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The Situation Room

Death Toll in Texas Rises to At Least 134; Major Layoffs at the State Department; Camp La Junta After Texas Floods; Connie Francis Dead at 87. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired July 17, 2025 - 10:30   ET

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

[10:30:00]

REP. PETE SESSIONS (R-TX), CO-CHAIR, DOGE CAUCUS: -- not federal employees, they're state and local employees to make these determinations. We must understand that whether it's FEMA or whether it's a state or local government, these things are going to keep occurring. We need to be prepared, and it is no longer OK not to be sound with a plan and an understanding in particular where children are involved. But these occurrences will happen again, and we need to be prepared.

I think that the State of Texas has the authority and the responsibility and the means by which to make sure this is better. I expect them to do that. I am watching it. The lieutenant governor has told me that he wants to work with us when it is part of the Federal Nexus.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: All right.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Excellent point and thanks very much for coming in.

BROWN: Thank you, Congressman. We appreciate it.

SESSIONS: You bet.

BROWN: And coming up, new CNN reporting on the mass layoffs at the State Department and the big impact it could have on the Trump administration's own priorities. That's next.

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[10:35:00]

BROWN: And we are getting a new look at the impact of the Trump administration's drastic overhaul of the federal government. And that includes at the State Department where more than 1,300 staffers were let go last week.

BLITZER: And at the Department of Education, scores of workers face a very uncertain future right now following a U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing mass layoffs to proceed.

Joining us now for more on all of this is Everett Kelly. He's the president of the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more than 800,000 federal and D.C. government workers. Everett, thanks very much for coming in. So, what are you hearing from your members over the last few days?

EVERETT KELLY, PRESIDENT, AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES: Well, thank you first of all for having me, you and Pamela. We are hearing so much concern of uncertainty. Because one minute, you know, the court say, you know, your job is safe, you know, and the next minute, you know, the court says, you know, you're going to be rifted.

So, the employees and the members that I represent are very concerned. So, much uncertainty, so much unrest because we feel that the dismantling of the agencies is unnecessary. And so, they don't even know why they have been laid off.

BLITZER: How many members have been affected at least so far?

KELLY: You know, it's hard for us to tell because they don't give us that information. We don't know if those that took the early buyout, we don't know how many they were. We don't know how many employees are being rifted or laid off, if you will, at this time.

We know that in the Department of Veterans Administration, there was a plan to lay off 83,000 there. But I'm grateful for that secretary that took another look at and say, you know, that's not the right thing to do. And I would also encourage every director or every secretary to take a look and say, you know, that was Musk's plan. You know, we have our own plan. You know, and then really analyze, you know, what's needed.

BROWN: How do you make your case to the American public that these jobs are necessary?

KELLY: Well, when they take a look at what these employees do, you know, they realize that it's necessary to keep these jobs, because you're talking about people that service veterans, right? You're talking about people that make sure that the food that we eat are safe. The air we breathe is safe. When we fly through the skies, we can fly safely. These are the people that I represent, although they're called names and, you know, but they're very patriotic dedicated employees.

BLITZER: The Senate, as you know, has sent, what, DOGE's $9 billion proposed spending cuts package to the House ahead of tomorrow's deadline to sign it into law. How concerned are you over the precedent all of this could set?

KELLY: Well, it could definitely set a precedent and also disrupt services that Americans depend on. I'm very concerned about that. I think that every American should be.

BLITZER: Yes. These jobs are important.

BROWN: And just to follow up on that, I mean, you have said the legal fight is not over. How do you continue to fight this? KELLY: Well, and I'm glad you asked that question because AFGE will always fight for the rights of its members. But we are not just fighting for our members, we fighting for Americans, we're fighting for the services that these members provide to the American public such as, you know, beneficiaries that want to file social security claim, you know, we are fighting for them, you know. And if we don't do it, who's going to do it?

So, we'll be here and we will continue to fight until we can't fight anymore. But I don't think we'll get to that point. We'll always fight for the American people and for the members that we represent.

BROWN: All right. Everett Kelly, thank you so much.

KELLY: Thank you.

BLITZER: Appreciate it very much.

KELLY: Thank you, Wolf.

BROWN: And just ahead, my Situation Room Special Report. For the first time, the world is hearing from the owners and getting a firsthand look at the devastation at Camp La Junta, an all-boys camp in Kerr County, Texas after the July 4th floods. What the owners are telling us about that night and how they're moving forward.

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[10:40:00]

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One of the windows broke and like. And I think that's how the water got in. And then one of our walls fell.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just got worried about him more than worrying about myself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So, that's Brock and Braden Davis. You may remember them sharing their harrowing story on this show with me from the night Floodwater raced through their campgrounds at Camp La Junta in Kerr County, Texas. The area was devastated by flooding on July 4th. One of the hardest hit areas was Camp Mystic along the Guadalupe River.

Nearly six miles downstream is Camp La Junta, an all-boys camp where the brothers were. And before the floods, the camp was bustling and full of boys making foundational memories. You can see the sprawling property right by the Guadalupe.

This is video showing just how fast and furious the flood waters came knocking a cabin straight off its foundation. Fortunately, for Camp La Junta, everyone was evacuated safely. The camp itself is now a skeleton of what it once was. And for the first time to CNN and the world, the owners are letting us see what it looks like now as they reflect on what happened that fateful night.

