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>> first thing that came to my mind was the movie twister. >> twornds and severe storms move through the south and southeast. we'll tell you where the storm system is headed next. the lead prosecutor in the case against alex murdaugh tells cnn what sealed his fate with the jury. and later. really excited to see senator cruz. >> excited to see ben carson. >> big names in the party and no one is bigger than donald trump but some other big names are going elsewhere. >> announcer: live from cnn center, this is "cnn newsroom" with kim brunhuber. and we begin with extreme weather from snow to tornadoes battering huge swaths of the u.s. at least ten people have died as the powerful storm system marches across the south and into the northeast. four of those deaths in kentucky, in some places the storm brought winds strong enough to flip semitrucks, this

is interstate 64 near lexington, kentucky, the driver says he's lucky to be alive. have a look at this, the roof of a church in indiana ripped right off. as winds reached hurricane strength and this man was at home in spencer county, indiana when the storm hit, listen to this. >> the back doors started shaking, the house started shaking and then i couldn't see nothing but white. we didn't even have time to get anywhere. it was just like right on top of us. the house was shaking. we were all close together. in the middle room of the house, still. wow. it's the craziest thing i've ever been involved in. 30 seconds later i seen nothing but absolute devastation, all around my house. >> more than a million homes and businesses are without power right now. kentucky is the worst hit with about half a million customers in the dark. michigan is also seeing significant outages after getting hit by heavy snow and high winds. winter storm warnings are now up

from michigan all the way to maine. cnn's cnn jennifer gray is at the weather center with more. >> it's been a wild 24 to 36 hours across the south and southeast with strong tornadoes, many, many wind reports, and very, very large hail. the storms are still in progress, but you can see all the reports we have seen, this is since thursday. so thursday and friday totals right there, observed rainfall, mississippi river valley across portions of the ohio valley we saw areas of two to four inches of rain, some pockets got as high as six inches of rain. so flash flooding has definitely been a concern. now, this is going to start pushing into the northeast, and new england, it should be all rain for new york, but boston could get in on the snow. and maybe a little bit of some icy precipitation, interior sections of new england are really going to pick up the higher amounts of snow, with this system, this should push offshore by the time we get into saturday evening into sunday. but for the next two days you

can see some of the higher elevations across interior sections of new england could see a foot and a half to two feet of snow from this. and then we shift focus over to the west coast. we have a lot of moisture still being pumped in, across the west. we have more winter storm warnings in effect, winter weather advisories, it has really just been a blockbuster year, especially for california, the sierra, we are going to continue to get snowfall here. you can see very heavy snow all the way through sunday and then the lower elevations are going to get rain. we have seen two years worth of snow just in this season. this has really been remarkable. across the west. look at these snowfall totals, this is just through sunday. we could see more than three feet of additional snow across the sierra, widespread across the rockies, we could see anywhere from, say, a foot to a foot and a half of snow and then we could also see an inch or two in some of the very low-lying

elevations. so here's the drought monitor, california has made dramatic improvement, completely eliminating the drought in some areas. we still have pretty decent drought. what we would call say variety drought across northern sections of california but they are really going to get the bulk of this next system. so we do think that's going to help with the drought in the coming weeks. >> in california san bernardino mountains there's been so much snow that people are trapped and possibly in danger. cnn's camillabernal has more on that. >> i was frustrated but now we're somewhat scared. >> derek hayes trapped in the mountains of southern california after an epic winter storm. >> there's nowhere to put the snow. there's no way to walk around. it's up to my neck in a lot of places. you take a step, you sink all the way down and you have to crawl yourself back out of the snow to try to get on top of it to even move around. >> reporter: derek just one of many who are stranded.

