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CNN This Morning
Trump: "Highly Partisan Appeals Court" Incorrectly Ruled On Tariffs; Trump Administration Plans To Send Hundreds Of Guatemalan Children In United States Custody Back Home; Minneapolis Mayor: Let Cities Take Action On Reducing Gun Violence; Cracker Barrel Says It "Could Have Done A Better Job" With Controversial New Logo That Dropped Its Stock; CNN Speaks To Bookie Linked To Scandal That Stole Millions From MLB Player Shohei Ohtani. Aired 7-8a ET
Aired August 30, 2025 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[07:00:03]
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to your weekend, and welcome to CNN THIS MORNING. I'm Victor Blackwell.
A new ruling finds President Trump's tariffs are unlawful. Why a federal appeals court says the president overstepped his authority, and what this means for his sweeping tariffs.
Hurricane Katrina, 20 years later, how music is helping the community heal from the devastation all these years later?
Also, Cracker Barrel is making more changes, quietly removing DEI and pride pages from its web site. Plus, the company's 93-year-old co- founder is now reacting to the attempted rebrand.
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: And Victor, doesn't know this yet, but I am stealing him for some burgers and brews, a full-day of college football in week one, but it started last night. How did Deion Sanders do in his first time out running in the field post cancer treatment? That and more coming up in "SPORTS".
BLACKWELL: Beef and alcohol, don't tease me with a good time. But the Trump administration is already promising to appeal a court's decision on a wide range of his tariffs. The Court ruled that many of the president's tariffs were imposed illegally.
Now, the Judges noted that imposing taxes and tariffs that's a core congressional power meant for the legislative branch, not the executive branch. But the tariffs, they will stay in place for now, because the court delayed implementation of its order until October.
This is to give the administration time to appeal. Joining me now, CNN's Camila DeChalus.
So, what's the administration saying about this, Camila?
CAMILA DECHALUS, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Victor, this is a major blow to the Trump administration, and the White House, and the president himself is making it very clear that they are going to fight this. That they are going to immediately appeal this decision.
He took to social media, to Truth Social and he's made it very clear, making it saying that the tariffs are, in fact, in place. But he says that the Supreme Court is really detrimental, that this is going to do more harm than good, and that the tariffs that he imposed will ultimately help the nation, help this country, and really serve his broader plan to boost the economy.
Now, we have seen time and time again that this Trump administration has used the implementation of these tariffs to really forge relationships with other nations and even kind of stronghold his adversaries, in the fact that he has really used these tariffs to kind of leverage these relationships and even broker deals.
And so, the fact that the federal court -- the federal appeals court really made this decision to say these tariffs can remain in place, but we are going to question the legitimacy of this and, in fact, give it back to the lower courts so they can ultimately make this decision, is really a blow to the Trump administration that has used these tariffs to wield more power and put them in a position to broker deals in this administration.
So, Victor, what we are going to see in the months ahead is really the following appeals. We seen the attorney general also take to social media, saying that what Trump did was constitutional and was within his right, and that they are going to file this appeal immediately.
BLACKWELL: Yes. And as you said, likely headed straight to the Supreme Court. Camila DeChalus, thank you so much.
This morning, we are learning from multiple sources that the Trump administration is planning to send hundreds of Guatemalan children in the U.S. -- in the custody of the U.S., back to their home country.
Now, these are children who arrived alone at the southern border and are waiting to be placed with relatives or guardians here in the U.S., but instead, they'd be returned to Guatemala.
CNN's Priscilla Alvarez has this exclusive.
PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Victor, the Trump administration has been fixated on unaccompanied migrant children in the United States, whether they are residing with family in the U.S. or they are in U.S. government custody.
But this latest move, according to the sources I've spoken with, is unprecedented. Now, again, the children that we are talking about here are those who arrived without a parent or legal guardian, typically at the U.S. southern border.
They are then put in the custody of the Health and Human Services Department, and while they are in care, officials work to place them with U.S.-based family members, and then, as they do that, these children go through their immigration proceedings to see if they are afforded protections in the United States. However, what this program appears to be doing is plucking these kids out of government custody and sending them back to their country of origin in a program where the U.S. has been working in coordination with the Guatemalan government.
