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The Situation Room

Gloria Steinem Dies; Justice Department Threatens States to Report Undocumented Immigrants; On the Ground With Lebanese Army; Lindsay Clancy Jury Continues Deliberations. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired September 03, 2026 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:00]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: The panel is tasked with deciding if Clancy is criminally liable for killing her three young children. Her defense says she was experiencing postpartum psychosis at the time.

Now, the jury has already indicated twice that it is at an impasse, raising questions about a possible mistrial.

CNN's Jean Casarez is at the courthouse in Plymouth, and Dr. Kameelah Phillips is an OB-GYN who will be joining us as well.

But, Jean, I want to start here with you. Where do things stand now with the jury?

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The jury continues to deliberate.

They have not asked a question this morning. They have not in any form or fashion communicated that we know of with the court at all. And, remember, they started deliberating one week ago today, and they continue at it with well over 30 hours of deliberation at this point.

Now, one thing that just happened in the courtroom doesn't seem significant, but Lindsay Clancy's father just entered the courtroom. He has a newspaper with him. He's standing there talking right now to Kevin Reddington, the defense attorney, who's in the courtroom. They're smiling. They're chatting. Doesn't seem as though anything is happening.

But, as you can see, everyone is staying very close because, at any minute, that all could change and there would be something significant.

BROWN: Dr. Phillips, this case has captured the nation. It has put a spotlight on the issue of maternal mental health. So many people are talking about this. In fact, Lindsay Clancy's attorney says she's been receiving letters of support from all around the world.

I'm curious what you have been hearing from your patients about mental health concerns in light of this trial.

DR. KAMEELAH PHILLIPS, OB-GYN: Yes, this trial has really illustrated that we are not doing a good job when it comes to maternal postpartum health and wellness.

And patients have expressed to me an increased amount of anxiety during this time, especially with the pending outcome of this case. Women feel the need for support. They see it in Lindsay. And they're really starting to reach out to their circles to engage them with their mental health during this really trying time.

BROWN: So these are apparently the letters that the lawyer says have come to Lindsay Clancy from all around the world.

While it's good awareness is being raised, of course, about postpartum mental health, do you have concerns about the stigma this case could also create with postpartum mental health issues? Because it is rare to develop postpartum psychosis, even rarer to then kill your kids, as the defense is arguing that is why she did that.

PHILLIPS: Yes, so postpartum psychosis is extremely rare. We're talking like 0.1 to 0.2 percent of pregnancies. But what is not rare is postpartum depression.

And if this trial brings to light the need for postpartum mental health services and the need for us to integrate mental health into every aspect of a woman's care, not just as an isolated set-apart, then I am grateful that we're having these conversations.

The six-week postpartum model that we're currently using is very outdated. Women don't stop needing help when they have a baby. And, if anything, their mental health needs exponentially increase. So I'm glad we're having these conversations.

BROWN: So, on that note, I want to go to Jean to walk us through Clancy's mental health history after birth and how it ties to the fact that she had an 8-month-old.

CASAREZ: It's a great question.

Let's look at the evidence here. First of all, Patrick Clancy testified that, after the birth of each one of their children, that, when it neared the time she was supposed to go back to work, she would develop this anxiety. And she told her husband, it's just not normal for a woman to leave her children like this.

With the third child, she had that anxiety again. That would be Callan. And the anxiety morphed into depression, according to the evidence. And that morphed into going to a psychiatrist. And she really made the choices. She went to a lot of different doctors on her own.

And, as one expert said, she was a sophisticated patient, because she was a nurse herself. And so they started giving her all these medications, which she wouldn't take a vast majority of them. They were -- they remained in the bottle.

But then, as time went on, one of the nurse practitioners said, I wonder if this could be bipolar. She wrote it in a note. She didn't make a diagnosis. As a nurse practitioner, that's probably not her role.

But then, ultimately, when she got to the mental hospital that she is now -- they officially made that diagnosis of a bipolar two situation. I do not believe at that point, once she killed her children, was in the hospital, that they correlated it with a postpartum situation.

But one thing to remember here, at the time she killed her children, she was on just a few medications and they were extremely low doses.

