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CNN This Morning

Biden's Border Executive Action; Boeing's Starliner Launch Scrubbed; NASA Postpones Boeing Starliner Launch; "Secrets And Spies" Premieres Tonight; Florida Panthers Goes To The Stanley Cup Finals; Millions Bracing For Sunday Storms; Real Madrid Wins 15th Champions League Final; State Of Emergency Declared In Atlanta Over Water Main Break; Growing California Wildfire Forces Residents To Evacuate; Zelenskyy, Austin Discuss Drafting Bilateral Security Agreement; Mexico Set To Elect Its First Woman President; Jury Selection Begins Tomorrow In Hunter Biden's Gun Trial. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired June 02, 2024 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: So, start with a small pea- sized amount and set aside at least two hours to watch your baby for any reactions. If they respond well, you can repeat feeding them the peanut butter product about three times a week and watch how they do. Back to you.

AMARA WALKER, CNN HOST: Welcome back, everyone, to CNN This Morning. It is almost 7:00 a.m. here in our Atlanta studios. I'm Amara Walker with Victor Blackwell, Coy Wire, Derek Van Dam, Amara Walker, flanked by some really dapper-looking men this morning. You guys clean up pretty well sometimes, I have to say.

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Stop it somewhere, if you say something.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: Yes. Sometimes.

WALKER: I think you're looking a little haggardly here and there.

All right. Here's what we're working on for you. A state of emergency is in effect in Atlanta after water main breaks set geysers of water gushing into the streets, cutting off water for homes and businesses, even forcing some hospitals to evacuate patients. What the mayor is saying about the problem.

BLACKWELL: In California, a fast moving fire doubled in size yesterday and is now forcing some people out of their homes. More on what we're learning about injuries and what's fueling the fire.

VAN DAM: Can't stop, won't stop another round of severe weather possible today across the central and northern plains. I'll highlight exactly where coming up later in the show.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: And the Florida Panthers are headed to the Stanley Cup final after beating the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference Finals, but they would not hoist the trophy. They wouldn't even touch it. We'll have the why on that and more in sports.

WALKER: All right, we begin with breaking news out of Atlanta. The city has declared a state of emergency Saturday after two days of the city trying to repair two major water main breaks across the city. This massive disruption left businesses and homes with little to no water, and it also resulted in a boil water advisory for a majority of the city's residents.

Hospitals in downtown and Midtown Atlanta were forced to transfer patients and divert ambulances to other hospitals. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens has apologized, saying the teams are working non-stop to repair the water main breaks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR ANDRE DICKENS, ATLANTA: We take this matter very, very seriously and our whole team takes it very seriously as you see us working on this. We apologize profusely for this disruption to life in the city of Atlanta.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The break also led to several major tourist attractions, including the Georgia Aquarium, Zoo Atlanta to close for the past two days. Thousands of people in neighborhoods throughout the city had been left without water for more than 24 hours.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY ELLIS, AFFECTED RESIDENT: It comes on kind of infrequently. We managed to take a shower in the one time, it was on this morning, fortunately. But yes, we've had no drinking water or we've had no cooking, no washing facilities. Yes, it's just crazy. Can't flush the toilets, can't have a shower, can't boil water to cook with. It's, yes, it's crazy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: While one of the main brakes has been repaired, crews are still working to repair the second break, with the watershed department saying that they are doing everything they can to restore regular water flow to the city.

More breaking news, this is out of California. A growing grass fire in San Joaquin County has already consumed more than 11,000 acres, and it's forcing people in its path to evacuate. The California Department of Forestry and Fire says the Corral Fire started in the city of Tracy Saturday afternoon and by Saturday night was still only 13 percent contained.

WALKER: San Joaquin County officials issued evacuation orders for Tracy residents nearest to the fire and told others nearby that they should be ready to leave. Two firefighters were injured while responding to the fire. Cal Fire Battalion Chief -- the Cal Fire Battalion Chief says that they had minor to moderate injuries and were transported to local hospitals for treatment. CNN's Derek Van Dam is tracking all these fires for us. Tell us more. What do we need to know?

