Return to Transcripts main page
CNN This Morning
Health Panel: Women Should Start Getting Mammograms At Age 40, Not 50; Tonight: Trump To Take Questions In Presidential Town Hall; Tucker Carlson Announces He Will Relaunch Show On Twitter. Aired 7:30- 8a ET
Aired May 10, 2023 - 07:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL)
[07:30:46]
POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Significant health news this morning that will impact millions of women in the United States. The U.S. Preventative Services Task Force is now recommending that women should get regular mammograms starting at 40 years old. That's 10 years earlier than the current recommended age. The goal, of course, is to screen for breast cancer, which kills more than 43,000 women in the U.S. each year. That's according to the American Cancer Society.
Joining us now is chief of breast surgery at Mount Sinai Health Systems, Dr. Elisa Port. Doctor, great to have you. Thank you very much for being with us.
DR. ELISA PORT, DIRECTOR, DUBIN BREAST CENTER AT MOUNT SINAI: Thank you, Poppy, for having me.
HARLOW: So, 40 -- I'm 41, so I started getting -- I started getting these last year --
PORT: Yes.
HARLOW: -- because my doctor recommended it. But officially, the guidance wasn't until you're 50, right?
PORT: Correct. So I think it is important to understand that originally, based on tons of data and research showing that mammograms starting at age 40 do save lives.
HARLOW: Yes.
PORT: We've known that all along. And there was a change to 50 and this a reversion back to where we were initially -- a very welcome reversion back.
HARLOW: One of the things that I think is important, and I'd like to get to his next, is when I was reading this reporting last night --
PORT: Yes.
HARLOW: -- is the disparity.
PORT: Yes.
HARLOW: How many -- how much more likely Black women --
PORT: Yes.
HARLOW: -- are to die of breast cancer --
PORT: Yes.
HARLOW: -- than white women. Forty percent --
PORT: Yes.
HARLOW: -- more likely.
PORT: Yes. So women of color -- Black women -- have a propensity to develop a type of breast cancer. They're way more likely to develop a type of breast cancer that's known as triple-negative breast cancer. It's more aggressive, it can develop at earlier ages, and can definitely lead to an increased risk of dying.
So this is a group of women that we do need to start screening earlier --
HARLOW: Yes.
PORT: -- as well as the rest of the population.
HARLOW: And that's a big reason why this updated guidance is so critical, right?
PORT: Correct.
HARLOW: When you look at this number, one in five.
PORT: One in five women who -- Black women who develop breast cancer will have this type of breast cancer.
HARLOW: OK.
PORT: That's compared to all women who develop breast cancer. It's closer to one in 10.
HARLOW: OK.
PORT: So yes, Black women are disproportionately affected by this aggressive kind of breast cancer and we've got to start screening them earlier and more frequently.
HARLOW: And early detection is the whole ballgame, right?
PORT: Absolutely.
HARLOW: It's everything. PORT: Yes. So early detection saves lives. And another piece of information that I really think is important and is much less known is that it also saves lives doing less aggressive treatment. If you're getting screened we're way more likely to pick up cancers earlier when a woman might not need aggressive surgery, aggressive chemotherapy. And that's a huge win, too, and that's really important to know and it's not as commonly discussed.
HARLOW: Obviously, a question often is well, what about cost?
PORT: Yes.
HARLOW: Is my insurance --
PORT: Yes.
HARLOW: Is any insurance, even government-provided, going to cover this cost in full? I've always had mine through my insurance --
PORT: Sure.
HARLOW: -- fully covered, but I think that's important for people to understand.
PORT: Right. Yes, and that's the thing we worry about --
HARLOW: OK.
PORT: -- with these guidelines.
HARLOW: Yes.
PORT: You're a hundred percent right, which is these people sit up and take notice when these national guidelines come through and insurers can use it as fuel to stop coverage.
HARLOW: What should people do if they call their insurance and their insurance says no, we don't cover it at 40?
PORT: Yes, that's a problem and obviously, many women who can't afford to get mammograms on their own are hamstringed by that.
HARLOW: Right.
PORT: So far, we haven't seen too many --
HARLOW: OK.
PORT: -- denials. And the truth of the matter is the national guidelines from the professional societies have never changed and never wavered --
HARLOW: Yes.
PORT: -- in starting at 40 and importantly, yearly after that.
HARLOW: Yes.
