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Trump Intensifies Attacks On Judge That Blocked Deportations; Israeli Military Intensifies Operation Inside Gaza; White House Seeks Corporate Sponsors For Easter Egg Roll; Second Lady Usha Vance To Visit Greenland Next Week. Reporters Without Borders Joining VOA Lawsuit Against Trump; Turkey President Erdogan Jails Political Rival On Corruption Charges; Pope Makes First Public Appearance Since Hospitalization; Fire Breaks Out At Epcot Theme Park. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired March 23, 2025 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:42]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jessica Dean in Washington.

President Trump again going after a judge that disagreed with him, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, posting this image on Truth Social last night and accusing the judge of having a, quote, "conflict of interest." This after Judge Boasberg blasted Justice Department lawyers during a fiery hearing on Friday, accusing them of using, quote, "disrespectful language" in their arguments against the judge.

Boasberg has been demanding answers from the White House on why the administration ignored his court orders and used a centuries old law to deport undocumented immigrants to El Salvador, something the president claims that he didn't have anything to do with.

Now, tomorrow, the administration will take this case to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. While the administration has suffered some legal setbacks in pushing its bold agenda, the White House has its eyes set on the Supreme Court and its conservative majority.

Joining us now to talk more about this, CNN's Supreme Court analyst Steve Vladeck. He's also a law professor at Georgetown University.

Steve, thanks so much for being here with us to kind of walk through a little bit of this. I spoke with a senior adviser for the Trump transition team, Jason Miller, in the last hour, and I asked him if the administration, if they didn't do anything wrong with these deportations, if they didn't defy an order, then why not just cooperate with the judge and what he's asking for. Here was his response.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JASON MILLER, SENIOR ADVISER TO TRUMP PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION TEAM: But I think what we're seeing here is the fact that we have a runaway judiciary. We have these district courts who are trying to step in and make laws to impact then effectively, or make precedent that would impact the entire country. So I think this is really something where you have one branch of the government, the judiciary, which is trying to overstep both the legislative and the executive.

And I think this is a real problem. You know, there are certain safeguards that are in place, but when you have the will of the people, you have 77.3 million Americans, 312 electoral votes, all going to support President Trump in this last election. the people want President Trump to be able to implement his policies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: So, Steve, you hear him there essentially saying that, making this argument the election gave the president a mandate that no judge can take away. Do you agree with that assessment?

STEVE VLADECK, CNN SUPREME COURT ANALYST: No. And, you know, if that were a valid argument, then we wouldn't have much point in having a federal judiciary in this country. I mean, you know, Jessica, you know, this that the reason why the Constitution creates an independent judiciary, judges who were not elected, is entirely so that you have judges who can stand up to exactly what Jason Miller is talking about, to presidents with far more of a mandate than President Trump has, who are nevertheless doing things that are unlawful.

And, you know, I think it's especially telling that he didn't actually answer your question. He didn't explain why judicial review in this context is so problematic. He didn't point out that under every other prior invocation of the Alien Enemy Act, even in the middle of World War II, we had robust judicial review. And so I think, you know, it's really an effort to sort of distract from the fact that judicial review is actually central to our constitutional system, not antithetical to it.

DEAN: Yes. And Trump last night, again, attacking Judge Boasberg, who, as we have noted, has yet to rule since that hearing on Friday. What kind of impact do those comments, those attacks have here?

VLADECK: I mean, you know, I think the good judges, the best judges that we have in our system, it has no impact at all. I mean, they're going to do their job no matter what, swirling around outside of them.

Jessica, that's why it's so important that they are independent. It's why it's so important that we don't elect our judges. They don't have to stand for reelection. They don't have to stand for retention. But, you know, there are broader impacts. I mean, I think this kind of rhetoric is dangerous because, you know, it increases the threats that these judges and Supreme Court justices receive.

You know, we saw an effort last week to dox Judge Boasberg's daughter. And I think there's a real concern that you are, through these attacks, through these statements, delegitimizing the judges in a way that might incentivize the worst actors to actually take it into their own hands. That's just as much a threat to judicial independence as would be a president defying these court orders.

