Trump Defends War at UN 

0:00Every day, animals across the country face abuse and neglect. And every day, the ASPCA shows up to rescue animals in crisis. But they can't do it alone. Visit ASPCA.org slash need. Become a donor today to provide the care and shelter these animals urgently need. And for a limited time, the ASPCA will send you a free gift as a special thank you. Visit ASPCA.org slash need. Happening now, President Trump is about to defend the war with Iran at the United Nations, but brand new CNN polls show American support for the war is slipping, with many saying he's not doing enough to end it. Plus, momentum in Michigan.

0:47Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed blames the president's war for the high gas prices, how he's hoping a familiar Democrat will give him a boost at the polls. And no wrongdoing. A grand jury declines to bring criminal charges for the death of Nolan Wells. How his family is responding this morning.

1:05Pamela Brown: Also happening now, media solidarity. News outlets, social media influencers and free speech advocates are showing support for three news organizations, including CNN, that have been banned by the president. How will the U.S. Justice Department respond to a lawsuit demanding we regain access? Plus, fighting to stay in America. New information about a man shot by ICE while doing deliveries for DoorDash. Why his lawyers say the bullet is still inside him this morning. And not in my backyard. A U.S. congressman leading the charge against AI is calling out the FAA for wanting to use a new AI air traffic control system in his district.

1:51Pamela Brown: He's live here in the Situation Room. Welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in the Situation Room.

2:09Pamela Brown: Happening now, President Trump is about to speak at the United Nations, despite the White House barring CNN and other news organizations from the presidential press pool. We do have a live signal of the president's remarks provided by U.N. television. We'll monitor his speech and bring you any newsworthy moments as they happen. CNN's chief White House correspondent, the anchor of The Source, Caitlin Collins, is at the United Nations, as is CNN's chief national security analyst, Jim Sciutto. Caitlin, what is the president expected to focus on in his U.N. speech? Well, Wolf, obviously, this is a moment where the president typically focuses on his role on the world stage.

2:50And certainly that has become under a microscope in the last several months amid the war in Iran, something that CNN polling shows today is deeply unpopular here in the United States, with two-thirds of Americans who do not believe the United States is actually winning that war. And so this is the first time the president is addressing these world leaders, as every U.S. president does, of course, every September here at the United Nations. But this is the first time since that war started in February earlier this year. And as the president entered here right behind me where all the world leaders come in, We watched many members of his cabinet, including Secretary Rubio, Secretary Besson and others, also enter.

3:26As the president came in, he briefly came over to speak to the reporters, who I should note are here because we are credentialed by the United Nations while being blocked by the White House from covering the president. And we asked him this question about that new CNN polling. Mr. President, two-thirds of Americans, two-thirds of Americans don't think the U.S. is winning the war with Iran. When will it? So it's an honor to be here. I'm surprised that CNN is here covering me. The United Nations allowed us in, sir. You should not be here covering me. You said you weren't going to cover me. You shouldn't be covering me.

3:59Two thirds of Americans don't think that the U.S. is winning the war with Iran. When will it end? We're making a lot of progress. Our country is doing really, really well. Thank you very much.

4:11Of course, Wolf, as you and Pamela know, we never said we were not going to cover the president. We will do our best to cover him each and every day. We were actually positioned in this spot last year when the president was here, long before all of this back and forth over access to the White House began, as it did on Friday. And we will continue to cover the president, despite their efforts to block CNN from accessing the White House grounds, as we are currently fighting in court. And as that plays out, though, of course, what we are watching here are the headlines from the United Nations when it comes to the president's speech and what he does say about the war with Iran.

4:43because a lot of these world leaders will be listening closely, especially those Gulf leaders, Wolf, who are going to be meeting with the president on the sidelines of this summit today and also have been some of the most directly impacted by this war in Iran as they have fired missiles and drones at several of the United States' allies in the region. So all of that is something we'll be watching very closely here at the United Nations today, Wolf.

5:05Pamela Brown: It's really amazing. The United Nations opens up the door to all the news organizations covering the president who's in New York today for this U.N. speech, even as the White House bars news organizations from covering the president of the United States. I want to go to Jim Sciutto right now. Jim, this morning, the Trump administration is saying it's open to meeting with Iranians at the U.N. General Assembly. Here's what the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, is saying. Listen. The president has said he's he has said that he's open to meeting with anybody. This is a president that will meet with anybody for the most part because he believes that engaging with people is important if you're going to solve problems.

5:44Doesn't mean you're going to end up agreeing with them, but it's important. So we're open to that. I don't think anything is scheduled at this point, but we're certainly open to something like that, especially if it has the prospects of leading to something positive and ultimately achieving the goal of what this is all about. And that is the fact that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon. They just simply can't.

6:01Pamela Brown: All right, Jim, the president has repeatedly said that Iran is anxious to make a deal. So do you see any evidence of that right now? Well, I don't think you or I or certainly the leaders of the nations assembled here see any urgency on Iran's part, given that they have not been pressured to go to the table yet by the combination of military strikes, the blockade and other economic pressure. It doesn't mean that they won't be. And it is notable that in town today, the Iranian president, Pazeshkin, as well as the foreign minister, Arachi, they are here. So if Rubio and Trump decide they want to meet face-to-face, they will have the opportunity.

6:41But the difficulty they'll face is one that has plagued these negotiations since the beginning, and that is that while the president and foreign minister of Iran might very well be open to sitting down and negotiating, there are different factions in Iran, harder-line factions, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, that have held the line to some respects. And you've heard the president, you've heard Rubio reference that, saying, you know, there are divisions there. And we know that some Iranians want to negotiate and others are standing in the way. But that dynamic has not changed. So you could perhaps see a meeting here.

7:16But whether that changes that fundamental dynamic is a different question. And the administration seems to be betting on increased economic pressure making the difference for this regime. And we know that increased economic pressure is at least exacting a price, right, because Iran has not been able to get its oil out, and that's how it gets its money. But whether that will change the calculus of those, of the whole range of Iranian leaders is an open question. The final note I'll make is this, Wolf, is that when this war started seven months ago, I am sure that President Trump did not expect to be in a position seven months later where the war is still going on.

7:58And he has to, in effect, make the case for it, not just to the American people who don't seem to buy CNN's poll and to be buying that case, but also to world leaders assembled here to say that the war that he ordered, a war of choice alongside Israel, would accomplish all these goals. I'm certain he did not expect to have to be defending it all these months later.

8:20Pamela Brown: I think you're right for sure. Jim Sciutto and Caitlin Collins, both at the United Nations for us today. And we'll stay in close touch with both of you as any news develops. Thank you very, very much. And Wolf, as President Trump addresses the United Nations and meets with Gulf leaders over the future of the Iran war, CNN has a brand new poll out this morning that finds just 29 percent of Americans approve of how the president is handling foreign affairs. That is a new low in CNN polling across both of his terms as president. Join us now is CNN Washington Bureau Chief and Political Director David Challey.

8:55And so give us some more context on these numbers, David. Yeah. So, you know, we asked, do you think the United States is winning the war in Iran? This is the finding that Caitlin was just asking the president about what you just saw there. Nearly two-thirds, 64 % in our poll, say no. The U.S. is not winning the war in Iran. Two-thirds of Americans say that. How is Trump handling the war in Iran? I think this is the worst number in the poll for him. Only 26 % approve of how Donald Trump is handling the war in Iran. I want to say something about that number. That was 33 % back in March. This has never been a popular war, Pamela.

9:32But it's down seven points here overall, largely driven by Republicans. abandoning the president on this issue. He's down 13 percentage points in Republican approval of his handling of the war. This war is nothing short of a political disaster for Donald Trump. And how do Americans view Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth? Oh, you know, I mean, if you look across the war cabinet overall, none of them are doing well. I think it's the weight of the president. I mean, you see Marco Rubio is at 40 % approval, J.D. Vance at 36%, Pete Hegseth is down at 34 % approval in our poll. By the way, I should note all three of these folks are mentioned as potential 2028 Republican presidential candidates and their current approval ratings are really dramatically upside down.

