Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

New Polling Shows Harris And Trump In Dead Heat Race; Manhunt Underway For Gunman In Kentucky I-75 Shooting; Protesters In Israel Call For Deal To Bring Hostages Home; Thousands Flee As California Fire Spreads; China Ends Its Foreign Adoption Program. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired September 08, 2024 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:25]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jessica Dean in New York.

And we are now just 48 hours away from the first presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump. It will be the first time the two candidates meet face to face as they hope to move the needle with any undecided voters out there. And it will be crucial as new polling underscoring just how tight this race continues to be with "The New York Times" and Siena College poll showing no clear leader. And a new CNN Poll of Polls showing Harris at 49 percent to Trump's 47 percent. Again, no clear leader there.

The two candidates spent the weekend in battleground states. Harris meeting with voters in Pittsburgh while she also prepared for the debate, while Trump took time to hold a campaign rally in Wisconsin.

Let's check in now with CNN's Eva McKend, who is in Pittsburgh.

And Eva, I know you've been following along with the vice president's campaign as they prepare for this debate. What are you learning about her mentality, her strategy going into this debate?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jess, we did get a brief glimpse of her today. She went for a quick walk with the first gentleman, her husband, here in Pittsburgh. And that was just a little respite from these intense debate camp that has been underway for four days. She's largely been indoors, safe for today, briefly, and then yesterday at that spice shop where she greeted some supporters.

What we think that this looks like is poring over briefing books, anticipating what the moderators may ask, anticipating what the former president might say, and then also coming up with sharp responses to some of the policies where she has changed positions on, some of the evolution on key policy matters.

What I know that they are not concerned about, Jess, are these polls. We have seen basically the former president and the vice president in a dead heat in many of these polls. But they're not concerned with that. Brian Fallon, a spokesperson for the campaign, tweeting today that they have always viewed themselves as the underdog and they are going to continue to act as such in the crucial weeks ahead, and that they have a lot of work to do in the next 50 or so days.

They already have a strategy for post-debate. They are going to have a battleground blitz where the vice president is going to campaign in North Carolina and in Pennsylvania. Governor Walz is going to do a Midwestern swing in Michigan and Wisconsin. And their respective spouses are going to be out on the campaign trail as well. So every battleground state will have some campaign presence.

And then the former president, he is going to have three fundraisers this week in California and Utah. So this contest really heating up here. The vice president continues to hunker down here in Pittsburgh preparing for Tuesday -- Jess.

DEAN: All right. Eva Mckend in Pennsylvania. Thanks so much for that.

And I want to bring in our political panel, CNN political commentator and Republican strategist, Shermichael Singleton, along -- also with us is Democratic strategist and consultant for the DNC and former White House director of message planning, Meghan Hays.

Good to see both of you. I hope you're having a good Sunday. We have some things, new things to chew on here.

Meghan, we walked through some of the new polling that's out today. And it's again, really underlining how deadlocked Trump and Harris are in a lot of these battleground states and certainly in national polling. Most Democrats that I talked to are pretty clear-eyed about how tight this race is. Certainly her campaign wants the positioning of she's the underdog.

But what is your sense about how Democrats are absorbing all of this polling?

MEGHAN HAYS, DNC CONSULTANT: Well, Jess, as you know, I worked for Joe Biden and we can't live and die by the polls or we never would have made it out of Iowa if we would have believed all the polls. So I am one of those people who do not want to look at the polls and look at them more of a guideline, not of where we actually are. The only poll that matters is the one in November.

But I do think that what she needs to do is they need to keep their heads down and continue to work. I think she's still introducing herself to the American people. I think there was some data saying that a lot of people don't know her and a lot of people want to know more about her policies. And so I think that she needs to spend the next, you know, 50 plus days doing that. I think the debate is an amazing opportunity to lay some of her policies out and to get more of who she is across to folks.

But I think that hitting the ground just like they're doing after the debate, and, you know, barnstorming all the battleground states is exactly what they need to do. They need to keep their head down and focus on the organizing and continue to build off the momentum they're getting and keep going out and meeting voters.

DEAN: And Shermichael, the Trump campaign, he was back in Wisconsin this weekend. Certainly they're trying, the reporting indicates, to focus on those battleground states, pretty obvious stuff there.