>> it's pretty unfathomable. >> reporter: the only thing they can do is wait for help. >> it's just crazy. there's no way to get out anywhere. >> reporter: their concerns, food, heat, medical emergencies or medicine and food for their pets, just to name a few. these san bernardino mountains do get plenty of snow in the winter but the past few weeks have been unprecedented with the national weather service issuing its first ever blizzard warning. >> our main concern right now is to try to get the infrastructure up the mountain to be able to clear some of these roadways so that we can essentially get, you know t people that live up there back to their houses, and the people that stuck up there, back down. >> reporter: emergency crews so far carrying out roughly 100 rescues. governor gavin newsom also declaring a state of emergency for san bernardino county and 12

others, activating the national guard. residents say lives are in danger. >> we're actually going to be getting a neighbor out of his house. he's a cancer patient who is elderly, and he has a doctor's appointment that he's going to try and get to. >> reporter: some have been shoveling non-stop. >> dig out the truck for the fourth time. >> reporter: but not all are able to do so. >> it's one of the roughest, roughest experiences. but you sort of go into survival mode and you just keep pushing through, you know, i feel incredibly bad for anyone that hasn't got that physical presence. >> reporter: and authorities apologizing for the time it's taking to help people who are stuck in their homes up in the mountain. they say they are expecting progress over the next couple of days. they do have members of the national guard who are up there with firefighters trying to clear the roads. that is their priority.

but again, they say it could take about a week before people can come and go from this mountain. camila bernal, san bernardino, california. alex murdaugh was given two consecutive life sentences with no possibility of parole friday, a day after he was found guilty of killing his wife and son. lead prosecutor spoke with cnn about the case. listen to this. >> we started to look at that timeline it really appeared that this was a man who was manufacturing an alibi, and that these time periods were more compressed than seems reasonable, you know, i think it's kind of ironic that he was using his cell phone in this kind of data to construct an alibi, but in the end that kennel video, i think, really caught him. but the chain of circumstances, even though the burden's on the state, the chain of circumstances that he was trying to get this jury to believe just defied any sort of logic that this could have occurred, and i

think it was compelling to the jury. >> cnn's dianne gallagher has more from walterboro. >> i sentence you for term of thes rest of your natural life. >> reporter: two consecutive life sentences for disgraced attorney alex murdaugh for the murders of his wife maggie and his son paul, the end of a dramatic six-week trial. >> mr. murdaugh -- >> reporter: murdaugh spoke in court again saying he did not kill his wife and son. >> i'm innocent. i would never hurt my wife maggie, and i would never hurt my son paul-paul. >> reporter: but judge clifton newman offered a different take. >> it might not have been you. it might have been the monster you become when you take 15, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 opioid pills. maybe you become another person. >> reporter: judge newman saying this trial was, quote, one of the most troubling cases of his career. >> i know you have to see paul

and maggie during the nighttimes when you're attempting to go to sleep. i'm sure they come and visit you. i'm sure. >> all day and every night. >> yeah, i'm sure. >> reporter: the prosecutor, again, pointing out murdaugh's lies. >> the lack of remorse, and the effortless way in which he lies, including here, sitting right over there in this witness stand. >> reporter: friday's sentencing comes just one day after the jury found murdaugh guilty of two counts of murder and two weapons charges. >> guilty verdict. >> reporter: one juror spoke to abc news about the jury's decision, saying the cell phone video placing him at the scene sealed murdaugh's fate. >> the evidence was clear, hear his voice clearly, and everybody else could too. >> it took basically 45 minutes for you guys to come to a decision. >> probably 45, maybe an hour. >> reporter: craig moyer said reactions during the trial were not convincing.

>> his responses, how quick he was with the defense, and his lies, steady lies. >> i didn't see any true remorse, or any compassion or anything. >> reporter: murdaugh's defense team spoke to cnn friday about their decision to put their client on the stand. >> but putting him on the stand i think the jury also got to see his emotions about maggie and paul, which were very raw and real. but then, you know, the next day on cross-examination got to give credit where credit's due. i mean, they clearly painted alex as, you know, a liar. >> reporter: vowing their fight is not over. >> we're appealing, and we feel good about an appeal. he's a liar, and he's a thief, and he admitted that. he's not a murderer. >> reporter: now, the defense team says they believe the fact that the judge allowed the inclusion of the financial crimes that alex murdaugh is accused of to be used as

