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CNN This Morning

Mass Shooting in Birmingham, Alabama; Harris Accepts CNN Debate on October: Trump Says CNN Debate is "Too Late"; Vance-Walz Debate Scheduled for October 1; NC Gov. Candidate Will Not Drop Out of Race; Biden and Harris to Meet UAE's President at White House; Biden to Address U.N. General Assembly; Hezbollah Fires 100 Plus Projectiles into Israel; IDF Launches New Strikes on Hezbollah; U.S. Embassy Warns Americans to Leave Lebanon. Police: At Least 4 Dead, Dozens Injured In Mass Shooting In Birmingham, AL; U.S. Election Officer Targeted By Suspicious Packages; Rate Cut Could Bring Relief For Some Mortgage Borrowers; Sensitive Intelligence Believed To Be On Sunken Super Yacht; Company Specializes Erasing Memories For Divorcing Couples. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired September 22, 2024 - 06:00   ET

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

[06:00:00]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. We're following breaking news of a deadly mass shooting in Birmingham, Alabama as we come to the air this morning, I'm Amara Walker.

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Danny Freeman in for Victor Blackwell. Right now, Birmingham police say at least four people are dead and dozens more were injured in this shooting.

Here's what we know. It all happened just about 11:00 last night in the Five Points south area. That's just about two miles away from Downtown Birmingham.

WALKER: Police believe multiple shooters opened fire on a group of people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OFFICER TRUMAN FITZGERALD, BIRMINGHAM POLICE: Rest assured we are going to do everything we possibly can to make sure that we uncover, identify, and hunt down who was ever responsible for preying on our people this morning.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: All right. Joining us now is former FBI special agent and criminal justice professor from the University of New Haven, Ken Gray. Ken, good morning to you. What are your thoughts on how they're going to track down the suspect or suspects? I mean, are they going to be relying on surveillance? I mean, what's your take? PROFESSOR KEN GRAY, MPS, CRIMINAL JUSTICE DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAVEN AND FORMER FBI SWAT: So, in a case like you're trying to establish basic facts. Right now, they don't even know how many shooters there were, whether they were in cars or on foot. So, really, they're trying to establish basic facts.

Interview witnesses, interview victims, collect up physical evidence, look for cameras. There are street cameras possibly, there are cameras in businesses, there are cameras in cars, all of those will be helpful also to try to establish these basic facts.

This is right on the edge of the university. One would think that it might be connected to a football game, but University of Alabama has a bi week this week. And so, it's probably not football related, but likely either gang or drug gang activity.

FREEMAN: Hey, Ken, because you mentioned it's so close to a university, is your sense that this is an area where there would be a heavy police presence? Would there be any deterrents in that area?

GRAY: So, it's 11 -- sometime after 11:00 at night on a Saturday night and this is a very popular entertainment area. So, police would likely be in the area, but not necessarily right on the street at that time. If they were, we would know a lot more information about what went on.

As I said, we are still trying to establish even basic facts. And this may take some time to get those basic facts. I would think that number one thing to do is to see whether or not there was somebody who was a victim, who was a likely target. Identify who that victim is. That might tell you who the shooters are. But it could also be a random shooting and not be connected to any of the victims.

WALKER: What about securing the area? I mean, the fact that this happened in a popular entertainment district. You said this is near the University of Alabama. What should -- what kind of precautions should people be taking?

GRAY: So, they need to get the word out to the people that be aware of this. And also, if they have any information to provide it, the Birmingham police, this is very early on. Of course, we're now several hours since the shooting occurred. The likely suspects are more than likely out of the area, but if they could immediately have secured the area and confined the shooters there, that might have helped them figure out what was going on and identify suspects. We're now six hours past the shooting. And so, that's no longer an avenue of pursuit.

FREEMAN: Ken, can you tell us just briefly what happens to a community when something like this happens? I mean, like you said, this is near university, popular entertainment district. This is a place where people should be able to enjoy a Saturday night. What happens to a community like this?

