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FBI On Scene Of Explosion At Palm Springs Fertility Clinic; Palm Springs Mayor Calls Explosion Intentional Act Of Violence; Tornado-Spawning Storm System Kills At Least 25 In Missouri And Kentucky; At Least One Killed In Explosion Near Palm Springs Fertility Clinic; Palm Springs Mayor: No Indication Or Concern For Additional Violence After Explosion Near Fertility Clinic; Mounting Problems At Home As Trump Returns From Mideast; Full Audio Released Of Biden's 2023 Interview With Special Counsel; Manhunt Ongoing For 7 Men Still On The Run After Jailbreak By Breaking Wall Behind Toilet; Lone Guard Stepped Away For Food; State Attorneys General Taking Luxury Trips Paid For By Companies They Regulate. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired May 17, 2025 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:28]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: And you're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jessica Dean here in New York.

We are following breaking news though, out of Palm Springs, California, where the FBI is on scene after a deadly explosion at a fertility clinic there. Palm Springs Mayor telling "The Los Angeles Times" that a bomb went off inside a vehicle at or near that building. Another official telling the Associated Press at least one person has been killed in this explosion.

Retired FBI Special Agent, Daniel Brunner and CNN correspondent, Josh Campbell both joining us now.

Josh, we have been getting a lot of information over the last hour. What do we know right now?

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, this occurred around 11:00 A.M. local time here in California in Palm Springs just a couple of hours east of Los Angeles. We are told that there was this explosion, which you can see based on some of our affiliate helicopter footage there, you can see this building impacted as well as nearby buildings.

There was debris that was strewn about the street there near Downtown Palm Springs. We are learning that this was a reproductive facility. It is interesting to note that what we are talking about is not an abortion clinic, but rather a fertility clinic, a clinic that assists people with fertility issues.

And so we know a host of law enforcement, public safety officials are now on scene. That includes, obviously, the Palm Springs Police Department, the Fire Department and now, we are learning that the FBI as well as the ATF are now on scene. That is going to be critical because, as Daniel knows, we both served in the FBI, you have these specialists within the organization that can actually look to try to detect, was there any type of explosive residue in and around that area? Does this have the signature of an actual type of intentional explosion?

Again, were learning from the Associated Press that this is being treated, investigated as a vehicle explosion, but there is still a lot of questions. We don't yet know whether there was potentially a device that was near a vehicle, was it in a vehicle -- that is something that investigators are trying to determine.

We do know that there was one fatality in this incident. One of the doctors that runs this facility spoke to AP and told them that thankfully, none of the employees were impacted, were harmed. There were no patients there at the time of this explosion, but a lot of investigative work that's happening not only at the central point there you see on your screen of the explosion, but authorities in an incident like this would also be wanting to canvass any type of surveillance, CCTV footage around the area, other businesses to try to determine was this an intentional act that the person conducted in real time? Was this a device that was left behind?

A lot of work going on right now though, Jessica.

DEAN: Certainly, and Daniel, as we are talking to you all, we are airing this video over from a chopper, a news chopper over the scene there. You see just how expansive the damage is. We just saw that giant hunk of metal, TBD on exactly what that is or what it could be, but it is a big hunk of metal right there to the back of that fertility clinic.

Daniel, we know that the FBI, the ATF, local officials, as Josh was just laying out all there, trying to ascertain exactly what happened. What exactly are they looking for in terms of when they try to find, I think in a lot of cases like this, people want to know, well, why did this happen? Was somebody trying to make a statement?

As they start to try to figure out the why behind this, what might they be looking for?

DANIEL BRUNNER, RETIRED FBI SPECIAL AGENT: Well, see there is going to be a lot of moving parts. And that's why the FBI is in the best position to really address this, because I am sure a crisis command post has been set up at the local division, where they will be able to coordinate with all the people, all the troops that are coming in.

You're going to have evidence techs working with the bomb techs, working with the squad that is going to be conducting the investigation. So all of these are going to be working in their own separate lanes, but the crisis command center, they're going to be bringing all of that information together understanding it.

So if there is an additional threat, that will be investigated by the investigating team, but they're going to look at the scene, they're going to -- the bomb techs are going to be working with the evidence tech. The crime scene is going to be extensively large because they are looking for the littlest piece of information.