evidence in this murder trial well it tainted the jury's perception of their client. and if they weren't included, well the defense team says maybe we could be looking at a different outcome. alex murdaugh may be now in state custody, but he still has to face those pending charges, about 99 of them, mostly related to those financial allegations against him. the attorney general tells me that just because he was sentenced to life in prison for these murders does not mean that they are not going to go after him for the financial crimes as well. dianne gallagher, cnn, walterboro, south carolina. adverse health effects are starting to show among residents following a train derailment in east palestine, ohio, the train carrying hazardous materials jumped the tracks and caught fire on february 3rd. well now state health survey says many residents are complaining of headaches, anxiety, coughing, fatigue and skin irritation. water testing so far isn't showing dangerous levels of

contaminant related to the derailment. the rail operator has been ordered to clean up the seat. the environmental protection agency hasn't accepted the company's plan yet and expects an update next week. all right, still ahead, thousands of civilians are still trapped in bakhmut, as russian forces pound their city. ukraine's military is trying to prevent the city from becoming surrounded. we'll have the latest on the fighting next. plus, a palestinian village becomes a flash point for violence, and children are caught in the middle. details on the impact of revenge attacks sparked by the killing of two israeli brothers. stay with us. our first fragrances infused with 2x more natural essential oil. it's our most amazing, true-to-nature fragrance expeperience ever. new vibrant. from air wick.

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president biden hosts the german chancellor at the white house friday to reaffirm continued allied support for ukraine, the first time olaf schultz has been back at the white house, supporting ukraine indefinitely. >> really important that we act together, that we organized our lockstep, and that we made it feasible that we can give the necessary support to ukraine during all this time.

and that this time, i think it is very important that we give the message that we will continue to do so, as long as it takes, and as long as it is necessary. >> also on friday the u.s. announced another $400 million security package to ukraine, primarily to resupply ammunition for weapons already in ukraine, so far the u.s. has provided ukraine with more than $32 billion in military support since the war began. now, to the front lines, the ukrainian army reports intense fighting taking place in and around the eastern city of bakhmut, russian forces continue to attempt to surround the city, and officials believe more than 4,000 civilians are trapped by the fighting. cnn's melissa bell has the latest from kyiv. >> reporter: bakhmut still stands says the ukrainian military. but only just. >> looks really hellish. >> the bridge along the last possible supply route in and out

destroyed overnight. leaving out of reach, and nearly encircled, around 4,500 civilians, including 48 children. the ghosts of bakhmut, entirely out of sight, any sign of life driven underground. what is life like in bakhmut today for the civilians and the soldiers? >> what life? what life? you know, the soldiers have -- are doing their work, which is quite hard, and civilians are trying to survive. there is no water, there is no electricity. >> reporter: this was bakhmut in august when the siege had just begun. this is bakhmut seven months on. the city is empty. people are afraid to go out. every day new destruction, it's better not to go outside writes

dr. ilena -- from inside the town. cnn met her, and other nurses, on christmas eve. not quite happier times, but certainly less desperate ones. now, the constant artillery prevents her from leaving the basement of her hospital. the ukrainian military says civilians are now trapped. the head of the vagner mercenary group urging ukrainians nonetheless to try to leave bakhmut as his men close in. >> the pinsers are tightening, the ukrainian soldiers are fighting but their lives are short, a day or two. give them a chance to leave the city, it is, in fact, surrounded. >> reporter: ukraine dismissing those comments as a disinformation cam.designed to spread panic. for now ukrainian soldiers continue to fight. >> almost all the building outskirts ruined absolutely.

almost every house has this coals and marks of shelling. the streets are empty, and the picture is quite sad. >> reporter: but inside life as best it can goes on. elena helping those who can with what drugs are left and she sends us this, spring is coming, she says, even to bakhmut, and that means there's hope. melissa bell, cnn, kyiv. >> ukraine's president is calling on international prosecutors to investigate alleged russian krieps committed against this country. zelenskyy made remarks at a justice conference in lviv on friday. u.s. officials says merrick garland held several meetings and reaffirmed america's determination to hold russia accountable. in zelenskyy's speech he said the world has a moral ask legal duty to prosecute vladimir putin and his accomplices, he

