Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Violence Escalates between Israeli Defense Forces and Palestinians in Gaza Strip; Reporting Indicates Influx of Migrants at U.S. Southern Border Smaller than Anticipated after End of Title 42; Ukrainians Use U.S. Made Patriot Missile Defense System to Shoot Down Russian Hypersonic Missile; Idaho Jury Finds Lori Vallow Daybell Guilty of Killing Her Two Children. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired May 13, 2023 - 10:00   ET

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

[10:00:00]

MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN ANCHOR: So you watched, and many of you were horrified by what you saw. OK, vote accordingly. I don't think that there was any metastasis of somebody who tuned in, heard him say something, heard her confront him with facts, and nevertheless now goes on believing what he said just because they heard it that one night. No, I think it's more complicated than that. Put the spotlight on everybody. That's the answer to all of this.

Happy Mother's Day to all. Thank you for watching. See you.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. It is Saturday, May 13th, 2023. Of course, that is the year we are in. I'm Amara Walker.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you for the reminder, though. Sometimes we need it.

(LAUGHTER)

WALKER: Sometimes we do.

BLACKWELL: I'm Victor Blackwell. You're in the CNN Newsroom.

We begin this hour with the escalating violence between Israelis and Palestinians in Gaza. The Israeli Defense Forces, they've launched a series of attacks today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(EXPLOSIONS)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The IDF attacked Islamic Jihad sites in the Gaza Strip, they say. These deadly strikes on Palestinian targets have been ongoing since Tuesday.

WALKER: Palestinian officials say at least 33 people have been killed so far including militants and civilians. And Israeli medical service says a rocket hit a residential building there this week. One person was killed, five were hurt.

CNN's Ben Wedeman is live in southern Israel, near Gaza. Hi there, Ben, what's the latest. What's going on there on the ground?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Amara, what we've seen throughout the day here is there have been occasional volleys of rockets being fired out of Gaza and more Israeli air strikes, most of them focused against Gaza right over there, most of them focused in that area. It's the Sheikh Zayed Jabalia Beit Lahia Beit Hanoun area which is in the northern part. We understand from reports from inside Gaza that several private homes have been struck. No word at this point about any fatalities this day.

But the activity has been fairly intense. We've been hearing drones all afternoon. Normally, what we've seen is that there's a lull in the midafternoon, and as the daylight comes to an end, there's another several volleys coming -- of rockets coming out of Gaza.

But as all of that is going on, there has been violence in the West Bank, in the northern city of Nablus in the West Bank, in the Balata refugee camp which is just south of that city. There was an Israeli raid that resulted in the death of two men there according to Palestinian medical sources. Hamas put out a long statement about that. That's significant in the sense that in this current conflict, Israel has focused almost exclusively, in fact, exclusively on striking targets affiliated with Islamic Jihad. Hamas has by and large stayed out of this fight, but it's still very much part of the landscape. Of course, Hamas is the de facto ruler of -- de facto ruler of Gaza, but Israel seems to be focused, as I said, only on Islamic Jihad. The fear is that if Hamas becomes involved, the scope of this violence could be much more intense. Amara, Victor?

WALKER: Yes, that is concerning. Ben Wedeman, thank you.

Turning now to the southern border where communities there say they're seeing fewer-than-expected migrants trying to enter the U.S. after the end of Title 42. And the Biden administration is vowing tougher consequences for migrants who try to enter the country illegally.

BLACKWELL: But U.S. officials still feel that the situation could deteriorate into a crisis. A federal judge blocked the administration from using a policy that would release migrants from U.S. custody on parole. Now, the parole strategy was designed to alleviate overcrowding at border facilities ahead of a potential service.

WALKER: With tens of thousands of migrants reportedly waiting in northern Mexico to cross into the United States, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas says his department desperately needs more resources, and he is urging Congress to do something about the flawed immigration system.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: The two primary constraints are as follows. One, a fundamentally broken immigration system that hasn't been fixed for more than two decades. And we need Congress to act. Two, we need Congress to provide us with the resources that we need, that we requested, and that we haven't received.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: All right, we are live on both sides of the southern border. CNN's Gustavo Valdes is in Juarez, Mexico. But let's talk with Polo Sandoval in El Paso Texas.

