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Severe Weather and Tornadoes Devastate Parts of Indiana, Arkansas, and Nearby States; Grand Jury in Manhattan Indicts Former President Trump; Former President Trump Expected to Travel to New York to Voluntarily Surrender to Manhattan District Attorney; CDC Investigators Studying Health Impacts of East Palestine Toxic Train Derailment Briefly Fell Ill in Early March; Buffalo Bills Player Damar Hamlin Endorses Congressional Bipartisan Bill Providing Funding to Schools for AED Equipment; Men and Women's College Basketball Final Four Taking Place; CNN Hero Teaches Children in Kenya about Computer Technology. Aired 2-3p ET.
Aired April 01, 2023 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[14:00:19]
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
And we begin this hour, with the death toll rising after a tornado outbreak wreaked havoc across much of the Midwest and south on Friday. At least 17, now, people have been confirmed dead and preliminary reports of more than 50 tornadoes in seven states. Dozens of others were injured in the second straight weekend of deadly severe storms.
In parts of Arkansas, the damage is catastrophic. Reports of at least a dozen tornadoes there. The hardest hit area was the town of Wynne.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't know what's left. All my neighbors' houses are about destroyed. My two boys are out now trying to help dig people out of their homes.
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WHITFIELD: Little Rock, Arkansas, also bearing the brunt of these storms, the city's mayor, telling CNN today that entire neighborhoods were flattened.
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MAYOR FRANK SCOTT, JR., LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS: The impact is devastating. It just came out of nowhere. We knew it was coming. Everyone took cover as it relates to the emergency response from that standpoint, but just to see the devastation of the impact of the flattening of homes, the flattening of businesses in a matter of minutes.
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WHITFIELD: And more devastation in several other states, including Indiana and Tennessee, a state that is reporting seven deaths now. But the threat is far from over. Millions are now bracing for a new round of storms today.
CNN has teams tracking the latest from these powerful destructive storms. Let's begin with Adrienne Broaddus live for us in northern Illinois. Adrienne, what's going on there?
ADRIENNE BROADDUS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, good afternoon to you. As the cleanup process here begins, now crews are dealing with the wind. Behind us is the Apollo Theater, and last night people gathered here for concert. I want to show you the view from above.
This is what the scene looked like moments after the roof collapsed. Inside more than 200 people. First responders say some of those folks were trapped underneath the debris. At least 28 people were injured. We're told one person was killed. Some others have what have been called life threatening injuries.
Meanwhile, within the last 90 minutes or so, this crew with the heavy equipment has been behind us working to clear this area. When we arrived on scene, obviously, the fence was here, which says keep out. The area is barricaded, but there's a debris scattered throughout the street.
This is a historic building. There's a marquee on the building that says 1921. If you're looking, you can see that the foundation or the structure of the building is brick, and those bricks have been scattered throughout the area.
If you drive around the neighborhood, you will also see a similar scene where trees have fallen in this parking lot, which is adjacent to where we are right now. There's also shattered glass. I spoke with a woman just a moment ago who told me she could not believe this happened. She says she has so many memories here at the Apollo Theater, but right now her thoughts are with those people who were er injured. Fred?
WHITFIELD: Wow, that's extraordinary. Adrienne, thank you so much.
Let's check in now with CNN meteorologist Britley Ritz, because Britley, this has been widespread damage and destruction. But then there's more on the way?
BRITLEY RITZ, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes absolutely. And not just today, but into the next week. But let's focus on what's happening right now across parts of the Ohio Valley. We now have a severe thunderstorm watch box in place for eastern Ohio, parts of western Pennsylvania, and on up into New York.
It includes Buffalo, Cleveland, back down into Pittsburgh until 6:00 eastern time. We've already had reports of trees down. We've had reports of power lines down south of Canton, which is just about an hour from Cleveland, and roofs off homes. We now have another severe thunderstorm watch box issued across the
south, and this we've already been watching a handful of severe thunderstorm warnings in place where we have had hail reports near an inch and, again, winds gusting over 60 miles per hour.
The SPC, the Storm Prediction Center out of Norman, Oklahoma, has issued an enhanced risk now for parts of the northeast, that area highlighted in orange. That includes Philadelphia back up into New York and back into Pittsburgh.
This is more of a wind threat, but tornadoes can't be ruled out either, nor can hail. The focus again wind across the southeast, 3:00, 4:00 in the afternoon, that line is pushing down towards Tallahassee back into Jacksonville. Then finally, through the evening, the severe threat is gone. But again, our main focus right on up into the northeast, look at this line start to bow out.
