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FBI Investigates Trump's Second Assassination Try; Suspected Gunman Ryan Wesley Routh in Custody; Republicans and Democrats Condemn Political Violence Against Trump; Trump Safe As FBI Investigates Apparent Assassination Attempt; At Least 8 Dead As Heavy Rain Hits Central & Eastern Europe; Venezuela Accuses of Plotting To Assassinate Maduro. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired September 16, 2024 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNA COREN, CNN HOST: This is CNN's breaking news coverage of the apparent assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump. I'm Anna Coren in Hong Kong. For the second time in just two months, federal investigators are looking into another apparent attempt on the life of the Republican presidential nominee. Donald Trump is safe and was not harmed in Sunday's incident at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida.

A 58-year-old man identified as Ryan Wesley Routh has been detained. A source says the FBI investigation has now gone global as officials look into his background. Trump meantime has posted on Truth Social thanking the U.S. Secret Service and other law enforcement officials for their actions on Sunday. He said quote, "The job done was absolutely outstanding."

Earlier we heard from the Palm Beach County Sheriff about exactly what happened at Trump International Golf Club as the former president was on the golf course.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RIC BRADSHAW, SHERIFF, PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA: On 1:30 this afternoon, a call came out, shots fired that was called in by the Secret Service. Because we're in constant contact with them all the time, we were notified of that and we had units here that immediately sealed off the area.

Fortunately, we were able to locate a witness that came to us and said, hey, I saw the guy running out of the bushes. He jumped into a black Nissan and I took a picture of the vehicle and the tag, which was great. So we had that information, our real time crime center put it out to the license plate readers. And we were able to get a hit on that vehicle on I-95 as it was headed into Martin County. We got a hold of Martin County Sheriff's Office, alerted them, and they spotted the vehicle and pulled it over and detained the guy. After that we took the victim -- I'm sorry, the witness that witnessed

the incident, took -- flew him up there, and he identified as the person that he saw running out of the bushes that jumped into the car. Now, in the bushes where this guy was is an AK-47 style rifle with a scope, two backpacks which were hung on the fence that had a ceramic tile in them, and a GoPro, which he was gonna take pictures of.

So, those are being processed right now. The Secret Service agent that was on the course did a fantastic job. What they do is they have an agent that jumps one hole ahead of time to where the president was at. And he was able to spot this rifle barrel sticking out of the fence and immediately engage that individual at which time the individual took off.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: CNN's Evan Perez tells us what officials know about the man detained in this investigation.

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR U.S. JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: A 58-year-old man arrested Sunday in Florida in connection with an apparent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump is a self- employed affordable housing builder in Hawaii and was a critic of the former president online. Ryan Routh has been active on social media, weighing in on politics and current events, including making a post referencing the July assassination attempt on Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania.

In separate posts on X, Routh tagged President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, encouraging them to visit those people who were injured at the rally while also criticizing Trump. In an April post also on X, also tagging President Biden's presidential account, he wrote that Biden's campaign should be called something like KDAF, Keep America Democratic and Free. The Trumps, he said, should be MASA, Make Americans Slave Again Master. Democracy is on the ballot and we cannot lose.

Now Routh also has ties to North Carolina where records show that he voted in the state's Democratic primary in March of this year. He also contributed more than $100 to ActBlue, which is a website that processes donations for Democrats. Now, at one point, Routh expressed strong support for Ukraine on social media. He had dozens of posts on X in 2022, and he said he was willing to die in the fight and that, quote, "We need to burn the Kremlin to the ground."

[02:04:58]

Now, Routh's eldest son, Orin, told CNN via text message that Routh was a loving and caring father. An honest, hardworking man. And he also said that the little that I've heard doesn't sound like the man I know to do anything crazy, much less violent. The FBI is investigating this incident as an attempted assassination on the former president, and federal charges are expected to be filed against him in the coming days. Evan Perez, CNN, Washington.