VAN DAM: Yes, Amara, Victor, this is the new normal in our warming climate. If we go back a couple of years ago, we had drought, longstanding drought across the state of California, but the past two winters have brought above average snowfall. And what that's done is allowed for grass to grow across much of the Central Valley. Well, now, it's time for the taps to be turned off and they have dried out exceptionally quick.

Watch this. This is the start of May. You can see all the greenery here across central California. Let's advance by 30 days. Look how that's starting to change to more of a shading of brown. So even visible from space, this drying effect. Now you start to combine that with, of course, the temperatures that are starting to skyrocket and the lack of precipitation lately and that is a recipe for fires. That's why we have the evacuations underway.

13 percent containment with the corral fire in the San Joaquin region, and it is being fueled by very strong winds. These are equivalent to tropical storm force winds, for instance.

[07:05:09]

Look at this, San Francisco Airport, 52 miles per hour overnight, and we still have our heat advisories in place for much of this region as the mercury in the thermometer continues to climb through the early parts of next week, and we'll see this heat risk continue for much of the Central Valley, along with the winds fueling more flames.

Amara, Victor?

BLACKWELL: All right, Derek, thank you very much.

There was a mass shooting overnight in Ohio. One person is dead, dozens are injured. Gunshot victims started arriving at Akron hospitals overnight and CNN affiliate WEWS is reporting that as many as 26 people were shot. Both the Cleveland Clinic and Summa Health System in Akron are confirming this morning that they are treating patients from this incident.

A spokesperson says, "Our thoughts are with the victims and their families. And I want to thank our first responders and caregivers for everything they did to care for our patients and community." At this moment, it is unclear what led to the shooting. And CNN, of course, will bring you more as we get those details.

Overnight in Singapore, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to talk about its progress battling Russia. Zelenskyy posted on X. He said that the two discussed what Ukraine needs to defend itself and a possible bilateral security agreement.

WALKER: Now, Zelenskyy is attending a high stakes security summit in Singapore meeting with world leaders about what Ukraine is dealing with.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINE: It's Ukrainians who are dying, that Russians were raping our people, our women, stole tens of thousands of our children. Nobody had rights to tell us how to finish this war, how to end this war. It should end according to the law and justice and this is compulsory.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: CNN's Natasha Bertrand joining us now. It's a familiar scene where we've seen Zelenskyy plead many times, appeal to foreign officials. What are we learning about Zelenskyy's meeting with Lloyd Austin, the Secretary of Defense?

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Amara, he met earlier today here with Secretary Austin and really they discussed, of course, Ukraine's most urgent battlefield needs, including their desperate need for additional air defense systems and munitions, something that is increasingly in short supply, not only inside Ukraine, but of course, among its allies, including the U.S.

So that is a very, very key need right now for the Ukrainians as they try to fend off these massive missile barrages that Russia is launching on a real daily basis there. But they also discussed, of course, this major policy shift by the United States to finally allow Ukraine to use American-made weapons to strike inside Russia itself, something that the Ukrainians had been pushing the U.S. to allow for quite some time now, and which the U.S. finally decided to give the green light for just last week.

And the -- President Zelenskyy repeated many times today how thankful he was for that decision that was made by President Biden. But really, one of the big reasons that Zelenskyy came to this forum to Singapore was to send a message to the Chinese who have been accused of helping Russia and supporting their defense sector and essentially fueling this war in Ukraine by selling and transporting dual use items to the Russians that can be used to build military equipment and overall bolster Russia's defense sector.

And he was not able, according to comments that he made to reporters earlier today to actually meet with any Chinese officials here today. The Chinese apparently rebuffed his requests for several meetings here over the weekend. But he did reveal that the Chinese, according to his information are actively working alongside the Russians to try to undermine support for a peace summit that Ukraine is aiming to hold in the next two weeks in Switzerland.