[19:05:05]

But how do you think -- when you're talking with the campaign, how are they seeing this moment in time? And what's their takeaway at this moment in the race?

SHERMICHAEL SINGLETON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes, it's a great question, Jessica. I mean, look, they've seen a stronger, more organized, more functional campaign on the operational side than ever before. You look at some of the data that just came out in that "New York Times"-Siena poll and Donald Trump is polling or performing better with Republicans than not only 2016, but 2020.

And that says a whole lot. You're looking at his numbers with Hispanic voters, with black men. I mean, the guy has increased his margins technically all over the place, despite a whole litany of things that he's gone through over the past year and a half now, despite the enthusiasm that Vice President Harris certainly brings to the Democratic Party. I mean, she's revived Democratic voters who certainly were not sure if President Biden could guarantee another victory for their party.

They do believe the vice president is capable. She's had 28, 30 plus days of incredible news coverage. And despite all of those very, very favorable and positive changes for Democrats because of the vice president, the race is still so tight and Donald Trump is performing a whole lot better than any other time when he ran in the past, and so that suggests to me that the momentum that we have seen with the vice president is starting to slow down.

It's starting to even out, and this race is going to, I believe, Jessica, return back to the fundamental issues, the economy and immigration.

DEAN: And Shermichael, the "New York Times" poll did ask voters about Project 2025. 55 percent of them said they'd heard about it. Another poll showed 62 percent of those registered voters oppose it. It's rare for something like that to cut through and for voters to really be aware of it in such big numbers, and in this case oppose it. What do you think about how the Trump campaign has handled this?

Obviously was filled with a bunch of people that worked in his administration. He's claimed to not know anything about it, even though he does know a lot of people affiliated with it. But what do you think -- what do you think the Trump campaign should do to address that?

SINGLETON: Well, let's look at a couple of things. First of all, it was completely idiotic for the Heritage Foundation to release that in the middle of what will be a darn close election. I don't know any political strategist who thought that was a brilliant idea. Number two, I got to give a lot of credit to my Democratic friends, Meghan, the vice president, they have done a good job of constantly reminding the American people about Project 2025. Now to Donald Trump's credit, he's attempted to step away from it,

sure. He said I know people who are working on it, but those aren't my ideas. They decided to work with the Heritage Foundation. Some people will believe that, some people won't believe it. Instead of trying to go tit-for-tat with Democrats on that issue, Jessica, the former president needs to constantly pivot back to those consequential issues because, again, I believe that is what is ultimately going to be the deciding factor in this election, not necessarily Project 2025.

But it does absolutely get Democrats riled up and excited about voting for Harris, would certainly help the vice president.

DEAN: I mean, yes, I mean, Meghan, Shermichael has a point like when Democrats say Project 2025, they've figured out that that is, that is cutting through.

HAYS: Yes, absolutely. I mean, it was a huge moment at the convention. They spent a lot of time focusing on. They had those very large books made that were, you know, used on the platform during speeches and primetime. It is cutting through and I think that the policies are actually cutting through because the policies are very extreme. And I think it makes independent voters nervous.

I think getting rid the Department of Education is an extreme policy that most women who live in the suburbs who have children do not want to see happen. So I think the more Democrats are out there reminding folks of what Project 2025 is and continuing to tie it to Donald Trump is a victory for the vice president and a victory for her campaign.

DEAN: And Shermichael, I want to ask you about something that Trump posted on Truth Social a few hours after his campaign in Wisconsin. He's accusing Democrats of cheating in the election and essentially threatening to jail his adversaries with, quote, "long prison sentences." And then he goes on to say, please be aware this legal exposure extends to lawyers, political operatives, donors, and legal voters, corrupt election officials.

Just -- this just -- what do you say to this?

SINGLETON: I say this is not what you do when you want to win an election. This election is close. Obviously there are some things that the American people, despite what they may dislike about Donald Trump, all of our data, including our data from CNN, Jessica, is saying they still think he's strong on the economy.

They still think he's the stronger option to tackle immigration, even though they may think Vice President Harris is a good woman, maybe they're excited and recognize the historic moment. But they said, you know what? Yes, history matters, she's a great person, but we just don't think she's quite the best person to tackle these issues.

