their last booster would be eligible to get an additional booster shot. >> dr. wen, thanks as usual for joining us. to our viewers, thank you very much for watching. i'm wolf blitzer in "the situation room." "erin burnett outfront" starts right now. "outfront" next, mar-a-lago search tapes. cnn learning some of trump's allies want the former president to release surveillance footage of the fbi searching hiss home. a celebrity attorney make up his attorney team now. we'll tell you more with a story you'll only see "outfront." and one man leaving his family behind in china, taking the trek through south and central america to get into the united states via the southern border. let's go "outfront."

good evening. i'm erin burnett. "outfront" tonight, there are tapes. cnn learning that some trump allies are urging him to publicly release surveillance footage of fbi agents searching his mar-a-lago home. we don't know what is on the tapes or not on the tapes. the footage has been held so close to the vest that a source close to the president tells cnn they're not sure if trump himself has even seen the whole thing. now, trump's son, eric, has been happy to talk about it, saying they're ready for the whole world to see the tapes. >> you still have the surveillance tape, is that correct? are you allowed to share that with the country? >> absolutely, sean, at the right time. >> absolutely, at the right time. well, the context here is we are awaiting a key decision on the mar-a-lago search. in just hours, the judge who approved the fbi search of mar-a-lago is holding a hearing, and the hearing is specifically on the merits of unsealing the

affidavit. that was the affidavit that was used to justify the search warrant and to get approval for that search warrant. so the affidavit lays out in great detail why prosecutors felt the need to search the home of a former president. the justice department has filed saying they are against releasing this information, they warn it would cause significant damage in their words, to both this investigation and they say other high profile investigations. look, there's a lot of information in that affidavit which would answer some crucial questions, like what the search was about, what fbi agents were specifically looking for, and who the fbi has been talking to in this. now, these are crucial questions we need answers to. tonight, we can say that one person we need to know a lot more about when it comes to the mar-a-lago searched seized materials is mark meadows. he was with trump in the final days of his presidency and was formally appointed by trump to oversee presidential records.

the letter was signed on january 19th, 2021, addressed to the national archives, signed by donald trump. so in these final hours, maybe frenzied hours of document chaos, this is written and the president writes, with this letter i designate mark r. meadows, and other names, and continues as my representatives in all respects that pertain to the records of my presidency. so as of tonight, we have heard nothing about the search from meadows, because he is a person who regularly blankets the airwaves defending trump. in this case, he has been silent. his last tweet was two weeks ago before the mar-a-lago sear. we have a lot to get to tonight. gabby, let me start with you. the tapes, trump often talks about tapes and there aren't any. in this case, it appears there are from your reports but we don't know what's on them. what more are you learning about them and whether trump will or

will not release the tapes? >> erin, we're learning tonight that former president donald trump sunldis under pressure fr some of his allies to release cctv footage from the day the fbi searched mar-a-lago in palm beach. now, that is drawing mixed reaction from some inside president trump's orbit. there are folks who think that releasing this footage could send a jolt of energy through the republican party base, and essentially give trump's claims that he's a victim of political persecution a boost by doing so. but there are others who cautioned that this could backfire, that he was specifically asked to turn off those cameras when the fbi was present at mar-a-lago on august 8th. and that to release that footage publicly could have implications for him, either legally or that it could just backfire and not have the expected results. i want to read to you what one

person close to trump told me about releasing this footage. this person said "it's one thing to read a bunch of numbers on an inventory list. it's another to see law enforcement agents actually carrying a dozen plus boxes out of president trump's home, knowing they probably contained sensitive documents. i don't see how that helps them. so of course, there is this discussion happening behind the scenes on whether to release this footage, or whether to hold it. it's also plausible, as trump has done many times before, that he will just continue to tease this out, without ever actually releasing the surveillance footage, erin. >> absolutely, gabby. thank you very much. certainly with some of the allegations they have put out there, you know, that these guys are going through and just taking some boxes, it does not comport with what trump has alleged. i want to go to evan perez. the hearing tomorrow about the affidavit is another crucial piece of this, because, you

