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Texas Judge Suspends Approval Of Medication Abortion Pill; Pope Francis Leads Easter Sunday Services; Days Of Violence Followed Israeli Raid Of Al-Aqsa Mosque; Israel Says Its Strikes Targeted Palestinian Militant Groups; Nashville Council Meets Tomorrow To Fill Justin Jones' Vacant Seat; Tiger Woods Withdraws With Foot Injury After Making 23rd Straight Cut; Helping Black And Brown Families Impacted By Autism. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired April 09, 2023 - 16:00   ET

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

[16:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN HOST: And the United States Supreme Court will agree with the Texas judge.

XAVIER BECERRA, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: If the role of judges and justices is to apply the law to the facts and the evidence, the facts and the scientific evidence are that mifepristone is not just safe, but it's effective, and it was properly approved. And so I don't care who the nine justices are on the Supreme Court or any court of appeal. They should be able to discern the difference between inserting their personal judgment and using the facts and evidence to make a legal ruling.

BASH: Do you feel confident that could happen with this court?

BECERRA: I do. But I'm not on the courts, and certainly I'm not on that court where that Texas judge decided to turn upside down the whole process that FDA has used for years for many drugs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: CNN's Alayna Treene is in Washington for us.

Alayna, I mean, this was a controversial decision to be sure. So what are members of Congress saying this is all about?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, the reaction has been pretty disparate. Immediately after the court's decision was announced, Democrats began railing against the ruling. They held press conferences. They spanned the airwaves. And some even went so far as to tell President Biden that they think that he should ignore the ruling altogether.

Now Republicans, meanwhile, have been far less outspoken, but we did hear from a few today who were pressed on the issue during the Sunday shows. That includes Congressman Tony Gonzales. He is a Republican from Texas, and he had some pretty harsh words for the Biden administration. Let's hear what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. TONY GONZALES (R-TX): If the administration wants to not lead this ruling, not live up to this ruling, then we're going to have a problem. And there maybe come a point where House Republicans on the appropriation side have to defund FDA programs that don't make sense.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: So, Fred. I will argue, though, that not all Republicans feel the same way. Some like Senator Lindsey Graham have really urged the party to tamp down the divisive rhetoric on this and try to frame their positioning as more reasonable and more practical. And here's Lindsey Graham on that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): I want to protect as many babies as possible. I want exceptions for pregnancies as a result of rape, incest, if the life of the mothers is in jeopardy then the family can decide. I do believe in commonsense restrictions on abortion. That's where America is that. We can win this issue at the ballot box if we show up with reasonable positions. If we have our head in the sand, we're going to lose.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: So, Fred, I would argue that Graham's comments there in arguing for more reasonable positions on this is pretty indicative of the broader political environment when it comes to this issue. Republicans are really navigating very tricky territory when it comes to abortion. The abortion issue has not been a winning issue for Republicans ever since the Dobbs decision last year, and we saw some of that during the 2022 midterm elections -- Fred.

WELKER: All right. Alayna Treene, thanks so much.

Let's talk further on all this now, here with me is Donna Shalala. She was the Health and Human Services secretary under President Clinton when mifepristone was initially brought to the U.S. She's also a former Democratic congresswoman from Florida.

Miss Secretary, so good to see you.

DONNA SHALALA, FORMER HEALTH SECRETARY UNDER CLINTON: Thank you. Good to see you, too. Happy Easter.

WHITFIELD: Happy Easter. So as former Health and Human Services secretary, you know, can you ever recall a time when the parameters of the FDA's power and expertise to approve medicine was challenged or undermined by a federal judge like this?

Never. You know, this particular drug has been reviewed already by the GAO a number of years ago. The process was reviewed. And I remember when it came to the United States because the French company actually wanted to give it to the government, we thought that was a bad idea because it would put us in a conflict of interest situation since FDA was in the department. And so they eventually negotiated with the Population Council. It was then brought to the FDA and they went through a very careful review.

In fact, I remember Jane Haney, the FDA commissioner, saying to her staff whatever you recommend I will support, and we kept politics out of it. We told the FDA commissioner that if there were any calls from the White House or from Congress or anyone on the outside to refer those calls to the secretary's office. And we told everybody to buzz off. We absolutely protected the process and the FDA and we did that right through.

