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Excitement Builds As Millions In U.S. Await Total Solar Eclipse; Couples Flock To Get Married In The Path Of The Eclipse; Trump Says Abortion Legislation Should Be Left To The States. Aired 9- 9:30a ET

Aired April 08, 2024 - 9:00   ET

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

[09:00:00]

MATT EGAN, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: That was the issue last month. And now there are all these concerns about the Middle East.

And you have to keep in mind, the U.S. is producing more oil than any country ever has before. And so that is cushioning some of the blow here, but there are concerns about the Middle East.

And so, Sara, what happens next on the oil price front is going to be big for the economy, for the market and maybe even the election.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Presidential candidates. We'll be watching that very closely, I'm sure.

Matt Egan, thank you so much.

Another hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

(MUSIC)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Mass weddings, animals going crazy, and the coolest glasses you will ever wear.

We are live across North America with everything you need to know about today's solar eclipse and what you will be able to see.

Donald Trump takes a stand on abortion this morning, but one that a major anti-abortion group calls a disappointment.

I'm Kate Bolduan with John Berman and Sara Sidner. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

(MUSIC)

SIDNER: A celestial event, years of the making, almost here. And it will not happen again for another 20 years.

So total eclipse mania has begun in America. In just over five hours, the moon will start to eat the sun, as NASA scientists would say. Wink, wink. And the really good news right now, the chances of clear skies across the United States is much, much greater than your chances of finding a pair of those cool glasses if you do not have them already.

Roughly 32 million Americans live in the path of totality. That is where NASA says the moon will appear to completely cover the sun for about four minutes.

Outside of this path, you will still see something pretty darn cool in the skies. Ninety-nine percent of Americans will be able to view at least a partial eclipse, of course, if the weather helps you out.

The next time this will happen, 20 years from now, so look up or look like the person who totally missed out.

We begin with Rosa Flores in Kerrville, Texas. Rosa, you've been showing us all day, all the fun things that are being sold. People are making good money off of this and it hasn't happened yet.

What are you seeing now? Because I, for the first time, am seeing crowds. You're not the only one out there.

(LAUGHTER)

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We finally have some daylight, Sara. You do see some of the crowds behind me.

Welcome to Kerrville, Texas. This is the heart, the capitol of the Texas Hill Country. And everything is Texas-sized here, the food portions, the crowd sizes, and yes, the eclipse glasses.

The ones that you see behind me are actually a size small, but, you know, it's Texas-sized. OK. The mayor of this town says that this town could get up to 100,000 people from all over the world that are going to be flocking to this area to witness the eclipse.

Now, I want you to see this map because this is from NASA. And what's fascinating about this is that there is an X that marks the spot. And this is what makes Kerrville so special because it is going to experience two eclipses in a matter of six months. So there's a lot of people having a lot of fun around me. In a matter of six months.

And so one of those paths of totality happened in October, and then you see the path of totality from today.

And in the center of that is Kerrville. That's why people think that there's going to be a lot of exciting energy here in Kerrville.

And there's a particular business that is buzzing in town, it's called Zen & Alchemy. And a lot of people are going there for the merchandise. I got to admit, I went there too for the earrings and the t-shirt.

But people are also going there for healings, and so that they can have pre-eclipse alignments of the body and mind. And so we had to ask about the weather because there's clear cloud cover here where I am. And the good thing that we heard from Zen & Alchemy is that there might be something we could experience even with the cloud cover.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: Hoping for good weather. So --

(CROSSTALK)

RISCHA LEINWEBER, CO-OWNER OF ZEN & ALCHEMY: Hoping for good weather. But even if it's not, the energy is still there.

FLORES: Ah.

LEINWEBER: It's still going to get dark for four minutes and whatever.

FLORES: So even if we don't see it all --

LEINWEBER: Exactly.

FLORES: -- because of the cloud -- potential cloud cover.

LEINWEBER: It's still there.

FLORES: We're still going to feel it.

LEINWEBER: Absolutely.

FLORES: Ah. So that might be the big price for the day. If it --

LEINWEBER: Yes.

FLORES: -- rains or if it storms or whatever, you might --

LEINWEBER: You still get the energy from the eclipse. Absolutely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Rosa?

FLORES: And to make sure we have that energy, Sara. Look at what I got there. I'm going to ward off the evil --

SIDNER: The evil eye.

