Return to Transcripts main page

New Day Saturday

Biden To Meet With Arab Leaders As U.S. Seeks To Reassert Influence In Middle East; Jan. 6 Committee Subpoenas Secret Service Amid Text Message Controversy; Missile Strikes in Dnipro Kill 3 As Russia Ramps Up Attacks; Biden Extends COVID-19 Public Health Emergency As U.S. Cases Soar. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired July 16, 2022 - 06:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:00:28]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Buenos dias. Good morning, and welcome to your weekend. We're grateful to have you on new day. It's Saturday, July 16. I'm Boris Sanchez.

KRISTIN FISHER, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Kristin Fisher, thank you so much for starting your morning with us and it's great to be with you in person --

SANCHEZ: Great to be with you, Kristin.

FISHER: -- for once, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Yes, look at us on set. This is great.

FISHER: Yes, and a busy morning too.

SANCHEZ: Indeed. We begin with President Biden's effort to turn the page on U.S. relations with Saudi Arabia. The President has been meeting this morning with key allies in the Mideast, including the president of Egypt and the prime minister of Iraq, before posing for the traditional family photo at the summit in Jeddah.

FISHER: And one of the most controversial meetings was President Biden sit down with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The President defends the decision to meet with him even though we refer to him as a pariah back when he was a candidate for president.

And our colleague, Wolf Blitzer is traveling with the president and joins us live now from Saudi Arabia. Wolf, you know, members of the Biden administration have been stressing that these meetings are really about trying to reset that relationship between the Middle East and the United States, right.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: They certainly do. They believe this is a moment that the U.S. can reset the overall U.S. relationship with countries of the Middle East. And they're working to do that right now. President Biden, Kristin, is laying out his Mideast strategy on this the last day of his trip to the region. He's meeting with key leaders on issues ranging from security to economics to human rights, but it says interaction with the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, that is looming very, very large over this entire summit.

The President says he was straightforward and direct when he met with him, and he said he believes the Crown Prince was in fact, behind the killing of the Washington Post columnist and U.S. resident Jamal Khashoggi.

He says the Saudi leader known as MBS denied involvement during the course of their meeting. President Biden was also fiercely criticized for his fist bump with the Crown Prince during his first visit during their first meeting yesterday.

The publisher of The Washington Post, by the way, called it and I'm quoting now said it was shameful. He says I'm once again I'm quoting it projected a level of intimacy and comfort that delivers to MBS the unwarranted redemption. He has been desperately seeking that from Fred Ryan, The Washington Post publisher, and remember Jamal Khashoggi used to write for The Washington Post.

The trip comes as the president deals with fallout from high gas prices and soaring inflation back home. The Biden administration says steps Saudi Arabia is taking now will eventually drive down oil prices and provide some relief, but official stress that could take time and also stress that oil is not the primary purpose behind this trip by the President to the region.

I want to bring in our chief White House correspondent, Kaitlan Collins. She's here with me in Jeddah right now following the president -- the President's last day. He yesterday came out and cited several achievements, he says that have already been warned by the US.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I think the White House really wants to stress that this is not just about the meeting and the optics. But it is also about getting things done. And that is why they have now decided to meet with the Saudis despite how critical President Biden was of the Saudi crown prince, he just spent nearly three hours with last night on the campaign trail. And so that's why they're focusing on the accomplishments.

But if you look at what each side is getting out of this, the Saudis really are getting what they want it, precisely what they wanted, which is to rehabilitate the image of MBS, someone who was an outcast on the world stage following this brutal murder of Jamal Khashoggi but has made this comeback and it was really solidified with President Biden coming here. And that is why you saw the Saudis prepared to capture that moment as they emerge together that fist bump, that Fred Ryan is calling shameful, saying it was more intimate. He thought that a handshake.

Officials of the White House are downplaying that, Wolf, they're saying it's not about the greetings, it's about what they actually got done in the room and also what they could potentially accomplish going forward. And I will say President Biden told reporters last night he does expect a forthcoming announcement on oil production, how much more oil the Saudis and the UAE can produce remains to be seen. They've said they're pretty close to capacity right now. But that is what the White House is driving home.

