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New Day Saturday

At Least Eight Dead, Hundreds More Treated for Medical Issues at Astroworld Festival in Houston; At Least 50,000 were in Attendance at Sold Out, Two-Day Event; Congress Passes $1.2 Trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill; Kids As Young As 5 Years Now Eligible to Receive Pfizer COVID Vaccine; Capitol Police Intelligence Unit Overhaul Caused Confusion Ahead of January 6. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired November 06, 2021 - 06:00   ET

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

[06:00:17]

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning and welcome to your "NEW DAY." It is Saturday, November 6th.

I'm Christi Paul.

BORIZ SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Christi.

I'm Boris Sanchez.

Thank you so much for waking up with us this Saturday. We begin with breaking news.

A tragedy in Houston where at least eight people have died at a sold- out music festival. As many as 50,000 people were attending the first night of the Astroworld Music Festival when crowd started to rush the stage and they caused panic and chaos.

PAUL: Now, earlier in the afternoon, hundreds of people - look at this video -- stampeded through a VIP entrance. They knocked over metal detectors and ignored security staff there, as you can see for yourself. This is the third year for festival - for the festival, which is organized by rapper and producer Travis Scott. Now, officials say that today's lineup is canceled and there is an investigation going on right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LINA HIDALGO, HARRIS COUNTY JUDGE: They're working to identify all the victims, but what has been made clear, the folks that were transported, some as young as 10. And so, really tonight is about that, is about connecting families with the information that they need.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: 10 years old. CNN's Evan McMorris-Santoro is following the story. He joins us live.

Evan, it's good to see you this morning. Help us understand what's going on right now.

EVAN MCMORRIS-SANTORO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris and Christi, this is an ongoing story. So, I'm going to refer to my notes a little bit as I talk to you about it.

We have a lot to learn about what happened, but what we do know is this is a tragedy that appears to be about crowd control and about what happens when a large group of people wants to go in one direction at one time.

This is supposed to be a celebration of Houston by one of its most prominent sons, but instead what we're seeing is 50,000 people were in attendance last night, according to authorities, at NRG Park, which is a stadium complex in Houston, which is used to be the home of the Astroworld/Six Flags Park, which is what the event is named after.

And authorities say that there was some kind of crowd surge which led to that large number of casualties. Around 20 people taken to the hospital, 11 with cardiac arrest, some were children, as we heard from those authorities earlier today. And then, of course, that horrible number that you mentioned, eight dead in these incidents.

Earlier in the day, as you also saw in that - in that opening video, another crowd control incident when the crowd rushed that opening entrance, surging through those gates like that. This is the kind of thing that you really hope never to see when you go to an event like this. This is the kind of event that you don't see that often, thankfully.

And the saddest part is you know Travis Scott is a native of Houston, and Astroworld was part of his efforts to really showcase his hometown and highlight his neighborhood of South Park. You can see him on stage during these horrible moments. And you could only imagine what's going through his head right now and head of everybody else as they are investigating just what happened and just what this means for you know Houston and for this you know this music festival.

Boris and Christi?

PAUL: Evan McMorris-Santoro, we appreciate it so much. We know that this is a very fluid situation. Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Joining us now over the phone is the Houston fire chief, Samuel Pena.

Good morning Chief Pena. We appreciate you making some time for us this morning.

We heard our reporter there Evan McMorris-Santoro describe this as a celebration of Houston, saying that a surge is what caused the most damage to life. Do you know what sparked that surge and what the latest is on your investigation?

CHIEF SAMUEL PENA, HOUSTON FIRE DEPARTMENT (via telephone): Boris, we don't know what sparked that crowd surge. We do know we had about 50,000 people that attended this venue. It was an outdoor concert event. And the crowd, for whatever reason, began to push and surge towards the front of the stage -- or towards the stage, which caused people in the front to be compressed. And they were unable to escape that situation.

That incident caused a lot of additional panic in the crowd and as people began to fall out and be compressed. And it quickly overwhelmed the security that was hired for that venue. So, you know, the people that were falling out, again, they -- the numbers just increased. There were scores of individuals that were injured.

