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Death Toll From Tornado Outbreak Jumps To 21; Former President Expected To Surrender Voluntarily Tuesday; Idaho Bill Would Limit A Minor's Ability To Leave State For Abortion; Former President Expected To Surrender Voluntarily Tuesday; CDC Investigators Fell Ill After Responding To Ohio Derailment; Star Wars Star Mark Hamill Voices Air Raid Alerts In Ukraine. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired April 01, 2023 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:28]

JIM ACOSTA, CNN HOST: You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington.

We begin this hour with the deadly outbreak of tornadoes that ripped across much of the South and Midwest beginning yesterday afternoon. Just over the last few hours, the death toll has more than doubled. Twenty-one people are now confirmed killed by the storms in all. More than 50 tornadoes have been reported in seven States, at least 12 of those tornadoes were reported in Arkansas. A State of Emergency is in place in the hardest hit areas including Wynne, the devastated Arkansas town that you're seeing right there.

CNN's Derek Van Dam is with the latest from Arkansas.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Jim, I was just talking to my crew a moment ago and the scene behind us reminds us of being on the set of a major blockbuster movie. I mean, just look at what we have with this destruction coming out of Wynne, Arkansas. That is a church steeple that was blown off by this tornado. Look at the incredible damage in front of that building.

Just in front of us here we have electrical poles light poles trees completely snapped off. Behind us, we've got the Wynne High School. I managed to capture a very powerful moment when a gentleman was walking through the parking lot with an American flag draped over his shoulders, and he told me that he had found it several hundred yards behind the structure, the high school and it had been blown off of the flag poles there.

So he wanted to hoist it back up in a sign of unity, and a sign of determination that Wynne, Arkansas will rebuild, they will stand tall through this devastation.

Look at this building behind me, a business. You can see the X's there, that is from the first responders going to door-to-door to confirm that there are no people trapped inside. And we've got the familiar sounds of a disaster zone. The sounds of chainsaws, the sounds of sirens coming from the ambulances that continue to race by. We have utility trucks that have been moving throughout this area. You can see the Bobcats here. There was larger construction vehicles pushing some of this debris out of the way. This is the scene in Wynne, Arkansas where the devastating tornado came through this area Friday evening terrifying residents.

It was over before a few moments, but it left this amount of damage in its path.

Jim, back to you.

ACOSTA: All right, Derek Van Dam, thank you very much.

And joining us now is the Mayor of Wynne, Arkansas, Jennifer Hobbs.

Mayor Hobbs, thanks so much for joining us this evening, and I'm so sorry about what's happened to your community. I know you've lost at least four people, you've suffered extensive damage there. How is everybody holding up?

MAYOR JENNIFER HOBBS, WYNNE, ARKANSAS (via phone): Well, as well as could be expected. The morale of the people is positive that we're going to rebuild, we're going to come out stronger on the other side of this.

We have a very well-staffed Command Center. We've had several emergency personnel and volunteers show up to our community and they've been working to get the areas, the roads passable, so that we can do the door-to-door search and check on all of our citizens.

We've just received an overwhelming amount of support from Arkansas communities.

ACOSTA: That's good, and I have to ask you, Mayor, did you experience any of this tornado outbreak yourself? Have you talked to some constituents or staffers who were caught in the middle of this? What was it like?

HOBBS: Well, it was a very scary situation. I actually was in a position where I watched it come across from quite some distance. I was not caught in the middle of it, thankfully, and it did move through very quickly.

But just the overwhelming aftermath was -- it was just -- I don't know how to put it into words. It was devastating. It is much different seeing it firsthand than it is when you see it on TV hitting other communities.

ACOSTA: I know -- you're right about that. I've been to many of these kinds of disaster zones and it is just -- it is unspeakable and it's hard to get your arms around it, get your head around it when you see it.

Are you getting all the help that you need?

[18:05:02] HOBBS: We are going to need more help as the days come. We just had an update meeting at four o'clock and can say that the search and rescue efforts, we feel like have come to an end. We feel like we've canvassed the area of the storm two to three times in most areas. I feel confident that we can say that search and rescue is over.

