tv Anderson Cooper 360 CNN September 27, 2021 5:00pm-6:01pm PDT
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international community, never leaving them behind and now they are left with nothing. >> reporter: now at home in denver, she says she and others like her are suffering from survivor's guilt. >> to this day, i am still processing the information and processing the reality on the ground. it just feels like it's a ongoing nightmare that, you know, i haven't been woken up from. >> reporter: alex marquardt cnn, denver. >> incredible story. thanks so much to all of you. it's time now for anderson. another piece of evidence tracing the journey of gabby petito and the disappearance of her fiance who remains at large. dispatch audio from the day the couple fought and police were called. the letter rp, you will hear, stands for the reporting party. >> do you have a phone number for the rp maybe just a landline and location of where our victim's at? >> phone number is -- but the
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female who got hit -- they both -- the male and the female -- both got into the van and headed north. >> rp states a male hit a female, domestic. he got into a white ford transit van. has a black ladder on the back. florida plate of quebec fox tango golf zero 3. the van turned right onto main street from moon flower market and headed north onto main street. >> so, just ahead on the program, how this late piece -- the bigger picture and fits into it in the search for brian laundrie. we begin, though, with the breaking news from washington. it is unfolding at the start of a critical week for democrats to either turn big pieces of president biden's domestic agenda into law or fail to and deliver themselves and the president into a world of political pain. they are working against a thursday deadline to reach agreement on what's in legislation that would, if
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passed, greatly expand the social-safety net with items like universal pre-k for kids, paid maternity leave, and medicare, dental coverage, potentially in the mix. but if there is no agreement which requires support from moderate house and senate democrats, house progressives could end up voting against the infrastructure bill which the president also wants and has already passed the senate. with all that at stake, it's getting tense in washington. house democrats have been meeting behind closed doors and on top of that, senate republicans just blocked legislation to prevent a government shutdown. cnn's ryan nobles is on the hill for us with the latest. so what happens next? i mean, is there real danger of a government shutdown? >> well, there is, anderson, at this point because the government it could run out of money as soon as midnight on thursday which would mean a partial-government shutdown would take place. so, they need to find some way out of this. democrats have been insistent on putting the continuing resolution that would continue to fund the government along with legislation that would raise the debt ceiling which the
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government is scheduled to reach at around mid-october. they wanted to put those two pieces of legislation together in order to force republicans to vote for it. republicans didn't take the bait, and they, you know, put the filibuster in place today that effectively blocked that legislation. now, the senate majority leader, chuck schumer, voted no on the legislation so that he can bring it back. there was talk of them offering up just a clean continuing resolution that would be for a short amount of time just to keep the government open. at this point, though, they have not revealed what those plans are and when they will take that legislation up. >> and in terms of the two big spending bills that have divided democrats, where do things stand? >> at this point, they continue to be in a staring contest, anderson. the house insists that they will vote on thursday for that bipartisan infrastructure package. but at this point, they may not have the votes. progressives continue to say that there are as many as 40 progressive lawmakers who are -- are willing to vote no on this
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package, unless they get some sort of firm agreement on that $3.5 trillion reconciliation package. that's that human infrastructure package that you were talking about before. now, there does appear to be a path to getting this done. i talked to a number of progressive lawmakers today who originally had said they were not going to vote for the bipartisan plan, unless the reconciliation package passed the house and senate. that's impossible by thursday. they are now talking about a public framework that everyone agrees to and when they say everyone, they are also talking about those two moderate senators, kyrsten sinema and joe manchin. and also, the eight or nine house moderates who have been resistant to endorsing this plan. so, they are willing to vote yes on the bipartisan deal if they get that firm agreement. the question is, anderson, can they get that agreement between now and thursday? >> ryan nobles, appreciate it. thank you. joi joining us now is john podesta, founder of center for american progress, one of the leading
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voices warning democrats of the consequences of failure. so, first of all, what do you make of the standoff that the white house is -- or the standoffishness the white house has about the scope of the president's involvement in these negotiations? should he be doing more? is this the right strategy? >> well, he had a series of meetings on last thursday and -- and -- and into friday. meeting with -- with different elements of the democratic caucus to try to forge an agreement. i think the reporting you just heard was exactly right. i think that if thursday comes and there's no agreement from -- particularly, from senators manchin and sinema, that the progressive caucus will hold firm. i would note that speaker pelosi said over the weekend she won't bring a bill to the floor unless it has the votes to pass. so i -- i think we're in one of those washington perils of pauline moments where you have the continuing resolution, the debt limit, the bipartisan infrastructure bill, and the
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reconciliation bill, all kind of tangled into -- into a knot. and my advice to democrats is work it out. spend these next two days figuring out that framework. get the commitments that are necessary or you'll play a heavy political price for failing to act on the crises that we're facing, both with climate and with -- and for working-american families. >> well i mean, what does work it out for -- among the democrats -- what does that look like? i mean, both sides give something. give -- give something that they don't want to give. >> well, look. i think that -- that -- that what's interesting is that there are 259 democrats who agree with the president that $3.5 trillion is the right size of the package. but there are 11 that don't. and with the narrow 50-50 senate and with -- they can only lose three votes in the house, that number is coming down.
