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Democratic National Convention Begins Today; Antony Blinken Meets With Benjamin Netanyahu To Talk About Ceasefire Deal; Iran Weighs Possible Retaliation Against Israel; President Joe Biden And First Lady Jill Biden To Address DNC; CNN Witness Ukraine's Cross-Border Assault Into Russia; Trump And Vance Visiting Key Swing States This Week; Security Ramped Up Across Chicago Ahead Of DNC; Talk Show Titan Phil Donahue Dies At 88; California Medical Board: No Restrictions Against Doctors Charged In Connection With Matthew Perry's Death. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired August 19, 2024 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:13]
ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our second hour of CONNECT THE WORLD, I'm Erica Hill in for Becky Anderson. It is 10:00 a.m. here in New York,
9:00 a.m. in Chicago, where the Democratic National Convention kicks off this evening, and it's a convention we're watching.
Many political pundits, of course, would have considered it to be unthinkable just a moment ago, the U.S. President Kamala Harris poised to
accept the Democratic Party's nomination for president, her meteoric rise, both as the party's standard bearer and in the polls, have been a cause for
celebration for Democrats. Amid that festive mood, though, there's this.
Just some of the protests there over Israel's continuing war against Hamas in Gaza. Protests starting, of course, over the weekend in Chicago. They're
expected to continue there throughout the week, and they come as the U.S. and its Arab allies are making another effort to broker a ceasefire.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken is once again in the Middle East.
Stephen Collinson is in Chicago for us this hour, we're going to continue to monitor that situation in the Middle East.
Stephen, I want to start with you, though, in terms of what we can expect this week in Chicago, there's, of course, what's happening outside. There's
what we will hear inside that convention center. How much is support for Israel? Is the state of the war in Gaza expected to be addressed this week?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: I think it's clearly, as you say, can be addressed by these protests. There are a lot of events
outside the convention hall. Advocates for the Palestinians, progressive Democratic groups raising this issue, I think it's still unclear about how
many speakers will actually raise it inside the convention hall, and whether we will get protests during some of the major speeches. That
wouldn't be a surprise, given the extent to which we've seen such disruptions in almost every campaign event that the President Joe Biden and
Vice President Kamala Harris has conducted so far this year.
So, clearly, it is something that's at least going to be part of the conversation here. It will be interesting in her keynote speech on Thursday
to see how the vice president talks about this, whether she'll put more of a stress on the need for an immediate ceasefire, and perhaps changes to
Israeli policy in Gaza than President Joe Biden has so far.
HILL: It will be interesting to see to of course, where things stand in terms of those negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release plan.
In terms of -- this is one of the areas, right, where we have seen a little bit more daylight between the president and the vice president in terms of
policy, in terms of how they are addressing what's happening in Gaza, specifically. Joe Biden is the big speaker tonight, and then he's done at
the Democratic National Convention. This is, must be a somewhat bittersweet moment for the president, one would imagine.
How much focus is there on Joe Biden at this moment? Is this -- is this more of a swan (ph)? How do we define this moment for him?
COLLINSON: It's something that we haven't seen in a long time. A sitting president being effectively rejected by his own party. There's no getting
around that that is what happened. The president wanted to continue his race for reelection. Senior elected officials in the Democratic Party
concluded that he was going to lose to Trump after that disastrous debate performance in Atlanta, and that they needed to move on to another
candidate.
We will see tonight, I am sure, an outpouring of love and respect for the president from the crowd in the United Center, speaking to a lot of
Democrats, they see him as a hero, not just for the things he did in his presidency, a very successful presidency legislatively, but also for
sacrificing his own career in the wider chords of beating the former president, and as he says, to save democracy.
You know, four years ago, Biden didn't get the kind of acceptance speech and big welcome from a convention, because everything was shut down during
the COVID-19 pandemic.
So, this is his first real, big moment at a convention as the party's leader, and I think it's going to be a very emotional one.
HILL: Absolutely. Stephen Collinson, appreciate it. Thank you.
Well, as we shift our focus to the Middle East in the ongoing ceasefire and hostage release talks reach a critical point. Hamas is now claiming
responsibility for this attack in Tel Aviv. It happened on Sunday, the video which has been widely circulated on Israeli media and geo located by
CNN, appears to show the moment of that explosion on Sunday. And it comes as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Israel.
[10:05:00]
CNN International Diplomatic Editor Nic Robertson is in Tel Aviv for us.
So, this attack happens as we were also hearing from Hamas as these talks continue, a three hour meeting earlier today between Blinken and Netanyahu.
Do we have a sense of where these talks stand?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, Secretary Blinken has come in to this, this round of talks here, with a sort of feeling, a
sense of positivity. And President Biden has said, look, he thinks this is really close, there's a real opportunity to close this deal and get it
done.
