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Deadly Abduction in Mexico; Frank Montoya Jr. is Interviewed about the Deadly Abduction in Mexico; Hearings on Covid-19 Origins; New Fight in Texas over Abortion Ban. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired March 08, 2023 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:46]

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Erica Hill.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Jim Sciutto.

This morning, Mexican authorities have just finished autopsies, sadly, on two Americans killed in Mexico. Now their families are waiting for answers with just how this happened when a group of four friends were kidnapped just across the southern border. Two survivors are now recovering in a hospital in Texas. Ahead, what we're learning about their ordeal, the effort to bring them home and broader law enforcement issues in Mexico.

Plus, right now, lawmakers are gathering for a hearing on the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic as the Department of Energy says they have low confidence in the lab leak theory.

HILL: Plus, five Texas women filing a landmark lawsuit to challenge that state's abortion laws, saying those bans nearly killed them. But the lawsuit isn't asking to overturn the law. What they are seeking, you're going to hear directly from one of the women about the impact of that law.

We will get to all of that this morning, but we do want to begin with the very latest on this situation in Mexico. The four Americans who were kidnapped, two of them killed.

CNN national security correspondent Kylie Atwood is at the State Department, CNN correspondent Rosa Flores is in Brownsville, Texas.

Rosa, let's begin with you.

In terms of what we are learning in the last 24 hours or so, specifically about the conditions of the two Americans who survived, how are they this morning?

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, according to the mother of Latavia Washington McGee, who spoke to CNN this morning, she says that her daughter is expected to head home today. As for the condition of the other American who was shot in his legs, it is unclear. The hospital is not releasing a statement or conditions. But we do know that the hospital that you see behind me is the hospital where the two Americans were brought to once they crossed into the United States.

Now, all this as we're learning more from Mexican officials about the actual timeline of what happened in Mexico. Mexican officials saying that the Americans crossed into Matamoros, Mexico, at about 9:18 a.m. on Friday, and that they were lost for a few hours. They were trying to get signal. They were calling the doctor where Washington McGee was supposed to have for her medical procedure. They were trying to get to the doctor's office. They couldn't get there. And at 11:45 a.m. is when that dramatic video was taken that shows the kidnapping, that shows individuals being dragged into the back of a pickup truck.

And now the mom of that survivor, Latavia Washington McGee, talking to CNN about those intense moments based on the account that she heard from her daughter.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA MCLEOD BURGESS, MOTHER OF KIDNAPPING SURVIVOR LATAVIA WASHINGTON MCGEE: They was driving through and a van came up and hit them. And that's when they started shooting at the car, shooting inside the van or whatever. And I guess that she said the others tried to run and they got shot at the same time. Shaeed and Zindell. They all got shot at the same time. And she watched them - she watched them die.

We put all them -- everyone on them that something to do with it, I want them locked up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: Some very intense moments there that mother describing the moments when her daughter saw some of her friends die there in Mexico.

Now, about justice and what the next steps are. Mexican officials say that they have arrested, they've detained a 24-year-old that was doing some sort of surveillance of the Americans, but Mexican officials have an ongoing investigation and the FBI on the U.S. side has an ongoing criminal investigation. The FBI says that they are working with the DEA, with HIS and with the Department of State to get to the bottom of this.

Jim. Erica.

SCIUTTO: Kylie, I know State Department Spokesperson Ned Price told you he wants to see -- the U.S. wants to see accountability. I wonder what he means by that. And are U.S. authorities cooperating with Mexican authorities right now on finding those responsible?

KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, first as to, you know, the U.S. working with Mexican authorities. The State Department said yesterday that they are very grateful for the joint efforts of the Mexican authorities working with the U.S. So it does look like things are working there in terms of, you know, the Mexican officials taking the lead on this investigation and then, of course, sharing and allowing the FBI and the DEA and others to be involved in that.

[09:05:06]

That's an area, of course, that we'll continue to watch.

But when it comes to accountability, as you said, the State Department, also the White House yesterday, calling for accountability, calling for justice. But when I asked the State Department spokesperson what that will look like, he said that the State Department doesn't want to be prescriptive at this moment and said it's really going to fall to law enforcement to design what that accountability looks like.

I think it's a little bit early because we know that this investigation is still really kind of in the depths of trying to figure out who was responsible and how this all went down. But, at the same time, there are calls on Capitol Hill, particularly among Republicans, who are saying that this Mexican gang should be designated as a terrorist organization.

