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New Developments In Georgia Election Interference Case; Security Preps Underway In Georgia For Possible Trump Indictment; Maui Wildfires Leave Trail Of Death and Destruction; Support For Russia Apparent Inside Niger After Coup; Concerns After Niger Coup; Warrant Seizes Equipment. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired August 13, 2023 - 16:00   ET

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

[16:00:56]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield in Washington, D.C.

And we begin this hour with exclusive new reporting on the investigation into Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Sources tell CNN that Georgia prosecutors now have text messages and e-mails directly connecting Trump's legal team to a voting system breach in Coffee County, Georgia, in January 2021.

This comes as the district attorney investigating Trump in Georgia appears to be close to an indictment. Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis is expected to seek charges against more than a dozen people. And if she brings charges against the former president, it will be the fourth indictment of Trump since being voted out of office.

CNN's Zachary Cohen on these stunning new developments now linking Trump's legal team to a voting system breach in a rural Georgia county.

So, Zach, tell us all that you know.

ZACHARY COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fred. Coffee County is a South Georgia County, heavily Republican, Trump carried that country by more than 70 percent of the vote there. But we're learning that prosecutors here in Georgia have text messages that do connect members of Trump's legal team to the breach that happened in the Coffee County elections office where operatives that were hired by lawyers like Sidney Powell and Rudy Giuliani did gain access to voting systems in Coffee County on January 7th, 2021.

But really what these text messages do is they show you the process and the planning that went in to this breach and how Trump attorneys were helping coordinate efforts to get access to this voting system in this rural Republican county.

Now Rudy Giuliani is somebody who his lawyers vehemently denied that he had any involvement, actually pointing the finger at fellow former Trump attorney Sidney Powell saying that he had nothing to do with the breach in Coffee County, but these text messages do show that lawyers working for Rudy Giuliani were involved in that planning process. There's one that even mentions the mayor, which is something that we've seen operatives that have been working for the Trump campaign refer to Rudy Giuliani as in other communications.

So really connecting some of the dots here and really drawing a more direct line between former President Donald Trump's attorneys and this breach that happened in Coffee County that is part of the Fani Willis investigation.

WHITFIELD: And then, Zach, what do we think this week is going to look like?

COHEN: Yes, Fred, we're expecting the Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis to start presenting her case to the grand jury early next weekend. We could see indictments come as early as Tuesday as we know several witnesses are -- have been notified that they do need to appear before the grand jury on Tuesday.

And look, we expect that maybe over a dozen people could face criminal charges, including former President Donald Trump. So really that's starting to ramp up here and expected to ramp up here in the early days of next week.

WHITFIELD: All right. Zachary Cohen, thank you so much in Atlanta.

All right, so downtown Atlanta is bracing for a possible Trump indictment. Security measures at the courthouse where the grand jury will meet this week are already under way. For more on that, let's bring in Isabel Rosales outside the Fulton County courthouse in Atlanta.

So, what is the situation?

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred. As you would expect for an event of this scale, Fulton County certainly taking this seriously. We have witnessed a larger than normal police presence. And in fact I took a lap around the courthouse here and there are law enforcement officers all over each road here. And also these orange and white barricades are surrounding the building and they are closing down streets.

So this is a heavily controlled area that's only going to get more intense as we get closer to this thing. It's not just the building that they're protecting but the very visible face behind this investigation, the prosecutor, the lead prosecutor Fani Willis. She has received, according to a source with knowledge of Atlanta law enforcement movements, additional security protection near her home.

And Willis has recently also urged local officials to stay vigilant about possible security threats. In an e-mail obtained by CNN, she shared messages, sexualized and violent and racist messages that she had received, and included she also mentioned obscene voicemails that she had received.

