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CNN This Morning
Federal Judge Blocks National Guard Deployment Into Portland; Trump Administration Plans To Federalize Troops Into Chicago; DHS: Officers Rammed By Vehicles During Shooting In Chicago; At Least 18 People Arrested Outside Broadview ICE Facility; Trump Releases Map Of Initial Israeli Withdrawal From Gaza; Trump Puts Pressure On Israel And Hamas To Accept Ceasefire Deal; South Carolina State University On Lockdown After Shooting; Former NFL Quarterback Mark Sanchez Stabbed; Mexican Navy Ship Departs New York Months After Deadly Crash; Rain And Storms Hit Gulf Coast And Central U.S.; Inside No-Fly Zones And How The Military Intercepts Aircrafts. Bad Bunny Mocks Backslash To His Super Bowl Half Time Gig On "SNL"; Dems At Impasse With Republicans Over Enhanced Obamacare Subsides; WIC Program Could Run Out Of Funds Within Two Weeks; Apple Takes Down ICE Tracking Apps Amid Trump Pressure Campaign; "New Orleans: Soul Of A City" Premieres Tonight At 10P (ET/PT); First Responders Endure High Levels Of Stress, These Dogs Can Lighten The Load. Aired 6-7a ET
Aired October 05, 2025 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[06:00:46]
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: You saw it. Sunday, October 5th. Welcome to a brand-new week. And welcome to CNN THIS MORNING. I'm Victor Blackwell.
Here's what's new this morning, a federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from sending National Guard troops to Portland. She called the plan a detriment to the nation. The next steps in this legal fight, coming up.
There are new details also about the ceasefire plan. Also, the peace plan negotiations between Israel and Hamas. What we know about where talks stand and the U.S. involvement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JULIA VARGAS JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is unbelievable how close these F-15s are to our King Air. And the captain just informed us that those are live weapons.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: First on CNN THIS MORNING, our reporter flies along with U.S. fighter pilots to see how they respond when pilots violate no-fly zones. And Bad Bunny returns to host the season premiere of SNL. How he responded to the criticism surrounding his choice as the season's Super Bowl halftime performer, that's coming up. We're starting off this morning with the federal judge that just blocked the Trump administration from sending the National Guard into Portland, and the White House is planning an appeal. In her opinion, the judge wrote this about recent clashes between protesters and federal officers. She said that they are inexcusable, but they are nowhere near the type of incidents that cannot be handled by regular law enforcement.
She also went on to say that the Trump administration's arguments, quote, "risk blurring the line between civil and military federal power to the detriment of this nation," a sentiment echoed by Oregon's attorney general.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAN RAYFIELD, OREGON ATTORNEY GENERAL: Mobilizing the United States military in our cities is not normal. It should not be normal. And we will fight to make sure that it is never normal.
Today's ruling is a healthy check on the president's power. And as the president, you must have actual facts based on reality, not social media or just your gut feeling if you want to mobilize the military here in the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Now, the temporary restraining order expires on October 18th, and A.G. Dan Rayfield says the state plans to ask for an extension. Let's take you to Illinois now. And the Trump administration is planning to federalize troops to quell resistance there. Governor J.B. Pritzker denounced the decision, which comes after several days of protests outside an ICE facility just outside of Chicago. CNN's Rafael Romo has more for us. Rafael.
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Victor, good morning. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker is calling it, quote, "absolutely outrageous and un-American to demand the governor send military troops within our borders," he said, "and against our will."
Pritzker made the comment in a statement he published Saturday announcing that the Trump administration intends to federalize 300 members of the Illinois National Guard. The statement goes on to say the following, they will pull hardworking Americans out of their regular jobs and away from their families all to participate in a manufactured performance, not a serious effort to protect the public safety. For Donald Trump, he said, this has never been about safety. This is about control.
In another development this weekend, the Department of Homeland Security announced there was a shooting, Saturday morning, in Chicago's Southwest Side. In a statement, a top DHS official said that law enforcement officers were rammed by vehicles and boxed in by 10 cars. Unable to move their vehicles, agents exited the car and they saw that one of the drivers had a semiautomatic weapon, which prompted the agents to fire what officials are calling defensive shots at the armed U.S. citizen. That U.S. citizen, the DHS statement said, drove herself to the hospital to get care for her wounds. It said, no one else was injured. Chicago police confirmed the shooting in the Southwest Side of the city and referred questions to federal authorities.