So we'll start regrouping tomorrow and start trying to get that community cleared up and can get volunteers in to help us start to do that.

We do have a donation center set up at 187 Murray Avenue, and they have a Facebook page set up for Wynne Tornado Distribution Center, and we've been amazed at the outpouring of people who have sent donations today due to the power outages and things. We haven't got a bank account set up yet, but we'll be doing that first thing Monday morning and pushing that out through Facebook.

We've had many requests to send in donations. We have a lot of families that are completely devastated, have no homes at all to go to, no belongings survived, so we will have to help these families, and we will need all the help that we can get.

But we're so appreciative of the people that have already shown up. It's just been amazing and we are just so grateful.

ACOSTA: And Mayor Hobbs, the four people who've lost their lives in your community, did that happen all in one home? One neighborhood? Were those victims found in different parts of Wynne? What do you know about that?

HOBBS: I don't have all of the details. It is my understanding they were in different locations, but I do not have all the details at this point. It's my understanding the families, the last of the families were just notified this afternoon.

ACOSTA: I'm very sorry about that.

Mayor Jennifer Hobbs, thank you so much for your time. We appreciate it. Our hearts go out to your community. As you now go about the process of rebuilding, best of luck to you. We appreciate your time.

HOBBS: Thank you so much.

ACOSTA: Thank you.

And one of the storm related deaths came during a crowded concert last night when the roof of the Apollo Theater collapsed in Belvidere, Illinois. One person was killed and 28 others were rushed to the hospital with injuries. Two hundred and sixty people were inside the venue when the roof came crashing down.

Three days ahead of his expected surrender to authorities in New York City, advisers and allies of Donald Trump are warning that there is no way the former President can get a fair trial on criminal charges in Manhattan. At this point, we don't even know what the DA is charging Trump with, let alone if the case will ultimately go all the way through a trial process.

But it is obvious, Trump supporters have concerns if things move forward and CNN's Kristen Holmes joins me now from outside Trump's Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago.

Kristen, what about this idea of trying to, you know, request a change of venue? I suppose Trump's lawyers when they get into the Courtroom, they may try all sorts of things on behalf of their client, but what about that one?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they certainly might Jim, but as of right now, we are told from sources close to the legal team, that that is not something that they are considering asking for, that change of venue, that they want to actually see that indictment, which they are expected to do on Tuesday when he appears for that arraignment before they make any decisions.

Now, of course, it is important to note that this message about it being unfair in Manhattan is coming from the political side. They were talking specifically about the makeup of a jury, talking about how the makeup of New York -- excuse me -- of Manhattan specifically, is almost all Democratic. It is obviously a very blue borough.

Talking to advisers, they just don't believe it's possible that he would get a fair trial there. But as you know, we are miles away from that potential trial. We have to actually see those charges first. And I will note, you know, I've been talking to sources around Trump the last several days, and it appears that he is incredibly focused and calm.

He has spent the last 24 hours on the phone talking to not just his allies on Capitol Hill, as we've previously reported, but allies across the country talking about how he believes this is unfair, and promoting his narrative that this is all a political hoax.

And I've spoken to some of these people who have had conversations with the former President in the last 48 hours, who say that they were actually surprised with how calm he is when he is discussing that he really believes that he can beat these charges.

And as you say, a lot of this is going to end up being in the hands of the lawyers as they try to figure out how exactly, they are going to proceed. But none of that can be done until they actually see this indictment, until they actually go through those public charges.

ACOSTA: All right, CNN's Kristen Holmes, thank you very much. We appreciate it.

Donald Trump's first Court appearance will obviously be very different than that of the average accused criminal in New York City. There are so many security issues involved as the first former or current US President answers criminal charges against him.

Our Polo Sandoval is outside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse.

Polo, what is being done to secure the scene ahead of what is certain to be a circus come Tuesday?

