a swift military operation in one of the most dangerous parts of the world.

almost 100 people evacuated in less than an hour. we have new details about the mission to get u.s. diplomats out of sudan. now, the white house must decide how to help thousands of other americans still trapped in a war zone. >> well, the aviators are hitting the trail again. president biden expected to launch his re-election bid tomorrow. that means he'll have about 19 months to tell voters about his accomplishments from term one, as well as his ability to keep going well into his 80s. ron desantis hasn't thrown his hat into the ring yet, but his travel itinerary indicates otherwise. the florida governor discussing trade with the japanese prime minister. this is just his first stop. we are following these major developing stories and many more, all coming in right here to "cnn news central." the u.s. says it is actively helping americans get out of

sudan as violence in that country continues to intensify. it comes after u.s. special forces pulled off a daring rescue operation, safely getting embassy staff out of the capital city of khartoum. now, this is a photo of secretary of state antony blinken watching the tense operation unfold. maybe it's not a photo of antony blinken. there it is. the u.s. government estimates that 16,000 americans remain in sudan, many who are dual citizens. we've also learned the number who want to leave the country is in the dozens. cnn's oren liebermann joins us live from the pentagon. oren, the u.s. is essentially saying a large-scale operation to evacuate those u.s. citizens is untenable, simply unsafe. >> reporter: especially given the security situation in sudan, which is moving in the wrong direction. what was supposed to be a 72-however cease-fire led to, first, violations, then from the reports we're seeing, smoke over the city.

the cease-fire has effectively fallen apart. the question is, what can the u.s. do now for the american citizens there, and how many want to get out? there is a difference here. though there are 16,000 or more u.s. citizens in the country, many of them dual nationals, the administration keeps saying it only has a signal from somewhere between dozens or hundreds who are looking to leave the country. in terms of what the u.s. is putting in place, the pentagon said just a short time ago, there is 24/7 surveillance overhead from drones, as well as a navy ship that is already off the coast of sudan and another headed that way. in terms of being able to get people different places or get them medical help should they get to port sudan. in terms of getting in, again, right now, that seems to be off the table. here is national security adviser jake sullivan just a short time ago. >> we are actively facilitating the departure of american citizens who want to leave sudan as the state department has been urging them to do for years. we have deployed u.s. intel intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets to support

land evacuation routes which americans are using, and we're moving naval assets within the region to provide support. this tragic violence has already cost the lives of hundreds of innocent civilians. it is unconsciousnunconscionabl. it must stop. >> the u.s. can talk to some other countries and perhaps, perhaps, boris, figure uout a wy that if there is a convoy or flight from another country, to get u.s. citizens on that flight. that remains to be seen. this is in the early stages to figure out how this works now that the evacuation is over. >> clear indications that conditions in sudan are rapidly deteriorating. o oren lieberman from the pentagon, thank you. >> we have cnn global affairs analyst kimberly dozdozier. tell us, what are the obstacles, kim, of a civilian evacuation? you have secretary blinken

saying there are dozens of americans who do want to get out. >> it's the same situation faced by brits, french, et cetera. the problem is, you have two rival generals who have turned the capital and much of the country into their own personal battleground. there aren't particular sort of lines of fighting and then safe zones. cease-fires keep breaking down. you would almost need, like we had in afghanistan when everything was falling apart, military forces on the ground to go in and grab people and get them out. that's why, since we don't have that, in the interim, the advice is, shelter in your homes until one of these cease-fires holds, then we'll try to advise you how to get out. the problem is, internets, phone service, everything is either getting knocked out or is in and out. it's really hard to communicate with people who are under threat, as to what is a safe way to exit the country. even if the u.s. does get a warship to a port like france is

doing right now. >> do you think the u.s. government, the state department, should have anticipated this? >> i don't think anyone anticipated how quickly this fell apart. for months, you've had u.s., european diploit ma mats tryingt these generals to go back to the original agreement of civilian rule, even as the friction between the two of them and their various collections of forces increased. in the one of these things where, when it all falls apart really suddenly, there's almost no way to plan for it. >> as you see all these diplomatic entities from different countries just getting out of dodge here, what is the effect going to be on the ground there in sudan? >> well, you have something like 45 million sudanese who are left in the middle of what will surely now be intensified fighting between the army and the rsf, the militia faction fighting it.