Tensions boiled over Friday when protesters clashed with federal agents during a protest outside an immigration and customs enforcement detention center for migrants, just outside of Chicago where the ICE facility is located, while Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino were seen on the ICE facility's roof.
[06:05:14]
At least 18 people were arrested at the site where protesters have gathered for several weeks in a row to protest the Trump administration crackdown on immigration. At a Democratic Party fundraiser here in Atlanta Friday night, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker denounced ICE actions in his state over the last few weeks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. J.B. PRITZKER (D-IL): In the past few weeks, in Chicago, ICE has detained multiple U.S. citizens because they were black or brown. They shot gas pellets into the car of a journalist who had done nothing except drive past an ICE facility to observe what was going on. They raided an apartment complex in the middle of the night and perp walked a group of young children out of the building with their hands zip tied behind them, separating them from their parents.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMO: According to DHS, more than 1,000 undocumented immigrants have been arrested since early September as part of what officials call Operation Midway Blitz. Victor, now back to you.
BLACKWELL: Rafael, thank you very much. And Governor Pritzker will be among the guests this morning on "STATE OF THE UNION." That's at 9:00 a.m. eastern right here on CNN.
New this morning, negotiations to try to finalize an end of the Israel-Hamas war expected to start tomorrow. President Trump is applying pressure to Israel and Hamas to accept his 20-point peace proposal. Now, both sides have indicated an openness to the plan.
Trump released this map on Truth Social. It shows Israel controlling far more territory in Gaza compared to what Hamas was offered back in July.
Now, in the meantime, Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, he made his first comment since Hamas signaled that it was willing to accept the Trump proposal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): We are on the verge of a very big achievement. It's not final yet, but I hope that in the coming days, during the Sukkot holiday, I will be able to announce to you the return of all the hostages in one phase, while the IDF remains deep inside the strip in the territories that control it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Pro-Palestinian protesters around the world continue to express outrage over Israel's military action in Gaza. Just yesterday, Gaza hospital officials reported the Israeli strikes killed more than 60 people.
Let's go to CNN's Jerusalem bureau chief, Oren Liebermann. So, what can we expect at this stage, Oren?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: So, there are discussions right now happening in Cairo. That's where U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law, are for the day discussing -- essentially holding pre-discussions to what we expect to be the indirect talks between Israel and Hamas that are set to start tomorrow, not in Cairo, but in Sharm el-Sheikh on the southern peninsula.
That city has been a host city for numerous sensitive and crucial discussions throughout the years, not just since the war began, for crucial discussions about the issue not only of a ceasefire, but of major agreements. And that's the city Sharm el-Sheikh in Sinai, that will once again host indirect talks between Israel and Hamas to try to hammer out the final agreements.
Now, we're seeing a lot of signs of optimism from the Israeli and U.S. sides. Crucially, though, this deal isn't done yet, and even Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, when he expressed his optimism in a short statement last night, said this isn't finalized yet. And there are some difficult discussions. And frankly, it's the same difficult topics that have been the stumbling blocks -- or the stumbling points for negotiations multiple times in the past. That is, the withdrawal map.
Trump, basically, endorsed Israel -- Israel's withdrawal map, which shows Israel holding a tremendous amount of territory in Gaza, even after Hamas releases all of the 48 remaining hostages. So, that is likely to be one of the key issues. Then there's the issue of disarmament.
When Hamas said they were ready for immediate negotiations to end the war and to release all of the hostages and to relinquish governance in Gaza they made no mention of disarmament. So, that's another crucial issue on which the talks that may be starting up again could easily fall apart.
So, we're not there yet even as Israel and the U.S. are indicating that this could all end in the coming days. So, this is all a reason to keep an eye on what really comes out of these talks, and where the issues -- where the discussions hit major hurdles. Frankly, the same ones, again, that we've seen in the past. Meanwhile, Israel is still bombarding Gaza. It may be less than what we've seen over the course of the past, frankly, months and years. And we have heard that from Palestinians on the ground who say, look, they're not interested in the promises of leaders, what they want to see is an actual ceasefire.
[06:10:03]
Here is one displaced Palestinian on the desperation felt across Gaza for an end to the war.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHEREEN KHAROUB, DISPLACED PALESTINIAN (through translator): I wish this really comes to effect not like every time we hear of ceasefire, then it doesn't happen, and we live on false hope. We don't want false promises. This is enough.