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i think people have accepted that. that the $3.5 trillion cannot pass the senate. and therefore, there -- it has to be the -- the investments have to come in at a lower number. that -- progressives have to give on. and likewise, i think the moderates have to be clear that they're -- they're prepared to vote for a substantial reconciliation package. and a strategy of trying to just get the bipartisan infrastructure bill is -- is dead in my opinion. so they have to come together, work it out. i think there is very strong support for the basic thrust of this to invest in clean energy, to create millions of jobs, to support working families through childcare, home care, elder care, prescription drug relief. >> right. >> so there is a lot of unanimity but you have no margin for error. and that's what the next couple
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days are going to be about. >> yeah. you reference what you called a heavy price that democrats would pay or could pay if they don't get this done. i mean, if nothing gets accomplished, how do they explain that to voters in the midterms? because they won't be able to pin it on republicans, will they? >> yeah. i -- i -- i think that's exactly right but i think the bigger consequences aren't political. they're substantive. this is a code-red moment for climate. if we don't make these investments, the floods, the fires, the drought, the heat waves that we have seen this summer will get exponentially worse into the future decades. president biden realized that and that's why he put such a substantial package forward. it's critical in terms of the global talks. and likewise, i think for working families who are dealing with the economic effects of delta now. i think they need the relief that's included here. will they get everything? no. but can they get something substantial? yes. if they -- if they fail, we've -- we've failed at an
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important democratic moment and i think there'll be dire political consequences from that. >> congressman ro khanna, progressive in the house, brought up with reporters the idea that -- that something like two democratic senators and ten-or-so democratic house members are holding up the agenda of the whole republican party. i mean, do -- have you seen something like this -- excuse me, the democratic party -- have you seen something like this before? did you think you would see? >> you know, i worked in 1993 in the clinton white house where the clinton economic plan which led to the strongest job growth in -- in history passed by a single vote in the -- in the house and a tie-breaking vote by vice president gore in the senate. so it was right down to the nail-biting wire. but it did pass, and i think it produced really great returns for the american people with wages growing across the board. so, i kyou know, these things happen. but i think it's time that
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everyone cinches their belt and -- and gets this done and really the -- the time is so short. and as speaker pelosi said tonight, the vote is on for thursday so that's the -- that's the new deadline and hopefully we'll meet it. >> john podesta, i appreciate your time. thank you. >> thanks, anderson. coming up next. the newly released dispatch audio and more late-breaking news in the killing of gabby petito. and later, anita hill on the new abortion law in texas. her confrontation three decades ago with clarence thomas and her continuing fight to stop gender violence.
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so we reported at the top of the hour, there is a new piece of the puzzle in the killing of gabby petito and the disappearance of her fiance brian laundrie during a cross-country road trip. audio from the sheriff's office in grand county, utah. now, again, the initials you will hear, rp, stand for reporting party. the person who saw the incident. >> do you have a phone number for the rp, maybe just a landline and a location of where our victim's at?
