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Kim Jong-un May Meet With Putin; U.S. First Lady Jill Biden Tests Positive For COVID-19; Senate To Return From Recess Facing Government Shutdown; Turkish President Pushing For New U.N. Grain Deal; Japan Increases Financial Support For Fishing Industry After China Banned Seafood Over Release Of Treated Nuclear Wastewater; Parts Of U.S. See Record Summer Heat In September; Texas Attorney General To Face Impeachment Trial; Overuse Is Depleting The Nations Aquifers; "The Equalizer 3" Tops U.S. Box Office On Opening Weekend. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired September 05, 2023 - 02:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:00:31]

PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and a very warm welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Paula Newton. Ahead right here on CNN NEWSROOM.

The U.S. First Lady test positive for COVID-19. I'll speak to a doctor about the new variants. That's coming up.

Then Russia looks to North Korea for arms. Kim Jong-un may meet with Vladimir Putin to seal a weapons deal.

And another race to avoid a government shutdown. Lawmakers have just days to reach a deal over the federal budget.

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Paula Newton.

NEWTON: And we do begin here in the United States where First Lady Jill Biden has tested positive for COVID-19. Now the White House says she is currently experiencing only mild symptoms and will remain at the Biden's home in Delaware. However, President Joe Biden has tested negative for the virus. Both were in Delaware for the Labor Day weekend. An official tells CNN there are no changes to the President's schedule at this time.

The President is scheduled to depart for the G20 Summit in India later this week. Meantime, as COVID cases increase right across the United States, lab tests indicate that the new Coronavirus variant may be less contagious than previously thought. And vaccinated Americans should have some protection against it. Scientists say the new B.A. 2.6 -- 86, pardon me, variant is highly mutated and has been detected in 11 countries so far.

That includes the United States. Two groups of scientists, one in China, another in Sweden, have also reported the results of their analysis of that new variant. Joining me now live from Kailua, Hawaii, is Dr. Scott Miscovich, who is President and CEO of Premier Medical Group. So good to see you again. Here we are, again, talking about COVID. I'm going to steal that headline from the New York Times.

They said, it seems everybody has COVID. They asked why. I'm sure Jill Biden wants to know, Dr. Biden wants to know why she has as well. Just to state the facts here. She's doing fine. She's 72 years old in very good health. What can you tell us about any risks that, you know, those people that age might encounter from getting COVID and if she should start maybe Paxlovid?

DR. SCOTT MISCOVICH, PRESIDENT AND CEO, PREMIER MEDICAL GROUP: Absolutely, what a way to start. That's exactly what I was going to say. I really hope that she is on Paxlovid because, you know, Paxlovid has worked so well. It does reduce up to 90 percent risk of hospitalization, and even higher with death. Now, with First Lady Biden, the good news is from what we know publicly, she's in pretty good health for what? 72.

And so, that also goes in her favor, but I really hope that she is on Paxlovid right now. And back to your other point at the beginning. Masks in public, you know, we don't see any masks anywhere especially -- well, anywhere, let alone our politicians and other people in other areas. But, you know, people over 65 probably should be wearing a mask when they're in public.

NEWTON: You know, like everything about this virus, it continues to be debated whether or not the masks were effective. I mean, you've -- I'm sure you've seen the most recent studies. What do you think?

MISCOVICH: Oh, the major study that was produced was so flawed that, you know, in the professional world, we look at it and shake our heads. So, the bottom line is masks work. We wear them in the healthcare setting. I have been around literally hundreds of thousands of positive COVID people when I'm out in the field or I'm working in the office same with my staff. And we're able to keep our staff safe.

Same thing. Working in an intensive care unit, those people rely on masking. Now the question is, are you wearing the right type of mask? And are you wearing it appropriately? All of us have seen people wearing a mask and their noses coming out or it's open on the side. And those don't work. Cloth masks don't work but if you're wearing the good N95, K95, they significantly work. So please still wear them.

[02:05:03]

NEWTON: And again, more, you know, information that we all need. Should we be getting the next vaccine? Does it include this new variant, which the good news is it's not perhaps as contagious as once thought?

MISCOVICH: Yes. That's very important right now. Now, the good news is in the laboratory studies that have been done with this type of virus in the mutation, you know, as you alluded to has 35 different changes in the spike protein, very significant. It does show the early studies that this new vaccination is going to be effective. So right now, we're back at square one. Anybody over the age of 65 should be getting it.