COREN: Well, former FBI Supervisory Agent Rob D'Amico spoke with CNN earlier about why ceramic plates were found in the two backpacks discovered by law enforcement at the scene. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROB D'AMICO, RETIRED FBI SUPERVISORY SPECIAL AGENT: The reason that you put ceramic plates on is for a rifle engagement. They stop rifle rounds. So he is looking for an encounter. Why else would you bring it and put it there if you're not like going to put it on for the event? So I think he was preparing and he was looking out the chain link fence that he was on and seeing what his scope can see because there's scope. When you start looking through a scope, it really brings down the field of view.

So he's probably checking that out, seeing where he could actually engage the former president. And the Secret Service agent sees his barrel sticking out, which again is a bad sniper tactic. You never allow your barrel to go past something. But he did that. Secret Service agent sees it and engages him right away.

I don't think he would engage them right away if it hadn't been for Pennsylvania. But I think they caught him beforehand. I think he was waiting for him to get in what we call an ambush zone where it's a shorter distance and he has better field of vision and that agent interrupted it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Ray Moore is a retired Secret Service special agent in charge of the Atlanta field office. He joins us now live from Conyers, Georgia. Ray, thank you for joining us. As you just heard from that retired FBI agent, he said because of what happened two months ago, that is why the Secret Service acted as quickly as what they did. Would you agree?

RAY MOORE, RETIRED SECRET SERVICE AGENT, ATLANTA FIELD OFFICE: I would totally agree.

COREN: Are you impressed at how quickly they did act?

MOORE: Yes, I am. I believe that based on recent training and the manpower upgrades, that they responded very quickly to what they perceived as a threat.

COREN: Because Ray, I guess when you think about it, you've got a rifle sticking out of a fence on the perimeter of a golf course. There's a lot of shrubbery, a lot of bushes, a lot of landscaping for the Secret Service to have spotted that rifle. I mean was he just doing his job? Was he very good at his job or did he just get lucky?

MOORE: I think a combination of all of the above. But the agent did the right thing once he saw it. I'm sure he made a command order asking the person to come out and the person probably didn't respond. And that's why he fired at the location of the weapon, probably not seeing the suspect but firing anyway.

COREN: Ray, over the last few hours, you know, a lot of analysts have been on talking about the level of security that Donald Trump had. And, you know, some people have said that because he's not a sitting president, that he is not afforded the same level of security. But this is a former president, and this is also the Republican candidate. So can you please explain to us perhaps the difference in security for President Biden and then President Trump?

MOORE: You said it correctly, there are different levels of security for sitting presidents, former presidents, and candidate nominees. But in recent weeks, as a result of Butler, President Trump security has been upgraded threefold. They've added extra tactical teams. They've added extra electronic protocols. They've added more manpower. So his has been upgraded significantly.

COREN: The fact that they were on the golf course, we've heard from analysts saying how difficult it is to protect the perimeter of a golf course. And the fact that this was a last minute decision as well for Donald Trump to play golf. What do you make of that?

MOORE: Well, they are correct with golf courses are very difficult to cover. That's why they have a lead team, a follow team and teams that parallel the president. They also have post standards out on the golf course, conducting surveillance and counter surveillance. So that assessment is really correct. It would actually take hundreds of people to properly secure a golf course.

[02:10:03]

COREN: The fact that the suspect had his gun sticking through the fence, obviously looking through the scope, it would suggest that he was quite inexperienced. What is your evaluation?

MOORE: I wouldn't say he was inexperienced. His timing was just bad. Looking at his history, he has history with weapons. He was arrested in 2002 with a submachine gun. So he understands weapons. He talks about participating in warfare and help fighting for Ukraine. He just had bad timing when he conducted his check and the agent saw it and responded appropriately.

COREN: So, Ray, the fact -- I beg your pardon. The fact that this man was known to law enforcement, how was he able to get so close to Donald Trump?

MOORE: Well, you know, Florida has over 15 million people. We can't check everybody. He was not screened in that area for movement because he was not inside the what we call the inner perimeter or the middle perimeter. He was in the outer perimeter. So that's how he was able to get into the area that he was. And his car was parked along a major fairway.

