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CNN This Morning
Pope Leo XIV To Be Discharged From Hospital; No Motive For Shooting In Deadly Oregon Shooting; Trump Waives Several Russia Sanctions As Row With Zelenskyy Intensifies; Trump Takes Midterm Campaign Blitz To Ruby Red Georgia; France Braces For Massive Protests. President Trump Waives Russia Sanctions Passed Under Lindsey Graham Act; Katie Zacharia Ousted After Five Days as White House Press Secretary; Police Search for Motive in Deadly Oregon School Shooting. Aired 6-7a ET
Aired October 17, 2026 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[06:00:25]
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to CNN This Morning. Here's what's happening today.
President Trump has scrapped planned sanctions on Russia. Expected 100 percent tax on Russian goods is gone, at least for now. What this means for the souring relationship between President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy.
There are new details and more questions about that 16-year-old who killed four people at a school in Oregon. What we know about the victims and the shooter. That's coming up.
Also, Six Flags Over Georgia's back open this weekend days after a man died after falling out of a roller coaster. CNN was there as the park reopened.
And we're following a fast moving wildfire in Southern California. Families are being evacuated from their homes as it continues to spread. It's fanned by those fierce Santa Ana winds.
Plus, after just five days on the job, Katie Zacharia is out as White House press secretary. The new details about a firing, it's all coming up this morning on CNN This Morning.
Saturday, October 17th. Good to have you along. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Victor Blackwell.
Breaking news this morning out of Rome. Pope Leo is expected to be released from the hospital later today. Minutes ago, we learned that doctors have deemed him fit to be discharged. The pontiff was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday to remove part of his lung after doctors discovered a cancerous growth. The Vatican says the pope will also lead the Angelus prayers tomorrow morning. Now to that mass shooting at Silver Rails Elementary School in Bend,
Oregon. There's still no known motive this morning for what drove that shooter to kill three children and one teacher in Thursday's mass shooting. But authorities have identified one of the children who died at Silver rail Elementary as 5-year-old Rome Summer.
Police also identified the teacher as 25-year old Megan Lambert. And one of the children at the school described what was going through her mind when she heard that gunfire.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KALANI JOURNEIGH, 9-YEAR-OLD-STUDENT: That we might die. It was kind of a weird feeling and all of us were screaming and we were all like really scared.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: CNN national correspondent Nick Watt has more on the terror that according to police happened at that school in just three minutes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They were so afraid. Looks on their faces was really hard to see.
NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A 16-year-old shooter, once a pupil here, armed with a pump action shotgun, blasted his way through double doors into the school, into a classroom right by those doors.
STEVEN COOK, BEND-LA PINE SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT: That classroom was a special needs classroom and the suspect was a special needs student in that school.
CHIEF MIKE KRANTZ, BEND POLICE: A teacher in the classroom threw her cell phone at the suspect and then tackled him and fought to take the firearm from him.
WATT (voice-over): Two other teachers were shot, one dead, the other now in critical condition. A dad with two daughters at the school happened to be passing, saw the shooter enter.
KRANTZ: The 36-year-old man who parked at the school, took out a 40 caliber pistol that was legally secured in his vehicle and carried it towards the school. As he made entry through the forced open doors, he heard shooting and saw a teacher involved in a physical altercation with the suspect. He then went to the classroom where the struggle was underway and fired his weapon, striking the suspect multiple times.
WATT (voice-over): His name, Kaylub Giamanco. He is not seeking recognition, said his mum, but instead wishes to express his gratitude to the first responders, school personnel and community for the outpouring of love and support. This could have been so much worse.
KRANTZ: In total, the Suspect had approximately 44 remaining rounds of 12 gauge ammunition on his person or in his backpack.
WATT (voice-over): This was all over in about three minutes. Three kids aged 5, 8 and 11 dead and a 25-year-old teacher also killed. A 10-year-old student described to ABC. Those several minutes of fright.
AIZEN, STUDENT, SILVER RAIL ELEMENTARY: I locked the door and I went back behind our lockers as all my classmates did the same. All of my classmates and my teacher were safe, but we were definitely scared and most people were crying and it was really hard.
[06:05:05]
WATT: Now, one source tells CNN that the shooter's mum originally bought the shotgun that he used. Now, we found her today sitting on her balcony smoking, crying, clearly very, very distraught. She says, I'm sorry. She says she misses her son.
