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CNN This Morning

Trump Taps Loyalist Kash Patel To Lead FBI; Patel Faces Uphill Confirmation Battle To Lead FBI; Trump Picks Charles Kushner For Ambassador To France; Trump AG Pick Pam Bondi Heading To Capitol Hill; Nearly 2 Million Under Lake Effect Snow Alerts Through Tomorrow; Brutally Cold Temperatures Are Covering Half Of The U.S. As Snow Hits Great Lakes; Hamas Releases Video Of Israeli-American Hostage; Rally In Tel Aviv Calls For Action After Edan Alexander's Plea; Rebel Alliance Claims Control Of Aleppo Artillery, Military Academy; Biden Will Be The First Sitting U.S. President To Visit Angola; Biden To Discuss U.S. Investment In Africa On Trip. Thousand Protestors Take To The Streets In Georgia; Supreme Court To Hear Arguments In Transgender Rights Case; Texas Preparing To Assist With Trump's Border Plans; Tomorrow: Closing Arguments Expected In High-Profile NYC Fatal Subway Choking Trial; The Race To Find A New Home For Massive Butterfly Collection; One Man's Mission To Keep Pets Safe. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired December 01, 2024 - 06:00   ET

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

[06:00:38]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Look who is up early, and we're glad about it. Good morning. Welcome to CNN THIS MORNING. It is Sunday, December 1st.

We are in it now, the holiday season. Don't you feel it?

MJ LEE, CNN ANCHOR: I feel it. I feel it.

BLACKWELL: You feel it, don't you? Good morning. I'm Victor Blackwell.

LEE: I'm MJ Lee in for Amara Walker. Happy December. Here is what we are working on for you this morning.

A future FBI shakeup. President-elect Donald Trump taps longtime loyalist Kash Patel to lead the FBI. What this means for the future of the agency that Patel has referred to as the deep state coming up.

BLACKWELL: Several feet of snow and temperatures so cold they feel like a slap in the face. Meteorologist Allison Chinchar is tracking it all and how it could impact the trip home from Thanksgiving for millions of Americans.

LEE: And protesters pouring into the streets in Tel Aviv after Hamas releases a propaganda video showing an Israeli-American hostage begging American and Israeli leaders to bring him and the other captives home. We are live with the latest.

BLACKWELL: Twenty-six states, one critical argument before the Supreme Court. How the fight over gender affirming care for children and teens could shape the future of transgender rights in America. That's coming up this morning as well.

All right. Let's talk about this major staffing signal from President- elect Donald Trump, tapping loyalist Kash Patel to lead the FBI. And that would leave Christopher Wray out of a job with 10 years of -- rather, let me change that. Three years of his 10-year term left. If Patel is confirmed, Wray would either have to resign or be fired.

LEE: Patel first rose to prominence in Trump's orbit back in 2018. He was working as an aide to Congressman Devin Nunes at the time the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee. As an aide, Patel helped with Nunes' efforts to discredit the FBI's Russia investigation into Trump's campaign.

But what are his chances of an actual confirmation? CNN's Alayna Treene breaks it all down.

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: Well, Victor and MJ, Kash Patel has been a top defender of Donald Trump. He was his former deputy national security director, but he has also been a hardline critic of the FBI, and in the past has called for the firing of the FBI's leadership and also said he wants to purge the bureau of bias.

Now, both Donald Trump and Kash Patel have said that they wanted to hold the bureau accountable for what they argue were unjustifiable investigations and prosecutions against Donald Trump. Now, I do think that Trump's selection of Patel really speaks to Trump's desire to fill top law enforcement and intelligence positions with supporters who are open to carrying out his demands for specific investigations, and also potentially to fulfill Donald Trump's desire for retribution against those who he believes has wronged him.

And really, I think, to put this all into context, you know, Donald Trump has had a deep distrust of the FBI for several years now, really dating back to when the bureau in 2016 investigated him and his former campaign of alleged ties to Russia. It's something that Trump even talked about in his post Saturday evening. He said that Patel, quote, "played a pivotal role in uncovering the Russia, Russia, Russia hoax, standing as an advocate for truth, accountability and the Constitution."