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>> phone number is -- but the female who got hit -- they've both -- the male and the female -- both got into the van and headed north. >> rp states male hit a female, domestic. he got into a white ford transit van. has a black ladder on the back. florida plate of quebec fox tango golf zero 3. the van turned right on to main street from moon flower market, and headed north on to main street. >> remember, rp, that's the man who witnessed brian laundrie, according to him, hit gabby petito and called 9-1-1. that makes him the reporting party. this comes as police back in florida announce a shift in the search for brian laundrie. our randi kaye joins us now from there. so what more do we know about
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this audio from the sheriff's office? explain the significance of it. >> reporter: well, anderson, this all goes back to that august 12th 9-1-1 call when someone called saying they had seen a man slapping a woman this is key because this is the dispatch tape to the moab police officers telling them that a male was seen slapping a female. that's what they said on that audio. so this was key because then the moab police were dispatched to find the couple. they found gabby petito and her fiance. they turned on their body camera and on that body cam, you see gabby petito visibly upset. she is crying. brian laundrie is showing them scratches on his hands. she says they did have a fight but she does tell the officers that he did not punch her. so they told them to separate for the night which they did but now we have learned that there is this investigation by the city of moab into the handling of this call because we know, also, that gabby petito was dead within about two weeks or so of that police stop, anderson. >> and what is the latest on the search for -- for laundrie? are they still focusing on this
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nature reserve? >> they are. they're looking at the carlton reserve. the fbi has taken over the search. um, and they are really saying now that it is more targeted based based intelligence. so clearly, based on tips, maybe sightings. but they are also waiting for the high water mark to go down so they can access some areas. but also, anderson, media outlets now reporting investigators have been here to the laundrie home behind me collecting dna-matching items. these would be used maybe -- maybe -- we don't know what they took but it could be something like a fotoothbrush or comb and perhaps they find something, they could find brian laundrie, dead or alive, and match it here in florida. or maybe the killer left a piece of chewing gum or bwrapper of some sort. >> just to be clear, the -- the reason police are at that -- that -- that nature reserve is because laundrie's parents told
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authorities that he had said he was going to go camping there. is that -- that's the only reason? >> that is it. that is where they pointed the -- the investigators and they have been there. and we spoke with a survivalist, anderson, who -- um -- his name is steve. he is with north florida survival and he has been a survival instructor for seven years. he's been doing search and rescue with marion county here in florida for years. and he told me that less than 5% of people survive the first-72 hours in a survival situation. he also told me that the tools they would be using to find brian laundrie perhaps in this reserve would include infrared. they can see the heat at night. he also said they would be using just the basic eyes on the ground. you want to be looking for things somebody left behind like maybe batteries or clothing but also look to see if there is any brush that has been turned over. he also said the potential problems for brian laundrie could include rain, heat, humidity, dehydration, also moving around at night is risky
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for him because here in florida there is a lot of predatory animals, alligators. bobcats. florida panthers. so if he is moving at night thinking that he has some cover, that could be a problem, as well. and then finally, in order for laundrie to survive if he is in that reserve, he said that he would need to find high ground, create a sleeping platform so it's safe for him. the problem is every time he moves, he would have to take that down so he doesn't leave any evidence and then also rebuild it, once again. he also said that he would have to find edible plants and trap animals. he said it's very difficult here in the swamp here in the carlton reserve. if he was in the north perhaps in the mountains, it would be cooler. a lot of squirrels on the move, he said, and he would have an easier time trapping something to eat, anderson. >> interesting. randi, appreciate it. thanks. i want to talk to our senior law enforcement analyst and former-fbi dpeputy director, andrew mccabe. what does tell it tell you, first of all, that authorities are scaling back their search of that nature reserve whether they say it's targeted or not? >> anderson, it simply tells me
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that they have determined that doing a traditional grid-type search where you employ many people to basically cover a designated area is not proving productive. which is understandable in light of the -- the area that they are trying to search much of it is underwater. some of it is infested with predatory animals, stuff like that. so it seems like they are staying away from that kind of traditional approach and likely using technology and intelligence and tracking techniques. >> would it seem likely that they would launch the kind of the massive search that they had or the -- the large search that they had of that area over the last couple weeks based solely on the parents saying, well, he said he was going to -- to camp out in -- in this area? is that enough to kind of launch the thing? or would they have to have some other information that -- that kind of corroborated that? >> it's certainly enough to get you going in that direction. and i think when they go over there and i think, initially,
