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Death Toll Keeps Rising After Russian Strike on Dnipro Apartment Building; At Least 68 Dead After Commercial Plane Crashes in Nepal; NYC Mayor Eric Adams Travels to Southern Border Amid Immigration Crisis; Black Man Dies After Being Repeatedly Tased by Los Angeles Police; President Biden Delivers Sunday Sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church; Five More Pages of Classified Material Found at Biden's Residence; U.S. Cancer Death Rate Falls Since 1991; Novak Djokovic in Australia One Year After Being Banned. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired January 15, 2023 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:56]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Pamela Brown in Washington. The top stories for you on this Sunday.

The death toll grows after a Russian missile strike destroys an apartment building in Ukraine. The mayor of Dnipro now says the chances of finding survivors are minimal.

Plus dozens are dead after a plane crash in Nepal with rescuers calling off the search for the night. And on the eve of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, President Biden tells the late civil rights leader's home church that, quote, "This is a time of choosing."

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We begin in Ukraine with the devastating missile strike on an apartment building in Dnipro. Right now the death toll is at 30 but that is expected to keep rising. And officials say there could be up to 40 people still under the rubble.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen is on the scene.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Pamela. What we're seeing on the ground here is just complete devastation. Obviously a densely populated area. And this building here, this residential building was just completely flattened by a cruise missile. Folks that we're seeing here come here and look at this. They're breaking down in tears at the utter devastation that's unfolding in front of them.

The Ukrainians say they're still trying to search for survivors but, of course, that search is very difficult.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (voice-over): The scene, apocalyptic as rescuers frantically sift through the debris searching for survivors. The hope of finding any fading by the second as the cold night progresses. For some, the grief is too much to handle.

Olha Nevenchanaya (PH) says she passed by this building only about half an hour before it was hit. There are many friends and people close to me here, many, many, she says.

Oleina Loyam (PH) stunned by the scale of the destruction and curses the Russians. I simply hate them. Children, people died here. And then she can't speak anymore.

On top of the many killed, Ukrainian authorities say dozens were injured and many more remain missing in just this one location in Dnipro after Russia hits sites across Ukraine with barrages of missiles this weekend.

(On-camera): The Ukrainians say they are absolutely certain that the missile that hit this building was a so-called KH-22. That's a cruise missile normally designed to destroy aircraft carriers, with a warhead of more than 2,000 pounds. And as you can see it absolutely annihilated the building, burying dozens of people underneath.

(Voice-over): Russia has not directly commented on the deadly strike in Dnipro, but in the past, Moscow has denied its forces target residential areas. The Ukrainians called the attack state terrorism and the president says rescuers will continue to try and save anyone trapped here.

Let's fight for every person, President Zelenskyy says. The rescue operation will last as long as there is even the slightest chance to save a life.

But even the slightest hope is fading fast, and this could soon turn from a rescue into a recovery operation for crews searching for bodies where so many lives were violently ended in an instant.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN: And Pamela, Ukrainian investigators have actually been on the scene here as well. They are going to open up an investigation into all this. But of course, Ukrainian politicians, the Ukrainian leadership, they are already coming out and squarely blaming Russia calling this state terrorism, and one of the things that they keep calling for as well is more modern air defense weapons to prevent missile strikes like this happening in the future -- Pamela.

BROWN: All right. Fred Pleitgen, thank you.

And to dig into this more, CNN military analyst General Wesley Clark joins us now. He is also the former NATO Supreme Allied commander.

So, General Clark, Russia claims it hit all of its missile targets, but seems to be ignoring the apartment strike here. I mean, is Russia suggesting this apartment building was a target or is it more likely that Russia missed its target?

[18:05:08] GEN. WESLEY CLARK, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: I think it's probable that Russia missed its target. But the Russian public affairs, they're going to say what they want to say to their own people and their own people believe it.

