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New Day Saturday

Source: Cipollone Proved "Great Deal" Of New Information; First Memorial Services Held For Victims Of Highland Park Shooting; Prosecutors Expect To File More Charges Against Accused Gunman; June Jobs Report Exceeds Expectations As Inflation Continues To Hold At 40- Year High; Rising Child Care Costs Straining Families, Industry; Body Of Slain Former Japanese PM Abe Arrives Back In Tokyo; Nara Police Chief: "There Were Problems" With Abe's Security; FDA Approves Pfizer And BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine In Kids 12-15; Ukraine: At Least Four Injured In Missile Strike On Kharkiv; L.A. Fire Dept., FBI Team Up To Bring Down Drones Near Wildfires. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired July 09, 2022 - 08:00   ET

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


[08:00:00]

W. KAMAU BELL, CNN ORIGINAL SERIES UNITED SHADES OF AMERICA HOST: -- in this country come up with a new Boogeyman. That is a thing that they use to say your America is being taken away.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you actually follow the money, you'll see tens of millions of dollars had been spent to create critical race theory as the Boogeyman.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: "United Shades Of America" premieres tomorrow night at 10:00 right here on CNN.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: The next hour of your "New Day" starts right now.

Buenos dias, good morning, and welcome to your "New Day." I'm Boris Sanchez.

DEAN: Good morning, everyone. I'm Jessica Dean.

Former White House Counsel Pat Cipollone spent seven hours with the January 6 committee. What we're learning about his testimony and how it could shape future hearings.

SANCHEZ: Plus, there are new details about the suspect in that deadly shooting in Highland Park, Illinois. What we're learning about his past amid questions over whether police and his family missed signs that this could happen.

DEAN: Also the body of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is back in Tokyo this morning, following his assassination during a campaign event. What we know about funeral services and new details on the weapons the suspect used in that attack. SANCHEZ: Plus, a CNN exclusive how firefighters are going on the offensive to bring down drones that can interfere with their ability to stop wildfires.

It is the weekend. We're glad to have you this Saturday, July 9th. Thanks for waking up with us.

DEAN: And thanks for having me here with you this weekend.

SANCHEZ: Of course.

DEAN: Always good to be with you guys.

We're going to begin this morning with the January 6 committee's interview with one of its most important witnesses. Former White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, testifying before that panel for more than seven hours. Sources Cipollone provided quote, a great deal of new information. And keep in mind portions of yesterday's closed door meeting will be made public in upcoming hearings.

SANCHEZ: Remember Cipollone was among a handful of people who spent time with then President Donald Trump as the riot at the U.S. Capitol unfolded. The committee is trying to determine what Trump was doing and how he reacted to the violence in real time.

Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren says that Cipollone did not contradict the testimony of other witnesses. But she says non-contradicting isn't the same as confirming. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ZOE LOFGREN (D) JAN. 6 SELECT COMMITTEE: He could say so and so was wrong, which he did not say. There were things that he might not be present for, or, in some cases couldn't recall with precision. My sense was that he as I say he did appear voluntarily. I think he was candid with the committee. He was careful in his answers, and I believe that he was honest in his answers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: It took months of negotiation to get Cipollone to appear under oath before the January 6 committee and sources described the former White House Counsel's testimony as very important and extremely helpful.

SANCHEZ: Yes, don't forget Cipollone's name came up repeatedly during committee hearings, including during Cassidy Hutchinson's explosive testimony.

CNN congressional correspondent Ryan Nobles has the details for us.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RYAN NOBLES, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Boris and Jessica, to put it simply, Pat Cipollone may be the most important witness that has come before the January 6 Select Committee up until this point, and he talked to the committee for quite some time and at least seven hours worth of testimony.

And sources tell us that he was pretty forthcoming, that he was cooperative that he had a lot to say and that the committee specifically asked him about his view of the President's conduct at that time, and, you know, specifically whether or not it was responsible for him to go to the Capitol on January 6th.

Now, Cipollone sources close to Cipollone say that he did not specifically confirm some of the testimony that we've already heard, for instance, from Cassidy Hutchinson.