The White House's view, the State Department's view, is somewhat of a variance with the sense in the region here, Hamas does not feel that the
deal is that close, and even Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not as -- is not that optimistic. There are big gaps between the two.
But one of the reasons to have this sense of optimism and project a sense of optimism is to try to make sure that there isn't an escalation in the
region, that Hezbollah in Lebanon doesn't escalate with a big strike on Israel that it had promised a couple of weeks ago when Israel killed one of
its very top military commanders, and Iran had promised vowed the same, to Strike Israel, because top Hamas official was killed in Tehran.
So, this positive atmosphere the Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is coming in here with isn't reflected in the region. And in many ways, that
explosion last night, that terror attack in Tel Aviv simply signifies just how bad the situation is.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON (voice over): A terrorist bomb, the first in Tel Aviv in almost two decades, scattering shrapnel, sowing fear, exploding within hours of
Secretary of State Antony Blinken's arrival, the city's alert level raised. America's top diplomat's peace mission here more high stakes than ever,
pushing America's bridging proposal to get over talks disagreements.
ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: This is a decisive moment, probably the best, maybe the last opportunity to get the hostages home to
get a ceasefire.
ROBERTSON (voice over): Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, pessimistic.
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): There are things we can be flexible on and things we can't and which we must insist
upon. Desire to make a deal should be directed at Hamas.
ROBERTSON (voice over): And Hamas in a statement as Blinken arrived, blaming Israel for the impasse. The new proposal meets Netanyahu's
conditions and is in line with them, especially his refusal to a permanent ceasefire.
Key sticking points, they say, are the net serene junction, referring to Israel's demand to search Palestinians returning to Northern Gaza for guns,
a red line for Hamas.
The Philadelphia Corridor, Gaza's six mile border with Egypt, Israel insists it needs to control it to stop Hamas smuggling in weapons. Another
red line for Hamas.
Rafah, Gaza's only road crossing to Egypt, the IDF controls it. Hamas wants it back. Israel says no.
Meanwhile, in Gaza, ceaseless suffering, a family killed in an Israeli air strike Saturday, another Sunday, safe zones shrinking and more people
ordered to them.
The IDF saying it's hitting Hamas while trying to protect civilians, but claims Hamas continues to fire rockets using residents as cover.
Blinken's recent track record wrestling compromise from Netanyahu, publicly, at least, has been poor. No reason yet to think this visit will
be different.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON (on camera): So, that 2-1/2 hour meeting that they had, perhaps that does indicate something positive. That's what the prime minister's
office here said, that it was a positive meeting, with Israel reassuring the United States that it supports all its -- all its positions in that
bridging proposal.
But we've seen Secretary Blinken have long meetings with the Israeli Prime Minister before and not get everything that the United States wants out of
those meetings.
So really, you know, later today, we're expecting Secretary Blinken's readout, and perhaps that will give us a better understanding of really the
progress that he feels he might be making here.
HILL: Yes, absolutely, we'll be watching for that. Nick, appreciate it. Thank you.
Of course, all of this happening as a threat of a retaliatory attack against Israel by Iran still looms over the region. CNN's Fred Pleitgen is
in Iran's capital for us now with more as we wait and we watch for what may be to come, Fred.
[10:10:09]
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely. There's really three messages that we're getting out of the Iranians in the
past couple of days really, Erica.
On the one hand, they say they do want a cease fire to happen in those talks. However, number two is that they're not very optimistic that one is
going to happen. They don't believe that the Israelis are serious about the negotiations, especially Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
But the third thing, and this is something that the Iranians have once again emphasized today, is that the retaliation against Israel for the
killing of Ismail Haniyeh here in Tehran on July 31st for them, is a completely different issue than the ceasefire negotiations, and that that
retaliation is still very much in the cards. Here's what we're learning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PLEITGEN (voice over): Iran says its drones and missiles are ready for an attack against Israel in retaliation for the killing of Hamas chief Ismail
Haniyeh. But as tensions remain at a boiling point, Iran's political transition continues.
The new president Masoud Pezeshkian's cabinet appointees going through confirmation hearings in Iran's parliament, the Majles.
PLEITGEN: Once Masoud Pezeshkian's cabinet is approved by Iran's parliament. The new government will have its work cut out for it. The
Middle East, of course, is in severe turmoil as the region awaits Iran's possible harsh retaliation for the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh.
PLEITGEN (voice over): While Iran's response appears delayed, parliamentarians here say, make no mistake, revenge is coming and will be
harsher than Tehran's last strikes against Israel after Iran's consulate in Damascus, Syria was bombed in April.
This time they attacked our mainland, the world will witness a serious reaction by us, the time, the place, and the type of reaction is to be
decided, he says, and then adds, you saw the first example. You can multiply that as much as you like.
We will teach our enemies a lesson so they will not attack us anymore. this parliamentarian says, We are seeking peace and calm in the region, and are
not warmongers at all.