And Trump's view of the FBI really only worsened in the years after that as well, especially when the bureau had raided his Mar-a-Lago home in August 2022 as part of their investigation into whether he mishandled -- mishandled classified documents. Now, I also want to be clear. In order for Donald Trump to install and to officially appoint Kash Patel as his new FBI director, he would first need to fire Christopher Wray, who is still serving out his 10-year term. Donald Trump had actually initially appointed Wray to the role in 2017, but in the years since their relationship has worsened.

Now, we did also get a statement from the FBI Saturday evening. They said, quote, "every day the men and women of the FBI continue to work to protect Americans from a growing array of threats. Director Wray's focus remains on the men and women of the FBI, the people we do the work with and the people we do the work for."

Now, I also just, you know, want to point out that Patel does face an uphill battle in his Senate confirmation process -- in his Senate confirmation process. He is someone who has made controversial comments in the past, but also there are questions of whether under Patel's leadership, that the FBI and the Department of Justice more broadly would continue to operate as an independent agency from Donald Trump.

[06:05:05]

We know that Donald Trump over the campaign, over the course of his 2024 campaign, had said that he believes he wants to put the FBI under more -- more under his own control and have it operate as less of an independent arm. So, all of that to be worked out and sure to come up in some of those conversations with Senate Republicans on Capitol Hill. Victor, MJ.

LEE: All right. Joining us now for some analysis is CNN political commentator and anchor for "Spectrum News," Errol Louis. Errol, it is great to see you. I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

I do want to start with the Kash Patel news that Alayna was talking about there. You know, even if this was the name that was widely expected, I do think we should take a beat to underscore just how unusual this is.

You know, the current FBI director, Christopher Wray, still has 10 -- three years left in his 10-year term. So, Trump is basically telling Wray to resign or else you're fired. And, Errol, separately, I do think this has to be pretty jarring for many of the folks who currently work at the FBI given Patel's views about the agency.

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good morning, MJ. That's exactly right. We have a system in which you require not just Senate confirmation but the FBI director serves a 10-year term. That's for a reason. So that it really goes beyond any one presidential term. And really any -- beyond any one president, since it goes for more than eight years.

And so, the idea is that it's supposed to be independent. We now have a president-elect who is determined to undermine that. He clearly has made no secret that he wants an FBI director that's loyal to him personally, who will carry out personal vendettas on behalf of a president which is a power that the FBI has scrupulously tried to avoid in the post-Watergate generation. So, that's what were in for.

This is what Donald Trump promised. This is him delivering on one of those promises. It will be up to the Senate, of course, to decide whether or not they're going to go along with that.

LEE: Yes, this is going to be a fascinating space to watch. The other headline coming out of Trump transition HQ in Mar-a-Lago was Trump choosing Charles Kushner as his ambassador to France, one of the most coveted positions as far as ambassadorships go. And definitely not the first time that Trump has had the back of his son-in-law's father. Talk to us about this decision.

LOUIS: Well, yes, I had to go back over my notes and look at this to make sure that I wasn't -- I didn't imagine something out of Hollywood. Charles Kushner was a real estate developer who basically -- who hired a prostitute and framed up his brother and had the whole thing filmed so that he could sort of blackmail the brother, his brother-in-law. And this is -- this is -- you know, this is what happened.

He was convicted of witness tampering. He served time in federal prison, and he was pardoned by Donald Trump, who now, I believe, is you know basically trolling the political and diplomatic establishment by giving this highly coveted position, this assignment to Charles Kushner.

I mean, there's no other way to put it. I can imagine the kind of fun that the French press and the French leadership will have with this. This is not somebody who's going to walk into an easy situation, but that's the kind of mood, I think, that Donald Trump is in as president-elect.

He's settling a lot of old scores, in this case against Chris Christie, who at the time was the U.S. attorney who prosecuted Charles Kushner. And Chris Christie, of course, was summarily expelled from Trump circles and indeed ended up running against him and working against him politically. I'm sure he would have loved to have been considered for the job, but instead, the person he sent to federal prison is going to apparently be on his way to Paris.

