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Biden Being Urged by Family To Stay In The Race and Keep Fighting; Latest Polls Following Debate Not Looking Good; Interview With Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI) On President Biden; Supreme Court To Rule On Trump's Immunity Claim Tomorrow; US Watching Closely As Far Right Leads In French Elections; Hurricane Beryl Now Extremely Dangerous Category 4 Storm, "Deep Dive: The Shark Wars." Aired 7-8p ET

Aired June 30, 2024 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:01:01]

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Alisyn Camerota in New York.

And tonight we do have breaking news because we have new reporting that President Biden's family is encouraging the president to stay in the 2024 race, defying calls for him to step aside following his alarming performance on Thursday's -- in Thursday's debate. The family is meeting at Camp David tonight. This is part of a planned gathering. It was scheduled before the debate we're told and the message out of that meeting, at least for now, appears to support -- to be support for the president to continue pursuing a second presidential term.

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez joins us now in Washington.

Priscilla, what's your latest reporting at this hour?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: While the president is huddling with his family following the immediate fallout of his debate performance on Thursday night and Biden advisers are telling CNN that his family is encouraging him to stay in the race and supporting him and expressing that support, including Hunter Biden and the president's grandchildren.

These advisers also saying that the conversations have been focused on how the family can help the president and not whether he should reconsider his candidacy. Of course, all of this, all of these conversations follow what has transpired since Thursday night's debate as there has been calls for the president to withdraw from the race, including editorial boards, as well as all corners of the Democratic Party.

Now, the president himself has also been collecting data anecdotally and through public polling as he too tries to assess what folks are feeling across the party and that has been a deep concern. Panic has certainly set in, donors have been wracked with anxiety over the president's poor performance on Thursday night.

Now the president, of course, did participate in a fundraising blitz over the weekend where he too conceded that Thursday night was not his best debate performance, but said that he would continue to fight and that he wanted to stay in the race, but the president and his campaign are certainly, Alisyn, under great scrutiny tonight. And what we know so far from the huddle that he had with his family at Camp David today is that he has the support of his family and their encouragement.

Of course, that is no small thing. These are key players in President Biden's orbit and have been crucial in a lot of his decision-making when it comes to running for president.

CAMEROTA: Priscilla, thank you very much for all of that reporting.

We're joined now by CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten. He was here to run the numbers.

So, Harry, do we have new poll numbers for President Biden post- debate?

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA CORRESPONDENT: We do. You know, CBS News- YouGov conducted some polling post-debate. We can compare it to the pre-debate numbers and the bottom line, Alisyn, it's not any good. It's not any good.

Look at this. Voters who say that Biden has the mental health to be president, it was just 35 percent pre-debate. Look where it's dropped to now post-debate, 27 percent. How about that he should be running for president, it was 37 percent pre-debate. It's now 28 percent.

I have never seen numbers this bad for an incumbent president during my lifetime. I mean, that mental health to be president at just 27 percent, you might say, OK, you know, that's low, but a lot of people thought Biden was too old back in 2020. These numbers look nothing like this back in 2020. These numbers were bad already. And the truth is, Alisyn, they have gotten just considerably worse even in just a few days after that first presidential debate.

CAMEROTA: Harry, do we have polling yet that suggests that voters want a different candidate?

ENTEN: Yes, this is the whole question, right? If it's not President Biden then who could it be on the Democratic side? And the truth is, there are no easy answers. You know, I went back and looked at the polling versus Donald Trump for a bunch of different Democrats have been suggested. Gretchen Whitmer, Gavin Newsom, Kamala Harris, look at this. They all trail Donald Trump.

[19:05:01]

So the idea here that we're somehow going to get this magic bullet that there's somehow going to be some Democrat who can beat Donald Trump easily, I just don't see it in the numbers. At this particular point if Joe Biden takes on Donald Trump, he's trailing, if there's another Democrat who runs against Donald Trump, they too are trailing. Perhaps you want to make the argument you bring in another Democrat who isn't as well-known as Joe Biden, has universal name recognition, and maybe they could change the numbers. But the fact is any Democrat who entered the race right now, at least

among those that are being suggested by a bunch of folks, they would all enter the race at this particular point as an underdog to former president Donald Trump.

CAMEROTA: But, Harry, are those numbers old numbers or are those since the debate? I mean, maybe the conversation has changed?