[06:05:00]

And it quickly overwhelmed the medical component that was hired by the promoters to be present for that venue. The Houston Fire Department, Houston Police Department responded as soon as the number of injured became overwhelming for those companies. And we ended up transporting about 23 people in serious condition, 11 of those were critical. We were doing CPR en route to the hospital.

Sadly, eight of those individuals to this point have succumbed to their injuries and have died. That number may change, because as I mentioned, the others were in critical condition. But at this point, we have eight confirmed fatalities, and we have scores of other individuals that were -- that were injured in some fashion throughout the course of that day.

PAUL: Chief Pena, the Harris County judge had said one of these patients was 10 years old. Do we know if that 10-year-old is OK? Do we have his or her condition? And how many -- do you have a gauge of how many children were at this event?

PENA: We do know that we transported patients from -- anywhere from 10 up to the upper 20s in age. One of the individuals that was transported was 10 years old. The last I heard, and things may have changed, but last I heard, the patient was in critical condition there at the Texas Children's Hospital. They got some of the best -- we have some of the best hospitals here in the city of Houston. I know they're getting the best care they can, but they are -- that patient was in critical condition.

And it was just a tragic situation. You know at this moment our hearts go out to the families that lost a loved one because, you know, they went out there to have some fun, enjoy a concert. And for whatever reason, the crowd surge and this incident turned into a tragic event.

SANCHEZ: Chief, obviously our hearts go out to the families and those that were hurt and impacted by this. But there are questions about accountability. And it's my understanding that almost an identical incident happened two years ago, the same festival also in Houston, three people had to be taken to the hospital after a stampede. Do you know if any special precautions were taken this time around by the promoters to avoid this happening again?

PENA: Well, you know, it's obvious that if they did, they weren't enough. You know, again, tragically eight people lost their lives tonight. And it could be more. But look, we're investigating this. It's still in its infancy. The incident occurred just several hours ago.

The Houston Police Department will be reviewing video of the scene. There were cameras present for security and other purposes that they'll be reviewing. We will certainly be looking at how the venue was laid out and was there enough egress points, was there -- what caused, one, the issue of the crowd surge and, two, what prevented people from being able to escape that situation.

PAUL: We showed the video just a bit ago of people at an earlier incident that day who were breaking through the security barriers and running in, that there was that surge. Don't know that anybody was hurt at that point. But at that point, did you get the sense -- and in here, just for our viewers, so they know, this is a video of that surge.

Is it safe to assume those are people who -- did they not have tickets? Was it a planned surge? Because they all just bombarded through there at once. What do you -- and should that have maybe been an indication of what may be to come?

PENA: Absolutely. Look, I don't know that -- you know, what the situation was for that initial surge. We do know that we had people that were trying to jump the fence. As a matter of fact, we did have one injury that resulted as a result of that. But it did give us an indication of the type of crowd that was present there at the venue.

And, again, you know, the promoters, they were handling the security. They handled the medical component. The Houston Fire Department, Houston Police Department deployed resources as a precaution. I mean, we had 50,000 people there.

And, you know, certainly I'm glad that we did because we were able to quickly mobilize and muster the required resources to be able to transport those that were critically injured.

[06:10:03]

And the event was stopped as soon as the crowd became -- you know, the situation got to the point where it was overwhelming the resources there. The Houston Police Department in conjunction with the promoter's security were able to stop the event and begin to deescalate. But look, the damage had been done.

PAUL: Fire Chief Samuel Pena, we know that it's been a long night for you. And we are so grateful that you and all of your officials there on this. We know you're doing the best you can.

Thank you so much for taking time to update us. We appreciate it.

PENA: Thank you. You all be safe.

PAUL: You as well.

SANCHEZ: Thanks, chief.

We're also tracking this morning a major moment for the Biden presidency. After months of painstaking negotiation and hours of delays Friday night, actually a record for the longest ongoing vote in the House's history, Congress finally passing a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill.

PAUL: This legislation is a major victory for Democrats after struggling to unite around President Biden's domestic agenda.

We want to go to CNN national politics reporter Eva McKend live on Capitol Hill.

Eva, good to see you this morning. Talk to us about how Democrats were able to get this bill across the finish line.

