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Guthrie Family Still Waits For Nancy; GOP Lawmaker Calls For Howard Lutnick To Step Down; Seattle Seahawks Won Super Bowl; Japan With New Prime Minister; President Herzog Visits Sydney; Russia Ramps Up Strikes On Ukraine's Energy Infrastructure; Storms Cause Damaging Flooding In Spain And Portugal; Lindsey Vonn Hospitalized After Crash In Women's Downhill. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired February 09, 2026 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BEN HUNTE, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello. Wherever you are in the world, you are now in the CNN Newsroom with me, Ben Hunte in Atlanta, and it is so good to have you with me.

Coming up on the show, more than one week on, the search is intensifying for the mother of a U.S. television host in a case that's captivated the nation. A historic election victory. Japan's conservative prime minister wins a snap election by a landslide, and the markets do take notice.

Plus, the Seattle Seahawks are celebrating their Super Bowl win. We'll have all of the highlights, including that much-talked about halftime show.

UNKNOWN: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN Newsroom with ben Hunte.

HUNTE: Welcome. The search for the missing mother of Today Show host Savannah Guthrie is intensifying ahead of Monday's reported ransom deadline at 5 p.m. local time in Arizona. Investigators returned to Nancy Guthrie's home on Sunday, but have still not publicly identified any suspects linked to her disappearance just over a week ago. The alleged ransom note reportedly threatens Nancy's life and is demanding $6 million in Bitcoin in exchange for her safe return.

CNN's Ed Lavandera is in Tucson with the latest on the search.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It has now been more than a week since Nancy Guthrie was abducted from her home here in Tucson. And there is still no word on where she might be or what her fate is in all of this. So we're following this story in a couple different fronts. Obviously we know that Savannah Guthrie, Nancy's daughter and her siblings had put out the latest video on Saturday afternoon saying and communicating to the author of these alleged ransom letters that the family would indeed pay an affiliate here in Tucson.

KGUN is saying that that amount could be as much as $6 million. But we do not have any kind of follow up as to, whether or not that response from the Guthrie's has triggered another response from the ransom letter writer. We still await news on that.

And we're also following and watching investigators continue returning home where Nancy Guthrie lives in this neighborhood in Tucson. We've seen them on Sunday going through continuing more searches around the property and in the surrounding area. And even on Saturday night, we saw a small number of sheriff's deputies at the home of Nancy Guthrie's daughter Savannah's sister who lives here in Tucson about 15-20 minutes away.

They spent about three hours inside the home. We saw an investigator come out wearing latex gloves, another investigator perhaps carrying a bag. We're unsure of what the contents are, putting it one of the law enforcement vehicles as I said. They spent about three hours out there late Saturday night as well.

So, sheriff's deputies and investigators are saying that investigative work continues all across the city as well. All of this happening as there's still no word as to whether or not we know that what investigators are saying that there is no suspect, no person of interest that they are officially announcing at this time, this a week into this desperate search for Nancy Guthrie.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, Tucson, Arizona.

HUNTE: Well, earlier, CNN law enforcement contributor Steve Moore was asked why investigators may be keeping some information close to the vest. He explained that revealing too much too quickly could tip off potential suspects.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE MOORE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRIBUTOR: After 25 years in the FBI, I never remember a time where releasing sensitive information during a kidnapping or during an extortion similar to this ever helped anything. It didn't help us get to the suspects or the perpetrators sooner and complicated matters completely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Nancy Guthrie's children have made several heartbreaking appeals for prayers and support to help find their mother.

CNN's Jason Carroll has more on how faith is guiding them through this tragic situation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAVANNAH GUTHRIE, CO-HOST, TODAY: On behalf of our family, we want to thank all of you for the prayers for our beloved mom, Nancy.

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The Guthries like to say that God is actually the sixth member of their family.

[02:04:56] GUTHRIE: Mommy, if you are hearing this, you are a strong woman. You are God's precious daughter, Nancy. We believe and know that even in this valley, He is with you.

CARROLL: Long before the tragic events that led to her mother's abduction, God has been at Guthrie's center. She says one of her earliest childhood memories is that of her mother and father being baptized. Here's how she remembered turning to her faith after losing her father when she was just a teenager.