Now, the reason that this is causing alarm among advocates is because it suggests that these children may not be able to get through their entire immigration process. Therefore, it's unclear whether they would have had or would have been afforded protections in the United States, given some of the conditions that they are fleeing.
Advocates who work with these children sometimes say that while there may be family and a parent in their country of origin, they might have been fleeing a situation in that home. They may have otherwise been or their parents may have believed that they couldn't protect them from a situation back at home.
[07:05:03]
So, it's no guarantee that this is something that would benefit a child.
Now, there are cases as well where children do choose to voluntarily leave the United States. But even in those cases, there are immigration judges involved to ask the children if they understand what they are doing, to ascertain whether they would be going back to any type of danger.
Now, we asked the Trump administration for comment, and have not received one in return, but this is yet another in a series of moves by the administration targeting this population. And one, a move in this case, where advocates say it could do more harm than good. Victor?
BLACKWELL: All right. Priscilla Alvarez, thank you so much.
Florida may be out more than $200 million, after a federal judge ordered the shutdown of this massive immigration detention center in the Everglades. You've heard of it. It's known as Alligator Alcatraz. It cost the state hundreds of millions to build and operate, but soon it could sit empty.
The judge ruled that Florida failed to follow environmental laws when converting the remote airport into a lock up. And the Department of Homeland Security says detainees are being moved to other facilities as the legal challenges play out.
You know it. It's Labor Day weekend. Everybody is hoping for pleasant weekend, maybe get out and barbecue. We got the latest reporting on what weather you can expect to see over your holiday.
With me now, meteorologist Chris Warren. I'm looking over your shoulder, so, it's like a mixed bowl, but better than it could be. Yes.
(CROSSTALK) CHRIS WARREN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Then, it could be this time of year, during hurricane season, and is hot as it could be. But I tell you what, this is one of those weekends. Grab your bean bags. Grab that bag of ice. We are talking prime time tailgate weather for a lot of people.
BLACKWELL: Yes, yes.
WARREN: Little taste of fall. Now, you see some green on the map. This is where there is going to be some showers. Typically, showers don't last all day, kind of like you don't spend all day in the showers. The showers kind of come and go.
However, where the showers do happen, there could be some flooding, that cold front moving through the northeast, cooling things down.
So, temperatures right now, it is 44 in Buffalo, 57 in New York. It's 60s and 70s in the southeast right now. By this afternoon, things are going to be warming up. Highs into the lower 80s from Raleigh to Atlanta, and the cooler than normal.
So, cooler than average, and here we are. The, you know, tail end of summer. It typically is pretty warm, so a little bit cooler than average. It's still warm, but not that crazy heat that we can see here across parts of the south this time of year.
So, normally, in the upper 80s to around 90 degrees in Atlanta, you're going to be in the mid to lower 80s this holiday weekend. Throughout parts of the Northeast, some green on the map shows us some cooler temperatures, with many areas in the 70s.
Now, the chances where there could be some of the heavier showers leading to possibly some localized flooding is going to be these areas here. This is the excessive rainfall threat. Areas in yellow, a little bit more likely. This is from, you know, a day when there is no chance. So, just a little bit better chance here for some flights.
Something to keep an eye on. But overall, these temperatures, Victor, pretty nice.
BLACKWELL: I feel like we have to explain, grab your bean bag. Because if you -- if you didn't hear the conversation earlier, that makes sense.
So, I just bought my first cornhole set.
(CROSSTALK)
WARREN: Yes.
BLACKWELL: That I'm hoping to get out, toss the bean bags, you know, get a little bottle of something to sip on.
WARREN: In the college football season, there is going to be a lot of those bean bags flying around.
BLACKWELL: Yes, yes. So, I'm hoping the weather is great this weekend as I break it out of the box.
WARREN: Yes.
BLACKWELL: All right. Chris, thank you.
BLACKWELL: Hey, Spirit Airlines is filing for bankruptcy again. You know the budget airline known for its bright yellow planes. It says flights and bookings will continue, but Spirit has struggled to steady operations since emerging from its first bankruptcy back in March.