announces the international court will be opening an office in ukraine. cnn's abdel aziz joins we me now. back to the war front here. we've been talking about bakhmut. what would taking bakhmut mean for the russians? >> fundamentally, kim, bakhmut is symbolic rather than a strategic victory for russia. we have seen moscow's troops really lob everything they have at gaining this city, for nearly six months now, wagner as well, that mercenary group of course that fights alongside russia's troops, sending most expert fighters on the ground. they've been able to encircle the city. ukrainian officials say that's not true, still holding the line of resistance but president zelenskyy's men admit they're on the back foot as you heard there in that report, the one vital supply route that rail bridge that connected bakhmut to the ability to get supplies for troops to humanitarian aid for

the few thousand civilians trapped inside that vital bridge has been blown up by russian forces making that city look ever more likely to fall to moscow. and president zelenskyy's men have admitted they could strategically withdraw from there. now, for president putin again this would be a largely symbolic victory, the act to say he's gained more ter noir this at a all important donbas region that he illegally annexed, of course, but if you look at the map there it's really a city that's wedged, not a major city, a city that's wedged between two other areas of importance, separatist regions controlled by russia but it doesn't provide a geopolitical bridge or anything to other regions that ukraine would want to gain back. but president zelenskyy, for president zelenskyy, this is also symbolic as well. he's promised to win back every single inch of ukrainian land and he simply doesn't want to back down here but we've heard from u.s. sources in d.c. saying

that u.s. officials want to see president zelenskyy shift his focus to the south where there could be greater gains, president se lensky saying he will hold the line of resistance as much as he can. one final note because we received this information this hour, kim, that i want to share with crow, that might show you, again, just how important this win is for president putin, we know that russia's defense minister was visiting the region right on the front lines, speaking to troops, we have video to show you of that, handing down medals, looking at some of the damaged buildings, surveying the area, this was, again, in that donbas region, right up near those front lines. one other indication, this very rare visit from a very top official from the kremlin, this very rare visit emphasizing the importance of a victory in bakhmut, how much that would mean to president putin. >> staying with russia, the wider war from their perspective, we've been talking about a russian spring

offensive. can putin afford another big push or are his resources running out? >> look, to answer that question i have to begin with a caveat, which is that it's very difficult to have a clear understanding of the finances of moscow, of course, because reporting is quite limited there. but of course this is a country now that since the start of the war in ukraine has faced thousands of sanctions, literally, from the united states and other western partners, of course, in kyiv's war, and we do understand, from u.s. officials, and other sources, that resources are dwindling, that the weapons arsenal has been depleted severely, that many thousands of russian troops have been lost on the ground, that russia now is turning to countries like china, and iran, to replenish its weapons arsenal, that it's relying ever more on something like the wagner mercenary group which has brought in prisoners to fight on that. all of that painting a really negative picture. but we also have a quote, a direct quote, that i want to --

i want to pull up for you. this is coming from a billionaire oligarch in russia, someone seen as close to the kremlin, but was not a supporter of the war. he says there will be no money already next year, we need foreign investors. again, it's very difficult to measure the impact of western sanctions on russia, but there is an understanding, of course, that russia's economy has shrunk in the face of these sanctions. there's been very few major victories or any major victories, really, for president putin a year into this conflict. so yes, as you head into the spring offensive you are potentially going to look at a kremlin that is increasingly turning to its partners, whether that be in china or elsewhere, to try to receive that help. but very opaque to get that reading on the finances, but those western sanctions still being piled on. kim? >> all right, appreciate the analysis, salma abdel aziz,

thank you. the conservative conference in the u.s., including former trump adviser steve bannon. >> the storm is here. the storm is here. this is the most dangerous time in world history since the late 1930s, early 1940s. >> at the cpac conference asking republicans what they really want from their politicians. stay with us. because it stinks. ♪have you tried♪ ♪new downy rinse and refresh?♪ it helps remove odors 3x better than detergent alone it worked guguys! ♪yeahhhh!♪ new downy rinse and refresh ah, these bills are crazy. she has no idea she's sitting on a goldmine. well she doesn't know that if she owns a life insurance policy of $100,000