And so the bottom line here was that while he made an effort, according to, you know, officials to try to meet with the Chinese to try to get them to stop their support for the Russians. He was not necessarily successful, but the biggest reason he came here today and over the weekend was try to rally other Asian leaders around Ukraine in its fight against the Russians and, of course, to meet with Secretary Austin in the wake of that very major decision to allow Ukraine to use American weapons to strike inside Russian territory.

WALKER: Natasha Bertrand in Singapore, thank you.

In just a few hours, millions will vote in Mexico's historic presidential election that will put a woman in the top job for the first time. It is also the largest general election with more than 70,000 candidates vying for congressional and governor seats as well as local positions.

BLACKWELL: One of the key issues is public safety. Political unrest and cartel violence have marred this campaign season. CNN's Gustavo Valdez is joining us now from Mexico City. So, Gustavo talk to us about the last 24 hours and more about what we expect to see at the polls as they open.

[07:10:12]

GUSTAVO VALDEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning. We're expecting hopefully a peaceful transition of power, if you will. This is almost 100 million Mexicans going to the polls and they have a clear choice. This is not just an election to select the next president. It's really a referendum as to whether they want to continue the policies of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

And in public safety, in particular, he had a hands off approach. He basically declined to utilize the army and the police forces to actively pursue the cartels, the organized crime, and many have criticized him for that. They believe that is the reason Mexico has fallen into this lawless in which we saw more than 30 candidates killed during this political process, and there is this feeling among citizens that the country is not safe.

And, in fact, the Mexico is considered one of the more dangerous countries in the world. So beyond that, they also, the Mexicans, have this choice to make between continuing those policies, social programs that he either created or expanded the relationship with the United States and other nations versus perhaps the more traditional way of doing business in Mexico with the opposition who had to nominate a unified candidate because they saw how powerful Lopez Obrador and his Morena party had become.

So Claudia Sheinbaum, who is the candidate for Morena, is seen as the favorite to continue these policies. But the opposition in the last few weeks, apparently, they have gained some momentum. The assassination of more candidates might be affecting the vote today.

So it's going to be very interesting to see, not only if Mexico go and select a woman to be their president, something they have given -- it's a fact for them because the two top candidates are women. They are really looking forward to decide the future of their country.

WALKER: And it's a fascinating election. As you said, millions in Mexico will be voting. But what about those who live abroad?

VALDEZ: It has created a large interest outside the borders. Mexicans abroad can vote. There is interest. In the United States alone, about 200,000 Mexicans registered to vote, and they're going to do it almost at the same time as they do it here in Mexico. So it's going to be interesting, especially in the states, because they send so much money back.

There's such a large part of the Mexican economy that their vote is actually significant. They have a stake in this game. So it's going to be very interesting to see when the results come in later tonight to see how the people who have left the country for whatever reason they want their country to be.

WALKER: All right, thank you for being there at Mexico City. Gustavo Valdez, thank you.

Jury selection begins tomorrow in Hunter Biden's first criminal trial. Coming up, what to expect as he faces federal gun charges.

BLACKWELL: Plus, President Biden is preparing to take executive action on the border. We go inside the White House plan to address this key election issue.

WALKER: Plus, meet the double agents operating in the shadows of the Cold War. Still ahead, a sneak peek of CNN's original series, "Secrets and Spies."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:18:00]

BLACKWELL: Jury selection begins tomorrow in the federal gun trial against the president's son, Hunter Biden. Biden has pleaded not guilty to three gun crimes connected to when he allegedly lied out of federal form when he swore that he was not using drugs before buying a gun.

WALKER: And testimony could get messy. Prosecutors say three of Hunter Biden's exes will take the stand and some of Biden's text messages are being allowed in. CNN's Marshall Cohen has the latest.

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN REPORTER: Good morning. Well, tomorrow is going to be a historic day for the United States. Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, will stand trial in Delaware on federal gun charges. This is the very first time in our nation's history that the son of the sitting president will go on trial.

Obviously, a huge moment for the White House, for the Biden family, and for Special Counsel David Weiss, who brought the case. He has been investigating Hunter Biden for over five years, and this is the very first time that his charges will be tested in in federal court.