GUTHRIE: I remember being asked by friends, how can you still believe? And I remember saying, oh no, this is when I need him the most. I can't lose my dad and lose God at the same time.

CARROLL: Guthrie has carried that faith throughout her life and career.

GUTHRIE: Hi, everybody, I'm Savannah Guthrie and this is my new book.

CARROLL: Last year she released an illustrated children's book she wrote titled, "Mostly What God Does Is Love You."

GUTHRIE: Just look at what God does. He hangs the stars every evening and every day summons the dawn. But mostly what God does is love you.

CARROLL: In 2024, she published an adult version of the book. She also appeared on the Jesus Calling Stories of Faith podcast.

GUTHRIE: When we are consumed by the grief of the world or our own griefs, we are usually looking inward. And sometimes we need to look up and out for help.

CARROLL: Prayers from across the country for Guthrie's mother, Nancy.

GUTHRIE: The greatest gift my mother gave me was faith and belief in God. It changed my whole life.

CARROLL: Guthrie describing her as a woman of deep conviction, a good and faithful servant. It was a friend of her mother's from church who first reported her missing.

UNKNOWN: Bring her swiftly to safety. The pastor from that church, St. Andrew's Presbyterian, delivered a special prayer Wednesday. St. Andrew's Facebook page offered these words, Dear God, we pray for our dear friend Nancy. Guide the search teams, law enforcement, and those seeking answers.

At another Arizona church, St. Philip's, a candlelight service for Nancy Guthrie. Sally Shamrell, who has been friends with Savannah for 30 years, helped organize it.

SALLY SHAMRELL, FRIEND OF SAVANNAH GUTHRIE: I thought a lot of people are feeling kind of helpless right now. We can't, what we're doing is sitting by waiting for the next alert. And that is what Savannah and the Guthrie's are all about.

CARROLL: These simple words are what the Guthrie's are all about.

GUTHRIE: God is all around and mostly what God does is love you.

CARROLL: Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: The most recent release of the Epstein files by the Justice Department is shedding light on the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's links with billionaires, royals and government officials in the U.S. and abroad. Now, a letter obtained by CNN from the Justice Department reveals that U.S. lawmakers will be able to view unredacted versions of those files starting on Monday. They'll have access to more than three million pages of information that were released to the public. Only lawmakers and not their staff can view the files and no outside electronic devices will be allowed.

In the coming hours, Epstein's long-time accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, is expected to give a virtual deposition to the House Oversight Committee, but her lawyers say she's likely to assert her Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination and not answer questions.

House Republican Thomas Massie is calling for the resignation of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick for his links to Jeffrey Epstein. Lutnick previously said he cut off communications with the late sex offender after 2005. But the documents reveal he tried to contact Epstein several times after. A Commerce Department spokesperson told CNN last month he, quote, "had limited interactions with Mr. Epstein in the presence of his wife and has never been accused of wrongdoing."

Here's what Massie told CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. THOMAS MASSIE (R-KY): No, he should just resign. I mean there are three people in Great Britain that have resigned in politics. Howard Lutnick clearly went to the island if we believe what's in these files. He was in business with Jeffrey Epstein. And this was many years after Jeffrey Epstein was convicted, you know, lightly sentenced but was convicted for sexual crimes.

So, he's got a lot to answer for but really, he should make life easier on the president, frankly and just resign. If this were Great Britain he'd already be gone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Meanwhile, a deepening scandal in Europe as well after the latest release of Epstein files. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's chief of staff has resigned. Morgan McSweeney exits as his boss deals with blowback over his appointment of Peter Mandelson as an ambassador.

[02:10:00] McSweeney told reporters he takes full responsibility for advising the prime minister to make the appointment last year. He says he didn't oversee Mandelson's vetting process but believes the system must be overhauled to be a quote "safeguard for the future."

Celebrations in Seattle after the Seahawks win the Super Bowl just the second in franchise history. The team getting revenge against New England 11 years after the Patriots took the Super Bowl title in 2015. This time it was the Seahawks and quarterback Sam Darnold coming out on top 29 to 13 in a game dominated by an outstanding defensive performance. On the offense, standout running back Kenneth Walker, the third, was named Super Bowl MVP.