LEE: Yes, I think settling scores is exactly right. Meanwhile, Congress is coming back this week, and House Speaker Mike Johnson, as you know, has said that he wants to get things done as quickly as possible. And he is going to have a really narrow majority to navigate. But I do think clearly, you know, this time around Washington is going to be very different than the Washington of 2017 when Trump first took office. How are you expecting Republicans to exercise their power this time around?

LOUIS: They're going to have to really be a lot more disciplined than what we saw in the last congress. Meaning they're going to all have to pull together. They have no room for error. None whatsoever.

If things end up in a tie, by the way, of a measure will fail. So, he actually needs a couple of votes beyond the majority that they barely have squeezed out. And, you know, that means nobody can be sick.

People have to make it to Congress on any given day. They have to all vote together. There's no room for defections. Mike Johnson is going to have his hands full, including with his own vote to maintain the speakership.

[06:10:05]

LEE: And just really quickly, Errol, one person who is going to be on the hill this week is Pam Bondi. Trump's new pick, of course, to be his A.G. Do you think this confirmation process is going to be basically smooth -- smooth sailing, no serious red flags or anything?

LOUIS: She has a much better chance of being confirmed than Matt Gaetz. Matt Gaetz was utterly unqualified. Senators let the president- elect's team know that he never would have gotten the votes and never should have been nominated.

Pam Bondi is a different kettle of fish. She's very loyal to Donald Trump and -- but she has actually been a practicing attorney. She has actually served in government, in positions of responsibility. And so, for that reason alone, I think, she ends up maybe getting through the nomination process.

LEE: All right. Errol Louis, thank you so much.

BLACKWELL: Almost 2 million people are under lake effect snow alerts through tomorrow. And of course, that could mean dangerous driving conditions for a lot of people heading home after Thanksgiving.

Look at this. This is northern New York. Entire communities are digging out from massive snowfall. Here's CNN correspondent Polo Sandoval.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Record setting snowfall is complicating the post-Thanksgiving ride home for travelers in the Great Lakes region.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This could be a 24 to 35-inch snow for sure.

SANDOVAL (voice-over): Daily snowfall totals have paralyzed stretches of the highly trafficked I-90 corridor this holiday weekend.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a car underneath that. Yes.

SANDOVAL (voice-over): Here in Erie, Pennsylvania, nearly 23 inches fell on Friday alone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yesterday, I shoveled for four hours.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Wow.

SANDOVAL (voice-over): Shattering a 1979 record, burying cars and interrupting flight operations at Erie International. In Michigan's upper peninsula, over two feet of snow fell on Friday, eclipsing a daily record set in 1942. And the list of cities impacted by the locally heavy lake effect snow goes on.

In Buffalo, New York, Bills fans are once again being hired as shovelers to clear out the stadium ahead of a snowy Sunday night game against San Francisco. And there's more to come, warn meteorologists, with nearly 2 million people still under lake effect snow warnings come Monday.

Then there's the cold. Some of the chilliest temperatures since last winter, which are expected to linger into the week ahead. They've been felt as far south as Florida, where many residents endured freeze warnings this weekend. Some are making the best of these snowy scenes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): Oh, the weather outside is frightful, and the fire is so delightful.

SANDOVAL (voice-over): But they may also be foretelling a wicked winter ahead. Polo Sandoval, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: All right. Now, as we move toward the workweek for so many there is more snow forecast through Monday with an extra two feet that could fall in and around that Great Lakes region.

LEE: Let's turn to CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar. Allison, it's not just the snow, it sounds like. We are talking about some very chilly temperatures all across the U.S.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right. And I think the one thing people need to understand is it's going to get worse before it actually gets better. So, even though it feels like its cold out right now, understand that those temperatures are actually going to drop a little bit more. And yes, that's going to play into the fact of why we're having so much snow out there.

You take a look at some of the snow that's already fallen. It's incredibly high amounts of snow and it's still coming down. That's the thing to understand. Weve got snow in the forecast today and even for many spots through the first half of the day tomorrow. You look at the map behind me, again, you've got all of those snow showers coming down across the Great Lakes.

But you also have that system a little bit farther south, totally separate, by the way, brought record snowfall to Saint Louis yesterday. Now sliding into portions of Kentucky, Tennessee and into West Virginia. But the highest snowfall totals are still going to be around the Great Lakes region. Especially Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, where, yes, one to two feet of additional snowfall is still possible, which is mind boggling when you think about how much snow has already fallen.

