tv CNN Newsroom CNN January 13, 2023 7:00am-8:00am PST
7:00 am
tonight is the drawing for the $1.35 billion jackpot. >> it is a long shot. >> can't win if you don't play. >> a lot of tickets are sold. the last winning ticket was sold in october in florida weeks after being hit by hurricaneean, we're live there. i wonder if folks think they might strike gold there twice in the same spot? >> reporter: jim and erica, that is the hope. things out here are a bit slow, but the folks here believe that folks are going to be showing up throughout the day and then later this afternoon with a lot of folks done with work and they come out to play. as you guys said, last time that someone won the mega-millions jackpot was in october. there were two winning tickets across the u.s. one was in california and the other one right here at this 7-eleven in fort myers and as you noted it was right after hurricane ian hit.
7:01 am
the owner of this store tells us since that jackpot was hit here in october, while two other customers have also won some money. one person won $50,000 and last week someone else won another $1,000 and so the hope is if you come to this location in fort myers, your chances might be a little bit better. that being said, it is pretty difficult to win any type of lottery system let alone one with this kind of jackpot. >> it is tough, but i won $21 in powerball so i'm -- >> could we split a ticket? >> you can. >> i won the last bet. >> you did win the last bet. carlos, thanks. top of the hour this friday. i'm jim sciutto, . >> and i'm erica hill. president biden and trump facing similar investigations because there are special counsels
7:02 am
involved. robert hur is now leading the probe which involves president biden. this afternoon several classified documents were found at the president's private home and also his former private office. cnn also learning the doj wants to speak with the people who searched former president trump's properties. looking for classified documents. we're going to break down the legal and the political implications here and what is similar here and what is not. >> seven people are dead after tornados ripped across parts of the south. the images from the air just devastating. one of those may have been on the ground for at least 50 miles. >> oh, my god. oh, my god. oh, my god. yeah, look, that is the building beside us. oh, my god. >> oh, my god, indeed. cnn teams are on the ground in georgia and alabama. we'll take you there in just a
7:03 am
moment. also tributes pouring in for lisa marie presley, the only child of elvis presley. she died overnight at age of 54. a look back at her life in the spotlight. let's begin with hour with what we've learned on president biden facing a special counsel probe now. correspondent paula reid joins us with latest. tell us exactly what we've learned about why garland appointing a special counsel why, in his comments he noted the extraordinary circumstances of this required a special counsel. >> i don't think anyone will argue with him that these are indeed extraordinary circumstances. you now have classified documents found in three different locations connected to a sitting president. and interestingly garland laid out the time line of this case and we got more details. it is interesting. because we see that in early november, the justice department was notified of the discovery of the classified documents at a former office that biden used to use just a couple of days before
7:04 am
the election. and we see the day after the election, he taps the fbi to conduct an assessment of this and that is notable because the justice department does not like to take steps in investigations too close to an election if it is a matter or a move that could potentially have an impact on the outcome of the election. just a few days later, he trapped a trump appointed u.s. attorney in chicago to look at whether a special counsel should be appointed here and that is significant because if he's looking at the facts he knows it is a possibility, but if he doesn't do it, at the same time he's mulling all of this, he's about to appoint jack smith. so he taps this trump appointed u.s. attorney will either say, yes, you should appoint a special counsel or no. and he could point to the fact that he went through this process. merrick garland is a judge. he's always going to follow the department of justice procedure. we know of course that u.s. attorney about a week ago briefed garland once again and did recommend a special counsel who is named yesterday. so it is likely that the
7:05 am
attorney general had been drawing up a short list, because let me tell you, jim and erica, the list of people qualified to do this is pretty short and of those, those who would be willing to take this on is even shorter. robert hur was the liaison for rod rosenstein and robert mueller and so i'm told he is fully qualified to do this and he knows exactly what he's getting into. >> paula, how much do we know this morning about who has been interviewed, which officials perhaps investigators want to speak with, where does all of that stand? >> so concern has learned of one official interviewed. kathy chung. she's an official at the pentagon. she was formerly biden's executive assistant and she was has been interviewed. we don't know if any other people have been interviewed. but it is going to take a while to get rob hur his office set up and they'll likely want to talk
7:06 am
that people involved in packing up materials in the transition and anyone who may have been in these places, the former office at the penn biden center or the garage or his private office and library. big question out there is would the president sit down and answer questions, is that something that they would want, is that something his lawyers would want. all questions that we'll bek loo looking at and digging into over the next weeks and months. >> joining us now to discuss, jennifer rodgers and political director david chalian. so jennifer, when we look at this here, there is so much talk and i've been asking the question, from the way i understand it and the way i've been told, a special counsel was pointed, recommended by a special attorney in chicago, but i it is appointed if a special counsel is warranted. could there be criminality here
7:07 am
