Return to Transcripts main page

CNN This Morning

44 People Arrest At Columbia University's Hamilton Hall; Emory's Faculty Senate Vote No Confidence In University President; Hicks Testifies On Trump's Reaction To Access Hollywood Tape; Heavy Rain Leads To Water Rescues, Evacuations In Texas; Trump Camp To Host Major Donor Retreat In Florida; Radical Disparities Persist Despite Drop In Maternal Mortality Rates; Bodies Found In Mexico After Three Surfers Go Missing; Caitlin Clark Makes WNBA Debut For Fever; Pro Volleyball Federation Vibing In Inaugural Season; Texas Rep. Cuellar Indicted On Conspiracy And Bribery. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired May 04, 2024 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anthrax, Sarin, V.X., and a list of the treatments and countermeasures for each one, not anymore. And they're now spending a lot of money on that pivot.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We went from 1.2 billion per annum to 1.8 billion. When you're not able to protect against everything, then you have to have in place good strategies and good reaction times.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm a little concerned they're not evolving as fast as Mother Nature is, because of the nature of bureaucracy versus evolution. Our funding on this is not really keeping pace.

WATT: Nick Watt, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: And be sure to tune in to an all-new episode of the CNN original series, "HOW IT REALLY HAPPENED: ANTHRAX, TERROR BY MAIL". That's tomorrow night at 9:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN THIS MORNING. It is 7:00 a.m. Eastern time here in our Atlanta studios, and it is Kentucky Derby Day. We've been talking about our horses, our picks. So, I know you like a long shot.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I do. I always go for the underdog. So, Grand Mode the first.

BLACKWELL: Grand Mode, yes.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS REPORTER: That would pay well.

BLACKWELL: I'm going with West Saratoga. West Saratoga is going to be my horse. I spoke with the trainer.

SCHOLES: Oh.

BLACKWELL: I spoke with the trainer. He's going to be on, first of all, coming up.

WALKER: Oh, got it. I thought it was just a hobby.

BLACKWELL: Oh yes, I just called him up.

WALKER: Tell me about your horse.

BLACKWELL: Tell me about the horse.

WALKER: Well, you were reading the names. I like the resilience, you know, because it's a good name.

SCHOLES: Yes, I'm going forever young. So, Japanese horse, they've never won the derby. It's got to happen at some point, so maybe this is the year.

BLACKWELL: All right, it's coming up this afternoon. Here's what we're watching for you this morning. Commencement ceremonies have become the latest target of protest that have gripped college campuses across this country. How schools plan to deal with the protesters and the agreements they're now making to put a stop to the demonstrations.

WALKER: Also, longtime Donald Trump aide, Hope Hicks, took the stand Friday in Trump's hush money criminal trial where she told the court about what was happening inside the campaign after the release of that Access Hollywood tape.

BLACKWELL: The CDC says the maternal mortality rate is down but significant racial disparities remain. We'll dig into the numbers and what's being done to close the gap.

CHINCHAR: And this could be the 10th day in a row we've had a confirmed tornado here in the U.S. We'll detail where that may end up occurring in just a few minutes.

SCHOLES: And Caitlin Clark's WNBA career is now up and running. She made her debut last night in Dallas and she did not disappoint. I'm going to show you all the step-back threes and what she had to say about her debut coming up in sports.

WALKER: We'll begin this morning with universities across the U.S. raising security concerns at their campuses as they prepare for graduation ceremonies. This comes after weeks of pro-Palestinian protests. The University of Southern California says it will hold a small family graduate celebration. Last week, the school canceled the main graduation ceremony that would have brought in as many as 65,000 attendees.

BLACKWELL: A protesting campaign will disband at the University of California Riverside, school administrators and protesters reached an agreement concerning investment transparency, but it does not appear to promise divestment from Israel. Now, we're also getting new details about the major protest this week at Columbia University in New York. A total of 44 people were arrested for storming and barricading

themselves inside Hamilton Hall. At Emory University here in Atlanta, some faculty members approved a vote of no confidence against the university's president. CNN's Nick Valencia explains what that means for the school.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Faculty Senate members at Emory University voted overwhelmingly no confidence on Emory's president, Greg Fenves. The vote comes just over a week after 28 people were arrested during pro-Palestinian demonstrations on campus. Of those 28 who were arrested, 20 of them had connections to the school. In his initial statement, Emory president Greg Fenves had said that the group was outside agitators, which was inaccurate.

