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Last Polls Close After Three-Day Russian Presidential Election; Biden Campaign Raises $53 Million In February; Days' Long Manhunt Ends For Suspect Accused Of Killing New Mexico State Police Officer. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired March 17, 2024 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:16]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Sunday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, and we begin with this breaking news.

A short time ago in Russia, the last polls closed following a three- day presidential election with no genuine opposition candidates appearing on the ballot, the outcome was never in doubt. Vladimir Putin is expected to win the vote that will keep his grip on power through 2030.

He is already Russia's longest-serving ruler since Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin.

We've got full coverage for you. CNN's Matthew Chance is in Moscow. Fred Pleitgen is in Berlin, and also with us, CNN contributor and former Moscow bureau chief, Jill Dougherty.

Matthew, let's begin with you.

Despite the lack of opposition, there were acts of defiance weren't there today?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, there have been quite a few actually, but look, I mean, the preliminary results are just coming in and that they're very high, which is expected. We are looking at something in the region of 88 percent votes for Vladimir Putin. That's with about 25 percent of the votes counted and a turnout of well over 70 percent. So these are extraordinary high results, even by the standards of an election of Vladimir Putin.

But you're right, it has not been a totally unified and stable election period. There has been a lot of defiance, acts of defiance at polling stations. For instance, across the country with petrol bombs being thrown and paint and ink, and antiseptic dye being put in to voting boxes. That's extraordinary, of course, in a country where public displays of dissent can attract very serious consequences.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CHANCE (voice over): Another flash of defiance in Russia's presidential vote. The opposition called this Midday Against Putin, supporters gathering at polling stations across the country in a show of solidarity.

(ALEXEI NAVALNY speaking in foreign language.)

CHANCE (voice over): It is what Alexei Navalny, Russia's late opposition leader had urged before he suddenly died.

CHANCE (on camera): Well, the Russian authorities say that anyone who attends an unauthorized protests will be dealt with severely, but you can see its just after 12:00 here in Moscow and a lot of people have turned out at this one polling station to cast their ballots.

It is not a protest, but it is an indication of just how many people here are heeding Alexei Navalny's call.

Why do you come now to cast your vote?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because they come, too.

CHANCE: And you wanted to see all of these people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, we wanted to come together and see each other in person.

CHANCE: Why did you decide to come now at 12 o'clock?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know why? I think everyone who stay in this queue know why.

CHANCE (voice over): For three days, Russians have been voting in an election which President Putin was always certain to win.

(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE speaking in foreign language.)

CHANCE (voice over): Scattered acts of disruption of exposed division.

In several polling stations, dye was poured into ballot boxes to ruin paper votes already cast.

Across Russia, a number of voting centers were hit with arson attacks. Officials insist these deeply flawed presidential elections in which the opposition wasn't even allowed to stand were free and fair.

(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE speaking in foreign language.)

CHANCE (voice over): "Compared to the last presidential vote in 2018, we received one half as many complaints," Russia's chief Human Rights commissioner, tells state television.

(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE speaking in foreign language.)

CHANCE (voice over): "I don't remember such active, deeply monitored elections here," she adds.

But the defiance of some Russians has also been exceptional, a simmering discontent in the Kremlin's tightly controlled Russia briefly boiling up to the surface.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHANCE (on camera): Well, Fred, the Kremlin have confirmed tonight that we are likely to hear from Vladimir Putin within the next few hours and with the results like the ones that were seeing now coming in, with 88 percent all or thereabouts of the vote, it is likely Vladimir Putin will take this opportunity to claim a mandate for more of his policies.

For instance, in Ukraine, and to kind of manipulate the Russian economy in order to cater for that.

WHITFIELD: And then Matthew, as the election has been taking place, there have also been constant Ukrainian drone attacks.

[15:05:10]

What more can you tell us about that?

CHANCE: Yes, I mean, from a Kremlin point of view, this has really been casting a shadow over the whole election process because for the past several days, in particular, there have been multiple drone attacks the from Ukraine into Russian territory, largely targeting oil installations, oil refineries, and things like that.

