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Tokyo 2020 Officially Underway; Florida State Has Most COVID-19 in U.S.; Coronavirus Surging across Asia; Hungary Plans Referendum on Homophobic "Child Protection" Law; Trump Ally Tom Barrack Strikes $250 Million Bail Deal; House Speaker to Bolster Credibility of Capitol Riot Investigative Panel; Wildfires across the U.S. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired July 24, 2021 - 03:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


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MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Michael Holmes. Appreciate your company.

Coming up here on CNN NEWSROOM, the Olympic Games are on, but fans are out. We'll have a live report from Tokyo and on the first gold medal that was won.

Plus, as Florida leads the U.S. in new coronavirus infections, their governor remains steadfast in his response. I'll speak with a Miami cardiologist, who says he's playing politics with Floridians' lives.

And Hungary asking its citizens to weigh in on a controversial new law. We're live in Budapest, where people fear that law might lead to homophobic attacks.

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HOLMES: Well, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics are finally under way, albeit a year late, of course. Japanese tennis champ Naomi Osaka lit the Olympic cauldron inside the shiny jewel of a stadium, the cavernous space nearly empty of spectators. Only some of the athletes were present.

But even as celebratory fireworks lit up the Tokyo skyline, the virus that stopped the games a year ago remains as dangerous as ever. Officials have now documented 127 cases connected to the games, including 17 in the past day. A Dutch rower and a Portuguese surfer the latest athletes forced out by a positive test.

CNN's Blake Essig is live in Oyama city, Japan; Patrick Snell of CNN "WORLD SPORT" is with me here in Atlanta.

Let's start with you, Blake. You're at one of the few places Japanese people can actually go and watch anything. Tell us what they're telling you.

BLAKE ESSIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Michael, despite how unpopular these games remain, there is a curiosity. I get the sense that a lot of people are really mixed about supporting the Olympics, given the obvious health and safety concerns.

But at the same time, there's an excitement that these games are finally under way. And there's also clearly a desire from some to experience the Olympic atmosphere any way they can. Yesterday, that meant battling crowds to take pictures outside of the national stadium ahead of the opening ceremony.

And for the people behind me here today, it means sitting in an auditorium to watch the games and experience that Olympic spirit as a community. Now this is one of the only live public viewing sites in the country; 2,000 people applied but given social distancing requirements, only 500 received tickets to be here.

With COVID-19 cases surging in Tokyo and rising nationwide, public viewings are incredibly rare. It's for that reason and the ban on spectators at 97 percent of events that many people here say that, even though Japan is hosting these games, it's hard to feel that connection.

But with the flame lit and competition now under way, people here tell me that that perception is starting to change. Take a listen.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I've really started to feel like the Olympics is taking place in my country because I saw the opening ceremony yesterday on TV and I was lucky enough to come to a live viewing site.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I think Naomi Osaka was the best choice to be the last torchbearer because she is one of the world's top athletes. She is also mixed race and has faced a lot of challenges. It is amazing she can represent Japan like this. It sends out a great message from here to the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ESSIG: Now there was a big moment last night during the opening ceremony, when Naomi Osaka, a mixed-race person, lit the Olympic cauldron. Now it's a moment that's incredibly significant in a country that's considered one of the most racially homogeneous in the world.

But Japan is slowly shifting views on identity and what we saw last night, Michael, shows how this society is adapting to changing times.

All right. Blake Essig there in Tokyo -- in Japan, appreciate it very much. Good to see you.

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HOLMES: Now switching to coronavirus and COVID cases ticking up in the U.S. but the daily pace of Americans reaching full vaccination keeps on falling. Now according to CDC data, it is now the lowest it has been since late January, when the U.S. had only been vaccinating about six weeks or so.

Driven, of course, by the Delta variant, new infections are soaring, especially, of course, among the unvaccinated. They make up the majority, the vast majority of both hospitalizations and deaths nationwide.

And because of the low vaccination rates, many experts warn the U.S. is facing another surge. They say even those who are vaccinated need to be concerned. The U.S. state of Florida has the unhappy distinction of topping the U.S., with the most new cases of the virus.