COREN: Ray, Donald Trump has praised the Secret Service and law enforcement for an outstanding job, but obviously this latest incident in light of what happened to him two months ago raises questions about the ability to protect not just Donald Trump, but all the candidates.

MOORE: What I believe will happen, all of these events are learning moments or teaching moments. I believe more manpower will be given. I believe more technical equipment will be given. More drones, more infrared, all these elements that are available will start being used for former President Trump and other protectees.

COREN: Ray Moore, we really appreciate your insights with all the experience that you have. Thank you for joining us.

MOORE: Thank you for having me.

COREN: Well, shortly after Sunday's incident, Trump sent out two fundraising e-mails saying in a second one, "My resolve is only stronger after another attempt on my life. I will never slow down. I will never give up. I will never surrender." The top ranking Republicans and allies of Trump's are doubling down on the notion that he was saved by divine intervention, a recurrent theme at the Republican National Convention, which was held just two days after Trump's first assassination attempt.

U.S. President Joe Biden says he is relieved that Donald Trump was unharmed in Sunday's apparent assassination attempt. In a statement he says, "I have been briefed by my team regarding what Federal law enforcement is investigating as a possible assassination attempt of former President Trump today. A suspect is in custody and I commend the work of the Secret Service and their law enforcement partners for their vigilance and their efforts to keep the former President and those around him safe. I am relieved that the former President is unharmed. There is an active investigation into this incident as law enforcement gathers more details about what happened. As I have said many times, there is no place for political violence or for any violence ever in our country. And I have directed my team to continue to ensure that Secret Service has every resource, capability and protective measure necessary to ensure the former President's continued safety."

Democratic presidential nominee, Kamala Harris also released a statement saying, "I am deeply disturbed by the possible assassination attempt of former President Trump today. As we gather the facts, I will be clear, I condemn political violence. We all must do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to more violence. I am thankful that former President Trump is safe. I commend the U.S. Secret Service and law enforcement partners for their vigilance. As President Biden said, our administration will ensure the Secret Service has every resource, capability and protective measure necessary to carry out its critical mission.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also reacted to the apparent assassination attempt posting on X. "Sarah and I were shocked by the second assassination attempt against President Trump and we're relieved to hear that it too failed. But we should not rely on luck. We send our best wishes to Donald and Melania, along with our hopes that all measures will be taken to ensure that such deadly attacks on a candidate for the U.S. presidency will be foiled in advance."

[02:14:57]

And this from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who shares a close relationship with Trump, quote, "It is clear that President Trump's life is in danger until his victory. We are praying for you, Mr. President." (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COREN: There is a lot of reaction coming from Capitol Hill after the apparent assassination attempt on Donald Trump in Florida. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have been quick to condemn what happened and are calling for the incident to be investigated. We're looking at a live shot of the Capitol.

The leaders of the Senate, Democrat Chuck Schumer and Republican Mitch McConnell, have both denounced political violence and called for the person responsible to be held accountable and prosecuted. And Republican Congressman Mike Waltz of Florida, a member of the House Assassination Task Force, has called for a briefing from the Secret Service this week.

In the aftermath of Sunday's incident, questions are being raised as to how this might affect the presidential campaign. Trump was scheduled for stops in Michigan, New York and the swing state of North Carolina this week. We don't know whether those events will go ahead as planned. It's also unclear how this incident might influence the tone or the focus of the of Trump's campaign.

Well, I'm now joined by Natasha Lindstaedt, professor of government at the University of Essex in England. Linda, great to see you. How will this impact the presidential election campaign over the next 50 days?

NATASHA LINDSTAEDT, PROFESSOR OF GOVERNMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ESSEX: Well, it's a great question. I think with the first assassination attempt that took place on July 13th, there -- it was clear that this was going to have a huge impact on the campaign. Biden had a terrible debate, he appeared very weak, and Trump in the aftermath of the assassination attempt, the first one, appeared robust, that he had survived death.

