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Migrants Amass At Border, Awaiting End Of Title 42; Seven Killed, Including A Child, At Public Pool; Former Indian Lawmaker Killed In Police Custody; Four Dead, 28 Wounded During a Mass Shooting in Alabama; House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to Pitch Fiscal Plan on Looming Debt Ceiling Crisis; Third Day of Armed Conflict in Sudan; New Video of Japan's Prime Minister Smoke Bomb Incident; Migrants Trying to Cross the U.S. Border in the Tens of Thousands. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired April 17, 2023 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN HOST: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. Just ahead on "CNN Newsroom." We're learning more about some of the victims of a mass shooting at a sweet 16 birthday party in Alabama. Details along with the message from police as they search for a suspect.

Congress is returning from a two-week break with a high stakes debt ceiling standoff looming in D.C. Will President Biden budge as Republicans ready a spending cut bill with strings attached.

Plus, chaos in Khartoum. Fierce fighting between rival generals in Sudan has left hopes for a peaceful transition to civilian rule in tatters.

With a new school week starts in a few hours here in the United States, one community will be facing it with a sense of loss, both impossible to explain and yet all too common. Dadeville, Alabama is the latest city grappling with a mass shooting. Police say four people were killed at a sweet 16 birthday party late Saturday night. Twenty- eight were wounded, some critically.

A second victim has now been identified by family members as high school senior Keke Smith. She was a student athletic manager on the track team who some say was always smiling. Also killed was Philstavious Dowdell, a beloved athlete and the brother of the birthday girl. Police have not released any details of a suspect or a motive for the killings. They are asking for help from the public.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEREMY BURKETT, ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY: We've got to have information from the community. So, if you are at home right now or you know somebody that has any information about what occurred last night, I cannot stress this enough. Ever how mad are you think it is, we absolutely need you to share it. So, again, please reach out to the alabama law enforcement agencies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And CNN's Isabel Rosales is in Dadeville, Alabama where she met with people who knew some of the victims.

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I spoke with Michael Taylor who is the assistant football coach over at Dadeville High School. And he says that this is personal because one of the known four victims so far of the shooting is Phil Dowdell and he -- Taylor says that Dowdell has been like a son to him. He's known him since he was nine-years- old. He is an utter disbelief at the news.

He calls Dowdell a freak -- a freak athlete. Somebody who was so blessed by God across the spectrum, basketball, track, football, and that he was about to turn the page on a new and exciting chapter in his life. He was about to graduate next month and actually got a scholarship to play football at Jacksonville State University here in Jacksonville, Alabama. Taylor spoke with Dowdell's grandmother this morning. Here's what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL TAYLOR, DADEVILLE HIGHSCHOOL FOOTBALL COACH: The biggest idea is she, she don't understand why, why did it happen, you know? We don't have any enemies. And Phil just told me about a month ago, he said, coach, will that ever happen to me? Even when I go to college, take care of my two sisters. I've never dreamed that he was talking about this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROSALES: And as you can understand, this is a terribly traumatizing situation for this tight knit community of 3,000 people. The superintendent says that tomorrow they will have counselors at the county schools to help the students grieve through what has happened. Isabel Rosales, CNN, Dadeville, Alabama.

CHURCH: Also on Saturday, someone fired shots into a crowd at a park in Louisville, Kentucky killing two people and wounding four others. This is Louisville's second mass shooting in less than a week. Last Monday, not far from the park, a gunman killed five people at a bank and injured several others.

In a statement, U.S. President Joe Biden asked, "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."

[02:05:06]

He went on to say, "Guns are the leading killer of children in America, and the numbers are rising, not declining. This is outrageous and unacceptable. Americans agree and want lawmakers to act on common sense gun safety reforms." A Kansas City teen who was shot after going to the wrong home while trying to pick up his siblings has been identified. One of the attorneys for the victim's family says his name is Ralph Yarl. He was hospitalized Thursday night after he was shot in a possible case of mistaken identity while trying to pick up his younger twin brothers. His family has now started a GoFundMe page for his medical expenses.