[16:05:13] Now, the man in charge of the security measures here is the sheriff of Fulton County. That is Patrick Labat. He says that his team is prepared and what helps with the legal woes really that Donald Trump has faced is that he's been able to take notes, the sheriff, in New York and D.C. and Miami, and he's coming back here and making sure that their security is solid. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF PATRICK LABAT, FULTON COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: So we've planned for months to really understand the day-to-day really coverage of what this looks like. And so we put a lot of resources in place. Our goal is to stay focused and I've said this before, we're ready.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROSALES: Yes, and we've seen that Trump over the past couple of months attacking Willis, not only during campaign events but also on Truth Social. And Willis has previously said that that rhetoric from him has escalated security concerns. We've seen that since early 2022 where Willis actually asked the FBI for help in protecting staff and protecting the buildings, the official buildings here after Donald Trump called prosecutors, quote, "racist." Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Isabel Rosales, thank you so much downtown Atlanta.

All right, let me bring in now Harry Litman. He is a former federal prosecutor and a former deputy assistant attorney general.

Harry, great to see you.

HARRY LITMAN, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY: Thanks, Fred.

WHITFIELD: So help us understand, you know, the significance, the gravity really, of the prosecutors having texts and e-mails directly connecting members of Donald Trump's legal team to the early January 2021 voting system breach in Coffee County, Georgia.

LITMAN: It's big. We've known about the breach but had no idea that it could have been overseen or even the moving forces would have been so high up in the Trump campaign. Giuliani, Powell, it's about as high as you go. And it's a crime -- well, first of all, it's crime -- many crimes when you have this sort of violation of computers, both newfangled computer laws and old-fashioned trespass laws and it really falls under the category, what were they thinking?

It's so plainly a violation. It's so plainly something that a campaign can't get involved in. And we might have thought before then it had been on the ground, people who didn't know one from the other, but Giuliani, Powell, that really puts it up very high. And the third point is, nothing like it is in Jack Smith's indictment and this becomes one of the several details we expect to see from Fani Willis that will supplement and kind of reinforce the broad charges that Jack Smith has brought on the federal side. WHITFIELD: And is it your view because we're talking about, you know,

the highest of the levels among, you know, Trump's legal team that would allegedly be involved here, is it your thinking that the prosecutors may have already connected any dots between them and any possible directives from Trump himself?

LITMAN: Well, we know that there are other instances like the false electors in which evidence has been proffered to show just that. Was he involved in the actual incursion into the computers? We know that he was involved in at least talking about seizing computers under a crazy plan with the DOD, but of course the distinctive thing about the Willis indictment that we're waiting on is it has so many defendants.

So even if it's simply that this crime stops at Powell and Giuliani, it's still very damning of the campaign as a whole and will be part and parcel of charges that certainly will include Trump in many fashions, if not this one specifically.

WHITFIELD: And then, Harry, you know, we know that this, you know, Georgia investigation really got started after Trump called the state secretary of state, pressuring him and others to find votes for him in early January 2021 as the official election count showed that he lost. Take a listen, just for those who may have forgotten what that call sounded like.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: All I want to do -- so, look, all I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have because we won the state.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So do you still see that phone call, the president called it a perfect phone call, do you see that phone call as key to any possible Trump indictment?

[16:10:03]

LITMAN: Oh, yes. It is a perfect phone call for prosecutors. Nothing like an audiotape that way, and you can just put those words up on the screen and they'll do it repeatedly, and it screams out solicitation to commit election interference, which is one of the leading charges I expect from this indictment when it comes out, say, Tuesday or Wednesday.

WHITFIELD: And if Trump is charged, it would be his fourth indictment. You know, where would this Georgia case rank, in your view, against the other cases in terms of legal threats for Trump?

LITMAN: Well, on the one hand this is sprawling and it's not subject to pardon. On the other hand it's complicated and he has certain legal challenges that he can't do in other places. I don't think it's as challenging for him nor as sobering as the 1/6 indictment that may now be the first trial to go. But I think it's just after that when you look at the panoramic detail that we expect is going to be charged here and the fact that it can't be pardoned.

I think it's a very, very serious set of charges. Also in some ways more challenging than some of the others. That's a different point. But on the overall list of the kind of broad, historical indictment of Trump, I think it's second only to the January 6th indictment on the federal side.

WHITFIELD: All right, got it.

Harry Litman, thanks so much for your expertise. Appreciate it.