But you know, this is shocking, this decision, because this drug is used for other purposes. This is the criminalization of medical practice. They're asking doctors to actually harm their patients, not just for abortion, but for managing miscarriages.

[16:05:02]

And for people of reproductive age a very high percentage of them use this drug when they have rheumatoid arthritis or other autoimmune diseases or cancer. It's used for a variety of cancers. So anyone in this country that is using an FDA approved drug ought to be nervous today that a federal judge can overturn a medical scientific process that has been invested in and supported by both parties for decades.

WHITFIELD: And in building on that, I mean, this Texas judge's ruling undermines, you know, the science behind this two-decades-old FDA approval, you know, of this medical abortion drug. CNN's medical team actually compiled the research showing, you know, that this medication is statistically less risky, less deadly than penicillin and Viagra. So given the science --

SHALALA: And Tylenol.

WHITFIELD: And?

SHALALA: Tylenol.

WHITFIELD: And Tylenol?

SHALALA: It's also -- and Tylenol. I mean, and it's been reviewed over the years. This is a very safe drug. And as I pointed out, it's used for other purposes as well. And -- but you just -- this is the camel's nose under the tent. The idea that a federal judge could make a decision that the FDA process was improper is outrageous. If they start on this drug, which is used for a variety of different things, they can go to cancer.

They could go -- any individual group that didn't like a particular drug could find a federal judge to overturn this decision. The FDA must prevail in this.

WHITFIELD: So do you believe an appeal will be an easy one? Or do you find that this is something that will make its way to the Supreme Court?

SHALALA: There's nothing easy in these days but my hope is that it will be stopped at the lower courts, that people will see this as outrageous at it actually is. And this particular decision is just whacky, frankly.

WHITFIELD: All right. I want to turn now to what we saw last week in Tennessee. As a former member of Congress, you know, what are your worries about how the Republican supermajority in the Tennessee general assembly voted to expel two out of three lawmakers who disrupted the statehouse floor while demanding gun violence be addressed after that horrible Nashville deadly school shooting?

SHALALA: Well, it's very sad and I like everybody else are very angry. It's clearly racist, but more importantly, it violates the First Amendment. It violates the right to speak out, to demonstrate peacefully in this country. Those two young legislators plus the teacher who was not expelled but spoke out.

WHITFIELD: Yes, Gloria Johnson, Justin Jones, Justin Pearson.

SHALALA: Magnificent Americans in the way they handled themselves, but more importantly, all of us ought to say, shame, shame, shame on that Tennessee legislator. I know my friends from Tennessee are deeply embarrassed, no matter what political party they represent.

WHITFIELD: Secretary Donna Shalala, always great to see you. Thank you so much.

SHALALA: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Have a great holiday weekend.

All right. Now to Rome, where Pope Francis led Easter Sunday services today before a large crowd in St. Peter's Square.

As CNN Vatican correspondent Delia Gallagher explains, it comes barely a week after he was released from the hospital.

DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Fred, Pope Francis looked in good spirits on a beautiful Easter morning at the Vatican. 100,000 people, according to the Vatican Press Office, in St. Peter's Square and in the surrounding streets for the Pope's Urbi et Orbi blessing. That's the blessing from the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica, which he gives after mass.

The Pope during that address recalled conflicts around the world, calling for peace in Ukraine. He also said he expressed his deep concern for the attacks in recent days in Jerusalem, calling for a renewal of dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians. The Pope mentioned Syria, Lebanon, the Rohingya in Myanmar, as well as many African countries such as South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Pope is 86 years old. He still has mobility issues. We saw him in a wheelchair because of an ongoing knee problem. [16:10:01]

He can't stand for long periods of time. But his voice was strong, Fred, and it suggests that he has successfully recovered from his bout with bronchitis last week -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Good news. Delia Gallagher, thank you so much.

All right, still ahead, high tensions in the Middle East. Israel says it has carried out air strikes in Syrian territory in response to rockets fired from Syria toward the Golan Heights. We'll go live to Jerusalem next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: China continues to ramp up its war drills around Taiwan, escalating an already tense situation. Today China says it carried out, quote, "simulated precision attacks" on key targets on Taiwan Island as part of the military drills. The three-day wargame exercises around Taiwan come after the island's president met U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in defiance of repeated threats by Beijing. The exercises dubbed "United Sharp Sword" have been denounced by Taiwan.

