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Community Gathers, Grieves After Deadly Minneapolis Shooting; Judge Temporarily Blocks Deportations of Guatemalan Minors; Interview With Representative Emily Randall (D-WA); Former CDC Official Warns The U.S. May Not Be Ready For The Next Pandemic; What The Movie "Jaws" Can Teach America; Ostapenko Apologizes For Comments Made To Taylor Townsend; Tennis Legend Seles On Inspirational Play Of 45-Year-Old Venus Williams; CNN Speaks To The Bookie Linked To Scandal Stole Millions From MLB Player Shohei Ohtani. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired August 31, 2025 - 16:00   ET

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

[16:00:49]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

All right. We begin with a call for action as a Catholic community in Minnesota begins to heal from that deadly shooting at a sacred space. Pope Leo made his first public comments on gun control this morning after offering prayers for the victims at Annunciation Catholic Church and School.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POPE LEO XIV, CATHOLIC CHURCH LEADER: We include in our prayers the countless children killed and injured every day around the world. Let us plead God to stop the pandemic of arms, large and small, which infects our world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: This morning's mass for the Annunciation parishioners was held in the school auditorium, just steps away from where two children were killed in Wednesday's shooting. The shooter fired through stained glass windows while students prayed, killing 10-year-old Harper Moyski and 8-year-old Fletcher Merkel.

CNN correspondent Leigh Waldman is following the developments for us.

Leigh, what was this -- the message this morning?

LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, it was another somber mass held inside of that school auditorium just days after this horrific shooting. Father Dennis Zehren telling the congregation to sit low in their feelings of grief to take in the moment that they're in. And he also noted this was the same message that those kids were hearing on Wednesday when those first shots rang out and came through that stained glass window.

He honored the lives of 8-year-old Fletcher Merkel and 10-year-old Harper Moyski, and prayed for the healing for those 18 others who suffered injuries less than a week ago. Now, you mentioned they are holding this mass in the school's auditorium not far from the sanctuary where this shooting actually took place. There's no word on when that sanctuary will reopen, but we know the parish offices are reopening on Tuesday.

The past -- the father there telling the congregation to lean on one another, to lean on their faith and the rocks in their community. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FR. DENNIS ZEHREN, PASTOR, ANNUNCIATION CATHOLIC CHURCH: All of you, all of our neighbors, all of our community, police, first responders, they've been our rock underneath us. And they will continue to be a rock for us. There's so many people who will be continuing to hold up our hands in prayer. These children, the families, they will continue to be that rock underneath us. Harper and Fletcher will always be that rock underneath us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALDMAN: And one of the intentions, one of the intentions that was set in this mass was to turn the words from those elected officials into action, calling for action to make their community a safer place for the children and their community.

Now, we know at this point there's been no date set for when those kids are set to return back to classes following this horrific tragedy. And looking ahead, we know there's going to be a rosary held by the archdiocese on Friday, September 5th at 10:00 a.m. to pray for healing and an end to violence in their community -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Leigh Waldman, thank you so much.

All right. And this breaking news this hour, a federal judge has just temporarily blocked the U.S. government from deporting a group of unaccompanied children to Guatemala, handing a victory to attorneys who argue the Trump administration is breaking the law.

CNN's Betsy Klein is joining us right now live from the White House.

What more are you learning, Betsy?

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, it's a really remarkable scene. The Trump administration in recent days had identified hundreds of Guatemalan children to be repatriated to Guatemala. And according to a federal judge, some of those children were woken up in the middle of the night and put on planes that were set to go back to Guatemala.

Overnight their providers were told to prepare them to be discharged within hours. They were told to put their belongings together and pack them a pair of sack lunches, and a federal judge says that she was woken up at 2:35 in the morning, notified that a complaint had been filed in this case, and then she tried to get in touch with the U.S. government to learn more details. Those children loaded onto planes and essentially sitting on the tarmac as an emergency hearing took place this afternoon.

[16:05:05]

And just to back up here, the Trump administration has been fixated on this issue of unaccompanied minors. These are children who arrive here in the U.S. without a parent or legal guardian with them. And once they get here, they are put into HHS custody, the Department of Health and Human Services, while officials try to sort out a legal guardian to put them with while their immigration process is playing out.

