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January 6th Committee Expects To Hand Out Criminal Prosecution Of Donald Trump; Argentina Wins The World Cup In Qatar; State Of Emergency In El Paso Because Of Migrant Surge; Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX) In Interviewed About The Southern Border Crisis; Severe Winter Weather Caused By Arctic Blast All Over The U.S.; Pope Francis Signs Resignation Letter In 2013; Women And Gender Health Gaps; Meghan Markle Gets Attacked By Jeremy Clarkson; Celebrities Gets Sued Over Crypto. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired December 18, 2022 - 17:00   ET

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

[17:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Tomorrow's really a grand finale of sorts for the committee. Former President Donald Trump committed crimes in their view.

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): Even inciting a mob to attack the capitol, if that's not criminal, then I don't know what is.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: This is going to be quite a far- reaching cold wave. Roughly 80 percent of the U.S. population is going to be impacted with temperatures at or below freezing.

UNKNOWN: Just stay ahead of the snow. We're supposed to be getting a lot more of it.

PATRICK SNELL, CNN SPORTS: Champions of the world for a third time. An epic contest as France and Argentina served up a final.

UNKNOWN: Lionel Messi, finally a World Cup winner. I'm sure that people here will be celebrating for hours.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: I'm Pamela Brown in Washington and you are live in the "CNN Newsroom." We are now just hours away from the final presentation by the House committee investigating the capital insurrection.

After 17 months and hundreds of interviews, tomorrow the January 6 committee is expected to call for the criminal prosecution of Donald Trump for his role in inciting the capital riot. An unprecedented rebuke of the former president. CNN political correspondent Sara Murray joins us now. So, Sara, walk us through the significance of tomorrow. SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: I think the significance of

this for the committee largely has to do with the historical record, and frankly, for them to speak in one voice about they'll all been saying individually, which is that they think Donald Trump committed crimes.

You know, we've learned that they're expected to refer him to the Justice Department for insurrection, conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government and obstruction of an official proceeding.

But as you know, Pam, DOJ does not take its cues from Congress and it's also well on its way in a criminal investigation into the former president, the people around him about January 6, about what led up to it, about efforts to subvert the 2020 election.

So, practically, DOJ is going to carry on doing what they are doing. You know, they probably have evidence that the committee has not been able to get. But lawmakers have said they really do think it's important. They believe that they have found evidence of a crime and they think it's important to lay that out both for the public as well as for the Department of Justice.

BROWN: Right. And the committee (inaudible) is saying it hasn't turned over all of its transcripts and evidence that it has collected throughout its investigation. It said a lot of things throughout. It said that there was witness tampering, perjury. So, I'm sure DOJ will be interested to see what evidence it has to back up some of what it has been saying.

MURRAY: That's right. And that's the part, those are the kinds of referrals that could actually matter if the committee does those kinds of things. I mean, it's a prosecutable offense to lie to Congress, you know. When we think back to what Roger Stone was convicted of in a jury trial, it was lying to Congress.

So, if they have some evidence that people lied as part of their investigation, or tried to obstruct this congressional investigation, those are referrals that DOJ would actually pay attention to.

BROWN: All right, Sara Murray -- and also, I just want to ask you about the criminal referrals expected against Trump, really quickly. You know, for those of us, we keep hearing insurrection or obstructing a congressional proceeding. Just help us better understand the legal weight here. As you say, DOJ is already investigating.

MURRAY: Yeah. I mean, I think when you look at the legal weight of these things, some of those charges are charges we've seen brought against the actual rioters who showed up and stormed the U.S. Capitol. So those will be, you know, significant. It would be significant if the Justice Department decided they wanted to go after the former president on these issues.