or is this more politically motivated, the attorney general just trying to save face and make sure everything seems fair? >> well, from what we know publicly, there doesn't seem to be a basis for criminal liability. so that predicate of a criminal investigation being warranted doesn't really seem to have be met. at at the same time the u.s. attorney in chicago recommended it and i think there is no way as cautious as merrick garland is reputed to be and turned out to be that he will go against that recommendation. and listen, we don't know all of the facts. until yesterday we didn't know that a second group of documents have been found that had already been evaluated by the u.s. attorney in chicago. so i think we have to take the appointment at face value and see what rob hur does over the next weeks and months as he digged through this. >> jennifer, let me ask you, because the special counsel statute notes not just -- it said criminal investigation of a person or matters warranted but it also notes, if there is a conflict of interest or other
7:08 am
extraordinary circumstances. and in his comments yesterday, garland cited extraordinary circumstances. can he appoint a special counsel under the statute based purely on extraordinary circumstances, which we clearly see here, right, given he's a sitting president. or does he also need some sort of potential for a criminal probe? i mean, are the extraordinary circumstances enough, in effect? >> they're not supposed to be. the way the regulation is written you're supposed to of a criminal investigation being warranted before you get to whether there is a conflict or extraordinary circumstances. but, listen, who is going to test it. it hasn't been evaluated and biden is not going to complain but it because it is a political issue for him now. so we are where we are with that. >> david, when we look at this, we can't remove the political from what we are looking at here. and this is certainly not great timing. democrats felt like they were on a much better road all of this
7:09 am
broke, obviously. this is likely not to be resolved quickly. do you sense that there is a circling of the wagons that both the white house and democrats are starting to get a handle on what they're message should be. because it is been kind of messy. >> well it is certainly an assessment period. let's be clear, there is no good timing to have a special counsel investigation launched upon your white house. there is no good timing for that. yes, the folks inside of the white house were feeling like they had a good run here going with their public standing, basically ever since the better than expected performance in the november midterms and on from there with their legislative record. but this is their new reality. and so you're in this assessment period now, i mean, the white house, you have heard, the way they're trying to deal with the politics of this is to lean into the comparisons to former president trump's documents case. because they think that contrast serves them well. and that includes, by the way,
7:10 am
on a day like this, the day after the special counsel was appointed, the difference in reactions from president trump when a special counsel was appointed during his administration, to how president biden and his team is responding to a special counsel being appointed here by merrick garland. i will just note, though, this should come as no surprise, especially to the tight circle of folks who learned on november 2nd that classified documents were found, even though they were not transparent with the country. and i think that is one of the biggest questions that hangs out here for this white house. why they didn't choose to be transparent with the country. but you could instantly see the moment that the documents were -- were recognized and sent over to the archives and then over to doj, that a special counsel was likely coming their way. >> david, i want to ask you, because the argument from republicans is that there is a double standard, biden and others will say it is about how you responded once you found these things. but i do want to play something
7:11 am
that gets to the difference of how republican lawmakers have responded to each of these issues. have a listen and i want to get your reaction. >> what i've seen that the national archives was concerned about trump having in his possession, didn't amount to a hell of -- >> i've been in the oval office with the president. and i'd be very surprised if he has actual documents that rise to the level of a immediate security threat. >> this is outrageous. this is mishandling of classified information. why did he have these documents. >> and we saw comer express outrage at the documents, unlike what he said for trump. is that attenable for republicans. >> don't think anyone watching that doesn't think there are politics at play here. as the republican sort of rhetorical talking points that are out there right now about the biden investigation as they're espousing them, they're
7:12 am
underscoring the legitimacy in the investigation and case with president trump. because it -- all of the same points apply, about potential mishandling of classified documents. so they're actually supporting the cause for the jack smith special counsel looking at the documents case now with trump with the current rhetoric about biden. >> but then you would be looking for a principle, and not -- david chalian, jennifer rodgers, thank you so much. >> sure. search efforts underway for survivors after yet another powerful deadly storm swept through the country. this time through the southeast leaving widespread destruction. >> 35 tornados reported and one of them which tore through the heart of selma, alabama, and the na neighboring county. a 5-year-old child was killed when a tree fell on top of a car. cnn is live with ryan young in
7:13 am
selma and derek van damn in georgia. this destruction in selma, overnight, it is just really something. we're looking at that car that you had showed us last hour. >> reporter: yeah, widespread and of course you could understand where people were so terrified by this storm. you look inside and you could see the damage. there is so many of these images there youout the city where it is repeated itself over and over again. as we walk this direction to the train tracks,s this the main street here, broad street. and we've been driving around and surveying the area. what we've discovered here, there are several homes on the other side of this area right here that have been damaged but look at what it did when the wind tore through here. there is an area where there is so much concern where people ran for cover because they didn't realize the storm was moving as fast as it did. more bad news for the people in this area, more rain is headed this direction. now take a look at this video from our mask above. it is pointed the occasion.
