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Brian Deese is Interviewed about Inflation; Boston Children's Hospital Faces Threats; Drought Conditions Improve and Worsen in U.S.; Inflation and Sports. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired August 18, 2022 - 08:30   ET

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

[08:30:00]

BRIAN DEESE, DIRECTOR, WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: Well, there's, you know, there's a set of considerations that the president has taken into account. And there's also the timeline of where we are. There's the question of the - of whether and how students should start to repay their loans, that during the pandemic we paused payments on student loans across the board as part of an emergency efforts that we did for different parts of the economy, small businesses and (INAUDIBLE). So there are those factors that all need to be factored in. And as the president has said, you know, he's -- he is preparing to make an announcement on that, and I'm not going to get ahead of him on that.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: I want to ask you a question right now because this is something that Republicans have raised. And I know the FBI is not exactly in your wheelhouse and budgetary issues don't necessarily deal with economic issues. But what would the economic impact be of defunding the FBI?

DEESE: Look, I think - I think that - I think that it's a - it's critically important that we have strong and resilient national security and domestic capabilities to protect American citizens, keep us safe, keep us secure. That's an integral part of the government and providing sufficient funding to do that is integrally important. And so we're, you know, we're going to need to do that as a government in the same way that we fund all of the basic and critical functions for our economy.

BERMAN: Brian Deese, nice to see you this morning. Thank you.

DEESE: Good to see you.

BERMAN: All right, coming soon, a sweeping overhaul at the CDC following the response to the pandemic. What needs to be done.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And staff at Boston Children's Hospital threatened and harassed because of misinformation posted online. We'll have details ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:35:41] KEILAR: Boston Children's Hospital says its doctors and staff have been facing violent threats after right wing groups spread online misinformation and conspiracy theories, like this one on TikTok, about their facility providing care for transgender children.

CNN's Alexandra Field is with us now on this story.

What's happening here?

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Look, the claims being made online are demonstrably false, unequivocally, but the threats that this hospital community is facing, they are and they feel very, very real.

Boston Children's Hospital bills itself as the first pediatric and adolescent transgender health facility in the nation. It provides gender affirming care. But the hospital has now put out a statement saying it's taking all possible measures to protect members of the community, and it is saying in no uncertain terms that it condemns the attacks and the misinformation that is being spread.

It also goes on to say, in very clear terms, Boston Children's does not perform genital surgeries as part of gender affirming care on a patient under the age of 18.

Now, the U.S. attorney in Massachusetts has said that their office is investigating any possible leads after they saw this spike in threats against the hospital community that followed a proliferation of social media posts, including a video that was posted to an account that has 1.3 million followers. That video showed a doctor talking about and explaining hysterectomy. The doctor made no mention of girls, no mention of minors, and yet that post was accompanied with this text. It said, Boston Children's Hospital is now offering gender affirming hysterectomies for young girls. Just entirely false.

But, really, we're talking about this, not just because of the threats to this hospital, but because it's part of a larger narrative that we're seeing nationwide. We are seeing more facilities that provide gender affirming care, which is not just surgery at all. It's a multidisciplinary approach to caring for the transgender community coming under fire.

Now, Massachusetts has very strong laws that protect and support the LGBTQ Plus community. But we have seen action in 15 other states to either implement or work to implement laws that would restrict access to this kind of care.

KEILAR: That misinformation being amplified by a former top aide to President Trump, we should mention. This is gaining a lot of traction.

Alexandra, thank you for taking us through that.

We have some new details on the fiery cash crash that killed actress Anne Heche, as the medical examiner reveals the official cause of death.

BERMAN: And a violent escape as a woman in the back of a police car gets out of her handcuffs, grabs one of the officer's loaded guns. We will show you what happened next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:42:40]

BERMAN: All right, it is time now for the "5 Things to Know for Your New Day."

The Trump Organization's former CFO, Allen Weisselberg, expected to plead guilty to a 15-year tax fraud scheme today. Weisselberg is willing to testify in a possible future trial on the Trump Organization, but will not agree with New York prosecutors -- to work with New York prosecutors in their criminal investigation into Donald Trump himself.

KEILAR: In a landmark ruling, Walgreens, CVS and Walmart have been ordered to pay more than $650 million to two Ohio counties for damages related to the opioid crisis created by the improper sale of the drugs. The companies say the blame is misplaced and they vow to appeal.