Pamela, this is not only state terrorism, this is an example of what is unfolding as a policy of Russian genocide against the Ukrainian people. From the beginning Putin has said he wanted to eradicate Ukraine and he wants to get rid of the language to people, and he's doing it bit by bit, piece by piece,. This is just the latest example of this.

So probably that wasn't the target, but it doesn't matter to the Russians or to Putin. He's absolutely relentless in going after what he wants, and the Russian people are -- they're just passive. They accepted, in fact many of them, have been so propagandized by the state media that they don't like the Ukrainians.

BROWN: Yes. And I think, you know, again, a reminder for people, Russians are largely indoctrinated from a very young age, right? And so there's just this loyalty to country and fidelity to country, and that is why, you know, there are people who dissent, but they're a small fraction of the actual population there in Russia. Even as we see these horrible atrocities take place, and Russia's attack on Ukraine's energy grid isn't just knocking the lights out. I mean, it is affecting water supplies, heating systems in the middle of winter. And their cell and internet networks.

Help us better understand the reality there. What kind of drain is this having on Ukraine?

CLARK: Well, it has a significant impact. And obviously the Ukrainian government is doing everything they can to immediately right that. But in Ukraine, these heating systems are centralized so the steam is sent between buildings. It's like electric towers and utility, it's not individual by the building, so when they strike the heating plant, or the power plant, it affects, you know, a large area, a lot of people.

They're really scrambling to repair it. The European allies, the United States, we've have done a lot. We're sending in generators with tools and replacement parts as best we can. It's a fabulous, incredibly ingenious effort by the Ukrainian engineers and their electric company to keep all this going. But it has not stopped the Russians from continuing it.

This is a policy of punishing the people of Ukraine. That's what it is. And it wants to stop the resistance. Putin wants them to give in and give up their identity.

BROWN: Yes. I am curious, because you also at the same time keep hearing about, you know, the ranks of thinning and morale is low and they're running out of missiles and yet they are able to carry out attacks like this. How is that?

CLARK: Well, they still got missiles. And this KH-22 missile that came in, they've got a number of those. They are somewhat obsolescent, they've been taken out active service. They've got a replacement to this. It's more accurate. So these are all their missiles. They've got a huge warhead on them. They come in at three and a half times, four times the speed of sound so they can't be intercepted by what Ukraine has available right now on air defense.

And there's more of this to come, no doubt, by the Russians. So we've seen it. It was all foreseeable. We knew this was coming. We just don't have the wherewithal to stop it. We don't have enough Patriots. There's no patriot batteries like sitting on a shelf that you can send in. And the training that's going on right now or about to start at Fort Sill is the one battery. That battery would be in Kyiv, so it wouldn't be in Dnipro anyway.

So, you know, it's just a shortage of what we can do to help. What we really need to do is give the Ukrainians the offensive equipment they need to start pushing the Russians out on the ground.

BROWN: General Wesley Clark, always great to have you on the show and hear your insight. We appreciate it.

More on Nepal, rescue crews are looking for four people missing after a commercial plane crashed during a short flight from the capital. Already 68 people are confirmed dead.

CNN's Vedika Sud has more on what happened and the latest.

VEDIKA SUD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pamela, dozens of passengers have died in a plane crash in central Nepal. A domestic carrier flight carrying 68 passengers and four crew members from capital Kathmandu to the tourist city of Pokhara crashed after it lost contact with the Pokhara airport. The plane debris was found in a gorge. Nepal is observing a day of mourning Monday. This is the deadliest air accident the country has seen in more than three decades.

[18:10:02]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUD (voice-over): A video appears to show a passenger plane tilting to the side moments before it comes crashing into the ground in central Nepal. At least 68 people died when the Yeti Airlines operated flight crashed on Sunday, making it Nepal's deadliest plane crash in decades. Dozens of bodies were recovered by rescue workers searching among the wreckage until darkness settled in Nepal.

On Sunday morning the aircraft embarked on a roughly 30-minute flight from the capital of Kathmandu to Pokhara, the country's second most populous city. But the flight was last in contact with the Pokhara Airport about 18 minutes after takeoff before it came crashing down in the nearby city river gorge.

