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Connect the World

USS George Washington Sent to Replace USS Abraham Lincoln; Palestinian Families Trapped as Settlers Block West Bank Homes; Hegseth Slams Negative Reports About USS Abraham Lincoln; Level 5 Emergency Warning Issued as Japan Faces Further Flooding; Wildfires Rage as Europe Battles Fifth Heat Wave of Year. Aired 9-9:45a ET

Aired August 14, 2026 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: Europe is in the grip of a powerful heat wave. And many countries, including France, the United

Kingdom, and Germany, are battling multiple wildfires. It is 02:00 p.m. here in London, I'm Christina Macfarlane, and this is "Connect the World".

Also, coming up, Washington warns of never seen before measures against Iran as the situation remains stagnant in the Strait of Hormuz. And as the

war rages, a new U.S. carrier strike group heads to the Middle East after reports of worsening conditions on the USS Abraham Lincoln.

The stock market in New York opens in about 30 minutes from now. And the U.S. futures looking mostly flat this Friday as investors digested comments

from U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent about Washington's intentions of further economically isolating Iran. Well, the swap was already planned.

That's what a U.S. official is telling CNN about the move to replace the USS Abraham Lincoln warship with another aircraft carrier in the Middle

East. We're hearing the USS George Washington is on its way to the region amid growing concerns about the well-being of the Lincoln's crew.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is pushing back on reports of poor conditions aboard the ship.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: Yeah, completely misrepresented. Listen, we make sure that every ship, every crew, every captain has

everything we can provide them at every single moment. Some deployments are longer than others, and I have more respect and gratitude for those sailors

than anybody.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, lawmakers are demanding answers from the Pentagon as mental health concerns for military personnel aboard the Lincoln continue

to grow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't expect for our aircraft carriers to be the Holiday Inn or anything like that. We're talking about basic standards of

habitability. We talk about readiness, and readiness doesn't just mean that you have the military tools that that the war fighters need, but also that

just you have that basic quality of life.

Again, we're not talking about anything over the top here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, CNN's Brian Todd will join us with more of the view from Washington in just a few moments. But first, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott

Bessent says Washington is preparing new measures against Iran on a scale he says quote, has never been seen.

Bessent says more announcements are coming next week, including what he called unprecedented economic isolation. That's alongside the continued

blockade of Iranian ports. Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates says two of its vessels were attacked while transiting the Strait of Hormuz Thursday.

A state-owned oil company ADNOC says no one was injured and the situation is under control. It's not clear who was behind the attack. CNN's Paula

Hancocks is joining us from Abu Dhabi. So, Paula, to that threat of economic isolation, I mean, how much more pressure can President Trump

realistically apply here?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a good question, Christina. We have been seeing this economic pressure all along. In fact, just a week ago, the

U.S. Treasury announced fresh sanctions against individuals, exchange houses, companies from several different countries that they accused of

aiding Iran Shah Bank to move hundreds of millions of dollars around.

So, we are seeing increasing sanctions. That could be something we see more of. Now the secretary, the treasury secretary said that it was going to be

economic isolation alongside this naval blockade that is still in place, preventing vessels from reaching Iranian ports, trying to create an

economic stranglehold on the energy sector there.

And it ties in with what we've heard from the U.S. President as well, saying that he believes that they're just watching Iran with its huge

inflation and the fact they have no money, saying that they are only semi- negotiating at this point. So, it does point to a suggestion that they are pulling back from believing that there are negotiations that can be held

right now, that the diplomatic process holds much hope, and that they're almost waiting to see the economy collapse in Iran.

[09:05:00]

Iranian officials just last week, when the sanctions were introduced did point out, we've been under sanctions for decades and we're still here,

Christina.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, and Paula, what more do you know about the attacks of these two UAE vessels that you know were transiting the Strait of Hormuz?

HANCOCKS: So, we've heard from ADNOC, which is the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. They say that it was two vessels which were impacted. They have

said there are no injuries. The situation is under control, and they say that they came under attack as they were trying to transit the Strait of

Hormuz.