This reminds me and makes me think back to the Eric Rudolph days in the 90s, where he was attacking Planned Parenthood, abortion clinics in the Carolinas. So this is not necessarily be, you know, that they want to kill people, they may be went out to send a message to these clinics that they don't want them to operate. They want people to be in fear.

[18:05:10]

That's why this is going to be dealt as a domestic terrorism investigation and all the pieces are going to be working together, but the FBI has the best tools to put it all together at the same time.

DEAN: Yes, and to your point, they want that if that's the case, that this is to make people fearful. Again, it is underscoring what Josh said, this is a fertility clinic. This is where people go to have children, who desperately want children but have whatever fertility issues they are trying to overcome.

We do know that the doctor that runs that clinic, in addition to saying that none of his staff was injured, which is a miracle looking at this, they didn't have any patients there at the time, also a miracle, that the embryos that they house there, those frozen embryos, which take a lot of time and a lot of money and a lot of effort to create for these people who want to have these children, that those are safe as well. So again, learning some more details as we try to put all of this together.

Josh, we are getting this information from the Palm Springs Police Chief that this explosion does appear to be what they are calling an intentional act. What more do you make of that?

CAMPBELL: Yes, that is critical. I've been talking with law enforcement sources over the past few hours since this incident occurred, and unsurprisingly, initially, they did not know. That was something that they had to try to determine whether this was some type of potential gas leak or whether this was an indeed an act that was done on purpose.

As you mentioned, the Palm Springs Police Chief now saying that at this point in the investigation, they do believe that it was an intentional act. But again, now they are trying to determine who may have been responsible for this as that investigation proceeds with all of the various different agencies that we have been talking about.

Now, there is a lot that investigators may want to keep close to the chest at this point, particularly if they are working to come up with the identity of someone. Again, we don't know if this person may have perished in this incident or the person is still at large that may have been responsible for this.

You know, Daniel mentioned, you know, some past bombing incidents. We know that particularly with vehicles, if it was indeed a vehicle-borne explosive, something that was in and around this vehicle outside that building, that would be critical trying to track back. Where did this vehicle come from?

We know that throughout various automobiles, there are stamped vehicle identification numbers. So even if a blast, you know, makes it unreadable in certain parts, you can look in other areas to try to again, try to track that back, where did this actually come from? And, you know, working these cases, this is so meticulous because, you know, you think about a bombing much like an arson, oftentimes evidence of the attack could perish within the explosion. I've worked in bombing cases where something as small as your fingernail was critical to solving the case. A bomb component, something that authorities can track to a particular area.

So, again, I expect we are going to see this crime scene frozen for a long period of time as they canvass, try to gather all the evidence that they can, again to try to determine who was responsible -- Jessica.

DEAN: Yes, and Daniel, look, we know now from the Palm Springs Police Chief, as we just said, appears to be an intentional act. The Palm Springs Mayor used the word "bomb" to describe this explosion as what the Mayor believes this explosion was.

As you're doing what Josh is laying out, trying to -- what you were just laying out, how long does it take to do all of this? Is this an investigation that moves really quickly? Is this something, as Josh was just saying, that, you know, it could take a long time, that they are going to have to cordon off this area to meticulously piece this all together?

BRUNNER: Well, and those are all great questions and Josh said, it is as meticulous as the smallest little piece of information, the smallest little piece of evidence that's going to be found.

The most important thing right now is that they are going to be slowly processing the scene to ensure that there are not secondary devices. Eric Rudolph, historically, he did that. He placed a bombing at the Planned Parenthood clinic, and then there was a secondary device when the first responders arrived.

Once the area is clear for secondary devices, then the evidence collection begins to make sure that everything is meticulously collected and sent back to the division for the Crisis Command Center to act upon the evidence that they have and the investigation team. Once that process keeps moving, those -- you know, people, those subjects will be identified, they will be processed and they will be collected, there will be search warrants.

There will be cellphone analysis that is going to be conducted at the same time that they're collecting evidence. They want to see what cellphones were in the area. They are going to want to see what was hitting off of the local tower, who was communicating?