What's unprecedented here is that that process was -- had not taken place when these children were identified for repatriation. And the advocates for the children say that some of them are afraid to go back to Guatemala. Some of them were the victims of abuse and neglect, while the federal government is arguing that they have been requested to return to Guatemala by their parents or their legal guardians, so a clear disconnect here.

The judge asking for evidence one way or the other and then stepping in with a temporary restraining order to prevent those planes from taking off while the U.S. government gathers more information to provide her. She set a new Friday deadline for a formal response from the federal government, and one of her main questions was what happens to those children in the meantime. She received assurances from the Trump administration that they will be taken off those planes, put back into U.S. custody -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Betsy Klein, at the White House, thanks so much.

All right. Officials in Washington state are speaking out after Border Patrol arrested two crew workers who were helping firefighters battle the state's biggest wildfire. The Department of Homeland Security says the men arrested were in the U.S. illegally, a claim that attorneys for one of the men disputes. And now the congresswoman who represents the district where they are being held says she was denied entry to the facility where these two are being held.

CNN has reached out to DHS for comment, and we have not heard back.

I'm joined now by Washington Democratic Congresswoman Emily Randall to discuss all of this.

Great to see you, Congresswoman. So you say that you tried to visit the processing facility, the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, and you've tried this several times before as a member of Congress but something was different this time. What happened?

REP. EMILY RANDALL (D-WA): Yes, this would have been my fourth visit yesterday to the ICE facility in Tacoma. They're in my district. I had done two previous announced visits and one previous unannounced visit, which is the statutory authority of Congress as an oversight body of ICE and Homeland Security. And this time we showed up around 1:00, went into the facility, signed in, got our badges, my staff member and I, and then the lieutenant on duty came out and told us it was a weekend. He couldn't let us in.

I offered the statute. He called his supervisor, and we were denied entrance to the facility to do our constitutional oversight duty.

WHITFIELD: And so what was the goal with this oversight duty? I mean, what is it you were -- you were hoping to gain access because you're a member of Congress, and then you were hoping to see what or interact with whom? Were you specifically, you know, looking for the two, you know, crew members who were detained, or was this just an overall observation you were going to make?

RANDALL: So, I mean, we've gone every month and a half or so since I've been sworn into Congress. I think it's really important, essential that Congress is allowed to do our constitutional oversight duty over these facilities, especially as they're getting packed fuller and fuller and fuller with human beings that this administration are targeting and sweeping up in raids across the country.

In previous visits, we've seen a stark increase in the individuals being detained inside. We've seen struggles with staffing up to keep up with the demand and the health services at the facility, and so it's my plan to continue going back and visiting. But certainly this week I went because two firefighters were detained, fighting an active wildfire in my district. They were crew members working on fuel management and we -- some attorneys and other representatives, including our office, were having a hard time finding these individuals in the ICE record locator. So we did want to confirm that they were both being held in Tacoma.

WHITFIELD: OK. And so I guess we have seen sort of encounters similar to what you had. I mean, there have been other lawmakers who've been denied access to immigration facilities.

[16:10:04]

Florida lawmakers who said they were worried about humanitarian concerns, were denied entry into a detention center, the one that's been dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz." in July just hours after the arrival of its, you know, first group of detainees. So they were eventually granted a tour inside. You know, you are, however, at the mercy, right, of DHS. So what kind of recourse do you feel you have since I'm gathering you never learned whether those two crew members were at that facility? You don't know about their, you know, disposition, do you? Or what have you learned?

RANDALL: Yes, we did get confirmation that they were being held in the facility. We provided A numbers and the officer was able to provide that confirmation for us. The next steps from here are to submit official -- an official letter to the Appropriations Committee that has jurisdiction over the budget language that gives us authority to provide or to complete these oversight visits. You know, there's quite a record of, as you mentioned, individuals being denied access to do their oversight duty.

And as some folks may know, while not an official congressional lawsuit, there are members of Congress who as individuals have brought suit against this administration for denying them access to their oversight duties. I'll provide information to the -- those colleagues as their case moves forward.

WHITFIELD: All right, Congresswoman Emily Randall, glad you could be with us. Thank you so much.