FLORES: -- weather that's trying to kill this eclipse.

(LAUGHTER)

Look, I'm just doing this, Sara, to make sure that the 100,000 people that are coming to a Kerrville. We can all enjoy this eclipse. It's just doing my part. SIDNER: I'm sure that they are appreciating all of your efforts, Rosa. And the businesses there. I know they're booming, partly, because of you and your producer, Sara Weisfeldt (ph). So that is all so appreciated. Thank you so much. Appreciate it all. John.

[09:05:08]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Look, you've got -- you've got Rosa Flores buying out South Texas, single-handedly supportive economy there. But I got more than that.

I have Stephanie Elam right now in Russellville, Arkansas, in a hot air balloon with Kid Rock, overlooking what will apparently be -- apparently be all kinds of marriages taking place there.

What's going on?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All kinds of marriages. All kinds of bluish skies. I'm just going to move out the way here so you can kind of see. Look at how pretty it is here. No offense to Rosa.

But you can kind of see we've got a beautiful day. We were concerned. But I'm cool with some light hazy clouds because I learned from 2017. A little bit of cloud doesn't stop a party.

But why stay on the ground if we could be closer to the celestial beings this morning? And so we are here in a hot air balloon.

And I am joined by Craig Wayne Boyd who --

CRAIG WAYNE BOYD, COUNTRY MUSIC ARTIST: Yes.

ELAM: -- you are, let's see, singer, a performer, a songwriter. And today you're also an officiant.

BOYD: Just call me rev.

ELAM: Rev, rev. OK. So have you married people before?

BOYD: It's Rev. CWB now. All right. I got that -- I got that e-mail a couple of days ago. I'm like I'm actually a reverend now.

ELAM: Yes. OK. So, I mean I know you're used to doing love. I mean, let's think about it. You won seventh season of -- we have to make sure we stay up in the sky.

But you won the seventh -- season seven of "The Voice," right?

BOYD: That's right.

ELAM: So you're used to doing live things. But have you ever married more than 350 couples at one time?

BOYD: No, I haven't. And, you know, this is -- what's wild about this is that I got to make sure the night -- the knot stays tight, you know. ELAM: Oh, that's true. You got to be -- now, I talked to some people who were excited because you're going to sign their marriage certificate.

So, have you been working on your wrist? And how much work you're going to have to do with that?

BOYD: You know, signing autographs after show is going to help out with that. But it's -- yes. That's -- my -- I think my hand is going to be tired after this one.

ELAM: Pretty much. OK. So have you been in a hot air balloon before you've gone on stage?

BOYD: This is my first time in a hot air balloon --

ELAM: Ever?

BOYD: -- ever. You see how hard I'm holding on up here.

ELAM: You are holding on.

(LAUGHTER)

Let's just show you. Raffy (ph). The photojournalist, Raffy. You can show us what we are doing here and keep us up. Keep the flame going.

What you're going to be doing later today right? You're going to be --

BOYD: Yes.

ELAM: -- making sure. I mean you have some romantic songs too. I was listening to your music. You are, you know, kind of the right man for the job today.

BOYD: I'm a little bit of a lush when it comes to that. I -- I'm a happy -- happily married man. So, you know, I write about what I know.

ELAM: See, that's all very good. I saw -- I think I saw your family here yesterday. They're here with you, right?

BOYD: Yes. I brought out most of the family. I have one son that he was like, I'm racing in the BMX races. I got to stay here.

But other than that, I brought all the rest of them, fortunately.

ELAM: OK. And so you're not from Arkansas. You're from Texas though. So -- right? So --

BOYD: Yes.

ELAM: -- I feel like this is a friendly crowd. I feel like they're going to be pretty excited to see you.

BOYD: I think I'm kind of happy to state though. My dad's from here.

ELAM: OK.

BOYD: And so if their last name was Boyd, Bodiford (ph), Bradley, or Boston, I'm probably kin to them.

ELAM: Wait, why are they all B names?

BOYD: Very good question.

(LAUGHTER)

ELAM: Hey, Mr. Berman, did you hear that? Maybe you should be here too.

BERMAN: I would like to be there with my kin, the reverend there, who is going to marry over 300 people from this balloon, which I hope is safely tethered to the ground.

As far as you know, are you tied down?