Of course, CNN's Andy Scholes was there for all of the action and has more from Santa Clara.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Well, the Seattle Seahawks' odds to win the Super Bowl before this season were 60 to 1. Boy, were those odds wrong because in the end the Seahawks proved to be the best team in the NFL and the Seahawks defense which gave up the least amount of points this season just dominated the Patriots and Super Bowl 60 pitching a shutout through three quarters.

They sacked Drake Maye six times in this game and for a while it was Seahawks kicker Jason Myers world and we were all just living in it. He made a Super Bowl record five field goals in this one. A huge play near the end of the third quarter. Derick Hall sacking Maye and forcing the fumble. The Seahawks would recover.

And then we finally got a touchdown in the fourth quarter as Sam Darnold finds AJ Barner for the score. That made it 19 to nothing. And it might as well have been 100 to nothing the way the Seahawks defense was playing.

Uchenna Nwosu putting an exclamation point on this one in the fourth quarter. Returning interception, 44 yards for the score. Seattle would end up beating the Patriots in Super Bowl 65 final 29 to 13 to claim their second Super Bowl title. And for Sam Darnold he completes one of the best comebacks in NFL history and he's once considered a bust but he never gave up. The Seahawks his fifth team and now he's a Super Bowl champion.

Darnold sharing a special moment with his family on the field as he completed his epic comeback journey.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAM DARNOLD, QUARTERBACK, SEATTLE SEAHAWKS: I'm here because of their belief in me and they believed in me throughout my entire career and I think that's why I was able to believe in myself almost ad nauseum. Some people called me crazy throughout my career for believing in myself so much and having so much confidence, but it was because of my parents, because of the way that they believed in me throughout my entire career. And it allowed me to go out there and play free and have a ton of confidence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Now Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald at 38 years old is now the third youngest coach to ever win a Super Bowl. And he did it in just his second season in charge in Seattle. And he joined CNN right here on the field after becoming a Super Bowl champion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: How do you feel right now?

MIKE MACDONALD, HEAD COACH, SEATTLE SEAHAWKS: Couldn't be any better. I mean, honestly, it's surreal right now. You look at the Jumbotron, the quarterback just with our team, can't wait to go celebrate with them. It's pretty unbelievable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Now, 11 years ago, Malcolm Butler broke Seattle's hearts with that epic interception to win Super Bowl 49 for the Patriots. But those tears, a distant memory as the party is now on in Seattle as they celebrate their second Super Bowl title.

HUNTE: Other than the final score, the next biggest moment of Sunday night was the much-anticipated halftime performance from rapper and singer Bad Bunny. And the recent Grammy Award winner made sure to bring the block party from Puerto Rico to California.

Bad Bunny's performance featured many of his greatest hits as well as appearances from Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin too. Unity was a large theme of the night and at one point in his performance Bad Bunny said, God bless America and went on to name every country in North, Central and South America. Apparently, everybody's welcome to the party.

Joining me now from New York is entertainment journalist Michael Musto. Thank you so much for being with me, Michael. How are you doing?

MICHAEL MUSTO, ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST: Good, thanks for having me.

HUNTE: It's good to see you again. Let's talk about this halftime show. Bad Bunny didn't just perform hits, he built a whole world. What stood out to you most about what he did last night?

MUSTO: Well, the whole thing was done as a set piece. It was a long medley, but it was done mostly with music from his 2022 album. And it was set in the sort of started out in the sugarcane fields of Puerto Rico. And the whole thing was a celebration of Puerto Rican culture. It was done in Spanish, as you said he did say God bless America, which is a positive message.

[02:15:01]

He loves America but he feels the immigration policies are too harsh and that a democracy should live up to the promise of freedom for everybody. But in any case, it went on and there was a wedding going on in the middle of it and they were violins. There was a trap door. Lady Gaga appeared to sing death with a smile. Die with a Smile. So she had done with Bruno Mars about embracing the one you love. The messages were very loving, very positive and exuberant.

HUNTE: Yes.

MUSTO: You felt high by the end of it.

HUNTE: Well, this was a Super Bowl halftime show before mostly in Spanish, centered on Puerto Rican culture and Latin heritage. How significant was that, both culturally and commercially for the NFL?

