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Army Sec Dan Driscoll Submits Resignation After Tension with Hegseth; NYC Schools Limits A.I. in Classroom; PA officer Charged After Fatally Shooting College Student; Feud Over Measles Stats. Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired September 02, 2026 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:00]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: -- feel like the Beatles with all the attention they're getting. You can see the press crowded around the aircraft carrier's leadership in this photo, for example. What do you think will be the military's takeaway on these extended deployments at the end of the Lincoln's journey?

SABRINA SINGH, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Well, that's a great photo. So exciting to see those sailors and marines be able to touch land after such a historically long deployment, and in Thailand, and they're getting some of that, you know, R&R that they so deserve.

But look, this has put an incredible strain on the force. The Lincoln was extended multiple times. Now, you have two aircraft carriers, the Bush and the Washington, operating in the Middle East. And even though Pete Hegseth says the military has everything that they need to conduct their missions, it is putting an incredible strain on the force.

I mean, just think about -- I know Pam was on the Lincoln. These marines and sailors are getting four hot meals a day. Think about how many people have to be fed. Also, all of those aircraft that are on the carrier have to get fuel to be refueled. You're talking -- and then they can't even go to Bahrain to restock because, you know, the Fifth Fleet was hit so bad during the war. So, they have to go to a smaller island, Diego Garcia, which is over 2,000 miles away. So, it is putting an incredible amount of strain on the force. And even though this administration says we can do this, you know, kind of indefinitely, we really can't.

BLITZER: Let me also ask you about the Pentagon's leadership right now. The U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, as we all know, has resigned after months of reported friction with the Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Driscoll follows the departures of other senior leaders, including the Army's chief of staff. As someone who worked inside the Pentagon, as you did, how significant is this loss of senior decision makers?

SINGH: You know, I remember when I was at the Pentagon and then Senator Tuberville put a hold on all promotions. And we had, you know, a backlog of senior leaders not getting promoted from one-star to four-star. The fact that you have all these firings at key positions, not just military, but civilian positions as well. Pete Hegseth is hollowing out the military right now and doing irreparable harm, I think, to the Army in particular. It's the service, you know, the largest service. It is the one that is modernizing at a pace that it needs to. And yet Pete Hegseth kind of put the pause on some of the modernization projects that Dan Driscoll was instilling. And so, was General George.

This is going to have catastrophic effects down the line. And I think for young people coming up in the military, they have to question, are they going to get promoted or are they going to be potentially fired because they're not politically aligned with this administration, which is something that the military has never had to deal with before.

BLITZER: Yes. And I cover the Pentagon. So, I can confirm all of that. Thank you very much, Sabrina Singh, helping us appreciate what's going on. Pamela.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Wolf, just ahead, a dramatic shift for the nation's biggest school system. How New York City plans to rein in A.I. and screen time in general.

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[11:35:00]

BROWN: Well, need this morning, no A.I. in the classroom. That's what more than half a million New York City public school students are facing. Mayor Zohran Mamdani and education officials are expected to unveil these new restrictions today. And they would impact elementary as well as middle school students. But high schoolers will still have some limited use of A.I. The new policy is believed to be one of the strictest in the nation.

So, let's go live now to CNN Tech Reporter Clare Duffy. Claire, tell us more about what you learned.

CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: Yes, Pamela, this is a big announcement as New York City families prepare to send their students back to school next week. Now, this is going to be a one-year moratorium on A.I.-generated software for students in 2K through 8th grade in New York City. That is more than 600,000 students. This policy is also going to include screen time limits based on grade.

So, for example, there'll be a 30-minute cap on individual screen time for students in second grade and below. High school students will have limited access to A.I. technology through a number of software pilots that the Department of Education is rolling out. They will also receive A.I.-critical thinking classes to teach them about the benefits, but also the downsides and the risks of this technology. Companion chatbots will be banned for students of all grades. And teachers will be able to use A.I. for things like lesson planning, but not for things like grading.

Important to note also, Pamela, that there will be exceptions to this policy for students with disabilities or who are still learning English. Mayor Zohran Mamdani talked about the fact that the point of this policy is really to protect the relationship between students and their human teachers. And he said that after this one-year moratorium, they will reconsider, re-evaluate how this policy worked as they look ahead to the following school year.

BROWN: So, just zooming out, how does this compare to what we're seeing at other schools around the country?

DUFFY: Yes. Certainly, this is a significant move by the country's largest public school district. This comes as A.I. companies have very quickly rolled out education tools. There was a big push last year to invest in A.I. trainings for teachers as they tried to get their technology into the hands of teachers and students. But at the same time, you are hearing big questions from families and from educators about the value of this technology in the classroom at a time when there really is limited research on the impact of things like screen time and A.I. on student learning. And lots of questions about whether this could actually negatively harm students' learning.

So, we are seeing schools across the country pull back in many ways on screen time. This is the first major move that we are seeing in terms of A.I. policy from the nation's largest school district. But I think a really interesting trend to follow, Pamela, is parents are asking tough questions.