In fact, they say that he was never even asked whether or not, he said to Cassidy Hutchinson, that he and other members of the Trump administration could be in legal trouble if Trump decided to go to the Capitol on that day.

And they actually say that had Cipollone been asked about that he would have said that that conversation never took place.

Regardless, the committee believes that what Cipollone did provide was very valuable and that we're going to see a lot of this testimony in the coming weeks.

They are in general happy with the amount of information that he provided them. Let's remember that Cipollone was at the center of a lot of what went on, not just on January 6, but in the time leading up to it after the election right up until that day.

And the committee believes that what they were able to produce this day will go a long way to helping their investigation. Boris and Jessica.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[08:05:08]

SANCHEZ: Ryan, thank you.

This morning we have new CNN reporting on alleged planning by the Oathkeepers to prepare for violence in Washington D.C. on January 6, 2021. A filing by the Justice Department says at least one member of the extremist group transported explosives to an area just outside the nation's capitol.

And that chapters of the Oathkeepers held training camps focused on military tactics. The filing says another member had a handwritten document with the words death list on it. That included the name of a Georgia election official and a family member.

That Oathkeeper member Thomas Caldwell tells CNN quote, the DOJ has claimed that I sought to assassinate election workers is a 100% false and disgusting lie, end quote.

Nine Oathkeepers are charged with seditious conspiracy. They're scheduled to go to trial in September. DEAN: As residents in Highland Park, Illinois try to come to grips with the absolute tragedy there, families of the victims are burying their loved ones. Seven people died, dozens more were injured in the shooting during a Fourth of July parade.

Police say Robert Crimo III confessed to that shooting. He's now charged with seven counts of first degree murder. He is being held without bond. Prosecutors say more charges are expected.

Meanwhile, police records released yesterday suggests his family was in turmoil for years before that shooting. Over six years, officers were called to the criminal family home at least a dozen times to settle domestic disputes.

And joining me now is Mary Ellen O'Toole, a former senior FBI Profile and Special Agent. Mary Ellen, it's great to have you. Good morning. Thanks for being with us.

I want to start with this new reporting on the criminal household, these calls involved his parents. There's no record that any of the calls led to criminal charges against them. But do you think that that has any significance or correlation to the investigation?

MARY ELLEN O'TOOLE, FORMER SENIOR FBI PROFILER: Yes, I would suspect that it does. When you look at somebody's background, especially a young person, you have to look at the environment in which they're exposed and what happens in that environment.

And what may be causing them to be drawn to something else in their life like immersion in violent videos, immersion into material where they can really fantasize about being violent and retaliating. So, that that home environment cannot be underscored anymore in terms of it's important.

So if there were there were a lot of issues. If there was a lot of domestic violence in that house, even though it didn't rise to the level of police making a report, that would have had an impact on him, especially if at times he was a target of some of that violence.

DEAN: And we also know that criminal had two prior incidents with law enforcement in April and September of 2019. In that first incident, he attempted suicide and the second he threatened to kill people.

There was no restraining order, though, or protection order against him. When he got these guns, he was able to pass for background checks and purchase five firearms. How is that possible?

O'TOOLE: Well, it's possible for a number of reasons. And I'm not suggesting that these, you know that this is a good thing. But here's the reason. If there were no reports on file, official reports on file, when that background check was done, they would not have been aware of what had what had happened.

So they can't just arbitrarily say, I think there's something there. So we'll deny this person's access to firearms. So that's number one. But number two is, if that individual did have someone to support

their application to purchase those weapons, there's a verification process there that says I'm verifying that this person is capable of being able to purchase these weapons and should be able to purchase these weapons.

So that verification process that took place really stood for a lot. It meant a lot. That was important.

DEAN: And I do want to ask you about that because he was able to get a gun in 2019, because his father sponsored him for a firearm, a firearm owners identification card. His father has tried to distance himself from this shooting. I think we have that clip. Let's listen to it.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

ROBERT CRIMO JR., FATHER OF PARADE SHOOTER ROBERT CRIMO III: Making threats to the family. I think it was taken on a context where it's like, just a child outburst, whatever he was upset about.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

DEAN: Mary Ellen, do you believe that this father could face any legal liability here?

