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New Day

Rt. Rev. Iain Greenshields is Interviewed about Queen Elizabeth; Blue Origin Rocket Fails; Flash Flooding in New York. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired September 13, 2022 - 06:30   ET

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

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[06:33:26]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: We have some live pictures for you from inside St. Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland, where a steady stream of mourners have been paying their respects to Queen Elizabeth II before her casket makes its way to London. That happens in a few hours.

On Monday, the royal family stood vigil following a service of thanksgiving. One of the speakers, Right Reverend Iain Greenshields spent the last weekend of the queen's life with her at Balmoral. He described her compassion, her service to others and her love of Scotland.

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RT. REV. IAIN GREENSHIELDS, MODERATOR, GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND: But here in Scotland, we acknowledge with gratitude her deep links with our land and its people. Here she was valued as a neighbor and a friend. And there she drew strength and refreshment during the summer months.

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BERMAN: Right Reverend Iain Greenshields is a moderator of the general assembly of the Church of Scotland, and he joins us now.

Thank you so much for being with us this morning.

You were with the queen basically last weekend. What was that like? How was she in those final days?

RT. REV. IAIN GREENSHIELDS, MODERATOR, GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND: She looked frail. She was 96 years, after all. And -- but she wasn't frail in her mind, not her personality, not her recall, and she was in every sense the queen and very much with it.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And tell us a little bit about what you were speaking about. I know you were talking about current events, which obviously she loved to speak of, and you spoke about Ukraine.

[06:35:10]

GREENSHIELDS: Yes, I mean, she was reflecting on the fact that, you know, she'd lived through a European war and that it really troubled her greatly what was happening in Ukraine, wondering when this conflict was going to come to an end.

BERMAN: And, Reverend, I was speaking to the former press secretary for Queen Elizabeth last night, who talked about her relationship with Scotland and the Scottish people. And one of the things he said was, it was at Balmoral where she could really be herself. In other words, she liked how she could be when she was in Scotland, and that helped her form a bond with the place. I wonder if that's something that you saw when you were with her, particularly at Balmoral.

GREENSHIELDS: Well, of course, as a Scot I would say, who couldn't love Scotland. But she was very much at peace here, definitely. And she said that it was a place that brought her close, I think, to her father and to her mother because it was a place that was very special to them too. It was a place where evidently, very evidently if you - if you walk in Balmoral's grounds, it's just quiet and peaceful. And you could understand the significant difference between living in the center of a busy London to being rural (ph) Aberdeenshire, where there was just constant peace and quiet.

KEILAR: She found peace. She found respite there at Balmoral. She also found some peace and respite in her faith as well. Can you talk a little bit about how you see that informing her lifetime of service?

GREENSHIELDS: Well, I mean, she spoke often about that and she spoke often about how her faith energized her and formed her, gave her the wisdom that she needed and the wisdom that was required to help her through some things are very difficult days and difficult times.

BERMAN: You know, it's interesting, obviously, the queen was 96 years old and had lived an incredibly full life. More full than almost anyone that you can possibly imagine. Yet, the world had seen pictures of her meeting Liz Truss, the new prime minister, just a few days before her death. You had spent time with her just a few days before. So, I'm wondering, how surprising was it for you to learn that she had passed?

GREENSHIELDS: Well, it was shocking in the first place, but I think it only really sunk in when I walked into the cathedral yesterday and there her coffin stood in the plenth (ph). And I suppose it's like death for all of us, isn't it. You know, when someone that we loved has died, someone we've known has died, when it comes to that moment in the funeral where you see the coffin, that's when it really sinks in that she's gone.

BERMAN: Right Reverend Iain Greenshields, the word - the world got to hear your lovely words. We're so glad to get a chance to speak with you again this morning. Thank you very much.

GREENSHIELDS: Thank you.

BERMAN: So, Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan speaking about the unprecedented leak of a draft opinion that struck down Roe versus Wade.