GRAY: Yes, people are in shock about this as they learn about it. I mean, this is a mass shooting. A mass shooting is when four or more people are dead, not to include the shooter themselves. And mass shootings just itself carries an awful lot of weight, a lot of pressure on the community. So, people will be in shock over this and wanting to know why it happened. And right now, there are no answers to that. This will take time to investigate

[06:05:00]

WALKER: Yet, another mass shooting to talk about in America. Ken Gray, appreciate your time. Thank you very much. And of course, we're going to follow this breaking story throughout this morning. So, make sure to stay tuned here to CNN.

All right. Well, we're 44 days out from the election and Former President Donald Trump is saying now it's simply too late for another presidential debate with Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris accepted CNN's debate invitation Saturday as Trump rallied in North Carolina. He told the crowd there it was too late for another debate since early voting is already underway.

FREEMAN: Now, traditionally, the presidential candidates will get the last word in a presidential election, but that might actually now fall to the VP candidates, as J. D. Vance and Tim Walz are scheduled to debate October 1st. CNN's Steve Contorno details Trump's first visit to the Tar Heel state since his handpicked candidate for governor got caught up in a porn site scandal.

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: Danny and Amara. Donald Trump landed in North Carolina on Saturday with the state GOP in crisis over their nominee for governor, Mark Robinson, following that CNN KFile report about what he wrote on a porn site several years ago.

However, Donald Trump did not invite Mark Robinson to his rally. He was not mentioned at all while he was there, which is notable because he has showed up alongside Mark Robinson when he has visited the Tar Heel State in the past. Trump did, however, address his invitation to appear at a CNN debate in October. This is what he said to his crowd when he said he was going to reject that offer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Good entertainment value. A lot of people say, oh, do it. It's great entertainment. I've already done two. The problem with another debate is that it's just too late. Voting has already started. She's had her chance to do it with Fox. You know, Fox invited us on and I waited and waited and they turned it down. They turned it down. But now, she wants to do a debate right before the election with CNN because she's losing badly.

It's too late to do another. I'd love to in many ways, but it's too late.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CONTORNO: I will point out that in 2016 and in 2020, Donald Trump did participate in October debates. Elsewhere in his speech, it was clear he was very much addressing the women in the crowd and the women voters of this country, who he said are quote, "poor, less healthy, less safe, more depressed, and less optimistic than they were four years ago." And he also had a message for them about the issue of abortion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: You will no longer be thinking about abortion because it is now where it always had to be, with the states and with the vote of the people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CONTORNO: The women's vote will be key in this election. Donald Trump only won the Tar Heel state by about one percentage point four years ago, and the gap between him and Kamala Harris among women is larger than it was against him and Joe Biden in 2020. So, it's going to be critical for him to try to narrow that gap in the next few weeks. Amara and Danny.

FREEMAN: Steve Contorno, thank you. Let's bring in Axios political reporter Erin Doherty for some analysis on all this political news. Erin, thank goodness. I was getting so nervous we wouldn't have any more debates over debates. I'm so glad we're able to have that conversation today. Harris said she'll debate on CNN October 23rd. Trump said it'll be too late. What's your take here? Will there be a second debate between Harris and Trump?

ERIN DOHERTY, POLITICAL REPORTER, AXIOS: Yes. I mean, you're exactly right. This debate over the debates is not new this cycle. And I think that, at this point, with Former President Trump, obviously anything can change, but I think that the historical context here is pretty important in the 2020 presidential election. The last debate of the cycle was on October 22nd.

And to Former President Trump's point, a little bit of context there too, is that several of the people who are voting in some of these states that allow early voting, these are the people who have made up their mind who they were going to vote for early this year. So, these are not necessarily the people that a presidential debate is really going to try to appeal to. But if there was a debate at the end of October, that could be a really critical moment for these voters who are still undecided, and it's a relatively small number of voters who are undecided.

But at the end of the day, in what looks like it's going to be a race within election, those undecided voters are going to be the ones that could flip the election. And so, I think there's no question that a debate at the end of October would be really important for these undecided voters. And I think it remains to be seen whether there is one.