All the nursing home residents should be getting it. Anybody who's immunosuppressed should be getting it. But some of the early looks we're getting are that the lines aren't going to be that long when it comes out in a couple of weeks. And at the same time, please, everybody gets your flu shot. And adults now over six get the new RSV vaccination. So, it's an important time to prevent an infection will be happening for sure.

We are going to see increases in COVID through the during fall season. No doubt.

NEWTON: Yes. I hate to tell everyone it is back. And apparently back with the first family as well. We will continue obviously to wish them well. And hope of course that the President really stays COVID free. Dr. Scott Miscovich, good to see you again. Appreciate it.

MISCOVICH: Nice to see you. Thank you.

NEWTON: Now, to pariah states maybe getting closer to sealing a weapons deal which could impact the war in Ukraine. A U.S. official says North Korea's Kim Jong-un is expected to travel to Russia to meet with President Vladimir Putin who is believed to be seeking more firepower for his war effort. Now, it's not clear when the visit might happen. But the New York Times says it could be as early as this month.

These images are from Kim's welcome home ceremony after his last visit to Russia in 2019. We want to go straight to CNN's Kristie Lu Stout from Hong Kong. I mean, what more are we learning from this potential meeting? And what exactly would that Vladimir Putin be getting in exchange for this meeting, given the needs that he has for the war in Ukraine right now?

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, Paula, this is what we know. Kim Jong-un may be meeting with Vladimir Putin in Russia. It's according to the U.S. National Security Council. They are expected to discuss potential arms deals for Russia for Russia to get more North Korean weapons. You know, like artillery weapons, like rockets to use against Ukraine. Now the timing of this meeting is unclear.

It was the New York Times that first reported about this potential meeting saying that Kim would travel from Pyongyang to Vladivostok where he would be meeting with Putin at a forum set to kick off this weekend. It will run from September the 10th. Now Vladivostok is a port city, not far from North Korea. It's also the city where Kim and Putin met for the first time and toasted their champagne flutes as you see on your screen back in 2019.

And Kim when he made that journey, he did it on that famous armored green train. Now as for this new potential meeting, the time supports that in exchange for weapons, what North Korea is seeking is advanced technology. Technology for satellites, for nuclear power submarines. They're also seeking desperately needed food aid. Now this potential meeting follows a recent visit by the Russian defense minister to North Korea that took place in July.

It also comes after U.S. officials have said that the two countries are actively advancing their talks over another potential arms deal for Russia and Ukraine. You know, last year, the U.S. and North Korea delivered rockets and missiles into Russia for use by Wagner forces something that North Korea has denied. But Russia and North Korea have been edging ever closer together. The Russian defense minister now saying that joint military drills in North Korea are currently being discussed.

We know that Kim and Putin have exchanged letters to each other pledging to increase their cooperation. Back to you.

NEWTON: Yes., Kristie. Interesting development, and it shouldn't be notable that the New York Times certainly was quoting U.S. officials who still seem to have quite a bit of intelligence on both countries. Kristie Lu Stout for us in Hong Kong. Appreciate it.

Now here in the United States meantime, the Senate will reconvene after its August recess in the coming hours and the House returns next week. Lawmakers will have to resolve major differences. I know this sounds familiar over funding the government before October 1st, but it won't be easy. If you're not able to get on the same page, all of them. The country faces a government shutdown. CNN's Melanie Zanona reports.

MELANIE ZANONA, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: Well, Congress is nowhere close to completing its work on its annual spending bills. And so, a short-term patch is going to be needed in order to avoid a government shutdown at the end of this month.

[02:10:05]

But even that is proving to be challenging and that is because of hardline conservatives and the demands they are making in these funding fights. At issue here is a supplemental funding package. The White House has requested $40 billion for both disaster aid and Ukraine money. And they want to see that supplemental funding package attached to a short-term spending bill. But conservatives say they don't want to see any more money for Ukraine.

They want those two key issues to be de linked. And so, it really presents a problem for Speaker Kevin McCarthy because he doesn't want to see a government shutdown on his watch. But at the same time, he doesn't want to enrage conservatives whose support he will need in order to continue to lead the conference. I want to read you this quote from Congressman Mike Simpson. He is a GOP appropriator.

