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Concerns Over Mental Health, Living Conditions Aboard USS Abraham Lincoln; Kennedy Center Board Votes To Put Trump's Name Back On Building; Murdaugh Due Back In Court As Both Sides Spar Over Retrial Venue. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired August 14, 2026 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

SABRINA SINGH, CNN POLITICAL AND GLOBAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR, FORMER DEPUTY PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY: I mean, not having a port call -- not seeing land -- not being able to step on land for over 200 days, being at sea for over 250 days. I think Pamela Brown even interviewed a sailor that said he hasn't seen land all of 2026.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Yeah.

SINGH: That is going to take a toll on your mental health and it's also going to impact just your communication with your family. Internet access is very limited. You can't just pull out your iPhone and call your -- call your wife or call your kids. It is very, very limited. So it's hard.

HILL: It's a good point. And Pamela Brown, when she was speaking with those sailors -- that was a month ago when she was onboard the ship -- and they were already -- you know, they were raising those concerns to her then. And this is not -- I just want to be clear. These are not sailors, you know, complaining necessarily.

There is -- it is -- it is well documented that even with a ton of preparation and knowing that your deployment could be extended, this does take an incredible toll on those onboard in addition to the fact that there are other reports about, you know, food issues. There are water issues.

Does it surprise you at all that we are still hearing these reports given how long we've been talking about them at this point?

SINGH: It doesn't. I mean, a carrier -- an aircraft carrier like the Lincoln also has to go through regular maintenance to address some of these problems.

And even during the Biden administration we did extend the carrier strike groups in the region because we needed to protect Israel or defend our assets in the Red Sea.

But I think what the difference here is that the extension of the USS Lincoln since the beginning of this year -- it seems never-ending. The sailors and marines do not know when they will be able to go home, and I think that is sort of the anxiety that --

Like you said, Erica, they're not complaining. They know the job. They signed up for the mission. But I think when you have conflicting ideas of what the mission actually is and then you don't even know when you're going to be able to see your family, that all is an added stress --

HILL: Yeah.

SINGH: -- and it's never-ending. And so that's why people are concerned.

HILL: There are two other points I want to get you on if I could quickly before we run out of time.

The fact, too, that this -- there is an extended deployment. That means some regular scheduled maintenance is potentially not happening. That could further impact the readiness writ large for the U.S. military.

SINGH: Absolutely. Aircraft carriers have a maintenance schedule that's planned a few years out. So whenever you have delays, those shipyards are going to be impacted and that -- those delays, you know, ricochet down through the force. So this does impact military readiness. Our Navy will do what it needs to protect our forces and defend our allies, but it still has an impact --

HILL: Yeah.

SINGH: -- and you're seeing it now.

HILL: I also want to ask you. The Washington Post is reporting that the U.S. military has now lost roughly 25 percent of its Reaper drones. So these are massive. They cost, I think, about $50 million apiece. They take a couple of years to build. But they've been used heavily around the Strait of Hormuz. They're relatively easy targets though when it comes to Iran and its proxy groups.

Does it surprise you at all that the loss level here is so high given that it was known they could be targeted? Because that came up, I know, when you were there in the Biden administration.

SINGH: Candidly, yes. I mean, the loss level that was reported in The Washington Post is very high and concerning.

When I was in the Biden administration and I remember we used the Reaper drone that was reported at the time in Gaza to help with hostage recovery and rescue. We also used it in our fight against the Houthis. And when the Houthis shot down the MQ-9 a lot of people in the building were surprised that they had the capability to do that.

You put the MQ-9 up and flying around Iran, which is a -- you know, an even greater adversary than the Houthis -- and the fact that we've expended through so many of these Reaper drones that are essential to intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, but also carry precision- guided munitions, that can really help with targeting. I think these figures, you know, are certainly concerning. There are other platforms that the department has and that can be used. But certainly, I thought the reporting yesterday that we saw of just how quickly Iran has been able to target some of these MQ-9s, that is -- that is concerning and I'm sure raising a lot of alarm bells in the building.

HILL: Sabrina, always good to talk to you. Thank you.

SINGH: Thank you.

HILL: Danny.

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN ANCHOR: This morning the board of The Kennedy Center pushing the limits of a federal order voting once again to close the center for renovations and add back President Trump's name to the facade. Sources say the board voted to add an inscription below The Kennedy Center sign that would read "Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump."

Now the rewording attempts to get around the ruling handed down back in May that stated the center is to be named for President Kennedy and bear no other.