At this point, Trump could change his mind, but his posture in North Carolina yesterday sort of signaled that he will not sit for another debate with Vice President Harris. FREEMAN: Yes, it did seem pretty definitive, as though he was not equivocating yesterday in North Carolina. But CNN's Brian Stelter wrote yesterday an interesting point, I thought, really asking the question, does Former President Trump really want what would J. D. Vance to have the last word from a debate before this election? You know, and you think about it, can Trump really resist what would certainly be a hugely watched event?

[06:10:00]

DOHERTY: Yes, and it would be unusual for the vice-presidential candidates to sort of have the last word and be the last two people to take the stage in this sort of historic 2024 presidential election. But I do think that, to Former President Trump's sort of point also, a lot of voters already know who Former President Trump is. Vice President Harris is the one that polling shows that voters want to know more about.

So, in some ways, she would have more to gain at the sort of 11th hour presidential debate at the end of October. But many voters already know what Former President Trump stands for. Of course, a third -- a second presidential debate this cycle could, you know, help him appeal to some of these voters who are on the margins in these key swing states, but at the end of the day, I think his strategy, it's appearing to be, is that he's going to continue to do these rallies to try to rally voters in these key swing states that will determine the election.

FREEMAN: Erin, over the past couple of days we've been talking about recent polling from The New York Times and Siena College showing the race nationally still in this dead heat. But I want to actually focus, if that's All right. for a moment on Pennsylvania, because this new polling suggests that Harris has a four-point lead just outside of the margin of error.

I'm curious, what do you attribute that to in such an important, and we thought pretty close, battleground state? Is that a debate bump, or do you think there's a real foothold taking place here?

DOHERTY: I think that we've certainly seen that the momentum that Harris had when she entered the race has continued to sustain itself. There was a big question when she entered and had sort of this honeymoon period that Trump's campaign liked to call it, whether that period would eventually end. And we've seen from polling that the honeymoon has not ended.

It, of course, is an incredibly close race, but in some of these battleground states that, I've said, will determine the election, she has maintained sort of this, you know, polling edge or at least maintained the sort of margins with Former President Trump, which is, of course, a dramatic difference than when President Biden was at the top of the ticket, when Former President Trump was winning in most of these swing states.

And so, I think sort of broadening out Harris' pathway to victory in November if -- you know, if she's able to pull it off, it's important to see that she has a broader path on the electoral map than President Biden did, and whether that's going to be enough to make her win the White House in November still remains to be seen. But by sort of having this edge in some of these swing states, at least gives her, you know, the momentum to continue these last six weeks of the election.

FREEMAN: You know, it's funny you talk about the honeymoon phase, right? And, you know, with such a short campaign for Vice President Harris, you know, I remember it was a couple weeks ago, I think The New York Times said the honeymoon period is over and then we're back in it again just because, again, it's all so, abridged.

Erin, another thing I want to pick your brain on is, so Trump was in North Carolina yesterday and perhaps surprisingly, to some extent, did not bring up his chosen candidate for governor, Mark Robinson, who, of course, has been engulfed in the scandal for his lewd comments made on a porn site. Do you think we're going to hear Former President Trump weigh in on this?

DOHERTY: So, at this point, we haven't. And there sort of is a documented track record that Democrats have really seized on documenting Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson with Former President Trump. And so, it's not necessarily surprising that the former president is not sort of drawing attention to the fact that, you know, Robinson is Trump's chosen candidate.

And so, I think it's not surprising given the sort of controversy that we've seen this week in the in North Carolina. And zooming out a little bit, North Carolina is a critically important state for Former President Trump. He won it in 2020 by the smallest margins of all the battlegrounds that he won. And so, I think he knows basically to win in November, he needs to win November -- win North Carolina.

And the big question is, will this scandal at the bottom of the ticket -- or lower down on the ticket sort of pull-down Trump at the top of the ticket? Trump is pulling higher than Robinson is in his respective race. So, Former President Trump is -- it's not surprising that he is trying to distance himself from sort of this lower down candidate that, you know, could be -- could potentially pull him down in November.