The Sunshine State's seven-day average, more than 10,000 cases per day, according to Johns Hopkins University data. CNN's Leyla Santiago is in Miami with more.

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LEYLA SANTIAGO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Leyla Santiago in Miami, Florida. Florida still leading the nation in the number of COVID-19 cases. Roughly 48 percent of residents here are fully vaccinated.

Many of them coming right here to this CVS, saying they've heard the news. They're concerned about the Delta variant, so they thought now is the time to come and sit right here to get vaccinated.

The CDC saying that 20 states have fully vaccinated their residents. Again, Florida not reaching that yet. The governor saying, he does not want any sort of lockdown in the future or any sort of mask mandate.

But we have spoken to a lot of doctors and nurses in this area, very concerned about the contagious Delta variant and what may be to come for the hospital system here.

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HOLMES: Dr. Bernard Ashby is a cardiologist in Miami. He is also Florida's state lead for the Committee to Protect Health Care.

Thanks so much for making the time, Doctor. I know it's been pretty crazy. Florida's COVID hospitalizations have tripled since the beginning of July. Nearly 20 percent of the country's new COVID infections are in that state.

What do you put it down to mainly?

DR. BERNARD ASHBY, CARDIOLOGIST, COMMITTEE TO PROTECT HEALTH CARE: Well, first of all, pleasure to be here and I appreciate having this platform to express myself on behalf of medical professionals and Floridians and Americans at large.

[03:10:00] ASHBY: So in terms of the reasons why the rates have jumped, I mean, one, you have to definitely look at the fact that we're dealing with the Delta variant, which has a viral load which is 1,000 times higher than the initial variant that we had.

And so that's a critical reason why it's so much more efficient at spreading to the entire population.

In addition to that, we have basically no mitigation measures. We're wide open and people are acting as if the virus doesn't exist, even though our vaccination rates are not at the point where we would expect a level of protection.

I hesitate to use herd immunity, given the fact that this is a coronavirus and there's a lot of other factors there. So that's one.

And the last is really the fact that this entire pandemic has been politicized and, you know, we're still dealing with individuals who are not taking this pandemic seriously. As a result, we're seeing that reflect in the large amount of folks getting infected, being hospitalized. And eventually we'll see an uptick in our death rates.

HOLMES: And to that point, there are a few states with governors who have pushed back more on COVID precautions than Florida's Ron DeSantis. Even now he's vowing not to issue any COVID mandates or anything like that.

Do you see his actions -- they're clearly political during this pandemic -- but how much responsibility does he bear for these case increases?

ASHBY: Well, I feel he's the biggest reason. I mean as the leader of this state, his job is to protect the citizens. But rather than do that, he's really taken a very political stance, basically following the footsteps of Donald Trump, acting as though he's his mini-me.

And from masks to, you know, mitigation measures, he has been patently against that. And, you know, furthermore, he just hasn't really had any plan. I mean his plan is for people to get vaccinated and that's relatively recent, meaning that he really didn't push for vaccinations at the onset of the vaccine distribution.

In fact, when he got his vaccination, he did it really undercover, so to speak. It wasn't until some media outlets reached out to him and asked him if he was vaccinated that he did confirm that. But he did nothing really to promote the vaccines for individuals who were hesitant at the beginning of the pandemic.

HOLMES: When you look at the numbers, 97 percent of COVID hospitalizations, 99.5 percent of deaths are among the unvaccinated. I think, to a lot of people, it's just confounding that people would not get vaccinated when they look at those raw numbers.

As a medical professional, how frustrating is a statistic like that when half the country is still unvaccinated? ASHBY: I mean it's incredibly frustrating, I mean, to say the least.

I mean, vaccines are our primary tool or weapon against this pandemic or this particular virus, SARS-CoV-2. The fact that folks are not taking the vaccine for any number of reasons is incredibly frustrating.

But again, it gets back to the politicization of this pandemic. If you're looking at TV, certain outlets, if you're on social media, they kind of make the vaccines seem as though it's something that will hurt you instead of helping you.