The charges here revolve around a gun that Hunter Biden bought in 2018. He's accused of lying on federal firearm forms when he bought the gun, checking a box that said he was not a user of or addicted to illegal drugs. He's also accused of unlawfully possessing the gun while addicted to drugs.

Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty to these charges, but he's been very public and very open about his lifelong struggle with addiction, including years of crack cocaine addiction around the same time when he did have that gun. That's going to be the heart of this case. If they can prove, the prosecutors, that he was using drugs around the time of the gun, that will be key to winning a conviction.

So the proceedings start tomorrow, Monday morning. 250 Delaware residents have been summoned for jury service. They will be asked some questions about their ability to be fair and impartial, despite the fact that this is obviously a political, politicized case involving the son of the president.

[07:20:16]

And once the jury is seated, the prosecutors and the defense think that this case may last one to two weeks. So it's all going to be happening in Delaware. But keep in mind, once this is done, it's not the end of Hunter Biden's legal troubles. He faces a second indictment in California, which is set to go to trial later this year and that is on federal tax offenses.

Marshall Cohen, CNN, Washington.

BLACKWELL: Marshall, thank you.

CNN Legal Analyst Joey Jackson is with us now. Joey, good morning to you. I want to start with jury selection first because the jury selection in the Hunter Biden trial starts four days after the conviction of former President Trump. How do you weed out? If you're the defense attorney here, you're trying to weed out those people potentially who want political revenge. What do you ask? How do you get them out of the number?

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, those are great questions, Victor. Good morning to you. And so remember that the questions with respect to selecting a jury have been submitted, right? What happens in federal court? If you submit to the federal judge, and there are certain questions to elicit bias.

Certainly, those questions will center around whether or not people could be fair and reasonable, objective and impartial, whether they believe this to be, you know, smacking of politics, whether they can move politic to the side, whatever they may be, not asking them specifically what side they're on.

But the essence of any question that's developed and presented to the jury, Victor, is to discern whether or not someone's inclinations would prevent them or preclude them from sitting on this jury. The big question for me, really, we could get into is, why we're here. I mean, the reality is, is that, you know, it's a shame that there is this sort of political weaponization.

You're dealing with a case that a year ago, Victor, a year ago, he was offered a plea on the misdemeanor charges that Marshall spoke to coming into this, right? We just heard the piece there. And that's in California. And the plea was a misdemeanor to that. And the diversion program as to the charges you and I are speaking about jury selection for diversion means stay out of trouble for two years. You know, be a good person and the case is dismissed. And now we're here on a trial with a gun that was never used before, with a gun you own for 11 days. Things have to make sense.

And even though potentially you've done something wrong, equitability needs to factor into the equation. And this is just we've gone into a different space and that's unfortunate.

BLACKWELL: Yes. Now that the potential plea deal fell apart, what is -- or how low is the bar for the burden for the prosecutors here? Hunter Biden has written about his drug use and drug abuse. He says he's been sober since 2019. But if they put these witnesses forward, they submit the text messages, they bring the memoir into evidence there, and they have this -- the form that he signed, is that it, or do they need to do more?

JACKSON: So, what happened, Victor, is that, like any case, ultimately, after they get through these 250 jurors, they'll dismiss jurors for cause. You can't be fair. They'll ultimately impound jurors who say and could be, right, subject to both parties raising objections. And then they'll have to prove unanimously like any case, proof beyond a reasonable doubt as to the offenses here.

Here, you're looking at three specific offenses. Did you lie to a federal arms dealer? Did you lie on the federal form? Did you possess the weapon? And so to the extent that they could establish that there was this drug addiction and you did lie on a federal form and that's established beyond the reasonable doubt that carries a day.

Now, getting there, of course, there'll be witnesses, there'll be documentary evidence. We'll see the form itself. We'll see the text messages as it relates to the text that he sent, right, to the person he was romantically involved in, his brother's widow, Hallie. Are you kidding me? Did you throw it out? Why did you throw it in a dumpster? What are you doing? Go retrieve it.

And so there'll be a lot of compelling evidence. But I think the defense's play here maybe a couple of things. They could either contest the underlying issue as to the addiction itself, even though there's admissions as to that. Was it at the time that he purchased the gun?