[10:05:00]

And Polo, we know officials are bracing for a surge, but instead what we continue to see is a steady stream of migrants. What's your vantage point from there?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So Victor and Amara, no mistake that Friday was certainly less chaotic than what DHS officials had anticipated. In fact, one official with that agency saying that Thursday into Friday there was no, quote, substantial increase in the number of encounters here along the southern border. Standing here in El Paso along this particular stretch of the border, I can tell you that there is no evidence of these kinds of pictures from Friday. So it certainly goes to that point that we've heard from officials, that the surge itself, it actually had been happening days before the lifting of Title 42.

But this certainly will come as some relief for officials on this side of the border that now are tasked with processing the close to 23,000 undocumented people who are still in CBP custody, those that were trying to make that final push towards the U.S. side of the border, they still have to have the hearing. And that's why those asylum officers will be hearing the cases throughout all weekend long.

In terms of what we're hearing from officials here on the ground, I want you to hear from El Paso's mayor as he brought us up to speed yesterday on where things stand.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR OSCAR LEESER, EL PASO, TEXAS: On Monday, we saw about 3,000 people there. And the Border Patrol with the assistance of a lot of agencies went in and handed out handouts to be able to help them register and get processed so they could go into the processing centers and be able to go on to, whether it's shelters, immigration centers, or anything like that, but the numbers have changed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: So will that change be temporary? I think that's yet to be seen. So I think what we will also see in the days ahead at least part of the focus shifts to some of these cities in the interior, cities like Denver, Chicago, Washington, D.C., New York City, where I've been covering this for the last year where many of the people that crossed here, eventually, they don't stay here. They want to head further north, and that's where major American cities are now left wondering what will happen to the number of asylum seekers that have ended up in their communities as well. And that's why you are seeing, in fact, just recently, a team of Democrats, turning to the White House, asking for some sort of humanitarian relief that will give them work authorizations, because though we may see some relief on the border, the numbers in the cities that we just mentioned, those will continue to increase.

BLACKWELL: Yes, the New York City mayor has a plan to put some migrants on buses and send them outside of New York City, as well. Polo Sandoval for us there in Texas, thank you.

Let's go across the border now from El Paso to Juarez in Mexico where CNN's Gustavo Valdes is joining us. What are you seeing there?

GUSTAVO VALDES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What we're seeing is something we did not expect, and that is an empty border. Even the National Guardsmen that were here all week long are long gone. There are no state troopers. There's no Border Patrol. The only sign that something happened here are those two big dumpsters where the migrants were told to drop everything they were carrying as they were being processed into the United States.

Yesterday, we saw very few, a very small number of migrants trying to get in, unsuccessful, because the National Guardsmen were telling them not to risk it. They said that they would be arrested and they would be deported quickly. So we saw a lot of fear on those last migrants that made it to this point.

However, Mexican authorities are saying that now they are concerned that as more migrants are being deported, and many of them might end up in Mexico, they are going to see another surge on this side, because there are also migrants coming from Central America trying to get into the United States. And the question is, what are they going to do next? They were turning themselves in at points like this. Will they now try to find other places, avoid the Border Patrol, and get into the United States in a more difficult situation? That is the next challenge for the Mexican authorities, and perhaps for American cities.

WALKER: Gustavo Valdes and Polo Sandoval, thank you both for your reporting there on the border.

So let's discuss this more. What we're seeing is really an unfolding humanitarian crisis at the southern border. Let's talk with Domingo Garcia about that. He is the president of the nation's oldest Latino Civil Rights group, the league of United Latin American Citizens. First off, sir, thank you so much for joining us. What do you make of what we're seeing or not seeing at the border? Do you expect waves of migrants to come over the next few months now that you have this pandemic-era policy, Title 42, which allowed for the quick removal or deportation of migrants because of the pandemic. That has been lifted as of Thursday night. Why aren't we seeing a surge?