And folks are really making decisions based on a lot of misinformation. But I would take it a step further and call it disinformation.

HOLMES: We're out of time for the moment. Dr. Bernard Ashby, thank you so much.

ASHBY: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Much more to come here on CNN NEWSROOM, including a look at the efforts in many Asian nations to turn back a new tide of coronavirus infections.

Also, Hungary's annual pride parade just hours away. And it's happening against the backdrop of a controversial law and an upcoming referendum over LGBTQ issues. We'll explain.

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HOLMES: Welcome back.

Much of Asia struggling with soaring coronavirus case numbers driven by that highly contagious Delta variant. Have a look at this map. There's an awful lot of orange and red there.

Indonesia currently the center of Southeast Asia's outbreak. Our Anna Coren with more on that and how other nations in the region are handling the latest COVID.

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ANNA COREN, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A taxi graveyard, the colorful cars that once zipped tourists around Bangkok, now sit idle in a field. There are fewer customers these days, as new cases of coronavirus in Thailand reach record highs. But for those lucky enough to pick up a fare, it's no longer a routine ride. UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We had passengers getting on

and off our cars every day. And we don't know if they are at risk or not. We need to protect ourselves and the passengers also need to protect themselves. Both sides are just scared.

COREN (voice-over): Those fears keeping more people at home. Volunteers bring food to those isolated along Bangkok's canals. The government says there is a shortage of vaccines along with the surge of infections, though supply is just one of the obstacles preventing people from getting shots.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I can't go. I only stay like this because, if I go for a vaccination, I'd have to take a boat, walk and commute by car. I have no money to spend for that.

COREN (voice-over): Experts say vaccines are a critical weapon in fighting this outbreak that has spread across Asia. Some health care workers in India hiking into the remote countryside to dole out the doses.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): They moved to door to door in my village, collected swabs for testing and gave vaccines to the villagers. Our village is a tribal village, and no one visits here.

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COREN (voice-over): Vietnam is also trying to accelerate its vaccination program, as cases sharply rise there, too. The outbreak in Ho Chi Minh city is so bad that soldiers in hazmat suits hose down the streets with disinfectant.

But even as countries across Southeast Asia tighten their COVID-19 restrictions, the virus still seems to be a step ahead. In one of the hardest hit nations, Indonesia, the death toll crossed 1,500 a day for the first time during the pandemic.

Singapore says even the vaccinated are impacted. Government data over the past 4 weeks shows vaccinated people made up three quarters of new infections, though they did not become seriously ill.

The empty streets of Sydney, Australia, a sign a lockdown is in effect but with cases still rising, some officials say it's not enough.

DANIEL ANDREWS, VICTORIA PREMIER: We need a ring of steel around Sydney, so that this virus is not spreading into other parts of our nation.

COREN (voice-over): But spreading is what this virus does very efficiently, so much so, the state of New South Wales asked the federal government for more vaccines, a request that was denied. Prime minister Scott Morrison saying it would disrupt the vaccination program for the rest of the country -- Anna Coren, CNN, Hong Kong.

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HOLMES: Welcome back. We'll move on now to hundreds of protesters blocking Slovakia's parliament on Friday as deputies debated a new bill on COVID vaccinations. The protesters chanting the word "Gestapo," and holding a banner that said, "Stop corona fascism."

Police later deployed tear gas. The proposed bill would give vaccinated people easier access to public events and spaces.

Now Hungary is planning to hold a referendum on a newly adopted law that would keep schools from discussing homosexuality and transgender issues with children. The announcement of the coming vote came just before the country's annual pride parade, which kicks off in just a few hours.

LGBTQ activists are expected to speak out against the law, as they did a few weeks ago when it took effect. Let's bring in CNN's Melissa Bell, joining me now live from Budapest.

Hungary is now actually being faced with infringement proceedings by Brussels over this.

What is the feeling on the ground?

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is a substantial propaganda campaign that is under way here across the country, Michael. It is considered to be part of Viktor Orban's strategy ahead of what is expected to be a fairly tight poll next spring.