DEAN: And Trump's National Security adviser Mike Waltz defended the use of the Alien Enemies Act in this case. This is how he described it. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE WALTZ, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: We are saying that TdA is acting as a proxy of the Maduro regime.

[19:05:04]

This is how the Alien and Sedition Act applies, and we cannot have district judges interfering with the commander-in-chief's actions to take care of in the way he deems necessary a terrorist organization.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Now, Waltz didn't give any evidence as to this assessment, but this is a largely untested law, as you know, it has not been used since World War II. Is the play here they just wanted to end up at the Supreme Court?

VLADECK: Maybe. I mean, I think, Jessica, it's really important to separate out two different questions. So the first question is, can the act be invoked against Tren de Aragua at all? And you know, there I think the president is on pretty shaky footing, but at least there's a specter of an argument that maybe you can sort of squint and kind of equate Tren de Aragua to a quasi-national regime.

But, Jessica, there's the second layer here, which is let's assume that that's true, or let's assume at least that the courts are going to hold as much, there's still tons of precedent from World War II, from World War I, from the war of 1812, where individual people who were picked up under the statute had the right to go to court and say, actually, I'm not a British national during the war of 1812. I'm not a German national during World War I. I'm not an Italian national during World War II. And courts meaningfully reviewed that.

And so what's really unprecedented here is not what the courts are doing. What's really unprecedented is the argument that the government can point at somebody and say, you're a member of Tren de Aragua, and we can remove you without giving you any judicial review at all.

Jessica, the problem is, if they can do that here, why can't they point at anybody and say that? That's why the role of the courts here is actually so important, and really not nearly as controversial as I think the administration is trying to make it out to be.

DEAN: And to that end, we saw a rare rebuke from Chief Justice John Roberts this week. He released that statement. Part of it said for more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.

Now, he obviously did not mention Trump by name, but it followed Trump's calls to impeach Judge Boasberg. So that's where the impeachment piece comes. And then there was also just this idea that there is so much pressure on these judges.

Do you think that is inevitably leading to some sort of showdown between both the Supreme Court and Trump, but even Justice Roberts and Trump?

VLADECK: It might be. I mean, I think that's going to depend a lot on Trump. These cases are obviously heading to the Supreme Court. I mean, you mentioned at the top that the Alien Enemies Act case is going to be argued on at least an emergency basis before the federal appeals court in Washington as early as tomorrow. I think the question is, when these cases get to the Supreme Court, not if, what happens when Trump loses because he's going to lose at least some of these cases.

And, you know, there are a lot of folks who think that the administration is setting itself up to defy an adverse ruling from the Supreme Court. I guess I'm not as persuaded. I mean, I think that there's a difference between dragging your feet and complaining and trying to work the refs and outright defiance. And at least so far, the president has said that he'll comply with the Supreme Court decision.

Jessica, one way or the other, I think we're going to find out pretty soon.

DEAN: Yes, it is going to be really interesting to watch that play out. I also want to ask you about this White House memo issued last night. It directs the attorney general, Pam Bondi, to, in its words, sink sanctions against attorneys and law firms who engage in frivolous, unreasonable and vexatious litigation against the government. These are private law firms.

What does this mean? I know we would probably need more time to break this down, but just kind of your first glance at this. What does this mean and how could it affect private law in this country?

VLADECK: Yes, I mean, it's part of a broader pattern that we're seeing from this administration, really a concerted effort to chill lawyers out of suing the federal government. And it seems like that's a very dangerous road to walk down because, you know, the rule of law in this country doesn't just depend upon an independent judiciary.

But, Jessica, it depends upon lawyers who are in a position to bring cases before those independent judges. And so I think, you know, what we're seeing is a really dangerous, concerted effort on the part of the Trump administration to make lawyers think twice before they challenge what the government is doing.

You know, given how unprecedented so much of what the government is doing is, I think we should be encouraging litigation that resolves the legality of what's happening, not discouraging it. And yet, the administration is, you know, pushing in exactly the opposite direction.

DEAN: All right, Steve Vladeck, thank you so much. Some really good context around these big questions. We really appreciate it.

