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Trump Expected To Surrender In Fulton County At The End Of Next Week; Hilary Remains At Cat 4 Storm With Winds Of 130 MPH; FEMA Asking Congress For $12B In Extra Funds; Mortgage Rates Soar To Their Highest Level In 21 Years; Fed Officials Still Believe Inflation Is A Threat; Study: Cancer Diagnosis Rates Are Going Up In Younger Adults; Law Enforcement Agencies Crack Down On "Flash Mob Robberies"; Mom Brings Toddler Triplets To Jury Duty. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired August 19, 2023 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR (on camera): I don't, I just, I think I'm a good neighbor. I keep my lawn cut. I just, you know, I'm not too loud, but like, I'm not, I don't really, I don't know six neighbors.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: But you know, I think that's a shame. I think there are so many people who would say that they don't greet their neighbors regularly. This is the first time I've moved around and lived in different parts of the country. This is the first time living in Atlanta where I actually feel like I know most of the neighbors.

BLACKWELL: So you all hang out, like you all hangout.

WALKER: We hang out, we do, and you know, we make it and they would be friends even if they didn't live near me. So, it's -- I guess it's just the luck of the draw sometimes.

BLACKWELL: Maybe I'll do better, probably not. But I think I'm a good neighbor.

WALKER: If Victor knocks on your door, neighbor, this morning, just greet him back.

BLACKWELL: I won't. The next hour of CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.

Good morning, welcome to CNN THIS MORNING, Saturday, August 19th. I'm Victor Blackwell.

WALKER: Do you want to take time to say hello to your neighbors?

BLACKWELL: Hello neighbor. I might as well do it now because I'm not showing up at the door. Good morning, neighbors.

WALKER: No, nothing. I'm Amara Walker. Thanks so much for being with us this morning. Here is what we are following for you. We're learning more details about what might happen when former President Trump surrenders to officials at the jail in Fulton County. How this will look different than his previous bookings and why the Secret Service recently toured the facility.

BLACKWELL: Officials in the Southwest are urging people to prepare ahead of Hurricane Hilary. It's expected to hit the region as soon as tomorrow. We've got your forecast and cities most at risk just ahead.

WALKER: Republican presidential candidates will take to the debate stage for the first-time next week. How they're expected to take on each other and Trump, even if he's not in the room.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When incidents of brazen theft and robbery occur, it shatters that feeling of safety. These are not victimless crimes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The city of Los Angeles is cracking down on those smash- and-grab robberies where vandals have made off with hundreds-of- thousands-of-dollars-worth of merchandise. Let's talk about the plan to put a stop to those heists.

WALKER: And a buck can't get you very much these days, but in one city it can get a house, but of course with a lot of strings attached.

Former President Trump has under a week to turn himself in at the Fulton County Jail here in Georgia. He and 18 co-defendants are charged with plotting to subvert the 2020 election results in Georgia.

BLACKWELL: Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has set August 25th as the deadline for the surrender. His arrests will likely look different from previous arrests in these other three criminal cases. Local officials have said that they will treat the former president like any other defendant. CNN's Paula Reid reports on the complicated logistics involved.

PAULA REID, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Victor and Amara. On Monday, Trump's team is going to head down to Fulton County, Georgia, to negotiate the details of this expected surrender of the D.A., Fani Willis has given all of the defendants until next Friday at noon to surrender. Right now, it's our understanding that Trump is likely to do his surrender towards the back half of the week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REID (voice-over): Now, here's what's going to happen when he goes to surrender. He is going to surrender to the Fulton County Sheriff's Office, and this process typically involves a mugshot and fingerprints. And the mugshot is important here because remember at the federal level, they did not take a mugshot of the former president because they said, look, we use those, they don't release them, but they use them for law enforcement if someone goes on the lam. And Trump is one of the most recognizable people in the world. They don't really need a mugshot for that. And it's unclear if Fulton County is also going to make that kind of exception.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID (on camera): Another big difference between the state and federal appearances here is that he's just going to be processed next week. Then, a judge will schedule a court hearing. At the federal level, all of this happened on the same day. So, the judge will have to schedule a hearing and the district attorney has asked for the initial appearances of all of these defendants to happen the week of September 5th. Victor, Amara.