O'TOOLE: I think, I certainly think it's a possibility both civilly and both criminally when a person vouches for somebody else whether it is, I vouch for you to buy a home, I vouch for you to buy a car, I vouch for you to have automobile insurance, there's a liability that attaches to that.

And what that means is that if that person fails to do what they're supposed to do, use the person that cosign that, that vouch for them, then have to stay, step up and take some kind of responsibility.

[08:10:32]

So I would think at some point down the road, there will likely be some possibly some criminal, if not some civil liability here.

DEAN: And we still don't know a motive. Investigators have said that the shooting doesn't appear to have been motivated by race or religion. Yet, obviously, they're still looking into this.

They're trying to get to the bottom of what motivated this man to do such a horrific thing. How important is it to the investigation to determine what the motive was here?

O'TOOLE: It's, it's important just because people want to know, and people just can't believe that someone can do this without having some specific motive.

But I will say this, in interviewing a number of offenders over, you know, three, five years, it is remarkable to me how often I would go in and I would say, why did you do this. And unless it was obvious, like a rob the bank for money, I did this

for because I was upset, they are remarkably not intuitive in terms of why they did it.

And so, we may not know specifically, but I will say in other cases like this, these individuals, it takes a while because violence begins in the brain. They develop this hatred for the world, and they want to take action against people that they feel have screwed up their life.

That takes a while. That doesn't happen overnight. So the shooters oftentimes wanted to kill people because they hate them. And their own life is miserable. And that's a motive, which the general public has a hard time wrapping its arms around, and I get that, that there are people out there that become radicalized, they hate us, and they want to kill us. And that's been the motive.

In other cases, it's not been the, I want money. So I did it for money. So I think we have to be prepared this motive is not going to be satisfactory.

DEAN: Right. It is truly a chilling idea. Mary Ellen O'Toole, thanks so much for your expertise. We appreciate it.

O'TOOLE: My pleasure. Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Coming up, the U.S. economy seeing an unexpected boost to the jobs market, shrugging off fears of a recession. But will that momentum last. We have a former labor secretary here to chat.

Plus, the former Prime Minister of Japan assassinated in broad daylight. The latest on the investigation and what we know about the suspected gunman.

"New Day" continues in just few moments.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:17:08]

SANCHEZ: President Biden is touting his economic policies after Friday's jobs report show the U.S. labor market held steady in June with 372,000 jobs added. Unemployment also stayed the same for the fourth month in a row at 3.6%.

DEAN: The strong hiring gains may be enough to ward off fears of upcoming recession for now. But rising inflation and historically high gas prices remain top of mind for a lot of Americans out there who are trying to make ends meet.

To discuss this further here with us now former U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez, he also served as the chair of the Democratic National Committee and is currently running to be the next Governor of Maryland.

Mr. Secretary, great to have you on.

TOM PEREZ, FORMER U.S. LABOR SECRETARY: Great to be back with you.

DEAN: Thanks for being here.

PEREZ: My pleasure.

DEAN: How -- are you encouraged by these numbers that came out? And at this rate, do you think inflation is peaking? Where do you think we are?

PEREZ: No, I think this is a great job report. I mean, this is, you know, we everybody says the economy's in recession, the economy's in recession, it is a good labor market for workers, workers continue to have leverage, it took 87 months to recover the jobs from the Great Recession, it took 28 months for the private sector to recover these jobs, thanks to the investments from President Biden, and Democrats.

And you look at the recovery, it's broad based. And so those are really important factors that I look at. I also look at the number of people who were working part-time but wanted to work full-time, that went down by over 700,000 in one month. So in other words, the American -- the workers are getting the hours that they want to work. Inflation is still a very real issue. There's no doubt about that.

SANCHEZ: That's where it was going to go. Did you see anything in this report that made you feel that the economy was slowing down at the level that would put some kind of pressure on inflation to go down?

PEREZ: Sure. Well, the pace of wage growth went down in this most recent report, and one month doesn't make a trend.