We asked if she has a message for the parents of the kids who died. She said, yes, I'm sorry. I wish that there was something I could have done. She said that there were no warnings. There were no signs that her son was going to do something like this.
I asked how he got the gun. She said she couldn't comment and walked off the balcony into her apartment. Nick Watt, CNN, Bend, Oregon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL: All right, Nick, thanks. And of course, there are still questions about the shooter and motive, where the investigation goes from here. So just ahead, we'll speak with a former NYPD lieutenant for that part of the story.
And also this morning, Russia getting sanctions relief from the US. Last night, President Trump signed an executive order to waive sanctions on Russian fossil fuel sales. The sanctions were just days away from taking effect, just a month after they'd been passed under the Lindsey Graham Act and signed into law by the president. They're intended to punish Russia for its war on Ukraine.
Trump said relieving the sanctions served the national interest of the US. Well, hours earlier, President Zelenskyy sought to shore up support among E.U. leaders as his relationship with Trump sours. Let's go right to CNN's Nada Bashir.
Nada again, the president signed these sanctions into law back in September now just before they were to take effect, a pullback. Talk about the significance.
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is not lost on President Zelenskyy that this decision to waive those sanctions on Russia has come just ahead of the U.S. midterms. And there certainly is that building frustration within the Ukrainian leader. We heard that yesterday as he met with senior E.U. officials trying to shore up support with his allies there.
But of course, we have seen and had that significant reminder overnight of the significance and critical importance for Ukraine of that military support and of the pressure that has been previously put on Russia with yet another round of attacks by the Russian military targeting Ukraine's energy infrastructure.
President Zelenskyy characterizing this as one of the largest attacks on the energy sector that Ukraine has seen, with more than 15 critical power generation facilities being targeted across the country. But this decision to waive those sanctions that were set to come into place in just a few days on Russian fossil fuels has, of course, sent alarm bells ringing, particularly amongst European leaders who have been pushing for further sanctions on Russia.
And of course, we are seeing now the exact opposite in the United States. These sanctions would have imposed tariffs of up to 100 percent on goods being brought into the U.S. from five of the largest importers of Russian crude oil and gas.
And of course, this comes just days after President Trump announced alongside President Putin a decision to lift sanctions on Russian diesel as well. So, of course, huge concern there as to what the next steps might look like in terms of President Trump's actions. And we have been hearing from the Ukrainian president again pushing for further support from his European counterparts, but also putting that pressure on the U.S. President as well. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: At the end of the day, the American people will have their say. Putin will listen to America if America really turns up the hit on him and makes one thing clear, either he chooses peace or he gets no more money for his war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BASHIR: Now, again, that is simply not what we are seeing happening on the diplomatic front, nor in terms of real term military support for Ukraine or sanctions on Russia. We are talking about the United States now allowing for diesel exports from Russia. We are talking about concerns around intelligence sharing from the U.S. to the Ukrainian military. Now, it is understood that Kyiv is running low and running out of those missiles needed for U.S. made Patriot air defense systems. And all this coming as the winter months threaten to further put pressure on the Ukrainian military.
BLACKWELL: Nada Bashir reporting from London. Thank you.
Our politics now, 17 days to go before the midterms and President Trump's red state campaign blitz makes a stop in Northern Kentucky this afternoon. The president headlined a rally in Georgia last night and once again urged his supporters to show up and vote on November 3rd like he is on the ballot.
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He also repeated claims about false claims about the 2020 election fraud in Georgia. He took aim at Georgia's Democratic senator, John Ossoff.
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DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: 18 days from now, the people of Georgia are going to defeat your weak, arrogant, hate filled, radical left senator who is really, I call him Pee Wee Herman. Pee Wee Herman looks like Pee Wee. His name is John Ossoff. Highly overrated.
Somebody said he's a good looking man. I don't think he's a good looking man. I actually think Mike Collins is a good looking man. And he's all man. He's all men. I'm not sure about Ossoff.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Another busy week ahead for the President. In the coming week, he's expected to headline Republican midterm rallies in Kansas, North Carolina, South Carolina, Iowa and Florida.
Next on CNN This Morning, President Trump searching for a new press secretary after Katie Zacharia was fired after five days on the job Monday through Friday. What he said that led to that decision.
Plus, France is bracing for a massive protest. Hundreds of people marches also and possible roadblocks are planned across the country. We'll have a live update from Paris.