RANDALL: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Coming up, inside the high stakes meetings in China with figures like Russia's President Putin taking center stage. And workers at the CDC have just been ordered to return to the office weeks after a police officer was fatally shot at the department's headquarters. And the decision comes as employees voiced concerns about the future of the nation's public health defense, citing ongoing staff cuts and high profile departures.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:16:57]

WHITFIELD: Amid growing concerns, politics could put the health of Americans in jeopardy. One Republican senator is defending President Trump's firing of the CDC director after a disagreement on vaccine policy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JAMES LANKFORD (R-OK): It's very clear if you don't align with leadership in this administration as it is in other administrations, you've got to be able to follow the instructions that are there. I think a lot of people are jumping to conclusions to say, hey, she's fighting on vaccine issues and other things. I would tell you, we don't know all the details of that at this point. Let's let this play out as we continue to be able to go.

But I would tell you, as many Americans would say, the CDC is very important. We've got to have them as a clear leader there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Rafael Romo is at the CDC headquarters in Atlanta.

Rafael, it isn't just the director who has gone, but some of the agency's top officials have also resigned, largely in solidarity. What are you hearing from many of the people?

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Some of the leadership, some of the most -- some of the highest positions here at the CDC, and Fred, not only has the last week been rough for CDC employees with the ousting of their agency's leader and the resignations of top leadership, it's also been a difficult year when you consider mass layoffs, budget cuts and even a shooting targeting these buildings behind me, the CDC's main headquarters here in Atlanta.

Just a few days ago, CDC Director Susan Monarez was ousted after only one month on the job after she clashed over vaccine policy with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who has espoused anti-vaccine views for many years. Monarez also refused to fire several CDC leaders, according to sources familiar with what happened.

Her dismissal helped prompt the resignations of several other members of the CDC's leadership, including its chief medical officer, who walked out of the building Thursday to the sound of loud cheers and applause from other employees.

(VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: The bad news for CDC employees doesn't end with the resignations last week. At least 600 CDC employees received permanent termination notices, according to the American Federation of Government Employees. Also, those who remain have been told to return to the office on September 15th. That will be a little over a month after a gunman attacked the agency's Atlanta campus, firing more than 500 shots and killing a police officer before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

In an interview with CNN earlier today, one of those leaders who resigned in protest says she's concerned that after all this chaos, the CDC may not be ready to face another pandemic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. DEBRA HOURY, FORMER CDC CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER UNDER PRES. TRUMP: We learned a lot from COVID, and we were prepared. Unfortunately, having lost over 2,000 staff and not having our scientific leadership, almost all of the scientific leaders at CDC, myself included, are now no longer at CDC.

[16:20:06]

So we're losing that bench. And with a projected budget cuts, we will not be ready for the next pandemic. I'm concerned.

DR. TOM FRIEDEN, FORMER CDC DIRECTOR UNDER PRES. OBAMA: What we're seeing is unprecedented. There has never been a firing of a CDC director. Public health is under assault. And as Dr. Houry says, it's no longer possible to have any confidence in what's coming out of HHS or CDC. What we see is a pattern. Deny, distract, destroy. They deny simple truths and plain facts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: CDC employees and other federal workers have really been paying attention to this because they are still trying to make their voices heard. More than 750 HHS employees asked Secretary Kennedy in a letter last week to, quote, "stop spreading inaccurate health information, including about vaccines and denigrating public health workers," among other complaints.

Fred, now back to you.

WHITFIELD: All right, Rafael Romo, thank you so much, at the CDC. All right. Up next, the Hollywood thriller that made America everyone

afraid to go in the water. Well, half a century later, "Jaws" is still making waves. The lessons it offers in today's political climate.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:25:48]

WHITFIELD: All right. So it is one of the most iconic American movies ever made, and it helped invent the summer blockbuster 50 years ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you see that?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're going to need a bigger boat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Yes. Was it the visuals? Was it the music? I mean, all of that still haunts us all, right? Well, "Jaws" also reflected America at that time. The Vietnam War had just ended. America's economy was in turmoil. The Watergate scandal fueled a deep distrust of politicians. And people were afraid for their country.

Julian Zelizer is with us right now. He's a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University. He's got a new column for "Foreign Policy" talking about what "Jaws" said subliminally and overtly about even the political climate in the U.S. then, and how some of the same messages resonate today.

Julian, great to see you.