And there are some very dramatic images that are making the rounds on social media showing the extent of the destruction that has been caused by those drones exploding and hitting their targets.

There have also been cross-border raids by various Ukraine-based Russian militias into Russian territory. And so all of that forming the violent backdrop for these election results.

WHITFIELD: All right, Matthew Chance in Moscow. Thanks so much.

Let's turn now to Fred Pleitgen, who is in Berlin.

So a Fred, the widow of the late opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, was among large crowds who voted remotely there in Germany. Tell us more about that.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Fredricka.

This was of course part of that Midday Against Putin protests that the opposition had called for, which of course took place that many Russian embassies where ex-pats were voting around the world. But Berlin certainly seemed to have one of the largest showings and certainly also some of the most prominent opposition activists are here as well, the most prominent by far, of course, Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Alexei Navalny. She actually came out and she said she had to stand in line for six hours to be able to vote because there were so many people who are showing up and we were there for large parts of that time, and we certainly did see a lot of people with anti-Putin signs, some of them with pro-Ukrainian gear as well.

There were, however, also a lot of pro-Putin voters, one has to say in the crowd that was waiting to also get in.

Now, Yulia Navalnaya, after standing in line for a very long time did manage to get in and cast her ballot. And she said that she wrote the surname Navalny on that ballot. And here is why.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(YULIA NAVALNAYA speaking in foreign language.)

TRANSLATION: You are probably wondering what I wrote on the ballot papers, who I voted for. Of course, I wrote Navalny's surname because it can't be so that a month before the election and already during the presidential campaign, Putin's main opponent, already imprisoned was murdered.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: So that was Yulia Navalnaya speaking immediately after getting out of that polling station in the Russian embassy here in Berlin.

She was then also asked if she had a message for Vladimir Putin as she was walking off. She got a little bit annoyed when she was asked that question. She said, look, stop asking me about messages for Vladimir Putin. She called him a gangster and a killer and said there could be no negotiations with Vladimir Putin -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, bold messaging from her. Thank you so much, Fred Pleitgen in Berlin.

All right, Jill Dougherty now with us.

I want to get some analysis from, you. I mean, you are formerly the bureau chief in Moscow, you know it well, and even throughout this three-day election cycle, we've been seeing sporadic acts of defiance here and there, but does it have any impact at all into the direction of Vladimir Putin's leadership.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CONTRIBUTOR: I do think it will have an effect, obviously on the vote that's already over, but I found it very interesting that comment by one person in line that Matthew mentioned. He said, I came because I wanted to see other people and I think this is one thing that the opposition wants people to know, that they are not alone, that there are other people in the country who feel the same way they do.

And that is very difficult in Russia sometimes because essentially you can't go onto the streets anymore. You cannot protest. You can't like things on social media. You can be arrested very easily for any sign of opposition. And so knowing that there are other people who do not support Putin, actually is significant.

It is very hard to measure, obviously, but I think, cumulatively it is an important thing.

WHITFIELD: Do you find it remarkable that there are people, we saw many people in terms of these examples of acts of defiance, many people who are willing to be seen putting dye into a ballot box, lighting fires, speaking of defiance and an outright opposition to Putin. They are willing to take these kinds of risks. Does that strike you given that there have been so many people arrested? People have lost so much, especially after Navalny's death in their forms of protest.

[15:10:04]

But people still don't seem to be at all, or at least a large number of people don't seem to be at all afraid of the repercussions.

DOUGHERTY: Well, the incidents like pouring ink and things like that, I still think have to defined. I'm not quite sure who those people were or exactly why they were doing that, but I think the lines that came out, especially in Russia, not only in Europe because it is easier in Europe, obviously, if you're a Russian in Europe, to show up in those long lines.

But the long lines within Russia, I think is really significant. Remember that woman in the line said, you know, why we're here.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

DOUGHERTY: They were here, at least supporting the call by Navalny to do that.