So this is a multifaceted investigation. This could travel very slowly or this could be a manifesto online where somebody takes credit for this bombing. Nothing is to be taken for granted. Everything is going to be processed, collected legally, correctly, so that if a subject is captured, he can be processed and seen appropriately in the court system.

[18:10:04]

DEAN: And Josh, as we are looking at this video, you know, we are told that this blast was felt as far as blocks away. Certainly, when we are looking at that overhead video, you can tell how wide, that perimeter is, how vast it is in terms of the explosion.

You can see that neighboring the businesses, not only that, so that's the clinic that you're seeing right now and then near the clinic, just the windows that are blown out on neighboring businesses or buildings, what does that tell you about the power of whatever this explosion was?

CAMPBELL: Yes, this appears to be a very large explosion as we zoom in there. That appears to be what's left of a chassis of a vehicle. Was that the actual vehicle in question where the explosion took place? Again, investigators will be looking to determine that.

Obviously, you have various different pieces of debris that are strewn about the entire area. But to your point, Jessica, you look at all the neighboring facilities there off to your left, you see that damage that was done. We've seen imagery on the street side where it appears that once this detonated, that then, you know, pushed everything out into the street, essentially blasting through that building.

So we are talking about a device that had, you know, somewhat high intensity in order to achieve that kind of damage. And I can just tell you, you know, personally, I mean, this is heartbreaking as someone who goes to Palm Springs often, I am based here in Los Angeles, but this is an area, a community that obviously people call home, but it is also a community that is used to tourists, people coming, you know, to enjoy the desert community.

And we are not talking about that far from the major downtown area where a lot of businesses, a lot of shoppers are, you know, and the like and so the fact that this would happen in that type of community, obviously I am feeling for the people there right now, in a place that I visit often.

But again, this is something that obviously people want to get back to some sense of normalcy. For investigators, there is no timeline. There is not a ticking clock in their view. They're going to try to do this as meticulously as they can again, because they have to get it right. They have to gather that evidence, try to determine who may have been responsible, and then, just as important, try to determine where this person is.

We, again, don't know if this person, you know, perished within the explosion or the person is at large. A lot of work going on right now.

DEAN: Certainly. All right, Josh and Daniel, thank you so much.

Stay with us. We've got the Mayor of Palm Springs up next. He is going to join us with some new information. We are going to take a quick break. We will speak with the Mayor of Palm Springs as they try to sort through what happened there in Palm Springs at that fertility clinic.

We be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:17:21]

DEAN: Taking you now back to our breaking news. The FBI investigating an explosion at a fertility clinic in Palm Springs, California with one official telling the Associated Press, that blast killed at least one person.

The Mayor of Palm Springs, Ron De Harte joins us live now.

Mayor, thank you so much. I know you all are going through a lot right now. What is the latest information you have?

MAYOR RON DEHARTE, PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA: Well, we do know that it appears to be an intentional act of violence and that the blast field extends for blocks with several buildings damaged and some severely damaged.

DEAN: And we've been told at least one person is dead. Is that the number you have as well?

DEHARTE: That's correct, one fatality at this time.

DEAN: And tell us a little bit about this area of town. Tell us about this clinic. I think it has been there for several years now. Obviously, it is a fertility clinic where people go to try to have children. What more can you tell us about this area?

DEHARTE: It is an uptown design district of Palm Springs. Its right across the street from Desert Regional Medical Center. It is not part of the Medical Center campus, but it is on Indian Canyon, which is just one block east of Palm Canyon Drive that everybody is familiar with when they come to Palm Springs.

DEAN: Yes, do authorities and do you have any reason to believe at this point that that this clinic was specifically targeted?

DEHARTE: Yes, we don't have any indication and the investigation will determine those details as it progresses.

DEAN: Have they told you how long that they will have to have that? We are looking at video while were talking to you of just how wide that perimeter is and how they've got it blocked off.

Have they told you how long that that it is going to be like this? That they are going to be doing this really extensive investigation?

DEHARTE: No, we don't have a timeline, but we are asking all residents to stay clear of the area. But if they do come across any evidence to leave it in place and call the non-emergency number, and officers will be with them and collect the evidence that they may find. DEAN: And do you have any indication at this point there is an active search ongoing for anyone involved with this? Have you heard anything about that?