[06:05:00]

But of course, this is something that Biden is facing harsh criticism over because it was obviously the most politically fraught part of the trip.

BLITZER: Certainly was. And let's see how the fallout, if it continues, right. Kaitlan don't go too far away. Stay with us.

I want to continue the conversation right now joining us Aaron David Miller, CNN Global Affairs analyst, the former Middle East peace negotiator for the U.S. State Department and a Senior Fellow over at the Carnegie Endowment in Washington.

Aaron, thanks so much for joining us. President Biden's agenda to bring what he calls stability to global energy markets, how important are his meetings with Arab leaders, the GCC plus three as it's called today?

AARON DAVID MILLER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: I mean, I think it's important, Wolf. I mean, he wants to kind of the perception over the last 16, 18 months, the administration has taken a step back. And the President and Jake Sullivan and Secretary of State Blinken and refer to the fact that we really don't want China and Russia to fill the vacuum, or to fill any vacuum that is created by the perception that the United States is withdrawing to meet a rising threat from China or the domestic challenges that the President faces.

The other point, of course, is on Iran. Vladimir Putin will travel there as part of the Istana process to meet with Erdogan and Raisi, I'm sure you'll see the Supreme Leader as well. It'll kind of the perception of the President has friends, partners, allies, GCC six plus three, Egypt, Jordan and Iraq. And I think that'll be a good optic for the administration to conclude the trip.

BLITZER: These are important leaders here in the Middle East. There's no doubt about that. And these conversations, the one-on-one conversations that the President has with each leader, as well as with the entire group will be significant, especially if you look down the road and as the U.S. hopes it will ease oil and gas prices in the United States. That's really important, obviously, for you, for Americans, and for the President, for that matter.

Should the President call for Saudi Arabia, specifically to pump more oil, Aaron?

MILLER: I think whatever assurances the Saudis have provided have already been provided. And deciding is may over time, ramp up production. I'm not sure it's going to do much to lower the price of gas. In fact, the price of gas here at home, Wolf, has been coming down for the last several weeks largely because of fears of recession and economic slowdown in China. But I think the Saudis are determined to maintain their spirit capacity, then the Emiratis are the only swing producers that could ramp it up. I don't think the Saudis are willing to break yet with the Russians, the OPEC agreement that they have, plus I think the Saudis are anticipated by years end, with sanctions on Russia, increasing from the European Union and oil may get tight again during winter.

So I think they're going to be hedging their bets. And I think that's part of the problem, Wolf, with the optic that the President has created with his meeting with Mohammed bin Salman. The Crown Prince got what he needed up front, no question about it. And most of the deliverables that the administration received are more or less related to process, they'll play out over time. And with a stain this big with respect to human rights.

In order to counter that optic, Fred Ryan's comments, (INAUDIBLE) opposition, the human rights, community's opposition members of his own party, president needed something on the issue of human rights. And that's, I think, increasingly problematic, very little was done, at least as far as we know in that subject.

BLITZER: Yes, and as we know, those of us who have covered Biden ever since he was a senator and that his vice president, now as President, this issue of human rights, and the U.S. attitude towards human rights has been very, very high on this agenda.

His so-called fist bump with MBS Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, as you know, is getting a lot of attention. And Jamal Khashoggi murder has clearly loomed over this entire Biden visit to Saudi Arabia. You knew Khashoggi, I knew Khashoggi personally as well back in Washington.

Let's listen to my interview yesterday with the Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Adel Al-Jubeir. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Did President Biden raise Jamal Khashoggi by name?

ADEL AL-JUBEIR, SAUDI MINISTER OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS: At the beginning during the reception the President mentioned that this was an issue. He mentioned that he took (INAUDIBLE) face value His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince explained to him that this was a tragedy for Saudi Arabia, and that those who were responsible for it had been investigated and faced law and are now paying the price for the crime that was committed. And we -- the conversation then moved on in terms of the official discussions are discussed important issues in terms of revitalizing the relationships.