WALKER: All right, Paula Reid, thank you. Joining me now is former Manhattan Prosecutor, Jeremy Saland. Good to see you Jeremy, good morning. So, let's start with you know this, when Trump shows up to the Fulton County jail when he is expected to surrender himself at the end of next week. What do you anticipate is being negotiated right now between Trump's attorneys and Willis's prosecutors and how do we expect things to play out even though local officials say, we're going to treat Trump like any other defendant but that doesn't seem very likely considering, you know, he is a former president and of course there's a lot of security precautions surrounding him.

JEREMY SALAND, FORMER MANHATTAN PROSECUTOR: Well, one of the biggest things we're going to have to deal with is in statute, statutorily pardon me, in Georgia, if there is a significant risk that the accused can will be or can intimidate a witness, then they won't be sitting down. In other words, the person will be staying in. So, there's no doubt addressing that issue. That's going to be something resolved by a judge, but they're also resolving whether or not bail should be set. And I can't imagine, I cannot imagine, that bail will not be set, allowing him to be released and go on his way.

[07:05:24]

As you noted in the segment, he's the most recognizable person, probably at least in the United States, if not elsewhere. So, I expect they're discussing dollars, or if that's going to be an issue. Timing's going to be an issue. Secret Service is going to be an issue. Because that Rice City Jail, or that Rice Street Jail, has an unfortunately notorious history for even being interviewed or investigated by the Department of Justice for some issues at the facility.

WALKER: So, as you know, you have the former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, who's also charging this, who was trying to get this state case moved to the federal system. Many expect Trump and his lawyers will attempt to do the same. Do you expect that? And if so, how strong or not are his chances in getting this case moved to the federal system?

SALAND: So, what he wants to do is something called removal. That's what Mark Meadows has already started. And they're going to argue, as Mark Meadows has, is this is my job. I was president of the United States of America. I was following my rules and the obligations I had as the president of the United States of America. The problem will be, among other things, is that's not completely accurate. So, in other words, yes, you might have been the president, and you might have been doing certain things as your job and as your role as a president of the United States. But what was allegedly occurring here was a fraud that goes well

beyond the means and responsibilities. The responsibilities of the president, I remind everyone, if they don't know, is not to count votes, is not to challenge the votes in the state of Georgia. That is not his role. There are people who can do that, but that is certainly not him. So, he's going to have some difficulties taking that case and bringing it to the federal courts.

WALKER: Now, Trump is being accused of being the head of a criminal enterprise to overturn the 2020 election results here in Georgia. We've heard a lot about RICO, which is the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, which is at the heart of this indictment. Why specifically RICO? Why does Fani Willis pursue these specific charges? Does it have to do with the penalty and potentially flipping witnesses?

SALAND: All the things you just mentioned are very valuable, but it's also important to know when people hear this statute, they think organized crime, they think the mafia or the mob. That is certainly not the case. It's used routinely by states in much, we'll call it smaller or less frightening types of situations. So, this is not atypical when there's a belief to be a structure, and an organization, as likely as that term can be used, or a crew or a group of people with a criminal objective and a criminal goal, and they all share in that goal and that criminal objective here to overturn the election in Georgia.

But specifically, in the state of Georgia, it's a five-year minimum. That is a significant and heavy sentence. So, when you have people at the top, meaning President Trump and his 13 charges and people at the bottom or far lesser, they are exposed to that same five years and if I am one of those people, if I'm one of those individuals charged, there is a strong likelihood that I might consider saying, hey why should I go to prison for five years when I'm a really small piece here? Let me tell you what happened. Let me cooperate with you. It's a great tool for law enforcement and for the District Attorney's Office.

WALKER: Very interesting. Wonder if there'll be more twists and turns ahead then. Jeremy Saland, I appreciate you this morning. Thanks.

BLACKWELL: A major hurricane is inching closer to a rare landfall. Hurricane Hillary, the Category 4 storm, is marching towards Mexico's Baja, California, and it's packing a punch with wind speeds topping 130 miles per hour. Hilary is still 260 miles offshore, but the storm's outer bands are already impacting land. Cabo San Lucas is seeing intense rain, but the worst is still to come. Officials warn the amount of flooding there could be catastrophic.