CNN senior White House reporter Betsy Klein is tracking this for us. Betsy, the board isn't letting this issue go. What are you hearing?

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Danny, that is very clear. President Trump's loyalist-stacked board of trustees at The Kennedy Center met yesterday to discuss a path forward after this federal judge issued a scathing ruling back in June that had to main components.

[07:35:00]

Number one, he ruled that the board violated the law when they renamed the center after President Trump. And then separately, he said that he was blocking plans to close for a two-year renovation without a more substantive plan.

So the board had to meet and develop a plan to move forward to satisfy the judge's requirements. And what we are seeing is blatant defiance.

So yes, President Trump's name has been removed from the exterior signage of The Kennedy Center, but they voted yesterday to add an inscription that says, "Restored and Renovated by President Donald J. Trump."

And then separately, the board voted for a two-year closure that will keep a small and newer part of the arts complex known as the REACH open with programming during that two-year closure.

Now we heard from Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse. He is a Democrat and he's an ex-officio member of the board because of his position as ranking member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Whitehouse said that he raised concerns that the board was not given detailed financial information about what happens during that closure. He also raised concerns about that inscription, which he said came as a surprise -- listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. SHELDON WHITEHOUSE (RI): In these meetings you sort of step into a bit of an odd fairyland in which a resolution comes forward. In this case it was not on the agenda. No one was given prior notice, and suddenly there is a vote. As I said, no legal opinion to show that this -- we're not doing another illegal vote on the same subject. So they kind of live in a fairyland of irresponsibility where things like complying with court orders don't matter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KLEIN: Now, our colleague Sunlen Serfaty spoke with a member of the plaintiff's legal team. They described this move by the board as "too cute by half" and an attempt to evade justice and said that they plan to challenge this is court, Danny.

FREEMAN: Yeah. We'll see if this, I guess, loophole or workaround works for the administration.

All right. Betsy Klein, thank you so much for that reporting -- appreciate it.

And joining me now is Axios political reporter Stef Kight, and Washington bureau chief for The Boston Globe, Jackie Kucinich. Thank you both for being here this morning.

Jackie, let's start here. There are so many things, right, that President Trump seems continually compelled to put his name on. It seems this is not going to stop anytime soon.

JACKIE KUCINICH, WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF, THE BOSTON GLOBE (via Webex by Cisco): Well, the reason the board hasn't let this go is because the president hasn't let this go. He wasn't happy about his name being removed from the building.

And look, no one should be surprised that they're going to keep pushing. I mean, look what the president is doing with the Supreme -- even the Supreme Court rulings on tariffs. On the Federal Reserve, for example. He has been trying -- he and his team have been trying to find a way around anything that a judge says that he can't do, and this no exception.

FREEMAN: You know, Stef, it's interesting because Americans though -- they don't seem to be buying this. I want you to take a look at this poll where it says that 58 percent of Americans recently said they feel angry or dissatisfied about President Trump's renovation projects.

So I guess, Stef, from your perspective, does the president not care about these numbers clearly saying that this is not important to them?

STEF KIGHT, POLITICAL REPORTER, AXIOS (via Webex by Cisco): I mean, he doesn't seem to care about numbers like that at all. In fact, there are many people who I talk to -- you know, members of Congress or people in the campaign space who wish the president would move his focus -- his attention more to the midterms and doing things that would help Republicans win in November.

But it's clear that the president is very focused and cares a lot about these renovation projects in D.C. He sees himself as, you know, an expert in renovations. This is a space that he is confident in and he's comfortable in because of his background.

He's used to putting his name on buildings. It's what he's done most of his career and it's something that he wants to leave a mark in D.C. moving forward. It's clear that he's very focused on his legacy and for him, putting his name on these buildings is a big part of that in addition to, you know, adding more gold when it comes to the D.C. architecture. He wants to leave his imprint, and this is the way he views it as most important to him.

And that's regardless of how voters feel about it, at least so far. He views it as something he wants to do. He is clearly obsessed with it and he's not going to back down anytime soon.

FREEMAN: You know, Jackie, this all comes, of course, as now we're seeing these reports this week of servicemembers in distress aboard the USS Lincoln, deployed for the war that President Trump started.

Is this just showing these priorities are out of step because this can't help Americans' perception, meanwhile, of the war that's ongoing with Iran.

KUCINICH: I mean, those -- what's going on with those soldiers is just one example.