It is straight out of his playbook. If you look back over the last few years, the hatred turned to migrants, to the homeless, to the transgender. Now he's taking on a bigger group and this is a campaign that is having profound repercussions for a lot of families, just trying to do their best to raise their kids.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BELL (voice-over): It is a picture of family life built on love and surrounded by love. Monica and Reka say they have never faced anything but acceptance raising their two daughters in southern Hungary. Now they fear they may have to leave the country altogether.

REKA SPOHN, GAY PARENT: They act like we are a hazard for children so that we are dangerous for children. And I think if they say it enough times, some people will start to believe it.

BELL (voice-over): On June 14th, they joined thousands outside of the Hungarian parliament to protest a controversial new bill that would all but ensure that many of the country's youth would never see pictures of families like theirs, the culmination of a gradual campaign of demonization.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There have always been people that were homophobic and transphobic. But now with this law they feel encouraged. They feel they are entitled to attack us.

BELL (voice-over): Krisztian and Lauren (ph) say they were victims of homophobic attacks when they were younger. Now, they fear there may be worse to come. KRISZTIAN BARRA, VICTIM OF HOMOPHOBIC ATTACKS: I'm like, what's next?

So maybe next week, they will just put me in jail because I am gay. Or maybe in one year, they will just kill us on the street.

URSULA VAN DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: The Hungarian bill is a shame.

BELL (voice-over): Brussels announced proceedings against Viktor Orban's government over the new law. This week, he responded by announcing a referendum.

VIKTOR ORBAN, HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTER (through translator): Hungarian law does not allow sexual propaganda in kindergartens, schools, TV shows and advertisements.

BELL: What Hungarian law does allow, apparently, is government funded propaganda and on a massive scale. All over the country right now, billboards like these, asking whether people are angry at Brussels and whether they are worried that their child may face sexual propaganda.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People love to hate something and while the population of Hungary is hating a group.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They don't really care what the government is really doing.

BELL (voice-over): But this prominent entrepreneur believes that Viktor Orban may this time have picked the wrong target.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gays are everywhere, sitting, all the companies, all in the government. Ministers are gay and everybody is just silent. It is going to come out because the truth will win in the end.

Who will be the next?

The gypsies or the Jews again?

BELL (voice-over): Hubert (ph) is part of the Family Is Family Campaign. Launched in November by Balazs Redli, a stay-at-home dad and journalist, who is worried about the future his son will face.

BALAZS REDLI, CO-FOUNDER, FAMILY IS FAMILY: The very existence of rainbow families isn't propaganda. It's the reality. We just want to live in this country like everyone else does.

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BELL: Michael, thousands are expected to take part in that gay pride due to start soon that will be this year just not the usual celebration but a protest as well.

HOLMES: Thank you, Melissa Bell there in Budapest. Thanks for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Michael Holmes. If you're an

international viewer, "AFRICAN VOICES CHANGEMAKERS" is coming next. If you're here with me in the United States and Canada, I'll be back with more news after the break.

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HOLMES: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM, everyone. I'm Michael Holmes.

The cauldron has, of course, been lit at the opening ceremony in Tokyo now and the games of the Tokyo Olympics are now being played; of course, in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic, though.

Organizers announced 17 new COVID cases on Saturday, adding up to a total of 127 games-related cases already. Despite the doubts and the protests in Japan, Olympic officials are trying to project optimism.

The International Olympic Committee president saying, in the face of the challenges the world has been facing, Friday's opening ceremony was a moment of hope. But not everyone agrees. Will Ripley with that.

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WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The official opening of the Tokyo Summer Games, a ceremony that tried to look familiar but felt so different.

Hundreds of drones forming a globe over the Olympic Stadium, celebrating one world united in sport, under the shadow of a pandemic. The stadium eerily empty, as flag-bearers proudly represented their countries, cheering them on a handful of visiting dignitaries.

U.S. First Lady Jill Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, among the athletes, some familiar faces and well-oiled physiques. The Tongan flag-bearer famous from Rio and South Korea. Team USA featuring basketball star and four-time gold medalist Sue Bird and baseball playing speed skating silver medalist Eddy Alvarez.