Spirit has been trying to go more upscale, but with falling airfares, Trump air tariffs, engine issues, grounding jets, the pressure appears to be too much. There is no place like Vegas, especially right now. the Wizard of Oz as the sphere, they are officially taking audiences down the yellow brick road like never before.
The show premiered on Thursday with an ultra-massive A.I. enhanced that wraps the classic 1939 film across 160,000 square feet of screen. More than 120,000 tickets have already been sold. This experience is complete with wind and scents and the haptic seats that make you feel like you're part of the story.
Someone could be America's next billionaire this weekend. Powerball jackpot has soared to a staggering $1 billion ahead of tonight's drawing. That makes it the sixth largest in the game's history. No one has hit the big prize since May. That drawing streams live at 10:59 p.m. Eastern. Tickets, $2.
[07:10:00]
All right, coming up on CNN THIS MORNING, community members are coming together to remember the two children killed in a school shooting in Minneapolis as we learn new details about the shooter.
Plus, three former Memphis police officers who were convicted in the death of Tyre Nichols are getting a new trial. Why now?
Also, 20 years after Hurricane Katrina, a music helped heal the soul of New Orleans.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:15:11]
BLACKWELL: we are learning new details about the investigation into the deadly Catholic school shooting in Minneapolis. According to a search warrant obtained by CNN affiliate WCCO, the shooter was wearing a mask and body armor during the attack. Authorities also recovered even more magazines and unspent rounds at the scene.
Law enforcement confirmed that they had been in contact with the shooter's parents. We are also learning that a month before the shooter opened fire at Annunciation Catholic Church, the Department of Homeland Security cut funding to mass shooting prevention programs in Minnesota. The grants were ended as part of $18.5 million in cuts to a Homeland Security program that the Trump administration says was partisan and unsuccessful.
Joining me now is former Minnesota State Senator Minority Leader Melisa Lopez Franzen, good morning to you.
I think about this in the context that that you were personally and many in Minnesota were already grieving the loss of Melissa Hortman when this shooting happened, beyond the acute needs of these families. Should there be some broader response, broader reaction?
MELISA LOPEZ FRANZEN, FORMER SENATOR OF MINNESOTA: Of course, and thank you for signaling that Minnesota is resilient, and we have been going through a lot of mourning lately, unfortunately.
We all should take this seriously, regardless of where you are in your faith, in your belief, in ideology. When it comes to politics, right now, we are grieving two young children, 8 and 10-year-old, Fletcher and Harper.
If you look at anybody's Minnesota feed, if you're from Minnesota, all you see is this news, this terrible news, and we should all be mourning together and try to figure out how to move forward together.
Certainly, there will be policies that will be discussed in the future. This is a time for mourning. But yes, we are -- we are really grieving in the state of Minnesota. We want our leaders to grieve with us instead of fighting between them.
BLACKWELL: Yes. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey has talked about the availability of extended magazines, assault rifles. In recent interviews, he was asked about a way forward. I want to play what he told an NPR station.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACOB FREY, MAYOR OF MINNEAPOLIS: If the federal government or the state government is not going to take the necessary steps to protect my constituents, let me do it. Give the city, give Minneapolis, give cities around the country the ability to take the action to keep their constituents safe.
If there is other levels of government that don't want to take action, let us do it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: As a former state lawmaker, would you support legislation that allows cities to enact bans on weapons or magazines?
LOPEZ FRANZEN: Well, it's a good step forward to actually have the conversation, but it's also really needing to be included with folks in all segments of the law enforcement population. I think it's really hard to have state by state, jurisdiction, by (INAUDIBLE) or city by city rules. But certainly, it brings the topic forward. I think we need to do something. I think it should be done at the state level. But if this prompts a conversation, I'm all for it. Certainly, we want to work with our law enforcement, because the practicality of enforcing these particular bans or whatnot can be practically unfeasible. So, instead of putting a band aid, I think this is the moment, if not any other, to do something. We don't need weapons that are meant for war to be in the hands of civilians. We can all agree on that.