So, I think we will have to see again how this plays out, because the Kremlin did not want this to happen. They did not want people to show up in big lines at the end.

And that type of protest to me is almost more significant than anything that we saw with destruction of ballots or anything like that.

WHITFIELD: Interesting. And then, you know, sanctions against Russia. I mean, it seems like the impact has been fairly limited. I mean, correct me if I'm wrong on that, but a lot of experts have said, you know, it doesn't seem to influence Putin very much.

But Russia's economy remains rather small compared to some of the larger nations. So is this the weak spot of Putin? Continued sanctions?

DOUGHERTY: Well, there are a lot of sanctions right now. There is a debate as to whether they are effective. Long term, they actually are, but they haven't done what they wanted to do or the West wanted to do in the beginning, which was to stop Vladimir Putin from invading another country.

But what's happening right now is Putin has put his economy on a war footing. So there are a lot of indications, you know, the economy seems to be doing quite well, or booming. Some of that is actually coming because it is a wartime economy, because people are back in factories making equipment and weapons et cetera, and that increases the economy.

But what does it mean in the long run? Some of it -- you obviously have a lot of people who have left the country, educated people, people who are in IT et cetera. You also have a lack of some of the most sophisticated technological supplies that you can imagine that Russia really needs, the high-tech supplies that they could get from the West, which they can't anymore. So that's I think more significant in the end.

WHITFIELD: All right, we will leave it there. Jill Dougherty, great to see you. Thank you so much. Matthew Chance, as well as Fred Pleitgen for joining us.

All right, it was quite the week for Vice President Kamala Harris. Could the next few months be even more pivotal?

Plus, we are following breaking news as a days' long manhunt ends with the arrest of a suspect accused of killing a New Mexico State Police officer. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:18:07]

WHITFIELD: All right, just days after officially getting enough delegates to clinch the Democratic nomination for president. The Biden campaign has announced yet another eye-popping month of fundraising. In February, Biden raised more than $53 giving the campaign a staggering $155 million in the bank.

That's the most of any Democratic presidential campaign at this stage of the election cycle, and substantially more than the Trump campaign has on hand.

I am joined now by Julian Zelizer, a CNN political analyst.

Julian, great to see you. So at this stage of the election and boy, it is going to be a very long campaign for the general, right? How big of an advantage might this be for the Biden campaign?

JULIAN ZELIZER, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: It is very important. I mean, money allows you to flood key markets with advertising and advertising can sway voters who haven't decided or voters who might not feel energized about the Biden campaign, so on both fronts, the money is important and former President Trump finds himself not only without that kind of money, but also needing to divert funds to his legal cases.

So I think the Biden campaigns is probably pleased about this situation.

WHITFIELD: Okay. And then isn't your view that the Biden re-election campaign is starting to get a little bit more confident by being a bit more bold. You know, President Biden was in the battleground states following his State of the Union address, and the vice president did something unprecedented, right? Vice President Harris became the first vice president to visit an abortion clinic during a campaign stop, that happening in Minnesota. And then she also criticized federal laws that treat marijuana the same as heroin and fentanyl. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This issue is stark when one considers the fact that on the schedule currently, marijuana is considered as dangerous as heroin -- marijuana is considered as dangerous as heroin and more dangerous than fentanyl, which is absurd not to mention patently unfair.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[15:20:18]

WHITFIELD: So you wrote an opinion piece for cnn.com this week, headlined, "It's Time for Kamala Harris to Shine." Why do you believe this just might be an optimal time for her?

ZELIZER: Well, I think the Biden campaign realizes that the stronger the vice president is publicly, the better their campaign is. I mean, part of it is because the better she is positioned, the more assured people will feel with concerns about Biden's age, that whatever happens in a second term, governance will be effective.

And she is being used as you just heard and played to reach out to constituencies younger voters, Black American voters, Latino voters, who might feel lukewarm or less than enthused about the Biden administration.

So I think now, the campaign is on to the fact that she must be it and should be one of their biggest assets if they're going to win.

