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CNN International: CNN Exclusive: Bodies Of U.S Missionary Couple Killed In Haiti Returning Home After U.S. Govt. Brokers Deal With Gang Leaders; Jury Deliberations Resume In Trump Hush Money Trial; Ukraine Weapons In Focus As NATO Foreign Ministers Meet. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired May 30, 2024 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RAHEL SOLOMON, HOST, "CNN NEWSROOM": Hello, and welcome to our viewers from all around the world and those joining us on Max. I am Rahel Solomon live in New York.

Ahead on CNN Newsroom, it's day two of jury deliberations in New York in Donald Trump's hush money trial. Coming up, we will break down what to expect to see today and when a possible verdict could be reached. Plus, U.S. President Joe Biden has often counted on Hollywood support. But now, CNN is learning that many stars may be hesitant to make any endorsements. We will look at how this could impact the youth vote. We're also live in Johannesburg, South Africa, where early election results are suggesting the biggest political shift since the end of apartheid.

All right. We'll get to those stories in just a moment. But, first, we want to begin with some breaking news out of Haiti and exclusive CNN reporting. We are learning that the U.S. government has worked with Haitian authorities and even brokered talks with gang leaders to secure the return of the bodies of two American missionaries killed in Port-au-Prince last week.

Let's go to Caitlin Hu in New York for the details. Caitlin, what more are we learning about this?

CAITLIN HU, CNN DIGITAL SENIOR EDITOR: Yeah. So, we've just gotten confirmation that that flight has taken off from the international airport in Port-au-Prince. This is the end of an incredibly sensitive operation on the ground in Haiti to recover the bodies from where they were -- where Davy and Natalie were killed in Port-au-Prince in a gang-controlled neighborhood to extract them from that and to put them and safekeeping until they could be safely repatriated home.

We know that the U.S. officials on the ground had to be in intensive talks with Haitian officials in order to be able to take the bodies into custody even before Haitian authorities had a chance to investigate the crime scene. And we know that U.S. officials had to bring together gang leaders on a conference call to make sure that they could access this dangerous area. An ambulance that had been sent to pick up the bodies was actually stopped by armed gang members on their way. And the U.S. had to try to broker negotiations, probably through intermediaries, in order to make sure that the ambulance would be allowed to pass.

The reason for this is because there was a huge fear in the families and even amongst state officials that the bodies of Davy and Natalie, these two young American missionaries, might be desecrated or even held hostage for ransom. So, the fact that that plane is now wheels up is going to be a huge relief for everybody involved.

SOLOMON: Yeah. And to that end, Caitlin, I mean, have we heard from the victims' families yet after this news?

HU: We've been in touch with the victims' families, particularly David Lloyd, the founder of this mission and father of Davy Lloyd. But, they've been very -- they've expressed a lot of concern about the security of the mission and fear that even until the moment that the plane took off that there'll be some kind of last minute attack or something. Remember that 80 percent of Port-au-Prince is controlled by gangs. So, anything could have happened in this volatile situation. I'm sure now that the bodies are now on their way to Miami, their parents will be much more happy to share their feelings about how it's going.

SOLOMON: Yeah. Caitlin Hu, thank you for the reporting. We appreciate you hopping on to bring it to us. Thank you.

All right. We also continue to keep a close eye on that Manhattan courthouse as day two of jury deliberations gets underway in Donald Trump's hush money case. On Wednesday, the panel of 12 New Yorkers spoke among themselves for more than four hours. They asked to see dense pieces of testimony from former tabloid publisher David Pecker, and also key prosecution witness Michael Cohen. The jury also asked the judge, Merchan, to repeat some of the instructions from his hour- long presentation. And this morning, they asked yet again for specific jury instructions to be read to them.

And now, the nation continues to wait as seven men and five women decide whether Donald Trump, the former President of the United States, is guilty of any of the 34 felony charges of falsifying business records.

Let's bring in our Senior Crime and Justice Reporter Katelyn Polantz, who is tracking all of this. She is with us from Washington now. Katelyn, obviously, it is anyone's guess how long this could go on. But, anything we can glean from the juries question so far?

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE REPORTER: Well, Rahel, the jury is clearly hard at work here. The things that they have notified the judge that they want more information about or help with is they wanted headphones so that they could listen to some of the information evidence that is in a laptop that they have. We also know that they asked for the judge to read back portions of testimony to them which is what is happening right now.

[11:05:00] The judge is talking to the jury and the people in the courtroom are being -- are hearing again portions of testimony, specifically from David Pecker. They're hearing a little bit of the Michael Cohen testimony as well.

But, David Pecker, if you recall, was the CEO of the publishing company atop the National Enquirer, who sat down with Michael Cohen and Donald Trump in August of 2015 at Trump Tower. That is a key thing that the jury requested. They wanted more -- to hear the testimony again on. And in that meeting, that was when David Pecker testified that he told Michael Cohen and Donald Trump that his world would be on the lookout for negative stories about women that they could help the campaign of Donald Trump that would be upcoming in the following year, and that they were interested, David Pecker was interested in essentially working with the campaign.