FREEMAN: Yes, not surprising that he's trying to distance himself, but perhaps surprising that there was some discipline on the campaign trail yesterday. Erin Doherty, thank you so much for your time. Really appreciate it.

WALKER: All right. We are continuing to follow that breaking news of a deadly mass shooting in Birmingham, Alabama. Right now, we know at least four people have been killed and dozens have been injured. We will continue to update you throughout the morning as this story develops.

Also, the U.S. embassy is urging Americans to leave Lebanon as soon as possible as the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah intensifies. CNN is live in Beirut with that report. Plus, President Biden ramps up his diplomacy efforts, we'll tell you where he is headed for the upcoming week. All that and more after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:15:00]

WALKER: Foreign diplomacy is taking center stage this week at the White House, beginning with President Biden and Vice President Harris welcoming the president of the United Arab Emirates at the White House Monday. Harris and Biden will Biden and what will be his first ever trip to Washington, D.C.

Then Tuesday, foreign leaders from all over the world will gather in New York for the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly. President Biden is expected to address the U.N. on Tuesday, he will meet with various leaders to discuss a broad range of topics, including international peace efforts.

CNN's Camilla DeChalus joining us now from Washington. Good morning, Camilla. The president of the UAE will be at the White House tomorrow, as we said. What are they expected to talk about?

[06:20:00]

CAMILLA DECHALUS, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, they're expected to talk about a wide range of issues, but the two top things are the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and also the ongoing conflict in Sudan.

Now, it's particularly notable, Amara, as you mentioned, that foreign policy is at the top of mind for the president, and he has said on several occasions that he really wants to make foreign policy one of his top priorities in the final days as he remains in the Oval Office. But this meeting is coming just after he wrapped up the Quad Summit with other world leaders and really cemented the support around these world leaders and really focused on joint efforts that they were going to establish. Take a listen to what he said yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: Welcome. We're democracies. We're democracies who know how to get things done. That's why within the first days of my presidency, I reached out to each of you, each of your nations to propose we elevate the quad, make it even more consequential. Four years later, our four countries have more strategically -- are more strategically aligned than ever before. And today, we're announcing a series of initiatives to deliver real positive impact for the Indo-Pacific.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DECHALUS: Now, White House advisers tell us that this meeting that's going to take place on Monday will also focus on other things. For example, they want to talk about space exploration and A.I. technology and how the two countries can come together and collaborate. But I really want to focus, Amara, just on this topic of the crisis in Sudan, because that is something that lawmakers are now pushing the president to just get -- put more pressure on the UAE President on that and just addressing the situation and how they can resolve the ongoing tensions in that region moving forward.

WALKER: All right, Camila DeChalus, thank you very much.

FREEMAN: Breaking overnight. The Israel Defense Forces say more than a hundred projectiles were fired into Israel by Hezbollah this morning. This comes after Israel hit about 180 Hezbollah targets inside Lebanon yesterday.

This is the moment right here on your screen. A projectile hit the town of Kiryat Bialik in Israel, causing fires and leaving at least four people injured. Israel is responding by striking more Hezbollah targets today. And Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is delaying his trip to the U.N. General Assembly, which starts on Tuesday.

U.S. officials are warning that the possibility of this escalating further is real, and the U.S. embassy in Beirut is now urging Americans to leave Lebanon. Our Ben Wedeman is live in Beirut. Ben, tell us, what's the latest this morning?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, shortly after midnight, Hezbollah launched the first of three volleys of medium-range rockets, described as Fadi 1 and Fadi 2. That's a type of rocket we're not altogether familiar with.

However, they said the targets included the Ramat David Israeli Airbase, as well as the Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Facility in Haifa. Now, they these appear to be the deepest strikes inside Israel since 2006. By all accounts, it doesn't appear that they hit their targets, but we are seeing video from northern Israel to indicate that there has been some damage. Most of those drones and missiles have probably been intercepted in this case.