His statement was criticized, as was his decision to call in police officers with the Atlanta Police Department and troopers from Georgia State Patrol. Now, this vote of no confidence is not legally binding, but the results will make their way to the Board of Trustees, and they have the discretion to remove Fenves if they wish.

We reached out to Emory University, and this is what they're telling us in a statement, saying, "While we take any concerns expressed by members of our community seriously, there are a wide range of perspectives being shared within the Emory community." Those pro- Palestinian demonstrations continue on Emory's campus. Nick Valencia, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Nick, thank you so much. The Biden administration is ramping up its response to the unrest on college campuses. Yesterday, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona sent a letter to university presidents condemning anti-Semitism.

WALKER: CNN's Camila DeChalus joining us now from Wilmington, Delaware. Good morning to you, Camila. The Biden administration has been slow to respond to these campus protests to these campus protests. Tell us more about what's in this letter.

[07:05:12]

CAMILA DECHALUS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Amara, the Education Secretary, Miguel Cardona, strongly condemned the anti-Semitic incidents that are happening on college campuses across the country. And this letter just really encapsulates what President Biden and what his top officials, what their stance is when it comes to these college protests. And that is they believe that there is no place for hateful rhetoric or for violence on college campuses.

Now there's a part of a letter that really encapsulates and really gets to this part. And it says, "I am particularly disturbed by the sharp rise in reports of anti-Semitism targeting Jewish students on some college campuses. No students should have to hide symbols of their faith or ancestry for fear of harassment or violence. We take these reports very seriously and will investigate discrimination aggressively."

And on that last part, it's really important to note that the Department of Education has said that since October 7th, they have launched and are now pursuing more than 130 investigations into complaints that they have received of harassment and a discrimination. So, this is an issue that they can no longer ignore. Amara and Victor, back to you.

BLACKWELL: Camila DeChalus, thank you so much. And also coming up later this hour, I'm going to speak with Angus Johnston, he's a history professor who studies student activism. I'm going to ask him how these protests on campuses are impacting graduation ceremonies at universities and where, after the students leave, where does this energy go? What happens next? So, stay with us for that conversation.

The second week of witness testimony in a Trump hush money trial ended with very emotional testimony from Hope Hicks.

WALKER: Yes, once one of Donald Trump's closest aides, Hicks was noticeably uncomfortable as she testified and avoided eye contact with her former boss. CNN's Paula Reid has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAULA REID, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Hope Hicks, one of Trump's former closest advisors, took the stand in the New York hush money trial. "I'm really nervous", she revealed to the court as she began her testimony. She did have some warm words for her former boss, praising his ability to message, "He deserves the credit for the different messages that the campaign focused on in terms of the agenda that he put forth."

But she never looked at him during most of her testimony, instead focusing directly on the lawyers asking her questions. She testified at length about the impact of the Access Hollywood tape on the 2016 Trump campaign, and how it was a crisis. She was the first person in the campaign to learn of the tape when she was contacted by a reporter. "I was concerned," she said. She also witnessed Trump's reaction to the story.

Asked if he was upset, she said, "Yes, yes, he was." She also told the jury about conversations she had with former Trump fixer, Michael Cohen, and Trump when reports of Karen McDougal and Stormy Daniels first surfaced in early November 2016, saying Trump wanted to make sure that there was a denial of any kind of relationship.

In a significant moment for prosecutors, Hicks revealed Trump communicated directly to her about the payment to Daniels. "I only know about one instance, sometime in the middle of February, Mr. Trump told me about it." And Trump was relieved that the story did not come out before the election. "It was Mr. Trump's opinion that it was better to be dealing with it now and that it would have been bad to have had that story come out before the election."