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they found his car left in a -- in a parking lot in the area. that would also support your -- your assumption that he might be in that area. however, i -- i -- i believe, strongly, that the fbi is likely not keeping 100% of its resources over there, right? they are also doing things to make sure that there are no ways that mr. laundrie could have kind of diverted himself, and tried to, for instance, engaged in public transportation or mass transit, exit the area. there is all sorts of resources that the fbi can tap into to track whether or not someone traveling under his identity may have tried to get on a plane or a bus or train out of the area. um, let's also keep in mind that he's highly recognizable right now and if he's just out there on the economy trying to get away, he is going to have probably a tough time. >> yeah. i mean, it seems given the public's interest in this case that, you know, the idea that he is driving around or on the move in, you know, on a public
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transportation. that seems unlikely. do you think -- um, i mean, in your experience, how long do people manage to -- i mean, if in fact somebody's in a wilderness area, how long do people manage to stay out in these type of areas if laundrie is, in fact, in the reserve? >> not long without a significant level of support and assistance. so the best example probably is eric robert rudolph, the infamous olympic park bomber. he was out allegedly in the north carolina wilderness for five years. however, when he was arrested, he was wearing clean clothes, new sneakers, had recently shaved and dyed his hair. so, it is -- it is assumed that mr. rudolph actually had the support of the community in trying to evade law enforcement and that's how he was able to stay away for that long. whitey bulger is another one, right? but whitey spent years preparing to be on the run. stashing cash in different places. false-identity documents and he was with a woman and, you know,
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going out into the world as a couple, you attract much less attention than you do as a single, you know, certainly a single man trying to flee. so you need -- you need a plan. you need extensive support. you need a lot of money. um, it's not clear that laundrie has any of those things. >> investigators also removed, according to media reporting, removed evidence from the laundrie home over the weekend to assist in dna matching. i assume that doesn't mean that they have some dna they want to match it to. or i mean, it could. but it could also just -- they just want to have it in the sire eventuality or possibility they may at some point come across something they want to match? >> that's right. they want to do that dna profile now in the lab, taking their time, so they can have it kind of sitting on the shelf. that way if they come across trash in the reserve or they come across evidence maybe from the -- from the crime scene or another crime scene, they have an existing-dna profile that they can compare it to, to determine whether or not it's
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laundrie. so i don't think it's indicative of any particular evidence or samples that they have as much as it is just having their ducks in a row. >> yeah. andrew mccabe, thanks so much. appreciate it. just ahead, we have breaking news about new subpoenas from the house select committee investigating the capitol riot. also, congresswoman liz cheney speaking out about the what she called unforgiveable conduct of the republican leader in the house, kevin mccarthy. li? one! two! three! four! five! 72,807! 72,808... dollars. yep... everything hurts. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ for people who are a little intense about hydration. neutrogena® hydro boost lightweight. fragrance-free. 48 hour hydration.
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the chair of the january 6th select committee says prepare for more subpoenas this week. congressman bennie thompson did not specify who might receive those, only that it may be individuals associated with the former administration as well as those already charged with crimes associated with the capitol riot. now, the news comes ahead of the highly-anticipated testimony tomorrow involving the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, general mark milley. when asked about reports in multiple recent books about milley's fears about the actions of the former president during the final days of his presidency. meanwhile, congresswoman liz cheney, one of two republicans on the committee, airing her concerns about the direction of the republican party, its support for the big lie, and republican leader in the house kevin mccarthy. >> what he's done is embrace donald trump. and if i were doing what he is doing, i -- i would be deeply ashamed of myself. i don't know how you explain that to your children. there are people who supported donald trump because of his policies.
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but there's a difference between somebody who voted for donald trump and being the republican leader after an insurrection. and setting all of that aside, and going to mar-a-lago and -- and rehabilitating him. bringing him back in. that, to me, is unforgiveable. >> i am joined now by former-republican senator congressman william cohen, who served as defense secretary under democrat president bill clinton. secretary cohen, what does it say there's gotten to this point in the republican party where there are two avenues, either you kiss the former president's ring like kevin mccarthy and indulge in the big lie or you stand up to it like liz cheney and adam kinzinger and essentially get excommunicated? >> well, first, let me thank you for having me on -- on your show. um, i basically support what liz cheney has said. and her characterization and that of adam kinzinger. i think we have come to a point
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now where what is unforgiveable is that there are so many republicans who are willing to turn away, to not look at the facts of what former president did. how he stoked an insurrection. how he sat in the white house, and apparently observed what was taking place on television. and then, anderson, he apparently when called upon to try and intervene, he simply laughed it off. that is what is unforgiveable, and those members on the hill -- republican members -- who think that's okay, then i think they are contributing to the dissolution of our democracy. and thank goodness you have liz cheney and adam kinzinger and others who are willing to stand up and say we're conservatives. we believe in the rule of law. we believe in conservative principles. what president trump did -- former president -- was not conservative. that was radical. that was rogue. that was undermining democracy, and trying to overthrow our constitutional government.