[18:10:20]

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jim, when I tell you that there are police officers on every corner, I mean that literally. We have seen that police presence increase and it will continue throughout the weekend just outside of the Court facilities behind me, which is what will house those highly watched proceedings come Tuesday when Donald Trump is expected to travel here in New York City and face those charges that we learned about on Thursday.

This will present a major logistical and certainly security consideration. So let's get to those first, what we have seen, not only that increased police presence, we have also seen temporary floodlights that the NYPD has set up around the building you see behind me. Also, temporary cameras, and that also what's not easily seen, the behind-the-scenes Intelligence gathering that officials have been monitoring online, social media chatter, for example, to see any potential protests, though we should make very clear that NYPD has not identified any credible threats.

We do know that in New York Governor, Kathy Hochul has reached out to city officials and said that there are plenty of State resources that are available, when and if those are in fact needed.

But in terms of the logistics, and we heard about that just a little while ago, Jim, this is going to be what should be a fairly normal process for any defendant, but when that defendant is the former Commander-in-Chief, it certainly will be unprecedented.

As our colleague, John Miller has reported, the booking process will likely be modified as former President Trump is expected to come here, will meet with officials, will officially face those charges, and so that is coming up on Tuesday, Jim. Back to you.

ACOSTA: And Polo, what about the Secret Service and how they're going to handle this situation?

SANDOVAL: You know, the Secret Service and the NYPD, they know how that dance works, step-by-step in terms of getting former Presidents in and out of the city, but the fact that you know, this unique circumstances here, it is certainly going to present some unique challenges.

So that's why the Secret Service, the US Marshal Service, the NYPD, they're having those conversations about how to safely get Donald Trump from what we expect to be at Trump Tower, which is where he'll likely be at least for some time before coming here, and then getting him in and out safely.

We also are told that it is quite possible that he will do it in the full view of cameras, though, all of that is yet to be seen, but it will be a highly rehearsed and practiced and planned dance that we do expect come Tuesday whenever the former Commander-in-Chief travels here in New York City -- Jim.

ACOSTA: Absolutely. Our Polo Sandoval, thanks so much.

One State is about to pass an unusual law to limit a minor's ability to leave the State to get an abortion. We'll explain the proposed law and the outrage against it, next.

Plus, after being indicted, Donald Trump started making a lot of claims about Manhattan and its District Attorney, are they true? The CNN factcheck on that is coming up.

And later, the jedi who is helping keep people safe in Ukraine, Mark Hamill joins us. He'll join us live in just a little bit to explain how it works and how you can help there as well.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:17:33]

ACOSTA: Idaho is set to pass a first of its kind law that would limit a minor's ability to leave the State for an abortion. At issue is when a person who is not the legal guardian of a minor helps them leave Idaho to get an abortion in a State where it is legal.

Republican lawmakers are calling it abortion trafficking. Opponents of the bill say it cheapens the term "human trafficking" and limits a young woman's ability to get medical care.

Caroline Kitchener joins us now. She is a national political reporter over at "The Washington Post."

Caroline, thanks so much for being with us again. Can you walk us through the legislation? What would happen to people who break the law? And does this include the person who got the abortion? Anyone who assisted and the doctor and the clinic performing the procedure? Is it that sweeping?

CAROLINE KITCHENER, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, "THE WASHINGTON POST": Like so much of this antiabortion legislation, Jim, this focuses on the people who are helping to facilitate the abortion. So anybody who wants to help a minor in Idaho access abortion without parental consent, that person could be facing jail time.

So that is anybody from an aunt who, you know, gives somebody a ride, somebody who makes you know, a doctor's appointment at a clinic out- of-State. This language, you know, as in much of this legislation is very vague, so it leaves a lot up to interpretation.

ACOSTA: And as a representative in Idaho, told Boise Public Radio this -- can we put this up on screen -- "This gives us the tools to go after those who would subvert a parent's right to be able to make those decisions in conjunction with their child."

Proponents are framing this as parental rights legislation instead of an abortion bill, but it sounds as though -- I mean, on the face of it, it sounds what Idaho is doing here is telling people you can't leave the state to get an abortion.