So, yet another example and of just how difficult trying to cross that strait is, the latest figures we have shown that some 13 vessels tried or

managed to cross just yesterday. That's a fraction of the 130, 140 that we were seeing every single day pre-war. We've also heard from MaRisk.

This is the Maritime Intelligence Group. They've put out a report saying, effectively, there is no genuinely safe side of the Arabian Peninsula for

maritime traffic at this point. Pointing out that the Strait of Hormuz to the northern part is dangerous, and then also pointing out that in the

southern part, the Bab al-Mandab Strait, is also being threatened by Houthi rebels, saying that these two issues cannot any longer be discussed

separately.

They have to be taken into consideration together. But all of this really does put a huge amount of pressure on the situation, given the fact that

with the Strait of Hormuz coming under attack and ships not being willing to take that risk to try and transfer goods or energy oil that particular

way, that it put more importance on the Red Sea, the Saudi Arabian Red Sea ports, and of course now those are under threat from Houthi rebels, it is

just making a bad situation even worse, Christina.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, certainly is. Paula, appreciate the update. Thank you. Now, the U.N. Human Rights Office says the situation in the occupied West

Bank is quote, beyond a boiling point, with Palestinian homes under siege and communities under attack. The IDF have declared the area of Qusra,

where Palestinian families live, in a closed military zone, but they failed at this point to remove Israeli settlers from leaving the area.

The tent you're looking at here was erected by the settlers. Israeli soldiers tried to dismantle it earlier today, but as you can see, the

settlers quickly put it back up. CNN's Jeremy Diamond has been tracking this story and joins us now. So, as we, you know, been saying there,

Jeremy, the situation in Qusra has been going on for days.

Is there any sign that the settlers might leave the area soon?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely not. As of yet, you know, these settlers are continuing to roam around these three Palestinian

homes in the area, despite the fact that the Israeli military deployed an infantry battalion to the area, presumably with the intent of trying to,

you know, kick the settlers out of this area.

But every single time these settlers have returned, they have re-erected this tent, which they are trying to create a as an outpost, an illegal

settler outpost in this area, soldiers eventually arrive to take it down. But you know this cat and mouse game seems to be continuing.

And what we're certainly not seeing from the Israeli military is any kind of mass detention campaign of these settlers. They have you know really not

used very much force in order to get these settlers out of this area, which again they are there illegally, not only in contravention of Israeli law

but also of this military order, which is you know mean -- which means that no one except for the residents are supposed to be in that area.

This morning we also saw over 100 Israeli activists who also tried to get to these Palestinian homes. A large group of Israeli soldiers then arrived,

prevented them from going into the homes. They had brought food and water for these families who have been besieged for the past six days now.

That was eventually able to be brought in to the families and a member of Israel's parliament from the far-left party Hadash Ofer Cassif was able to

get inside and meet with some of these Palestinian families that have been besieged. The question is really one of not only you know the political

will within the Israeli government and military to get these families to get the settlers, I should say, out of the area.

But also, what happens once this battalion of Israeli soldiers' leaves, as you know, this mission is only expected as of now to last through this

weekend. What's going to happen after that? Because these settlers don't seem intent on quitting their efforts to take over these homes as of now.

[09:10:00]

MACFARLANE: Yeah, and I mean, to that point, we were saying the U.N. Human Rights Office says these settler encroachments, attacks on Palestinian

homes, are now beyond boiling point. Do you sense this situation is going to escalate further?

DIAMOND: I think it certainly could, not only in Qusra but across the West Bank. What we have been witnessing is not only rising levels of settler

violence in the West Bank, but also a kind of concerted effort from these settler groups. Which, while you know, as the Israeli government points

out, often do include a number of juveniles.