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BROWN: As they should be, right? Clare Duffy, thank you. Wolf.

BLITZER: And new this morning, a Pennsylvania police officer who shot and killed a 22-year-old college student last month has now been charged with voluntary manslaughter. Prosecutors say police corporal Sean Farrell had less lethal options and did not need to resort to shooting and killing Glenwood Pysher.

Let's go to see it as Danny Freeman for us. Danny, what more are you learning about this horrible case?

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, truly a horrible case and an awful story all around. This all started about a week and a half ago on August 23rd in Upper Pottsgrove Township. That's about 40 miles outside of Philadelphia where I'm coming to you right now. And it started in the middle of the night where a husband and wife thought that there was someone breaking into their home. They called 911 and they told dispatchers that they saw a young man on their rear patio, though crucially they said he did not appear to be armed.

Well, then Upper Pottsgrove Township police corporal Sean Farrell, as you noted, he was the first officer to arrive. He got out of his car, he drew his weapon, and he saw that young man. And mind you, Wolf, this was all caught on body camera footage. He then says to the young man, police, let me see your hands. And that young man put his hands up and started to approach the officer. Then Corporal Farrell said, stop or I'll, and then ultimately opened fire, killing that young man.

Well, Wolf, it turns out that that young man was not an intruder at all. It was 22-year-old Glenwood Pysher, as you said. Earlier that evening, on Saturday evening into Sunday morning, he was out celebrating a friend's 21st birthday party. He was on a pub crawl, he had been drinking, and then he decided to walk to a friend's home, but he got disoriented according to prosecutors and ended up walking to the wrong house. And that's when that initial 911 call came out.

Now, the Montgomery County District Attorney, Wolf, says that this man, Pysher, was not armed, not a threat, and that that officer, as you noted, had less than lethal options, including a taser to use in this situation. And also, the DA said that there was a healthy distance between these two people at that time. Ultimately, the DA concluded this was not a legal use of force and charged that officer with voluntary manslaughter. Wolf, take a listen to how the Montgomery County DA processed this terrible story.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEVIN STEELE, MONTGOMERY COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: They are trying very hard to understand why this happened and why their son was taken away from them. And as a parent, I can only imagine their pain and my deepest condolences go out to them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Now, Wolf, I'll also note that the officer, Corporal Farrell there, is actually heard on body camera telling another officer who came to the scene initially, he charged me and he was screaming. The DA said, that is not true, that never happened. Corporal Farrell does not have an attorney listed in court documents, but in a statement provided to the Associated Press by the Pysher family's attorney, by the family's attorney of the victim here, they said, quote, "The family is grateful for the work of the Montgomery County District Attorney's office, and they are looking forward to justice in this horribly tragic, preventable and reckless conduct that took the life of their son." Wolf.

BLITZER: What a horrible, horrible story indeed. All right. Danny Freeman, thanks very much for that report. Pamela.

BROWN: Well, coming up, Wolf, why the CDC says it's not including two measles related deaths in its national tally. And by the way, that's what Pennsylvania says and how it's sparking a political war of words.

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BROWN: Well, new this morning, medical groups are looking to fill a void at the CDC when it comes to vaccine guidance. With school back in session and the fall on the horizon, it's typical for the CDC to launch a campaign recommending seasonal immunizations. But this year, the agency said its guidance would be the same as last year and it has not issued recommendations on COVID or RSV shots.

So, let's bring in emergency physician and former Baltimore Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen. Thanks for coming on. So, how unusual is it for the CDC to abstain from issuing this yearly guidance on something like this and why is that kind of guidance important?

DR. LEANA WEN, EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN, FORMER BALTIMORE HEALTH COMMISSIONER AND CONTRIBUTING COLUMNIST, THE WASHINGTON POST: Well, we're in the middle of a measles outbreak. In fact, we have had in 2026 alone more than 30 outbreaks in 47 states here in the U.S. We're reaching more than 2,900 cases of measles and these numbers are rising as the number of people, the number of children getting vaccines is decreasing.

And so, when the CDC or any public health agency sees these numbers, they should be raising awareness. They should be reiterating that vaccines are safe, effective, life-saving. They should be talking about the importance of vaccines for protecting yourself, protecting your children, as well as other vulnerable people. And especially with back to school, this is the best opportunity to ensure that kids are vaccinated.

So, it's highly unusual, highly unfortunate. But thankfully, there are medical organizations, there are pediatrician groups, there are individual medical providers and states that are stepping into the void. But of course, that's not enough. And I think brings a lot of confusion when there are differences between what's being said on the federal level versus the states.

BROWN: Yes. So, how should people at home navigate this and understand who to trust on these recommendations?

DR. WEN: Thankfully, we still know that people trust their individual doctors, that families trust their pediatrician, their family physicians.

