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President Biden Confirms Bodies Located In Gaza Strip; Harris Slams Trump On Arlington National Cemetery Visit; Suspect In Death Of Johnny Gaudreau And Brother, Put On Leave From Job; Law Enforcement Battles Against Suburban Weed Houses; NFL Embraces Soft-Shell Helmet Covers, But are They Effective? Aired 7-8p ET

Aired August 31, 2024 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:01:01]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. Hi, everyone. I'm Jessica Dean in New York.

And we have a breaking news in the Israel-Hamas war. The Israeli military issuing a rare announcement their forces have discovered, quote, "a number of bodies" in the Gaza Strip. Moments ago, President Biden acknowledged the discovery to reporters.

Now this news has prompted the Hostages and Missing Families Forum in Israel to call for the public to mobilize, to pressure the Netanyahu government to reach an agreement on a hostage and ceasefire deal. There are currently 107 total hostages living and dead, still being held in Gaza. That is according to Israel and the hostage forum.

CNN international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is in Jerusalem.

And Nic, it's been several hours now since the IDF put out what you've categorized and explained as a very rare statement. What more are you learning?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes. At the moment, we're really waiting for the IDF to put forward more information, the identification process, which is what they say is underway at the moment, the retrieval and identification process of these bodies that they've discovered during combat operations, which a few hours ago were still ongoing and that was the environment in which they were retrieving the bodies, and then be able to go through the process of identification.

It's something that Israel has become all too painfully familiar with, the process of trying to find out about, generally speaking about hostages, whether or not they've found bodies of hostages and if so, who those hostages may be. This is a process that Israel has a huge amount of expertise in. So in the context of what we're hearing tonight, the fact that Israel is saying that it has discovered these bodies in of itself is unusual for them to say that during combat operations.

So it's raised that level of expectation, particularly with the hostage families and all across the country quite frankly, and this evening, there were protests on the streets of Tel Aviv and in other cities in Israel where many of the families of hostages and their friends and supporters were coming out quite simply to demand that Prime Minister Netanyahu does the deal to bring the hostages back, trying to put increasing amounts of pressure on him at the same time as talks are slowly, slowly going on step by very painful step in the background.

But at the moment, everyone here is waiting for that next piece of information to come from the IDF, who will at this time very likely have a good accounting for what they know and what they don't know.

DEAN: Yes. Such a heaviness as everyone waits for that information.

All right, Nic Robertson for us in Jerusalem. Thank you very much for that.

And as we mentioned, President Biden just speaking about this issue outside his church in Delaware. Let's go now to CNN's Priscilla Alvarez, who is covering the president.

Priscilla, what did he have to say?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, the president didn't offer many more details. He did say that his staff is in talks with the Israelis and confirmed that they had discovered bodies in Gaza but did not have the exact number. And again, these conversations are ongoing behind the scenes between the U.S. and Israel. But take a listen to what he told reporters as he left church.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't have much to report. My staff has been in contract with the Israelis. They discovered bodies in Gaza, not sure of the exact number. They haven't provided it yet.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Choose life, Mr. President.

BIDEN: And in the meantime --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Choose life while you still have time to undo so many terrible things you've done.

BIDEN: And in the meantime, they want to identify the bodies. A lot of speculation of who they are, their names. I'm hoping they're able to do that as long as their families (INAUDIBLE).

[19:05:03]

And it's time this war ended. We should end this war. I think we're on the verge of having an agreement. It's just time to end it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We love you.

BIDEN: It's time to finish it.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Why do you think you're on the verge of an agreement? How optimistic are you?

BIDEN: Still optimistic because the leaders of both have led -- met both in Egypt. Our people are continuing to meet and we think we can close the deal. They've all said they agree on the principles, so keep your fingers crossed. Thank you.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Next week?

BIDEN: Yes, there are talks.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Mr. President, what do you think of President Trump's behavior at Arlington Cemetery with the visit to the fallen soldiers?