7:14 am
so you could see how wide the damage area is around here. we've been able to block out a two mile swath where it looked like the wind came through here and blew everything in its direction down. we talked to certain people who were about a mile away from here, they still don't have power, cell phone is spotty and they were terrified. also, look at these pictures from a nearby town, about 40 miles away. people trapped in their home for least close to three hours after the storm blew their roof off. so you could understand the pain and the agony and the danger that people experienced here. one of the women who was trying to deal with the storm was in that building right there when the wind compressed and came down and took out the front of the building. she was happy to get out of the situation as they all ran to a closet. so you understand this storm was huge and it hit fast and it left a lot of people terrified. >> look at the metal wrapped around the three there. it gives you a sense of the winds. derek van damme is in griffin,
7:15 am
georgia. could you set the scene for us there? >> reporter: yeah, tragically, jim, the fatality of the 5-year-old child was in an adjacent county, butte's county, spaulding county where i'm located here and unfortunately this is part of the 35 tornados that ripped through the southeast that is likely, the same tornado that cycled up and down causing the damage you see behind me. so what you're looking at is actually the roof of a large shopping complex. when we surveyed the scene last night, the hobby lobby had a large gas leak and you could smell and hear the gas as it was being released. the firefighters have since cut that off. now, we've had 35 tornados just in the past 24 hours. but there have been 100 tornado reports so far this year. that is four times as many as average tornados to date. we've had nearly half of the days this year in 2013
7:16 am
experiencing tornados across the country. from california to illinois, here in georgia we've had three days where we've reported tornados including here yesterday. now in spaulding county, there were four middle schools that sheltered in place during this tragedy that swept through here during the afternoon and evening hours. the students had to stay within their schools until the authorities deemed it safe enough for the buses to ship they are home. so that occurred after midnight last night. it has been quite a scene here to see -- to say the least. and nonetheless, a very, very difficult start to the tornado season. again with 100 tornados already reported across the country so far. this is one of the many that have occurred. jim, erica. >> it is just devastated. derek, ryan, appreciate it. thank you both. still ahead here, an update for you just outside the ukraine town of soledar and they deny
7:17 am
russia's claim of victory in that key town. cnn is on the front lines as the intense fighting continues. and the entertainment world mourning the death of lisa marie presley. she died overnight after an apparent cardiac arrest. we'll hear from his family after the loss. plus we're going to take a look back on her life and find out what is ahead for graceland.
7:18 am
moderate to severe eczema still disrupts my skin. despite treatment it disrupts my skin with itch. it disrupts my skin with rash. but now, i can disrupt eczema with rinvoq. rinvoq is not a steroid, topical, or injection. it's one pill, once a day, that's effective without topical steroids. many taking rinvoq saw clear or almost-clear skin while some saw up to 100% clear skin. plus, they felt fast itch relief some as early as 2 days. that's rinvoq relief. rinvoq can lower your ability to fight infections, including tb. serious infections and blood clots, some fatal, cancers including
7:19 am
lymphoma and skin cancer, death, heart attack, stroke, and tears in the stomach or intestines occurred. people 50 and older with at least one heart disease risk factor have higher risks. don't take if allergic to rinvoq, as serious reactions can occur. tell your doctor if you are or may become pregnant. disrupt the itch and rash of eczema. talk to your doctor about rinvoq. learn how abbvie can help you save. [sfx: stomach gurgling] it's nothing... sounds like something. ♪ when you have nausea, heartburn, indigestion, ♪ ♪ upset stomach, diarrhea. ♪ pepto bismol coats and soothes for fast relief... when you need it most. for adults with generalized myasthenia gravis who are positive for acetylcholine receptor antibodies, it may feel like the world is moving without you. but the picture is changing, with vyvgart. in a clinical trial, participants achieved improved daily abilities with vyvgart added to their current treatment. and vyvgart helped clinical trial participants
7:20 am
achieve reduced muscle weakness. vyvgart may increase the risk of infection. in a clinical study, the most common infections were urinary tract and respiratory tract infections. tell your doctor if you have a history of infections or if you have symptoms of an infection. vyvgart can cause allergic reactions. the most common side effects include respiratory tract infection, headache, and urinary tract infection. picture your life in motion with vyvgart. a treatment designed using a fragment of an antibody. ask your neurologist if vyvgart could be right for you. hey, thanks for helping me out. of course. you can easily get helpful customer service over the phone or on the progressive app pretty much anywhere. like at the coffee shop, at the park, or on the moon. just kidding. it's another coffee shop. aah, it's a good day to cough. oh, no! bye, bye cough. later chest congestion. hello 12 hours of relief.