Now, State Department Spokesperson Ned Price didn't count out that possibility, said that the department will use all tools available to it to try and crack down, of course, on gang activity along the border. But that is something that I think we should watch for in terms of if there is forward movement on that, if the State Department does want to kind of join with Republicans and push for that. We don't know if they're headed in that direction, but certainly that's something that folks on Capitol Hill are calling for.

HILL: Kylie Atwood, Rosa Flores, appreciate it. Thank you both.

Also joining us this hour, former FBI special agent in charge, Frank Montoya Jr., joining us with more perspective.

Frank, good to have you with us.

You know, if we pick up just where Kylie left off there, this push by some lawmakers, questions about whether the State Department could, in fact, designate cartels as terrorist organizations. What would that actually change? What would that change on the ground, especially for FBI agents, for example, who work out of that Mexico City office?

FRANK MONTOYA JR., FORMER FBI SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE: Yes, it might open up some -- and it's a great question -- it might open up some other avenues of approach when it comes to dealing with these cartels. But the reality of the situation is, we're not going to be able to operate unilaterally against these targets in a place like Mexico. There's -- it's just too fraught with bad history. It's also -- this is a problem that is primarily a Mexican problem. They could use our assistance. I love what Congressman Vicente Gonzalez said yesterday when he talked about our neighbor's house being on fire and they need our help to put it out, but it is largely a Mexican problem.

And so however we move forward in terms of trying to deal with this, it's going to require a joint activity, a joint -- a joint effort by both sides of the border because there is so much intended (ph) in terms of how you address these really dangerous cartels.

SCIUTTO: Frank, you've described Mexico as becoming a failed state. That's an appraisal I've heard going back more than a decade now. You're talking about that description of our neighbor's house being on fire. What does that mean for Americans? Americans travel back and forth all the time for vacations, to visit family, for other reasons, and what does it mean about how the U.S. should be responding?

MONTOYA: Well, it goes back to just how powerful these cartels are and how much control they have over certain parts of the country. When you look at the border region, and I started in the FBI in 1991 in San Antonio, so I got to see a lot of this firsthand even back then. And then when I ended my time in the bureau 26 years later in Seattle, of all places, we continued to see just the spread of the cartels' influence around - you know, different places around this country.

And so when I talk about the failed state nature of that, it's the inability to control the criminal enterprise that is occurring down there. I mean we would like to be able to do it as a country. The United States would like to be able to do more, but we're still dealing with a sovereign nation. And the challenges that they are facing right now in terms of trying to get control, it really reflects not just an inability, but so many other systemic issues that prevent them from being able to get control of this situation. And that's where that idea -- and I'm not the only one that feels that way. There are a lot of guys who work in law enforcement and in the intelligence community who feel that way because of the things we have seen over the last couple of decades in Mexico.

SCIUTTO: Goodness. And you've noted the Mexican administrations, in your view, animosity towards the U.S. right now and how that factors in.

Listen, a lot of threads there. We'll continue to cover.

Frank Montoya Jr., thanks so much.

MONTOYA: Thank you very much.

HILL: Happening on Capitol Hill right now, the new Republican-led panel investigating the origins of Covid-19 kicking off its first hearing. We do expect there will be testimony from three GOP witness who have said the virus may have accidentally escaped from a lab in China.

SCIUTTO: A Department of Energy report came to the same conclusion of the lab leak being the cause of this, though that intelligence assessment was given with low confidence.

CNN Capitol Hill reporter Melanie Zanona joins us now with the latest.

So, Melanie, you know, this is a highly politicized issue as well. I wonder, is the testimony today going to be about digging in for answers here or is it going to be more of a political back and forth?

[09:10:05] MELANIE ZANONA, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: Yes, Jim, I think we're going to see a mix of both politics and some substance here because the big question that has plagued both health officials and intelligence officials is where did this virus come from. And that is something that Republicans have vowed to dig into with their new majority.

And we will see the first step in that process today. The House select committee on the coronavirus pandemic just kicked off a hearing moments ago with opening statements about to get underway here, looking into the origins of Covid-19. And the three witnesses that Republicans have called are Robert Redfield, the former CDC director under Donald Trump, Jamie Metzl, a former fellow for the Atlantic Council, and Nicholas Wade, he is a science writer. And all three of these witnesses have given some voice to the theory that the coronavirus may have originated in a lab.