KITCHENER: I mean, that's really how it is coming across and that seems to be, you know, how it will be perceived and interpreted in the State.

You know, this kind of legislation has been talked about for months. It was really a very hot topic right after Dobbs in June, because antiabortion advocates realized, you know, even if they can ban abortion in their State, people are going to cross State lines and clinics are going to set up right across the border from these Red States. So you know, what can they do about?

[18:20:00]

KITCHENER: And right after the decision, we saw a lot of model legislation really trying to curb anybody's ability, not just a minor's ability to leave the State, that really hasn't gone anywhere since then. This is the first piece of legislation of its kind that, you know, is really moving forward.

So, you know, I think that a lot of people are looking at Idaho right now and wondering, you know, are other States going to try the same thing?

ACOSTA: And that was the question I had: Could other States follow suit? One of the things that we've seen, particularly with the abortion issue is that antiabortion rights advocates are looking at what other States are doing. They are almost laboratories in trying to restrict abortion rights, and you can see copycat laws in other States. Might we see a similar situation with this?

KITCHENER: I think you absolutely could, and I do think that you could also see States take it one step further and try to limit anybody's ability to leave the State. You know, like I said, there is model legislation for that out there. So, you know, I do think a lot of States, a lot of Republicans and antiabortion States are watching this closely. I think that people did back away initially over the summer, because I think even to many antiabortion Republicans, this is, you know, kind of a wild idea, the idea of restricting movement across State lines.

But you know, I think a lot of people will be watching this to see how it is going to go in Idaho.

ACOSTA: And we know you'll be watching it as well. Caroline Kitchener, thanks so much. We appreciate it.

KITCHENER: Thank you so much.

ACOSTA: All right. We appreciate it.

Is billionaire George Soros tied to the indictment of Donald Trump? No.

The former President wants you to think so. We'll factcheck that claim and others next live in the CNN NEWSROOM. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:25:55]

ACOSTA: Former President Donald Trump has been attacking Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for indicting him. Trump accuses Bragg of focusing on him and ignoring what he calls soaring record crime in Manhattan.

CNN's Daniel Dale joins us now with a factcheck on this and other claims Trump and Republicans are making about the District Attorney.

Daniel, as usual, we can't go through all of them, but we're going to go through some of them. Help us sort it out.

DANIEL DALE, CNN REPORTER: Yes, so this claim that crime in general or violent crime in particular in Manhattan is soaring or at a record high is not even in the ballpark of true, it is completely false.

Jim, New York City crime numbers are public. They are one Google search away if you actually want to find them. So, I want to take people through some of these very public numbers to show just how inaccurate the former President's claims are.

So the north part of Manhattan had 43 murders last year, about the same pace earlier this year. That North Manhattan region had 379 murders in 1990, almost 10 times as many. Now the south part of Manhattan had 35 murders last year, is doing better so far this year versus 124 murders in 1990, not even close to a record.

Now, every kind of violent crime in Manhattan is way down from the record high in this kind of massive fashion. There was an uptick in many kinds of crime in Manhattan last year, 2022 compare to 2021, but many of these categories like shooting incidents have come back down significantly in the first part of this year.

Now, Jim, some Republicans are making an even broader claim that New York is experiencing record crime. We saw such a claim from New York Congressman Anthony D'Esposito yesterday on Twitter, that is also not even close to true. New York City had 438 murders last year, it had 2,262 in 1990. So again, not even close.

ACOSTA: Right. I mean, a lot of cities have seen upticks in violent crime, but it's nowhere near where it was back in the 90s.

DALE: Absolutely right.

ACOSTA: So people need to understand that. And Trump has claimed that Bragg was handpicked and funded by liberal billionaire, George Soros. This is a common thing that is thrown around by folks in the right. Here is a quote from the former President saying that. The reality check on that is --

DALE: Well, there was no sign whatsoever that George Soros somehow pressured or otherwise got Bragg to do this indicting of Trump. A spokesman for Mr. Soros told me that Soros has never once communicated with DA Bragg in any way.