And Blue Origin, the Jeff Bezos rocket, crashing a minute after liftoff. What was on board and how it happened.

Then there's this.

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SHERYL LEE RALPH, ACTRESS (singing): I am an endangered species.

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KEILAR: Actress Sheryl Lee Ralph delivering a show-stopping acceptance speech at the Emmy's. That and more of the night's big moments, ahead.

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SHERYL LEE RALPH, ACTRESS (singing): I am a woman. I am an artist.

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[06:43:11]

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mission control confirms New Shepard has cleared the tower and it's heading to space.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It appears we've experienced an anomaly with today's flight.

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KEILAR: OK, that anomaly, that was a Blue Origin rocket experiencing a booster failure during a launch of its New Shepard rocket. Now, luckily, there were no astronauts aboard this rocket, only scientific payloads. But that failure triggered an abort system, you saw the parachutes there, and that allowed the capsule to land, to come all the way to earth.

And joining me now is Kristin Fisher, our CNN space and defense correspondent.

I mean, you look at that, Kristin, you say, oh, my gosh. But, at the same time, it appears that it worked as it was supposed to in a case like this.

KRISTIN FISHER, CNN SPACE AND DEFENSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you know, I think the big question for me now is, what does this do for Blue Origin's business, right? They are a private company, a space tourism company.

KEILAR: Yes.

FISHER: And, yes, you see what's happening right there. That is a New Shepard spacecraft launching yesterday. And then about a minute and four seconds into flight, something happens with that booster. And this is the same rocket booster that took Jeff Bezos and William Shatner into space. Something bad happens. And then, right there, the capsule on top pops off.

So, the good news is, that emergency abort system appears to have worked. You see the capsule landing beneath parachutes. And so if people had been on board, they likely would have been just fine.

But you also have to wonder if, you know, potential paying customers are seeing that and thinking, you know, gosh, do I want to -- do I really want to fly on that?

[06:45:03]

But, I should point out, the New Shepard spacecraft, typically, historically, a very safe system. And that rocket has flown nine times without issues. So, that abort system working as planned, but definitely a scary moment. And the FAA is now investigating.

KEILAR: It's not the adventure paying customers are hoping for.

OK, walk us through some new images that we're seeing from the Webb Telescope.

FISHER: Well, so this latest one comes from the -- it's of the Orion nebula. And this is one that scientists have been waiting for, for quite some time. This is about a thousand light years away. And this really goes to the core of what the Webb Telescope is designed to do, which is really peer into all of those interstellar clouds and see the birth of stars. And so this is what's called a stellar nursery. And scientists just -- that have been waiting literally years for these photos say this is exactly what they have been waiting for. They all them breathtaking. You can see the difference in composition and clarity between the Hubble and the Webb Space Telescope there. And that's exactly what Webb was designed to do, exactly what these scientists have been waiting for. And the goal is to really get a sense for how stars are born, and not just stars a thousand light years away, but, you know, ones in our own solar system too.

KEILAR: That is gorgeous, that photo on the right there.

OK, and then finally, in a moment of, I guess, life imitating art, if you can call the movie "Armageddon" art.

FISHER: It's art. It is absolutely art.

KEILAR: I do. I call it art. Tell us about this, what NASA's planning here.

FISHER: I think this is one of the coolest missions that NASA has ever done. In just under two weeks, NASA is going to slam a spacecraft called DART into an asteroid. And they're going to do that because they're trying to push this asteroid just off course, just a little bit, to see if, you know, a real asteroid that was, you know, coming to, you know, wipe out planet earth, if they could do this down the road.

So, to be very clear, this asteroid that's part of the DART test is not in danger to planet earth or any humans, but NASA is trying to test out this technology for the very first time to see if the big one, an extinction level event ever does come, if this technology would work. And so, you know, this is something -- I got to tour the mission operation center yesterday, and this team is so excited. They've never seen anything like this. It is the world's first planetary defense team and the world's first planetary defense mission. So, this is not just to benefit, you know, the United States of America, it's truly to benefit all of humanity.