you also have, according to the u.n., something like a third of the country was already in need of aid. there have been a number of conflicts all around sudan, and there is a refugee population in the country from that. plus, when you talk about the recent ravages of the farms by drought, et cetera, and now you have the aid agencies lyies lea the people who can deliver that aid. the situation only gets more di dire. >> you have sudan bordering so many nations, and you have refugees fleeing sudan to all directions here. what type of humanitarian crisis or crises are we talking about? >> you could have a cascade of crises that stretches across other borders. it is going to be hard to deliver aid. the other part that could happen is that these two generals also have different supporters within the region. the main army general in charge has strong ties with egypt. the head of the rsf militia has

strong ties with the libyan war lord, so you could see, going forward, military aid, fighters coming through from some of these disparate factions, only supercharging the violence and creating a massive refugee situation of sudanese fleeing the country searching for safety. >> all right. kim, thank you so much for putting all of this into perspective. jim? well, in a few minutes, president biden will host a so-called tennessee three at the white house to discuss gun control. the trio of democrats, who you may remember, landed in national headlines after republicans in that state moved to strip them of their seats because they'd protected on the floor there for stronger gun laws. two of the lawmakers, justin jones and justin pearson, they did briefly lose their jobs, but now all three are back in the chamber. there are calls for major legislative action on guns only getting louder. phil mattingly is live at the

white house. phil, for the lawmakers, they were out of their jobs briefly. they have a much larger voice, it seems, in the state and nationally. tell us what the white house's view of this is. what do they hope to gain by meeting with these tennessee democrats? >> >> reporter: jim, i think white house officials want to utilize that voice, to track with that voice, to push what they know, at least on the national level, has become extraordinary difficult, if not impossible when it comes to moving further legislation on guns. i think when you talk to white house officials, to some degree, the president wants to show his appreciation, both for what these lawmakers did on the floor that got two of them expelled, their process and how they've utilized grassroots movement behind them in the days and weeks since. but also to discuss their views on how to continue moving forward on an issue that, particularly with republicans in control of the house, has no real prospects of moving forward in congress. now, our colleague sat down with the lawmakers yesterday.

one of them, jausustin jones, m it clear they have asks of the president. take a listen. >> i think that we need emergency response because we're facing a crisis situation. in states like ours, we need help from our national leaders because we're in a state where the only action that our colleagues took in response to the mass shooting in nashville was to expel the two youngers lawmakers, then to pass a law to protect gun manufacturers. that's all they've passed this session. >> reporter: he is referencing on the president signing off on an emergency health situation. the president said he's basically run out of options at this point in time. the president has been extremely supportive of these lawmakers. very clearly wanted to meet with them. said at the time in a statement, rather than debating the merits of theish ish i ish issue, thes expelled the people of tennessee. another point he'll probably make again once reporters are in the room. trying to find some way to

utilize the movement that is kind of embraced this group of lawmakers, to try to push forward an issue that remains attractive on the national level. >> no question. the numbers haven't changed. republican majority in the tennessee house. republican majority in the house in washington. those are the facts. phil mallin ingmattingly, thank. ron desantis is in japan, the first stop on a week-long trip overseas. today, he met with the prime minister of japan and exchanged views on regional affairs. desantis is considered a possible gop presidential candidate, but take a listen to what he told reporters today. >> governor, polls show you falling behind trump. thoughts on that? >> i am not a candidate, so we'll see if and when that changes. >> a new nbc poll shows that desantis is trailing former president donald trump in the race for 2024, but the poll also shows that voters do not want to

see president trump or president biden run again. let's bring in steve, who is live in florida for us. bring us the goals desantis has on this foreign trip. he may say he is not a candidate for president right now, but this has the trappings of a potential presidential trip. >> yeah, that's right, boris. on paper, his office is officially calling this an international trade mission. florida is a large state with a big global economy. there is a lot to be done on that front, and he is meeting with dignitaries and businesses in japan. then he'll move on to south korea before going to israel and the united kingdom, as well. but, you know, the subtext to all this is that there is this presidential race that he is laying the groundwork for, and he has not had an opportunity to step out onto the international stage yet. this is really his first chance to visit many of these

countries. he's only ever gone to israel as an elected official, and, you know, he tried to sort of tap into international issues a couple weeks ago when he was asked about ukraine. he received a lot of blowback for calling it a territorial dispute. had to walk that back, then sort of pivoted all over again. this is his opportunity to sort of get some international exposure. however, it's coming at a time when he is facing some significant headwinds back home. you mentioned that poll. that also comes just as donald trump last week unveiled a whole bunch of endorsements, including many from desantis' home state of florida, where we saw 11 house republicans now have endorsed donald trump for president in 2024 over ron desantis. desantis has also been facing some criticism from trump's allies as well as democrats back home for his extensive travel. we've seen him all over the country lately, even as florida faced a pretty big natural