JULIAN ZELIZER, HISTORY AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS PROFESSOR, PRINCETON UNIVERSITY: Nice to be back.

WHITFIELD: So, of course, after watching "Jaws" going into the water was never the same. And now I feel like I got to look at "Jaws" through a new lens after reading your article. I mean really, really fascinating. And you say, you know, go deep, you know, as we examine things on this 50th anniversary, you know, of "Jaws."

For one, you say moviegoing, the moviegoing audience after Vietnam and Watergate scandal, you know, still had a lot of, you know, trepidation, distrust in government. And you draw parallels to the movie with the John Williams score. You know, that stirred fear of what was beneath the surface. So explain, you know, how you are seeing this applicable to today's social and political climate.

ZELIZER: Well, back in 1975, it is the aftermath of Vietnam and Watergate. Americans are becoming very distrustful of all sorts of officials. They're not even trusting the economy that they had benefited from for so many decades. And I think that's part of why the movie resonated. Theres danger beneath the water. You can't trust the mayor who's telling people to go back in. And we still live with the legacy of that period, the aftermath of both Watergate and Vietnam.

We have a culture of distrust. And I think when you watch the movie again, some of those themes are just as strong today as they were in '75.

WHITFIELD: Well, let's play that moment from the film where the mayor says, you know, he's going to ignore the sheriff's advice, keep the beaches open after a deadly shark attack.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tomorrow is the Fourth of July, and we will be open for business. It's going to be one of the best summers we've ever had. Now, if you fellas are concerned about the beaches, you do whatever you have to to make them safe. But those beaches will be open for this weekend.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So other than the shark itself, you know, you write that the mayor is the villain in the movie by wanting to keep people in the dark for the sake of the local economy. And you say that that's not an unfamiliar method.

ZELIZER: Yes. I mean, there's two parts of that. One is the mayor who you can't trust, who's saying, do what's in his short-term interest or in the community's short-term interest, even though in the movie people are going to get attacked by the shark. And there's that same distrust today of many leaders and at the same time, I watched it and I could not help but think the mayor is reflecting an economic anxiety of the '70s, that today is back where if you close the beaches, the entire community is on the verge of closing.

And I think that's a second theme that really today has become very important in an era of economic insecurity and instability.

WHITFIELD: Class divisions is perhaps very pronounced these days as well. And you say that was evident in the movie between the shark hunter Quint and the marine biologist Matthew Hooper, you know, played by Richard Dreyfuss. You write that Trump is exploiting the anger of rural, working class people against educated, wealthy people. So in the movie, the peacemaker was Chief Brody. Who might emerge in real life today as the Chief Brody?

[16:30:13]

ZELIZER: Well, that's the million-dollar question. I mean, one of the interesting parts is Brody's not perfect. He starts off kind of meek and he backs away from trying to close the beaches, but by the end, he does the right thing.

So, I don't know who the hero is of 2025, who that Chief Brody might be, but we should remember that in the film, imperfection at the beginning ultimately doesn't prevent him from being the person who saves the town.

WHITFIELD: Julian Zelizer, it was really fascinating read. Again, I'm going to look at the movie again because I have been watching it a couple times this year. Why not? But now I'm going to look at it with a new lens. I'll be looking for all these things. Thanks so much.

ZELIZER: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, coming up, a luxury mansion, rare wines, exotic trips around the globe, all paid for with millions in illegal bets, including wagers tied to baseball star Shohei Ohtani's interpreter. The bookie at the heart of the scandal sits down with CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOWYER: 00:01:16: The first time I saw "The Wire" with Shohei Ohtani, it was a

holy s(bleep)t moment for me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:36:02]

WHITFIELD: All right, the first week of the U.S. Open tennis tournament in New York has delivered a range of compelling stories. And now that we've entered the round of 16, several surprises of this year's competition have advanced, setting up key matchups and enticing storylines. I mean, it's been hard to pull away from the television set unless you're there and looking up to have a ticket.

CNN's Don Riddell is joining us right now with so much more. I mean, bring us up to speak because there were a lot of moments in this past week.

DON RIDDELL, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, a lot of amazing narratives --

WHITFIELD: Yeah.

