I blame FIFA and I blame Qatar as well, but mostly FIFA. And here's why. You know, when you choose the country, you choose the consequences. And Qatar has laws on the books.
Homosexuality is illegal, with fines and jailtime, up to three years in jail. And so, when you choose a country like Qatar to hold a World Cup, you're going to have situations like this occur. And the pride flag is the universal flag for inclusion, for the gay community, for the LGBTQ community and it's known the worldwide.
And they were stopping him because he had the flag and the pride colors on. And it is strictly homophobic. And it's just astonishing and very upsetting to me.
BLACKWELL: You're critical of FIFA, so is the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, who criticized FIFA for threatening players with yellow cards if they wear an armband that supports inclusion and diversity. Here's the Secretary of State. Let's listen to him.
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ANTONY BLINKEN, SECRETARY OF STATE: It's always concerning, from my perspective, when we see any restrictions on freedom of expression. It's especially so when the expression is for diversity and for inclusion. And in my judgment, at least, no one on a football pitch should be forced to choose between supporting these values and playing for their team.
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BLACKWELL: Yellow card is a warning. Too many of those, a player has to leave the field. What's your take on this and how it impacts the game?
SCURRY: I am so -- I mean, I've been around FIFA for decades, and they have been known to pull a lot of shenanigans in the past. But this situation is astonishing to me. To threaten to yellow card, captains of teams from wearing an armband, and that's the sanction that actually is the most damning for the player.
I mean, if you get -- like you said, if you get two yellow cards, you are basically out of the next game. And because yellow card accumulation is a subjective ruling, you could have been out of the tournament completely. They could rule that you have broken the laws of FIFA by wearing an armband and essentially eliminate captains from their games and their teams for the rest of the World Cup. So the sanction, the threat, is a big one and a very, very heavy demand on players for, just like you said, just trying to show allegiance and be, you know, included, and to just, you know, wear these colors not only for their country, but for the world and to show that they're in alignment with inclusion and diversity.
[15:45:04]
It's really -- you know, I've heard of FIFA doing a lot of things. Like I said, I mean, you know, stresses and all these different prides that they've, you know, taken in the past, but this is really a real -- this is the worst that I've seen so far that they've pulled -- by threatening players with yellow cards and essentially exclusion from the World Cup that they've worked so hard, so very hard for so many years to get to.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
GOLODRYGA: So let me ask you a loaded question here with the limited amount of time we have. What are -- are you more excited about Team USA's prospects in this World Cup, or are you more shocked by what happened to Team Argentina at Lionel Messi earlier this morning?
SCURRY: Oh, my goodness. You know, I love Messi. I mean, he is a champion in so many ways, and, you know, he's that player, like, in American football here, that quarterback that you just want to win that Super Bowl just once, right? I mean, they've won everything but that.
I am shocked about that. Actually, that's more shocking to me Argentina losing to Saudi Arabia then the USA tying yesterday, because the USA had that game.
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
SCURRY: And it's really unfortunate because if you win your first game, you have an 84 percent chance of getting through to the knockout phase. Right now, that chance is down to 30. And so, it's unfortunate, but I tell you, waking up this morning and hearing that Messi's team had lost was really astonishing. But I feel that they may rally and might pull through anyway.
GOLODRYGA: I bet you could hear a pin drop in the country of Argentina when that final score was there if will display. They're not out, he still has another chance or two --
SCURRY: Yes.
GOLODRYGA: -- to make it, but that was a shocker. Briana Scurry, thank you for joining us. For anyone that has some free time when they're not watching us or the World Cup, go look at your killer blocks. I recommend going back and looking at your beautiful, beautiful blocks of goalie for Team USA. Thank you for joining us.
BLACKWELL: Thank you, Briana.
SCURRY: Thank you. Thanks for having me, guys.
BLACKWELL: All right, close Trump ally Senator Lindsey Graham testified today in a case about the former president's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. We have details ahead.
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[15:51:44]
BLACKWELL: Lisa Ling is back with an all-new season of "This Is Life", where she takes viewers on a journey around the country exploring some of the most pressing issues of our time.
GOLODRYGA: Now that includes the social impact of the pandemic, particularly loneliness. In the first episode, Lisa explores how some people are embracing nonhuman companions to fill that void. Here's the preview.
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LISA LING, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER & HOST "THIS IS LIFE WITH LISA LING": (voice-over): Most of the time, Tasha spends her days in a finished bedroom in Tony's basement.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey totchy (ph) pop. Ready to get that makeup off and get changed?
LING (voice-over): A place he built just for her, where the two of them can be alone.
(on-camera): Are you physically intimate with Tasha?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
LING (on-camera): What's that like?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's different. It's different than I would have expected. But there's a relationship there. Right now, sex is a very small part of it. It really is.
Oh, look at how gorgeous you are.
LING (voice-over): Sex may be why Tony first purchased Tasha, but he tells me, that was just the beginning.
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GOLODRYGA: And Lisa Ling joins us now. Fascinating, Lisa. And I would imagine in your travels, you met other people like Tony, who were craving non-human attachment given the pandemic and the shutdown in the country.
LING: Well, certainly, Bianna. I mean, this episode, just to be clear, is not about sex dolls. It's really about the relationships that people are developing with nonhuman entities. Now, most of us are not in relationships with dolls, but we are in relationship with these. Increasingly more so. In fact, I would argue that most of us are even addicted to these and what's available on them.
Look, algorithms have so much power over us based on the data that's been collected on our habits. They know what we like, what we dislike, what makes us feel good, what we like to buy. In some ways, these algorithms know us better than we know ourselves. And we are certainly spending time with these devices much more than we are spending with human beings themselves.
I mean, look at kids, they would rather forego human relationships, relationships with their friends or playdates, then they'd rather be on these devices. And so we really explore the implications and what it means for the future of humanity. I mean, as a species, we need human connection in order for -- in order to be able to survive and thrive. And so what does it mean when these algorithms will start inevitably supplanting human interaction and human relationships?
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
BLACKWELL: So looking forward to this episode. The element of dealing with loneliness in this way. Of course, we've seen the sex doll story before, but in talking about how people deal or use these dolls to have some type of companionship, I think is fascinating.
9th and final season, I'm looking forward to it, "This is life." Lisa Ling, thank you so much.
GOLODRYGA: Thanks, Lisa.
LING: Thank you, Victor. Thank you, Bianna.
[15:55:01]
GOLODRYGA: And "This Is Live with Lisa Ling" premiere Sunday night at 10:00. And you can find every single episode of this is in live streaming on Discovery Plus.
Well, multiple cases involving Donald Trump were in court today. Among them, federal prosecutors asking that the Special Master be removed from the Mar-a-Lago documents case. That story just ahead.
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GOLODRYGA: Some sad news to bring you that hits close to home for us here in the CNN family.