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER: Well, Christi and Boris, for a long time there was just this trust deficit between progressive and moderate Democrats. But ultimately, President Biden calling Democrats last night in the final hour, leaning on them, imploring them to vote for this infrastructure package is what seems to have moved this across the finish line.

Also, some Republicans joined Democrats in voting for this bill, 13 of them. These are moderate Republicans who want to be able to go back to their Congressional districts and say they had a hand in supporting the largest single investment in infrastructure in American history.

But six Democrats did not support the bill. They include Congressman Jamaal Bowman of New York, Congresswoman Cori Bush of Missouri, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, and Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib of Michigan. So, every member of the squad who have long argued that they would only pass the infrastructure bill if they also passed the larger spending package at the same time. Those are members that really stuck to their guns.

So, here is what's actually included in this infrastructure package. $110 billion for roads and bridges, $65 billion for broadband, $39 billion for public transit and billions more in infrastructure investments. Progressive Chair Pramila Jayapal, listen to what the Congresswoman had to say during the time of the vote.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. PRAMILA JAYAPAL (D-WA): We feel really proud of what we were able to get and how far we've come in just four weeks because we held the line over and over again.

We also made the determination that the country needs to continue to move forward. And so, we feel like we got the best of all worlds. We got a commitment on this vote, which -- and every single one of those individuals looked us in the eyes and said, they are voting for it.

And so, you know, look, we got -- we've got to move things forward. And you know I'll just say that I think I have stayed positive about everyone along the way, but I think anybody watching us fight understands that progressives have been delivering for the president over and over and over again. (END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: So, it seems as though progressives blinked in this forever staring contest. An indication that ultimately that the longer this dragged on, it just became too difficult for Democrats to continue on this path. Boris, Christi?

PAUL: All right. Eva McKend, we appreciate it. Thank you so much.

So, the president is expected to sign this infrastructure bill into law, obviously, very quickly, but his much larger social spending bill is still very much in question.

SANCHEZ: Yeah, as Eva pointed out, progressives were hoping to advance both bills together. They fought for that for months. Now Democrats say they plan to hold a vote on the spending bill no later than November 15th.

CNN White House reporter Jasmine Wright is live for in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Jasmine, that's where the president was supposed to be, instead he decided to stay in D.C. and oversee the passage of this long fought for bill. President Biden planning to speak later this morning. What should we expect to hear?

JASMINE WRIGHT, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yeah, Boris. We can expect to hear a major victory lap. Because look, when President Biden does get here in Rehoboth, he comes with a massive win under his belt, a few hours delayed but really, hours arguably after one of the best days so far of his presidency.

[06:15:03]

And you're right, it comes after months and months of painstaking negotiations. But as of right now, and when he comes down here later today, he will have a lot, one of the major components of his economic agenda.

And so, in starting that victory lap yesterday in a statement, I want to read a part of it for you. He said, "Tonight, we took a monumental step forward as a nation. Generations from now, people will look back and know this is when America won the economic competition for the 21st century."

Now, this bipartisan infrastructure bill as Eva so gratefully laid out just a few minutes ago, it will bring roads and bridges and transportation and broadband and clean water to the American people. And it should also bring jobs. That was something that the president touted over and over and over again when making his argument.

And so, you know, still though, it did not come without painstaking effort on his part. Though, it is kind of one of this massive victory, we saw him last night -- or we heard from officials last night in reporting that he was going back and forth from progressives to moderates. Really trying to push them, pressure them to come to a deal, calling into the caucuses, making sure that something can move ahead. And we saw him really putting a deadline down, something that for the last few months, even in the last week, that he was really reluctant to do, telling them that this is a time now to come ahead. I will make sure that the second part of my agenda, which is the reason why progressives were holding out that vote, because moderates said that they would not vote for that larger social safety expansion package. So, progressives said that they would not vote for the bipartisan infrastructure package.

He said that I will make sure to bring these things to you. So, today the president, we can expect to see him, really take a victory lap as he starts to move forward on that second part of his agenda, that social safety expansion part. Boris, Christi?

SANCHEZ: A big question, what is going to happen when November 15th comes around, if that expansion is going to pass.

Jasmine Wright, thank you so much from Rehoboth Beach.

WRIGHT: Exactly.