BLITZER: Did your impression minister, that President Biden accepted your explanation for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi?

AL-JUBEIR: I believe so, but I believe -- yes I believe so.

BLITZER: And you didn't raise it any more throughout the course --

AL-JUBEIR: What is there to raise, Wolf, a crime was committed.

[06:10:07]

BLITZER: The U.S. intelligence community, as you know, concluded that the Crown Prince ordered, effectively ordered the killing of Jamal.

AL-JUBEIR: I don't believe that that was specified in those terms, one. Number two, it was an assessment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Aaron, you and I have known Adel Al-Jubeir for a long time. He used to be the Saudi ambassador in Washington. What did you think of the way he responded to those questions and how the whole issue of Jamal Khashoggi was treated during the course of the President's meeting with the Saudi leadership and Minister Al-Jubeir did participate in those meetings?

MILLER: Correctly, Wolf, I thought your questions were quite penetrating follow ups. I think Adel exposed President Biden unnecessarily. And I think that the President made it unmistakably clear that when the Crown Prince said that he was not responsible, even though he's leader of Saudi Arabia in sort of general sense, he was not responsible.

The President said that he pushed back and said to the Crown Prince, you are responsible. And what Adel is implying there is that that conference -- that part of the conversation never happened. This is the part of the problem with the Saudis controlling the narrative. And I think it -- the fist bump I think was the tone of this meeting, Wolf, should have been very different. The public optic.

The president, the fist bump, I think suggested I think Fred Ryan is right at certain casualness, and intimacy. It was far too chummy. And frankly, I think the President Biden was very conflicted about this meeting. He has put human rights at the centerpiece of his agenda at a time when he's defending Ukraine, human rights, democracy against Russia. He's meeting with a ruthless and repressive authoritarian who is continuing to criminalize dissent, detain and hold U.S.-Saudi nationals in Saudi Arabia.

That's a problem, particularly for the president who genuinely believes that human rights and our values are critically important. We could argue our values, our interests and our interests, our values of John McCain did. But there had to be a balance struck in this meeting, to at least begin to deal with some of the criticism, and frankly, I don't think there was that balance struck in terms of tone and optics. And as a consequence, the criticism is mounting, you know, it'll go away. But the stain that exist over MBS for Khashoggi and his other human rights abuses won't.

BLITZER: So as President Biden, Aaron, tries to turn the page on U.S.- Saudi relations, how will this trip affect how he is now viewed by other world leaders and indeed, by Americans and his commitment to human rights policies? MILLER: It's an interesting question. I think the public is obviously focused on domestic concerns, inflation, still COVID, rising gas prices. The contradiction the anomalies in American foreign policy and this issue on human rights, Mr. Biden is not the exception, frankly, of a president who faced extremely difficult choices when it came to dealing with authoritarian and repressive leaders who are able to make a contribution as well to furthering American interests.

The problem that with the Saudis, and this is not Putin, this is not President Xi. Saudi Arabia is presumed to be a friend, a partner, I wouldn't say ally, because there is no value coincidence, as we have with France, Germany, Canada, Australia, South Korea, Japan. Saudi Arabia is presumed to be a friend and an ally. And I just don't think you can leave this on the table without pursuing a much more active human rights agenda with respect to current, current Saudi behavior. I think that's increasingly going to be a problem here. And it's not going to go away.

BLITZER: Aaron, David Miller, thank you very much. Kaitlan want to weigh in, as well. Kaitlan, you got a point?

COLLINS: I was just going to say one thing on top of that, you know, this is not the first time that this administration has faced criticism over this because oftentimes they'll point to sanctions and visa restrictions that were put on lower level Saudi officials.

But even despite the president, President Biden releasing that intelligence that confirmed that they do believe MBS ordered his murder, they never sanctioned directly the Crown Prince.

BLITZER: You're absolutely right. All right, guys. Thank you very, very much. Let's go back to Boris and Kristin. Right now they got more news.