[19:10:05]

So if you have all of those variables, at least the two variables, the economy and immigration, maybe foreign policy if you want to throw in a third, to your benefit, you don't do that. It just doesn't make sense and I would imagine the advisers on the campaign are trying to beg the former president to stick to the issues because that is ultimately what is going to win, not this.

DEAN: All right, so we look to the debate on Tuesday. I'm sure I'll talk to you both at a certain point and discuss what unfurls there, if it is about the issues or whatever else might transpire in two days.

Shermichael Singleton and Meghan Hays, I thank both of you.

HAYS: Thank you.

SINGLETON: Thanks, Jessica.

DEAN: And you could follow CNN for complete coverage and exclusive analysis before and after Tuesday's debate. The ABC News Presidential Debate simulcast starts Tuesday at 9:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

And still ahead tonight, breaking news, we have thousands of people who are fleeing their homes as the Line Fire burns across mountain sides in Southern California. Firefighters are battling those flames and triple-digit temperatures. We're going to be live on the frontlines. Plus a manhunt still underway in Kentucky as authorities search for the man they say opened fire on people driving on Interstate 75 last night. The latest on the challenges that the police are facing as the sun goes down.

And video showing Miami Dolphins star handcuffed, face down on the ground just outside Hard Rock Stadium. You're going to hear from Tyreek Hill and find out what happened with the officer involved in that arrest or in that moment there, rather.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:16:15]

DEAN: Authorities saying with a gunman still on the loose they will close area schools tomorrow in Laurel County, Kentucky, just to be extra precautious. Officials still searching for this man, Joseph Couch, calling him armed and dangerous. The sheriff's department says, while the attack does not seem to have targeted anyone in particular, they do believe it was a planned event. That shooting happening along Interstate 75 in a very heavily forested area near London, Kentucky.

CNN's Gloria Pazmino joining us now.

Gloria, what more are you learning?

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, the sun is going down in Kentucky and that's bad news for all these law enforcement agencies that are spread out across Laurel County, looking for Joseph Couch. Police say they believe he is the suspect behind last night's shooting. Five people were injured. He shot at a total of nine cars. And police say that he is armed and considered dangerous. Now we do know that the suspect's vehicle has been recovered as well

as a weapon, an AR-15 style weapon that was recovered from the scene. They believe he was shooting from. Now we've also just learned in the last few minutes that White House officials have been in touch with law enforcement in Kentucky and that they are monitoring the situation. We're seeing the suspect's car there. That's from the sheriff's office.

They provided those photos to us just a short while ago. They have put out as much information as they have been able to gather in the last several hours. But as we get into the evening hours, Jessica, they are saying this is going to become extremely difficult. And at some point they will have to pull their people out of the woods. It's an extremely heavily wooded area. A lot of trees, a lot of brush, not a place where you want to be in the dark when someone is out there with potentially a weapon.

Now, the sheriff's office said just a short while ago, they believe that there is this containment area where they are searching where they believe that the suspect may be. However, they recognize that there's a possibility the suspect could have fled from that location, and that of course, is a concern not just for this community but also the surrounding area. As you mentioned, schools are going to be closed tomorrow.

Take a listen to the sheriff's office just describing what the next few hours are going to look like.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GILBERT ACCIARDO, LAUREL COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: We're still searching and we're going to continue to search until it gets dark, until it becomes dangerous for us to be in the woods. We've not had any luck so far. No trace so far. No information or evidence that's at the scene to indicate that he's there, but we believe that he's there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAZMINO: Now without going into much detail, Jessica, the sheriff's office also said that this appears to have been a planned attack. They did not say what evidence they have so far to confirm that but they say that it appears like Joseph Couch may have been planning this. He did not target anybody specifically but it appears that he was planning to do this, so that is also part of what law enforcement is looking into.

But as we get into the later evening hours, they're going to have to pull back and we may be going into a third day where the suspect remains at large and this community remains on edge -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right. Gloria Pazmino, with the latest, thank you very much for that.

Miami Dolphins star Tyreek Hill is speaking out after he was handcuffed earlier today just before the team's opening game of the season. Video showing Hill face down on the ground after he was pulled over about a block away from Hard Rock Stadium in a reported traffic incident. He talked about it after the game.