And a fast moving wildfire is tearing through Southern California. Look at this. It's destroying homes, forcing thousands of people to evacuate their neighborhoods. Why the battle to contain this fire is getting even tougher.
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BLACKWELL: Headlines for you this morning, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating suspicious let containing powdered substances. At least three dozen lawmakers have reported their offices receiving suspicious letters in the mail as of Friday. In several cases they contained a white powdery substance that prompted evacuations and a response from law enforcement. There have been no reports of anyone getting sick or hurt.
Six Flags Over Georgia reopened for the first time last night days after a man fell to his death while riding a roller coaster there. On Monday, a 42-year-old teacher from Atlanta fell out of the Goliath roller coaster and died. The ride is still closed as an investigation into what went wrong is going on. One park goer who was there on Monday says the fatal accident has not scared her away from the rides.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We it's right night. I mean I'm a honest to God it's the Goliath Open tonight. I would ride the Goliath okay.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Really? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're not afraid of going back on the fly?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I'm a daredevil. I'm not scared.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: At least 10 similar rides at six other parks in the U.S. and Canada have been closed temporarily.
In Southern California, the North Fire exploded in size Friday burned several homes. At least six people were either -- six homes rather while the destroyed or damaged, according to fire officials.
Two firefighters suffered significant injuries but they're in stable condition the fire started around noon Friday and sent evacuating neighbors into panic.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: By the time we left, we could see flames and right before we left, I could see the billowing smoke out my balcony. So, you know, there's more stuff you can get, but at some point you just have to go.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: At last check, the fire was 0 percent contained. This is one of several fires that have broken out since Thursday, driven by fierce Santa Ana winds blowing across Southern California.
France is bracing for unrest as nationwide protests for education reform are planned today. Student led demonstrations have swept the country for several weeks. But the French prime minister says the protest no longer resembles a student led movement. Instead, he describes them as a movement of urban violence. Dozens of marches are planned for today. Tens of thousands of people are expected near Paris.
And that's where we find CNN senior international correspondent Melissa Bell. Melissa, talk more about actually is happening now and what's expected throughout the day.
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the president in central Paris picture from which two of the big marches across Paris will start. They're not due to start for another couple of hours, but as you can see, the crowd's getting pretty big here and it's been getting pretty big in cities across France already.
We've seen this morning scuffles with the police in cities like Lyon and Caen (ph) and we expect the turnout today to be pretty massive. You mentioned those student protests that we've had here in France over the course of the last three weeks, a month, now that the governments and authorities have really had trouble dealing with and getting contained. This is taking on an extra level today because it isn't just that the students are being joined by trade unions, by public sector workers, but also by the yellow vest. You may remember them from Emmanuel Macron's first term in office, 2018, 2019. The high visibility jackets, you can see some of them were gathered amongst the crowd here today.
The call has been this Saturday for yellow vest. This had been a protest to cast your mind back, Victor, a few years to do with a proposed hike in fuel duty. It was to do with the cost of living.
[06:20:00]
And this is what today is morphing into a massive day of protest about the issue of the cost of living so much broader than the initial student demands and one we expect to draw many of many hundreds of thousands the streets of France today.
BLACKWELL: Melissa Bell for us there in Paris, thanks so much. We'll keep an eye on what's happening.
Next, five days on the job and she is out. What led to Katie Zacharia's stunningly short tenure as White House press secretary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: And I said, I said to her, honestly, if I were you, I'd reconsider. You think about it.
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BLACKWELL: President Trump has put a hold on sanctions against Russia just days before they were set to go into effect. Now, the sanctions that target Russia's economy were part of the legislation he just signed a month ago.
In his executive order, the president claimed waiving the sanctions is in the national interest of the United States. Now, the context is important because it comes during this feud between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is escalating.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Zelenskyy is a not a good guy for us to deal with. Biden gave him hundreds of billions of dollars, billions and billions of dollars.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have you lost faith in him?
TRUMP: Well, I think they're going to if -- they're going to end up with a settlement of some kind, they're not going to do it with him. He doesn't want to settle. He says he wants to settle, but he hasn't. No, I'm not -- I'm not a big fan of Zelenskyy. They've destroyed that country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Michael Bociurkiw joins us now. He's the founder of the World Briefing Report on Substack and is also a senior fellow, Atlantic Council. Michael, hello to you. Let me read what we heard from Democratic member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and co- author of this Lindsey O. Graham sanctions bill, Richard Blumenthal.
