Return to Transcripts main page

The Situation Room

NY AG: "Active Criminal Investigation" Into Cornell Case; Christa Pike Critical After Surviving Two Lethal Injections; Sources: Trump Expected To Name Jay Clayton His A.I. Czar. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired October 02, 2026 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:00]

CROWD: And this is Body Language by CNN.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: So Pamela, this is obviously very, very personal for you. I'm very proud of you. This is so important, not only to women, but to men as well.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: It is. That's an important point. And Wolf, you know on this show we've been doing the Women's Health Watch. We cover a lot of stories around women's health. So this is really an extension of that. And I want women and men to walk away feeling empowered that they have information about topics that have historically been taboo around women's health that we didn't talk about.

And so we're really hoping to demystify these issues and have these really honest, open, candid conversations that we did. And, you know, it's really important to me that women feel like they see themselves in these other women we interviewed and that they feel seen, heard, and validated. Because so often, as we've discussed, Wolf, on this show, women feel dismissed when they have issues and they go to the doctor and they seek help. I know I have personally. I talk about it very openly in this series. And I'm just so excited for the launch.

BLITZER: I'm excited too, because every time you do one of these excellent, very excellent reports, I learn something important. If you have a mother or a grandmother, you have a wife or a daughter, and you're a man --

BROWN: Exactly.

BLITZER: -- you want to learn about this because it is so, so important.

BROWN: I've already told my husband, get ready. You're going to have to watch all these episodes so you can learn.

BLITZER: And I want to watch them all too.

All right, stand by. The first four episodes of Body Language by CNN will premiere next Thursday, October 8th, exclusively for our all- access subscribers.

BROWN: And just a quick follow-up on that. It will be free. The first drop will be free for everyone.

BLITZER: Free is good.

BROWN: Yes, free is good.

BLITZER: And the next hour of The Situation Room starts right now.

BROWN: Happening now, breaking news, deeply disturbed. New York Governor Kathy Hochul is sharply criticizing Cornell's handling of an alleged gang rape on campus as the state opens an official criminal investigation into what happened.

Plus, new information from Jane Doe's attorney. I just spoke with him last hour. Hear why he believes his client never consented to anything that night.

BLITZER: And legal limbo. What's next for the Tennessee woman who's been on death row for 30 years after she survived her own execution?

Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in The Situation Room.

And we begin this hour with the breaking news. The 2024 alleged gang rape at a fraternity house over at Cornell University on the campus is now, "an active criminal investigation" being overseen by the New York State Attorney General's Office.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul tapped the State Attorney General Letitia James to serve as a special prosecutor in the case last night, saying she had lost faith in the county prosecutor's ability to, "fairly oversee the investigation." Just a short while ago, Governor Hochul told reporters that Jane Doe was failed by people and institutions responsible for protecting her, "at every turn."

BROWN: And last hour, I spoke with Jane Doe's attorney, and I asked her about documents we obtained in which Jane Doe told police that she did engage in consensual sexual activity at the beginning of the night, but then it evolved into non-consensual sexual activity. Here's part of our conversation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: In documents we obtained, Jane Doe told police that she did engage in consensual sexual activity in the beginning of the night, and then it evolved into non-consensual sexual activity. At what point in the evening did it cross into non-consensual for her?

THOMAS GIUFFRA, ATTORNEY FOR JANE DOE: I don't think it was ever consensual. She showed up at the Chi Phi house heavily intoxicated. There were -- there was testimony not just from the people involved in the assault, but there was a lot of testimony from people who were around that time, saw her that day, and by all accounts, she was completely, completely intoxicated. She couldn't consent to anything. So I don't think she ever consented and was incapable of consenting because of the level of intoxication and the fact that she was plied with drugs, she couldn't consent to anything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Joining us now is CNN correspondent Gloria Pazmino, who was at the news conference with the governor and state attorney general. Gloria, what else did the governor say about all of this?

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, she was very clear that over the past few days, as a result of what has emerged publicly, that she did not believe the Tompkins County district attorney could possibly carry out this investigation, and she said that she had lost faith in his ability to do that, and that was the reason why she signed this executive order appointing the state attorney general, Letitia James, to take over as special prosecutor in the investigation.