We need to protect our babies, not more than our guns or not less than our guns.
(CROSSTALK)
BLACKWELL: Yes.
LOPEZ FRANZEN: So, we need to make sure that we are doing something. So, the conversation needs to happen, and if it happens, starting at the city level, yes, but at the same time, I think it's not going to solve the bigger picture that we need national conversation on this particular issue.
This is enough. We've had enough of these additional high caliber guns in our -- in the hands of people who should not have them.
BLACKWELL: Two years ago, the Minnesota Catholic Conference wrote to Governor Walz, and their request was that $50 million in building and cyber security grants that was proposed include non-public schools. They said this in their letter, that their schools were under attack. "The exclusion of one sector of schools -- as you know, nonpublic schools serve many students and families in need of services and resources -- is a discriminatory act against our students."
Should public dollars be afforded to private schools for security?
[07:20:06]
LOPEZ FRANZEN: For national interests? Of course, that should also be something we should evaluate. I tend to agree, without hearing more than what I just heard, that, that schools are schools, churches are churches, and we should make sure that they are all safe, regardless of whether they are public or not.
At the end of the day, we are all public citizens. We all live in a sphere of government. So, there comes a moment where we need to make sure that we are all protected. The sad thing is that we thought we were protected in our schools. We thought we were protected in our places of worship, and now, we are seeing that no one's safe anywhere. We are living in fear, and politicians need to step up to the plate and do what they are supposed to do to keep our community safe and stop the lip service, and stop attacking one community over the other.
At the end of the day, we're all people, but what we all have in common is that we're getting access to weapons that we should not have access to. So, that is a first step. And I'm not saying that's the only solution. Let's be -- let's be clear. We have some of the worst counsel rates in terms of helping our students and therapists in schools. Let's do something like that, that we can do at a bipartisan nature, to make sure people have supported, starting with our little ones.
This community is going to need support, not just the children, their families, our neighbors, our entire state. So, what do we do there? Can we at least agree that we need to do something there and bring the right supports instead of cutting health care, instead of cutting mental health supports? Like you mentioned, we need to start investing in people's health care and in people's mental health.
BLACKWELL: Melissa Lopez Franzen, thank you.
LOPEZ FRANZEN: Thank you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:26:17]
BLACKWELL: "NEW THIS MORNING", Cracker Barrel has quietly removed DEI and LGBTQ-plus-related pages from its web site after uproar over its logo change.
The company made headlines recently after it decided to go back to its original logo After fierce backlash from conservatives over the change. Tommy Lowe the company's founder, weighed in on the multimillion-dollar controversy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOMMY LOWE, FOUNDER, CRACKER BARREL: That's not -- it's the bland, nothing. It is pitiful. Food is something that you need to work on, spending $700 million to do that is all doing that, just throwing money out the street.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: CNN's Business and tech writer Clare Duffy has more.
CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS AND TECH WRITER: Hey, Victor.
Yes. Conservative activists and influencers are now claiming total victory after they had said the Cracker Barrel's move to walk back this new logo didn't go far enough to address a rebrand that they were calling woke.
Cracker Barrel has updated several pages on its web site, including changing a culture page to remove reference to employee resource groups like an LGBTQ-plus group, a DEI, and belonging group. The company has also removed a pride page from its web site.
I want to read to you what that page had said. It said, "On behalf of Cracker Barrel's LGBTQ-plus Alliance, and DEIB team, we want to celebrate you for being you. It's our greatest mission to ensure that pleasing people means, 'all people'".
Now, Cracker Barrel is framing this as something that had already been in the works, and not as a reaction to this protest. A spokesperson telling CNN, "In connection with the company's brand work, we have recently made updates to the Cracker Barrel web site, including adding new content and removing out of date content.
The company spokesperson also telling CNN, the Cracker Barrel is focused in on key company values, like addressing food insecurity. But I do think there is a question about whether, in the eyes of some customers on the other side of the aisle, this may have gone too far in addressing some of the protests on Thursday, after news that the company had quietly updated its web site, the stock was down a little bit, although, it started to tick back up again on Friday. Victor.