SANCHEZ: Let's bring in CNN political commentator Errol Louis. He joins us to discuss a big week in Washington. He's the political anchor for "Spectrum News" and host of the "You Decide" podcast.

Errol, great to see you as every Saturday morning. Appreciate you getting up early for us.

This bill faced a couple of near-death experiences, right? But it passed. And as Jasmine noted, yesterday was one of the best days of Joe Biden's presidency. Put it in context for us, given, you know, slumping approval numbers and some of the other hurdles he's had to jump.

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good morning, Boris. The reality for the Biden administration was they had to get this done. They have something that they can really crow about and that a lot of the members of Congress can run on next year, which is that they've got something done that under a decade's worth of Republican leadership in Congress, they never got done, right?

It was a running joke that it was going to be infrastructure week. You know, we talked about that for four years during the Trump presidency and they never even brought anything close to a vote. Whereas now, there's also - there have now going to be the possibility of roads and bridges that people can ride on and see and touch and infrastructure and jobs and everything else. So, that's a very good thing for the Biden presidency.

On the other hand, the much larger bill is also going to be contentious. It may or may not get done to the approval of voters. And we may not feel and see that in time to really help in the midterms.

And so, politically, the White House is -- has got a lot of work to do. On the other hand, taking this first step and getting this bill passed, a major achievement. Just as public policy, history-making public policy of the kind that Joe Biden had vowed to deliver.

SANCHEZ: It is the largest single investment in infrastructure in more than a decade, so it is a big deal. I wanted to ask you about the Build Back Better plan. You noted it still remains to be seen whether it's actually going to pass. The CBO has to weigh it. It then heads to the House, the Senate, back to the House, before it winds up on President Biden's desk. What do you think is going to be the biggest challenge to getting that bill passed?

LOUIS: You know, this is looking like this might be choreography here at the end, Boris. Meaning some of the moderate or so-called blue dog Democrats have said they want a CBO score. They want to know how much all of this is going to cost. That's not necessarily, strictly speaking, an accounting exercise but more of a political exercise so that they can be able to say truthfully when they try and run for reelection.

Well, I wanted to be responsible. I wanted to make sure that this $1.7 trillion or $2 trillion bill was responsible spending. And so, I held out even to the very end asking for a neutral calculation of what it's going to cost over the next 10 years.

[06:20:02]

So, if that's the case, then really this is choreography. This is about making sure everybody feels politically protected as they try and hold hands, step over the cliff together and hope that the voters are there to catch them when the midterms come around next year.

SANCHEZ: And that is part of my next question because on election night this past Tuesday, we saw Democrats suffer some pretty significant losses. How much did those losses lead to urgency and sort of force the hand of not only the progressives, but also moderates like Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema.

LOUIS: I think some of that was a little overblown, to tell you the truth. I mean, it looks like Phil Murphy, you know pulled a victory in New Jersey whereas nationalizing the race in Virginia and making it all about Donald Trump and trying to tie the Republican candidate to Donald Trump. It seems to have backfired because people care about local issues.

I think though it may have been a wake-up call to members of Congress that, you know what, if we make this some sort of a national stat about the last presidency instead of talking about the future and what's going to help families in the here and now, then we're going to lose. And as long as they keep that in mind, that's a general rule that would always apply to most politicians. You know, help the people that you were sworn to represent, get them the resources that they need to have better lives, help move the economy forward and the politics will take care of itself.

SANCHEZ: In the case of new governor, Glenn Youngkin, try to keep Donald Trump at arm's length whenever possible, potentially a playbook for other Republicans moving forward, right? LOUIS: Well, yeah, possibly. I mean he kept a little bit of distance. But believe me, he had that Trump base out there working hard for him. And they picked a number of issues, including the nonexistent critical race theory hoax that was a key part of his campaign. You know it's been described as you know education, but we all know what they were really talking about. And even though critical race theory is not taught in any school in Virginia, they tried to make it as if it was some sort of a mandate that had to be fought against.

So, as long as you have that kind of ugly undertone, you know, Trumpism in whatever variation or evolution is not yet gone. And so, this is going to be something I think we see prevailing in both the midterms and the next presidential election, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Hard to believe just about a year away. Time flies.

Errol Louis, thank you so much for the time.