WHITFIELD: The GOP has launched a lot of criticisms against her trying to lay the groundwork that she is a real weakness for the Biden administration. In your view, though, are you seeing that the rewards are much greater than any risks?

ZELIZER: I think they can be. I mean, those attacks are going to come regardless. Vice presidents usually don't determine the outcome of an election, but I think they can play an important role again, in reaching out to constituencies and attacking the opposition in a way Biden might not be comfortable, she can go after the former president with hammer and tong, and so both of those are important.

And again, because of his age, and the peculiarity of this particular election, I think the stronger confidence people have over time, the better Biden would be positioned in November.

WHITFIELD: All right, Julian Zelizer, great to see you. Thanks so much.

ZELIZER: Thanks for having me.

WHITFIELD: We are following this breaking news out of New Mexico now. The suspect accused of killing a New Mexico State Police officer has been captured following an intense manhunt.

New details from the investigation next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:26:43]

WHITFIELD: All right, this breaking news out of New Mexico after a two-day manhunt, the suspect who fatally shot New Mexico State Police Officer Justin Hare along the interstate early Friday morning, is now in custody after a foot pursuit in a nearby county.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF JOHN ALLEN, BERNALILLO COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: During this time as they had an eye on Mr. Smith, a foot pursuit ensued, shots were fired, some shot strikes Smith.

We don't know the amount right now or how many. That is still under investigation. But Smith was then taken into custody without further incident.

Smith was transported to a local hospital where he is under guard being treated for his injuries at this point.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Police say 32-year-old Jaremy Smith killed the officer who had stopped to help him, and then the suspect drove off in the officer's patrol car with the officer still inside.

Joining me right now is CNN national correspondent, Camila Bernal.

So what more do we know about the investigation?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred. So it was actually a gas station clerk that spotted Jaremy Smith this morning at around 7:00 AM local time. She called authorities and then what we are told is that at some point, officers found him walking. They established a perimeter. Eventually, there was a chase and those deputies shot Smith.

He was then taken into custody as you heard the sheriff there explaining and this all comes just two days after authorities say he shot and killed Officer Justin Hare, and what authorities are saying there was that the two had a brief conversation and he shot the officer multiple times before taking off in that patrol car.

The car that Justin Smith was in was a white BMW or that Jaremy Smith, excuse me was in was a white BMW and that car belongs on to a paramedic in South Carolina. Her name was Phonesia Machado-Fore and while Smith is not named a suspect in this case yet, he is described as a person of interest in that case.

So the chief of the New Mexico State Police said he would do everything he could to arrest Smith.

Here is what he said today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF TROY WEISLER, NEW MEXICO STATE POLICE: Yesterday, we said that we would bring Jaremy Smith to justice. There was nowhere that he could run, that there was nowhere he could hide.

Today, thanks to our community, to our fellow law enforcement partners, we were able to do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERNAL: And the chief had been emotional over the last couple of days after the shooting. He says that now they're focused on trying to find anybody that tried to help Smith escape, but he also said that this arrest is giving them time to grieve his officer, time for the community to come together and remember this man who was trying to help.

He said this was an officer who's last words were offering to help -- offering to give Smith a ride back to town, and instead the chief saying, he was shot in cold blood.

So again, this was a horrible incident where authorities said they would do everything they could to get this guy. They did so today. They say they're focused on this investigation to eventually bring justice and a prosecution against Smith -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Terribly sad. All right, Camila Bernal, thank you so much.

[15:30:10]

All right, and now, new details in a weekend shooting spree in Pennsylvania where a man is now charged with murdering his 13-year-old sister, his stepmother, and the mother of his two children.

Authorities say the suspect then staged a carjacking and then fled to Trenton, New Jersey where they initially thought he was holding hostages in a home, but then officials later said that he was later apprehended after hours surrounding that house, he was later apprehended after being spotted walking down a nearby street. New Jersey officials have now charged him with multiple crimes.