PORT: We're still not there yet with the USPSTF guidelines.
HARLOW: Whenever I go, I put -- June -- I put an appointment in for the next year --
PORT: Smart.
HARLOW: -- to remind myself to make it.
PORT: Yes.
HARLOW: So just something to remind everyone to do it.
PORT: Yes, very smart and I applaud that.
HARLOW: Thank you, Dr. Elisa Port. It's great to have you.
[07:35:00]
PORT: Thank you.
HARLOW: Thanks very, very much.
PORT: Thanks for having me.
HARLOW: Phil.
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Well, federal prosecutors filing charges against embattled New York Republican Congressman George Santos. He could appear in court as early as today. What he could be in trouble for.
Plus, how other Republican presidential contenders are reacting to the sexual abuse and defamation verdict against Donald Trump. Who is speaking up and who is staying silent.
(COMMERCIAL)
MATTINGLY: Tonight, former President Donald Trump returns to CNN for the first time since his 2016 presidential campaign. Why? Well, he will be participating in a presidential town hall in New Hampshire moderated by our very own Kaitlan Collins.
And the event comes as the 2024 Republican primary field is beginning to take shape. Now, we're still in the early stages and I'm sure a lot of you would like it to stay in the early stages, but this is starting to get real.
So let's take a look at where things stand today.
[07:40:00]
Let's start with who is actually in the race. Yes, the former president -- he was in the race -- the first one in. Also, former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson, and kind of the candidate that's gotten a little hot early, Vivek Ramaswamy, is also in right now.
But more are coming as everybody tries to game out what the best timeline is to get in. How you challenge somebody who is so formidable, as the former president, in Republican polling.
Well, here's one who believes he might have a shot. Senator Tim Scott, South Carolina Republican senator. He's not officially announced yet. He's about to announce. It's pretty clear he's going to announce on May 22. That's when a big event is planned. He's been moving in that direction.
If you talk to people on Capitol Hill they think very highly of the Republican senator. Whether he will be able to challenge, a very open question, but he will have money and certainly has name recognition and respect within the Republican Party.
Who else is out there, though? This is also interesting.
Former Vice President Mike Pence has been traveling all over the country trying to set the stage before he makes a decision.
Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie -- he was in, in 2016. He has been lambasting former President Donald Trump as he tries to figure out whether or not there's a lane. He's considering.
Former New Hampshire governor Chris Sununu hasn't made a decision yet either.
But this is the one everybody has their eyes on, Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. He was the hottest item in the Republican Party for the months leading up to just about now. That has started to shrink a little bit -- not just in the polling but also in perception.
What hasn't shrunk, however, is the amount of money he has in his campaign, and this reality which has been clear now for several months. This, at this point, is a two-person race with one of those people having a significant polling advantage.
You take a look at the two most recent polls, ABC News-Washington Post and Fox News poll -- Donald Trump with a 26-point lead over DeSantis in the most recent ABC-Washington Post poll, and with a 32-point lead over DeSantis in the Fox News poll.
Let me tell you, it's very early. It's like really early. Maybe don't pay a ton of attention to polls but that is a notable number which, again, underscores this reality. These two -- not so close and friendly as perhaps they were there -- at this point in time, are the people that everyone has their eyes on. They've got money, they have clear authority within the Republican Party, and they have long been viewed as the two that would eventually be going at one another.
Well, their Super PACS -- they're already doing that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SUPER PAC AD: Ron DeSantis loves sticking his fingers where they don't belong and we're not just talking about pudding. DeSantis has his dirty fingers all over senior entitlements.
SUPER PAC AD: Donald Trump is being attacked by a Democrat prosecutor in New York, so why is he spending millions attacking the Republican governor of Florida? Trump's stealing pages from the Biden-Pelosi playbook.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MATTINGLY: Ramping up is probably an understatement. Buckle up, folks. It's campaign season -- Poppy.
HARLOW: Phil, thank you.
Former Vice President Mike Pence reacting to the jury verdict that Trump sexually abused and defamed E. Jean Carroll with this response.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DASHA BURNS, NBC NEWS NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Does that result change your view about whether or not he is fit to serve as president?
MIKE PENCE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I think that's a question for the American people. But I really can't comment on a judgment in a civil case. I have no knowledge of those matters. And I'm sure the president will defend himself in that matter.