FISHER: All right, Wolf Blitzer. Thank you so much. We'll be going back to wolf throughout the morning for to the very latest on the President's final day in Saudi Arabia.

[06:15:02]

But first, still ahead this hour, the Secret Service under scrutiny. The January 6 Committee issuing a new subpoena to the agency over claims that did erase text messages from the day of the riot. One committee member tells CNN that their explanation just doesn't make sense.

SANCHEZ: Yes. Plus, as cases of monkeypox rise vaccines are in high demand and health officials are stepping up to control the outbreak.

FISHER: And another blow for a prominent South Carolina attorney at the very center of a murder mystery. Now, he's being indicted for the murders of his wife and son. We have a very latest on the case, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) SANCHEZ: The January 6 Committee is now digging deeper into reports that Secret Service agents deleted text messages sent the day before and the day of the insurrection. The committee issued a subpoena to the Secret Service yesterday after meeting with the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security.

[06:20:00]

This is the first time the committee has subpoenaed an agency in the executive branch.

FISHER: Earlier this week, the government watchdog accused the Secret Service of erasing those text messages after his office requested them. But, the Secret Service says that the messages were deleted as part of a device replacement program.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ZOE LOFGREN (D-CA) JANUARY 6 SELECT COMMITTEE: I will say that the explanation that you have to factory set, eliminate your data without backing up your data. Just seems I'm skeptical. I mean, I wouldn't do that.

The argument about when the request was made as largely irrelevant. The Secret Service was aware this was one of the signature events of our country, and that there would be a need to preserve all of the evidence because of that, and also, there's an obligation for federal agencies to retain records. So, this is troubling, but they've said they've got the text and the committee intends to get them all ASAP.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FISHER: The inspector general briefed the committee yesterday concerning his investigation of the agency's actions during the attack. According to a source, the Inspector General told the panel the Secret Service has not fully cooperated with his probe. He also says the agency did not conduct its own review of its actions on that day. Instead, the agency was relying on the investigation being conducted by his office.

Meanwhile, Georgia's investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election is now focusing on top Republican Party officials.

SANCHEZ: Yes, the Republican chairman of the party in Georgia, David Shafer received a target letter from Fulton County's District Attorney warning him that he might be indicted. CNN's Sara Murray has more.

SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Boris and Kristin, the investigation into Donald Trump and his allies efforts to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia appears to be escalating. We are learning that David Shafer who is the chairman of the Georgia Republican Party received what is known as a target letter. This is essentially a letter saying you are now considered a target in this investigation. You could perhaps face an indictment. Now, this is interesting because it's the first target letter we are learning of in this case, for the first time that she has warned someone that we know of that they may face an indictment. It's also interesting because Shafer had been cooperating with prosecutors. He was under the impression he was a witness in this investigation. He is someone who served as a pro Trump elector of fake elector, he worked with the Trump campaign to sort of organize this fake slate of electors. People around him and said he was talking publicly about it at the time that it was only in case Donald Trump somehow won one of his court challenges, but it's very clear from this letter, that he could face some legal exposure.

What's not clear is if he is actually going to be indicted, or if this is somehow a warning because the district attorney wants something else from him. But we can see it clearly she is chugging ahead with her investigation down in Georgia. Back to you guys.

SANCHEZ: Sara Murray, thank you so much. Let's bring in CNN political commentator and spectrum news political anchor Errol Louis. Errol, good morning. Always great to have you on bright and early.

Let's start with that unprecedented subpoena of the Secret Service. How could those deleted text messages help the committee's case?

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good morning, Boris. It's clear that the Secret Service, members of the Secret Service were witnesses, possibly eyewitnesses to some of the most important parts of the probe some of the most sensitive parts of the probe. And to corroborate some of what we've already heard in sworn testimony, you really have to find out what they saw, what they knew, and any records of that, which is what you would see in text communications and other messages between them would really shed a lot of light on that.

It's understandable that they might be a little skittish about turning over all of that information. But this is not a normal situation. And that information really is going to be important for the January 6 committee.