LOUIS: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: So, across the country, millions of families are breathing a sigh of relief as young children begin to get vaccinated.

Next, you'll hear from a pediatrician who has a message for parents that might still be hesitant.

PAUL: Also, chaos and confusion ahead of the Capitol insurrection.

Coming up, an exclusive report on how an overhaul of the Capitol police intel unit may have led to some missteps.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:27:00]

PAUL: Good morning to you. 26 minutes past the hour. The CDC officially recommended the Pfizer vaccine for young children ages 5 to 11, did so this week.

And our next guest did not hesitate. She immediately took her kids to get their first shots. She's a pediatrician at Duke Children's Primary Care and wrote this in "The Charlotte Observer."

"There don't have to be another 700 childhood deaths next year. With the protection of the vaccine on board, our children can now be part of the fight, part of the victory."

We're talking about Gabriela Maradiaga Panayotti. And she's joining us now. Doctor, thank you so much.

I'm wondering if you can give us some context here. What made you so confident in this vaccine for children and what do you say to parents who are on the fence and just don't trust it particularly for this age group?

DR. GABRIELA MARADIAGA PANAYOTTI, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, DUKE CHILDREN'S PRIMARY CARE: Yeah, these are really important questions. And it's normal to be skeptical and concerned when something like this comes up.

You know, Christi, over this last 20 months, I have been seeing children devastated by the virus. Children are sick themselves, but they're also suffering from all of the effects of the virus. Their mental health has suffered, their normal routines that they need have just been ruined. And when I reviewed all the data and talked to my colleagues and experts, I felt very confident that the vaccine, number one, was effective so it worked to prevent children from getting very sick and dying, and that it was safe. And so, as soon as I could, I took my own two kids and got them their jab.

PAUL: When you talk about you know parents being confused and concerned, what reasons did they give you about not wanting to get the vaccine and then how do you respond to that?

PANAYOTTI: Yeah. One of the bigger questions I get is the concern that the vaccine is new. How can we be sure that it's OK to give to my own precious child when it is so new? And I respond by saying that actually the vaccine is not new. The technology is over 20 years old. Scientists have been working on MRNA technology for a long, long time.

And a good analogy is thinking of your phone. We've had phones for many years, but every year there's a new version and it gets updated. And that is what has happened with these vaccines. Technology has been there. It's very well-known and it's been adapted to fight the coronavirus. And I let them know that I'm very comfortable with the technology actually not being new.

PAUL: That's a great analogy.

PANAYOTTI: The second thing I say -- yeah, I think everybody can relate to a smartphone analogy. And the second thing I'll say is that the vaccine has been given to billions of people around the world. And we have over a year now of information of how the vaccine works.

[06:30:00]

And that's very strong support because we know it works really well. And so far, it has shown to be very safe with the normal side effects I would expect in children like the babies who come in and get their early vaccine, they may, you know, feel uncomfortable or have a fever, but nothing, you know, more than that except in very rare cases. .

PAUL: I mean, you write in this article, "The Charlotte Observer" about what you've seen, the real mental health issues in children. I want to read some of that you say, "in my 15 years as a pediatrician, I've never seen so many young girls cutting their wrists as a suicidal gesture as I have this year." Talk to us about what you're seeing, and are the girls opening up to you about it when you see them?

PANAYOTTI: It's heartbreaking I mentioned girls because they are the majority, but I've also seen young boys. And what I have seen is children who used to come in, they were full of life and excitement, over the year, their mood and their emotions have tanked. And this comes as a result of their whole world structure being changed. Children thrive on routine and predictability. They need their school environment, their friends, their activities to really thrive.

And that has really been cut off. And most of the young people, because I have a relationship with them, do open up to me. And they'll say things quite frankly, you know, this sucks and I hate this and it's often even more serious than that. As I mentioned, a lot of young people making gestures like cutting their wrists because they are so depressed and full of anxiety, they don't know what's going to happen in the future, they may be hearing kitchen table conversations from the caregivers in their house about difficulties with finances or maybe keeping their home.

They are absorbing all of this information, and it is really hard for them to adapt. And so, the vaccine is really the best way to get out of this hole for our young people. This will allow them to go back to their regular routines and lives, to getting dirty in the playground, and you know, playing with their friends at school. I really see this as the most important way that we can help our children get back to their regular lives.