RIDDELL: -- being written on the court, but off the court too. And I think one that really transcended the tournament was the spat between the Latvian Jelena Ostapenko and the American Taylor Townsend. Remember, in the second round after that match, Ostapenko said that Taylor Townsend had no class and no education, which, as Naomi Osaka put it later in the week, is about the worst thing you could say to a black American tennis player.

Ostapenko has kind of apologized for it. She wrote about it on her social media feed, basically saying, as a Latvian, English isn't my first language. When I said education, what I meant was etiquette. And she didn't really directly apologize to Taylor Townsend either. Townsend, for her part, said, well, it's nice that she apologized, but she was definitely hurtful. She was definitely belligerent, and she definitely offended a whole culture of people. Townsend's actually playing right now. If she can pull off her match, will be into the quarterfinals, which will be her greatest progress ever at a Grand Slam tournament. So, Townsend really hasn't looked back since that incident.

Something that we're looking forward to coming up next round is going to be Coco Gauff against Naomi Osaka. And this is amazing for so many reasons. First of all, Osaka's been kind of in the tennis wilderness for a few years. She is into the second round of a slam for the first time since the French Open in 2021. So, it's always great when Osaka is playing well.

But the fact that she's going to run into Gauff again reminds us all of Coco Gauff's debut in this tournament when she was just 15. They played each other, I think, in the third round. It was so emotional at the end. They were both crying. Osaka said so many nice things about Coco Gauff. And she's actually described her more recently as kind of like, she sees her as a little sister.

WHITFIELD: That's nice. That camaraderie is so nice.

RIDDELL: So, that is going to be -- yeah, so that is -- that is going to be amazing for the New York crowd.

And then the other huge headline we've got to bring you up to date on is Venus Williams.

WHITFIELD: Yeah.

RIDDELL: Who is back in the tournament, playing in the doubles at the age of 45.

WHITFIELD: Yeah, go on with your bad self.

RIDDELL: Her partner, Leylah Fernandez, is more than half her age. But they're into the third round. They're doing great.

WHITFIELD: And I love how they came together.

RIDDELL: Right.

WHITFIELD: Right. I mean, Venus wasn't going to be a doubles player in this. And it was Leylah's dad, once her partner, right, fell ill. He was like, why don't you ask Venus? What a great story.

RIDDELL: And it's -- and it's working out. Yeah.

WHITFIELD: It really is.

RIDDELL: And so Venus has now gone further, or she's gone the furthest since she was playing with Serena back in 2018. So yeah, so just amazing to see.

WHITFIELD: It really is. I mean, there are a lot of beautiful moments. Yes, there were some pretty fiery, you know, moments, like you just described the spat. You know, throughout the week. (CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: Right. And that, but now it's -- it really is about inspiration and uplift now. That's what I feel like you're telling me to brace for.

RIDDELL: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: OK, I like it. Don Riddell, thanks so much.

And of course, yesterday, we caught up with two-time U.S. Open singles champion Monica Seles, who saw so much inspiration at Flushing Meadows, starting with seven-time Grand Slam champ Venus Williams, who again, 45, kicked off the Open as the second-oldest singles female player to compete before becoming a wildcard draw in women's doubles.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MONICA SELES, FORMER TENNIS PLAYER: She played against me. I still relate a little bit about, you know, her game and what an inspiration she is to really all of us.

[16:40:04]

WHITFIELD: It really is incredible. She's 45 years old, you know, she's advancing, you know, winning in the doubles first time in 10 years. But hey, we're in the moment. And I like her, you know, what she has to say about, you know, just she's a singles player. That's her passion. And she's approaching the doubles game as a singles player. And we're seeing the results here. You know, it's really a huge inspiration.

SELES: Yeah. And really just how she's also mentoring the younger generation and partnering up with Leylah Fernandez. I mean, I would have loved to been able to play doubles with Venus and learn from her.

But I think her little sister had the monopoly on that. But truly, I mean, Venus, not just the on-court, but off-court, she's so inspiring. I mean, in my own personal journey, you know, coming and talking about my Myasthenia gravis, really Venus coming out, talking about her issue has really helped me to not be afraid and not feel so isolated and share this and really use our platform in a good way.

Because, you know, we were such good tennis players. She's still playing, which I can't even imagine playing at 45 at the level that she is and with such joy. And, you know, for I think just giving back to sport that has given us so much.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Always great to hear from Monica Seles.