They are directed by adult settlers, organized and with a concerted effort to establish and solidify facts on the ground, to establish as many settler

outposts as possible, to get those settler outposts legalized by their allies in the Israeli government. And all of this does seem to be

intensifying ahead of the Israeli elections in late October, which could see the current government, which has been the most pro-settler government

in Israel's history, ousted from power.

And so there does seem to be an attempt to kind of solidify the gains that they have made on the ground so far ahead of those elections. And the

Israeli government is a willing partner in this enterprise. We heard just yesterday from the Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, who denied the

existence of this settler violence phenomenon, saying that they are simply isolated violent disturbances.

That, of course, contradicts the reality on the ground, but it goes to show you that this is not just an isolated incident of some juvenile

delinquents, as the Israeli government would have you believe, but rather a very clear and organized campaign of settler expansionism, not only by

these miners, by the settler leaders who they are listening to, but also by the Israeli government, which is really working hand in hand with this

effort.

MACFARLANE: All right, Jeremy for now, thanks very much. And we are staying in the Middle East, as we were telling you a little bit earlier. The USS

Abraham Lincoln is waiting for another warship to replace it in the region. That's coming from a U.S. official. It's been a long haul for the Lincoln

sailors who haven't set foot on dry land for some 200 days.

CNN's Brian Todd has been covering the story for us from Washington. So, Brian, what do we know about the conditions on board the USS Abraham

Lincoln at this point?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Christina, this is new reporting from our colleagues Pamela Brown and Ross Adkin. They cite 3 U.S. officials

saying a sailor on board the aircraft carrier the USS Abraham Lincoln went overboard earlier this month. Two of the officials tell CNN the sailor was

quickly rescued and was medically evaluated.

One official said the sailor went overboard wearing a life vest and was not injured. The official added that the navy considered the incident a mental

health episode. One official said the sailor was recovered by an air wing search and rescue helicopter, received treatment on board, then was

transferred off the ship for follow-on care.

Now, this incident, which has not been previously reported, adds to growing concerns about the crew on board the USS Lincoln. The news outlets "Stars

and Stripes" and the "Navy Times" reported this week that there had been multiple attempts by crew members on the Lincoln to jump overboard.

Those outlets cited interviews with sailors and families of those on board who described the impacts of a very lengthy deployment. Now, since the

Lincoln left its home port of San Diego, and that was last November. It's been deployed for more than 250 days after being redirected to the Middle

East to take part in the war with Iran.

According to Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, who sits on the Armed Services Committee, the Lincoln has not made a port call in more than 200

days. That's about six and a half months. Now, the "Navy Times" and "Stars and Stripes" report that about a week ago, about 200 family members of the

sailors on board the Lincoln voiced concerns over the sailors' mental health and safety conditions when they met at a town hall meeting in San

Diego with Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao and other senior officials.

The "Stars and Stripes" reported that during that town hall, one spouse was in tears when she said she had received a message that same day from her

husband saying quote, he hopes he doesn't wake up tomorrow, end quote, Christina.

MACFARLANE: And Brian, we heard earlier from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pushing back about you know these reports of poor conditions. Do we know

what the Pentagon are planning to do about this now?

TODD: Well, right now, Christina, the aircraft carrier strike group, the USS George Washington is on its way to the region to relieve the Abraham

Lincoln. The George Washington should get there in a few days. Meanwhile, in a statement to CNN, the navy said this quote, we have not observed an

increase in suicidal ideations or attempts on board the ship.

[09:15:00]

We take every service member's well-being seriously, and have religious, medical, and mental health professionals available to assess and address

concerns as they arise. One U.S. official told CNN. the navy's internal tracking of reports of suicidal ideation on the ship had actually gone down

in recent months, Christina.

MACFARLANE: All right, Brian Todd, appreciate the update for now. Thank you.

TODD: Thank you.

MACFARLANE: You are watching "Connect the World". Still to come. A few short weeks ago, he was running for parliament in Russia. Now he's living

in exile in Paris. CNN speaks to a prominent Putin critic about how Russians are really feeling about the war. And thousands stranded, major

power outages, and a rising death toll.