The Himalayan country has a record of crashes due to its mountainous topography and sudden changes to the weather. Nepal's prime minister announced an investigation would proceed to determine exactly what happened. PUSHPA KAMAL DAHAL, NEPAL'S PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The

incident was tragic. All forces have been destroyed for rescue operations.

SUD: The passengers on board were mostly Nepali, but included 15 foreign nationals, Nepal's civil aviation authority said. Yeti Airlines canceled all regular flights on Monday in mourning for the passengers who lost their lives.

The Nepali government also declared Monday a public holiday as the nation continues to grapple with the tragedy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SUD: According to the Nepal government, a committee has been formed to investigate the cause of the crash. A report is to be submitted to the government within 45 days -- Pamela.

BROWN: All right. Vedika Sud, thank you.

And New York City Mayor Eric Adams pays a visit to the Texas border as his own city grapples with the continuing influx of migrants. Adams says the crisis has pushed New York to its, quote, "breaking point," and he is now calling for federal support.

CNN's Gloria Pazmino is following the latest developments for us.

So, Gloria tens of thousands of migrants have arrived in New York in recent months. How much is it costing the city to shelter and to feed them?

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Pam, Mayor Eric Adams has estimated this is going to cost the city anywhere between $1.5 billion and $2 billion just in the next fiscal year. Now the mayor travelled to El Paso last night and he met with the mayor of El Paso, Oscar Leeser. You can see that the two visited the border there. During the visit, the mayor also visited some local shelters in addition to a Customs and Border Patrol processing center.

Now the mayor has, as you said, described this as a crisis. He has said that the city is reaching a breaking point. And he is asking for federal support. Now the mayor travelled to the border just five days after President Biden traveled to the border himself.

And I want to just put up the numbers to show what New York City has been dealing with. More than 39,000 asylum seekers have arrived in New York City since last spring. More than 26,000 of them are still in the care of New York City. And in an effort to house them and feed and help them, the city has put up 74 emergency shelters and four emergency relief centers which connect people to resources.

Now as I mentioned, the mayor's visit follows the president's visit after facing much pressure to visit the border he finally did so a week ago. And of course this is not just a problem that New York City is dealing with. For months now Texas has been bussing some migrants to several cities including places like Philadelphia and D.C., as well as Chicago. In fact, Mayor Lorie Lightfoot of Chicago posted to social media earlier today saying that she was supportive of Mayor Eric Adams' trip to the border saying that she agrees with his request for federal funding -- Pam.

BROWN: All right, Gloria Pazmino, thanks for the latest on that.

Well, over two days, three deaths of people involved in confrontations with the LAPD, including a high school English teacher who died after being tased following a traffic incident.

President Biden knows how to speak from a pulpit, and today he becomes the first sitting president to give the Sunday sermon at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s former church.

And later, the Australian Open starts minutes from now, and one of the top men in the world is getting a warm welcome after being kicked out of the country last year.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:18:38]

BROWN: The Virginia Elementary School where a 6-year-old is accused of shooting and wounding a teacher will remain closed for a second week. Walk-through metal detectors will be installed on a campus, this after the superintendent says school officials were alerted to the possibility that the boy might have been carrying a gun that day. First grade teacher Abby Zwerner has been praised for her heroic actions keeping her students safe after being shot. The school said she is continuing to improve every day.

Well, a high school English teacher is dead after Los Angeles Police repeatedly tased him following a traffic accident. And we do want to warn you, the video we are about to show you is disturbing. Authorities say after police arrived on the scene 31-year-old Keenan Anderson resisted arrest, trying to flee, and was warned multiple times before the taser was used. Police body camera footage shows Anderson in distress and begging for help, at one point saying, quote, "They are trying to George Floyd me."

CNN's Stephanie Elam has more. And again we want to warn you, what you will see is disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: All right. I'm going to tase. I'm going to tase him.