VLADECK: Thanks, Jessica.

DEAN: Still ahead, Israel escalating its offensive in southern Gaza as health officials there say more than 50,000 Palestinians have now been killed since the start of the war. We'll take you there.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:14:40]

DEAN: New developments now as Israel intensifies its military operations in southern Gaza. Today, an Israeli airstrike hit a hospital there, killing multiple people, including Hamas says a member of its political bureau. Israel confirming it carried out that attack, saying it was targeting a key Hamas terrorist who was working inside.

Now this assault comes as the Hamas-run Palestinian Health Ministry says more than 50,000 people have now been killed since the war began.

[19:15:04]

This is not a number that CNN can independently verify.

CNN international producer Sebastian Shukla has more on this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEBASTIAN SHUKLA, CNN INTERNATIONAL PRODUCER: A grim milestone in Israel's war with Hamas came today, as the Palestinian Health Ministry announced that 50,000 Palestinians had died since Israel launched its Gaza offensive in the wake of the October 7th attacks.

The numbers announced by the Hamas run ministry mark a grave moment in the conflict, as tensions are growing once again after Israel upended the ceasefire in Gaza by restarting offensive operations in the strip and Israel and Lebanon traded blows, ending what was an equally uneasy truce between the two neighbors.

In response to the Hamas run ministry's arithmetic, the IDF told CNN the Hamas controlled ministry's figures are replete with inconsistencies and false determinations, adding that the ministry tends to record deaths unrelated to the conflict, such as natural causes, before saying the IDF operates according to international law.

Despite those numbers, the IDF has continued and ramped up operations in the Gaza Strip overnight as member of Hamas's political bureau, Salah al-Bardawil, was killed alongside his wife in a tent in Khan Younis. The IDF today has also been conducting operations in the district of Rafah. The IDF saying that they have destroyed what they call terror infrastructure and according to the Palestinian Authority, the IDF have been displacing tens of thousands of Palestinians from their homes in makeshift tents.

Renewed actions inside Gaza come as Israel ratchets up pressure on Hamas to return the remaining Israeli hostages, both dead and alive, still held there since October 7th and blaming the group for refusing to agree revised terms on the first phase of the ceasefire deal. Hamas, though, for their part say they are still fully engaged with the mediators and are deliberating on a proposal delivered by Donald Trump's Middle East peace envoy, Steve Witkoff.

Sebastian Shukla, CNN, Berlin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Thanks, Sebastian.

Earlier tonight, I spoke with Brett McGurk. He was the lead negotiator in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage deal. And here's what he told me it would take to get that agreement back into place.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRETT MCGURK, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: It's tragic. It's heartbreaking. We want to see the ceasefire get back. And there's one formula. And it's actually pretty simple to get the ceasefire back in place. There's a formula on the table where Hamas can agree to release a number of hostages. There's 25 living hostages still in Gaza. They can release a set number, and you'll have another 40 to 50 days of a ceasefire to negotiate the ultimate arrangements to end the war.

I know a lot about this agreement that's in place. To get to phase two, which they're talking about right now, the agreement says you have to agree on the conditions for phase two, the conditions for phase two mean Hamas ultimately has to relinquish its power and authority over Gaza. I know that's hard, but, you know, Fatah, the legitimate Palestinian ruling authority in the West Bank, stated just yesterday, really, for the first time, that Hamas must relinquish its authority over Gaza for the sake of Gazans and to get a ceasefire in place.

That is critical. There are talks ongoing behind the scenes here. What Israel is doing is targeting very deliberately the leaders of Hamas that are purporting to be part of the politburo that would control Gaza once the war is over. Hamas will not be in charge of Gaza once the war is over. That is impossible. Israel is making that clear. But the path here back to the ceasefire is a hostage release. It's really as simple as that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: McGurk also said there is no path for peace for Gaza unless Hamas relinquishes his authority, as he said there, something that will take pressure and negotiation.