Soros also did not make any donations to Bragg's election campaign. What Soros did do is make donations to a PAC, a Political Action Committee that supported Bragg. And here is the context for that.

Soros is a longtime supporter of criminal justice reform and progressive Democratic DA candidates around the country. His spokesman told me that between 2016 and 2022, Soros and an affiliated PAC gave $4 million to a pro-reform PAC, another PAC called Color of Change, which like Soros, backs these progressive DA candidates. Those donations included $1 million in May 2021.

Now, Color of Change told me, it ended up spending just over $500,000.00 in support of that Bragg campaign.

How much did this money matter? We don't know for sure. Of course, Bragg was still outspent by millions of dollars in the Democratic primary he won. Even if you count that Color of Change 500K, and I spoke to Color of Change President, Rashad Robinson, who told me it is a huge reach to suggest that his PAC was like the one factor that elected Alvin Bragg.

Robinson told me: "Up until last week, we couldn't get people to write about our PAC. Now, all of a sudden, we single handedly elected the Manhattan DA. But when he was elected, I did not get that credit."

Robinson also called these Soros related attacks, Jim, antisemitic and this is really important context.

Soros for years has been subjected to this centuries old antisemitic trope that like sinister Jewish you know, money puppet masters are orchestrating international events. And the Trump campaign itself is using that puppet master language in fundraising e-mails.

Oren Segal, an executive at the Anti-Defamation League, which fights antisemitism told me the Trump campaigns e-mails have "Increasingly promoted potentially problematic language, often used as antisemitic dog whistles, including calling Soros puppeteer or puppet master."

Now, I'll just I'll just say in closing, it is of course possible to responsibly talk about George Soros and his donations. I mean, he is a major political Democratic donor, a major player in this country, but calling him a puppeteer or puppet master, I think is not good, as the former President might say himself.

[18:30:16]

ACOSTA: Right. It's just ugly old tropes ...

DALE: Yes.

ACOSTA: ... that are thrown out there.

Daniel Dale, very important fact-check for us. Thank you so much.

DALE: Thank you. ACOSTA: We appreciate that context.

With the nation's first criminal indictment of a former president, Trump's legal issues may unleash a bitter new phase in American politics, if it's not bitter enough.

CNN Senior Political Analyst, David Gergen, joins us now David also served under four different U.S. presidents. David, a pretty big day coming up on Tuesday, Former President Donald Trump expected to, I guess, surrender himself to authorities, be arraigned and all that under this indictment? How big of a challenge is this to the justice system? And shouldn't our justice system be - should be able to withstand this? I mean, this is the U.S. Justice system after all?

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I do think, Jim, that it is a test of the resilience of our legal system. I must say that, we went into the midterm elections, thinking a lot of things might happen, coming out of institutions over the weakened and that did not happen. The voters stuck to some old norms, they push back on some of this. So it - I don't think we ought to - for abandoning our belief in the traditional justice system. Sometimes it comes out and we learn more through it, sometimes it's weaker.

But right now, I think we - I think the United States is turning the corner, at least I hope it is, so let's wait and see. But Tuesday is a big, big day. We'll finally know what some of these charges are and then we'll see what - how the country responds, how do voters respond.

We know that activists on the Trump side are going to rally to him no matter what's in there.

ACOSTA: Yes.

GERGEN: But that's not true voters with voters. If - the Quinnipiac poll this week was really interesting. It said one in four Republicans believe that there are criminal charges they should disqualify Trump as a presidential candidate, one in three independents. Those are pretty sobering numbers.

ACOSTA: Right. I mean, it's hard to imagine somebody who voted against Donald Trump in 2020 all of a sudden saying, because of these indictments that are coming down the pike, I'm going to vote for him. I mean, I just don't understand how it makes him a more attractive general election candidate.

But getting back to the history of this, David, U.S. has been close to this situation before with Watergate and Richard Nixon. I mean, as much as we're saying this is unprecedented. 0Gerald Ford did save Richard Nixon's bacon to some respect back in those days.