Well, they could look for jury nullification in this case, saying, look, this is a guy who's been through a lot. What are we doing here? He possessed, as I noted, this gun for 11 days. How do we know? You know, he was going through a tough time. He lost his brother to brain cancer. Because of the brain cancer that his brother had, Beau, a rising star in Delaware, he was in a really dark place at the particular time.

He lost his mom and his sister when he was a young kid, what are we doing? The gun was never used in terms of any type of crime at all. Things have to make sense. And so if that's sympathetic to a jury, they could nullify. [07:25:07]

So it'll be interesting to me, Victor, to see what the play here, is it to confront the facts head on, or is it to garner sympathy, which would mitigate the charges? And even if they're proven, the jury says, hey, you know what? This doesn't make sense. Let's throw the case out. Let's see.

BLACKWELL: If you're defense attorney for Hunter Biden here, do you want someone on this jury or several people on this jury have experience with people who have been or are struggling with drug addiction because that could cut both ways? On one side, there is some sympathy for this man who has struggled. He's been transparent about it. He's been sober now for five years, he says.

On the other hand, you could know just how dangerous that weapon could be in the hands of a person who's dealing with that addiction. Where do you fall on that line of the profile of jury you want as it relates to that?

JACKSON: Yes, Victor, that's a great question. And here's my answer, while it can fall on both sides, obviously, there's nothing foolproof in life, right? Ultimately, you have to take the risk that you think in order to your benefit. And I think it's much more important to me to have someone who's sympathetic, who understands that someone who's in that place in their life.

And there are many people out there that, you know, you lose a measure of control. And yes, you can be dangerous with the weapon, but we're talking about the lead up to its purchase, the state of mind with respect to its purchase, what you were thinking at the time, what faculties you will control of at the time.

Did you have a grip on your life at the time? So someone who is sympathetic and empathetic to that, I think, to me, would outweigh someone who says, oh, they can be dangerous and therefore he's guilty. Again, that's where I fall. And if I was on that defense team, that's what I'd be speaking to. And certainly there'll be divergent opinions.

But I want someone who understands my plight to judge me. And that's why I think to your question, it's important to have people who understand the significance of an addiction.

BLACKWELL: Joey Jackson, always good to have your insight and perspective. Enjoy the Sunday. Thank you.

WALKER: The border will be a crucial issue heading into the November election. Now, President Biden is taking executive action. What could be the plan?

Also, a stormy Sunday is on tap for millions from Texas to Minnesota. Meteorologist Derek Van Dam is tracking it all next.

WIRE: And Caitlin Clark and her Indiana Fever getting their first home win, but not without some controversy. A blind side hit that has the sports world a buzz and her coach asking the league to do something about her star player repeatedly getting, quote, hammered by opponents. What both players had to say as well, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: The Biden administration is on the verge of taking an aggressive new step on border security. President Biden is expected to roll out sweeping border executive action as early as Tuesday.

Now, sources tell CNN the White House is already reaching out to mayors in cities along the U.S. southern border to potentially join the president when he announces the order. The action would be similar to the controversial order placed during the Trump administration and would limit migrants' ability to seek asylum.

Joining me now is Shelby Talcott, a reporter -- a political reporter for Semafor. Shelby, good to see you this morning. What are you hearing about what the Biden administration is telling these mayors? And do we expect some of the executive action policy to mirror some of the policies from that -- remember that bipartisan deal that was so close to passes before Trump told Republicans to kill it?

SHELBY TALCOTT, POLITICS REPORTER, SEMAFOR: Good morning. And yes, I think everything is a little bit up in the air. But what we do know is part of it is expected to, as you said, be reminiscent of that Trump era subject.

And really, they're trying to get a lot of mayors and Democratic lawmakers on board. They want them behind him when he does announce this, if he does give a sort of speech, if he does end up going to the border, although there are no plans for him to actually go to the border as of now. But they want momentum. They want people behind this, because the border has been such a tough topic for Democrats leading into this election. And it's a topic that people really care about, but it's one that Democrats have struggled to come to an agreement on how to handle it.