BEGIN VIDEO CLIP

UKNOWN: Justice for Yarl! Justice for Yarl! Justice for Yarl!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the teen's home in Kansas City on Sunday demanding justice. The city's mayor has assured the public that detectives are thoroughly investigating the case.

Well, the U.S. Congress is back in session later today after a two- week break. One of the first things they will have to address is a looming deadline on increasing the debt ceiling. President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy locked in a standoff over raising the debt limit.

In the coming hours, McCarthy will deliver a speech at The New York Stock Exchange as he makes his pitch to investors on Wall Street to get behind, potentially raising the limit for just one year. McCarthy held a conference call with House Republicans on Sunday ahead of the new session to rally party members to the cause.

Joining me now from Los Angeles is Ron Brownstein. He is a CNN senior political analyst and a senior editor at "The Atlantic." Always great to have you with us.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Hi, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So, Ron, the U.S. debt ceiling tops the agenda when Congress returns this week. Republicans hope to strong arm the White House with a one-year debt ceiling plan. So, what will likely come of that and when do you expect Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to meet with President Joe Biden to thrash (ph) out a deal to try to avoid the U.S. defaulting on its debt as that deadline looms.

BROWNSTEIN: You know, President Biden as the vice president under Barack Obama was in the middle of the last time, we had a debt ceiling crisis this severe, both in 2011 and then in 2013 when the Republicans who control the House at that point demanded budget cuts in return for raising the debt ceiling.

In 2011, President Obama did negotiate with Republicans. They went right up to the brink. The deal virtually fell apart, and at the last minute they were able to cobble together reductions that allowed John Boehner to move through the debt ceiling (inaudible) the House. President Obama and Joe Biden came out of that experience and said never again. And in fact, in 2013, when Republicans again tried to leverage

concessions in return for raising the debt ceiling including rolling back portion of the Affordable Care Act, Obama and Biden refused to negotiate. That is the position that he is sticking to now, and there are no indications that he is moving off of it.

You know, I think the assumption in Washington has always been that there would be enough Republicans who recognize the magnitude of defaulting on the debt and would break from the party to allow a debt ceiling increase to go through, but that is far from clear, Rosemary. And as you can see, the weeks are ticking by without any real progress.

CHURCH: Yeah. Let's see what comes of that. I do want to turn now to the issue of abortion, and after a Texas judge ruled against the FDA- approved abortion pill, mifepristone, the U.S. Supreme Court stepped in and put a hold on that ruling for now, at least.

But the issue is causing tensions within the Republican Party and one big donor for presidential hopeful Ron DeSantis just hit the pause button on his financial support due to misgivings over the Florida governor's stance on abortion. So, what might all this indicate in terms of how the issue of abortion is becoming a problem for the GOP?

BROWNSTEIN: I was in Wisconsin earlier this month when Democrats won by 11 points a state Supreme Court race in a state where elections are lately been decided more by one or two points, and it was essential -- largely around the issue of abortion. Republicans are caught between the demands of their base to move as far and as fast as possible toward imposing a national ban on abortion.

And the clear indication in red and purple states that this is simply an untenable political agenda, and it is not clear entirely how this is going to play out.

[02:10:01]

But the fact that Ron DeSantis signed a six-week ban even after the Wisconsin election results shows how much pressure there is in the party to continue moving in a very militant direction on this issue, despite the pretty clear signals from voters.

CHURCH: And Ron, on gun violence, President Biden is voicing frustration over inaction in the wake of yet another mass shooting in this country, the 147th this year, more than the number of days so far in 2023. All polls indicate that an overwhelming majority of Americans want Congress to act and provide common sense gun control. So, why isn't that happening given it's what the American public want?

BROWNSTEIN: As you say, there is a significant national majority in support of most of the key measures that people talk about in terms of restricting access to guns, universal background checks, universal red flag laws, a ban on assault weapons, a ban on high-capacity magazines. There is majority support for those ideas, not only among Democrats who do and don't own guns, but also a majority of Republicans who don't own guns also support those ideas, according to the Pew Research center.

