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Four Killed, At Least 15 Injured In Shooting Tied To Birthday Party; Debt Ceiling Tops Agenda As Congress Returns This Week; Some Democrats Calling On Feinstein To Step Down. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired April 16, 2023 - 15:00   ET

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

SALLY BEDELL SMITH, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: But something called a cap of maintenance, which is a sort of medieval signifier of the ground.

So you know, these are things that people haven't seen really well. Nobody moves around now has seen it since 1937, and other elements that applied to the crowning of a sole queen, because Britain's spell up was not a part of the proceedings, except after the Queen was crowned and concentrated.

He was -- he paid homage to her as her liegeman, and others will do that. William will do that.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Oh, interesting.

SMITH: Yes --

WHITFIELD: Anyway, we do know that Harry will be there. Harry will be there, but not with Meghan. And I mean, it sounds like what you're describing as it will be unique, too because there is a nod to modernity, but then it also sounds like kind of maybe, you know, in Royal spaces, kind of a humble, you know, also offering, too with that type of medieval crown that you were talking about.

We'll leave it right there for now, and we'll have you back because we've got two weeks of well, you know, a whole lot of rehearsing of all those musicians, and those choirs who've got to get used to this 12 musical selections.

And of course, there's going to be so much pomp and circumstance. So we'll have you back for that Sally Bedell Smith, good to see you. Thanks so much.

SMITH: Good to see you, Fredricka. You're welcome.

[15:01:33]

WHITFIELD: All right, hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, and we're learning new details now about a deadly mass shooting in Alabama. At least four people killed, 15 teenagers shot and wounded at a sweet 16 party.

The shooting happened last night in the small town of Dadeville. CNN's Isabel Rosales is following the latest developments for us.

Isabel, what more are you learning there from Dadeville?

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred, so the number of teenagers, people that were shot at what was supposedly a sweet 16 party at this dance studio right behind me, that number is still the same, four people, at least four people dead.

But here in the last half an hour we have received new information from the Russell Medical Center, a nearby hospital where they say that they have received multiple patients. They are not confirming an exact number, and that those patients have been treated and released or transferred to other facilities.

We've also spoken with a spokesperson at Lake Martin Community Hospital who say that at least 15 were shot, six treated and released; the remaining nine transferred to other medical facilities, five of those in critical condition.

Right now, no public safety concern. That is what we're hearing from law enforcement here in the State who still have not released details on the shooter whether they have been apprehended or what is going on in that situation.

We have also heard from a man who identified himself as the DJ hired to do this sweet 16 birthday party, and he told us that he did not hear a fight or disturbance prior to the shooting, which seemed to start inside of this venue.

He also tells us that one of the victims was -- deadly victim -- somebody who passed was the brother of the girl who's sweet 16 he was covering, and he has named that person as Phil Dowdell, something that we have confirmed with a local pastor here.

I want you to listen to what the DJ described that chaotic scene inside of the venue behind me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEENAN COOPER, DJ AT EVENT: It was scary. I did try to make sure everybody around me was safe.

It is really sad to see all the kids that were shot and the ones that are deceased, and seeing those bodies at the front door, all of those kids are probably going to be traumatized.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROSALES: And Keenan Cooper tells us that Dowdell was a high school football player, kind of like the hometown hero is how he describes him, about to graduate next month and who received a scholarship to play football at Jacksonville State University in Jacksonville, Alabama.

We did receive a statement which I will read out to you from the Head Coach, Rich Rodriguez who says: "Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Phil Dowdell and the other victims of the senseless tragedy last night. He was a great young man with a bright future." -- Fred. WHITFIELD: Oh my gosh. This is so sad so many times over.

All right, Isabel Rosales, thank you so much.

And just a week after a gunman killed five of his co-workers in a Louisville bank, there has been another mass shooting in the city. Here is what we know about this incident.

Police say someone fired into a large crowd in a park in Louisville last night killing at least two people. Four others are in the hospital. At least one is in critical condition.

Authorities are still working to identify the gunman and piece together a motive. The Mayor addressed both shootings last night.

[15:05:08]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is frustrating. It's very frustrating. I know that Monday was a very high-profile event, but for LMPD, for EMS, for Fire, University Hospital, for this community, this is every night.

This is not okay. Turn yourself in. The best thing for you to do is to turn yourself in. We know that this will not end well. The best case scenario is for you to turn yourself in and stop this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Police are asking witnesses and anyone with information to come forward.