WALKER: Yes.

TALCOTT: And so, that's one of the big things that Biden is certainly talking to mayors and Democrats across the country, as he prepares to announce this executive order.

WALKER: What have you heard, Shelby, about what is being considered? What kind of border restrictions are being considered for this executive action?

TALCOTT: Well, I think again, the really big thing is something called a two and two F. It's attempted to clamp down between the ports of entry. So, these unlawful border crossings. But remember, we did have that bipartisan border bill that Republicans killed earlier this year.

And so, the Biden administration, while they are planning this executive order, are still trying to focus voters on the fact that Republicans killed that border bill to try to get them sort of on board with the administration when it comes to the border, which voters, by and large, have been unsatisfied with how the Biden administration has handled it.

WALKER: And do you -- back to the -- you know, the fact that the Democrats aren't exactly united around, you know, the restrictive border policy. Do the Democrats have messaging around immigration? Because, as you know, the Biden administration has gotten more conservative on border issues and, you know, like we saw in the last vote, you know, Democrats are divided over it?

TALCOTT: Yes, right now, the big thing that Democrats agree on messaging wise is trying to bring the topic back to Republicans and Donald Trump, and trying to bring the topic back to the fact that they did have a bipartisan border bill and Republicans and Donald Trump killed it.

[07:35:00]

Now, where they differ is how exactly to handle the issue of immigration. Do you talk about border security and legal ways to immigration, or do you focus more on pro-immigration policies? And so, that's really the big divide. And I do anticipate that when Joe Biden comes out with this executive order there is going to be backlash from members of his own party. And so, that's certainly something that the administration is thinking about as they prepare this.

WALKER: Will Democrats -- I mean, is that's part of the strategy to portray Trump and the Republicans as being responsible for any of the border chaos.

TALCOTT: Absolutely. And again, remember, Donald Trump was the person who said that this would be a -- this bipartisan border bill would be a political gift. He sort of urged Republicans not to vote for it. Republicans argued that it didn't go too far enough. But at the end of the day, there was a bipartisan border bill. And so, certainly Democrats are focused on saying, hey, we had something on the table and we weren't the ones to kill it. Republicans were. And so, that's absolutely something that they're trying to message heading into the election.

The problem is, I think a lot of voters, when I talked to them on the ground, are still concerned about the border and all they see is that there hasn't been results and that there hasn't results under the president, which is often what we see with issues generally, whether it's the president's fault whether it's not, right, things get blamed on the president.

WALKER: Yes. It's a very big issue heading into the election. Shelby Talcott, thank you so much.

BLACKWELL: Still to come, NASA scrubbed the launch of Boeing Starliner just minutes before it was scheduled to take off. Coming up, the next opportunity for takeoff.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:40:00]

BLACKWELL: Headlines now. Chad Daybell was sentenced to death Saturday just days after being convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy charges for killing his first wife and two children of his second wife. In addition to the death sentence, the judge also gave Daybell a 15-year prison sentence for insurance fraud.

A shooting in Southern Arizona left one police officer dead, another officer hurt and several other people injured. Now, the officers, they were responding to a disturbance call involving a big crowd yesterday when the shots were fired. The officer who was killed had been with the department for less than a year and was still field training.

NASA confirms that there will not be another attempt to launch Boeing Starliner flight today. The mission was aborted with fewer than four minutes left in its window for liftoff yesterday. NASA initially hoped to try to launch the Starliner again today, but says there was not enough time to fix the issue that led to the scrubbing. This was said to be the Boeing Starliner's first crewed flight. The next launch window is Wednesday.

Espionage has always played a vital role in Russia's relations with the West, from the Cold War to Russia's recent invasion of Ukraine. Now, the FBI and CIA are collecting valuable intel from Russian insiders who are furious over the ongoing bloodshed.

CNN's Josh Campbell takes a closer look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Amid Russia's brutal ongoing invasion of Ukraine, a rare opening for U.S. intelligence to recruit Russian insiders furious at the handling of the war.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Disaffection creates a once in a generation opportunity for us at CIA. We're very much open for business.