And I think he summed it up best when he told me, I tell people to buckle up. It's going to be crazy for September, October, November, December. The next four months are going to be wild. Of course, Kevin McCarthy knows that better than anyone. That is why he held a conference call with his members last week where he encouraged hardliners in the House to hold their fire and to save these funding fights for later in the year when they actually do their long-term spending bills. But it remains to be seen if conservatives are going to back down. So time is ticking with not a whole lot of time to figure it out. Melanie Zanona, CNN, Capitol Hill.

NEWTON: Meantime, U.S. President Joe Biden went on the economic offensive as America marks Labor Day and he was courting blue collar union members in Philadelphia. Mr. Biden touted his administration's economic achievements and also took swipes at his potential 2024 election opponent. Donald Trump often referring to him as the last guy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The great real estate builder, the last guy here, he didn't build a damn thing. When the last guy was here, you were shipping jobs to China. Now we're bringing jobs home from China.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Union members and leaders are an important voting bloc for Mr. Biden and they have largely supported him. But Democrats are concerned that Donald Trump may have drawn away some blue-collar union votes.

OK. Still to come for us. Organizers of the Burning Man festival lift a driving ban. They imposed after all of those muddy conditions. Thousands who were stranded this moment have begun a mass exodus while others stick around for the finale.

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[02:16:11]

NEWTON: There has been a mass exodus from the Burning Man festival in Nevada after organizers finally lifted a driving ban that was in place due to extremely muddy conditions. Some 72,000 people had been stranded in the desert over the weekend by heavy rain and flooding. With the good weather, roughly 60,000 party goers stayed for that main event that is the burning of a giant wooden effigy of a man.

It began just a few hours ago. And now soon it will be followed by another ritual the burning of the chapel of battle. More now on an unforgettable Burning Man festival from CNN's Camila Bernal.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a real sloppy mess out there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We put them over on the bar --

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): Tens of thousands of people stuck at Burning Man in the Nevada desert over the weekend after heavy rains made a mess of the dirt roads.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We drove out and got stuck. I made one bad decision. It was up to here. BERNAL (voiceover): Hundreds of cars ended up stranded on roads leading out of the Black Rock Desert in the northwestern part of the state.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everything was shut down and getting out was a nightmare.

BERNAL (voiceover): Paul Romero and his wife left Maui's devastation for what was supposed to be a relaxing honeymoon.

PAUL ROMERO, BURNING MAN ATTENDEE FROM HAWAII: It became a mini disaster for a lot of people. It was - it was impossible to function, impossible to move around, impossible to communicate. Entire camp has became pretty much destroyed.

BERNAL (voiceover): Less than an inch of water fell over one 24-hour period from Friday to Saturday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So much water. We are flooded.

BERNAL (voiceover): Organizers of the weeklong festival asked attendees to shelter in place and to conserve food, water and fuel.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's actually been fairly festive. Everybody's taking it in stride.

BERNAL (voiceover): But not everybody. Some so called burners say the mood was festive until supplies started running out.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everybody took their shoes off, start dancing in the mud. It was great. And then the reality sunk in that we couldn't leave.

BERNAL (voiceover): There was one death over the weekend which authorities say is not weather related. No serious injuries have been reported.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody was helping each other out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People are making mud sculptures.

BERNAL (voiceover): D.J. Diplo and a few others including comedian Chris Rock, managed to walk out and hitch a ride.

DIPLO, AMERICAN DJ: I think Cindy Crawford walked through this. Kyle Gerber, Austin Butler. It was a challenge but it was honestly one of the highlights of the whole trip.

BERNAL (voiceover): Tens of thousands are now slowly inching their way out of the event grounds.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERNAL (on camera): Organizers say that this line and the amount of time that they wait here is normal. The difference here is that people are coming out muddier and obviously happier to be out than previous years just because the last couple of days have been difficult. Camila Bernal, CNN, Black Rock City.

NEWTON: Four men have set a new record for killing the longest alligator ever in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The Gator weighed, wait for it, more than 800 pounds or about 360 kilograms. And it doesn't even look real. And it measured 14 feet and three inches which is about 4.3 meters. Alligators, in case you were wondering can be found right across Mississippi and hunting them has been allowed since 2005. Wow.

Coming up. Ukraine wants greater integration into the E.U. and NATO but the country still needs to root out corruption before that can happen. And Ukraine's President is trying to tackle that problem next.