Hicks appeared nervous throughout her appearance on the stand and after that key exchange as defense attorneys were starting their cross-examination, Hicks broke down in tears. "Sorry about that," she said as she returned to the stand. And when Trump's attorneys had the chance to question her, they got her to confirm that he was worried about his wife Melania's reaction to some of the stories.

President Trump really values Mrs. Trump's opinion, and she doesn't weigh in all the time, but when she does, it's really meaningful to him. The big question now is who will take the stand on Monday? about who they will call next and when they will call the man at the center of this alleged conspiracy, Michael Cohen. Amara, Victor.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Paula Reid, thank you so much.

WALKER: Mandatory evacuations are underway in Texas after heavy rain and flooding. Rivers have surged to levels not seen since Hurricane Harvey back in 2017. Floodwaters have submerged vehicles and homes, forcing dozens of rescues. CNN's Allison Chinchar is monitoring all of this from the Weather Center. That's a lot of water there. Any relief in sight?

CHINCHAR: There is, but it's only temporary. Say today, for example, we aren't expecting a tremendous amount of rain, which is great because we need time for this water to recede. The unfortunate part is that rain comes all right back again tomorrow. So, here's a look at all of the areas.

Look at this. All of these dots represent rivers, creeks, or streams. The gauges at minor, moderate, or even major flood stage across these areas. And that water, when you're talking about rivers, that takes time to come back down.

[07:10:23]

Again, we've also got some of these areas that we've been dealing with across some of this. Take for example, all of the rain here. You're talking widespread six to 10 inches. Some of these areas have picked up 15 to even 20 inches of rain. That's why you still have a lot of these flood warnings. Even though we're not anticipating a ton of rain today, it takes time for that water to go away. Now, where the heavy rain is, that's farther to the north.

Areas of the Midwest and into the central plains where we've got some of those strong thunderstorms. That's going to set the stage for today, because we are still anticipating severe weather today, stretching from Chicago all the way back towards the Texas-Mexico border. The target point is really going to be here across Texas.

That's where we could see very large hail. You're talking larger than golf balls, some damaging winds, and yes, even some tornadoes. That would mean, if we end up with a confirmed tornado, this would be the 10th day in a row of a confirmed tornado somewhere in the U.S. But take a look at this, 224 total tornado reports just in the last few weeks. Again, an excessive amount of severe weather.

It is the busy time of year, but even still, this is the area where we highly anticipate some of those tornadoes today. The focus right there around midland Abilene, Texas, but also the risk for large hail and that extends up through St. Louis, Kansas City, Oklahoma City, even into some of the Western Chicago suburbs. And yes, we've talked about additional rain. This is what we can expect for tomorrow.

Now, notice some of that heavy rain is not going to necessarily be in the same areas of Houston where we saw the flooding, Victor and Amara, but you have to remember, it's all those areas where that water is going to flow downstream into those same rivers, creeks, and streams that are already dealing with high flood stage.

WALKER: All right, Allison Chinchar, thank you very much. Still to come, the Republican National Committee and Donald Trump are holding a fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago, which is expected to feature his potential vice presidential hopefuls. More on who we can expect to see on that guest list.

BLACKWELL: Plus, CIA Director Bill Burns is in Cairo for negotiations over a ceasefire and hostage deal and the Israel-Hamas war. The latest on those talks.

WALKER: And although maternal mortality rates have dropped, black women still have higher rates of maternal deaths than other women. We will ask a doctor why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:17:10]

WALKER: This morning, Donald Trump is waking up at home in Palm Beach, Florida after a standing trial all week in a New York courtroom. Trump is in Florida for the Republican National Committee's annual spring retreat.

BLACKWELL: Well, that's the committee that his daughter-in-law, Laura Trump, co-chairs. The former president will headline a large fundraising event and meet with Republican mega donors and potential VP contenders. CNN's Alayna Treene is live in Palm Beach this morning. Alayna, how's this event likely to help the former president?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you're exactly right Victor and Amara. Donald Trump is trading the courtroom for banquet halls this weekend and look, he's really focused on fundraising. That is a huge part of this weekend, and that's why he's the main attraction at this event at Mar-a-Lago today.