All right, turning now to a big week on Capitol Hill. Congress returns to session tomorrow after a two week break. The debt ceiling deadline will be one of the major issues facing lawmakers. President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are locked in a standoff over raising the debt limit.

Today McCarthy is holding a conference call with House Republicans and tomorrow, he will deliver a speech at the New York Stock Exchange as he makes his pitch to investors on Wall Street.

CNN's Arlette Saenz is at the White House, also Alayna Treene is with us.

Alayna, let's begin with you. You have some new reporting on House Republicans' plan on the debt ceiling.

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN REPORTER: We do. House Republicans have begun putting together a deal that would raise the debt limit for one year and include budget savings of around $3 trillion to $4 trillion over 10 years.

Now, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy wants to put this measure on the floor in May, which is no easy feat, given that Republicans are really divided on this issue and how to approach it, as well as he has a very slim majority of Republicans in the House.

But really the strategy for McCarthy and other House Republicans is to try and use this to garner as much support as they can within the Republican base and then strong arm the White House and pressure them into going back to the negotiating table and showing them that any sort of debt limit deal must have strings attached.

Now the big issue though here has been that President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy have not sat down to negotiate on this for months now, and the deadline is looming.

So everyone is looking to win another potential White House meeting between Biden and the Hill will take place.

WHITFIELD: Okay, and now, Arlette, at the White House, where does the White House stand on what could be a real breakthrough, but in general, where are they on this whole debt ceiling battle?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, right now the White House's position remains unchanged. The White House has yet to respond specifically to this brewing proposal from House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, but they have consistently said that the President does not want to see any strings attached to a debt ceiling hike.

The President has said it is the constitutional obligation of Congress to raise the debt limit and that it can't come with any spending cuts or other items attached to that.

Now, the President has tried to paint Republicans as threatening the US economy. You know, he recently in a statement had said that they are engaging in debt limit brinkmanship, which threatens to wreak havoc over our economy.

Now, one thing that the President has said that he is willing to negotiate on is talking about the budget. He has repeatedly pressed Republicans to present a blueprint for their budget and around that, he would be willing to sit down and have those talks.

There was a letter that the President had sent over to McCarthy, just before their two week recess asking for that budget before they left. That is not something that Republicans were able to produce or come to agreement on even. But right now, as Alayna said, all eyes are on whether the President and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy will sit down for a talk eventually.

They last met back in February, and so it's now been a month-and-a- half where the two men have not sat down to discuss anything related to the debt limit or to the budget, but it does come at a very precarious time as that debt limit deadline is looming in the coming months.

WHITFIELD: All right, we'll leave it there for now. Arlette Saenz, Alayna Treene, thanks to both of you.

So when the Senate returns to session tomorrow, it will once again be without longtime Democratic Senator, Dianne Feinstein. The 89-year-old California lawmaker has been undergoing calls among Democrats to resign. She has missed 60 votes over the last two months due to illness.

Joining me right now to discuss this, former California Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer. She was sworn in alongside Dianne Feinstein in 1992.

Senator, good to see you.

BARBARA BOXER, FORMER US SENATOR: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: So yes, how is your longtime colleague doing as far as you know?

BOXER: Well, I think she's made a move in the exact direction she should, which is to say she wants a replacement on the Judiciary Committee because that's the really big problem we're facing right now.

[15:10:11]

BOXER: And if there is cooperation on that, it will give her more time to recover from her terrible case of the shingles.

So, you know, my hope is that the Republicans who claim to respect her and, you know, laud her all the time, they should do this for her and not make a fuss about it, and give her that space.

WHITFIELD: What do you think the chances are that they will do that for her? To get a replacement on Judiciary?

BOXER: Oh, I never know what to expect, but I do think there may be a few of them with a heart, because if it happened to them, believe me, they would want her to help them in that way. And she would be the first to do so, because everybody has issues and everybody has problems and I know she has been facing a lot of them. And it's been very -- it's a rough go.

So give her a chance, see what happens, and that will take away the immediate problem right now, which is that the Democrats can't get any Judges out of Judiciary Committee, because the Senate is so close, the Committee is so close, they need her vote.

You know, everybody hates to leave a job they love. You know, whether you're a news anchor, Fredricka, or a Senator, but the difference is, you can have a substitute for a news anchor. There's no substitution for a senator. It's different.