So, these questions, what can we glean from them, other than the fact the jury wants to pay attention to very specific things that happened over the course of the trial, it does appear that they are trying to hear a little bit more about the campaign aspects of the testimony, a key piece the prosecutors will need to prove as far as intent, did Donald Trump want to help his campaign by providing money to Michael Cohen to reimburse Stormy Daniels to keep her quiet, protect his presidential run. But, exactly what this means where the jury might be in working through the evidence and coming to a unanimous decision, we just don't know at this point.

SOLOMON: We just don't know. And Katelyn, Trump's team also just doesn't know. But, any sense based on how long the jury deliberates? We're now, look, more than six hours into deliberations. Any sense of how his Trump -- how Trump's team is viewing this? Are they seeing this as potentially a positive sign that the jurors can agree?

POLANTZ: Well, much of this in the -- in jury land, whenever you get into this phase of deliberations, it is reading tea leaves. It is much more of an art than a science. But, we do know generally that the Trump team believes every moment the jurors spend deliberating, longer may signal that they are having a harder time of reaching an agreement. They certainly didn't enter into deliberations, and within one minute, five minutes or even an hour come back with a verdict. So, they weren't in complete agreement there. They may be working through the evidence, the facts, the charges, 34 of them in this case. But, the Trump team does seem to believe that the longer jury deliberations go on, the more possible it is that the jury could hang that one or more of the jurors are not in agreement with the others.

Now, if they get to the point where they notify the court, ring the buzzer in the courtroom, come back in with a note and say we're just having a hard time. We don't think we can reach an agreement. We're deadlocked. At that point, the judge could give them an instruction to try and reach an agreement. That's something that the Trump team is nervous about. But, you just never know. Again, Rahel, jury deliberations is they are secret unless the jurors want to devolve later on once they're over, what happened in that room, and it is one of the hardest things to predict and to read of what's going on in a court proceeding. SOLOMON: Yeah. As one legal guest told me yesterday, Katelyn, the waiting is the hardest part. And so, we continue to wait. Katelyn Polantz, good to have you. We'll see you a little later in the show. Thanks, Katelyn.

The Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Prague for a meeting of NATO foreign ministers. Top of the agenda is, of course, support for Ukraine, and specifically the prospect of Kyiv boosting its defense with the ability to use Western weapons to strike targets within Russian territory. Now, this is something that the U.S. has so far opposed, but that position may be softening.

Melissa Bell is watching developments from Paris. We'll get to her in a moment. But, first, let's get to Kylie Atwood, who has the view from Washington. Kylie, this position would be a shift for the U.S. Talk to us a little bit about how we got here and what exactly Blinken said.

KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN U.S. SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. That's right. So, up until this point, as you said, Rahel, the U.S. has not allowed the weapons that they are giving to Ukraine to be used to go after any targets, military targets inside of Russia. They're only used to defend against Russian aggression on Ukrainian territory. And we're now more than two years, of course, into this awful conflict. And as we have seen over the course of the last few years, the U.S. adjustments have been made in terms of what it has given to Ukraine military, what it has been willing to give to Ukraine militarily. And now, there are conversations right now about this question as to whether the United States would allow Ukraine to go after some of those military targets that are inside of Russia, that are allowing Russia to continue, of course, its assault on Ukraine.

[11:10:00]

And this comes as there are multiple European leaders who, in recent weeks, have said that Ukraine should be allowed to use the weaponry that it has in a way that effectively it sees fit. And the United States up until this point has said that they have not enabled Ukraine to strike inside of Russia at all. Now, the Secretary of State is referencing the fact that they have made adjustments, U.S. has made adjustments to its policy over time. They are constantly having conversations with the Ukrainians on this topic, the first time he is indicating that there could be a softening in that position from the United States.

So, this is a really interesting area for us to watch, because it could critically change the trajectory of this war, what Ukraine is able to do as it defends against those Russian assaults. And we should watch to see gatherings of world leaders over the course of the next few months here. We have the G7 meeting. We have the NATO summit level here in Washington in July. And these may be times when President Biden takes up this issue and makes it an official change in policy, or it might be something that the U.S. changes more quietly. We also know that this -- there has been no official conversation topic that has ended this and made it a full on change in policy yet. So, we're really watching to see where this all goes. SOLOMON: No. Look, Kylie, it's a really interesting point that it's a remarkable position if they are in fact shifting, both for what it does for Ukraine, but also how Russia may respond to this. Kylie Atwood, thank you.

Let me actually bring in Melissa Bell, who is in Paris, who has been following the Prague meeting pretty closely. Melissa, talk to us a little bit about the Russian response to this, wasting no time to react. I mean, how is this development being received?

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The response has been swift and it's been impressive in its range of voices. In the last 48 hours, what we've heard, Rahel, is Vladimir Putin himself addressed this possibility of Western-gifted weapons being used on Russian targets outside Russia. We've heard Sergey Lavrov, the Foreign Minister, speak to it as well. And of course, today we've heard from Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, I think, because it's being extremely closely watched, because it is -- it would be such a game changer in terms of Ukraine's ability to strike those positions from which it's being attacked just across the border.