Now, the RNC's retreat typically brings together wealthy donors, high- profile Republican leaders, and they've been gathering at the Four Seasons, and that event kicked off last night. But today, for lunch, they're going to be picked up in transportation provided by the party and brought over to Mar-a-Lago, where Donald Trump will be giving remarks and mingling with these deep-pocketed donors and other Republican leaders.

And this is really about, again, raising money. And we know that Donald Trump and his campaign is aggressively trying to catch up to the Biden campaign, whose ever-growing war trust is really out of reach for them. They've been continuing to raise a lot more money than the Trump campaign. So, that's a big part of this as well today.

But one really interesting part of this weekend, and you touched on this briefly, Victor, is that on the guest list are a lot of potential vice presidential contenders people like Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, Byron Donald of Florida, Doug Burgum of North Dakota -- a lot of these people will be there today mingling with the former president as well.

And look, when I talk to the Trump campaign they say Donald Trump is still weeks, if not, a couple months away from choosing his running mate. He's expected to do that closer to the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee in July. However, this is a really good opportunity for those people to brush shoulders with him, to have some conversations and show them that they are here this weekend to support him.

And I also just want to note again, this is coming off another long week in trial for the former president and I've been told that really the novelty of that has worn off for him, that worn off really quickly actually I'd say within the first week but this is going to be a weekend where he's surrounded by his supporters, surrounded by his people and I think you know giving him kind of the ego boost that he has been seeking after a hard couple days in the courtroom.

BLACKWELL: Alayna Treene there on Palm Beach thanks so much. Still to come, how graduation ceremonies at universities are being affected by the wave of pro-Palestinian protests across the country.

[07:20:00]

SCHOLES: -- Clark making, her first WNBA game, I'm going to have the highlights from Clark's dazzling debut coming up

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Graduation ceremonies at colleges and universities across the country will happen this weekend after weeks of pro-Palestinian protests. Protesters have already interrupted one commencement ceremony. This is at the University of Michigan School of Music, Dance, and Theater.

The University of Southern California now says that they will hold a smaller family graduate celebration just over a week after they canceled the school's main graduation ceremony. They cited security concerns. With me now is Angus Johnston, he's a History Professor at Hostos Community College and he studies student activism.

Professor, thank you for being with me. Let me start here with something that got a lot of attention this week and that was Senator Bernie Sanders, who said that in the campaign context, what's happening across the country might be President Biden's Vietnam. From a student activism and student protest perspective, in that context, is it comparable, is it close? ANGUS JOHNSTON, HOSTOS COMMUNITY COLLEGE HISTORY PROFESSOR: So, we are very, very early into this cycle of protest. It's only been two weeks, and it's hard to draw conclusions based on that, but frankly, the speed at which this has accelerated, the speed at which the administration and government response has spiraled, leaves me taking that comparison a lot more seriously than I did a week or two ago.

BLACKWELL: Let me ask you about a development overnight, an encampment in U.C. Riverside, they've decided that they will disband now protesters in the administration they've reached an agreement on study abroad programs investment transparency. Historically, are these demonstrations successful? Most of, of these university students want the university to divest from any companies that are benefiting or profiting from what's happening in Gaza?

JOHNSTON: So, we've now by my count seen six colleges reach agreements to end encampments by offering concessions to the students, and that, in that way, the current protest model is following on the anti- apartheid movement of the 1970s and 80s, where students, sometimes in encampments, protested to demand divestment from businesses doing business with apartheid. And those gradually built-up power and speed over the course of several years and were successful at many campuses, leading to some of the reforms which led to the collapse of the apartheid government.

BLACKWELL: For the universities that will hold the traditional commencement ceremonies, I mentioned what's happening at the University of Southern California. What are you expecting we're going to see? This would not be the first commencement season during which there would be protests or some demonstration, but of course, it's been a long time since we've seen what's happened nationwide, something like this. What are you expecting?

JOHNSTON: So, I think one of the things that's distinctive about this moment is that the encampments in many places have been in the location that was set aside for the commencement. And so, at Columbia, for instance, one of the reasons why they sent in the police twice to break up this encampment was that they were planning on having commencement on that quad, which means that the commencement itself is directly relevant to the protest campaign.