[19:20:09]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TYREEK HILL, MIAMI DOLPHINS WIDE RECEIVER: Right now I'm still trying to put it all together so I'm not going to give you a version that I still don't know what happened. You know what I'm saying? But I do want to say, I do want to be able to use this platform to say, like, what if I wasn't Tyreek Hill, bro? Like worst-case scenario, you know, because it's crazy. Like I want to be a cop one day.

I got a state trooper hat, you know, so I got a lot of respect for cops, man, but obviously, you know, everybody has some bad apples in every situation. You know, so, I want to be able to, you know, use this platform, you know, to figure out to -- figure out a way to like flip this and, you know, make it a positive on both ends. On my end and then also Miami-Dade. You know, so that way we continue to -- you know, do some positive for the community. Because that's what it's all about.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Miami-Dade Police have put an officer -- the officer involved on administrative duties during an internal investigation. Miami-Dade Police director says all of the details will be immediately reviewed.

Meantime, Hill had 130 yards receiving and a touchdown in that game. The Dolphins going on to beat the Jaguars 20-17.

Still ahead tonight, angry protesters filling the streets of Israel demanding the return of dozens of hostages still being held by Hamas nearly one year after the October 7th attacks. Can a deal like that be made? We're going to talk to Israel's coordinator for hostages and the missing. That's next in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:25:58]

DEAN: Jordanian authorities say the man who opened fire at an Israeli border crossing killing three guards may have been motivated by anger over the violence in Gaza. That insight reportedly coming from the suspect's brother.

Those shootings happened at Allenby Bridge, a crossing used mainly by Palestinians. Authorities say the shooter was a Jordanian truck driver who used to travel back and forth through that crossing quite often. He allegedly approached the crossing today and opened fire on guards at close range before being killed by a security guard. Israel closed three land crossing things into Jordan after that attack. They are not scheduled to reopen until tomorrow morning.

Now, October 7th, of course, will mark one year since Hamas terrorists carried out a massive terrorist attack against Israel, killing some 1200 people and taking hundreds more hostage. Right now 101 Israelis are believed to be held hostage in Gaza including 35 hostages thought to be dead. Last week's recovery of the bodies of six hostages has sparked large protests across Israel with massive crowds of demonstrators demanding a deal to bring those remaining hostages home.

I'm joined now by Gal Hirsch, the Israeli coordinator for the hostages and the missing.

Thank you so much for being here with us this evening. We appreciate your time.

GAL HIRSCH, ISRAELI COORDINATOR FOR HOSTAGES AND THE MISSING: Shalom. Good evening, Jessica.

DEAN: I want to ask you first what your response is to those massive crowds in the streets of Tel Aviv and across Israel who are calling for the acceptance of a ceasefire and hostage deal to bring the hostages home.

HIRSCH: Well, of course I can understand the emotions. This is the Israeli democracy and people in Israel speak their mind. This is the Israeli strength of democracy. But it is not really depend on us. Hamas in the other side are not really in the same negotiations as we thought in the beginning. They are not negotiating, they are dictating, and they do not really want negotiations or an agreement unfortunately.

DEAN: The CIA director who has been intimately involved in these negotiations said this comes down to political will, and both sides agreeing that enough is enough. What do you say to that?

HIRSCH: Well, I think that I won't put any type of symmetry between the state of Israel, a democracy, a state, and put in front of it actually political will from Hamas, a terror organization. You just mentioned what they did to us in October 7th and what are they doing to the state of Israel and to the Israeli people and Jewish people worldwide in the last decades. Hamas do not want Israel on the map.

Now, I'm doing everything, everything. We have very good people. My friends from the Israeli Secret Services, the Israeli government, the Israeli armed forces, to bring all our people back home. Not forget that in the very beginning of the war, we had 3200 missing. And then it came to the point that we knew that we have 255 hostages in Gaza.

This is unprecedented event. Never happened something like this. And it is very important it won't happen not only in Israel, it won't happen any other place in the world.

DEAN: And I hear you on what you have done so far. I've spoken with family members of hostages that are still being held. My colleagues have spoken to them. We've interviewed them in the streets, just also Israelis. How do you explain to the families of these hostages that their loved ones aren't home yet?

They're really, really outraged by this and they're really upset and they don't feel like they've been getting -- a lot of them don't feel like they've getting answers from the government. HIRSCH: Well, I am in direct contact with all the Israeli hostage

families. I must say our beloved families and our beloved hostages. I speak with them 24-7 and they know that we are doing everything, turning every stone 24-7 since the very beginning of the war to bring them back home.