LITMAN: Thank you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, coming up, the death toll from wildfires in Maui climbs to 93 as search-and-rescue efforts continue. And it is expected to rise. So far just 3 percent of the fire zone has been searched. We'll have the latest next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:15:51]

WHITFIELD: The Lahaina Fire is now the deadliest fire in the U.S. in more than a century. The official death toll reached 93 and is expected to rise as recovery continues. Officials say only two of those fatalities have been identified. Hawaii's governor says the losses are nearing $6 billion with more than 2,000 structures damaged or destroyed.

Senator Mazie Hirono visited the rubble and tells CNN that the town of Lahaina burned to the ground.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MAZIE HIRONO (D-HI): The focus right now is truly on the recovery. There are still people who are unaccounted for. They need to be identified. There is a call for people to come in to provide DNA. So we are in the -- still I would say the initial phases. But we're going to do everything we can to provide the kind of support that people will need.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Mike Valerio joining me live on Maui.

So, Mike, what's the latest from what you're hearing.

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, I think we have to start off with how we are witnessing the entry into the disaster zone and right here just off the side of the road, Kahekili Highway, it is night and day from when we were with you 24 hours ago. So what we mean by that is this is the only way in to the disaster zone, compared with yesterday when there was a lot of conflicting information.

People weren't really sure where to go, when they could go. So what is happening here these officers in the yellow jackets who just started their shift change, beginning 12-hour shifts, they are checking to make sure that everybody who comes up the highway is a resident from inside the disaster zone. They don't want tourists. They don't want anybody from other parts of Maui coming in. They're just trying to tightly control who accesses this very sensitive geography of the island.

Now a couple of minutes ago we were able to speak to a woman who lives in nearby Khana, that's a couple minutes outside of the epicenter of this crisis. We're going to hear from her what it was like the afternoon the fire started and what it's like going in and out of the zone. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUSAN SLOBODNJAK, LAHAINA RESIDENT: We did not know anything that was going on really in Lahaina. We just couldn't get out of our house. We had no running water, no electricity, no nothing. And we got stuck there and I had no idea what was going on just two miles down the road. We had no information. My cousin's over there right now taking care of everything but we can't -- we don't have any like good running water or anything.

So, yes, it's -- and I went back to go get two generators and 25 gallons of gas to come back over and I waited in line for four and a half hours thinking that I could get through, and a fight started when I was there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALERIO: So that gives you an idea, you know, fights started, people fighting over gas, over resources. It is such a sensitive situation inside the zone. That's why as many police who are doing double duty controlling entry and law and order inside the perimeter. You know, they're exhausted but they are still going.

So, Fred, we want to put up a map that we made within the past few minutes. This is the emanating energy and the logic. Think of a counterclockwise motion from where we are right here at the entry point at 2:00 to 9:00. That is how people are being allowed to go in rather than different directions. And down here an extremely treacherous roadway. So people have a one-lane, Fred, one-lane road to deal with.

So that is showing you how desperate it is, how dangerous it is if they're saying that this one-lane road is the best way for people to get inside the zone to check on what survived and who survived -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Yes. I mean, there aren't that many routes on Maui to get around.

VALERIO: Right.

WHITFIELD: And that also better explains why we saw in that, you know, sped-up video that you showed earlier how long the lines were because that is the primary route to get to that location. [16:20:03]

All right, Mike Valerio, thank you so much for that.

All right, behind every house and storefront burned on the island of Maui, there is a story. And for rock 'n' roll artist Ruby Mazur, it was his life's work going up in flames. The iconic artist was set to open up a new gallery on Front Street in Lahaina just as the fire swept through the town. 100 of his paintings were lost.

CNN's John Berman talked to Mazur and asked him about what he experienced on Tuesday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUBY MAZUR, ICONIC ARTIST WHO LOST ART GALLERY IN LAHAINA: My sons called and said, Dad, it's really getting bad. I said, well, better come on back here because it's not looking good here either. And they came up -- they tried to get out of Lahaina and they were closing down the road because of the flames. And they got out. It was a miracle they got out.