This morning, Southern California is under its first ever tropical storm warning. If Hilary makes landfall there, it will become the first storm to do so in nearly 84 years. CNN Meteorologist Allison Chinchar is tracking this storm force this morning. There's history made even before potential landfall. What do we expect?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We could expect even more history to be made especially in terms of historic rainfall amounts for a lot of these areas. The storm right now still has sustained winds of 130 miles per hour gusting up to 160. We do anticipate this storm is going to weaken over the next 24 hours because it's going to head into cooler waters, and that's really not good fuel for storms like this. So, by the time it makes it into Florida, likely just going to be a tropical storm. But don't let that deter you from thinking that this isn't going to be much of a big deal because as it weakens, the field of rain is still going to be very widespread.

[07:10:09]

You've still got tropical storm warnings. That includes Los Angeles, San Diego, and some of the interior portions of Southern California as well. But rain is really going to be the biggest story here. You're already going to start to see some of those outer bands spread the moisture into Southern California as early as this afternoon. Then, by overnight tonight, that's when you really start to see the heavy rain begin to push in. It will last almost the entire day, Sunday, before finally starting to let up by the time we get to the latter half of the day on Monday, because of that, you're talking almost 48 hours of rainfall here.

We have a high risk for excessive rainfall in the flood threat here. That includes areas of Death Valley down through Riverside and portions of Palm Desert, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and San Diego under that moderate risk for excessive rainfall. Most of these areas, you're talking widespread two to four inches, but some areas could top out at eight to 10. Keep in mind, for some of these areas, even two to four inches is a year's worth of rain. So, you're talking a year's worth of rain for some of these communities in just about a day or two at most. Not to mention some of these communities, if they end up getting four, five, and six inches, which is why you have these flood watches.

Now, you're talking multiple years' worth of rain in just a few short days. And it's not just California. You've got Arizona, Utah, Nevada, even portions of Oregon and Idaho under flood watches as that storm continues to track off to the north. One other thing too, we've got more systems that we're continuing to watch. Hilary is not the only one. We've got four other systems that we're watching in the Atlantic. These farther to western systems, Victor and Amara, these are the two that could likely have some impacts as we go later into next week. So, we'll keep a close eye.

BLACKWELL: All right. Allison Chinchar watching it all for us, thanks so much. And you can stay on top of all the developments surrounding the hurricane at CNN.com/stormtracker.

WALKER: Many families in Hawaii are facing the brutal way to find out if their loved ones made it out of the wildfires alive. Crews tasked with the very slow and painstaking search for remains go from home to home in the disaster zone.

BLACKWELL: Search and rescue teams have made it through more than 60 percent of the charred town of Lahaina. And as each day goes on, the death toll continues to climb. As of this morning, 114 sets of remains have been found.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. JOSH GREEN (D-HI): This process is agonizing for the families waiting for word from their loved ones and heartbreaking for those sifting through the debris testing our capacity to continue searching, our ability to endure pain and loss, and our commitment to locate and identify every person affected by this disaster.

Friends, this loss we have suffered is unspeakable and devastating. We will continue to mourn as we care for the survivors and begin to move forward together. With federal aid, we will begin a massive recovery effort to clean up and begin to rebuild the affected areas of Maui.

We will rebuild Lahaina. It will take years of work and billions of dollars, but we are committed to this effort and together we will meet this challenge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: On Monday, President Biden will head to Maui to tour the devastation firsthand. He will meet with survivors along with local and state leaders, and his visit comes as new reporting shows that only halfway through the year, FEMA's disaster fund is already running out of money.

BLACKWELL: From major flood events in California to extreme tornadoes in the Midwest, the federal government has tallied 15 weather-related disasters, each exceeding $1 billion in damages, so far this year. CNN's Priscilla Alvarez joins us now. So, what is FEMA going to do if they run out of money?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Victor, they simply don't want to get to that point and they're asking Congress for more money. But as you mentioned, it has been a record-breaking year in expensive weather disasters. And that is something that the agency has had to contend with. And FEMA officials tell me they're growing concerned as those funds are expected to deplete by mid to end of this month. Now, the FEMA administrator had told White House reporters this week that she anticipates that there are enough funds for the initial response to Maui but any delay in funds could put recovery into next year. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEANNE CRISWELL, FEMA ADMINISTRATOR: We have enough funding to support the ongoing response efforts as we take events like this into consideration. But it would delay, if we don't have additional funding, it would delay some of the recovery projects and push them into next year.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