I mean, there is a reason why Russia has opened this new front above Kharkiv. We know that they'd been amassing this -- they've been calling up, conscripting some 30,000 extra people a month, according to Ukrainian sources, ahead of this, that this had been long planned even if it took the world somewhat by surprise. This has been their focus for a while. Why? Because so many of the attacks over the course the last couple of years that Ukraine has successfully managed to carry out, it has carried out on places like Belgorod, just across the border. If Ukraine were able to use its Western-gifted military, to put it in Jens Stoltenberg words, Ukraine would no longer be defending itself with its hands tied behind its back.

So, it would likely militarily be a game changer. But then, there is, of course, what symbolically this would mean. And I think what we've heard from all three of those senior Russian voices, from the President to the foreign secretary to the Kremlin spokesman across the board, is that they would consider that this was NATO coming at them, because this would involve military strategists, military intelligence, people -- military personnel, even if they were outside Ukraine involved in the use of this weaponry.

And so, they would consider this their own red line and an escalation, and the threats that have come from the Russian President have been fairly specific about countries that are inside NATO's eastern flank. Those that are, in his words, populous and small, perhaps referenced the Baltic States needs to be very careful about what the consequences of any such use would be.

And I think what's interesting as well, when you consider the words, for instance, of the French President and the German Chancellor, who spoke to this yesterday, is how clear they are that this isn't about NATO coming to a collective decision about whether to do this. We heard also from the British Foreign Secretary in early May when he was in Kyiv himself, the first one to say it is time that Kyiv take this as a green light from us that you can go ahead and use our weapons, and that's what we heard very clearly from Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz yesterday.

I guess the question is now going to be, to the point that Kylie made earlier, will this be an official -- it has been an official announcement from these particular European leaders. The question I suppose is, when Kyiv decides to use that green night and what the response opposite is? How the Kremlin goes about declaring, announcing to the world that it has found proof of this use and what its immediate response is? For now, though, this is an extremely interesting and dangerous ratcheting up of the rhetoric on both sides.

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SOLOMON: Yeah. Well said. Well put. Melissa Bell live for us there in Paris. Melissa, thank you.

All right. Authorities in northern Gaza say that Israeli forces are withdrawing from some parts of the Jabalia refugee camp, leaving behind vast destruction. I want to show you some of the first images we're seeing from the scene. Now, Gaza officials are warning people not to return home yet. We do want to warn you that this next video is disturbing. Local authorities say that some residents who attempted to enter the area had been shot and wounded by quadcopter drones. That information confirmed by a local journalist working for CNN. Israeli forces say that they continue to operate against quote "terrorist infrastructure".

In the south, meantime, the IDF says that it now has operational control over a key 14-kilometer buffer zone along Russia's border with Egypt. It says that it found 20 tunnels used by Hamas to smuggle weapons into Gaza. Egypt, meantime, denies the existence of these tunnels, accusing Israel of spreading lies.

Let's bring in Jeremy Diamond in Jerusalem for more. So, Jeremy, Israel again saying that it has control of this quarter. I mean, lay out for us how significant that is.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rahel, since the earliest days of the war, the words Philadelphi corridor have been ringing in the halls of Israel's military headquarters in Tel Aviv. That's because the Israeli military has long had its eyes on this corridor, viewing it as strategically significant, not only is it Gaza's border with Egypt, but it's also where the Israeli military believes Hamas has been smuggling weapons in from Egypt, and then using that area to smuggle weapons through tunnels throughout the Gaza Strip, and now the Israeli military saying that they have operational control of this corridor.

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DIAMOND (voice-over): On a hilltop in western Rafah, Israeli tanks overlook Gaza's border with Egypt, the Israeli military's latest prize. Three weeks into its Rafah offensive, Israel says it now controls the strategic Philadelphi corridor, spending the length of that seven-and-a-half-mile long border, which the Israeli military says Hamas has used to smuggle weapons into Gaza. Egypt denies these tunnels exists. REAR ADM. DANIEL HAGARI, ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES SPOKESPERSON

(Interpreted): The Philadelphi corridor served as Hamas' oxygen pipeline through which Hamas regularly smuggled weapons into the Gaza Strip. So far, our forces have located about 20 tunnels in the Philadelphi corridor area. We investigate these tunnels and neutralize them.

DIAMOND (voice-over): This is the human toll of that military offensive. United Nations says more than 940,000 people have been forced to flee the city in recent weeks. For many, this is not the first time. There is multiple there is no safety. Al-Mawasi is hit. The UN warehouses are hit. The UN schools are hit. There is no safety, Taisir Al Raas (ph) says. You might die at any moment, anywhere. Multiple Israeli strikes on camps for displaced Palestinians in recent days have made that point with deadly clarity, none more so than this strike in northwestern Rafah on Sunday night, which killed at least 45 people and injured hundreds more, according to Gaza as Ministry of Health.