He said these waivers have nothing to do with our national security and everything to do with sucking up to Vladimir Putin. And we talked about the context, the diesel deal, the questions about Starshield. What do you see as the significance as the hold on these sanctions against Russia?
MICHAEL BOCIURKIW, FOUNDER, WOLD BREIFING REPORT ON SUBSTACK: Hey, Victor, good to be back with you again. Well, it's too early to tell. The news is only breaking here in Ukraine, but it's going to definitely be greeted with shock and horror here across Ukraine. This is clearly throwing Mr. Putin an economic lifeline.
The next steps that will be watched for here is whether Russia is even further allowed into the Western financial architecture and of course, whether Mr. Putin will be offered a seat at that G20 summit in Miami in December. But, you know, we talked a lot in the past months, did we not, about Putin's shadow fleet, these Gulf ships that transport his fuel. And this is his floating galleon. This is his floating war chest, which Mr. Trump has just given a free pass.
It's unbelievable and will really make Ukraine think twice about being allies with the United States.
BLACKWELL: Yes. We just heard from the president talking about President Zelenskyy. And we, of course, remember February of 2025, that argument in the Oval Office. There is, of course, this coarseness. Again, I want you to listen here to what President Zelenskyy says about his supporters in the E.U. and then what he does not say. This moment of silence actually was asked about President Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENSKYY: I'm so thankful that we have such huge support from E.U. council, commission and leaders, real leaders, so that they stay with us from the very beginning of this war is crucial and we count on the support.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think you are being treated as a scapegoat for his own problems?
ZELENSKYY: This is my answer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Trump and Zelenskyy have had a tumultuous relationship going back to the first term. But do you see this as a different moment?
BOCIURKIW: Definitely. I mean this makes that Oval Office dust up look like a minor thing. What happened in the past week with the pausing of intelligence and the Starlink connectivity. But you know, I've long since been advocating a long time, including on my world briefing that Zelenskyy has to decouple with the Trump circle because they've made no difference.
Mr. Trump, so called peace envoys, all those trips to Moscow hasn't moved the meter when one iota further. And you know, I got to say, you know, both Lindsey Graham and Joe Biden, who Trump mentioned are very dear to the hearts of Ukrainians. I mean, talk about a betrayal of Lindsey Graham.
This is the man who fought hard to get Trump to office. The bill carries his name. Mr. Trump said that it's -- the bill is going to be a tribute to Mr. Graham. I mean that is -- that is quite the eulogy he's left. And you know, the other -- the other thing here is when it comes to Mr. Putin and his future steps here in Ukraine, again, Mr. Trump has given him a green pass to go further into Ukraine, but also to widen this war even further into Europe through hybrid means, through even, you know, his kind of secret activities off the coast of the U.K. and European waters.
It's a very bad moment for Western democracy. And one more thing, Victor, if I can.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
BOCIURKIW: You know, speaking of Mr. Biden, I mean we all remember how Trump has been mocking him his so called auto pen.
[06:30:05]
Now, it's fair for people to ask, is Vladimir Putin controlling Donald Trump's pen, especially with this action that just happened?
VICTOR BLACKWELL, ANCHOR, CNN THIS MORNING WEEKEND: Provocative question there. Let me ask you the -- heard from Zelenskyy thanking the real leaders, as he calls them in the EU.
BOCIURKIW: Yes --
BLACKWELL: How much can Europe fill the void of what Ukraine says is a slowing Star Shield? This satellite internet system that they use, the lack of Patriot missiles, which the U.S. uniquely has or has not extended the license that they can build their own. How much can Europe do that the U.S. --
BOCIURKIW: Yes --
BLACKWELL: May be retreating from?
BOCIURKIW: Well, on that one, I have bad news for you, because I listened, for example, to Kaja Kallas yesterday, the EU foreign representative, and she said, yes, maybe we can start looking at our own space agency to help backfill what the U.S. is not giving Ukraine.
Well, you know what I'd say to that? This war did not start yesterday. They should have assumed a long time ago that something like this would happen. And the other problem, of course, we have in Europe and the United Kingdom is the leaders there have not prepared their people whatsoever for a possible war-time economy.
That is to bite the bullet, maybe take on higher diesel prices so that Russian fuel is not purchased, because by purchasing Russian fuel, the West is funding autocracy like Mr. Putin. It's not fighting it. So, very bad combination of events, and it does not bode well for Ukraine, which is in this existential fight for its survival.