[10:10:02]

DOMINGO GARCIA, PRESIDENT, LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN AMERICAN CITIZENS: I think over the last three years, we've had a pretty steady stream of refugees coming from Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, and Haiti, who are the main sending countries because of the sanctions the U.S. has against the dictators of those country. But the surge, the rhetoric we heard from Abbott and DeSantis and Trump, that there was an invasion, there is no invasion. These are refugees looking for asylum in the United States. and I think that President Biden, Secretary Mayorkas did a great job in providing an orderly process to allow them to legally enter the country so that we don't have illegal entry into the country, which is what many people expected. And I think that's what they've done, kudos. And they have also provided funding for the border cities like El Paso, Brownsville, to have the funding to process these people and give them a transport and get them out of the border as quickly as possible.

WALKER: So your organization has been calling on President Biden for more federal funding to support these nonprofits helping to handle the surge of migrants at the border. And we've been hearing anecdotally from the many people that we have been interviewing that they're running out of shelter space, they're running out of transportation. Do you feel like your calls are being answered?

GARCIA: One of my favorite Biblical quotes is Matthew, "I was hungry, and you gave me food. I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me." That's what the nonprofits, the Catholic charities, LULAC, and other organizations are doing. We are providing people who have nothing. They come with everything on their backs. And these are Christian families, children, many of them. But we don't have the resources, when you're dealing with literally 4,000 or 5,000 people a day.

So we do need additional funding from the federal government. And this is where I think President Biden and Congress needs to come up with bipartisan immigration reform to fix the broken system so you don't see this humanitarian crisis that we're seeing now, and volunteers like ourselves have to step up and help these people.

WALKER: What would be sensible, comprehensive immigration reform, especially knowing that the Democrats have controlled both chambers of Congress before and they failed to pass any immigration reform. What would -- how do you think both sides would be able to find common ground, especially years after Trump being in the office, we saw xenophobia rising?

GARCIA: Well, it's interesting, we haven't had immigration reform since 1986 when President Ronald Reagan signed an immigration reform bill with Speaker Tip O'Neill who was a Democrat. Nowadays, those Reagan and Bush Republicans have been replaced by, like you said, some of this xenophobia, scapegoating, using immigrants to political pinatas to score points. And until reasonable heads come together --

WALKER: OK, what a shame. It looks like we lost Domingo there, but appreciate that conversation. He's the president of the League of United Latin American Citizens. Thank you, Domingo Garcia.

BLACKWELL: There are new reports of explosions in eastern Ukraine this morning in any area occupied by Russian forces. Our team is live in eastern Ukraine as Ukrainian troops are working to recapture the territory taken by the Russians.

Also, an Idaho jury convicted Lori Vallow Daybell in the murder of her children, guilty on all charges. The evidence they considered and what Daybell's family had to say after the verdict.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: Now to Russia's war on Ukraine. As Ukraine prepares for a summer counteroffensive, western nations are supplying the country with more assistance. Germany has just announced it will be sending $3 billion in military hardware to Ukraine, and that includes 30 Leopard tanks and over 200 reconnaissance drones.

BLACKWELL: Right now, President Zelenskyy is working on strengthening ties with Italy. Today he will meet with the Pope and his Italian counterpart.

Early this morning, more explosions were heard in the Russian occupied center of Luhansk. Witnesses say the windows were blown out of many homes, a heavy plume of smoke was seen over the city.

WALKER: It comes just one day after the city's industrial zone was struck by two missiles. Six children were injured in that attack.

Our Sam Kiley is joining us now from southeastern Ukraine. Sam, some Russian bloggers have said these missiles were provided by the U.K. Is there any evidence to back up those claims?

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The short answer is no, at least not yet. There is also reports that those missiles were fired from aircraft over Kramatorsk, which is very close in aviation terms to Luhansk, so that would have been a kind of grotesque waste of the capabilities of the storm shadow cruise missiles that the United Kingdom has given to Ukraine. These are intended for use over 300 miles or so distance. They are designed to fly very low and avoid radar detection, not to be dropped effectively as a guided bomb.

So it's possibly unlikely that they were using British cruise missiles, but the Ukrainians also have their own manufactured long distance missiles, their own cruise missiles, indeed, and our capabilities. So it's not the only type of ordnance that could be used against Luhansk. What is significant there, everybody got the word of the authorities there that those children were injured, is that the industrial zone was hit, and now we've had further attacks overnight.