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[02:24:22]

NEWTON: As Ukraine's counter offenses -- counteroffensive reaches a critical point the country is facing challenges well beyond the battlefield. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is making it a public mission to root out corruption that's been ingrained in public life for decades now.

Corruption that's a barrier to entry to the E.U. and NATO. This is all in focus now after Ukraine's President dismissed defense minister Oleksii Reznikov.

Reznikov himself is not directly implicated in corruption scandals. But earlier this year, President Zelenskyy carried out a purge of other defense officials over graft scandals. Now, President Zelenskyy's nominee for defense minister Rustem Umerov is a former lawmaker known as an anti-corruption advocate.

[02:25:05]

Daria Kaleniuk is cofounder and executive director of the Anticorruption Action Center. A non-governmental organization and she joins me now live from Kyiv. Good to have you. You know, many wondered why in the middle of a counteroffensive that there would be this swath of defense ministers. What does it tell you though, about the enduring problem that is corruption remains a problem in Ukraine and what the President Zelenskyy intends to do about it?

DARIA KALENIUK, COFOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ANTICORRUPTION ACTION CENTER: Well, first of all, it tells about situation when Ukraine admits the problem. We are not saying that there is no corruption. We are saying yes, there is corruption in Ukraine. And our authorities must react to the public demands to root out corruption. So, what the President Zelenskyy is doing, he's responding to the will of the people who treat corruption as a security threat, even larger than the threat of Russia and Ukraine.

And there were some scandals exposing corruption in the Defense Ministry, particularly in the procurement of food and other supplies for the army. And this was not tolerated by the people of Ukraine who are supporting our army. We are donating to charities, we are supporting trans and family members at the battlefield. So, we expect our Ministry of Defense to spend every Ukrainian greener effectively without any corruption scheme.

So, and as a response to these demand Zelenskyy had to dismiss Reznikov and appoint, nominate a new minister of defense.

NEWTON: You know, Zelenskyy himself has equated in this war time. Corruption is equated corruption with treason. Is that the way many Ukrainians would interpret it as well?

KALENIUK: Well, it sounds very appealing. And many Ukrainians would share that statement that corruption is treason during the wartime. However, we would want to embed this statement into the legal mechanism. They might not work. Because devil is in the details. We set top in Ukraine for the last eight years of complex infrastructure of anticorruption agencies. All of them were mentioned by Vladimir Putin on February 20, 2022 on the eve before the invasion.

He knows our anticorruption infrastructure better even than any Ukrainian. And he failed to take over Ukraine from inside just embedding, implanting corruption into various political structures, as he did with Belarus. And he had to invade Ukraine with conventional war. So -- and these anticorruption institutions they perform well. We are tackling corruption, they just recently -- they arrested the head of the Supreme Court of Ukraine at the bribe, the raw ongoing investigations against top officials of Ukraine.

It means that despite the world large scale invasion, our anticorruption infrastructure works. So we need to strengthen them, instead of giving this, you know, very easy solution equating corruption to treason.

NEWTON: Right. I think the question is going to be for many and hopefully Ukraine will get to that point where funds for rebuilding or entering the country not funds for war. But given the, you know, expectations from both NATO and the E.U., is it really be realistic to have an anticorruption campaign during wartime like this? One that can endure and actually take root?

KALENIUK: It's even more than realistic. It's happening. An anticorruption fight never stopped in Ukraine. Even where there was Spring 2022 and Kyiv was under siege. We had anticorruption institutions still working and aggression watchdog organizations still controlled in our government. So, in Ukraine, it's clearly that we are moving towards the E.U. and NATO which is demand of that people of Ukraine and we treat corruption as a risk towards that.

Therefore, there will be more on the track of anticorruption fight in Ukraine. And it's both the work of government and civil society institutions with the help of the E.U. and NATO partners. When conditions are sad for Ukraine, what we must do, what we must reform in the area of rule of law, we will be able to achieve more and to achieve faster.

NEWTON: And we will continue to take note of the developments there with that anticorruption campaign. Daria Kaleniuk from Kyiv. Thanks so much. Really appreciate your time.

KALENIUK: Thank you.

NEWTON: Now after talks with the Turkish President, Vladimir Putin said he would consider reviving the Black Sea Grain Initiative but only with one big condition. It's an offer Ukraine's foreign minister reportedly called classic black men.