MUSTO: Very significant because Latin people are a huge part of the population, and they're extremely important and creative. And Puerto Rico of course is a territory of the United States. Anyone who's mad about his inclusion needs to do a little more research. His number was a celebration of Puerto Rico and a demand for democracy to be more democratic and inclusive.

Ricky Martin also appeared and did a song about Hawaii. A Bad Bunny song about Hawaii and Puerto Rico and how they both favor the colonists who came in and knocked the natives out into the street and took over. So that was a critical song. Bad Bunny has a lot on his mind but he also can party like nobody else as you can see from that number.

HUNTE: From the moment that it started and even before it to be honest, we saw praise from fans, backlash from conservative figures and even counter programming from Turning Point USA. Was the performance actually political enough to even justify all of that drama though?

MUSTO: No, I don't see why anybody would be threatened by someone who lives in Puerto Rico. First of all, halftime entertainment has never been strictly American. There have been British people who perform. Nobody ever complained about that. And Puerto Rico, as I say, is a territory of the U.S. And to be mad that he's singing in Spanish, I mean, that's not illegal.

I used to be very good at Spanish back at school. I won awards, believe it not. Now all I know is like, taco grande, por favor, cuanto cuesta. That's cool. I enjoyed immersing myself in the beauty of that language. And anyone who wants to can look up the translation.

HUNTE: That's it. The internet is free for most of us indeed. Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin both appeared and beyond the halftime show there were some other music moments too. Do you think that anyone else made history last night?

MUSTO: Well, there was also a little boy who represented the young Bad Bunny and he gave him his Grammy Award. This was tied in with Bad Bunny's one of his Grammy Award speeches. And that was a very sweet moment. Cardi B somehow appeared in the number. I didn't see her. That's how incredible this number was. You didn't notice Cardi B. And I think they all made history. They made history to show that we can include different aspects of our culture. And it doesn't have to be exactly middle of the road, just same old, same old. I think they've broken it ground with this.

HUNTE: Love it. We've got a little bit more time, so I'm going to ask you one more. We also saw a ridiculous number of U.S. celebrities representing a wild amount of random products in some very cool commercials. Did any of the commercials stand out to you at all?

MUSTO: There was an amazing Dunkin' Donuts commercial which featured various sitcom stars and Ben Affleck who claimed that Good Will Hunting started out as a script for a sitcom and they kind of recreated that. There was also a weird commercial, a weird one for Uber Eats with Matthew McConaughey talking to Bradley Cooper about how sports is really selling food.

I didn't quite think it worked. It was a stretch, but a, for effort and by the end of it I was ordering food so I guess it did work. And you had Andy Cohen dancing with nerds and you had Emma Stone, Adrian Brody for Turbo Tax. And he was doing his usual brooding; everything has to be horrible. And they were like, no, no, use Turbo Tax. Everything will be nice. It was quite an uplay of celebrities up there selling, selling, selling and be more persuasive about it.

HUNTE: Yes, everyone got their coins last night. Everybody. Michael Mustro, thank you so much for staying up late for us. We do appreciate it. Thank you so much.

MUSTO: Thank you.

HUNTE: OK, still to come. Japan's first ever female prime minister was gambling on her popularity when she called for a snap election. And it did pay off in a surprising way. We'll explain how next. See you in moment.

[02:20:03]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HUNTE: Welcome back. Japan's markets are soaring after the prime minister's massive victory in a snap election this weekend. Sanae Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party secured a two-thirds majority in the lower house of parliament and that is the LDP's best ever result. It gives the ruling coalition the ability to override votes in the upper house of parliament.

CNN's Hanako Montgomery has more for us from Tokyo.

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Sanae Takaichi's huge political gamble, one where she literally put her job on the line, has paid off. I mean, to the extent that we could not really expect. I mean, most experts I've spoken to really said that it was likely that the Liberal Democratic Party would secure a majority in Japan's lower house of parliament.

But the fact that the LDP was able to secure more than two-thirds of seats is truly something unexpected and historic. And what that now means is Takaichi will be able to pass through any bills really with little to no opposition. So, making her leadership and her, really, I suppose her job as a politician much, much easier.