WHITFIELD: Yes, and what are your feelings of at least one Democratic member of Congress, Ro Khanna was very outspoken, I mean, causing a bit of a stir when, you know, he called for his fellow Californian to resign.

He pointed to her prolonged, you know, absence, bout with shingles, et cetera, that she can no longer fulfill her duties. Were you surprised that that call would come from within the party so publicly? BOXER: Well, you have to look at Ro. He is the Chairman of the Barbara

Lee for Senate Committee, and there is some thought that he did it, because he wants the Governor to appoint Barbara Lee. Now, Barbara Lee, to her great credit, Congresswoman Lee said, all I care about is Dianne getting well.

So it didn't come without controversy, and look, I think it is reasonable to talk about any senator's prolonged absences and how it is impacting the business of the Senate, of the State, of the country.

And I think she has by putting herself forward and saying please replace me on Judiciary for now. Give me the space I need. I think that's the way to go, and let's see what happens.

As I say, it will be another test of the Republicans, and I just hope that they step up, at least enough of them, because it's going to take 60 votes or unanimous consent to get this done, so this is really important.

WHITFIELD: As it pertains to, you know, a push for her resignation. Do you think that there is a double standard? I mean, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, you know, said these, these calls for Feinstein to resign are sexist, saying in part: "I've never seen them go after a man who was sick in the Senate in that way." Are you in agreement with her?

BOXER: I think in the beginning, when the senator wasn't well, before the shingles, there was a piling on for sure, and it was unusual, so I think that Speaker Pelosi, former Speaker Pelosi was right to call that out. I think now, it's a different situation, because when you can't get the judges out, and we see one Judge, one Judge can take away medicine for people who need it.

So we need to get Judges out there that are non-ideological, that care about the people and the law. So, I think it's a different circumstance. But I do think, again, there's a path now, if she can be replaced on Judiciary, then we can all breathe, the whole country, we will know we will get the business of the Senate done, get the Judiciary filled, and then give her that space to recover.

WHITFIELD: And as she recovers from shingles, you know, what do you believe? What do you think her heart says about how she should or wants to proceed?

BOXER: Well, knowing Senator Feinstein as well as I do, and we did make history together as the first two women ever elected from any State, and she was so good to me during that campaign because she was so the favorite and I was so the underdog and she could have dropped me, but she didn't. She stood by me.

I think in her heart she wants to go back. She has told me, she looks at that job like a calling, and you know when I left, she looked at me like why are you doing this?

[15:15:06] BOXER: But you know, for me, I just knew it was the season, you know.

And she just cannot imagine herself, you know, without having this work, and especially with this outbreak, this new, horrible continuing outbreak of gun violence.

You know, she is the one who carried the assault weapons ban, it only lasted 10 years, because in order to get it through, it had to have an expiration date, but this is an issue of her heart. And when she sees the Republican Party refusing to do a thing about it because of cowardice, I mean, this -- she just -- she is right now, I know seething about that, because if you say you're tough on crime, and you're not tough on gun crime, you're soft on crime. And I think that's how she feels. She is very clear on that.

WHITFIELD: All right, Senator Barbara Boxer, so glad you could be with us. Thank you so much. I love that picture of you and Senator Feinstein when you all started out, together, politically.

Well, my producer says you all were just 22. Is that right? Oh, no. 1992, I was going to say oh my gosh, but 1992, I am sorry. But still, nonetheless, that's a beautiful picture.

BOXER: We were a heck a lot more mature there, isn't it? Oh, thank you very much.

WHITFIELD: Yes, gorgeous picture.

BOXER: That was from the night we won. That was from the night we won.

WHITFIELD: So nice. All right, there it is. Love it.

All right, Senator Boxer, thank you so much.

All right, coming up, more concerning information coming from the leaked Top Secret Pentagon documents. According to "The Washington Post," the Russian government is far better at manipulating social media than previously thought.

Plus, a former Indian lawmaker was killed on live television, the dramatic footage and what we know about the gunman, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:21:11]

WHITFIELD: The 21-year-old National Guard Airman who is accused of leaking dozens of highly classified US documents online is scheduled to return to Court on Wednesday.

Jack Teixeira is being charged under the Espionage Act for allegedly posting the documents on social media.

And today, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who serves on the Senate Armed Forces Committee told CNN the leak has raised grave concerns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND (D-NY): I have a lot of questions about why

were these documents lying around? Why did this particular person have access to them? Where was the custody of the documents? And who are they for?