[16:15:07]

And turning now to the Middle East, where Israel says it has carried out airstrikes in Syrian territory. Israel's defense forces released a video it says shows strikes on a Syrian military compound, radar systems and artillery posts. The strikes were launched after Israel says rockets were fired for Syria toward the Golan Heights. Days of violence erupted following an Israeli police raid on the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem last week.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen is in Jerusalem.

Fred, have things been quiet today?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, they've been quite throughout the course of the day. However, this morning you have that very big incident, Fredricka, that you were just alluding to, the fact that there were rockets incoming from Syrian territory early this morning. In fact, the Israelis are saying there were six rockets that were fired in total. They said at least one of them was intercepted. One apparently fell in the Golan Heights, which of course, is an area that's controlled by the Israelis.

And then you had those retaliatory actions by the Israeli Military, and that was actually very important as well. We saw some of that video on our screens just now, where the Israelis launched an unmanned aerial vehicle, a drone obviously, and took out some of those rocket launching facilities. But then they also said that they use their air force, their jets, to then launch strikes against Syrian military targets.

Now that's interesting because the Israelis have not said that they believe that those rockets were actually launched by the Syrian military. They believe it could have been other groups behind this as well. But they do say that any sort of attacks on Israeli territory or Israeli controlled territory originating from Syrian territory that they hold Syria accountable for those. And of course, this is something that's very concerning for the Israelis because they've taken rockets in the early morning hours from Syria in the past couple of days. However, they also took some rockets from Lebanon and from Gaza as well.

And the Israelis launching some retaliatory action, so certainly very tense, very volatile atmosphere. And at the same time, the strategic affairs minister of Israel, Ron Dermer, he earlier today went on CNN and he warned what he called Israel's enemies to underestimate Israel despite the fact that right now of course you do have some political divisions here in this country. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RON DERMER, MINISTER OF STRATEGIC AFFAIRS AND PUBLIC DIPLOMACY OF ISRAEL: I think that Israel's internal divisions have been misinterpreted. This is why I talked about Iran. Misinterpreted by our enemies and maybe they think this is a time to attack Israel. Believe me, Israel will stay united and will defend itself against that aggression. I have no doubt that we will stand together and confront anyone who tries to endanger our country and endanger our civilians.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: Ron Dermer speaking earlier this morning to CNN. At the same time you had a funeral that took place, Fredricka, for those two sisters who were killed on Friday when their car came under fire in the West Bank and then later crashed. That obviously a very important, very emotional here in this country, really sad event. We were following some of that here as well.

On a more positive note, though, here in Jerusalem things were fairly quiet throughout the course of the day. There were some Jewish prayers on the Temple Mount. All that happened without incidents. Al-Aqsa Mosque also fairly quiet as well today as well. At the same time, though, on the whole with these rocket attacks, it certainly does appear as though the situation here remains very volatile and certainly very tense as well -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Fred Pleitgen, thanks so much.

All right. Today's strikes come just days after Israel says they targeted Palestinian militant groups in Lebanon.

CNN's Scott McLean has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): About an hour south of Beirut, the yellow flags of Israel's sworn enemy, the Lebanese militant and political group Hezbollah, is the first sign that the Jewish state doesn't have many friends here. After the police raid on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, outrage came

in the form of almost three dozen rockets fired across the border from southern Lebanon where Palestinian refugee camps have for decades sheltered tens of thousands of displaced people.

On Friday, Israel responded, targeting the weapons and the Palestinian militant groups they say launch them.

(On-camera): This is an irrigation channel running through this banana field. This used to be a bridge over top of it, leading to a hotel by the sea. It obviously took a direct hit. Locals say the force was so intense that it shook their homes. They also insist that this would not have been a good place to store weapons.

(Voice-over): The aftermath attracted a crowd of local residents and farmhands, among them Halel Elrae (PH), who makes no apologies for the rockets fired at Israel.

This is a response, he says. This, at the very least, is a message that we as the Lebanese people stand for resistance. Do you want peace with Israel, I asked him. Of course not, he says.