And I think with these really will be seen as part of the shaping operations ahead of what President Zelenskyy says is a coming offensive, but one that his troops are not quite yet ready to prosecute. But clearly, those extra armaments coming in from Germany will be a significant addition if not to this offensive directly then to reinforcements as the offensive gets under way. Amara?

WALKER: Sam Kiley, thank you.

U.S. officials tell CNN Russia tried to destroy a U.S.-made Patriot air defense system in Ukraine with a hypersonic missile. [10:20:04]

BLACKWELL: The attack failed, and the Ukrainians instead intercepted the missile using the Patriot system. CNN's Oren Liebermann has details for us.

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: It was only last week that we learned of the first known successful use of the Patriot missile battery by Ukraine to intercept the incoming Russian missile. In this case, it was a Kinzhal or "Killjoy" missile which Ukraine first claimed. It was then confirmed by the Pentagon. The Kinzhal missile is a hypersonic missile, essentially an air launched ballistic missile, one of the most advanced and powerful systems we've seen Russia use in its war in Ukraine. And crucially, we've seen it used for the first time during this war.

Well, now we've learned that what Russia was targeting when it fired this Kinzhal missile, and it turns out according to two U.S. officials that Russia was targeting the Patriot missile itself to try to take out one of the most potent and long-range air defense capabilities that Ukraine has, and this just weeks after it arrived in country.

When the U.S. first announced they were sending in Patriots back in December, it was the Kremlin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov who said that Russia would target these, and now we have seen them carry out that promise. But it was a failed attempt. Ukraine was able to detect the incoming threat with the Patriot missiles, that long range radar, showing its potency and detecting the incoming Kinzhal missile. And multiple rockets were fired, or multiple missiles from the Patriot system, rather, were fired, according to the two officials, to intercept the incoming Kinzhal missile, to protect the Patriot system and to keep it online.

The Ukrainians were able to learn the Patriot missile battery, a complex long-range air defense system, much faster than anticipated, only several months, three or four months, instead of a year, to get it into the country quickly and get it up and online.

How is it that Russia was able to find the system? The Patriot uses a very powerful radar to detect threats at a long range. And just as the U.S. or Ukraine can detect Russian radar, Russia can detect western radars and try to target this. Once they have a general sense of where it is, because they can pick up on that radar emission, they can use satellite imagery or other signals and intelligence ways to try to zero in on than that and try to target it, which is what they tried to do with the powerful Kinzhal or Killjoy missile, but Ukraine able to effectively use the Patriot missile system to shoot down that Kinzhal before it was able to hit its target, to hit that Patriot battery and take it offline. That would be a devastating blow since this is one of more powerful and advanced and long-range air defense systems that Ukraine has. Victor and Amara?

WALKER: All right, Oren, thank you.

Still ahead, the man accused of killing a homeless street artist after holding him in a chokehold is now charged with second degree manslaughter. But his lawyers claim it was self-defense. Can they prove their case in court, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:26:55]

WALKER: An Idaho woman has been found guilty of killing her two children and conspiring to kill her husband's ex-wife. Lori Vallow Daybell was charged with murder after her 17-year-old daughter and seven-year-old son went missing in 2019. They were found dead months later in June 2020.

BLACKWELL: Her husband Chad Daybell is also facing charges. He is still awaiting trial. Now, this three-year investigation included bizarre claims of zombie children, apocalyptic religious beliefs. CNN's Camila Bernal explains.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Answer, guilty. Answer, guilty.

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Lori Vallow Daybell stood almost motionless as one guilty verdict after another was announced. She was found guilty on all murder, conspiracy, and grand theft charges.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- unanimous verdict.

BERNAL: The jury's decision closes the book on the monthlong trial for the Idaho mother who prosecutors say was motivated by money, power, and sex to kill her two children and conspire to kill her husband's wife at the time. And while she decided not to testify, her lawyers argue she was innocent.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Listen, just tell people what is happening. There's people around the country praying for your children.