SANCHEZ: Right.

PEREZ: But that's also encouraging to me. So, I continue to look at that. Obviously, inflation is still outstripping the pace of wage growth. So, the trouble and challenge that people feel making ends meet. That's very real. And that's why we have to continue to be vigilant on this.

But I, you know, remember when I was Labor Secretary, the plight of the long term unemployed kept me up at night, because of the fast recovery here. We don't have that situation. That's huge for people. People were out of work for years. And when you're 50 years old, and you've lost your job for four years, you've got a bull's eye on your back. It's just really hard to get back. And so this fast recovery, I really applaud President Biden and Democrats for what they have been able to do to get people back to work. Workers continue to have leverage, that's a good thing.

DEAN: And to that point, excuse me, the wages are rising. The problem is so is inflation.

[08:20:01]

PEREZ: Right.

DEAN: So you're making more but things cost more still. PEREZ: No, absolutely.

DEAN: Do you think that it's time for the Fed to raise interest rates again? Or do you think where do you have -- what direction would you like to see them take?

PEREZ: I know they're going to do something. But one fear I have personally is I don't want them to seize defeat from the jaws of victory. This continues to be a very strong labor market.

Those who've said over the recession is here, the recession is here. This jobs report and the jobs reports of recent months belie that. And if you do too much, I know, I know, we have to slow the economy. But again, I don't want them to seize defeat from the jaws of victory, and put us into that recession again. And that's the delicate balance.

SANCHEZ: You, it seems like you feel like the fears of a recession are overblown. But there's an actual technical recession and whenever we get the quarter two figures, and then there's the feeling that the sense among the American people, and we've seen it in poll after poll that there's this economic malaise out there.

How can the President and Democrats by extension hold on to seats in Congress, when there is that feeling that general feeling that the economy is not performing as well as it should.

PEREZ: Well, by reminding people what we've been able to accomplish. Again, you know, we've recovered all of the private sector jobs that were lost, and we've recovered them in record time.

This is the fastest recovery, I believe in American history from a recession. And we have a president who fought to make sure that people had child care. We fought to make sure that, you know, everyday Americans can make ends meet.

This November, you always have headwinds, when you have the party in power and a midterm election always confronts those headwinds. I think we can, I think we can still withstand this by telling the story completely of who has had your side, who's had your back during these tough times.

And so, I still have real optimism. I was looking at some polling the other day, and it showed the generic ballot that goes 42%, we're looking at Democrats 41%, looking at Republicans.

You know, what the Supreme Court has done to turn the clock back for women, that's on people's mind. We're talking about the economy and inflation right now, the other issue that's top of mind for voters, is abortion rights.

And the Supreme Court is turning the clock back. And states are -- some states like Texas, Mississippi, and so many others are turning that clock back, voters are going to remember that.

DEAN: And they're also thinking about, I mean, gas prices is --

PEREZ: Absolutely.

DEAN: -- is something else, too. They're going its $4.70 is the national average. That's really hitting people where they can see it and feel it. No one president can control gas prices. Right. But what do you think should they be invoking the Defense Production Act? Should that should they be doing more to even just be talking about this to people.

PEREZ: No, I mean, inflation is a very real issue, there's no doubt that the wage increases are being trumped by the pace of inflation. At the same time, we also know the number one cause of inflation in this country was the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent rise in cost of commodities, we understand that.

They are coming down. I think there are other actions. I know at a state level, there are actions we can take. The President's trying to suspend the gas tax, there are things that we can do to expand eligibility for food stamps, we can expand the Earned Income Tax Credit, we can do things to demonstrate that we're fighting.

We understand your plight, we understand that it's a struggle right now. We have a global democracy recession. We have a war criminal in Russia. And that invasion of Ukraine is a big part of why we're struggling right now.

But again, I applaud what the President has been able to do to bring together the global community. And I hope that when voters understand the totality of what is going on, and the alternative, because Republicans are only going to help the rich and Democrats are looking out for everyday Americans.

SANCHEZ: Hard to believe the midterm elections is only a few months away.