Japan's record-breaking rainstorm causes widespread misery just outside Tokyo.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MACFARLANE: Here in Europe, devastating scenes as extreme heat drives major wildfires. Take a look at these remarkable images that are coming out of

Croatia, where wildfires along the coast are forcing hundreds to evacuate. Shifting winds have been spreading the fires deeper into land, and there

were also evacuations in France, which is experiencing its driest ever year.

And here in the UK, fires have been tearing through homes in England's West Midlands region. On Thursday, the UK recorded the hottest day of the year,

with the summer on track to become the hottest on record. Other parts of Europe, including Germany and Greece, are also battling major fires.

Nada Bashir is here in London and joins me. So, Nada, what more can you tell us about these wildfires that we've been seeing in the in the Mideast?

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It has been a sweltering summer. We've certainly seen the effects of that here in the United Kingdom, where of

course the infrastructure is not really prepared for this level of heat. As you mentioned, we did see record breaking temperatures just on Thursday,

yesterday, topping 38 degrees Celsius.

That's over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. So, a significant amount of pressure on the fire services and, of course, on infrastructure overall. We did see

fires breaking out in the West Midlands. Several homes burnt to the ground as a result of the blaze that we have seen now spreading in this part of

the United Kingdom.

We have been hearing from fire officials who have described this as one of the most serious incidents that they have had to deal with to date. So,

this just gives you a sense of the scale and the impact of these wildfires that we are seeing in the United Kingdom. And of course, this isn't a

country that is used to seeing such incidents in the summer months, as of course many countries in Europe have now been dealing with for some years

now.

And of course, as we have been hearing from officials now over the last year. Overall, there have been more than 1000 wildfires that they have had

to deal with in this country.

[09:20:00]

So, this is something that, of course, fire services across the country are now dealing with more regularly, and as temperatures continue to rise,

something they may have to deal with more regularly in the future as well.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, and we know, as you say, it's not just here in the UK. What is the picture like across Europe, you know, in terms of those

wildfires dealing with the heat?

BASHIR: Well, for weeks now, we have seen wildfires spreading across Europe. France, of course, amongst those nations, really grappling with the

impact of this blaze, which is struggling to be contained. Really, this has been one of the driest years that France has seen.

Just last month, we saw those huge wildfires spreading across the Bordeaux region. Now they are still dealing with wildfires in the Land region. We

have seen some 500 people in the area forced to evacuate their homes. And of course, as we saw last month, many of these families will be sheltering

in makeshift accommodation until they receive the all clear from firefighters to say that they are able to return home.

And of course, it's not just the blaze that is spreading, but it's also the aftermath, the smoke inhalation that poses a real threat to local

residents. And we are seeing similar scenes in Germany as well in Croatia, as you mentioned, Christina. We have seen huge fires spreading across the

coastal region, forcing people again to flee their homes and evacuate.

Some 1000 people told to evacuate their homes. And according to reports on local media in Croatia, there have even been reports of people jumping into

the sea because their boats were catching fire as well. So, you can get a sense of the scale and how disastrous the impact of these wildfires has

been.

And of course, this is something now that Europe has been grappling with for weeks.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, and as you're speaking, Nada, we can see there, live pictures of emergency services attending to a wildfire in Germany. I mean,

the picture is just grim across the continent. Thank you, though, for now, Nada. More on this in the next hour. Now, a former candidate in next

month's Russia parliamentary elections is speaking out after being disqualified from running.

Putin critic Boris Nadezhdin, who publicly opposes the war with Ukraine, was designated as a foreign agent by Moscow. Now exiled in Paris, he spoke

to Clare Sebastian about the mood in Russia as the conflict drags on.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This has happened so suddenly for you. One minute you're running for parliament, and now you're here.

BORIS NADEZHDIN, RUSSIAN OPPOSITION POLITICIAN: Yes. It's all my life is all my life. I have a lot of adventures.