BLACKWELL: Michael Bociurkiw, always appreciate the insight and context. Thanks so much. President Trump has fired Katie Zacharia as White House Press Secretary after just five days on the job. Zacharia had faced a barrage of questions about whether she was right for the job after that rocky first press briefing.
There were also more questions about her background, including whether she had passed the bar exam, despite President Trump referring to her as an attorney. And the President told reporters yesterday he asked her to think about seriously stepping down.
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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And I said -- I said to her, honestly, if I were you, I'd reconsider, you think about it. But I would reconsider. She has suffered over the last few days -- and I'm not saying -- you know, I mean, maybe it's not for her, but I said, you want to be happy in life --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Well, minutes after he said that, the President fired her. Zechariah's hiring caught a lot of people at the top of the White House staffing off guard. The White House says that she will be transitioning into a new role that will be announced later.
Her departure leaves the President without a top spokesperson just two-and-a-half weeks before the Midterm elections. And just ahead of the Midterms, New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was on the campaign trail in Michigan yesterday.
She was there to stump for Democrats, their nominee for Senate Abdul El-Sayed. Now, El-Sayed is in a tough and really bitter race with Mike Rogers, former Republican Congressman. Our Gloria Pazmino spoke to voters in Michigan, and she has more on the mood before the Midterm and why AOC has this major stake in this race.
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REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): Thank you Michigan, and let's hear it for my friend, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed.
GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the closing weeks of the Midterms, U.S. Senate Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez barnstorming across Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
It may be a Republican stronghold, but El-Sayed is hoping his populist message with a focus on Medicare for All and affordability, might appeal to moderate, even conservative voters.
ABDUL EL-SAYED, MICHIGAN DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR CONGRESS: The number of people who tell me I voted for Donald Trump two or three times, and I'm voting for you. The difference in our politics right now is not red versus blue. It's not Democrat versus Republican. It's the people who have been locked out of their politics for a very long time.
PAZMINO: Among the Great Lakes, the sleepy towns, and Rosie's Diner, where the waitress greets you by name, voters say they're worried about the basics.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We hunt, we fish, and we can put stuff in the freezer, right? But now we're starting to see even the cost of fuel for the boat. Things are starting to affect us up here. So, it's getting to be a serious thing. It keeps you up at night.
PAZMINO: These are the voters El-Sayed is hoping to make in-roads with. Ocasio-Cortez making a direct appeal to Republicans.
OCASIO-CORTEZ: I want to welcome you here. I want to thank you for keeping an open mind and an open ear, and really, what we want to say is that we're better together than we are apart.
PAZMINO: Elliot Eckstein(ph) opened this butcher shop five years ago. He's a Republican, but hasn't made up his mind on the race.
[06:35:00]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Upper Peninsula is its own economy. The fuel prices have made it challenging to deliver product. We had to put a delivery charge on.
PAZMINO: It's not just gas prices voters are worried about.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There are people who care about what's happening to immigrants right now. There are people who care about what's happening to those on Medicaid and losing SNAP that it's -- these issues are very important.
PAZMINO: There's also palpable frustration about the ongoing trade war with Canada. Michigan's largest trade partner.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Even though we're fairly conservative up here, that most of the people are fairly conservative here, I mean, nobody wants to be in a war. Nobody wants to have tariffs on Canada who we've been trading with forever and have our prices go up because somebody picks a fight with somebody who doesn't need to have a fight picked with them.
PAZMINO: Here at Blade's Bait and Tackle, they agree on how to catch the lake fish.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, these are giant suckers that people use for catching big muskie out on the lake.
PAZMINO: Less so on who to vote for next.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd probably vote for Mike Rogers. I agree with more of his policies.
PAZMINO (on camera): You're a registered Republican, but you've supported Democrats in the past and you still might.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I -- absolutely, I'm wide open.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PAZMINO: And Victor, Ocasio-Cortez held the first Latinos for Abdul rally here in southwest Detroit, where she encouraged the community to organize and vote ahead of the Midterm elections.
And just in another sign of just how important this race is for Ocasio-Cortez, she transferred $1 million from her campaign accounts to El-Sayed's campaign accounts, an unusually large sum of money for a House Representative who is supporting a Senate race outside her district. Victor?
BLACKWELL: Gloria Pazmino, thanks so much. Next, we have new details about the teenage gunman and that shooting at a school in Oregon. We'll talk with a former NYPD lieutenant about where the investigation goes from here.