disaster. we had torrential rain in south florida. there was flooding. there was a gas shortage. desantis has not talked about that very often. leading to one of donald trump's top allies, his son, don jr., to tweet this last week. ft. lauderdale is underwater, and desantis is campaigning in ohio right now instead of taking care of people in his state. boris, even as he is trying to turn the page a little bit by going to this other -- to other countries, there's questions back home as to his viability in the presidential race, if he were to jump in. >> yeah, he may not be a presidential candidate officially, but he is certainly being treated like one, especially by trump folks. steve, thank you so much for that. jim? coming up, doordash driver had to be rescued by her family after someone kidnapped her on the job. we have the details. plus, can public officials block their critics online? the supreme court is going to decide. is knowing that

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a harrowing story out of tampa, where police say a doordash driver was rescued by her family after being kidnapped and sexually assaulted while trying to make a delivery. cnn's carlos suarez is covering this disturbing story. carlos, tell us what happened. how did her family know where she was? >> reporter: well, boris, it is an incredible story out of tampa. according to authorities there, this doordash delivery woman, she was making this food delivery, and that's when, according to police, the 38-year-old suspect here who has been identified as joseph killins, he forced this wo woman back into her car and drove her 6 miles away. that's where we're told he sexually assaulted her. now, boris, what makes this particularly of interest, at least according to some of the details we've learned, is that the victim was wearing headphones according to police. she was talking to a girlfriend

at the time when she was making this delivery. according to authorities, the girlfriend was able to essentially piece together that something was going terribly wrong, at which point, according to authorities, the girlfriend calls the victim's family members who then call police. but the story doesn't end there. according to authorities in tampa, the family was able to track the victim's cell phone, so they showed up so where she was being held. it's at that point that investigators say that this 38-year-old man shot one of the family members. we're told the family member that was shot is doing okay as well as the doordash employee. now, police, they do not get a break in this case until the following day because they're able to piece together a robbery that had taken place with another person to the initial crime. that's when they finally make an arrest in this case. doordash, as you can imagine, has offered a great deal of resources to this employee.

they released a statement that read, in part, quote, we are appalled by this heinous and abhorrent crime. no one should ever have to endure something as horrific as this. we are here to support the dasher in any way that we can. again, boris, the good news at this hour is that both victims that were hurt in this are doing okay. the 38-year-old has been arrested, and he is facing a number of charges, including armed kidnapping and sexual assault. >> yikes. we're glad those folks are expected to be okay. carlos suarez, thank you so much. can public officials block critics from commenting on their social media accounts? it is really a complex question that the supreme court has agreed to take up. if it sounds kind of familiar, it also came up when former president donald trump tried to block critics from his twitter account. cnn's jessica schneider is here with me on this. walk us through what the court is considering in this case. >> yeah, as you mentioned, this

is an issue that the supreme court has sidestepped previously. what they'll hear next term, beginning sometime in october, are two questions that ask this basic -- sorry -- two cases that ask this question, do public officials violate the first amendment when they block people from their personal social media accounts that they might use to communicate government businesses. at hand will be two cases. one from southern california, where school board members, two of them, actually blocked two parents from their twitter and facebook accounts after those parents had posted things criticizing these two school board members. in that particular case, the ninth circuit here said that the board members blocking of the parents' comments did constitute government action, then that violated the first amendment. that was one case. there's a second case out of michigan involving the city manager of port huron, michigan. he had a facebook profile page that a resident in that city posted on repeatedly,

criticizing the covid policies of that particular town. the city manager then blocked that user. interestingly, this was a different outcome in the ninth circuit. the sixth circuit said because the city manager was operating only in his personal capacity, he did not violate the first amendment as it came to his government duties. there's really a circuit split here. that's why the supreme court has taken up this case. >> something to work out, clearly. they haven't dealt, the supreme court, specifically with this issue. have they dealt with social media anywhere close to this sphere? >> there have been a number of cases that have come possibly before the supreme court, but they were able to punt on a few of these issues, including the 2021 case where the former president had blocked users from his twitter account. they didn't end up deciding the case because at the point when it came to them, donald trump was a former president. they were able to say, okay, it's no longer applicable, it's moot. however, in that case, justice clarence thomas talked a little bit about the fact that, pretty soon, the supreme court wouldn't be able to dodge this issue.