Now, according to the Israeli Medical Service, at least 10 people have been admitted to hospital as a result of these three volleys of strikes. Now, in addition to this, Israel is striking back so far this morning, there have been at least 60 Israeli airstrikes on targets in Southern Lebanon, according to the official news agency, which also says that at least two people on the Lebanese side have been killed already.

Now, we did hear Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defense minister, saying this morning that Israel's so-called efforts will continue against Hezbollah until the residents of Northern Israel will be able to return to their homes since October, about 62,000 Israelis living near the border have had to flee south, that in addition to the more than 100,000 Lebanese who have fled the border area.

Now, as a result of these mounting tensions, the U.N. special coordinator for Lebanon put out a statement saying that the region is on the brink of imminent catastrophe. She stressed that no military solution will make either side safe.

[06:25:00]

Now, you did mention the U.S. embassy. Yes, it has advised U.S. nationals to leave the immediately from Lebanon. And if there's in Southern Lebanon, definitely to leave as soon as possible. And other Lebanon -- other American nationals should cancel all plans to travel to the United States.

Now, the United States, over the last 11 months, has tried to ease the tensions between Hezbollah and Israel. They've been trying to work out a deal whereby Hezbollah fighters would withdraw from the border area north of the Litani River, which is about 20 kilometers north of that border. But until now, those efforts have resulted in nothing. In addition to, of course, the American efforts to bring about a ceasefire in Gaza.

And really, the fact that we are in this period of intense escalation tells you something about the inability of the United States, after 11 months, to somehow resolve, to put an end diplomatically to the war in Gaza, which is why, in fact, Hezbollah says they are a support front, supporting the Palestinians in Gaza since the war began on the 7th of October.

FREEMAN: Ben Wedeman, thank you very much. Please stay safe.

All right. And we're still on top of that breaking news out of Birmingham, Alabama. Police say a mass shooting has left at least four people dead and dozens more injured. We'll tell you what police are saying about the search for shooters on CNN This Morning Weekend returns.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:31:01]

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, an update now on the breaking news out of Birmingham, Alabama overnight.

Police say at least four people are dead and dozens more are injured after a mass shooting there. It all happened just at around 11 o'clock last night in the Five Points South area, which is a popular entertainment area. That's just about two miles away from downtown Birmingham.

Now, police believe multiple shooters opened fire on a group of people. They don't know if this was a drive-by or a walk-up. Here's Birmingham Police Officer Truman Fitzgerald.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMAN FITZGERALD, BIRMINGHAM POLICE: Our officers arrived on the scene when they observed two adult males and one adult female who was unresponsive on the sidewalk suffering from a gunshot wound. We also began locating multiple additional gunshot victims in and around the area. Also, multiple victims began arriving at various hospitals throughout our city.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: No suspects have been taken into custody yet. Several law enforcement agencies are involved in the investigation, including the FBI. We'll keep you posted.

Danny.

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN ANCHOR: After a string of suspicious packages targeted election offices across the U.S. this week, officials are stepping up security measures to protect their workers. This includes installing bulletproof glass and even providing panic buttons.

CNN's Brian Todd reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hazmat teams respond, and an election office in Iowa is evacuated. According to CNN and the Associated Press, suspicious packages containing powder were sent to election offices in at least 19 states this week, North Carolina confirming it was one of them.

KAREN BRINSON BELL, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NORTH CAROLINA BOARD OF ELECTIONS: We have learned that there was one in the mail stream to us, and it was intercepted.

TODD (voice-over): There were no reports of actual hazardous material in any of the packages, but it's part of a significant and very dangerous spike in recent months and overall, since the 2020 election of those types of acts.

MERRICK GARLAND, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: Election officials, workers, and volunteers in communities across the country have been targeted with heinous acts and threats of violence.

TODD (voice-over): In Durham County, North Carolina, this past March, according to the county elections director, a man showed up too late to the polls and was told he couldn't vote in the primary.

DEREK BOWENS, DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS, DURHAM COUNTY, NC: When the individual told our chief administrator at the precinct that if I can't vote with a ballot, I'll vote with a bullet.