Here to discuss is CNN senior national security analyst, Juliette Kayyem.

Juliette, great to see you.

I mean, this is -- this was something else. I mean, we had live coverage of it, a good part of yesterday, but now were learning that the suspect may not have been in that home as initially reported and thought, but instead, he seemed to be outside of the perimeter that police had set up around the home and he was spotted walking down the street. Okay, so how does that happen?

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, at least from the police reports, the people inside the home that they had barricaded essentially told them that they thought that he was still in the house. And so you know, in that moment, the police are going to believe eyewitness reports because everything is in real time. They don't have time to validate it, so they then look and focus on this house, keep it secure, make sure nobody gets out.

Now at some stage, he does get out. It might have been much earlier. We just its simply don't know at this stage. And then, the good news is, is that in all of these cases, that in terms of police training and in terms of securing sites, you're going to have the primary spot and then you're going to have secondary, third, all sorts of layers or zones of protected activity either keeping people in which appears to be the case here that he was walking around close to secondary surveillance or keeping people out because lots of people know where the house is and they might want to come gawk.

So it looks -- look, we do these things in real time because of our access to them but, but how it unfolds is not known in real time. And so in this instance, I think that the police focused on the eyewitness reports, which is probably the right thing to do in the middle of this.

WHITFIELD: Right, and at the time, it is a real delicate balance too, right, because there were people inside the home who certainly thought they were in danger and the focus was trying to get some of those residents out, which they did successfully unharmed.

And so now, when you look at the totality of the investigation and the charges that will come, you know, it began as far as we know with the timeline, it began with the killings of people in his family in Pennsylvania, then he allegedly carries out a carjacking and then crosses state lines.

So who takes the lead on an investigation like this? Because it is an issue now of prosecuting the suspect.

KAYYEM: Yes, where the murders occurred will be more likely than not where the investigation should be, where the investigation will focus, and where motive will be determined and where he will be tried in this case, Pennsylvania. It should be. That's where the victims are.

And as you -- you know, Fred, you said people were killed, I mean, look, these are three women in his family. Are we to believe that there is no men in the family? One is a stepmother, one is a sister, and then one is the mother of his children.

So when you're looking at an investigation like this, what prompted it? Why only women? Because as we know violence and rage tend to be tied to misogyny and focusing on women. And so when I look at this, just 24 hours later, that's a key factor. Was there something with the family in terms of children, children custody, or did he just have a hatred towards the women in his family and killed them?

I mean, his sister was young. I mean, this is --

WHITFIELD: Thirteen years old.

KAYYEM: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Terrible. Juliette Kayyem, great to see you. Thank you so much.

KAYYEM: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:39:10]

WHITFIELD: All right, back to our top story. Polls are closed in Russia after a three-day presidential election. We are awaiting official results, though Vladimir Putin is expected to win as no genuine opposition candidate appeared on the ballot.

CNN's Clare Sebastian has more from London.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's just after midday here in London, and you can see there's a pretty significant turnout here at the embassy.

People are starting to line up at the entrance and then the queue stretches all the way along. I can't even see the end of it.

At this point, people have been turning out in the rain, clearly heeding the call from Alexei Navalny and his team to come out and to line up at the embassy at 12 o'clock to express their opposition to President Putin, and of course, his war in Ukraine.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have to start somewhere, and you knew, we can't just say we can't change anything and therefore, we are going to stay home on the couch.

[15:40:07]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think this is a really key moment in our lives and given that, so we were actually just talking about it. So we are 28, all of us, we are quite good friends and this is the first elections that many of us have taken part in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This picture of people standing here, the very fact that there are lots of people and all of them are against Putin, it means something. It is worth something.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the highest probably turnout that I've seen at any mass protest in London.

It is important for us to not to give up our fight, even though we cannot really affect the situation now, but things will change. And at that time, we want to be an organized political force that can shape how Russia will be governed at the next stage of its development.