SANCHEZ: And it could corroborate some of the testimony that we heard from Cassidy Hutchinson right about former President Trump reaching for the steering wheel and appearing to reach for an actual Secret Service agent at one point out of frustration.

The next committee hearing set for Thursday in prime time. It's actually focusing on that spans of time where Trump effectively stood by while the Capitol was being swarmed. What are you expecting to come from that hearing?

LOUIS: Look, if this was really structured like a television drama, they got a television producer, in fact that helped produce these hearings. This is the season finale. This is the grand finale. This is us now finding out what to the best of the committee's knowledge the President actually was doing, as people were under attack, as the Vice President was fleeing for his life, as crowds were storming into the Capitol taking over the Speaker's office, you know, defiling the Senate chamber and so forth with guns drawn security trying to push them back.

[06:25:10]

What was the President doing? What was he told? What did he know? When did he know it? Why didn't he take action? Why wasn't the National Guard mobilized? All of these important questions that have been out there all along, we're going to finally get some answers that go beyond some of the excellent reporting that's been done, and hear from eyewitnesses and others under oath, what they knew and what they saw as they watched the president during those crucial hours.

SANCHEZ: The former President has been very vocal in his anger over there not being sort of a counterprogramming of the January 6 committee hearings. He apparently wanted Republicans to cross examine some of the witnesses.

Now, CNN has learned that some House Republicans are planning to release a report this fall on January 6 security failures, what do you expect will come of that? Is that just counterprogramming or a worthwhile endeavor to get answers?

LOUIS: Right, it's certainly undertaken in bad faith, Boris, it's what part of the corrosive and poisonous atmosphere that you have in Washington DC in which it's really all about a narrative, it's about pushing back, it's about saying something even if it doesn't make any sense, even if it's not relevant, which in this case, all of that applies.

This is a case of them simply wanting to sort of take up some airtime, distract the public from the hard truth that this committee is unsurfaced and try and make the President's position look a little bit less bad as he prepares to run for reelection. It's nothing more than that. I think people would be well advised to tune that stuff out. Because this is not simply a matter of talking points versus talking points.

This is about one of the most serious threats to our democracy that we've ever seen. And getting to the bottom of what happened there, even if you don't like the outcome of what we're going to uncover is really going to be essential if we're going to go forward.

SANCHEZ: So Errol, as this investigation is unfolding, there are several others that loom over other former president, including we just heard from Sara Murray, the one ongoing in Fulton County, Trump has indicated that it's really a matter of when not if he's going to run again for the White House. How do these investigations factor into his potential announcement?

LOUIS: His announcement I think is going to either be timed to benefit and politically by falling just after or before the midterms, meaning he'll be able to take credit for whatever Republicans do in the fall, it's a little bit risky, or it's going to be used as a way to do more of this what we just described is kind of counter programming just sort of step one a negative headline by putting something explosive in there to sort of make sure there's at least a split screen or a different kind of a headline at the same time. This fake electors scheme, and it's really great that the Fulton County district attorney is looking into it. Anybody associated with that blatant attempt to overturn the election really should be held accountable. And, you know, I understand what Donald Trump might not want us to focus on that or report on it or analyze it.

But we absolutely have a duty to get to the bottom of that. And, you know, if anybody in Georgia or anywhere else wanted to be part of that, they should expect some really tough questioning. It's a really uncomfortable moment. And the President, of course, will try and distract and just the reality of it. But I don't think the American people are going to be swayed in this case.

SANCHEZ: Errol Louis, it's not a Saturday at 6:00 a.m. unless you're with us. Always appreciate the expertise, sir.

LOUIS: Thank you, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Of course.

FISHER: Well, still ahead. Several parts of Ukraine have just been struck by a barrage of Russian launched missile attacks. We'll take you live to Ukraine, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:30:00]

SANCHEZ: We want to give you an update on what's happening in Ukraine, because this morning, several parts of the country have been hit by deadly Russian missile strikes. In the southeastern city of Dnipro, at least, three people were killed, more than a dozen injured because of rocket attacks.

