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Unrest In France Sparked By Police Shooting Of Teen; Baltimore Police Brief Media On Mass Shooting; Russian Deals With Fallout From Prigozhin's Mutiny; 719 People Detained In France On 5th Night Of Unrest; Bus With Migrants Arrives In Los Angeles From Texas. Aired 5- 6a ET

Aired July 02, 2023 - 05:00   ET

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

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[05:00:29]

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and all around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. Ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

We're live in France with a look at another night of protest after the fatal police shooting of a teenager. This is a French Mayor's home was attacked overnight.

And we already knew about Donald Trump's call to Georgia trying to overturn the 2020 election results in that state. Well, now we're learning about a different phone call with the governor of Arizona.

And an unrelenting heat wave scorching parts of the U.S. this holiday weekend. This is millions of Americans are taking to the skies on roads to celebrate. What's in store for this Fourth of July weekend. That's ahead tonight.

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Kim Brunhuber.

BRUNHUBER: Might well have those stories in a moment but first, we're following police reports of a mass shooting in southern Baltimore. Now, the exact number of casualties is still unclear, but it appears there are multiple fatalities and dozens of people wounded. We are expecting a news conference and we'll bring you the latest details as soon as we get them.

We turn now to France where an officials home has reportedly been attacked during nationwide protests against the fatal police shooting of a teenager. The Mayor of L'Hay-les-Roses says a group of people rammed a car into his residence injuring his wife and one of his children. It happened as demonstrations raged across the country for a fifth straight night.

Police say they detained more than 700 people, some of whom set fires, overturned cars and damaged buildings. The interior minister says several areas were reinforced with extra security to discourage more violence. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GERALD DARMANIN, FRENCH INTERIOR MINISTER: And I think that everyone has understood that the state will not back down, I think, and let me say here that the message of responsibility over you given to parents is very important.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: All right, let's get more now from Catherine Norris Trent, a Senior Correspondent for France 24. So, first of all, what's the latest on this alleged attack on the mayor?

CATHERINE NORRIS TRENT, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, FRANCE 24: Well, the latest we're hearing, Kim, is that prosecutors have now opened a formal investigation into attempted murder after this attack, which is shocking a lot of people in France as they're waking up this Sunday. Images of extreme violence coming out of this town of L'Hay-les-Roses which is a suburb just south of Paris.

So it seems that the mayor's family, the mayor of that town, his family was inside, his wife and his two young children went around 1:30 a.m. a car rammed into the building. The prosecutors say they believe that that was to try and burn it down and in fact pictures of -- of a huge blaze at the property were broadcast. The family managed to escape but his wife was injured. We believe her leg was fractured and one of the children was injured too. So the mayor of that town has said he is shocked by the violence. Political reaction coming out to has been of people very shocked to hear of those events.

We've seen in previous nights, town halls and city halls across France coming under attack basically in these riots with been set on fire outside, vehicle set on fire, angry protesters or rioters coming to those symbols of the French state of French authority. But this is an attack on seemingly on his family. And we've had reactions for example from Marine Le Pen, the leader of the far-right national rally party saying that a new milestone has been reached in France. So there is increasing pressure on authorities to crack down on the violence.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah, pressure on authorities and also on French President Emmanuel Macron to do some more, right?

NORRIS TRENT: Absolutely. Because this has carried on now since Tuesday when the 17-year-old boy was shot dead during a traffic stop by police in a suburb of Paris. And since then, it has spiraled to not only the suburbs of Paris, of course, but cities and towns right across France. So people are comparing this to the weeks of violence that France saw back in 2005 which was extremely hard for authorities to put down.

[05:05:08]

Now, Emmanuel Macron has cancelled, he cut short his E.U. trip in Brussels. He was due to hold a press conference after a European Union summit. And now he has had to cancel a state visit to Germany which he was due to be starting this Sunday. He is considering bringing into place a state of emergency for the moment that is not the case. There are local curfews put in place in some towns and cities across France. And 45,000 police officers have been drafted in to try and contain the violence some 7000 police officers in the Paris region alone. But there are a lot of people calling for more action and saying that this needs to be contained fast.