know, when we got the warrant, okay, that was important. we got the receipt of what they took. that was important. but the affidavit is the real deal, right? so many questions would be answered. are we going to get it? >> well, the justice department is opposed to releasing the entire thing. a judge could have them go through the document and find a way to release at least some aspects of it. again, the justice department itself, when they asked to release the search warrant, said that they understood that there was a public interest in releasing some information about this search. and given the fact the unprecedented nature of this, you could see where this could go. one of the things we would be looking for is, you know, often when lawyers for the justice department show up in court, sometimes they have a way of saying additional things that

they wouldn't say necessarily in the court filings and documents. so those are the things we'll be listening to tomorrow to see if we get a little more of the narrative, especially the key period after that june meeting where, you know, the justice department believes that they have taken away the classified information and clearly something happens to make them believe that there are still more boxes of documents. of course, that's what they found. >> of course, how they figured that out and what human source may or may not have been involved. so i mentioned mark meadows who is crucial in so many ways and in so many investigations, whether it's this or the other quote unquote high profile investigations that the doj mentions when they say that's why they don't want to release the affidavit. we don't know whether the fbi has talked to mark meadows. he has been unusually quiet. why could he be so key here? >> look, we don't know whether the fbi has talked to him. we know that they have talked to almost everybody else who was involved in the document issue.

we know that they have talked to a number of aides, both the ones at the white house and the ones that are still working for him. what's interesting about meadows is if the fbi hasn't asked to talk to him, that's not a good thing for mark meadows. we know that meadows is obviously a key witness, not only in this, because he was involved and in charge of helping secure documents near the end of the trump 39 si. we also know that he was deeply involved in this other investigation in this whole, you know, effort for the former president to remain in power with the fake electors. we know he was deeply involved in all of that. and that is also an investigation where the former president has some legal exposure, erin. >> evan perez, thank you very much, from washington. now ryan goodman, the former special counsel at the defense department and co-editor in chief of the security blog and professor at nyu law school and

stephanie grisham, former press secretary for president trump and gloria borger. ryan, let's start with the tapes. should the fbi be concerned that trump could release these? >> i don't think they should be concerned in terms of they seemed to have followed everything by the book. but there's another reason for them to be concerned, and that's according to "the wall street journal"'s reporting. the fbi said to the folks at mar lageo, please turn off the surveillance tapes citing officer safety. >> in terms of people being identified what they are? >> exactly. if we see them and their faces, that could be a serious concern. when the arrest warm was leaked to breitbart that included the two fbi agent's names. so it's something of a similar concern. that's something real. and that's also what might be the legal jeopardy for those who

thought it might be an interesting idea to release this information. >> fbi says there's been an unprecedented number of threats against fbi agents, including those who were there that day. stephanie, knowing president trump as you do, are you surprised that he hasn't release tw whatever he has now, since there is some cctv footage, not something that he's just pretending out of the ether. >> i'm not surprised because i don't think anything is there. i think donald trump would have released it already. he doesn't listen to his lawyers. if he wanted it released, it would be by now. what we would see is hardworking fbi agents doing their jobs. if there was video of them ransacking rooms or stealing items like donald trump has purported, that would be out there. >> oh, yeah, without question. that's the reality. so you'll put a video out there looking professional. that doesn't serve his aims at

all. gloria, eric trump says they're going to release the tapes absolutely at the right time. eric trump does not know what his father is going to do. the question this begs is whether a release could backfire. >> look, i think a release could backfire. that's why there's an internal debate about it, and that's why they haven't done it already. remember, at the beginning of all of this, there was talk about planted evidence. ah, evidence was planted. well, what would you see on the tape? would you see fbi agents planting evidence? i don't think so. but that could backfire, because that was one of their stories early on. also, stephanie is saying, you could see hard-working fbi agents. and i think the whole point of this from the -- from the trump point of view is to show the president being a victim of an out of control government looking to get him.

and so maybe they're waiting so they can put music to it, or release it at a certain time during a campaign. so he would, again, look like a victim and this would really rally the base around him. but legally, since they were asked not to tape this, it could really backfire. >> absolutely. and yeah, just to state the obvious, would completely backfire. mark meadows was, according to the letter signed by president trump, in charge of presidential records. we know everybody else has been interviewed in this investigation. we don't know about meadow it is he has or hasn't. if he has, it could be very damning. at this point, do you think they have spoken with him or not? >> that's a great question. on that letter that you showed, he's listed first and it's not in alphabet call order.