One to two feet alone is enough to cause travel problems. But when you're adding one to two feet onto three to four feet that has already come down that's why you have so many of these roads that are closed or almost impossible to travel on.

Look at this, Barnes Corners, New York, almost four feet of snow has already come down. Areas of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan all looking at two to three feet already on the ground and now were going to continue to add more.

Here's the thing about lake effect, though, because it's going to come with the wind shift so you may have some areas that get it really bad for six to eight hours. Then it changes to different communities as we go later into the evening or early into tomorrow morning. So, you may get breaks throughout the day, but it doesn't necessarily mean that it's all done. Here's the interesting thing though. The Buffalo Bills game tonight at home, they already have 16 inches of snow in Orchard Park where that stadium is located. They're going to get a lot more as we go through the day today, and even some during the game itself tonight.

[06:15:01]

The temperatures, though, we talked about that. That's more of the widespread concern. Look at some of these temperatures. Current right now in Minneapolis, seven degrees. But you factor in that wind, it feels like minus eight outside right now.

But the thing is it's not just limited to northern states. Look at all of these freeze alerts that go all the way down to the Gulf Coast. Mobile, Pensacola, Tallahassee, even Panama City all under those freeze alerts to show you how far south that cold air goes, and also the fact that it's going to be here for a very long time.

Look at a southern city like Atlanta, 55 today. You're looking at a high of only 43 on Tuesday. But also look at all of those mornings over the next week where the low temperature is going to be in the 20s. You get into some of those Atlanta suburbs, the teens not out of the question. And even New York they will spend every single one of the next seven days below where they normally would be to start off December.

BLACKWELL: Good news, Chinchar is what they call you. I mean, just bringing all the good news, freezing temperatures, snow bright spot of the morning. Thank you so much.

All right. President Biden is preparing for what could very well be the final international trip of his presidency. Coming up, why the president is heading to Angola.

LEE: Plus, there are renewed calls for a hostage release deal after Hamas released a propaganda video showing Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander alive. And the Supreme Court is set to hear a potentially explosive transgender care case this week. Why it's dividing conservatives and what it could mean for parental rights in the U.S.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:21:17]

LEE: This morning, the mother of an Israeli American hostage is in despair after a video was released showing her son begging for a ceasefire deal. We want to warn you that the video you're about to see is disturbing.

The Hamas propaganda video here shows Edan Alexander pleading with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President-elect Donald Trump to not forget him and to do everything they can to free the remaining hostages in Gaza. CNN's Nada Bashir has been following this story closely. Nada, tell us more about this video and how it has been received. NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this has certainly sparked concern, of course, and much fear, of course for Edan Alexander's family. We've been hearing from the White House who have said that officials in the U.S. have been in touch with Edan Alexander's family, that the U.S. will continue to push for an immediate release of the hostages still held captive in Gaza.

But as you mentioned, we've heard from Edan Alexander's mother as well who spoke at hostage square in Tel Aviv in front of thousands, saying that she was shaken by the video. But also said that she had been assured by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the conditions right now are ripe for a hostage release and ceasefire deal.

And, of course, Prime Minister Netanyahu has faced mounting pressure both at home in Israel and more broadly across the globe to push and secure a cease fire agreement that would not only secure the release of hostages but, of course, for many secure an end to the war in Gaza as well. So mounting pressure there.

And, of course, the fear right now for many is that we've seen over 400 days of war now in Gaza. This video, of course, has struck the family members of Edan Alexander, but also representatives and family members of other hostages still held captive in Gaza, who continue to push for a ceasefire deal.

And of course, this comes as the situation in Gaza for civilians there also continues to deteriorate. We've just been hearing about the situation in northern Gaza. More than 200 killed in an Israeli airstrike on Saturday. There weather conditions, the winter months, of course, very difficult for civilians who are already facing a deteriorating humanitarian situation.

But hopes for a ceasefire have been faltered. Of course, time and time again there had been some suggestion that perhaps the ceasefire struck between Hezbollah and Israel may allow for conditions to push forward with negotiations between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Whether that is the case that remains to be seen.