The one group in the society that opposes those ideas is in the majority basis are Republican gun owners. But those republican gun owners as we saw at the NRA conference this weekend have, in essence, a veto over the Republican Party.

And because of the small state bias in the Senate and the filibuster, that veto within the Republican Party becomes a veto over the country. It is simply implausible at this point that there will ever be meaningful action on guns without changing the filibuster. The crisis over the -- the inability of the political system to deal with gun violence is fundamentally a crisis of majority rule.

And it is why that issue I think is ultimately going to come to a head very quickly the next time Democrats have unified control of the White House, the House and the Senate. Hard to see how the filibuster survives, given how it is being used on voting, on guns, on abortion, to frustrate the view of the majority of the country.

CHURCH: Ron Brownstein, always a pleasure to get your analysis. Many thanks.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me.

CHURCH: In a stunning development, Dominion Voting Systems high stakes defamation trial against Fox News is being delayed. A U.S. court announced hours ago that the case which was supposed to start Monday morning, has been delayed until Tuesday. The change comes as the Wall Street Journal is reporting Fox has made a late push to settle the dispute out of court.

Legal experts have expressed surprise that Fox has not yet settled the case, avoiding what is expected to be an excruciating and embarrassing several weeks for the news network.

Sudan is seeing a third day of fierce fighting between the country's army and the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group. Witnesses tell CNN that battles continued around Khartoum overnight and became especially intense after morning prayers. There were also reports of airstrikes around the airport and the capital as well as near both RSF and Sudanese military garrisons.

The civilian death toll has risen to at least 97 according to a Sudanese doctor's union. There are reports of water and power cuts and shortages of fuel, food and medical care. And Larry Madowo joins us now live from Nairobi, Kenya with more on this. So, Larry, what is the latest on the fighting in Sudan? Of course, how bad could this actually get do you think?

LARY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rosemary, we're starting to see the human cost of this war that's now entered day three because people in Sudan have woken up to a third day of artillery and bombardment. They are hiding, many of them, far away from windows because they don't know what stray bullets or other weapons that might get into where they're living. Those are bunkers in Khartoum. I've spoken to at least two different

people who are in their basements trying to stay safe and afraid that they might run out of food, of medicines, and they don't know when this might end. There is great concern about how long exactly this could go on because the African Union is sending its chair, Moussa Faki Mahamat.

He's expected in Khartoum today to start talking to these two generals who have been in this conflict. They're the two most powerful -- powerful generals in Sudan. General Burhan is the leader of the Sovereign Council that runs Sudan and is also the one who leads the military. But his deputy, the number two in the country, General Mohamed Hamdan, better known as Hemedti, leads the Rapid Support Forces, the very powerful paramilitary group.

[02:15:00]

And the two of them have a power struggle of who exactly will be in charge when the two fighting forces have to be merged. This is a precondition to return to civilian rule in Sudan, and that is one of the sticking points. They -- framework agreement has already been signed, which sets out kind of the big picture of how this would work.

But how exactly the two fighting forces will be combined remains one of the major issues. These tensions were building for a while, so this was predictable, but the scale of the violence has been unprecedented. We just heard a short while ago from U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the U.K. Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who say they're calling for an immediate ceasefire.

And they have a shared concern over the security of the people in Sudan and the foreigners that live there, and they say the military belong back to the barracks. These men need to go back to the negotiating table, Rosemary.

CHURCH: How much concern is there, Larry, that this could sadly move in the direction of civil war again?

MADOWO: That is a real concern and it's growing because we're now in day three. Sudan has seen already so much civil war. This country has seen so much instability. Sudan is the country in Africa that has had the highest number of attempted or successful coups, which is why we're paying a lot of attention to this because the one thing the people of sudan need is a return to peace so they can rebuild their lives and live in a country that is not constantly taken over by this so much instability and about the military running every aspect of their lives.