[16:20:02]

Just down the road, though, it is a much different story. Abdulhalad Abdulsatur (PH), a Syrian refugee, shows us the shrapnel he's collected from the blast that left a hole in the roof of his farmhouse. His kids were sleeping here at the time.

Me, my wife, and young kids, he says, I couldn't calm them down. We left Syria to flee the shelling, and now this. He walked us through the orange grove past more and more disturbed earth.

(On-camera): The house that was hit by shrapnel is about 200 yards away from here. It seems far until you see the size of the crater.

(Voice-over): Abdulsatur (PH) says there were no weapons here. Incredibly, the only living casualties were the orange trees, some ripped apart at the trunk.

Hezbollah has not claimed responsibility for any of the rockets fired from Lebanon, neither has any Palestinian armed group. The Lebanese army vowed to stop the attacks and located and dismantled several rocket launchers and rockets hidden amongst the hillsides and terrorist orchards. On Saturday, they found one more, though no sign a new attack was on the way, at least for now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCLEAN: Israel has indicated that it will not strike Lebanese territory again unless there is new rocket fire coming from this country. The question is, will there be? The leader of Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant and political group, which to be clear has not been blamed for the barrage of rockets coming from Lebanon, met with Palestinian militant groups to discuss, among other things, the readiness of the resistance access to confront what's been happening in Jerusalem.

So far, there's no indication that there's an attack coming. But in the meantime, it has been the job of the Lebanese Army to try to prevent one from happening. And as we found out, that is no easy task.

WHITFIELD: Scott Mclean, thanks so much.

All right. Right now a desperate search is underway in France after a building collapsed in Marseille. Up to 10 are believed to be trapped under the rubble. An official says a violent explosion is believed to be the cause of the collapse. But it's unclear at this point what may have triggered it. Dozens of neighboring buildings have been evacuated as a precaution. Rescue teams are working around the clock to save any survivors.

Coming up, the fate of the two expelled Tennessee Democratic lawmakers is in limbo right now. I'll discuss those expulsions and the outrage over them with the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:27:08]

WHITFIELD: All right. This morning in Memphis, we heard from Justin Pearson, one of the two expelled Tennessee House Democrats as he gave a sermon at a church in his home district of Memphis. He delivered an Easter address that made a not-so-subtle comparison of Governor Bill Lee with Pontius Pilates as he drew parallels between the unjustly persecuted people from biblical times with those from this week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUSTIN PEARSON, EXPELLED TENNESSEE STATE LAWMAKER: We see those who want to kill the movements in the Republican-led supermajority. We've witnessed one of the most historic unprecedented on justifiable abuses of power by a state government against black folks and a woman. Just because we decided to own our birthright to speak up against injustice, to speak up and fight for people. Including people who are no longer here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN correspondent Israel Rosales joining me live from Nashville.

So, Isabel, what's in store for these lawmakers for the week ahead?

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fred, tomorrow evening is a big day. The Metro Council right here in Nashville in this building right behind me will decide the political future of ousted Representative Justin Jones. They are looking to do three things. Three votes. One to nominate him, one to suspend a rule within the council that prohibits nomination and appointment during the same meeting.

If that fails, then they're going to have to wait four weeks to nominate him. But if it succeeds, then they vote to appoint him. They will need 27 council members of supermajority to move ahead with that and send him right back to his seat at the state capital.

Meanwhile, political tensions are rising. We're hearing from the chairman of the Tennessee Democratic Party that threats have been made against Memphis and against Shelby County, political threats of retribution, of withholding state funding for key projects if they go ahead and reappoint Justin Pearson.

We have reached out to the Shelby County Board of Commissions to get a comment about those claims. Here in Nashville, we spoke to Councilman Jeff Syracuse. He says he is not aware of any threats being made against the Metro Council right behind me. Still, he's worried.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF SYRACUSE, NASHVILLE METROPOLITAN COUNCILMAN: I do worry a bit that these kinds of threats as it relates to Memphis and their FedEx forum, right now we're going through very detailed conversations about a new Titan Stadium and it's part of the state's actions to take over some control of Nashville, including our sports authority. It's very troubling when we're going through a $760 million revenue bond resolution for our stadium that their suggestions that the state is going to threaten our local municipalities.