[14:05:00]
That's a good indicator of strong damaging winds, and we could be ending up with wind gusts of 80 miles per hour. Once we get into the overnight hours, that whole system pushes off our shoreline, and we watch the system starts to taper back a little bit, Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right, Britley Ritz, Adrienne Broaddus, thank you so much to both of you.
Former President Donald Trump is expected to travel to New York on Monday, where he will voluntarily surrender on Tuesday to the Manhattan district attorney's office and be arraigned. Trump's indictment will mark the first time in U.S. history that a current or former president has been criminally charged. Sources say Trump faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud. CNN's Ritz Jessica Schneider has a preview of what we can expect this week.
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REPORTER: What are the charges against President Donald Trump?
JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: An historic court date set for former President Donald Trump on Tuesday in Manhattan, where district attorney Alvin Bragg has brought an indictment against him. Trump is planning to leave his Mar-a-Lago estate on Monday for New York, and then on Tuesday, authorities will take his mug shots and fingerprints before escorting him to his arraignment. NYPD and Secret Service already working together to bolster security at the courthouse as they track any threats and possible protests.
The indictments still under seal, styled "The People of the State of New York against Donald J. Trump." CNN learning the grand jury voted to charge him with more than 30 counts related to business fraud after hearing from an unidentified witness for about 30 minutes Thursday.
MICHAEL COHEN, TESTIFIED TO GRAND JURY THAT INDICATED TRUMP: I am a convicted felon. I am a disbarred lawyer. But I also brought the documents. There's plenty of testimony corroborating, testimony to go around.
SCHNEIDER: Former Trump fixer Michael Cohen met with prosecutors and testified to the grand jury and multiple occasions in this yearslong investigation. Cohen was convicted on federal charges and sentenced to three years in prison in part for his role paying off porn star Stormy Daniels to keep her quiet in the leadup to the 2016 election about her alleged affair with Donald Trump.
CLARK BREWSTER, STORMY DANIELS' ATTORNEY: It's a fight against his rejection of truth and his manufacturing of stories that really motivated her to try to cooperate in any way, certainly to get the truth out.
SCHNEIDER: Trump denies the affair and any wrongdoing.
REPORTER: Mr. President, do you know about the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels?
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT: No, no.
REPORTER: Then why did Michael Cohen make this, if there was no truth to the allegations.
TRUMP: Well, you'll have to ask Michael Cohen. Michael is my -- an attorney, and you'll have to ask Michael
SCHNEIDER: Cohen, though, admits to writing the $130,000 check and claims he was reimbursed by the Trump Organization. That reimbursement and the way Trump accounted for it appears to be at the heart of the case against Trump.
COHEN: For Donald, since we're talking about convicted felons, see you on Tuesday, pal.
SCHNEIDER: Sources tell CNN the grand jury also heard testimony about a catch-and-kill scheme to bury a story about another alleged Trump affair with former Playboy Playmate of the Year Karen MacDougal. Trump's longtime friend and then chairman of the "National Enquirer's" parent company, David Pecker, is believed to have orchestrated that $150,000 payment. Pecker testified before the grand jury Monday. Trump also denies any affair with McDougal.
Trump's lawyers are now vowing to fight, saying they will move to get all charges dismissed before any trial.
JOE TACOPINA, TRUMP DEFENSE ATTORNEY: There's no crime. I don't know if it's going to make the trial because we have substantial legal challenges that we have to front before we get to that point.
CNN has been digging into who this last witness was on Thursday before the grand jury voted to indict Trump. A lot more could become clear as this case progresses, and we'll see just how strong this case might be after the indictment is unsealed, likely Tuesday at the arraignment.
In the meantime, former Attorney General Bill Barr is the latest now speaking out, joining Republicans in saying that this case is just a political hit job and a weak case, notably, though, no one has seen the exact charges or the evidence here.
Jessica Schneider, CNN Washington.
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WHITFIELD: Alright with me now to discuss, Guy Smith. He is a former Clinton White House adviser and impeachment expert and a Democratic strategist. Guy great to see you.
GUY SMITH, IMPEACHMENT EXPERT: It's good to be back. Thank you.
WHITFIELD: OK, so how do you think this indictment impacts Donald Trump and his 2024 presidential bid?