7:21 am
12 hours!! hmmm, ok. not coughing at yoga? antiquing not coughing? not coughing at the movies?! hashtag still not coughing?! aaah. oww! mucinex dm gives you 12 hours of relief from chest congestion and any type of cough, day or night. it's not cough season. it's always comeback season. this morning, those who knew and loved lisa marie presley honoring her in the wake of her sudden death overnight at the age of 54. sh he was hospitalized on thursday after suffering an apparent cardiac arrest. the singer is survived by her
7:22 am
mother and three daughters. >> they released this statement saying, quote, prescilla presley and the family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved lisa marie. they're grateful for the support and love and prayers of everyone and ask for privacy during this very difficult time. her last appearance was at the golden globes just on tuesday. there she is. here is what she said when asked about austin butler's portrayal of her father in the film elvis. >> i was mind blown, truly. i actually had to take like five days to process it. because it was so spot on and authentic. characteristics, mannerisms and the singing and talking without doing it in a caricature way, like in the past. it is done in a funny joking way, the way they spoke. but austin actually got it and did it perfectly without making it sort of comical.
7:23 am
>> that was just a few days ago. joining us now is car is ma. good to have you. >> she had not been in the spotlight after losing her son just in 2020 by suicide. i wonder, with there are concerns in the family about her overall health, was this a total surprise? >> i think to her family and all of her fans around the world, i think it came as a total surprise. >> it is really heartbreaking. as jim mentioned, losing her son to suicide in 2020. she wrote very movingly and so openly about that grief. and i was really struck by those words. i mean struck as a parent, obviously. but to carry that much grief, that much loss throughout her lifetime, and yet to still have these beautiful daughters and this beautiful family, you could just talk to us a little bit por
7:24 am
about who lisa marie presley was when she wasn't in the spotlight. >> i could think you could see throughout her work and also her music, her dedication to her family was something that she always was dedicated to and specially her father's legacy. i think behind the camera it was just a lot of love for not only her father but her children and also her mother. >> her words there in praise of the film "elvis" and the portrayal of her father, i wonder what that movie, to your knowledge, meant to her and the family? >> it was a big part of elvis's legacy. i know that i read and i've heard that they were quite nervous about the movie coming out. but i think once they saw butler's performance and dedication to the role and the
7:25 am
way he portrayed elvis with a lot of love, it was -- it made them very happy to see that elvis's legacy would be continued in such a beautiful way. >> yeah. >> the closest of the family, this comes from her mother yesterday, and then heartbreakingly confirmed her daughter's death talking about her surviving children. moving forward, do you expect that we will hear more from prescilla presley and her daughters in the coming days? >> i think when the time is right, they have a lot to process right now. but i think they're going to make a comment in the coming future. but for now i think it's for them more about just remembering who lisa was and then also her relationship with the family and her father. >> yeah. quite a life in the public eye. we showed those baby pictures when she was first introduced to the world. with such a sad ending.
7:26 am
charisma, thank you so much. >> thank you. well, the new gop house majority is making good on a promise to investigate the biden administration's withdrawal from afghanistan. up next, the ultimatum given to the state department by the top republican on the house foreign affairs committee. it works naturallyly with the water in your body to unblock your gut. ...free your gutut. and your mood will follow. my moderate to severe plaque psoriasis... ...the burning, the itching. the stinging. my skin was no longer mine. emerge tremfyant®. with tremfya®, most people saw 90% clearer skin at weeks. the marity of people saw 90% clearer skin even at 5 years. tremfya® is the first medication of its kind also approved for adults with active psoriatic arthritis... ...and it's 6 doses a year after 2 starter doses. serious allergic reactions may occur.