[11:50:00]

And I think that is the best place to go if you have questions, if you have concerns, if you are not sure about what shots your child should be getting, speak to your pediatrician, speak to your family doctor. Other sources that I highly recommend are the American Academy of Pediatrics. You can also look at the American College of Physicians, the American Medical Association. All these groups have come out with consensus recommendations because the science itself has not changed.

And it's unfortunate, again, that we are seeing silence or confusing information coming out of the federal government. But the science, the guidance from medical organizations remains the same regarding the safety and importance of vaccination.

BROWN: And just speaking of vaccinations or lack thereof and the measles outbreaks, I want to talk about this other story we're following. The new CDC director has ordered the agency to delay counting two deaths in Pennsylvania. So, health officials there say they're measles related, but the CDC says it doesn't have enough information on what caused these deaths.

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania officials, they say they thoroughly investigated the deaths and the details surrounding them. As someone who has worked in a state health agency, walk us through what kind of investigation happens at the state level in these situations and just how unusual it is for the CDC to not accept the findings.

DR. WEN: I think at the moment we're missing a lot of information. We are hearing from Pennsylvania that these deaths may be measles associated. So, they're not necessarily saying that measles caused these deaths. We don't know much about the circumstances regarding these cases. And I think it is reasonable for everyone to take a pause and to say what are the details here.

Now, normally the CDC does accept the information that's presented on the state level. But I think in this case, having more information about these cases will help to clarify things. And in the meantime, I think we're taking our eyes off of the big picture because the big picture here is that vaccines are really important and that there is a huge measles outbreak that's happening in Pennsylvania, along with in other places. And in Maryland, I mean, there are many other states that are seeing increases in measles cases. And we should be talking about the importance of vaccination.

BROWN: How does something like this affect the public's broader understanding of an outbreak? And how does it impact community's ability to respond appropriately? Because I understand what your point is, but we should be focusing on the larger issue with people not getting the measles vaccine. But there is a public trust issue, both at the state and federal level, right?

DR. WEN: That's exactly right. I think that anytime there is this kind of back and forth about what actually happened, there are people who are going to be pointing fingers, and then there's also going to be distrust as a result. Because there are going to be people who are saying, well, maybe we're over-counting measles cases or under- counting them.

And at the end of the day, what we should be focused on is what this disease actually is. That this is a disease that's one of the most contagious diseases that spread through respiratory routes. That there's a high rate of children who get this contracting pneumonia and end up needing hospitalization. That this could be deadly. And we have already seen individuals who have died from measles here in the U.S. in recent years.

And so, I think it's important for us to focus on these facts. But you're absolutely right. I think that this back and forth creates confusion and opportunity for more distrust.

BROWN: I want to turn to another really important issue. There is this new study out that finds an alarming trend of women not getting critical cancer screening. Researchers in the study found that nearly one in three American women between ages 21 and 29 have never received screenings for cervical cancer. What do you think is contributing to this trend?

DR. WEN: Yes. This is very alarming because cervical cancer is one of the most preventable types of cancer. In part because we have the vaccine against the human papillomavirus or HPV that's highly effective at preventing cervical cancer. And also, because this is a slowly progressing cancer for the most part. And so, screening diagnosis really works to pick up pre-cancerous and cancerous cells.

So, the fact that nearly one in three women in their 20s have never gotten screening is a problem. It's also up, by the way, Pamela, from about 20 years ago when it was one in eight women never got screening. So, we're going in the wrong direction here.

Now, we don't know exactly, but the study does show that the rates of missing screening are highest in uninsured women and that there are big disparities based on education and socioeconomic status and geography. So, I think there are structural barriers also that are preventing women from seeking this type of potentially life-saving care.

BROWN: That's so interesting. So, it went from one in eight to now one in three women. What should women know? What else should they know about the specific screening and why it's so important?

DR. WEN: There are two main types of tests that look for cervical cancer. One is the PAP test that looks for cervical cells and whether there are pre-cancerous or cancerous changes. There's another test looking for HPV, the virus that causes the most number of -- that contributes to the most number of cervical cancer cases.

[11:55:00]

Women should start getting these screenings from -- starting from age 21. There are now also self-tests that are available for women who may not be comfortable with getting a PAP test. And I think the most important thing is that women should be discussing testing and screening based on their own medical history, their family history, maybe if they have a weakened immune system, so past history of positive testing.

But they should be getting regular -- they should be having regular conversations with their primary care physician, their gynecologist every year. That's why that annual exam is so important. It's also an opportunity for women to talk about other aspects of their health history, including their mental health too.

BROWN: All right. Dr. Leana Wen, always great to have you on. Thank you so much. Wolf.

BLITZER: She's got great, great information. And to our viewers, thanks very much for joining us this morning. You can always keep up with us on social media, @wolfblitzer and @pamelabrowncnn.

BROWN: And of course, we will see you back here tomorrow morning and every weekday morning at 10 Eastern for two hours. Inside Politics with our friend and colleague Dana Bash starts after a quick break.

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