[02:30:00]

CNN's Nic Robertson explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): By inviting the Turkish president to the grain deal talks in Russia, Vladimir Putin got a big platform to vent his grievances with Ukraine's Western backers.

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (though translator): The West, to put it mildly, deceived us about humanitarian goals by the humanitarian Black Sea Initiative to assist developing countries.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): But just hours ahead of the meeting, Putin's drones were destroying vital grain stores in Ukraine, as they have done with increased intensity since Russia pulled out of the Black Sea grain deal in July.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan went to Sochi hoping to convince Putin to accept a new U.N. grain deal. If he had success, it might be slow coming.

RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, TURKISH PRESIDENT (through translator): I believe we will be able to reach a solution which fulfills the expectations soon.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): The deal was in fact two deals in parallel, one with Ukraine, one with Russia. Inspectors checked cargos as grain ships exited the Black Sea and entered Turkish waters. It lasted for a year before Putin unilaterally pulled out.

His reasons for exiting the deal, apparently rooted in Western sanctions, imposed as a result of his illegal and unprovoked war of choice, potentially now leveraging the grain deal to roll some sanctions back.

PUTIN (through translator): What we saw is that there was a refusal to renew deliveries of the agricultural spare parts. And also, there were problems with them, financial settlements and transaction fees.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Erdogan wants to be a peacemaker, but in Sochi, seemed to scold Ukraine and legitimize Putin.

ERDOGAN (through translator): In order to be able to take common steps with Russia, Ukraine needs to soften its approach. Putin rightfully does not approve if 44 percent of the grain goes to European countries. ROBERTSON: Putin says he'll consider reviving the U.N. grain deal if he gets what he wants, which includes the removal of what he claims are export restrictions on Russian agricultural products. But he is also upping the ante and the pressure, pressing ahead with a separate workaround grain deal, with Erdogan.

Nic Robertson, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Still to come for us, Japan looks to prop up its fishing industry after China banned Japanese seafood over the Fukushima wastewater concerns.

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[02:37:02]

NEWTON: Japan is giving more financial support to its fishing industry after China banned Japanese seafood over the release of treated radioactive wastewater from the crippled Fukushima Nuclear Plant.

CNN's Ivan Watson has our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Backlash in China over Japan's decision to release treated nuclear wastewater from the Fukushima Power Plant into the Pacific Ocean. The Chinese government banned all Japanese seafood imports to prevent the risk of radioactive contamination and to protect the health of Chinese consumers.

Fears over Fukushima prompting panic buying of salt in several cities until authorities reassured the public that China consumes mined salt more than sea salt. Ripple effects also felt here at a Japanese food court in Beijing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I told my daughter that we should go and eat some seafood now while it is still safe. And let's not eat it anymore afterwards. Nothing from the ocean is edible from now on.

WATSON (voice-over): Fears echoed by her daughter.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Of course, first seafood will be affected, but other crops and food will also be affected later on. It's only a matter of time.

WATSON (voice-over): The nuclear controversy potentially crippling business for this sushi chef.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WATSON (voice-over): Some customers are disgusted by this news. They no longer want to eat Japanese food, he says. His once busy restaurant, now largely empty. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WATSON (voice-over): After the pandemic, our business this year has not recovered yet. And now with this news from Japan, our business is worse, he says.

Some scientists argue these fears are unfounded. The International Atomic Energy Agency says Japan's plan to release wastewater is in line with IAEA standards.

RAFAEL GROSSI, DIRECTOR GENERAL, INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY: Our cooperation and our presence will help build confidence in Japan and beyond that the water disposal is carried out without an adverse impact on human health and the environment.

WATSON (voice-over): And yet, the heavily censored Chinese internet still bubbles with anger at Japan, including prank calls harassing Japanese businesses.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WATSON (voice-over): This group of young people are reportedly calling random numbers in Japan.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WATSON (voice-over): Why do you release nuclear wastewater into the ocean, this young man shouts.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WATSON (voice-over): Elsewhere, a Chinese restaurant owner makes a show of tearing down Japanese decorations at his Japanese restaurant.

The Chinese government is tolerating these displays of anger at Japan, tacitly encouraging nationalist fervor, even if it results in empty restaurants at a time when China is increasingly suffering from economic uncertainty.

Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:40:08]

NEWTON: So here in the U.S., the official start of autumn is still a few weeks away. So, yeah you guessed it, it's hot. The summer heat is sticking around. Especially east of the Mississippi River.