[11:04:57]

The governor also made it clear she believes that something simply is not right here. She says that there's a lot of confusion between what Jane Doe told police investigators, the information that was eventually handed to the district attorney, the reasoning behind the district attorney's decision not to bring charges back when the incident took place in 2024.

And so there's a real effort now that we are seeing this public outcry, you know, this demand for accountability and scrutiny over the District Attorney's Office, but also over Cornell University and how they handle this situation. The governor calling for transparency, saying that people need answers, and also saying that victims should feel that if they go to the police to report a crime, especially a sex crime, that they are going to at least get not only spoken to but get an investigation, which we have learned in the past few days that the district attorney apparently didn't even speak directly to Jane Doe when she reported this to Cornell Police.

Also significantly, Pam, and I think the interview you just did with Jane Doe's attorney is so important, because he talked about this concept of consent, right? Jane Doe's ability to consent, whether she could have consented, considering that when she showed up at Chi Phi's fraternity house that night, she was already intoxicated.

That has been the topic of much debate here in New York for years. And they have tried to change the law when it comes to sexual assault statutes and what you need to prove in order to prosecute. And this question around how do you determine consent, and can someone who has become willingly intoxicated provide consent, the governor saying today that she is getting behind an effort to change that law, that is significant.

And we just got a statement from Cornell University also supporting the change in law. They said, "We fully support the appointment of a special prosecutor and efforts to change New York State's rape law and are committed to an independent external review of all aspects of how Cornell has handled this case." The legislative session will not begin until the new year, Pam, but it's clear that at least for now there appears to be some momentum, certainly at least from the executive, Governor Kathy Hochul, to change that law. Pam?

BROWN: All right, Gloria Pazmino, thank you so much. And if you or anyone you know is struggling after a sexual assault, the National Sexual Assault Hotline is available 24/7 to help. The number is 1-800- 656-HOPE. And there are also resources at rainnwithjewens.org (ph). Wolf?

BLITZER: Also happening now, attorneys for Christa Pike, the Tennessee woman who was sentenced to death and survived two lethal injections, is in critical condition this morning and receiving life-saving medical care. Her attorneys are now calling for the Tennessee Governor Bill Lee to commute her sentence, saying she had endured punishment, "greater than any other person in the history of the American death penalty." Let's go live right now to senior national correspondent Ryan Young. Ryan, there are so many questions about what happened and what went wrong. What are you learning this morning?

RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so many questions about this case, Wolf, and we're still asking those questions, trying to see if we can get anyone in the government to step forward with what happens next. We know all the executions for the state have now been pushed past this year. And, of course, they're going to do a total review of how we ended up here.

But for Christa Pike and her attorneys, they were warning about this days before this execution even took place. They were even saying the fact that she had small veins would play a role in this. At one point, she was even telling the doctors in the room where to put the needle in her shoulder. This went on for quite some time. And that second dose was administered 40 minutes after the first one.

So you can understand why the people in the room who were witnessing this thought this was astonishing. Let's take a listen to her lawyers talking about the pain their client went through.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RANDY SPIVEY, ATTORNEY FOR CHRISTA PIKE: After having endured solitary confinement for more than 20 years and a full attempt to kill her by lethal injection, Christa has endured punishment greater than any other person in the history of the American death penalty.

STEVE FERRELL, ATTORNEY FOR CHRISTA PIKE: It's such an unknown what was conscious, what will be remembered, what damage may have occurred to her brain from oxygen deprivation. We may never know what all she was suffering through, either because she can't remember it, she can't tell it, or it overwhelms her in such a way that, you know, sometimes pain and suffering affects people that way. That really was her biggest fear. It was not a fear of dying. It was a fear of a prolonged, painful, traumatic death. And that's what happened, minus the death.

(END VIDEO CLIP) [11:09:57]

YOUNG: Yes, Wolf, once again, we continue to push to figure out what happens next in terms of what's going on with this statement. This is not the first time they've had issues. We're also checking on her condition. Once again, so many questions about how this moved forward.

BLITZER: What a horrible story. Ryan Young reporting for us. Ryan, thank you very, very much. Pamela?