10:19You've got, I mean, for Hegseth, who scores the worst here, two thirds of Americans disapprove of his performance as secretary of defense. You know, again, the president's weight of unpopularity hangs over his entire administration and, quite frankly, the Republican Party. All right, David Chalian, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

10:41Pamela Brown: And still ahead, no charges. What a grand jury just decided in the death of Nolan Wells, the Mississippi teenager who died on a Fourth of July boating trip with friends. We'll be right back.

10:59Hey, I'm Anderson Cooper. On my podcast, All There Is, we explore grief and loss in all its complexities. My guest is Lil Jon. He's a rapper, DJ, and producer known for hits like Get Low and Turn Down for What. In February 2026, his 27-year-old son Nathan went missing near Nathan's home in Georgia. Three days later, his body was found in a pond nearby. eye. Lil Jon has a memoir that just came out called I Only Shout So You Can Hear Me.

11:28Pamela Brown: It takes time to heal and I kept myself busy that I didn't let myself mourn. I needed to laugh again. I needed to be silly and interact with people and feel other people's energy and make people happy too. We have to share so other people can see that they can get through it too. Talking grief, building community. That's what the podcast is all about. This is all there is. Listen and follow wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Dr. Sanjay Gupta, host of the Chasing Life podcast. You may have noticed gambling doesn't require a casino anymore. You can just open up your phone. It's designed to keep us coming back or maybe never even leaving in the first place.

12:12We're going to talk to Dr. Timothy Fong, co-director of UCLA's gambling studies program. You're going to learn what your brain is really chasing when you place a bet, and also importantly, how to keep the game from playing you. Gambling addiction, gambling disorder, is the hidden addiction. You can't smell it, you can't taste it, you can't see it, you can't have a urine drug test. Who are we talking about here, Professor? Who's the most likely demographic to be affected by this?

12:37Pamela Brown: Literally any single human on Earth. Listen to Chasing Life, streaming now, wherever you get your podcasts. happening now the michigan democratic senate candidate abdul el sayed hitting the campaign trail this morning soon he's set to be joined by former vice president and 2024 presidential candidate kamala harris this morning el sayed held a news conference and said this about rising gas prices in michigan this really is a crisis for michiganders detroiters seeing that number at the gas pump is the difference between being able to afford the groceries you're going to buy or not. It's the difference between being able to pay your car note or pay your rent or not.

13:28You may not pump diesel, but diesel pumps you. And the way that diesel pumps you is that you got to pay for the price of everything that gets shipped to the places that you buy it in. So when you look at that loaf of bread or you look at that gallon of milk, that loaf of bread, that gallon of milk is more expensive because the diesel that it took to get that to you, you are now paying the price of.

13:50Pamela Brown: According to AAA, the national average price for a gallon of gas, regular gas, is$4.48. In Michigan, it's about 40 cents higher,$4.88. But President Trump said on social media this weekend, and I'm quoting him now, gas prices were much higher under Biden than under Trump. So were almost all other prices, end quote. And we should note that gas prices did spike under President Biden in June of 2022. But diesel prices today are at an all-time record high. Here's what President Trump said about the Iran war on Friday. I think most people, if they had a vote on lower gas prices or letting Iran have a nuclear weapon, I'd be willing to vote that it would be a massive landslide.

14:39People don't want to have Iran have a nuclear weapon. So this comes as a new CNN pullout this morning shows that an overwhelming number of voters say that the toll of the Iran war is not worth it. Let's go live now to CNN correspondent Arlette Sainz. Arlette, former Vice President Kamala Harris is set to join Abdullah al-Sayed on the campaign trail this afternoon. Tell us more about her appearance. Well, Pamela, Abdul El-Sayed spoke to reporters a short time ago as he tried to highlight those high gas prices and the need to drive them down, a key issue of concern to voters here in a battleground state like Michigan.

15:16But he also fielded a lot of questions about his appearance later today with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris is returning to Michigan, a state that she lost two years ago to campaign with El-Sayed, Even as the wounds, there are still the fresh political wounds from 2024, people frustrated with the way that it turned out here in the state, as well as some of those in the more progressive lane of the Democratic Party who wish that Harris would have taken a more firm stance on the conflict in Gaza. El Sayed was questioned about that today, saying that he had clear differences with the position that she took back in 2024.

15:57But he believes that the party needs to move forward and focus on finding areas of common ground. Now, Harris and El Sayed a bit later today will be hosting a roundtable on black maternal health. That's an issue that Harris promoted as senator and as vice president and one that could hold sway with black voters. And here is what El-Sayed had to say about Harris's appearance and the way that she could help turn out voters in this election. I think her presence here speaking to communities that were really empowered by her voice throughout her political career, I think will help us to continue to bring our coalition together and build the broadest possible coalition to defeat Mike Rogers in November.

16:40Now, this is Harris's first appearance on the campaign trail this fall for the 2026 midterm elections. But of course, there are questions about what she plans to do in 2028. So far, Harris has said she has not decided whether she will pursue a run. And so but having her visit a battleground state like Michigan, of course, will spark some intrigue. Michigan is not just an important Senate race, but it will be a consequential state in the general election in 2028. and in the Democratic primary process. This is a state that will actually be one of the early states to decide who the Democratic presidential nominee will be in 2028.

17:17Now, Harris is campaigning here in Michigan today. She has a few other campaign stops on her agenda in the coming months. That includes out in Nevada to campaign for the Democratic candidate for Governor Aaron Ford and down in Georgia to campaign for Senator John Ossoff. But one place we are not seeing Harris really campaign in is in those red-leaning states which could determine control of the US Senate come November. But all eyes will be on Michigan today and whether Harris offers any clues about her plans for 2028.

17:50Pamela Brown: Arlette Zients reporting for us. Thank you very, very much. All right, coming up here in the Situation Room, a rare early season nor 'easter is brewing right now, threatening to bring seriously messy and dangerous weather to millions of people. Derek Van Dam has the forecast, Derek. Yeah, Pamela, we are monitoring a powerful early season low pressure system off the east coast that will bring a whole host of hazards. Of course, the devil's in the details in this track. I'll break it down for you after the break. Stay tuned.

18:27Happening now, a rare and powerful September nor 'easter is brewing and could hit this week. Officials are bracing for the most severe impacts. Coastal flooding, wind damage and rain to hit Friday and parts of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.

18:40Pamela Brown: Let's go live right now to our meteorologist, Derek Van Dam. He's over at the CNN Weather Center. Derek, explain why a storm of this enormous strength potential is so unusual for this time of the year. Well, it's forming in kind of the shoulder months, right? We think of nor 'easters basically in the winter, a winter phenomenon across the Northeast. But because it's impacting the east coast on middle of September, middle of the second half of September, this powerful, that is a rarity. So let's talk about what's unfolding. Right now, we have more of a direct onshore flow, not even associated with the developing nor 'eastern.

19:17I'll highlight that in just a moment. But anywhere from basically Tom's River through the Chester Peak Bay, the Delmarva Peninsula to the Outer Banks has a coastal flood watch that is in effect through Thursday. several river gauges across this region are forecast to reach major flood stage with this pressure squeeze. We've got a very powerful high pressure to the north and a developing low pressure, and that puts the squeeze on the isobars with the pressure, the lines of constant pressure, funnels it into the mid-Atlantic. That's why we have our ongoing flood threat along the coastal areas here that I just highlighted.