[16:29:58]

If we do put them back into their seats, this kind of rhetoric and threat needs to stop and we need to have continued good substantive policy and constructive discussions, not threats.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And over social media we're seeing flyers circulating a so-called Day of Action Nashvillians here organizing a rally an hour before the Metro council meeting happening tomorrow and then after that Council meeting a March to the state capitol.

Now, when it comes to former representative Justin Pearson his future that will be determined by the Shelby County Board of Commissioners, the Chairman Mickell Lowery, he says that they will not discuss Pearson situation before the regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday. As of now, it's unclear when they will set up a special meeting to address that vacant seat, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Isabel Rosales in Nashville, thank you so much.

I want to bring in now Democratic Congressman Steven Horsford from Nevada for more on this. He's also the Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. So good to see you and Happy Easter.

REP. STEVEN HORSFORD (D-NV): Happy Easter. Thank you for having me.

WHITFIELD: So, I mean, congressmen who can watch, you know, the Tennessee Three as we now know them to be and not think of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. or Julian Bond or Reverend Andy Young. And, of course, the late Congressman John Lewis. They were all teenagers and young men in their 20s leading of movements for justice. So what do you see particularly in Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, again, they are just ages 27 and 28.

HORSFORD: What I see is incredible young leaders, black leaders who are doing the right thing by using peaceful protest, to do something fundamental, which is to speak about the very survival of life of their constituents that they represent. And they represent in the spirit of Adam Clayton Powell, Julian Bond, Colin Kaepernick and others that have spoken up about the injustices, whether it's -- whether we take a knee, raise the salute, sign a petition, or take a bullhorn, the other side always wants to punish us. And I find it quite appalling that the debate in Tennessee is about a revenue bond, when the protest was really about the survival of children who are being lost because of gun violence in our country.

WHITFIELD: Right, it seems as though that's the message that got lost on the motivation of this nonviolent protest to try to inspire these legislators to take some action in order to keep it safe for children, their families and teachers. I mean, the late Congressman Lewis would call this good trouble, right? I mean, in 2016, in fact, as a sitting member of Congress, John Lewis, led this sit in to inspire Congress to act on gun violence watch.

No one was expelled here. One of the parallels of the effort in your view?

HORSFORD: Well, what I know of the late John Lewis, the phenomenal civil rights icon is that he touched the hearts of so many people and he actually during that protest in the well of the Capitol knelt in order to compel action on gun safety. There is no difference between what Congressman John Lewis did and what representatives Justin Jones and Justin Pearson are doing. They are speaking for young people, a generation who are tired of having their lives under assault, whether it be by gun violence, police brutality, discrimination, they are fed up, and they want action.

And it's not about the decorum of the house. It's about the survival of the very people that they represent that they give voice to. So the Congressional Black Caucus stands with them. We are working along legislators all across the country. We are calling on the local officials to reappoint representative Jones and Representative Pearson without haste. There should be no delay. If you don't appoint them, you're actually disenfranchising over 70,000 voters in each of their districts. That is wrong, it's undemocratic, and we won't stand for it.

WHITFIELD: Yeah, I think the number is something like 200,000 constituents. So, you know, meantime, is there kind of a, you know, a swelling effort to what my guests you know, journalist, Ron Brownstein, said yesterday was a building of a nation within a nation and exists since that supports a kind of a cultural agenda that is exclusionary. It was his explanation as to what was behind this GOP super majorities efforts to exclude people. And that was just the beginning. Do you see that there is this kind of growing effort to do that across many super majorities across the country?

[16:35:23]

HORSFORD: Sadly, it's happening across the country. It's being attempted in the U.S. Congress with MAGA Republicans who want to dismantle our democracy, disenfranchise voters, silence, those who are speaking up on behalf of our constituents. But guess what, Fredricka, we will not be silenced. Black people have to restore our democracy. And now it is our time to take up that mantle and do it again. If no one else will, we will.

WHITFIELD: Then thank you for that. I want to now switch subjects I'm going to turn to this controversial abortion a ruling in Texas that just happening and it within the last 48 hours suspending the FDA approval of a widely used abortion medication. I mean, what are your greatest concerns about access for women of color, particularly when the maternal mortality rate among black women is nearly three times that of white women?