We need to know the facts, we need to know who this Airman was, why he felt he had the authority or ability to show off confidential documents, secret documents to his friends. It sounds like he was extremely immature and someone who did not understand the weight and the importance of these documents, and so, we need to figure it out and put proper protections in place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The documents appear to reveal sensitive Intelligence the US has on both allies and adversaries.

All right, let's look more -- look at the fallout from the leaked documents now. Joseph Menn is a "Washington Post" technology reporter specializing in hacking, privacy, and surveillance. Good to see you.

So you reported that the leaked documents show that Russia is far more successful at manipulating social media than previously believed and didn't most people have a pretty good sense that they were very good at it, but apparently they're even better than we thought?

JOSEPH MENN, TECHNOLOGY REPORTER, "THE WASHINGTON POST": Well, it's been sort of an unending debate since 2016 or 2017, of just how influential and important Russian influence is. I mean, it's obvious that they've been doing it, but the Twitter and Facebook and the other companies have stepped up their defenses, they've taken down more of these networks.

But more recently, there's been a fight over whether the US government has gone too far in trying to get the social media companies to take down suspected Russian accounts. This suggests that maybe they haven't gone far enough.

WHITFIELD: So then, what did you find that was most revealing about these documents that helped magnify the problem?

MENN: We've been able to obtain two Top Secret documents that were given to US military leaders. The first outlines a number of propaganda campaigns that are planned for this year, largely around Ukraine, though there is also one that says, it is going to try and plant the idea that the US has been covering up side effects from vaccines, which is false.

But the scarier one has a Russian government computing agency saying that they can -- they have hundreds of thousands of bots that use sophisticated means and are only detected one percent at the time on most social media networks. So TikTok, Twitter, Telegram, and YouTube are all named, and apparently, they are very good at pretending to be people that they are not.

WHITFIELD: It's fascinating. It also means that it's highlighting the real deficiency in terms of how the US is able to detect this kind of manipulation, the extension of the arm of Russia.

MENN: Even if they are able to detect it, it's up to the companies to decide what to take down. And sometimes in the past they've said no, we don't think that is a Russian account. One of the ways that they've been able to do it is the Russians have been able to sneak past those detections is that they've been using foreign companies to acquire mobile telephone numbers.

So they look like legitimate accounts, they can also hijack routers, so it looks like they're coming from some US home when in fact they're on a farm somewhere in Russia.

WHITFIELD: How creepy.

All right, Joseph Menn, thank you for enlightening us We appreciate it.

MENN: Thanks for having me.

[15:25:08]

WHITFIELD: All right, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is set to announce his presidential campaign this week, but he can't count on the support of his own family to take on Biden or why the Kennedys want to sit this one out, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, President Biden has just weighed in on two different mass shootings last night.

CNN's Arlette Saenz is at the White House for us.

Arlette, what is the President saying?

SAENZ: Well, Fred, President Biden said the nation is once again grieving, following that shooting in Dadeville, Alabama as well as the shooting in Louisville, Kentucky overnight.

[15:30:08]

SAENZ: In this statement from the President, he really voiced his frustration about the inaction from lawmakers when it comes to enacting more gun reform measures. The President wrote in this statement: "What has our nation come to when children cannot attend a birthday party without fear? When parents have to worry every time their kids walk out the door to school to the movie theater or to the park? Guns are the leading killer of children in America, and the numbers are rising, not declining."

The President added: "This is outrageous and unacceptable. Americans agree and want lawmakers to act on common sense gun safety reforms." The President went on in the statement to criticize those Republican elected officials who attended the NRA Convention earlier in the week saying that those lawmakers were siding with the NRA in efforts to what he called erode gun safety in this country. Now, one of the people who attended that convention was former

President Donald Trump, who argued that there is not a gun crisis in America. Instead, he said that the issue pertains to mental health.

Now the President in his statement did go on to praise one Republican and that is Governor Bill Lee of Tennessee. The President praised his decision to sign an executive order to strengthen background checks and he has also called for the Tennessee Legislature to pass more gun reform measures.

Of course, Bill Lee is the Governor of that State where that horrific mass shooting occurred at that Christian school in Nashville just a few weeks ago. Bill Lee's wife had a dear friend who was lost in that shooting as well.