he also ran the operation for what was going to be turned over to the national archives in the last couple of weeks of the presidency. so i do think that he's in serious trouble, because it must mean he's a target since they're speaking to everybody who is a witness to those operations. >> so this is very crucial, because they mention of course, other high profile investigations in that affidavit. stephanie, when it comes to the affidavit itself, that the doj does not want released, trump says he does want it released. what do you think he plans to do with it if it comes out? >> well, this will be his way to fact find. this will be his way to see what they were looking for, try to figure out who it was that supposedly turned on him. this is going to be how he crafts his message next to see how he's innocent, a victim, et cetera. he doesn't want it for transparency for the american

people, i want it to be clear. he wants it to make up more lies and bs. i think transparency is important, it's vital. i want to see what's in the affidavit. but right now, i am for keeping the integrity of the case is vital and if there is a witness or witnesses who have cooperated, i think it is important we keep in mind the rhetoric and we keep those people safe. >> there could be a lot in this affidavit that trump doesn't want to be made public. so he may be saying he wants it public, getting it will never happen. >> classified documents, right. >> absolutely, and what was there, more information about what they were looking for and why they were looking for it. those other high profile investigations. you've been talking to all of your sources about this. what are you learning? >> one former white house official made a point to me today that i think is very pertinent here, and stephanie is a former white house staffer. he said look, if names in the

affidavits are witnesses, and also there are people who are handling documents a t the white house. if they were classified, and they should. have been handling them because they didn't have the security clearance, they now have legal exposure. and these may be people who were just staffers, who were moving things around, who -- don't forget, it was chaotic at the end of this administration. there were lots of people in the administration who were more worried about keeping donald trump in office than classified documents. but there may be other people who were trying to get things in order, get things moved, whatever. and they now have a lot of legal exposure. and those are people that the fbi is talking to or going to be talking to. so there's a question about whether there are a lot of people involved here who, you know, who are inadvertently facing a lot of legal troubles. >> all right.

all, thank you very much. i appreciate it. next, speaking of legal troubles and the mounting avalanche of them for the former president. rudy giuliani testifying before a georgia grand jury about trump's efforts to overturn the election six hours for giuliani today behind closed doors. trump reportedly having a hard time getting reputable attorneys to work for him. so who is on his defense team tonight? and a little league world series player suffering a serious injury after falling from a bupg bed. an update on how he's doing tonight.t. instead of j just masking it. so pull it in close. secret works.

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tonight, legal troubles are mounting for former president trump. cnn learning that the former cfo of the trump organization is expected to plead guilty tomorrow to a 15-year tax fraud scheme. guilty. 15 years tax fraud. a source says weisselberg, who's known the trump family since the 1970s, will be forced to testify as a witness. that is under the terms of his plea deal. that testifying will happen in the -- if the case against the trump organization goes to trial. this is going on as fulton county investigation continues to pick up steam. in georgia, former trump attorney rudy giuliani testifying before the fulton county grand jury, which is looking at trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election there. giuliani was there for six hours, refused to answer

ques questions. nick, six hours bhs behind clos doors. what is giuliani's team saying about his testimony tonight? >> reporter: well, erin, we asked bob costello for details, but he says he wanted to respect the privacy of the process, so declined to comment. we don't know the line of questioning from the special grand jury, but we know as you mentioned that giuliani was in there for roughly six hours. it was giuliani as we reported that appeared three times in the wake of the 2020 election before georgia lawmakers. twice in person, once virtually. it was during those appearances that he spread conspiracy theorys and baseless claims about election fraud. we don't know if he was asked about that. but the bigger question, is was he cooperative? he seemed to indicate he was willing to play hardball and any conversation that he's had with former president trump is protected under attorney-client