BERNAL: The harrowing case, which involves a tangled web of family deaths and doomsday religious beliefs, began in September of 2019 when two of Vallow Daybell's children from a previous marriage, 16-year-old Tylee Ryan and seven-year-old Joshua, or J.J., were last seen. Shortly afterwards, she married Chad Daybell, whose wife died in her sleep just weeks before Chad and Lori's wedding in Hawaii. When authorities conducted a welfare check on J.J. in November of 2019, police say Vallow Daybell told them her son was with a friend in Arizona. They returned the next day with a search warrant, only to find the couple had vanished.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just tell us where your kids are.

BERNAL: The couple was located in Hawaii, in January of 2020. But J.J. and Tylee's whereabouts remained a mystery. After a months-long search, law enforcement located the remains of the children at Chad Daybell's property in southeast Idaho.

ASSISTANT CHIEF GARY HAGEN, REXBURG POLICE DEPARTMENT: Chad Daybell, who resides at that residence, has also been taken into custody. BERNAL: Daybell and Vallow Daybell were ultimately indicted for murder

in May of 2021. Chad Daybell's trial is being held separately. He's pleaded not guilty.

The couple's apocalyptic religious worldview was a focus throughout the trial. Prosecutors say they believed they were religious figures who used the system of rating people as light or dark.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't get in touch with my kids.

BERNAL: But before the children went missing, Vallow Daybell's estranged husband Charles told police about her beliefs.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She thinks she's a resurrected being and a god.

And he filed for divorce, but prosecutors say the Vallow Daybell's brother, Alex Cox, shot and killed Charles in July of 2019.

[10:30:06]

She's facing a conspiracy to commit murder charge in Arizona in connection with that killing. Cox died in December of 2019.

Hearing the verdict was emotional for many who followed this tragic case, but perhaps none more so than family.

LARRY WOODCOCK, GRANDFATHER OF VALLOW CHILDREN: J.J., I love you. Tylee, papa loves you.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

BERNAL (on camera): And the judge said sentencing would happen in about three months. She could face life in prison. J.J.'s and Tylee's grandfather, he spoke out after the verdict saying that he's going to be there for that sentencing to ask Lori and for what? Now, the defense, they did not comment after the verdict, but the prosecution put out a statement saying they're pleased with this verdict. They also said they couldn't comment on the case because Chad Daybell still hasn't been tried. They did, though, express their commitment to justice for all of these victims. Victor, Amara?

BLACKWELL: Camila, thank you.

A New York man who held a homeless street performer in a fatal chokehold is now out on bail. Daniel Penny surrendered to police on Friday morning, 24s years old, former Marine, he is charged with second degree manslaughter in the death of Jordan Neely earlier this month.

WALKER: CNN's Mark Morales joins us now live now from New York with the very latest. Mark, you were in court. Take us through what happened.

MARK MORALES, CNN REPORTER: Well, he appeared very calm when he walked in. His hands were cuffed behind his back. And of course, prosecutors read the details of this case. And it's important here, because these are significant developments in this case that really struck a nerve in the city. Investigators have been pouring over video of the account, 911 calls, eyewitness interviews. That's how we've gotten here today. And as we mentioned, Penny facing second degree manslaughter charges. In court, prosecutors, they read the details they had in the case. They said that Jordan Neely had gotten on the subway, was making threats, was scaring passengers, and that's when Penny came up from behind him and put him in that chokehold.

Now, Mr. Penny did not enter a plea, that comes later on in the process. For right now, he was just there to face the charges and to give the details of his release, $100,000 bond. He does have to give up his passport, and if he wants to leave New York state at any point, he does have to get permission from the courts.

BLACKWELL: And I know the Neely family's attorney, they don't think this is enough. What else are they saying?

MORALES: They spoke after the hearing, and they were pretty forceful. The point they wanted to make was that Jordan Neely did not have to die. His lawyer spoke afterwards. He said because he acted with indifference, he speaking about Penny, he didn't care about Jordan, he cared about himself. And we can't let that stand. That's not who we are. That's not who we want to be.

BLACKWELL: Mark Morales in New York for us this morning, thank you so much.