[10:45:00]

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KATIE FINESKE, OWNER AND DIRECTOR, CAMP LA JUNTA: To see the growth and the giggles and the fun and the friendships that form here, that's what this is supposed to be. This is not supposed to look like this. This is not what we're supposed to be filled with.

BROWN (voice-over): Almost two weeks after catastrophic flooding hits Central Texas, the owners of Camp La Junta, Scott and Katie Fineske are opening up for the first time to CNN and reflecting on how quickly deadly waters overran their idyllic campground full of campers on July 4th.

SCOTT FINESKE, OWNER AND DIRECTOR, CAMP LA JUNTA: This was our dining hall. So, this was a walled building. It had all of our tables. We had 35 giant wooden tables.

BROWN (voice-over): Awakened by the thunder in the overnight hours, the Fineskes started planning for rainy 4th of July activities until Katie looked out the window.

S. FINESKE: A lightning bolt came across the sky and lit up the athletic fields, and she looked at me and said, I think I see our dining hall table floating across the athletic field.

K. FINESKE: Water does not rise this fast here, and it's just something that was beyond belief.

BROWN (voice-over): So, the Finekse's jumped into action, splitting up and going to each of the 18 cabins on the main grounds because there was no other way to communicate. We've got speakers all through camp and we also have our own radio station that we broadcast announcements, but all of that stuff washed away.

S. FINESKE: Evacuation is one of those things that's on that emergency plan. And so, when the counselors got the directive to pull the kids out of the cabin to go to the maintenance road, they knew exactly what to do. They knew how to do it. They knew the path that they were going to go.

BROWN (voice-over): One of the counselors helped campers climb onto wooden rafters to escape the rising waters in their cabin, as you see in this picture, shared with CNN.

K. FINESKE: Water was rushing by with huge force and was about chest deep on Scott when we came down. We were on the high ground screaming at the counselors to get their kids in the rafters.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's people in it.

BROWN (voice-over): As the water rushed through the camp, one of the cabins for adult staff was ripped from its foundation and began drifting away. S. FINESKE: Never made it down to the river. It just floated down the back sidewalk and stopped at the tree right there.

BROWN (voice-over): The Fineskes emphasized the bravery and heroism of the counselors, mostly teenagers.

S. FINESKE: We were very fortunate in the fact that all of our kids were able to get out safely, and it's -- without them and without the way that they reacted, it would -- it could be a completely different story.

BROWN (voice-over): That reality of a different story becoming abundantly clear to them once the sun rose on July 4th, when they say a little girl from Camp Mystic was found alive next door after floating five miles in the torrent.

S. FINESKE: It was very shocking that she was there. It was very shocking that she was in good spirits, and it was very shocking that she wasn't injured.

BROWN (voice-over): Now, they're grappling with the loss of friends from nearby camps. Jane Ragsdale from Heart of the Hills, and Dick Eastland from Camp Mystic, along with 27 campers and counselors.

K. FINESKE: It's a really strong community. So, losing Dick and losing Jane is just -- we have -- it's unthinkable.

S. FINESKE: Our heart goes out to everybody at Mystic, everybody in the community. This is a disaster that's hitting a whole lot of people.

BROWN (voice-over): Despite the physical toll of the storm, they say the camp spirit of grit and resilience is unchanged since its founding nearly 100 years ago.

K. FINESKE: We plan to be back in 2026. Feel like the work we do here is a too important to miss and it's just not an option for us to not rebuild and be back for the kids next year.

S. FINESKE: It's not camp right now. It will be. It will be. But it's hard at this moment to see and to know what it has been for so many years, and it's difficult.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN (on camera): And as you just heard, they have the rather ambitious goal of reopening the camp next summer. And while they did have property insurance, they don't have flood insurance to help in this crucial time of rebuilding. So, for more on how you can help support Camp La Junta getting back to their mission of being a safe haven for boys, you can go to my Instagram @PamelaBrownCNN.

BLITZER: It's so nice of you to do that. It's so heartbreaking, especially for you and me who were both campers and camp counselors for that matter. We had a very different experiences in our day, but it's still so powerful to see how these people are surviving. [10:50:00]

BROWN: And it is, and it's also really inspiring that they are so focused on bringing the camp experience back for next summer. I mean, they lost a lot of their camp.

BLITZER: I hope they do it. Yes.

BROWN: But they really do have the grit and the resilience and it was incredible to see and to talk to them, and we really just thank them for letting us in and sharing their story. It's only been two weeks, right?

BLITZER: Right.

BROWN: Still very fresh and raw for everyone there in Kerr Country.

BLITZER: And thank you for being there and doing these amazing reports. Really powerful.

BROWN: Thank you. And I know a lot of people are wondering how they can help. So, for more information about how you can help Texas flood victims, go to cnn.com/impact or text FLOOD to 707077 -- 70, I should say. We'll be right back.

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BLITZER: Breaking news, the actress in singer, Connie Francis, who became the soundtrack of a generation has died. Connie Francis was known for hits, including "Lipstick on Your Collar" and "Pretty Little Baby," song that has seen a resurgence with a new generation on TikTok recently.

[10:55:00]

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(MUSIC PLAYING)

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BLITZER: Connie Francis had recently been hospitalized for pain issues. Her long-time friend and publicist, Ron Roberts, confirmed her death on social media saying, and I'm quoting now, "I know that Connie would approve that her fans are among the first to learn of this sad news." Connie Francis was 87 years old. Our deepest, deepest condolences to her family. May she rest in peace and may her memory be a blessing. We'll be right back.

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