BRUNHUBER: All right, thanks so much, Catherine Norris Trent, appreciate it.

And later this hour, we'll discuss how the unrest in France compares to the 2020 U.S. protests over the death of George Floyd. That's coming up in an interview with journalist and filmmaker Rokhaya Diallo.

Parts of the U.S. are expecting extreme and in some cases dangerous heat for the July 4 holiday weekend. In central California, Southern Nevada and southwestern Arizona. Temperatures could soar to up to 110 degrees and up to 120 in desert areas.

All right, we're going to bring you some breaking news. Now, we're following police reports of a mass shooting in southern Baltimore. Now, the exact number of casualties is still unclear, but it appears there are multiple fatalities and dozens of people wounded. Police are addressing the media now. Let's listen in.

WORLEY: -- this morning. Officers received numerous calls for shooting in 800 Gretna Court. Upon officers arrival we located multiple victims suffering from gunshot victim, gunshot wounds. We located one female adult deceased on the scene, nine additional victims were transported from the location to area hospitals.

Additionally, we had 20 other victims walk into hospitals throughout the region. Our detectives are currently working an extensive crime scene. The two deceased victims we have are both adults. We have three other victims who are in critical condition. Our hearts and prayers are going out to the families, sending out to the families and friends of these victims as well as the community and our entire city.

This is an extensive crime scene. Our detectors is going to be here quite a while. If anyone saw anything or knows anything, please call 911 or call local Metro Crimestoppers, 1-866-7LOCK-UP. We have members of our fire department officer emergency management, as well as other jurisdictions working us -- working with us to try to determine a motive. Again, please call 1-866-7LOCK-UP. And at this time, I'll turn it over to Mayor Scott.

BRANDON SCOTT, BALTIMORE MAYOR: Thank you, Mr. Commissioner. This morning, all of Baltimore is grieving the lives that we lost here and our hearts are with all those who are still recovering at the result of this mass shooting. As you heard, this investigation is ongoing and a homicide detective will continue to work until they find out what happened here. But what we do know this morning, and this was the reckless, cowardly act that happened here. And that has permanently altered many lives and cost to people their lives. And I want those who are responsible to hear me, hear me very clearly, we will not stop until we find you. And we will find you.

Until then, I hope with every single breath that you take that you think about the lives that you took. And you think about the lives that you're impacted here tonight. We're also asking that anyone that knows anyone, anything about what happened here, anything about this mass shooting to come forward with any piece of information, treat this as if it were your family and how you would want people to treat it, if you were mourning. If this was your neighborhood. If this was an event in your community that this happened that we want you to treat it that way because that's how we have to treat each other as Baltimoreans.

We are mobilizing every resource in my power to embrace this community and support this community through this unspeakable tragedy. MONSE will be conducted in a coordinated neighborhood in response in every single city agency will be in Brooklyn, to support this community are beginning later this morning.

I want to again express that this is an absolute tragedy that did not have to happen. It again highlights the impacts in the need to deal with the over proliferation of illegal guns on our streets, and the ability for those who should not have them to get their hands on them. And also the need for accountability on each and every level when you're dealing with guns and gun violence. And again, we will not stop until we find those cowards, who decided to just shoot dozens of people, causing two people to lose their lives and we're going to be here until we find them, until we hold them accountable, until they are held accountable for the actions that they took. Because we cannot rest until they do so.

[05:10:16]

And again, our thoughts and prayers are with their entire community now, entire city. Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right, at this time, we'll take a few questions. We're going to start over this way and make our way over. One question for outlets. And we'll start with 575.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Commissioner, just to be clear, right now there's no suspect or suspects?

WORLEY: We are actively reviewing video, talking to possible witnesses to try to identify suspects.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mayor told us there was some sort of blockchain already going on to that kind of idea of what was going on at the time it does not hold it?