The Israeli military has said it did not expect civilians to die and has launched an investigation into the strike, which killed two senior Hamas militants. But, at least three people can be seen on the road outside those structures moments before the strike. The Israeli military targeted these two container-like structures, just steps away from structures housing displaced civilians, which were also destroyed in the blast or the subsequent fire.

Four weapons experts tell CNN the weapons used in the strike were U.S.-made bombs. They say these remnants found at the site of the attack are pieces of a GBU-39 small diameter bomb carrying a relatively small payload intended to minimize civilian casualties. But, dropping them in densely populated areas can still have devastating consequences.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: If they going into Rafah, I'm not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah.

DIAMOND (voice-over): But for now, the U.S. doesn't plan to stop providing those weapons, with the White House insisting Israel hasn't crossed that red line.

JOHN KIRBY, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL SPOKESPERSON: We don't want to see a major ground operation. We haven't seen that at this point.

DIAMOND (voice-over): Major or not, the Israeli military is now deep in Rafah where Palestinian rescuers are struggling to safely reach the wounded, as the dangers are mounting for so many.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DIAMOND: And while there is some evidence, Rahel, that the Israeli military's ground defensive in Rafah is more limited in scale than what they had originally envisioned, that they are carrying this out in a more strategic targeted way than the kinds of offensives that we've seen the Israeli military carry out in northern Gaza or in places like Khan Younis.

[11:20:00]

Despite all of that, we are still witnessing the continuation of deadly airstrikes that the Israeli military is carrying out, including increasingly in recent days we've seen these airstrikes hit camps for displaced people, not only that incident on late Sunday night, but also in subsequent days. According to "Save the Children", at least 66 people, including children, have been killed in safe zones over just four days. And they are also warning that those who are not dying in these airstrikes or being wounded in those airstrikes are also struggling with basic food and necessities as a result of the impact that these military operations, that the continued fighting between Israel and Hamas is having on the flow and the distribution of humanitarian aid in Gaza. Rahel.

SOLOMON: Yeah. OK. Jeremy Diamond, thanks for the reporting, live for us there in Jerusalem.

All right. Still ahead for us, our latest look at the U.S. GDP for the first quarter. Those numbers just released this morning. We will take a live look at what the numbers tell us. Plus, it's a big day for Boeing, as it tries to prove itself after some glaring safety concerns. What we can expect, right after this break.

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SOLOMON: Welcome back. The report is out, and the U.S. economy grew slower than previously estimated for the first quarter. From January through March, the Gross Domestic Product grew at an annual rate of 1.3 percent. Now, the initial estimate was higher at 1.6 percent. So, this is the softest figure we've seen in quite some time. It's also much softer than the last quarter of 2023. That is when GDP grew 3.4 percent on an annual basis. Also released this morning, a weekly look at the number of Americans who are filing for unemployment benefits. This number did tick up, although slightly.

Joining us now from New York to break down this report is Matt Egan. So, Matt, give us a sense of GDP. What was behind the revision lower?

MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Well, Rahel, we knew the U.S. economy slowed down at the beginning of this year, and now we know it slowed even more than we realized. We're talking about GDP. This is the broadest measure of the economy, clocking in at 1.3 percent. As you mentioned, that is down from the initial estimate of 1.6 percent, and down from 3.4 percent at the end of last year. The big reason why this was downwardly revised is because of consumer spending. Now, Americans are still shopping. They're just tapping the brakes a bit. And you know what? That may not be the worst thing in the world, especially when you look at some of those credit card debt statistics out there and people falling behind on some of their bills. But, it is something to keep an eye on because consumer spending is the biggest driver of this economy.

At a high level, though, Rahel, I don't think there is anything in this report that is overly concerning. Economists are not very much alarmed by this. And we should also note that this is a backwards- looking report. It's a revision of a backwards-looking report.

[11:25:00]

Looking forward, economists do expect GDP will bounce back this quarter in a big way. In fact, I just looked, the Atlanta Fed is calling for GDP of 3.5 percent for this quarter. So, if they're right, then this first quarter slump will look more like a blip than anything to be concerned about.

SOLOMON: Yeah. It's funny, Matt. I looked at that this morning too, and it sort of feels like if they're right, we're on a bit of a roller coaster here, right? But, certainly, we'll wait to see how those numbers come out.

Let's talk about mortgages. Obviously, the housing market has taken quite a bit of a cool off because of higher interest rates, and also because of the price of homes. You have some new reporting on zero- down mortgages. Explain how this new program works, and what the fine print says.

EGAN: Right. Well, Rahel, we know that a lot of people would love to buy a home right now, but they just can't swing it, not just because of prices and rates, but because of the down payment. That can be an insurmountable hurdle. And so, now we have one of the nation's largest mortgage lenders, United Wholesale Mortgage, coming out with this new zero-down mortgage program. Now, this is open to first-time homebuyers and lower-income borrowers. It's essentially two loans. The first one covers 97 percent of the value of the house. The second one is the remaining three percent, up to $15,000. But, experts are stressing that you really need to understand the fine print here, because if home prices stopped going to the moon, this could backfire.

