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Confusion And Furor From MAGA Base Over Epstein Files As Trump Defends Pam Bondi; New Evacuation Orders As Heavy Rains Return To Central Texas; New Polling Shows Positive Support On Trump's Crackdown On Immigration; Two Women Killed In Kentucky Church Shooting. NATO Secretary General Rutte To Meet With Trump; Bill Nye Reports On Accelerating Earth; Rivals Clash In Wimbledon Final. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired July 13, 2025 - 17:00   ET

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

[17:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: You're in the "CNN Newsroom." I'm Jessica Dean in New York. We're going to have more on that shooting in Kentucky in just a bit. But first tonight, President Trump is sending a clear message, inviting Attorney General Pam Bondi to join him at the FIFA Club World Cup in New Jersey. Bondi, of course, at the center of a political firestorm, which has deeply divided MAGA world over that Justice Department memo that concluded that she accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein had no client list.

The deputy FBI director, Dan Bongino, reportedly considering stepping down amid all of this. CNN's Betsy Klein traveling with the president, joining us now live from Basking Ridge, New Jersey. Betsy, the president last night throwing his full support behind Bondi. Now today, them showing up together. The question now is what comes next for Dan Bongino?

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: I think that's anyone's guess, Jessica, but for years President Trump has made big promises about Jeffrey Epstein, but that memo released by his Justice Department and FBI last Monday is directly at odds with the conspiracy theories pushed by Trump and some of his top lieutenants. That memo concluded that Epstein died by suicide and that there was no evidence of any so-called client list.

But MAGA world is now in revolt, pitting some of the president's closest allies against each other and all of this essentially setting up a loyalty test between President Trump and the MAGA movement that he created. Now the infighting between the DOJ and the FBI came to a head on Wednesday at an explosive meeting where FBI Director Kash Patel and his deputy, Dan Bongino, were both confronted about whether they were behind a story that said the FBI wanted more information on Epstein released but was ultimately stymied by the Department of Justice.

Then after that meeting, Bongino told people close to him that he was considering resigning and as you mentioned, he did not come to work on Friday. His status in the administration remains uncertain. Now Patel, for his part posted to social media Saturday that he would continue to serve in the Trump administration. And though he was among those fanning the conspiracy flames, he also wrote, quote, "the conspiracy theories just aren't true, never have been."

Attorney General Pamela Bondi, meanwhile has really borne the brunt of the frustration from MAGA supporters. And that was very clear this weekend at the conservative Turning Point USA Summit where both speakers and attendees present in Florida directed their anger at Bondi and the administration more broadly. But President Trump now trying to rein in this infighting. He said in a post to social media, quote, "What's going on with my boys and in some cases, gals? They're all going after Attorney General Pam Bondi, who is doing a fantastic job. We're on one team, MAGA, and I don't like what's happening."

Now privately, President Trump has also doubled down on his support for Bondi. Members of his inner circle have reached out to some of her most vocal critics to essentially ask them to cool it, that her job is safe for now. And a notable show of support here in New Jersey as the president invited Bondi to his box at the FIFA Club World Cup Championship. The president flashing Bondi a thumbs up, Jessica.

DEAN: All right, Betsy Klein with the very latest. More to come on that. Thank you so much. A farm worker who fell from a greenhouse roof during an ICE raid in California has now died from his injuries. Jaime Alanis Garcia is the first person known to die during the Trump administration's crackdown on undocumented migrants. CNN's correspondent Julia Benbrook is joining us now. Julia, what more are you learning about this man and also how is the administration responding to this?

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, according to his family, he had worked on a farm for 10 years and was the sole financial provider for his family. Information from relatives as well as from hospital and government sources shows that he may have been running from ICE agents when he fell 30 feet from a greenhouse roof and broke his neck. He later died from his injuries at the age of 57.

Earlier today, President Donald Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, appeared on CNN and he was asked specifically to respond to what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM HOMAN, WHITE HOUSE BORDER CZAR: It's sad. It's unfortunate. He was in ICE custody and ICE did not have hands on this person, but it's always unfortunate when there's deaths.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BENBROOK: Now in a statement, DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Trisha McLaughlin, said this.