BLACKWELL: Clare, thank you.
All right. CNN's Coy Wire is here with the look of "SPORTS".
WIRE: Week one of college football is back, is started with coach prime. Deion Sanders in his Colorado Buffaloes last night, fresh off of beating bladder cancer. We'll show you the private bathroom he had on the sidelines, and show you what top 10 matchups are coming off today.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:33:33]
BLACKWELL: The bookie who took bets from MLB star Shohei Ohtani's translator, has now been sentenced to one year in prison.
Matt Bowyer pleaded guilty to money laundering, tax evasion, running an illegal sports betting ring. The case drew national attention after Ohtani's interpreter admitted stealing nearly $17 million from Ohtani's account to cover gambling debts.
CNN's Nick Watt sits down with Bowyer to talk about remorse.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Shohei Ohtani show a tiny is among the greatest baseball players of all time. This had the makings of baseball's biggest scandal.
MATTHEW BOWYER, FORMER BOOKIE FOR OHTANI INTERPRETER: First time I saw The Wire with Shohei Ohtani was a holy moment for me.
WATT (voice over): Ohtani, his name on The Wire, his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara's name on that account, deeply in debt at Matt Bowyer's illegal sports book.
BOWYER: Made me think was their partners in an account, which is common, by the way, or it was Shohei. And I clearly was starting to think it was Shohei. Stealing never really crossed my mind.
WATT (voice over): It would be natural to think it was Shohei. Right?
BOWYER: What I mean, I truth -- truthfully, I did, but I wasn't sure. And you know, sometimes in life, you have a question that you really don't want to know the answer? That's where I was. WATT (voice over): The interpreter later admitted to stealing and wiring nearly $17 million from Ohtani's account to cover his own astronomical losses.
Bowyer pleaded guilty and was sentenced today for money laundering, tax evasion, and running an illegal gambling operation.
[07:35:06]
BOWYER: You do a crime, you got to do the time. So, at the end of the day, I was doing something illegal.
WATT (voice over): Which helped fund his lovely lifestyle.
BOWYER: This is a movie theater room I put in. We've watched a lot of games here -- big, big money games.
WATT: And betting on it didn't ruin your enjoyment of sports?
BOWYER: No, just added to it.
WATT (voice over): The bookie business also funded Bowyer's owned massive gambling habit.
WATT: What's the most you've won in a single bet?
BOWYER: 4.6 million.
WATT: Just most you've lost in one bet?
BOWYER: Well, on the casino trips, I've lost over 2 million multiple times. But on a particular wager, I lost 2.5 once.
WATT (voice over): Casinos gave him a lot of free stuff.
WATT: They would send their jet to pick you up to bring you.
BOWYER: almost all of them, like Monte Carlo, would fly first class, they pay for our seats, $30,000 our tickets.
WATT: You're going from flying first class to Monte Carlo to taking a drug test and peeing in a cup in a courthouse in Santa Ana,
BOWYER: Yes. That's a -- it's a wild term. There is no question. It's definitely been humbling.
WATT (voice over): And began early one morning in the driveway of his home here in Orange County, California.
BOWYER: I heard, FBI freeze, and I literally turned this way, and there is eight red dots on me, and they were in full tactical gear.
WATT (voice over): Now, he's not allowed to take bets or make bets.
BOWYER: But, you -- do I miss it? Do I want to gamble? Sure. I love gambling, and I will probably tell him dead. This is definitely where the action took place.
WATT (voice over): He says he gambled every day for maybe 35 years, and got very used to risk.
Bowyer just wrote a book about his life of hustle, selling newspaper subscriptions as a kid, trading commodities, and all that gambling.
BOWYER: Morally, I felt 100 times better being an illegal bookmaker than I did as a commodities trader, because 95 percent of the people that invested in commodities would lose their money. And it wasn't like we were saying that, disclosing that statement.
When I was a bookmaker, you just -- you decide what you bet on, you decide how much money you risk.
WATT (voice over): Remorse, he has a lot.