And yet, now with this continuing with people scared, with the airport closed, people trapped at hospital, at universities, it's a real growing concern that this might degenerate into another civil war, a long-drawn-out process which delays that transition back to civilian rule. So far, every single international body, every single regional (inaudible), every single country from Egypt and South Sudan to Ethiopia to Kenya have told these men, have spoken to the two of them and said, please go back to the negotiating table, end this right now. CHURCH: All right. Our thanks to Larry Madowo joining us live from

Nairobi. Appreciate it.

Well, still to come, we are getting new video of Saturday's attempted attack on the Japanese prime minister. We will have a report from Tokyo after the break.

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[02:20:00]

CHURCH: We are getting a better look at the attempted attack on Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. On Saturday, video posted to social media shows a cylinder-shaped object land near the prime minister. Now, one of his bodyguards' springs into action and kicks it away while putting up a protective board to shield the prime minister from any fragments. Mr. Kishida was evacuated from the scene unharmed.

And all of this comes as G-7 foreign ministers are meeting in Japan. For more, I'm joined by Marc Stewart who joins us live from Tokyo. Good to see you, Marc. So, let's start with those extraordinary images of this heroic bodyguard protecting Japan's prime minister from an attack. What more are you learning about that?

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you know, Rosemary, so often after a big news event, new video will emerge and that is the case here. Let's take a look at it once again and go through it frame by frame because it is very extraordinary.

As we reported, people in this crowd at this political rally reported this cylinder like device flying in the air, and then we see it land on the ground, and then immediately that security guard basically kicks it out of the way and deploys this shield, which is described as something that could protect from debris.

And then the prime minister, as we see is immediately whisked away, and fortunately, the prime minister is safe. Now, in custody is a 24- year-old male. Police recently raided his home over the weekend, and they took away everything from a laptop, a mobile phone which is being described as some powder and then boxes and boxes of evidence. Yet, despite all of that, we are getting no public word from investigators as to any kind of motive or any kind of intent.

And Rosemary, we are also told that this young man is not speaking to them right now, awaiting legal advice. So, that is the big question that we really need to have answered. What were his intentions? What was he really hoping to do?

CHURCH: Yeah. Just -- and remarkable images as we stated there. So, Marc, of course, there are concerns as we mentioned about political violence at the G-7 after that attempted attack on Japan's prime minister. What is the latest on that?

STEWART: Well, already, there is -- G-7 meetings are taking place here in Japan. So, the foreign ministers are here and they're talking about everything from Ukraine, to China, to broader issues in the Indo-Pacific. And then we have this bigger meeting in Hiroshima, and that will bring heads of state.

And obviously, what happened here is raising the bar, raising concerns about safety. It's something that the prime minister did recently address. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FUMIO KISHIDA, JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER (through translation): For event schedules like the gG-7 Summit where dignitaries from around the world gather, I believe Japan nationwide will have to work together to make the utmost effort to provide security and safety.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: It's interesting, Rosemary. Here in Japan when there are political rallies, political gatherings, the public and politicians are in very close quarters. It's a sense of pride that people could be face to face. I was just getting on the subway this morning here in Tokyo and there is a politician at the quarter holding a small event. But a lot of that may be called into question. But at this point, no wholesale call or order to change things, Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. Mark Stewart joining us live from Tokyo. Many thanks for that report.

[02:24:48]

And this programming note coming up later Monday, Christiane Amanpour sits down with Ireland's former premier, Bertie Ahern, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and former U.S. President Bill Clinton for an exclusive reunion interview in Belfast, 25 years after brokering the Good Friday Agreement and bringing peace to Northern Ireland.

The U.S. Border Patrol says it encountered more than two million migrants at the southern border last year, and soon many more could be coming. The reasons why and how the U.S. is preparing, still ahead here on "CNN Newsroom."

Plus, a horrifying scene at a swimming pool in Mexico. Seven people are murdered, one of them just a child. We'll have the latest on the search for the gunman.

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CHURCH: The U.S. Border Patrol says it encountered more than two million migrants at the southern border last year and tens of thousands are still waiting in northern Mexico for the opportunity to enter the U.S. hoping that will be easier once the Trump-era policy known as Title 42 ends next month. CNN's Rosa Flores explains what could happen when it does.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Where are we?