But you repeatedly hear the President voice this frustration with lawmakers, Republican lawmakers up on Capitol Hill as really efforts to pass any further gun reform remain completely stalled out at this moment despite this wave of mass shootings that we've seen over the course of the past few weeks.

WHITFIELD: Arlette Saenz at the White House. Thanks so much.

All right, in the race to the White House, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is expected to announce a run for President of the United States on Wednesday. The longtime vaccine skeptic will challenge Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination, but he will be doing so without any support from his family.

The Kennedy family says it remains fully behind President Biden.

CNN senior reporter Isaac Dovere joining me now.

Isaac, wow, this is something else. I mean, it is quite striking that you have many members of the Kennedy family who are making it very clear that they are not supporting Robert Kennedy, Jr., his run. Why not?

ISAAC DOVERE, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Well, they support President Biden because a lot of them like what President Biden has done, but they also feel very distant from where their brother, their uncle, their cousin, has landed on a lot of issues, as you mentioned, vaccine skepticism, a big part of it, other issues as well, where they feel like he is not to them, representing what the family feels or a lot of other members of the family, and obviously, it's a huge family that's gotten involved in a lot of things, but what a lot of other members of the family feel are the kinds of things that the Kennedy family has stood for over the years and they want the Kennedy family to continue standing for going into the future.

WHITFIELD: Yes, and I mean, this quote, you know, from Rory Kennedy kind of says it all in terms of, you know, the real conflict, you know, with family versus the overall cause, and I'm quoting now, it says: "This is a difficult situation for me. I love my older brother, Bobby. He has extraordinary charisma and is a very gifted speaker. I admire his past work as an environmentalist. Because of him, we can swim in the Hudson, but due to a wide range of Bobby's positions, I'm supporting President Biden."

I mean, it's one thing to think that, right and to say that within the family. It is another, too, state that publicly, how influential might the sentiment of these family members be on his run on the success or failure of his run?

DOVERE: Well, from my reporting, speaking to Rory Kennedy and other members of the Kennedy family, but also reaching out to RFK, Jr.'s campaign, it does not seem like it's a surprise to him that his family feels this way about it. He said to me, in a quote provided by his campaign that he feels like he knows that there are some members of his family that are not supporting him, some that may be supporting him, that he has a lot of personal admiration for Joe Biden, and recognition of the closeness of the Kennedy family and many generations of the Kennedy family for Joe Biden.

It should be said, four members of the family currently work for Biden in some position or another. But Kennedy said he feels like there are reasons that he feels like he needs to run and he hopes that his family can be able to work through their divisions just like he hopes the country will be able to.

WHITFIELD: All right, it is fascinating. Isaac Dovere, glad you could be with us. Thank you so much.

DOVERE: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, coming up, since the start of the war, Russia has moved thousands of Ukrainians away from the frontlines calling it a humanitarian effort, but some Ukrainians call it forced deportations.

CNN spoke to several of them. Their stories next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:39:29]

WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back.

Since the start of its war with Ukraine, Russia has moved thousands of Ukrainians away from the frontlines. Ukraine says many of these are forced deportations, but Russia insists it is a humanitarian effort.

Many of these refugees have found themselves thousands of miles away from their former homes, resettled in remote Siberian villages closer to Alaska than to Ukraine.

Here is Scott McLean.

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, it took a lot of effort to get people to really open up and to share and so the picture that we have of their lives in the far east is still somewhat incomplete, but there were definitely some common threads.

[15:40:10] MCLEAN: First off, most everyone that we met was working class. They

spoke Russian, they had Russian heritage, and had really no connections to Europe that may have tempted them to seek refuge there. The reality is that going to Russia, even to the far east of the country was simply the path of least resistance. Now that they're there and settled in, the question is, will they ever go back to Ukraine?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MCLEAN (voice over): In the chaos of battle in Mariupol in Eastern Ukraine, the civilians caught in the crossfire had few good options. They could either escape to Russia or take their chances as the war intensified.

Many of those who fled toward Russia were encouraged to live and work in the far east. From Rostov, a 4,000-mile train journey to the edge of Siberia in a town just a stone's throw from North Korea.

These are some of the first arrivals stepping off government chartered trains a year ago.

MCLEAN (on camera): Why does Russia want those people there?

NATHANIEL RAYMOND, HUMANITARIAN RESEARCH LAB, YALE UNIVERSITY: That's a great question.