PAUL: Yes, there was a doctor on several months ago, and I remember this as a parent, who said children will generally, not always, this means, but generally do as well as their parents are doing. It was a reminder of me to be very thoughtful and intentional of the words that I'm using and the conversations I'm having in their presence. So, yes, because of what you're talking about, it's really scary. Dr. Gabriela Maradiaga Panayotti, thank you so much for being with us, we appreciate you and the work you do.

PANAYOTTI: Yes, you're welcome, thank you.

PAUL: Quick programming note for you here about a special town hall later this morning, CNN and Sesame Street are teaming up to answer questions that you and your kids have about the vaccine. They're going to expand more on what we just heard from Dr. Maradiaga there. So, you can watch "THE ABCs OF COVID VACCINES" later this morning, it's at 8:30 Eastern, we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:35:00]

PAUL: Well, about two months before the insurrection, U.S. Capitol police started a complete overhaul of their Intelligence unit.

SANCHEZ: And sources tell CNN that, that rapid change contributed to a lot of the confusion and chaos on January 6th. CNN's Whitney Wild got an exclusive look into what went wrong.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITNEY WILD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the days after the January 6th riot, inside the unit that helped prepare Capitol police security plans that day, there was outrage. "I am filled with anger and frustration", one Intelligence employee wrote to Capitol police leaders on January 9th, "we analysts have been reporting for weeks that patriot groups are commenting on social media their intentions to storm the U.S. Capitol with overwhelming numbers. I hope this information was briefed with the veracity it deserved."

YOGANANDA PITTMAN, ACTING CHIEF, U.S. CAPITOL POLICE: It has been suggested that the department was either ignorant of or ignored critical Intelligence. There was no such Intelligence.

WILD: U.S. Capitol police breakdowns have been well documented, but now CNN has obtained internal documents and source interviews that show frustrations and confusion in the Intelligence division after the department brought in two outsiders to overhaul the mission critical unit, just two months before the riot.

CHARLES RAMSEY, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Implementing change is always difficult, even in times that aren't that trying. The Intelligence section obviously, you had a unit that was under-staffed and under-trained. And so it would take time to bring them up to speed.

WILD: Sources say after Jack Donohue and Julie Farnam arrived to Capitol Police, changes and priorities happened rapidly, and sources say without enough training. Sources tell CNN the new demands scrambled a unit already struggling after years of Inspector General reports pointed to dysfunction. They were pulled in so many different directions, it would have been impossible to catch what they should have, a source told CNN.

RAMSEY: It was a time when, you know, making changes like that is something that, obviously, you know, would give you some pause as to whether or not that's the right time to do it.

[06:40:00]

WILD: The department tells CNN threats against members of Congress spiked in 2020. Those cases became the highest priority. The department says analysts were asked to expand their skill set and insisted leaders offer training. These changes are essential, even if certain individuals on the team do not embrace them.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WILD: A source tells CNN that Thursday, Julie Farnam appeared before the House Select Committee investigating January 6th. Members are examining Intelligence breakdowns as part of that sweeping probe. The source declined to provide any details about the nature of what was discussed Christi, Boris?

PAUL: I want to thank you so much A quick programming note for you here. Do not miss an all-new episode of CNN's original series, "DIANA" tomorrow night. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JULIE MONTAGU, VISCOUNTESS HINCHINGBROOKE, AMERICAN ENTREPRENEUR: One person, Diana, took on the royal family, and now she needs to take a step back and figure it out.

RICHARD KAY, JOURNALIST: Diana was even more isolated after her divorce. She hadn't just lost the royal family and her ex-husband, but the whole backup, the palace machinery. The one saving grace, if you like, for her was, of course, William and Harry. But when they were not around, she was quite alone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She would go back to the palace and there would be nobody there to welcome her home, to say, well done or let me pour you a drink.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She'd lost her sense of trust and security.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: Watch that new episode of the CNN original series "DIANA", it's tomorrow at 9:00 p.m., we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:45:00]

SANCHEZ: We're staying on top of all the breaking developments out of Houston, Texas, where at least, eight people have died and dozens more were injured at the Astroworld Music Festival. Here are the details we have right now. As many as 50,000 people were in attendance for the first night of the two-day festival, it's organized by Houston rapper Travis Scott. Investigators, though say that crowds began to push toward the stage last night, it's unclear exactly why, but that created a crush.

