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More Than 30 Million People Live in the Path of Totality; Nebraska Lawmakers Eye Second Attempt to Change Electoral System; Judge Rejects Trump's Bid to Dismiss Classified Documents Case; Judge Rejects Trump's Bid to Get Georgia Election Subversion Case Dismissed on Free Speech Grounds; Report Estimates Global Cancer Cases Will Jump 77 Percent by 2050. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired April 04, 2024 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

DR. JEFF GARDERE, BOARD CERTIFIED CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: And talked about how this could be something that we may not see again, this total eclipse, you know, in, in America, or maybe, you know, even in the world in the future. So this is something that is supernatural. And the awe that it gives us this total eclipse, it really does make us, Brianna, think outside of ourselves, that sense of self that we have getting away from that.

And this is something that brings us all together to be able to share, if I may make up this word, the awesomeness -- or maybe it's not so made up -- of this particular phenomenon. So it is certainly something that is psychologists call a collective effervescence, where all of us come together and share this energy together.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: I mean, it's true, because I think that no matter what change we go through in life, we know the sun will rise, the sun will set, there may be clouds in the way, maybe you're standing in the shadow of something.

But the idea that there is the moon completely blocking out the light is amazing. And people are so excited about this. So talk a little bit more about the psychological benefit of that collective experience. What does that do to people?

GARDERE: Well, there are two things that psychologists are talking about. First of all, when the light changes and the temperature drops, what we see is that fight or flight phenomenon that happens, right? Where it releases a epinephrine, we feel excitement, but a little bit of fear because we don't quite know what's going on. But once it actually does happen, and then we're in that darkness, and we know that we're safe with everyone else around us, then that fear turns into a euphoria.

And it really does help us connect with other people. We're there to share this and protect one another. The other thing that we tend to see, Brianna, is that people with depression live in the past, right? For the most part, they can't get over some of the past.

People who have anxiety, like I do, they're always thinking about the future. But something like this total eclipse, it keeps you right here in reality, in the here and now. It snaps us back into the present, as some psychologists will tell you.

So we're much less anxious and worried and depressed during that time. And I would venture to say, we just need more total eclipses, psychologically, if nothing else, to keep us centered, to keep us in the here and now, so that we can be better off emotionally.

KEILAR: Yes, it's such a great way to think about it. It brings us to the present, and it allows us to connect. And clearly, we all need that. Dr. Gardere, great to have you. Thank you.

GARDERE: Always a pleasure. Thank you.

KEILAR: Be sure to join CNN for special live coverage of the eclipse across America. Boris and I will be spearheading this coverage starting on Monday at 1 p.m. Eastern, or you can stream it on Max.

Still ahead, Donald Trump and his allies want to change how Nebraska awards its electoral votes, how the pressure campaign could potentially impact the presidential election.

[15:35:00]

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KEILAR: Some Nebraska lawmakers will try again today to change how the state awards its electoral college votes. They're under pressure from former President Trump and his allies to switch Nebraska to a winner- take-all system.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Now, the effort failed last night when they tried to attach the measure to a broader government spending and policy bill. But now they're planning to attach the Trump-backed proposal to an unrelated measure.

CNN's Daniel Strauss is here. Daniel, explain for our viewers how this Nebraska electoral college vote in Omaha works and whether the measure has a chance of succeeding.

DANIEL STRAUSS, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER: Well, this is one of two states that award their electoral delegates differently than the rest of the country. If you're a presidential candidate, you only have to win certain parts of the state, certain congressional districts, to get one delegate in particular.

Now, what's important here is that if this were a situation where there was an electoral tie across the country, that one electoral vote could tip the election. And that is really the incentive right now for advocates of changing this. And those advocates are being encouraged by Donald Trump.

And the argument here is essentially it's going to be a close election, and in that scenario, this one vote could decide the election. KEILAR: Yes, because there is a scenario where if Nebraska moves to

winner-take-all, there's a 269-269 tie. And it's not too outlandish. You could see how that could kind of work out there. But you mentioned it's one of two states. And the other one is Maine. And there are some sort of machinations in Maine as well. But do you see that working?

STRAUSS: Right. I mean, right now, Democrats and the governor's office, Governor Janet Mills, have signaled that they don't have any interest to try and follow this push in Nebraska.

But I've got to be honest, in a scenario where this proposal does pass, does change, I can see Democrats rushing to Maine to try and even the score on that front.

[15:40:00]

SANCHEZ: Quite a bit to keep an eye on. The fight for 2024 is being waged in every possible way, including on the electoral college map. Daniel Strauss.

STRAUSS: Thanks so much.

SANCHEZ: Stay with CNN NEWS CENTRAL. We're back in just a few minutes.

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[15:45:04]

KEILAR: We want to turn back to our breaking news from earlier, a simply nonstop day for rulings on former President Trump's various legal issues. And the latest one is the Federal Judge Aileen Cannon deciding not to dismiss charges against Donald Trump in the classified documents case. Maybe not a huge surprise, but there you go.

SANCHEZ: Meantime, a judge has upheld the criminal indictment against Trump in Georgia. The judge there rejecting a Trump attempt to get the charges dismissed regarding his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, saying Trump's lawyers that his efforts were protected by the First Amendment. Judge Scott McAfee saying no.

New York Attorney General Letitia James, meantime, is now asking Trump's out-of-state underwriter for his $175 million bond to show that they're financially capable of supporting the president's, former president's, bond requirements. A lot to get through.