I think insurrection is going to be a difficult one. We'll look at how the committee lays out their case. But this is not a charge that we have seen the Justice Department go for when it comes to people who showed up who stormed the capitol. BROWN: All right. Thank you so much, Sara Murray. Appreciate it. And

let's continue this conversation with Jennifer Rodgers, a CNN legal analyst and a former federal prosecutor. So, Jen, first off, I want to play what Congressman Schiff had to say this morning. (Inaudible) Congressman Schiff.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCHIFF: If you look at Donald Trump's acts and you match them up against the statute, it's a pretty good match. I realize that statute hasn't been used in a long time, but then when if we had a president essentially incite an attack on his own government.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: All right. So, there you heard it. And now I want to read the federal statute. For those of us who are not lawyers like yourself, this is what the statute said. Whoever incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 10 years or both, and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.

[17:05:05]

So, Jen, based on your reading of the statute, what do you think about what Congressman Schiff said?

JENNIFER RODGERS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well in a way, he's certainly right. I mean, if you think about what happened on January 6 as an insurrection, then you're almost there, as long as you get your evidence in order. But that's really the issue, right? Is how is an insurrection defined, and when you have a criminal charge that hasn't been used very much, you have fewer definitions of it that you can rely on as far as a judge giving instructions to the jury.

So, that is a challenging charge for them just because if hasn't been used very often and they have to establish that, in fact, it was an insurrection that the former president was inciting. And then you talk about the authority of the United States. Now that's not going to work because he was in charge of the United States still then at the time. But he did -- the insurrection was against the laws of the United States.

The laws include the Constitution and include all of the provisions around the peaceful transfer of power in elections and what Congress was doing on that day. So, it does seem to be a good fit but there are a few wrinkles there in terms of getting across the finish line for a charge.

BROWN: But taking a step back here, I mean, look, there have been 11 hearings so far. Do you believe the committee has made the case that Donald Trump should face criminal charges?

RODGERS: You know, Pam, I think they've made the case that he violated his oath, that he acted abominably in a way that you would never want a president to act. You know, they made a very good case against him in the sense of the kind of case that they were trying to make. A criminal case is something different. You know, the committee had no burden of proof, they had no unanimous jury to convince, they didn't have elements of statutes that they had to satisfy.

So, DOJ is looking for something a little different here. And the problem really is the committee didn't make enough of their evidence public for us to say definitively whether you can actually meet those burdens beyond a reasonable doubt with competent evidence. And I think DOJ has a way to go and we see that they're doing that with the witnesses that they're now putting into the grand jury.

So, I can't say for sure what has been released publicly by the committee is enough, but I think DOJ has more and, you know, I think we're eventually going to see it in the form of charges.

BROWN: It's interesting because obviously there is a big difference between a congressional committee and a special counsel, the Department of Justice investigating Donald Trump. Ad I'm wondering, when you look at the dynamics here of the committee handing over these criminal referrals, do you think potentially it could politicize the DOJ's work, and if the special prosecutor does not bring charges against Trump, does that undermine the committee's work?

RODGERS: You know, I don't think it undermines committee's work because, again, I think that they were aiming for something different. You know, they were trying him in a way in the court of public opinion and saying he violated his oath, you know. He undermined an election. He tried to stay in power instead of leaving, which is what he should have done, peaceful transfer of power.

So, I don't think whatever decision DOJ makes says anything negative about what the committee did which is really extraordinary work that they've managed to do. But DOJ, as you said, is a different animal and, you know, they are not looking at this politically. They're looking at exactly what I said a moment ago, they have elements of statutes that they're trying to meet by competent evidence beyond a reasonable doubt.

They're looking at this very methodically. Did this man commit offenses that we can charge and win in front of a jury, and then should we? You know, do we need accountability for this in in order to make sure that it's never tried again. And so that's the question they're trying to answer. It is not about politics; it's really about rule of law and accountability.

BROWN: All right, Jennifer Rodgers, thanks so much.

And don't miss CNN's coverage of tomorrow's hearing of the January 6 committee. I'll be joining our special coverage starting at noon eastern.

Well, soccer fans in Argentina are celebrating their victory in one of the most thrilling finales in World Cup history.