Our children are gone. Our life is gone. Our homes are gone. Everything is gone. This is enough. We want a ceasefire, for real. On the ground, for real.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIEBERMANN: The key here is that the Israelis and the Americans are pushing for a ceasefire for the final proximity talks to take days, not weeks. So, we may know if this falls apart or succeeds quite quickly here, Victor.
BLACKWELL: Oren Liebermann for us in Jerusalem. Oren, thank you so much. Let's bring in now CNN global affairs analyst Kimberly Dozier. Kimberly, good morning to you.
And I want to pick up on those two potential stumbling blocks, the sticking points in these talks. And let's start with this new map that President Trump posted on social media. And the new lines that have drawn it gives Israel more territory than before. Wrap some context around these new lines and how this could complicate getting to this first phase.
KIMBERLY DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, from Israel's perspective, it does not want to withdraw from the Gaza Strip until Hamas disarms and is in some way disbanded, something Hamas has not yet agreed to.
The yellow line that you see bisecting Gaza, what this does is provide a sort of buffer zone where Israeli troops would be based to try to keep Hamas from resuming major rocket attacks, because some rocket attacks have continued, but a flurry of rocket attacks against Israeli cities, and also to keep them from infiltrating into Israeli territory. So, that's the position from the Israeli side.
From the Hamas side, they need to see Israeli forces withdraw further, but they haven't yet gone to the negotiating table in Cairo and Sharm el-Sheikh. Talks to come. So. that will all be hammered out, hopefully. BLACKWELL: Kim, is there a lever that is available to the president now, there are pressure point that's available now that makes disarmament of Hamas any more likely than it has been up to this point of his administration?
DOZIER: Well, I think you've got Netanyahu as the head of Israel on the rocks politically, because so much of the country is up in arms over just getting those hostages out. And there's a wide feeling across Israel that Netanyahu has put his political survival ahead of the survival of the hostages. So that has, in a sense, handed Donald Trump some political capital.
You've seen President Trump, for the first time, actually call for Israel to stop bombing Gaza. He said that over the weekend, first time since his second term. So, Trump senses weakness in his political ally/frenemy, Netanyahu, and is pushing.
Trump also has been impressed -- it's made an impression on him the pictures, the video of the destruction and the plight of the Palestinian people. I think Arab leaders really took that opportunity to speak to him directly at the U.N. and tell Trump, if you don't stop the madness in Gaza, you can kiss expansion of the Abraham peace accords goodbye. And you will lose the will -- we will lose the will of the Arab world to try to help you accomplish some of your goals.
BLACKWELL: You mentioned the Abraham Accords. And let me talk to you about personnel, because that's one of the wins of Jared Kushner, who was the senior adviser during the first term. His then chief Middle East envoy, now back part of these talks, heading to Cairo, then on to Sharm el-Sheikh. What do you make of his inclusion at this phase? And does it make at least getting to a temporary ceasefire more probable because of that success and, frankly, some of his business connections in the region?
DOZIER: Yes, Kushner has such deep ties now to Saudi Arabia, to Qatar, but not just business ties, but the talks were so intense in Trump 1.0 that, you know, Kushner practically lived in some of these capitals. All the leadership has each other's cell phone numbers, phone numbers, et cetera.
I was surprised not to see him come back into the White House. So, to see him join this plan right now at this crucial moment makes a lot of sense because there's trust on the Arab leaders' side in him.
[06:15:02]
Also, Steve Witkoff, he doesn't have much of a team at all. He's doing a lot of this all by himself without a large staff. He needs help. So, for two reasons you can see why Kushner is there. Hopefully, that will help put the pressure on Hamas to say yes to some of these things that it doesn't want to do, disarm, agree to disband, to get them at least across the finish line enough to get the hostages out, and then discuss the next stage of what happens with Gaza in the future.
BLACKWELL: All right. And there will also be, as they're describing this, the intra-Palestinian dialogs that are happening as well. So, we'll see what happens as part of that conversation. Kimberly Dozier, thanks so much.
This morning, South Carolina State University is on lockdown after a shooting on campus. According to the school's Web site, all of today's homecoming events are canceled. School officials are asking anyone who is not a student to stay away. Off campus residents are urged to leave campus. The State Law Enforcement Division is investigating.