SEBASTIAN (voice-over): Boris Nadezhdin, Soviet bureaucrat, Russian opposition figure, and former presidential hopeful, can now add exile to

his list. We meet in Paris a couple of weeks after he was forced to flee Russia amid a mounting pressure campaign to bar him from running in

upcoming parliamentary elections.

NADEZHDIN: When I was announced as foreign agent in 10th of July, I declared for all of the world, I will not stop my campaign. In Monday, I

was arrested by police, taken police department, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.

SEBASTIAN (voice-over): He was convicted of displaying extremist symbols and given a small fine. Then came the summons from Russia's powerful

investigative committee.

NADEZHDIN: Normally, after you go to this place, you will receive the criminal paper and go to the court. And after court, go to the jail,

Lefortovo. When I have received this paper about criminal investigation, I have understood that it's a question of three days.

SEBASTIAN (voice-over): I am alive and I am free. He announced on Telegram on arriving in France. Previous Russian opposition figures were not so

lucky.

SEBASTIAN: I mean, there was Nemtsov, who you worked with, Navalny, but you tried to do opposition within the system. Then the system came for you.

NADEZHDIN: I didn't cross the red lines for 40 years of my political biography. The red line number one is not to criticize Putin like a person,

and cross line number two to have no support from foreign governments. I never cross these lines, but these lines have changed.

SEBASTIAN (voice-over): Behind Putin's facade of stability, Russia is cracking down harder, Nadezhdin says, because as the war drags on, dissent

is rising. In early 2024, his campaign to run for president on an anti-war platform exposed an undercurrent of despair in society.

Long lines of his supporters formed across the country-a quiet legal protest. That undercurrent, he says, is now bubbling up. Just this week,

demonstrators gathered as Russia's highest court blocked Yabloko, the only remaining anti-war party, from the parliamentary elections.

[09:25:00]

NADEZHDIN: The understanding of that everybody wants to stop the war, it's in the society, is in the elite, and in the nearest people around Putin,

and of course the understanding of what this war Israel means for Russian economy.

SEBASTIAN: Does Putin understand this?

NADEZHDIN: Yes, he has to. Putin and people around here. It's quite possible to freeze the mutual strikes, and -- but the question of how to be

in peace with West, be in peace with Ukraine, it's a question of next generations.

SEBASTIAN (voice-over): Nadezhdin himself is now in limbo. His family is still in Russia. On the day we met, he missed his daughter's wedding.

SEBASTIAN: She just got married.

SEBASTIAN (voice-over): His political project, one of the last vestiges of Russian political opposition, for now on hold.

SEBASTIAN: Do you worry that you've left Russia for good?

NADEZHDIN: I think I could return to my country only when the political situation will change.

SEBASTIAN (voice-over): Clare Sebastian, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: You're watching "Connect the World". Still to come, U.S. President Donald Trump is trying to stamp his name on the Kennedy Center

again. We'll have the details ahead of his second attempt, and if it could be successful.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MACFARLANE: Welcome back. I'm Christina Macfarlane in London, and you are watching "Connect the World". The U.S. is sending another warship to the

Middle East to replace the USS Abraham Lincoln. This comes amid reports of poor conditions and mental health issues among the 5,000 service members

aboard the Lincoln.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the reports are quote, completely misrepresented. Colombia's government is saying they will only accept

rescue teams from the U.S. El Salvador, Ecuador, and Israel as the critical or crucial 72-hour window to find survivors closes.

The announcement from the newly appointed president has drawn criticism as the death toll mounts to at least 281, with hundreds still missing. And the

U.S. is promising to dramatically ramp up economic pressure on Iran. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says new measures are coming next week,

including what he calls economic isolation on the scale never seen before.

And in the coming hours, Luigi Mangione could plead guilty to federal charges tied to the killing of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

[09:30:00]

Plea talks have been underway, and sources cautioning nothing is -- The opening bell on Wall Street today, construction firm Tutor Perini. And

let's take a look at the markets. It looks like a pretty quiet start to the Friday trading session, with the DOW just up, as all eyes remained fixed on

the Strait of Hormuz.