And to his supporters, he was this messianic type of figure who was incredible and could survive anything, and there was all kinds of elation and positive energy going into the Republican convention. And Trump himself said that he was going to tone down his own rhetoric and that he was going to try to be nice. After the assassination attempt, you also had Elon Musk declaring his endorsement for Trump.

So there was a lot of momentum behind Trump at that time. But then as soon as Joe Biden dropped out of the race, we weren't really hearing much about the assassination attempt anymore. And now at this point, we're much more far along in the campaign. Many more people have made up their minds. And I don't see it having the same impact because I actually think the shock of it, the shock of it with the first one has already made its impact and this sort of aftershock, it's not going to be making such an impact politically speaking.

COREN: Linda, I'm interested in your thoughts as to what you make of Trump's team sending out a number of fundraising e-mails after this alleged attempted assassination.

LINDSTAEDT: That's a really good point and that would be -- there could be some kind of impact that he could enhance his campaign funds. He hasn't been doing anywhere near as well. Trump hasn't been fundraising anywhere near as well as Kamala Harris. She made millions after that debate in the first 24 hours. So campaign funds is something that he badly needs. He was able to capitalize on the first attempt as many Republicans, Trump supporters, were really galvanized more than ever that they needed to support him and donate to his campaign. And I think that's what the Trump campaign is trying to capitalize in this instance as well.

COREN: Linda, obviously the FBI is investigating. They are going through his digital data, he was prolific on social media, the suspect. But his political ideology, how will that affect the electorate?

LINDSTAEDT: So this was really interesting that it turned out that the would-be assassin voted for Trump in 2016 and was a pro-Ukrainian activist. That's similar in some ways to the first assassination attempt, that it was a registered Republican. So this was right on right violence. It wasn't some sort of, as the Republicans might say, some kind of left-wing liberal that enacted (inaudible) made this attempt.

This is important to cooling down the temperature a bit, because after the first assassination attempt, J.D. Vance blamed Biden and his rhetoric of calling Trump a fascist, and that was the reason why this violence occurred. But I think something that is even more concerning, apart from the ideological affiliation, is now that we've had the first assassination attempt, we're seeing these copycats.

Political violence begets more political violence. If people see that there were openings there, there were cracks that the Secret Service was unable to protect Trump, and as a candidate, of course, you have different protection levels than if you are the sitting president. And so that's a major concern for me going forward that there could be more of these assassination attempts as it's become normalized.

COREN: Linda, you talk about cooling down the temperature, and yet we're already hearing from some of Trump supporters, you know, about these conspiracy theories. Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, has said that his state will launch its own investigation, which it's well and truly entitled to do, but he has stated on social media that the people deserve to know the truth. Are you concerned where this may lead?

LINDSTAEDT: That's another good question, whether there's going to be more of these conspiracy theories. And that's been a major problem in American politics in general. And of course, Trump has been engaging with Laura Loomer, this conspiracy theorist person who somehow entered his inner circle.

[02:24:56]

And this is incredibly damaging to democracy when the truth becomes just completely mangled by mistruths, by extreme ideas, by conspiracy theories. I think that the law enforcement community has been very transparent as much as they could be about what's happened, providing the media with information and up to date as they can about what's going on to debunk any conspiracy theories, but I'm sure there'll be an investigation as to how this could have happened again.

COREN: Natasha Lindstaedt, we appreciate you joining us. Thank you so much.

LINDSTAEDT: Thanks for having me.

COREN: More reaction as well from politicians on both sides of the aisle. Donald Trump's running mate J.D. Vance said on X, "I'm glad President Trump is safe. I spoke to him before the news was public and he was amazingly in good spirits. Still much we don't know, but I'll be hugging my kids extra tight tonight and saying a prayer of gratitude."

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson posted this after he and his wife met with Donald Trump. "Kelly and I are departing Mar-a-Lago, where we just spent a few hours with President Trump and thanking God for protecting him today once again. No leader in American history has endured more attacks and remains so strong and resilient. He is unstoppable."

And Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Tim Walz condemned the violence. He wrote, "Gwen and I are glad to hear that Donald Trump is safe. Violence has no place in our country. It's not who we are as a nation."

We'll have more on our breaking news ahead, including the latest on the investigation and the man detained in connection to Sunday's incident.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:30:10]

COREN: Back to our breaking news coverage.

The FBI says it's investigating another apparent assassination attempt on Donald Trump. He was not harmed in Sunday's incident at his golf club in West Palm Beach.

The county sheriff says the Secret Service spotted a rifle barrel sticking out of a fence while Trump was on the course. Agents fired at a man who was in the bushes along the perimeter. The man fled and a witness provided a photo of his car and license plate.

Three law enforcement sources tell CNN authorities detained 58-year- old Ryan Wesley Routh when the car was stopped on an interstate highway.

Well, CNN's Randi Kaye has more now from Palm Beach County, Florida.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We are learning more about the man who was detained in this incident here at Trump International Golf Course.

His name is Ryan Wesley Routh. He lived in Hawaii for some time. He's 58-years-old and the car that he was driving actually belonged to his daughter. We understand from law enforcement that when he was taken into custody, he was calm and that he was not displaying emotion according to law enforcement. Now, we also know that he had with him according to what was found at the scene, to backpacks and a GoPro, as well as an AK-47 style rifle.

Now this all unfolded after Secret Service, who was on the golf course working the holes ahead of Donald Trump saw the barrel of a rifle poking through the fence, and then they engage the suspect with some gunfire. He took off. They made chase. They eventually tracked him down and took him into custody.

Now, in terms of the law enforcement presence here, still at the international golf club, the roads have been closed since this incident occurred. That has continued much through the day. Here on Summit Boulevard, which is the main thoroughfare outside front of the International Golf Club. That is where holes five and six where this incident apparently occurred.

Those holes backup to Summit Boulevard where we are standing it has been closed for hours, so that is sort of a key boulevard as well as others that surround the club, which would be Kirk Road and Congress Avenue. All of them were shutdown following this incident. The former president was kept here at the International Golf Club for hours, made sure that the area was secure. The intent higher golf club was locked down and then he was brought to Mar-a-Lago, which he calls home about 15 minutes from here in West Palm Beach.

So, we understand that he does still have scheduled events this week and we will see what the week brings and what the investigation brings as well.

Randi Kaye, CNN, Palm Beach County, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: CNN presidential historian Tim Naftali says he's concerned about the impact of Sunday's apparent assassination attempt on U.S. politicians and their supporters. He also shared what went through his mind when he heard the news that this incident could have been another attempt on Donald Trumps life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIM NAFTALI, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Oh God, not again, was my initial reaction. It was so painful and worrying in July when the first assassination attempt occurred and the concerns we all had about how that might contribute to increasing this culture -- of this toxic culture that we live in. Those concerns are back again we had that moment as you remember, after the first assassination attempt where both political parties were talking about the importance of lowering the tension, reducing the temperature, if you will of our political rhetoric.

In the debate just the other day, President Trump sort of verged on blaming Vice President Harris and the Democrats for that first assassination attempt. So I, first of all, its horrible that he and his family are undergoing this trauma, it's a terrible shock to the country. I'm concerned about what follows.

Will we have once again the sort of the sort of the discussion about the importance of lowering the temperature or is this going to quickly going to become politicized? And we see more violence as a result.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Many Republican lawmakers have been reacting to this apparent assassination attempt.

Congressman Mike Waltz of Florida called for the U.S. Secret Service to brief Congress saying that the July 13 assassination attempt was not an isolated incident that we can take our time investigating as domestic and foreign threats are ongoing.

And Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene criticized Democrats asking on X whether two assassination attempts on Donald Trumps life for considered a threat to democracy yet.