JAVIER CALVILLO, DIRECTOR, CASA DEL MIGRANTE SHELTER: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE).

FLORES (voice-over): Father Javier Calvillo runs the Casa Del Migrante Shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, across the border from El Paso, Texas, and says this is one of about 40 shelters in the city. And that most of the migrants here are from Venezuela.

FLORES: The top nationality is Venezuela.

FLORES (voice-over): And the majority, if not all, are part of the skyrocketing number of migrants trekking through the dangerous jungle passage between Colombia and Panama, known as the Darien Gap.

[02:30:02]

Migrant crossings there have jumped from under 600 in 2010 to nearly a quarter million last year. This year, nearly 90,000 migrants have made the trek so far, all of them on their way to the U.S. southern border.

The Biden administration took notice and alongside Colombia and Panama, it launched a two-month campaign to curb the flow of migration.

ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, UNITED STATES HOME SECURITY SECRETARY: We must do more to discourage the dangerous journey.

FLORES: At the U.S. southern border the humanitarian crisis that left hundreds of migrants sleeping on the streets of El Paso in December and January has effectively jumped the border to Mexico, immigration advocates say.

Emotions there, boiled over last month when a large group of migrants rushed the international bridge to El Paso over frustrations with a cumbersome us asylum process forcing them to wait in Mexico.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text): Please, we want answers.

FLORES: That dissatisfaction stemmed from the Trump era pandemic public health rule known as Title 42, which allows immigration agents to swiftly expel migrants back to Mexico. The Biden administration's expansion of that rule to Venezuelans, Nicaraguans, Haitians and Cubans and the recent launch of an app that allows migrants to set up appointments to enter the U.S. legally pending immigration proceedings under an exception to Title 42.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text): That app doesn't work.

FLORES: More than 23,000 migrants are in northern Mexican cities waiting as Title 42 was set to expire next month according to officials and community leaders. In Tijuana, about 10,000 are waiting. In Reynosa and Matamoros, about 9800 and into Ciudad Juarez up to 3500. The top 21 countries where they're coming from include places outside the Western Hemisphere. As for who is responsible for the migrant crisis, which appears to ping pong across borders, Father Kaldidio (ph) says.

The game. The game of politics. FLORES (voice over): Both the U.S. and Mexico for what he calls the game of politics and policies.

Rosa Flores, CNN, El Paso, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Mexican authorities are trying to track down the gunman who killed seven people to swimming pool on Saturday. A young child is among the victims. It's unclear why they were targeted but the area is known for gang activity. More now from CNN's Rafael Romo.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: A relaxing and sunny afternoon abruptly turned into hell in Mexico Saturday when gunman suddenly showed up and opened fire at a crowded swimming pool. It happened in Cortazar, a city in the Mexican central state of Guanajuato. According to police, at least seven people were killed including a seven-year-old child.

The victims were three men and three women in addition to the minor. Mexican media report, they were all members of the same family but officials have not confirmed. That social media videos show people in swimsuits, screaming and hugging their children after the mass shooting according to a statement published by the city of Cortazar. It all started at about 4:30 in the afternoon.

After shooting the victims, the unidentified gunmen vandalized the swimming pool, shot before taking security cameras and a monitor with them. The Mexican army and security forces have been deployed to search for those responsible for the attack. So far, Mexican officials have not disclosed the motive. According to an assessment by the U.S. State Department, gang violence associated with the theft of petroleum and natural gas from the state oil company occurs in Guanajuato.

It also says that a high number of murders in Guanajuato southern region is associated with cartel-related violence. Guanajuato, some major agriculture and manufacturing hub and the native state of former Mexican president Vicente Fox. Several major carmakers including Chevrolet, Ford, GMC, and Toyota have assembly plants in the state.

Rafael Romo, CNN Atlanta.