Negotiations continue this weekend on a plan to keep America from defaulting on its debt. How that could impact you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:37:27]

WALKER: New bodycam video from the Newport News Police Department in Virginia shows officers responding to Richneck Elementary School on the day that a six-year-old student shot his teacher. The short clips were released during a fallen officer's memorial ceremony, and the video shows bodycam footage from several officers as they guided children to safety on January 6th. It was part of a longer video illustrating the positive impact police have as well as the dangers they face in their communities.

BLACKWELL: In a new social media post, Jamie Foxx's daughter announces that the actor has been out of the hospital for weeks recuperating. Corinne Foxx initially alerted the public on April 11th that her dad was hospitalized in Atlanta after experiencing an undisclosed medical complication. On Wednesday, Foxx also shared a brief message himself expressing his gratitude for the support he received.

WALKER: An advisory panel to the FDA has approved an experimental gene therapy for a rare type of muscular dystrophy called Duchenne. The potential one time treatment is the first to reach the FDA's doorstep, and it could change the way patients with the disease are treated if it's approved. DMD affects about one in 3,500 male births worldwide. Most people with the disease do not survive beyond their 30s. The FDA is expected to make a final decision by the end of the month.

BLACKWELL: Today, the already tense competition between Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is expected to intensify. Both Trump and DeSantis, who could potentially become Trump's top opponent for the Republican nomination next year will head to Iowa with where they'll hold dueling speeches. Both men are vying for the support of the voters in that state, of course, to host the first contest in the Republican primary process. DeSantis was in Illinois yesterday but still has not officially announced that he is running for president.

The White House and congressional staffers are working throughout the weekend to find some compromise on debt negotiations.

WALKER: Both the Treasury Department and the Congressional Budget Office warned the U.S. is at a significant risk for defaulting and that could have catastrophic consequences.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JANET YELLEN, TREASURY SECRETARY: A default on U.S. obligations would produce an economic and financial catastrophe. It would spark a global downturn that would set us back much further. It would also risk undermining U.S. global economic leadership and raise questions about our ability to defend our national security interests.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: CNN's Alayna Treene joining us now from Washington, D.C. Alayna, at least they got the first step accomplished, getting the two sides together to start talking. How are these talks going?

[10:40:07]

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Well, this is day four of the staff level negotiations taking place between the top congressional leaders and the White House as they try and figure out how they can find a compromise to raise the debt limit.

Now, these talks are occurring after a meeting between the top four leaders in Congress and President Biden was postponed on Friday as they're struggling to find some sort of common ground here. And really, these negotiations just began in earnest this past week. Normally a deal like this takes months to come together. And the reality is they don't have months. They have less than 20 days until June 1st. And early June is the deadline that the Treasury Department has set for when the government could default on its debt.

Now the Congressional Budget Office released a report on Friday backing up the Treasury Department's timeline here in saying a default is likely within the first two weeks of June, and this has a lot of leaders on both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue really worried about what's going to happen here. But I am told from people who have been involved in these negotiations that they have made some modest progress. They began to pinpoint some policy areas that they think they could find an agreement on. Those include rescinding unspent COVID relief funds, permitting reform, and spending cuts, which is something that the White House really hasn't wanted to budge on, but increasingly people within the West Wing think that they are going to have to cave on that.

We also heard from President Biden just this morning, he issued a tweet warning of the economic calamity of not passing a deal. He wrote, "Default would erase millions of jobs, trigger a recession, hit retirement accounts, and increase borrowing costs." He also added that this is not an option.

Now, we're going to see these negotiations continue over the weekend and into next week, but really, they need to have a deal in hand in the next few days. Remember, Congress moves very slowly. They still need to draft a bill once a deal is reached, then they need to sell it do both chambers of Congress, and then try to get enough support to pass it. And that is a huge obstacle that they face. But there is still hope that they can get a deal done on time to avoid the first- ever government default.

WALKER: As we laid out earlier, there is so much at stake. Alayna Treene, thank you.

Well, Twitter is getting a new CEO months after current chief Elon Musk promised to step down.