KEENAN ANDERSON, DIED AFTER POLICE ARREST: They're trying to kill me.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The end of a police encounter, the beginning of a nightmare for the family of 31-year-old Keenan Anderson, the cousin of Black Lives Matter co-founder, Patrisse Cullors, who posted, "Keenan deserves to be alive right now. His child deserves to be raised by his father."

[18:20:07]

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: Sit with your legs crossed.

ANDERSON: Please. They're going to trying to kill me. Please.

ELAM: Police say it began with a traffic accident that witnesses said Anderson caused.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That guy right there, he caused that accident.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that guy is in very paranoid state.

ELAM: Anderson was running around near the scene, police say, when an officer caught up with him.

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: Have a seat against the wall over here.

ANDERSON: I don't want to be in the black. I want people to see me.

ELAM: He initially complied, dropping to his knees and putting his hands behind his head, as he pleaded with the officer.

ANDERSON: Please, sir, I didn't mean to, sir. Please.

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: Hold on.

ELAM: Anderson later jogged into the middle of the road.

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: Come here.

ELAM: Where police restrained him and eventually tasered him.

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: Turn over on your stomach right now.

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: Watch your elbow, partner.

ANDERSON: They're trying to George Floyd me. They're trying to George Floyd me.

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: Stop it. Stop it or I'm going to tase you. OK, stop it or I'm going to tase you.

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: Stop resisting.

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: Please stop resisting.

ANDERSON: Please, please, please. Please!

UNIDENTIFIED POLICE OFFICER: All right. I'm going to -- I'm going to tase him. I'm going to tase him.

ANDERSON: They're trying to kill me. They're trying to kill me.

ELAM: The video, edited and released by LAPD, shows Anderson is tasered five times. He died later of cardiac arrest at the hospital. MELINA ABDULLAH, CO-FOUNDER, BLACK LIVES MATTER LOS ANGELES CHAPTER:

Keenan Anderson said, they're trying to George Floyd me. They are trying to George Floyd me. And guess what happened? They did.

ELAM: Police say early test results indicate cocaine and marijuana in Anderson's system. Keenan Anderson was a high school English teacher in Washington, D.C., visiting L.A. during winter break. His death is one of three involving LAPD officers last week.

CHIEF MICHAEL MOORE, LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT: This cluster of events while miles apart deeply concern me.

ELAM: But police say officer-involved deaths are falling to all-time lows. The chief vowing a full investigation as Anderson's school calls him a deeply committed educator and father of a 6-year-old son. He was beloved by all.

(On camera): The Los Angeles Police Department says of the more than 2,000 times police officers used force last year, 31 resulted in death. And of that 31, 80 percent involved drugs or alcohol. However, the police chief says that number is still too high, but it is a low for the department.

As for Patrisse Cullors, who is the co-founder of Black Lives Matter and who is cousin to Keenan Anderson, she posted on Instagram, in part, that her cousin was killed by police. Los Angeles has no mental health care structure, no real social services, just cops, cops, cops.

Stephanie Elam, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Thank you to Stephanie.

Well, you are in the CNN NEWSROOM. President Biden took the pulpit at one of America's most historic churches as critics talk slammed his handling of classified documents. A closer look at both up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:27:19]

BROWN: President Biden this morning became the first sitting president to deliver a Sunday sermon from Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. And that is where civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. served as pastor until his assassination in 1968.

CNN White House reporter Priscilla Alvarez joins us now.

So, Priscilla, what message did the president deliver ahead of the MLK holiday?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, President Biden drew a direct line between Dr. King's legacy and the soul of the nation. As you mentioned there, Pamela, he was the first sitting president to deliver a sermon at the service. And this is the same church where Dr. Martin Luther King also preached. It was an important, a significant one, just ahead of MLK Day and the president used the opportunity to really reflect on the country calling it an inflexion point right now, as well as a critical juncture, as well as reflect on Dr. King's legacy.