[19:30:12]

It is very important to remember that although right now, we have 101 hostages. We brought back to Israel many hostages, most of them came back alive.

There are dozens that came back, not alive, unfortunately, but we did a lot and are still doing a lot everyday, 24/7. And I'm explaining to the families exactly what is happening in negotiations, exactly what they are doing in the operative point of view, intelligence issues, and confidential issues as well.

The families have the picture. I speak with them every day and they know exactly what is going on. What are the efforts, of course, the frustration, the fear, the sorrow, the grief is well understood. I feel the same, just the same.

I'm looking forward for the day that I will bring everyone back home.

DEAN: And I understand that Hamas is also yet to -- has not agreed to a deal.

So, let's put that to the side for a second because the Israeli people and the families have been calling on the prime minister to get to a deal. They have criticized him that he is getting hung up on details and that are not allowing these hostages to come home. What do you say to them -- to those criticisms?

HIRSCH: Well first, let me say loud and clear from the very beginning of the war, we've made two main deals.

The first one was the setting of negotiations during October. We brought back to Israel four women hostages and another one girl that was rescued in a commando operation.

And then, during November, we brought back to Israel in tough negotiations, 81 hostages, most of them women and children, and 24 foreign workers that you know, I tried to take good care of them as well and to bring them back, all the hostages. Israelis and foreign workers that were kidnapped to Gaza by Hamas terror organization.

Now, since then, since October and November, let me tell you, since December, Hamas was not really negotiating. They're trying to dictate and trying mainly to earn some more time. And the most important thing, the most important thing, when Hamas identify that there is daylight between Israel and its allies, the most important ally is United States of America of course, and Great Britain and others.

When Hamas identified that there is daylight they are not in a hurry to come to negotiations, this is why there is a direct connection between effective negotiations and criticizing Israel, and this is important.

DEAN: Are you blaming the Biden administration for this deal not happening?

HIRSCH: Of course not. I think that the Biden administration, Director Burns from the CIA, other secret services that are working with us 24/7 since the very beginning of the war, they are doing excellent job, excellent.

We're working together and they're doing their best to push the negotiations, we work with the other mediators and to bring a deal. But in the other side there is Hamas and Hamas do not want a deal.

Hamas is not really negotiating, so we keep pressing. We will do everything -- everything -- that we can to bring them to the table with the help and assistance of, United States of America and the mediators.

And let me tell you one important thing. This war can be ended tomorrow -- it can be ended tomorrow. Actually, I believe that when we will have all the 101 hostages, Gaza will be demilitarized and de- radicalized and I even believe that we will agree to build safe passage to chief terrorist, the new Hitler, Sinwar, safe passage to him and whoever he wants to join him out of Gaza. Then Gaza can be recovered and an end to this war.

DEAN: All right, Brigadier General Gal Hirsch, thank you very much for being here with us. We appreciate your time.

HIRSCH: Thank you very, much.

DEAN: Still ahead, firefighters are struggling to contain a fire outside Los Angeles that's exploded in size this weekend, forcing evacuations for more than 10,000 people, and the weather conditions are making their fight even more difficult.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:39:30]

DEAN: Congress back in session. Tomorrow, they're going to find themselves back in a familiar standoff over government funding. There will be just 13 days in session before the current funding resolution runs out. And sources close to House Speaker Mike Johnson say he's planning to attach a controversial voting bill to that resolution which could quickly anger Democrats.

CNN Washington Correspondent Sunlen Serfaty is joining us now, and Sunlen, we have been here many times before and the last several years. What's the outlook for this particular situation?

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jessica, certainly Congress knows how to hurl quickly potentially into a shutdown showdown, and it appears as of this week in Washington, they are coming back and they have to approach this head on.

[19:40:13]

Now, lawmakers will return after an extended summer recess and the first big thing that they have on their plate how to keep the government funded, how to keep the government open.

Now, sources on both sides of the aisle tell CNN that there just is no appetite for a shutdown, that they have no desire to move to that outcome especially given that this is happening so close to an election, but that said, they have so much to get through in a very short amount of time.

Still not settled is how long the continuing resolution, which is the stopgap measure, which will keep the government funded for a short period of time, how long that would be?