WORLEY: Yes, there was a block party happening inside right on 800 Gretna Court.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you give us the total number of injuries and total number of casualties just so we have a concrete number? WORLEY: Sure. It's a total of 30 victims, 28 of them are non-fatal at this point. Three are critical, and two have been pronounced deceased.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right, thank you guys.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.

BRUNHUBER: All right. We're listening there to Baltimore's Police Commissioner and Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott after a mass shooting in southern Baltimore. They said two people are dead, many more injured, including three people in critical condition. Police say they're still trying to identify suspects and they're looking for a motive. We'll be right back.

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[05:15:29]

BRUNHUBER: The Trump campaign is pushing back against reporting that the former president targeted Arizona in his effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Donald Trump lost the state to Joe Biden by fewer than 11,000 votes. A source tells CNN, the current Republican front runner tried to push then Arizona Governor Doug Ducey to help overturn his loss.

The source says, Trump called Ducey and pressured him to find fraud. Sources also say Trump leaned on Vice President Mike Pence to talk to Ducey as well. A Trump spokesperson responded saying, "These witch- hunts are designed to interfere and meddle in the 2024 election in an attempt to prevent President Trump from returning to the White House." CNN's Jeremy Herb has been digging into this new revelation and as more details from New York.

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JEREMY HERB, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Sources telling CNN new details about President Trump's efforts to pressure then Arizona Governor Doug Ducey after the 2020 election. President Trump had -- have phone call with Governor Ducey that we previously knew about, but Governor Ducey had not shared details about what President Trump told him.

Now, sources tell CNN that President Trump pressured the Governor to try to find enough fraud in the state to overturn the election in Arizona. Sources also tell CNN new details that President Trump tried to enlist his Vice President Mike Pence in this effort. Vice President Pence he called Governor Ducey several times after the 2020 election to discuss the election. But a source tells CNN that Vice President Pence did not follow through with a request to pressure the Governor. This all comes as Special Counsel Jack Smith is ramping up his investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election, including some of those efforts by the President and his allies to reach out to state officials.

Now, the Governor's spokesperson he downplayed the significance of this call to us saying in a statement to CNN, frankly, nothing here is new nor is it news to anyone following this issue the last two years. Governor Ducey defended the results of Arizona's 2020 election. He certified the election, and he made it clear that the certification provided a trigger for credible complaints backed by evidence to be brought forward. None were ever brought forward."

Now, the spokesman also told CNN that the Special Counsel's Office has not reached out to Governor Ducey to set up an interview and to talk about this call. The Special Counsel dinner interview this week, another state official Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, about the call he had with President Trump in 2021 about finding enough votes for the President to win the election in that state. Jeremy Herb, CNN New York.

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BRUNHUBER: Ukraine is claiming success in the latest Russian strike on the capital, Kyiv. Officials say Russia fired a barrage of missiles and Iranian made drones overnight but Ukrainian air defenses at a perfect score shooting them down.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Wagner mercenaries have suffered enormous losses during the war. He says Ukrainian troops have killed 21,000 of them and left 80,000 more wounded. Zelenskyy spoke after meeting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Saturday. Now, CNN can't verify those claims about the numbers injured. So for more CNN Correspondent Scott McLean joins us from London. So first, Scott, let's start with those attacks on Kyiv, what more are we learning?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, as you mentioned, Kim, the Ukrainians say they had a perfect score in shooting down eight Iranian made Shahed drones and three caliber cruise missiles. These are long range weapons either fired from occupied parts of southeastern Ukraine or from the Black Sea as well. And interestingly enough, the Ukrainian Air Force says that this is the first time in 12 days that drones have been used to fire at the Capitol.

What is also unusual is the fact that all of them were shot down, which is why the Ukrainians had been pushing for more air defense for their skies because President Zelenskyy said last month that they simply do not have despite what they've had been given from the west already, they do not have enough air defense systems to protect both cities and also troops on the front lines.

And Zelenskyy, as you mentioned, also met with Pedro Sanchez, yesterday, the Spanish Prime Minister and there were some headlines that come -- came out of that, including the extraordinary claim that you mentioned that 21,000 Wagner mercenaries were killed along with 80,000 injured in eastern Ukraine.