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so, um, i think we're at a point now where if republicans continue to simply save their seats, as opposed to saving their honor, they will have to live with that in the future because what donald trump has done, continues to do is to undermine our society and to promote more rage, more fear, more peril. as bob woodward has written to our system. i think that is what is unforgiveable. and those members who are unwilling to -- to speak up, to speak out, they really are acting more, if i can put it this way, more like fido than fiduciaries. the united states congress is a separate institution. it is not part of the executive branch. those members owe their obligation to the constitution, not to the chief executive of the -- a separate branch of government. so there will -- how it plays out. >> yeah. general milley testifying tomorrow. i mean, there's certainly going
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to be a number of -- i mean, obviously, there is afghanistan for him to talk about. he is going to likely be grilled on many of the revelations in the new bob woodward/robert costa book about the trump admini administration's final days, the call with speaker pelosi about the former president's state of mind, how do you think this hearing is going to play out? >> well, there will be some who certainly want to make headway. and there will be others who want to make headlines. i think for the most part on that committee, most of the members are going to look, try to get to the bottom of what the analysis was. i mean, they are going to ask the questions that howard baker asked years ago. what did you know? when did you know it? on what basis, what intelligence did you rest the premise that you could do this and carry this out assuming that the afghan military could hold and not fold as they did? there are several other things that i think we have to keep in mind. number one, i hope that all
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three of the testimony who are testifying tomorrow, all three generals. they will know that they are earning their four stars tomorrow. there is going to be a lot of incoming to them. i would recommend they remain cool and calm and confident. and also, remain concise, not drag out their answers because the one thing that will alienate members of congress, if they think you're stonewalling. by the -- on the other hand, i would say members of congress have to take this in mind. don't be so aggressive that you look like bullies. we found that out during the iran contra investigation when colonel oliver north was sitting as a witness, and he was sitting there in his uniform with all this decoration that he had received. and members of congress looked they were piling on a patriot. that's something members of congress have to take in account. most of them admire those who have gone into battle, have
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sacrificed, and been willing to sacrifice life and limb. so as you examine them and put them under intense examination as to what happened back in afghanistan, what happened on january 6th in terms of your assessment, mr. chairman, chairman of the joint chiefs, what was the basis of your assessment that you felt that the then president's mental state was deteriorating to the point where you felt you had to involve yourself in a much more aggressive way to make sure that nothing untoward took place? so i think, what was the benchmark? what was his benchmark for understanding what his state of mind was at that time. >> well, that's going to be fascinating to hear the joint chiefs talking about the former president's -- his concerns about the former president's mental state of mind. secretary cohen, it is a pleasure to talk to you again. thank you. >> always good to be with you, anderson. coming up next. the colorado election official who has peddled similar conspiracy theories but is now under investigation after
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republican county election clerk who's alleged to have done more than just peddle fraudulent claims and who also has ties with a quite infamous tv pitchman turned election conspiracy theorist. ed lavandera has the details. >> reporter: tina peters is the mesa county clerk who oversaw elections in grand junction, colorado, until last month when investigators began looking into her alleged involvement with a reported breach of the county's election system. she's not interested in speaking with cnn. >> want to get you in touch with people that can schedule that for you. >> reporter: peters, who hasn't been charged with any crimes, has teamed up with one of the biggest 2020 election conspiracy theorists, mypillow ceo, mike lindell. in august, peters flew to this symposium in south dakota where she told an adoring crowd she's uncovered voting problems, even though donald trump won her county by almost 30 points. >> out of 64 counties in colorado, i am willing to stand up as the county clerk.
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one out of 64. >> reporter: but in grand junction, peters' critics, many of whom are republicans, say her pursuit of voter fraud has turned up zero evidence. one republican mesa county commissioner calls her a, quote, problem child. >> she's gone into the election process and yelled fire, get out, get out. and in the panic, a lot of people are running over each other and they're running for the exits. and the theater's getting torn up as they're running out. and there's no fire. >> reporter: the backstory of how we got here is a bizarre tale. in may, the colorado secretary of state's office was scheduled to conduct a routine software update of the dominion voting system in mesa county. sometime before that visit, a lawsuit filed by colorado's secretary of state alleges security cameras monitoring the county's voting equipment had been turned off. and that someone recorded video of the software update procedure, and an image of passwords to get into the equipment. according to a counterclaim,
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tina peters admits she recorded video of the procedure and also said she brought in a consultant two days earlier to make a forensic copy of the computer data because she was concerned that election results would be destroyed. in august, those images were posted to a website peddling election conspiracy theories. peters denies she authorized this leak and her lawyer says she was surprised and upset that the information became public. she maintains that close to 30,000 files were deleted during the update. >> virtually all electronic data that would be necessary to conduct a full-forensic audit of the 2020 election was -- were deleted. >> reporter: the colorado secretary of state tells cnn that no election records are missing, and that peters are misleading voters with these baseless accusations. >> the clerk either still does not know the type of security breach she has created. or she is lying to try to cover her act.