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(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

BROWN: There you see it. That is just a sample, a small sample of what was going on there in Buenos Aires after their national team defeated France to capture the World Cup title. Our correspondent there even got caught up in the celebrations as well.

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UNKNOWN: It's just an incredible scene. I can probably see from behind our live location, Patrick, tens of thousands of people just marching here. I think the --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: It is Argentina's third World Cup win overall, but the first for soccer legend Lionel Messi whose family celebrated with him on the field in Qatar. CNN's Don Riddell joins us now from Doha. Wow, Don! That was a World Cup final for the ages and quite a grand finale for Messi?

[17:10:00]

DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: It was just extraordinary. You know, I've been pinching myself all day knowing that I had a ticket to a World Cup final. And now I'm standing here thinking, I might just have witnessed the greatest football match of all time.

I mean, that is where this game is now being discussed, not just because of what was at stake, two great teams, the defending champions France, Argentina and Messi trying to fulfill what many saw as his destiny.

But the way the match actually played out was just incredible. Argentina seemed to have this one in the bag but with 10 minutes to go, the French came back there. Young superstar, Kylian Mbappe, scored a hat trick. That hasn't happened in the World Cup finals since 1966, and yet Mbappe finishes up on the losing side.

Both sides went back and forth in this period of extra time before it finally came down to penalties. The French missed two of theirs and when the Argentines put in their fourth penalty to win it, I mean, this place just erupted.

Tens upon tens of thousands of Argentine fans have been in Qatar for the last month hoping that they were going to see this knowing that it was Messi's fifth and almost certainly final World Cup. This is the trophy that has eluded him throughout his entire career and finally he's got his hands on it.

BROWN: Finally, he does. So, tell us fi you would about those debate, Argentina's debate between its two all-time greats, Messi and Diego Maradona.

RIDDELL: Yes. So, Diego Maradona and Pele have remained to our life been regarded as the greatest two players of all time. But then along came Lionel Messi who won everything with Barcelona again and again and again, but he could never do it with the national side. In fact, he was often criticized for leaving his best performances for his club team in Spain and never for his country.

And the pressure built and built upon him and of course he was compared to the great Maradona who had won the World Cup with Argentina back in 1986. And even though Messi is much more successful player than Maradona at the club level, it was always held against him that he'd never won the World Cup.

But now, he has finally done it. So, at the very least, he's on a level plain with Maradona in the pantheon, but many people now believe he has absolutely surpassed Maradona and he is out there on his own as arguably the all-time great.

BROWN: Wow. He has a lot of bragging rights too after today, that's for sure. Don Riddell, thank you so much.

And coming up for you on this Sunday night, a state of emergency in El Paso and a feeling of dread over what could happen on the border with a surge of migrants after a key policy expires Wednesday.

And winter is roaring in like a lion with freezing temperatures for millions of us. That forecast up next.

Also, crude comments aimed at Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, maybe proving her point when it comes to how she has been treated by the media.

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[17:15:00]

BROWN: El Paso is bracing for Wednesday. That is when the controversial Title 42 policy will end, possibly leading to a flood of migrants across the border. And last night, the mayor declared a state of emergency because of the surge the city has already seen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OSCAR LEESER, MAYOR OF EL PASO, TEXA: We know that the influx on Wednesday will be incredible. There will be huge -- talking to some of our federal partners. They really believe that on Wednesday our numbers will go from 2,500 to 4,000, 5,000 or maybe 6,000. And when I asked him, I said, do you believe that you guys could handle it today? The answer was no.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So, Title 42 is a Trump-era policy allowing authorities to swiftly expel migrant at the border put in place to help stop the spread of COVID. Before Title 42, migrants were either removed from the country, detained or released into the U.S. while their cases made their way through immigration court.

So, what's going to happen now? Well, last month, the Department of Homeland Security projected between 9,000 to 14,000 migrants will attempt to cross the southern border daily when Title 42 ends. That is more than double the current number according to a source familiar with the projections.