ENTEN: Yet. Those are not numbers that have been taken since the debate, though I was looking at numbers that were posted. But this takes into account on average, a long-term average, right? Because the key is, I don't just want to rely upon one polling number. But even the limited polling data that we have post-debate suggests that none of those candidates on your screen, Gretchen Whitmer, Gavin Newsom, or Kamala Harris, any of those would be favored over Donald Trump.

He leads against all of them whether you look at the pre-debate numbers or the post-debate numbers. And of course, I like to look at an aggregated numbers. So that's what I did. But the fact is, even if you just did post-debate, it really wouldn't look any different.

CAMEROTA: Do you have any precedent for how lopsided Thursday's debate was?

ENTEN: Yes. I mean, if you want to take one solace, if you are Joe Biden, the fact is first debate winner margins, look, Donald Trump, more people by 34-point margin said that Donald Trump beat Joe Biden in debate. That's not much different than what Joe Biden's margin was over Donald Trump four years ago. It's actually larger than the Hillary Clinton margin that she had over Donald Trump.

But you may remember that first debate back in 2012 where Barack Obama just did horribly. Mitt Romney won that debate in the voters' minds by 42 points. But of course he didn't become president. Barack Obama was reelected. So I guess if you want to take a look on the one bright note is there is a history of someone losing the first debate as an incumbent and going on to win the presidency. And that was 12 years ago.

CAMEROTA: OK. So you're saying that somebody -- I mean, you have seen examples of somebody, you know, coming from behind basically in that way after a poor debate.

ENTEN: Yes. That is true. But here's the thing that I would note, which is that Joe Biden was trailing going into the first debate. OK. Barack Obama was leading. So I want to limit it down for you. Incumbents who are trailing going into the first debate and then lost that first debate. Well, how about Jimmy Carter lost that one debate he took on Ronald Reagan at '80? George H.W. Bush lost that first debate to both Ross Perot and Bill Clinton.

And in 2020, Donald Trump lost that first debate to Joe Biden. Well, guess what else? And they all lost. They all lost. So the question is for Joe Biden, can he defy history, create new history and being incumbent to trail going into that first debate and then won? Well, he's going to have to do it if he wants to get reelected in November. CAMEROTA: Harry Enten, thank you very much for sharing all of these

new numbers with us.

ENTEN: Thank you.

CAMEROTA: Joining me now is Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Dingell of Michigan.

Congresswoman, always great to see you. Thank you for making time for us tonight. You've known President Biden and his family for a long time. What do you think he's wrestling with tonight? Do you think he is wrestling with this decision?

REP. DEBBIE DINGELL (D-MI): First of all, I have not talked to anybody in the family since the debate on Thursday night. We -- look, I said on Friday morning, we can't sugarcoat this, Thursday night was not a good night. And we know what he's got to do. He has to go out and prove to the American people that he can still and not that he can't. I mean, he has done a great job as president and we have four years of Donald Trump compared to four years of Joe Biden.

He got to go out there and show people it was a bad night, that he is capable of doing the job. He can't make mistakes, and I think he gets that. I think his family is a very close family. They're talking to each other. And I think a whole lot of people are wringing their hand to adding to the drama. I know one thing. I know what will happen if we have another four years of Donald Trump.

And I am working to remind everybody of how much he doubled down on Thursday night about a woman's right to make her own health care decisions, how January 6th was OK, making fun of veterans, not saying he'll protect seniors and Social Security, that he will protect his billionaire friend. I've been up into probably 30 events since I left Washington on Friday. And while all my (INAUDIBLE) in Washington, my colleagues, everybody else is up and they're wringing their hands, believe it or not, back here people are talking about that here at home some people are saying it was a bad debate.

I had one African-American male who was not leaning towards Joe Biden said to me after listening to Donald Trump Thursday night, I think I know more of why I should vote for Joe Biden.

[19:10:04]

It's a long time between now and November and every one of us has a job to do to remind people what will happen if we have second Trump presidency.

CAMEROTA: Well, I mean, a couple of things. The -- unfortunately for Democrats, the president's poor performance eclipsed some of these substance or the answers of what Donald Trump gave. And so obviously the president is having to -- and Democrats are having to fight that wave also. There's, you know, basically it's not just pundits. It's also voters because we do have new polling out and you just heard from Harry Enten. So there's this new CBS poll out today. It shows that 72 percent of

the voters polled do not think that Joe Biden should be running. Again, that's up 9 percent from a poll in February. So what does that make you think, Congresswoman, in terms of --

DINGELL: You know what, Alisyn?