Democrats, they have been fighting for to push it to the end of the year potentially into December. They want to get past the November election, but Republicans, they're pushing for maybe a spring end of the continuing resolution, get past leadership races in the House in the early part of next year. So, that's still a big thing yet to be decided.

And of course, they need just settle on this spending levels, that's no small thing when they get back in Washington tomorrow, Jessica. They'll have 13 days in session to get this settled.

Of course, it is September 30th, that means that if this is not solved, the government could shut down at least partially by October 1st.

DEAN: And, Sunlen, what more can you tell us about the Save Act and its potential role in all of this?

SERFATY: Yes, this is a really interesting part of the negotiations. Which will likely see play out in the first part of this week. We have heard according to sources, that Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, he intends to put -- to move forward with this continuing resolution and attach this controversial provision.

Now, that is the Save Act, as you referenced and that's -- it's a non- citizen voting measure, this is of course, as we know, it is already illegal for noncitizens to vote in the United States, but this bill proposes that people would have to require their proof and submit their proof of citizenship before they vote.

This is something that is a nonstarter for many Democrats. It's something that the House Freedom Caucus likes and it makes it attractive to them. So we will see some of that wrangling over this bill on the floor this week and just in the last hour or two, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, he in a statement said, "We will not let poison pills or Republican extremism put funding for critical programs at risk."

So, Jessica, certainly that is a nod to some of the House Republicans move, it is what they intend to do this week on Capitol Hill.

DEAN: All right, back-to-school, back to the Hill. Sunlen Serfaty, thank you so much for that preview, we appreciate it.

SERFATY: Thank you.

DEAN: Still ahead, new details of a warning from the mother of the Apalachee school shooting suspect on the morning, the teenager allegedly opened fire, killing two students and two teachers.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:47:37]

DEAN: Evacuations are underway in Southern California where a massive wildfire is threatening 35,000 structures. The Line Fire about 65 miles east of Los Angeles, more than doubling in size overnight and scorching more than 17,000 acres its currently zero-percent contained.

CNN's Camila Bernal is in the fire zone with more. Camila, what have you been seeing over the last couple of hours?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey Jess, so we got to see a lot of hotspots and also got to see a lot of these firefighters inaction putting out these hotspots. But what we're seeing right now is the fire very high up in the hills.

It's actually very hard to see right now because of how much smoke. But once in a awhile you'll see the flames and you'll see, you'll be able to make out a fire line up in that area. And that's why it's so difficult for firefighters to access.

To get to those areas, they either have to be flown in or they have to walk in. And so it takes a lot of time, it takes a lot of effort from these firefighters. And so, that's one of the challenges they have.

The other challenge has been weather. First of all, we've had triple- digit temperatures all throughout the week. It has been extremely hot here and the lows are in the 80s. And so, there is no break for these firefighters when it comes to the heat.

Then you also add the fact that right now are in the middle of a thunderstorm. We have heard some of the thunder. We have seen the lightning and we are even feeling a little bit of rain. So yes, the water is good, but the lightning can start new fires.

And the other thing that comes with all of this is wind. And so that wind can move the direction of the fire to the point where it becomes an unpredictable for firefighters, they don't even know where to station their crews, because the wind it changes the direction of the fire so quickly.

So what I was told is that a lot of the crews are closer to the homes. There's about 5,000 people that have been evacuated and had been told to pack their bags and get out of this area.

So what they're trying to do is protect all of those homes. So you have firefighters stationed in critical areas so that if the fire gets closer to the homes, they are able to fight that off.

But firefighters saying, look, it is actually difficult to get to the areas where we can actually fight the flames. So instead we want to protect the homes and do everything we can to stop it from getting to those homes.

Right now, there are no homes destroyed, but there for is the potential for the flames to get closer. So again, just a warning from authorities.

And I want you to take a listen to what Cal Fire is saying in terms of the difficulty of this fire. Here's what they said.

[19:50:12]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRENT PASCUA, CAL FIRE, BATTALION CHIEF: So the biggest challenge when the fire is unpredictable like this is knowing where to position all your crews. So right now, we are positioned all over the whole fire. Most importantly, within the neighborhoods around homes.

We have yet to lose or damage any structures and we want to keep it that way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERNAL: And so, one of the things that has been very beneficial today is the air attacks. They were not able to fly most of the day. Yesterday, we have seen them working today, but there's still so much work to be done.