19:51But going forward in time, we're going to see this storm evolve and strengthen. There's a couple of different computer models. The GFS, or the American model, keeps it a little further offshore, less impacts. The European model, which has been performing pretty well this summer and into the early fall, that has it closer to the coast. So if we take that consideration, look at how this storm evolves and how it moves a little to the north and west as we head into the course of the weekend. This is just one computer model. But that would put a long fetch of these winds pushing right into the Long Island Sound, into, let's say, the coastal areas of Massachusetts.

20:25There was a lot of potential coastal hazards with this, including large waves, the potential for coastal erosion. And then on top of that, Pam and Wolf, the astronomical high tide will only exacerbate these high tide levels as we head into the weekend. So all of these kind of working together for this developing nor 'easter. All right, Bracen for this. Derek Van Dam, thank you so much.

20:47Pamela Brown: A grand jury decision in the death of Nolan Wells, the teen who was found dead after a boating trip with his friends. Omar Jimenez has the latest. In a few moments, we're going to take you through the grand jury report and tell you what the district attorney said in very direct terms as this report was released.

21:14Pamela Brown: New this morning, a heartbreaking update from the front lines of the California wildfires. two crew members, including the pilot, were killed in a helicopter crash while battling the massive dome fire in Yosemite National Park. So far, the fire has burned more than 3 ,400 acres and is just 15 % contained. The FAA and the NTSB are both working to try to find out what went so wrong. And in Wisconsin, a dramatic end to a high-speed police chase. New dash cam video shows a driver fleeing from police so fast that his car was literally throwing sparks before taking a turn directly into Lake Como. Police say they attempted to stop the car after spotting a passenger hanging out of the window without a seatbelt.

22:02Pamela Brown: All four passengers managed to escape the sinking vehicle and swim to safety. Pamela. All right, well, breaking news just into the Situation Room. A South Carolina coroner says actress Hayden Penetier died from the toxic effects of fentanyl along with other substances. Penetier was found in cardiac arrest at an apartment in Greenville, South Carolina last month. CNN's Diane Gallagher joins us live with the details. What more are we learning here, Diane? Yeah, Pamela, we just received that release from the Greenville County coroner's office in South Carolina, And they say that the 36-year-old actress, Hayden Penetier, died from the toxic effects of fentanyl and other substances.

22:43And her manner of death has been ruled an accident. Now, of course, there is still an investigation around this. As you mentioned, back in August, on August 16th, Hayden Penetier was found unresponsive after her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Brian Hickerson, and his brother, Zach, called 911 for medics to come to an apartment in Greenville, South Carolina, where she had been temporarily staying. They attempted to resuscitate her, but were unable to do so. Now, last week, CNN reported that a source familiar with the case said that Drug Enforcement Administration agents and Los Angeles area authorities had been questioning several people about the circumstances surrounding her death.

23:27And they were also examining the possibility that she may have died after taking a counterfeit pill that she believed was another substance. Now, that source said then that pending toxicology testing would be critical in helping investigators determine whether she ingested a counterfeit narcotic and how it may have interacted with other substances in her body at the time. Now, again, that was before we got these toxicology results, and that was where the investigation was going at that time. We don't know what will happen after this point. The actress, of course, has spoken very publicly about her mental health and postpartum depression struggles.

24:03and what it was like being a child star. She had a memoir that was recently released and actually her career was sort of experiencing resurgence as she just had a film released in January. Of course, she passed away last month and many fans and many of her friends and family members have been remembering her since. Very sad. Diane Gallagher, thank you.

24:26Pamela Brown: Also new this morning, new charges in the death of Nolan Wells. A grand jury just came to the unanimous decision that there's no evidence of criminal wrongdoing after the 18-year-old was found dead. The announcement follows months of speculation of whether his disappearance was racially motivated. Let's go live right now to CNN correspondent Omar Jimenez. Omar, what has the family said about this grand jury decision? Well, the family, one, is looking for more. They don't see this as an end result to this case here. But to the news that you were mentioning just a moment ago, this grand jury unanimously found there was no evidence to support bringing charges in the death of Nolan Wells.

25:09Remember, he was found dead after a Fourth of July celebration with friends off the coast of Mississippi. They went to a party. They all came back in terms of his friends, and he did not. Since then, there's been a lot of attention on this case for a number of different reasons. But let's look at this grand jury report in particular, because it specifically said it found no criminal or racially motivated wrongdoing as part of this after conducting an investigation involving witness testimony, physical and digital evidence, as well as GPS and cell phone data as well. And then it specifically says, quote, the position of the condition of time of discovery and location of Mr.

25:47Wells' body is consistent with drowning. Now, this grand jury report was released by the Jackson County District Attorney's Office. And we actually heard from that district attorney who put out a video statement alongside the release of this report. I want you to take a listen to some of it. The narrative that three white boys and a black boy went to an island and only three white friends returned spread like wildfire. This was false. There is absolutely no evidence to support the allegations that Nolan's disappearance and death were racially motivated. The family, the Crump team, and anyone close to Nolan knew that his disappearance and death were not the result of racial hate or violence.

26:32Yet the flames of that narrative set against the backdrop of Mississippi's terrible history were fanned by both people who knew the truth and those who didn't. So some pretty direct words there. Now, Ben Crump, his civil rights attorney, but also representing the Nolan Wells family, put out a statement after this report was released saying that the state of Mississippi is attempting to close the chapter on Nolan Wells' death without getting to the truth. It goes on to say, this grand jury result leaves us with more questions than answers. Nolan's family will not rest until we know what happened to him and neither will we.

27:08He also cited bruises on Wells' head and body that he said had not yet been explained, which were actually mentioned in the grand jury report. including that the cause of those bruises was uncertain. But the report also said it was not a fatal injury. It's part of why, when you look at the county coroner's report, it said that there were no immediate signs of trauma. But the family and Ben Crump as well are pushing for the state to release the full autopsy result as well. The grand jury, I should mention, also acknowledged that if evidence comes out suggesting that this was not an accidental death, that is something that will be considered and reviewed moving forward.

27:44But that, of course, is not what the result is here from this grand jury report, Wolf.

27:49Pamela Brown: Omar Jimenez, thanks very much for that report. Pamela. All right, Wolf, let's bring in criminal defense attorney Elyse Hirschhorn for more legal perspective on this case. So, Elyse, there is no statute of limitations on homicide cases in Mississippi. So where does the Wells family go from here?

28:07Good morning, and thank you for having me on your show. So the Wells family is looking for answers. They're looking for an explanation as to what happened to their son. And there's a lot of suspicion and speculation as to certain pieces of evidence they have where he has some injuries to his head. Is that from his falling or is that from someone, a blunt force trauma, someone attacking him and leading to his death? So the grand jury's role is not to explain what happened to a victim's family, even though they want answers and they deserve answers. There's a grand jury's job is to review the evidence and decide if there's enough evidence or specific facts that a specific crime was committed.

28:46Not beyond a reasonable doubt, but the lower standard of probable cause, and they just couldn't get there. And after the grand jury's announcement here, civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the Wells family, said, quote, no true bill does not resolve how Nolan Wells died. Can you explain what a no true bill means in this case? absolutely and i'm following up on what we were just discussing so a neutral bill means there's not enough probable cause at this point it doesn't mean he was not killed or murdered it doesn't mean that but at this point there was not enough evidence and remember also the death certificate determined that the manner of death is undetermined it did not say accident it did not say homicide it left it open and there are cases that can go forward to a murder trial without that being determined but here because it's still speculation at this point the grand jury just did not have enough to say yes go forward and prosecute these three friends for murder i wonder what you thought of the prosecutor's video that we just saw from omar jimenez uh so i you know i think that clearly the prosecution part of a grand jury proceeding is the prosecution is the only lawyer in that room presenting evidence.

29:58There's no defense attorney. Crump is not attorney. Crump is not allowed in that room and the people who are potentially being accused or who are suspects are not allowed in that room. This is just the case from the prosecution's perspective, which means it's not being challenged in front of them and it's not being questioned. So without any cross-examination, they still couldn't present enough to point to how this young man died. Was it connected to these three kids? There are no criminal connection between them. There's no motive at this point. There's no way that they even know that he died.