[11:05:03]

BROWN: And just the fact, Dr. Phillips, that her youngest child was 8 months old, how does that -- how is that relevant when you look at her mental health history postpartum and what DSM says, which is sort of the playbook doctors use to make a diagnosis, what that says, versus what you see in patients in terms of mental health issues postpartum and how long they can last?

PHILLIPS: The fact that her youngest was 8 months old is completely appropriate for when I see women having their most stress.

That first year of life, bringing home a new baby, really blows up what you knew as life as you knew it. So I think the country really needs to think about the implications of this. There is really no reason that, in the United States, women don't have at least a year of paid leave to stay home and take care of their children.

It really, truly is unacceptable for the richest nation in the world. Insurance coverage, adequate, accessible low-cost childcare, these are real conversations that we need to be talking -- excuse me -- talking about, because the first year of life, not only for babies, but also for mothers, is extremely critical and vulnerable when we're talking about our mental health.

BROWN: And you had mentioned earlier postpartum depression, but there's other types too. There's postpartum anxiety, and with under that umbrella, there's postpartum OCD...

PHILLIPS: Anxiety.

BROWN: ... which I have talked about on the show I experienced.

For women who may have -- be concerned about experiencing something like this or have worries in light of this trial, what is your advice to them?

PHILLIPS: My advice to them is to actually talk about it. We can't get you the help that you need and you deserve if we don't know.

It is important that health care professionals are asking these questions, but it's also important that family members, friends, loved ones are stepping in to specifically inquire, how is your mental health? How are you feeling today? How are you coping?

And if we can encourage women in very safe spaces to talk about their issues, I think we will see how normal and common this is, and then, with reassurance, can step in, not only to protect her, but also to protect the babies that they're charged with taking care of.

BROWN: All right, Dr. Kameelah Phillips and Jean Casarez, thank you both for this important conversation -- Wolf.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Really important.

I want to get to some exclusive reporting right now. CNN has gained very rare access inside Israeli-occupied South Lebanon, where homes are reduced to rubble. The Lebanese army is trying to regain control of the region through so-called pilot zones. That's a framework backed by the U.S. meant to transition control of Lebanese territory occupied by Israeli forces.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond exclusively embedded with the Lebanese army on patrol in one of these areas.

Jeremy, tell our viewers, what did you witness?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Wolf.

The Lebanese army gave us access to their operations in one of these pilot zones. We joined them on patrol there, and we saw the ways in which they are patrolling the town. They have set up checkpoints at the entrances to this village in an effort to keep militants out, including Hezbollah militants.

This is all part of an effort to eventually try and push for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Southern Lebanon. A lot of it depends on the success of these pilot zones. So far, there isn't much of an appetite, though, in the current Israeli government for expanding those pilot zones, so we will keep an eye on that.

But what we also saw on the ground, Wolf, were the enormous levels of destruction, not only from Israeli airstrikes, but also from Israeli bulldozing, as the Israeli defense minister has vowed to raze every single village inside the Israeli security zone to the ground, with the rare exception of just a few Christian villages in that area.

We also saw the extent to which the cease-fire in Lebanon is very much a cease-fire in name only. As we were interviewing a soldier talking about a previous Israeli strike, here's what we heard and saw.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: When you were first deployed to the south -- and that was some kind of Israeli strike close by. How often are you seeing Israeli military strikes like this?

COL. RAJA AMER, LEBANESE ARMY: It's continuous. It's continuous in all the area of population.

As I told you, since the 27th of June framework agreement, we had now more than 5,000 attacks. So it's continuous and it's everywhere in all the sector of the responsibility.

DIAMOND: This is what cease-fire looks like?

AMER: This is what's happening. This is what -- this is the cease- fire from their side.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: And, Wolf, 34 Lebanese soldiers have so far been killed this year, not only by Israeli strikes, but also by unexploded ordnance, a very dangerous task.

[11:10:01]

We met the Lebanese army's EOD team, which is tasked with recovering drones, mines, missiles, and then decommissioning those. They showed us how they were decommissioning a drone, a fiber-optic drone used by Hezbollah, and the very dangerous task that comes with that. They say they need more support, including from the United States, in order to be able to complete this task more safely and effectively.