SEBASTIAN: Now, obviously these Russians in London can do what Russians inside Russia cannot without great personal risk as they hold an actual protest against Putin's regime and the purpose of all of this, when they cannot change the result of the election is one to do something at a time of great despair for the Russian opposition movement after the death of Alexei Navalny and secondly, to try to show Russians in Russia that if they do oppose the regime, they're not alone.

Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And now to Haiti, a political and humanitarian crisis, a UNICEF container with critical aid was looted in Port-au-Prince Saturday as violence in Haiti persist. The shipment carried items essential for maternal and neonatal care, as well as resuscitators.

And now armed groups control over 260 humanitarian owned containers at Haiti's main shipping port.

CNN's David Culver and his team are the first to enter Port-au-Prince since the most recent surge in violence. And he has more from the Haiti capital.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Neighbors, protecting neighbors. That's essentially what this has become here in Port-au- Prince just to survive. And this is one community that we're in that feels rather safe. And that's just because several blocks out, you've got perimeter after perimeter that is set up by the community and works with the police.

So, the police essentially allow the community to do what they need to do, to set up these blocks at entries and exits. And the community in turn helps empower the police so that they can then do their patrols. But for many of them, it's about setting these up to block what is not far from here, and that is an expanding gang territory, one that has been trying to encroach on this community, in particular, many times over the past year or so.

And it got to a point where community members, according to one police commander, had to take justice into their own hands. And they were able to take into custody 14 suspected gang members. They then executed those gang members right in the middle of the street. It was a very public display, but for them it was to send a message to other gang members to keep out of their community.

It hasn't stopped the gangs from trying to push further and further in. But for the folks who live here, they say everyday life has gotten increasingly difficult. We see a few street vendors, but not many.

When we were here three weeks ago, many of the sidewalks were filled with street vendors. Folks now simply don't have things to sell. And so, they've resorted to trying to secure as best as possible using the police's help some of the supply lines, trying to bring water and food into areas like this.

I asked some of the community members how is it that they're able to stay afloat. And he said we rely on each other. Essentially, they will have some of these community members go door to door collecting food, maybe some money, some water. And then that provides some sustenance for the folks who are securing these communities.

If you ask who's in charge, they look around and they say no one. That's why they've taken matters into their own hands. If you ask what do you need, what can help, Haiti in this moment, the first thing that most folks have told us is for the international community to not intervene in the way they have at the past. Instead, they want help in the form of aid. They also say that they need some sort of security backup.

What that looks like they didn't really articulate. Folks really didn't want to go into too much detail in trying to explain what that added security might come in the form of. But for most here it's just about trying to figure out how to get to tomorrow and knowing that tonight could bring another round of violence.

David Culver, CNN, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:49:44]

WHITFIELD: All right, what a week it has been for the British Royal family, a question surrounding the public absence of Catherine, Princess of Wales after her abdominal surgery have only grown. And as you likely know, news agencies pulled a doctored photo of her and her three kids which was designed to show her seemingly healthy and happy.

[15:50:06]

Well, no detailed explanation yet from the Royal family, but now Catherine's sister-in-law, Meghan, and Prince Harry are facing questions over a surprise announcement online that's unrelated. Details now from Isa Soares.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ISA SOARES, CNN ANCHOR (voice over): A new business venture and a social media comeback for the Duchess of Sussex.

After a six-year absence from Instagram, Meghan has launched American Riviera Orchard. Little is known about the brand but the timing of the announcement is raising eyebrows here in the UK.

Across the Atlantic, on the very same day, Prince William honored the legacy of his mother, Princess Diana at an awards ceremony. His brother and Meghan's husband, Prince Harry, joined live via video link and thanked those working for keeping her memory alive.

Despite the warm messages, the event was overshadowed by the relentless saga surrounding the Princess of Wales.

REPORTER: It's the question that has taken over the internet. Where is Kate Middleton?

REPORTER: Everyone is still talking about this picture.

PIERS MORGAN, FOX NATION HOST: Wherever you stand on Katespiracy, there's no doubting its impact on the reputation of the British Royal family.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They really, really messed up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They really have messed up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They have messed up, yes.