BOWYER: I do have remorse. I have remorse for E.P. (PH) being in prison. I have remorse for anyone that I aided and abetted in their gambling addiction and didn't know I was doing that. So, I have remorse for many things. I have remorse for what I put my family through.
WATT (voice over): And remorse, he says, for bringing America's pastime into a little disrepute, and also almost tarnishing one of the GOATs.
BOWYER: Thank God he had the best year of his life, 50-50, won the World Series, MVP. I mean, that's --
WATT: Did you win any money on that?
BOWYER: No, because I was out of business.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WATT (on camera): So, Matt Bowyer is facing a year in jail. He is also $2 million in the hole between restitution and the cash that was seized from his house, but he seems 100 percent confident that he's going to bounce back in life through legitimate business, speaking engagements, books, movies. Here is a guy who clearly thrives on stress. He plays better at golf, he told me when he has money, a lot of money, on the game, when most of us would shank it, the stress works for him. He says he's going to bounce back, and he says he is remorseful. Nick Watt, CNN, Los Angeles.
BLACKWELL: It's been 20 years since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, the storm that didn't just wash away homes, but entire lives.
Jazz bassist Michael Harris lost everything when the levees broke. His home, his belongings, his city. When he returned to ruins with nothing but the clothes on his back and his bass.
With two decades later, he's rebuilt. Thanks, in part, to Habitat for Humanity, the nonprofit organization built a neighborhood called Musicians Village after the disaster. And CNN Randi Kaye caught up with Harris at his new home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Music is part of the soul of this city. And when Katrina flooded New Orleans, the music stopped.
MICHAEL HARRIS, MUSICIAN, NEW ORLEANS RESIDENT: It went silent for a minute. It did. It did. Who had money to go to the club or whatever?
KAYE: Was it even open?
HARRIS: Really, really. There was no place to go.
KAYE (voice over): Musician Michael Harris grew up in New Orleans, in the city's Lower Ninth Ward. He plays bass and acoustic guitar. He was out of the country touring in August 2005 --
HARRIS: Better again, yes.
[07:40:02]
KAYE (voice over): And came home to find his house had been destroyed.
HARRIS: I was like about three or four blocks from where the levee actually broke. And that barge came through, and my house wasn't where I left it.
KAYE: Did you find any belongings?
HARRIS: I found one piece of paper. How paper survived. A piece of paper and a license plate from a vehicle that we had.
KAYE (voice over): Still today, the memories of Katrina remain.
HARRIS: It's still -- they still lingers, you know. We're coming up on the 20th anniversary, and it's still, those memories are fresh, you know. One of the things I really remembered that really shocked me was the smell of death in the air. You know, that, I don't know about the body and the mind or whatever, but it's still there. It's still there.
KAYE: How much did music help you through some of the really the darkest times after Katrina?
HARRIS: That was my therapy. The music was therapeutic because there were so many mixed emotions and everything, and that was my release. It helped me to be even more grateful and appreciate music even more.
KAYE (voice over): Music was medicine in a city blessed with such rich history. The sounds of Louis Armstrong, Fats Domino and Louis Prima, to name a few. So, for Michael, there was no doubt music would bring the community together.
HARRIS: I think that the music has helped the city to recover because it's like they sing Psalms in the bible, you know, make a joyful noise unto the Lord. And that's what that was, making a joyful noise. KAYE: This is Musician's Village. It's a neighborhood located in the Upper Ninth Ward of New Orleans. Musicians Branford Marsalis and Harry Connick, Jr. partnered with Habitat for Humanity to build this and provide housing for musicians who had lost their homes in the storm. The goal was to preserve the city's unique musical culture.
KAYE (voice over): The first keys were given to homeowners in 2006.
HARRY CONNICK JUNIOR, ACTOR/MUSICIAN: Let's go over to the car.
KAYE: Today, Michael Harris lives in Musician's Village.
HARRIS: New Orleans is home. I just knew that for me, in my heart, it was here in New Orleans, in this city, I had to come back. And this is pretty much the story of my life since Katrina.
KAYE: As the city continues to bounce back, so has the music.