The U.S. says it's seeking a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas also in the hopes a deal to end the violence in Gaza could persuade Iran not to launch
the retaliatory strikes against Israel.
But Washington has also deployed substantial forces to the Middle East. A senior Biden administration official warning Iran could face, "Cataclysmic
consequences" if it attacks Israel.
Iranian parliamentarians brushing off that warning.
If they attack or threaten us, the Iranian response will be jawbreaking, he says, Iran has showed in practice it will do so, and has the means to do
so. The capabilities we have are not what the world knows about, they are far beyond.
But when, where and how Iran plans to use those capabilities remains shrouded in secrecy, keeping the Middle East on edge.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PLEITGEN (on camera): And you know, Erica, one of the interesting things that we've seen over the past couple of days is that while the Iranians
obviously are not part of the ceasefire negotiations that have been going on in Doha and are set to continue this week in Cairo, the Iranians still
very much a factor in all of that.
And one of the things that was showcased was the fact that the Qatari prime minister on every single day that there were negotiations in Doha, at the
end of each day, he called the Iranian foreign minister and updated him on the progress that was being made.
Still, the Iranians definitely sending the message that they are not optimistic about the ceasefire talks, even though they do say they want a
ceasefire between Israel and Gaza.
HILL: Fred, it's good to have you there on the ground. Appreciate it. Thank you.
Still to come this hour, Ukraine is hoping its incursion into Russia will actually change the course of that war and CNN got a firsthand look at
Ukraine's control over the town of so and the intensity of the battle there.
We are also just learning that legendary us talk show host Phil Donahue has passed away at the age of 88. Still to come this hour, we'll take a look
back at the legacy of this television pioneer.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:16:27]
HILL: A bittersweet and historic turn of events coming to a head later today, one month after conceding to pressure, ending his reelection bid and
throwing his support behind his second in command, President Biden will deliver the opening night's keynote speech on day one of the Democratic
National Convention. It is impossible to ignore the real focus and the real draw in Chicago this week. That is, of course, Vice President Kamala
Harris, she will be in the hall tonight for Biden's remarks.
Later this week, she's set to become the first ever woman of color to be formally nominated as a major party's U.S. presidential candidate.
CNN's Senior Political Analyst Mark Preston joining me now live from Chicago, as the party is preparing to get started.
There behind you, Mark, it's going to get quite busy as the day goes on. Just put this moment in context, if you would for us, in terms of what
President Biden will be doing tonight, and what a marked change this is from what Democrats were planning just a month ago.
MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, Erica, you know, I just ran into a democratic congressman in the hallway, and we were just talking
about how just 28, 29 days ago, things were entirely different for the Democratic Party, the excitement level for their nominee was not nearly
where it is right now.
And what we've seen over these weeks is a Democratic Party that was in many ways depressed, demoralized, you know, didn't seem to have the energy
heading into November that they needed. That has now all changed.
And what we're going to see tonight is the passing of the torch. And I know that's an overused term that you'll hear over and over today, but there
will be this symbolic passing of the torch, and this idea that Joe Biden, you know, got us through these last three years, that people forget, you
know, he came in during COVID, towards the end of COVID, and he will talk a lot about that.
But it really will be, I think, setting it up for Kamala Harris and for her to then take it on for the next four years.
HILL: In terms of that throughout this week, which, of course, will come in on Thursday night with that official nomination, with her acceptance
speech. What does Kamala Harris need to do this week?
PRESTON: Well, it's a really good question, because she hasn't -- so far, her campaign has been flawless in the sense that there hasn't been any
hiccups. The polling continues to increase. We expect, or would suspect, that her polling will increase, Erica, coming after this convention because
of what we would call the convention bump.
But what she has to do is sell herself to America. That's what the next four days are, not just Kamala Harris, but everyone else that takes the
stage here and will be broadcast all across the country, all around the world for that matter, they need to sell Kamala Harris as the person who
can build upon what Joe Biden did, but also take it into another direction. Talk about the future. Talk about the youth.
I mean, in part, what we're seeing from the excitement build up from the Democrats is being driven largely by women and young people right now. And
those were two groups that were -- I don't want to say they were demoralized, but they were certainly not as excited as they are now.
HILL: And we heard from a lot of young voters, not just young voters but there certainly seemed to be a higher number of younger voters who were
really disenchanted, especially those voting for the first time with their two choices. That has changed a little bit.
I was also struck by some recent polling. I think it was around a third, maybe a little bit more, in this latest CBS News poll, of people who really
weren't that familiar with Vice President Harris. They don't know enough about her. That seemed to me like a fairly large number. 3-1/2 plus years
into her being the vice president.
PRESTON: Yes, you know, it's amazing by that, not only that, but she also - - she also ran for president. She has been on the debate stage, people have seen her.
[10:20:06]
But no, but that's a good point Erica, because what we've seen is that it seems nowadays that our memory loss as you know as a nation seems to be
very quick.