BLACKWELL: Musk tweeted his replacement will be Linda Yaccorino, the now former head of advertising for NBC Universal. CNN's Jon Sarlin has been following this one for us. John, more than the former title, what do we know about Yaccorino?

JON SARLIN, PRODUCER, CNN DIGITAL: So Yaccorino, as you said, is an advertising executive who up until now was working at NBC Universal where she was the chairman of Global Advertising and Partnerships. According to NBC, she oversaw a team of 2,000 people globally. That, remarkably, is larger than Twitter itself, which, according to Elon Musk, now is only around 1,500 employees. That's down around 80 percent from what Elon Musk took over the company.

WALKER: Yes, and we know it has been a really tumultuous time at Twitter. A lot of advertisers dropping off as well. Is there an expectation that we could see a change in direction at the company?

SARLIN: Well, in some ways, this is Twitter looking backwards, right, because we don't know too much about the financials now because Twitter is a private company. But before when Elon Musk took it over, around 90 percent of Twitter's revenue came from advertising. And when Elon Musk took it over, we saw this exodus of advertisers from Twitter. And Elon Musk's solution to that was to double down on Twitter's subscription service. Well, that subscription service has reportedly been a dud. So the hiring of Yaccorino, an advertising executive, is an acknowledgment from Twitter and Elon Musk that advertising is core to Twitter's business.

WALKER: Jon Sarlin, we will be watching this with you. Thank you very much.

Still ahead, stores like Walmart, Starbucks, Nordstrom, even Whole Foods are closing in big cities. Some have pointing to crime as a reason for their exits. Why it's more complicated than that, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:48:37]

BLACKWELL: Women should be getting mammograms starting at the age of 40 and not 50. That's according to recommendations from a National Health Panel. They say more women are getting breast cancer in their 40s.

WALKER: A U.S. preventative services task force says the earlier screenings could potentially save thousands of lives. CNN's Jacqueline Howard takes a closer look at the new guidance.

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: For women at average risk, the task force sees more benefits than risks for them to start mammograms at age 40. This is a draft update. It's available for public comment from now through June 5th. But based on current incident rates, it is estimated that 12.9 percent of women born in the United States today will develop breast cancer at some time during their lives. And it's important to catch these cancers early. That gives a better chance of survival.

Now meanwhile, this update does not change recommendations for women at high risk of getting breast cancer. Those women should still keep in contact with their doctors for what's best for them. But for all of us, for all women, it's important to discuss with our doctors our family history of cancer, whether you have dense breasts. Ask for a breast exam at your next appointment and talk to your doctors about when to start screening for you based on your own risk factors and how often. Back to you.

[10:50:00]

WALKER: Jacqueline Howard, thank you.

Well, there's been a lot of focus on crime pushing out retailers from big cities. Just two weeks ago, Nordstrom announced it is closing both of is stores in downtown San Francisco. But it's not just crime in some areas. Experts say retail stores are facing a lot of different headwinds.

BLACKWELL: CNN's Nathaniel Meyersohn joins us now. So what is driving these stores out, beyond some of the crime?

NATHANIEL MEYERSOHN, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: Right, Victor. So it's not just crime pushing retailers out. It's remote work which has crushed downtowns. Fewer people going to office buildings. Online shopping has also taken a big toll on these stores. Fewer people buying in stores, more online.

And then higher rents. These cities have some of the highest retail rents in the country. San Francisco, double the national average. Also much higher rents in Chicago, New York, and these other cities. And then retailers have overexpanded the past several years. Think about CVS. There's a CVS on basically every corner of the country. And it is not just CVS closing stores in cities. They're closing 900 stores around the country.

BLACKWELL: So also, we're hearing that the buffet line is crowded again. What is happening there?

MEYERSOHN: Yes, so think back to early in the pandemic. It just crushed all you can eat buffets, several of them filed for bankruptcy. Nobody wanted to share their serving spoons and food with other people. But now all you can eat buffets have made a comeback. Visits to Golden Corral, Pizza Ranch, and some of the other leading buffet chains, up about 125 percent in March from their January 2021 levels. And it is really being driven by folks looking for value, getting hit by inflation, and trying to find cheaper prices.