SMITH: Well, it impacts Donald Trump, and it impacts the Republican Party in some big ways. So with Donald Trump, he's now a criminal defendant. It's a new ballgame. Everything is completely beyond his control. There's nobody to pay off. There's nobody to cut a deal with. There's no settlement possible. There's nobody he can intimidate or bulldoze. And he's in the criminal justice meatgrinder system. Now, everybody's saying New York is a weak case. Everybody is saying that buy they haven't even read the indictment. Nobody knows what it says.
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But what's more important is there's more coming. There's Georgia coming. There's this insurrection coming. There's a stealing national security documents that's coming. And all these Republicans are out there running her mouth, this is a terrible thing. And they haven't even gotten to what's really terrible. The insurrection, that's coming, too.
But what really is happening here, Fred, we are watching the disintegration of the Republican Party in real time. And what I mean by that is if you look at the -- if you really look at it. Republicans written large are 27 of the electorate, and the MAGA supporters may be 40 percent of that 27. That gets you down to maybe 15, 17 percent of the entire electorate. And this is at the same time you are also seeing in the Republican Party people like Mitch McConnell aren't saying anything.
WHITFIELD: Right.
SMITH: He's not saying anything. These other, some of the other candidates aren't saying anything. And then if you look at what these people, these candidates are saying, they're throwing stones at Bragg. They're not protecting Trump. And what are they going to -- what are all these people going to say? When the Georgia thing comes down? Remember, there are three types we've all heard.
WHITFIELD: Yes, although you did hear Jim Jordan, who said, he believes the president is innocent. There are a lot of Republicans who are rallying in a very big way around Trump. And is it to bolster Trump or is it to prevent, as you say, the disintegration of the party? SMITH: Well, I think it's to some degree it's probably both. And
what's important to say here is that Donald Trump is innocent until proven guilty. But what's different this time, this is the third time he's been indicted. Basically, the impeachment is an indictment, and then the trial in the Senate. The fix was in in the Senate because Republicans had enough votes. This time there will be a trial before a judge of real citizens who look at real evidence.
Donald Trump has never been in that world before, and he isn't in control. And there'll be a flurry of motions and that sort of thing. Oh, God, the judge is a bad guy. We've got to go get a new venue. They want to go to Staten Island. All that, all that's meaningless. It just will delay everything.
WHITFIELD: Yes, he's been in court before. He's familiar with the process. He's had a lot of lawsuits. But this is different because he is the target as opposed to his business.
But look, Guy, at what he the former president has done. He is using this indictment -- he's not cowering. He is not in hiding. He's using this to fundraise. And so far it's been very effective. He's already apparently raised more than $4 million. So --
SMITH: OK, so he raised $4 million.
WHITFIELD: So what does he do with that money? Does that mean being able to raise that kind of money gives him a better chance at winning the Republican nomination, because he is an announced candidate, or does it cement something else, just his ego?
SMITH: Well I don't know how much they're siphoning off for themselves in the fundraising.
(LAUGHTER)
SMITH: But then there's a lot of -- there's a lot of evidence of that. Having happened across the fundraising from the all the Trump stuff. But what's really going to happen, Fred, is when we read these indictments, the 30 or whatever they are, a lot of them will probably be misdemeanors. They'll be the felony that everybody's talking about. There might be some witness tampering in there or obstruction of justice. And that's pretty serious.
But we've never had a president or presidential candidate who's a criminal defendant. And all the research, all the polls show that anybody that's got that kind of scandal go on just a scandal, they lose eight to 10 points. Now, what's going to happen after Georgia comes down or one of the federal things like the insurrection, DeSantis is going to start throwing stones. Nikki Haley will start throwing stones. Chris Christie --
WHITFIELD: They haven't yet, right?
SMITH: No. Well, no, they haven't yet. And they're out there, all of them are out there on a limb because they don't know what these indictments say. But what we do know is that the Georgia stuff, if everybody's right about New York, and, it's a weak case. All right, well, George is not a weak case, and the insurrection and stealing the documents, the national security documents, you had all those sorts of things up -- OK, so here's what might happen.
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So you get a primary, a Republican primary, low turnout. It'll be DeSantis and Trump and maybe Nikki Haley, maybe one of these governors, Republican governors will get into the race. Maybe Chris Christie will get into the race. Maybe Mike Pence will get into the race, and suddenly you've got a divided vote.