BIDEN: I don't want to answer this. They may tell you what I think. Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALVAREZ: Now the president there expressing optimism about those ongoing talks for a ceasefire deal that would include the release of hostages. Now, we do know from senior administration officials that those talks are ongoing. A lot of what is being discussed is working out these details of what exactly this will include and how it would be executed. But there are still sticking points.

This has been painstaking negotiations for the U.S. and all parties involved and the optimism we heard there from the president is one we have heard before, and yet there still has not been a deal despite those conversations ongoing minute by minute, hour by hour. But certainly while we still await these details and whether or not these bodies do include hostages, the president and the vice president have met with hostage families, frequently have been in touch with them.

The last time they were together was July 25 when the hostage families, some of them, visited the White House. So certainly this has been a top priority for this administration. We have repeatedly heard officials talking about the work that's ongoing on this front, but still waiting for more details from the White House as they continue conversations with Israel to try to get more information about what exactly -- who exactly the IDF found.

DEAN: All right. Priscilla Alvarez for us with the latest reporting out of Washington, D.C.

Thank you very much, Priscilla.

And we have two Middle East experts to discuss this further. CNN political and national security analyst David Sanger, and national security correspondent for "The New York Times." He also wrote the book, "New Cold Wars: China's Rise, Russia's Invasion, and America's Struggle to Defend the West." Also with us, Aaron David Miller, a longtime State Department Middle East negotiator, who's now a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Great to have both of you here with us.

Aaron, I want to start first with you because your background is in hostage negotiation. We don't know -- all we know are these bodies were found. The IDF has not categorized who they are, they're clearly obviously trying to identify them now. But they did take this step, this rare step of putting out this statement, asking people to refrain from rumors and spreading rumors.

What does it say to you that the IDF is making this move?

AARON DAVID MILLER, FORMER STATE DEPARTMENT MIDDLE EAST NEGOTIATOR: Thanks for having me, Jessica. Look, I think there's -- it's no secret that there's a growing divide between the prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, and senior members of the Israeli Defense Forces. Last week, there was a virtual shouting match between Minister of Defense Gallant and the prime minister over the absence of urgency and the lack of strategy on the part of the current Israeli government led by the prime minister. Both freeing the hostages, cutting a deal in an effort perhaps to de-escalate the war.

IDF has a stake in transferring their military resources to what they believe is the graver threat in the northern border and the IDF has a longstanding mission to redeem those on the battlefield, those who are alive and those who are dead. And while it's understandable to prosecute a war against Hamas and prevent another repetition of October 7th, the IDF understands, the people of Israel understand, many Israeli politicians understand, that the redemption of the living, the redemption of living is critically important.

And time may be on Netanyahu's side as well as Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas, but certainly as today's events seem to suggest, not on the side of the hostages and their families.

DEAN: And David, as Aaron is alluding to there, this drives so much of the heart of what's happening domestically in Israel as well. This push and pull between how the prime minister is proceeding and what especially these families of the hostages are pushing for. We see these massive protests, not just with families, but with everyday Israelis going into Tel Aviv to protest and now these families, some families of the hostages, calling on Israelis to mobilize in light of this news.

[19:10:04]

Help people understand kind of all the dynamics at play here as we await more information.

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, it's complicated. As Aaron just suggested, the problem, the core problem here right now is that for Prime Minister Netanyahu there is almost every political advantage in dragging out these negotiations, raising new issues. And the same thing for Sinwar, the head of Hamas, and this is why you have seen so many repeats of the president coming out as in that tape that you just saw from an hour or so ago, in which he says we're right on the edge of things, and was just -- it was mid-July that Secretary of State Blinken told us we're inside the 10-yard line here.

The reason they can't get this over the goal is that whenever you come right up to the agreement, it's in the -- to the advantage of both leaders to try to push this off. I think tomorrow you're going to probably see very significant demonstrations. We've seen them before. Because frankly that the number -- the tyranny of the numbers here is pretty big. There were 250 hostages taken roughly, about 100 got released, about eight have been rescued.

And that leaves, you know, a good number, over 100 unaccounted for. We think probably a third of those have probably died. And I wouldn't be surprised if some of those are in this group that has been identified by the IDF.