And this morning, former NFL quarterback and Fox sports analyst Mark Sanchez is in custody in Indiana. Police say the 38-year-old was involved in a stabbing in downtown Indianapolis yesterday. Officers found two men hurt, including Sanchez, one with cuts, the other with stab wounds. Detectives believe it was an isolated fight between the two.
Sanchez is in stable condition. He was arrested at the hospital and charged with public intoxication, unlawful entry of a motor vehicle, and battery. He was in Indianapolis to work today's Colts-Raiders game.
A Mexican Navy ship, training ship, left New York this weekend more than four months after it hit the Brooklyn Bridge. Two crew members were killed. More than a dozen others were hurt.
Now, this ship is heading back to Mexico. It's scheduled to make several stops before joining independence celebrations next month. Federal investigators say the review of the crash could take up to two years.
And protecting the skies at all costs. NORAD scans the skies with fighter jets ready to fire. We're going to take you inside the invisible shield guarding U.S. skies. And political impasse is sending the government shutdown into its second week. What lawmakers are saying about the sticking points preventing a deal.
ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And thunderstorms right here along the Gulf Coast. But it's not the only area that's expected to see the potential for flooding. We'll take a look at some other spots, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:22:22]
BLACKWELL: Today, rain and thunderstorms are moving across the Gulf Coast and central parts of the country. Downpours could cause some flooding, and winds are making for rough surf, dangerous rip currents along the beaches.
For more on what to expect, here's CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar. What are we expecting? It looks like a lot of color, a lot going on in that map behind you.
CHINCHAR: It is. It is. I mean, it looks like a box of Crayola just kind of exploded on the map. Yes, it does, but that's because we have a lot of that going on. You've got a lot of different systems here to kind of contend with. And that also means that not just one area is going to see the potential for flooding.
Yes, we've got the potential right down here along the Gulf Coast, but also across portions of the Midwest and into the Central region. And that's going to be the one that lingers for a couple of days. So, let's take a look at what we've got. Again, you can see a lot of these showers and thunderstorms firing up right there along the front as we go through the afternoon across the Midwest and even into the Central Plains.
But then as we head into Monday, you'll start to see a lot more of that moisture surging up from the gulf and that's going to really fuel a lot of the showers and thunderstorms across places like Kentucky, Tennessee, even into Arkansas, and Southern Missouri. So, you've got two different areas here that are going to be looking at the potential for showers and thunderstorms, and neither one of them is really very fast moving. So, both have the potential to trigger some flooding, especially as we go late into tonight and into early portions of Monday.
Here's a look at the widespread totals. Again, you can see a lot of yellow on that screen. That's two to four inches of rain, but a couple pockets of that orange or even red color, meaning six, seven inches is not out of the question. It's not going to be widespread, but you are going to have a few places that could potentially see those higher amounts.
You've got two areas where we have that excessive rainfall, not just there, but also across portions of Florida, because that gulf moisture that's sitting down there is also going to produce quite a bit of rain over the next few days.
BLACKWELL: All right. Thank you. Well, from the cockpit to the command center, the U.S. military scrambles jets almost daily to intercept aircraft that stray into restricted airspace, sometimes it's a lost small plane, sometimes it's a foreign jet. The goal is the same, warn and assess while keeping the skies safe. CNN's Julia Vargas Jones rode along with pilots and commanders to show us exactly how those moments happen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JONES (voice-over): From the cockpit of a small twin engine plane over California this is what it sounds like when the U.S. military intercepts an aircraft that has violated restricted airspace.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you do not cooperate, you will be fired upon.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're (INAUDIBLE). We're the main target. Now, look on your left side.
[06:25:01]
The F-15s are on their way up.
JONES (voice-over): Then one fighter jet emerges from the clouds.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A second one is right behind him, doing the same thing.
JONES (voice-over): It is a simulation. But real intercepts by the North American Aerospace Defense Command happen almost daily, often when civilian pilots stray into temporary flight restrictions around the president, major sporting events, or global summits, less common but not unusual, military planes.
Last week, NORAD intercepted four Russian fighter jets in Alaska's air defense identification zone. This was not seen as a threat, according to NORAD. Fighter pilots now approach as they try to assess why our pilots would not be responding to their warnings.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Does it look like a hijack? Are the pilots unconscious? They can see if there's any damage to the airplane, something's going on there.
JONES: It is unbelievable how close these F-15s are to our King Air. I can see inside the cockpit there. And the captain just informed us that those are live weapons.