Now the Supreme Court could have the final say on this matter. CNN's Gustavo Valdes is on the Mexican side of the border across from El Paso. Gustavo, your team has been watching migrants crossing into the U.S. Are you seeing that momentum build as we get closer to Wednesday?

GUSTAVO VALDES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pamela, what we're seeing today is a little bit of an uptick in the number people crossing in spite of the weather. You can see some of them are trying to stay warm as they wait. They are burning the debris, the clothes left behind, but right now people are going in, going across and still, there is a long line forming and more people coming from another direction.

They have found another place to cross into the United States and we've seen the border patrol take them in one group at the time, a few minutes ago, maybe a hundred of them were taken in. It's a number that continues to grow.

And I just spoke with some -- one of our contacts down south on the Rio Grande Valley on the Mexican side Reynosa. One of the shelters there tell me they have 4,000 people and they had to deny entry to another 6,000. That's just in one city along the border.

BROWN: So, help us better understand this, Gustavo, you know, there is the -- that the state of emergency that the mayor there had announced in El Paso, what is that actually going to do?

VALDES: That would affect the United States side. And they expect that they will get more resources. Those resources could be more agents helping process these migrants.

[17:19:56]

On the Mexican side, the fear is that the change of duties for these agents from border crossing, four of them here in the El Paso area for legal -- people who just want to go shopping, want to go see relatives, who want to go and spend the holidays and the trade, that that legal movement is going to be affected because there are going to be fewer people at the legal crossings trying to deal with the people who are crossing illegally.

BROWN: All right. Thank you so much for helping us better understand the issue there. At the border, Gustavo Valdes. Appreciate it.

And with us now, Democratic Congressman Vicente Gonzalez of Texas. His district includes part of the U.S. border and he's a member of the Problem Solers Caucus. Congressman, thanks for coming on. So, your fellow Democrat, Senator Joe Manchin, offered this advice to President Biden today. Let's watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOE MANCHIN (D-WV): I understand that the president needs to use every bit of power he has as an executive to find a way or ask for an extension.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Of course, we should note, a court ordered Title 42 to be lifted and the Supreme Court could have the final say. But congressman, I know you have written the Biden White House letters on this. What more do you think President Biden could have done here and could be doing right now?

REP. VICENTE GONZALEZ (D-TX): Well, I think we need a comprehensive plan for the border. And I was against lifting Title 42. I still am at this time. My proposal was called the Safe Zone Act and what it does, it creates a safe zone on the border of Guatemala and Mexico, on the Guatemalan side where all migrants south of Mexico must go and check in and process their asylum claim at that juncture and do everything that we're doing here on my border and all of the processing that's happening on the southern border of the United States to happen in a further away place like 1,500 miles away in that country.

And it does several things. One, it takes -- and if we're going to allow them in any way, the way we do here when they get to our southern border under the credible fear standard, just give them a document and let them fly into their final destination. It does two things. It takes the pressure off our southern border and it allows law enforcement and border patrol to do what they're trained and supposed to be doing. And it takes the cartel element out of it in Mexico.

Migrants are paying $6,000 to $8,000 a head to get to our southern border. Last year, we calculated that they've made about $5 billion just in this business and I think this is the most humane way of doing things. We could do it from further away and we can work with the Guatemalan government. The president has agreed with this project to me. I think we need to think out of the box and we need proposals that will solve the problems that we have now.

BROWN: Well, as you know, a lot of what you were saying is working with these countries in Central America to help stem the flow. The vice president, Kamala Harris, had been appointed by President Biden to work with Central America to try to help solve this problem.

How do you think she's done? And do you think that she should be visiting the border more and that President Biden should be visiting the border more to send the signal that this is a priority for the administration?