HARRIS: We are recovering. We are resilient. And this too shall pass.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE (on camera): New Orleans is all about the music. So, when the music venues reopened after Katrina, it was a place for people to go, to bond, to heal. And as that musician said in my story, he got therapy from music after he lost his home in the storm. And when these venues started up again, it was really a place for collective therapy for the people here.
And then you had Jazz Fest returning about a year after the storm. And that not only brought music, live music, but it also brought money, poured money into the community, which was much needed. And then, you had these second line parades return like we saw for the 20th anniversary here. So, that brought a lot of jazz, music, and it was really a way for the people here to reclaim joy, which is much needed. Victor?
BLACKWELL: All right. Randi Kaye, thank you. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:48:05]
BLACKWELL: All right, it is Coy's favorite time of the year. College football is back. Everything you need to know ahead of today's kickoff, Coy is here.
WIRE: First of all, that suit is fire.
BLACKWELL: Oh, thank you very much.
WIRE: (INAUDIBLE) sometime.
BLACKWELL: I don't know if it's going. But you -- but you can try it.
WIRE: I like -- medium. Hey, listen, we had an absolute thriller kicking off week one in Boulder, Colorado. Coach Prime Deion Sanders led his Buffaloes onto the field to face Georgia Tech. After multiple surgeries, blood clots and most recently, beating bladder cancer, he joked, I depend on depends. Well, they had to defend private bathroom for him in case he needed it.
BLACKWELL: What!
WIRE: Now, Coach Prime's Buffaloes started off hot. Defense Force three turnovers on the first three drives. New quarterback Kaidon Salter, singing that touchdown pass on his very first drive. But Georgia Tech, despite the long trip out west, high altitude and players cramping up, they fight back, took the lead with just one minute to go.
Quarterback Haynes King with his third rushing touchdown of the game. He had 19 carries, 156 yards. The Yellow Jackets win, 27-20.
Now, get your popcorn ready, or better yet, your burgers and brews for a huge day of week one action today. We start off with number one, Texas at number three, Ohio State, yet number eight, Alabama at Florida State. And then, LSU, and Clemson, buckle up.
Victor, you let me know where we're going.
All right. Vanderbilt, volleyball didn't exist for 45 years, but it was reinstated in yesterday, Victor. They built a court in the middle of campus outside. How awesome is this? And what's more? they beat Belmont in four sets. It's their first win since 1990.
U.S. Open now, maybe the story of the tournament so far. American Taylor Townsend taken on number five, Mirra Andreeva, and she pulls off the upset. 7-5, 6-2. She advances to her second career major, round of 16. She dedicated the win to her son, A.J. He's just 4 years old. He's heading up there today to come see her.
[07:50:03]
After her last win, remember, her opponent, Ostapenko, got in her face, called her uneducated. Townsend says her win is about more than just herself. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TAYLOR TOWNSEND, AMERICAN TENNIS PLAYER: It's bigger than me. It's about the message. It's about the representation. It's about being bold and being able to show up as yourself. And I did that tonight. You guys saw the real Taylor Townsend tonight.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WIRE: Let's go. American Ben Shelton had high hopes in front of a home crowd, facing Adrian Mannarino, but he'd end up in tears, as a shoulder injury forced him out of the U.S. Open. He was leading this match until the injury in the fourth set, when he could just no longer go.
Well, Victor, his opponent had to go too, in another way. When Shelton retired, Mannarino was on the bathroom. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADRIAN MANNARINO, FRENCH TENNIS PLAYER: I'm 37 years old, and it's my first time that I'm winning a match from the toilet. So, no, you know, there is always new things coming up. And, yes, I mean, I'm still enjoying my time on court, and I hope that I'm going to extend it for a little while.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WIRE: That may be an all-time quote, right there. First time I'm winning on the toilet.
BLACKWELL: Listen, it works. All right. So, today, what are we going to do?
WIRE: We're going to have some burgers, some brews, or I know you like your gin, you know, we'll do that.
BLACKWELL: Gin and tonic green lines.
WIRE: Yes, college football. Lots of that.
BLACKWELL: Yes, yes, yes, yes. All right. Coy, thank you.