BERMAN: Drastic changes coming to the CDC's operations after criticisms about the agency's missteps during the Covid pandemic. Following a one-month review, key recommendations include staffing changes, sharing scientific data faster, and having easier to understand policies.

KEILAR: The L.A. County coroner has ruled that actress Anne Heche's death was an accident after her car crashed into a house and burst into flames on August 5th. Causes cited include smoke inhalation, burn injuries and a fracture of the sternum. She was taken off life support Sunday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got a civilian -- got a civilian hit. What the heck? Did she get out of her cuffs?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Investigators in Oklahoma say a woman who was being held in the back of a patrol car slipped out of her handcuffs and shot a deputy's AR-15 out the window. A deputy and another man were injured. Police say the woman was only being detained and was not going to be arrested. She now faces charges of shooting with intent to kill.

KEILAR: That is "5 Things to Know for Your New Day." More on these stories all day on CNN and cnn.com. And don't forget to download the "5 Things" podcast every morning. Go to cnn.com/5things.

BERMAN: All right, this just in, new data showing the extent of the severe drought across the western United States as water levels sink dangerously low.

Let's get right to meteorologist Chad Myers.

Chad, what's the data show?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: A lot of nuances here, John. Some of the areas did get better. Arizona, Nevada, parts of Utah, parts of Colorado. Some parts got worse. Texas, also even into California got worse.

Now, I'm going to take you back two weeks.

[08:45:00]

And you kind of have to focus on the area that you want to see because this is going to go fast. Now, two weeks ago. So, there was a lot more yellow and orange and reds on the map a couple of weeks ago. Some areas did get better. I'm going to go back to live now. This data just coming in. Notice that some of the rain around Phoenix and Flagstaff and even in Vegas have helped. In fact, Lake Mead has gone up 19 inches. Now, considering how many feet were low that is helpful but not anywhere near record-breaking or drought-breaking.

Now, I'm going to take you to the Northeast. And this is a little bit more significant here for the growing areas here and not so much the desert. One hundred percent of Massachusetts is now in drought. That has not happened in seven years. Ninety-nine percent of Rhode Island is in extreme to severe drought. So, this is, back, again, two weeks ago, and here we are last week, and then here we are again, the drought is growing. And, John, there is - there's no rain in sight for this area here for the next seven days that I can see at all.

BERMAN: Yes. Look, we're living through it. I just can't remember the last time it rained at this point.

MYERS: Right.

BERMAN: Chad Myers, thank you very much.

MYERS: You're welcome.

BERMAN: So, LeBron James, the king of getting paid. The new deal that is pushing him into the history books.

KEILAR: And it seems like athletes are raking in way more than they used to. What does that data actually say, though? Harry Enten here to tell us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:50:16]

BERMAN: LeBron James is reportedly extending his stay with the Lakers after agreeing to a two-year deal that totals nearly $100 million. That's a lot. But what does it tell us about sports salaries?

Here with the numbers, Harry Enten, CNN's senior data reporter.

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: If you have $100 million you'd like to give me, I'd more than welcome it. Look, let's just take a look at sort of the long-term trend and the

average player's salaries. Now, this is adjusted for inflation. Look, there's Major League Baseball, the NBA, the NFL. If you look at this, the NBA, the MLB and the NFL, the salaries have really gone up over the last 32 years. Look at this. Here's MLB, went from $1.4 million adjusted for inflation, to $4.4 million. The NBA, went from $1.9 million to $9.6 million. The NFL, went from $793,000 to $3.3 million. So, very clearly a high rise in player salaries.

BERMAN: Yes, salaries are going up. But this is the thing that I think people need to appreciate.

ENTEN: Yes, this is -

BERMAN: The teams are making a fortune now.

ENTEN: This is exactly right. John and I had this back and forth over texts and we thought we'd bring it to you.

Take a look here. The average team valuation, again adjusted for inflation, 1995, MLB, $216 million there in about, now $2.1 billion. The NFL, $284 million, and now $3.5 billion. The NBA, $203 million, and now $2.5 billion. Ten times as high versus the player salaries, which have really only gone up, say, three to five times as high.