TODD (voice-over): Law enforcement responded, but Derek Bowens says the man soon left the scene.

Last year, a series of suspicious letters, some laced with fentanyl, were sent to election offices throughout the country. The near constant threat of violence has led to an exodus. Many experienced election officials stepping down this cycle, some citing harassment.

CLINT HICKMAN, BOARD OF SUPERVISORS CHAIR, MARICOPA COUTY, AZ: I've had death threats. My family has suffered through threats.

TODD (voice-over): For those staying on the job, the measures they're taking to try to stay safe are mind-boggling.

BELL: And it really adds to the anxiety that we have about doing our job.

TODD (voice-over): In Durham County, workers at polling places this year will be equipped with panic buttons.

BOWENS: They can actually press a button, and that will alert emergency services to respond, and it will use Bluetooth technology for their exact location.

TODD (voice-over): The central election office in Durham County will be like Fort Knox, bulletproof glass at the front desk, a de- escalation room for people who are upset. And, incredibly, they've had to install a separate expensive filtration system for hazardous mail.

BOWENS: We have a mail room that has a separate exhaust system, so if there are any hazardous substances that come out as a result of mail, it will be contained to that room and will be pushed out through a separate exhaust system.

TODD (voice-over): Derek Bowens says he felt that sense of fear in recent days when he was leaving his office late at night.

BOWENS: I had the thought of looking around me, making sure that there was no one, you know, coming up to me or trying to get in close proximity. I actually thought about my life for the first time.

[06:35:01]

TODD: One election security advocate we spoke to says the exodus of experienced election workers has presented the challenge of getting new workers up to speed before Election Day But he was quick to try to tamp down the rhetoric of conspiracy theorists and fear mongers, saying he's confident that those challenges won't translate to problems or chaos on Election Day.

Brian Todd CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FREEMAN: Brian Todd, thank you very much for that report.

WALKER: What a sad state of affairs.

FREEMAN: Yes.

WALKER: Still to come, the Federal Reserve slashed interest rates this year. So, what are the benefits for you? And what should you do with your money now? The answers after the break?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:40:22]

WALKER: The Federal Reserve caught a lot of people and investors off guard last week, cutting by a half a percentage point. They even hinted that another cut could come before the end of the year.

Joining me now is Michelle Singletary, personal finance columnist for the Washington Post. She's also the author of What to Do With Your Money When Crisis Hits, A Survival Guide.

Michelle, good to see you this morning. So, I mean, yes, it seems like a lot of people were caught off guard by that. I think that the conventional expectation was that it would be a quarter percentage point cut. It was a jumbo half point cut. What's the first thing we should be doing?

MICHELLE SINGLETARY, PERSONAL FINANCE COLUMNIST, THE WASHINGTON POST: So, really, there's two types of people that should be excited and maybe a little worried. If you are a borrower, it's good news because it means for many people, auto loans, you know, mortgage rates are going to come down. Although mortgage rates aren't directly tied to the Fed rate, they are impacted by it.

Now, if you're a long-term saver or saver, you're going to see some of those high-yield savings rates come down, not right away, so you can still lock in some good rates, but they will eventually come down as the Fed continues its rate cuts.

WALKER: So, if this is an encouraging sign, and I'm asking this for people who have been waiting on the sidelines, hoping that the rates would go down, that they could finally get their, you know, buy their first home, perhaps, how encouraged should they be when it comes to mortgage rates continuing to go down?

SINGLETARY: Yes, I think they should be encouraged. Like I said, it's not directly related --

WALKER: Yes.

SINGLETARY: -- to the Fed cuts, but they are impacted. So, if you've been on the sidelines, you're thinking, oh, you know, am I going to be able to afford a house, this is good news, but I don't think that people should be like, yes, let me just go out tomorrow.

You know, there's still some fundamentals that need to be in place. You need to make sure that you've got a good down payment, that you're, you know, you've reduced as much debt as you possibly can before you buy a house.

So, don't just look at the rates and say, it's time to buy. You need to look at your entire financial picture to make sure it's right for you. And this is particularly so for people who were, you know, just really waiting to refinance their mortgage.