07:15:02]

ALVAREZ: Now, some of the other consequences of there being a delay in getting those funds, according to a FEMA official I spoke with, is that they would not be able, or at least they would be hindered, in trying to deploy assets and people to different areas that may be experiencing or may experience a natural disaster. Take Hurricane Hilary, for example. FEMA pre-positions, knowing that that's coming in, and they can at least try to prepare for the recovery on the back end.

Without those funds it just makes it all the more difficult. Now, the White House has been monitoring this and they have requested 12 billion dollars in additional funding, but that's a request that's part of a broader supplemental going to Congress that already faces an uphill battle. And by the way Congress is still in recess.

So, all of these challenges still facing FEMA as it works to respond. We should also note in regards to Maui and the President's trip there, I've been talking to White House officials who say that they have been meeting this week to think about creative solutions to help Maui, be it housing or even just making their energy grid more resilient.

BLACKWELL: All right, Priscilla Alvarez, Forest and Washington, thank you. Coming up, several 2024 Republican presidential candidates are in Atlanta this weekend for a conservative conference just days before former President Trump is scheduled to surrender himself to officials in that same city. Ahead, their pitch to Georgia voters.

Plus, mortgage rates soar to their highest levels in 21 years -- the impact it's having on the housing market.

WALKER: But you might not need a mortgage if you're looking for a home in Pontiac, Michigan. Ahead, the 724 square foot, two-bedroom, one- bathroom house that could be yours for just a dollar?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:20:24]

BLACKWELL: President Biden says he's looking ahead to the next era of cooperation with Japan and South Korea after a historic trilateral summit at Camp David on Friday. The three leaders hope to bolster ties as the U.S. works to counter both China's influence and North Korea's persistent, provocative behavior in the region.

WALKER: While the political commitments fall short of a formal three- way alliance, the three leaders vow to consult each other during crises and threats affecting common interests.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Your leadership with the full support of the United States has brought us here, because each of you understands that our world stands at an inflection point. A point where we're called to lead in new ways, to work together, to stand together, and today I'm proud to say our nations are answering that call.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: As Republican presidential hopefuls gear up for their first debate next week in Milwaukee, there is one person who's expected to be missing from the stage -- former President Donald Trump. He is planning to skip the debate and sources tell CNN he may instead sit down for an interview with former Fox News Host, Tucker Carlson.

BLACKWELL: Trump has suggested he would likely pass on the debate, given his sizeable lead among Republicans in the polls. Meantime, several GOP presidential hopefuls at an event called "The Gathering" in Atlanta this weekend. CNN's Eva McKend has details.

EVA MCKEND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Victor, Amara, though Georgia not an early state like Iowa and New Hampshire, still a battleground state, an opportunity for these Republican hopefuls to make their case to voters from across this region, conservative activists from Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida, and with Trump not in the mix, taking up the oxygen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND (voice-over): They had about 45 minutes on stage each with conservative radio host Eric Erickson. And a universal theme that came up among all of them was really this pledge to limit the scope of the federal government, clamp down on the bureaucracy. They also discussed a wide range of issues, including immigration, other domestic policy matters and foreign policy as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND (on camera): Many of these candidates will be on the debate stage next week. There, no indication that most of them will try to take on Trump directly. We spoke to former Vice President Mike Pence and it seems as though he's going to try to use that platform to really make his case against President Biden and try to argue why he would be the best candidate to go up against President Biden in a general election. Victor, Amra.

BLACKWELL: Eva McKend, thank you so much.

WALKER: All right, so the price of buying a home just got more expensive as the Federal Reserve's historic rate hiking campaign continues. Will we see another rate hike before the end of the year?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:27:43]

BLACKWELL: The U.S. mortgage rate surged this week to their highest level in 21 years. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averages 7.09 percent. That's the highest it's been since April 2002 when it was 7.13 percent. Jeana Smialek is New York Times Federal Reserve and Economy Reporter, she joins me now. You know the people who have these two percent, three percent rates, they are not selling. So, they're not, you know, putting more of these existing homes on the market. What's the outlook for the housing market?