CAMEROTA: Yes.

DINGELL: It reminds me of a 215 to 216 when nobody thought Hillary Clinton could win. And I kept telling people, I have a gut. I have -- and I kept, you know, how many people I've told Donald Trump could win this election and he would win the election. The "Detroit Free Press" had headlines declaring Hillary Clinton the winner that night. So these are polls, we're all throwing numbers just the way those who prepped Joe Biden probably gave him too many numbers for Thursday night.

It's a long way between now and November. A lot of things can happen. We know that the president has to show people, it was a bad night. He's up to the job. He had a cold. I mean, that's what we're being told. He has to show people that that's the case. But these numbers also are a mumble-jumble to me because the only poll that matters is that on election day, and we have a lot of work to do. Thursday night wasn't good. We got hard road ahead.

CAMEROTA: But are you comfortable with him staying in the race?

DINGELL: I'm going to -- he's in the race. Right now I got a choice between Donald Trump and President Biden, and to me that is a clear choice. And I am scared to death about what will happen to our democracy. What will happen to the country that I love. What will happen to women who should be able to make their only health or their own health care decisions? Who will fight for working men and women?

That to me is what November is about. I'm dealing with the reality of where I'm at and it's a clear decision for me.

CAMEROTA: Your colleague Congressman Jamie Raskin said earlier today that very serious conversations are happening among Democrats. Very serious candid conversations about what the next step should be. Are you hearing those also? Because there is a third way. I mean, I know that you're setting up as a binary choice. And today it is between President Biden and Donald Trump.

But there is a third possibility, and that is that President Biden decides to hand over his delegates and that he's not going to seek a second term, and that different -- somebody from the Democratic bench is chosen.

DINGELL: Look, there are a lot of discussions going on. You and I know that. We can't say that people were rattled by Thursday night, and I think President Biden has got to go out. I think the biggest group of people he's got to convince right now are his donors and the people that work in the House of Representatives and the Senate, and that are on the ballot with him. But the way this is set up, he -- I mean, this is decision he's making with this family.

You all are reporting that he's talking to his family. They know what they're seeing, they know whether he's up to the job, and this is about his legacy. And to me, I have one thing that I'm going to work on right now. And that is making sure that we don't have another four years of the presidency that proceeded Joe Biden. He's done a good job as president. We have to -- all this drama playing out in public isn't helping anybody.

And I also am going to be really clear with you. Those numbers that is to me, I've seen so many polls that aren't real. There are so many polls that, you know, try to impact where people are feeling. People need -- he had a bad night. The president has got to live with the consequences of that. He has to show people he's up to doing what he did during the past four years and by the way, he's done a damn good job as president and he brought this country together.

He didn't pick people against each other. He's fought for a lot of things and I don't want another Supreme Court that's going to do some of the horrific things that they've done. That's where we are. And people are talking to each other. They're hearing it. The administration is not stupid. They're hearing the calls. And the people around him have to make sure that he can show people he is OK. He is up to this job. That's where we are right now.

CAMEROTA: Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, always great to get your perspective. Thanks so much for making time.

DINGELL: Thank you.

CAMEROTA: Still ahead, tomorrow we expect to finally hear the Supreme Court's critical ruling on Donald Trump's claim that he's immune from criminal charges, charges that he faces for trying to overturn the election that he lost to Joe Biden in 2020.

[19:15:14]

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAMEROTA: We're just hours away from the Supreme Court ruling on Donald Trump's claim of immunity from criminal charges for his attempts to overturn the election he lost to Joe Biden in 2020.

[19:20:06]

The decision could have far-reaching consequences for the powers of all presidents.

Joining me now is CNN legal analyst Steve Vladeck. He's a professor at the University of Texas School of Law.

OK. Steve, what do you expect to happen tomorrow?

STEVE VLADECK, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Alisyn, if I felt confident about it I wouldn't be a law professor. You know, we're going get the decision from the court tomorrow. We know tomorrow is the last day of opinions. I guess the best thing I can say is it's probably being written by Chief Justice John Roberts. It's probably going to allow at least some aspect of the January 6th prosecution against former president Trump to go forward.