30:32So it's a very sad situation. But from a legal perspective, we just don't have answers. And in the end, the grand jury heard from 43 witnesses and reviewed extensive digital data. In a high-profile case like this, how does a defense attorney counter a unanimous jury here of 23 members? All the defense can do is try to do their own investigation and try to gather new evidence to reopen the investigation. So the grand jury is not the be all end all. At this point, prosecution cannot continue, but new evidence could come in. Perhaps an eyewitness comes forward and says, I saw one of these kids do something to the young man Wells, or I saw him trip and fall and hit his head on a rock.

31:15Either one of those things could create some closure and could reopen the grand jury presentation. And there could be charges at some point. Like you said, there's no statute of limitations on murder. So whether this new information or new evidence comes up next week, next year, or in 10 years, this is still something that can be pursued. Of course, the family wants answers. They did get their own medical examiner to conduct an autopsy. And they didn't get very far with that in terms of it was still undetermined as to the manner of death. So if there's more investigation that opens more evidence, that's a possibility.

31:48I want to play this clip for you with an interview from an interview with Nolan's parents. And this is his mother and what she said about just days after her son was found dead. Transparency is important. Since we started this, that is all we asked for. And it's just a lot of things with this case that's going on that's not clear. I know locally it's being pushed that, oh, it's likely a drowning. Well, you know, you have all these other things that have kind of happened in between, and

32:21Pamela Brown: it makes you wonder, you know, could there be anything else? And again, like I've stated this time and time again, I would expect any parent or person to want to use any resources available to them to find their loved one. this was our baby boy. And on the day of his funeral letters went out to some of Nolan's friends and their families that litigation was reasonably anticipated. How does a civil lawsuit help a family find answers without a criminal trial? So a civil lawsuit is a much lower burden of proof. It's not beyond a reasonable doubt. It's not probable cause, but it could open the door to more investigation and more legal involvement so lawyers assisting investigators launching their own investigations and depositions are required there which would mean that certain witnesses again they have lawyers so they may or may not proceed but certain witnesses may be requested to testify in a deposition with the other side that could provide more information that's not available at this point so it could help them pursue their investigation remember also if we look at Karen Reed, the grand jury first did not return an indictment for murder.

33:36They went back six months later with additional information after they gathered witness testimony statements and after they got surveillance and ring door cam from the neighbor, and then they charged her with murder down the road. So this could be the situation here. There's just not enough information at this point. All right, Elise, thank you so much. Appreciate it. Wolf.

33:59Pamela Brown: And coming up, the president's new plan to turn his giant arch into a drone base and a sniper's nest.

34:13Pamela Brown: Happening now, a striking and controversial new proposal from President Trump, and it's raising fresh alarms here in Washington. President Trump now says his proposed 25-story arch in Arlington, Virginia, could double as a U.S. military site and would have drones and rooftop snipers. That revelation is raising concerns about militarizing one of America's most symbolic spaces, the nearby Arlington National Cemetery. CNN's Tom Foreman has more. Amid raging controversy over the president's proposed arch and relentless claims from the White House that construction will proceed as planned, a surprise change.

34:58At the strong request of the United States military, Trump wrote on social media, I have agreed to convert the project to a top-grade military complex triumphal arch to house, store, and have the rapid ability to use large numbers of drones plus snipers. The about face comes amid fierce outcry from preservationists and veterans groups who clearly saw Trump as an arch villain and claimed his original plan would detract from nearby Arlington Cemetery. Some of them now say the new plan should start the approval process all over again. We've been going through this process now for about six months where it's been reviewed by the Commission of Fine Arts.

35:42It's been reviewed before the National Capital Planning Commission. And now this is an entirely different complex. It's not lost on those critics that Trump has made this maneuver before. When he tore down the historic east wing of the White House, he stated his goal clearly. We're replacing it with one of the most beautiful ballrooms that we've ever seen. But after being demolished himself in the press, polls, and courts, he repainted that pet project too as being as much about defense as dancing. This will be the greatest military complex slash ballroom anywhere in the world. There won't be anything like it.

36:18This is more than just a battle of architecture and landscaping. Safety advocates who had already raised alarms over such a massive monument crowding flights into Reagan Airport now must grapple with the idea of drones and gunmen in the mix, even as the president keeps going as he has all along, full throttle. What I do best in life is build. I build buildings really well.

36:43Pamela Brown: So that report from Tom Foreman. Thanks, Tom, very, very much. All right, here's what's coming up. All new at the top of the hour, new details about the DoorDash driver shot by ICE in Austin, Texas. His lawyer now says he was taken to a detention center, quote, with a bullet in his back. Plus, a Russian oligarch spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on Donald Trump Jr.'s wedding, and now a Republican senator is suggesting a subpoena. Plus, testimony is back underway for the former American Idol contestant accused of killing his wife. What the wife's mother just revealed about the night she died.

37:20That's all new next hour.

37:28Pamela Brown: New this morning, another starting quarterback goes down just two weeks into the NFL season. And this one cost the New York Giants the game. CNN Sports anchor Koi Weyer joins us now. What's the latest, Koi? Hi, Pamela. Hi, Wolf. Sam Darnold, Kyler Murray, Caleb Williams, Jaden Daniels, and now Giants fans are the latest to be holding their breath. It was the first drive of the game. Jackson Dart takes this hit, and that's his night. He limps to the locker room, believed to be a sprained MCL. MRI still to come. Now, from there, welcome to old man strength night for the Rams. Aaron Donald hadn't played a snap in two and a half years.

38:05The three-time Defensive Player of the Year out of retirement, immediately wrecking things again. Three tackles, including that tackle for a loss. And 38-year-old Matthew Stafford, four touchdown passes, moving to sixth all-time. His favorite target, the youngster of the group, almost 34-year-old Devontae Adams, 195 yards, two touchdowns. And his 16 receiving touchdowns since the start of last season are the most in the NFL, did you know? The team that got blown out by San Francisco in week one after that much-discussed last-minute travel plan to Australia dominate 28-6. So, Coach McFay, what exactly happened in week one?

38:46Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn. And, you know, sometimes you have a dumbass coach that makes travel plans that put you in a bad spot. So, there you go. All right, to the WNBA. Liberty hosting the Atlanta Dream. Playoff seeding on the line. and Atlanta's Angel Reese came to work. 18 points, 10 rebounds, and some late-game drama. Fourth quarter, Reese strips Liberty star Brianna Stewart. No foul call. Stewart doesn't love it. She fouls Reese in frustration, then gives the official an earful and gets herself her first technical in nine years. Atlanta wins it 95-84, but these two get to play again on Wednesday.

39:25In Baltimore, postseason hopes hanging by a thread, and Pete Alonzo understood the assignment. in the two home runs against Toronto, powering Baltimore to a comeback 4-3 win. That's his fourth 40 homer season, tying him for most among active players. Six games, essentially six must wins, one down. Keep the defibrillators nearby, Orioles fans. Finally, we now know the inspiration behind one of week two's greatest celebrations. Vikings' Isaiah Rogers breaks out the hot dog, hot dog, diggity dog. And apparently, we have his son to thank for this masterpiece, he says. Most sons get their dance moves from dad, but Isaiah Rogers is like, nah, son, I'm going to take yours and take it to the big screen.

40:11Pamela Brown: Such a talented young boy. Very, very nice. Coy Weyer, thank you very, very much. Thanks, Coy. And the next hour of the Situation Room starts right now. And happening now a violent encounter with ICE. Protests erupt in Austin, Texas overnight. after a man is shot and his lawyer tells CNN he was moved to a detention facility with, quote, a bullet in his back. Plus, Department of Justice deadline. The Justice Department has just hours to respond to a lawsuit filed by CNN and other media outlets over the White House plan. And later, GLP won game plan what people who use the drugs for weight loss need to know to avoid potential complications.