FISHER: And further south, rescue crews in Mykolaiv are searching for survivals after multiple missile strikes caused powerful explosions across the city. CNN's Ivan Watson is live in Odessa, Ukraine. And Ivan, I understand Odessa has also come under attack this morning, is that right?

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): That's right. I mean, the fire and the smoke that you see here has been burning for more than 8 hours since the air raid sirens went off shortly after 4:00 a.m. Residents here tell me, and then shortly before 5:00 a.m., this projectile slammed into this factory industrial zone over here, shattering windows in residences around there.

Now, the authorities say that no civilians were killed or injured in that. We're not being allowed to go any closer to it. So I don't know if there was any -- I cannot confirm or deny whether or not there was a military presence inside the factory zone. What I can say, though, is that the constant threat of missile strikes coming from the Russian military is something that Ukrainians are living with day and night now.

You mentioned the city of Mykolaiv, it's about two hours drive to the east of where I am right now. That's been hit by dozens of missiles. Just this last week, I visited a school, an elementary school that was destroyed. We've heard of universities that were hit, a hotel that was hit there. We of course, know that the city of Vinnytsia was hit by rockets on Wednesday, killing at least 24 people, including children, wounding dozens, including the mother of one of those children who was killed, and the mother is in hospital right now.

[06:35:00]

Other cities have been pounded as well. On the front lines, this is an artillery war of attrition, but these rockets are being flown deep behind the front lines, and they are terrorizing the civilians here. Last night, we were at the Odessa ballet, and it was very surreal to see the musicians and ballerinas going into air raid shelters because of air raid sirens, pausing, and then coming up to carry out a performance if you can imagine. Back to you --

FISHER: Wow.

SANCHEZ: Ivan Watson reporting live from Odessa, thank you.

FISHER: New this morning, the Biden administration has extended the COVID-19 public health emergency for another 3 months as new cases of the Omicron sub-variant, which is the most contagious variant yet, continue to soar nationwide. According to CDC data, more than half of the U.S. population is living in a country with a high COVID-19 community level. Currently, the official case-count is hovering right around 110,000 new cases a day.

But those numbers are believed to be vastly underreported, and CDC forecasts also predict that coronavirus hospitalizations in the U.S. will surge over the next month. Now, at the same time, the U.S. also seeing that major spike in monkeypox cases.

SANCHEZ: Yes --

FISHER: The CDC now says that there are more than 1,800 confirmed cases across the country, and that's 489 cases in New York State alone.

SANCHEZ: Dr. Fauci says that 1.1 million vaccine doses should be available in the near future. But the CDC is warning states not to stretch supply to a limited amount by giving people just the first dose. Health officials say that both doses of the monkeypox vaccine are needed for a full protection. CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATT FORD, HAD MONKEYPOX: It started off with just a few lesions, I got intense flu-like symptoms. As the flu symptoms updated, the lesions, well, eight more started to appear, and they became at worst excruciatingly painful, and at best mildly irritating.

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Knowing exactly what it feels like to have monkeypox, Matt Ford has now taken to social media to now warn people about the virus.

FORD: This sucks, and you don't want it. And that these are my arms --

GUPTA: But now, his frustration is that even as awareness grows, those who need it might have a hard time finding a vaccine.

FORD: Supply is so low, there's just not that much to go around.

GUPTA: Since May, the number of cases in the United States has continued to grow quickly, but the two-dose Jynneos monkeypox vaccine has been rolling out slowly.

DAVID HOLLAND, CHIEF CLINICAL OFFICER, FULTON COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH: We've got an allotment of 200 vaccines and the appointments for that went in about an hour and a half.

GUPTA: New York City Mayor Eric Adams has reached out to the White House to underscore his state's unmet demand. The two doses are usually given 4 weeks apart. But Mayor Adams wants the White House to consider a longer interval in between the doses, so more first doses could be administered immediately.