he said that that case and likely others highlight, quote, the principle legal difficulty that surrounds digital platforms, namely that applying old doctrines to new platforms is straightforward. he went on to say, we have no way to show the new infrastructure, namely, digital platforms. it begs this question because it is blurred lines. it is personal social media accounts that government officials are operating, and they often post government-related policy issues on those pages. the question is, are they acting in their personal or government cap capacity? it is something the supreme court will wade into starting in the fall. >> maybe both. >> yes. >> jessica schneider, thank you so much. jim? coming up next, the most magical place on earth just announced another round, sadly, of layoffs. plus, hunter biden is fighting back. he's calling for investigations

into some republicans investigating him. we'll have more on that new strategy right after this.

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♪ top story we are following today, sudan under siege. as the u.s. says it is actively trying to held get remaining americans out of the country.

this follows a huge rescue operation by u.s. special forces that evacuated u.s. embassy staff and their families overnight on sunday. the state department released this photo of secretary of state antony blinken as he watched the mission unfold from the white house. u.s. government estimates, though, that 16,000 americans remain in the country. many of them dual citizens. officials say the number of americans wanting to leave remains just in the dozens. biden administration says there are no plans for a large-scale u.s.-led evacuation operation for now. we'll continue to monitor. boris? bed bath & beyond forced to add a new "b" to the brand. bankrupt. the retailer just filing for chapter 11 on sunday, alerting its customers that it is, quote, winding down operations and closing stores. there's some 360 bed bath & beyond locations and 120 bye bye

baby shops. not clear how many will shut down or what will happen to the company's 14,000 employees. rahel solomon is here with us. yet another brick and more torre st mortar store facing trouble. bed bath & beyond had been having trouble for quite some time. >> it has, yeah. this has been a long time coming, boris. quite a few reasons for why bed bath & beyond's sales had been slumping for years. in fact, sales peaked about 2014, and they have slumped since then. one reason is, of course, the rise of ekmecommerce. ecommerce offers convenience and low prices, so they were undercut there. the rise of stiff competition from the likes of the walmarts of the world, the targets of the world. boris, the pandemic also really hurt bed bath & beyond quite significantly. now, i should say, the company had been trying to turn itself around in recent years. it had a management shakeup at the top. it closed hundreds of stores even before this announcement. we had even heard some reporting last summer that certain stores were trying to cut back on

utility expenses by cutting back on a/c expenses in the middle of the summer. the company had been trying to prevent this from happening for quite some time, but ultimately making this announcement on sunday. what does this mean for consumers? if you shopped there or plan to, the company says if you have a coupon, you need to move fast. you have until wednesday to use those. if you have a gift card, you have through may 8th. if you have a return, you have about a month, until may 24th. one analyst saying in a research note today, boris, management refused to go down without a fight. the comments coming from saunders, exploring every option to avoid bankruptcy, but they simply could not avoid gravity forever. >> even turning off air-conditioning, yikes. rahel, tell us about this other big company that's now facing serious job losses. >> right. disney, right? we've reported on this before, so this is the second round of pretty significant layoffs for

did disney. the company announcing a second round of layoffs, bringing the total layoffs in recent months to 4,000. we expect another round of layoffs from disney according to the company before the summer begins. all told, we're expecting about 7,000 disney workers. we can show you within the disney company who we expect to be impacted. disney parks, espn, entertainment. front line workers at the theme parks, resorts, they are not expected to be impacted. boris, disney and other media companies have found themselves victim to a slowing advertising environment, as companies prepare for the potential for a recession. you know, it's one of these interesting realities. even if we are not necessarily in a recession yet, companies are already starting to prepare for that likelihood and starting to pull back on advertising dollars. disney, a victim of that, as well. >> the silver lining is that the job market is still red hot. there's two openings for every applicant. maybe those will find jobs elsewhere. rahel solomon, thank you so

much. the best defense is the best offense. as republicans pursue hunter biden's finances, we're learning about the president son's new legal strategy. and imagine seeing this on the other side of your window seat. the faa investigating what caused an american airlines engine to burst into flames. the culprit much more common than you'd think. ten years o, i invented the ring video doorbell for moments like that. and ring security cameras for moments like this. [rg floodlight cam siren sounds] [bear growls] and ring alarm with pr.