You know, you forget what happened a year ago, two years ago, two days ago, for that matter, but Kamala Harris does have the ability now to try to
build upon that and to take those numbers and try to push them in the positive direction.
Now, the negative for that is, though, is that she will be criticized for being the vice president for the last 3-1/2 years. Where has she been? So,
she will be criticized, and has been criticized for that.
But also, in addition to that, she could potentially drop in her numbers. If people don't know her, maybe they will not like her. So, there is that
concern as well.
But I have to say, Kamala Harris right now, they haven't done anything wrong. The campaign hasn't done anything wrong, and the next four days,
they're going to try to build upon that and continue to try to chip away at Donald Trump's ability to kind of get into those edges of the Democratic
Party.
Mark Preston, great to see you. Thank you.
PRESTON: Thanks, Erica.
HILL: Ukrainian officials have now started evacuating children and their parents as Russian troops advanced toward the eastern city of Pokrovsk.
Authorities say residents there have won maybe two weeks left to escape to safety. And all of this, of course, is happening as Ukrainian forces
continue to make progress inside Russian territory, nearly two weeks into their incursion. The Ukrainian military now says it controls a thousand
square kilometers of Russian territory and claims it has destroyed another Russian bridge by using precision airstrikes.
As all of this fighting rages on, CNN was among the first news organizations to go into the part of Russia's Kursk region, which is now
controlled by Ukraine. It's important to note, CNN was accompanied by Ukraine's military, which also reviewed the video you're about to see for
operational security reasons.
The military, however, did not hear the sound, and I do want you to know they had no editorial control. Here's CNN Nick Paton Walsh.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This was never in Putin's plan. But still, into Russia we cross with Ukrainian
forces moving forward through the border post they destroyed in their surprise assault 10 days ago.
PATON WALSH (on camera): As we get closer towards Sudzha, we can see more smoke on the horizon. But still, it's bizarrely calm on this road.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Pause a moment in these open fields and remember, this is the Cold War superpower. Unguarded, open and never expecting when
Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his war of choice two years ago, to be invaded back.
A Russian dead soldier still in the road. Ukraine only claimed here a day ago.
PATON WALSH (on camera): Well not even the statue of Lenin is unscathed here. This Ukrainian assault, so persistent, and Russia, despite its sense
of history, it's sort of past as being so impregnable, completely unable to push the Ukrainians out here. A sound of small arms fire we can still hear,
so clearly there is a bid for the Russians to push back, but it simply isn't working, and the humiliation for Putin endures.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Days ago, locals had honored their war dead. But none since the Nazis led Russia to face occupation.
PATON WALSH (on camera): You can see the damage that's been done to the street here from the intense fight that rage. Still clearly active fighting
happening here.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): A sign in the basement here, they're peaceful people, no soldiers. Ina (ph) 68 says 60 civilians are there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): The Ukrainians brought a lot of boxes. There is food.
PATON WALSH: Just like we've seen in multiple Ukrainian towns over the last two years here, the locals trying to find some shelter from the war around
them.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Dennis (ph) Lav (ph) shows his gray.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): This isn't living. It's existing. It's not life.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): In the dark, hunted like so many Ukrainians now the infirmed isolated, begging for calm.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I don't know how it will end. At least a truce, so we can live peacefully. We don't need anything. I have a
crutch. I can't walk. It's very hard.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Day, night, light, dark, news or blackout or blur into one.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): No news, we don't know what's happening around us.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Yefimov (ph) is over 90 and wants to leave to Ukraine, but there is no route out, he says.
[10:25:03]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): You're the first to come here. My daughter, niece and grandkids are there. I'm Russian but they are married
to Ukrainians.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): Again, ordinary streets that never guessed of their destruction or newfound fame days ago.
Vacant in the storm around them. Normal life here vanished in a hurry, leaving store floors as barracks. And Nina (ph), 74, out looking for a
pharmacy for her medication.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): If I wanted to leave, I would have. Why leave? I've lived here 50 years. My daughter and mother are
buried here. What about Ukraine? I live on my own land. I don't know whose land this is. I don't know anything anymore.
PATON WALSH (voice-over): It is a war that keeps turning the world order on its head where wreckage that lined Ukraine's fields now haunts Russia's.
Ukrainians learn to paint over their road signs to confuse the invaders, but still here the signs asked God to protect and save Russia. That was
Putin's job. It is not clear when he's coming back.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Sudzha, Ukrainian held Russia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: While the Democratic National Convention kicks off in Chicago, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is working overtime this
week, holding rallies in a number of battleground states. We'll bring up to speed on those plans just ahead.