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[06:40:00]
BLACKWELL: This morning, investigators are working to establish a motive for this week's deadly school shooting in Bend, Oregon. A 16- year-old shot and killed at least three children and a teacher at an elementary school on Thursday. Two others are in critical condition.
Authorities have now identified two of the victims, five-year-old Rhoam Summer and 25-year-old Megan Lambert. The school superintendent says all of the victims were inside a special needs classroom when that shooting started. Here's how one nine-year-old student described what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When you started to hear gunshots, do you remember what went through your head?
KALANI JOURNEIGH, FOURTH GRADE STUDENT: Kind of like that we might die. It was kind of a weird feeling, and all of us were screaming and we were all like, really scared.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BLACKWELL: Now, police say that suspected shooter was tackled by a teacher and was shot and killed by a man who had followed him into the school.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE KRANTZ, CHIEF OF POLICE, BEND, OREGON POLICE DEPARTMENT: The 36- year-old man who parked at the school, took out a 40-caliber pistol that was legally secured in his vehicle and carried it towards the school.
As he made entry through the forced open doors, he heard shooting and saw a teacher involved in a physical altercation with the suspect. He then went to the classroom where the struggle was underway and fired his weapon, striking the suspect multiple times.
In addition to the 36-year-old man who bravely stepped in to stop the suspect, I want to highlight another person whose heroic action we need to recognize. A teacher in the classroom threw her cellphone at the suspect, and then tackled him and fought to take the firearm from him. She was not injured in that incident, but she almost certainly helped prevent more bloodshed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: With me now is former NYPD Lieutenant and Criminal Justice Expert Darrin Porcher. Lieutenant Porcher, good morning to you. This all happened -- I think what is so remarkable here is that it all happened in three minutes inside that school.
And so, let's start broadly here. Do you see anything from a security perspective that was a vulnerability or a mistake or anything that could have prevented this from happening?
DARRIN PORCHER, CRIMINAL JUSTICE EXPERT: Well, if you read the tea leaves of past shootings that we've had in this country, one of the things that's of germane concern is the fortifications of our schools.
No school district wants to be the past Uvalde. We saw what the failures were as it related to Uvalde. So, we have to provide the necessary fortifications, such as locked doors and preventing people that shouldn't be coming into that school as allowing them entry.
One of the other concerns is when we conduct these lockdown drills for these schools, this is a K-through-five school. The shooter in many cases is a part of these lockdown drills, so they understand and identify the mechanisms that are associated with such.
This individual in particular was a student at that school, although he's 16, but he had -- he was prior a student at that school. So, he would have had a genuine understanding as to how the lockdowns work.
But fortunately, we had a citizen who had a child at that school that identified that an individual entering with a long gun should have presented a level of danger, which it did. And he came in and violently neutralized him as a result. [06:45:00]
BLACKWELL: It's an important detail that this was a student who attended this school in the past. He attended special needs classes. This was a special needs classroom. We don't know yet if he was a student in that classroom, but that's something I'm sure investigators will be exploring.
And in your discussion about fortification of these buildings, the school district says that they've made significant, security improvements over the last several years. Secured entry vestibules, photo ID checks, visitor screenings, indoor and outdoor security cameras, upgraded the locks on classroom doors.
I mean, we've discussed the vulnerabilities of soft targets over the years. These attacks in public spaces. But I mean, with all of that, still, there is no 100 percent safe school if all of that doesn't keep a shooter out.
PORCHER: Pretty accurate. This year alone, we've had 52 school shootings, resulting in 28 people that were killed. So, we do -- if you read the tea leaves, there is information that's significant that -- or greater security component in a school.
One of the issues that we have in the United States is we have 365 residents, however, we -- 365 million residents, however, we have more guns than residents. So, it begs the question of how effective can we be as a society?
When we look back to what happened in New Zealand, they had a mass shooting and it was the citizens that turned in their firearms because they wanted a safer society. Here in this particular case, we have a 16-year-old that acquired the firearm from his mother.
So, it begs the question that if he was a special needs person, why didn't the mother identify that this was an individual that shouldn't have been in possession of a firearm? If we look at the precedents that were set in Chicago in the Crumbley shooting, we had the parents that were prosecuted for having information identified that their child, Crumbley, was a danger to the public if he was armed with a firearm.