BLITZER: Jeremy Diamond back from South Lebanon. He's in Tel Aviv right now.

Thank you very, very much -- Pamela.

BROWN: All right, still ahead, Wolf: immigration ultimatum. How the Justice Department is threatening states that don't report undocumented immigrants.

BLITZER: Plus, dangerous flash flooding and water rescues. What's left of a tropical storm that dumped 20 inches of rain in Texas? And it's not over.

Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:15:40]

BROWN: Happening now: The Trump administration is launching a new effort to make states cooperate with its aggressive immigration crackdown. States are being told to report undocumented immigrants known to be living there or risk losing federal funding for two programs aimed at helping low-income individuals.

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez reports extensively on the issue of immigration. She is here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

So, this new demand from the administration is a sweeping revision of a longstanding legal opinion. What specifically changed here?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They essentially made it broader.

So this is a new legal interpretation of a Clinton era opinion. Now, what that opinion did was have a reporting requirement in place for the agencies within a state that were administering these two programs, that being Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and Supplemental Security Income.

What the Justice Department is doing now in this new legal opinion is broadening that out so that every agency within a state government would be required to provide information about undocumented immigrants believed to be residing in the United States.

Now, the way that they have justified doing this revision is by -- is this. And I will read here from a statement from the Justice Department -- quote -- "When a state chooses to participate in TANF, it accepts the obligation to report illegal aliens in the United States. Tax dollars intended to help vulnerable Americans should not perversely encourage illegal entry into the United States, but rather should reinforce our laws and our borders."

Now, again, it's worth noting undocumented immigrants do not receive federal benefits. They're not eligible for them, but there are limited exceptions. And it's unclear how exactly they plan to implement this. We do know from the opinion that it would be for future funding, so it's not retroactive.

We also know, however, that they have been, they being the administration, have been challenged in court when they have attempted to do this. Critics say that they are trying to compel states and force states to comply with the administration's immigration crackdown by leveraging these welfare benefits.

And we saw something similar last year with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And, this year, a federal judge temporarily blocked the conditions that they had put on funds specific to food stamps. So this is an administration that has tried to get information wherever it can about undocumented immigrants in the U.S.

And this falls under that category with now this reporting requirement that is much broader that would require agencies within state governments to report or provide information of any undocumented immigrants. So we'll be looking to see if there are legal challenges that are brought against the administration on this latest effort.

But it is clear from -- the message, rather, is clear from the administration that they are going to continue this pursuit through various methods. And this is just the latest one through this new legal opinion that, again, to your original question, broadens out the requirement for state governments. And, again, all states use these programs.

BROWN: Yes.

ALVAREZ: So they all face this consequence if they don't turn over information.

BROWN: Right.

So, basically, we don't know yet if any of these states are going to bring a legal challenge to this?

ALVAREZ: We don't, but we have an indication of who might or what that might look like because the USDA tried something last year as it related to food stamps, and they -- the states brought a challenge there.

A federal judge temporarily blocked it and blocked specifically the new conditions that were put on the food stamps. So, because of that lawsuit and other lawsuits that have related to information-gathering, it is likely that we will see it. But we'll -- but, again, this also comes down to implementation and how the Justice Department gets these states to turn over information.

BROWN: All right, Priscilla Alvarez, as always, thank you for bringing your reporting to us.

And still ahead, a SITUATION ROOM special report: A 20-year-old Haitian immigrant steps into highway traffic and is killed. His family says he preferred death to the humiliation of wearing the government ankle monitor that's now required for a growing number of Haitian immigrants. His story later this hour.

BLITZER: Also happening now, we're remembering the feminist icon Gloria Steinem. She died yesterday at the age of 92.

A statement on her social media account says she passed away in New York -- and I'm quoting now -- "surrounded by some of the many who loved her."

BROWN: Steinem rose to prominence advocating for women's rights and abortion access. She continued that activism into her 90s.

[11:20:00]

CNN's Sara Sidner has more on Steinem's life and legacy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GLORIA STEINEM, CO-FOUNDER, WOMEN'S MEDIA CENTER: Any philosophy that tells us that there's only one way to live has got to be wrong for some people.