Plus, growing calls to regulate the use of ketamine after the death of actor Matthew Perry. Why some are comparing prescriptions of the drug to
the "Wild West."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: Welcome back, I'm Erica Hill in New York, just about half past the hour now, as Democrats are gathering for their national convention in
Chicago this week, the Republicans presidential nominee Donald Trump and his running mate, Senator J.D. Vance, are set to hit the campaign trail
with some counter programming, and they are doing it in key battleground states.
Later today, they'll be holding rallies in Pennsylvania. The campaign also has plans for Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina, Arizona and Georgia --
[10:30:01]
HILL: And they are doing it in key battleground states later today. They will be holding rallies in Pennsylvania.
The campaign also has plans for Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina, Arizona and Georgia this week. CNN's Kristen Holmes is following all things
Trump campaigned for us and joins me this hour from Washington.
So, in terms of these stops, obviously, these are key states that both candidates are eyeing. What can we expect at some of these events?
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Erica, what you're going to see is something that looks a little bit different from what we have
seen from Donald Trump of the past.
One, these aren't evening events. These are all happening around 3:00 p.m. and there is a reason for that. They know they are not going to break
through in terms of media coverage at 7:00, 8:00, 9:00 p.m. when you start to see those big speakers at the DNC, like President Joe Biden, like
Hillary Clinton, like Bill Clinton.
That is not going to be something that you're going to then pop-up Donald Trump in the middle of. So, they are trying to try to see some of the media
narrative when they possibly can.
Now, what this is going to look like is a series of what they call "messaging" events. These are smaller events held at smaller venues with
smaller crowds that focus on one issue.
So, what you're where you're going to see Donald Trump this week? He's going to be in York, Pennsylvania, talking about the economy. And Tuesday,
he's going to be in Howell, Michigan, which is a suburb of Detroit, talking about safety.
Wednesday is Asheboro, North Carolina. Thursday, he's going to be south of Tucson, in the border, talking about immigration. And then, Friday is going
to be in both Las Vegas and in Glendale, Arizona.
Arizona is the only one of those that is an actual rally. The rest, as I said, are those smaller messaging events. And part of this is to try and
get Donald Trump back on track, back on message. Because, as we have seen, it has been difficult for him to focus on the issues, instead, he has been
focusing on the personal attacks.
And I want you to listen to what he said over the weekend when he was in Pennsylvania.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Crooked Joe, have -- what happened to Biden? I was running against Biden.
All of a sudden, I'm running against somebody else. It's true.
You know, it's interesting. I said, who am I running against? Harris. I said, who the hell is Harris? I believe she will be easier to beat than
him, because she is a truly radical left lunatic.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: So, clearly, they are going off of message on the topics of issues, instead, just with the personal attacks and fixating on President Joe
Biden. So, we'll see what the rest of this week looks like.
HILL: Kristen, appreciate it. Thank you.
HOLMES: Thank you.
HILL: Let's hear with speed now in some of the other stories on our radar right now. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi plans to visit Ukraine this
Friday. Mr. Modi has repeatedly called for a ceasefire, but has yet to condemn Russia's war on Ukraine.
You may recall back in July, he visited Russia, a trip, Ukraine's president condemned.
China and the Philippines trading blame after their coast guard vessels collided in the South China Sea. The Philippines blaming unlawful and
aggressive maneuvers by China the damage two of its ships.
China, for its parts, says the Philippine vessels entered its waters illegally despite repeated warnings. The two countries signed a provisional
agreement in July to allow the Philippines to conduct resupply missions to a Navy ship.
At least one person is dead, six others missing after a water spout sunk a luxury yacht, sailing off the coast of Sicily. British tech tycoon Mike
Lynch is among those missing. The vessel was actually anchored at the time off of Porticello when it was hit by the storm happened just before dawn.
Officials say 15 people were rescued. The vessel's captain is reportedly among the survivors.
CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam Joining me now with more on the weather conditions in that area. So, this spout, almost a local fisherman described
what he saw as a tornado, Derek.
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right. But it was a water spout, because it formed over water, likely, or perhaps, moved from land onto water. So,
we're going to talk about the differences here.
But here is the reason why we had this kind of area of disturbance near Sicily. You can see the flare up of showers and thunderstorms. It's all
centered around this area of low pressure that continues to rotate across the region, which, by the way, could spark off additional water spout
threats across this portion of the world.
But water spouts, they really fall into two different types of categories. You can either have a fair-weather water spout, one that you see forming on
the bottom of cumulus clouds, dark cumulus clouds in the distance. There is often light winds associated with their formation. But you can have a
tornadic water spout.
So, one that actually drops down from a supercell thunderstorm, perhaps reaching the water and then moving on shore and creating damage on shore,
or perhaps into any boats near the shoreline.
They are often associated with more turbulent weather, lightning, thunder, strong winds, and they can be very destructive. That was certainly the type
of water spout that we contended with here across the northern sections of Sicily, just off the shore there. And yes, that is a concern.