DAVID MCCLOSKEY, FORMER CIA OFFICER: That business is the exchange of information that the asset or agent would provide for something that they want. We want people who have some sense of what those leaders' priorities are, what they're trying to accomplish.

CAMPBELL (voice-over): The recruitment effort is far from a state secret. America's spy handlers have publicly taken to social media, releasing videos appealing to the patriotism of disaffected Russians.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This an absolutely brilliant ploy by the CIA.

CAMPBELL (voice-over): But while the technology is new, spying has underpinned and undermined U.S.-Russian relations for decades. That secret battle between intelligence services, now the focus of a new CNN-BBC documentary.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I spent 10 years as an illegal undercover agent for the KGB in the United States.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This the unseen story of the Cold War, fought not by politicians, but by secret agents.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was complete misunderstanding on either side.

CAMPBELL (voice-over): With interviews and never before heard audio from spies and the traitors who sealed their fate.

TIM NAFTALL, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Aldrich Ames put some of those names to death by sharing them with his KGB case officer.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN SENIOR GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Not only was the CIA and its intelligence sources in the Soviet Union completely compromised, he also was in a compromised position.

CAMPBELL (voice-over): For each side, espionage was used to gain strategic advantage. The ultimate cost of discovery, the highest form of punishment.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you do to officers who betray their own motherland? You execute them.

CAMPBELL (voice-over): In the new modern day shadow war, espionage remains a vital tool.

MCCLOSKEY: The backbone of our understanding about Putin, the people around him, the basis for all of that will be sources inside Russia.

[07:45:00]

CAMPBELL (voice-over): And the lessons of the Cold War could very well determine future global stability.

NAFTALL: You have to know your enemy. If you don't, you can scare your enemy into doing something that neither of you want to see happen.

CAMPBELL (voice-over): Josh Campbell, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: And tune in to the all-new CNN original series, "Secrets and Spies: A Nuclear Game" premiering tonight at 10:00 p.m. on CNN.

It is raining rats in South Florida. Don't worry, it's all part of a winning tradition by Florida Panthers hockey fans. Coy Wire will be here in a moment to explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:50:00]

BLACKWELL: Take a look at this rescue off the Florida Coast. The child and seven adults were found clinging to a cooler after their boat overturned near Boca Grande. The boat -- the Coast Guard got a distress call. They said the boat was sinking. Now, crews responded by helicopter, pulled all eight people from the water. Coast Guard officials say the boaters were carrying all of the right lifesaving equipment and wearing their life jackets, which likely saved their lives.

This morning, 35 million people facing severe storm threats in parts of the Central and Southern Plains.

WALKER: And some of those areas could see powerful winds, large hail, and even some tornadoes. Meteorologist Derek Van Dam is tracking it all for us. What do we need to know, Derek?

VAN DAM: Yes, Victor, Amara, we're showing you this two-day severe weather outlook because we may, and I say may with a big quotation around it, just get a break that we have been longing for for so many weeks. This a marginal risk for tomorrow.

Today, we still have an enhanced risk across portions of Kansas and Nebraska, but it has been over a month where meteorologists at the Storm Prediction Center and all the various offices across the U.S. have been dealing with this slight risk or greater. So, it has been an extremely active weather pattern with day after day of tornado threats and hail as well as severe weather threats.

Now, the radar fairly quiet at the moment, but I think by the time we get that sun to come up across the nation's central midsection will start to destabilize the atmosphere, fuel a few thunderstorms, and we're focusing our attention across the plain states today for our greatest risk of hail and damaging winds.

Look at this, risk for hail today, two inches in diameter or greater. That's a baseball falling from the sky possible across this area and that hatched region. That's where we could see winds in excess of 74 miles per hour. That is hurricane force. Put the season into perspective, we've already experienced nearly 1,100 tornadoes since the beginning of the year. We should be at about 788. So, we are eclipsing the averages year-to-date. Victor, Amara.