(voice-over): But firing those weapons is the last thing the pilots want. Their job is to make sure a warning is enough.
(on camera): What was that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That is a jet wash. That is a jet wash -- the pilot's attention.
JONES (voice-over): It's an escalation maneuver sometimes used with flares designed to force a response and establish control. This is as far as the simulation will go.
LT. COL. JEFF "VADER" BRANDON, CALIFORNIA AIR NATIONAL GUARD: Oh, I don't know. I haven't seen it.
JONES (voice-over): Back on the ground, we meet one of the pilots.
(on camera): I mean, it felt to me like you were about to hit us, right?
BRANDON: Well, and that's -- what our goal is to move to a safe distance. So, thinking closer to that 1,000-feet and then slowly but surely, as safety dictates, we'll kind of move in closer and closer. OK.
JONES (voice-over): Lieutenant Colonel Brandon says the protocols are the same, whether it's a lost weekend pilot or foreign jet probing U.S. defenses.
(on camera): What are you looking for as you're trying to assess the situation?
BRANDON: What I'm trying to do is try to build that 3D picture, that God's eye view, of where I am and where they are, and how I can maneuver in relationship. To now get my aircraft, just like you saw, right tucked in tight in what we would call close formation. So, that's what I'm trying to do, is use their words to build a picture in my mind and then use my sensors to now mesh those two, and then execute whatever the best game plan would be.
JONES (voice-over): Julia Vargas Jones, CNN, Orange County, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL: Wow. Julia, thank you. Another casualty of the government shutdown could be a lifeline for millions of parents and kids. WIC and SNAP benefits may run out of money if a deal is not reached soon. We'll break down the impact.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:32:17]
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Bad Bunny kicked off the new season of Saturday Night Live with a clear message poking fun to critics upset over his upcoming Super Bowl halftime show.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BAD BUNNY, PUERTO RICAN RAPPER: I'm very excited to be doing the Super Bowl. And I know that people all around the world who love my music are also happy.
(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: He also encouraged people who didn't understand his Spanish to start learning, and then he switched languages to tell fans how proud he is to represent Latinos.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BAD BUNNY: If you didn't understand what I just said, you have four months to learn.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Even aired clips of Fox News personalities spliced together. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BAD BUNNY: And I think everyone is happy about it. Even, even Fox News.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bad Bunny --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: is my --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- favorite -- UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- musician.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And he should be --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- the next --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: His SNL appearance follows a record-breaking run of concerts in Puerto Rico and another hit album topping the charts, but despite his massive success, some U.S. officials and conservative media are trying to turn his Super Bowl spotlight into a culture war over his past anti-ICE comments.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that ICE will be at the Super Bowl and that only law-abiding Americans who love this country should attend.
All right, we're five days into the government shutdown, and Democrats say that they are at an impasse with Republicans and President Trump over enhanced Obamacare subsidies. There will be no votes this weekend to reopen. Lawmakers are out of town.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES, (D) MINORITY LEADER: Unfortunately, Republicans have shown zero interest in even having a conversation. After the White House meeting on Monday, we've seen behavior by the President that is unserious and unhinged.
And Leader Schumer and myself haven't gotten a single phone call as it relates to a follow-up conversation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: The White House says the firing of hundreds of thousands of federal workers is imminent. Republicans are pitting the blame entirely on Democrats.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. MIKE LAWLER (R-NY): The unfortunate reality here is this is not about health care. This is about Democrats wanting to show their progressive left base that they are fighting against Donald Trump and Chuck Schumer being petrified of a primary from AOC. And that really is ultimately what this is about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[06:35:18]
BLACKWELL: The latest casualty of the shutdown is the National Gallery of Art in D.C. The museum says that it will be temporarily closed starting today and all programs canceled until further notice. Now, if the shutdown does not end soon, millions of Americans could lose food assistance from WIC within two weeks. The 50-year-old program serves nearly 7 million pregnant women, new mothers, infants and young children. It received $7.6 billion in funding for fiscal year 2025, but that funding ended five days ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The formula is like crazy expensive. So literally the only way we were able to afford it was with WIC. They can literally only have formula.
So if they can't afford it, I mean, there's no other option.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Let's bring it down Nell Menefee-Libey, the senior public policy manager for the National WIC Association.
Nell, good morning to you. Can we just start with, I think people have kind of maybe a cursory understanding of WIC, but give us a fuller picture of what this means for the 6.7 million people who rely on it.