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so there is a big push from hunter biden to fight back against gop congressional investigations aimed in his direction. he's now launching a new legal barrage in an aggressive strategy to strike back. in a letter, hunter biden's attorneys are asking the treasury department's inspector general and the office of congressional ethics to launch inquiries into some republicans pushing for investigations into their client, him. among them, they want a review of former donald trump aide garrett ziegler, who allegedly acquired and published online financial activities of hunter biden, and they're also asking for an ethics review of georgia republican congresswoman marjorie taylor greene. saying she has made, quote, continuous verbal attacks, defamatory statements, publication of personal photos and data and promotion of conspiracy theories about and against robert hunter biden. sound and read like schoolyard insults rather than the work of a member of congress.

we have cnn legal analyst and former federal prosecutor elliott williams here with us now on this. i mean, clearly, he's going through his lawyers for this, a good defense is a good offense approach. is this something you would advise a client on? >> certainly, i'd advise a client. i'm not a political adviser, and i'm sure his dad's political advisers may take a different view. someone who is a high-profile defendant or someone of certain stature has an interest in winning over the publish as they proceed through the system. of course, it makes sense to go on the offensive a little bit. >> legally? >> legally, you can get yourself in trouble by -- because every statement you put on the record, like they say, can be used against you in a court of law. it may be risky, depending on what he does or what he says. here, these are really just letters to the government. they're aggressive. many people don't do them, but they are a legal strategy and legal approach that might work

out. >> okay. let's talk a little bit about politically then. >> yeah. >> in this case of going to the treasury department ig, i mean, yes, this is supposed to be an independent ig, and they are, right? but this is in his father's sort of sphere, right? this is the biden treasury department. how much of a pickle does that put the president in, that he is doing that? >> it is hard to say. what he's alleging ultimately could be a violation of crime -- or effect of criminal law, saying, you're coming avenfter . someone may have released my personal data, which is a crime. he could have written a letter to the justice department asking for a criminal investigation here. it may have been an easier approach to go straight to the treasury department, have them investigate it, almost as an hr matter, saying, either you can fire or terminate or take action against this former employee. or forward it on for prosecution. >> let's look at the timing of this, right? >> yeah. >> at the same time his legal

team has requested a meeting with the justice department. they'll be meeting with a justice department official and the u.s. attorney out of delaware, who is overseeing this investigation into hunter biden. what do you make of that? what are you expecting to come out of this meeting? >> things are clearly moving along here. now, it's not that uncommon for people to sit down with prosecutors or investigators as investigations move along. they can explain, this is where i was and why i did what i did. >> this has to do with taxes and possession of a weapon, to be clear. >> allegations and false statements related to that. a lot of people meet with prosecutors as investigations move on, try to explain their point of view, where they came from, why they did what they did, or if it comes to it, work out a plea deal and say, "this is what i'll admit to doing so i don't have to go to jail. maybe probation or something like that." that may be what's happening here. to be clear, it's really not uncommon or anything spectacular for someone in investigation to sit down with the justice department. >> maybe get a status check.

elliott williams, thank you so much. jim? now to some of the headlines we are following this hour. new video shows houses sliding off a cliff in draper, utah. it's remarkable to watch. officials say melting snow pack and shifting ground have made some foundations unstable. to say the least. luckily, no one was injured. engineers are evaluating surrounding structures now. also, look at this heart-pounding video. ski helmet camera captured a sudden, unstoppable slide into a deep crevice, this in the french alps. you can see he managed to use his skis to slow his descent, ultimately coming to a stop. he saved his own life, it seems. if you love french fries like i do, you're not loving this story. a new study shows eating fried potatoes specifically could raise eyour risk of anxiety or depression. it could be due to a chemical found in fries. outside experts say the results are preliminary. they claim people who are

already anxious or depressed may be seeking out those foods. i'm a little depressed reading this story, boris. >> as am i, jim. some scary moments for passengers on board two american airlines flights in recent days to tell you about. two fires reported in two separate incidents. yesterday in columbus, ohio, officials say a bird strike may have sparked this engine fire after takeoff, forcing the pilot to return to the airport. fortunately, the plane landed safely, and the faa says it's now investigating. last week, officials say a plane was waiting to take off from charlotte, north carolina, when a mechanical issue was reported. american airlines says the plane returned to the gate and takeoff was canceled after passengers saw that. also, remember the southwest airlines meltdown over the holidays? we're learning the department of justice is joining the investigation into that travel nightmare. that has big implications. cnn's pamela brown will be taking a closer look at this story and many others on the lead. first and foremost, welcome to