So, I think the lens that law enforcement is going to look through is to see, did the mother identify the leakage, meaning the breadcrumbs, that it was unsafe for her child to have a firearm? And if that's the case, the mother will be prosecuted as a result.
BLACKWELL: And of course, investigators are still looking to that question. Nick Watt went there and asked questions about how this shooter acquired the gun. She said that she couldn't give more details, and they're still looking for a motive here.
Lieutenant Darrin Porcher, thank you so much for being with me. Ahead in the next hour, Pope Leo is expected to leave the hospital today, a few days after undergoing lung surgery. We'll take you live to Rome for an update. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:50:00]
BLACKWELL: All right, weather now. If you're one of the millions of people across the East Coast, you're going to need a jacket this morning. A sudden cold front dropped temperatures by about 20 degrees in just 24 hours. Melissa Nord is with me now.
MELISSA NORD, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We've got Fall colors on too --
BLACKWELL: Yes, we have a tonal --
NORD: Maple(ph) leaves --
BLACKWELL: A palette on, I walked out this morning and I was just like, it's here. I'm excited.
NORD: It's nice.
BLACKWELL: Yes --
NORD: It is so nice. But there's a breeze. Quite windy conditions, but I mean, look at this map. We've got dozens of states that are now finally seeing the end of the growing season. So, frost advisories, freeze warnings in effect.
And this shows you just how much colder things are right now than 24 hours ago. A lot of these spots running 20, 25 degrees colder. So, it's finally feeling like Fall time outside instead of dealing with record high temperatures like many places saw this last week, we're finally seeing things closer to average the next couple of days.
You can see New York City only in the 50s. Today, they still have some rain out there right now, thanks to this little cold front which is still bringing some rain up and down the 95-Corridor from Washington all the way up into New York and Boston.
But that's eventually going to slide off the coast, not clear completely, though. This becomes a coastal storm that we are dealing with through the weekend, through the start of next week. And what this is going to do, even though most of the rain stays offshore, it's going to really bring up some high wind gusts.
There's going to be a lot of rough surf and large waves off the coast, and coastal flooding, coastal erosion also possible. This is expected to last all the way through at least Wednesday of the upcoming week. Check out some of these wind gusts.
In fact, Hatteras Island now has a mandatory evacuation that is being put into place because of those rough conditions out on Hatteras. You can see the winds there, Hatteras, 45 to 50 miles per hour, those wind gusts through the day today, through the day, tomorrow, even into Monday and Tuesday.
We're dealing with these high winds that we're watching. A lot of coastal flooding is expected as well. In fact, over two dozen different sensors, water gauge sensors as we get into Monday, Tuesday time frame, that tidal flooding going to get into minor and moderate flood stage.
Now, from a coastal storm in the east to a storm in the Pacific, I want to show you this. This is Typhoon Champi, that is Guam, that island right there. This is the equivalent of a Category Four hurricane moving near or just over the island today, and then pushes further off towards the west, north of the Philippines over the weekend. So, Victor, feeling like Fall for now, but watching two big coastal systems.
BLACKWELL: All right, Melissa, thanks so much. Tonight, on "THE WHOLE STORY WITH ANDERSON COOPER", we examine the cracks emerging in the MAGA movement. Some of President Trump's most loyal supporters have now started to question their allegiance to him.
CNN's senior correspondent Donie O'Sullivan traveled the country to find out exactly what is driving former Trump die-hards to break with him.
[06:55:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: What does the land mean to both of you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Freedom. Yes, well, I found freedom. Should I choose to -- I live totally off of this land that we've got, I could. I wouldn't have to beholden to anything out there.
O'SULLIVAN: Did they tell you what they wanted to do with the land?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, they did not tell us what they wanted to do with the land. They were just in a very big hurry to get it off you as fast as possible. I voted for Trump. I have every time he's run, I would go questioning it now.
O'SULLIVAN: Trump said if you're against data centers, you're going to end up backward and poor.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And that sort of pisses you off when you're from Appalachia. Anyway, you've always been backward and poor.
O'SULLIVAN: Do you think this issue is going to hurt Republicans in the Midterms?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hope it hurts them. They need to be voted out. Voted out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: "THE WHOLE STORY WITH ANDERSON COOPER: MAGA EVER AFTER" airs tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific on CNN and tomorrow on the CNN app. As we go to break, here's a live look at the skies over Boston Common. Good morning! We'll see you in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