We've also by the way, just in the last few hours, seen a speaker be canceled at the University of Vermont the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and that was one of the demands of the protesters on that campus that she'd be disinvited.

BLACKWELL: You said something during an interview that I want you to expound here is that you believe we underestimate or undervalue the influence of this being the pandemic class, the pandemic generation. This is -- 2024 would have been the high school class of 2020 and every undergrad right now, at least most of them, they are post pandemic era students. What do you think the influence is?

JOHNSTON: It's kind of extraordinary to me that if you had asked just about any social comment or three weeks ago about what was going on with this generation of college students, they would say, well, they're really socially isolated, they never leave their house, they're always on their screens, they're not forming real connections with other people.

And now, suddenly, we're not only seeing the largest wave of student protest in quite a few years, but it is popping up across the country very, very quickly and taking the form of students building communities, building these encampments where they are face-to-face 24 hours a day.

So, I really do feel like there is a hunger for human connection and a hunger for human community, which may not be the reason the students are protesting, but it's shaping the form those protests take and the appeal of those protests to a very large number of students.

BLACKWELL: Yes, it's a fascinating angle there. I had not considered until I watched that interview. Professor Angus Johnston, thanks so much.

WALKER: A new report from the CDC shows that maternal mortality rate is declining, but there are still significant racial disparities. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a sharp rise in women dying in pregnancy, childbirth, or shortly after childbirth.

[07:29:54]

The study shows those numbers dropped in 2022. The overall rate fell from nearly 33 per 100,000 live births in 2021 to 22 per 100,000 live births in 2022. The rate among Black women though is much higher. It dropped from nearly 70 per 100,000 to nearly 50 deaths per 100,000 live births.

[07:30:20]

Joining me now is Dr. Uche Blackstock, founder and CEO of Advancing Health Equity, which addresses the critical factors contributing to racial health inequities. She's also the author of Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons With Racism In Medicine. And by the way, she was just selected as one of Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in Health.

We've got to congratulate you for that. So, congratulations and thank you, Dr. Blackstock, for joining us this morning. Big picture first, if you don't mind, Doctor, what is your reaction to this report that we did see this, you know, drop in maternal deaths from 2021 to 2022?

UCHE BLACKSTOCK, FOUNDER AND CEO, ADVANCING HEALTH EQUITY: Well, yes, just -- I want to make sure we have the context. And the context is that even before the pandemic, the rates of maternal mortality were increasing and more specifically for Black mothers. And we saw the pandemic accelerating those rates. And even though this recent data is showing a decline, the rates of maternal mortality across all racial demographic groups, when we compare them to other high-income countries, our peer countries, are still quite high.

I think it will be interesting to see what the data from 2023 show because we know that there are states that have very restrictive abortion policies that we know may impact maternal mortality as well.

WALKER: I mean, do you think the decline -- I've seen people make this link to the pandemic and that we're seeing this decline potentially because the declines in COVID-19 infections.

BLACKSTOCK: Absolutely. You know, we saw at the beginning and at the height of the pandemic, people who were pregnant were more at risk for developing severe complications. They were more likely to be hospitalized, be in the ICU, and to have a breathing tube place. And now as we see the rates of COVID-19 infections decrease, of course, we're going to see a decrease in maternal mortality complications and death.

However, it's just important to note that those rates are still quite high. We still have so much work to do around addressing the crisis in this country.

WALKER: And the rates for Black women -- I mean, we have to point this out and underscore it, right? They remain significantly higher for Black women than they do for, you know, any other group, White, Hispanic, Asian, you name them. The CDC on its website regarding why this disparity says multiple factors contribute to these disparities such as variation in quality health care, underlying chronic conditions, structural racism and implicit bias.

I mean, these are big issues that you can't just fix overnight. Tell me more about how we go about as a nation trying to at least bring down this disparity.

BLACKSTOCK: Yes, and you know, I always say that even myself, I have a Harvard undergrad in medical school degree, I'm still five times more likely to die of pregnancy-related complications than my White counterparts with a high school education. So, again, all of those factors work together to really impairing our quality of lives.