GERGEN: Yes. I never thought, Jim that we would, that I might say that Richard Nixon offer some lessons about how to deal with scandal. We just - it seemed beyond the pale.

ACOSTA: Yes. GERGEN: But the truth is Nixon handled it well. He fought like hell until he was pinned down. But then he basically surrendered. He said for the good of the country, I'm going to resign. And that was a gutsy thing to do. It took a lot of, as you can imagine, out of him emotionally.

And then Ford had the, I think, the courage to then let Nixon off the hook. And when he - and I think that was a huge step forward as well. Ford may have lost the election that election because of pardoning Richard Nixon.

ACOSTA: Right.

GERGEN: The fact was years later, the Kennedy Library gives an annual award for courage in politics. And the Kennedy Library, remembering this Democratic icon, gave that award a few years ago to Gerald Ford, the Republican, because Ford had acted so wisely, even though it hurt him badly, but he acted so wisely for the country.

So hopefully, one day people will look back and say, how we've handled this issue of Trump and how it affects our democracy really could be a major event could be a big turning point one way or the other.

ACOSTA: Well, but we're not seeing a whole lot of profiles in courage. Are we on the Republican side ...

GERDEN: No, no.

ACOSTA: ... when it comes to - we're seeing some pretty big name Republicans rallying behind former President Trump. Jeb Bush is now tweeting ...

GERGEN: Yes.

ACOSTA: ... critical things about the DA. How surprising is that and why is it that you're just not seeing Republicans, even ones that aren't really interested in running for political office anymore? I think Jeb Bush is probably retired from all of that, I suspect. Why are they still getting behind him?

GERGEN: Well, there's still a lot of pressure. There's still - if you're in Florida, DeSantis want every county down there, it's no reason you people are a little scared of him now. But the fact is there are some good names and people who were taking it to Don Bacon, for example, a congressman from Nebraska, a Republican.

[18:35:02]

He was in the Air Force for 29 years and he left the Air Force as a brigadier general. He's now a Republican congressman from Nebraska and he's a moderate. He's a moderating voice and he's a voice of reason. And he's saying to the country now, wait, let's wait and see what's in the charges. Let's see how serious they are. Let's see where they seem to stand up to t logic. Let's see how everybody handles this. And then begin to make some judgment, but let's not rush to judgment before we even know what the charges are. ACOSTA: Right. That's right.

All right. Well, David Gergen, great to talk to you as always, thanks so much for your time. We appreciate it.

GERGEN: Thank you, Jim. Thanks so much. Take care.

ACOSTA: You too.

Ukraine is getting help from none other than Luke Skywalker. Actor Mark Hamill joins us next to explain what he's doing and how you can help as well. It's not a Jedi mind trick. He's coming up live next. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:39:58]

ACOSTA: A big update in the "Rust" movie shooting, the film's assistant director David Halls has been sentenced to six months probation, part of a plea deal for his role in the death of cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins. Halls' handed actor, Alec Baldwin, the gun in the moments leading up to the shooting.

Along with probation, Halls' agreed to testify in all future trials, including those of Baldwin and the film's armorer. Both of them have pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter.

CNN has learn seven CDC investigators who were studying the health impacts of the East Palestine toxic train derailment, briefly fell ill themselves in early March. They were doing house to house surveys near the derailment site where hazardous chemicals were released into the air, water and soil.

And CNN's Jason Carroll has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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 eight team 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 would not - 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.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And what started with the disappearance of 20 people from a small town in Oregon ended with the largest suicide on U.S. soil and it changed the face of new age religion forever. Heaven's Gate: The Cult of Cults airs tomorrow night at 10 on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:47:09]

ACOSTA: Russia's relentless shelling in the Donbas region is bombing out entire towns. At least two people died in new attacks overnight. Apartment buildings, school and a bank were completely obliterated. These are civilians either caught in the crossfire or intentionally targeted by the Russians. On the front line, soldiers are still losing their lives daily.