Tom Perez, we hope you'll come back and chat more with us as (INAUDIBLE).

PEREZ: Always a pleasure.

DEAN: Good to see you.

SANCHEZ: Appreciate it.

DEAN: Thank you.

PEREZ: Good to see you again.

SANCHEZ: As we were just discussing, rising costs are being felt everywhere, but the grocery store, at the gas pump and for working parents at daycare center.

DEAN: That's right. A new report shows that since the pandemic, nearly half a million families have struggled due to unreliable childcare and that is forcing a lot of parents out there to make some tough career decisions.

CNN's Gabe Cohen has more on this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At KidzStuff Childcare Center in Baltimore, the cost of food rent power and supplies is soaring.

ANGELA KIDANE, CEO, KIDZSTUFF CHILD CARE: Everything is up.

GABE COHEN (voice-over): And Angela Kidane has raised wages roughly 40% but is still struggling to hire staff with one classroom closed and her waitlists growing.

[08:25:02]

KIDANE: We're probably up between 30 and 35% for operating costs. That cost too is going to have to pass along to our parents

COHEN (voice-over): This fall, she'll raise tuition at her nonprofit for the third time in 12 months in all up 30%. For some families thousands of dollars a year.

(on-camera): What would happen if you didn't raise tuition prices?

KIDANE: We couldn't survive. We wouldn't say open.

COHEN (voice-over): Programs nationwide are raising rates for the same reasons.

CINDY LEHNOFF, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL CHILD CARE ASSOCIATION: It's happening everywhere to keep the doors open. This is what has to happen. And it's going to continue to get worse.

COHEN (voice-over): Inflation is just part of it. At least 15,000 programs have closed with 11% fewer childcare workers than pre pandemic, leaving an industry with a median wage just over $13 an hour. Now, many parents face longer wait lists and tuition hikes.

(on-camera): Revenues going down even though there's demand for it

SEAN TONER, PRESIDENT & OWNER, BEACH BABIES CHILD CARE: Because we just don't have enough teachers be able to get, the amount of children that we used to have into our buildings.

COHEN: Sean Toner owns Beach Babies in Lewes, Delaware, a child care desert. He's raising tuition 8 to 10% this fall for the second straight year to offset inflation and raise teacher wages to roughly $14 an hour.

TONER: I don't want to be that person that's driving away the parents.

JESSICA GEBBIA, TEACHER, BEACH BABIES CHILD CARE: We'll go to sleep.

COHEN (voice-over): Jessica Gebbia is a teacher at Beach Babies and her five-year-old son comes here for daycare. GEBBIA: Most of my paycheck is going just to have him here. And that's rough because now we have gas prices, food prices, everything's just going up and up.

COHEN (on-camera): Have you thought about leaving the industry?

GEBBIA: I love what I do, and I can't these children need teachers who do love what they do.

COHEN (voice-over): But many mothers have left the workforce part of a trend. As of May women's jobs made up 88% of those lost in the pandemic.

TO-WEN TSENG, MOTHER STRUGGLING TO PAY FOR CHILD CARE: This is Jasper.

COHEN (voice-over): To-Wen Tseng and her husband have struggled to afford childcare in San Diego $370 a week since her employer cut her hours in half. So she flew her son's to Taiwan to stay with family as she looks for a second job.

TSENG: If I just quit my job and I stayed at home and watch my kids, maybe the whole thing will be easier for my family. I hate to say this, but this is true. And the reason why we're still struggling to pay for this day childcare, let's because I don't want to give my -- give up my career.

COHEN (voice-over): Millions of parents are making tough choices. For Jessica and her husband, a decision not to expand their family.

GEBBIA: We think we're just going to stick with the two.

COHEN (on-camera): How much of that is childcare?

GEBBIA: The childcare plays a big part in that. I can't imagine having the two of them in daycare. There's just no way. I wouldn't be able to do this job.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: And our thanks to CNN's Gabe Cohen for that report.

Still ahead, a nation in shock after the former Japanese Prime Minister is gunned down at a campaign event. We're going to have the latest on the investigation. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:32:11]

DEAN: The police chief of the city where former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated says, quote, there were problems with a base security detail and that he, quote, takes responsibility for what happened.