ELAM: We are -- we are tethered. We are tied down right now. That's why our good friend Joel (ph) here keeps -- making sure that we have the plane to take us back up because we're coming back down to the ground right now. And then he like gives us a little bit of heat and we go back up.

But we have to do it early. So, you know, no one wants the balloons to be in the way when the lunar eclipse actually happens here.

So the wedding, just to let you know what's going to happen. The wedding is going to happen just before the eclipse happens here in Russellville, Arkansas. And then after that, everyone's going to pause and we're all going to look up at the sky. And then they'll have their first dance.

And I do believe you are performing then.

BOYD: Yes. It's a song that I wrote back about a year ago. A little bit very little fanfare. And I think it found us home with this -- with this event.

ELAM: Yes, totally. So, yes, we're going to have a great time here today, John. I'm sorry you're not here to join us.

We've got a Beatles cover band. We've got a lot going on here. The -- Russellville, Arkansas is the place to see the eclipse.

BERMAN: It's awesome. I can't believe it. Just so people see, if we can show the big wall here so we can see this. We actually have a view of -- you're the red, white, and blue balloon that is now floating upward, roped safely.

ELAM: That's us.

BERMAN: Roped safely --

ELAM: Yes. BERMAN: -- I think to a truck there. Let's hope that truck doesn't drive off. There you are. You are waiving.

ELAM: That truck is not driving off.

BERMAN: And you guys are floating up in the sky getting ready to perform marriages only on CNN.

Stephanie Elam, our thanks to you.

ELAM: There you go.

BERMAN: Our thanks -- our thanks to the Reverend B. be who's going to marry everyone there. It all sounds incredible. Reverend B. I'll tell him.

(LAUGHTER)

BERMAN: OK, Kate, beat that.

(LAUGHTER)

BOLDUAN: I don't think just like -- it's like competition of who has the best --

[09:10:01]

BERMAN: Yes.

BOLDUAN: -- shot. So let's try and one of you, if you will.

Joining us right now are two eclipse chasers. Retired physics professor Joe Izen. He's a -- and former NASA contractor, Paul Maley, who's preparing to watch the eclipse from just north of Durango.

And Joe is watching it just north of Durango. Paul is in the path of totality on a ship off the coast of Mexico. Let us begin.

Paul, we're thankful that the connection can hold while you're on -- while you're on the ship. So hopefully this sticks with us.

You're one of the most active eclipse chasers in the United States, Paul. What's the draw for you? What is -- what is it about it that keeps you chasing the next one?

PAUL MALEY, NASA JOHNSON SPACE CENTER ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY: Well, if you've ever seen a total eclipse of the sun, you would understand because it's probably one of the most dramatic experiences, personal experiences that you can have in life.

It's so short in terms of the time that it lasts that you have to really soak up every second. So this particular eclipse has more than 260 seconds. And that's pretty remarkable.

BOLDUAN: And, Paul, you've been -- we're showing some pictures that you provided to us. You've been to dozens of countries to catch eclipses. This time you're on a boat in the Pacific off the coast of Mexico.

Why did you pick this location? Kind of talk me through the preparation ahead of this one.

MALEY: Well, we looked at the weather data statistics for the past 20 years. And it seemed that this area had a very long history of clear skies on April the 8th or on the days surrounding it. So that was the main driver.

You know, could we actually encounter clouds or would it be likely to be clear?

BOLDUAN: How's it looking right now? What do you -- what do you -- how is the forecast looking?

MALEY: There are a few minor high clouds currently out the window and I'm sitting in my cabin looking outside. But it's looking pretty good right now.

BOLDUAN: That's excellent.

OK. Joe, you're near Durango, Mexico. You're also taking part in a big experiment for this eclipse.

What is your group hoping to capture?

JOSEPH IZEN, EMERITUS PHYSICS PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT DALLAS: Well, the modern editing experiment is redoing the experiment that was done 100 years ago that confirmed one of Einstein's predictions of the theory of relativity that the gravity of the sun will bend starlight as it goes passed.

And there are about two dozen of us in Texas here in Mexico and El Salto and elsewhere. And we're hoping to blow the best measurement out of the water and confirm the functional dependence of that deflection.

And so we're holding our breath and we're hoping for clear skies all over and that's the game we're playing.

BOLDUAN: Exactly. Hoping to top Einstein. No small feat. Good luck on that one there.