One, it is a propaganda benefit, positioning these people as somehow willingly seeking citizenship in Russia. The second benefit is that Russia simply needs bodies in many parts of the country. They don't have enough citizens to make those municipalities function.

MCLEAN (voice over): This hotel in the coastal town of Wrangel was where new arrivals were put up at first. CNN reached several of them through a Telegram group chat run by local volunteers, keeping a log of resident requests from baby food and toys to medicine.

Anyone dissatisfied with their stay is told sarcastically to take their complaints to Moscow, the Kremlin, Putin.

The Russian government has long been eager to populate its resource rich far east and the state has tried several experiments to attract settlers, including those from ex-Soviet States. It now promises fleeing Ukrainians, cash, housing assistance, citizenship, and even free land. Though two people told CNN they were struggling to get the rent reimbursement they say the government had promised.

Natalia (ph) was struggling to find any housing at all, hardly enthused by her new reality.

NATALIA, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE IN WRANGEL (through translator): Nothing's changed except the place, but I no longer have a job that I love and a home that I love.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)

MCLEAN (voice over): New arrivals quickly had their Ukrainian passport swapped for Russian ones. Natalia figures, she can't go back.

NATALIA (through translator): Because we are criminals there, because those who left for Russia are immediately considered criminals by the Ukrainian authorities, so I'm forbidden to go there.

RAYMOND: At this point, the absence of clarity is the biggest problem. There is, understandably within Ukraine, an absolute outrage against those who are perceived as collaborators, but the fact of the matter is that we are dealing here with a civilian population that was seeking refuge in a time of war.

MCLEAN (voice over): Under the terms of Russia's Relocation Program, the Ukrainians are required to stay for at least three years. One woman, Marina told CNN that after that, we will see. It depends on the job and material wellbeing. So far, it's not very easy.

Another, Valeria said plainly that her family will stay in Russia, and I don't even want to think about Ukraine.

In a statement, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's office told CNN that safety and security of Ukrainian citizens is a major priority, and that for many, the only safe passage was through Russia. Of course, they are not considered collaborators. They need to get to a third country and address a local Ukrainian consulate. It will issue them Ukrainian documents to return to Ukraine.

But for those who remain in Russia long term, the future is less clear. By Ukrainian law, people who publicly deny occupation or who call for support for Russian actions are considered collaborators.

International law prohibits forcible transfers of people. Russia says more than five million Ukrainians have arrived in Russia since the full scale war began, and while Ukraine says many were forcibly deported, some like Oksana (ph) said, they went willingly.

OKSANA, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE (through translator): We were saving our own lives.

MCLEAN (voice over): Though they had few other options.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCLEAN (on camera): Now, it's unclear just how freely people felt that they could speak with us, but it seems that some were quite obviously on the side of Russia. One woman said that she wants to go back to Mariupol to visit one day, but hopes that by then it is firmly part of Russia.

Others had more mixed opinions or didn't want to answer any questions about war at all.

We did also reach out to Russia's Ministry of Interior, but it didn't respond to any of the questions we sent -- Fredricka.

[15:45:09]

WHITFIELD: Scott McLean, thanks so much.

All right, "The Phantom of the Opera," the longest running show on Broadway will have its final curtain call tonight. Up next, we're live outside the iconic Majestic Theatre on Broadway.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Investigators have discovered what caused a passenger ferry to run aground in Washington State. Onboard, 600 people on the vessel that runs between Bremerton and Seattle.

Authorities say, a mechanical issue was the likely cause of the incident. No one was hurt but it did cause delays. Washington State Ferries said they are working on processing refunds for customers who did not get to complete their trips.

And a plant fire in Brunswick, Georgia that triggered evacuations has been extinguished. This was the scene yesterday as the fire sent massive plumes of smoke into the air, prompting the Mayor to issue an Emergency Declaration.

No one was hurt during the fire and there is still no word on what caused that.

And today, Broadway loses its longest running show ever. The curtain comes down one final time tonight for "Phantom of the Opera." The show has had nearly 14,000 performances over the last 35 years.

CNN's Polo Sandoval is live outside the Majestic Theatre on Broadway. So Polo, the production has called this theater home since 1988, and I imagine a lot of people who were in line tonight have probably seen the show before, but because it is the last one, they've got to see it again.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You better believe that, Fred. There's going to be plenty of loyal fans here and look, by the time that the curtain closes, and since 1988, since the opening night, you're talking about close to 20 million audience members that would have been entertained by "The Phantom of the Opera" on Broadway in those three and a half decades.