We've heard previous conditions put forward by the Israeli government deemed nonstarters by officials in the U.S. And, of course, Netanyahu continues to face pressure from more right-wing elements of his cabinet not to secure a ceasefire.

LEE: Yes, just an unbelievable nightmare for all of the hostage families there. Nada, let's shift our focus to Syria. Syrian rebels recently took control of most of Aleppo City. Give us an update on the current situation there on the ground and how the residents are being affected.

BASHIR: That's right. It appears as though rebel forces in northern Syria have consolidated or are consolidating their control over Aleppo, Syria's second largest city. This came as really a surprise offensive by rebel forces earlier in the week, with little resistance it appears by the Syrian armed forces. And we've been hearing today on the ground from people on the ground in northern Syria and around Aleppo and Idlib. It appears as though rebel forces have now also taken control of a military academy.

Again, residents nearby saying that essentially the Syrian armed forces present there surrendered with little fight as well. But what we are also beginning to see and have seen over the last couple of days is the Syrian air force, as well as the Russian air force, targeting parts of Aleppo and Idlib with airstrikes.

[06:25:02]

We've been hearing from journalists and activists on the ground who have reported at least 10 airstrikes since Wednesday by the Russian air force alone. So, real concern over what the response will be by the Syrian armed forces which has long had backing from the Kremlin, from Russia with regards to its military operations in the north.

So, real concern there as to what this could spark. But also, what appears to be developing on the ground is what could be essentially a domino effect that we may well see the rebel forces in northern Syria pushing further beyond Aleppo, if indeed they are successful there, perhaps focusing further south on Hama and even beyond so that continues to be the question there.

But of course, there has been a lot of diplomatic focus on the situation in Syria as well. The White House said it is closely monitoring the situation. We've been hearing from the Iranian foreign ministry. Iran, again, a key backer of President Bashar al-Assad's regime. They have said that they've been in touch with counterparts in both Turkey and in Russia, and focused on what coordination efforts can be done there to secure some sort of de-escalation as well.

LEE: All right. Nada Bashir, thank you for that reporting.

BLACKWELL: Today, President Biden is leaving the U.S. for his first trip ever to Angola. That's in southwestern Africa. CNN's Sunlen Serfaty explains what he plans to accomplish on this historic trip.

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: MJ and Victor, this is going to be a landmark trip. The first time a sitting U.S. president has visited Angola and makes good on a promise Biden made that he would visit Africa before he leaves office.

This is also, notably, a very long-awaited trip. It was originally scheduled back in October, but Biden had to postpone to deal with two hurricanes here in the U.S. Biden, while there, will be meeting with the Angola president. He'll also meet with members of civil society and deliver remarks that, according to a senior administration official, will lay out the country's shared history and highlight the growth in strength of the relationship.

Biden will also be talking a lot on this trip, according to the same administration official, about U.S. investment in African infrastructure, specifically the rail corridor project that would start in Angola that the U.S. is in support of. Now, White House officials suggesting that this is the type of initiative that one that they hope will last in the upcoming Trump administration. And that reality of this moment for Biden is what is going to be important. It is going to be hanging over this trip that the president is visiting, as he's also preparing to be departing the White House in just two months. White House officials will not say whether this could be Biden's last trip abroad as president. MJ and Victor.

BLACKWELL: All right. Sunlen, thank you. President-elect Trump is laying out his plans for the border with Mexico. How Texas could provide a blueprint for his border policies.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:32:13]

MJ LEE, CNN ANCHOR: Taking a look at this morning's headlines. More than 100 people were arrested during the third night of protests in the country of Georgia.

The country has been rocked by demonstrations since Thursday. The ruling Georgian Dream Party, which claimed victory in last month's election that observers said was fraudulent, announced it would suspend talks to join the European Union until 2028.

The Supreme Court set to hear arguments Wednesday in what could be a pivotal case for transgender health care across the country.

The Biden administration challenging a Tennessee law banning puberty blockers and hormone treatments for minors. Twenty-five other Republican-led states have the same bans. The law also imposes civil penalties on any doctors who give such treatments.