Now, CNN can't verify that kind of a number. But Zelenskyy did go on to say that look the insurrection attempt in Russia is definitely weakening Russia on the front lines and he says that Ukraine has to take advantage of that.

[05:20:08] But he also seemed to preempt some criticism of the speed at which the Ukrainians are moving forward with their counter offensive saying that look, unlike what he describes as the cannon fodder of Wagner mercenaries, Ukrainians have to be much more careful with their own moves along the heavily mined front lines, because they value every single life.

One of the thing that I thought was interesting and worth pointing out from that press conference, Kim, is that, President Zelenskyy was asked whether or not he thinks that he is the person in the world who is most at in danger right now. And he said, well, no, because he thinks that Vladimir Putin is much more in danger than he is because from his vantage point, it's only the Russians that are interested in killing him. He says that the whole world would like to kill Putin. Kim?

BRUNHUBER: Yeah, interesting way to put that. And then, so Scott, in the spirit of never letting a serious crisis go to waste, the CIA here saying the unrest in Russia could be seen as an opportunity for them to take us through that.

MCLEAN: Yeah, a recruiting opportunity is something that they have made clear in the past this disillusionment with the Russian government may actually help them and they say that there are already contacts coming in. And they tried to really bolster their efforts a few weeks ago when they made this video, very slickly produced, very dramatic video, that they posted to their telegram account, which appeals to the Russian sense of patriotism and then directs Russians to the way to contact the CIA anonymously, securely through the dark web.

And CIA Director Bill Burns spoke in England yesterday, gave a speech, where he said that that video has been viewed two and a half million times in the very first week since it was put out a few weeks ago. And here's what he said about why he believes this is such an opportunity for the CIA to recruit within Russia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL BURNS, CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY DIRECTOR: Disaffection with the war will continue to gnaw away at the Russian leadership beneath the steady diet of state propaganda, and practiced repression. That disaffection creates a once in a generation opportunity for us at CIA, at our core, a human intelligence service. We're not letting it go to waste.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCLEAN: Obviously, not saying how many they've recruited, thus far, what industries that they work at, but the CIA has previously said that they want to recruit people in industries like finance, tech or cyber. I should also mention, Kim, that according to a U.S. official, Bill Burns also reached out to his Russian counterpart, the head of the Foreign Intelligence Service Sergey Naryshkin to say that the U.S. had nothing to do with the insurrection in Russia that we saw a few weeks ago. We have seen previously American diplomatic efforts to do the same with their Russian counterparts with a similar message. The Kremlin, though, has yet to comment on this.

BRUNHUBER: All right, thanks so much, Scott McLean in London, appreciate it.

So for more analysis, we're joined by Nigel Gould-Davies, Senior fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. And he's also a former British Ambassador to Belarus. Thanks so much for being here with us. So first of all, CNN spoke with you, you know, what -- over a week ago, I guess is all of this, the Wagner insurrection was unfolding. Could you ever have guessed that this was how it would all play out?

NIGEL GOULD-DAVIES, SENIOR FELLOW, INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES: The course of events of the past week has been extremely unpredictable and there's still a great deal. We don't know about them. And in particular, the circumstances in which the acute crisis was suddenly diffused. A bargain appears to have been struck under conditions of extreme pressure on all sides to allow Prigozhin to go to Belarus. And maybe we can talk a bit more about that.

But what's clear is that this is a tectonic moment in Russian history. And even if the immediate threat to the Kremlin has been averted, the shockwaves of it continued to spread out across Russia, and to sow deep anxiety and unease among Russian elites in particular. And if there's at least one really important ongoing strand of this, which is clearly not resolved yet, it's the question of how much further this went than Prigozhin and Wagner, specifically, the suspicion that others are even closer to Putin may have been involved. And the fact that General Surovikin has been detained, appears being questioned for several days now, suggest that this plot, all this plan went further.