GONZALEZ: Well, it would be great for them to come down and Secretary Mayorkas has been down there several times so they get informed. I'm talking to them regularly. But I wish they would engage this plan that I'm proposing that would be a real long-term solution and we build a permanent infrastructure 1,500 miles away from our southern border.

Right now, the vast majority of migrants returning from those three countries, from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. But in five or 10 years it could be two or three different countries and until we have some solid -- BROWN: Right. So, I just want to make sure -- I just want to go back

to the question I asked initially about the vice president, Kamala Harris, the job you think she is doing and handling central America and trying to stem the flow, and whether you think she should visit the border along with President Biden to send the signal it's a priority.

GONZALEZ: I think it is great for them to visit the border. I think they should. I think a lot more can be done than what's been done. But this is not a problem from just this administration. I've been in office through both Democratic and Republican administrations. And when Republicans are in office, Democrats come down here and point fingers at them and say they're doing a horrible job on the border.

And when Democrats are in office, Republicans come and do the same thing. This is not a Democratic or Republican problem, it's an American problem. We need to solve it together. We need real proposals. I don't want to see people to come down here for photo ops.

You have a ton of membership from all these red states across the country that came down in this last election season, but have much bigger problems in their home city and they are here taking photos in my district saying, hey, you know, the sky is falling. Instead, come down here and say we have a proposal, we have a solution. We have a plan. And I haven't seen that from anyone.

BROWN: So, you're absolutely right, by the way. It is true that both Republicans and Democrats point the finger at each other. There's not a lot of solutions that are proposed. There are a lot of photo ops there at the border. As a member of the Problem Solvers Caucus, though, I mean, how realistic is it that Republicans and Democrats will find common ground either with an idea like you've just proposed on this show or another plan or is this just going to continue, this cycle will just going to continue on?

[17:24:58]

GONZALEZ: Well, we're going into a new term this January. I intend to take this plan to the Problem Solvers Caucus. I brought the only bipartisan group of members of Congress to our border ever down to visit the situation. And we've had conversations and that's why this solution and proposal that I have was developed.

This next term I intend to push it really hard. I've given this plan to the vice president, she has it. I've spoken to about it to the administration. And we have to be honest, the people are pressured by different groups. When we had Trump in office, he was under extreme pressure from the right and think we have the same situation with this administration from the left, from some of the migrant activist groups.

But at the end of the day, we need a solution on our southern border. Here in south Texas, this is not a Democratic or Republican issue, this is a south Texas problem that impacts the entire country and we need to come together and solve it. BROWN: All right, Congressman Vicente Gonzalez, I think that is

something that people on both sides of the aisle can agree with. Thank you so much. Appreciate you coming on the show.

GONZALEZ: Thank you.

BROWN: And you're in the "CNN Newsroom" on this Sunday. Just ahead, the deep freeze coming that will have much of the country bundling up this week. So, where exactly are we going to see the bone-chilling temperatures. We're going to talk right after this break.

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[17:30:00]

BROWN: Well, most of the United States will see bitter winter weather this week as an Arctic blast drops temps in some places to, get this, minus 60 degrees. South Dakota has already seen three days of freezing rain, snow and wind. Just look at this video right here. This is from Lonetree Ranch where you see cows are covered in ice. But the owner said that they're hide and hair makes great insulation. So, we should all be so lucky, right. CNN's Allison Chinchar has the chilly forecast. Allison?

CHINCHAR: Okay. Well, this is going to be quite a far-reaching cold wave. Over 260 million people, roughly 80 percent of the U.S. population is going to be impacted with temperatures at or below freezing at some time this week. It all begins here in the northern plains today. But then we start to see the spread out as well as intensify.

Take Fargo for example. The high temperature on Wednesday only gets to minus 13. The windchills likely to be even colder than that at some point across the Dakotas and Montana. Those windchills are expected to get down to dangerous levels of minus 45 to even minus 60 degrees. But, again, that is not the only place. That Arctic air is expected to spread south as well as east as we go through the rest of the week. Impacting, yes, even some southern states.