CHURCH: Still ahead. A former lawmaker in India is shot dead while in police custody. We'll head to New Delhi for details on how the government is responding to the shocking attack.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:37:25]

CHURCH: Russia marked orthodox Easter in Ukraine with a barrage of missiles with a church among the targets on Easter Sunday. Villagers searched the rubble near the city of Zaporizhzhia where their church suffered massive damage. No services were underway when the missile hit and no one was hurt. But the head of the local military was in sense saying nothing is sacred. And there was no lull in the ferocious fighting in and around Bakhmut. Ukraine says almost 100 Russian shillings were recorded around the city in just 24 hours. And about 30 firefighters raged between Ukrainian and Russian forces for control of the devastated city. But there was also a little joy on this holiday. 130 Ukrainians are now free after a prisoner exchange with Russia.

In India, a former lawmaker convicted of kidnapping was killed along with his brother in a dramatic attack that was caught on live television.

CNN's Vedika Sud joins us now from New Delhi with more. So, Vedika, what is the latest on this fatal shooting of a former lawmaker in India's parliament?

VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER: Fatal indeed and disturbing as well. Before I bring you the details, Rosemary, I do want to warn our viewers the parts of the video that we're about to talk about could be disturbing for some. Now imagine this. On Saturday evening, Rosemary, you have police officers is courting two people, one of them convicted of a kidnapping incident as well into a hospital for medical checkups.

You have the media surrounding them asking them questions as well. Despite the security cordon around these two men, one is a former lawmaker Atiq Ahmed, the other his brother, they were assassinated out in a public space. You could hear in that video more than a dozen gunshots being fired over and over again. So, here's the sequence of events that's led to a lot of criticism of the Uttar Pradesh, government in northern India.

This is a government that's run by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party, the Bharatiya Janata Party. So, you have Atiq Ahmad coming out from the back of a Jeep along with his brother. They're walking there. They're -- they've got handcuffs and there's a chain that's tying the handcuffs together. You have a police officer who's also escorting them along with another -- perhaps five or six police officers with him.

And then within moments, you have some journalists who come forward to interact with them.

[02:40:04]

You have the mics right in front of their faces. And within moments, Rosemary, you hear the first gunshot. And that, of course, isn't the last. You see the turban falling off the former lawmaker's head. You see him collapsing. Next in line was a brother who was also targeted. And within moments, there was utter chaos in that area. Perhaps even the police didn't know what had really happened for the next few seconds.

There was panic outside the medical hospital. According to police officers that we've heard from who have spoken to the media, these two men were being taken to the hospital for a medical checkup. But so many questions here on the security and the safety of the state. And you have opposition leaders also questioning the state government and what they're calling the lawlessness, the auto lawlessness currently in Uttar Pradesh. Rosemary?

CHURCH: All right. Vedika Sud joining us live from New Delhi. Many thanks for that report. Well, the consequences of climate change are painfully evident as wildfires rage in parts of Europe. Emergency officials in southern France are racing to fight a fire, the size of one usually seen in the summer months. Hundreds of firefighters were deployed on Sunday to control a blaze that has consumed more than 660 hectares of land.

And in northern Spain, huge clouds of smoke darkened the skies. The fires in both Spain and France have been made worse by drought conditions throughout the year.

I'm Rosemary Church. For our international viewers, World Sport is next. And for those of you here in North America, I'll be back with more CNN NEWSROOM in just a moment. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:45:36]

CHURCH: Last month's upheaval in the U.S. banking industry took many people by surprise and raised concerns about its impact on the economy. The Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says she doesn't think it has pushed the U.S. off course financially. In an exclusive interview with CNN's Fareed Zakaria Yellen talked about whether the government can bring down inflation while maintaining a strong job market.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JANET YELLEN, UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY: I think we probably need some easing of stress in the labor market to get inflation down. But that doesn't mean that we need to see unemployment rise significantly. I believe a strong labor market and bringing down inflation are compatible goals. And I think we're seeing that play out right now. First of all, inflation is too high.

And President Biden and I feel this is a major a primary problem that is afflicting American households. And it's something that we need to deal with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: As the government talks about ways to reduce inflation, ordinary Americans are struggling to keep up with rising costs. Even as wages grow. Many people say their take home pay just can't match the cost of living. Vanessa Yurkevich has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Valvin Nicholson works as a cook in a Manhattan skyscraper, but he lives here in Brooklyn in his mom's third floor apartment, because he says his wages aren't keeping up with rising costs.