Now, that second loan is interest free, which is great, but it does need to be paid back in full when either the home is sold, the mortgage is paid off, or it's refinanced. And so, the problem here is that borrowers are going to start off with no equity at all. And so, yes, home prices are going up right now. But, if they start to go down, that means borrowers will instantly be underwater, where they actually owe more than the home is worth. Of course, that's what we saw during this subprime mortgage meltdown.

And so, you can imagine a scenario where say someone loses their job or they run into financial trouble and they have to sell their home, well, they still owe that second mortgage even if the home is underwater, and if they can't come up with the cash, well, they could face foreclosure. They could have their credit ruined.

And so, that is why Better Markets CEO Dennis Kelleher, he told me that this has quote "the potential to turn the American dream of home ownership almost immediately into a nightmare". Now, the company is pushing back here, telling me that this new program is a win for consumers because it helps them get to that down payment. And they say that critics are quote "uneducated about the state of the industry". The company also says that they have strong demand. They've seen thousands of applications for this new zero-down mortgage program, even though it just launched a few weeks ago. I think, Rahel, the real key for borrowers is knowing what you're getting into, because this is certainly being pitched as a solution for the affordability problem, but it's not without risks. B SOLOMON: Yeah. It's a great point, Matt, knowing what you're getting into, and as some financial analysts have said in the past, not buying too much house, right, making sure you can absolutely afford the mortgage payments. But, Matt, it's important reporting because it really gets to the need out there right now to o buy a home. But, how expensive it is, especially when you consider down payments? Matt, great reporting. Good to have you. Thank you.

EGAN: Thank you.

SOLOMON: OK. Well, today, aircraft maker Boeing is expected to produce a sweeping action plan that was demanded by U.S. air safety regulators. It comes after a string of problems, including the blow out of a door on an Alaska Airlines right back in January. Remember this?

CNN Aviation Correspondent Pete Muntean has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Rahel, this is a big moment for Boeing to prove it is turning the ship around following this year's back-to-back bad headlines. Still unclear if Boeing will release this new plan to the public. But, we will hear from FAA administrator Mike Whitaker today. Boeing is trying to prove its plan so far is a fix for the quality control issues highlighted after the Alaska Airlines door plug blowout that grounded the 737 MAX 9s nationwide for weeks. Boeing stresses it has already laid out a clearer assembly line instructions for workers as well as training improvements to tools on the factory floor.

Notably, Boeing says it is hounding suppliers to no longer ship defective parts. It was an issue on the fuselage built by supplier Spirit AeroSystems that caused Boeing workers to remove the door plug on the 737. That was ultimately delivered to Alaska Airlines. The door plug was put back but all of the bolts were not. Boeing is, in general, trying to fix it safety culture, a big ask, and a report found that Boeing had gaps in the safety culture, something underscored by whistleblowers that keep coming forward. That has led to delays in certification and deliveries plans.

[11:30:00]

We'll be keeping an eye on what's in this new plan. Outgoing Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun is reportedly meeting with the FAA administrator today. Rahel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOLOMON: All right. Pete Muntean there. Pete, thank you.

And let's take a look at how Boeing stock is doing. We'll pull it up for you. Boeing stock actually green, which is unusual. Today, it's up one percent. But, if you take a look at the broader markets last I checked, they were all red, as they still are. Dow is off about one percent. The NASDAQ is off a little bit more than half a percent, as is the S&P, part of the reason why despite that GDP data we got, which was softer than expected, but we also got some weak earnings from Salesforce, which posted a disappointing earnings report. So, you can see part of that being digested by investors here in the U.S.

Let's take a look overseas. Let's go across the pond and look at European markets. You can see solidly green in Europe, which is still open. FTSE 100 right now up about two thirds of a percent, let's call it. The DAX, one quarter of a percent, and Paris up. Let's also call it two thirds of a percent. I'm generous here. I'm rounding up. Asian markets, solidly lower.

All right. Coming up, we're going to take a quick break, but our live coverage continues in day two of jury deliberations. Coming up, we will have the details ahead on what has happened so far inside of that Manhattan courthouse, as we near the end of Donald Trump's hush money trial. Plus, the U.S. presidential candidates, including Donald Trump, turning to celebrities for help on their respective campaigns. We will take a closer look at Biden and Trump's efforts to win over the youth vote. We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOLOMON: Welcome back. You're watching CNN Newsroom. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York. Let's now get to some of the international headlines we're watching for you today.

Human rights groups have condemned the ruling by a court in Hong Kong that found 14 opposition figures guilty of subversion. It follows the largest national security trial since Beijing's sweeping crackdown on the city. Prosecutors say they plan to appeal the acquittal of two former district councilors.