I would say for those folks in particular, you need to probably put a pause on it, because the Fed has said, you know, we're probably going to do some more rate cuts. And so, you need to be patient so that when you refinance, you get the best rate possible.

WALKER: Yes. Yes. That's very good advice. Just hold off a bit because the rates may be coming down even more. What about inflation? What does this rate cut mean for which, you know, way and how fast inflation could go down?

SINGLETARY Well, you know, the Fed has been fighting inflation. And so, this is a good sign. They're saying, listen, we're seeing the numbers come down. That's a good thing.

Now, for different types of goods, it's not come down enough, right? You know, people still have to pay more for groceries. You know, if you're in the market for a car, even though the rates have come down, cars are still very expensive.

And so, you know, here's what I tell people, you know, you can't just look at the rate cut and go, yay, and go out there. Look at your financial fundamentals. You know, if you're looking for a car and the rates are still a little high, then maybe you buy a used car or you buy a car less expensive. Or maybe you put on to your hoopty for a little bit longer, you know, and save up, and you can actually pay cash for a car, you all.

And so, you know, just look at the whole thing. You know, people, just the one thing we ask, should I go buy a house? Should I do this? Listen, if you're carrying a lot of credit card debt, no. You know, if you still have a whole bunch of student loans, no. You know, just make sure when you walk into that house and you buy that car that you are in the best possible situation. And if you've got credit card debt, you know, this cut is really not going to impact it. You're still paying on average a credit card that's around 21 or 21 percent. And that's too that's really hot.

So, concentrate on getting that debt down. And that's really the best thing for you than just watching what the Fed does with the Fed rate.

WALKER: Michelle, I wish I knew you and you talk some sense into me when I was a massive debt using my credit cards for everything when I was in college. Where were you then? Last question to you --

SINGLETARY: I was here.

WALKER: I know you weren't. I just couldn't find you. Last question about the job market.

SINGLETARY: Yes.

WALKER: I mean, could this rate cut also improve the job market? Because obviously this will hopefully spur more consumer spending?

SINGLETARY: Yes, you know, and so the Fed has been looking at both the inflation rate and also the jobs market. So, there was a little bit of cooling on the job market and that was a little concern.

[06:45:04]

And so, the rate cut should help that because, you know, businesses are saying, should I hire people? You know, it costs me a lot if I'm borrowing money, but if the cost of borrowing money is a little less, it might encourage them to hire or, you know, or fill that vacant position that has been left open for a little while.

So, I think that this is one of the -- the things that the Fed has been looking at, and hopefully this will make sure that people, you know, that their jobs out there for people.

WALKER: Let us hope. Michelle Singletary, thank you very much. Good to see you this morning.

SINGLETARY: You're welcome.

FREEMAN: That was a great, that was a great interview.

WALKER: Yes.

FREEMAN: I'm buying that book. I love that.

WALKER: Great energy. I'm buying whatever she's selling.

FREEMAN: Yes, exactly, exactly.

All right, this morning, we're going to tell you why specialist divers are asking for extra security to guard the superyacht that sank off of Sicily in August.

That's coming up next.

WALKER: In case you missed it, "HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU" with Roy Wood Jr., Amber Ruffin, and Michael Ian Black. We'll replay tonight at 9:00 p. m. Eastern on CNN.

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[06:50:27]

FREEMAN: We have new developments in the sinking of that $40 million superyacht that went down off the coast of Italy last month. Sources tell CNN that the specialist divers surveying the wreckage of the Bayesian are asking for security and underwater surveillance to guard the wreckage.

And here's why. Sources tell CNN that foreign governments could be interested in sensitive data that may be stowed in watertight safes that were on the ship.

CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau is live for us in Rome. Now, Barbie, quite a twist in this story. Tell me, what else do we know?

BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN REPORTER (on-camera): Yes, you know, I mean, I think first and foremost, we have to remember this is a tragedy. Seven people lost their lives when this luxury yacht went down in a storm on August 19th. But it's who those people were and what they may have had on board that is making this a matter of international intrigue.