DEHARTE: Well, both the public safety authorities are definitely on top of this right now. I don't have the details of exactly what is going on.

[18:20:06]

We expect to have a briefing in the next couple of hours where we will learn some more details on exactly where the investigation stands.

DEAN: And I am sorry, I couldn't hear. When are you having that briefing?

DEHARTE: It is expected to be in the next several hours.

DEAN: Okay, okay.

And is there any indication at this point that they are -- that they are getting details on why this might have happened?

DEHARTE: No, we don't have the wire who yet? And that's all to come. Certainly, our teams are on top of it right now, but time will get us those details.

DEAN: And does anyone in that area need to be on guard or concerned for their own safety at this point?

DEHARTE: No, we have not -- there is no indication that there is any concern or issues of any additional violence surrounding this whatsoever.

DEAN: And do you have any additional details at this time about that fatality? About the person who died?

DEHARTE: No. No I.D. No way yet to know if that was connected to the bomb. So that investigation is underway.

DEAN: And I know the Governor, Gavin Newsom, has been briefed on this. Have you spoken with him at all? And have you been able to have a conversation with him?

DEHARTE: I have not spoken with the Governor, but I know his office is trying to give me a call.

DEAN: All right. Okay, Mayor, thank you very much. We certainly will look forward to that briefing. I know that it is a tough day for a community when something like this happens. So we are certainly thinking of all of you.

Thanks so much for being here with us.

DEHARTE: Yes, thanks. Thank you.

DEAN: Thank you.

We are going to keep following this breaking news out of palm springs. We will continue to bring you any new information as we get it.

Up next, though, deadly tornado spawning storms pummeling several states in the middle of the country, killing at least 21 people and carving a path of destruction. We will check in on that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:26:40]

DEAN: A violent storm system that tore through parts of the Midwest is being blamed for at least 25 deaths in two states. Large tornadoes were reported in Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana and Missouri.

A St. Louis man captured this video of a twister approaching his house.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is a tornado, man. There is a tornado. Oh. Oh.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: More than a half million homes and businesses across a number of states are without power right now.

Julia Vargas Jones is joining us from St. Louis.

Julia, obviously we saw that video, and now you're standing in the middle of a lot of that destruction. What more are you hearing from people there?

JULIA VARGAS-JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All day people have --

DEAN: Okay, unfortunately, it looks like Julia's signal there is frozen. We are going to try to get back to her and bring you more from St. Louis where those storms hit.

I think we have her back. Let's see -- Julia. Oh, no. We still don't have her.

JONES: Hi, Jessica. Yes, I hope you can hear me now. I hope you can hear me now.

DEAN: I think we can go to Julia now.

JONES: We have really bad signal issues here. This is one of the challenges of being in a disaster zone, right? It is just -- the signal is really bad. Communications are really difficult. What I was telling you is that a lot of this debris has been cleared up by volunteer crews in this neighborhood.

Look, the way that one person described it to me here in this residential neighborhood is that street after street here, it looked like five different tornadoes had hit in one spot. They had never seen anything like this.

They said, you know, this only took about 15 minutes for this level of destruction to appear. And we are talking about entire roofs, entire room of that house over here -- I am not sure that you can see. I hope that our viewers will be able to see this, an entire portion of this house gone.

We've seen so many buildings with the roofs, whole upper floor hit or hit with trees or just totally ripped off by these very, very powerful winds of up to a hundred miles an hour.

This will continue, of course, the cleanup will go on for a long time. The challenge is still actually finding people who might be missing. The number of dead could still go up, both here and in the neighboring states. There will be a curfew tonight starting at 9:00 P.M. and going until 6:00 A.M. tomorrow morning.

There is a concern, of course, because of the lack of power and because people are trying to basically take the cleanup into their own hands, Jessica, that it could be dangerous. So there are a lot of crews. We are seeing so many different power crews, also utility crews trying to assess the damage.

If you see some of our video, there are marks on some of the doors, they have orange marks. That means that the city has already gone through and checked to see that those homes don't have anyone in there, and that they're safe, if they are structurally sound, that people can go ahead and go back in there -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right, Julia Vargas Jones, thank you so much, there in St. Louis. We really appreciate it. It can be tough to get signals out when there have been big storms that come through an area. So thanks for sticking with us on that.