Fortunately, we have former U.S. attorney Harry Litman with us. Harry, your reaction to Judge Aileen Cannon's ruling in the classified documents case?

HARRY LITMAN, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY: So my best guess, Boris, is this, is Jack Smith is saying two cheers for Judge Cannon today. On the one hand, she rules, and that's what she wasn't doing. And obviously, she took to heart or was chastened by his very strong filing Monday night that said, get off the dime and rule already, please.

On the other, what she said was very sort of basic. She just said, look, the indictment itself charges the Espionage Act, doesn't mention the Presidential Records Act. The indictment is sufficient to give information.

So I'm denying Trump's motion to dismiss based on the Presidential Records Act. But she then drops a paragraph that will give a little heartburn that says, of course, I could still, at trial, change my mind or basically give the jury instructions based on the bogus Presidential Records Act. And so that risk that really prompted Smith to act and do a forceful filing is not completely eliminated. But she replied, she issued an order, and she denied Trump's motion.

KEILAR: And in Georgia -- how are you looking at Georgia upholding the criminal indictment against former President Trump? Which, I mean, obviously, and yet here we are, these are the things that have to go on.

LITMAN: Yes, but every court has done this, Brianna, and it's just accurate.

What he's been charged with is simply not protected by the First Amendment. It consists of words, but so do so many crimes of conspiracy and the like. And we've been around in every courtroom on this now.

And Scott McAfee, who's a thoughtful and, you know, I think pretty responsible judge, it doesn't surprise me at all that he would adopt what is by now the party line. Look, I'm sorry, President Trump, or I'm not sorry. I'm telling you, President Trump, this is not protected core political speech.

On the contrary, when you incite people or you conspire or you enter into a RICO, you can use words, but it doesn't make it protected speech, denied. And that, I think, was to be fully expected.

SANCHEZ: So then the New York AG, Letitia James, demanding that the underwriter of the bond provide more information. Clearly, she's skeptical.

LITMAN: You know, she is. He's an interesting figure. He's a he's a very strong Republican partisan. Almost all his contributions are to Republicans. But the guy has $8 billion. He is a bona fide businessperson. And there's some suggestion he made a bona fide business decision. But she asked for more.

And I think the judge will at least let that effort be given if it's if it's a sort of sham. And there isn't really the money to cover it, then there'd be a problem. I suspect, though, that when she pushes and looks harder, she'll find they do have the money to cover and it will probably pass muster.

KEILAR: Yes, very interesting. Harry, thank you so much. A lot to keep straight. It is hard with all these cases. And we appreciate it.

LITMAN: No kidding.

KEILAR: Yes, totally. LITMAN: That's just this morning, right?

KEILAR: That is just this morning. There you have it.

Still ahead, a new report says cancer rates could spike by more than 75 percent in the next two decades. We're going to break down the startling new numbers.

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SANCHEZ: A new report by the American Cancer Society predicts a major increase in cancer in the next 25 years, rising like a, quote, tidal wave in some countries. The report says that by 2050, cases of cancer could jump by 77 percent to some 35 million cases worldwide.

CNN's Jacqueline Howard has the details. So, Jacqueline, what is driving this huge increase?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: Well, Boris, there are really two factors at play here. One, we're aging as a society. And two, we're growing as a global population. So those are the two factors over time as we see more people, especially more people in older age, we can expect to see more cancer.

And this report does highlight that lung cancer has caused the most cancer deaths and disease in recent years. But when you look at data on other cancer types, there's some interesting trends. When you look at cancer incidents among men, specifically across different countries, we know that prostate cancer you see there in green is very, very prominent, but also lung cancer is very prominent in Asian countries.

And then when you look at cancer incidents among women around the world, breast cancer is the most dominant. You see there the prevalence in pink. But cervical cancer shown in orange is prevalent in parts of Africa and lung cancer in blue is prevalent in parts of Asia. So these are numbers and trends to definitely follow as we think about the future.

But also, Boris, there are things we can each do to reduce our cancer risk, like maintaining a healthy diet and a healthy weight, reducing how much alcohol we drink. Definitely not smoke. Smoking is a big risk factor. Getting regular exercise. So these are ways we can reduce our risk, Boris.

SANCHEZ: All good pieces of advice. Jacqueline Howard, thank you so much.

[15:55:00]

Next, how remote goats could be yours if you have a boat on which to tote said goats. I'll try to figure out what that means after we come back.

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KEILAR: If you're like Boris and you have wanted to own your own goat.

SANCHEZ: Since forever.

KEILAR: Here's your chance. A remote island off the coast of Sicily just overrun with them. And now officials are offering these goats to anyone who will take them. Now to put things in perspective here, the island which has around 100 residents. It has six times as many goats as people.

[16:00:00]

SANCHEZ: Six times. The island's mayor is so desperate. He told CNN he doesn't care whether you know anything about raising goats. He just wants them out. You're going to be able to take up to 50 goats, but you have to catch them yourself.

You do need a boat to get them off the island. You have until April 10th.

Since I was a little kid, I've just had this fascination.

KEILAR: That is not true. Is it true?

SANCHEZ: Are you accusing me of falsehoods?

KEILAR: Wait, you've always wanted a goat.

SANCHEZ: So passionate about them. Passionate about goat cheese, about goat milk.

KEILAR: I love feta.

SANCHEZ: It's not true. It's a joke. Thank you for being with us.

KEILAR: Speaking of goats, let's send it on over to Jake Tapper right now.