privilege. but since he's been named a criminal target in this investigation, it may not be that cut and dry. erin? >> certainly not. and he has been named a target and informed of that. so nick, there are major developments tonight about other high profile witnesses that the fulton county d.a. is hoping to hear from. what is the latest on them? >> it was a busy day not just here but across the country. a flurry of legal activity tied to this case. south carolina senator graham is asking for a federal judge to intervene and put a stay on his subpoena. he is expected to appear next week. the georgia governor here is asking a judge to get involved to quash his subpoena to appear before the special purpose grand jury. and it was earlier today that john eastman, one of the five trump campaign attorneys that were subpoenaed by bonnie willis, the lead investigator here in this investigation. he was unsuccessful in his bid to get his motion or his subpoena quashed, a judge saying he's going have to show up here

one way or the other. >> nick, thank you very much. live in fulton county. "outfront" now, the chief investigative correspondent for yahoo news, breaking a lot of news on the fulton county investigation. giuliani was there for about six hours today before the grand jury. his attorney had signaled that he would not be responsive. the comment was, we know how to play hardball. but giuliani being a target raises the question about trump's criminal exposure. what is the latest you're hearing about that? >> first of all, we can't say this enough. the fulton county investigation is the most imminent legal threat the president has right now. more so that what the justice department is doing on the mar-a-lago search. more so than what the justice department is doing on january 6th. because bonnie willis, the fulton county d.a., is proceeding across the board

rather aggressively, no holds barred, pushing to a rapid close of this investigation. i'm a little surprised that giuliani spent six hours in there, because i didn't expect him to say very much, given attorney/client privilege issues, and also fifth amendment rights, which he's been told he's a target. new targets told that will then testify before a grand jury, because they're just giving prosecutors rope they can be hung on. but that said, i don't think it matters all that much. if you look at the way bonnie willis is approaching this investigation and what she's trying to do, she is using georgia's very expansive racketeering law to build a case of a racketeering conspiracy involving donald trump, rudy giuliani, john eastman, the 16

fake electors who met on december 14th at the georgia state capitol and declared themselves the duley elected e wil -- electors for georgia, even though they weren't. and then the threats, such as rudy freeman, who, after rudy giuliani's testimony after the video and the supposed stuffing suitcases full of fake ballots, a charge that was baseless. rudy freeman and her daughter, as she testified, faced really grueling and horrific threats forcing them to move out of their house. >> so michael -- >> you put all this together, i think that's the way she's looking at this. it doesn't really matter what giuliani said today before the grand jury. >> you have spoken to her. she says she could finish in july or august in a perfect

world. 're we are halfway through august. how close do you think she is to deciding on an indictment or indictments? >> it's not a perfect world, right? so i think at this point, given the challenges that folks have raised to subpoenas and given the legal fights all over the country, it's clear she's not going to finish by the end of this month. and then you get into september. and remember, this is a special grand jury that won't issue indictments itself. it will provide a report to the judge who will make the decision. and she has also said once early voting in georgia starts for the 2022 lekelections, she will not bring charges during that period. that's october. so i think at this point, as a practical matter, we are looking at the weeks after the election when fonnie willis decides whether to pull the trigger or

not. >> which is much later than many perhaps expected or hoped to hear a decision. michael, thank you very much. >> but before doj. >> all right. michael, thank you very much for your reporting on that, as swulz. next, meet the team fighting these legal battles for trip, among them a lawyer specializing in insurance cases. and a story you'll see only "outfront." a man so desperate to escape china he traveled by plane, boat, plus, motorcycle and foot to get to america. the way he chose was the mexico/u.s. border. he's not the only one making that perilous journey.

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tonight, help wanted. the former president facing legal jeopardy for possible espionage violations and more is having trouble hiring a defense team. so who is fighting trump's legal battles? among them, an attorney known for defending rap stars and a lawyer whose specialty is real estate insurance. tom foreman is "outfront."