Take a listen to what the president has to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The battle for the soul of this nation is perennial. It's a constant struggle. It's a constant struggle between hope and fear, kindness and cruelty, justice and injustice. Against those who traffic in racism, extremism, and insurrection. A battle fought on battlefields and bridges from courthouses and ballot boxes to pulpits in protests.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALVAREZ: Now he also talked about economic justice and civil rights, all very important issues and all in a state that President Biden looks at ahead of potentially running a re-election bid. This is something his advisers are considering what his political future looks like. It's a state, of course, that Biden narrowly flipped in 2020 and that was buoyed by black voters. So all of this do comes against the backdrop of what we learned over the last week and the trickle of disclosures about documents with classified markings being found both at President Biden's residence here in Wilmington, as well as a former private office after his time as vice president.

This is something that the administration has been contending with over the last week, and it served as the backdrop as the president spoke at Ebenezer Baptist Church today, but the president staying focused on Dr. King's legacy throughout the course of the morning -- Pamela.

BROWN: All right. Priscilla Alvarez, thank you so much.

So let's talk a little bit more about that backdrop that Priscilla talked about. President Biden and the White House staff, they are facing blistering criticism for their handling of classified information. Just yesterday the Biden White House revealed that aides had found five more pages of classified material at the president's home in Delaware.

[18:30:04]

They were discovered two days earlier on the same day a special counsel was appointed to take over the Biden documents investigation.

Joining us now to talk about this is Shan Wu, a defense attorney and former federal prosecutor.

So let's begin with the special counsels. One for Trump's handling of classified documents, the other for Biden. As a former federal prosecutor, if you were the special counsel for either, what would you be doing right now? And what is the difference between a special counsel coming in at the front end versus after DOJ has already been investigating for a while, which was the case with Trump?

SHAN WU, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: Well, I think the big difference there is in the Trump case, as you said, they came in after they've been investigating for a while, and after months of back and forth with the Trump team trying to get the documents, grand jury subpoena and finally they were so concerned about recovering them and safeguarding them that they got a search warrant.

So the big difference is having a special counsel after all that, very strong predicate for probable criminal activity. And the special counsel regulations say that you only appoint one if you think it's warranted if there is the possibility of this criminal investigation being necessary. So in Trump's case, a lot of work done to establish the possibility that there could be criminal actions there, like obstruction.

Appointing one so early in contrast in the Biden documents matter, personally I think Garland didn't need to do that. I think he could have waited to get to the bottom, looks at the chain of custody, how did the documents get there, et cetera. And then if it looked like there was possible criminal action, then you can appoint a special counsel. Of course we're not privy to what else he may have been told and such.

But the big difference is, appointing one so early, all the evidence isn't necessarily there yet. But he clearly was reacting to political pressure, even though Garland says he tries not to be political, but he wanted that insulation.

BROWN: Right. And on that note, last night I spoke with Rod Rosenstein who served as deputy attorney general during the Trump administration, appointed a special counsel. And I asked him if the Justice Department, which I covered for years, is facing a crisis of confidence with millions of Americans not trusting the DOJ and whether that could have maybe played a role in this. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROD ROSENSTEIN, FORMER DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL: That concerns me a lot. It was something that I worried a lot about when I was deputy attorney general. I know it's weighing on Merrick Garland's mind right now as he's head to appoint now two special counsels, in addition to the one that he inherited from the prior administration. So it does create concern as to whether you can maintain that public confidence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So how much do you think that crisis of public trust in DOJ influenced this decision for Garland?

WU: I think it influenced him a tremendous amount. And honestly, a lot of the damage to DOJ's reputation that Merrick Garland is concerned with repairing occurred while Rod Rosenstein was there. And so Garland has been very worried about restoring that reputation. And it's a difficult situation we're in certainly. And I think in this case I think he erred too much on the side of caution, but unquestionably, he was doing this because there was a question of how can he avoid criticism of the department possibly investigating and prosecuting Trump when there's something that looks a little bit similar involved classified documents. So he's trying to take away that criticism, but it's pretty hard to do that.