And I would tell you in my 4 1/2 years serving alongside the president I never heard or witnessed behavior of that nature.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: So far, silence from several other prospective Republican White House hopefuls, except for former Arkansas governor and now presidential contender Asa Hutchinson. Listen to what he said on CNN last night
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ASA HUTCHINSON, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Republicans should not be dismissing this and saying this is not of any significance. It is, and the jury system worked in this case. For anybody who wants to be president and lead the free world to have these kind of serious issues around is a significant factor.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: What really matters is what voters think. Will this verdict change how they feel about former President Trump and how they will vote?
Joining us now, CNN national politics reporter Eva McKend, as well as very serious writer, Josh Barro. It's great to have you both. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER: Nice to see you. HARLOW: So we will know how some voters feel tonight because I suspect this would be a topic that voters -- I don't know, but I would -- voters may ask about tonight at the town hall.
MCKEND: Yes, we'll start to get an early sense.
Listen, if we were in a traditional political climate this would clearly be a liability. This would clearly have implications for his electability. But we're not in a conventional climate.
I think about my time last year in Georgia covering that Senate race between Herschel Walker and Sen. Warnock.
HARLOW: Right.
MCKEND: And I met a lot of conservative voters out on the trail at these Herschel Walker rallies and a consistent theme was that they felt as though conservatives were targeted. They said that the onslaught against Herschel Walker -- that they also related that to Justice Kavanaugh.
[07:45:00]
And so, with this outcome with the E. Jean Carroll case, I think it gives them more fodder for concern. So we'll have to see. I think that Republican voters are likely to rally around Trump but some could be turned off by this.
MATTINGLY: Josh, it's the first time I've put together that because your writing is titled "Very Serious" you are now introduced as a very serious writer.
JOSH BARRO, WRITER, "VERY SERIOUS": Yes, I know.
MATTINGLY: -- and nobody puts the quotes around very serious.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTINGLY: That's actually brilliant. I should have put that together a long time ago.
BARRO: Yes.
MATTINGLY: I think my question right now is we saw some of the ads from the Super PACs where the DeSantis Super PAC is going after Trump --
BARRO: Yes.
MATTINGLY: -- a little bit. Very few Republicans, as we're watching, actually do that and I feel like to some degree, when you talk to people inside the Republican operative world they're starting to come to terms with the fact that the former president is going to be the nominee again. It's like a year away from the general election.
Do you feel like this is a done deal at this point? BARRO: I don't think it's a done deal yet because I don't think we've seen the full scope of the DeSantis attacks on Donald Trump yet. I mean, I think the roadway for Ron DeSantis is that you have to make the case that Trump says he's fighting for you but he lost a lot of these fights. He ultimately -- you know, whatever you think about the conduct of the 2020 election -- he came out of it and he was no longer president.
Many of the COVID restrictions that conservatives were so upset about were imposed under Donald Trump's rule, who kept Anthony Fauci in place through that entire year or nearly a year that the -- that the former president was president during the COVID pandemic.
And so I think there is that case to be made. DeSantis has not been making it in earnest because he's not a candidate yet.
MATTINGLY: Right.
BARRO: So I think we need to see what that looks like.
I don't think this verdict matters a lot for the primary because I think frankly, we knew that the former president admitted to this sort of behavior as soon as we all heard the "ACCESS HOLLYWOOD" tape. The "ACCESS HOLLYWOOD" tape was a key piece of evidence in this trial going to his propensity to treat women in the matter that E.J. -- E. Jean Carroll accused him of treating her in. So I think that was basically priced in.
And when we talk about Herschel Walker, I think most Republicans sort of discard these accusations. And yet, Herschel Walker lost that race at a time when other Republicans were winning statewide elections in Georgia.
And so I think there is a real penalty for Trump's behavior. I just think it's a penalty that applied in 2016, applied in 2020. It's something that has been an electoral liability for him, I just don't think it's a new electoral liability.
HARLOW: What about George Santos and where this goes? We'll see maybe in court today these federal charges unsealed. And the question now really is for Speaker McCarthy. So what are you going to do about it?
MCKEND: Yes, we'll have to see if he believes that this is untenable. Obviously, Republicans have a very slim majority and that is why we have seen this consistent reluctance to really fully distance himself from the embattled congressman.
But Poppy, I have spent the last several months talking to constituents in that district. And I think we will learn what the charges are today. That is really important. But we should not forget the people that live in this district. And fundamentally, beyond all the theater, it's about constituent services. It's about serving your community. And when you are just ensnared in all of this controversy and now indicted on federal charges it's really hard to do that.