And, of course, their testimony is coming amid this intensifying debate over whether the coronavirus originated in a lab or if it was because of humans exposed to an infected animal.

Now, the intelligence community does remain divided over this subject. There is no conclusive evidence on that front. But the Department of Energy did recently come to the conclusion that it may have been the most likely cause of the coronavirus. So, I do expect Republicans to focus a lot on that specific theory. You have firebrands on the panel, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, who have been really animated over this. I expect that she will try to claim vindication. We could see some fireworks.

But overall, Jim and Erica, I will say that there is a bipartisan agreement here on Capitol Hill that figuring out the origins of the coronavirus is important in order to determine and make sure this never happens again.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Melanie Zanona, I appreciate it. We know you'll keep us posted on those developments through the hearing.

SCIUTTO: Well, on the pandemic, the U.S. is planning to relax Covid testing restrictions for travelers from China. And those changes could take effect as soon as Friday.

HILL: A source telling CNN this move comes amid a drop in Covid cases, hospitalizations and deaths in China. And if you're saying to yourself, wait a minute, testing restriction, you may remember, this only went into effect at the beginning of January. That was after China did away with its controversial zero Covid policy, leading to a surge in cases.

Just ahead here in the CNN NEWSROOM, we're joined live by one of five women now suing the state of Texas over its restrictive abortion laws. A law which she says led to her facing a life-threatening complication after doctors denied her care. Details on what that lawsuit is arguing. Plus, stunning revelations from court documents which show -- which

prove Fox News hosts and executives had widespread doubts about the bogus election conspiracies that were being peddled on that same air. They were doing it anyway. More of those internal texts and emails.

SCIUTTO: And new this morning, the NATO secretary general says he cannot rule out that the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut may fall in the coming days. Here what President Zelenskyy had to say about his decision to keep Ukrainian forces fighting there. All that in an exclusive interview with CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:17:19]

HILL: On this International Women's Day, there is a new fight in Texas where five women are suing the state after being denied emergency medical care because of that state's near total ban on abortion. The group, along with two OBGYNs, say the Texas laws, quite simply, put lives at risk, and they are demanding the state now clarify what qualifies as a medical exception.

Lead president Amanda Zurawski, says she nearly died when her water broke just 18 weeks into her pregnancy. Doctors, though, at that time told her there was no way to save her daughter's life. She was initially denied an abortion because of that new law. She had to wait until she developed sepsis days later, a life-threatening medical emergency. Amanda eventually needed a blood transfusion and the infection also caused one of her fallopian tubes to permanently close, impacting her future fertility.

Amanda Zurawski joins us now, along with Nancy Northup, who's president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, the advocacy group behind the lawsuit.

It's good to have both of you with us this morning.

Amanda, you've been very public about what happened to you, the very real concerns about your life in those moments. I know one of the reasons, as I understand it, that you have wanted to share your story so publicly is that you don't believe your experience is unique in the state of Texas. What have you heard since you first came -- became -- or went public, rather?

AMANDA ZURAWSKI, SUING TEXAS OVER STATE'S RESTRICTIVE ABORTION LAWS: Yes, absolutely. Thank you for having me, first off. But to answer your question, it's definitely not as rare as people think. And every time there's any sort of story or headline or awareness that's brought up around what happened to me, I hear from women and men, not just in Texas, but across the country, sometimes across the globe, of similar stories. And people are afraid to speak out. And I'm hopeful that by speaking up and by putting a face to what's going on that it will give courage to other women to speak up about what's happening to them as well.

HILL: Nancy, when it comes to this lawsuit, I think some people may be surprised that the goal of this lawsuit is not to overturn the law. What is the goal?

NANCY NORTHUP, PRESIDENT AND CEO, CENTER FOR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS: Well, right now, on behalf of the five women who are plaintiffs in this suit, but beyond that is to clarify that under Texas law that people who are experiencing pregnancy complications that are serious, that their doctors can exercise their good faith judgment, in consultation with their patients, to be able to provide the care that they need, including abortion care. Right now it's not happening in Texas. Texas is a dangerous place to be pregnant right now.

[09:20:02]

And so the lawsuit is seeking clarity to be sure that what happened to Amanda and the other plaintiffs in this case does not happen to more people in the state of Texas.