BROWN: I mean, DOJ is under the executive branch, right? I mean, so, also you would potentially be having an employee in the executive branch investigating the president. Wouldn't that be another factor to have a special counsel?

WU: Absolutely, Pam. And that's exactly why they have this special counsel regs. But unlike the old outdated independent counsel, which is really completely outside DOJ, the special counsel regs now, the special counsel will still report to the attorney general and make those recommendations. And while it makes a lot of sense to have an outside person to avoid best you can conflicts of interest in the political realm and criticism, there's no way to avoid that.

BROWN: And I should note that, you know, the crisis of confidence in large part comes from the fact that the former president was always trashing DOJ because he was under investigation. Russia investigation for example. And so, you know, I think people would question whether there should be a crisis of confidence potentially, depending on your perspective.

But I want to ask you about the length of this because also looming over this is the fact that you have the leader of the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, one has already launched a campaign for presidency, the other says he intends to run. Could these investigations go over into the 2024 race? I mean, could it be hanging over the presidential race?

WU: I think it certainly could be. I mean, these tend to move very slowly. And I do think from what we know of the Biden situation, it's something that could be wrapped up very quickly. You find out how did the documents get there. You talk to people who are in charge of that. It's a pretty fast resolution.

[18:35:05]

Both of the Trump matters that are assigned to the Special Counsel Jack Smith are pretty complicated. I mean, there's been so much history already with the Mar-a-Lago documents to unravel to figure out what kind of intent, what kind of culpability there is. And January 6th is a very, very complex investigation, particularly from the white collar aspect of who was involved with planning it, what messages were taken. Those are both very large extensive, time consuming investigations.

BROWN: Yes. They sure are. Shan Wu, thank you very much.

Well, a new report shows progress in the fight against cancer, but it also includes new warnings. We're going to break it down for you up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BROWN: Dramatic scenes out of San Diego as firefighters rescued an injured driver after a crash left his vehicle dangling off a cliff. The team battled heavy winds and rain, first securing the SUV and then airlifting the driver out of the rocks and into safety.

[18:40:06]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVE SENEVIRATNE, FIREFIGHTER, SDFD: Sheer luck, the car landed where it was. It could have been worse. The car could have gone over the side and then it would have been a whole different outcome.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very crazy scene. The rescue team did awesome out here. They had like ropes going down there, there's a spotlight. Just double checking that the person -- that the car is not going anywhere.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Firefighters say the driver was parked on the side of the road there when the vehicle suddenly and unexplainedly lurched over the edge.

Well, minutes ago at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two, one, engine full power, and liftoff.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: SpaceX launched its Falcon heavy rocket into space. It's embarking on a classified mission for the Space Force and the fifth overall launch for SpaceX's most powerful rocket. It is also the same rocket used for the 2018 launch that released a Tesla roadster with a mannequin in the driver's seat into orbit the sun, you may recall.

All right. Well, I'm hoping this one really pulls through for us. New research is showing the process of aging is reversible right now, if you're a mouse. A team of scientists at Harvard just published what they say is a breakthrough study on the DNA of lab mice and they say after 13 years of research they have discovered a way to reprogram the mice's cells allowing them to fast forward and even reverse how their cells age. They say the techniques could eventually be used on the cells of humans to delay illnesses and potentially even reverse aging. Let's hope that that happens soon.

Well, some good news tonight in the fight against cancer. A new report shows the disease's death rate in the U.S. is way down. Of course there are still plenty of work to do, though.

CNN's Jacqueline Howard looks at the 2023 projections and what we can learn.

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This new report from the American Cancer Society shows we've made steady progress in getting our nation's cancer death rate to decline in the past three decades. That's in part due to advancements in treatment. We have fewer people smoking, which is a risk factor for cancer. We also have an HPV vaccine, which offers some protection against cervical cancer. And we're detecting cancers.