I will say that, you know, there's the Momnibus Bill that has been trying to be pushed through Congress through the House. Representative Lauren Underwood has really been taking a lead in that. But that bill is a multifaceted bill that really addresses all of those factors. You know, the social determinants of health, the factors that influence the health of communities, the role of Telehealth, diversifying the perineal workforce, using other technology and innovation to improve the quality of care that Black birthing people receive.

And so, yes, so definitely in order to address these horrific statistics, they are horrific and appalling, we really need policy, broad policy that addresses all aspects of how racism negatively impacts the lives of Black mothers.

WALKER: Yes, you're right. This is a multifactorial issue and you need to take a multifactorial approach to it. But I mean, you mentioned the U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate among other high-income countries. That's an issue, obviously, something needs to change fast.

BLACKSTOCK: Yes.

Dr. Uche Blackstock, we appreciate your time. Thank you so much.

BLACKSTOCK: Thank you.

WALKER: Still to come, how this burnt pickup truck may give investigators in Mexico a key clue in their search for the missing American and Australian tourists.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:35:00]

BLACKWELL: Mexican officials confirm that they've found three bodies after three tourists were reported missing in Mexico this week. They will now work to identify them. A burned-out pickup truck has also been found. Australian brothers Jake and Callum Robinson, pictured here, and American Jack Carter Rhoad who is not pictured, were on a surfing trip near Ensenada, California.

WALKER: Well, now --

BLACKWELL: Or Mexico, I should say.

WALKER: Yes. Now, Mexican authorities are questioning three people in connection with the case. Journalist Stefano Pozzebon joining us now. Stefano, what are you learning?

STEFANO POZZEBON, JOURNALIST: Yes, Amara, well, overnight the Attorney General of Baja California, the state where Ensenada is found, has confirmed that they have recovered, like Victor was saying, they have recovered three bodies and that they are performing forensic examinations on to them to try to identify them.

As early as possible, however, due to the weekend, it's unlikely we're hearing from Ensenada that we will hear a definitive answer from the forensic examinations before Monday. The three Mexican citizens we have learned that have been taken into questions and actually been detained under the accusation of participating in a kidnapping. Of course, they're not being charged yet, but there is already a step further from what we learned in the previous day. As the authorities are really scrambling to present a complete picture of what happened to those three surfers.

And we learn from the FBI, and I'm going to quote that they are assuring us that they were assessing every tip. And if credible, they will pursue those leads with vigor. But right now, it's still too early to say to have a complete picture on to them.

And thanks to CNN's international news gathering network, we know that the families of both the U.S. citizens and the two Australian surfers from Perth, Western Australia are on their way to Ensenada to help with both the forensic examinations. It's a matter of the DNA matching. And also, to be as close as possible to the scene of the investigation.

We can only imagine the anxiety that they're going through in these moments, in these hours when it seems like these search is reaching a conclusion and a sad one, especially if you consider that they've recovered a burned-out truck. But as I was saying, Victor, Amara, it's too early to say. We're still waiting. And as soon as we hear anything back from the authorities in Mexico from the FBI and from the Australian authorities who are assessing the search as well, we will let you know as soon as possible.

Victor, Amara?

WALKER: Stefano Pozzebon, thank you so much.

Caitlin Clark is officially a pro and she lived up to the hype in her WNBA debut. Plus, Australia is under siege from climate change on multiple fronts and things are about to get a lot worse.

BLACKWELL: For this week's edition of "THE WHOLE STORY," CNN's Senior International Correspondent Ivan Watson embarks on a journey across Australia to see the evolving threat firsthand. At first stop, he visits Kangaroo Island, a nature reserve which tens of thousands of kangaroos and koalas call home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): The small team at this wildlife center helps raise some of these orphaned animals by hand, including Pearl who seems pretty fond of humans.

WATSON: This is a little bit like holding a child but pretty fuzzy kid. And the other part about this is that the fur really is soft.