JEANNA SMIALEK, FEDERAL RESERVE AND ECONOMY REPORTER, NEW YORK TIMES: Yes, they're just bragging about those two to three percent rates at parties, right? Yes, you know, it's a really interesting moment for the housing market because if you are a new buyer in this market, you're just being clobbered from all sides. We've got mortgage rates at a 21-year high. We've got very little inventory because as you mentioned, people just aren't selling houses.

And we have seen, you know, actually some new construction coming online, but that hasn't been as robust as you might have expected in a world where we didn't have higher interest rates. You know, the higher interest rates also deter people from building houses. And so, tough time to buy a house. Affordability is really, really tough. Prices are high, even as these mortgage rates keep ratcheting up. And so, it's a very challenging moment for the housing market, which is why we've seen a real slowdown in the housing market over the last year and a half.

BLACKWELL: Let's talk about gas prices. A 10-month high, up about 30 cents more than a month ago. Still lower than it was a year ago this time, though. And this is before we even hit the peak of hurricane season, when storms could interrupt refineries along the Gulf Coast. The president is out touting Biden-omics, but this is one of those variables that people feel every week, potentially, the White House really just cannot control.

SMIALEK: Yes, this is a really, this is a tough one, both for the White House and for the Federal Reserve, because gas prices matter a lot to how people experience the economy, to how they think about inflation, to what they expect going forward for inflation. And gas is just, as you mentioned, it's something that the White House and the Fed cannot control. We've had an interesting summer in the sense that we've had a lot of heat that has shut down some refineries, and that's part of the reason gas prices are already up a lot.

That heat could also make for a bad hurricane season. You know, we haven't seen it materialize yet, but the risk is certainly there. And if that happens, we could be in for a really in for, you know, a really, really rough time here. And if that happens, we could be in for a really, really rough time here. So, I think that's something to really watch as a risk going forward this summer.

[07:3o:04]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: There were reserve releases when prices were near $5 a gallon. Is there any discussion of maybe not now, because we're still south of $4 a gallon, but returning to those releases for potentially lowering prices, even temporarily?

SMIALEK: I think we're certainly not at the point where that's going to become a real thing at this stage. And I think, mostly at this stage, when you talk to folks in the government, they are -- they are watching the hurricane season nervously. They are hoping that it doesn't materialize.

I think we're kind of at -- you know, things haven't gone south yet. So, we're not -- we're hoping that they just don't at this stage.

BLACKWELL: Let's put up some poll numbers. This week, we got some new poll numbers, as the president is going on his victory lap of the anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act. Polls show -- this is new from the A.P.

Overall, his approval rating, how he's handling his job? 42 percent. But on the economy, specifically, that number is a bit lower. 36 percent.

Is there evidence that the messaging campaign going out and creating, and then selling Bidenomics is working?

SMIALEK: Yes, you know, I think this is a really interesting question. I do think it's worth noting that we've had two years of very rapid inflation. And so, people are still feeling that, and they blame the president for whether that's merited or not.

And so, I think that, that is, to some degree, why you haven't seen those numbers rise higher. That said, we have seen consumer confidence really starting to bounce back in recent months.

And so, I think there is some hope for the Biden administration, that's going to feed through into economic approval ratings, we just haven't seen the full effect there yet.

BLACKWELL: It's interesting that people are more confident about the economy, or at least the consumer confidence is higher. But the sour on the handling of the economy by the president.

SMIALEK: We've seen a really interesting split screen for consumers for a while now, where if you ask somebody how they feel about their own economic prospects, like are you going to get a job? Are you going to get a raise? Anything like that.

They'll tell you, they feel really good, like people feel very good about the job market, about their own chances. But then, they feel bad about the economy overall.

And I think that, that is a -- it's we're at an unusual economic moment that we haven't had in quite a while here in America, where we do have a very, very strong job market.

We've had inflation for a while, and I think people are sort of trying to think through how to understand that. And, you know, obviously, I think that we're at an inflection point here, and the sense that inflation has come down quite a bit.

So, I think you could see people start to feel better about the state of things just because they're not watching the prices in the grocery aisle, just steadily tick up, trip after trip the way that they were previously.