All of those factors have played a role in what the head of the American Cancer Society calls meaningful gains here. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAREN E. KNUDSEN, CEO, AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY: Those new revelations for prevention, for early detection and for treatment have resulted in true meaningful gains in many of the 200 diseases that we call cancer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWARD: And while that's good news, when you really look at the numbers there's still room for improvement in certain areas. So the data show that as a nation we have seen our cancer death rate decline by 33 percent since 1991, but we also see some racial disparities continued. The death rate in the black community is still 12 percent higher, which shows there's some inequities that still need to be addressed.

We also are seeing increases in the incidents of certain cancer cases. We're seeing more breast cancer, more uterine cancer, more prostate cancer. And overall, the lifetime probability of being diagnosed with any invasive cancer is 41 percent for men, 39 percent women. Researchers say there is still room for improvement there as well.

Back to you.

BROWN: All right, thanks, Jacqueline.

Well, tennis star Novak Djokovic is back at the Australian Open just one year after being removed from the country because he refused to get a COVID vaccine. So what changed? That story is up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:48:12]

BROWN: We are just minutes away from the start of the 2023 Australian Open. Novak Djokovic will be back in action after he wasn't allowed to play last year due to his vaccination status, and not only that, he was publicly removed from the country and issued a controversial visa ban, you may recall.

ESPN commentator and former professional tennis player, Patrick McEnroe, joins us now.

Hi, Patrick. So Djokovic is only playing because his three-year visa ban was overturned. Why was it such a big deal to keep him out of the country last year but not this year?

PATRICK MCENROE, FORMER PROFESSIONAL TENNIS PLAYER: Well, Pamela, have you ever heard of the word politics, OK? Politics I know is big in your world but it actually seeped into the tennis world last year. Of course nothing bigger than the story from the Australian Open last year. When he was deported he stayed in essentially a detention center for five days. So it was a huge story.

This year, though, Pamela, thankfully for those of us in the tennis world, it's about the tennis and what could happen on the court. So the other political issues later this year in tennis, you know, Djokovic at the time being cannot get into the United States because he's unvaccinated. We'll see if that changes over the course of this next year. When he was allowed to come back into Australia, they had a change in government. So sometimes, you know, politics can change. That's what happened in Australia.

And I'll tell you, he's been warmly received thus far. He won one of the tune-up tournaments in Adelaide. He played a practice match again Nick Kyrgios, the controversial Australian just this past week in Melbourne, so all signs look like they're welcoming him back with open arms.

And just for good measure, Pamela, he is the clear favorite to win the title for the 10th time, which would be a record.

BROWN: So he is ready for this first tennis major of the year then, it sounds like. Well, I want to get to something else, though, because despite pleas from Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian players will be allowed to compete this year as individuals without country name or flag.

[18:50:09]

As a former player, did the politics of an opponent's country affect the way you approach the match?

MCENROE: No, not at all, Pamela, and I think that one of the things, the lessons we learned from this past year in the sports world and the political world, with the ban of the Russian and Belarusian players in Wimbledon by the All England Club, that was a big mistake by the All England Club. Nothing has changed with the war. Of course all of us want the war to end, there's no doubt about that.

But as far as being a professional player and playing against someone from a particular country that your country may not agree with, I mean, that happens all the time in sports. Sports is one of the things that's supposed to bring us all together and we saw the controversies during the World Cup, they petered out. We ended up having a great World Cup. And tennis is the same. But that won't be an issue for the All England Club later this year. So in addition to the vaccination issue for the number one, well, he's not number one but he should be number one, that's Novak Djokovic, coming back into the U.S., that would be a big, hot topic issue moving forward for the world of tennis this 2023 year.

BROWN: Another big story in tennis is of course with Naomi Osaka who will not be playing in Melbourne because this week she announced that she is pregnant. On Twitter she wrote, "Can't wait to get back on the court but here's a little life update for 2023." And she posted along her statement and shared this photo of her ultrasound. We're all very happy for her. So how much will tennis miss Naomi while she's out?