Still ahead, ethics concerns at the White House as event planners hunt for corporate sponsors at the upcoming Easter Egg Roll. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:23:20]

DEAN: The White House Easter Egg Roll could look a lot different this year. The White House is taking the unprecedented step of seeking corporate sponsors for this year's event, which dates back to the 1800s and has long been privately funded without taxpayer dollars. As CNN's senior White House producer Betsy Klein explains, the move is

now raising some ethics concerns.

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE PRODUCER: So, Jessica, the White House, through an outside production company called Harbinger, is soliciting corporate sponsorships for this year's Easter Egg Roll. They range from $75,000 to $200,000 and offer logo and branding opportunities.

Now, I obtained this nine-page document that's being sent to prospective sponsors, and when I showed it to a range of ethics experts and former White House officials on both sides of the aisle, the overwhelming reaction was shock and concern.

Now, the egg roll has been privately funded for many years. What's different this year is this explicit promise of logo and brand activations. I just want to read to you some of the promised sponsorship perks from this document. Naming rights for key areas or elements, sponsor logos featured on event signage. Custom branded baskets, snacks, beverages or souvenirs and mentions in official event communications and social media posts.

Sponsors will also receive tickets to the event and access to a brunch hosted by the first lady, as well as a private White House tour. Now all of the money raised is going to go through the White House Historical Association to pay for event production and any excess funds raised a source familiar with planning tells me it's going to go to similar events like Halloween and the 4th of July.

Now, the concern I am hearing from a range of ethics experts and former officials here is twofold. Number one, this document itself, the access and branding, it is promising. I talked to Richard Painter, who was in the White House Counsel's Office during the Bush administration.

[19:25:02]

He told me this pitched document wouldn't have gotten through counsel's office in most other administrations, and he said it would have been vetoed in about 30 seconds in his day. And second, what actually happens and what it looks like to have logos and branding on the South Lawn and on social media. We still don't know if those promised social media mentions will be from official White House accounts.

All of this directly goes against regulations prohibiting public officials from promoting private business. But of course, this is a regulation, Jessica, not a criminal statute.

DEAN: All right, Betsy Klein, thanks for that report.

And joining us now to talk more about this CNN media analyst and media correspondent for Axios, Sara Fischer.

Sara, good to see you. This is a fine line that the White House is walking here. What is your sense of if businesses will be eager to participate?

SARA FISCHER, CNN MEDIA ANALYST: I'm sure they're going to be eager to participate. I mean, the White House Easter Egg Roll gets so much coverage. If you go on Getty Images, which is the photo provider for every major news company, there are thousands of photos from the Easter egg roll every year because it's fun. You have this huge Easter Egg Bunny who's dressed up, you have kids on the lawn, you have usually celebrities and musical guests. So if there are locals planted everywhere, it's a great marketing and branding opportunity.

I will say, the thing that's unusual about this is that typically when you go to one of these Easter egg rolls, I've been a few times, the whole celebration is meant to feel like a celebration of the holiday at the White House. It's not meant to feel very branded and very corporate, and so inviting those types of brands in, I'm wondering how that changes the feel of the event.

But to Betsy's point, it's just an unusual thing. Typically, the government, when they partner with private sectors, it's not done in this very publicized way. Part of that is just to keep the decorum of the White House. The other part of it is because you don't want some sort of quid pro quo, meaning you don't want someone to come in and say, I'm going to buy out all of the government's events and with the hopes that the government is going to be more lenient with me in terms of regulation or things like that. That's typically why these things tend to be very low key.

DEAN: Yes. And you mentioned the brand of the White House. Look, anything you go to their -- they've branded everything, branded little candies that they hand out, especially at the Easter egg roll. It's all your right. Branded around the White House itself. So the idea that you would have these kind of corporate like logos does feel so different in addition to all the other kind of layers of this we're talking about.

FISCHER: Yes. And you know, I'll say different parts of government do partner with private sector companies all the time. Like my company Axios, we partnered with the State Department on a big thing around women's sports this last year. So it's not uncommon to partner and co- brand with private companies. It's really going to depend on how it looks and feels when we get there. So I'm very curious to see that.

If this is super subtle, you know, that might be a different thing. If it's very in-your-face, then the White House Easter roll essentially becomes a big marketing opportunity for brands. And we've never really seen that with government events like this before.