You know, beyond that, I think that's the real question and it's why I think it's taken the justices the better part of two months to get from the oral argument in April to tomorrow's decision day.

CAMEROTA: So, I mean, in layman's terms, is it possible that there'll be some sort of not split decision, but -- well, I guess maybe that is the right answer. I mean, that is the right word that they'll say that some of his actions on January 6th were immune, you know, covered by immunity and some aren't?

VLADECK: Yes. I mean, I think that's right, Alisyn. I think the best way to think about it is the court is really being asked to decide two questions. The first question is, are there any circumstances in which a former president can claim categorical immunity from criminal prosecution. Of course, if the answer is no, then there's nothing else to say. But the way the oral argument went in April certainly sounded like there was a majority of justices who thought there were at least some contexts in which former presidents shouldn't be liable to criminal prosecution.

So that gets us, Alisyn, to the second question which is, what are those contexts? And if the court is going to articulate a line, if the court is going to say the test is X, are they going to then apply it to the four different charges that Special Counsel Jack Smith has leveled against Trump in the January 6th indictment? You know, one of the most telling exchanges at the oral argument back in April was when Justice Amy Coney Barrett got Trump's lawyer to concede that at least three of the four charges probably don't implicate official acts.

They were all private acts by candidate Trump. Is the court going to seize on that? So I'm looking for how the court tackles both of those questions. Is there any immunity? And if so, does it apply to any of the charges against Trump?

CAMEROTA: And if there's any immunity can that carry over for other cases that Donald Trump is involved in such as the classified documents case?

VLADECK: You know I'm sure he will argue and I'm sure his lawyers will argue it. Realistically the answer ought to be no. Certainly not the New York state case because that has nothing to do with acts he took while president. And, you know, even the Florida case, Alisyn, involves for the most part acts President Trump took after leaving office. And no one seriously argues that former presidents are immune from stuff they do when they're no longer president.

So really this is about the January 6th prosecution, first and foremost. And I think one of the other things we'll be looking for tomorrow is, does the court's decision open up the possibility that the trial can continue, that the trial can actually happen before election day? You know, the presiding judge in D.C., Judge Tanya Chutkan, has suggested she's going to need probably eight to 10 weeks from whenever the Supreme Court's decision comes down to getting ready for trial.

Is that going to be longer if there's actually now a new test that she has to apply in the first instance to each of the charges in the indictment? So, you know, there's really a lot of different things swimming around this massively important decision that we expect sometime after 10:00 Eastern tomorrow.

CAMEROTA: All right. Well, stay close to your phone. We need you on speed dial.

Steve Vladeck, thank you very much.

We have a quick programming note. Stay with CNN tomorrow morning for complete coverage of this very important Supreme Court decision.

Still ahead, former CNN analyst John Avlon wins a competitive Democratic primary on Long Island by double digits. We're going to talk to him about the winning formula for Democrats as he looks to flip a red seat blue. We're going to talk to him about a lot of things. Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:28:53]

CAMEROTA: We do have some new reporting tonight. President Biden and his family, as you know, are huddled at Camp David and they are reportedly urging him to stay in the race and fight on. A longtime adviser to the president tells CNN the only way Biden would even consider stepping aside is if he's presented with serious data showing he would not only likely lose his reelection bid, but also endanger House, Senate and competitive local races across the country.

Joining me now is the winning Democratic candidate for New York's First District, John Avlon. He is also of course a former CNN senior political analyst.

John, always great to see you. Congrats on your recent win. And we will get to that in just a moment. But first, the biggest question of the moment after Thursday's debate performance by President Biden, should he bow out of the race?

JOHN AVLON, DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE, NEW YORK: Look, I think panic is not a useful emotion but I don't think denial is either. The truth is President Biden had a bad debate, but he's also got a great record. And I think this kind of deliberation that's going on is actually healthy. It's a sign of a healthy debate within a healthy political party as opposed to doing whatever, you know, falling into line no matter what the dear leader says or does.

[19:30:12]

And I think there is a strong record to run on, but at the end of the day, I really believe that this was never going to be a top-down election. It is always going to be bottom up.

It wasn't going to be about the top of the ticket, it was going to be about building a broad patriotic coalition to defend democracy and I think that is still the case, hundred percent.