The other concern with that is with the cold air already in place, when this new low-pressure system finally starts to push into the Pacific Northwest on Tuesday, and then begin to make its way across the country, that cold air being in place means that a lot of the moisture from this system is going to be in the form of snow. Not only across the Pacific Northwest, but also the Midwest, even across the central portion of the country and even making it into the deep south.

BROWN: All right. Thanks so much.

Coming up next hour, one town in Montana won't see temperatures above freezing until Friday. The town's mayor joins us to explain how their preparing for the frigid weather.

Well, comments don't get more vile than what just appeared in one British tabloid, and they were aimed straight at Meghan Markle. The royal controversy, up next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:35:00]

BROWN: Just a day after celebrating his 86th birthday, Pope Francis is revealing he has a resignation letter signed and ready to go in case his health ever prevents him from doing his work. CNN's Delia Gallagher is in Rome with all the details.

DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pam, Pope Francis said that he has resignation letter ready to go in the event that he should become incapacitated. He made the revelations in new interview published on Sunday with the Spanish news outlet ABC. He said he signed the letter in 2013, which would have been the first year of his pontificate and gave it to the Vatican secretary of state.

He said he was doing what popes before him had also done. We should say that the pope did he not give any indication that he would invoke this letter any time soon. He was merely responding to a question from the Spanish journalist about what might happen should he become incapacitated.

Pope Francis' health seems to be just fine with the exception of a mobility issue. He has had an ongoing knee problem as we know. We've seen him use a wheelchair on occasion, but he likes to joke that you don't need two legs to be pope, just one head.

We also know that he has a full schedule ahead of him for Christmas and indeed a very big trip coming up at end of January to the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan. So, the main takeaway from the pope's comments, Pam, is that he would be willing to resign should he become incapacitated, but there is no intention that he intends to do so for the near future. Pam?

BROWN: All right. Delia Gallagher, thank you so much.

Well, new concerns tonight that women's pain isn't taken seriously by many medical professionals. Up next, a doctor joins us and we ask why and what could be done to close this care gap?

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[17:40:00]

BROWN: So, did you know that women who go to the emergency room with chest pain wait 29 percent longer than men to be evaluated for a possible heart attack. Well, that is from a report in a journal of the American Heart Association. And it is just one of many studies showings that when women express pain or discomfort, they are less likely to be taken seriously or given effective treatment than men. So, let's talk about it with Dr. Megan Ranney, emergency physician and deputy dean of public health at Brown University. Dr. Ranney, how do you see this play out in your E.R.?

MEGAN RANNEY, EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN: So, I don't find this study surprising at all, unfortunately, Pamela. Listen, if I go back to when I went to med school 20 years ago, I didn't learn anything about the differences between how women and men experience disease, how we metabolize medications, what sort of symptoms we have. The only thing I learned about that was different was about our reproductive organs.

So, you have a generation of physicians, nurses, physician assistants who don't know that women and men have different symptoms. You also have a lot of women who aren't aware themselves of the way in which we present differently with common diseases like heart disease, but also cancer, skin diseases, and a lot of other common problems as well. So, the problem is both on the medical side and unfortunately, on the patient side due to lack of recognition of what ails us.

BROWN: "The Washington Post" quotes a study showing that middle aged women with chest pain and other symptoms of heart disease, they were twice as likely to be diagnosed with a mental illness compared with men who had the same exact same symptoms. I mean, this thinking is so antiquated yet pervasive. Why else do you think?

[17:44:56]

RANNEY: So, I think there are two big reasons. The first is it wasn't until the mid-1990s that national research was required to include women. In fact, women were systematically excluded from research prior to that because people were afraid about hurting our child bearing potential. So, we literally had no data on things like how heart disease presents differently in women or how to treat it differently.