BLACKWELL: So, we're always looking ahead to the next Federal Reserve meeting. You cover the Fed. We're a month out from today from the next one.

What's the expectation? I know there's more data to come over the next four weeks. But if we're looking at another rate increase? SMIALEK: Yes. So, this is the several trillion-dollar question at the moment. Nobody, nobody knows the answer to whether we are going to have another rate increase in September at this stage.

Wall Street is betting probably not. I think the assumption is that we've seen a lot of slowing in inflation and the Fed is going to want to see how that plays out a little bit more before putting any more restraint on the economy, before hitting those brakes harder.

But it's clearly still something that officials are talking about. You know, I think the economy has surprised them with how strong and resilient it has been. It's surprised everybody, you know. Nobody was penciling in growth tracking it anywhere near the level that it is currently. And the job market just keeps chugging.

You know, employers are hiring a lot. They're getting wage increases. And so, in an environment like that, I think the question is, can Fed officials feel comfortable that inflation is going to slow down the whole way? And I think they're going to be parsing the incoming dating -- data releases to try and figure that out. And we could get a little bit of color on this point from the Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who's going to deliver a big speech at Jackson Hole, which is the Feds big annual conference this Friday.

BLACKWELL: All right. Well, look forward to that. Jeanna Smialek, thanks so much.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: You can be the proud owner of a home in Pontiac, Michigan for the low, low price of --

(CROSSTALK)

BLACKWELL: Low, low.

WALKER: Very low. Just $1. That's it. The 724 square foot ranch-style home features two bedrooms and one bathroom, hardwood floors, and endless opportunities to make it your own.

I sound like a real estate agent. Don't I?

BLACKWELL: You could sell this one. And at listing description on Zillow, realtors are pitching the property as an opportunity to unleash your inner DIY guru and embrace the challenge. They say the roof might have bit seen better days, but "it's not leaking yet".

[07:35:00]

If you're interested, all offers must be submitted by 10:00 a.m. on August 23rd. So, of course, this is going to be a bidding war.

WALKER: Yes.

BLACKWELL: Right?

WALKER: It's not going to be $1. (INAUDIBLE) the day.

(CROSSTALK)

BLACKWELL: I'd love to know what the final sale price is.

WALKER: Price. Hopefully it won't be high to the point where you would need to get a loan those high interest rate, because it's not doing it for me.

Well, a new study has found an increase in certain cancers in women and adults in their 30s. We're going to have details on that when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: In our "HEALTH THIS MORNING", a new study shows certain cancers are being diagnosed more often than younger adults in the U.S.

BLACKWELL: And the change seems to be driven by rates of cancer in younger women and those in the 30s.

[07:40:02]

CNN's. Dr. Sanjay Gupta breaks it down for us.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, guys, I think first of all, just to get the definition straight. If a cancer is diagnosed before the age of 50, it's considered an early onset diagnosis.

And what they found and this is sort of serves as a warning sign is that the number of those early onset diagnoses have been increasing over the last 10 years or so.

Let me show you the specific numbers here. If you go back to 2010, there is roughly 100 per 100,000 diagnoses made in that population of people, again, under the age of 50.

Fast forward 10 years, and it's gone up to close to 103. So, about a three percent increase.

That may not sound like a lot. But if you start to project that into the future, you start to see a significant number of these cancers being diagnosed in younger people, people where you don't typically hear about these cancers.

A little bit of context. Overall, in the country, there's maybe 1-1/2 million cancer diagnoses made every year. And about 50,000 of those roughly, are made in people in this early onset stage.

So, it's a small percentage. But again, that percentage is increasing and can continue to increase unless something is done about it. The most of the drive was among women. And it was among people in their 30s, a little bit more of the context there.

If you look at the common cancers that were driving this increase, they were primarily breast cancer, colon cancer, and thyroid cancer. Why is this happening? That's the big question. It's a -- it's a point of debate in the cancer community.

But it seems to be two major things. One is that we are better at finding these cancers earlier, the screenings are happening, or they're more sensitive. So, we may be finding more cancers. That way, it is not enough to account for this, this total increase though.

Another big component seems to be just our overall health as well in this country, and specifically things like obesity.