[17:04:58]

She said, quote, "This man was not in and has not been in CBP or ICE custody. Although he was not being pursued by law enforcement, this individual climbed up to the roof of a greenhouse and fell 30 feet. CBP immediately called a medevac to the scene to get him care as quickly as possible. Jessica?

DEAN: All right, Julia Benbrook, thank you so much for that reporting. Also tonight, heavy rain hitting areas in central Texas devastated just a week ago by those deadly flash floods. According to the National Weather Service, Kerrville is currently under a flood watch until 7:00 p.m. And people in parts of San Saba, about two hours northeast of Kerrville, are now facing mandatory evacuations from dangerous new flooding. CNN's Julia Vargas Jones joins us now from Kerrville. Julia, look, this is just more of what they don't need, which is more rain. What's going on there on the ground?

JULIA VARGAS JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, more rain means that those search and rescue operations, Jessica, have to come to a stop. I was just speaking to one of the commanders of these operations here in Kerr County who said, look, we'll come back to it tomorrow morning. We'll go back to what we've been doing. These people that have been working tirelessly throughout the week to look for those who are still missing.

But I want to share with you one photo that is coming from the Unified Cajun Navy that shows a car completely submerged. This is a pickup truck, completely submerged not only in water but with so much debris and gravel, Jessica, just -- it goes to show the level of difficulty that these operations have been facing. This is from earlier this week.

You can imagine that the rain that's coming today will only make things more difficult but Like I said, tomorrow these things will be back out there. For now, they're saying they have to prioritize the safety of those firefighters, those Cajun Navy officials who are out there as they go through.

It's not just here in Kerrville, you know, there's miles and miles of river bed that still need to be combed through. They have gone through once at least. They brought, you know, canine teams out, but they still need to go and look painstakingly for those people who are still missing and of course this rain is just not helping.

DEAN: No, it certainly isn't, and Julia I have to think that the people there just don't want to see any more rain. How are they reacting to more of this?

JONES: Well, you know, Jessica, we're here outside of this makeshift memorial that's been made for the victims of this tragedy. Earlier, I spoke to a father and son. They actually came to thank us for being here and telling the story of this community for the rest of America and the world. And as we were talking about these rains today, they were just like, we just don't know what to expect and that everybody is just on pins and needles and almost in a PTSD from last week, you know.

After going through a flooding event, you can imagine just every -- just the sound of rain makes people just perk up and be very mindful, you know, careful as they're walking and driving through the streets here that have just been open just a couple hours ago where we are. This is downtown Kerrville and that was also affected earlier today. So this community is still very much reeling from all that happened this past week and concerned, and still nervous as they hear of more rain.

DEAN: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Julia Vargas Jones in Texas for us. Thank you so much. President Trump is showing no signs of wanting to slow down his immigration push. Six months into his term, though, some new polling appears to show a shift in how Americans view that issue, that really was one of the top ones that got Trump elected back in the fall.

Plus, a crucial meeting for Ukraine as President Trump sits down with NATO's secretary general as he moves ahead with plans to get more U.S. weapons to Ukraine and turns up his public rebukes on Vladimir Putin.

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DEAN: A new poll out this week shows a shift in Americans' feelings on immigration. Polling from Gallup showing a 25 percent drop in the number of Americans who think the U.S. should cut down on the number of immigrants coming into the country. Another poll showed a record number think immigration benefits the U.S. That number up 15 points from 2024. And when you break it down by political party, even Republicans see immigration as more favorable with 25 percent -- a jump of 25 percent since June of last year.

Joining us now is Larry Sabato. He's the director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia and the author of the new book coming out later this month, "Campaign of Chaos: Trump, Biden, Harris and the 2024 Election." Larry, good to see you on this Sunday afternoon. We're taking a look at this new polling on immigration. What does it suggest to you?

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: Jessica, this is actually a significant poll. A lot of polls are ephemeral. They come and go. But people should take a look at this because you rarely see such a dramatic shift in really just a few months' time. And basically, I think it's because while Americans became in 2025 very concerned that criminals, illegal immigrants who were criminals and committing more crimes, serious crime here, they needed to be shown the door. They needed to be sent back to their home countries or put in jail or something.