The second thing is, honestly, there weren't a lot of women doctors. It was only in 2017 that the number of women and men became equal in medical school classes. Of course, there are still huge disparities for minorities. And, you know, we know that women take better care of other women. There weren't folks out there advocating for the way in which our experiences are different and insisting on studying it or making sure we were treated appropriately.

BROWN: Wow. That's just stunning, the years that you just put out, 2017. It wasn't until then there was an equal number of men and women. We're not even talking about the racial disparities. What is concerning is that this kind of bias can lead to a delayed or misdiagnosis in a serious condition. Our own Jake Tapper's daughter had a very close call with appendicitis last year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALICE TAPPER, DAUGHTER OF JAKE TAPPER: I started throwing up on a Saturday morning and I got really sick. I was just not getting better so my parents took me to go into the hospital.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Most likely diagnosis at the time, stomach pains, possible food poisoning, gastroenteritis. Jennifer was particularly worried about appendicitis.

JENNIFER TAPPER, WIFE OF JAKE TAPPER: I said, this is on Monday and I said, why don't you just give her a sonogram. You know, she has so much going on down there. She's in so much pain. Let's just see what it is because we don't know. And they looked at me and the doctor said, that data is not needed.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: That data is not needed.

J. TAPPER: We don't need that data.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: By the time doctors figured out it was appendicitis; her appendix had already ruptured and she had sepsis. Recovery took months. And I just want to make clear, look. The doctors that I know, they're amazing, right? They work really hard and they do a very good job. But that doesn't take away issues like this, right?

RANNEY: No. That's -- it's inexcusable what happened to Alice and what Jake and Jennifer had to go through. And it is also emblematic of a systematic problem, right? So, it is both about the knowledge, it is about the bias, it is also about the system. These errors don't happen in a vacuum. It's a Swiss cheese of errors that led to that misdiagnosis.

It was Alice's mom not getting listened to. It was Alice herself not getting listened to. It was the fact that this happened during COVID. We had insufficient staffing. We don't have enough resources to do imaging and so people are always cutting corners. It's that combination of problems that make this happen. But that doesn't mean we should accept it. As a mom myself, my goodness, that story hurts my soul.

BROWN: Me, too.

RANNEY: But I also have kept it in mind. Actually, I will say, Pamela, that I have diagnosed a few young women with appendicitis, keeping Alice's story in mind that known about for a few months now. And I think that's part of it. It's just the awareness that this happens.

BROWN: Yeah. And the fact that -- that I'm learning a lot about this through Jake's story, but the doctors were focused on one symptom of appendicitis when in fact there are other telltale signs that it could be appendicitis even though it doesn't fit into the typical box. So, this is raising awareness, too, on that front. Dr. Megan Ranney, great conversation. Thank you.

Well, new comments about Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, may have crossed a line even for her critics. This week in the British tabloid "The Sun," columnist Jeremy Clarkson unloaded on her writing that he hates her on a quote, "cellular level." And he went on to say, "At night, I'm unable to sleep as I lie there, grinding my teeth and dreaming of the day when she is made to parade naked through the streets of every town in Britain while the crowds chant "Shame!" and throw lumps of excrement at her."

Wow. Royal watched and CNN contributor Sally Bedell Smith is here with us. She's also the author of the book "Elizabeth the Queen." I mean, I'm offended, I mean, just reading that Sally. But besides stealing a scene from, you know, "Game of Thrones" there, what is your take on those comments?

SALLY BEDELL SMITH, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, I think they're absolutely despicable, vile and he really owes her an apology. I mean, there is one thing, there is fair comment, there is even ridicule and there is satire, there are critical reviews, but this from him is intensely personal misogynist and just vile. What kind of person would say things like that, would think things like that? I mean, he's obviously got some issues, shall we say.

[17:50:03]

BROWN: Yeah.

BEDELL SMITH: I mean, it's really awful. And it's -- you know, it's in line with some of the things that were brought out in the series. And most of those vile comments came on Twitter, and you know, not in a -- "The Sun" is a tabloid that is well read and it is not a fringe-y enterprise. And, you know, I mean, "The Sun" may have something to answer for it, but I mean, it really -- it goes so far beyond the boundaries of any kind of commentary.