And if Trump wins that primary, Joe Biden wins. And if Trump loses that primary -- remember, the chairwoman of the Republican Party said anybody is going to participate in the Republican debates has to pledge to support the ultimate nominee. You think Donald Trump is going to do that? Of course, he's not going to do that.
And then you've got a third party. And then the Republican Party splits further.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh. You are really taking this down the road. OK, those are a lot of scenarios. But you're right. You've got to entertain all of it, because, like we've seen, anything can happen, and anything seems to happen. OK, there's a lot to watch. Well, Guy Smith, we have lots more to talk about another time, because there's a lot of material there. Thank you.
SMITH: Lots of material, and it'll be exciting every day.
WHITFIELD: It will be. It will continue to be just that. Guy Smith, good to see you again. Thank you so much.
SMITH: Thanks for having me.
WHITFIELD: All right, ahead of former President Trump's voluntary surrender on Tuesday, New York City is ramping up security measures. And we're learning Trump is expected to walk in view of cameras before entering the courtroom for his arraignment. CNN's Shimon Prokupecz has more.
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SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: With an unprecedented indictment comes immense security challenges. The NYPD along with court officers, U.S. Marshals, and the United States Secret Service are running through logistics of how Tuesday's historic arraignment of the former president will go down.
Law enforcement sources telling CNN officials are conducting a dry run of Trump's movements, including his motorcade route to the courthouse in downtown Manhattan, where he is expected to be arraigned Tuesday afternoon, how he will get inside the courtroom flanked by Secret Service. And what will the arrest process look like? Will he be treated like any other defendant? The former president expected to be fingerprinted and photographed for a mug shot. It's a massive effort starting when Trump arrives by plane Monday,
securing Trump Tower, the court, and the motorcade route.
KENNETH COREY, FORMER NYPD CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT: In this case, though, where you have a former president, and certainly a president with as large a following as former President Trump, there's a lot of unique concerns that are going to come into play. I think that the bigger unknown here is going to come in the form of protests or potential protests.
PROKUPECZ: Officials are also bracing for protests after Trump urged his supporters to protest his arrest when news of the indictment reportedly neared. So far, the mayor's office says there are no credible threats to the city, and out of an abundance of caution, every member of the NYPD, some 35,000 officers, are reporting for duty in uniform and prepared for mobilization.
COREY: So the challenge for the NYPD is going to be protecting everybody's First Amendment right, allowing everybody to have their voice heard, and to do so in a way that keeps the peace.
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WHITFIELD: Shimon Prokupecz, thanks so much for that.
Still ahead, I'll talk with a presidential historian about this indictment. Not since the 1800s has a president been arrested, and that was for speeding on his horse-drawn carriage. The historical significance straight ahead.
Plus, CNN has learned that several CDC investigators got sick after visiting East Palestine, Ohio, following that toxic train derailment. Details straight ahead.
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WHITFIELD: CNN has learned that seven CDC investigators who were studying the health impacts of the East Palestine toxic train derailment briefly fell ill themselves in early March. CNN's Jason Carroll reports.
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JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this latest information about the CDC investigators only came to light after a member of CNN's health team saw posts on social media and checked with a government source about what had happened. According to the CDC, seven government investigators did fall ill in early March.
They were part of a 15-member team sent there to conduct what is called an assessment of chemical exposure, or an ACE investigation. They went door to door in the area near the derailment when apparently seven members of the team said they started feeling sick. Their symptoms included sore throats, headaches, coughing, and nausea.
These, of course, are some of the same symptoms that residents, first responders, and rail workers had complained about.
When the CDC -- when CNN asked the CDC about the investigators, a spokesperson said the symptoms resolved for most team members later the same afternoon, and everyone resumed work on the survey data collection within 24 hours. Impacted team members have not reported ongoing health effects.
It's unclear what caused their symptoms. The other 18 members did not report any symptoms. The EPA has repeatedly said that the air and the water in East Palestine are safe. Government officials have also repeatedly said they want all aspects of their investigations to be transparent.
So in the spirit of transparency, it's just not clear at this point why that information about the investigators was not released to the public at the time, especially when you consider residents there had been complaining of the same symptoms.
Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.
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WHITFIELD: All right, coming up, an emotional plea from Buffalo Bills Damar Hamlin to lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
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DAMAR HAMLIN, BUFFALO BILLS PLAYER: Today, I thank each of you for focusing on the idea that every kid should have the same access to a lifesaving emergency response that I did should they need it.