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welcome back to all of you watching us here in the united states, canada and around the world. i'm kim brunhuber. this is "cnn newsroom." at the annual conservative political action conference in the u.s. right now it's as much

about who isn't there as it is about the people who are on stage. now in previous years it was the hottest conservative ticket in town, especially for presidential wanna bes hoping to kick start their campaign in front of a friendly audience, and we can expect to see donald trump headlining later today. this time many top republicans are staying away, including florida governor ron desantis, considered one of trump's most fierce rivals. here's a flavor of what some of the other conservatives have been saying at cpac so far, have a listen. >> if you're tired of losing, put your trust in a new generation. if you want to win, not just as a party, but as a country, then stand with me. >> over the last few years i've heard some who claim to be conservative, excuse hypocrisy by saying something like well we're electing a president, not a sunday schoolteacher, that's true. but having taught sunday school,

maybe we could get both. >> i ended up putting a sign outside my office door that said there's only two genders, male and female, trust the science. >> i think we had to spend four or five days asking the chinese spy balloon what its pronouns were before we were willing to shoot it down. >> make no mistake this is an investigation of joe biden. and to determine whether or not joe biden, first of all, lied to the american people, i think we're going to be all right on that answer. but secondly, is joe biden compromised? >> our kristen holmes has been asking people in the conservative crowd who they most want to see. >> who are you most excited to see this week at cpac? >> besides donald trump? >> kari lake at the ronald reagan dinner, and lauren boebert. >> always steve bannon. i think he's brilliant, my favorite information person. >> i'm really excited to see senator cruz. >> most excited to see ben

carson. >> i'm pretty excited about seeing donald trump jr., but this weekend i'm really excited to actually see donald trump. >> the conservative political action conference known as cpa has for decades been one of the biggest conservative gatherings in u.s. politics. and this year it is incredibly trump centric and it shows what a strange position the republican party finds itself in ahead of the 2024 presidential election. >> i am a trump supporter because he's a warrior. he's the only one that can pull this through. >> reporter: was there anyone you were disappointed that wasn't going to be speaking here this week? >> my understanding is governor desantis is not coming. that was disappointing. he was one of the bright spots for the republican party during the midterms, not only won reelection, he won big, beating a former governor. >> reporter: while trump may be the main draw here a lot of people are also talking about who isn't here. florida governor ron desantis, who's widely expected to run in

2024 as well. desantis is at a duelling event for the club for growth, one of the top spenders in republican politics that's at odds with trump. >> president trump is not doing himself any favors when he attacks governor desantis. one, desantis hasn't gotten in the race yet. trump may find he's going to lose support if he continues on the path of attacking desantis. >> i would recommend one thing, take the ronald reagan approach, don't talk bad about republicans. >> does that change your mind about him at all? >> no, but settle down, mr. president. >> reporter: but even with the interest in a desantis candidacy, there's still a lot of questions about what a path to a republican nomination looks like for anyone not named donald trump. >> thank you, ladies, appreciate it. >> you know, we love ron desantis, amazing guy, we need him as our number two to support donald trump. he and donald trump would be an amazing team. >> reporter: and china's rubber

stamp legislature, the national people's congress is set to convene on sunday, preparations for that event are now under way. the focus of the congress is expected to be on reviving china's slug herb economy following beijing's disastrous zero covid policy. to that end the congress is likely to approve new economic leadership a move widely seen as an effort by beijing to exert more control over the business sector. violent protests have broken out in the greek capital athens after the train crash killing 57 people and injuring dozens more. you can see demonstrators throwing petrol bombs and fireworks at police outside the parliament buildings. around 2,000 students took to the street friday night as anger around the crash grows across the country. many involved in the accident were young people traveling from the capital after a holiday weekend. here's how students at the protest reacted to the tragedy. >> it's a disgrace. what were they thinking?