[07:40:00]

Look at gas prices. I mean, if the president hasn't been concerned, and has said as much, that the war is -- and continuing this is paramount to, you know, the rising cost of pretty much everything for Americans. So the fact -- and when you -- when you hear the defense secretary downplaying it you have to imagine that's coming from the top.

FREEMAN: Yeah. Again, it's the prioritization on renovations or names on buildings instead of both the war, which also impacts the economy as well.

Stef, though, it's interesting. You brought this up earlier and I want to ask you about your latest reporting because this, I think, caught a lot of people potentially off guard that President Trump's team is encouraging the GOP now to focus on, of all things, health care ahead of the midterms. I mean, that seems like a no-brainer.

But, I guess, what prompted this change because this feels different than, again, the priorities that we're seeing coming out of the White House? KIGHT: Yeah, it's interesting. You know, last week we had some of the president's top political team people like, you know, James Blair, Tony Fabrzio who gave an overview to Senate Republicans and some top aides about the state of the midterms. They shared some polling. They shared kind of their thoughts on where the races are competitive and how Republicans are going to do in the midterms in November.

And within this presentation -- I got my hands on some of the slides that were looked over there -- they showed some message testing.

And within that, there was an emphasis on Republicans going on offense when it comes to health care. And this, of course, unusual as you point out. Because historically, health care has not been a strong topic area for Republicans. It's something that has historically benefited Democrats.

And it comes right after the debate over extending some of those Obamacare tax credits that ultimately were allowed to lapse at the end of last year. That was something that was hugely unpopular with voters and something that many people thought would hurt Republicans this year in the midterm elections.

And now we're seeing Republicans seeing an opening for them to go on offense and specifically, they see a path for really hitting insurance companies in particular.

FREEMAN: Again, we'll see if that actually comes to bear in terms of if the White House and the GOP are able to focus on this issue instead of some of these other things that again have been captivating so much of their time seemingly.

Stef Kight, Jackie Kucinich, thank you both so much for joining us this morning -- appreciate it -- Erica.

HILL: Alex Murdaugh is due back in a South Carolina courtroom this morning as his defense lawyers and prosecutors battle over just where his murder retrial should take place. Today's hearing comes just months after the South Carolina Supreme Court overturned Murdaugh's convictions for killing his wife and son, finding the former county clerk's conduct had tainted that trial.

Dianne Gallagher is outside the court in Lexington, South Carolina. So what are we expecting today, Dianne? Will we actually get a decision?

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So look, Erica, if the flurry of filings that came down this week are any indication, we could see some fireworks in the courtroom today. Both the state and the defense going back and forth on just about everything from whether Alex Murdaugh's infamous testimony from his original murder trials can be used in his new ones to where this trial, in April, should actually take place.

Now, Judge McCaslin will have to solve a growing list of disputes over logistics, evidence and other issues that could eventually shape that new trial, which again is set to start picking a jury in less than eight months. But between his last appearance in June and today -- well, the defense

has received a win. And that's because McCaslin, over the objection of the state, ruled that Alex Murdaugh will not have to appear in his orange prison jumpsuit and shackles at these pretrial hearings with cameras, meaning that today he's likely just going to be in street clothes.

Now, you mentioned where it's going to be -- this venue change location dispute they are having right now. Both sides agree that they have no problem changing it, but the question is where?

The state is pushing back on the idea that the defense only wants to hold it in one place, and that's Charleston. The state, in a lengthy reply, said basically Charleston is too expensive. There are too many tourists there in the spring. They even cited The Masters golf tournament down in Augusta, Georgia, saying people come and travel that week, and they take up the hotels, meaning it's just going to be logistically too difficult.

The defense has said all the alternative locations that the state has proposed within South Carolina do not meet the criteria they are looking for.

What it does appear they agree on is that it can be moved from the 14th Circuit. And so the judge is going to have parse through that. She indicated last time that she wants to get this out of the way quickly and she wanted the sides to come together before this hearing and make a decision on where they could be. Obviously, they could not do that, so we'll see what happens in court today.

[07:45:00]

Also, we are going to hear them talk about that DNA evidence that was found from an unnamed man underneath Maggie Murdaugh's fingernail. The defense would like for that to be shipped off to an independent tester so it could be further tested to see if they could find out who that did belong to. The state is pushing back, saying they don't want that to happen.

Also today we are going to hear them try to say that they want to use Alex Murdaugh's testimony. Remember up on those dramatic two days where he testified in his own defense and admitted to lying to authorities. This -- the defense says they don't want them to be able to use that because the only reason he did that was because of all those financial crimes that he's now serving 40 years in prison for.