NELL MENEFEE-LIBEY, SENIOR PUBLIC POLICY MANAGER, NATIONAL WIC ASSOCIATION: Sure. Thanks for having me.
WIC is a public health nutrition program that's targeted to really specific life stages. So, pregnancy and postpartum and then infancy through a child's fifth birthday. WIC delivers healthy foods, targeted nutrients that we know families need to thrive during this vulnerable period, as well as nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and health screenings and referrals to other services that families may need.
BLACKWELL: And so the last shutdown, 2018-2019, started in December, went into January. And I'd like for you to talk about the significance specifically of this shutdown starting October 1st and how this could be more dire for those families.
MENEFEE-LIBEY: That's exactly right. Because we are at the beginning of a new fiscal year, there are no fiscal year 2026 funds on board for WIC yet, which means that the only resources available to keep program operations running are the very little that was left over from the end of fiscal year '25 and $150 million contingency funds that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has indicated that they will disperse to support continued program operations.
There are a couple of other limited pots of federal money, but even all of those together only gets us about two weeks' worth of program operations before states will start to hit a crisis point.
BLACKWELL: Are there states that are more vulnerable than others? You mentioned this $150 million contingency that USDA is going to allow, according to a memo we've seen. Ag will also allow states to use rebates from infant formula manufacturers, some of their own money. But are there some states that this is going to be tougher for those families than others?
MENEFEE-LIBEY: Yes, it'll really be a state-by-state process. We know that there are some state governments that have already taken steps to shore up WIC, which is a 100 percent federally funded program. This is not something that state governments usually have to budget for, which creates challenges in situations like this where they would need to step in in order to support continued program operations.
We don't quite know yet which states will hit a crisis point first, although Washington State has indicated that they only have one to two weeks' worth of resources on hand to support continued program operations. But I really want to underscore that this will be a state- by-state breakdown if and when the program hits a crisis point, and that there's still time for Congress and the White House to come together to avert that crisis.
BLACKWELL: Yes, well, the House isn't coming back next week, and no votes happened this weekend in the Senate.
And this is happening, you know, not in a silo. There are other compounding elements here. Food banks are not seeing the wealth of resources that they would otherwise see or depend on because of, you know, people, some are donating less. There may be some federal employees, as we saw in the last long shutdown, who go to these food banks.
So, what could be the supplements for these families just aren't there. What's your fear if these resources run out?
MENEFEE-LIBEY: Yes, that's exactly right. We know that the charitable food system is already stretched and that it is not equipped to step in for programs like WIC. I think especially for really young children whose sole source of nutrition may be infant formula, the loss of WIC would be absolutely devastating because their families don't have other options in order to feed their young ones that really puts us in a crisis point very quickly. And the position that parents would have to be in to try to figure out how to feed their children in the event that their WIC benefits are lost is just terrifying.
[06:40:24]
BLACKWELL: Some of the youngest victims of this shutdown, just some of them not even born yet.
All right, Nell, thank you so much for being with us.
We'll take a quick break and we'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:45:13]
BLACKWELL: The Trump administration is pressuring tech companies to remove apps that track ICE offices in their locations. Apple has removed ICEBlock and similar apps that allow people to alert others about sightings of immigration and customs enforcement agents. CNN tech reporter Clare Duffy has more.
CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER (on-camera): That's right, Apple on Thursday removed ICEBlock and similar apps which had been on the App Store for months following a request from the U.S. Justice Department.
In an e-mail to ICEBlock creator Joshua Aaron, Apple said that the app violated its rules against objectionable and defamatory discriminatory and mean-spirited content. The company also said it received information from law enforcement that it said, showed the purpose of the app was to provide information that could cause harm to law enforcement officers, although Aaron the apps creator has denied that.
This all comes as President Trump and other members of his administration have for months criticized these kinds of apps saying that they could pose a threat to ICE agents. In a statement on Friday, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said the DOJ demanded the apps removal from the App Store because it puts ICE agents at risk.
Now for his part, Joshua Aaron says he created ICEBlock to allow people to avoid interactions with ICE agents. He called the suggestion that the app is designed to put ICE agents at risk patently false, and when users went to report sightings nearby sightings of ICE agents on the app, they would actually see a pop-up that reminded them that the purpose of the app was not to interfere with law enforcement. He says that he will fight this removal from the App Store.