[17:15:04]

Now that we have been through this for quite a few months with the government seeking out illegal immigrants or undocumented immigrants throughout the country, they're much more concerned about what's being done because you have lots of people who have either committed no crime at all or very minor crimes like traffic infractions, being arrested at the courthouses, they're paying the fee. And people who've committed no crime at all, being ushered out in large numbers. That's not America. How often have you heard already this year, Jessica, from people who

talk to you about politics saying, that's not what I voted for. I voted to get rid of the criminals. I didn't want to get rid of average, hardworking, undocumented immigrants who have families here, who've lived here for years, who pay taxes. There's been quite a shift and it's a stunning shift across the board, and even includes Republicans, but especially independents and Democrats.

DEAN: And look, we're just six months in to Trump's second term and he and his administration have been -- they've really prioritized putting this out there as much as possible, being very public with this, putting this on TV, making sure it's online. Do you think that's contributing to this, that that's politically been a double-edged sword for them?

SABATO: Absolutely. And it also has encouraged the media, as they should, to cover these mass raids, some of which have turned into semi-riots, but also you see ICE gathering people together and arresting them en masse. Again, this does not strike most people as America, especially if they're hardworking and they haven't committed serious crimes. So absolutely, it makes a difference. It is a double- edged sword.

Remember who they're trying to please, though. They're trying to please the core of MAGA because that's the basic support for Donald Trump. It's a support system for everything else he's doing and they cheer it. But what's significant is they're now a minority. They're a minority. And the majority of the country wants to ease up on this and to distinguish between criminal immigrants or illegal immigrants and undocumented immigrants who've lived honestly and fairly, worked hard, pay taxes, and are parts of their community, functioning parts of their community.

DEAN: And we've seen over the years, I mean, even when I was covering Capitol Hill, they tried it another time, then they tried again. Congress has tried to get after immigration and reform the immigration system in this country, and it is just never -- they have never been able to get there. Americans, statistically, not satisfied with either party when it comes to this issue, which has kind of historically been the case. So do you think that there is a moment in time -- Will there be any appetite, A, for Republicans to do anything to lead this charge while they have these majorities now that the border crossings are way down?

SABATO: The Republicans aren't going to do anything. And I don't think if the Democrats take over the House, even if they took over the House and Senate, they just get a presidential veto. If they just get the House, they could pass something in the House, but the Senate wouldn't go along at all probability and the president would veto it. But Jessica, it can be done. You know, I'm old enough to know that. I've seen it several times.

The last time it worked significantly well was in the middle 1980s when Ronald Reagan, a Republican president, joined with Democrats and Republicans in Congress to pass some comprehensive immigration reform, which worked quite well. It can be done when both parties see it in their interest to do it. And that's the problem. they don't see it in their interest to work together on this even though they should.

DEAN: And so what about the Democrats in all this because, look, some of them have really clung to certain cases and thinking about Kilmar Abrego Garcia who was wrongly deported, but now is facing criminal charges back in the U.S. and they're trying to sort through what the next steps are. And then, you know, other people going to their districts where the raids are happening. Do you think, again, that this has real life humans involved, but to take it purely politically for the Democrats, how did they take this issue and capitalize on where American shifting feelings are?

SABATO: Well, feelings are running so strongly in both parties that I understand why Democrats are saying the things that they're saying about individuals who've been treated badly in their opinion and about the policy as a whole. But I think in general, they would be better off appealing to Americans better angels and talking about history and what immigration has done for America and what the goal is.

[17:19:56]

So when you use strident language, it pushes people back to the other side if they have been leaving that side. It's tough to do because the activists in both parties expect their representatives, frankly, to scream and yell about it and they accommodate.

DEAN: I do also, before I let you go, want to talk about the Republicans' new legislation, which the president has now signed into law. It does contain cuts to social safety net programs like Medicaid and others. And our Manu Raju did speak to Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski from Alaska, who had initially said she had doubts about the bill. She ultimately voted for it. Here's what she told Manu.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Given that it passed and people can suffer health care cuts and food stamp benefit cuts, do you regret voting for the Senate passage?