Think of it like this, when we feed our bodies too much glucose, too much -- too many calories, we're not just feeding our normal cells, but the abnormal cells as well -- cancer cells.

So, cancers that may have otherwise never been a problem in our lives, they are now getting a lot of energy from these calories that we're taking in. So, obesity, we associated with heart disease and diabetes. But we do have to think about this with regard to cancers as well, especially in younger people.

Getting screenings, that's important, you know, for both breast cancer, colon cancer starting around 45, if you have no increased risk.

But again, also thinking about your overall health, and specifically, things like obesity. The number of people who are obese, the percentage of the country that is obese at this young age now is higher than it's ever been, and that's probably driving what we're seeing with cancer as well.

So, taking care of ourselves, making sure we're preventative about it, that can make a difference, so, that these numbers don't continue to balloon. Amara, Victor?

BLACKWELL: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, thanks so much.

Ahead for us, officials in Los Angeles are forming a new task force to crack down on smash and grab robberies after a mob stole up to $100,000 worth of goods from a mall in the middle of the day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:47:26]

BLACKWELL: In Idaho, a judge has set a deadline for defense lawyers in the death penalty case against accused killer Bryan Kohberger. He is the man charged in the stabbing deaths of four Idaho university students in the town of Moscow last November.

Now, his attorneys have until September 8th to submit evidence in his alibi and defense. His trial is also likely set for early October.

Police in Los Angeles are cracking down on what's called flash mob robberies. Now, this is when a large corporated -- coordinated, I should say, group of people, rush into stores, overwhelmed staff, and then, just steal goods and runoff. WALKER: And the video of it all is just so stunning. Hundreds of stores have been targeted in the past few years. And now, law enforcement agencies are teaming up to take them on.

CNN's Brian Todd has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): With overwhelming force, at least 30 masked robbers tear through a Nordstrom store in the Westfield Topanga Shopping Center near Los Angeles. They ransacked, attacked a guard with bear spray, and within minutes made off with hundreds of thousands of dollars in stolen merchandise.

This incident on August 12th, is one of at least five so-called smash and grab or flash mob robberies at high-end stores in the L.A. area since early July.

SCOTT TENLEY, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: Perpetrators know what to do. Try to dress in mono, single-color clothing, cover your face, stay in the pack, don't do anything that distinguishes you, and get out of there quick.

TODD (voice-over): A crime spree with a level of violence, chaos, and organization that's so serious that several Southern California law enforcement agencies, along with the FBI and the U.S. Marshals, are teaming up in a newly formed task force to go after these groups.

KAREN BASS, MAYOR OF LOS ANGELS, CALIFORNIA: When incidents of brazen theft and robbery occur, it shatters that feeling of safety. These are not victimless crimes.

TODD (voice-over): The dragnet has brought one arrest so far, 23-year- old Ivan Isaac Ramirez. It's unknown if Ramirez has an attorney. He's believed to be among at least 30 suspects who swarmed an Yves Saint Laurent store in Glendale, California, on August 8th. And made off with an estimated $400,000 in stolen goods.

CNN analyst John Miller says these are likely crews, some associated with gangs. How would they organize for one given hit?

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: It's a word of mouth, but the electronic version. So, somebody will send out a text message saying, we're thinking of doing a hit on Wednesday. This is where we're thinking of doing it. Who's in?

Other people may speak in person, but they'll begin to gather, and then it's who's going along? What vehicles are we using?

[07:50:04]

TODD (voice-over): Authorities say there have been at least 170 of these flash mob robberies across the U.S. since the fall of 2021. Can law enforcement catch up to these perpetrators? Miller believes they can, with the FBI and the Marshals able to bring federal charges. MILLER: Once you start to find the shot callers, the people who are the organizers of these groups and swarms, and they start to face federal charges under the Hobbs Act for organized crime theft. That is usually what will break a crime spree like this.

TODD (voice-over): Another analyst says customers can also help.

TERRANCE GALNER, FORMER UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE CHIEF: If it goes down while you are in the store or nearby, stay out of the way. If you are in a position to take a photo, that would be helpful to police. Or just observe what you are doing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (on camera): Law enforcement analysts say this taskforce will go after the robbers with a multi layered approach, using cyber investigators to monitor communications, facial recognition, informants, physical surveillance, and they say, they'll also track the people who buy and sell the stolen merchandise. Victor, Amara?