[02:25:00]

Now, Takaichi has a long list, a long laundry list of issues that she must tackle from the get-go. First, of course, is the Japanese economy. We've seen record high inflation, a sliding Japanese yen against the very powerful U.S. greenback. And of course, just voters feeling very frustrated with the fact that their wages aren't increasing. So, she will have to tackle the Japanese economy to appease these voters, to appease the Japanese public, and show that she's on the right track to make Japan a much stronger economy.

Now she must also deal with foreign policy. In her brief time as prime minister, less than four months, she has shown that she's quite able and adept at really tackling different foreign policy issues and developing deeper ties with foreign nations. For example, Italy's prime minister, South Korea's president, also the U.K., Canada, and including the U.S. president Donald Trump. In fact, when it comes to Trump, Takaichi has shown that she has a very good personal relationship with him.

In fact, last week on Truth Social, Trump went so far as to endorsing her as the prime minister of Japan, encouraging the people of Japan to vote for her in this very local election. Now, Takaichi as early as Monday, so just a few hours ago, thanked Donald Trump for that endorsement and for his kind words, also adding that quote, "the potential of our alliance is limitless."

So really, just emphasizing the strength of the U.S.-Japan alliance here, also mentioning that her visit to the U.S. in March, her expected visit, will be one of greatness and of course will be an opportunity to develop that alliance further. So again, long list of issues Takaichi must tackle, but for now, a moment of victory for the Japanese prime minister.

HUNTE: Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai has been sentenced to 20 years in prison in a landmark national security case. Lai was found guilty of three charges in December, two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, and one count of publishing seditious materials. It is the longest sentence delivered under the city's national security law. Lai will not be eligible for parole until he is in his late 90s.

Monday's sentencing is the culmination of a years-long legal saga for the 78-year-old billionaire. The media mogul has been in detention since 2020 on charges related to Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement. The British foreign secretary is calling for Lai's release on humanitarian grounds, calling his prosecution politically motivated. Both Beijing and Hong Kong's government have repeatedly rejected criticism of Lai's prosecution.

The Israeli president is in Sydney as part of a multi-city trip in Australia. President Isaac Herzog laid a wreath at the site of the deadly Bondi Beach shooting, where 15 people were killed during Hanukkah celebrations in December. The Israeli president is being met with support and some protests over his role in the war in Gaza. Well, CNN's Angus Watson joins us on the phone from Sydney. Thank you

so much for being with me, Angus. What is happening over there at the moment? What can you tell us?

ANGUS WATSON, CNN PRODUCER: Well, Ben, you and I were talking in the immediate aftermath of that horrific terror attack on the 14th of September last year when 15 people were shot dead by two gunmen incite by ISIS. So, it turned up at that Hanukkah festival and opened fire on the crowd. Right after that, the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, was asked by the victims and the survivors to invite President Herzog, the head of state of Israel, Isaac Herzog, to Australia in their grief, and the government agreed to that.

So that's what's happened today. Now, the Jewish community says that they found solace in this trip. Isaac Herzog was at Bondi Beach at the scene of that horrific crime. This morning where he laid a wreath and he met with survivors and the victims of the families.

One woman told me that she felt like as a Jewish person the Israeli state was looking after her despite her being so far away from Israel all the way out here in Australia. So that's one group of Australians that are happy about his visit. But right now, Ben, there's a very large group of Australians that are very, very unhappy about this. They are demanding in fact that President Herzog from Israel is arrested on this trip to Australia because they believe that he is complicit in the killing of tens of thousands of people in Gaza, in that war that Israel has prosecuted in Gaza since October 7, 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel.

Now we know that the prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu doesn't have arrest warrant out for him by the International Criminal Court who accuse him of crime against humanity and war crimes.

It's important to remember, Ben, that President Herzog does not have (inaudible) in Israel. He's a head of state of state who does ceremonial duties.

[02:30:05]

However, the United Nations has pointed to comments by him suggesting that he may be guilty of incitement to genocide. So, he denies that. A lot of Australians here have been very angry, believing that he is guilty of that, have consumed gruesome pictures since October 2023 of that war in Gaza, a moved by that and have taken to the streets in Sydney and across the country in protest of Isaac Herzog's visit here, Ben.

HUNTE: Okay. Thank you so much for that update. There's a lot going on. We appreciate it. And thank you for being on the ground. Angus Watson in Sydney.