[02:35:00]

Stay with CNN. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COREN: Well, more on our breaking news this hour, Donald Trump is thanking the secret service and other law enforcement officials after what appears to be an apparent assassination attempt on the former president. In a post on his social media website, Truth Social, Trump told the Secret Service, quote, the job done was absolutely outstanding.

Well, Trump's campaign says the former president is safe after the incident. The Secret Service agents spotted a rifle barrels sticking out of offense, while the former president was golfing at his Florida club and fired shots, and investigation is underway.

And joining me now from Toronto is national security expert, Tony Seaboyer. He's a political science professor at the Royal Military College of Canada.

Tony, thank you for joining us.

From what we've heard about the suspect, what does it say about his intention and also his experience?

ANTHONY SEABOYER, NATIONAL SECURITY EXPERT: Well, I think there's lots of questions at this point. For example, a choice of a weapon used. So it's not a long long-range high precision (AUDIO GAP). Not a weapon a sniper would use that would enable, assure to have a long distance between himself and the target. It's a regular service rifle. That's what the AK-47 designed for some. So, not for precision targeting. Also, that he would position himself in a way that could raise attention to law enforcement, were in the fence, of actually taking a shot suggests that he didn't plan this very well, it wasn't particularly at least trained for this kind (AUDIO GAP).

COREN: So you believe from what you've learned that perhaps he was inexperienced?

SEABOYER: Exactly.

COREN: Okay.

SEABOYER: Yeah. I think there a lots of questions around that, yes.

COREN: Yeah, absolutely. The Secret Service, obviously, was very quick to act. Was this really in response to what happened to Donald Trump two months ago?

SEABOYER: Absolutely. We do know that they increased security, they ramped up security. That said, it's not anywhere close to what the sitting president actually has.

[02:40:03]

For example, if the sitting president wouldn't have been at the golf place, what would happen, the whole area would be surrounded, would have been locked off and access would've been restricted. This was not the case here, and this is why were seeing that this was possible.

I do think though they did an amazing service and finding, imagine identifying in the bushes, a barrel pointing out. I think this is a great job they did for sure.

COREN: We're learning that Donald Trump made this decision at the last minute to play golf. Is it likely that the Secret Service could have pushed back on that decision considering that perimeter to that needed to be secured?

SEABOYER: This is another big question is, how could they assess the suspect know that Trump will be there when this was a short-term decision? What we know is that protection of high target, high-value targets like a former president is very difficult, in any case, it's even more difficult if there outside and this is one of the challenges with Trump, many of his rallies or outside, he prefers to have them outside, whereas other politicians prefer to them inside because inside areas then use can be protected better. So this is a challenge that also rises from his choice of venues/

COREN: But considering this is now apparently the second attempt on his life, is it -- is it likely that this will now change that he will not be allowed to make a last-minute decision and play golf that the areas that he attends, the rallies that he holds they will now have to be a lot more controlled, a lot more secure?

SEABOYER: Yeah, certainly, were security is ramped up after the first attempt. Now this was certainly be even more the case, but he did he was advised by his advisers to be much more careful the choice of venue as he did double if not want that, he wanted to continue having rallies over the open. I think that was still there will be a challenge, but I think now more than ever, there's a reason to keep these rallies at least indoors, to have a larger protection capability of the former president.

COREN: As we know that the suspect fled. He was later captured. But what was found in the bushes and AK-47 rifle and scope along with two backpacks containing ceramic plates. What would that suggest to you?

SEABOYER: Well, the ceramic plates can be used for protection, but then again, its very surprising that he would do this in this form and such if you would have chosen a weapon that has a longer range, a regular sniper rifle would have a range of two-and-a-half times the distance it would have been able to him to be much more protected and safer, able to actually leave the scene. So there's lots of questions about what he actually chose. He had a GoPro there. You obviously wanted to record or even stream his assassination.

The question really is, what planning was there? And I think it's really good that were seeing a mental health assessment being made. There are a lot of questions are raised around what he's been posting online and what mental state he might have been now that he decided to perform this kind of act.