They came up to my house and they saw all the furniture on my deck, everything was being thrown around like toothpicks, and they go, Dad, we got to go now. And I said, you know what, if it's going to be really bad, let's get a hotel room. Not one hotel had a room available. Nothing. We were calling 15 hotels. Not one room. So my other son said, you know what, let's get a U-Haul. I said OK.

We got two U-Hauls, we went to Walmart, bought blow-up beds and then we have four dogs in the car. We bought two blow-up beds, blankets, sheets, pillows, bottles of water and we went and took the two U-Hauls to the parking lot of the airport to sleep there. And the next thing we knew, Lahaina was gone. Lahaina was completely gone. My lifelong work of 50 years painting rock stars gone.

And I've been having calls from people, collectors, from all over the world. And last night one collector called back and she said, Ruby, this painting we bought from you a couple of years ago, we paid a lot of money for it. We'd like to send it back to you so you could sell it and get some money. People are amazing.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Ruby, I can't imagine what it's like for you now. When you saw the images of Front Street, you know, not just your gallery in ruins but all your artwork gone, what went through your mind?

MAZUR: Well, John, I just beat cancer for the third time. I had bladder cancer, I had a brain tumor, they gave me six months to live, and this last year I had a bout with throat cancer. So I figured if I could beat cancer three times, nothing could take me down. And then losing my life's work and almost losing my three sons on Front Street, it's a lot to take. It's a lot to take.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: It's an amazing account. And there is, however, a bright spot there with Ruby Mazur's experience. He tells CNN his home on Maui is miraculously still standing.

All right. For more information on how you can help Hawaii wildfire victims, go to CNN.com/impact or text Hawaii to 707070 to donate.

All right, coming up, new questions about free press and constitutional rights after police in Kansas raided the home and office of a local newspaper owner. What authorities are saying led to this, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:28:49]

WHITFIELD: A regional block of West African countries say that it is preparing to send representatives to Niger to meet with the leaders of the military coup. The group known as ECOWAS has condemned the coup and even suggested military intervention as an option. Inside Niger, the situation remains murky and many supporters of the coup say they welcome support from Russia and its mercenary forces.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Since the military junta overthrew the elected president of Niger, Russian flags have become prominent at pro-coup rallies.

All the Africans know that Putin is ready to save us, this man says. He adds, I prefer that the Russian settle in because today if Russia does so it's not to exploit resources, it's to help us have peace.

PLEITGEN: But the Wagner private military company might soon be settling in here as well. France says it believes the Niger junta leaders are already in talks with Wagner to bring the mercenaries to the long independent former French colony.

Wagner's boss Yevgeny Prigozhin after his own failed mutiny inside Russia says the group wants more business in Africa. In Niger, the country where the U.S. has long-deployed around 1,000 troops to support counter-terrorism operations. That allegedly means Wagner will soon be fighting terrorism here.

[16:30:18]

YEVGENY PRIGOZHIN, FOUNDER, WAGNER PRIVATE MILITARY (translated): I am proud of the guys from PMC Wagner, he said in an audio message. Just the thought of them makes ISIS and Al Qaeda into small, obedient boys.

And while some west African nations have threatened to intervene in Niger after the coup, Wagner could confront them or even France. Russian analyst, Sergei Markov, tells me.

SERGEY MARKOV, ANALYST, RUSSIA: The soldiers of (INAUDIBLE) will be happy to put (INAUDIBLE.)

PLEITGEN: Wagner mercenaries were some of Vladimir Putin's toughest and most successful forces in the war in Ukraine. But the group has also been expanding in West Africa for years.

CNN filmed the mercenaries training security forces in the Central African Republic. But they're also active or have been linked to Libya, Mali and Sudan, huge countries with vast, natural resources, some of which Wagner are exploiting.

Over the past years, investigations by CNN and human rights groups have established Wagner's involvement in and complicity with atrocities against civilian populations in Sudan, Mali and the Central African Republic.

And the French say the group is also behind a smear campaign against them. Paris says this drone video filmed last year in Mali shows white men burying bodies at a site where a fake Twitter account, probably created by Wagner, falsely claimed French forces had committed a massacre.