This is Vitalii Merinov, a four-time kickboxing champion. He died last night in the hospital from wounds sustained on the battlefield. The mayor of his hometown says he left for war on the first day of the invasion. He is survived (ph) by his wife and two-year-old daughter.

The difference between life and death in Ukraine can be a few moments notice before the missiles start falling. A popular air alert app gives anyone in Ukraine a heads up to seek shelter if an attack is imminent. If your language is set to English, you may hear a familiar voice there take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUKE SKYWALKER, STAR WARS: Attention. Air raid alert. Proceed to the nearest shelter. Don't be careless. Your overconfidence is your weakness. Attention. The air alert is over. May the force be with you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Now, that last line did not give it away it is the legendary Mark Hamill, probably better known as Luke Skywalker.

And Mark as always is so kind to join us. He joins us now. Mark, I have to ask how does a Jedi become the English voice of air raid alerts in Ukraine. And what does it mean to you on a personal level to know that it's your voice that's telling people to take cover and when it's safe to come out?

MARK HAMILL, AMBASSADOR, UNITED24: Well, I was contacted last September of '22 by President Zelenskyy and obviously I'm not used to being contacted by world leaders. But we had a virtual meeting with him. He asked me to become an ambassador to the army of drums for the UNITED24 endeavor to raise funds.

ACOSTA: Right.

HAMILL: And, of course, I've agreed immediately and since then I've been educated on what's going on and it's just tough. I mean, it's really tough because when you think about the suffering, the lack of food, the bombing of civilian targets, schools, playgrounds, it's really tough. And I was able to Zoom last week with the actual drone operators, the men and women who operate these drones, and boy, it puts a human face on it. All of these soldiers were young enough to be my children.

[18:50:00]

So ...

ACOSTA: Right.

HAMILL: ... we start - I mean, like I say, I wouldn't follow this story anyway, but to be involved, personally, is - it's humbling and I feel a real sense of responsibility to do whatever they asked me to do. And I appreciate CNN for letting me come on and talk about it.

ACOSTA: Well, we appreciate you so much, Mark. And it's always great to see you. And for the folks at home who don't know this or aren't up to speed on it. You're an ambassador for this "Ukraine 24 Drone Nation Campaign." It's a fundraiser to buy Ukraine, 10 reconnaissance drones. They're pretty pricey about $150,000 each. How is this effort going as far as you know on your end?

HAMILL: Pretty well. I mean, we we've raised 600,000 U.S. on a goal of 1.5 So we're almost halfway there. I know they've purchased - I'm - we're working to raise money for 10 RQ-35 Heidrun reconnaissance drones. And as I'm told, these are vital.

I mean, the army is familiar with them. They're easy to operate. They can transmit video in real time, travel up to 25 kilometers. The eyes in the sky to protect the population and ...

ACOSTA: Right.

HAMILL: ... as they say, you can't win war without drones.

ACOSTA: No, that's right.

HAMILL: So - and these are - it's ... ACOSTA: Yes.

HAMILL: ... like I say, I mean, when they asked me to do the recordings of those warnings, again, I was really thinking of the gravity of it all. Because I'm a voiceover artist, I do cartoons and I'm in the escapism business. So to be in this harsh reality is not something I take lightly. And I did - we did five different recordings for missile attack, shelling, street fighting, radiation - radiation ...

ACOSTA: Wow.

HAMILL: ... and chemical threats. So - and it's hard. I don't really like to overuse the Star Wars connection, but people really respond to it. There's clearly a evil empire and there's clearly a resistance to this hostile invasion. So I don't think it's - I think it's rather appropriate that they make that analogy.

ACOSTA: Right.

HAMILL: I have to tell you, President Zelenskyy was the first one to refer to Russia as an evil empire in that call I had with him, so he started it.

ACOSTA: Yes. He started it, that's right.

But, I mean - but it goes to the enduring legacy of Star Wars, Mark. And I know it's not something you want to talk about in every conversation. But it must be so satisfying to know that halfway around the world, folks who don't speak English as their first language, but probably have a good understanding of English and a good understanding of Star Wars, when they hear Mark Hamill's voice they know, take cover. It's just extraordinary.