DEAN: And Aaron, I don't want to gloss over just the hell that these families have gone through in almost a year now, that their loved ones have been gone, and what it must feel like right now, just knowing there's a big question mark over all of this. But knowing that and I am curious how you think this development might affect the ceasefire talks, the hostage negotiations over getting a deal done.

MILLER: It's hard to say, Jessica. Again, you know, you saw on judicial reform for 42 weeks in a row, hundreds of thousands of Israelis out in the streets defending what they believe to be the kind of society that they want, the kind of Israel that they want, but the sad and cruel and politically inconvenient reality is you only need 60 plus one to stay in power in the Israeli Knesset and Mr. Netanyahu has a very tight-knit, coherent coalition of 64.

And it's stunning to me, frankly, even by his own, his determination, he wants to stay in power more than any other politician wants to have power. But here is a man who presided over the bloodiest day for Jews since the liberation of the Nazi death camps, the greatest intelligence failure in Israel's history, and has identified total victory, total victory even he knows is an unrealizable goal.

So I'm afraid that unless you saw a crack within that coalition or the kinds of protests literally 24/7 just in essence shut down the country which I don't think most Israelis are willing to do, this is going to drag on. And as David pointed out, when negotiations closed, they closed because there is urgency. Both parties believe that an agreement is better off than -- for them that no agreement at all.

I'm sad to say neither Sinwar nor Netanyahu, I'm hesitant to compare them, when it comes to time they are in effect on the same wavelength. Sadly and cruelly.

DEAN: And David, I saw you nodding your head there a little bit.

SANGER: Yes. It's a remarkable situation. Listen to what you heard the president say when he asked -- when he was asked about the negotiations. He just keeps repeating it's time for this war to end. It's time for this war to end. His critics are -- you and I, I think there's some validity to that, that he has more leverage to make the war end than he gives himself credit for, and of course, as a long time and traditional supporter of Israel and Israel's very important right to self-defense, he doesn't want to threaten to cut off weapons or do anything else that would force Netanyahu's hand.

But clearly that's the internal debate that's underway. And you could even see Vice President Harris walking that fine line in the CNN interview the other day.

DEAN: Yes. It will be fascinating to see how this plays out.

[19:15:02]

And again, as we wait to hear more information about our breaking news tonight, which is that the IDF has said that it has found what would it has categorized as a number of bodies and that they are working to identify those.

David Sanger and Aaron David Miller, thank you so much for your context here. We appreciate it.

MILLER: Thank you.

SANGER: Thank you, Jessica.

DEAN: Up next, Vice President Harris tonight sharply criticizing former president Trump over what happened at Arlington National Cemetery just a few days ago. We're going to discuss when we come back.

And also breaking news just into CNN, what police are revealing about the driver accused of fatally striking an NHL star and his brother while they were riding their bikes. We have a live report on that coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:20:24]

DEAN: Vice President Kamala Harris is slamming former president Donald Trump for his controversial visit to Arlington National Cemetery earlier this week. Harris releasing a statement earlier today saying in part that Trump, quote, "disrespected sacred ground, all for the sake of a political stunt," adding, quote, "It is my belief that someone who cannot meet this simple sacred duty should never again stand behind the seal of the president of the United States of America."

Tom Nichols joins us now. He's a staff writer for "The Atlantic."

Tom, great to have you here with us on a Saturday night. This was the first time the vice president really addressed this controversy. What do you think about her statement and more broadly about this whole episode?

TOM NICHOLS, STAFF WRITER, THE ATLANTIC: Well, I think she's right. And, you know, Donald Trump has no sense of propriety. He has not even disrespect for veterans and the fallen but a real contempt for them. And he's made that clear many times. This is the guy who stood there with John Kelly in 2017 in front of the grave of Kelly's son, and looked around at this, you know, very sacred place and said, I don't get it. What was in it for them? He has referred to the fallen from our armed forces as losers and suckers.

So this is just one more event in Donald Trump's long and reprehensible line of really ghastly events and just really unacceptable behavior when it comes to America's veterans and particularly to our wounded warriors and our fallen soldiers.