U.S. Secretary of state, Blinken, saying Wagner is both exploiting and creating instability in western Africa, where Washington has also invested in training local militaries.

ANTONY BLINKEN, SECRETARY OF STATE, UNITED STATES: Every single place that this group, Wagner group, has gone, death, destruction and exploitation have followed. Insecurity has gone up, not down.

PLEITGEN: But, for now, Wagner and Russia stocks seem to be rising in West Africa. Tailors in Niger's capitol busy making more Russian flags to meet increased demand.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Straight ahead, in this country, record hot temperatures are not only threatening the ocean's ecosystems. How the extreme heat could also impact the upcoming hurricane season, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:36:46]

WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. In Marion, Kansas, a story about small-town politics is erupting into a big story about First Amendment rights.

On Friday, the town's police raided the home and office of the local newspaper owner. He believes it was in connection to a story he published on a local business owner and called the raid, chilling. Authorities counter that they were investigating a case of what they say is possible identity theft.

CNN's Polo Sandoval has details for us. So, Polo, how did this story begin?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fred, this is a complicated one but an extremely important one, especially when it comes to press freedoms. In fact, one press-freedom group maintaining that Friday's raid, targeting the Marion County record about 60 miles north of Wichita, not only violates federal law but also the First amendment.

Eric Meyer, he's the co-owner of the publication. He tells CNN the Marion County Police Department raided both his home and his publication's office last week. He also added that police also seized computers, cell phones and other materials that are part of the investigation. Meyer suggesting that it was partly triggered by a story he published last week, mentioning Carey Newell, who's the owner of a local coffee shop there.

Well, Meyer explains that he and his colleague received a confidential tip about Newell allegedly driving without a valid license. And in his story last week, Meyer reported that after consulting with an attorney, they then reached out to local law enforcement that the newspaper had, in fact, received this sensitive information about Newell. Per that report, police then notified her.

What followed was the issuing of a search warrant, alleging violations of identity thefts and unauthor -- or rather authorize the seizure of any documents pertaining to Newell. She, for her part, is telling CNN that she was, quote, "flabbergasted when she learned about the raid and denied not even knowing that this was in the works." Meyer, for his part, claiming that the law -- that law enforcement did not provide any explanation about the reason for the search. That they simply handed over a copy of the search warrant.

We do also understand that during that search, Meyer's 98-year-old mother, who's a co -- was a co-owner on record, was home. Meyer confirmed for CNN that she died this weekend. And he believes that it was because of stress that was brought on by the raid, though the cause of death has not been confirmed.

The Marion County police chief has not provided any exact details to CNN. Only saying that he was confident that the judicial system being questioned will, in fact, as he put it, be vindicated. CNN has also reached out to the Marion County magistrate who signed the search warrants.

Meanwhile, in the last hour, we've also heard from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, telling my colleague, Sarah Noonan (ph), investigate -- in a statement, that they have been asked to join this investigation. And also pointed out that they did have nothing do with the search warrant, weren't even present at the time that this was being executed.

And that, in the past, their agency has investigated schools, churches, even people in high positions of power, and that a member of the press would certainly not be any different. So, they're continuing their involvement in this investigation.

So, it is absolutely complicated, Fred. But, at its very heart, this is now a sort of First Amendment conversation and battle that's taking place in a small Kansas town.

[16:40:02]

WHITFIELD: And, now, a growing investigation at that. All right, Polo Sandoval, thank you so much.

All right, weather experts are predicting a stronger and more frequent hurricane season, due to record-warm temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean. The changes of above-normal activity doubled from 30 to 60 percent, according to a division of the National Weather Service.

And we should note, the forecast cannot predict how many storms will make landfall in the U.S. CNN Meteorologist Allison Chinchar has more.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: The latest NOAA forecast is out and the numbers have actually increased for the remainder of the Atlantic hurricane season, compared to their first forecast that came out in May, when they originally called for 12 to 17 total named storms. Now, they're calling for 14 to 21.

In terms of hurricanes, the previous forecast called for five to nine. Now, we're up to six to 11. In an average year, we would typically have 14 total named storms and seven hurricanes.