let's go, and whatever happens? what happened was lives were lost. and now all of greece is crying f from morning until evening. >> most of us all feel rage that this could happen in the year 2023. how can two trains collide? to be dealing with such an event when there's so much technology. >> all right, we're going to take you to the palestinian village in the occupied west bank which is seen some of the worst violence in recent days. last week a mob of israeli settlers torched cars and homes and shot a man dead after the killing of two israeli brothers. palestinians have been flooding the streets to protest the violence. the tense situation there has always been escalating since israel's far right fans minister says he thought the village should be, quote, erased. on friday the u.n. ambassador to a palestinian territories toured the scene and called for accountability. >> it's absolutely necessary. for us, that accountability is

fully ensured, that the protest perpetrators be brought to justice, that those who lost property be compensated. it's even more important that violence must stop. if it continues there is no future for this place. if there is no protection of palestinian civilians, they cannot live in peace, in freedom, and cannot work for their families here. >> -- explaining why the village has become such an epicenter of violence between the israeli and palestinian communities. >> reporter: this is the palestinian village israel's far right finance minister said needs to be erased. foara where israeli settlers tried to do just that on sunday, the eveng attacks after the killing of two brothers by a palestinian gunman the day before.

the smell of rubber still linger in the air as residents clean up shattered glass, burnt out cars, blackened buildings, one palestinian man killed in the ensuing chaos. it's long been a flash point for violence between israeli settlers and palestinians, partly due to the highway that runs through it. residents say sunday was some of the worst attacks they have ever seen. >> they usually attack us by throwing stones. if we try to defend ourselves, they will use weapons. but last time was different. wherever you look there are bullets fired, fires everywhere. >> reporter: security cameras outside of resident's home show masked settlers gathering flammable material to set this home on fire, the door literally melting. 10-year-old lamar said her room's window was broken by three big stones. >> mom hid us in our room and went to the rooftop to see what's happening. we heard them breaking the windows of the house. we didn't do anything to them.

>> reporter: her 2-year-old sister sawar jumpers when she hears a noise outside. beep fire, she whispers, assuming reference to the cars set ablaze at her family's auto repair shop. their mother hannah saying her children are traumatized. >> they burnt the cars and shot three bullets towards me, and were screaming death to arabs. we will wipe out foara. >> reporter: a few days later that phrase wipe out -- echo the israeli finance minister and -- >> i think the village of huwara needs to be erased. i think the state of israel needs to do this, and god forbid not private people. >> reporter: the leader tweeting he didn't mean it and only wants to, quote, act in a targeted manner against the terrorists and supporters of terrorism. >> these comments were irresponsible. >> reporter: the u.s. state department calling his original

comments repugnant, and disgusting. at least a dozen settlers have been arrested according to israeli police, and there's now a heavy military presence in town. israeli soldiers telling our team to stop filming because it's a closed military zone as israeli authorities still search for the gunman who killed the two israeli brothers and to keep israeli settlers out of town. hadas gould, cnn. lloyd austin heads to the middle east today to connect with key allies in the region. the pentagon says the trip will include stops in israel, egypt, and jordan. he will also visit with some of the more than 30,000 members of the u.s. military stationed in the region. a new study highlights a racial disparity in the u.s. health care system, still ahead, why are older black men apparently more likely to die after elective surgery than white men?

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a medical emergency worker testified police impeded his efforts to provide care to tyre nichols. tyre nichols died in january three days after his arrest and horrific beating allegedly by police in memphis, tennessee. on friday emt robert long testified before a state medical board. he was one of three memphis fire department emergency staff who responded to the incident, and were later fired. he said police impeded care for nichols by loudly saying nichols was going nowhere and refusing to uncuff him. but long also said he believed nichols didn't want to be treated. nichols' condition deter rated minutes later. it was part of an effort to restore long's license which was suspended for failing to provide care. a new study validates concerns that racial inequalities exist in american health care. the study shows that older black men are 50% more likely to die after elective surgery than

white peers, the mortality rate for elective surgery for black men is 1.3% compared to .85% for white pen. researchers say structural racism, physicians bias and higher stress experienced by african american men could be part of the reason the study was published in the medical journal bmj. >> dr. dan lee is an assistant professor at the david geffan school of medicine at ucla, the lead on the study, joins me now from los angeles. thanks so much, doctor, for being here with us. so death after elective surgery was 50% higher for black men than for white men, obviously a huge difference here, so what's causing this? is it something going on during surgery? or something that happens afterwards? >> yeah, you hit it on the nail, it's sort of -- we think about things before surgery, things during surgery, and things after surgery, so before surgery, you