What are we making? VALVIN NICHOLSON, UNION COOK: We'll make sweet chili salmon.

YURKEVICH: How old were you when you had your first job in the kitchen?

NICHOLSON: Nineteen, twenty.

YURKEVICH: Do you remember your first job, how much you made?

NICHOLSON: Eight something.

YURKEVICH: How much do you make now per hour?

NICHOLSON: Twenty-three and change.

YURKEVICH: So, the $23.00 that you make an hour now --

NICHOLSON: It's not enough.

YURKEVICH: It's not enough.

NICHOLSON: You've got to pay, you know, car notes on insurance is very expensive. Food and everything.

YURKEVICH (voice over): Nicholson, originally from Jamaica, says his co-workers, many who are immigrants too, feel the same way, especially as inflation sits at five percent.

In their new contract with their employer, Sodexo, a food service company, union workers are asking for a minimum of $20.00 an hour for everyone. Food service workers make about $14.00 an hour on average and low wage workers and other industries aren't far behind. Women, black and Hispanic workers are disproportionately low-income earners.

YURKEVICH (on camera): Before the pandemic, it was high income earners who typically saw the greatest wage gains compared to low-income earners. But during the pandemic, it was low wage workers who saw the greatest gains, up nine percent compared to 4.9 percent for the highest earners, and just 2.4 percent for those in the middle.

DANA PETERSON, CHIEF ECONOMIST, THE CONFERENCE BOARD: There are two factors driving increases in wages among low wage workers. The first is minimum wage increases amongst a number of states and also labor shortages.

YURKEVICH: Does that mean their wages are rising right along with inflation?

PETERSON: Well, no, wages haven't actually been catching up with inflation.

YURKEVICH (voice over): This is the industry table. One table held each night at four of Michelin star chef John Frasier's restaurants exclusively for restaurant workers. They get 70 percent off the bill.

JON FRASER, CHEF AND OWNER, JF RESTAURANTS: So, if I could put myself in the position of dishwasher, because I was one.

YURKEVICH (on camera): Yes, were you?

FRASIER: I was one. There's no way that I could have afforded this restaurant on that salary.

YURKEVICH: Do you think that some of your employees should be paid more?

FRASIER: Should is a very difficult way too --

(CROSSTALK)

YURKEVICH: Should if you could?

FRASIER: Should if we could, of course, right.

YURKEVICH: Yes.

FRASIER: Said everyone, everywhere, all the time.

YURKEVICH (voice over): But in order to make that happen, the consumer would have to pay more.

FRASIER: Are you ready to pay $55.00 when you go out for a chicken? Probably not.

NICHOLSON: Hopefully by then, when we meet again, we're able to come to agreement.

YURKEVICH: Valvin hopes that comes with a raise. Sodexo posted about $750 million in net profits last fiscal year.

[02:50:01]

NICHOLSON: I came to the U.S. for American dreams. Yes.

YURKEVICH (on camera): Do you feel like you are living the American dream?

NICHOLSON: No. I mean, not really. Right now, it's like you're living from paycheck to paycheck.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Vanessa Yurkevich, many thanks for her reporting there.

Well, U.S. lawmakers have questions for the Biden administration about the leak of highly classified U.S. intelligence information. That 21- year-old National Guard airman accused of leaking the documents, Jack Teixeira is charged under the Espionage Act and remains in custody. On Sunday, lawmakers expressed grave concern about the circumstances around the leak. He has reaction from both sides of the aisle.

(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 were they for? Those are important questions we can ask in the intelligence committee so that we can have stronger oversight.

REP. MIKE TURNER (R-OH): The access that he was having to this information should have been cut off. He should have never been having access to this level of classified information that could hurt the United States. Right. He had no reason -- there was no need to know for him of the information that he was accessing. And the department defense admits in the affidavit that they had the ability to track him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The next court appearance for suspect Jack Teixeira takes place on Wednesday.