Outside the ceremony, Japanese protesters calling for the games to be canceled, fearing the Olympics will become a COVID-19 super spreader event. Fears fueled by rising cases in the host city. Daily numbers hitting almost 2,000 this week, a six-month high.

Olympic dreams dashed for more than 20 athletes so far, testing positive or being placed in the COVID-19 protocol, including five members from Team USA, most taking the COVID protocols and lack of fans in stride.

KENDRA HARRISON, TEAM USA TRACK & FIELD: When you're lined up with the best in the world like you're not worried about the stands, you're not worried about the people there. You're just worried about going out there and competing to the best of your ability.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Despite the Olympics first ever spectator band, some are making the most of it. Fans watching the opening ceremony from outside the stadium.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was so moved to my heart. So yes, that's so special for us.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Closing out the opening ceremony, the reveal of the torchbearer to light the cauldron, four-time Grand Slam women's tennis champion Naomi Osaka, in recent months, facing her own very public mental health challenges. Perhaps, the perfect representative for the 32nd Olympiad overcoming postponement and a pandemic, to showcase the triumph of the Olympic spirit -- Will Ripley, CNN, Tokyo.

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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: CNN sports analyst Christine Brennan, joining me from Tokyo. She is the sports columnist for "USA Today."

I was reading your column today, Christine, great to see you.

First of all, what was it like at the opening ceremony?

Was there any sense of real occasion and atmosphere?

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: They tried, Michael. I am unsure if they succeeded. I covered a lot of these, covered openings ceremonies since '84 in L.A. and certainly, it was the most different. Obviously, no one in the stands, 1,000 or so dignitaries and media.

But if there was applause from those dignitaries, it sounded like theater applause. Once the music was blaring, you couldn't even hear that. I think it was solemn. It was fitting of where we are, in the middle of a pandemic.

The athletes, I'll give them credit, certainly, some of them come in holding their flags, dancing around, exuberance, giving it a good college try. But I watched many of them, as soon as they made their path and circled around the stadium floor, many of those teams just exited out, got out of there.

You didn't see that on TV. But we could see it. I got out of there to get away from everyone else and away from the logjam in the middle of the field.

[03:35:00]

HOLMES: I wanted to ask you and I'm interested in the day to day in, terms of the COVID precautions and procedures.

What is it like getting around?

Both for you as a journalist and for the athletes. What is the sort of protocol?

BRENNAN: We had 3 days here, a saliva test. We had to produce the tests, the saliva and then put it in a plastic vial and deliver it. There is an app that we have on our phones, that every, day we need to sign, in and give our temperature, how we are feeling and make sure no one around us is sick.

Then, if you don't fill that out by a certain time in the afternoon, you get the text message, you need to fill that out. Then, otherwise, hand sanitizer, everywhere. Also, when you do that, going into a venue, they take your temperature remotely, just within the close proximity.

And then, masks everywhere. We are all wearing masks the way we did in the United States 6-8 months ago. Very much, we feel like we are plunged back into 2020. It's fine, because we understand the protocols are necessary as journalists. And the athletes are also dealing with the same, lots and lots of testing.

HOLMES: Speaking of the athletes, more and more have tested positive since arriving. I think a Dutch rower just in the last few hours.

You cover sports, you know these athletes, how devastating will it be to an athlete after all that goes into making the teams?

Years of preparations, leading to a moment and it's gone like that.

BRENNAN: Heartbreaking. Absolutely, heartbreaking, Michael. It's the only way to describe it. In the United States and around the world, we will certainly see teams and individuals that have to deal with COVID tests.

But mostly, those are games that you might have a game the next week. Or, you can go back and compete next year at something. This isn't that. The Olympics, of course, once every 4 years.

It has been 5 years since Rio, it'll only be 3 years to Paris in 2024. This is the opportunity of a lifetime and if it is, gone it is really gone. So I think it's a shock to the system, it's a very, very sad moment but there is a finality to it. It is over. Your Olympic dream is over.

Only 3 years to Paris. I guess that's the positive. It is not 4 years but it's devastating for those athletes, no doubt about it.