So, why the change? Well, a lot of that really comes down to extremely warm sea surface temperatures. In some of these areas, they've been record-breaking extreme warmth, especially across portions of the Gulf of Mexico and Eastern Caribbean.

However, here's the counter to that. Air also headed into an El Nino pattern. And, traditionally, in an El Nino pattern, the jet stream shifts farther south. When it does that, it begins to increase wind shear across the main development region, really suppressing a lot of tropical activity. In addition to that, you also tend to have fewer storms that will even form in the eastern portion of the Atlantic.

So, traditionally, in an El Nino year, we would see those numbers go back down. But because of those warm ocean temperatures, this is where NOAA is saying, no, we think these numbers are really going to start to tick up.

And keep in mind, we have yet to even get to the peak portion of the season. Statistically speaking, September 10th is the peak portion of the season. But, really, the back half of August, all of September, and even creeping into October, is when we really see the bulk of activity.

We've already had four named storms so far this season. We typically don't get to that fourth named storm until mid-August. So, we're already slightly ahead of pace, even before we get into the peak season.

So, the two main factors here really going to be focused over the next few months is how strong of an El Nino sets in, and how warm do those ocean temperatures actually remain. But the key takeaway is, remember, folks, it only takes one landfalling storm for it to be an impactful season.

WHITFIELD: Allison Chinchar, thank you so much.

All right, still to come. Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis trading jabs as they make their pitches to voters at the Iowa State Fair. How the Republican presidential rivals are trying to stand out in a very crowded field, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:47:16]

WHITFIELD: Former President Donald Trump is trolling Florida governor, Ron DeSantis.

CROWD: We love Trump. We love Trump. We love Trump.

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Yesterday, Trump met with cheers at the legendary Iowa State Fair, with an entourage of congressmen from Florida, who have endorsed Trump over their own Florida governor, DeSantis.

Well, this comes on the heels of several bad weeks for DeSantis of campaign shake-ups, low fund-raising estimate and sinking poll numbers.

CNN's Steve Contorno is joining me right now. All right, the duel of these two Floridians duking it out. What's happening?

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: Well, we saw DeSantis certainly try to turn the page from what you described as that rough stretch he's had. And he's doing it by making his presence felt in these important early nominating states.

He spent a lot of time in Iowa over the weekend, making he -- spending a lot of time with his young family. He's really playing up that contrast with an aging former president and trying to introduce himself to voters. Who maybe only know him for his divisive social battles and the culture wars he's waged from Florida, talking more about his time in the military. And, also, talking more about kitchen table issues, like he did when he talked on Saturday to fair-goers right here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We need to leave this country better off than we found it, and we are in danger of being the first generation that turns over less opportunities to our kids than the opportunities we've inherited. And that is unacceptable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CONTORNO: DeSantis spent most of the day in Iowa at the state fair. He was flipping pork chop. He was playing ride games with his family. Trump, meanwhile, sort of just swooped in for a couple hours but really made his presence felt. He had a large crowd there to see him speak. And, of course, he spent a lot of that time talking about these legal troubles.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) in the latest indictment?

TRUMP: I'll have to take a look at the order. It's a -- the whole thing is a fake. It was put out by Biden. And they put it out because they can't win an election the fair way. It's all called election interference. Biden put it out because he can't win the fair way. He's way down in the polls.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CONTORNO: So, I think what we saw this weekend was just a strong contrast and a sense of how these two candidates are going to campaign going forward. We're going to see a lot of Ron DeSantis in these early nominating states. He has said he's going to visit all 99 counties in Iowa. That is, of course, the first state on the nominating calendar.

Trump, meanwhile, he's got all these legal troubles to deal with.

[16:50:00]

CONTORNO: His calendar is quite booked. He's going to be swooping into these states from time to time holding large rallies. But DeSantis is going to try to grind out a victory one event at a time. And we saw a little bit of that this weekend -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Steve Contorno, thank you so much.

All right, still to come. A new health warning from officials. We could be phasing a triple threat of respiratory viruses this fall. How to protect yourself, straight ahead.