Well, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas will amend his financial disclosure forms. A source says the changes will be made to reflect his real estate deal nearly 10 years ago with billionaire GOP donor Harlan Crow. The source says Thomas thought he didn't have to disclose the deal because he lost money on it. The controversy first came to light and reporting by nonprofit news outlet pro publica.

Thomas has also come under fire for not reporting luxury travel he and his wife took with the Crow family.

Well, the U.S. Coast Guard is helping Mexican Navy crews in the search for three American sailors who have not been heard from for nearly two weeks. CNN's Camila Bernal has the story.

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: These three Americans were last heard from on April 6. They were near Mazatlan, Mexico and they were headed to San Diego, California. They were supposed to stop on April 6 in Cabo San Lucas but they never made it there. Now it is the Mexican Navy who is leading the search here with the help of the U.S. Coast Guard. The three Americans that are currently missing are Kerry and Frank O'Brien. They're a married couple.

And William Gross. I spoke to Kerrys' mother and she says that Kerry and her husband have about 20 years of experience and said that Bill has about 50 years of experience when it comes to sailing. She says, you know, a mother always worries but she wasn't particularly concerned about this trip. She speaks to her daughter every single day. But on day two, when she didn't hear from her, she began to feel scared, to feel concerned.

She says she is now heartbroken, but is not losing hope. Here's part of the conversation I had with that mother.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELLEN ARGALL, MOTHER OF MISSING AMERICAN KERRY O'BRIEN: We're so close. We either talk on the phone or we text each other. So, when I didn't hear from her when she was -- to Cabo, I started getting very worried. I'm very worried, sad, concerned. But I'm still hopeful. I'm hanging on to the hope. We've all been praying seem so odd that in all these days not one person has seen them or heard from them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERNAL: And the U.S. Coast Guard saying that the weather was not optimal. When they began sailing. They say it is a long trip even when the weather is good. They say it takes about two days to get from Mazatlan to Cabo San Lucas and they've now been missing for more than 10 days. The search continues. This mother says that she gets an update from the Coast Guard every single day. She is waiting to hear back from her daughter.

She wants this search to expand. She says the Coast Guard has told her that they're using technology to try to figure out where this boat could be. They're looking at the patterns in the wind and in the currents to figure out if there is any spot where they can search and where they can eventually and hopefully find them. Again, this mother says she has hope and she is waiting for the next time that she speaks to her daughter.

Camila Bernal, CNN, Los Angeles.

CHURCH: It's the end of an era on Broadway. The curtain has come down for the final time on Phantom of the Opera. The show ran for 35 years, making it the longest running play in Broadway history. But it became a victim of the post-pandemic economy and cost nearly a million dollars a week to fund.

Polo Sandoval has more now from New York.

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POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you can't be the longest running show on Broadway and I pick up some fans along the way. In fact, since it first debuted back in 1988 all the way down to this past Sunday when the curtain closed one last time. The Phantom of the Opera on Broadway entertain roughly 20 million audience members here at the historic majestic Theatre in Times Square.

All of them drawn here by Andrew Lloyd Webber is organ heavy score. Those beautiful sets and not to mention the elaborate costumes. But it was all extremely expensive as well. In fact, the pandemic really changing the course for this iconic show. In fact, the -- costing roughly a million dollars to produce on a weekly basis. The profits simply not enough to offset the cost. So, that's why the creators, the producers, directors, all making that very, very difficult decision to close that show.

Certainly, some sad news for some of the fans that have followed the show for quite some time. In fact, we caught up with one that was able to see one of the final shows just a couple of days ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was introduced this musical as seven. I was in -- I was in line for a carwash with my mother. She's going through CD booklet. She goes, if 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, is quite sad honestly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Well, The Phantom of the Opera on Broadway also one of the largest single generators of income and also jobs employing roughly 6500 employees here on Broadway during the course of its -- of its run. Again about 35 years, though there will be production scheduled for later this year in South Korea, Italy and Prague.

Paolo Sandoval, CNN, New York.

CHURCH: And thanks so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. I'll be back with more CNN NEWSROOM in just a moment. Hope you can stick around.

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