DEAN: Yes. I also want to ask you about something else. Greenland is back in the headlines. The Second Lady Usha Vance is set to travel there this week as part of what the White House is describing as a cultural visit. Walk us through the political significance of this trip, how people will view it.

FISCHER: It's super interesting, Jessica, because on the campaign trail, Greenland was not something that Donald Trump was prioritizing and talking about a lot. And then he gets into office and says the U.S., you know, should take over Greenland. And I think a lot of Trump voters were almost surprised by that. It wasn't something that was being touted.

You know, Usha Vance going over there and doing a cultural trip just sort of reinforces the idea that even though taking over Greenland is not at the forefront of Donald Trump's agenda right now, it's not something that he's letting up. If it was, there's no way that the second lady of the United States would be going over there to do a cultural trip.

DEAN: Yes. And Sara, you also have some new reporting on a legal battle brewing between the Trump administration and U.S. funded international news outlet Voice of America after the president signed an executive order to shutter that news outlet. So a new group is joining that lawsuit. Tell us about your reporting here.

FISCHER: Yes. It's incredible. So you have a few former employees and I say former because at this point, the Trump administration has said that those people are no longer going to have their jobs and they defund the agency. And Reporters Without Borders is essentially coming in with a few government employee groups to sue the Trump administration to essentially say that they want to stop this, file an injunction, do not let this ban go forward for two reasons.

One, you have actual employees who need to pay their bills, their mortgages. Some of them are linked to visas and they need support. If they cannot get the support of VOA and USAGM, they're going to be sent back to countries that are, you know, autocratic, that are punishing journalists for speaking the truth. So you have that problem that they need to address. And then the other is just saving this agency that's been around, Jessica, for more than 80 years.

I mean, the VOA was created after World War II to stop Nazi propaganda. That's how far back the tradition is at the VOA. And so this lawsuit is not just to, you know, halt what Donald Trump is doing, but it's to reinforce protections for the VOA and for USAGM. I should note that the VOA sister company, Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty, is also filing a lawsuit in response to the Donald Trump administration trying to shut them down.

And so, you now have two big legal battles brewing over government funded media. I'm very curious to see where these things land. As a journalist, it's one of the most important sort of First Amendment media cases that we're going to be facing this year.

[19:30:16]

DEAN: All right, more to come on that. Sara Fischer, always good to see you. Thank you so much.

FISCHER: Thank you.

DEAN: Still ahead, Turkey has seen days of massive protests after the country's leader arrested his main political rival. Next, were talking with a Turkish activist and former NBA player about what's happening in his country. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:35:12]

DEAN: Today, a Turkish court jailed the mayor of Istanbul on corruption charges in a crackdown against opposition to the country's President Erdogan.

Erdogan is considered by many to be a strongman type leader, and Istanbul's mayor is considered his most serious political rival. The mayor was arrested just days before he was to be registered as a candidate in the next presidential election.

Tens of thousands of people this week took to the streets in more than a dozen cities to protest. Hundreds have been detained by Turkish authorities. Former NBA player, Enes Kanter Freedom joins us now.

Thanks so much for being here with us. We're really happy to talk to you about this tonight. I know that, you know firsthand what it feels like to be under the microscope of the Turkish president. What is your reaction to the arrest of his political opponent and the protests that were seeing? Tell us what you've been thinking.

ENES KANTER FREEDOM, FORMER NBA PLAYER: Thank you for having me. I mean, thousands of -- hundreds of thousands of people are taking the streets and protesting against a dictator Erdogan. I actually have been talking about Erdogan and his brutal regime in a very long time and no dictator tolerates any threat to their power.

You know, Ekrem Imamoglu, I believe the greatest threat to Erdogan and actually capable of defeating him even in an unfair election, have been arrested and sent to Silivri Prison, where they held thousands of political prisoners.

And, you know, there are actually many other examples, like the Kurdish leader Selahattin Demirtas. So long story short, to be able to qualify for the Turkish presidency, a candidate must hold an undergraduate degree. Around two weeks ago, in a blatant attempt to disqualify Ekrem Imamoglu's authorities, and yield, all of a sudden they canceled his degree and they put him in prison.