Still ahead, Democratic Party leaders are facing a new wave of tough questions about its future as we hear new audio from President Biden from a now closed classified documents case.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:34:56]

DEAN: And, again, breaking news this evening as the Associated Press reported, one person is believed dead following an explosion in Palm Springs. This happened at a fertility clinic. That's what you're looking at right there. Law enforcement responding to that blast earlier today. It damaged the clinic, as you can see, in a significant way. The city's mayor saying a bomb went off inside a vehicle at or near that building. At this point, there is no indication for concerns or additional violence.

The doctor who runs the clinic told the Associated Press that the explosion did damage its office space. But its IVF lab and all of those frozen embryos are unharmed. We now know the FBI, ATF, and others are there on the scene trying to figure out a motive and exactly what happened. We're going to continue to follow the news and bring you more updates as we get them.

In the meantime, tonight, President Trump is facing several immediate problems after his three-day trip to the Middle East. Questions remain about how to end the war in Ukraine, how to keep prices from rising amid his trade war, and how to get his agenda over the finish line in Congress as GOP hardliners threaten his big, beautiful bill.

Tonight, in a major development, Trump says he plans to hold a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, hoping to reach a ceasefire and finally end the war in Ukraine. And this is coming just days after the Russian leader skipped a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Turkey.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He is at the table, and he wanted this meeting. And I always felt there can't be a meeting without me because I don't think a deal is going to get through. There's a lot of hatred on both sides. I have a very good relationship with Putin. I think we'll make a deal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Meantime, the President is picking a fight with Walmart over rising prices after the company's CEO made it clear early this week that Walmart would raise prices to cover Trump's tariffs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUG MCMILLON, WAL-MART CEO: We will do our best to keep our prices as low as possible. But given the magnitude of the tariffs, even at the reduced levels announced this week, we aren't able to absorb all the pressure given the reality of narrow retail margins.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: The President responding, saying Wal-Mart should, in his words, "eat the tariffs" instead of raising prices, adding, quote, "I'll be watching." Now, all of this coming as Republicans on the Hill fight over how to cut $1.5 trillion in spending while also cutting taxes. Trump warning them, quote, "We don't need grandstanders. Stop talking, and get it done."

And it's now public, the audio from then-President Joe Biden's 2023 interviews with former special counsel Robert Hur. At the time, Biden was being investigated for his handling of classified documents. And although the transcripts were already released, this is the first time we're actually hearing the audio.

It was these conversations that prompted Hur, the special prosecutor, to call Biden, quote, "a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory." CNN's Jake Tapper has more on this.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: What we hear from these excerpts of the Hur report interview in October 8th and October 9th, 2023, is a President Biden who is not functioning the way one would want and expect a President of the United States to be able to function. He's having difficulty with dates. He loses his train of thought quite a bit.

You might remember, also, that President Biden asserted executive privilege to block these audiotapes from coming out, even after the transcripts have been released. The transcripts released right before Robert Hur testified, before Congress, were buried in a lot of the coverage of Hur's testimony, where he was attacked by Democrats for his apparently offensive characterization of President Biden as somebody who he was not going to prosecute for mishandling documents because Robert Hur said he would come across to a jury as a well- meaning elderly man with a poor memory, which - when, of course, that is, if anything, a charitable version of how Biden comes across in these tapes.

We also have to remember that this is the period of time when his close aides and family members start really sequestering him off from even members of his own cabinet, administration, Democratic officials, donors, because of these moments of non-functioning Biden that are happening with an increased frequency.

I want to throw to another clip. This This one is a clip of when Robert Hur, who is investigating mishandling of documents by President Biden, then-former Vice President Biden, in 2017, 2018, wants to ask him about this period where he moves from the vice president's residence to a house on Chain Bridge Road in Virginia, and that is where the conversation begins. Let's roll that clip.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT HUR, FORMER SPECIAL COUNSEL: Where did you keep papers that related to those things that you were actively working on?

JOE BIDEN, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I - I - I don't know. This is, what, 2017, '18, that area?

[18:40:09]

HUR: Yes, sir.