Now, Mike Lynch, the British tech titan, as he's been called the British Bill Gates was among those who perished. It was his companies that were tied to Western intelligence agencies. That was a very, very well-established fact. And, you know, through investigations and through interrogations with the crew members and the friends that survived, we've learned that that he always traveled with his highly encrypted data with him. He didn't trust cloud services. Let's say he kept it with him in these watertight safes on the vessel.

So, as they're trying to figure out how to raise this very large luxury yacht from the from the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea, the very concerned that people might try to access it. Now, this is 50 meter or 114 feet below the surface. So, you're not going to have novice divers here, and that's what they're worried about.

So, they're putting in place some extra security to try to make sure nobody reaches that vessel that shouldn't have access to it.

FREEMAN: Wow. I mean, just a fascinating story. And again, I don't think a twist that any of us were expecting from this.

Barbie Latza Nadeau, thank you so much for that report.

WALKER: Well, as they say, breaking up is hard to do, and that doesn't stop couples from calling it quits, especially in China, where the divorce rate is surging, and it is a big business, especially for one company that specializes in erasing memories.

CNN's Marc Stewart has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARC STEWART, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is a factory complex about 60 miles outside of Beijing. It's fueled in part by the business of breakups.

STEWART (voice-over): Divorced couples send their mementos to Liu Wei and his team, paying to destroy the evidence of their marriage.

STEWART: For Chinese families, photos like these are a big part of their home on full display for friends and family to see.

STEWART (voice-over): But these photos are pretty much indestructible made out of hard acrylic boards. The team spray paints faces to ensure privacy before being placed inside the crusher. It's a better solution compared to just throwing things in the trash. Divorce is still seen as shameful in China.

STEWART: This entire process is recorded on video. Customers want proof the deed has been done.

STEWART (voice-over): It's happening as China's divorce rate is skyrocketing, and as authorities try to avert a demographic crisis by promoting marriage and parenthood. But the slumping economy leaves many young couples feeling stressed out about work life and relationships.

STEWART: Where did you even get the idea to have a business like this? LIU WEI, CO-FOUNDER, BEIJING ZHONGTIANJIE COMPANY (through translation): This was actually an accidental idea, but it quickly became an obvious business. During my daily contact with some customers, they all had the same thought because they were troubled by the issue, but there was no way they could destroy them. I had the same thoughts. I saw their dilemma.

STEWART: A lot of these photos have captions talking about happiness and dreams. These were couples that were once in love.

Does this ever make you sad, watching this process happen, knowing once happy couples are no longer together?

WEI (through translation): I think of myself as a doctor. I see my job as being a witness to the disappearances of all kinds of relationships. Love or not, marriage or not, it's all normal. And a divorce might not necessarily be a bad thing. It could be a good thing.

STEWART (voice-over): The cost of this varies up to around $30 depending on what needs to be destroyed. Yet for some people in China, it's a small price to pay for a fresh start.

[06:55:02]

Marc Stewart, CNN, Longfeng, China.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: Fascinating. OK, two questions. Number one, did you see that some of the people sent in full picture frames? Why wouldn't you just take the photo out and keep the picture frame?

FREEMAN: Well, it's the satisfaction of the whole --

WALKER: Whole thing.

FREEMAN: -- frame. The whole memory --

WALKER: OK.

FREEMAN: -- just shredded (INAUDIBLE).

WALKER: And so, there's all this junk now. Are -- is this guy recycling all this stuff?

FREEMAN: The environmental concern of destroying --

WALKER: Yes. I mean, if --

FREEMAN: -- the couples' memories.

WALKER: -- the divorce rates have become so high and this business is so popular, I mean, I hope you're recycling.

FREEMAN: That's the follow up story for Marc Stewart. That's what we need to see next.

WALKER: Recycling all the evidence.

FREEMAN: That's right. Interesting story though.

WALKER: Yes, very, very interesting. We're going to take a quick break. More news after the break.

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