So, right now, as you see, many thousands of people actually are taking the streets and saying enough is enough. We are tired of his brutal regime and we need a change immediately.

DEAN: And help people -- familiarize people with your personal experience in all of this.

FREEDOM: Well, I mean, Erdogan actually put my dad in jail. And, you know, it's been 11 years that I haven't seen or talked to my family and people know my story because I play in the NBA. But there are thousands of families are in jail waiting for help.

So, I am calling on internationally, I'm calling on the European Union and actually America to take a strong stance against Erdogan regime. And actually, the words are not enough, we have to take concrete actions or Erdogan is definitely going to destroy a NATO ally.

DEAN: And so what kind of stories? I'm sure you're talking with friends back home. What are you hearing from them as all this is unfolding?

FREEDOM: People are not happy. Economy is going down. And Erdogan wants to dictate the whole country. And now, we are talking about a NATO ally. But as you see, Erdogan is, you know, has very close relationship with Putin, Ali Khamenei, Iran and many other dictatorships and I believe Erdogan is the Trojan Horse for Putin in NATO. They just got kicked out of F-35 program because they wanted to buy S-400s from Russia.

So, it's been very challenging times for Turkey, but I am hopeful. I believe that, you know, the brave people of Turkey, as you see, are taking the streets and saying -- enough is enough. We are tired of his brutal regime and we need a change immediately.

Turkey plays a very important role, but unfortunately it's a lost case when Erdogan is in power these days.

DEAN: And so, we're watching video from the protests. As you're talking to us. These have now been going on for several days. And it is -- they continue to go on. How long do you think this can continue? Is there a tipping point, do you think, for Erdogan here?

FREEDOM: There are so much, you know, police brutality, actually, the police has been given orders by Erdogan is actually beating up peaceful protesters. And I think, you know, I believe the people of Turkey are very strong and very brave. They are going to continue to protest it. But unfortunately, you know, they've been getting attacked a lot by police and I'm just afraid of my country because once the military, you know, steps in, it can it can become very ugly.

[19:40:06]

So, I am praying for my good country, but unfortunately this is heartbreaking, what's happening over there. You know, the leaders like Selahattin Demirtas or Ekrem Imamoglu shouldn't be in jail -- so yes.

DEAN: Yes, all right, Enes Kanter Freedom, we really appreciate your time. Thank you so much and we're wishing your family the best. Thank you.

FREEDOM: Of course, thank you.

DEAN: Still ahead Pope Francis now back at the Vatican after spending weeks in the hospital. How the 88-year-old is doing and what his plans are for the Easter Season.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:45:22] DEAN: Pope Francis is now back at the Vatican this morning, making his first public appearance since being hospitalized five weeks ago. The 88-year-old pontiff was being treated for double pneumonia. Doctors now say he is stable and will continue to recover from his home for at least the next two months.

Katie McGrady is the host of "The Katie McGrady Show" on Sirius XM's Catholic Channel and joins us now. Katie, thanks so much for being here with us. We did get to see the --

KATIE MCGRADY, SIRIUS XM CATHOLIC CHANNEL, HOST OF "KATIE MCGRADY SHOW": Yes, happy to be back.

DEAN: Yes -- the Pope this morning for his first public appearance since going into the hospital. What did you think when you saw him?

MCGRADY: I was excited to see the Holy Father. You know, it's been a long five weeks. We got the photo of him last week from the chapel, which was very encouraging to see. Although his hand looked a little swollen. And of course, you know, we didn't see him from the front, so this was great. It was great to get to see him. It was good to have eyes on our Papa, as we affectionately call him.

I will say, you know, I think every Catholic around the world kind of did the same thing that you do when you see an elderly person who's had a long hospital stay. We went, oh, look, he's looking like he's been in the hospital for five weeks. And that takes a toll on somebody.

But he gave his thumbs up. He was his classic Francis with his thumbs up. And he saw someone in the crowd, a grandma, Carmela Mancuso and she had brought flowers, and he pointed her out. And then, in classic Francis fashion, he then took those flowers to Saint Mary Major Basilica, his favorite place in Rome, and had somebody bring them inside in front of the Salus Populi Romani.