>> reporter: what do these all have in common with a certain former president? atlanta lawyer drew findland, known for big cases, big clients and now helping team trump face a slew of allegations. never mind tweeting trump was racist and pathetic. trump is consolidating his legal team as cases swirl around. >> this raid was a shock to everybody, because we had been extremely cooperative. >> reporter: that team includes an election denier who worked for trump and homeland security and on the one american network. a florida lawyer known in part for handling insurance cases. >> we still don't know what exact documents they took other than some mementos. >> reporter: and a lawyer who has defended anything trump

does. >> why you would ask for a raid with a cooperating president. do i believe this judge is going to review it? no, i don't. >> reporter: other team members have more federal legal experience, such as jim trusty, who says it's all well to be the fbi director to look at january 6th and say nobody is above the law -- >> but he doesn't seem to be able to use the same phrasing when he talks about the biden family. >> reporter: and evan corcoran, on steve bannon's team when the former trump aide was found guilty of contempt of congress. >> i stand with trump and the constitution. ly never back off that. >> reporter: there are more and trump has always sworn by the power of his legal team. but the relationship is complicated. >> there was a brazen plot to illegally exonerate hillary clinton. >> reporter: some who were expected to join the team in the past ultimately did not. >> do you think trump deserves blame for january 6th? >> yes, i think that the

president certainly, umm, deserves some blame for what happened. >> reporter: and others could soon be busy enough just defending themselves. part of the problem for trump's legal team is just this. while he can embrace wild theorys and unhinged ideas, that's very different when you go into court and you to stand in front of a judge and say, now i want to put that forward with no supporting evidence. and these lawyers can get into some trouble. so it's a very difficult needle they're trying to thread here. the president wants him on their team. some of them seem hesitant. >> thank you very much. i want to go to jim schultz, a former trump white house counsel, knows a lot about this. so jim, i appreciate your time. you heard tom foreman's reporting here. you heard some of the sound bites from some of the attorneys who are currently on the team. a few of them, of course v. a few of them have the

background of fighting something like this. what stands out to you who is and isn't on this team? >> i think anyone going through this, especially a former president in such a high profile case is going to want a big team of lawyers, certainly washington lawyers who work in the d.c. federal courts to be on the team. he has a couple of folk there is who are long-time prosecutors who understand the criminal justice process, certainly good defense attorneys. but i think the -- look, what he's not getting are the big law names coming out of washington who would normally work on these big cases joining the team. >> so and that is obviously a glaring absence, none of the washington ones, none of the new york ones either. why do you think those lawyers are saying no? >> well, i think a lot of it has to do with, one, the stigma

associated with january 6th events surrounding january 6th. some of it probably has to do with the public reported issues when you represent the former president that's been publicly reported. he's a difficult client to deal with at times. and then, you know, i think those are the two big issues, you know, you have a bunch of folk twhos who have represented in the past, who represented the government in the past as a former white house counsel, and before grand juries, before the january 6th commission. that's not something that a lawyer wants to spend time doing. you know, in connection with the representative of anyone. >> obviously, pat cipollone, you're talking about them. you also have -- >> mcgahn spent some time there too. >> you in your role as a former trump white house counsel, i'm sure you're glad you are not among those names, but would you

rejoin the team or are those the same reasons you have for not joining? >> i'm a civil lawyer, not a criminal defense lawyer. that's not the space i work in any way. but that's somewhat irrelevant. but i think the folks that he want on that team are folks that are d.c. barred lawyers, d.c. lawyers who work in the federal courts, former 3r5 er prosecuto the justice department. those are the folks that would make up a team or the southern district of new york, because that's the place that he knows. that's what you expect to make up the team, he just doesn't have them. >> jim, thank you so much. i appreciate your time. >> happy to be on. next, the biden administration hitting the road to sell the $750 billion spending bill that he just signed. but when some of the most important benefits don't kick in for years, how does biden sell

it now? and more than 100,000 chinese taking desperate measures to escape. we'll follow one man's track to come to america, and the way he chose to come into the u.s. is the mexican/u.s. border, a story you'll see only "outfront." you're making all the difference out there kid. next big american. pressure, prsure? pressure, pressure. so where do you think this pressure's coming from? presseveryone.sure. i'm just here for the mints. [ cheering crowd ] so much pressure. pressure makes diamonds. true. pulisic! he scores! incredible! she is fearless heart's on the line depend silhouette keeping leaks off her mind.