Right now to these incredible images out of southwestern Iceland, a volcano there spewing smoke and lava for now the fifth time since December. Lava flows have now cut off all but one road leading to the town of Grindavik, which remains largely evacuated after a previous eruption. The city's mayor although now saying that the situation there is much better than initially feared. Iceland's famous tourist destination and geothermal hotspot, the Blue Lagoon, well, that was evacuated on Wednesday before the volcano erupted.

And the heatwave that has gripped northwest India has claimed its first life. Local media report that a 40-year-old farmer in Delhi died of heatstroke on Wednesday. The temperature in India's capital reached a record of 52.9 degrees.

[11:35:00]

That is 127 degrees Fahrenheit. Officials in Delhi are rationing the water supply to help accommodate areas that have little or no water.

Now to South Africa where early election results are suggesting the biggest political shifts since the nation became a democracy 30 years ago. Initial results show support for the ruling ANC party falling well below 50 cent -- 50 percent, and that could mean that the party is forced into a coalition with its rivals. Final results are expected by Sunday.

But, for more, let's go to CNN's David McKenzie, who is live for us in Johannesburg. So, David, you've been following this story now for days, certainly. What have you been hearing about this latest -- these latest early results?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Rahel, I must stress that these results are still coming in, and it's much slower than it was five years ago because of an expanded ballot system that they are dealing with. But, it is very significant at this stage with 22 percent or so of the voting precincts that have been counted. The ANC, the African National Congress, is still below 45 percent of the vote. Now, that's truly significant. Again, I must stress, that will change until the final votes. But, there have been some very smart people projecting that they could fall under the crucial 50 percent mark.

Now, if they hold those numbers that you're seeing there, they will get to a point that they have to form a coalition with a more substantial opposition party. They can't just pick up one or two seats here and there from the much smaller parties. And that will be a huge blow to the ANC and certainly to the political reputation of President Cyril Ramaphosa, who had promised that this would be a renewal of the ANC in the eyes of the public. At least at this stage, that doesn't appear to be happening.

Another thing to stress is that this new party, the uMkhonto we Sizwe party, which is led by former President Jacob Zuma himself, who has faced scores of allegations of corruption over the years, has eaten into the support of the ANC very significantly, particularly in the coastal KwaZulu-Natal province. They could even potentially take that regional power structure in case it in. This means that you're looking at structures or parties that used to be part of the ANC, in Zuma and Julius Malema that have already eaten into the support base of the ruling party.

This is uncharted territory for South Africa. It was long expected, but the ANC's support would erode. I think, at least at this stage, some will be surprised how much it's eroded, and the parliament will have to form coalitions relatively quickly when the final results come out, which we expect by at least Sunday on the weekend. Rahel.

SOLOMON: OK. Well, keep us posted. David McKenzie live for us here in Johannesburg. David, thank you.

All right. Day two of jury deliberations are underway in Donald Trump's New York hush money case. On Wednesday, the panel of 12 New Yorkers spoke among themselves for more than four hours. You can see we're now closer to six hours and 43 minutes into deliberations. But, the jurors asked to see dense pieces of testimony from former tabloid publisher David Pecker and also key prosecution witness Michael Cohen. Now, the nation waits as seven men and five women slowly decide whether Donald Trump is guilty of any of the 34 felony charges of falsifying business records. Joining me now with some legal analysis is National Security Attorney

Bradley Moss. Bradley, good to have you. Let me just first start by, because we obviously don't know what the jury will decide, they don't even know perhaps at this point, we sort of try to glean from the questions what they may be thinking, what's your sense based on some of the questions of where they may be leaning?

BRADLEY MOSS, NATIONAL SECURITY ATTORNEY, & PARTNER, LAW OFFICE OF MARK. S. ZAID: Sure. So, if we're trying to read the tea leaves here, which is all we can really do at this point, the questions, the notes that the jurors sent to the judge that were addressed this morning seem to be focusing on sort of a supplemental issue, which is whether or not the falsification of the business records was done with the intent to commit a separate crime, to defraud via unlawful means. That is good news for the prosecution and bad news for Donald Trump, because if the jury has already settled on the idea that there was falsification of the business records and that he had caused it through Michael Cohen, that means the prosecution got over its biggest hurdle, which was Michael Cohen's credibility, and they're addressing the supplemental issue, which bumped it up to a felony, which was the unlawful means and issue.

SOLOMON: Bradley, is it good news for the former President that the jury is now six hours and 45 minutes into this, right, because he only needs one, he only needs one juror that can't convict and won't convict?

MOSS: Yeah. Every hour, every minute that passes without a verdict is a good thing for Donald Trump.

[11:40:00]

If we get into tomorrow afternoon without a decision, if we get into Monday without a decision, that would -- those signs would indicate there is a potential for a hung jury, which he would absolutely describe as a vindication, as some sort of win. I don't think even Donald Trump and his team really expect an acquittal. Certainly, that's happened - sorry, that could happen. Juries are unpredictable. Their goal right now, their aim is a hung jury. And every day -- every hour that passes, they get a little closer.