WALKER: Brian Todd, thank you.

Former President Trump, along with his 18 indicted co-conspirators have less than a week to turn themselves in to a Fulton County jail in Atlanta. What we're learning about their timeline.

BLACKWELL: The CNN Original Series, "GIULIANI: WHAT HAPPENED TO AMERICA'S MAYOR" provides a revealing look at the epic rise and fall of this iconic American politician. Here is a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: What happened to Rudy Giuliani?

AL SHARPTON, MSNBC HOST: It is almost unthinkable.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A theme that runs through his life is that he is got to be at the center of the action.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rudy --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is got to be a star.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rudy really wanted to make big cases.

RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER ATTORNEY TO PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: We sure as heck can deliver a message which is, you're going to go to prison.

New York has five organized crime families and they have been permitted to grow and grow and grow and grow.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Giuliani was taking on the Mafia.

GIULIANI: I heard a plane they had crashed into one of the Twin Towers.

GIULIANI: There's a terrible tragedy. The best way we're going to get through this is if we remain calm.

The number of casualties will be more than any of us can bear ultimately. Those of us who are here have to defend freedom by going about our lives unafraid.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He stepped forward to be a leader.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That was a man meeting the moment.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fast forward to Giuliani becomes the story of rise and fall.

GIULIANI: And we're going to fight to the very end to make sure they don't take away our free and fair vote.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Rudy Giuliani arguing that he wasn't literally advocating for insurrection.

TAPPER: To understand the arc of Rudy Giuliani, one has to appreciate how intoxicating fame and power are.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was always this tension between genuine public service and the pursuit of the glory of Giuliani.

GIULIANI: It's fake!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rudy is not a guy who backs down. Rudy is a guy who doubles down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand up and be defiant. In America, that's what they love.

GIULIANI: America!

ANNOUNCER: "GIULIANI: WHAT HAPPENED TO AMERICA'S MAYOR?" tonight at 8:00 on CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:57:36]

BLACKWELL: So, when you're summoned for jury duty, and there is nobody to take care of your children, what do you do?

WALKER: That's a great question. Jeanne Moos has the answer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Triplets are three handfuls when you only have --

TORREY SCOW, MOM OF TRIPLETS BABIES: Hey, careful.

MOOS (voice over): Two hands. So, when Utah mom, Torrey Scow, says she was not excused from jury duty, even though she had triplet babies and a toddler, and no babysitter.

SCOW: And I just knew it was going to be a crap show. So, that's why I was like, I'm going to film some of this.

MOOS (voice over): You thought you whined about having jury duty?

What's a mom to do?

SCOW: I fed them more snacks than they've ever had in their entire life to keep them quiet.

MOOS (voice over): A technique practice during our interview.

MOOS: Whose hands does that feeding the kids?

SCOW: My husband.

MOOS (voice over): It only partially works. At times, mom says the triplets drowned out the judge's questions to potential jurors. But the worst was when they got sick of being in the wagon.

SCOW: That's when they started screaming and they pooped.

MOOS (voice over): Justice may be blind, but she can still smell. Eventually, mom performed consecutive diaper changes out in the parking lot.

Someone suggested, "The kids should also have their boxes ticked for their first jury duty summons."

A nice officer did supply them with toys. Finally, after 2 1/2 hours, they were dismissed.

MOOS: Was this the most embarrassing thing you've done as a -- as a mother of triplets?

SCOW: Yes, I mean, obviously, with triplets we have a lot of embarrassing moments.

MOOS: This was a lot of law, but not much order.

Jeannie Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: 2 1/2 hours? It took 2 1/2 hours for this mother and those poor children -- and the poor mother to be dismissed.

BLACKWELL: Jury duty is such a long day.

WALKER: Yes.

BLACKWELL: However, that is one way to get dismissed. Bring the triplets?

WALKER: I've been dismissed sooner than 2 1/2 hours. That's yes, but it is a way. Memorable stuff.

The next hour of CNN THIS MORNING starts now.

[08:00:07]

WALKER: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to CNN THIS MORNING.