SEN. LISA MURKOWSKI (R-AK): Manu, I did everything that I could to try to improve that bill. And is it the bill that I would have designed? Of course not. But I had a couple choices, either try to make it less bad, which I think that I did, not only for the people of Alaska, but for the country when we were able to double the funding for the rural health transformation fund. That's going to help not only these hospitals, but all of the 50 states.

RAJU: Do you worry that people may lose their health care because of this bill?

MURKOWSKI: That was what we were trying. That was what I was trying to do along with others to make sure that that is not going to be the case.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: But Larry, there are still questions about that. And look, Republicans are -- this is what they're going to have for the midterms. And there are real questions around what they're going to be able to sell to voters.

SABATO: Well, they've timed it very well for them, for the midterms because of the cuts to Medicaid and some other negative provisions don't go into effect until, surprise, surprise, after election day. And if people don't feel it and they don't see it in their neighbors and friends and other family members, they're less likely to vote on it. They'll feel it once the election is over.

But as far as Senator Murkowski -- you know, in olden times and then that includes parts of my lifetime, we had more United States senators. They acted in the national interest. And partly that was because people expected that, especially in the wake of World War II. We don't have as many of those anymore. And I understand why Senator Murkowski did it.

They like to say they represent the national interests. They really represent the interests of their state because in the end, it's the voters of that one state that will determine whether they get back to the Senate or put in early retirement. So they go with their state. The rest of it is a rationalization, you know. If you listen to exactly what Senator Murkowski said, again, I understand why.

It's probably what any senator would say in those circumstances. But it doesn't hold water because she didn't change anything that mattered for the rest of the country. But boy, did she get some great concessions for Alaskans.

DEAN: All right. Larry Sabato, always good to see you. Thanks so much. We appreciate your time.

SABATO: Thank you, Jessica.

DEAN: New tonight, two women were shot and killed at a shooting at a church in Lexington, Kentucky, and police say the suspect shot a state trooper near the Bluegrass Airport around 11:35 this morning. That state trooper, now in stable condition, were told the suspect then fled to that church, opening fire where those two women were killed. Two men were also shot and injured. CNN's Rafael Romo is joining us now. Just a horrible story, Rafael. These people just at church doing what they normally do on a Sunday morning.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, that's right. Truly horrible. Jessica, the first call to police came at 11:36 in the morning. This is in Lexington, Kentucky, according to Lexington police chief Lawrence Weathers. And according to the chief, a Kentucky state trooper was shot after pulling over a vehicle on what he described as a license plate reader alert.

After making the stop, the trooper was shot and the suspect fled. We have learned that the trooper is in stable condition. A short time later, Chief Weathers said, the suspect apparently carjacked the vehicle before fleeing the area and driving to the location of Richmond Road Baptist Church, I should say, where he fired his weapon at people on church property. According to the chief, two women died at the church and two men were

transported to a local hospital. CNN has learned that the fatal victims are a 72-year-old woman and a 32-year-old woman. One of them, is in critical condition. I'm talking about the people who survived -- the two men who survived and the other one was reported in stable condition.

[17:25:00]

This is what Chief Weathers said about a possible motive for the shooting. Let's take a listen.

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LAWRENCE WEATHERS, LEXINGTON POLICE CHIEF: The suspect may have had a connection to the individuals at the church. Four individuals were shot on church property. Two female victims were pronounced deceased at the scene. The other two victims, both male, were transported to a local hospital. The suspect was shot by responding law enforcement and was pronounced deceased at the scene.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: Police Chief Weathers also said the Lexington police officers who responded to the scene fired their service weapons. The shooter, as we just heard, is dead and has also been identified, but police did not release the name yet. The family of the shooter has not been notified. Officials said during the entire episode they had their body cameras on, which will allow investigators to learn exactly what happened. Jessica?

DEAN: Rafael Romo with the Latest. Thank you very much. President Trump is getting ready for what he calls a major announcement on Russia tomorrow. This, as Russia has continued to pummel Ukraine with drone strikes. Just ahead, we're going to look at what we could expect in his announcement.