SOLOMON: Bradley, remind me, I was talking to a juror yesterday from another high-profile case, who said that, and they did reach a unanimous conviction, unanimous decision, but it was only after they previously went to the judge and said, judge, we're having a really hard time agreeing here. We think we're hon, and she told us that the judge said, nope, go back, try to work it out. And that's when they got to a unanimous decision. So, how common is it that if a jury is sort of struggling to reach a unanimous decision that the judge might say, try harder?

MOSS: It's incredibly common. And certainly, if there is a problem say going into tomorrow and they still don't have a decision, there is still one or two hold outs, and they go to the judge saying we have a problem. The judge will send them back to deliberate further. Judges don't want to declare a hung jury in a mistrial. That means the whole thing could potentially be done again. A lot of time and resources have been put into this, witnesses called, people's lives disrupted. So, judges will push back on initial problems with the jury reaching a unanimous verdict. But, if they ultimately conclude, look, judge, we've gone back multiple times, we are inevitably and completely deadlocked, that's the circumstance in which a judge would declare a mistrial in a hung jury.

SOLOMON: And so then, what happens then? I mean, is it case closed? Does the prosecution have the discretion of potentially at some point in the future bringing this back? I mean, what are the range of scenarios here?

MOSS: Sure. So, if there is a hung jury and this thing gets called off at that point, the prosecution absolutely has the ability to try the case again. Will they do, is anybody's guess right now, and certainly it'd be difficult to envision a way in which that would happen before the election at this point. My expectation is that, if there is a hung jury, that will likely be the end of this for at least 2024. They may not even decide to go through with it in 2025, depending on other factors, especially if Donald Trump does win election and returns to the White House.

But, we'll have to wait and see. The jury has only been at this for about six and a half -- six, six and a half hours. We've seen juries take much longer than that. It's not a simple case. There is a lot of details to go through. They'll take their time and they'll make a decision.

SOLOMON: Yeah, and it sounds like they are taking their time and sort of painstakingly going through the evidence, which is what you would hope from a jury. Bradley Moss, thank you.

MOSS: Absolutely.

SOLOMON: All right. Still to come, the Biden campaign is seeking a celebrity star-powered boost, but some in Hollywood are not ready to throw their support behind any candidate. You will find out why, just ahead.

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[11:45:00]

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SOLOMON: Welcome back. The Biden campaign may be boasting about some of its heavyweight star power, but many in Hollywood appear to be taking a backseat this election season, and sources say that the main reason why is the hyperpolarized world of politics right now. Both Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and rapper Cardi B who endorsed President Biden in 2020, say they won't be endorsing anyone this time around. However, celebrities George Clooney and Julia Roberts, they are throwing their support behind President Biden with a campaign fundraiser in the coming weeks. And known Trump critic, actor Robert De Niro, well, he grabbed headlines with his fiery news conference outside the former President's criminal trial on Tuesday. Listen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT DE NIRO, ACTOR: If Trump returns to the White House, you can kiss these freedoms goodbye that we all take for granted. And elections, forget about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: Now, one area where celebrities may play a big role is by capturing the youth vote in the 2024 election win.

I want to now bring in Daniel Cox. Daniel is a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and he specializes in survey research, politics and youth culture. Daniel, so good to have you today. Thank you. Welcome.

DANIEL COX, DIRECTOR, SURVEY CENTER ON AMERICAN LIFE, & SENIOR FELLOW AT AEI: Great to be here.

SOLOMON: So, obviously, both sides want the youth vote. This is expected to be a very tight election. Cardi B, one of the most popular entertainers right now, in 2020, she endorsed Biden and she said this. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARDI B, AMERICAN RAPPER: You know, what I'm trying to do is I'm trying to advocate the youth in my community because I feel like there's a serious problem right now in America. We have this bully as a president. And the only way to take him out is somebody winning.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: All right. So, I want to read for you something she said this time around to Rolling Stone magazine. "I feel like people got betrayed" Cardi B said of Biden. "It's just like, y'all not caring about nobody. Then, it really gets me upset that there is solutions to it. There is a solution. I know there's a solution because you're spending billions of dollars on any f*****g thing. Daniel, I want to ask, how significant is it when a major star like Cardi B comes out so critically?

COX: Honestly, I don't think it's that significant. I mean, we tend to think that voters are easily swayed, and people with star power have a lot of influence. And it may matter on the margins. But, I don't think people are taking political cues from, no, no offense, but folks like Cardi B, I just -- I see the impact being fairly minimal.

SOLOMON: What about turnout? Does it help when you have a celebrity like Cardi B who says, look, I really support X, Y and Z because of X, Y and Z? Does it perhaps motivate people to come out and vote?

COX: I think what those kinds of folks are really good at is raising people's attention to an issue. So, like increasing the salience of a particular issue, or even Trump's character, right? She called him a bully. And I think that can get people to pay attention to it. But, I don't think they themselves are motivating people to get to the polls. But, given how little people are paying attention at this point, I think that's the -- one of the best things that they can do.