CAMEROTA: Okay, I mean, other voters I think are struggling with what they saw on Thursday night. We just have new poll numbers. This is the CBS poll, I am sure you've seen it. It suggests now that a majority of voters do not think that President Biden should run for a second term.

So are you worried about having President Biden at the top of the ticket and that it will affect down-ballot Democrats, like say, you?

AVLON: I'm not worried because I think that's all things that are being decided at a different level, and that's -- I don't believe in worrying about things that are out of your control.

I really do think that this is going to be about folks gathering together and forming a broad coalition and I think that's going to happen regardless of what happens at the top of the ticket.

But President Biden has got a great record to run on and I think that is getting a little bit lost. People shouldn't be asked to deny what they saw. They should be asked to put it into context in the total record that's been put forward, and I think that's important.

I think whatever happens, Democrats are going to be united, but it is more important that they are reaching out also in winning over Independents and even some Republicans.

And for all the talk about President Biden's performance, there hasn't been nearly enough attention, I think on the over 30 lies Donald Trump told on the stakes of the race, on the stakes the race not only about democracy, but Trump's record on abortion rights and encroachments into basic reproductive freedom, on the affordability crisis, on the fact that he is praising dictators around the world. These things have real-world implications.

And so, I think it is about more than styles, about substance at the end of the day.

CAMEROTA: I mean, it is also about winning and I think that Democrats are wondering, yes, you said that he has been a great president, he has a great record and I think the Democrats feel that way, but it is now a question of whether or not he can in beat Donald Trump, and so that's basically what we heard from our reporting tonight, is that President Biden is at Camp David and if you were presented with new data, as we just reported, that he was going to hurt the Senate or the House or that he wouldn't be able to beat Donald Trump then he would reconsider.

I mean, there is new polling that is suggesting that.

AVLON: Look, I think you should take all the data into account, but at the end of the day, I think it is his decision to make. He is the president of the United States. You know, CNN had on the presidential historian who does predictions

based on actual data and believes strongly that President Biden is likely the strongest. You don't want to over-index a single moment, but you need to take all the data in, and that's a reasonable thing to do.

But you need to view it in the total package of his accomplishments, his achievements, and the power of incumbency, but we should take in all of the data.

The stakes we've said all -- said from the beginning, the stakes of this race are incredibly high. At the end of the day, it is bigger than any one person. That's why there needs to be a focus on this broad coalition that is being built that we will have to stay united because the alternative is so dire for our democracy, for global politics, for reproductive freedoms, for our economy, just for our ability to reunite as a nation those are the real stakes that people are talking about when I talk to them.

CAMEROTA: Yes, let's talk about that, John. Let's talk about your own personal experience.

This week, you just won your primary race, your district won by a margin of 70 to just about 30 percent, obviously, a super impressive margin.

Are there the takeaways from that, that other Democrats should learn from?

AVLON: Look, I actually think what it showed is the enthusiasm, the excitement around our campaign, our volunteers, obviously, our voters. That is I think something that has been in short supply in our politics.

I am incredibly proud that we ran a positive campaign and what I am proud of is that the positive defeated the negative, that we showed that the politics of addition beats the politics of division and that's what is going to need to be the case in the general election.

But you can't buy that kind of enthusiasm, and I think in a time when politics, all the news feels so dire, everything feels very negative. I think when people feel hope, enthusiasm, that energizes and that is ultimately what we need to do to rekindle hope and faith in our democracy.

And we've got one country and its absolutely worth fighting for and I was really humbled by those results.

But now, we take the fight to the fall. Let's go.

CAMEROTA: John Avlon, always great to see you. We will talk again soon.

AVLON: We sure will, Aly. Thank you.

CAMEROTA: Thanks so much.

Still ahead, France's far-right party celebrating a dramatic lead over President Macron in the first round of parliamentary elections. What's next? What it means for the US.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:39:44]

CAMEROTA: Breaking news out of France tonight. The country's far-right party is leading in the first round of parliamentary elections. This is according to projections.

In a surprisingly weak showing, President Emmanuel Macron's Centrist Party took third place. Voter turnout was at 67 percent, that is the highest in a first round in nearly 30 years. This is according to French officials. Round two takes place a week from today.