All right. So, listen. A few games -- stick around for this one, have been played, but there is already a new breakout star this college football season, but it's not for a player. This is Pudge the cat.
WIRE: Yes, let's go.
BLACKWELL: Unofficial new mascat for the Bowling Green Falcons. 3- year-old feline has become a locker room staple to boost morale. Pam Brown talked to Pudge's owner.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE CARLSON, OWNER, PUDGE THE CAT: So, we had a practice in fall camp. I was a scrimmage practice, and early on, we had a player go down with a serious injury, and everyone was pretty down from that. And, you know, morale was a little low.
And the next day, we had an off day, and I said, you know, I might as well bring my little cat in. And, you know, I brought him in. Everybody loved it. And it's, it's taken off from there,
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WIRE: Incredible stuff.
BLACKWELL: What I like is that Pudge is so attentive. Like, if you look back at that sound bite, the entire interview, Pudge is looking right up at him.
WIRE: Oh, yes.
BLACKWELL: Just in wrapped in every word.
WIRE: And Victor, they had Pudge on the sideline of their game. Their head coach of Bowling Green is Eddie George the NFL legend.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
WIRE: He is allergic to cat.
BLACKWELL: Oh, yes.
WIRE: Yes. They have a -- people are calling this the best thing going in college sports right now.
BLACKWELL: Well, listen, Pudge, I support it. I had a cat when I was a kid. Smokey.
WIRE: All right.
BLACKWELL: RIP. But Pudge on sidelines, I'm for it.
WIRE: Yes.
BLACKWELL: All right.
WIRE: Shout out, Pudge.
BLACKWELL: I say goodbye to bland cinder block walls. College dorms are getting a bit of a glow up. We are talking wallpaper, luxury linens, even custom cushion headboards. Have you seen this online? TikTok, it's full of video showing these extravagant dorm rooms. Some parents are even enlisting the help of interior designers to decorate.
This wasn't a thing when I was in college.
WIRE: Man, we had like a straight cinder block, cell block feel. Right?
BLACKWELL: Yes, yes.
WIRE: I feel like there is got to be some sort of you got to earn that. You got to go and feel nothing (INAUDIBLE).
(CROSSTALK)
BLACKWELL: Yes, you got to start at zero.
WIRE: Yes.
BLACKWELL: So, then when you get that first apartment, then you put up some stuff that's nice.
I remember moving in the first day. It was the hottest day God ever created when I moved into drew Hall Howard. But it was that extra-long twin mattress.
WIRE: Yes!
BLACKWELL: And it was the -- it was like, it made noise, like, the plastic.
(CROSSTALK)
WIRE: Your feet were frying off the edge.
BLACKWELL: Yes, that crunchy plastic. No A.C.
WIRE: No.
BLACKWELL: But, yes, you got to start off basic. Don't send these kids off with interior designers.
WIRE: Yes. I mean, if you're like, maybe the roommate, right? And you're meeting your roommate for the first time, and you walk into that, and you're like, what just happened here?
BLACKWELL: It looks like wicked.
WIRE: Yes.
BLACKWELL: Like one side of the room is all done up, the other side is not.
WIRE: Oh, yes,
BLACKWELL: All right. Thanks, Coy.
WIRE: You got it.
BLACKWELL: Hey, "FIRST OF ALL" is up at the top of the hour. This morning, we are watching Chicago.
President Trump is reportedly preparing to send in the feds to fight crime there do immigration enforcement as soon as next week.
Now, city and state leaders say they do not want this, but the president says that beautiful black women there do. Well, I'm going to speak to the activist who says that she is the one who is getting the president's attention.
Plus, controversy, after two members of a crew helping contain a wildfire in Washington state get arrested by border patrol.
A state lawmaker joins me to explain why he thinks that both parties have blame for what's going on there.
Also, later, the lost art of signing your name. I speak to a couple about why they're now trying to get more kids to learn cursive.
[07:54:55]
Those stories and conversations you likely won't see anywhere else, coming up after a break on "FIRST OF ALL".
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:00:06]
BLACKWELL: "FIRST OF ALL", gun violence in schools, that's a crime. And every American city would agree that they need help with gun violence.