SOLOMON: Fascinating. I'm curious about strategy, and I want to turn to Donald Trump. Last week, we saw him at this Bronx rally with two rappers, Sheff G and Sleepy Hallow, both accused of sweeping gang- related crimes. But, Daniel, he appeared to treat the rapper sort of like a mascot. At one point, he said, you know, I got to get my teeth like that, talking about his squirrel. But, he continues to push a tough on crime message, and he also had this to say about black voters. Look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And a lot of people said that that's why the black people like because they have been hurt so badly and discriminated against. And they actually viewed me as I'm being discriminated against. The mugshot, we've all seen the mugshot. And you know who embraced it more than anybody else? The black population. It's incredible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: Daniel, from your perspective, what seems to be the strategy here?

COX: Well, I honestly think there is not probably much of one. I think for -- Trump, I think, tends to chase shiny objects. So, I think that's kind of the thing if there is a -- someone new who is supporting his campaign, if there is an issue that he thinks will help him in the moment, he may gravitate towards it. But, I don't think there is any kind of master plan here. And I think one of the things that the Biden campaign has really struggled with, particularly when it comes to the youth vote, is a lot of them don't have a great sense of who Trump is. A lot of them, this is their first time voting. They haven't really paid attention to politics previously.

And so, all the things that we know from paying attention this day in day out, a lot of young people are hearing for the first time. There was a really interesting research done by a progressive firm that just laid Donald Trump's statements on a variety of things, including some rather divisive and offensive comments that he has made about immigrants, and they just asked him this.

[11:50:00]

What he said, does it bother you or not? And for a lot of young people, they said, no, they hadn't heard of it. And when they did hear, they said, yeah, it didn't really bother them. So, I think for the Biden campaign, just trying to reintroduce Donald Trump is -- it has to be a pretty core part of their outreach to young people.

SOLOMON: Yeah. And so -- and more broadly, talk to me about what you see as an effective strategy to reach young people. I think about, for example, Hillary Clinton, not to pick on Hillary Clinton, but when the Beyonce album "Lemonade" was out and Beyonce said in one of her lyrics, I carry hot sauce in my bag, and Hillary made a joke about it. And everyone was like, no, you don't. But, it sort of backfired. Right? She was trying to sort of meet the moment, but it backfired. So, how do you find the strategy that resonates with young people and that doesn't work against you?

COX: Yeah, I mean, it's something that we talk about a lot. But, I think authenticity is really important, and something that Donald Trump really excels at. I mean, he is -- his authentic self for good and bad. And I think a lot of politicians struggle with it. The other thing is I think talking about issues that young people really care about, I think there is this tendency to think that on any issue where young people are distinctive, like climate change or gun control that these are the issues that they really care about. And we saw this among millennials and the debate of same sex marriage. It was like, this is a defining issue for the millennial generation, but they really didn't care that much about it.

And so, I think the same thing is happening with Gen Z. You look at the constellation of issues, and they're actually not that different in many ways from the general public. First and foremost, they care about inflation and cost of living. And a lot of these other issues that we talk about, the war between Israel and Hamas, just rang really far down the list of political concerns that they have.

SOLOMON: Well, that's really interesting, because, of course, what we see a lot and what we cover a lot at least a few weeks ago was the unrest on college campuses. And so, what's your view on how -- on Biden's sort of reaction to those protesters? I mean, was it an effective strategy, or -- I mean, how did you see it?

COX: Yeah. I mean, I think this is a part of where the Democratic Party is divided on the issue. And there are progressive voices who are extremely critical of the President. And so, I think the best thing for him was to try to ignore some of the most extreme examples of criticism that he was getting on college campuses, because they are not reflective of the broader landscape of opinion among young adults that it's just simply not. And so, I think trying to cobble together this coalition on an issue that, quite frankly, we weren't voting on. The best thing for him is to kind of refocus the conversation on issues that people do really care about and everybody has some kind of advantage.

SOLOMON: Yeah. Really fascinating. Inflation and prices continue to be the number one issue for young people and the general public at large. We're going to get some new inflation data tomorrow. So, we will see. Daniel Cox, thank you.

COX: Thank you.

SOLOMON: All right. Still ahead, and today's one more thing. You go to a court hearing in Michigan held over zoom. We will show you exactly what not to do in front of a judge. You will not believe this story. We will be right back.

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[11:55:00]

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SOLOMON: And before we go, one more thing. This may seem obvious, but if you have a suspended license, you're not supposed to drive. You're definitely not supposed to drive on a zoom meeting in front of your judge. That is exactly what happened in Michigan. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Harris, are you driving?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Actually, I'm pulling into my doctor's office actually. So, just give me one second. I'm parking right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: I mean, even if you were pulling into your doctor's office, you're still driving. Unsurprisingly, the judge revoked that man's bond and told him to turn himself into jail. No comment. Whatever you're thinking, I'm probably thinking too.

We know your time is money. So, thank you for spending some time with me today. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York. Stick with CNN. One World is coming up next.

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