Of course, they come from these thunderstorms, and they often bring damage along with them, if they're encountering people. At the same time, it makes
it even worse.
[10:35:04]
Now, the ongoing back story to this is that Sicily has been under the grips of a very long drought. So, the storm did bring some rainfall to the area.
We will take what we can get in terms of rain, but it's not enough to put a dent in their longstanding drought that continues. Erica?
HILL: Yes. Derek, appreciate it. Thank you.
We are, of course, are keeping a close focus on Chicago all this week, the start of the DNC now just hours away, as parts of the city of Chicago are
locked down already with protesters in the streets.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AMERICAN CROWD: Hey, hey, ho, ho, the (INAUDIBLE) has got to go. Hey, hey, ho, ho.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Just ahead here, why some are already drawing parallels to what happened when Democrats came to town more than five decades ago. Are they
accurate?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Student protesters, hippies, supporters of Senator McCarthy, and opponents of Vice President Humphrey, some peaceful
demonstrators, some avowed revolutionaries, battled and were battered by police.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Those were scenes from August of 1968 when the Democratic National Convention was also held in Chicago. Violent riots, of course, shaking the
city that year, protesters were there, angry with U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, clashing with police.
So, now, there are questions about whether parallels can be drawn with what unfolded there more than five decades ago, and what is expected this week
in Chicago.
Tens of thousands of demonstrators expected to take to the streets during this convention. Some of the protests have already begun. The Harris
campaign, for its part, saying their free speech rights need to be respected.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITCH LANDRIEU, NATIONAL CO-CHAIR, HARRIS-WALZ CAMPAIGN: This is a really emotional issue for a lot of people. And so, the First Amendment is
critically important. Everybody has a right to protest. They should. They should protest as loudly as they want. Just, the protests need to stay
peaceful.
HILL: Security has been ramped up across the city. The governor of Illinois says about 250 members of the National Guard will be on standby. Here is
CNN's Whitney Wild with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice over): As the Democratic National Convention gets underway, security is a top priority.
DEREK MAYER, DEPUTY SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE, U.S. SECRET SERVICE: It takes several days to put these security perimeters into effect.
WILD: Secret Service Deputy Special Agent in Charge Derek Mayer has spent more than a year directing the planning for this massive event.
MAYER: The United Center has been closed down now for almost a month. As you can look at this entire perimeter will take over the work that goes
into putting something like this into effect.
WILD (voice over): Non scalable fencing will surround two locations, the United Center and McCormick Place.
Law enforcement will also have support from the air, on the ground, and in the water. Security officials are on alert for possible retaliatory attacks
against Democrats, more than a month after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, according to a new intelligence report on
the DNC obtained by CNN.
MAYER: I think the world is a very dangerous place nowadays.
WILD: When you -- when you look at the. overall threat landscape, what is the most concerning thing to you?
[10:40:02]
MAYER: I mean, I think from a secret service perspective overall, I think everything we have to take every risk, every threat seriously.
WILD (voice over): As war rages in the Middle East, angry protests are expected during the DNC.
AMERICAN CROWD: Free, free, free Palestine!
WILD (voice over): The Chicago metropolitan area is home to the largest Palestinian population in the U.S., and thousands of pro-Palestinian
protesters have marched downtown for months.
HATEM ABUDAYYEH, CO-FOUNDER, U.S. PALESTINIAN COMMUNITY NETWORK: Absolutely there will be tens of thousands of people, especially if there's an
expanded war.
WILD (voice over): Chicago has hosted several political nominating conventions in the past, none more notorious than 1968. The city has been
unable to shake the memory of those violent clashes. Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling says the department is training for high
stress and high risk.
LARRY SNELLING, SUPERINTENDENT, CHICAGO POLICE DEPARTMENT: But we've also given our officers extensive training to help them deal with these types of
protests through stress inoculation training, just putting them through real-time scenarios, which is going to help them out there in the field.
WILD (voice over): Chicago Police will lead any response while under scrutiny themselves.
WILD: What is a realistic measure of success for you and for your officers?
SNELLING: Everything that we trained to do was in full effect, and our officers are safe. The residents here and our businesses, they were here
long before the DNC ever thought about coming here, and they will be here long after it's gone.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WILD (on camera): In addition to these massive police presence, the Illinois governor says that up to 250 members of the National Guard have
been authorized.
Whitney Wild, CNN, Chicago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: Joining me now to discuss, Larry Sabato. He's the director of the Center for politics at the University of Virginia, and also the editor of
"Return to Normalcy: The 2020 Election That Almost Broke America".
Larry, it's always good to see you. There is been so much in the run up, of course, to the DNC this year, so much talk about how accurate or not the
parallels are to 1968 in terms of what people are expecting and the protests themselves. What do you make of those comparisons?
LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: Well, I think they're overdrawn. I say that as somebody who actually was not at
the convention, but was in Chicago shortly before the convention, and it was like being in the eye of the storm. It was calm at that time, but you
could tell from the police presence what was coming to a certain degree. That was the most divisive political convention in modern times in either
party.
And the Vietnam War was very different than the Gaza-Israeli war. Yes, people are concerned about what's going on now in the Middle East. But in
with the Vietnam War, the country was torn right down the middle, every family had an argument about it. It wasn't just in politics.
And so, what happened there affected not just the election, but the entire debate about Vietnam.
You only have, as I understand it, about 30 uncommitted delegates. There are probably other supporters in the hall that have gotten in some way or
another, but you don't have a critical mass sufficient to do what the anti- war delegation supporting Senator McCarthy, and also the leftover delegates from Senator Kennedy, the -- of course, occurring after his assassination.
They were right there in the hall. And you also had the convention being run by Mayor Richard J Daley, who was a tough guy, and he was determined to
run that convention the way he wanted to run it. And he ran into an immovable force, the anti-war delegates. It was a disaster of monumental
proportions. That's not going to happen this week.
And a lot of the reporters, Erica, they didn't live through that time. They don't realize from those little bits of video they are seeing from the 68
convention how different this situation is than that one was.
HILL: And I think you point out rightly too, in terms of being different, how much bigger the situation was. Right? How divided the entire country
was in that moment, how divided the party was.
If we do look at just the purely political aspect of it, though, moving into this convention, there is a real push by Democrats to be more united
as a party. It certainly seems as if they have, in the last three, four weeks, been coalescing, you know, around the vice president as she moves
toward that official nomination for the office of president from the party.
How effective do you think that has been as well, in really setting the scene to show that, that too is different than 1968 in terms of the party
itself?
SABATO: Very, very different, and you're right to make that point. It's fundamental. Right now, the Democratic Party is almost completely unified.
Yes, a few people are very upset about the Middle East situation, but again, you can't compare it to 1968.
And the convention was not united around the nominee, Vice President Humphrey, who faced a lot of opposition in the hall, not just the thousands
of demonstrators being beaten into submission by the Chicago police force.
[10:45:12]
You've got a different mayor, completely different mayor. You've got a different police force, and in the convention, you have a United Democratic
Party. And the Democrats could have been less -- could not possibly have been less united.
And Erica, remember one thing, despite all that, despite Hubert Humphrey coming out of that convention behind somewhere between 15 and 20 percentage
points, he came within less than one half of one percent of winning the election in November.
HILL: We still have a lot of time until November.
SABATO: Yes. No, we do.
HILL: But there is a lot riding on this moment and in this week. What are you -- before I let you go, real quickly, what are you watching for over
the next four days?
SABATO: I'm watching to see whether Kamala Harris, who is new on the national scene, even though she is been vice president, whether she is able
to fill in the blanks that Americans have about who she is wholly apart from policy.
And add to the policy profile that she have. And also, she's got to engage with the economy. There is no way around it. The border excites mainly
Trumps people, but Inflation affects everyone, and she's got to tangle with it.
HILL: People would like some more details on that price gouging ban. We will be looking for those as well. Larry, always great to talk to you.
Thank you.
SABATO: Thank you, Erica.
HILL: Some sad news to report this hour. We're just learning that legendary U.S. talk show host Phil Donahue has died at the age of 88.
In decades at the helm of his show, Donahue revolutionized that genre. He also laid the groundwork for the many who followed in his footsteps. Here
is a look back at his life.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIP JOHN DONAHUE, AMERICAN MEDIA PERSONALITY: After 29 years and more than 6,000 shows, here we are.
SARA SIDNER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Phil Donahue changed the face of daytime television forever with a talk show that tackled
controversial issues in front of a live audience.
DONAHUE: We were so different. Everything else around us was a soap opera, game show.
SIDNER (voice over): Donahue honed his broadcasting skills early in his career as a radio and TV news anchor in his native Ohio. His big break came
in 1967 when Dayton's WLWD T.V. launched "The Phil Donahue Show."
Donahue had the groundbreaking idea of asking the studio audience for questions.
DONAHUE: Suddenly, people were watching people just like themselves stand up, kick tires, complain. And we found that we liked that.
SIDNER (voice over): "The Phil Donahue Show" built a reputation as a forum for hot button topics like equal rights for women.
DONAHUE: Issues that women cared about and talked about among themselves, we were on the air talking about them.
I realized that people in the audience were asking better questions than I was.
SIDNER (voice over): The show moved to Chicago, and later New York, all the while expanding to more stations across America.
National syndication meant higher profile guests. Among them, his future wife, actress Marlo Thomas. In 1977, audiences watched the couple fall in
love live on stage.
DONAHUE: You are really fascinating. And you are --
MARLO THOMAS, WIFE OF PHIL DONAHUE: No, but you are wonderful. I said it when we were off the air and I want to say, you are loving and generous and
you like women and it's a pleasure. And whoever the woman in your life is very lucky.