All right. The bookie who took bets from MLB star Shohei Ohtani's translator has been sentenced to one year in prison.

Math Bowyer pleaded guilty to money laundering, running an illegal gambling business and filing a false tax return. The case drew national attention after Ohtani's interpreter admitted stealing nearly 17 million dollars from Ohtani's account to cover gambling debts. CNN's Nick Watt sits down with Bowyer to talk about his demise.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Shohei Ohtani is among the greatest baseball players of all time. This had the makings of baseball's biggest scandal.

MATHEW BOWYER, FORMER BOOKIE FOR SHOHEI OHTANI INTERPRETER: The first time I saw the wire with Shohei Ohtani was a holy moment for me.

WATT: Ohtani's name on the wire, his interpreter Ipe Mizuhara's name on that account. Deeply in debt at Mathew Bowyer's illegal sportsbook.

BOWYER: Made me think was their partners in an account, which is common, by the way, or it was Shohei. And I clearly was starting to think it was Shohei. Stealing never really crossed my mind.

WATT: It would be natural to think it was Shohei.

BOWYER: Well, I mean, truthfully, I did, but I wasn't sure. And, you know, sometimes in life you have a question that you really don't want to know the answer. That's where I was.

WATT: The interpreter later admitted to stealing and wiring nearly 17 million dollars from Ohtani's account to cover his own astronomical losses. Bowyer pleaded guilty and was sentenced for money laundering, tax evasion and running an illegal gambling operation.

BOWYER: You do a crime, you got to do the time. So, at the end of the day, I was doing something illegal.

WATT: Which helped fund his lovely lifestyle.

BOWYER: This is a movie theater room I put in. We've watched a lot of games here, big, big money games.

WATT: And betting on it didn't ruin your enjoyment of sports.

BOWYER: No, it just added to it.

WATT: The bookie business also funded Bowyer's own massive gambling habit.

WATT (on camera): What's the most you've won in a single bet?

BOWYER: Four point six million.

WATT: Just most you've lost in one bet.

BOWYER: Well, in the casino trips, I've lost over two million multiple times. But on a particular wager, I lost $2.5 million once.

WATT (voice-over): Casinos gave him a lot of free stuff. BOWYER: They would send their jet to pick you up to bring you. Almost all of them. Like Monte Carlo, we'd fly first class. They'd pay for our seats. Thirty-thousand-dollar tickets.

WATT: You're going from flying first class to Monte Carlo to taking a drug test and peeing in a cup in a courthouse in Santa Ana.

BOWYER: Yes, it's a -- it's a wild turn. There's no question. It's definitely been humbling.

WATT: And began early one morning in the driveway of his home here in Orange County, California.

BOWYER: I heard FBI freeze and I literally turned this way and there was eight red dots on me and they were full tactical gear.

WATT: Now he's not allowed to take bets or make bets.

BOWYER: Do I miss it? Do I want to gamble? Sure. I love gambling and I will probably tell him, dad, this is definitely where the action took place.

WATT (voice-over): He says he gambled every day for maybe thirty-five years and got very used to risk. Bowyer just wrote a book about his life of hustle, selling newspaper subscriptions as a kid, trading commodities and all that gambling.

BOWYER: Morally, I felt a hundred times better being an illegal bookmaker than I did as a commodities trader, because 95% of the people invested in commodities would lose their money. And it wasn't like we were saying that disclosing that statement when I was a bookmaker. You just you decide what you bet on. You decide how much money you risk.

WATT: Remorse, he has a lot.

BOWYER: I do have remorse. I have remorse for being in prison. I have remorse for anyone that I aided and abetted in their gambling addiction and didn't know I was doing that. So, I have remorse for many things. I have remorse for what I put my family through.

[16:45:13]

WATT: And remorse, he says, for bringing America's pastime into a little disrepute and also almost tarnishing one of the GOATs.

BOWYER: Thank God he had the best year of his life. Fifty-fifty won the World Series MVP. I mean, that's did you win any money on that? No, because I was out of business.

WATT: So, Matt Bowyer is facing a year in jail. He's also two million bucks in the hole between restitution and the cash that was seized from his house. But he seems 100% confident that he's going to bounce back in life through legitimate business, speaking engagements, books, movies. Here's a guy who clearly thrives on stress. He plays better at golf, he told me, when he has money, a lot of money on the game. When most of us would shank it, the stress works for him. He says he's going to bounce back and he says he is remorseful.