The controversial law has even divided some conservatives who worry it bypasses parental rights to make decisions for their children.

Donald Trump's pick for attorney general, Pam Bondi, is set to head to Capitol Hill on Monday. The longtime Trump ally is hoping to shore up support with key Republicans to make for a smooth confirmation process.

She is expected to meet with Senator Chuck Grassley, who is poised to become the new chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. In his first comments after her nomination, Grassley called Bondi well-regarded and experienced.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: We have new details on what President- elect Trump's plans for the southern border will look like. The state of Texas is already preparing to help enact his immigration overhaul.

CNN's Rafael Romo has the story. Rafael.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on-camera): Victor and MJ, the man chosen by President-elect Trump to secure the U.S. borders, urged officials across the country to cooperate with the new administration to enforce immigration law. Former Acting ICE Director Tom Homan, who Trump has chosen as his border czar, said on Fox News that he wants so-called sanctuary cities to give immigration authorities access to their facilities.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM HOMAN, FMR ACTING ICE DIRECTOR: The sanctuary cities have locked us out of the jails and the law enforcement isn't allowed to work with us.

Give me access to the bad guy that you locked in a jail cell, because you obviously locked him in a jail cell because he's a public safety threat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO (on-camera): And it appears Homan will get plenty of cooperation in Texas. The state's Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham in the last few days spoke about an effort that will be, in her words, the largest deportation of violent criminals in the history of the United States.

Texas is offering a 1,400-acre property at the border to the incoming Trump administration to use for the processing, detention and coordination efforts to expedite the deportations. Commissioner Buckingham made the announcement in Rio Grande City, Texas, with heavy machinery and construction workers in the background at a site where Texas is building a new section of border wall.

Texas launched Operation Lone Star in 2021, which included, among other things, transporting migrants on buses to Democratic-led cities, blocking portions of the border to federal agents, setting up buoys in the Rio Grande to deter migrants from crossing the river and signing a bill that would give state law enforcement authority to detain migrants.

[06:35:14]

The Texas Land Commissioner says this is also about helping local law enforcement.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAWN BUCKINGHAM, TEXAS LAND COMMISSIONER: A facility here will be the final stop for processing before these violent criminals are deported. This will reduce the burden on our local jails and keep our Texas children safer.

President Trump and Mr. Homan, I meant it when I said that I will do everything in my power to help this administration.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO (on-camera): Meanwhile, in Mexico City, President Claudia Sheinbaum is denying her country is willing to close her country's border with the United States, as President-elect Trump recently claimed.

In her own statement after a phone call with Trump, Sheinbaum said, Mexico has a comprehensive strategy to address migration while respecting human rights.

Victor and MJ?

LEE: Closing arguments set to begin tomorrow in the trial of a former Marine who used a fatal chokehold on a man riding the New York subway.

Coming up, how forensics could be the key to Daniel Penny's defense.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:40:53]

BLACKWELL: Closing arguments are expected tomorrow in the high-profile case of Daniel Penny. Penny allegedly put Jordan Neely in a fatal six- minute-long chokehold after Neely boarded the subway and began shouting at passengers in New York.

According to Penny's statements to detectives, he tried to restrain Neely until police arrived and did not intend to cause harm. Penny faces charges of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide.

Joining me now is criminal defense attorney, Misty Marris.

Misty, good morning to you.

So, let's start here because prosecutors in this case are not trying to prove premeditation. They're not trying to prove intent. They're trying to prove that Daniel Penny went too far, violating laws and human decency.

It's a lower bar. Is it necessarily an easier case to prove?

MISTY MARRIS, TRIAL ATTORNEY: Yes, good morning, Victor. You nailed it. So, it's not necessarily an easier case.

Prosecutors are clear. There's no proving intent. No one is saying that Daniel Penny intended to kill Jordan Neely. But the legal standard is recklessness. That's what is the manslaughter charge, a reckless disregard for human life.

So, the prosecutor's case is that Daniel Penny taking Jordan Neely down initially is justified. However, he held him down too long. And during that time period, Daniel Penny should have known and actually ignored a risk that Jordan Neely would and ultimately did -- ultimately caused his death.

So, it's still a difficult case to prove, but the legal standard is much different than an intentional standard.