BIDEN: Remember, in this timeframe, my son is either been deployed or is dying, and so it was ...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: So, what you heard there is Robert Hur just trying to talk about the investigative matter at hand, which is when Joe Biden shared these classified documents with others. But vice - then-Vice President Biden is unable to figure out when this time period is. 2017 to 2018, he says, you have to remember that's when my son Beau was either deployed or dying.

Now, Beau's death is obviously tragic, but that happened in 2015, not 2017, 2018. And Beau deployed in 2008, 2009. So, he really doesn't have a grasp on dates, even dates surrounding one of the most important, significant and traumatizing events of his life, the death of his son Beau in May 2015.

And you might remember later on when the Hur report comes out and Robert Hur explains to the world that while he thinks President Biden mishandled classified information, he isn't going to prosecute him because he would come across as a well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory.

President Biden blames Robert Hur for bringing up Beau's death. Robert Hur, as you heard, did not bring up Beau's death. And yet the Democratic establishment, led by President Biden, also Vice President Kamala Harris and others, went after Robert Hur for that false assertion, but also for characterizing President Biden in a way that, frankly, seems rather charitable.

Anyway, we have a lot more about this. My co-author, Alex Thompson - Alex Thompson, who broke this release of this tape with Axios with his - and his colleague Marc Caputo at Axios. Alex Thompson and I have a book coming out on this topic, "Original Sin." It drops Tuesday and you'll find out much more about how bad it really was behind the scenes. Back to you.

DEAN: All right. Jake Tapper, thanks for that.

Still ahead, more breaking news from Louisiana, where an urgent manhunt is underway as authorities fan out from a jail from which several inmates escaped. And investigators think they might have had some help.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:47:15]

DEAN: Breaking news now, as a manhunt is underway right now in the New Orleans area for the seven men still at large after a mass jail breakout Friday morning. Authorities found and arrested three people who broke out already and sent them to a state facility. The local sheriff's office says the inmates breached a wall behind a toilet, that they possibly had some help from the inside. Rafael Romo has the latest on this. Rafael?

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Jessica, the escaped inmates range in age from 19 to 42 years old and face a wide range of charges. Several have been charged with murder. Authorities say they made it out of the jail around 1 A.M. on Friday after breaking open a door and then breaching a wall behind a toilet. They appear to have left graffiti messages about the hole that they crawled through. The message said, quote, "We innocent" and the words, "too easy," "LOL."

Another video released by officials shows the inmates running across Interstate 10 into a neighborhood where authorities say they found clothing. The Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office announced three of those inmates who escaped Friday morning have been recaptured, including 21- year-old Robert Moody, 24-year-old Dkenen Dennis, and Kendell Myles, who is 20 years old. The Sheriff's Office said Moody was caught - thanks to a tip - and are still asking the public to provide information to help them capture the rest of them. As you can imagine, people in New Orleans and the rest of Louisiana are both concerned and outraged about the massive jail break, something that became evident last night during a press conference that turned confrontational.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, no one was watching live video all night at the jail?

MAJOR SILAS PHIPPS JR., ORLEANS PARISH SHERIFF'S OFFICE: I won't say no one was watching live video, but there are --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then how did nobody see them leave the jail?

PHIPPS: -- there are over 900 cameras.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How did nobody see them leaving the jail?

PHIPPS: There are over 900 cameras in this facility, sir.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know. It's just - how did no one see a massive jail break?

But it's your job.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: Some Louisiana officials are not mincing words about what happened, especially after Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson acknowledged that she believed the inmates received assistance in their escape from individuals inside her department. Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams calls the escape of the 10 inmates a, quote, "'complete failure of the most basic responsibilities entrusted to a sheriff or jail administrator.'"

Officials say all the inmates should be considered armed and dangerous. New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said her officers have leads on the escapees still at large, and 200 agents and officers are currently looking for them. Jessica, back to you.

DEAN: All right. Rafael Romo, thanks so much for that. And much more ahead on the breaking news tonight, as one person is believed to be dead after a car explosion outside a fertility clinic in Palm Springs.

[18:50:05]

The FBI has sent bomb technicians to that scene. We're tracking all the latest developments. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:54:50] DEAN: Exclusive trips to luxurious cities around the world, all paid stays in five-star hotels. Those are just some of the perks attorneys general around the country from both political parties are enjoying and paid for in part by the same companies that sometimes they're investigating. CNN's Kyung Lah investigates how lobbyists may be influencing your state officials.