Joe, talk to me. Seeing an eclipse for you know --

IZEN: Well, we're going to confirm his theory.

BOLDUAN: I'm just playing. Seeing an eclipse, what does it feel like for you, Joe?

IZEN: Oh. It's a whole mix of excitement and tension that all the cameras will go off when they're going to go off. And you just look up and there's nothing you can do as that shadow approaches except gawk.

And hope you got your preparations done. And then there's a hole in the sky. It looks like just as black hole surrounded by the magnificence of the corona. BOLDUAN: Paul, did I read correctly that you met your wife on one of your trips to catch any eclipse?

MALEY: Yes, that is correct. In 1994, I met her at the Lima, Peru airport and we have been together ever since. So she's observed 45 eclipses with me up to now.

BOLDUAN: It's amazing. And, Paul, you help coordinate trips to help others to kind of get the best views of these events.

What is it like sharing, not only your personal passion but, you know, kind of -- what is it like sharing this with others in this way?

MALEY: Well, it's really enjoyable because I represent the Johnson Space Center Astronomical Society in Houston. And it's a public outreach effort. So we don't, you know, require anyone to have a background in astronomy or having seen an eclipse prior to now.

So this is more of an educational one-on-one experience. And I have 185 people here with me on this ship.

BOLDUAN: That's pretty exciting.

Joe, you and Paul are both in this unique community of eclipse chasers. Have you found a common thread kind of between all of you and where your passion all comes for this?

IZEN: I think we're just the eclipse extremists. You know, people have their thing. And I know I have figured out every possible eclipse that I can see in the remaining years that's in my lifetime.

[09:15:10]

And it's always a challenge to figure out how to get to them. There's one coming up where I'll be an Iceland, I guess, and then there's another one in Africa. And it's a great way to see the world.

And whatever -- wherever I've been for an eclipse, there have been lots of people who've been even the most (INAUDIBLE) who come along just because a friend made them come along just come out astounded. And the mass joy is something to behold.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. The only great type of extremist would be an eclipse extremist, I think we can declare.

Wishing you both a very successful eclipse today. Thank you so much for coming on and sharing it with us -- sharing this with us. Really appreciate it. Sara.

SIDNER: Hey, we have mass joy here, don't we?

BOLDUAN: Every day. Every day.

(LAUGHTER)

SIDNER: All right. Coming up, a major message this morning. Donald Trump delivering his stance in abortion by way of a new video. But what he said, upsetting a pro-life group.

And the women of South Carolina are bringing home a third national championship. Best thing Iowa superstar, Caitlin Clark and her team, we're going to hear from the winning coach who has just made history, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:20:00]

BOLDUAN: After months of mixed signals, Donald Trump, just this morning, stated his position on abortion, and stated that he wants to leave the decision to the states, rejecting pressuring calls from many anti-abortion groups and Republicans to push for a national ban on abortion.

CNN's Alayna Treene, she's getting new reaction to Trump's statement this morning and what this position and policy position can mean now in the election.

What is Donald Trump saying, Alayna? And what's the reaction you're getting?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN REPORTER: OK. Donald Trump, as you said, he's been sidestepping this issue for months, because he's been telling people both publicly and privately that he believes that the issue was a political loser, despite also taking credit for the overturning of Roe versus Wade. And that's exactly what he did in this video this morning.

He said that he's proud that he played a part in the overturning of Roe versus Wade. But he also said that he's leaving this decision to the states. He believes it is up to the states to decide how they should rule on abortion.

Take a listen to how he put it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My view is now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint, the states will determine by vote or legislation or perhaps both. And whatever they decide must be the law of the land. In this case, the law of the state.

Now it's up to the states to do the right thing. Like Ronald Reagan, I am struggling in favor of exceptions for rape, incest, and life of the mother. You must follow your heart of this issue. But remember, you must also win elections to restore our culture.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: Now, Kate, as you heard there, I think a key line is that he said, you must also win elections. This is something that Donald Trump has said before, both publicly and privately. And, really, that's what this comes down to. He recognizes that Republicans are very vulnerable on this issue and you have to win elections. And this is how, you know, they think is really the politically safe route.

But I have to also argue that, you know, it does open him up to more criticism from both the left and the right. Democrats can continue to blame him for strict abortion laws, state by state, and Republicans and conservatives on the right, particularly those in the anti- abortion movement who have been pressuring him to come out for a specific number of weeks when abortion should be banned.