SARA SIDNER, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Like few in her generation, journalist and feminist leader Gloria Steinem helped shape the national dialogue on some of the most contentious issues of our time.

STEINEM: The point is not what we choose, but that we have the right to make a choice.

SIDNER: A Phi Beta Kappa graduate...

STEINEM: Any philosophy that tells us that there's only one way to live has got to be wrong for some people.

SIDNER: Like few in her generation, journalist and feminist leader Gloria Steinem helped shape the national dialogue on some of the most contentious issues of our time.

STEINEM: The point is not what we choose, but that we have the right to make a choice.

SIDNER: A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Smith College, Steinem burst onto the national scene in 1963 with an expose of the working conditions of Playboy Bunnies. She applied for and got a job as a Bunny at the New York Playboy Club to get the inside scoop.

She revealed the long hours and stingy salaries of women who worked in the clubs where rich men spent their leisure time.

PROTESTERS: Equal pay for equal work!

SIDNER: Steinem became a tireless advocate of what came to be called the women's liberation movement. She was an eloquent and sometimes poignant champion of women's issues, including equal rights and abortion.

STEINEM: I can assure you, as a woman who has had one, that abortion is not a pleasurable experience. It is only a last resort. And if the anti-abortion forces were not also anti-contraception and anti-sex education in the schools, we would have millions fewer abortions.

(CHEERING)

CHRIS WALLACE, CNN HOST: You are the one who coined the phrase reproductive freedom. Now, how did that happen?

STEINEM: It was reproductive rights, reproductive freedom, But, clearly, the ability to control to make decisions over our own physical selves is fundamental to democracy. But because democracy did not in the beginning include female human beings, we didn't necessarily include reproductive freedom.

SIDNER: Her refusal to shy away from hot-button issues provoked a backlash.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I teach my children to hate just like me, card cheats, horse thieves, baby killers, and sodomites.

SIDNER: In 1971, Steinem launched "Ms." magazine, the first national women's magazine run by women. The preview issue sold out. And within five years, its circulation reached half-a-million.

She hobnobbed with the rich and famous and received the red carpet treatment as a celebrity in her own right. In September 2000, Steinem married David Bale, father of actor Christian Bale. They were together for less than four years. Bale died of brain lymphoma at age 62.

Steinem, though, remained active as a mentor and educator. The 2011 HBO documentary "Gloria: In Her Own Words" introduced Steinem to a new generation of women. And, in 2013, President Barack Obama awarded her the nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Her one piece of

advice to young girls is -- I love this -- "Do not listen to my advice."

(LAUGHTER)

OBAMA: "Listen to the voice inside you and follow that."

SIDNER: Steinem's reaction -- quote -- "I'd be crazy if I didn't understand that this was a medal for the entire women's movement."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:28:35]

BROWN: Happening now: More than seven million people in Eastern Texas are under flood watches, and parts of the state face a rare high risk for flooding.

What's left of Tropical Storm Edouard has swamped some areas with nearly two feet of rain. That's several months' worth of rain in just hours. And it flooded out roads and forced water rescues. Iconic Texas longhorn cattle were seen wading through flood waters near Houston. The storm is expected to drop more heavy rain this afternoon.

Also this morning, powerful storms hit parts of the Northeast and Ontario with floods, damaging winds, and even a couple of tornadoes. Tens of thousands of homes and businesses are still without power.

And take a look at this scene in Toronto, where the downpours flooded vehicles and bus stations, sending people running for cover and forcing road closures. More storms are expected this afternoon in the Ohio Valley and mid-Atlantic -- Wolf.

BLITZER: And also happening now: Rescue teams in Nepal are racing against time as they battle mud and debris to try to find survivors who may still be trapped inside tunnels. Officials say around 900 workers are missing across hydropower sites across the catastrophic flood a week ago.

The disaster has left more than 1,200 people dead, and more than 5,000 people are still missing, including 75 Americans. Across the border in China, at least 21 people are dead.

CNN's Hanako Montgomery is in Nepal following the rescue efforts.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: More than a week on from the deadly flash floods, Nepal is still counting the number of those who died and searching for thousands who remain missing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)