DEAN: And I want to talk more too about Vice President Harris and what she's been doing with her campaign. This week, she sat down with CNN's Dana Bash for her first interview since becoming the Democratic nominee for president. And she was asked about some of her previous policy positions, which there have been a lot of questions about, and I want to play some clips of what she said and then we can talk about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: In 2019, I believe, in a town hall, you said -- you were asked, would you commit to implementing a federal ban on fracking on your first day in office, and you said there's no question, I'm in favor of banning fracking, so yes. So it changed in that campaign?

KAMALA HARRIS (D), VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, CURRENT PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: In 2020 I made very clear where I stand. We are in 2024 and I've not changed that position nor will I going forward. I kept my word and I will keep my word.

BASH: What made you change that position at the time?

HARRIS: Well, let's be clear. My values have not changed.

BASH: Something that you said in 2019 when you first ran, there was a debate. You raised your hand when asked whether or not the borders should be decriminalized. Do you still believe that?

HARRIS: I believe there should be consequence. We have laws that have to be followed and enforced that address and deal with people who cross our border illegally. And there should be consequences.

Dana, I think the most important and most significant aspect of my policy perspective and decisions is my values have not changed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: And so, Tom, do you see this -- how do you see this playing with some of those voters out there who were on the fence, are still on the fence about where she is on different policies? And do you see this as a tack to the middle?

NICHOLS: I do see it as a tack to the center. That's what presidential candidates do. It's what Ronald Reagan did, it's what George H.W. Bush did it. You know, Barack Obama changed his mind on gay marriage. Bill Clinton declared the era of big government over. Running for president is not the same thing as running for Senate in

California or trying to win a Democratic primary. I think it was a completely normal interview. I think those are the two moments where Dana Bash tried to pin down Harris on changing her mind, but you're not going to find a presidential candidate who runs and doesn't change his or her mind.

And I think it's kind of interesting we're having this conversation at the same time that Donald Trump has had now, you know, five different positions on abortion in the last five days. But that's just part of running for president. And I think the rest of the interview was, you know, pretty standard interview for a presidential candidate. And I think it was, you know, nothing, nothing revolutionary, nothing -- no homeruns, no major fouls. It was kind of refreshingly normal actually, to be honest in my view.

[19:25:06]

DEAN: And I do want to ask you about this debate that's right around the corner. You know, I feel like with the holiday weekend people forget it is right around the corner. Obviously, Harris has been taking shots at the Trump campaign over whether these mics will remain open or closed and they're working through all of that.

But more broadly, how high are the stakes with this debate do you think?

NICHOLS: Well, I don't think she's been taking shots at them about the mic. I think they've been -- I think she's been kind of trolling Trump about, you know, if you really feel that comfortable leave the microphones on because he's going to shout over them anyway, no matter, whether they're on or off.

I think the debates in this case are more important for Trump because I think what you saw in the CNN interview is that, you know, Harris is not going to rise to some of the bait. I think one of the most effective moments in that interview is when she was asked about one of Trump's -- you know, one of his many ghastly racist statements, and she said, you know, same old playbook, next question, and that's exactly what she should have done and that's the kind of thing that annoys him.

He's the one that I think runs the risk of confirming yet again to millions of people that he's unstable, that there's something wrong with him. You know, when Trump is not on television, his approval ratings go up. The more he's on, the more people see of him, his rating go back down and I think the debate is a great opportunity for him to look unhinged as he usually does.

And he's been in a meltdown for a few weeks. I don't think that's going to change in the next as you pointed out, Jessica, you know, it's like we're, what, eight days away from it now, nine days away from it. I don't think he's going to change in a week and a half.

DEAN: Well, we will all watch it unfold together.

Tom Nichols, great to have you. Thanks so much.

NICHOLS: Thank you.

DEAN: We have new information about the suspect in the accident that killed a hockey star and his brother when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:31:35]

DEAN: We have breaking news, learning new details about the man suspected of hitting and killing NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his younger brother, Matthew while the two were riding bicycles in New Jersey Thursday night.