MATTINGLY: Josh, I want to ask you another issue that's hanging over Washington is age, right? There's no question about it, whether you're in the Senate Democratic Caucus and you're dealing with Sen. Dianne Feinstein who came back after being away for a while, or whether your presidential candidate is 80 -- already the oldest president in U.S. history and might be facing off against somebody who is almost as old as well.
There was a really interesting piece of sound from Charlamagne tha God which doesn't sound like something that I'm probably watching or listening to on a regular basis, but he's actually --
HARLOW: But he's famous.
MATTINGLY: No, no -- it's not because he's famous but it's actually a very astute take on politics very, very often.
HARLOW: It's a great -- it's a great -- yes.
MATTINGLY: And I want to listen to it real quick.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And people are saying that they don't want those people running. Isn't this a democracy where we get to decide?
CHARLAMAGNE THA GOD, RADIO HOST, THE BREAKFAST CLUB: No, it's not and it's a damn shame America don't have any other options because we are in a two-party system. Folks don't really want Trump. Folks don't really want Biden. We just stuck with what we got --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
CHARLAMAGNE THA GOD: -- and that's a damn shame.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MATTINGLY: First off, that's alarm bells material for the White House if they care what Charlamagne Tha God thinks, but what do you make of that argument?
BARRO: Well, I mean, this is the same thing that Charlamagne Tha God was saying in October --
MATTINGLY: Right.
BARRO: -- of 2020 where he was saying I'm going and I'm voting for Kamala Harris. I'm not really casting a vote for Joe Biden. But they'd had an open primary process in 2020 and Joe Biden had basically no support among operatives in the Democratic Party, no support among commentators. He led the polls the whole way through.
I think he reflects a base of opinion within the party that likes his low-key style and that low-key style I think applies -- appeals to a broader segment of the electorate than would be the case if they had nominated Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders, or Kamala Harris.
And so I think that Biden has never really quite gotten the respect that he deserved for how broad his appeal has been. And yes, you see these polls that say people would prefer some other candidate but then if you ask them about specific other candidates those candidates don't beat Joe Biden in the primary.
[07:50:00]
And so I think that you can always conjure up in your mind some ideal candidate that you would have instead. I think a lot of people basically want Barack Obama back. You can't have Barack Obama back. And I think there's a reason Joe Biden won and if he was actually weak within the party and if there was actually hunger for someone to replace him he would be facing a serious primary challenge.
MATTINGLY: That's the key point.
HARLOW: Eva, before you go, I mean, I think he's saying out loud on a very popular show what a lot of people are saying at home with their friends.
MCKEND: Absolutely. This sort of raw take mirrors I think the sentiment of a lot of voters that I speak to out -- speaking to young, progressive activists. And they say that this is going to be a tough sell to get young, progressive voters out to support President Biden again. So, Charlamagne is not speaking in a vacuum here.
HARLOW: Yes.
Thank you. Good to have you both on set.
MATTINGLY: Thanks, guys -- very serious writer.
BARRO: For sure.
HARLOW: Very serious writer. Very serious great journalist to my left as well. All right.
MATTINGLY: That's not in jest, though. Like, that's very -- well.
HARLOW: Very.
MATTINGLY: Thanks, guys, very much.
All right. Also, Tucker Carlson saying he's relaunching his show on Twitter. We'll tell you what Elon Musk had to say about that big announcement.
HARLOW: And this just in. Officials say more than 10,000 migrants were encountered along the U.S. southern border yesterday alone. We're going to take you there.
Thank you, guys. So nice to have.
MATTINGLY: Thanks, guys. It's good to see you, man. I feel like I haven't seen him forever.
(COMMERCIAL) [07:55:07]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TUCKER CARLSON, POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, WRITER, TV PERSONALITY: Starting soon, we'll be bringing a new version of the show we've been doing for the last 6 1/2 years to Twitter. We bring some other things, too, which we'll tell you about. But for now, we're just grateful to be here. Free speech is the main right that you have. Without it, you have no others. See you soon.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: Just two weeks since Tucker Carlson was fired from Fox News. He's announced he's relaunching his show on Twitter. In that video, he praised the social media platform as a bastion of free speech while criticizing the media industry writ large. It's unclear how this will all work.