7:27 am
7:29 am
hi, we've both got a big birthday coming up. so we have a lot of questions about medicare plans. we've got a lot of answers! how can i help? well for starters, do you include hearing benefits? how about a plan with dental, vision and hearing benefits? i sure like the sound of that! then how does a $0 monthly plan premium sound? ooooooooh! [laughs] if you're new to medicare, call 1-888-65-aetna. we'll walk you through all your coverage and benefit options to help find the right plan for you. just look around. this digital age we're living in, it's pretty unbelievable. problem is, not everyone's fully living in it. nobody should have to take a class or fill out a medical form on public wifi with a screen the size of your hand.
7:30 am
7:31 am
this morning, republican congressman george santos is still defying calls from his own party to resign. it is now 7 gop members of congress calling for him to step down. >> the latest coming from ohio republican max miller, going after him for lying about his jewish heritage, saying it is not okay to lie for a political gain. this is true when the lie seeks to benefit from the murder of millions of jewish people. cnn's manu raju live on capitol hill this hour. so the pressure is building, but is it having any impact, manu? >> reporter: well the goal of both santos and kevin mccarthy, house speaker is to simply weather this storm. and hope that it simply blows over and that these investigations don't yield any more damaging information that could potentially lead for him to resign or make things worse. for mccarthy, the reason is very clear. this is a district that democrats could very well pick up if santos were to resign.
7:32 am
it is one that joe biden carried by eight points. could be a clear pick up opportunity and tighten mccarthy's maeshlgrgin in the h. and now for santos, republican leadership indicating he is not going anywhere and the only recourse for the house republicans and democrats to kick him out is to expel him, something that would require two-thirds majority in the house and something that does not exist given the support of the republican leadership. kevin mccarthy's contention is let the process play out, and let them investigate and then if issues come up we'll decide. conference rules in the house, republicans say that unless someone is indicted, they do not lose their committee assignments. so that means that santos could get committee assignments later next week when they name the rest of the committee assignments. now santos wanted a spot on the financial services committee, that was not allowed but he could get other aspects here. even as some members are calling for him to resign, seven members right now, most of them are
7:33 am
freshman, five of them are from the new york delegation, two from other -- one from ohio and another from south carolina, most republican members are keeping their powder dry, not saying a whole lot. aligning themself with republican leadership and hoping this goes away but day after day more revelations come out showing that santos lied about his past and facing real legal problems both here and potentially abroad. >> listen, these individual members, they could call for his resignation knowing that the gop leaders is not going to push him to resign given the political math and it is a win-win for them. i took a stand, but not knowing where it is all going to go. >> it is a good point. also, as manu pointed out, the three of us know, this is not going away so the questions will come coming. manu, thank you. good to see you. >> first here on cnn, top republicans are investigating the u.s. chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan. on thursday, committee chairman
7:34 am
michael mccaul requested the state department hand over a vast number of documents related to the exit. >> the agency now has less than two weeks to respond. if it does not comply, congressman mccaul has threatened the power of the subpoena. cnn national security correspondent kylie atwood is at the state department this morning. this is expected and there are a lot of questions to be answered about how this withdrawal came about. what do we know about the pace of this and when starts and how long it will go and how far it will go. >> listen, if you look at this letter sent from this chairman of the house republican committee, congressman mccaul to the secretary of state, it is clear that the committee wants to investigate essentially every aspect of the biden administration's withdrawal from afghanistan. what they have requested from the department is a list of all of the planning, all of the meetings that went into the withdrawal from afghanistan. they want a list of all of the u.s. taliban meetings during the biden administration, and they also are making it very clear
7:35 am
they want to look at the after-effects of the withdrawal. so they want a status update on the afghans who have come here to the united states. they want to know what the future of u.s. security assistance, u.s. assistance generally to afghanistan is going to look like. so they're casting a broad stroke here in terms of what they want from the state department, what they are looking into. this is a ten-page letter. as you said, this is expected. the state department knew that congressman mccaul was going to be launching this investigation. they say that they look forward engaging with congress. they haven't saying they're going to provide all of these documents, so that is going to be what we're going to watch for here. how much does the state department work with the chairman of the house republican committee, excuse me, the house foreign affairs committee on this investigation. >> yeah, it is going to be deep. kylie atwood, thank you so much. intense deadly fighting raining right now just outside the eastern ukrainian town of