40:56Pamela Brown: 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.

41:11Pamela Brown: We begin this hour with breaking news and President Trump addressing world leaders at the United Nations. His speech before the General Assembly comes amid a spreading conflict in the Middle East and a war of attrition in Ukraine. And CNN has a brand new poll out showing more Americans, including Republicans, are souring on the war with Iran. Almost two-thirds of respondents now say the U.S. is not winning, and even more say Trump isn't doing enough to end it. And nearly seven months into the conflict, a majority says the conflict has not been worth the costs. The poll also shows just 29 percent of Americans approve of how the president is handling foreign affairs overall.

41:50That is a new low in CNN polling across both of Trump's terms as president.

41:56Pamela Brown: CNN Global Affairs Analyst Kim Dozier is joining us here in the Situation Room. Kim, bad news for the president and the war in Iran. When would you say things took a turn, a dramatic turn like this, for the White House in regards to the war? It's so opposed right now. I think the longer it has dragged on and the more that these polls have kept coming in and signaling to the president that he's losing his domestic audience, that what he was doing today with his remarks at the UN is saying he could still go back to war with Iran. That's his threat to Tehran, that you better negotiate or, and then back to yet also saying, I don't think there's going to be a resolution to this until after the midterms.

42:41So he's basically signaling his base, you've got to turn out and vote for Republicans, even though you're not going to see an end to the war and lower prices probably at the pump until after these votes. So Trump just addressed the war at the UNGA. He's trying to frame it as the U.S. is winning. But you have this pullout from CNN showing a vast majority of Americans, almost two-thirds, saying the U.S. is not winning this conflict. Is this an opinion that's also prevailing worldwide? When you look at the fact that while Iran has lost so much of its military capability, it is still able to partially close the Strait of Hormuz, harass ships that go through there, and fire ballistic missiles and drones at Gulf allies and Middle East allies all the way to Jordan, that signals to the American public and the rest of the world that the U.S.

43:40isn't winning this war. Also, because we've got a free and open media, you have the world aware of the fact that the U.S. is running out of interceptor-type missiles and that it is wearing out its military with this very short war. You've got countries like China watching this and saying, hmm, the U.S. can't stick it out in a long fight, and it also can't defeat a militarily inferior nation. And those are dangerous messages for the world writ large and also back here at home in terms of Trump's party's election chances.

44:16Pamela Brown: And all this, Kim, is coming at a time when there are new flashpoints emerging, especially the Iran-backed Houthis renewing their fighting against Saudi Arabia right now. Is the U.S. doing enough right now to protect its close allies in the Persian Gulf? Well, Trump knows that if the U.S. gets in on this fight on the side of Saudi Arabia against the Houthis, the Houthis will likely widen their targeting. Right now, they're only targeting Saudi ships that go through the Bab al-Mandab and up to the crucial Suez Canal passageway. If they widen it to U.S. traffic as well, western traffic, we could see a rise in prices, not just of fuel but also anything that goes through that canal such as toys at Walmart, food supplies, etc.

45:06And then it won't just be the U.S. feeling it at the pump. Globally people will be feeling it wherever they buy anything. Trump is aware of that. He's also aware that the U.S. doesn't have the kind of defensive weapons in the large numbers that they need to open a new front. I want to turn to Ukraine because President Trump is due to meet with Ukrainian President Zelensky on the sidelines of the UNGA. There is a new CNN poll as part of this we've been talking about that shows the share who view Ukraine as an ally or friendly has actually dipped from 76 percent in January to 70 percent now. How is the meeting between the two leaders expected to play out?

45:45basically trump has to put a marker down to say that he is committed to this peace deal because you know he's he still wants uh the the peace awards um he still wants to be known in his legacy as the guy who ended these conflicts and from his latest social media posts it does seem like he's coming around to the idea that russia is losing rather than ukraine losing and that Russia is the aggressor, though we haven't seen him double down on that yet. When you talk to Ukrainian officials, they're just hanging on to get whatever they can from him to convince him to help them stay in the fight. But when you talk to them privately, they fear that they're just going to have to stick it out for two years without any resolution, that Putin will keep stringing Trump along and not agree to give up fighting.

46:44Putin is also looking ahead to this winter and trying to make progress on the battlefield such that he could possibly take more of the Donbass territory and he can declare victory and go home.

46:57Pamela Brown: In our new CNN poll, Kim, when it comes to Israel, the share of Americans calling Israel an ally or friendly has dropped to 61%, WHILE 15 % ARE ACTUALLY CALLING ISRAEL AN ENEMY. HOW ARE YOU INTERPRETING THESE NEW NUMBERS? THE SHOCKING THING ABOUT THESE NUMBERS IS THAT HOW MANY PEOPLE ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE OF THE HOUSE ARE JOINING IN IN ANTIPATHY TOWARDS ISRAEL. THE ISRAELIS COULD ALWAYS COUNT ON THE GOP IN THE PAST. BUT WHEN YOU 'VE GOT THE LEFT SIDE PLUS PART OF THE RIGHT NOW joining up. That spells difficulty for Netanyahu after the Trump administration in trying to enact their policies. That is possibly why you're seeing them expand right now, trying to seize more territory in the West Bank.

47:50And Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, is allowing the furthest right parts of his coalition to do some of their most extreme measures without checking them because he thinks that Trump at this point has too much going on to crack down on Phoebe.

48:10Pamela Brown: Yeah, I suspect, I don't know if you agree, that this deterioration in the U.S.-Israeli relationship, the weakening of support for Israel is going to hurt Netanyahu in the end of October elections coming up in Israel. A lot of Israelis are going to blame Netanyahu for this bad U.S.-Israeli relationship now. Absolutely. Netanyahu is in a really tough situation in that he's got to keep this coalition together, so he's got to keep the extremists in his coalition happy, but the rank and file in Israel are watching their greatest ally slowly turn away from, not against them, but the anti-Semitism is on the rise and anti-Israeli sentiment is on the rise.

48:50Neither of those things are good for Israel's future.

48:53Pamela Brown: And a lot of Israelis will blame Netanyahu for a lot of that. All right, Kim Dozier, Thank you very, very much, Pamela. Thank you so much, Cameron. Let's go live now to CNN national security correspondent Kylie Atwood at the United Nations. Kylie, what are the headlines from President Trump's address? Well, President Trump spent a tremendous time of his speech focused on the Iran war, saying that he has a decision to make whether to annihilate Iran or to make a deal with Iran. We have heard this language from President Trump time and time again over the last six months, threaten U.S. strikes against Iran, sometimes falling through on those threats and sometimes not.

49:29He also recounted what has happened over the last six plus months, the United States trying to broker deals to end this conflict, turning to the Iranians for being the ones to violate that MOU that they struck earlier this year. But what we also heard from President Trump was that he does believe there will be an actual deal to end this conflict. And listen to what he said about the potential timing of that deal from his perspective. But I have a big decision to make. Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before? Maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world?

50:14Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again. Do I drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness or generations? But I believe we'll make a deal right after the election. Now, we have heard some of this commentary from the president before. What is different now is that he is here in New York at the United Nations, and so is an Iranian delegation. We heard from Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier this morning saying that the president would be open to meeting with the Iranians.

50:56A U.S. official told our colleague Elena Treen that Trump has been interested in setting up a meeting if the conditions were right for that meeting between U.S. and Iranian officials. Obviously, it could be President Trump, but it also could be members of his delegation here, Steve Wyckoff, who has engaged with the Iranians multiple times in recent months. So we'll watch and see if that comes to fruition. Of course, this is as the world is watching to see what the United States is going to do, because there really doesn't appear to be a breakthrough on the horizon for ending this Iran war anytime soon.