Twitter's chief executive Elon Musk posted that Twitter has not signed any kind of deal whatsoever, and he said that Carlson, quote, "...is subject to the same rules and rewards of all content creators."
MATTINGLY: And according to The New York Times, Carlson is still under contract with Fox until 2025, which could prevent him from working elsewhere until that deal runs out.
Now, CNN reached out to Fox for comments. A spokesperson could not immediately be reached.
But joining us now for more details is CNN media analyst and Axios media reporter, Sara Fischer. Sara, you have some new reporting -- and I think this is the most fascinating element of many -- about how Tucker Carlson is trying to get around the contract issue. What are you learning?
SARA FISCHER, CNN MEDIA ANALYST, MEDIA REPORTER, AXIOS: Yes. So, Tucker Carlson's lawyer sent a letter to Fox News executives yesterday alleging that they breached his contract because a bunch of executives, including Rupert Murdoch himself, made promises to Carlson basically saying look, if you give us some of your personal communications we will use them to protect you. And what the lawyers are alleging is that they didn't do that. That they actually were responsible for potentially leaking these communications to the news media, et cetera.
And so what they're saying is that in doing that and breaking those promises, it would be a breach of his contract. And that matters, Phil, because that would get Tucker out of a non-compete clause in his contract that prohibits him from launching new ventures, going on other networks, et cetera.
As you mentioned and as our sources have told us, because his contract ends in 2025, that would sideline him through the 2024 election, and Tucker Carlson does not want to waste precious time. HARLOW: What about advertisers? Obviously, that is a challenge that Fox faced with some advertisers pulling out of Carlson's time slot, although he had really high ratings and they started to see those ratings in that time slot really fall when he left. But how would this play out on Twitter vis-a-vis advertisers?
FISCHER: It's a great question. The news media, especially as one type of sector, has not fled Twitter. A lot of advertisers still use Twitter because it's a great platform. There's still a lot of the -- it's still a big audience there.
But in terms of how it would work on a show like that, it's very unclear, Poppy. Twitter has a program called Amplify where it does work with certain media partners to place premium brands around their content, but I don't think premium brands that didn't want to be around Tucker's show when it was on Fox are going to be jumping at the bullet to be being around that show when it's on Twitter.
I don't think this is really a revenue play for Tucker. I think it's a prominence play. He wants to reach opinion leaders and he thinks Twitter is the place to do that.
What I expect will happen is that he'll do this alongside other ventures. Maybe he has a Twitter show and he also has a subscription product. Maybe he has a Twitter show and he also tries to do something with Newsmax or Daily Wire, or another conservative outlet. I don't think this is going to be his money play.
MATTINGLY: And Sara, I do want to ask -- Paramount announced it's shutting down the iconic, generationally very relevant for me, "MTV NEWS," which comes less than a month after Buzzfeed announced it would shut down its news division, Vice Media, and canceled "VICE NEWS TONIGHT." Nearly every major new technology and entertainment company has had to make cuts in recent months, including CNN.
What does this say about the current media landscape?
FISCHER: It's tough, Phil. This is something I cover very closely.
When the ad market began to dip in the wake of inflation after the pandemic, news media companies were impacted badly. And that's because if you have to put our messaging around something if you're a brand, you want to do it in the most cost-efficient way. Put him on Google and Facebook. You're not going to spend premium dollars.
And so what happened is a lot of these companies are facing investor pressure. You noted Buzzfeed. They're publicly traded now. Paramount, publicly traded. And what investors want to see is for them to put all of their eggs in the most lucrative baskets. That's often entertainment content. It's not news.
HARLOW: Sara, thank you very much.
FISHER: Thank you.
HARLOW: CNN THIS MORNING continues right now. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have absolutely no idea who this woman is. The verdict is a disgrace -- a continuation of the greatest witch hunt of all time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: Good morning, everyone. It is the top of the hour and we have a big hour, a big day, a big rest of the week ahead of us so we are very glad that you are with us.
Minutes from now, E. Jean Carroll will join us live in studio after winning her sexual abuse and defamation lawsuit against former President Donald Trump. What she has to say to that response from the former president that you just heard.
And then tonight, Trump will be right here on CNN for a town hall. He'll face questions from our very own Kaitlan Collins.
MATTINGLY: And Congressman George Santos could turn himself in as soon as today after being charged by federal prosecutors. And if that's not enough news.