BERMAN: That's the point. Exactly. So everyone complaining, oh, salaries are getting so high. The teams are ten times more valuable. The salaries, only three to five times richer.

ENTEN: Yes.

BERMAN: That's important to know here. What about the top salaries?

ENTEN: Yes, if we look at the top salaries here, you know, this is just another way of looking at this, adjusted for inflation. The MLB, $7.3 million, and now $43.3 million. The NBA, $9.6 million to $48.1 million. Keep in mind, LeBron James' salary doesn't actually take place for a few more years. So that's actually Steph Curry. Look at the NFL, $7.4 million to now $50.3 million. Joe Montana was making that $7.4 million, Aaron Rodgers that $50.3 million. I think they're both pretty comparable, but very clearly the salaries for the highest is way up.

BERMAN: Yes, again, but only five times as much, not ten times as much for the team.

ENTEN: Correct. Correct.

BERMAN: I think it's very important to note.

This is about the major leagues, per se.

ENTEN: Yes, this is --

BERMAN: Now, it's a lot different for athletes just breaking into professional sports. ENTEN: That's exactly right. So, the -- you see these large salaries

and you go, oh my goodness gracious. But keep in mind, for other professional athletes, the minimum salary is actually quite low. In minor league baseball, just $4,800. The g-league NBA -- the minor league for the NBA, $37,000. The USFL, football, $45,000. So you have to be able to get to the major leagues to earn the salaries. A lot of guys don't - or aren't able to earn that. In fact, their living conditions are often quite difficult.

BERMAN: Let's talk about some of the biggest salaries we've seen.

ENTEN: Yes, so the other thing to just keep in mind is that the largest salary, still adjusting for inflation, was actually Michael Jordan, not really much of a surprise, at about $61 million. And also keep in mind that the MLB average adjusted for inflation is actually down from where it was five years ago.

BERMAN: That's really important. Salaries are going down in baseball, which is why they held out. Why there was this (INAUDIBLE).

ENTEN: Exactly, why there was that lockout. It's something that would basically have been steady if not a little bit downward over the last few years.

BERMAN: Yes. All right, but, again, a lot of these athletes doing very well compared to the average American.

ENTEN: Yes, you know, this is - these are all first world problems right? You look at the personal income per capita yearly adjusted, it's now $63,000 in 2021. That's up a little bit, but not anywhere near as much as team valuations or player salaries.

BERMAN: Harry Enten, thank you very much for helping us understand this.

ENTEN: Putting it all in perspective.

BERMAN: You got it.

So, some Trump allies are urging him to publicly release surveillance footage of the FBI's search of Mar-a-Lago. Could that backfire? We have new CNN reporting ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:58:31]

KEILAR: A sculptor who lost his thumb and a finger in a table saw accident is hoping to use his skills and those of his artist friends to build a better prosthesis in today's "The Human Factor."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN POWERS, SCULPTOR: I'm a sculptor. I was working on a table saw and the piece of wood I was cutting kicked back and dragged my hand through the saw. When I went into surgery, they reattached the thumb. They worked very

hard to save it. They kept me in the hospital for six days hoping it would take. And it didn't.

I had built this tiny little casket. And I had built the tombstone, or the thumbstone. And then I asked a group of my friends to be pallbearers for it and we played the Rolling Stones "Under My Thumb." We eulogized the thumb.

When I put this on, I immediately began to deconstruct it and to think about how it could be better. Talking to the prosthesis people, there a number of different people attacking this problem in interesting ways now. I mean this is a great tool. It could be a greater tool.

I began to imagine, like, oh, it would be wonderful to have a silver finger to like go to parties in. It wouldn't do anything, it would just be lovely to look at.

So I began contacting sculptors. What I want them to do is whatever they want to do, to see what other people would come up with.

I would love if the games I'm playing with artists helped inform the games I'm playing with prosthetics. My hope is that I can begin making those things for myself, and that they might turn out to be useful to others.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[09:00:05]

KEILAR: I love that.

BERMAN: You know, adversity inspires creativity. That is just a wonderful example of someone going through something and then trying to make everyone else's life better because of it.

KEILAR: Yes, through art, which maybe you wouldn't think of. But you can see how it adds so much.

BERMAN: Yes.

KEILAR: CNN's coverage continues right now.