Our Gloria Pazmino is joining us now. Gloria, what are you learning?

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, we're learning more about Sean Higgins. He is the man that police say was driving the vehicle that struck Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew on Thursday night while they were outright saying bikes and killed them.

The two brothers were supposed to be groomsmen in their sister's wedding the next day.

Now, we're learning more about Sean Higgins' background. He was an active member of the National Guard. He belong to the National Guard's 44th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. And he had been previously deployed to Kosovo in 2019. He was in fact promoted to Major while he was there.

We're also learning that Sean Higgins worked as a financial operations director for an addiction treatment provider in the northeast that company has issued a statement saying that they " ... received the heartbreaking news regarding the tragic crash that took the lives of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau along with the charges brought against Sean Higgins. Mr. Higgins is an employee of Gaudenzia, was immediately placed on leave. We extend our sympathies to the Gaudreau family during this incredibly difficult time."

So, Sean Higgins has been in custody since the night of the incident. He is scheduled to appear back in court next week. In the meantime, we have heard from the widow of Johnny Gaudreau or "Johnny Hockey" as he was affectionately known by his fans and by the community.

She took to Instagram earlier today to talk about her husband, about her family, about their two young children, about this incredible loss that this family is experiencing now.

She talked about what an incredible dad he was to their two children, about the love that the two of them shared, about their relationship, saying that the year she had with him were the best of her life.

And as I said, Jessica, it is just a tragedy on top of tragedy here. They were supposed to be attending a wedding. Now, they're planning a funeral. Matthew's wife was pregnant, expecting his child. So just a mounting sadness and loss for this family and also for the family of Sean Higgins who is undoubtedly going to be affected by this as well.

DEAN: It is just the story -- it's just a gut punch. Gloria Pazmino, thank you so much for that update.

Up next, a CNN investigation. Imagine discovering the house next door is growing weed for the black market marijuana industry. We're going to take you to California where police say that is a very real problem.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:39:20]

DEAN: A new CNN investigation: Authorities across the country say family homes in suburban US neighborhoods are being used to grow and fuel the black market marijuana industry and it is creating a major problem law enforcement, particularly in a state of California, where the growers face little in criminal penalties.

CNN's Kyung Lah has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

KYUNG LAH, SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This upscale California suburb is a glimpse into an underground world where authorities say a Chinese crime ring feeds America's black market.

Doors and windows heavily fortified at three different homes on the same block in this bedroom community of San Francisco.

[19:40:07]

When officers finally break through, inside, it's a massive marijuana farm. These are family homes worth nearly a million dollars. The interior unrecognizable. Every part of the home used to grow weed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This was probably the nursery is my guess, just based off of the way it's set up.

LAH (voice over): Windows, boarded up to control the light. A massive ventilation system running full blast. Intricate electrical setups to power lights and fans. A generator in the laundry room.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Somebody hold that up here.

LAH (voice over): Molds can be seen growing on walls and ceilings, runoff into makeshift drains room, after room, after room, filled with marijuana.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You couldn't even tell this as a master bedroom.

KEVIN MCINERNEY, COMMANDER CA DEPT. OF CANNABIS CONTROL'S LAW ENFORCEMENT DIVISION: It's easy to disguise it here. You're not growing outside your growing indoors and as long as the house looks nice and the yard is taken care of, nobody's going to question what's going on inside.

LAH (voice over): Investigators saved this bust snagged more than a million dollars worth of illegal weed cultivated by unlicensed growers using chemicals without regard for safety that end up in the plants.

Despite the growth of the legalized marijuana industry, most pot is still sold on the illegal black market.

California produces about 40 percent of the nation's weed. Much of what's grown here will be shipped across the country and sold far cheaper than legal weed.

LAH (on camera): How many houses have you hit in Antioch?

MCINERNEY: About 50.

LAH (on camera): How many more might exist in Antioch?

MCINERNEY: Somewhere between 100 to 200 houses.