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WHITFIELD: Hamlin is calling for defibrillators to be available at schools nationwide after he suffered cardiac arrest during an NFL game, and that key device was used to help save his life. A sponsor of the bill joining me next.
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WHITFIELD: All right, we're just a couple of days away from an unprecedented moment in American history. Former President Trump's indictment Tuesday will mark the first time in us history that a current or former president has been criminally charged.
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Tim Naftali is a CNN presidential historian and a former director of the Nixon Presidential Library. So good to see you, Tim. So how will history remember this moment? TIM NAFTALI, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Well, Fred, it's obviously a
president creating moment. It has taken us 230 years of having presidents for a former president, let alone a sitting president, to be indicted of a criminal offense. And I think how history views this will depend on a number of factors.
Number one, how President Trump reacts. Number two, whether or not President Trump is found guilty. And number three, whether this is the first of a number of indictments or the only indictment. So I think that will shape how history views it. Arguably, history will also be interested to the extent it is a thing in what happens in 2024 and who emerges in 2025 and is inaugurated as president of United States.
WHITFIELD: OK, and before we get there, the here and now is there's a lot of Republican support for this former president, including the former Florida governor, Jeb Bush, who has been very critical of Trump after Trump was not very kind to him on the campaign trail and beyond.
And this is what Jeb Bush said in a tweet, calling the indictment political, tweeting, "Bragg's," talking about the Manhattan district attorney, "Bragg's predecessor didn't take up the case. The Justice Department didn't take up the case. Bragg first said he would not take up the case. This is very political, not a matter of justice. In this case, let the jury be the voters."
So what's going on that Jeb Bush and others would want to weigh in, defend the former president to the extent in which it is being done, even before anyone can hear the material, the details of the indictment?
NAFTALI: Fred as somebody who's spent quite a bit of time studying the Bush family and its contributions to American life, I'm terribly disappointed that Jeb Bush didn't wait to see the unsealing of the indictment. Once the indictment is unsealed on Tuesday, OK, have at it.
If it's a weak case, it's a weak case. Then you can start asking why the grand jury, a majority of the grand jury decided to press forward, why the prosecutor, Alvin Bragg pushed. All of that, of course, is something to be expected if the indictment is weak.
But what happens if, for example, there are bits and pieces of information, critical information, that we didn't know about, that all the good coverage that has been in the newspapers and elsewhere in media, it turns out was actually lacking certain details, and it turns out the case is stronger? Again, President Trump is innocent until proven guilty, but what if the indictment on Tuesday is a lot stronger than people think?
It's disappointing that someone with such a career in public service like Jeb Bush has rushed to judgment. Mitch McConnell, for example, has not rushed to judgment. So it's disappointing. I would wait until Tuesday to make that call.
WHITFIELD: OK, and then, of course, there is Donald Trump's daughter, Ivanka, who sent out a statement saying "I love my father and I love my country. Today, I am pained for both. I appreciate the voices across the political spectrum expressing support and concern." What do you suppose this is doing to the Trump family?
NAFTALI: Well, I would expect, regardless of how prominent a family we're talking about, that a family will come together at a time like this. I would assume children would want to defend their father or mother if she were in a similar situation, so I would expect the natural response is to embrace your parent.
And remember, in our system, you are innocent until proven guilty. So we, we outsiders who are not members of the family, have to wait for the process to go to its end. And those who are insiders in the family, well, I think they should obviously rally to support the former president.
Yes, it really is quite the dramatic sequence of events, and it's still continuing. We haven't even gotten to, like you said, the big day, which is Tuesday, to hear about the unsealing of the indictments or to hear as much about it as we can. All right, Tim Naftali, good to see you. Thanks so much.
NAFTALI: Thank you, Fred.
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WHITFIELD: All right, coming up, this year's March Madness is getting even crazier as it comes down to the final teams. We are live in Houston next.
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WHITFIELD: As a young football player, Damar Hamlin says he never thought about CPR or where the nearest defibrillator was located. But after the Buffalo Bills safety went into cardiac arrest and collapsed on the field in January, heart health awareness has become a top priority for him.
And now he is teaming up with lawmakers to highlight a bipartisan bill that grant schools with funding to buy those devices and develop response plans for cardiac emergencies. Hamlin spoke at an event on Capitol Hill Wednesday to raise awareness on the access to AEDs Act.
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DAMAR HAMLIN, BUFFALO BILLS PLAYER: Today we are so humbled and inspired by what I feel is an opportunity that God has given me to help and protect young people based on what I experienced.