HILL: Is this essentially pushing the state of Texas to say that abortion is, in fact, health care?

NORTHUP: Absolutely. It makes clear in these cases that these women experienced, and I will say in the lawsuit we also document other reported cases in Texas and other states, Ohio and Alabama, Louisiana and more, that it is clear that you need to be able to have the option of abortion when you are experiencing a serious pregnancy complication.

HILL: Amanda, you chose to use your full name. and you've been -- since you have been public with your story, you've done so. In this day and age, I know a lot of people would have pause doing that because, frankly, of the way people react to strangers and the threats that come along with that potentially for you and for your family. Has that happened?

ZURAWSKI: No. I would say by and large the outreach that I've received has been just overwhelmingly supportive. As I mentioned before, people are very grateful and very thankful that we're kind of paving the way so that hopefully others can use their voice. And a big part of my decision in using my name is because they don't want me to, right? Our lawmakers would be happy for the general public to think that this isn't real or this isn't happening. But by putting my name out there and putting my face out there, it's helping people understand that this is real and it is really happening and it could happen to their wife or their daughter or their aunt. And I think that's what's really needed in order to make a change.

HILL: Nancy, as doctors, like Amanda's doctor, frankly, struggled to navigate what this medical exception means, whether they decide to somehow speak in a code, which it sounds like has happened in different cases, what would your legal advice be to an OBGYN in Texas when faced with a complication like Amanda was facing?

NORTHUP: You know, there are also two obstetricians who are plaintiffs in this lawsuit because they've come forward to say, we can't practice medicine the way we are trained, we can't give the care that we know that our patients deserve to have. And look, they're stuck in an, you know, unacceptable position because

they want to give the care to their patients, they know that abortion care is part of what needs to be done in a pregnancy complication, and yet the state of Texas has imposed a prison sentence on abortion, up to 99 years. That's a life sentence. So, it's understandable that they feel caught in this just unacceptable situation. So, they have also joined the lawsuit to say, we've got to have clarity.

HILL: Amanda, you just said one of the reasons that you decided to use your name is because you feel that there are, perhaps, lawmakers who don't want your name out there, who don't want these stories out there. What do you think is missing? This is - the word abortion is immediately divisive in this country. What do you think is missing from the conversation in this country?

ZURAWSKI: I think what a lot of people don't understand is that abortions are just standard health care. And in some cases it's needed to save lives. And, in my own case, for example, one of my other fellow plaintiffs was pregnant with twins and she needed an abortion of one to save the life of the other. An I think you're exactly right, the word has become so stigmatized that people immediately put up their guards when they hear the word and they don't understand that it is simply health care. And it's health care that women in the state of Texas and across the country deserve access to.

HILL: Amanda Zurawski and Nancy Northup, thank you both for joining us this morning. We'll continue to follow these developments. Thank you for your time.

NORTHUP: Thank you.

ZURAWSKI: Thanks for having us.

HILL: And I do want to note, CNN has reached out to the defendants here. We have reached out to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Texas medical board, its executive director, Stephen Brint Carlton, as well as Texas Governor Greg Abbott, specifically about this lawsuit. And as of this interview and this moment, we have not yet heard back.

SCIUTTO: Such an important story.

In California, a separate battle over abortion rights is brewing. This after Walgreens announced it would stop dispensing abortion medication in 21 Republican-led states. California's governor, Gavin Newsom, now says his state will not do any business with the drugstore.

HILL: The Democratic governor tweeting, California, as Jim just said, won't be doing business with Walgreens or any company that cowers to the extremists and puts women's lives at risk. Ending that tweet with, we're done.

Walgreens has said that it plans to dispense Mifepristone in any jurisdiction where it is legally permissible to do so. In some of those 21 states, it is still legal. Republicans, though, have threatened some legal action.

[09:25:02]

We'll keep an eye on that story as well.

SCIUTTO: Still ahead, what hosts on Fox News said on air about 2020 election conspiracies was dramatically different from what they were texting and emailing about those lies privately. The revelations in a new trove of court documents coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCIUTTO: A new trove of texts and emails revealed in a lawsuit against Fox News shows that while the hosts actively promoted 2020 election fraud conspiracies on the air, they were very much doubting those claims in private.

[09:30:02]

HILL: Yes, very clearly doubting them.