LAH (voice over): Up to 200 that they think they know of. Law enforcement says this criminal enterprise can operate in California more easily than anywhere else in the country. Because California law says illegally growing weed is just a misdemeanor in most cases.

MCINERNEY: It's relatively low risk, huge reward.

LAH (on camera): This, whether you have one plant or a truck full of plants, what is the penalty in California?

MCINERNEY: It's a misdemeanor in California.

LAH (voice over): And that offers an opportunity, says law enforcement for organized crime.

Inside these suburban grow houses,, on walls and doors instructions in Chinese.

LAH (on camera): CNN reviewed Antioch search warrants as well as online property records and found that in nearly every grow house busted in Antioch, almost all of them go back to a Chinese owner or occupant.

MCINERNEY: It's really the Chinese criminal syndicate that's dominant.

LAH (on camera): Why would the Chinese cartel care about marijuana?

MCINERNEY: Because it's so lucrative. It is a very profitable crop.

LAH (voice over): And it's not just in California.

CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: We are starting to see as we unpack this more, more ties between a lot of these growing operations and Chinese organized crime.

LAH (voice over): Twenty-two states have illegal grow operations says Senator Susan Collins a member of the Intelligence Committee including her state of Maine.

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R-ME): Why are Chinese transnational criminal groups here in the United States buying up these homes and growing illegal marijuana in them?

It's difficult for me to believe that there isn't some sort of plot involved.

LAH (on camera): How much of this bleeds into a national security issue?

COLLINS: I believe it does pose a serious national security threat, as well as a public health risk.

LAH (voice over): Back in California, we learned there's even more financial incentive for illegal growers.

LAH (on camera): It's been about two months since the grow houses were busted. We've learned that one of the houses is going back on the market and today is the open house.

A manicured home with a for sale sign listed for just under a million dollars flipped since that day we watched law enforcement swarm in.

LAH (on camera): Hello? Hi, are you Susanna Huang?

SUSANNA HUANG, REAL ESTATE AGENT: Yes.

LAH (voice over): Susanna Huang, is real estate agent listing this open house and the agent who sold three other suspected grow houses in this area. She owns one of those homes where authorities found more than $900,000.00 of marijuana last year.

Her attorney tells CNN how she owns was busted said by the state, but it was being rented at the time and she was not involved in any illegal activity.

LAH (on camera): My name is Kyung Lah, and I'm a correspondent with CNN. We're recording here. I just wanted to talk --

HUANG: No, I am not feeling comfortable.

LAH (voice over): Huang, did not want to speak on camera, but she did invite us to come inside this home she's listed to record video go on our cell phone and take a look at this immaculately cleaned up space.

The dramatic make-over seen in the master bathroom before and after. The house is listed for $200,000.00 more than the owner paid for it.

BILL TILSON, RESIDENT: Now, they're going to make money off the houses as well as they resell them.

LAH (voice over): Bill Tilson lives on this block.

TILSON: What's deterring them from setting up shop someplace else? They've got to recover their equipment, so now, they just pick another location and do the same thing. Oh, bummer, we got to misdemeanor and then they'll do the same thing and on and on and on. So, it's whack-a- mole.

LAH (on camera): One of the houses we saw rated that day is owned by an Oakland police officer, Samson Liu, Cannabis Control tells us that what they found inside the house was 80 pounds of illicit marijuana trimmings and they were stuffed in garbage bags.

The home had been extensively modified for cultivation, and it also have been fortified from the inside. Cannabis Control adds that it doesn't know whether Liu was living in the home at the time or it had been rented out to tenants citing an ongoing investigation.

We reached out to the Oakland Police Department who says that since the raid, Samson Liu has been placed on administrative leave. They are cooperating with outside law enforcement and treating this as a personnel matter.

We did try to reach Officer Liu both in person, over the phone, as well as in e-mail. We did not hear back.

Kyung Lah, CNN, Minneapolis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: An incredible report. Kyung, thank you very much for that.

There is a push to make Guardian caps mandatory in youth football. We're going to have much more on that when we return.