BROWN: All right. Wolf, breaking news just into CNN, sources tell us President Trump is expected to name Jay Clayton as his czar of A.I. Clayton is already the director of National Intelligence. So let's go live now to CNN White House correspondent Alayna Treene. What more can you tell us about Jay Clayton and this appointment?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, look, we're told that the President is expected to name Jay Clayton, as you mentioned, Pamela, as the White House's new A.I. czar and that this announcement could come as early as today. Now, it's been known that the President has said he wanted to set up a new A.I. force and name a new czar to kind of oversee the administration's posture when it comes to artificial intelligence.

Now, Clayton is currently director of National Intelligence. Before that, he was the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan and also served as the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission during the President's first term, for the majority, I should say, of the President's first term. But all of this comes, as we know, that a lot of leaders in the A.I. space, tech CEOs as well, have been ringing the alarm bells about the potential risks that A.I. poses and also the guardrails that they believe need to be put in place in order to prevent such dangers from seeping into society.

The President did invite many of these leaders to the White House for a meeting here on Tuesday, and they did ultimately sign what they're calling a commitment to self-policing their company's A.I. policies and models. I should note, we previously heard Jay Clayton, when he was going through his confirmation hearing, say that he believes that A.I. is a, "game changer and not only an opportunity, but a threat." Clayton said when something's both an opportunity and a threat, you better get your arms around it.

Trump has now been kind of teasing this announcement of Clayton for some time now, saying that he would be making his decision soon, but that he believed that his candidate was an excellent candidate to lead the A.I. industry and be the White House's A.I. czar. I should say a White House official had told CNN that any personnel announcement will be announced directly by the President. Any reporting until then is baseless speculation. So we'll be standing by, waiting to see when exactly this announcement will be made, Pamela.

BROWN: All right, Alayna Treene, thank you so much. Wolf?

BLITZER: And still coming up, chaos in the cockpit. Stunning new video captures the moment passengers on the flydubai plane broke into the cockpit after the co-pilot attacked the pilot. And now we're hearing more from the heroic pilot who fought off the attacker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[11:12:43]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And then I just opened it, sir. And then everybody came and everybody else also played an equal role. I was telling, sir, that I was doing this for my life. But at the same time, I knew that I cannot let everybody else die.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Happening now, investigators have not yet identified the Omani co-pilot accused of attacking his captain in the cockpit and nearly crashing the flydubai plane with more than 170 people on board.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go out, go out. Take him out.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Daniel, come here for a minute.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is a pilot. Let him in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Passengers pulled the co-pilot out of the cockpit and then restrained him and gave medical aid to the severely wounded captain.

BLITZER: That rescue was only possible because he somehow managed to unlock the cockpit door. That captain from India described the ordeal to his country's prime minister. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And then I just opened it, sir, and then everybody came, and everybody else also played an equal role in this. I was telling, sir, that I was doing this for my life, but at the same time, I knew that I cannot let everybody else die.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: I want to bring in retired U.S. Army General Wesley Clark, a former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO. General, thanks so much for joining us. The United Arab Emirates, where the Israel-bound flight originated, has launched a full-scale terror investigation right now. The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, already says the suspect, an Omani national, had undergone what he calls Islamist radical indoctrination.

General, tensions are very high in the Middle East already, and the Iran war, obviously, is still going on. What could all this mean to the region if this is determined to be a terror attack? GEN. WESLEY CLARK (RET.), FORMER NATO SUPREME ALLIED COMMANDER: It will mean a resurgence of violence in the region, because there will have to be a response. It also means a real tightening of the counterintelligence operation inside the Emirates and especially with respect to any airline flights and pilot training. And it will have repercussions on Oman as well, if this man came from Oman. But I think it could be a trigger for a renewed set of strikes on Iran, if it's traced back to Iran.

BLITZER: Without offering details, President Trump already says the pilots could have ties to Tehran. And he says the U.S. would hit Iran, in his words, very hard if investigators find that Iran was involved in trying to down this Israel-bound flight. Most of the passengers were Israelis coming back to Israel from Dubai. What could that U.S. retaliation look like?