PAUL: We know 23 patients were taken to local hospitals, many of them in cardiac arrest. Officials say the youngest patient, 10 years old. Authorities have set up a center now for anyone who had friends or people that they loved and knew who were at that concert to try to get information if they don't already have it.

Back in Washington, Jeffrey Clark; a former Justice Department official refused to answer questions from the January 6th committee this week. Clark played a key role in former President Trump's attempts to overturn the 2020 election. He sat down with the panel for an hour and a half yesterday, apparently handing over a letter from his attorneys, saying he wouldn't testify until a court decided his interactions with Trump are not protected under attorney-client privilege or executive privilege.

Now, Chairman Bennie Thompson later rejected Clark's claims, saying he has a, quote, "very short time to consider and cooperate with the committee's subpoena.

SANCHEZ: There's still more ahead on NEW DAY, but first, last week, we announced the top ten CNN Heroes of 2021, one of whom will be named the CNN Hero of the year. Over the next few weeks, we're going to be reintroducing you to each of our top ten. So, this week's spotlight is on a man who's diagnosed with a learning disability as a child and he's now helping students who face the same challenges. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Eye-to-eye provides a safe space that's constructed around what's right with kids so they can talk about their experiences.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you get scared during tests or like nervous or no?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have anxiety, like, I shake a lot.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, that happens to me sometimes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People's hearts sing when they're seen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Michael.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My masterpiece.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Really cool. I like how you use a duct tape as a handle.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My moment that I am wishing for is when the problem of stigmatizing kids because they learn differently goes away. I want them to know that their brains are beautiful. I want them feeling like they know how to ask for what they need and that they can do it, and that's what we give them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, Daniel!

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: To learn more and to vote for your favorite hero, go to cnnheroes.com, we'll be right back, stay with us.

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[06:50:00]

SANCHEZ: A silver medalist from the Summer Olympics is using a viral moment from the Tokyo games to pay it forward.

PAUL: Carolyn Manno, do tell us more, we love good news.

CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: This is good news indeed, good morning to you both. You know, the New York City Marathon is tomorrow. So, this week's difference maker is Abdi Nageeye; he's a Somali-Dutch long distance runner, and his second place finish that you mentioned in the men's marathon in Tokyo went viral because of what he did with the finish line in sight. He began cheering on, urging on his fellow Somali-born training partner to bronze, it was a really selfless moment and it resonated with so many around the world.

So, in his own words, he spoke with CNN about how that moment played out and his mission to help under-served kids.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABDI NAGEEYE, SOMALI-DUTCH LONG-DISTANCE RUNNER: When you do something nice, you've got this flow, you've got this nice feeling. I was just feeling very comfortable. It's a marathon, and it is a sprint and it is Olympics. And I don't even know how to explain it, why I did that. It happened so smoothly. I was more concentrated on him. I don't know. I had that feeling, I had a lot of confidence that I would be number two and I was just trying to tell him that he finish number three, and then we did it, and all the emotion came when you finish. We did it.

[06:55:00]

I grew up in the Netherlands and you're able to do as a child whatever you like, and that's playing outside, not possible in Somalia. And I'm really trying to help that. I really hope that I can -- even after my running career, that I can inspire the younger generation. But the most thing is to give them facilities, and that's why I started the Abdi Nageeye Foundation and I started with kids, with kids who are in school.

New York is the highest marathon you can run. Everyone have on his list, even normal people. It's great. It's a marathon, I think after the Olympics and world championships. I'm in good shape and I'm one of the favorites. It's actually a dream that I never thought it will happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MANNO: Abdi has a remarkable story. He's a refugee, one of 33,000 runners preparing to trek through New York City's five boroughs tomorrow, guys. And the weather is nice here, so everybody is excited, there's a real energy here.

PAUL: No doubt. All right, thank you so much Carolyn, good to see you.

SANCHEZ: Thanks.

PAUL: We'll be right back.

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