July's inflation data, oh, it's down now. July's inflation data released this week was good, and if the trend continues, the Federal Reserve could

keep the rates on hold. However, that may not please U.S. President Donald Trump. Earlier this year, a federal judge ordered U.S. President Donald

Trump's name removed from the Kennedy Center sign.

Now, sources say the Performing Arts Center's board, handpicked by Trump, voted to inscribe it back in. So, it would say the center was quote

restored and renovated by President Donald J. Trump. The board also voted to close most of the complex for a two-year renovation, but these plans

have to be sent to a federal judge by August the 18th.

And CNN has reached out to the Kennedy Center for comment. CNN's Betsy Klein has been following the story and joins us. So, Betsy, a federal judge

in May said that the law establishing the center made it clear that it cannot have any other formal name on the sign.

So, what is the legal justification that Trump is trying to use to get his name back on the sign here?

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, it's a lot of circumventing. And it's going to be interesting to see whether that

satisfies the judge. But the board of the Kennedy Center, stacked with Trump loyalists, had to meet yesterday to come up with a plan to satisfy

the judge's requirements after that scathing ruling that he issued earlier this year.

It had two main components. Number one, that the board had violated the law when they renamed the Kennedy Center after President Trump. And separately,

that they could not fully close the center for that planned two-year renovation because it needed to be a living memorial to President John F.

Kennedy.

So yes, President Trump's name was removed, but the board of trustees is now voting to add this inscription under that sign that says, Restored and

Renovated by President Donald J. Trump. And then separately, they also voted on a plan to close for two years, but to keep a small portion known

as the REACH.

A part of the complex that does smaller scale concerts and other types of entertainment programming, open during that period to try to satisfy that

judge's requirements for compliance there. And we heard from Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. He is a Democrat who serves as an ex officio member of

the board of trustees weigh in on that inscription, which he said was a surprise. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. SHELDON WHITEHOUSE (D-RI): In these meetings, you sort of step into a bit of an odd fairyland, in which a resolution comes forward. In this case,

it was not on the agenda. No one was given prior notice, and suddenly there is a vote. As I said, no legal opinion to show that this we're not doing

another illegal vote on the same subject.

So, they kind of live in a fairyland of irresponsibility, where things like complying with court orders don't matter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KLEIN: Sunlen Serfaty spoke with a member of the plaintiff's legal team. They said that the board's move amounted to an attempt to evade the court's

justice, and that they plan to challenge this in court.

MACFARLANE: All right. Well, we will continue to watch this space and keep an eye out for the August 18th date. Betsy, appreciate it. Thank you.

KLEIN: Thanks.

MACFARLANE: Now, Luigi Mangione could plead guilty today to federal charges tied to the killing of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson. As Reid Binion

reports negotiations between Mangione's lawyers and federal prosecutors are ongoing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BERIT BERGER, FORMER U.S. FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: So, at this point, we don't really know what to expect for tomorrow.

REID BINION, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A former federal prosecutor weighing in on developments in the federal case against Luigi Mangione, the

man accused of killing United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Sources say plea negotiations are underway, and Mangione could plead guilty as soon as

Friday to federal charges tied to the fatal shooting.

Friday's hearing was hastily scheduled after the final pre-trial hearing Tuesday in Mangione's state case, in which he faces second-degree murder

and weapons charges.

[09:35:00]

At the federal level, he faces stalking charges connected to Thompson's killing. Mangione previously pleaded not guilty in both cases.

BERGER: I think it's unlikely that he would get, you know, a deal in the way that we typically think of a deal being some sort of reduced sentence.

BINION (voice-over): A lawyer from Mangione declined to comment, as did a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's Office. But experts say a guilty plea

at the federal level could be part of a strategy to affect the state case.