[14:40:03]
So here are some facts that I feel that need to matter to all of us. Sudden cardiac arrest happens to more than 7,000 kids under the age of 18 every year in our country, 7,000 kids every year. For schools that have AEDs, the survival rate for the children from sudden cardiac arrest is seven times higher. The access to AEDs Act will help ensure that schools are just as prepared and trained to respond in a time of crisis as those on the sideline of an NFL game.
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WHITFIELD: Joining me right now is one of the lawmakers who introduced the bill, Florida Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick. Congresswoman, so good to see you.
REP. SHEILA CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK, (D-FL): Nice to see you, Fredricka. Thank you so much for having me.
WHITFIELD: Wonderful. What inspired you to bring this bill before Congress and get Damar Hamlin on board as well?
CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK: Well, as a mom watching the game when I saw Damar collapsed, my heart sunk. And I immediately thought about the times when my daughter was playing soccer and one of the kids got hit with the ball, and you didn't know if they had a concussion, and the fear that you have as a parent watching. And then I learned very quickly that this situation actually happened to many of our kids who play sports, but they have a heartbreaking outcome that wasn't as great as Damar's.
Like when we think about the Mangine family in Kentucky, their son passed out on the floor, had cardiac arrest while he was playing soccer. And there was the AED device that was 250 square feet away from him. However, no one knew how to use it. Or the Manning (ph) family in California, whose daughter was a cheerleader, and we also have the Macaroons (ph) in Florida, whose family member also, their son, died there playing soccer.
So it became very apparent that we have to protect our kids and make sure that all of our children, especially our student athletes, are actually having an opportunity to have lifesaving technology, especially since a lot of times we think of cardiac arrest and we don't think of our children. We especially don't think of our athletes. So it's important we think what we see happening with cardiac arrest and make sure that all of our kids have a chance at surviving.
WHITFIELD: And it really is extraordinary just to hear Damar Hamlin break it down, 7,000 kids a year. That is hard to believe. And as you said, especially when you're talking about student athletes, you don't think that this becomes something so common. So this bill is cosponsored by a Florida Republican, lawmaker Bill Posey. What does it mean to have this kind of bipartisan support to get this measure going?
CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK: Well, it really proves the point that there are some people who are still willing to work bipartisanly and despite people in politics and to make sure our kids are protected. And I think the support we've been getting from all the major league athletics, especially the NFL, NBA, and even the National Hockey League, it's really weaving the story that we're united on saving our kids. When we think about the legacy that's actually going to be left after we pass this bill will save -- even if it saves one life, we did our mission and we accomplished what we need to do. WHITFIELD: So help us understand the objective of the bill and what
it will afford schools to do. It's not just having the devices, but there's training involved so you don't have circumstances like the ones that you described, where people didn't know how to use it, or even how to access something that they had on campus.
CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK: Well, what we found out is that there's only a handful of states that require schools to have AED, so we wanted to normalize their availability to all schools. In addition to that, as I mentioned, there were two students who actually died because there was a defibrillator there, but no one knew how to use it.
And really, when we see these cardiac arrest situations happen with our kids, the response is usually one of fear and not knowing. And we want to normalize people knowing about heart health and also how to use defibrillators, and that's why this bill also provides grant funding for yearly trainings.
So now it will be as easy as a fire drill. Once you hear that bell, you know what to do and you know how to get out. We want the same response for our parents, our students, and anyone who's working on these facilities, on the schools, to make sure that everyone has the same response. And that's really our goal is to normalize heart health, normalize saving our children, and normalize everyone having access to lifesaving treatments.
WHITFIELD: All in an effort to have a much better lifesaving outcome. Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, thank you so much.
CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK: Thank you so much for having me.
WHITFIELD: Alright after a month of March Madness, I know it's hard to believe it's been a month of it, the NCAA men's tournament is down to the Final Four right now. And we've seen every emotion along the way, from Cinderellas advancing into the big dance to top seeds falling in shocking upsets.
Coy Wire joins us now from Houston. Oh, they're having a little fun before the big dance. What's happening? It's all been fun, though, hasn't it, exciting?
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Welcome to the parties. It's all been fun. This is what it's all about.
[14:45:01]
We are at the Final Four. We're at the fan zone where you can step on the court and see if you can conquer the court like Caitlin Clark. It's just outside NRG stadium. This is where the NFL's Houston Texans play, and that's how big March Madness is, they have to turn a football field into an arena.