But the State Supreme Court said that too much of that evidence for the financial crimes was used in the original murder trial and the judge is going to have to determine how much will be allowed in the new one. That could play into her decision on whether or not his old testimony can be used in the new trial and again, whether Alex Murdaugh chooses to testify on his own behalf come April.

HILL: Yeah. A lot happening, that is for sure.

Dianne, I really appreciate it. Thank you. Still ahead here, the water level at the United States' largest reservoir now hitting a record low as state officials grapple, fighting with one another over how to manage it.

And you've got to be kidding. Cue the puns. They're coming all morning long. Two goats board a city bus in rush hour. Where'd they come from and, as Danny pointed out, did they actually pay?

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:50:53]

FREEMAN: Top overall pick Fernando Mendoza making his debut for the Raiders last night as they took the field for their preseason opener.

CNN's Andy Scholes joins me now. Andy, he's the golden boy. We were just talking about him with Erica. How'd he do?

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yeah. Well, he did pretty good, Danny. You know, Raiders fans getting a little glimpse into their future last night because, you know, the last time we saw Fernando Mendoza on a football field he was leading Indiana to their first-ever national title.

And, you know, despite being that first overall pick, the Raiders have named Kirk Cousins the starter, so Mendoza is going to be starting the season as his backup.

But last night he came in and he completed 10 of his 16 passes for 97 yards and this touchdown right here. Mendoza said it was a good start but he's going to watch the tape after the game because he's got lots to learn.

Now part of those fans also getting their first look at third overall pick Jeremiyah Love. He was just electric. He was showing it all. He hurdled the defender and then a little later he hit the spin move on the defender. Love ran for 58 yards and 11 carries. I know it's just preseason, but Fantasy Football owners take some notes there.

The Cardinals won that game 27-14.

All right. In baseball, meanwhile, the Phillies and Twins taking part in the Field of Dreams game in Dyersville, Iowa. A really cool moment before the game. Twenty-six Hall of Famers walked out of the cornfields just as the ghost players did in the movie. This is the largest gathering of Hall of Famers at a game since 2008. Now this is the first Field of Dreams game at the new stadium that they built right there where the movie was shot.

And Kyle Schwarber had himself a night. He led the game off with a home run into the cornfields. Then later in the game Schwarber up again and he gets ahold of this one. Now, Luke Keaschall was tracking it but he's going to get a glove on it and knock it over the fence. I would have probably been a home run anyway but certainly catchable. Keaschall certainly wanted that one back.

Phillies ended up winning the game big, 7-1.

All right. Finally, The NBA schedule -- it came out yesterday and the Atlanta Hawks had bird-caller extraordinaire Samuel Henderson help with their reveal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAMUEL HENDERSON, BIRD CALLER: The rock pigeon. The bald eagle. American crow. Well, thanks for watching. Go Hawks!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Danny, I have to say that was one of the most impressive things I've ever seen a human do. Samuel Henderson -- he's so good.

FREEMAN: I'm telling you, every time I see this kid it defies reality. It is so incredible. Love that they used him for this video.

Andy, good to see you, man. Thanks so much for that.

SCHOLES: All right.

FREEMAN: Erica.

HILL: All right. Well, new this morning a critical reservoir in this country is now facing a crisis. Lake Mead is drying up. So we've been talking about this but now we're at the point where the nation's largest reservoir, which sits on the border between Nevada and Arzona -- and, of course, provides water for millions of people across seven states -- the level in there has now fallen to a record low.

Here is CNN chief climate correspondent Bill Weir.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): For the boaters who still love Lake Mead, reminders of the megadrought are all around. The bathtub ring, which shows the high water mark from the mid-'80s, is now almost 19 stories tall. Old sunken boats and worthless drinking water intakes get more exposed by the day.

WEIR: They couldn't imagine when they built this the kind of megadrought that would drop Lake Mead by 70 percent. That used to be the water intake tower.

WEIR (voiceover): A satellite timelapse shows how much of the nation's biggest reservoir has disappeared in the last 25 years. Mead, 27 percent full while Lake Powell only 23 percent and dropping. Together, they keep 40 million people alive in seven states, which have never agreed on how to share.

[07:55:00]

While the dry, lower basin states of California, Nevada and Arizona have volunteered to make cuts, Doug Burgum's Interior Department could force much steeper ones, especially to junior rights holder Arizona where water is needed to make everything from copper to microchips to most of the nation's winter vegetables.