Okay. Russia is ramping up attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. Ahead, we'll get the latest on the situation on the ground from a member of Ukraine's parliament. That is coming up. Stay with CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HUNTE: Russian investigators say that Ukrainian intelligence is behind an attempted assassination in Moscow on Friday. A suspect in the shooting of Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseyev has been arrested after being detained in Dubai. Ukrainian officials have denied any connection to the incident.

Meanwhile, in Ukraine's southern city of Kherson, regional officials say eight women were injured in overnight Russian strikes on residential areas. This follows last week's devastating drone and missile attacks that left many across Ukraine without power, the latest in a pattern of targeted strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure as the country struggles to cope with extreme winter cold.

For more on the situation on the ground, I want to bring in a member of Ukraine's parliament, Inna Sovsun.

Thank you so much for being with me. I'll get right to it.

You are speaking to us from Kyiv and we've seen so many headlines about the conditions there.

[02:35:01]

What can you tell us about how things have been for you? And are you hearing directly from your constituents about how they're surviving day to day right now?

INNA SOVSUN, MEMBER OF UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT: Well, the situation in Ukraine in general is very tough one. It's particularly difficult in Kyiv. Russians have been particularly targeting the energy infrastructure in the capital. That is why it's actually much worse in the city than in many other regions of the country.

The situation is particularly dire for the people living on the left side of the river. That's roughly one million people who are living there who don't have any heating, and they didn't have it for a month now. So today is the ninth, the ninth of January was the first big attack that basically left hundreds of thousands of people without any heating at all. And we are having a very cold winter so far, the coldest as I can remember for many years, probably.

So, people live in there are in terrifying conditions. Many of them have left their housing, and many people who are elderly, who don't have the ability to move anywhere. They're basically stuck in their housing, living on their fifth, 10th or 15th floor. They cannot go down because the elevators don't work. They can't buy food. So, it's really terrifying.

But even for people who do have electricity from time to time, myself included, and people living in my neighborhood, it's still a couple of hours electricity a day. I think they had another attack on the night from Friday to Saturday. So Saturday was basically the day when I didn't have electricity at all. I had it for one hour when I was not home because I left with my son, because when I don't have electricity at home, I don't have water, I don't have heating, I have electric stoves, so I can't make any food without electricity.

I literally had to leave my home just because it was impossible to stay there for the whole day with a child. Again, I'm not complaining there are people in much worse conditions in the city. But it's indeed terrifying, and both physically and emotionally.

HUNTE: We definitely think you can complain. It sounds absolutely awful. And while you were speaking there, we're just seeing some pictures alongside. It's absolutely terrible. I'm so sorry you're going through that.

It has been said that Russia is turning winter into a weapon where you are, cutting heat, water and electricity, like you said. Do you think that part of their goal is to exhaust civilians into submission?

SOVSUN: Well, it probably is. I'm not sure that it is working because of course, people get very tired. Of course, it's very difficult to live in a situation where just doing the regular things, like brushing your teeth in the morning with the water running from your tap is becoming a luxury. So, people do get exhausted, but it doesn't mean that people are getting more willing to negotiate. Its rather people are getting more angry at the Russians for doing that to all of us.

I do think they have another reason for doing that. That is to exhaust the material resources, the financial resources, the weapons that that we do have in limited supply. Because by attacking the energy infrastructure constantly with Ukraine having limited supply of missiles we unfortunately have to spend it.

A lot of it on, on, on defending the energy infrastructure. And thus, we have less, to use up against the Russians directly. So, so there are double goals, I would say to that both psychological exhaustion of the people, which works to exhaust the people doesn't work to make them more willing to negotiate, but it also exhausts our military resources, which is strategically very important for our partners to remember.

HUNTE: Well, speaking about that, there are also reports that Ukraine's strategy is to make the war unsustainable for Russia to even aiming to push huge battlefield losses. As a lawmaker, how do you weigh the moral and human cost of that sort of strategy against the need to end the war?

SOVSUN: Look, I'm not here just speaking as a lawmaker. I'm also speaking as a woman whose partner has been on the front line from day one of this war. And, there is very little I want more than for him to be back home safe and getting back to our life as normal as it could have been.