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JESSICA DEAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte will be in Washington this week to meet with President Trump, just days after they struck a deal to send weapons to Ukraine. The two met last month at the NATO summit at The Hague. The president tells NBC the U.S. will send Patriot missiles to NATO, then NATO will handle their distribution. Rutte was also -- will also meet with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, as well as members of Congress.

Meanwhile, in Ukraine, Russia says it has captured another village in the western part of Ukraine's Donetsk region and its troops are now advancing to the neighboring region. Russia's claims have not yet been verified though. Ukrainian officials say at least nine people have been killed in strikes this weekend and the country has endured nearly nightly attacks as Russia escalates its aerial attacks. We're joined now by CNN contributor and Moscow bureau chief, Jill Dougherty. She is also the author of the new book, "My Russia: What I Saw Inside the Kremlin." Jill, it's great to see you. Thanks for being here. We have seen Trump --

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Thanks.

-- yeah -- shifting his position on Ukraine as Russia continues to escalate its attacks. And now, he's teasing this major announcement, major statement is what he said, to come tomorrow. You don't have a crystal ball, as I often say, but what might this be and does it even just on its head represent a significant shift for the president?

DOUGHERTY: Well, it sounds like a very big deal. President has been talking about it. And the two senators, both a Republican and a Democrat, which I think is important, Senator Lindsey Graham on the Republican side and Richard Blumenthal on the Democratic side, have been out today talking to the media and kind of giving an idea of what could happen.

And it's a full court press, you'd have to say. I mean, the words they're using are, you know, sledgehammer, the door is about to close, you're going to see weapons pouring, flowing into Ukraine like you've never seen before, and the game is about to change.

So, this is -- this is a dramatic moment. And it would depend. You know, there are various things, we can talk about them, what the president, who ultimately will have to decide on this, could do on Monday.

DEAN: And you mentioned Senator Lindsey Graham. We do have a clip of him speaking earlier today. I just want to play a bit of what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): A turning point regarding Russia invasion of Ukraine is coming. For months, President Trump has tried to entice Putin to the peace table. He has put tariffs against countries that allow fentanyl to come in our country, other bad behavior. He has left the door open. Regarding Russia, that door is about to close.

Stay tuned about a plan to go after the seized assets more aggressively. Stay tuned for a plan where America will begin to sell to our European allies tremendous amount of weapons that can benefit Ukraine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Jill, you -- you kind of summarized that earlier, but it is -- it is pretty striking to hear Senator Graham speaking that way. And again, it really underscores the shift we have seen from this administration on Ukraine and on Russia.

DOUGHERTY: Yeah. So, I think it's important to kind of break this down. So, you've got the economic side of it, and then you have the military side of it. So, the economic side, when Senator Graham talks about frozen assets, that is Russian money, Russian government money that has been seized and frozen in Europe and in the United States. So, there's -- you know, there are a lot of figures out there, but roughly $300 billion in Europe, perhaps a little less, and $5 billion in the United States.

So, up until now, the allies have been saying, well, maybe we can use the interest on that money and give it to Ukraine. So now, and we'll have to see what happens tomorrow, but it appears that they might be thinking about actually taking that money and giving it to Ukraine. That would be a very big deal and it's pretty controversial.

And then the other thing that Senator Graham was talking about is that the tariffs. So, the tariff issue, the president, President Trump would be given the option of invoking up to 500% tariffs on countries that buy Russian oil or Russian petroleum products, and that would be like China, Brazil and India, essentially.

[17:35:08]

That also would be a very big deal.

DEAN: Yeah. I mean, that could really -- that could really threaten Russia in a way as well.

DOUGHERTY: Yes. I mean, the question, I think, is whether the president will actually do that because he does have the option to -- to go not all the way to 500%. I mean, he could do less, he could not do anything. But, you know, at this point, that's definitely in his, you know, armaments that he could use.

And then the other thing is weapons. And you just heard that the United States and President Trump, they've been talking about this for quite a while now, that they could sell weapons, apparently, to the members of NATO, and then those weapons are used -- are given to Ukraine. So, there's a lot out there, and it should be a pretty dramatic day.

DEAN: Yeah. No question about that. And we also noted just before we came to you that the president will be meeting with the NATO secretary this week. Also, as you know, after striking this deal to sell -- to supply Ukraine with weapons through those NATO members.