BLACKWELL: Pizza Ranch, you say.

WALKER: I don't know.

BLACKWELL: I learn something every week on this show. Nathaniel Meyersohn, thank you so much.

WALKER: I know Golden Corral.

BLACKWELL: I do know that.

Today, millions across the Midwest are facing a severe weather threat. Certainly, let's focus in on Texas, though. A big storm is expected to hit parts of that state.

WALKER: Yes, and impact a lot of the migrants who are amassed there. Let's bring in CNN's Allison Chinchar with more. Hi, Allison.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, that's right. So we've got two different areas. You've got the area in the Midwest that you mentioned, but we also have this area farther down to the south. And the thing to note, too, is that not only is flooding going to be a concern here, but it is a tremendous amount of lighting. You've got a lot of strong and even severe thunderstorms possible today across not only Texas but Oklahoma, areas of Arkansas and Louisiana, and then yes, also the separate area in the Midwest. Just in the last 24 hours, we've already seen some pretty significant rainfall amounts, that Del Rio down to Laredo area already picking up several inches, same thing with points along southern Texas. And then it's going to rain even more today.

And when you start factoring in that cumulative amount, that's why you've got the flood watches in effect, because it is not just rain yesterday. More rain today, and even additional rain expected tomorrow. That's going to saturate the ground, but you also have the potential for damaging winds, and especially some hail for a lot of the same areas as we go through multiple rounds of storms today and tomorrow.

WALKER: All right, Allison Chinchar, thank you.

So if you've got $130,000 dollars in your pocket, that is the price tag to eat a one Michelin star level meal, but it would be on the edge of space if the French company Zephalto gets its way.

BLACKWELL: So pre-reservation tickets are now available for trips in a pressurized capsule dubbed Celeste, attached to a stratospheric balloon. Celeste will climb to an altitude of just over 15 miles where guests can marvel at the earth and the stars and be wined and dined in style. No loss of gravity, so all of the food is on the place. They're now selling slots for mid-2025, and later.

I don't know what a pre-reservation is, that's the first thing.

WALKER: Yes, I don't know what that means. What about just a reservation?

BLACKWELL: If I'm spending $130,000, I want a reservation, I want a full wine list pairing, right?

WALKER: Of course, yes.

BLACKWELL: I want the aperitif. I want all of the things, and I have dietary restrictions. Get it all right for 130.

WALKER: They better, for that price tag, you're right. Although you would have to pay me to go to close to space, because I'm not up for that.

Thanks are watching, everyone. Much more ahead in the next hour of CNN Newsroom. Fredricka Whitfield is up next. But first.

BLACKWELL: Diners sitting halfway around the world might soon be able to enjoy a New York pizza baker's special, or a pair of chef signature dish served up fresh to their homes. Vanessa Yurkevich has today's "Innovate."

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Nikhil Abraham is on a mission to recreate some of the world`s finest dishes with some computerized help.

NIKHIL ABRAHAM, CLOUDCHEF CO-FOUNDER, CEO: What we did was build technology where a chef can come into one of our kitchens, be it from your favorite restaurant in Paris or even from your grandmother. And we can then recreate this recipe without the chef.

[10:55:10]

YURKEVICH: Abraham and his co-founders developed this specialized software and are putting it to use in a new startup kitchen called CloudChef.

ABRAHAM: We start with Indian food because we were missing some of our favorite restaurants from back home.

YURKEVICH: Chef Annika (ph) Golruli (ph) is testing the technology. As she cooks, sensors record the entire process, breaking it down into thousands of data points.

ABRAHAM: You have cameras looking at the contents of the pan, looking at colors, in some cases, textures. There are infrared cameras figuring out how hot each individual item is.

YURKEVICH: After her dish is recorded, it can be reproduced at any of the sensor powered stations. And the results --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't taste a difference in it. Literally everything is duplicated.

YURKEVICH: Chefs receive a royalty every time one of their dishes is ordered. Right now, CloudChef has dishes from Michelin starred chefs available for pickup and delivery in Palo Alto, California. But they are looking to expand their kitchens and menus soon by bringing the world's greatest cuisine to your home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)