BLACKWELL: Florida Panthers are headed to the NHL Stanley Cup Final for the second straight season.

WALKER: Coy Wire is here with more. I mean, that's amazing to get to this point, twice in two seasons.

WIRE: Yes. Does Victor know what the number one top hot 100 billboard? Number one was in 2009. I don't. "Single Ladies" by Beyonce. And that was the last time we had a team advance to back-to- back Stanley Cup Finals. The Pittsburgh Penguins did it in '09.

Florida facing the New York Rangers in front of their home fans last night. Sam Bennett getting the cats on the bird board first in the first with that thunderous one timer from the circle. Rangers had the NHL's best regular season record. It didn't matter because Vladimir Tarasenko adding an insurance goal in the third and the Panthers fans throwing plastic rats onto the ice as time expires in a two to one win, continuing their long standing tradition dating back to the team's first Cup final appearance in '96.

The Panthers now face the winner of the Oilers Stars series with a chance to win the first title in team history.

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ALEKSANDER BARKOV, FLORIDA PANTHERS CAPTAIN: We all know the job is not finished, but still want to get that big prize and work really hard for it.

MATTHEW TKAHUCK, FLORIDA PANTERS FORWARD: It's special for us to be back in this position after such a tough loss last year. I just remember going around the locker room after losing a game five against Vegas, going around and telling everybody, you know, we'll be back. We'll be back. Well, we're back right now. So, we're really excited.

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WIRE: All right. Check this out, you all. Coach Paul Maurice telling his players don't touch the trophy. Last year, they touched the conference's Prince of Wales trophy, then lost the Stanley Cup final. It's all longstanding NHL tradition. You never touch a trophy until you hoist that Stanley Cup after winning it all.

All right. Real Madrid are champions of Europe for a record extending 15th time in club history after beating Borussia Dortmund two-nil in the Champions League final at Wembley Stadium in London. That's more than double Europe's second most successful team, AC Milan.

Real breaking through in the 74th minute with that header from Dani Carvajal off that corner kick. Then in the 83rd minute, watch Jude Bellingham assist Vini Junior to wrap up the match. Bellingham giving an emotional interview after the win.

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JUDE BELLINGHAM, REAL MADRID MIDFIELDER: I've always dreamed of playing in these games and, you know, you go through life and there's so many people who say you can't do things. And I was all right until I've seen my mom and dad's face there. And the amount of nights where they could be at home by 7:00 and they're doing trips at 11:00, 12:00 at night to take me to football, man. And my little brother there who I'm trying to be a role model for and things like that. Yes, I can't put it into words. It's best night of my life.

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WIRE: Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese facing off in the WNBA for the first time since March Madness when 20 some million people tuned in to see their college game. Clark finishing with 11 points, becoming the first rookie to score 150 with 50 rebounds and 50 assists in their first 10 games.

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Reese making history too, 13 rebounds, eight of them offensive, the most by a rookie in Chicago Sky history. But then controversy. Chennedy Carter making a shot and blindside blasting Clark afterwards. The two-time national player of the year tumbling to the floor, Reese and teammates celebrating it. But the Fever celebrating the end. It's their first home win, 71 to 70. Here's Clark on the controversial foul.

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CAITLIN CLARK, INDIANA FEVER GUARD: I wasn't expecting it, but I think it's just like, just respond, come down, let your play do the talking, it is what it is. It's a physical game. Go make the free throw and then execute on offense.

CHENNEDY CARTER, CHICAGO SKY GUARD: I ain't answering no Caitlin Clark questions. I don't know what she said.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What'd you say to her?

CARTER: I didn't say anything.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's enough.

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WIRE: Is it causing quite the stir on social media. A lot of folks saying that players are being too tough on Caitlin Clark. Now, they're saying, hey, she's a rookie. She's supposed to be that way. Getting it like that. So, we'll see if the coach gets some -- the League to step in and do something about it.

BLACKWELL: All right. Thank you, Coy.

WIRE: Yes.

BLACKWELL: Thank you for joining us this morning.

WALKER: "Inside Politics" is up next with Manu Raju.

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