But the truth is that we need peace. That will be stable. We need peace that will not erupt in yet another war in a month tour, four or five years from that moment, with having survived four years of my button on the front line. I don't want to go through this again with my son, who is 13 years old now. I don't want him to be fighting in yet another war. That is why this has to be a definitive end to this war, to those hostilities, to make sure that that this peace is stable and long-lasting.

That is why we can't simply give in to Russia's demand, because then it will mean for Russians that they have won if their demands are being met by Ukrainians and by the civilized world, and then they will attack again.

[02:40:02]

They do that all the time.

HUNTE: Yes. And I'm sure we're all very surprised it's still going on almost four years after it started. For now, though, we're going to leave it there in in Kyiv. Thank you so much. Appreciate it.

SOVSUN: Thank you for having me.

HUNTE: Spain's prime minister plans to visit areas hit hard by this weekend's storms. Thousands of people have been forced to leave their homes after severe weather caused dangerous floods, and Spain and Portugal are bracing for even more bad weather.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE (voice-over): A series of storms is drenching parts of Spain and Portugal. Storm Marta is the latest weather system to dump heavy rain across the already waterlogged Iberian Peninsula. Some places have been inundated with water, like this town in Spain's Andalusia region. Floods gushing through its narrow streets as emergency crews battled to reinforce barricades. But many houses have already been engulfed by the rushing waters, and some residents say they fear even more water could be accumulating in the nearby hills.

MARI CARMEN LOPEZ SANCHEZ, RESIDENT: Knowing the mountains, too, I can imagine what's underneath them, how the aquifers are doing and all that, and that water has to come out at some point.

HUNTE: In southern Spain, more than 11,000 people have been forced to leave their homes because of recent storms, and nearly 170 roads across the country have been shut down. The ground is so wet there are fears of landslides in some areas. Many people say they're just hoping for a dry spell to take stock of the damage.

PEPI CARO, RESIDENT: We hope this will end soon and pass, and that we will see what is there, because there is nothing else to do but wait, wait and wait. And the more hours that pass, the more desperate we become.

HUNTE: Nearby Portugal has also been hit hard by back-to-back storms. More than 26,000 rescue workers have been deployed to help manage the floods, and three municipalities in flood affected areas have postponed a presidential runoff vote by a week because of the extreme weather. Though the vote continued in other parts of the country, many voters armed with umbrellas managed to cast their vote in the very soggy conditions.

(END VIDEOTAPE) HUNTE: U.S. skier Lindsey Vonn's Olympic dream ended in a crash in the downhill final. Just ahead, we'll update you on her medical condition after she had to be airlifted to an Italian hospital. See you in a moment.

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[02:45:40]

HUNTE: Here's a look at the gold medal count so far. At the top of the pack is Norway, with three golds, the United States right behind with two. Italy, Japan, Austria and Germany all have one gold medal each. Rounding out the top six. Italy leads with the most number of medals overall.

Meanwhile, some of the events that will medal later include women's freestyle skiing and men's team combined alpine skiing. Can't wait to see what that is.

U.S. skier Lindsey Vonn is recovering after breaking her left leg at the games. She is in a stable condition after undergoing surgery to treat the fracture.

As Amanda Davies reports, the accident comes after Vonn snapped a tendon in her knee late last month.

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AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: There's an incredible sense of sadness across the Olympic and alpine skiing community if that is the last time we see Lindsey Vonn on the biggest stage being helicoptered off the mountain in Cortina just 13 seconds into what we know was going to be her final Olympic downhill hurrah. Wearing bib number 13, the American clipped a gate with her shoulder, lost control and landed with a real crunch in an incredibly awkward, painful looking position. The Cortina crowd, her fellow athletes, and the rest of us watching on stunned into concerned silence.

She was taken straight to hospital. U.S. ski and snowboard provided an update, simply saying Vonn has sustained an injury, and agency "A.P." are now reporting she's undergone surgery on her left leg fracture at a hospital in Treviso here in Italy. Her sister, admitting to media at the course. It was scary when you see the stretch as being put out, but that she dared greatly and put it all out there and that she certainly did. It had all the makings of the most incredible comeback story, didn't it?