Nick Watt, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Nick.

Coming up, world leaders gather in China with Russia, India and others at the table, showcasing an alternative leadership and counterweight to the United States and its allies. We'll take you inside the high stakes summit and a highly anticipated military parade.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:51:12]

WHITFIELD: All right, happening today, a major summit underway in China. Leaders from some two dozen countries, including Russia and India, are there to talk about security in the region. China's President Xi Jinping is taking the spotlight as he looks to reshape the world order away from the U.S. and Western dominance. While President Trump will not be in China for any of this week's gatherings, his presence looms over many of the conversations at these meetings.

Preparations, in fact, are also underway for a massive military parade in Beijing following the summit on Wednesday. CNN's Marc Stewart has that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARC STEWART, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A synchronized show of strength in China, soldiers march in formation late into the night, a dress rehearsal for a massive military parade less than two weeks away for the entire world to see, celebrating 80 years since World War II ended.

STEWART (on camera): What kind of message do you think this parade will send to the world from China?

LI HONGMEI, BEIJING TOURIST (through translator): I believe that this military parade will have a big international influence, especially in showcasing our military might. It's going to be a great event.

STEWART (voice-over): There's excitement here among the locals, a rare chance to get up close to these war machines. And this mysterious site, warheads wrapped like gifts until the big reveal. Fighter jets soar in the sky as the world's largest military is set to show off its latest additions, including drones and hypersonic weapons. A point of pride as China faces constant tension with the U.S. and its allies over its claims to the South China Sea and Taiwan. STEWART: We're driving here along Tiananmen Square. The seats are now empty. But this is where we will see Chinese officials and world leaders, including Russia's Vladimir Putin, and the parade will extend here along Chang'an Avenue for miles.

STEWART (voice-over): The 70-minute parade is a chance for Chinese President Xi Jinping to show off in front of world leaders as he did during the Victory Parade 10 years ago. Parades like this eclipse similar events in the United States. The bold display comes as China asserts itself as a strong superpower.

MR. XIAO, BEIJING RESIDENT (through translator): Now, China is acting more outward looking and more assertive. I think this is in line with China's current strength.

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: China, first row.

STEWART (voice-over): Strength now tested by the U.S. trade war in a shaky domestic economy. The show of muscle aims to bring feelings of stability to the billion plus people who live here and sending a message to the world China is a force.

Marc Stewart, CNN Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And back in this country, more than a billion dollars up for grabs. Coming up, the Powerball lottery jackpot is again approaching an all-time high with, again, another drawing coming up.

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EVA LONGORIA, CNN ANCHOR, "EVA LONGORIA: SEARCHING FOR SPAIN": I feel like everybody in Marbella knows you as a restaurateur, but you were a football player.

ZAZOU BELOUNIS, FORMER PRO FOOTBALLER TURNED SUCCESSFUL RESTAURATEUR: I was, yeah.

LONGORIA (voice-over): When he moved to Marbella 10 years ago, Zazou swapped his passion for football for food, and his rise has been meteoric.

BELOUNIS: I started with one restaurant and now I have four.

LONGORIA: No, you started washing dishes.

BELOUNIS: Of course. Of course.

LONGORIA: You didn't start with a restaurant.

BELOUNIS: Of course. Yeah, it's true, it's true. I didn't know you knew that.

[06:55:01]

LONGORIA: Yeah.

BELOUNIS: Yeah, yeah, I came here and you know, this knife, I washed like a thousand knives like this. I learned a lot and I love my work. No, I love my work.

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WHITFIELD: So, how did Spain become such a culinary powerhouse? Eva Longoria uncovers the secrets of its culinary scene on a special night of Searching for Spain tonight, 8 p.m.

All right, the record-breaking Powerball jackpot just got even bigger. No one hit last night's $1 billion drawing. And that means that tomorrow night's drawing has soared to an estimated $1.1 billion. That's the fifth largest prize ever. Cash value of the jackpot prize is around a half a billion dollars. No one has won the Powerball lottery since the end of May. Time to go out and get your tickets.

[17:00:15]

Thank you so much for joining me today. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The CNN Newsroom continues with Jessica Dean right now.