BRUNHUBER: Do you get the sense that all this unease that you're talking about will result in consequences for Putin?

[05:25:00]

GOULD-DAVIES: In the short-term his position is secure. There is no other Wagner like threat to him out there. There are other so-called Private Military companies, but none with the resources, understanding that Wagner did. I think the question it poses in the minds of many elites now, more insistently than ever is whether Putin is really the person that they still want around. He has demonstrated profound misjudgment in allowing the situation to -- to arise in the first place. Prigozhin was entirely Putin's creation, so outside force, yield everything to -- to Putin's patronage, and then turned-on Putin away, Putin didn't realize. So it demonstrates just how out of touch he is.

In addition to that, tensions are intensifying within the elite between the true hardliners even harder than Putin, who want this war to be prosecuted in a truly ruthless and unhindered way. And the majority of those who think this will actually has been a bad idea from the start, and they'd rather start sooner rather than later.

BRUNHUBER: So turning down to the role that Belarusian, Lukashenko played here, I mean, Lukashenko is viewed as a pariah by the West, he and his country have been hit increasingly by sanctions from the U.S. and other countries. So how should the West react if Wagner mercenaries do set up shop on Ukraine's northern flank and that much closer to NATO countries?

GOULD-DAVIES: Yeah, I still think that decisions are being made in the Kremlin about the future of Wagner forces. How far they will be folded into which -- which forces. There's some suggestion that it might be some of them in Belarus might be absorbed into Belarus's regular armed forces. And of course, Belarus is a co-belligerent, but not yet a co combatant in the war, it hasn't sent its own forces directly to fight against Ukraine. Those preside -- provide all sorts of military services for Russia.

But if in whatever way, and whatever form a critical mass of the Wagner -- current or former Wagner forces were permanently located in Belarus, that would create the potential new worry of another axis of attack from Ukraine's north down into -- much closer to say to Kyiv or even Ukraine's western border than the fighting that's currently going on. And the Russian regular forces did in fact, mount such an attack at the beginning of the war itself, it would be an unwelcome development for Ukraine, of course, if this threat further to the west and further to the north would be renewed.

BRUNHUBER: All right, I really appreciate your expertise on this Nigel Gould-Davies, thanks so much for talking to us.

France could face a national reckoning after a person of color was killed by police. Ahead, we'll discuss how the death of Nahel Merzouk is fueling a social movement which has drawn comparisons to the George Floyd protests of 2020 and the rioter strike which has paralyzed some movie and television productions for as long as two months could get some backing from another major Hollywood union. Stay with us.

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[05:31:59]

BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and all around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber, This is CNN NEWSROOM. I want to get back to one of our top stories this hour.

In France, more than 700 people have been detained after a fifth night of protests sparked by the fatal police shooting of a 17-year-old boy Nahel Merzouk, who is of North African descent was killed last week during a traffic stop. The tragedy has sparked public outrage against the police who have been accused of systemic racism. Authorities have also faced criticism after witnesses and surveillance video contradicted the official narrative of the shooting similar to the George Floyd case here in the U.S.

Weeks after Floyd was killed in 2020, additional information was released about the agonizing moments around his death. This included graphic images which show the nine minutes and 29 seconds that Police Officer Derek Chauvin held Floyd to the payment with his knee on Floyd's neck, similar to Nahel in France, Floyd's death led to widespread protests and sparked a national conversation about race, police brutality, and social injustice.

And joining me now from Paris is writer, journalist and filmmaker Rokhaya Diallo. Thank you so much for being here with us. So first of all, just what do you make of the protests and also how the police have dealt with the protesters so far?

ROKHAYA DIALLO, JOURNALIST: Like, first of all, what I want to say is that the protests are the result of a process which is connected to systemic racism and a way of operating in the French police that targeted -- that targets, mostly people of color, young men, especially young people of color. So the protests are echoing sense of despair, a sense of outrage that has been a present among that population for a long time. It has started very, very vividly, on Wednesday, because many people, many of those young people think that they could have been Nahel and that's why they are so angry.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah. And that sensation will be familiar to many African Americans here. But just to contrast, your -- I mean, the language used by the largest police union in a statement, they said they were, "at war with savage hordes" and called the protesters, vermin. I mean, you know, here if the police said that, I mean, you'd say they were saying the quiet part out loud, what does it say about relations between the police and the community that they would openly use that kind of language?