WATSON (voiceover): There are few things sweeter than cuddling a koala. My teammates couldn't wait for their turn.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's cute.

WATSON (voiceover): But then we learn the real reason Pearl is here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Find out more on this week's edition of "THE WHOLE STORY" with Anderson Cooper tomorrow at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and streaming on Max.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:47:58]

WALKER: All right, Caitlin Clark has graduated from college hoops to the pros making her WNBA debut for the Indiana Fever last night.

BLACKWELL: Andy Scholes is here. Electric.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: I mean, guys, so many people are excited to see how Caitlin Clark was going to do at the WNBA. So, people were like, oh, is she going to be as good as she was Iowa?

WALKER: Yes. SCHOLES: She lived up to the hype last night in her very first game. I

mean, she had it all going in her first game in the WNBA, the step- back threes, the crossovers. So, her WNBA debut was in Dallas. This was the first-ever sold-out crowd for the Dallas Wings. And Clark, like I said, did not disappoint all those fans in attendance.

Just one minute in the game, she hit her first three. Then moments later, a crossover step back three. Clark, she made five three- pointers in this game. She scored 21 points. Now, the Fever would lose their preseason over 79-76, but Clark is very happy with the start.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAITLIN CLARK, GUARD, INDIANA FEVER: Just a great atmosphere for women's basketball. I think it's a good kick off to the WNBA season. I think the way we play, you know, there's some things we could have executed a little better. I thought we could have gotten our offense a little bit better. The pace was amazing. That's one basketball people like to watch. But overall, definitely what I expected.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Also in Dallas, Kyrie Irving going off in the second half for the Mavs against the Clippers in game six. This game was tied and earned the third quarter, but that's when Kyrie just took over. He scored 28 points in the second half and Kyrie was doing Kyrie things in the fourth. Look at that crossover there, step back three and got fouled. That had the whole crowd there in Dallas going crazy. Dallas win 114-101 to win the series in six games. Mavs now going to face the Thunder in round two.

Now, historically, if you were a great college volleyball player and wanted to play professionally, you had to go overseas to do so, but not anymore. On this week's difference makers, Patrick Snell highlights the Pro Volleyball Federation, a new league striving to keep our top players right here at home.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MORGAN HENTZ, LIBERO, ATLANTA VIBE: I sometimes get the question, you can make a living doing that? I'm like, yes, you can.

LEAH EDMOND, OUTSIDE HITTER, ATLANTA VIBE: It's the number one girls sport in high school right now. And so being able to keep building that so that high school girls have something to look forward to. And so, now, they're finding out the ways of how do I become just like those girls in the court. And I think that's really, really cool and really special.

HENTZ: It's really hard to encapsulate how I feel because it's just immense gratitude. I never thought this was going to be a possibility for me to play here in the states right after college. The only chance you had to continue your career was to go overseas and play.

PATRICK SNELL, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: The Atlanta Vibe and the pro volleyball federation are breaking new ground in women's sports. A first real opportunity to provide its players with "a living wage in the United States." And it's not just inspiration on the court either. The Vibe are the only league side with an all-female leadership team including their owner.

COLLEEN CRAIG, OWNER, ATLANTA VIBE: I strongly believe we're going to look back in 10 years from now and you're like, of course, there's pro volleyball. One of my most favorite stories is when we did their draft this fall. So, we had our very first draft this December. And you know, we took five players out of college and in the social post, there was a girls, two girls, and they had a sign and said, Coach Todd, I'm available for the 2035 draft.

And that's what this is about, right? This is about now having someone to look up to, to follow and know that there's a path to become a pro and that they can follow their dreams.

EDMOND: They were invested from day one. And I think that speaks volumes of where women are. Like, women can invest in other women. It doesn't have to be in the men's sport, helping the women's sports. Women can help each other. But also that other young girls, sometimes the goal might not be to play volleyball, but to be able to own something like this, to be a part of something like this, can now also be an option because they're seeing it just as well as they're seeing us.

SNELL: And what they're seeing in person is a lot of fun too. The fans getting up close and personal with their heroes, building bonds and traditions basically from scratch.