51:29Pamela Brown: All right, Kylie Atwood, thank you very, very much. Pamela. I'm still ahead here in the Situation Room. On the clock, the DOJ has just hours to respond to a new lawsuit as President Trump takes another swing at the press. And understanding AI, Congressman Don Beyer actually went back to school to learn more about it. We'll ask him what lawmakers are missing when it comes to the evolving technology. Lots going on. You're in the situation.

52:03Pamela Brown: Happening now, a federal judge has given the U.S. Justice Department until today to respond. after three national news outlets, CNN, MSNOW, and Politico, filed a joint First Amendment lawsuit against the Trump administration. It's a response to President Trump's decision to ban them from covering the White House. Let's go live right now to CNN's chief media analyst, Brian Stelter. Brian, so where do we all expect, what do we expect to hear, and where does this go from here? Right, the government is supposed to file a response today, And then there will be a hearing, a telehearing on Wednesday afternoon in front of a Trump appointed judge, Tim Kelly, who is the same judge that handled the Jim Acosta case in 2018 and ruled in favor of CNN.

52:48And that press passed back in 2018. Notably, President Trump lashed out at his Trump appointed judge, lashed out at Kelly in a true social post yesterday, maybe perceiving that the court will likely rule against the president because that's what all the case law would indicate is going to happen. So we'll see what the government's able to come up with in this filing later today ahead of Wednesday's hearing. But as you can tell, this is going to move pretty quickly. A case like this, certainly a situation where there is clear harm being done on a daily basis, not just to CNN, but also to those other publications.

53:22And so we will likely hear from the court later this week. So that's the situation on the legal side. Meanwhile, I continue to be struck by the amount of solidarity we are seeing from other news outlets that are standing with those banned outlets and saying, hey, this could happen to anybody. It's almost like a ban of one is being treated like a ban of everyone.

53:42Pamela Brown: That's a good point. The emergency request is set to go before a federal judge in the D.C. District Court tomorrow. Walk us through what will happen in that hearing. Right. So in that hearing, we're going to hear arguments from the CNN counsel, Ted Boutros, who's been retained by CNN, MS Now and Politico. And we'll also hear from the government side. We've had some previews of the arguments from figures like Mike Waltz, J.D. Vance, Marco Rubio. I noticed that when Rubio was talking about this ban on NBC earlier today, he was careful just to say this is what the president wants. Rubio did not say that he's going to ban any of the pool journalists who travel with him.

54:20Rubio, after all, he has pool journalists who are with him at all times and showing him on television. So does the vice president. So this is very much the president on his own. Other administration officials might be trying to explain what the president's thinking by doing this, but they're not trying to turn off the cameras that follow them around. So one of those other interesting wrinkles about this, the president pretty alone on this one. And even rival networks like Fox News continue to show solidarity in various ways. with the affected outlets.

54:52Pamela Brown: Yeah, it's very impressive. You know, Brian, I spent seven years as CNN's White House correspondent during the Bill Clinton administration, and a lot of times they were not very happy with our reporting, but it never dawned on me at all that I would be barred from coming into the White House or other reporters would be barred from coming into the White House despite their anger at some of our reporting. This is really the first time this has ever happened, right? And even President Trump once told me back in 2016, before he was elected, there was a kerfluffle about Trump stripping the press passes from a couple of reporters on the campaign trail.

55:28And I got him on the phone and he promised he would not do this if he were elected president. He said, no, I would not kick reporters out. I would not take away their credentials if I'm elected. So here we are 10 years later. It's another promise that he is broken. And as you said, Wolf, it is something that was unfathomable with any previous American president.

55:46Pamela Brown: Yeah, no matter how angry they were at our reporting, Brian Seltzer. Thank you very, very much, Pamela. All right, Wolf. And up next with the lawyer for the man shot by an ICE agent in Texas is telling CNN.

56:04Help us build a movement that will drive ICE out of Austin and out of Texas.

56:18Protests overnight in Texas after an ICE agent shot and wounded a Venezuelan DoorDash driver in Austin. CNN has brand new video and it shows the moment Sunday when Wilbur Rafael Garces Perez was pulled out of his car in handcuffs. Also this morning a lawyer for Garces Perez tells CNN and that this client was moved out of the hospital to a detention center with a bullet still in his back and without pain medication. We are now learning that he has been moved back to a hospital. CNN's Senior National Correspondent Ed Lemondares in Austin. So what more are you learning about Perez's condition, Ed?

56:57Well, we are waiting to hear from his lawyer who, last we heard, was trying to connect with him at that hospital, this new hospital that he has been moved to. We are not told where that might be, but he was taken south of San Antonio after he was taken from the hospital here in Austin on Sunday to the immigration detention facility, which is several hours away south of Austin. So presumably maybe the hospital is in that region and not necessarily back here in the Austin area, but we're still trying to figure all of that out. But the great concern right now, according to the attorney and Wilbur Garces Perez's family, is that they are concerned about his condition.

57:38And that they fear that it is deteriorating for the worse in the sense that he was sent away and turned over to ICE agents on Sunday with the bullet still lodged in his back. When they spoke to him yesterday afternoon, he said he started feeling that he was losing feeling on the left side of his body.

57:54Pamela Brown: The lawyer told us, as you can hear here, that they were concerned that there is paralysis setting in. He has lost movement on the entire left side of his body, which means that he is facing paralysis. So we have to consider this is a man who was shot in the back four hours later, was moved, was transferred, as you said, 100 miles away, and is now facing transfer again to a hospital because he is being paralyzed.

58:27And we are still trying to piece together exactly why this escalated to the level that shots needed to be fired. The Department of Homeland Security has not put out any more information other than that initial statement that they put out on Sunday saying that they were going after Wilbur Garces Perez

58:47Pamela Brown: because he had a deportation order that was outstanding. His lawyer pushes back on that and says that he had entered the country legally through the CBP1 app two years ago, had a work permit, but that the immigration court paperwork was sent to a wrong address. He missed a court date, and that's why he was ordered to be deported. So we're still trying to weed through all of that as well. But still, many questions remain as to how and why this escalated the way it did. Hopefully we get some answers soon. Ed Levandera, thank you so much, Wolf. And just ahead, the Republican senator now joining Democrats to demand answers about who helped pay for Donald Trump Jr.'s wedding celebration.

59:38happening now a republican senator is now asking the judiciary committee to subpoena donald trump jr after pro publica reported that a russian oligarch paid for part of his wedding senator john curtis says he is making the request to restore trust in government the president says his son will return the money despite both of them defending the gift and flights are back to normal on the East Coast after a Monday travel meltdown. The FAA says an aging communications line at a key radar facility failed and when they tried to switch to a backup, they discovered contractors had accidentally severed it.

1:00:12That caused hundreds of delays and cancellations at five major airports, including in New York, where delegates from around the world had started arriving for the UN General Assembly. And a South Carolina coroner says Hayden Panettiere died from toxic effects of fentanyl and other substances. The star of Heroes in Nashville was found last month in cardiac arrest and medics could not resuscitate her. She had spoken publicly about her battles with mental health and substance abuse. Her manner of death has been ruled an accident. Wolf.

1:00:44Pamela Brown: And as lawmakers debate how to regulate artificial intelligence amid serious warnings from industry leaders, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has rolled out an AI-powered tool to manage flights in the Washington, D.C. area. Listen. This is a predictive tool that will give a prompt to a human, to someone who's managing the airspace. But it's always going to be a human that manages the airspace in America. So this tool won't manage the airspace, but it gives us better information, better data to manage the airspace on behalf of the American people. Democratic Congressman Don Beyer of Virginia is here in the Situation Room.