MCENROE: Well, tennis is going to miss her a lot. But the truth is, she's sort of been off and on for the last couple of years anyway. And this is a woman that took the tennis world by storm. The big controversial win over Serena Williams at the U.S. Open. It wasn't her controversy. It was just Serena had a meltdown in that match, but then she went on to win three more major titles, Pamela, including two Australian Open titles.

So tennis would love to see her back. I think you hit the nail on the head, though, this is someone that we want to see her happy because we've seen her have issues with that off the court and on the court as well, and hopefully having a child will be a great blessing for her and that she can come back and play tennis because she's still very young and in my opinion, she's still one of the best female tennis players in the world.

So it would be great to see her back. We've got two great Americans starting in the women's tour in Australia tonight. We'll be live on ESPN momentarily, as you said, at 7:00 p.m. Coco Gauff, who's highest seed she's ever been, and Jessica Pegula, who, of course you know her parents own the Buffalo Bills, she's celebrating that win by the Bills earlier, and hoping that as the highest ranked American, she could make a big, big run in this tournament. In fact, I'm predicting her to win the Australian Open this year.

BROWN: Wow. All right. We shall see. 7:00 as you say. All the viewers need to stay here, though, until 7:00. Thanks so much, Patrick. We appreciate it.

MCENROE: Thanks, Pamela.

BROWN: Well, the next great American women's soccer player may have just joined the pros. This right here is Alyssa Thompson. On Thursday she made history by becoming the first high school student ever to be drafted into the National Women's Soccer League and not only that, she was the first overall pick. But her new stint with Angel City won't be her first time under the bright lights. In September Thompson debuted for Team USA in a match against England and what's more the California native was playing with 17-year-olds when she was just 13. Wow.

Well, tonight's pop culture impresario Andy Cohen and Barefoot Contessa Ina Garten join Chris for a new episode of "WHO'S TALKING TO CHRIS WALLACE?" And here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS WALLACE, CNN HOST: Do you think that Harry and Meghan have become a bore?

ANDY COHEN, HOST AND EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, BRAVO: Do I think they have become a bore? No. I think that, as I watched his "60 Minutes" interview, I thought, you know, as he's talking about his brother's balding head and how he's losing his looks and all this stuff, and then he says, no, we love each other and I -- you know, the ball is in their court and all this stuff, I mean, I think that maybe there was a way for him to do it without torching the bridge, but also telling a story, which is so compelling. I mean, his brother is now the future king of England.

WALLACE: Right.

COHEN: I think that the move is for William -- Harry's book is called "Spare."

WALLACE: Yes.

COHEN: I think William should write a book called "Heir" and tell his story.

WALLACE: I don't think that that's what they do.

COHEN: I don't either.

WALLACE: No. But I guess part of what I'm asking is at a certain point, doesn't this show need to be cancelled?

COHEN: Their -- look, it's expensive to live in Montecito. You know? They're cashing out. They're cashing out.

WALLACE: And that, ladies and gentlemen, is from the arbiter, the ring master of pop culture in America today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Don't miss "WHO'S TALKING TO CHRIS WALLACE?" with Ina Garten and Andy Garten up in just a few minutes here on CNN.

[18:55:03]

We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: He was New York's mayor during 9/11. In the middle of tragedy, he stepped up. But what happened to that leader? The CNN Original Series "GIULIANI: WHAT HAPPENED TO AMERICA'S MAYOR" airs tonight at 9:00.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody's attention started turning to one man, and that was Rudy Giuliani. Rudy's influence led to Trump's impeachment over these Ukraine issues.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's again this moment of everybody working to sort of contain the Rudy influence and keep him away from the president and yet the president keeps seeking him out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rudy Giuliani is not a guy who backs down. Rudy is a guy who doubles down.

DAN BARRY, REPORTER AND COLUMNIST, THE NEW YORK TIMES: Whenever Giuliani was on the defensive when he was mayor, his response was to attack.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't remember him ever apologizing saying I shouldn't have said that or I over reacted.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you.