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>> reporter: peters says she is doing the job she was elected to do. meanwhile, local, state, and federal authorities are investigating the breach. peters has not responded to our repeated interview requests but she spoke with a christian advocacy group called the truth in liberty coalition. >> i am willing to go -- to go as far as -- as it takes to do what it -- needs -- what needs to happen. i mean, god's called me. he'll sustain me. and um, and he's surrounding me with -- with his people. so i feel very good. >> this is the tabulation room. >> reporter: after the security breach was discovered, county treasurer, sheila riner was put in charge of overseeing elections. mesa county had to spend $300,000 to replace all of the compromised election equipment. but the scandal has revealed a new reality. >> this is a real lesson learned. i don't think that we had any protocols for insider threat before. >> that's the way you see this? >> yeah, i don't think that we ever really considered what if we have a bad actor on our team,
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what does that do? and then, how do we get around that in the future? >> it's fascinating, ed. i mean, she's lying and believes god is on her side somehow. and his people are protecting her in some way. then-president trump won the county by 30 points the way she is talking, it sounds as if she is from a county in which, you know, joe biden won. >> right. and that's the question that so many people have is exactly what is she up to? tina peters in public statements that she has made in recent weeks is essentially saying that she is listening to voters who are telling her they believe something is going on. it really is this unfounded paranoia that continues to exist among so many trump voters. there are so many people there in grand junction who are skeptical of what she -- what she is saying. that perhaps, she enjoys the spotlight and the notoriety of being connected with mike lindell. but it really is a localized
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snapshot of what happens when the big election lie comes strolling into town. >> yeah. she seems to like being on tv, except for people who are actually asking her real questions. ed lavandera, appreciate it. thank you. coming up. one on one with anita hill. what she has to say about the new texas abortion law, and how it fits into the themes of her fascinating new book. in your hands or feet? try nervivenerve relief from the world's #1 selling nerve care company. nervive contains alpha lipoic acid to relieve occasional nerve aches, weakness and discomfort. try nervivenerve relief.
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tonight, texas abortion providers are still waiting to hear from the supreme court after asking the justices late last week to expedite a review of the state law that blocks abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. the law went into effect september 1st but the federal appeals court hearing the challenge has set a tentative hearing for december. and the abortion providers are asking the justices to in effect step in and decide a key issue in the case now, instead of waiting for the appeals court to weigh in. now, that's one of the issues now that some see as an assault on women's rights, anita hill joins us now for her take. she's been fighting for women since she testified for an all-male senate panel 30 years ago led by then-senator joe biden about supreme court
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justice clarence thomas. she accused thomas of sexual harassment. he denied any wrongdoing. hill is now a law -- and lawyer and professor writing about that and more in her new book that goes on sale tomorrow. it's called "believing: our 30 year journey to end gender violence." and anita hill joins me now. thanks so much for being with us, professor hill. let's just talk about the term gender violence for those who aren't familiar with it. can you just talk about the -- the meaning of it? >> well, the meaning of it is probably best explained by giving you the examples that i explore in the book which includes a range of behavior from bullying in schools. and certainly, sexual harassment in schools and colleges. to intimate-partner violence as well as sexual assault and rape and stalking. so, it's a range of behaviors and basically it's directed at -- at people because of their gender and in the name of gender, very often.