Now, forecasters expect more than 200 record-highs this week alone. Look at that. And right now, more than 12 million people are under heat alerts with a lot of heat and humidity, and those make for some pretty uncomfortable conditions.

A cooldown is coming for parts of the Midwest, including Minneapolis and Chicago. But that cold front won't reach the Mid-Atlantic or the South just yet. Everyone else will have to wait a little while.

I want to thank you for joining us. I'm Paula Newton, for our international viewers, WORLD SPORT is up next. For our viewers here in North America, I will be right back with much more news in just a moment.

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[02:45:31]

NEWTON: And welcome back. I'm Paula Newton. In the day ahead, the Texas Senate is expected to begin the impeachment trial of the state's attorney general. Ken Paxton faces 20 articles of impeachment over allegations that he abused his power to help a donor.

CNN's Ed Lavandera reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just days before the start of his impeachment trial, Ken Paxton showed up at a rally to kick off his wife's state Senate reelection campaign.

ANGELA PAXTON, TEXAS REPUBLICAN STATE SENATOR: Please welcome to the stage, my husband, the love of my life, my best friend, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): The suspended Republican attorney general was impeached on 20 articles, including charges of retaliating against whistleblowers, abuse of power, and bribery, as well as misconduct involving an alleged affair. Paxton used this moment to pound the theme that he's the victim of a political witch hunt.

KEN PAXTON (R), TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL: Actually, if you kind of kept up, I -- you could read that I'm responsible for the JFK assassination and for 9/11 and for everything in between.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Paxton's impeachment trial begins Tuesday in the Texas State Senate, and it features some of the highest profile and unique legal characters in the state.

Paxton is represented by Dan Cogdell and Tony Buzbee. They've described the impeachment of Paxton as a drive-by shooting.

TONY BUZBEE, ATTORNEY FOR KEN PAXTON: This was a sham. It was a sham from the get-go.

DAN COGDELL, ATTORNEY FOR KEN PAXTON: To say this case is not about politics has the credibility, the believability, and the sincerity of the fellow that's trying to convince his wife that he goes to the strip joint for the food. It's not about the naked women, sweetheart, it's about the food.

Nonsense. It is definitionally political. Nonsense.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Prosecuting the case against Paxton are the legendary Rusty Hardin and Dick DeGuerin, for decades they've worked the biggest cases in the state. A few months ago, when Paxton's lawyers ripped the impeachment process, CNN asked Rusty Hardin to comment and he referred us to this classic scene from the 1992 Joe Pesci courtroom comedy, "My Cousin Vinny."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE PESCI, ACTOR, VINNY IN "MY COUSIN VINNY": Everything that guy just said is (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAVANDERA (voice-over): But the political stakes are sky-high. In May, Paxton was overwhelmingly impeached by Texas House Republicans, 121 to 23. And Paxton is vowing political retribution against those Republicans who voted against him.

PAXTON: Let's clean house.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): There are 31 state senators. One of them is Angela Paxton, the attorney general's wife, but she will not be allowed to vote on her husband's impeachment.

There are 12 Democrats in the Senate and prosecutors need 21 votes to remove Paxton from office. The question is whether nine Republicans will vote against Paxton. Veteran Republican political strategist Brendan Steinhauser says it is not clear how this trial will play out.

BRENDAN STEINHAUSER, REPUBLICAN POLITICAL STRATEGIST: There is a lot of political pressure coming from all sides. This is unprecedented, so they're trying to do their constitutional duty. They're trying to do the legally, morally, ethically right thing. They don't know what that is yet until they really dive into it and see the evidence.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Paxton has enjoyed support from Donald Trump and among Republican voters.

DONAL TRUMP, FORMER AMERICAN PRESIDENT: He's a great man.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Steinhauser says that Paxton is benefiting from Trump's attacks that the justice system is weaponized against politicians like them.

STEINHAUSER: That alignment is important for Paxton because it helps him. It gives him some political support among the grassroots voters and activists in the Republican Party of Texas and it makes it more difficult for state senators and state representatives to impeach and then convict him.

LAVANDERA: When the impeachment proceedings begin on Tuesday, there is a chance that the majority of the articles of impeachment could be dismissed by a simple majority vote in the Texas Senate, but it is not clear if that is going to happen.