GOV. KATIE HOBBS, (D) ARIZONA: I would argue that all of those things are not just important to Arizona's economy; they're important to the national economy.

WEIR (voiceover): And Gov. Katie Hobbs seems willing to fight for their share all the way to the Supreme Court.

HOBBS: We are very hopeful that it will align closely with the proposal that we put forward -- the three lower basin state proposal. And nobody wants to end up in court, but this is a critical situation for Arizona and I'm going to use every tool available to me. We have set aside millions of dollars to fight in court if that becomes necessary. I hope it doesn't. But we're not at that point yet.

WEIR (voiceover): Utah is among the upper basin states refusing to offer new cuts, even as St. George has some of the cheapest water and highest per capita use in the West. And that's not even counting this private surf ranch with wave and wakeboarding pools for 56 homes and another similar development under construction.

WEIR: You can surf in the driest county in Utah. How can you justify that? Whether they're pulling it out of a brackish aquafer or it's private water --

ZACH RENSTROM, GENERAL MANAGER, WASHINGTON COUNTY WATER CONSERVANCY DISTRICT: No.

WEIR: -- how is that a good look for Washington County?

RENSTROM: So unfortunately, like other communities, certain things were approved years and years and years ago and we're kind of dealing with those. Since then we have completely changed all the rules but not just at surf lake but at a data center or a golf course. We've implemented this very strict policy now of large water users.

WEIR (voiceover): Zach Renstrom is trying to get his very conservative county to copy Las Vegas where nearly every drop of Sin City's wastewater is captured, cleaned and put back into Lake Mead thanks to the foresight of leaders like Pat Mulroy.

PATRICIA MULROY, FORMER CEO, SOUTHERN NEVADA WATER AUTHORITY: I mean, the minute you accepted climate change is a reality, you had to accept that this day was coming. And if you're in the water business you hope for the best and plan for the worst.

WEIR (voiceover): She thinks Burgum should be using more carrots and sticks to get the states to agree and proposes desalination plants in California for irrigation so farmers could give their shares to thirsty cities and wildlife habitats.

MULROY: To put the states through the pain and anguish of having to go through another round of cut discussions, I would put that off. But where I would put my energy is I would put the states together and empower a body or a group in the Lower Basin and upper basin to look at ways to augment this river system. I mean, we have stayed away from desalination, and it blows my mind. You can't conserve your way out of this. You can't cut your way out of it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WEIR: Israel and Singapore are two countries that have figured out how to turn seawater into drinking water. It's expensive and there's environmental costs to that as well, but they're saying we've got to put more water.

It's not just water, Erica. It's electricity. Both of those dams provide power for about 1.6 million people when the water is high. But when it's low like this it's about half that. So to protect Lake Powell and Glen Canyon Dam they may have to stop releases through the Grand Canyon. That's bad for the wilderness there, the fish, the ecosystem.

And a lot of people just praying that this El Nino will bring a big snowpack here in the Rockies. They sorely need it there. But praying for snow is no kind of water policy for 40 million people.

HILL: No, it's certainly not. It is just really something to see it get to this point.

Bill, I really appreciate it. Thank you.

FREEMAN: To this now. A 5-year-old boy is safe after being rescued from a pond in Florida. The child, who has autism, wandered from his home into the water and quick-thinking Good Samaritans stepped in to save him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POLICE OFFICER: Have you guys ever seen this kid before. He's probably five, if that, and he's autistic. He's nonverbal.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When we got out, he started -- we were like hey, are you OK? Are you OK? And then he started running. And we saw the water and I was like if he's autistic, he's going for that water.

POLICE OFFICER: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So I started hauling butt. I got on the phone with 911, and I started telling them what was going on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Just incredible there. The two women and other neighbors helped guide the boy out of the water after about 10 minutes. He was covered in fire ants but thankfully not injured.

And to this now in Colorado. We told you about this. Police say a bear broke into a hotel in Breckenridge and took some M&Ms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POLICE OFFICER: Keep coming. Come on. Get out of here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Oh, man. Officers were able to coax the bear back into the wilderness, thankfully, and police reminded residents to stay alert for bears and secure food, especially sweet treats -- apparently, not just honey, M&Ms too.

All right, and to this now. A couple of, let's call them fare-evading passengers caused a bit of a stir on a Portland, Oregon bus. Cameras caught two pygmy goats trotting on board during rush hour, but the ride did not last long.