Right now, the CDC recommends a vaccine for high-risk individuals. People who have been diagnosed with or exposed to monkeypox, and people who are at higher risk of being exposed to monkeypox. That means not for the general population's prevention.

CARLOS DEL RIO, EXECUTIVE ASSOCIATE DEAN, EMORY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: The problem is, we simply don't have enough vaccine. So we're trying to play catch-up. We need to get vaccination to people because we know that, you know, vaccinated people may not necessarily prevent the infection, but will certainly decrease the severity of the disease.

GUPTA: The CDC estimates this vaccine is at least 85 percent effective, given it within four days of exposure is best to prevent the onset of disease, and even if given within 14 days of exposure, it may still reduce the symptoms.

(on camera): Because I'm looking at something that I've never seen before as a doctor. I want to introduce you to Coy(ph), she's 22 years old, and what she has is an active case of monkeypox.

(voice-over): But this is not necessarily what monkeypox always looks like. For Matt Ford, the lesions started smaller and not as obvious.

FORD: I maybe would have suspected that they were like herpes simplex virus or some other skin condition.

GUPTA: Right now, public health officials are sounding the loudest alarm in the LGBTQ community. That's due to most cases being reported in men who have sex with men. But experts warn, the outbreak could still expand.

DEL RIO: It's very reminiscent of the early days of HIV, right, in which it was impacting, you know, men who had sex with men, the gay community in the United States. And it's almost like the general public were not paying attention, and then HIV became a disease that affected other people, it affected everybody, and then all of a sudden, people got interested.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[06:40:00]

SANCHEZ: Thanks to Sanjay for that. We have a quick programming note to share with you. Tomorrow night, CNN takes you along Patagonia's Pacific Coast in a CNN original series, "PATAGONIA: LIFE ON THE EDGE OF THE WORD". Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Patagonia's fjords are now bursting with life. Running for 1,000 miles up the west coast, this is one of the most extensive fjord land regions on earth. Fed by dozens of these fjords is an incredibly rich feeding ground. The Corcovado Gulf, and heading straight for it is the largest animal that has ever lived. A blue whale. Weighing nearly 200 tons, he's twice as heavy as the largest dinosaur.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FISHER: And you can catch CNN's original series "PATAGONIA" tomorrow night at 9:00 right here on CNN. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:45:00]

FISHER: Well, this week brought even more legal trouble for that South Carolina attorney, Alex Murdaugh.

SANCHEZ: Now, this case just gets --

FISHER: It's crazy --

SANCHEZ: More and more bizarre, it does --

FISHER: It really is --

SANCHEZ: Yes, he was already in jail on dozens of mostly financial charges, but this week, a grand jury indicted him for the 2021 murders of his wife and son. CNN's Dianne Gallagher has more.

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris and Kristin, these indictments handed down by a Colleton County, South Carolina grand jury on Thursday, allege that it was Alex Murdaugh who pulled the triggers, and yes, I said triggers as in plural. Yes, the indictments have very few details. But what it does allege is that Alex Murdaugh shot and killed his 52-year-old wife Maggie with a rifle, and shot and killed his 22-year-old son, Paul, with a shotgun. Now, Murdaugh was a very prominent and powerful attorney here in the

Low country from a prominent family, but he was disbarred by the state's Supreme Court earlier this week. His attorneys released a statement shortly after the indictments came down, saying in part, quote, "Alex wants his family, friends and everyone to know that he did not have anything to do with the murders of Maggie and Paul.

He loved them more than anything in the world. It was very clear from day one that law enforcement and the attorney general prematurely concluded that Alex was responsible for the murder of his wife and son. But we know that Alex did not have any motive, whatsoever to murder them."

Now, his attorneys have said that they plan to request a speedy trial, they say they want to get the evidence that law enforcement may have out in the open, and expect much of that to happen in potentially the next 90 days or so. Now, again, not much evidence, not much information in those indictments, but a source does tell CNN, that at least, some of the evidence that law enforcement may have could pertain to blood spatter that may have been found on Alex Murdaugh's clothing that he was wearing the night of the murders.