SANCHEZ: Abe's body arrived today in his hometown, accompanied by his wife following his assassination in the western city of Nara, where the former prime minister was making a campaign speech. Hundreds of people lined the streets to witness the procession. Funeral Services are set to take place Monday and Tuesday.

CNN Senior International Correspondent Will Ripley is live for us in Taipei with more. Will, Shinzo Abe was a towering figure in Japan, one of the most important prime ministers in post-war history. Put this into context for us, the significance of this loss.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, in Japan it's monumental on multiple fronts because, a, as you said, he is the most recognized Japanese politician probably in modern history. And, b, there are very serious questions about how his security detail allowed someone with a gun to get so close.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RIPLEY (voice-over): A campaign speech in central Japan, one of many in the long career, a former Japanese leader Shinzo Abe, but this would be his last. The country's longest serving Prime Minister and one of Japan's most high profile figures laying on the ground shot twice, bleeding profusely from wounds in the neck and chest. He would later die after being rushed to the hospital, a team of 20 doctors unable to save him.

His alleged attacker, 41-year-old Yamagami Tetsuya, also lay nearby, tackled by security. Police say he had a handmade gun and similar pistol like items in his home. They're investigating his motive.

KAZUHISA YAMAMURA, NARA PREFECTURAL POLICE (through translation): The suspect confessed that he had committed the act as he had a grudge against a specific organization and believe the former Prime Minister Abe was part of it.

RIPLEY (voice-over): A shooting like this is almost unthinkable in Japan. Guns are strictly controlled here. It's a long and complicated process to buy one involving classes, background checks, mental health evaluations, and drug screening. It's resulted in one of the lowest crime rates in the world.

In Japan, there were only 10 shootings last year, with only one death. In the United States, that figure, exponentially higher. According to the gun violence archive, firearms were responsible for more than 45,000 deaths last year in the United States. Keep in mind Japan has about 40 percent of the U.S. population.

The U.S. is also eclipsing Japan and the number of guns in the country. In Japan, there are 0.3 guns for every 100 people. In the U.S., 120 guns that is more guns than people.

[08:35:06]

Disbelief on the streets of Tokyo, a crime most people here only hear about in other countries not their own.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translation): It's unbelievable to see an attack like this in Japan, which is very safe. It's unbelievable that somebody was walking around with a gun like that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): There are many gun crimes happening abroad, but I never imagined it would happen in Japan.

RIPLEY (voice-over): At the scene of the shooting, mourners laid flowers for the former leader. Sam shedding tears for the man who was widely admired at times controversial, and one whose death weighs heavily on a country unfamiliar with the grief of gun violence.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RIPLEY: Police say the motive of the suspected shooter was not politics but an organization that he believed the former Prime Minister was somehow attached to. We expect to learn more about the investigation and also funeral arrangements in the coming days.

Meanwhile, tributes are pouring in from around the world. Here in Taiwan, Taipei 101, the iconic skyscraper, lit up with special messages honoring the former Japanese Prime Minister considered a good friend to this self-governing democracy.

Speaking up very frequently about the need to defend Taiwan's democratic system despite the fact that Beijing's communist rulers which have never controlled this place, say that they could take it back by force if necessary.

And so his loss is really being felt here. They're going to be actually flying flags at half-staff on Monday to honor Shinzo Abe. And you're seeing tributes like that popping up all over the world. He visited dozens of countries and made a huge global impact, Jessica and Boris.

SANCHEZ: And the tribute coming here from the United States from President Biden recognizing that at his last moments, Shinzo Abe was engaged in the work of democracy.

Will Ripley live from Taipei, thank you so much.

Stay with New Day, we're back after a few moments.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:41:34]

DEAN: And here's a quick check now of some of the other top stories we're following this morning. Tesla founder Elon Musk has told Twitter he wants out of his $44 billion deal to buy that company.

In a regulatory filing released yesterday, a lawyer representing Musk accused Twitter of breaching multiple provisions of the original deal. In response to the filing, Twitter's Board Chairman Bret Taylor said in a tweet, the company would be pursuing legal action to enforce the merger.