So you can't be the longest running Broadway show without picking up a few fans along the way. You're talking millions from around the world. In fact, I still have my Playbill from when I got to see it back in 2018, with my wife.

And the thing is, this was before the pandemic. The pandemic was certainly a massive game changer for the industry. And sadly, there were many shows that just couldn't quite fully recover. This is one of the most expensive shows to put on, at about a million bucks a week in full operating expenses and salaries or what have you.

And at this point, this is when they had to make that very difficult decision that simply those profits were just not enough to keep it afloat. And this is certainly one of the key factors that was considered when that very difficult decision was made to end this long, long run.

And it was just devastating news for so many people around the world, including Lexie, who I want you to hear from. I just met her a little while ago. She was one of those lucky few folks who actually got to see the show last night, but saw it for the first time earlier this year. And for Lexie, as you're about to hear, it really is a story of "The Phantom of the Opera" that continues to resonate today and one that has personal meaning for her.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEXIE LUHRS, "PHANTOM OF THE OPERA" FAN: I was introduced to this musical when I was seven. I was in -- I was in line for a carwash with my mother. She's going through the City of Brooklyn, she goes, have I ever showed you "Phantom"? I said no.

I fell in love with it. I really did. I began singing. I grew up to be a vocalist. I now hold my bachelor's in music with a musical theater concentration and seeing the heartbeat of Manhattan leave, it is quite sad, honestly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: The heartbeat, it is iconic. There are a lot of questions about what will happen next for the theatre here. There are also high hopes that we will see revival down the road.

By the way, there are productions of this that are scheduled to open in North Korea, also in Prague, Italy. Not a bad place to check it out. But as for "Phantom of the Opera" of Broadway, tonight, the curtain closes. That chandelier falls one last time.

WHITFIELD: It is an amazing production. I saw it with my mom very early on when they first started there, so I was either -- I was like in high school or college. Yes, but I enjoyed it. Glad to have been able to say that I saw it, too.

All right, Polo Sandoval, thank you so much.

All right, this week, the EPA proposed that within a decade, two- thirds of all new vehicles sold in the US be zero emission or plug-in hybrids. One company in California hopes to get ahead of the curve with an EV that packs a solar boost.

Here is a look at their prototype in today's Innovate.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS ANTHONY, APTERA MOTORS: Transportation as a whole should move towards efficiency. I think Aptera is the future of transportation.

We use advanced aerodynamics, lightweight components, a very efficient drive train to make a vehicle that can go a thousand miles on a charge, and then we add solar to it so you can get up to 40 miles a day of free solar range. The Aptera looks like no vehicle you've ever seen before. It has three

wheels and has a very organic shape. So we have wheels that sit outside the body and one center wheel in the rear so air can flow very nicely and easily around it.

We're going to be building the battery packs from a battery cell and then building the solar panels from the individual solar cells to strings of solar cells.

REED THURBER, APTERA MOTHERS: This is our solar panel manufacturing validation line. We need them to be light, strong for high impact, and we need them to be curved in multiple axes which is pretty abnormal for solar panels. We're kind of straddling the space between solar panel manufacturing and automotive manufacturing.

[15:55:10]

ANTHONY: We hope to have Aptera in full production in about a year.

What's really exciting, less air pollution, less raw materials out of the ground.

And with solar charging capability, you can have something that you may never have to plug in. It's like nothing the world's ever seen.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: Innovate brought to you by Toro. Count on it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: On tonight's episode of "Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico," Eva is in Nueva Leon in Northeast Mexico experiencing the food of her childhood.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EVA LONGORIA, CNN HOST, "SEARCHING FOR MEXICO": Come and get it.

Our hardworking crew has earned their lunch.

Oh my God.

(EVA LONGORIA speaking in foreign language.)

LONGORIA: The last eggs with deer. Deer sausage. Deer meat.

It is venison served five ways.

Frankie, I am going to give you a little bit of everything.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Okay.

LONGORIA: You guys need a tamale.

Our British sound recordist, Nathan has taken a break so he can try his first ever Tamale. This is huge.

(EVA LONGORIA speaking in foreign language.)

LONGORIA: You have to take the leaf off. She is going to drop this on my head.

Nathan ate the leaf, he's not supposed to eat the leaf.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, watch an all-new "Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico" tonight at 9:00 p.m. on CNN.

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