DONAHUE: Well, thank you very much.
She was just obviously a very exciting person. She was not only gorgeous, she had the great facility, language, and she had opinions and he was a
feminist. She was somebody you could argue with.
SIDNER (voice over): Donahue paved the way for daytime talk show hosts like Geraldo Rivera, Jerry Springer, and Oprah Winfrey, but soon began losing
viewers to his new lineup. In 1996, after years of declining ratings, "The Phil Donahue Show" ended.
DONAHUE: Well, thank you. I am flattered. You may be seated.
SIDNER (voice over): Donahue returned in 2002 with a short-lived interview program on MSNBC. The left-leaning broadcaster claimed his outspoken
opposition to the Iraq War, lead to the show's cancellation.
In later years, he appeared as a political commentator and produced the 2007 anti-war documentary "Body of War".
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let your voice be heard.
SIDNER (voice over): Phil Donahue, daytime talk pioneer and an enthusiastic examiner of society's thorniest questions.
DONAHUE: I think everybody ought to have a talk show. It's a wonderful education.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:51:08]
HILL: The Medical Board of California, says it is investigating the two doctors charged in connection with the death of actor Matthew Perry, but
adds no restrictions have been imposed on them at this time.
Both are facing federal charges for allegedly helping to supply the "Friends" star with ketamine. It's a hallucinogen approved as an
anesthesia.
An autopsy found Perry died from the acute effects of ketamine and subsequent drowning last year. His death is also now turning a spotlight on
the loose in prescribing practices of the drug. Some doctors now calling for regulations.
CNN medical correspondent Meg Tirrell, joining me now with more.
So, Meg, if we look at this, you know, as noted, this is approved as an anesthesia. It's not really approved for other ways of use, correct?
Certainly not for treating mental health disorders.
MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. So, it's a really interesting regulatory situation for ketamine. This is a drug that has been
approved by the FDA as an anesthetic since 1970. It was developed for use on the battlefield and was used in the Vietnam War.
But since then, it started to be used for a lot of other things as well, both recreationally, but also sort of off-label with the FDA approval.
So, it's being used for things that it's not FDA approved for, often through these clinics that have proliferated.
Also, in 2019 a version of ketamine called esketamine was approved to treat treatment resistant depression, a nasal spray version whose brand name is
Spravato that's sold by Johnson and Johnson.
But ketamine itself has been used through these clinics for everything from anxiety to depression to PTSD and pain. And some doctors worry that the
oversight over those clinics, many of which are cash pay, is too lax.
We have seen prescriptions for ketamine go up by more than five-fold since 2017 according to data from epic research, and those are just uses within
the medical system. So, it's not capturing all of the ketamine use outside of the system, and doctors are concerned, because this is quite a powerful
drug that could be done unsafely in some situations.
HILL: Those numbers are so high. When we look at this, to stepping back, let's talk about the risks if we could of taking ketamine without that
medical supervision.
TERRELL: Right. Well, if you think about the way ketamine works, it blocks a neurotransmitter in the brain, and it can cause people to have a sort of
distorted perceptions of sight and sound, to sort of remove them from their environment. And, you know, the reason people might use it for pain is
because it sort of detaches you potentially from feeling pain.
But it can also cause, you know, sedation, dissociation, psychiatric events, and increases in blood pressure, and depressed breathing, or slowed
breathing. And so, there are concerns that if you don't have supervision while using it, that could be quite dangerous.
And, in fact, the approved version, esketamine has a lot of guardrails around it. You have to be monitored for two hours by a health care
professional after taking it, and then, you're not supposed to drive until the next day, you've gotten a good night's sleep first, because this can be
so powerful.
HILL: Wow, boy, talk about a real conversation that's being had right now. Meg, appreciate it. Thank you.
TERRELL: Thanks.
HILL: I do want to leave you with a bit of sports news before letting it go. WNBA star Caitlin Clark's rookie season really proving to be one for
the record books. On Sunday, she broke the assist record for a rookie. This came as the Indiana Fever her team, of course, beat the Seattle Storm 92 to
75.
When asked about that latest milestone, turns out Clark had other things on her mind.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAITLIN CLARK, GUARD, INDIANA FEVER: I thought it was a really fun game like these fans have just been crazy and so into it. And I feel like --
especially with how we started the season like, I feel like they definitely deserve it, and I think they're starting to see how much potential this,
you know, this team has.
But yes, I mean, the assist record is cool too.
HILL: Well, with 12 games to go, Clark is on pace to break the season record for assists.
[10:55:02]
That's going to do it for CONNECT THE WORLD. Be sure to stay with CNN. We have live coverage of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago
starting at 5:00 p.m. Chicago time. That's 6:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.
Stay tuned. Up next, "NEWSROOM WITH RAHEL SOLOMON".
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