7:36 am
soledar. it is not the main target, though, of russian forces. we're going to have an update right from those front lines. the day you get your clearchoice dental implants makes every day... a "let's dig in" day... mm. ...a "chow down" day... a "take a big bite" day... a "perfectly delicious" day... mm. [ chuckles ] - ...a "love my new teeth" day. because your clearchoice day is the day everything is back on the menu. a clearchoice day changes every day. schedule a free consultation. ♪ ♪ charlotte! charl! every day can be extraordinary with rich,
7:37 am
creamy, delicious fage total yogurt. and i'm going to tell you about exciting medicare advantage plans that can provide broad coverage and still may save you money on monthly premiums and prescription drugs. with original medicare, you're covered for hospital stays and doctor office visits, but you have to meet a deductible for each, and then you're still responsible for 20% of the cost. next, let's look at a medicare supplement plan. as you can see, they cover the same things as original medicare, and they also cover your medicare deductibles and coinsurance. but they often have higher monthly premiums, and no prescription drug
7:38 am
coverage. now, let's take a look at humana's medicare advantage plans. with a humana medicare advantage plan, hospital stays, doctor office visits, and your original medicare deductibles are covered. and, of course, most humana medicare advantage plans include prescription drug coverage with no copays or deductibles on tier 1 prescriptions. and zero dollars for routine vaccines, including shingles, at in-network retail pharmacies. most humana medicare advantage plans have coverage for vision and hearing. and dental coverage that includes two free cleanings a year, plus dentures, crowns, fillings and more! and most plans include a silversneakers fitness program at no extra cost. you get all of this for as low as a zero-dollar monthly plan premium in many areas. and your doctor and hospital may already be a part of humana's large network. there is no obligation, so call the number
7:39 am
on your screen right now to see if your doctor is in our network, fto find out if you could save on your prescriptions, and to get our free decision guide. humana, a more human way to healthcare. power e*trade's easy-to-use tools like dynamic charting and risk-reward analysis help make trading feel effortless and its customizable scans with social sentiment help you find and unlock opportunities in the market with powerful, easy-to-use tools power e*trade makes complex trading easier react to fast-moving markets with dynamic charting and a futures ladder that lets you place, flatten, or reverse orders so you won't miss an opportunity meet a future mom, a first-time mom and a seasoned pro. this mom's one step closer to their new mini-van! yeah, you'll get used to it. this mom's depositing money with tools on-hand.
7:40 am
cha ching. and this mom, well, she's setting an appointment here, so her son can get set up there and start his own financial journey. that's because these moms all have chase. smart bankers. convenient tools. one bank with the power of both. chase. make more of what's yours. this morning ukraine is defying russia's claim its forces have taken the town of soledar in the eastern part of the country where the fighting has been just bloody of late. >> just horrific. ukraine said it is holding the
7:41 am
line there despite the attacks for weeks now. correspondent ben wedeman is near the front lines and just filed this report. >> reporter: we're in a trench just about two and a half miles or four kilometers from the front -- from soledar. now the situation in soledar is not altogether clear. ukraine officials still hold part of it. speaking to the soldiers, it is a mixed story. some of them say it is either fallen or it is about to fall. others say they are still making minor advances inside. now what is interesting, in these forward positions, we have spoken to many of the soldiers, they're fairly confident and morale seems high given the situation, they're confident they could hold these positions, a rear position. but what appears to be going on is an organized pullout from the town of soledar.
7:42 am
we've been watching as they've been firing mortars in the direction of russian positions and rockets as well. you could hear, in fact, some of the thuds of some of that fire, some of it of course going toward soledar and some in the direct of bakhmut and there is fire coming the other direction. i'm ben wedeman, cnn, outside of soledar. well next hour, president biden set to welcome japanese prime minister fumio kishida to the white house. they are expected to discussion climate change and technology and a newly strengthened military relationship. >> this is a big deal because with the threat of china, the u.s. and japan have been closer into military ties. correspondent m.j. lee, she is at the white house with more. m.j., what do we expect the leaders to be speaking about today and do we expect them to be explicit about the need to challenge china? >> reporter: yeah, jim and erica, keep in mind this is not the first time that president
7:43 am
biden and japanese prime minister kishida are meeting. over the last year they had a by lateral meeting in tokyo and got some face-to-face time in cambodia on the sidelines of a summit there and it is coming at an interesting moment for japan in terms of security posture. remember that last month japan announced that it was going to be boosting its military as well as its defense spending, a change in posture that was significant coming after a long time of operating a certain way, of course. and then u.s. and japan recently also announced that it would be boosting and strengthening its joint military cooperation as well. and, of course, the important back drop here is containing china and its own military build up as well. so yes, we absolutely expect that will be an issue that the two leaders talk about quite explicitly and also when itm coul could -- when it comes to kline,