1:01:27Pamela Brown: He's also co-chair of the House AI Caucus. Congressman, thanks very much for joining us. Your district includes, as we all know, Ronald Reagan and Washington National Airport. You're calling on the FAA to suspend using this new AI-powered tool. Tell us why. Well, if you listen to Secretary Duffy, he sounds very reasonable. What Sean didn't say was that the air traffic controllers had no input or design in how the AI system is working. They also tell me they've had no training. It seems like that when you put a new system in, the last thing you want to do is put it into probably the most dangerous airport in America, which is DCA, Reagan National.

1:02:07Also Dulles and BWI.

1:02:09Pamela Brown: So we're just asking for… Why are they the most dangerous airports in America? I fly into those airports all of the time. Not Dallas or BWI. We're just a year and a half away from that terrible crash of the American airliner into the helicopter. At National. At National. That runway at National is the busiest runway in the United States. We land 38 planes every hour from 6 in the morning until 11 o 'clock at night. And it's right there in the middle of one of the densest airspaces in the country. And not very far away from there is going to be this huge arch that Trump wants to build, because a lot of those planes come in for their landing, go over that Potomac River area.

1:02:47And now, Wolf, we hear they're going to fly drones off the top of that arch, which will be right in the flight of the airplane. And he's going to store all the ammunition there. So when a plane does hit it, it's going to explode.

1:02:56Pamela Brown: Anything you can do to stop that? Well, we've got lawsuits coming, especially from the veterans, because, you know, we have something like 80 ,000 veterans buried there. So they have the best standing. But we're trying to do everything we can to make sure that it doesn't happen. Yeah, it's very worrisome indeed, especially for those of us who love Reagan National Airport and come in and fly in and out of there all of the time. You've led a bipartisan group of lawmakers calling for AI regulation. What guardrails do you think should be put in place? Well, the biggest thing is what they're now calling pacing the frontier, which is slowing it down so we don't get to artificial superintelligence until we know we can control it.

1:03:33Some of the big labs like Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini, Google, have said they want to put in their own systems. We're eager to work with them, but there should be federal oversight. Something like what NHTSA is for cars or FDA is for drugs. They don't let us sell any drugs until they've been tested. So we want safety testing and an ability to report any incidents that happen so you can address it right away.

1:03:56Pamela Brown: You went back to college at the age of 73 to get a master's degree in artificial intelligence at George Mason University of Virginia. What inspired you to do that? Well, curiosity, and I did it a little before ChatGPT 3 hit. It turns out it's, for me, put me in the middle of the conversation, which I very much appreciate. Also, it's really helpful to know what parameters are, how the coding works, understand a little bit. I could never work for Gemini, for example, but how those people are thinking about building artificial intelligence models that can solve some of the most interesting problems in our world.

1:04:36Pamela Brown: Were these warnings raised during, for example, at the time that you enrolled at George Mason? Oh, yeah. They've been around for quite a long time. In fact, going back into the early 2005, 2008, you know, when Demis Esauvis, who started DeepMind, won the Nobel Prize, Jeff Hinton won the Nobel Prize. They've been talking about this for at least 20 years. Just moments ago at the United Nations, President Trump proposed changing the name from artificial to super intelligence. Do you agree with that? No, because I think they're very different. We've had artificial intelligence one way or the other all of our lives at lower levels.

1:05:12The artificial superintelligence is when they get to something called recursive self-improvement, when the machine doesn't depend on us to train it or to teach it. It can teach itself. That's when it can grow much, much faster. By the way, these machines work 24 hours a day. They're going to sleep or eat 365 days a year. So once they get smarter than we are, they can get much smarter and much faster. That's what we have to be ready to control.

1:05:38Pamela Brown: President Trump also told the U.N. just a little while ago that the U.S. leads the AI race. Trump holds a high stakes summit with the Chinese president Xi Jinping this week here in Washington. What does winning the AI race against China look like? Well, what we don't want it to be is winning the race is to be the first to lose control of our systems. That's what we don't want. In the meantime, yes, we have bigger data centers. We have better chips. I think the president made a big mistake selling the Nvidia chips, allowing them to be sold to China, because that allows them to catch up. In the meantime, our models are mostly private, owned by Anthropic and OpenAI.

1:06:15Theirs are all public. They're owned by the government. And they're also what they call open source and open weight. So you can actually look into the Chinese models and understand exactly how they work. We can't do that with our big models.

1:06:27Pamela Brown: President Trump said he'll also appoint what he called an AI czar and task force, despite calling AI a hoax. What's your reaction to that? I got it. Which one is it? Is it a hoax or do we need regulation? I don't think it's a hoax. I think the very smartest people in the world who started all these companies don't think it's a hoax. So what we need is good regulation. We need to work together with the industry to make that happen. But government should not stand back and let it self-regulate. That doesn't work. Not all AI leaders think AI could wind up, quote, killing us all by the end of the decade, as some of them have suggested.

1:07:02Pamela Brown: Here's NVIDIA co-founder and CEO Jensen Wang. Listen to this. There is a 0 % chance that's going to be the end of the world. And so I think that scaring people is unnecessary. It is irresponsible. And I don't know what their motives are. What do you think? I think Jensen Wang has a huge economic incentive to say that. He's the head of NVIDIA. He makes an awful lot of money. He doesn't want that to slow down. In the meantime, others who still have an economic place in this, like Elon Musk and Jeff Hinton and Sam Altman, all of those, Dario Amadei, people that we should really trust because they're at the middle of it, all say there is a non-zero risk that it will be the end of civilization.

1:07:48It may not be 100%, but if it's only 5 % or 10%, that's still a pretty high thing when you consider the fate of humanity.

1:07:56Pamela Brown: When you think about regulating AI, Congressman, while many members of Congress are already invested in AI stocks, as well as the Trump families invested in those stocks, how do you think these conflicts of interest play into things? Well, all the more recent, it passed the Stock Act or something like that. that would prohibit not just members of Congress, but Supreme Court justices and the White House from trading stocks. I hope it doesn't make that much difference. I certainly think there's enough movement in Congress right now, Democrats and Republicans, who want to regulate this, that we can get it done if they'll bring us back into Congress.

1:08:31Pamela Brown: When you went back to college to study AI, did you get a good grade? Yeah, so far they've all been pretty good grades. Okay, good. You've got a future. All right, thank you. Thanks very much for joining us. Appreciate it very much. Thank you. Pamela. All right, coming up, what we're hearing from the witness stand is a former American Idol contestant stands trial for murdering his wife. CNN's Jean Casares is following developments inside the courtroom. Ashley Flynn's sister testified that when the FBI told her they believed Caleb Flynn had killed her sister, she said, you've got the wrong guy. When the FBI went on and said he was having an affair with a fellow church pastor, she was stunned.

1:09:07We'll have more right after this.

1:09:15Pamela Brown: happening now in Ohio. Testimonies underway in the murder trial of Caleb Flynn, the former American Idol contestant, is accused of murdering his wife, Ashley, and staging the crime scene. His mother and sister-in-law took the witness stand earlier today, detailing the night they learned that Ashley was killed. Caleb claims that someone broke into his home and shot his wife while she was in bed. he has pleaded not guilty. CNN's Gene Kassaris has the latest development. So, Gene, what did we learn from Flynn's in-laws? Well, we've learned a lot this morning because Ashley's family has been taking the stand one after the other, Ashley's mother and then Ashley's sister, and they loved Caleb Flynn.

1:09:57They welcomed him as a son. They were so giving in their testimony toward him, and they had a very successful family business, still have it, in Ohio, and they brought him into the fold, And he was making$200 ,000 that last year as a salesman for the family business, which they included him on. And they described that night when Caleb Flynn called them all and said, somebody's come into the house and they've shot Ashley dead. They were stunned. They could not believe it. But one curious thing happened the day after. And we want to tell you, you know, Ashley Flynn and her husband had two. They have two daughters, young daughters.