SOARES (voice over): Which has been swirling in the media and amid the public for nearly a week. It all started with this photo to mark Mother's Day in the UK meant to calm fevered speculation over her health but in the end, only made things worse.

The image, put out by Kensington Palace, is the first glimpse of Princess Catherine since her last public appearance on Christmas Day.

The only problem, it had been edited.

By the end of the day, major international news agencies had withdrawn the image, citing manipulation concerns, including the French-based AFP, where Eric Baradat is a photo director.

ERIC BARADAT, AFP PHOTO DIRECTOR: Everybody started at, you know, enlarging, zooming in the picture and noticing straight away that something was wrong. And after a few hours, all agencies in London decided to pull the pictures together.

SOARES (voice over): With the palace in damage control, the princess issued an apology on social media saying, "Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused."

She was spotted briefly on Monday alongside her husband, William, in the car leaving Windsor for a private appointment. But AFP's photo director, says her doctored photo raises serious questions about trust and transparency.

SOARES (on camera): You thought you were tricked. Did you feel you were tricked?

BARADAT: Yes. Our position now will be that every image -- still image coming out of Kensington Palace will clearly be scrutinized very thoroughly before we decide to put it out to our subscribers around the world.

SOARES: It's often said that the Royal family has to be seen to be believed. But when you don't believe what you see, then a whole host of conspiracy theories start swirling online.

I did a search for Kate Middleton photos you can see here and there are so many just circling right now on social media from the insensitive to the outright outlandish.

SOARES (voice over): Still, some in the British public believe Kate has a right to privacy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a lot bigger issues to worry about in the world, really, people just leave her alone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's blown out of all proportion. She did a little couple of tweaks at home. End of story.

SOARES (voice over): Blown out of proportion or not, one thing is clear, with King Charles' ongoing cancer treatment and the mystery around Kate's health, the Royal family is dealing with a PR battle on several fronts.

Isa Soares, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And in this week's new episode of "United States of Scandal," Jake Tapper takes you inside the resignation of the nation's first openly gay governor or former New Jersey governor Jim McGreevey -- Jake

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Fred.

Tonight, we are examining the story of former New Jersey Democratic Governor Jim McGreevey. He came out as gay in 2004 and admitted to having had a gay affair and he resigned from office, all in one breathtaking press conference.

Here is what governor McGreevey told me about the moment he realized that in order to succeed, he would have to hide from the world who he really was.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Governor, thanks so much for doing this.

JIM MCGREEVEY, FORMER NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR: Oh, it's a pleasure. TAPPER: So your story is so interesting because you were living a lie, the secret life. How did you justify this to yourself? Was this just well, this is what gay men have to do and I just have to pretend to be something else and lots of other gay men are in politics pretending. Like what --

[15:55:06]

MCGREEVEY: I didn't wake up and say, I'm going to be deceptive for the sake of deceiving. I'm going to create this whole double ledger. No, I didn't make that decision prior to a gubernatorial campaign, I made it, like at seven or eight years old.

I can remember this as if it were yesterday. I go to my local public library and I am pulling out the guard catalogue look of the word "homosexuality" and it said underneath, "See psychiatric illness" and it was just like this thing, at least then in America called "gay" wasn't a good thing.

I realized at that point in time that life is going to be a very painful trajectory if I own this and you just try to make an accommodation outbid an unhealthy accommodation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: We were all quick to embrace the headline, the one that McGreevey made when he said -- he stood before the nation as a gay American.

But tonight, were going to dig a little deeper into what else was going on in that case. Allegations of corruption and nepotism, ones that consumed McGreevey's administration and also contributed to his fall from grace -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much, Jake, look forward to it.

An all new episode if "United States of Scandal" airs tonight at 9:00 PM Eastern Time.

All right, coming up, votes are being counted in Russia's presidential election, while anti-Putin protesters take to the streets in cities around the world. Our team is live in Russia. Stay with us.

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