I don't think they're going to be very happy with this. And one group already is saying that they are disappointed.

Here's a statement from Marjorie Dannenfelser. She's the president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. This is what she told me this morning.

She said, quote, "We are deeply disappointed in president Trump's position. Unborn children and their mothers deserve national protections and national advocacy."

The statement went on to say, "Saying the issue is back to the states. Cedes the national debate to the Democrats."

And so, as you can see, one pro-life group already is pretty disappointed with this. And, look, I think one thing that I've been hearing from a lot of these groups and anti-abortion allies of Donald Trump is that they argue that they were crucial in helping get him elected in 2016 because of this issue. And they really wanted him to go further on this. And so him leaving this up to the states isn't necessarily a satisfying answer for them. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Great reporting, as always, Alayna. Thank you so much. Sara?

SIDNER: All right. Joining me now is national politics reporter at "Axios," Sophia Cai. Thank you so much for being here.

You listened to this. We -- you know, we just played a clip of what Donald Trump said. Was there anything that stood out to you? Other than the fact that this was a very calm and very scripted response?

SOPHIA CAI, NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER, AXIOS: Yes, very, very scripted. You know, Trump has also floated a couple other things previously. We had the 15 or 16-week ban, and he was surveying people at Mar-a-Lago.

We know that he liked the 16-week ban because it was -- it was a whole four months, and now he's saying, in a very scripted way, very formal background that he wants to leave it up to the states.

[09:25:05]

And I think it is just an answer for now. It'll be easy for him to move from this and say, oh, actually, I want an ex-week ban for him -- then for him to do the other way around.

And so I think we should remember that Trump has been telling people different things, and this is just what he's saying for now, seven months away from the general election.

SIDNER: Does it sound to you like he's trying to message sort of the moderates on abortion at this point in time, because he himself has said this is like a no-win issue?

CAI: Yes. I mean, let's just take a step back, right? A month ago, he got enough delegates to be the presumptive nominee. He spent the last month taking over the RNC. It was very chaotic. They've finally come to a point now where that is stabilized.

And this past weekend, he had a pretty good fundraising haul.

Now on Monday, he finally has the brain space to now focus on putting out a couple more concrete stances on policy issues, and abortion is just one of them.

Of course, you know, everyone runs the center. He's putting out more moderate stances. And I think, yes, he's signaling to suburban women, something that he knows is going to be a problem for him that, you know, he can be potentially on the right side or a moderate side of this position.

SIDNER: Yes. We've talked to some Republican strategist who think he shouldn't have touched the issue of abortion at all because no matter what he says, he's going to be attacked by one side of the argument or another.

A case in point where we just heard from the Susan B. Anthony anti- abortion group who were very unhappy. And if we could just pop that up with the announcement that he will leave abortion rights up to states, and that's what he's going to stick with for now.

Let me ask you about that. Like, you know, is this a situation where this could hurt him with conservatives, which most people don't think, but could potentially help him with moderate voters?

CAI: Yes. I think with conservatives, there are a lot of lawmakers who is right, who look to Trump as a North Star. And so we saw this with IVF. When the ruling came out --

SIDNER: Mm-hmm.

CAI: -- you know, Trump pretty immediately said that he supports IVF. And you saw a lot of members who was right, like Senator Tuberville, also kind of moderate their own position on IVF. And that was something that Trump also addressed in the video today. He said Republicans have to support growing families.

And so he understands, you know, on these issues, he sets the North Star and a lot of more conservative members will follow his lead. And that may help in kind of letting the base know, it's OK, we have for president Trump. And then, you know, on your -- on your second question, I think, look, suburban women, you know, and others, I mean, parents, families, this is something that a lot of voters care about. And it's not just this cycle. We saw it in the last cycle.

Former president Trump had several losses in key swing states where abortion has been on the ballot. And Democrats have been sending folks like Vice President Harris to states where abortion will again be on the ballot.

SIDNER: Yes, the Biden's -- Biden campaign is hoping that they can turn Florida on this very issue.

Sophia Cai, thank you so much. Appreciate it. John?

BERMAN: So what tortoises do in the dark? Apparently, there is no aphrodisiac quite like a solar eclipse.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)