If the impeachment trial moves forward, it's expected to last several weeks. Ken Paxton's lawyers say the suspended attorney general will not testify, but impeachment managers insist that they will call him to testify at some point.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, Austin, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Now, we turn on the tap at home and we expect water to come out. It's a normal thing. Often that water comes from an underground aquifer. But now, according to a study from "The New York Times," over-pumping is depleting the subterranean bodies of water that, in some cases, took millions of years, think about that, millions of years to fill.

[02:50:10]

Much of the water is going to quench the thirst of rapidly growing cities and towns in dry regions of the country. Now, water is also being siphoned from the Earth to irrigate farm fields. As the water is pumped out, some of the underground chambers shrink in size leaving less room for future water storage.

Joining me now is Warigia Bowman. She is a law professor and water expert at the University of Tulsa in Oklahoma. And it's really good to have your expertise on this. When so many of us are worried about so many elements in climate, I'm not sure any of us want to hear this, but I think we need to. When we talk about aquifers, right, they're integral to America's water supply. Why are so many of them in such a precarious state right now?

WARIGIA BOWMAN, LAW PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF TULSA: That is a great question. I would say that the biggest villain here is the diesel pump. So before World War II, farmers did take groundwater, but they took it at a very slow rate. And now we have incredibly powerful pumps that can withdraw hundreds of gallons a day, per well.

NEWTON: And they are doing as much as they can with that water in terms of the fact that we are dealing with large industrial-sized farms here that are pulling a lot of that water out of the ground.

But I want to ask you, is it what they are growing or how they are growing it? And then, a lot of people have already had discussions, should cattle be used with this kind of water table? Are we growing too many water-intensive newts (ph) -- fruits and vegetables? Where does the aquifer fit into all of this?

BOWMAN: OK, you are asking exactly the right questions. So, I think there -- that we need to look at both what we are growing, as well as where we are growing it.

So, some of the most stressed aquifers globally can be found in the Arabian Peninsula, in the border of India and Pakistan, and then the famous Ogallala Aquifer that covers eight states in the United States, as well as the California Central Valley Aquifer. So those are all under enormous stress.

So, for us to resolve this crisis we need to look at two main areas. The first is agriculture but the second is industry. Industry also uses quite a bit of water.

So in terms of agriculture, I think the key question is, are we growing water thirsty crops in highly arid regions, such as the Great Plains? The Great Plains in the United States are extremely arid. The Central Valley of California is very arid.

We can't stop growing plants in those areas, we rely on them heavily, but we can do a better job --

(CROSSTALK)

NEWTON: And that's -- that kind of adaptation certainly makes a lot of sense. But you know, the comeback for farmers is going to be, look, the water is there, it remains there, it's going to be there forever. We just had all of this water into California earlier this year, we had floods in the desert recently.

What do you say to that counter argument?

BOWMAN: And actually, farmers are some of the most concerned people. They are organizing themselves to adapt their water use. Some agencies of the U.S. government are helping them, like the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

It's an interesting point that you raise about the large amount of rainfall in California.

Obviously, everybody is very excited about that because that can help reduce drought and it can fill reservoirs, but aquifers or groundwater recharges incredibly slowly. So, many aquifers may take millions of years to fill, but only like 100 years to deplete.

So, although everyone is excited about all of the rain and snowmelt we've been getting, it's not going to be sufficient to recharge these heavily stressed aquifers, whether in the U.S. or globally.

And I do think that the farmers are concerned, and they are making changes. And the Natural Resources Conservation Service, among others, is working closely with farmers to make careful choices about what they're growing, to make sure they keep their profit margin.

NEWTON: Yes. You know, you make such a good point though. Millions of years to fill and sometimes can be depleted in the matter of a little bit more than a century.

We have to leave it there. But Professor Bowman, we certainly appreciate your expertise on this.

BOWMAN: Thank you so much for having me on, I appreciate it.

[02:55:07]

NEWTON: OK, so there is a new king of the U.S. box office. Denzel Washington nabbed the top spot with the third film in the "Equalizer" franchise. The action film brought in more than $34 million dollars over the holiday weekend. And, yes, Washington bumped "Barbie" from six weeks at number one. The

film starring Margot Robbie has smashed box office records, becoming the top grossing film of the year so far. Barbie is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, which is owned by CNN's parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.

And I want to thank you for watching. I'm Paula Newton. I'll be right back with more news in a moment.

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