know, one possibility is that black men are more likely to have delays in their care, which makes the surgery longer, more difficult, black patients may have worse management of their chronic diseases, like hyper tension, and diabetes. and black men, in particular, may -- research shows, face especially high cumulative amounts of stress which leads to worse health. those are factors before the surgery. when you think about factors during the surgery, you know, the research suggests that black patients are less likely to have access to high quality specialists, high quality surgeons. and so there might just be differences in the types of surgeons black patients and particular black men see. after surgery, you think about possibilities of just complications that might be less recognized in black patients, and so those are the factors i think about before, during and after surgery that might be

contributing to this difference in this 50% difference in mortality between black men and white men. >> it's tricky to pinpoint the cause because on one hand you -- the outcomes for black men were worse than for black women, so that suggests that something beyond just race is going on here but then a different study found similar results among children with black children dying at a higher rate after surgery than white children. so, you know, what role do you think race plays here? >> that's really tough, kim. i think, you know, again, thinking about the role of structural racism, thinking about red lining, thinking about how black patients might be exposed to more pollution, might be in areas that have worse hospitals, access to worse facilities and things of that nature. there's so many ways in which

race can play a role, both structurally, and due to -- by the medical system. >> if we were focus on this one angle, the surgical outcomes finding, this is the most important question, obviously, what can be done to help reverse this? >> well, i think the -- when you think about surgeries and we think about even beyond surgery i think the two major -- two ways that we can improve health care for black patients, one is to increase the number of black doctors, and of doctors from other groups underrepresented medicine. we know when black patients see black doctors, black doctors just spend more time with black patients. in turn, black patients are more likely to undergo preventative care like cholesterol screenings, like flu vaccinations and other types of vaccinations. i would say that, you know, when one sees a physician that looks

like you, might understand your experience better, better care results. i think one major way to improve health care disparities is to increase the diversity of the physicianal workforce. >> it's a real challenge to try to get a handle on, but hopefully your study will help to shine some light on the problem, really appreciate having you on, dr. dan lee, thanks so much. >> thank you. we've now learned that u.s. president joe biden had a cancerous lesion removed from skin during last month's annual exam. according to the president's physician a biopsy confirmed the lesion was a basal cell carcinoma. the doctor added all cancerous cells had been removed and no further treatment was needed. he also revealed that first lady jill biden had similar lesions removed earlier this year. still ahead, king charles and camilla make their first international clip as britain's monarch and queen consort, we'll have details on where they're

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make they're first visual state visits. balking ham palace announced the royal couple will travel to france and germany. promoting the close relationships between the nations and show solidarity in their fight against climate change and their support for ukraine. now, the oil that's going to be used to anoint king charles iii during coronation has been consecrated. the ceremony was heard at the church of the holy sepulchre on friday. the coronation ceremony has remained essentially the same for over a thousand years. the oil was harvested from olives from two groves on the mount of olives, according to the palace, it's based on an oil used in the coronation of queen elizabeth in 1953. the coronation of a king charles iii is scheduled for may 6th. discovery of spices 500 years old under water off sweden's coast is being called extraordinary. the savory food items were found in the baltic sea in the silt of a royal ship that sank in 1495.

divers discovered the ship in the 1960s and have since recovered items like timber and figure heads but this time they found spices, like saffron, peppercorn, and ginger. >> to find spices like this in one sample is quite remarkable. if we look at the exotic spices it's quite -- it's very unique. saffron, particularly. >> researcher michael larson says this is the only excavation area he knows about where archaeologists have discovered delicate saffron threads. these spices could have come from the far east but remained well preserved in the frigid water. >> the baltic is strange. it's low oxygen, low temperature, low s-- many thing are preserved where they wouldn't be preserved elsewhere. >> they continue to plan to

search for more unique items. remembering saving private ryan actor tom sizemore, who died on friday. >> gear up, all in. >> sizemore often plays tough guys and is best known for roles in the movies heat and black hawk down along with the tv series china beach. his representative says sizemore died peacefully in his sleep at 61 with his brother and sons at his side. he'd been hospitalized in a coma since last month when he suffered a brain aneurysm that was triggered by a stroke. his brother called him larger than life. well, that wraps this hour of "cnn newsroom," stay with us.

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