1:10:35They were preteens. This year is when it happened. And the day after, Caleb wanted to see his daughters right away, right now. And so they were staying with her sister. And so they brought the young girls and he took them for a walk. They were just about to go into the two young girls into an interview with detectives and children's services. I want you to listen to the testimony from Ashley's mother this morning about what those girls were talking about after that walk. Listen. Did you see the girls after the walk? Yes. How did they appear? Nervous. And did you talk to them about that? Yes. What did you do about that?

1:11:18I asked her why she was nervous. And without telling you what she said, what did you do next? I marched her down to her dad and said,

1:11:31she's afraid to tell the truth. Tell her to tell the truth. What did he say? Of course, baby, you're supposed to tell the truth. And then I got Ava and went upstairs with her. And so right after that, the girls went to talk with the detectives. But there are two, there have been two charges in the indictment against Caleb Flynn of witness intimidation. And who was in the house that night when it all happened? It was those two young preteen girls along with Caleb and his wife, the victim.

1:12:03Pamela Brown: Gene Casares reporting for us. Thank you very, very much. Pamela. All right. Well, for millions of Americans are using GLP-1s to lose weight. But what happens after the pounds come off? We're talking to someone who has written about personal game plans up next.

1:12:24Happening now, millions of Americans are benefiting from GLP-1 drugs used to treat type 2 diabetes and chronic obesity. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker says he took the meds after his diabetes diagnosis and dropped 80 pounds. He tells CBS he feels a whole lot better after following his doctor's advice. But what does long-term success on these drugs look like? I'm going to bring in nutritionist Heidi Skolnick. She is the author of the new book, Your GLP-1 Game Plan, What Your Doctor Didn't Tell You About How to Eat, Move, and Thrive on Weight Loss Medications. Heidi, thanks so much for coming on.

1:12:59So first, tell us what inspired this book. Well, the inspiration was actually my husband. He had decided to go on a weight loss medication. His doctor had recommended it for his blood sugar, but he really cared a lot about his weight. Like many people over the years, he had gained weight. He had some orthopedic issues. He couldn't be as active as he wanted to be. And so he felt really good about the weight loss part. Of course, I was concerned about the blood sugar part. But I watched him on this journey. And, you know, even though he has a nutritionist in his home, I don't play food police there.

1:13:34He wasn't interested in what I had to offer until kind of I noticed, you know, I said, you know, Michael, you're not looking so great. Your eyes are sunken and your clavicles are like, I don't think you're doing so well, even though, you know, in terms of health. And sure enough, he had iron deficiency. And he was he really hadn't revealed how little he was eating, leaning into that appetite suppressing part of it. but it meant he wasn't getting in enough food, and he really was starting to get malnourished. So we made some changes. He felt a lot better, was doing a lot better, and he said, you know, Heidi, you should write a book on this.

1:14:07I'm like, oh, hey, I could do that. And you did, and now you're here talking about it. And you do talk about in the book how just focusing on weight loss really can backfire with these drugs. And a lot of people, as you point out, do go on for the weight loss, but you have to be really careful about how you're managing that, right? Well, you know, research actually says that if you're focusing only on the aesthetic part or the weight loss part, because weight doesn't actually equate to health and the medication doesn't nourish you or make you stronger. It also doesn't help with the social interactions and the shifts that can happen as food isn't as central to sort of your interactions in the world.

1:14:45And so, yes, it really matters how you eat, focusing on why you're doing this beyond just the scale. Understanding the scale is part of it. But there are a lot of health benefits to these medications, and they help a lot of people. But you do need to pay attention to how you're eating and nourishing yourself while you're on this journey. And as we get older, I know that muscle mass becomes more and more important, right? And there's concern that people could mistake losing muscle mass for actual fat loss. How can patients get ahead of that? And I think your point is right. It's getting ahead of it.

1:15:23So look, any type of weight, the medication doesn't hurt your muscle. And it doesn't make you lose muscle. It's the weight loss that does. And anybody who loses weight will lose some muscle. We expect that. But when you lose weight rapidly, when you're not eating adequately, then you accelerate that muscle loss. And that becomes even harder to put back, especially as we age. And so the sooner you can start a resistance training program, the better off you'll be in terms of countering that effect and maintaining muscle, which is really a cornerstone to our health. What about eating protein, which helps build muscle?

1:16:00So, you know, that's a very popular, but you do not need to protein max. You need adequate protein, but you still need other nutrients, right? You still need a balanced plate because you need that vitamin C that comes from an orange for tissue healing and collagen formation and calcium for bone health and blood pressure management and, you know, all of the other nutrients have to afford. So yes, we need more protein proportionate to sort of your balanced plate, but it's not all protein. And in fact, protein doesn't build muscle, right? It helps to diminish how much muscle will break down. You need strength training to build muscle.

1:16:38They work in tandem, right? Eating protein, strength training. So how much protein a day? Because there's so much out there about, you know, how much protein we're supposed to be eating at a certain age. What do you suggest? So 1.2 to 1.5 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, you know, sounds like a good, but everybody's starting at a different place. And when you're in a caloric deficit, you might need a little bit more. So for the most part, we're talking about 20 to 35 grams of protein per meal. And that's like four to six ounces of protein. It's not hard. It's intentional, but it's in foods.

1:17:15Like you don't have to get popcorn that has protein in it, cookies that have protein in it, and max your protein. You can really, you don't need special foods. You can find it in the foods you eat. But it's slightly larger portions. What about creatine supplements? I think creatine is a great idea. I think if you can afford it, look, it's not therapeutic like taking iron if you're iron deficient, but I think that creatine is pretty well studied. And if you're lifting weights, it can really be helpful in terms of maintaining that muscle, give you a little bit of an edge. And there's some research in terms of brain health as well at slightly higher doses.

1:17:53So I think creatine is a good one to add to the toolkit. it. All right. So on GLP-1s, if you're on it, the big question is, do you have to stay on it permanently to maintain those benefits? Yeah. So actually, for most people, it seems like you really do. Think of it just like a hypertensive medication for high blood pressure or asthma. You know, these medications help to manage disease states. And it goes well beyond obesity. It's also for things like chronic kidney disease or fatty liver disease or sleep apnea. The list is long. We're looking at it even for things like cancer and, again, inflammation.

1:18:31So it manages it. It doesn't cure it and will come back. The weight returns when you get off the medication and so do the conditions like cardiovascular, you know, reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. It comes back when you get off the medication even before the weight does. All right, Heidi, thank you so Thank you so much for coming on, really interesting. Look forward to reading your book. Thanks. Thank you so much.

1:18:53Pamela Brown: Really an important book, potentially life-saving for a lot of people as well. And to our viewers, thanks very much for joining us this morning. You can always keep up with us on social media, at Wolf Blitzer and at Pamela Brown CNN. We'll see you back here tomorrow morning and every weekday morning at 10 Eastern for two hours. Inside Politics with our friend and colleague, Dana Bash starts now.

1:19:19I'm Adi Cornish. I'm Ari Shapiro, and it's Engagement Party. It is Engagement Party. And we get to talk about what we're obsessed with, what we're engaged with, what we need to process with a friend. Her name is Amy O'Dell. She is a fashion writer, blogger. But the thing is, she's a journalist who's written about the sacred cows of fashion. And yes, I mean, Gwyneth Paltrow and Anna Wintour. She has done biographies of both. And she is also the sort of rare fashion writer who, at this point, kind of outside the system. And so the question that we're going to try to tackle is... Fashion terrible now.

1:19:49Well, no, I mean, I would phrase it as how do you develop a personal style in the age of AI slop? You know, on social media, like creators have to try a whole bunch of different things and see what catches and then they make it over and over and over again. The same thing happens with clothing. So they're sort of seeding the market, seeding the Internet with all of these different ideas. And then they can see what sells and then they can just make them really fast. Follow Engagement Party. Wherever you get your podcasts.