[19:51:13]

DEAN: It could be a game changer for the safety of NFL players. For the first time the league allowing athletes to wear new soft shell helmet covers known as Guardian caps during regular season games.

Players like Indianapolis' Kylen Granson and Rodney Thomas are opting in for extra protection. But just how effective are they?

CNN sports anchor and former NFL player Coy Wire has a closer look

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Hi, Jessica. Lots has changed since the last time I played. The helmet, I wore my last season with the Falcons is now banned by the NFL because it doesn't meet the league safety standards.

There have been 50 rule changes the last two decades, all land at making the game safer. And the advancement of technology and equipment have accelerated. Inventions like Guardian caps weren't around when I played.

We wanted to take a closer look at their potential to make the game safer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) WIRE: Each football season, sporting cathedrals like this Mercedes-

Benz Stadium are full of excitement about the game. But each season also brings concerns for families and players about the dangers that come with it.

There has been a recent uptick in efforts to make the game safer. One of them, these protective helmet covers called Guardian caps. But do they work?

The Georgia-based company aims to reduce damage that can be caused to the brain by the sudden stopping or rotation of the head.

The NFL's research led them to make these caps mandatory for all players during practices. Aside from kickers in quarterbacks who are off limits for contact.

Players can also choose to wear the caps during the games. NFL Executive Vice President, Jeff Miller says the statistics show the caps increase safety.

JEFF MILLER, NFL EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT: As a result of the last two seasons, we saw about a 50 percent decrease in concussions in the positions that were mandated to wear them. So, of course we said okay, all positions will now wear them in this preseason.

WIRE: Now, NFL rule changes and advancements in the helmets themselves could also be leading to a decrease in concussions. The company says that more than 3,000 high schools and more than 750 youth programs currently use the caps.

One question is, if the NFL is making them mandatory for the pros, why aren't they mandatory for kids? One potential drawback could be cost. Each one of these runs about $70.00, $56.00 when bought in bulk for a team.

Many schools are already struggling with funding and the National Athletic Trainers Association has said that such products come with little to no independent scientific evidence showing that they actually work.

STEVE ROWSON, VIRGINIA TECH HELMET LAB: The helmet head protection is really the last line of defense. The first thing to do is minimize number of head impacts that kids and other athletes are experiencing.

WIRE (on camera): One other potential drawback is the way it feels. Some NFL players are saying it makes them feel top-heavy at times. Well, the research will continue to be done and the push to make the game safer, continues.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

WIRE: Jessica, even if inventions like Guardian caps make the game one percent safer, it's a step in the right direction.

While there is no question, it's still a violent game. All our reporting shows that the game is safer now than it's ever been. DEAN: Coy Wire, thanks so much for that reporting.

Over the next couple of months, Vice President Kamala Harris will continue her bid for a shot at the White House. But where does she stand on the topics that matter most to voters?

On Monday, a two-hour special for "The Whole Story" with Anderson Cooper, we will examine five key issues from both candidates out of the November election.

One major issue, immigration. CNN's Audie Cornish takes a look at the unique hurdles Harris faced in dealing with immigration.

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AUDIE CORNISH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Her first official trip abroad as vice president, Guatemala in June of 2021.

She talked about the role of women and economic development there. But Harris also delivered a stark message.

KAMALA HARRIS (D) VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I want to be clear to folks in this region who are thinking about making that dangerous trek to the United States-Mexico border. Do not come, do not come.

The United States will continue to enforce our laws and secure our border.

CORNISH (on camera): "Do not come, do not come." What was her reaction to how that was received?

ASHLEY ETIENNE, FORMER COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR TO VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS: It wasn't well received coming from the daughter of immigrants and a Black woman. So, that was a moment in which I think we realized that okay we have to talk about these things differently, although it's the company line, we can't toe that line in the same way that Joe Biden can.

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DEAN: This two-hour special airs Monday night starting at 8:00 Eastern.

Thanks so much for joining me this evening. I'm Jessica Dean. I'm going to see you again tomorrow night starting at 5:00 Eastern, "Real Time" with Bill Maher is up next.

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