KEILAR: This team does not include Bruce Willis and Ben Affleck.

FISHER: It does not. They invited Bruce Willis actually to the launch and, for whatever reason, he didn't go. I asked that question yesterday, and they said, as of now, no plans for Bruce Willis to be there, sadly.

KEILAR: All right. I love it.

All right, Kristin, thank you so much for that.

FISHER: Thanks.

KEILAR: Up next, tributes are pouring in for rapper PNB Rock after he was fatally shot during a holdup at a restaurant in Los Angeles. We'll have the hunt for his killer ahead.

BERMAN: Reclaiming Ukraine. On the heels of Ukrainian forces recapturing hundreds of miles strategic territory, CNN is on the ground with an exclusive look inside one of the key liberated towns.

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[06:52:40]

BERMAN: New this morning, 7 million people in New York are waking up to flooding after severe thunderstorms brought more than 2 inches of rain overnight in some areas.

Let's get right to meteorologist Chad Myers. Chad, if I did not have the right umbrella, my hair this morning would have been at serious risk.

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Oh, no. That would have been the crime of the century there, wouldn't it?

Man, it did rain. It came down about 4:00, New York City, all the way across even towards LaGuardia and Port Washington. It was just a gully wash. Two to four inches in some spots.

This weather brought to you by Safelite, your vehicle glass and recalibration experts.

We expected the rain to come through because there's a cold front behind this rain. There goes the rain now. It's way off into eastern parts of Long Island and Connecticut and Rhode Island. But it's part of a cold front that's going to really make a very good middle of the week. We still have the chance of some severe weather across parts of New England today, but there is the cold front with the drier air.

This is the first time Atlanta's been below 60 since May. That was nice outside. It is nice all across the Midwest and the air does get to the Northeast for tomorrow. Still mild, temperatures in the 80s, but your humidity is gone. That is the true key. Just watch out for the water that's still running off in some spots, John.

BERMAN: All right, Chad Myers, thank you very much for that.

The rain was welcome, I should say, though.

MYERS: Yes.

BERMAN: Though a risk for my hair. Thank you, Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

KEILAR: Philadelphia rapper PNB Rock has died after being shot at a Los Angeles fast food restaurant. This is according to "The Los Angeles Times." Police say a suspect approached the victim while he was eating at Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles on Monday and demanded some sort of property. The rapper, whose real name Rakim Allen, was shot multiple times and died from his injuries. And officials say that they have no one in custody at this point.

King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla set to arrive in northern Ireland any minute now. We are live from Belfast where they plan to view an exhibit on the late Queen Elizabeth's long association with the region.

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[06:58:42]

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JIMMY FALLEN, HOST, "THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JIMMY FALLON": But this is exciting. History was made last night as 45-year-old Tom Brady became the oldest starting quarterback in NFL history. Yes, at Brady's age, when he claps to get the snaps, all the lights in his house turn off.

You can tell Brady's getting up there because he has to put tiny tennis balls at the bottom of each cleat. Yes, at Brady's age, the only false start he gets now is when he's peeing.

And, get this, people on the inside are saying Charles is already dealing with quite a few problems. For example, I heard that he can't decide what to do with all the palaces left to him by his mother. Kings are just like the rest of us. Apparently his first order of business was really stretching the definition of the word problem.

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BERMAN: It was interesting the transition from royalty to royalty, right? Tom Brady, American royalty, the better kind, earned royalty, and then - and then King Charles. He kind of transitioned between jokes there seamlessly.

KEILAR: Are you so excited about this achievement of his?

BERMAN: Every achievement. It's just like one after -- he looked good. He looked good when he played Sunday night. I, you know, why retire if you're still one of the best.

KEILAR: Why?

BERMAN: That's what I always - that's what I always say.

[06:59:57]

NEW DAY continues right now.