HAMILL: Extraordinary is the word and I've never taken it for granted, because wherever I go, since the - when they first came out. People relate to it to the point where they relate stories about how it's been woven into the fabric of their everyday life.

I got through my mother's illness or I met my future wife at a screening, and whenever I go out in public, that's what I hear. And, of course ...

ACOSTA: Yes.

HAMILL: I never really expected to be remembered for anything. I was just trying to make a living, but to have been able to be involved with something that has resonated so deeply with people all around the world is - I'm truly grateful for that.

ACOSTA: Yeah. What it means so much I'm sure to the Ukrainian people that you're doing this and it means a lot to Americans. You see the blue and yellow flags on people's homes and on their cars all around this - and people have just become so invested in what's taking place in Ukraine and your Star Wars connection be able to make a difference is so impressive. And on the Star Wars thing I know - I feel bad doing this to you, but as a fan, I feel like I have to, I have a duty to the viewers out there to ask you at least one Star Wars question and that is - we saw Luke Skywalker's character appear in "The Mandalorian," I hate to give the spoiler if you haven't caught up with "The Mandalorian" by now, you're at the very end of that second season.

Are there any plans, any possible plans of seeing Luke Skywalker emerge as its own TV show? Forgive me for putting you on the spot about that, but I just think it would be an amazing idea. And what do you think about the Star Wars TV shows?

HAMILL: Well, to answer your question, I haven't heard anything along those lines.

[18:55:03]

I was contacted by Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni, and they told me their idea for "The Mandalorian." And what I thought was attractive about it was it's back to a Luke that the audience were deprived. Because when Return of the Jedi ended, you didn't see him again for 30 years ...

ACOSTA: Right.

HAMILL: ... and he was quite a different character by the time you saw him. So you never saw him at his - the peak of his powers when he was still a Jedi. So you never say never, but listen, I have to tell you why I did - I - when I was given such definitive closure in the sequels, I thought I better take a step back and it's a whole new era. It's a - I wasn't planning to really dive in. But I wanted to do my homework for Mandalorian and I wanted to do my homework for book a Book of Boba Fett.

So my family and I binge watch those and I have to tell you that the form is really perfect, because by being episodic approach, it doesn't have to be the gigantic spectacle ...

ACOSTA: Right.

HAMILL: ... that the films are. So you can tell much more personal stories on a much more modest scale, so I think they're doing a great job. I mean, it's in very good hands.

ACOSTA: Yeah. Well, and I saw Andor and I just was blown away about how inspiring it was. I - it was just sort of unexpected this emotional connection you - I felt with the characters in that series. But Mark, it's so great to see you and for your efforts in Ukraine, I'll go to another Star Wars impersonation. Probably won't be as good as my Yoda, but I will just say, impressive, most impressive. I hope that that rings a bell. I'm sorry ...

HAMILL: Boy, you are - listen - no, no ...

ACOSTA: That's my very bad Darth Vader.

HAMILL: ... listen, your Yoda was great and the fact that you were just a little kid, when these movies came out, we got you at the right time, Acosta.

ACOSTA: You really did.

HAMILL: And you never let go.

ACOSTA: You totally do. You won't, the force is strong and it's a bond that will not be broken. But Mark, really what you do for the folks in Ukraine - people of Ukraine, it is just amazing and thank you so much as always taking the time to speak with us. It's great to see you, the great Mark Hamill, we appreciate so much.

HAMILL: And thank you. Thank you so much. And thanks to everyone who's donated or considered donating. Go to UNITED24 (inaudible) ...

ACOSTA: All right. We will. We will. Thanks, Mark. Great to see you. Appreciate it so much.

HAMILL: Thank you.

ACOSTA: All right. Good to see you again.

Again, here's how you can use the force to help Ukraine just go to the website U24.gov.ua. It's the official fundraising site of the Government of Ukraine and our thanks, once again, to Mark Hamill. We'll be right back.

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