7:44 am
it is also just has a lot to do with the economy. for example, expect they they will talk about the issue of semiconductor. this is an issue that care about a lot about and athink there is cooperation to contain china and its economic expansion in the region and trying to contain its chips manufacturing and its exports. so those are expected to be some of the main issues they talk aabout in addition to the ongoing war in ukraine. also north korea and its continuing saber rattling. so any minute now we should see the motorcade actually drive into the south lawn. so we will bring that to you when that happens. there is going to be a bilateral meeting followed by a working lunch here at the white house as well. >> it is a big meeting at an important time. m.j. lee, thank you so much. we do have this additional news in cnn. the death toll in the deadly tornados that struck the southeast could increase from
7:45 am
the six people so far in alabama. this is the autaga county authorities, and they have been finding more bodies during the search and recovery efforts. >> we want to go back to ryan young who is in nearby selma, alabama. so what more are officials telling you about had a what th finding. >> that corner is buster barber, and they are finding more bodies and not updating the numbers. we've been talking about this all morning long because we're an hour behind you. the light is just coming up here so they're doing an assessment. just in the last ten minutes or so there was a helicopter that was doing an assessment in the area where we are. so there are a lot of people who still haven't been reached in their homes an we know trees are blocking some roadways. so you get that terrifying news that they are finding more bodies. but they did not update the body count. we do know that six bodies were found earlier and those people are confirmed dead. but we do not know the new number as they start doing this assessment across the state.
7:46 am
so with the emergency that has been put in place, with the power companies that are moving in, and also the heavy machinery coming in, grimly and unfortunately they may be finding more people over the next few hours. of course, we are doing our own assessments as we're driving around. and when you see the power of the storm, you understand what is going on right now as they do these grim assessments. >> grim is the word for it. heartbreaking news likely ahead. ryan, thank you. appreciate the update. coming up, covid disaster loans were lifelines for millions of small businesses during the pandemic. but now it is time to pay those loans back and that is could be real tough for some owners. anand sustain tissue health. ensure with twenty-five vitamins and m minerals, and ensure complete with thirtrty grams of protein. i have moderate to severe crohn's disease. now, there's skyrizi. ♪ things are looking up ♪ ♪ i've got symptom relief ♪ ♪ control of my crohn's mes everything to me. ♪
7:47 am
♪ ♪ contr is everything to me. ♪ feel signicant symptom relief with skyrizi, including less abdominal pain and fewer bowel movements at 4 weeks. skyrizi is the first and only il-23 inhibitor for crohn's that can deliver both clinical remission and endoscopic improvement. the majority of people on skyrizi achieved long lasting remission at 1 year. serious allergic reactions and an increased risk of infections or a lower ability to fight them may occur. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms, had a vaccine or plan to. liver problems may occur in crohn's disease. ask your gastroenterologist how you can take control of your crohn's with skyrizi. ♪ ♪ control is everything to me. ♪ learn how abbvie could help you save. i'm jonathan lawson here to tell you about life insurance through the colonial penn program. if you're age 50 to 85,
7:48 am
and looking to buy life insurance on a fixed budget, remember the three ps. what are the three ps? the three ps of life insurance on a fixed budget are price, price, and price. a price you can afford, a price that can't increase, and a price that fits your budget. i'm 54, what's my price? you can get coverage for $9.95 a month. i'm 65 and take medications. what's my price? also $9.95 a month. i just turned 80, what's my price? $9.95 a month for you too. if you're age 50 to 85, call now about the #1 most popular whole life insurance plan available through the colonial penn program. it has an affordable rate starting at $9.95 a month. no medical exam, no health questions. your acceptance is guaranteed. and this plan has a guaranteed lifetime rate lock so your rate can never go up for any reason.
7:49 am
so call now for free information and you'll also get this free beneficiary planner. and it's yours free just for calling. so call now for free information. we know you care. [music plays] but if this is all too real for you and your loved ones. make the call. because we care too. ♪ home instead. to us, it's personal.
7:50 am
♪ every search you make ♪ ♪ every click you take ♪ ♪ i'll be watching you ♪ - [narrator] the internet doesn't have to be so creepy, the duckduckgo app, lets you search and browse pria blocking most trackers all forf your search history is never tracked, so it can't be shared. and when you leave search, duckduckgo helps keep companies from watching you as you brows. join tens of millions of people making the easy switch by downloading the app today. duckduckgo, privacy simplified.