And for many people living in remote areas of Ghana and West Africa, accessing medical care can mean walking several hours to a hospital or struggling to afford payment. This week's CNN Hero saw first-hand the consequences of those barriers to health care, after his aunt and grandmother died from preventable diseases. And, now, he's dedicating his life to bringing medical care to remote areas of Ghana.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): We have been to communities where they haven't seen a doctor before. Literally, they haven't been to the hospital before. We have designed a van like a clinic. Depending on the person's condition, if the doctor needs additional labs work done, we have some point of care labs that we do in the van. We have medications. And so, it's like a one-stop shop for people.

Up to date, we've served over 4,000 people. So, imagine if we had two or three vans. Our vision is to really expand. Words cannot describe the feeling that you get, providing care for someone who otherwise wouldn't be alive if your mobile health van wasn't there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: For the full story, go to CNNheroes.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:56:09]

WHITFIELD: Officials say they have recovered the remains of a fifth victim found at the site of this ferocious home explosion outside of Pittsburgh. Three homes were destroyed and 12 others were damaged. A child is among the victims. Authorities are working to determine a cause.

And here is a ring doorbell video obtained by CNN that appears to show the explosion and debris scattering all over the area. As a precaution, the gas service was shut off to 50 nearby homes. The local gas provider said, at a press conference a short time ago, that gas systems were operating as designed at the time of the explosion.

Fifty-seven firefighters at the scene suffered minor injuries related to the response to the blast. One victim from the explosion remains in critical condition.

And health officials across the U.S. are warning that we could be facing a viral triple threat this fall as a new COVID variant emerges. The CDC says COVID hospitalizations are increasing for the first time since early this year. And experts are also saying that they're bracing for a possible surge in RSV and flu cases in the fall. Here is CNN's Jacqueline Howard.

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: This fall, for the first time, we'll have immunizations against the triple threat of viruses: seasonal flu, COVID, and RSV. And for the flu, vaccines are already available at some pharmacies and doctor's offices for everyone six months and older. For COVID, we're expecting an updated vaccine to be ready in the coming weeks. And then, for RSV, there's an injection available for newborns that can prevent infections, and a vaccine available for adults 60 and older.

We're also hearing that some states may host vaccine events this fall, to make it easier for people to get these immunizations. In a briefing this week, state health officials said they're preparing for anything to happen this season. Here's Connecticut's state health commissioner, Dr. Manisha Juthani.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MANISHA HJUTHANI, COMMISSIONER, CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH: We're in uncharted territory. We don't really know what this season is going to look like. And it's going to look different in different areas of the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP) HOWARD: And so, to prepare for this flu season, health officials have a saying called flu before boo. That means to try to get your flu shot preferably before Halloween. Sometime in mid to late September or October. And some health officials say that Halloween deadline can be applied to getting your COVID shot and RSV vaccines too, if you're eligible. Back to you.

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much. CNN's Jacqueline Howard.

All right, well, what is it really like for restaurants in the post- pandemic world? The Food Network's Bobby Flay joins "THE WHOLE STORY" with Anderson Cooper with a look at how the industry is adapting. Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BOBBY FLAY, HOST, THE FOOD NETWORK: Those first three weeks were super chaotic. It wasn't clear if food delivery was even allowed by the regulations. So, one of the things that we knew right away was that restaurants were going to need platforms like ours to be able to stay open.

We channeled all of our marketing dollars at the time into building the campaign called Open to Delivery. We're up on air six days after the stay-at-home orders were in place.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When the pandemic hit, I had one high-end restaurant in New York.

FLAY: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gotto (ph). And we decided to close almost immediately --

FLAY: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- because we didn't know what was going to happen.

FLAY: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I didn't go down the road that most of my contemporaries did --

FLAY: Right which partnering with --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- which was being in business with a company like yours.

FLAY: Yes. Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of my contemporaries would say to me, I'm doing a ton of business on delivery, but I can't make money because of commission rates.

[17:00:02]

FLAY: Correct. That's right. And during the pandemic, we heard that a lot.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Be sure to tune in for a new episode of "THE WHOLE STORY" with Anderson Cooper.