That could indicate a rifle that was fired at a very close range. Now, of course, Murdaugh is actually in jail, he's been behind bars for months now on a $7 million bond that pertains to some of the more than 70 financial-related charges that are currently pending against him, with clients and other victims accusing him of defrauding them of millions upon millions of dollars.

And then, of course, there was that initial arrest, in part, what sparked so much interest in this case from not just the Low country, but the nation itself. That bizarre, attempted roadside suicide for hire insurance fraud plot. And of course, there are the mysterious deaths. At least, three death investigations have either been opened or reopened in the past year that relate in some way to the Murdaugh family orbit.

And again, Boris, Kristin, Murdaugh is still in jail, but he will appear for a bond hearing on Wednesday of next week on those murder indictments.

FISHER: So many twists and turns in that case. Dianne Gallagher, thank you so much. Still ahead, NFL teams are getting ready to start the new season next week. One player has spent a lot of his time overseas, in the Philippines, trying to rebuild his family's ancestral home after a devastating natural disaster.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:50:00]

FISHER: Back in April, a tropical storm ripped through the Philippines, decimating everything in its path, and leaving hundreds of thousands without a home.

SANCHEZ: CNN's Carolyn Manno joins us now with the story of one NFL player, Carolyn, who spent the off-season trying to help people piece their lives back together, and then rediscovered his heritage in the process.

CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, good morning to you both. You know, the off-season before training camp begins is such valuable time for NFL players, but Cam Bynum has spent a lot of it helping other people. The Vikings defensive back, he grew up knowing his family's history, but he never had the chance to visit the Philippines until that deadly storm back in April.

And now, he spent the better part of the month overseas providing much needed relief to the people there while also sharing his love of sport with those on the island of Leyte, and that's the place where his great-grandmother was born and raised.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAMRYN BYNUM, SAFETY, MINNESOTA VIKINGS: I've always wanted to go to the Philippines, I always wanted to help out around here, especially the past year. And being in America, we don't hear about typhoons and all the destruction that goes on in the Philippines.

A year ago, I didn't know what a typhoon was, I'm just thinking, oh, it's just windy day or heavy rain, but as soon as I learned more about that, then find out about my family history here and being able to -- you know, being out here, I was able to meet some of the new family members I've never met, it just brings everything full circle.

We then went to one of the most devastating and dangerous areas in Manila called Thunder, and we were able to do a big feeding program. We fed 600 kids in one of the most devastated areas out there.

[06:55:00]

So, that was another eye-opening experience. I mean, just eye-opening, seeing how happy they still were, all the kids and all the families, there was not one person that was down and down and out about it. So that helped me to check myself if I ever got mad, get mad about anything in the future. I just realize how grateful I need to be every single day just to be alive, just to be waking up in the morning, having a roof over my head because I met so many kids that didn't.

One thing I made sure that planning this whole thing, I don't want it to be a one-time thing, show up, give some stuff out and never show up again, or me just raise money, give money and go back. And I wanted to inspire the people to be able to give more, and be able to do more in their city wherever they want to go, just give back to somebody and change somebody else's life because we can't live alone, we can't do life alone.

And we need community, we need people, wherever it may be, home, different country, their backyard, like wherever, there's a difference to be made anywhere.

(END VIDEO CLIP) MANNO: It's so true, and Bynum along with New Life Community Care

Foundation and the Minnesota Vikings raised more than $20,000, guys, and also help feed hundreds of people. And when you talk to Camryn, it's just so clear. He doesn't want the focus on him. He said he was just blown away by the boundless spirit of the Filipino people, and you can see it in that piece. It's just a wonderful way for an NFL player to spend the off-season.

SANCHEZ: Yes, that kind of philanthropy always puts things in perspective. Carolyn Manno, thank you so much. Still ahead, lawmakers investigating the January 6th insurrection have just subpoenaed the Secret Service for text messages the agency deleted before and on the day of the riot. We have new details for you, next..

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)