7:51 am
millions of small business owners have to start paying back covid disaster loans they took out during the pandemic to keep the doors open. many will be required to make the first payment this month. >> some businesses say, however, they'll struggle to pay, higher inflation eating up profit and they don't have the money right now to start repaying the debt. cnn correspondent gabe cohen joins us now. so you spoke to business owners an it is understandable. it takes a long time to get things back up to normal and they're telling you they are not ready. >> so many businesses are trying to claw back from covid. and about 4 million of them took out those loans from the federal government, these disaster relief loans. about $380 billion in all, and now, well they have to start paying them back. >> reporter: at teddy and the
7:52 am
bully bar near downtown d.c., business post pandemic has never been the same. >> i'm still climbing the hill. >> reporter: covid closed two of his four restaurants, government loans saved the other two. but with city center struggling to bring back traffic, his revenue is still down more than 45% from pre-pandemic and allen said they're struggling to stay open and now it is time to pay back those loans. >> it is very difficult. we just got over paying back the landlord. you're just a hamster spinning on a wheel. >> reporter: at the start of covid with business stalled, nearly 4 million small business owners took out economic injury disaster loans or idle loans from the federal government. on average about $100,000. in many cases just to stay afloat. 30 years with a fixed interest rate of 3.75%. and unlike some other pandemic programs, idle loans were expected to be paid back down
7:53 am
the road. now the first monthly payments are coming due. most businesses are owe money by the end of january. >> it is daunting. >> reporter: allen said he owes more than $3,700 per month. roughly $780,000 in all. a lot of which he said he spent on rent and payroll. >> we can't afford anything. but what we're doing is we're paying interest only right now. >> so you haven't made a dent on the actual loan. >> have not made a dent on the principal. >> reporter: a new survey from a leading small business association found only 36% of its members have reached their pre-pandemic sales levels. amid staffing shortages, supply chain issues and inflation. now add a possible looming recession just as these loans come due. >> it is one more cost that they're going to have to deal with some small business owners, unfortunately are going to struggle and meeting those obligations. >> reporter: lisa klein said covid is still keeping some clients away from her physical
7:54 am
therapy practice. making it tough to pay off her idle loan. nearly $1,000 each month with $80,000 to go. >> all of the cost of everything have gone up. we can't pay the staff what we like to pay the staff. the whole business is still suffering and this is adding insult to injury. >> reporter: the small business administration said struggling businesses could declare hardship and make small partial payments for six months. but interest keeps accruing forcing owners like lisa klein to weigh short-term protection against a big bill down the line. >> we have no choice. if we don't keep paying it, it will accrue more interest. >> reporter: and another survey from the same small business association found that business owners are feeling less and less optimistic about 2023 with that potential looming recession. so, jim, all of those uncertainties about the future, that is just adding to the stress of paying back these loans at this moment. >> no question. gabe cohen, thank you so much.
7:55 am
still to come here, forget your friday the 13th superstitions or maybe you think it is lucky number 13. i bet your hoping it is. because the mega-millions jackpot is now $1.35 billion. stick around. so you only pay for what you need. and by switching, you cocould even save $652. thank you, libiberty mutual. now, contestants ready? go! why? why? only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty.♪ wondering what actually goes into your multi-vitamin? at new chapter its innovation organic ingredients and fermentation. fermentation? yes, formulated to help your body really truly absorb the natural goodness. w chapter. wellness well done
7:58 am
business can happen anytime, anywhere. so help yours thrive and stay connected with the comcast business complete connectivity solution. it's the largest, fastest, reliable network. advanced gig speed wifi. and cyberthreat protection. starting at just $49.99 a month. plus, you can save up to 60% a year when you add comcast business mobile. or, ask how to get up to a $750 prepaid card. complete connectivity. one solution, for wherever business takes you. comcast business. powering possibilities.
7:59 am
8:00 am
>> that will do. >> i did some math during the break. erica, $1.35 billion divided by two, that is you and me, is $675 million. i just want to say i'd be happy with that if you were to honor our agreement to split. >> i'm good with half of that $675 million. and i would recommend you cover your bases. we only have an agreement for the mega-millions. but those of us in the studio have also purchased the powerball, new york lottery and a thousand dollars a day for life tickets. so, we may or may not see you next week. >> i claim half of those too, for the record. >> interesting claim. interesting claim. thanks to all of you for joining us today. i'm erica hill. good luck with your lottery winnings. >> and i'm jim sciutto, hoping. "at this hour" with kate bolduan starts right now. hello, everyone. "at this hour," a deadly tornado outbreak, dozens of twisters
132 Views
IN COLLECTIONS
CNN (San Francisco) Television Archive Television Archive News Search Service The Chin Grimes TV News ArchiveUploaded by TV Archive on