A once in a lifetime opportunity for the most of these student athletes who are playing, but a huge moment for these universities, as well, as millions of people tune in, Fred. The revenue that is brought in from a Final Four can be enough to buy new facilities for a program, to fund the team's band, to pay for other sports programs as well.
I talked to coach Jim Larranaga, the 73-year-old coaching legend from Miami, leading them to their first ever Final Four. Now, 17 years ago he did the same thing at George Mason, leading them to their first ever Final Four, and at that time they saw their out of state admissions increased by 40 percent, Fred. So he knows all about how big this moment is. Listen.
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JIM LARRANAGA, MIAMI HEAD COACH: It's a very special time for the University of Miami. We are great academic institution, top 50 school in the country, and now everybody's talking basketball. So it's great for both the academics because more students will be hitting our website. And for basketball we'll have more fans next year at our games.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WIRE: Nothing quite like the Final Four, Fred, drawing in fans who don't even necessarily watch basketball during the regular season. So much hype. This is the first time since 1970 that there are three teams making their first ever Final Four appearance. We'll see who can battle it out in just a few hours. It'll be Florida Atlantic University taking on those rowdy San Diego State Aztecs fans. And then after that, it will be the U Miami taking on UConn.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my God, they are pumped up. So exciting. All right, Coy Wire appreciate it. Thanks for taking us to NRG Stadium.
WIRE: Thanks, Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right, we'll be right back.
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[14:51:40]
WHITFIELD: New developments in the fatal shooting on the set of the movie "Rust." According to court documents, a district judge has approved a plea deal for the film's assistant director in connection to the death of Halyna Hutchins, who died in 2021 when she was shot in the chest by a prop gun fired by Alec Baldwin.
Under the terms of the deal, David Halls will receive six-month probation, have to pay a $500 fine, and complete 24 hours of community service. Baldwin maintains that he was not aware the gun contained a live round. The actor and the film's armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, are both facing two counts of involuntary manslaughter related to the incident.
In Tennessee, a federal judge has temporarily blocked the state from enforcing a ban on public drag shows. It was supposed to begin today, but just hours before it was to take effect the judge delayed the measure for at least 14 days. He says he is considering whether the ban is unconstitutional. Opponents say the law would essentially restrict freedom of expression
among LGBTQ people. But the state has argued the measure is not a full ban and is only intended to stop overtly sexual performances in front of minors.
And Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania has been released from Walter Reed Medical Center after undergoing weeks of treatment for clinical depression. In a statement, Fetterman said he wants everyone to know that depression is treatable and treatment works. He also posted this picture to twitter. Fetterman is expected to return to the U.S. Senate when it reconvenes April 17th.
And this quick programming note. Tomorrow at a new time, Eva Longoria's culinary adventure continues in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. Don't miss the new episode of this CNN original series, "Eva Longoria, Searching for Mexico," tomorrow at 9:00 p.m. eastern time.
All right, last December, Nelly Cheboi was voted CNN Hero of the Year for her efforts to break intergenerational poverty in rural Africa. And a lot has happened in the last few months since returning to Kenya with the award in hand.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: The 2022 CNN Hero of the Year is Nelly Cheboi.
(APPLAUSE)
NELLY CHEBOI, CNN HERO: You can only imagine how crazy it was when I was named the CNN Hero of the Year. I thought I was like about to fall down. I look at the audience, and it was my mom screaming back at me.
(APPLAUSE)
CHEBOI: Like most women that come before her, they die in poverty. Like that's all they know, poverty. I don't think it can't get any bigger than that. It was really heartwarming for me to see that the work was bigger than me now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We also congratulate Nelly Cheboi.
CHEBOI: The president of Kenya congratulated me, talked about TechLit. It has become a household name. In Kenya everyone knows that we are teaching kids computer skills. What I'm really excited about is the future in Kenya and in the rest of the continent where kids are going to be learning about the tech world.
[14:55:03]
There's hope for what is an inspiration date. When you were growing up in poverty, you think of yourself as less than. I knew just how powerful the kids celebrating this award was. I wanted to turn that into like, hey, yes, this can happen for you to.
(END VIDEO TAPE) WHITFIELD: To learn more, go to CNNHeroes.com. And while you're there, nominate a hero of your own. She is an ultimate inspiration.
All right, thank you so much for joining me today. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. SMERCONISH starts after a quick break.
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