What do you expect to come out of that meeting beyond more details on that? And also, too, just -- I think it is striking to see the president meeting once again with the -- with the NATO secretary after for -- you know, on the campaign trail, he threatened to leave maybe NATO at one point. And now, to see them coming together in support of Ukraine is quite a difference.

DOUGHERTY: Yeah. Well, that -- I think the president's view on NATO has shifted. And right now, you do have Mr. Rutte coming, the head of NATO, and the expectation is that, of course, they will be talking about all of this, the weapons, and then also these sanctions because -- I mean, you look today, I believe it's today, Germany is talking about providing more weapons. I mean, Europe is realizing that the United States, even though it could change on Monday somewhat, but the United States has been kind of pulling back and really putting the burden, at least trying to put the burden on Europe. So, Europe is arming and they are talking about a lot of different things that they can do to maintain that unity. That's the main thing and that's probably a good purpose and reason why Mr. Rutte will be here on Monday.

DEAN: Yeah. All right, Jill Dougherty, putting a lot of pieces together on what promises to be a very interesting, potentially quite significant day. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.

Well, did you feel that? Earth's rotation is speeding up. It makes the days shorter. We're going to ask Bill Nye, the science guy, about new data and what it tells us about our planet.

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[17:40:00]

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DEAN: Scientists say the Earth is spinning faster than usual this summer and some of the shortest astronomical days of the year are this July and August. According to data reported by "The New York Times," this week has seen the shortest days of the year so far. But that's just a blip because the bigger trend, stay with me here, is that the days are actually getting longer.

Who better to explain all of this than Bill Nye, the science guy? He's the executive director of The Planetary Society. Bill, always good to have you on. Help us understand what's happening here. Is the Earth really spinning faster and why does it matter?

BILL NYE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, THE PLANETARY SOCIETY: Just a little bit. What matters is so much in everything we do with space assets, with satellites, with weather forecasting, and so on.

And the way to think of it is the Earth and the moon and the sun are a system. And as the moon -- as the moon goes around, it gets a little farther from the Earth now and then. If it gets far enough from the Earth by a little bit, it slows down its tidal effect on the Earth a little bit, and the earth has a chance to speed up a little bit.

Everybody, we're talking about 1.3, 1.2 something milliseconds.

DEAN: It's a little.

NYE: Not something you would --

DEAN: It's a little. Yeah.

NYE: Not something you would notice. However, your phone, this television broadcast or cablecast, what have you, depends on precise timing, on extraordinarily precise or accurate clocks. And so, computer scientists, weather forecasters, everybody in the world have to -- the military, has to coordinate its time signals. And so, when the Earth slows down and speeds up, it's something to take into an account. It's of great significance.

DEAN: And is it surprising this is happening or is this just kind of typically how it goes in a -- in a solar system?

NYE: It's how it goes in a solar system. But mainly, you brought this up earlier, the tidal effect of the sun and the moon on the Earth causes the oceans to bulge or effectively bulge, and the earth, the land masses, run into it, and that tidal friction is slowing the Earth down a little bit. So, in ancient dinosaur days, it was the Earth would be -- the Earth day would be the equivalent of about 18 hours. Now, it's -- we're 24.

[17:44:56]

But -- so, as the Earth and moon do this wobble with the sun, let's not forget the sun, the speed of the Earth on a given day or a given month can change a little bit. But what is also extraordinary, everybody, is you can measure it. People nowadays, scientists, researchers, have the ability to measure this, and we all depend on it. Everybody who's got electricity or a television, broadcast or cablecast, depends on this timekeeping.

DEAN: Yeah, it is incredible that they're able to measure this and that into your point, that so much of our day-to-day life is impacted in terms of technology by these teeny little -- little nanoseconds, milliseconds, I guess, it were.

NYE: You know, we think about the speed of your internet service or what have you. That is -- depends on dividing hours, minutes, and seconds into nanoseconds, into billionths of a second. So, when you change things a few milliseconds, a few thousandths of a second, man, you got to keep track of it or the computers won't line up and things won't -- things just won't work. No emails, no nothing.