So, I think he's still himself and it's a real gift to get to see him, even if we know he's been there for five weeks.

DEAN: Yes, that's a great point. And now so -- now, we look at his recovery, just reminding everyone he's 88. He's been in the hospital for about five weeks. That's going to -- and they say they want him to recover for the next couple of months. What more can you tell us about what that process might look like, what the setup might be like.

MCGRADY: So, some Italian reporters were sharing that the Holy Father will have nurses and a doctor on the second floor of the Casa Santa Marta, which is where his apartment is, his residence at the Vatican, 24/7.

So, the Holy Father is not just being sent home to just kind of resume his normal schedule. He'll have care. I'm sure they've outfitted it with some of the necessary things. We know that he's still on oxygen. In fact, when he went in the car, we saw the nasal cannulas were back in his nose. So, the continued therapies, whether its motor therapies and physiotherapy and of course, we know that he's beaten pneumonia, but there's continued concerns about further infections.

So, he's going -- not be under lock and key. We're certainly going to see the Holy Father. In fact, if you go to the Vatican website, they have the activities posted for the Holy Father. We have one event on the calendar, April 6th, which is the Jubilee for Health Care Workers, how appropriate.

And so, we know that he will resume some activities. There's not going to be group gatherings. I would be shocked if we see Wednesday and Saturday audiences coming back anytime soon.

I think we'll see him at the window for the Angelus on Sunday and will of course, receive these every now and then, medical reports. He's continuing therapies or, you know, God forbid he takes a turn for the worse. But they wouldn't be sending him home if they didn't think he could continue these therapies from home and we know they will continue there.

DEAN: And then the Easter Season is nearly upon us. What do you -- how much do you think he'll be able to participate in all of that.?

MCGRADY: You know, that is kind of the million dollar question. We've got a month. Easter is April 20th, and then the big thing leading up to Easter, of course, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday.

Pope Francis has always gone and celebrated Holy Thursday in a prison and wash the feet of prisoners. I would be surprised if we see that this year, but I imagine he is pushing his handlers to let him do that.

Good Friday, we always have the Stations of the Cross at the Coliseum. Now, very famously, many, many years ago, John Paul II live streamed those Good Friday Stations of the Cross and they patched in a video of the Holy Father from his apartment. I would be surprised if they did that with Francis. I think he's going to try everything he can to be there, or at the very least, to lead them from somewhere.

And then, of course, we have Easter, which is a huge to do with the Urbi et Orbi Blessing. So, with all of that coming up, I wouldn't be surprised. My guess is that throughout April we see very limited Francis public appearances, because they're going to try to get him ready for Holy Week, for Easter, and then a huge canonization on April the 27th for Blessed Carlo Acutis.

So, I feel like that's what were kind of watching for. How much are they letting him do? Because we're getting ready for those big days in the Catholic calendar.

DEAN: All right, Well, we will see. Katie, thanks again for being here with us. We appreciate it.

MCGRADY: Absolutely, thanks so much.

DEAN: All right, we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:54:44]

DEAN: New details about a fire that broke out at Epcot at Walt Disney World in Orlando. A Disney spokesperson telling CNN some equipment caught fire in a backstage area at the French Pavilion, Saturday. That meant visitors had to be evacuated from the area. As you see there, heavy smoke filled the air. Disney officials say the flames were put out and the pavilion was reopened.

[19:55:06]

DEAN: The past ten years were the hottest ever recorded. That's according to a report from some of the world's very top climate scientists. The record heat helped fuel disasters across the globe. Hurricanes, floods and wildfires only getting worse, costing the U.S. Billions of dollars in damage every year.

This week on "The Whole Story" with Anderson Cooper, CNN's chief climate correspondent ,Bill Weir travels the globe to see for himself some of the innovative solutions that could allow us to build safe and sustainable communities that can withstand these climate disasters.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It was the Spring of 2020, and the height of the global pandemic, so they kicked me out of the hospital after just one precious hour.