BLACKWELL: Penny chose not to testify. You think that's the right call?

MARRIS: Well, that was a complicated one because a lot of people were predicting that he -- that he would because it's a self-defense case. So, in a self-defense case, it's important for the jury to understand whether there was, here are the elements, an imminent threat, was the action justified? Was it proportionate to the risk? And hearing that from the defendant, from Daniel Penny, and specifically explaining why he held Jordan Neely down for that six-minute period of time is pretty critical to the defense.

That being said, putting the defendant on the stand is always incredibly risky. So presumably, his defense attorneys weighed that risk. And also, Daniel Penny was on body cam footage. He also had a police interrogation video.

So, the jury was actually able to hear from him without putting him on the stand. So strategically, the defense attorneys decided that that risk outweighed any potential benefit that they could get from putting him up on the stand.

BLACKWELL: Let's talk more about some of the testimony we heard. We heard from a forensic pathologist paid by the defense to challenge the medical examiner's conclusion that this was a choke-hold death. Instead, that forensic pathologist said that this was the combination of a sickle cell trait, schizophrenia, K2 intoxication, that's like a synthetic marijuana, and the struggle and restraint by Penny.

How important is the distinction? Because still, even in the defense's equation, the resistance to Penny and the struggle on the train contributed to his death.

MARRIS: Yes, so this is the issue for the defense. They're trying to break causation, meaning that if the jury were to determine that Daniel Penny's actions did not cause Jordan Neely's death, that it would cut off any criminal culpability that could exist. And that's why we heard from the defense expert.

But to your point, that combination of factors, what's going to really matter when it comes down to it is what the jury instructions say. The defense is likely to argue that the jury instructions should say that if Daniel Penny's actions, that choke-hold, was not a substantial factor, or the only factor in Jordan Neely's death, then you cannot find him criminally culpable. However, the prosecutors are going to say even that combination could still result in a causal connection, and you can convict Daniel Penny.

[06:45:01]

That's going to be a battle royale between prosecutors and defendants, what ultimately ends up on that jury verdict sheet. But the defense argument goes a bit further. They also say that Daniel Penny did not exert enough force or pressure to -- to actually cause Jordan Neely's death.

So, a couple of different causation arguments at play.

BLACKWELL: Let's talk about the jury, because this is a jury of local people who very likely ride the train, right? It is the most democratizing element of the city is that everybody rides the train.

So in 2023, crime on the train was high profile, although exceedingly rare. How much in these closing arguments that start tomorrow do you expect that these attorneys will play into that setting the scene of potential danger on the train and what Neely was attempting to prevent?

MARRIS: Yes, it is going to be a huge part of the defense narrative. And I'm a New Yorker myself. So many New Yorkers, everybody takes the subway. And many of those individuals on the jury had said in voir dire that they take the subway regularly and have even had negative experiences in doing so.

That being said, that focus for the defense is going to be that Daniel Penny's actions were justified because there was an imminent threat to himself, but also to others. But prosecutors are going to refute that with the argument that we spoke about before, that it wasn't necessarily initially restraining Neely. It was about how long he was held down.

BLACKWELL: Misty Marris, always helping us understand these cases. We'll be watching the closing arguments starting tomorrow. Thank you.

LEE: A butterfly collection large enough to fill two cargo jets. But the four million African butterflies now need a new home. By that search is a race against time.

And Trump loyalist Kash Patel has been tapped to replace the current FBI director.

Coming up, we speak with former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe about the implications for that agency.

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[06:51:28]

BLACKWELL: Somebody's trying to find a home for more than 4 million butterflies. Collective Steve Collins has what is likely the world's largest collection of African butterflies.

LEE: Collins is now in his 70s and on the hunt to find a new worthy home for his prize collection.

CNN's Larry Madowo has the story.

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STEVE COLLINS, BIOLOGIST: There is a leaf, and here are the caterpillars living underneath the leaf. We haven't brought them in, they've come in of their own accord.

LARRY MADOWO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Steve Collins has devoted his life to butterflies. His garden in Nairobi is a sanctuary for the insects.

COLLINS: Every day we empty these, and they come in and we see, we record who's there.