DIALLO: That tells a lot about the sense of impunity, the disrespect that they have towards certain groups, and the fact that they can openly use a colonial vocabulary to speak about the population that the populations that are supposed to protect, and I would like to draw your attention to the fact that when Nahel was killed, a first statement was published by one of -- another union of the police who congratulated the cop for killing 17 teenager.

[05:35:06]

So the -- that tells -- that informs a lot about how the police perceives the population. And why that population is so outraged is because they know that they're not considered as fully citizens, they are treated as second class citizens. And that's why the police can openly speak about them as if they were still colonized. And as if they were animals to tame.

BRUNHUBER: Now, some of your work has involved comparing American and French views of race, you know, officially, as you know, race and ethnicity are treated very differently here than in France, France prides itself in on at least pretending to be colorblind, but some say that official that -- that official policy just makes them sort of blind to the problems of race that are -- that are very real.

DIALLO: Yes, actually, colorblindness is also a tool of racism, it's a very beautiful idea, the fact that we are all the same, but as great as race has -- is like racism is deeply rooted into French history. It's -- it operates people who are not white are still -- you know, mistreated by the police, by an institution. They don't have the same opportunities. So being blind to their racial position is being blind to their experience. And I think that that ideology of universalism of colorblindness is

part of the larger -- larger denial about racism in France. And that's also for -- for France -- were to get away with something that also happened here. What I hear the most when we speak -- when I try to address race in France, is that I'm importing something that doesn't belong to France. And that goes to the U.S. And it's a narrative that France tells to itself that we do not have any problem with race.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah. But obviously, that's clearly not true. Now, here in the U.S., the killing of George Floyd became a transformational moment for the country in many ways. Do you expect this to be similar in France?

DIALLO: I'm not so sure, I think that there is still a divide. And, for example, the U.N. released a statement a couple of days ago to say that French has to deal with its profound problem with racism. And that statement was dismissed by the French government telling that there was no problem of racism in the police. So I think that the country is still not ready to address the problem of race. People who are affected by racism know much about the fact that racism is so much present.

But the institution and the larger white population still prefer to choose the comfort of denial. And that doesn't help. I think that we need a real moment of recording of the fact that -- that history, that legacy of slavery and colonialism has very, very serious consequences on the lives of people who live today and who are not -- who -- who -- whose ancestors were enslaved or colonized.

BRUNHUBER: Finally, want to circle back to the protests. Some French politicians have been calling for harsher crackdowns, other people fear that if the riots become more violent, they might do more harm to the cause than good. Where do you see things headed?

DIALLO: What I can say is that I understand the reasons of rage and of anger. Of course, I'm saddened by the fact that they're destroyed their own neighborhoods, but at the same time, if it wasn't for those uprisings, wouldn't we be talking about what happened tonight? And I don't think so. I think that those young people know that the only way to attract attention to them and to what has happened to one of them, is to make noise.

And I don't know if it's the best way, but it's one of the ways and it's -- it's the only way that I have found to be -- to be listened to because it's not the first time that it happened. It happened 18 years ago. And there was, you know, there were three weeks of uprising, it also happened 40 years ago. And still have the same problem, the same kind of violence, the same kind of death, still take place and there is no political response.

So I think that as long as the systemic problem is not addressed, the same kind of -- of response from people in the streets will -- will happen because -- because we have not heard the authorities telling that they will have a will -- that have a real political will to transform the police force and to make it, get rid of racism.

[05:40:08]

BRUNHUBER: One can only hope that this will result in meaningful change. I really appreciate your perspectives Rokhaya Diallo. Thanks so much for speaking with us.

DIALLO: Thank you for having me.