WEIR (on camera): What's up big man?

WEIR (voice over): That's when it hit me. This kid could live to see the 22nd Century. But what will be left?

WEIR (on camera): The fire season has gotten hotter and longer.

WEIR (voice over): Given everything I see on the climate beat, the very thought filled me with dread. The trillion ton monster made of fossil fuel pollution is only getting bigger, and the weather is only getting weirder.

So, I couldn't help but wonder, where should he live? What kind of shelter? How can he power his life in harmony with everything else? Survive and thrive in the age of flood and fire? So, this is a search for the helpers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When we harness the solar power, it makes you feel great that you're self-generated.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Push a button and then it pushes itself out of the water.

WEIR (voice over): The hidden heroes --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not only is it more energy efficient, but it actually could save lives.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I tested materials these guys wanted to use. And as it's flaming in my hands, I throw it down and say, were not using that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: And Bill Weir joins us now. Bill, I love that your son was the inspiration for all of this. And I love the fact that through a father's love, we're able to find some hope for living in this world where we keep seeing more and more climate disasters.

WEIR: Absolutely, and there's so much out there, so much innovation, so many amazing communities that serve as role models. River is almost five years old now, and I've learned over that time on the climate beat that stories like "The Three Little Pigs" take on a new meaning and the Big Bad Climate Wolf is blowing. I get to see it huffing and puffing on these fires and floods around the world, but there's always the people that build like the third pig, the pig that had the shelter that was strong enough to house the other two and --

DEAN: The third one, yes.

WEIR: -- you know, and so, we have to start thinking like the third little pig, because that wolf is only getting bigger and stronger and the worst kind of natural disaster or unnatural disaster is one in which no lessons are learned.

So, that's why I went looking for. And this, this hour is packed with examples.

DEAN: And did it give you some confidence that people could keep living in really vulnerable places, California, Florida, places like that?

WEIR: Absolutely, yes. We went to Babcock Ranch, Florida, first solar powered town in America has taken now two direct hurricane, major hurricane, it's never lost power, never flooded because they built in harmony with nature and the natural water tables they're engineered for these storms.

Out West, Paradise, California, five years after that massive storm, the people who stayed really want to be there and really want to learn how to live with fire. So, what they do with construction?

This -- what you're seeing now is a floating neighborhood in the Netherlands, where it's in a cleaned up shipping canal where these homes, they don't look like houseboats that we think of them, but entire neighborhoods that become much more flexible. You can move a restaurant or a school depending on the need.

And in an age of rising sea levels, places like Florida are going to have to figure stuff like this out. And so, there's so many innovative ideas, a lot of them for many years in the climate space, nobody wanted to talk about adaptation because that felt like surrender. You had to talk purely about mitigation, stop the pollution, transition away from fossil fuels. But too much time has gone by. Now, everybody has to sort of do both.

And so, hopefully tonight's special sparks a lot of ideas in communities around the country. Because really, regardless of what's happening sort of globally or nationally, a lot of these ideas can be employed with just some motivated citizens at the local level, wherever you are.

DEAN: Yes and we talked about this on Friday, and I was struck by how you said it. You said people can keep living here. It's just not going to be in the same way, which I think is a kind of a good reframing for all of this. And you visited a home in, I believe it was the Palisades that didn't burn down in the fires.

WEIR (voice over): Exactly. This went viral on Reddit because on the street where every other house was burned to ash, this one home, looked like it was brand new, and it was designed to be fire smart and fire safe. Design ideas and materials. There's a premium on that now. That's the home you're looking at right there.

You can see no eaves or gables or vents to suck in embers there. It looks like a Monopoly house some would say, but it survived. And in a place like Southern California, where the ecology is there to burn, and you either fit into that ecology or you don't. And some of the great bursts human innovation came during climate change if you look back through human history and this could be the smart surviving.

DEAN: All right, Bill Weir, thank you so much. That all new episode of "The Whole Story" of Anderson Cooper starts right now at eight o'clock only on CNN.

In the meantime, thank you so much for joining me this evening. I'm Jessica Dean here in Washington. We're going to see you again right back here next weekend.

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