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and so, um, i wanted to explore the totality of it even though i'm known for people -- to people because of the issue of sexual because i found such linkages between all those behaviors. >> what's happening in texas now, one of the most restrictive abortion laws in really the developed world, the fact that private citizens are now being allowed in texas to bring civil suits against anyone who assists a pregnant person seeking an abortion and no exception for rape or incest, how do you see that? governor abbott, as you know, his response when asked about it was, texas will work tirelessly to make sure we eliminate all rapists. i'm wondering what you thought of his comments as well. >> what i think of the law is it really is a dangerous -- sets a dangerous precedent, using
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private citizens as vigilantes to police women's constitutionally protected decisions about their own lives is truly dangerous. i'm just thankful the justice department is taking the side of women in this case, and doing what the federal government can do to protect their rights. but, you know, it is to me, the issue, as it relates to gender violence, we already have a high rate of gender violence in this country, intimate partner violence especially. here the law is being used to coerce women and to police women. suc >> you said 2020 is a year of clarity. part of thing that forced that
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clarity besides the death of george floyd and others, can you tell us how the pandemic made 2020 year about gender violence? >> yes, of course there was isolation. there were the health challenges that people experienced. within that pandemic, there was a further burden put on vulnerable populations. so there was economic insecurity, which leads to housing insecurity and food insecurity. and the weight fell heavily on those who were already living on the edge. and i call it the year of clarity because for once, we could begin to see how disparities in this country that have existed through society get amplified. and we hopefully could see the need to address them.
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and related to that, in terms of the topic of gender violence, you know, during the pandemic, predicted in about march of 2020 or so, various health organizations around the globe started predicting that there would be a high surge in what we call domestic violence, violence that occurs in the homes. they were absolutely right. it resulted in shelters being overflowing, resources being inadequate to cover all of the victims that were -- victimhoods that were occurring during the pandemic. and it just really shows you how close people are to catastrophe in their personal life, because intimate partner violence,
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domestic violence, is a behavior that impacts families. it impacts communities. and it impacts our country. >> and it's not something that people necessarily link to events like a pandemic. and yet, as you say, it was predicted there would be a rise in attacks in the home, and there were. >> well, there were, because people were in the home, locked in the home. they were isolated in the home. and probably, you know, we're still studying it, but very likely what happened was that sentiments just overflowed, whereas before, when people were out, able to go to work or go to school, there were outlets. there were ways to get out and connect with other people. there were ways to report bad behavior that didn't cause you to be put at greater risk.
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that didn't happen during the pandemic, when people were together. and so we're still trying to figure out what that means. but clearly what it says to me is that this is a problem that we need to address. >> anita hill, thank you so much, i'm so glad you wrote this book. it's fascinating. i really appreciate it and i hope to speak to you again. thank you. >> well, i just want to say, in addition to -- these stories are all stories about how people who have survived, and they're stories about the way the public sentiment has changed and grown since 1991 when i testified. and there is hope that we can change and we can do better. >> the book, again, is "believing," available starting tomorrow. anita hill, thank you so much. up next, president biden's message for america as he got his booster shot of pfizer's
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but your first treatment could be a chemo-free combination of two immunotherapies that works differently. it could mean a chance to live longer. opdivo plus yervoy is for adults newly diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer that has spread, tests positive for pd-l1, and does not have an abnormal egfr or alk gene. it's the only fda-approved combination of two immunotherapies. opdivo plus yervoy equals... a chance for more time together. more family time. more quiet time. opdivo and yervoy can cause your immune system to harm healthy parts of your body during and after treatment. these problems can be severe and lead to death. see your doctor right away if you have a cough; chest pain; shortness of breath; irregular heartbeat; diarrhea; constipation; severe stomach pain, nausea or vomiting; dizziness; fainting; eye problems; extreme tiredness; changes in appetite, thirst or urine; rash; itching; confusion; memory problems; muscle pain or weakness; joint pain; flushing; or fever. these are not all the possible side effects. problems can occur together and more often when opdivo is used with yervoy. tell your doctor about all medical conditions including immune or nervous system problems,
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at the white house this afternoon, president biden rolled up his sleeve and received his covid-19 vaccine booster shot, his third shot. the president trying to set an example as a new phase of vaccinations gets under way. the president said today, quote, boosters are important but the most important thing we need to do is get more people vaccinated. that's it for us. the news continues. let's hand it over to chris for "cuomo prime time." >> thanks, anderson. i'm chris cuomo. welcome to "prime time." breaking news out of washington, d.c. on a looming debt crisis. now, what happens in the next few days could help determine who stays in power or who comes to power. the good news, and right now kind of the bad news, is that the democrats are in a position of making their own fate. the right just did what it does best. it ensured that the country is once again on the brink. this time of not being able to pay its bills.
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