COREN: I mean, the focus right now is very much on Donald Trump, but there are other candidates at play. You know, obviously, Kamala Harris, Tim Walz, J.D. Vance, as well.

So how will their security detail be affected in the next 50 days? If you were advising them on what they had to do, what would you be telling them? The law enforcement learns from every individual case and this is what's happening here right now. They're seeing and how could he accessed the weapon system? How could you access that location? And they're learning from each of these cases.

So it won't be easy or even possible to do a similar attack in the future because of what law enforcement is learning. That said, though, I think to have any kind of rallies in close located, or indoor locations as a recommendation, that's we know others have followed and I think (AUDIO GAP).

COREN: Tony Seaboyer, we really appreciate your insights. Thank you very much for joining us.

SEABOYER: Thank you.

COREN: Well, now for a quick check of some of the other stories making news this hour. At least eight people are dead after some of the heaviest rain in decades hit parts of Central and Eastern Europe causing widespread flooding.

A slow-moving low pressure system named storm Boris has dumped a months worth of rain across the region from Austria to Romania. Officials in Romania say hundreds of people have been stranded and thousands of homes are damaged in the hardest hit areas in the country's southeast. The flooding has also impacted parts of Austria, Poland, and the Czech Republic where rivers have burst their banks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The worst has passed, but now the work is coming. We see the horrible damage. Here, there was a shop on the corner and its not there anymore yesterday, they were trying to get water out of the seller of the shop for three hours. The shop owner woke up at 7:00 a.m. and realized how futile it was.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Poland's prime minister says the government will announce a state of disaster and seek aid from the European Union.

And there's no relief in sight, just yet with more rain forecast for the region. CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar has the details.

[02:45:02]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Cyclone Boris is making its way ever so slowly across much of Central Europe. But we're finally going to start to see some movements south here in about the next 24 to 48 hours. This video from Sunday, from Poland, you can see all of that heavy water filling up the streets and a lot of the communities there and also filling up some of the rivers and the creeks and streams, allowing some of those things to kind of flow down that wouldn't normally be there.

We're talking substantial amounts of rain for a lot of these areas. Take a look at this, Prague picking up almost 100 millimeters of rain that is way more than they would normally see for the month of September. Same thing for Vienna, seeing much more than they normally be 2, 3, 4 times what they would normally see in the month of sale September, as are several other communities.

Look at some of these rainfall totals, not just for Austria, but Slovakia, Czech Republic, a lot of them looking at least 100 millimeters, some of them even exceeding 200 millimeters. And sadly, that is not all we still have more rain yet to come. You can see the system continuing to spin during the day Monday before finally starting to dive a little bit farther south towards the Mediterranean, taking with it more of that rain towards coastal France, as well as portions of Italy and away from areas of the Czech Republic and Austria that we have seen the last few days.

But even in the short term, still looking at additional rainfall and even snow for the alps, were looking at additional ten to 15 centimeters of snow for the alps and then a lot of the surrounding areas to the north, they're looking at additional 50 to 100 millimeters of rain also starting to see some new rain developed down south of proportions of Italy where we could also see an extra 50 to 100 millimeters of rain total through the next few days.

(END VIDEOTAPE) COREN: Chinese authorities say typhoon Bebinca is the strongest storm to hit Shanghai in more than 70 years. It made landfall early Monday with heavy rain and gale force winds. China's meteorological administration has issued a red typhoon warning for the area, its most severe alert.

Officials are keeping a close watch on rivers and water flow from mountain areas due to flooding concerns. Some parts of China could see up to 80 millimeters of rainfall per hour.

Venezuela is accusing the CIA of orchestrating a plot to assassinate President Nicolas Maduro and other top officials, saying the U.S. wants to destabilize the country after a disputed presidential election. Venezuelan officials say Spain's intelligence agencies also involved. The U.S. and Spain say that's not true.

Stefano Pozzebon has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEFANO POZZEBON, JOURNALIST: The United States and Spain are firmly rejecting the claims that they were involved in an alleged plot to overthrow the Venezuelan government and kill authoritarian president Nicolas Maduro.