"cnn news central," being on set. >> first time. >> second of all, you have an important guest that can speak to the transportation issues. >> what's in store for us for summer travel, right? we're going straight to the source. transportation secretary pete buttigieg. what is going on this summer? what does he anticipate? we know there is a shortage of air traffic controllers. there's concern of a, quote, tsunami of pilot retirements that could create issues this summer. then you have those concerns on top of what we're seeing play out in the skies, right, with these two incidents you speak of. one including a bird strike. we're learning now, this is interesting, i don't know if you knew this, apparently, there is an increasing population of larger birds and their inability to hear quieter birds is contributing to this problem. >> did not know that. >> we're going to be asking him about that. as you mentioned, this news today, doj is joining this investigation into southwest. what happened, as you'll recall, nearly 17,000 cancellations over the winter holiday.

they're looking into whether there was an issue with their flight scheduling system and whether there could be a violation of law. there is a lot to dig into with pete buttigieg. >> potential criminal case over the holiday delays. pamela brown, "the lead" starts at 4:00 p.m. we will be watching. thanks so much. >> thanks. maybe some hearing assistance for birds. great invention. up next, a key music copyright trial is getting under way in new york. the defendant is ed sheeran. the question is, did he copy the late, great marvin gaye? you decide after the break. these straps are mind-blowing! they collect hundreds of data points like hrv and rem sleep, so you know all you u need for recovery. and you are? i'm an investor...in invesco qqq, a fund thahat gives me access to... nasdaq 100 innovations like... wearable training optimization tech. uh, how long are you... i'm done. i'm okay.

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selection took place in the coppery right infringement case against artist ed sheeran. the singer sued by the family of ed townsend who cowrote the marvin gaye, get it on, saying thinking out loud has striking similarities to let's get i on that violate the song's copyright. time for you to be the judge. let's listen first to ed sheeran's think out loud ♪ darling, i will be loving you till we're 70 ♪ >> great song. all right. so let's listen to a clip from marvin gaye's '73 soul classic, let's get it on. ♪ let's get it on, ah, baby, let's get it on, let's love, baby ♪

>> i mean, it's a little bit of a tough one seeing as chloe, she's been covering the copyright trial for us. how do they respond to this claim? >> it's not the first time. and looking with since like the beginning of music and the recording industry, you have seen stars have to deal with copyright infringement suits if you want to go all the way back to led srks eppli, or taylor swift shake it off. often times, we see these settle out of court. i just want to say that this is a common core progression that ed sheeran's legal team and their music experts are saying are found in countless songs from the beach boys, you name it, and that he didn't have this song in mind from the '70s from marvin gaye. remember, t not marvin gaye's family suing ed sheeran, it is

the townsend side, the producer side that cowrote it. i want to tell you, yes, jury selection concluded today. opening statements start tomorrow in manhattan federal court, and the jurors are going to have to decide is that rhythmic infringement. they're going to have to keep the lyrics out of it, so there's certain pieces of the music composition they're going to be listening for. >> it reminds me of the sam smith case. what's interesting here is ed sheeran has faced this kind of thing before. >> yeah. well, so, ed sheeran actually faced a copyright infringement last year with the shape of you, and he was successful. we won, and actually the defendants had to pay him a million dollars in legal fees. i want to point out a video that is being widely debated by both side, both ed sheeran's team and

the townsend side. it's from 2015, a performance when ed performed in zurich switzerland, and he is playing the sond and transitions into marvin gaye's let's get it on. they're saying right there, that is an admission that he knew they sounded similar. take a listen. >> it's really hard. the sam smith of course was tom petty's "i won't back down." let's have a listen. ♪ sing sha-la-la-la, let's get it on ♪ >> okay. so he is singing thinking out loud, and then you hear him literally say, jim,let get it on. the crowd goes wild. there have been hundreds of thousands of views on youtube this w this clip.

and this particular performance was in 2014, the same year the song came out. it was in 2016 that this legal battle came out, finally making its way to court this week. so does that video support the claim that is ed sheeran knew his song was a play off of marvin gaye's "let's get it on?" we'll have to see what the jury decides. >> first of all, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. i try to copy off you guys as much as i can. >> the lawsuit will be coming soon, jim. >> they share so much, the difference between stealing as opposed to maybe being subconsciously inspire zbld it's no like "ice, ice baby"/"under pressure" situation.

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