BROWN: Do you think it helps prove their point, the case their trying to make about the British media?

BEDELL SMITH: No. I really don't because I've read a lot of what has been written over the past few weeks and much of it has been negative and the nature of the comments has been primarily that this is so -- it's a one-sided view, and there has been misrepresentation. There have been missing facts, missing situations.

And I think a lot of the commentary has focused on that. But I think any kind of a personal attack of the nature of what Jeremy Clarkson said is -- I mean, it's, you know, it's just beyond the bounds. And much of what has been written about the series has focused pretty equally on Harry and Meghan.

I'm not -- some people have singled her out, but by and large it has been a critique of the series and some of the assumptions they have made and some of the accusations they have made and the fact that they in many instances, they were very vague. But this is a whole level of --

BROWN: Right.

BEDELL SMITH: Totally unacceptable.

BROWN: All right. Well, I agree with you on that, Sally Bedell Smith. Thank you for joining us tonight.

Well, A number of celebrities, they are caught up in the crypto crash. Why they are named in major lawsuits, up next.

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[17:55:00] BROWN: Potential crypto clash brewing on Capitol Hill. This morning, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown saying lawmakers may consider banning the digital currency. His comments come in the wake of the sudden collapse of crypto exchange company FTX. That collapse also bringing new legal scrutiny to some of crypto's biggest celebrity endorsers. CNN's Christine Romans has more.

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CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Disgraced FTX founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried is in jail, accused of carrying out what a prosecutor called, "one of the biggest financial frauds in American history." Bankman-Fried earned the backing of prominent figures across Hollywood, sports and politics.

UNKNOWN: I'm getting into crypto with FTX. You in?

ROMANS (voice-over): Now, several celebrities who endorse crypto currency are all under fresh legal scrutiny including seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, supermodel Giselle Bundchen, and four-time NBA champion Steph Curry. They are among some named in a class action lawsuit filed against Bankman-Fired last month after his company suffered a liquidity crisis, collapsed and filed for bankruptcy.

At least a million people can't access their funds. He is denying defrauding customers. The lawsuit alleges they did not properly disclose the scope and amount of compensation they personally received in exchange for the promotion of FTX. One of the plaintiffs in the proposed class action suit, Michael Livieratos says, "As a new England Patriot's fan my entire life, you can imagine the influence that Tom Brady would have, claiming he moved nearly all his money from another crypto exchange to FTX."

Adam Moskowitz, the lawyer representing the plaintiffs told "The Washington Post" you have very rich people we all love, telling us that they've checked this out and it was okay. Why shouldn't they be held responsible? This is just the tip of the iceberg for the crypto fall out. Another lawsuit was filed earlier this month by cryptocurrency investigators against the NFT series Bored Ape Yacht Club.

JIMMY FALLON, LAT NIGHT SHOW HOST: We're part of the same -- we're part of the same community. We're both apes.

PARIS HILTON, CELEBRITY: Love it.

ROMANS (voice-over): In the complaint, 37 defendants are named including Paris Hilton, Jimmy Fallon, Justine Bieber, Madonna, Serena Williams and again, Steph Curry. The lawsuit accuses the creators of enlisting A-listers to mislead their followers into buying bad investments at inflated prices. Actor Ben McKenzie testified before the Senate Banking Committee Wednesday describing crypto as a bill of goods sold to tens of millions of Americans.

BEN MCKENZIE, ACTOR: They have been lied to in ways both big and small by a once seemingly mighty crypto industry whose entire existence, in fact, depends on misinformation, hype and, yes, fraud.

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[17:59:59]

ROMANS (voice-over): Our thanks to Christine Romans. And next hour, I'm going to speak with Congressman French Hill from Arkansas. He is on the Republican leadership team for the financial services committee.