(Begin VT)

KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Among the thousands of international tourists flocking to Rome, Italy, CNN spotted American politicians. This looks like a vacation, but this is a snapshot of how lobbyists and lawyers pay for access to your top state leaders.

Stepping off the tour bus, Attorney General Liz Murrill. She's from Louisiana.

Next, Treg Taylor the attorney general from Alaska, and a few people behind them, the attorney general from Idaho, Raul Labrador, taking in the sights of the Vatican with representatives from some of the very corporations their states regulate. Some of those companies are currently being sued by state AGs.

It's no coincidence that this group of state AGs and competing corporate interests ended up together, standing in line for the Vatican. This is an exclusive Italian getaway, a week-long conference arranged by a group called the Attorney General Alliance, or AGA.

The group picked up the tab for the AGs to travel, business class, to the luxurious five-star Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Rome.

Documents show corporations and lobbyists donate large amounts of money to the AGA, paying to get special access to state attorneys general at foreign trips like this.

"Join us for an unforgettable experience," wrote the AGA in an email invite. While the weeklong itinerary shows some law enforcement meetings in the morning and discussions with Vatican officials. CNN saw guests chauffeured to excursions and captured Maryland's Attorney General Anthony Brown, resting near the pool at the Waldorf. Brown's office tells CNN that he is honored to participate in the bipartisan delegation to address pressing global issues.

Records show the AGA paid more than $14,000 for Brown and his wife's business class tickets to Italy. Along with Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, the AGA also flew her husband to Rome. The man chatting them up is Paul Connell. He works at a law firm which represents BlackRock, a company AG Murrill is suing, but the law firm is also representing Murrill's Department of Justice in another matter, and told CNN that conversations with clients are privileged.

CNN also spotted in Rome multiple other representatives from corporations and law firms, including Kia Floyd from General Motors. GM was slapped with a lawsuit from two different states. The company did not reply to requests for comment. Besides Italy, the AGA has also flown state AGs and their plus ones to Spain, France, and South Africa.

We tried to talk to state AGs earlier this year about why they joined other foreign trips with the AGA.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAH (on camera): Excuse me, sir. Hi. Can I just grab you for one second?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH (voice over): New Mexico's attorney general, Raul Torres.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAUL TORRES, NEW MEXICO'S ATTORNEY GENERAL: We got to run.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH (voice over): Minnesota AG Keith Ellison said international partnerships are important to his state.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEITH ELLISON, MINNESOTA ATTORNEY GENERAL: I understand how this game is played. I mean, us reporters and politicians always, oh, you went on a trip and try to embarrass the politician.

LAH (on camera): The concern from ...

ELLISON: I get it.

LAH: ... ethics.

ELLISON: I know where you're coming from, and I'm just telling you that we have substantive programs, our constituents are disadvantaged if we are not having meaningful conversations with international partners. I'd like to end the conversation right there.

LAH: Thank you for your time.

ELLISON: Thank you. You know, whatever.

LAH: Thank you. I appreciate it. Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LAH (on camera): The AGA tells CNN that they held accredited legal educational sessions that no litigation was discussed, and just because an attorney general accepts an invitation to go on a trip like this, it, quote, "does not in itself constitute impropriety." A record show that Torres did accept the invitation to go to Rome. Ellison did not go on the Rome trip. And we reached out to an ethics professor who says that what we saw in Rome is very challenging to defend, because if this was really about gathering in one place at one time, why not select Chicago in January? Jessica?

DEAN: All right. Kyung Lah, thanks so much for that.

The next hour of Newsroom starts right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.

DEAN: And you are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jessica Dean here in New York. We're following breaking news tonight out of Palm Springs, California. Law enforcement there investigating a large explosion. The mayor telling us at least one person is dead after the blast, which damaged a fertility clinic.

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RON DEHARTE, PALM SPRINGS MAYOR: Well, we do know that it appears to be an intentional act of violence, and that the blast field extends for blocks with several buildings damaged and some severely damaged.

[18:59:59]

We don't have a timeline, but we are asking all residents to stay clear of the area.