BRUNHUBER: The cries for democracy continue in Israel. Tens of thousands took to the streets yet again to protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has proposed judicial reforms. The demonstrations are now in their 26th consecutive week and come days after lawmakers began debating the bill that would limit the Supreme Court's powers. Protesters throng the heart of capital Tel Aviv, waving Israeli flags and chanting democracy.

Just days ago, Netanyahu said he dropped the most controversial aspects of the plan, which would allow lawmakers to overturn Supreme Court rulings, but critics say the new bill would still open the door to corruption and weaken Israel's democracy.

All right, still to come, another busload of migrants has been sent from Texas to Los Angeles in a callous political move. What L.A. officials are saying, that's a head.

Plus, thousands of hotel workers are set to go on strike this holiday weekend in California. Just ahead, we'll details of their key demands. Please stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: Another bus carrying dozens of migrants including 11 children arrived in Los Angeles from Texas on Saturday. It's the second such transport to the city in recent weeks, funded by the state of Texas. L.A. Mayor's office says they weren't formally notified of the arrivals. Republican governors had been sending migrants to several democratic led states to protest the Biden administration's policies, which they say is led to an immigration crisis at the border. Authorities say their migrant system is already backlog. Listen to this.

[05:45:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LINDSAY TOCZYLOWSKI, EXEC. DIR. IMMIGRANT DEFENDERS LAW CENTER: So our immigration court system is incredibly backlogged in Los Angeles. There's nearly 100,000 open cases and because of that court dates can be pushed out. The first court date can be several months from now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: The Screen Actors Guild, which represents 160,000 actors is delaying plans to go on strike against the major Hollywood studios and streaming services. The Guild announced an extension of contract negotiations with the studios to July 12. Just hours before the contract was set to expire on Friday night, the Guild's members had overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike. About 11,000 members of the Writers Guild of America have been on strike for two months, bring production of movies and television shows to a halt. If the actress follows suits in going on strike, it could stall most remaining productions.

Dozens of major hotels in California are bracing for workers strike this holiday weekend. Thousands of staff from more than 60 hotels are expected to walk off in the push for better wages. Some of the big names likely to be affected are JW Marriott, Beverly Hilton, and Sheraton Grand. CNN's Camila Bernal has more.

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CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is significant because we are talking about 15,000 hotel workers. These are the people that greet you when you get to the hotel, the people that are behind the scenes that are cooking and cleaning. And they have a number of demands. They're of course asking for higher wages and better pensions. Specifically, they're asking for a $5 an hour increase.

But they're also asking for better health benefits for safer workloads. And they're also focused on a housing fund. And part of the reason is that the union says that a lot of the employees the workers cannot live in the areas where the hotels are, where they work. They're pointing to members who are having to commute two, three hours a day just to get to where they work. And so they say this is making it extremely difficult for them. And I want you to listen to what one of the union members says about being an essential worker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: During the pandemic, we were called essential workers. Now there's no pandemic, employers think we are not essential anymore, and they think they can run without us. But we all know that's not true.

BERNAL: And a person familiar with management plans has told us that the hotel's plan just stay open, that they offered a $2.50 cent increase. We are waiting to hear from both sides in terms of an update on those negotiations and those numbers. But there is this notion on the part of the hotels that it is L.A. city leaders who should be focused on affordability here. Camila Bernal, CNN, Los Angeles.

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BRUNHUBER: The Atlanta Police Academy is the apparent target of arsonists. On Saturday, a number of motorcycles were set on fire and after the flames were extinguished, firefighters discovered several incendiary devices.

Police vehicles were vandalized in another part of the city. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp issued a statement saying, "These attacks on public safety resources are outrageous and completely inexcusable. The plan destruction of property and attempted use of explosive devices put both wives and community assets in danger." All right, still ahead. Number one NBA draft pick, Victor Wembanyama,

is officially on his new team. CNN's sports Carolyn Manno joins me live look at when we can see him on the court. That's coming up.