This is just the latest in the whirlwind relationship between the business titan and tech giant with Musk's first becoming the company's biggest shareholder than turning down a board seat and finally agreeing to buy the social media platform before raising doubts about that deal.

SANCHEZ: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced it is fully approved both Pfizer and BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine for kids ages 12 through 15. This is the first COVID-19 vaccine approved for this age group.

Until now it had only been approved for emergency use because the FDA was still testing the safety of the shot. The vaccine has been approved for anyone aged 16 and older since last August.

DEAN: Attorneys for Jeffrey Epstein, confidant Ghislaine Maxwell have filed an appeal for her conviction and federal prison sentence. Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for a longtime scheme with Epstein to groom and sexually abused underage girls.

Maxwell's attorneys have maintained her innocence since her 2020 arrest arguing that she has been a scapegoat for prosecutors in the wake of Epstein's 2019 suicide.

SANCHEZ: To Ukraine now where at least four people including a child have been injured in a Russian missile strike on a residential neighborhood in Kharkiv.

DEAN: This latest attack comes as the U.S. prepares to send Ukraine a new $400 million security assistance package. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowing not to relinquish territory for peace with Russia.

Let's bring in CNN's Scott McLean who's live in Kyiv for the latest on this. Scott, what are you seeing?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jessica, Boris, there are plenty of signs that the fighting is really intensifying in the southern part of the country. There -- the Ukrainians are even warning people to evacuate even if it means going further into Russian held territory.

There's also that missile strike in Kharkiv that you mentioned as well, that really is a reminder that the Russians can strike anywhere in this country.

But what's remarkable here though, is that Ukrainians continue to return. Over the last couple of days, there has consistently been more people coming into Ukraine from Poland than going the other way.

President Zelenskyy says that his country is determined to take back every square inch of occupied territory and it seems that his people are hell bent on rebuilding.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here we spent two days and one night.

MCLEAN (voice-over): As the Russians bombed the Kyiv suburb of Hostomel in the early days of war, the Titova family, Russian speakers who fled Donetsk eight years ago, huddled in their tiny basement listening to the new war on their doorstep. Here, 10-year-old Machar (ph) harassed his five-year-old sister Tasha (ph) what she wants most.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking Foreign Language).

MCLEAN (voice-over): For Putin to finally die, she tells them. When the shelling hit their yard, Alex and Katerina grab the kids and left the safety of the crawlspace.

(on-camera): You had no choice?

KATERINA TITOVA, HOSTOMEL RESIDENT: You have no choice, you have to live. You must leave to save your lives and your kids.

[08:45:07]

MCLEAN (voice-over): Our Hostomel is burning, Alex said from the end of his driveway. They walked 10 miles past dead soldiers to find an evacuation bus.

Two months later, they came back to find Katerina's jewelry studio missing an entire wall. Windows were smashed, the roof of their house had holes in it. And inside there was shrapnel everywhere.

TITOVA: I even took a piece small of metal from this. It was broken. This is our family from Donetsk.

MCLEAN (on-camera): Why do you still want to live here?

TITOVA: This is our casita. I wanted to live in my own house and I wanted to make a place for my family, for my kids.

MCLEAN (voice-over): Plenty of others feel the same. In their bombed out village amidst the signs of war, there are also signs of life. Mikhail Neymet's corner store was ripped apart and looted. He says he could easily have fled the country, but he would rather be here. I have kids, grandkids he says. You have to keep living, life goes on.

Down the road, this high rise complex sustained heavy damage in the fighting. In this building, most apartments are badly damaged. This one has a new window.

(on-camera): This is actually not the roof of this apartment block. It was actually once the penthouse suite. This would have presumably been the doorway. There are also some dishes lying around from whoever lived here before.

We slept in this room, resident Alexander Rachmaninoff (ph) tells me. This is where we ate. This is our dining room. During the invasion, he and his wife were forced to stay in this filthy basement while Russian soldiers lived in his apartment.