Take a listen to what more he told our Erin Burnett on Friday night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSHUA AARON, ICEBLOCK APP CREATOR: So, there are no repercussions. They want to act in secrecy and an app like ICEBlock does not allow that to happen. But here's the interesting part, if you see something in public, remember our federal tax dollars are paying for all of this, right? And if you see a law enforcement officer in public whether it's a speed trap or an ICE agent, you're just simply saying on ICEBlock or Apple Maps when you're reporting a speed trap or Waze if you're reporting a speed trap. Hey, I saw something in public that I saw with my own two eyes that you can see with your own two eyes. I'm just pointing out where it is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DUFFY (on-camera): Now we also asked Apple for their comment on this situation. The company told us, we created the App Store to be a safe and trusted place to discover apps. Based on information we've received from law enforcement about the safety risks associated with ICEBlock, we have removed it and similar apps from the App Store.
Now, I do think it's also worth noting that this comes at a time when Apple and its CEO Tim Cook have been working to Strengthen their relationship with President Trump and the White House as President Trump has threatened the company with tariffs. We obviously don't know if that played a role here. But overall, I do think this situation does tell a story about the varying ways that the tech world is responding to President Trump and his policies.
Back to you.
BLACKWELL: All right. Thank you, Clare.
They rush in to save lives. Rush into that chaos to help people, but who helps them heal.
We'll meet a CNN hero who brings comfort to America's first responders.
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[06:52:46]
BLACKWELL: A "CNN ORIGINAL SERIES, NEW ORLEANS, SOUL OF A CITY," premieres tonight.
Here's a look.
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BRETT ANDERSON, FOOD CORRESPONDENT, NY TIMES: When people talk about Creole cuisine, on a really basic level, we're talking about traditional New Orleans food. We're trying to differentiate it from Cajun food, which is a rural expression.
ZELLA PALMER, DILLARD UNIVERSITY: Creole is a mixture of many cultures. It's a New World culture. It began with the Portuguese word crioulo. However, when we talk about Creolization or we talk about Creole culture, we have to remember that the Creolization didn't actually begin in the United States. It began in Africa.
ANDERSON: You can't overstate the contributions that enslaved Africans made to the creation of New Orleans cuisine. You know, that contribution has been understated.
In fact, understated is probably too mild a word. It's been ignored.
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BLACKWELL: Watch "NEW ORLEANS, SOUL OF A CITY," tonight at 10:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific, only on CNN.
So, first responders, they're here to help all of us in a crisis. But the people who do that work, they often find it hard to get the help they need. And that's where this week's CNN Heroes steps in.
Heidi Carman and her golden retriever became a therapy dog team in 2019. And she soon realized all emergency workers would benefit.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: To fight the fires in California is like a war zone. It's grueling work. It's smoky. It's hot. It's dangerous. They go for a minimum of two weeks, 24 hours on, 24 hours off. That stress to have it lightened with a therapy dog visit is priceless.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Puppy, puppy, puppy, puppy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We got Kerith in 2018, and we were training her to become a working guide dog.
OK, fetch (INAUDIBLE).
She was just too friendly to every single person. So, I started doing therapy dog work with her.
During the 2020 fire season, going around to fire base camps, she was so good at just making the firefighters feel better.
I started posting pictures on her Instagram. Then I was getting messages, can you come to my husband's police department? I'm like, yes, sure.
[06:55:05]
Now we have hundreds of therapy dog teams across the entire country. We go to fire base camps, fire stations, police departments, 911 dispatch centers. All first responders would benefit.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The average adult male lives around 18 years longer than the average adult police officer, and that is often because of chronic stress. And oftentimes as a defense mechanism, we close up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is she just for first responders?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's so soft.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When we are around emotional support animals, you just see that all sort of melt away.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Cortisol levels go down. The endorphin levels go up. I can feel that goodness just coming up a leash.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just to have a dog come by and she can't talk, can't ask questions, it can kind of break the ice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, I missed you too.
The first time I met Kerith, I had undiagnosed PTSD. She just picked up on it right away. She just went nose to nose with me, and we just had a moment, and it broke me down.
This was my wake-up call that I needed to go to therapy. The man's best friend for a reason.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have helped so many people. I'm grateful to Kerith for showing me the way. (END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL: Good work. For the full story about Heidi and her important work, go to cnnheroes.com.
We'll be back.
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