[19:40:09]

And CNN's Jim Bittermann explains from Paris.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Jubilant cheers filled the headquarters of France's far-right National Rally as projections show the party dominated in the country's first round of parliamentary election.

Seen as a fringe movement, the National Rally could be positioned to assume power and become the first far-right party to enter French government since the Second World War.

The controversial doyen of the party, Marine Le Pen asserted that the second round of voting to be held next week will secure their position.

MARINE LE PEN, NATIONAL RALLY PARLIAMENTARY LEADER (through translator): Democracy has spoken, and the French people have placed the National Rally and its allies in first place.

Nothing has been won and the second round will be decisive.

BITTERMANN (voice over): Complete results of the election are not finalized and much political maneuvering is expected before the second round of voting is held next week, which could determine whether a seismic shift is underway in French politics.

National Rally's leader and Le Pen's protege, 28-year-old Jordan Bardella could be positioned to be welcome France's next prime minister. The child of Italian immigrants, Bardella has maintained the party's nationalist politics and hardline anti-immigration stance.

Across the country and its overseas territories, voters turned out in huge numbers to participate in the high-stakes election. Uncertainty has loomed ever since President Emmanuel Macron suddenly

dissolved Parliament and called for snap elections earlier this month sending shockwaves across the country. Now his gamble appears to have backfired as his alliance of centrist parties faltered in the vote, finishing a third according to projections.

In a statement, the president called for the formation of a broad alliance to block the National Rally from coming to power.

"Faced for the National Rally, the time has come for a broad clearly Democratic and Republican rally for the second round."

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)

BITTERMANN (voice over): The coalition of left-wing parties also had a strong showing coming in a close second, projections show, however, no party achieved an outright majority, possibly leading parliament into a political deadlock.

For now, the preliminary results of the election are being received with intensity, drawing some protesters out to demonstrate in Paris.

(PEOPLE chanting)

BITTERMANN (voice over): As a country with a painful history with fascism and far-right movements, deals with an uncertain future.

Jim Bittermann, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA: And we are tracking Hurricane Beryl, the warm waters in the Caribbean, helping to strengthen it into a monster storm. This is the earliest Category Four hurricane we've ever seen. We will take you live to Cuba, where people are preparing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:47:42]

CAMEROTA: Hurricane Beryl is closing in on the Caribbean after intensifying to a Category Four storm with maximum sustained winds of 130 miles per hour. This is the earliest that a Category Four hurricane has been recorded in the Atlantic.

The storm is expected to bring life-threatening conditions to the Southeastern Caribbean islands.

Moments ago, the island of Tobago issued a rare red level warning urging residents to shelter in place and prepare for a direct hit. Hurricane warnings are also in effect for Saint Lucia, Barbados, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadine Islands.

CNN's Patrick Oppmann is in Havana.

So Patrick, how are people in the path preparing? PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They are making their final

preparations at this very moment. Just think about it, yesterday, a little over 24 hours ago, this was a tropical storm and now it is a Category 5 , a very dangerous Category 5 storm.

People not having a lot of time to prepare because of this rapid intensification. So airports are closing down ahead of the storm's arrival in the Windward Islands. Officials are telling people to make their final preparations at this very moment.

CAMEROTA: How about Cuba? Are you all in the clear?

OPPMANN: In Cuba, we are in the clear. So far, I mean, you can never see it completely in the clear because the storm is going to go across the south. It could always track up. That's happened before.

So this is early in the season, of course, this is a scary thing about it and we are already dealing with a major storm here.

So, you know, we will be keeping an eye on this, but there are many more storms comes to come. Officials are keeping a close eye on Beryl here in Cuba. It will certainly affect Haiti, and his likely to go across into the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, in the United States, the Gulf Coast of the United States is not out of danger yet.

There are those tracks that could bring it up there. It is just too early to tell at this point, but you know, we are not even in July, which is the crazy part of this and you just realize that it is going to be a very long hurricane season.

Officials, climatologists are predicting the busiest season on record for the summer.

CAMEROTA: Yes, you're right. In fact, let's take a listen to what some of those officials are telling us.

[19:50:09]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RALPH GONSALVES, PRIME MINISTER, SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES: I am advising everyone to be where they are supposed to be by sunset, no later than 7:00 PM. You have to be off the road. You must be off the road.