[11:20:03]

CLARK: I think it certainly would be strikes on any intelligence facilities. Any renewed construction of air defense and radars and typical military targets. And maybe some other associated intelligence activities that have subsequently, to the stop of the air campaign, been identified. But the region's on a knife edge right now, Wolf. I mean, we don't know, nobody knows whether and how effectively we're getting oil out. Some people say 15 million barrels a day, that's what "The Wall Street Journal" says. Some people say no, no, no, that's an exaggeration.

It's not nearly that much, and that's being put out in an effort to pressure the government of Tehran. People say the government of Tehran may preempt and therefore strike. This would count, if it's traced to Tehran, as a preemption. And the President would respond. On the other hand, if it continues as it is, maybe this will, as the President said, get settled after the midterm elections. So I'm talking to people in the region, and they're very concerned.

But they -- I think the prevalent, prevailing opinion is, this is not going to continue until the midterm elections. That there will be a renewed set of strikes. They could be directed against civilian infrastructure. They will certainly be directed against any resumption of Iranian capabilities or rebuilding of Iranian capabilities along the Strait of Hormuz. So I think that we do have to expect 60-40, 70- 30 renewed violence in the next three or four weeks in the region.

BLITZER: Yes, this is an extremely sensitive moment right now. I also want to ask you about the U.S. aircraft carrier, the USS Theodore Roosevelt. It left this week for the Middle East with about 10,000 sailors and Marines. It's expected to relieve the USS Washington. The Roosevelt will join the carrier USS George H.W. Bush in the region. Do you see any de-escalation at all of U.S. military readiness in this current war with Iran?

CLARK: I don't see that. In fact, I see this as a buildup. It is a measure intended to provide coercive pressure onto the Iranian government. They can see it coming and they can see it build up. And obviously, their partners, Russia and China, are watching this, tracking the carrier and digesting the lessons from previous Iranian attempts to strike the carrier or other U.S. naval assets out there.

There's a lot going on behind the scenes, Wolf, in terms of learning lessons from this. They're watching very closely U.S. naval operations. They're looking at all of the electronic signatures. They're looking at the flight patterns. They're looking at the defensive measures. You can be sure that there's a lot of schooling going on based on what's happened thus far.

So this may look like a period of calm, like a duck smoothly sailing over the water, but underneath, the webbed feet are paddling furiously on the other side as well as on ours.

BLITZER: Yes, the calm before the storm indeed. The former NATO Supreme Allied Commander General Wesley Clark, thanks so much for joining us.

CLARK: Thank you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Pamela?

[11:23:35]

BROWN: All right, Wolf, just ahead, a national moment. The group that runs the National Sex Assault Hotline says it has seen a massive spike in calls as an alleged gang rape at Cornell pushes more and more people to share their own stories.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Well, happening now. The alleged 2024 gang rape on Cornell's campus has sparked a nationwide conversation about how sexual assault cases are handled as more details come out about what happened in the days following the alleged incident. And more questions are being raised about how the university handled its initial investigation under the accusations. Women have taken to social media to share their own experiences with sexual assault and the aftermath.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If it weren't for my faith in the Lord, I don't know how I would even be able to get up and walk and go about my life each day. Healing is not linear and I'm, you know, still healing every single day and making sense of what happened.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I provided his confession to both incidents and they did nothing. Despite him confessing, the prosecutor declined to prosecute.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now to Ms. Jane Doe, other survivors out there, anyone who's currently going through it, please reach out to somebody. I still have people that don't believe me and my abuser's in prison.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: All of this a stark reminder that the allegations at the center of all of this are not an isolated incident. Joining us here in The Situation Room is Megan Cutter, the chief of victim services at the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network known as RAINN. So our understanding is since Jane Doe's civil suit was filed, you all have seen a huge increase in the volume of calls just this past week. Tell us about that.

MEGAN CUTTER, CHIEF OF VICTIM SERVICES, RAINN: Yes, we've received more than 80 percent increase in calls to the national sexual assault.

BROWN: Eighty percent, wow.

[11:29:52]

CUTTER: Yes. So it's been really intense. And I think some of it is we're hearing from survivors who are realizing and understanding for the first time that maybe their experience is considered rape or considered sexual assault. They're hearing Jane Doe's story.