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and may stop treatment. upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. tell your doctor about your medicines and if you're pregnant or planning to be. otezla. show more of you. between two initiatives on sports betting. prop 27 generates hundreds of millions every year to permanently fund getting people off the streets a prop 26? not a dime to solve homelessness prop 27 has strong protections to prevent minors from betting. prop 26? no protections for minors.

prop 27 helps every tribe, including disadvantaged tribes. prop 26? nothing for disadvantaged tribes vote yes on 27. tonight, the biden administration trying to sell the $750 billion spending bill on health and climate that the

president just signed. three cabinet secretaries visiting colorado, new mexico and california today as part of what the white house is calling a "aggressive effort to tout the new law." passing the law is a major victory, but many benefits won't be felt by americans for years. the three-year of obamacare subsidies kicks in immediately. the $2,000 cap on out of pocket costs kicks in, in 2025. and negotiating medicare prescription drug prices will only cover ten drugs, and that doesn't start until 2026. so what can he do to capitalize on this bill now, years before key parts take effect? "outfront," david axelrod, senior adviser to president obama. so david, can biden capitalize on this now? >> yeah, i think he can. i don't think the greatest challenge is the one that you

suggest, which is the timing of when these things happen. i think that's a great deal of support for these, and if he can tell this story and the administration can tell the story, i think they will be well received. you didn't mention the climate pieces of this, which will be quite popular with many people and the minimum corporate tax so that companies like amazon and others who avoid taxes won't be able to. all of those will resonate with people. the old question, what if you threw a party and nobody came? what if you had a big victory and nobody knew? that's what he is contending with now. his omnibus bills have so many different elements that it doesn't cut through. secondly, you have donald trump, who is eclipsing all as witnessed even by your show and every show. he has to deal with that first. and so he -- you know, they haven't punched through. a poll today said only 40% of

americans knew about this bill. so that task is a big one, and they have to kind of flood the zone with it. senate cabinet members to do local and regional tv is one way to do it. microtargeting to the constituencies that are going to benefit about what this bill will do and what has been passed is another. the other challenge the president has is, you know, joe biden, his numbers have improved in the last few weeks. he's been on a very strong winning streak, particularly democrats have noticed that, and that has helped him. but he's still sit tting there with a 41% approval rate, and a w lot of candidates don't want him to tout this, they want to. >> there's -- to your point, they want to benefit from the policy but not wanting his face or him involved with it. before this bill was signed, and i want to emphasize this was

before a lot of these victories were fully known, a cnn roll showed 75% of democratic voters wanted someone else to be the nominee in 2024. this was before this was signed, but 75% didn't want him to be the nominee is stunning. is passing this bill or having cabinet secretaries do microtarget goinging to fundamentally change that? >> yeah, it remains to be seen. the short-term goal is to troy and improve the prospects of candidates running in 2022. and i think this could help with that. it gives democratic candidates achievements, it's the burn pit bill, the semiconductor bill. they have been on quite a run. democrats needed achievements that they could go out and tout. and the party needs to be advertising those achievements. so yes, i think it could be helpful. and whether it helps his standing is another matter, and

that's to be determined. you know, there are other issues that are involved in how people rate him as a potential candidate. most prominent of which is age. this isn't going to change that, but he certainly looks like a guy that's getting stuff done right now. that has to be helpful to the party, as they face what, you know, is still a very difficult election in november. >> david axelrod, thank you so much. >> good to see you, erin. and next, we'll follow one man who couldn't take china's strict covid policies any more, so he wanted to come to the u.s. he made the journey to the border of mexico. his only way in was the illegal way. and a little league sere world series player suffers a head injury after b balling from a bk bed. an u update on his condition. ♪ ♪ kick off your shoes and ♪

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came illegally through the southern border of u.s. and mexico? he was pushed to the brink as xi jinping tightens his grip on zero covid. the rate of chinese nationals seeking asylum elsewhere increasing as a clip since xi came to power. selina wang has the story you'll see only outfront. >> reporter: this wall separates this man from his american dream. he's prepared to risk everything to climb over, illegally crossing into the u.s. from mexico. but unlike most of the thousands of illegal crossings a day on the southern border, he's not fleeing poverty or violence south of the wall. his journey started on the other side of the world. we've been following him for months during his perilous escape out of china by plane, boat, bus, motorcycle, and on foot. he ran a bubble tea shop back in