We and she knew she was taking a risk, giving it one last shot at an Olympic medal, competing just nine days after fully rupturing her ACL on her left knee. But for all those who questioned her, this was the race she had had as her ultimate focus since she made her decision to return to skiing after her 2019 retirement and subsequent knee replacement surgery. One final shot at an Olympic medal on the course that has been so good to her throughout her career, where she's been the most successful female alpine skier of all time, it feels a really unfair, brutal end to a trailblazing career, as you have to suspect it will be.

Well wishes and tributes have been pouring in from across the skiing community, including from her teammate and the athlete who ultimately took gold, Breezy Johnson. You have to feel for her somewhat. The massively contrasting emotions as she claimed the biggest prize of her career to become Olympic champion for the first time. Having missed out on Beijing 2022 through an injury suffered on the very same course and served a 14 month ban for missing three out of competition drug tests. The 30-year-old from Idaho came back to win world championship downhill gold this time last year, and this is the icing on the cake.

But with a side of sadness given how it ended for Lindsey.

Amanda Davies, CNN, Milan.

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HUNTE: After a Team USA Olympic skier expressed mixed emotions about representing America at the Olympics, President Trump reacted by calling him a, quote, loser on his Truth Social platform. Mr. Trump went on to say that Hunter Hess shouldn't have even tried out for the team.

Julia Benbrook has more for us.

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JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As the Winter Olympics take place in Italy, President Donald Trump is calling a member of Team USA a, quote, real loser, adding that he believes it will be difficult to cheer on this specific athlete. This comes after that athlete said that just because he's wearing the American flag doesn't mean that he personally represents everything going on in the United States right now.

Those comments led to criticism online from a number of conservatives. And now Trump himself is weighing in, writing, quote, "U.S. Olympic skier Hunter Hess, a real loser, says that he doesn't represent his country in the current Winter Olympics.

[02:50:08]

If that's the case, he shouldn't have tried out for the team, and it's too bad he's on it. Very hard to root for someone like this. Make America great again."

Now I want to play a part of the comments that appeared to spark that reaction from the president of the United States. Hess made these remarks during press availability, and this didn't just come out of nowhere. These athletes were being asked questions on a variety of topics, some related to the current political climate. Take a listen.

HUNTER HESS, TEAM USA SKIER: I think it's -- it brings up mixed emotions to represent the U.S. right now. I think, it's a little hard. There's obviously a lot going on that I'm not the biggest fan of. And I think a lot of people aren't. Just because I'm wearing the flag doesn't mean I represent everything that's going on in the U.S.

BENBROOK: And he's not the only athlete to make a comment like this. In fact, during that same press conference, another freestyle skier said that many are hesitant to speak about their political views right now, but he personally is heartbroken by some of the things that are taking place in the United States.

This as Vice President J.D. Vance is there at the Winter Olympics, representing the administration, and he has not received the warmest of welcomes. When he appeared on the big screen during the opening ceremony, some of the spectators booed, illustrating some of the pushback the United States is receiving on the world stage. One of those areas of tension is the immigration crackdown taking place. Anti-ICE protests broke out across the country last month, and those protests spilled into Italy as U.S. officials announced that ICE agents would be deployed to assist with American security operations at the Winter Olympics.

Traveling with the president in Florida, Julia Benbrook, CNN.

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HUNTE: All right. We'll be right back. Stay with CNN.

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[02:55:53]

HUNTE: Welcome back.

Relief from the winter chill is on its way for parts of eastern U.S., but only for a moment. Unseasonably warm temperatures in the West will spread through much of the East this week, as well as the Midwest and mid-Atlantic, but a cold reprieve will be temporary for some as temperatures are still expected to drop by Friday, in most places along the east coast. Currently, millions of people are under extreme cold alerts through Monday morning. This includes areas from Maryland through Massachusetts, including Philadelphia and New York City.

A group of Buddhist monks will end their nearly four month long walk for peace this week. The monks have been traveling from Fort Worth, Texas, to Washington, D.C. to raise awareness for inner peace and mindfulness. The journey will cover 2,300 miles in all. Monday marks day 107 of the trip. The monks are in Virginia and they should arrive in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday.

All right. That's all I've got for you. Thanks for joining me this hour. I'm Ben Hunte in Atlanta. I will see you next weekend.

My colleague Rosemary Church continues our coverage after a quick break. Rosemary, over to you.