Hostomel has no shortage of challenges. And yet its people are still coming back.

TITOVA: We even thought about, if our house will be burned and destroyed, no matter, we will return.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCLEAN: Rebuilding though is a serious uphill battle though, in part because home insurances, it's not really a Ukrainian concept. Almost no one has it. And so people who are rebuilding or having to either find some savings, take a loan or cross their fingers and hope for government money that hasn't come so far. Boris, Jessica?

DEAN: All right, Scott McLean, thanks so much for that report. We appreciate it.

SANCHEZ: Thanks, Scott.

Still ahead, a battle to bring down rogue drones in California. How the L.A. County Fire Department and the FBI are teaming up to take down offenders standing in the way of efforts to put out wildfires.

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[08:52:02]

SANCHEZ: Listen to this, just one rogue drone is all it takes to bring an aerial assault on a wildfire to a standstill.

DEAN: But in a fresh Alliance, the Los Angeles County Fire Department and the FBI's L.A. field office are working together in a first of its kind program to get those drones out of the way.

SANCHEZ: CNN's Stephanie Elam has the exclusive story from Los Angeles.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just one rogue drone.

CAPT. DAVID LAUB, LOS ANGELES COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT: It makes our aircraft divert or land.

ELAM (voice-over): Is all it takes to ground a firefight from the sky.

LAUB: It's in mandatory stop operations when we see drones operating in our emergency locations. We don't know what the operators going to do so the potential damage to our helicopters or our fixed wing is extensive.

ELAM (voice-over): Let alone the danger to firefighters on the ground. Yet while unauthorized drones can stop aircraft from dropping crucial water or fire retardant on a blaze, that blaze churns on.

LAUB: It continues to burn, it continues to get bigger, it threatens people's homes, property, the environment.

ELAM (voice-over): But Los Angeles County Fire is now going on the offensive partnering with the FBI in a first of its kind drone to turn program that can hone in on offending drones in seconds. JAMES PEACO III, WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION COORDINATOR, FBI: When the detection equipment finds a drone and identifies the operator's location, we can very rapidly get that information to a ground intercept team who can then go make contact with that drone operator.

LAUB: I set this up so that I would be notified if a drone crosses within the location and it is very accurate. Speed, direction, elevation where he took off from and where he's standing.

ELAM (on-camera): What happens when they do get to whoever's operating the drone?

PEACO: The first thing we do is order them to bring the drone back, explain to him that there's a wildfire and flying that drone during a wildland fire is actually a federal felony. We break the violators into three categories, clueless, careless and criminal.

And if it's just clueless or careless, we'll either issue a citation or even just warn them off and tell them not to do it. The overwhelming majority of people are happy to comply.

CAPT. MICHAEL NARDONE, LOS ANGELES COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT: Oh, it's been a great game changer.

ELAM (voice-over): Los Angeles County Fire also deploys its own drones to battle structure fires and wildland blazes.

NARDONE: They can get a bird's eye view.

ELAM (voice-over): Helping first responders scout fires and target hotspots.

NARDONE: We can do a 360 degree lap around the entire fire and really pinpoint where the fire is without having to put firefighters in harm's way.

ELAM (voice-over): Optimally from 50 to 200 feet away, watching this demonstration for CNN, as the drones' high definition camera detects the temperature of the fire and any people nearby.

NARDONE: I can switch from regular video screen to infrared screen so you can see where the hotspots are in the building. So we can see pretty much anything and everything we'd like to see.

ELAM (voice-over): Putting eyes in the sky where they need them and keeping them away from places where they shouldn't be.

Stephanie Elam, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[08:55:08]

DEAN: Stephanie, thank you. A quick programming note, join CNN as we explore the diverse wildlife of Patagonia's desert coast. "Patagonia: Life on the Edge of the World" premieres tomorrow night at 9:00 on CNN. And here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Patagonia. See this land of extremes like never before. Where animals and humans once enemies now fight together against some new challenges. What does it take to live in one of the most wild and isolated places on earth?

"Patagonia: Life on the Edge of the World" premieres tomorrow at 9:00 on CNN.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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