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[05:52:14]

BRUNHUBER: French phenom Victor Wembanyama is officially part of the San Antonio Spurs now. CNN's Carolyn Manno joins us from New York with more. So Carolyn, so much excitement and anticipation. I mean, when can we actually see him take the court with his teammates?

CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Kim, he said he spent more time with the media than he's actually spent on the court since he's been in the United States. But the hype around the 19-year-old top profile pic has just been so overwhelming and it's going to grow to a fever pitch when he does step on the court for the first time, expected next week at the Las Vegas Summer League, so a couple days away.

But before that can happen, he had to take care of business as in signing his brand-new contract with the Spurs, terms of the deal not disclosed. But it was previously reported by Forbes that Wemb was expected to earn around 2.2 million in his rookie season. Remains to be seen how much action he's actually going to see on the floor in Vegas considering his season in France just wrapped up a couple of days ago but he says he's excited about what's coming next.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICTOR WEMBANYAMA, SAN ANTONIO SPURS CENTER: I'm glad this is over now and I can focus on basketball, focus it. I don't know how -- how it works yet, don't know how many minutes I'm going to play. But I'm not -- I'm not going to have a big role. And it's going to be intense. And yeah, I can't wait to try to wear that Spurs jersey for the first time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MANNO: Everybody will be watching that's for sure. In free agency news, it looks like Damian Lillard will be putting on a different Jersey next season. Agent Aaron Goodwin confirming to CNN that the seventh time all-star has requested a trade. Lillard spent the first 11 seasons of his career in Portland. This was a huge story going into free agency. He ranks first in Blazers history in both points and three pointers second in assists. And according to Goodwin, Lillard is hoping to take his talents to South Beach and play with the Miami Heat, that is the preferred destination.

In the meantime, soccer fans in Miami are holding their breath in anticipation over the arrival of arguably the greatest player of all time, Messi, whose contract with Paris Saint-Germain ran out on Friday. He has verbally agreed to join Inter Miami but still hasn't put pen to paper yet, so projected to make his debut on July 21. But the demand for anything with his name on it is already sky-high, T- shirts are flying off the shelves, but his official Jersey unavailable for now. So, we'll wait and see.

And watch this, IndyCar driver Simon Pagenaud, walking away unharmed from this terrifying wreck during IndyCar practice on Saturday. His car rolling seven times throughout the gravel before coming to rest on its side. The 2019 Indy 500 Winner said his brakes had failed. While he was going about 180 miles per hour. He was evaluated then released by doctors but was not clear to compete in qualify.

[05:55:05]

And rush hour traffic in and take out a whole new meaning on the streets of Chicago this afternoon, Kim, the Windy City set to host his first ever street race in NASCAR Cup Series history. Denny Hamlin going to start from the pole position. It's 2.2 miles. It's through Grand Park, set against the backdrop of Lake Michigan and the city skyline. Some have questioned the massive downtown disruption here, but NASCAR hopes that the race is going to help grow the sport. And there's been a lot of attention focused on this. That I think is what the intention is. But hopefully, everybody living in Chicago won't be too effective, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah, absolutely. All right. Thanks so much Carolyn Manno in New York. Appreciate it.

All right. Well, the Fourth of July has plenty of traditions here in the U.S. barbecues, baseball, beer, hotdogs, but here's a new mashup, Pepsi is introducing a cola-infused ketchup that they're calling Colachup. Now, you can't get it at your local supermarket for now. It's only going to be available at Yankee Stadium in New York, and three other ballparks on July Fourth.

And before we go, cities across the United States getting a head start on the Fourth of July celebrations. This was the view from a top the CNN Center here in Atlanta, the fireworks display at Centennial Olympic Park. Quick programming note, CNN's July Fourth special returns with an all-star lineup celebrate with spectacular fireworks and musical performances. Don't miss The Fourth in America live Tuesday, July 4 at 7 p.m. Eastern, of course, only here on CNN.

That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. You can follow me on Twitter @Kimbrunhuber. For reviewers in North America, CNN This Morning is next, for the rest of the world, it's Connecting Africa. See you.

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