HENTZ: For the past, they yell A. For a set, they yell T. And then for an attack, they yell O. It's like it's so fun to be a part of that. So, I just think that come give it a try. You don't know if you don't give it a try. You might like it and become a whole new fan of the sport of volleyball.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCHOLES: Yes, and the Pro Volleyball Federation, it's growing. Seven teams right now, three more teams coming next year.

WALKER: I'm excited about that.

SCHOLES: Yes. And guys, hey, Kentucky Derby Day. You guys excited about that? Victor, are you getting into some mint juleps?

BLACKWELL: I do love it.

WALKER: Yes, always.

BLACKWELL: I do love it.

WALKER: Always.

BLACKWELL: I don't have to wait just for Derby Saturday.

SCHOLES: Oh, yes. WALKER: He has one every weekend.

BLACKWELL: No, not every weekend.

WALKER: Something about a fact.

BLACKWELL: There you go.

SCHOLES: 6:57 post time tonight.

BLACKWELL: All right.

SCHOLES: I wonder when it's going to start exactly.

BLACKWELL: We'll be watching.

WALKER: Thank you, Andy.

Taking bribes, laundering money, and unlawful foreign influence. Democrat Henry Cuellar is accused of doing all that over a seven-year period. Details of those allegations are next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:57:09]

BLACKWELL: Headlines for you now. A Hamas delegation has arrived in Egypt to join talks of a possible ceasefire and hostage deal in the Israel-Hamas war. A source tell CNN that CIA Director Bill Burns is also in Cairo joining Egyptian mediators. An Egyptian official told CNN there was noticeable progress in discussions.

An Israeli source says the latest proposal calls for Hamas to release as many as 33 hostages kidnapped from Israel in exchange for a temporary ceasefire. U.S. officials believe the proposal has the best chance at ending the violence in Gaza.

WALKER: Democratic Representative Henry Cuellar of Texas and his wife have been charged with accepting nearly $600,000 in bribes. The federal indictment accuses a couple of a year's long scheme to get bribes in exchange for pushing legislation to benefit two foreign entities.

The indictment says they used bribery money to pay down debt, to dine at restaurants, and to buy a custom $12,000 dress. The Cuellars maintained their innocence. If convicted, the couple faces up to 20 years in prison on the most serious charges.

BLACKWELL: Violent crime continued its downward trend through the first quarter of the year. Specifically, there were fewer reported incidents of homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault from January to March when compared to the same period last year. Now, although this new report from the Major Cities Chiefs Association shows crime is still higher than it was before the pandemic. The White House touted the new numbers calling it a result of "historic steps by the Biden Administration to stop the flow of illegal guns and investment in fighting and preventing crime.

WALKER: Actor Kevin Spacey is denying new sexual misconduct allegations. He took to social media, writing, I will not be speechless. And he shared a clip of a recent interview. This comes days before a new British documentary will detail new allegations about Spacey. Last year, he was acquitted of nine counts of sexual assault and indecent assault in a London case.

And "FIRST OF ALL" with Victor is up next. What do you have coming up, Victor?

BLACKWELL: All right, so we're going to start with the campus protests and the tricky politics of what's happening. President Biden says that they're not changing his mind on policy toward Israel, but college Democrats say that it should. They put out a statement backing the protests across the country, but there's division within the group on backing the protests. So, I'll speak with these young Democrats. Of course, you know, crucial to a Biden re-election campaign about that rift.

Plus, this is a story that I think is getting overlooked and it certainly should not be. This is the death of Frank Tyson. An officer knelt on his back during an arrest. He's heard on video and the police video saying over and over, I can't breathe. We have a video and his fiance, Sabrina Jones, and attorney Ben Crump are here with me as well.

Also, you know, I love learning new things through this show. And I hope you learn something every week that you're not seeing on any other show. Today, it's about the Kentucky Derby and it's the overlooked Black history in horse racing. You'll hear from Larry Demeritte, who is making his own history today as the first Black trainer with a horse in this race in decades.

WALKER: Always something to learn. We'll be watching. Have a good show.

BLACKWELL: Yes. All right, let's do it right now. Let's start the show.