MADOWO (voice-over): He traps, documents, and then releases butterflies here every day.

COLLINS: Oh puppy, I'm going to bring this one out because it's beautiful.

MADOWO: OK. Oh, my goodness.

COLLINS: This is the white-banded emperor. There she is with her tongue feeding on my finger.

MADOWO (voice-over): But it is Collins' collection of preserved butterflies which is most remarkable.

MADOWO: This is massive.

COLLINS: Yes. It's the biggest collection of African butterflies in the world.

MADOWO (voice-over): In total, Collins has over 4 million specimens from across Africa, including 1.2 million penned in cases like these.

MADOWO: This is a very expensive hobby.

MADOWO (voice-over): Now in his 70s and running out of space and money to maintain the collection, he is trying to find it a new home.

MADOWO: What do you want to do with this entire collection?

COLLINS: Ultimately it needs to be available for scientists.

MADOWO: This is probably the world's largest private collection of butterflies. It's several decades worth of work across Africa. So, who would pay for something like this? And how much would it even cost? It's not that simple.

MADOWO (voice-over): Collins is hoping a wealthy philanthropist might step in. But he has so far struggled to find a buyer, in part because he wants to keep it as a whole.

COLLINS: It would be a pity to break this up when it's such an entity and it's 30 or 40 people's life's work. And it needs to be tied to a university rather than a museum.

MADOWO (voice-over): Back outside, I get a glimpse into how much work has gone into each and every one of these specimens.

Yes! Nailed it.

COLLINS: Well, done.

MADOWO: I'm becoming good at this.

This is a - this is a beautiful one.

EDGAR EMOJONG, STEVE COLLINS' ASSISTANT: Yes, it's beautiful.

MADOWO: How do I hold it? Do I just?

EMOJONG: You can just hold it like this or (INAUDIBLE).

MADOWO (voice-over): Collins' assistant, Edgar Emojong, walks me through the penning process.

MADOWO: So, you're killing the butterfly right now?

EMOJONG: Yes, now. (INAUDIBLE).

MADOWO: Oh, that was fast. It's clearly painstaking work. So, you have to be gentle not to break the wing.

EMOJONG: Yes.

MADOWO (voice-over): Collins thinks his most valuable butterfly is worth $8,000.

MADOWO: Where is it?

COLLINS: I won't show you because, you know what? Of course, if somebody says, oh, that's worth $8,000, it disappears.

MADOWO (voice-over): He still maintains he's just an enthusiastic hobbyist, despite the fact he's written eight books and publishes scientific papers once a month.

MADOWO: This looks like a full-time gig.

COLLINS: Well, it's -- it's got out of hand.

You could say it's an obsession.

MADOWO (voice-over): The future of this vast trove for scientific research hangs in the balance. Without a buyer, it could all go to waste.

Larry Madowo, CNN, Nairobi.

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LEE: This morning, we are introducing you to one of this year's top five CNN Heroes. Every year, nearly one million shelter animals in the U.S. are euthanized.

BLACKWELL: A lot of them are pets whose owners could not find temporary care when they needed it. Stephen Knight is now drawing on his own personal experience to change that.

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STEPHEN KNIGHT, FOUNDING EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, DOGS MATTER: When somebody makes that decision to go into treatment, is where the bravest decisions we'll make.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll see you soon, OK?

KNIGHT: When people needed to go to rehab, and they don't have a place for a dog, what we'll find out is how big of a need it is. We provide free temporary fostering services for people that are ready to change their life.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dice (ph), she has the same (INAUDIBLE) so long. Hi!

KNIGHT: And it becomes their motivator. Just stay healthy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, that face.

KNIGHT: When we find a foster, we will do a temporary foster contract. You're saving that dog's life and the owners life. And we're able to prevent a dog going to shelter.

We cannot have the solution on these nice dogs. We can't. I want to be the voice of the dog and to help them, because they don't have that voice.

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BLACKWELL: You can go to CNNHeroes.com right now to vote for Stephen or any of our heroes for CNN Hero of the Year. You get 10 votes per day each day through December 3rd to help the ones who inspire you the most.

Another hour of "CNN This Morning Weekend" starts at the top of the hour.

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