JOEY JACKSON, U.S. CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: So, I think it's a brilliant move in terms of double jeopardy. It -- there'll be an immediate motion

made by his attorneys to void the state prosecution.

BINION (voice-over): That state case trial is scheduled to begin with jury selection on September 8th. The federal case had been scheduled to go to

trial in January, but that could change depending on Friday's hearing. I'm Reid Binion reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACFARLANE: Now, a U.S. Federal Judge is demanding to know why the Justice Department is holding back so many records from the Epstein files. A

journalist filed a lawsuit to force the removal of some redactions and the release of more files. And the judge in the case told government attorneys

he's willing to impose tough consequences that could hurt their careers. CNN's Katelyn Polantz reports.

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: A federal judge making a stern warning to the Justice Department, specifically the attorney

sitting in his courtroom and saying that they didn't have any answers for him on questions he was asking about the Epstein files and the redactions,

the documents that have not been produced yet under the transparency law Congress passed.

The key quote today from Judge Emmet Sullivan in the D.C. District Court. It's that he said the public has a right to know what the hell is going on

in this case. The victims have a right to know. The court has a right to know. That was the judge telling the prosecutors that their answers so far,

especially when they were trying to say they didn't know when the work would be done to explain the redactions to the American public about what

they've done with the Epstein files.

They released millions of those documents, but have redacted or withheld many, many more. There also is no explanation from the Justice Department

today about files in the Epstein documents or related to the Epstein investigation that are in foreign languages. And the Justice Department had

nothing to say to the judge that they had a reason to withhold handwritten notes the FBI took during interviews.

They said they didn't need to put them out because they were the same as memos that were released by the FBI summing up those interviews. So not the

interview notes themselves that were hand written, but the memos are out there. They're not the same thing, and Judge Sullivan was not pleased with

that answer.

He also gave them a warning by telling them a story about the past. The story was the trial of the late Senator Ted Stevens, Judge Sullivan

presided over that, found prosecutorial misconduct after there was a verdict in that case, and it severely hurt the lives and the careers of the

prosecutors who worked on it.

He told the story for about 20 minutes, and then just put it out there that contempt was not something that was happening right now in these Epstein

files cases, but the parties and specifically the Justice Department needed to know that this is the judge that wouldn't be afraid to sanction lawyers

if they needed to be in the future if they weren't answering the questions that the court demanded. Back to you.

MACFARLANE: Katelyn Polantz there. All right, stay with us. We'll be back with a bit of sports after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:40:00]

MACFARLANE: Welcome back. Now the 2026 NBA schedules are being released, and teams are getting really creative with their announcements. Our Patrick

Snell is joining me to explain more. And it seems, Pat, that the hawks' release is going to be hard to beat this year.

PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: It most certainly is, yes. And don't even think of asking me to attempt any impressions. I'm going to leave that to a

youngster, very talented youngster. This is all to do to generate interest, you know, ahead of the new season, who's playing who?

But one really cool viral moment. His name, the youngster Samuel Henderson, and apparently this kid can mimic over 100 bird calls. But Christy, don't

just take my word for it. Let's hear from the young man himself. I want you to watch this and watch it carefully.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAMUEL HENDERSON, A KID WHO CAN MIMIC OVER 100 BIRD CALLS: The rock Pigeon, bald eagle, American crow. Well, thanks for watching. Go hawks!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNELL: He's absolutely brilliant, such a talent, and as I say, Christy, don't even think about asking me to try and replicate any of that. For the

record, hawks open up against the magic on the 21st of October.

MACFARLANE: -- please --

SNELL: Back to you. More on "World Sport", by the way. What a tease.

MACFARLANE: Of all the things, I thought you were going to say, that was definitely not something that was on my bingo card. But certainly, I'm

going to now watch to see what else is on, you know, the NBA's cards.

SNELL: Yes.

MACFARLANE: Pat, thank you. You'll be back with more after the break. And we'll be back with more "Connect the World" in 15 minutes. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)

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