About 600 personnel, they are here, but they're asking for more help -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right, Camila Bernal, with the latest from California. Thank you very much.

Tonight, new details in the deadly school shooting in Georgia that killed two students and two teachers. The suspect's family telling CNN, the suspect's mother called the school immediately after reading a heart-drop text message from her son.

CNN's Rafael Romo is in Winder, Georgia with more.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Jessica, it's a new and dramatic development.

We have learned that Marcee Gray, the mother of the 14-year-old accused of the shooting, called the school counselor roughly 30 minutes before the shooting and described a "unspecified emergency."

This was first reported by "The Washington Post" and later confirmed by CNN with Annie Brown, the teenager's aunt.

The emergency turned out to be an alarming and apologetic text from Marcee Gray's son, Colt Gray. The text simply said, "I'm sorry, Mom." CNN confirmed earlier today with Charles Polhamus, Colt Gray's maternal grandfather.

It was after receiving that text that the mother placed the call to the school before beginning a 200-mile drive from Fitzgerald, Georgia to here in Winder, but by the time she arrived, the tragic shooting had already happened.

The painful question that hangs in the air today here in Winder is whether this tragedy could have been prevented based on the new information we have learned about what the suspect's mother at tried to do.

The answer, of course, is that we will never know. But these new revelations are very consequential and may widen the investigation into the shooting.

Throughout the weekend, we have witnessed how thousands of people have arrived here at Apalachee High School in Winder to pay their respects, bring flowers, and show support to the families of the deceased and at the school itself.

And the Atlanta Falcons decided to also show their support Sunday. This happened ahead of their season opening home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Atlanta Falcons players wore Apalachee Wildcats t-shirts, during pre-game warm-ups. Also, a moment of silence was observed before the National Anthem in Mercedes-Benz Stadium to honor those affected by the deadly shooting, roughly 50 miles from downtown Atlanta -- Jessica.

DEAN: Rafael Romo, thank you for that.

Still ahead, many American families have lost hope for having children after the Chinese government said it is ending its foreign adoption program immediately. The reason why and the disappointment for some American families, that's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:57:54]

DEAN: The Chinese government is officially and abruptly ending its foreign adoption program. Hundreds of American families who've been working hard to apply are now just in limbo.

CNN's Steven Jiang reports.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: This announcement didn't come as a total shock because the number of international adoptions from China have been in decline in recent years.

The program, of course, came to a sudden halt during the pandemic and never really recovered even after COVID, but still, this marks a major change to a policy that has seen more than 160,000 Chinese children being adopted all over the world since the early 1990s, about half of them going to the United States.

But remember, this program began when China was dealing with an overpopulation problem. The government very much enforcing its draconian one-child policy that basically limited most couples in cities to one child forcing many families to abandon children, especially girls and disabled kids.

Now fast-forward to today, they are dealing with the opposite problem, a shrinking labor force and a rapidly aging society. That's why within the last decade, the authorities here have twice relaxed its once strict family planning policies, now, allowing most couples to have up to three children, but none of that seems to have worked against this backdrop of a slowing economy and young people's changing attitudes towards marriage and parenthood.

Now, the Chinese reaction to this policy change seem to be mixed on social media, but those applauding this decision seem to be expressing a nationalistic sentiment saying China is now rich and the powerful enough to take care of its own abandoned children. And often, citing rising tensions between China and the United States and other Western nations as well.

But none of this economic, social, and political realities, of course, offer any real comfort to the hundreds of international families in the middle of adopting children from China because the government here has reportedly indicated this ban goes into effect immediately with very limited exceptions, leaving hundreds of Americans in limbo and potentially heartbroken.

Steven Jiang, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: And before we go, the NFL announcing today, rapper, Kendrick Lamar will headline the Super Bowl Halftime Show, February 9th.

Lamar saying in a statement: "Rap music is still the most impactful genre to date, and I'll be there to remind the world why."

Thanks so much for joining me this evening. I'm Jessica Dean. We're going to see you right back here next weekend.

And as we leave you tonight, a look at the Superdome in New Orleans as the sun sets there and a live look at The Sphere in Las Vegas, a little bit cloudy.

"The Whole Story" with Anderson Cooper is next. Have a great night.

[20:00:00]