On Saturday, Venezuela's interior minister Diosdado Cabello announced the arrest of six foreigners including three U.S. citizens, saying that they were involved in the plot, which Cabello you blamed on the CIA without showing any proof.

DIOSDADO CABELLO, VENEZUELAN INTERIOR MINISTER (through translator): The security services of other countries involved in the plot know that we know more than what I am saying now. I'm not going to reveal everything we know as part of our investigation because there's a reason we were able to stop them. Behind this, there are two main instigators, the CIA and the national intelligence center of Spain.

POZZEBON: Now, Cabello is seen as a hard line and intransigent member of the Venezuelan government. He was appointed to cabinets in August after a widespread cycle of anti-government protesters following the controversial reelection of Nicholas Maduro on July 28. Both the U.S. government and the European Union have already announced that it will not recognize those results after massive allegations of voting fraud.

On Saturday, Cabello accused the six detainees of introducing some 400 U.S. manufactured guns to Venezuela. But again, failed to reveal so any detail leading up to these arrests, which include two Spanish citizens and one Czech citizen, as well as if three Americans said.

CNN first reported on the detention of a U.S. Navy sailor on September. Wilbert Castaneda is now being accused by Cabello of being the ringleader of the alleged plot, something both the Department of State and the Department of Defense had already denied. They told us back then that Castaneda was traveling to Venezuela on personal matter when he was detained in Caracas at the end of August. For CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Bogota later today, the U.S. Coast

Guard will begin its two week hearing into the cause of the titan submersible implosion. The vessel operated by OceanGate expeditions Russians lost contact with its mothership during its dive to the Titanic wreckage in June of last year.

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All five people on board were killed. The head of the inquiry says they'll make a recommendation to the Department of Justice if there's any evidence of a criminal act.

Well, stay with CNN. We'll be right back with more on our coverage of the second assassination attempts of Donald Trump.

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COREN: More now on the breaking news we've been following. Donald Trump is safe after being targeted in what the FBI says was an apparent assassination attempt at his Palm Beach Florida golf club on Sunday.

Trump was playing golf when a Secret Service agent spotted a rifle barrel sticking through a fence on the course. Police say the agent opened fire, but apparently did not hit anyone. One man was later detained and could soon go through a court ordered mental health assessment before facing any possible criminal charges.

This is the second apparent attempt on the former presidents life in the past two months what's also still CNN at Trumps golf outing on Sunday was a last-minute addition to his schedule. These spontaneous golf games may have complicated matters for the Secret Service. Golf courses, particularly Trump's own properties, have long been a source of concern among officials tasked with securing the grounds.

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Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach presents its own set of unique challenges. The course sits along three heavily trafficked roads and Palm Beach International Airport is hereby.

Well, let's now look at some other news. WNBA star rookie Caitlin Clark broke the rookies scoring record on Sunday. It happened during the Indiana Fevers' win over the Dallas Wings 110-109. Clark finished the game with a career high 35 points and now stands atop the rookie leader board with 761 points this season. That beats the previous record of 744 points set by Hall of Famer Simone Augustus. Clark is breaking her record felt like a full circle moments, adding that Augustus was the first player ever met at first WNBA game.

It was a record-setting night at the 76th Emmy Awards where Hollywood honored the best in television achievements. Historical drama "Shogun" took home awards for outstanding drama, lead actor, and lead actress in a drama as well as directing for a drama series. Along with its creative Art Emmy wins "Shogun" wins 18 awards, total, and you record for the most wins in a single season. Max series "Hacks" took a surprise win for outstanding comedy, one of its two wins on Sunday. Max and CNN belong to the same parent company. "Hacks" beat out "The Bear" for the hop comedy award but the show didn't go home empty handed after an unprecedented 23 nominations, comedy one honors for three of its actors and outstanding directing for a comedy series.

Well, thank you so much for your company. I'm Anna Coren in Hong Kong. My colleague, Max Foster, picks up our breaking news coverage from London after this short break.