DEAN: Wow. And now, could any of this impact climate change?

(LAUGHTER)

NYE: Well, certainly, weather forecasting can be affected.

DEAN: Yeah.

NYE: It seems like a change of subject, everybody. It is. But weather forecasting depends on -- on accurate clocks, accurate timekeeping for satellite and computer systems around the world. You know, we have many dozens of satellites that are used to keep track of the weather for civilian purposes, and also the military has all kinds of satellites doing this. And you can't mess with this stuff, you guys. It's very important.

And while we're talking about climate change, I want to say very sorry. It's heartbreaking, what happened in Texas last weekend. It's really --

DEAN: It is. It is.

NYE: -- a terrible thing. But everybody, all the climate models suggest that it's not -- it's not the last time it's going to happen. Things like that are going to happen more and more as the Earth's atmosphere holds more and more heat.

And we don't want our weather forecasting abilities to degrade. We want to keep them as robust as possible so that whatever else you might say, things could -- people could be warned to get out of the way of these things. So, this is -- we're living at an extraordinary time, Jessica.

DEAN: We certainly are. Bill Nye, the science guy, always good to see you. Thank you so much.

NYE: Thank you.

DEAN: Still ahead, another epic showdown between the highest-ranked men's tennis player in the world, this time on the center court -- on center court at Wimbledon.

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[17:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: A thrilling win for tennis star Jannik Sinner. He is the new men's Wimbledon champion in an epic showdown. Sinner beat two-time reigning champion and rival, Carlos Alcaraz, in a four-set thriller.

CNN's Don Riddell is joining us now from Atlanta on the rematch of a lifetime. Just last month, Alcaraz came from behind to beat Sinner and win the French Open. But today, it was Sinner who came back to win. What more did we see from these two ranked -- the two top-ranked players in the world today?

DON RIDDELL, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yeah, different story today, Jessica, but still just as entertaining. When these two met in the French Open final, what, five weeks ago, it lasted five and a half hours and it was quickly described as one of the greatest finals of all time.

It wasn't quite that good this time around, but a hugely important win for Jannik Sinner considering the way their rivalry is going.

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This was the first time Sinner had made it to the final of Wimbledon. Grass not his strongest surface. Of course, Alcaraz, the two-time defending champion here. So, you know, a huge win for Sinner.

Alcaraz took the first set, though. Sinner had to come from behind, but he did so, winning the next three sets. And you just look at points like this. These two guys are absolutely incredible. They're such a joy to watch. They really do bring the best out in each other. And Sinner was asked afterwards if this was a harder match to him -- for him to win physically or emotionally. This is what he said.

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JANNIK SINNER, TENNIS PLAYER: Yes, I would say mostly emotionally because I had a very tough loss in -- in Paris. It's -- but at the end of the day, it doesn't really matter how -- how you win or you lose, especially important tournaments. You just have to understand what you did wrong, trying to work on that. That's exactly what we did. We tried to accept the loss and just kept working.

And this is for sure one of the reasons why I hold this trophy here. We were talking actually before the match. We would never have thought to be in this position. Back in the days when I was young, this was only -- only a dream, a dream of the dream because it was so far away where I'm from. So, it's all -- I'm just living my dream. So, it's amazing and --

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Yeah.

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RIDDELL: So Jannik Sinner is the first Italian Wimbledon champion. And just look at those two guys there. I mean, they both have such big smiles. They play the game with so much joy, Alcaraz in particular. They're so intense. They're so physical. They're both just so brilliant. They're completely different players, but you can tell they really do bring out the best in each other.

[17:55:03]

And for the last 20 years, tennis fans have reveled in the rivalries in the entertainment provided by Federer and Nadal and Djokovic. And those guys have pretty much left the scene now. But these two have stepped up to bring the game a really magical new rivalry.

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They've won the last seven major titles between them. Nobody else can get a look in. I would fully expect this rivalry to continue at the U.S. Open in New York later this summer.

DEAN: That's right. More to look forward to. Don Riddell, thanks so much. Good to see you.

Ahead, one year later, how the attempt on President Donald Trump's life supercharged his movement and transformed the 2024 race that Trump eventually won.

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