china. when covid hit, business tanked from constant lockdowns. he left his son and daughter behind with his parents, hoping to bring them to america one day. china's unrelenting zero covid policy stifling nationalistic education taught in schools pushed wong over the edge. >> reporter: he's the strong man atop a surveillance state, one that during the pandemic can control and track the movements of virtually all 1.4 billion people. since the start of the pandemic, china has kept its borders sealed, a policy the government says is needed to fight covid-19. and earlier this year, for bade its citizens from going overseas

for nonessential reasons. with china turning increasingly inward, wong became desperate to get out, and he was set on one destination -- america. >> reporter: through online chat groups, he discovered a network of people in china planning to illegally emigrate to america through ecuador. he applied for a language school in ecuador and made it out of china in april with the school's admission letter as proof. he started documenting his whole journey. from ecuador, he rode buses over 1,000 miles to colombia, then took a boat to panama, sharing the ride with other desperate but hopeful migrants. on the other side, a five-day hike through panama's rain forest, an endless walk through

rivers and mountains, a journey that wong said almost broke him from exhaustion. a brief respite at a refugee camp, then seven days of buses from panama to costa rica, nica nicaragua, honduras, then guatemala. from there, a boat to mexico's border, where police detained him for five days. when he was released, he paid an illegal smuggler thousands of dollars to get to mexico city. dozens of people squeezed into the back of a truck, then packed into a van, more than 104 degrees fahrenheit inside. in mexico city, wong rode a motorcycle 1,600 miles to the u.s. border, where we met up with him, determined to make it to the other side. according to the u.n. refugee agency, the number of chinese nationals seeking asylum has been steadily increasing until it reached a record in 2021. and most of them, 70%, were trying to get to america. on china's internet, searches

for emimmigration started skyrocketing in march has many struggled to get basic necessities and food during lockdowns across the country. discussion forums with detailed tips on how to leave china have gone viral on social media. immigration lawyers say inquiries from chinese wanting to leave have surged since the pandemic. but for others like wong, he says their only path into america is the illegal way. he ultimately made it to the other side, walked hours in the american desert over mountains. his sneakers fell apart. more than a month later, we met wong in los angeles. in this new world, he's found the familiar. in the best case, it will be years before he sees his family again. how do you feel when you think about your children?

have you told your family where you are? >> reporter: that future is uncertain certain, but with china in his past, he has hope of living out his american dream. >> absolutely incredible report, selina. i know as this report was airing, much of it was blacked out in china, and they put up claiming no signal. but the majority of that report did not air where you are due to censors. how is the chinese government reacting to cases like wang's? >> yeah, erin. in our conversation right now, it is still being censored and blacked out. it says there's no signal here. we had reached out earlier to the chinese government to comment on our story, and

beijing defended the country's covid policies and called china a land full of vitality and hope. you know, stories like wang's, they are a smear on beijing a narrative that china is getting stronger and more prosperous while america is in decline. wang's journey may be rare and extreme, but we have spoken to others that are taking a similar path, including one man who illegally escaped china by walking across the border into vietnam. from there he flew into ecuador and is now taking that same path as wang did into the u.s. through the u.s./mexico border. of course there are still people in china who support the zero covid policies here, erin, but more and more are feeling the sense of hopelessness about their future, a country here where they see their freedoms and opportunities disappearing. erin. >> thank you very much. an absolutely incredible story with such a window into china as well as the u.s. southern border. thank you so very much. and next, the little league world series announcing changes

tonight after a player fell from a bunk bed and suffered a serious head injury.

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finally, an update on the 12-year-old who fractured his skill after falling from a bunk bed at the little league world series in pennsylvania. those close to easton oliverson says he is no longer sedated. he's asking for water and been waving to his parents and mouthing the words "i love you." officials at the little league world series say the bunk beds don't have guardrails. they've now removed all the bunks from the rooms. thank you so much for joining us. ac 360 starts right now. good evening. after more than a week of threats against fbi agents incited by the former president and his supporters and after one failed attempt on their lives, our top story tonight is anything but academic. the consequences of it could be very real. late today, we learned that some of the former president's allies want him to publicly release surveillance chemical video of agents searching mar-a-lago last week. he's already suggested on several occasions they might have planted evidence while they were executing the search warrant. there's no evidence of that at all. just today on his social network, he linked to an article