HORSFORD: Well, you're absolutely right. And it's why women within the Congressional Black Caucus, as well as the pro-choice caucus of the House Democratic Caucus, have worked so hard in order to protect the fundamental right for women to make their own health care decisions. We now have these two conflicting opinions. But regardless, we need Federal Code codify Roe versus Wade.

We have an extreme out of touch Supreme Court that is trying to take away these fundamental rights. We have extreme legislators throughout the country and now federal judges who are trying to take away those protections and access to reproductive justice. And so we will continue to work to defend women's freedom to make their own health care decisions about their body.

WHITFIELD: All right, Congressman Steven Horsford, thank you so much for tackling both very emotional topics with us today and Happy Easter.

HORSFORD: Happy Easter. Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, still to come. Tiger Woods is out at the Masters because of a foot injury. He was seen limping during the third round. What's next for the five-time masters champion?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:41:41]

WHITFIELD: The final round of the Masters is underway right now. But it's being played without fan favorite Tiger Woods. The 47-year-old made history on Saturday by making his 23rd consecutive cut but dropped out of the tournament today because of his foot injury. You see him right there limping. It was painful to watch.

Joining me right now from Augusta to talk more about the Masters is Ann Liguori. She is the host of Talking Golf with Ann Liguori on WFAN radio in New York. Ann, so good to see you. You've covered more than 25 a Masters over the years you've seen it all, you've seen, you know, Tiger play in all kinds of elements under all kinds of conditions. But there was something very different today. It was -- it was hard to watch him in so much pain. I'm sure -- he's very excited that he made the cut. That was a goal. But he just couldn't go any further, right?

ANN LIGUORI, HOST, TALKING GOLF WITH ANN LIGUORI, WFAN/NY: Oh, that's right. I mean, the good news is he made that cut for the 23rd straight time, you know, tying that Masters record but he's been injured and especially coming after that 2021 near fatal car accident. I mean, he's had a lot of problems trying to walk the hilly terrain here. He hasn't played much. He can't practice that much. And he has his Plantar fasciitis that he got last November. He had to withdraw from his own event in the Bahamas, due to that and it acted up again.

So then on top of all these other injuries to his right leg into his foot and ankle, it was just too much for him. So unfortunately, he pulled out and, you know, he admitted earlier in the week that he's not sure how many more Masters he has in him. He's appreciating the time here. He's cherishing the memories and he's finding joy actually playing golf with his son and passing on his knowledge to some of the younger players. So we'll have to see how much more he can play. It's just so hard for him to walk.

WHITFIELD: And I know and you can see it right there. But I mean it's so beautiful to see him with his little Charlie, you know, at times are an eighth nurturing him and he's obviously, you know, already a force. He's going to be a great player. It'd be even better especially with his dad of being able to be by his side so much more. So let's talk about some of the leaders are going into this final round now. Sorry, Tiger. We got to move on.

LIGUORI: I know, right?

WHITFIELD: No, I hate to do it. But, OK, so it's setting up to be a very competitive --

(CROSSTALK)

LIGUORI: Unbelievable. Yeah, well, Brooks Koepka looked unstoppable, all week. You know, he had a four-shot lead when third round play resumed early this morning. And then a two-shot lead to start this final round but Jon Rahm, I mean, he has been in hot pursuit. He took the lead with a par at the six. So now we have Jon Rahm at 10 under Brooks Koepka, one shot back. Jordan Spieth, the 2015 winner. He's three behind all of a sudden it's wide open. I mean, you had these two warriors.

You had Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka going at each other, duking it out with Koepka looking like he was going to stay at the top. Now Rahm is looking to win his first masters, his second major title. He won the U.S. Open in 2021. Koepka, he hasn't been sharp. He's been sharp all week until this final round, so it's going to be a really compelling finish. It's getting very, very exciting with Rahm at the top buy one right now through seven holes.

[16:45:06]

WHITFIELD: Wow and regardless of today's finishes, this is the final, I imagine that people will continue to really be enamored and watch this young Texas A&M Sam Bennett because, you know, he made a really good run for it. Tell me more about him. And then, you know, the flip side he's the young buck and then how about the more seasoned I like to say seasoned, who made the Masters cut 63-year-old Fred Couples?