There are instructions to the police to enforce this. You have to take care of yourself. You have to look out for your neighbors, and your friends, and your families.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: Yes. I mean, Patrick, as you pointed out, this is the earliest Category Four ever recorded in the Atlantic.

Patrick Oppmann, thank you very much for being there for us reporting live. All right, still ahead, millions of sharks killed every year. We are

going to take you deep underwater to look at the conflict between fishermen and conservationists. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:55:45]

CAMEROTA: This next story is not about sharks attacking, but being under attack themselves.

According to scientists, about a hundred million sharks are killed every year around the world. CNN anchor, Boris Sanchez takes us on a deep dive to look at the conflict between fishermen and conservationists.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When we feel like we are in a safe position, we are going to dive down and swim with these animals. So I am going to be taking pictures of you with the tiger sharks in the background.

[15:55:05]

Make sure you're looking all around, above, below, all the sides, because these sharks can come from different angles.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: The amount of energy that is spent getting down there, getting close to the shark, keeping up with it, and also keeping your head on a swivel because there were several moments where you're focused on one and a couple of them are behind you or in your peripheral.

So it requires a lot of energy to not only be close to the shark and moving with it, but also to be alert.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is almost the same every time for me. It is that slipping in beneath the water, the world suddenly becomes more silent.

All the things in my mind are pushed to the periphery and I am focused 1,000 percent on these sharks.

It is the most present that I will ever be.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: And Boris Sanchez joins us live now.

Boris, very cool assignment, but I don't understand. You have to keep her head on a swivel. What if there is a shark behind you? What are you supposed to do?

SANCHEZ: It is so fascinating, Alisyn.

So sharks, the majority of them are ambush predators, meaning that they have to catch you off guard. So something as simple as eye contact will award them off.

Now, obviously that doesn't work all the time, but in the circumstance that we were in, these sharks were very curious, tiger sharks especially, they're not known to be shy.

Usually they weigh up to 2,000 pounds. They can get up to 18 feet long and being that curious and that big, yes, it was important to keep our heads on a swivel.

CAMEROTA: Oh my gosh. Did you have any experience before this assignment of diving with sharks?

SANCHEZ: Yes, absolutely. This is a personal passion of mine. It is the way that I try to connect with Mother Nature and it is sort of an experience with a sublime. These animals are dinosaurs.

They've been on this Earth longer than there have been rings around Saturn. They are ancient and as I said, massive and they have the deepest blackest eyes.

And when one of them gets up close to you, there is a moment of recognition. You're looking at it, it is looking at you, it sort of sizes you up and then it moves along. And it seems like it doesn't really care that you're there and its sharing the ocean with you.

And for me, as my friend, Jason Washington said, it is a meditative experience. There is a deep presence, so it is something that I've been doing for a long time and I am really fortunate that I got this chance to talk about the plight that sharks are facing, and also the issue that some fishermen are facing when it comes to having to compete with sharks in order to make a living.

CAMEROTA: Yes, I can't wait to see the whole thing, but I mean, you describe it as meditative, as though it is a super relaxing experience. Are you ever scared when you're in the water with them?

SANCHEZ: I wouldn't say I've ever been scared, but it is certainly a process of acclimation. It is almost like exposure therapy and its meditative because as these things are around you, your inclination is to be scared, for your heart rate to go up, you get anxious, but you have to sort of control your breathing and control what your body is doing.

So it sort of teaches you specifically when you're free diving with sharks to be really calm under pressure and especially knowing that if you show any fear, these animals might have interest in you and you're supposed to control any sign of panic, that's an additional incentive to really enjoy the experience and take it in as it is happening.

CAMEROTA: See, I like the idea of doing it in a cage, but the free diving sounds -- is that an option? I mean, the free diving seems a lot more stressful.

SANCHEZ: It is for certain sharks, certainly for great white sharks, you do not want to be outside of a cage with one of those animals because if they sneeze, something really bad can happen. Fortunately here, we were under the watchful eye of some of the most

experienced shark folks in the world. So we were fortunate to do it.

CAMEROTA: Boris Sanchez, can't wait to watch it. Thanks so much for coming on to promo it for us.

SANCHEZ: Thank you so much, Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: The all-new episode of "The Whole Story" with Anderson Cooper airs next right here on CNN.

Thank you so much for joining me this evening.

I'm Alisyn Camerota. Have a wonderful Sunday night and upcoming week.

[20:00:35]

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