LIGUORI: Absolutely. That's another great story Fred Couples becoming the oldest to make the cut at 63. But Sam Bennett 23 years old Texas A&M standout from Madisonville, Texas. He won the U.S. amateur last year. And he played in the final grouping and the third round and looks so poised and composed and he shot 68 in rounds one and two. He's just really been impressive.

He's -- he felt dropped out from the leaderboard at this point, but you have to love, you know, these young guys. I mean, he has a great story. You know, you pay tribute to his dad who died of Alzheimer's by putting a tattoo, having a tattoo on his wrist. It says don't wait to do something. The last words that his dad actually ordered to him and he said that has inspired him and it forces him to focus because he looks at it right before, you know, he hits the ball on his wrist. And it's been a great story, Sam Bennett.

WHITFIELD: That's a sweet story. Wow. All right. Ann Liguori, a great talking to you. Thank you so much. We appreciate your coverage all these many years of Masters coverage.

LIGUORI: My pleasure.

WHITFIELD: All right. All right, this week on searching for Mexico, Eva Longoria continues her culinary adventure in Oaxaca, where indigenous traditions and modern innovations create some of the country's most incredible food wonders. Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EVA LONGORIA, CNN HOST: I don't even want to attempt to try it. I mean, I can --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): I can make one?

LONGORIA Oh, Lord, my hands are clean.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): Really tight? Not too tight, so that you can.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have to add salt Janet.

LONGORIA: I feel like I'm making a baseball. That's my (inaudible). Oh my god. Look at -- look at his. I'm just going to say I did this one. Wow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, the new episode of the CNN Original Series, Eva Longoria, Searching for Mexico airs tonight at 9:00 right here on CNN.

All right, still to come Saturday Night Live, Reimagines the last supper with President Trump in SNL.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:52:18]

WHITFIELD: In case you missed it, Saturday Night Live poked fun at Donald Trump's recent arraignment in an Easter themed opening sketch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And though I have committed no crime, I will be arrested, tried and found guilty.

JAMES AUSTIN JOHNSON, COMEDIAN: Sam familiar? Thank you so much. And famous wonderful man arrested for no reason at all. If you haven't put it together, folks, I'm comparing myself to Jesus again. And what better time than on his birthday Easter. As we speak, I am being persecuted on a level the likes of which the world has never seen even worse, even worse than the late great Jesus.

I know many people are saying we're very similar. We're both very tall, very popular. And both frankly white Americans. You know, Jesus did some incredible things. Some would call them miracles in terms of fish in with regard to bread, a lot of fish and bread. He rose from the dead on the third day, I would have done it faster, possibly. Possibly two days. I think we could have done it a lot faster. He had a good mind for business water into wine, pure profit. And he had big, big rallies just like me. And a lot of his followers got in big, big trouble just like mine. All because I told them exactly what Jesus would have said, get very violent and start a war.

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WHITFIELD: All right. That was comedian James Austin Johnson as the former President crashing the Last Supper.

All right, thanks so much for joining me today on this Easter Sunday. I'm Fredericka Whitfield. The CNN Newsroom continues with Jim Acosta after this, but first, April is autism awareness month. And it's a time of year when 2022 Top 10 CNN Hero Debra Vines phone rings off the hook with calls from parents impacted by autism.

Since 2007, she and her nonprofit have provided 1000s of families in underserved communities with support services and education that they need to thrive. As the mother of a son with autism. She understands the daily challenges facing those she helps.

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DEBRA VINES, TOP 10 CNN HERO: Children and adults they live with autism are very repetitive everything that they do this the same way but when you have a career or parents that have other children and up responsibility sometimes it can be very, very, very, very challenging, like you look handsome.

When Autism Awareness Month comes, we are in flux with so many calls and so many families about the what if so, what can I do? Do you have more resources? We learn from each other, you know, the community should be more aware of the signs and symptoms of autism. And I believe that Autism Awareness Month is not just April, autism is every day and so many families.

I would like to see them have more resources within the community, within the park districts, within the businesses. With the numbers going up every day. We need support every day. So I encourage families not to give up because you never know when that lightbulb is just going to go off and they're going to hit another milestone, right?

My advice help families that have children and adults with disabilities be a little bit more supportive, and to the world open up your heart to autism.

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WHITFIELD: All right, to learn more about Debra and her word and nominate your own CNN Hero, go to CNN heroes.com.

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