HOLMES: Heartbreaking and yet, they made the team; again, they've got to be at that premier level for the next three years, that's tough.

COVID aside, if that is possible, what are you looking forward to in these games?

BRENNAN: Actually, I am really looking forward to the sports. I think that sports can save these games, in the sense that once events start to really happen, people get into it around the world. That is a positive. I'm not saying it overshadows COVID, no, these are the COVID Olympics,

they will be known as the COVID Olympics. But swimming, in a few hours. I will go to the swimming venue and watch the preliminaries of the swimming. And we will see athletes from around the world, the best in the world, world record holders competing.

And that will go on for a good 7 or 8 days. And in gymnastics, with the great Simone Biles, we'll see how she does and if she can, indeed, win more gold medals as the greatest of all time.

So, there are a lot of storylines and it is possible to be the optimist for a moment, Michael. It is possible that these stories will catch hold and people around the world will be entranced by these athletes and maybe, for a little while, can forget or at least just push aside, the true, real, awful concerns about COVID and focus for a few minutes on sports.

HOLMES: You will be telling the stories we know, and I will be following you on Twitter, seeing how much you are enjoying it. We'll talk again, Christine, always good to see you.

BRENNAN: Michael, thank you very much, take care.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Quick break here. When we come back, a longtime friend of Donald Trump, who is deemed a serious flight risk, gets out of jail on bail. The case against Tom Barrack and whether he might cooperate with investigators against the former president.

Also, still to come, a U.S. House committee is getting ready to investigate the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Why the Democrats want more Republicans to join the probe. We'll be right back.

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HOLMES: A longtime ally of former U.S. president Donald Trump has been released from jail on $250 million bond. Tom Barrack must wear a GPS monitoring device and return to court on Monday.

The Emirati businessman charged with failing to register as an agent of a foreign government while working as a back channel to the UAE. He's also accused of lying to the FBI about his UAE activities. Senior legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid with a closer look at the case.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Federal prosecutors agreed to this quarter billion-dollar bail agreement that will keep Mr. Barrack out of prison ahead of an expected trial.

This is quite a shift because, earlier in the week, these same federal prosecutors were arguing that Barrack posed a significant flight risk. They pointed to his enormous wealth, his international network and the fact that his co-defendant fled the country shortly after being interviewed by the FBI in 2018.

So why the change?

Well, Mr. Barrack has just about the best lawyer's money can buy. And they have been squarely focused for several days on getting their client out of jail. Mr. Barrack was located in California, but his case is being tried in New York. And his lawyers were very concerned about their 74-year-old client being on the notorious Con Air, the plane the U.S. Marshal's Service uses to transport prisoners.

Apparently, they were certainly successful in getting their client out of jail. Some people have asked whether this deal signals that Mr. Barrack will cooperate in any ongoing investigations, especially those involving the former president.

But at this point, our reporting indicates there is no indication that Mr. Barrack will cooperate against the former president in any state or federal investigations -- Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is working to get more Republicans on the committee that will investigate the deadly January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. Sources telling CNN she is seriously considering naming Republican representative Adam Kinzinger to the panel to bolster its bipartisan credibility.

She may also tap Republicans who are not currently serving in the House. The Republican House minority leader pulled all five of his picks from the committee after Pelosi nixed two of them for their roles in trying to overturn the presidential election results.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (from captions): What is wrong with having one or two members of your conference join with Democrats to investigate what happened here?

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA), MINORITY LEADER: Look, you know it and we predicted it back at the very beginning. This is a sham committee that's just politically driven by Speaker Pelosi.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:45:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): It's my responsibility as Speaker of the House to make sure we get to the truth on this. And we will not let their antics stand in the way of that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: The hearings start on Tuesday.

Now the CIA's inspector general is reviewing how the agency handled cases of so-called Havana syndrome, that mysterious illness that sickened diplomats, intelligence officers and others with debilitating symptoms. CNN national security correspondent Kylie Atwood with the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN U.S. SECURITY ANALYST (voice-over): Mysterious health incidents known as Havana syndrome, for where U.S. personnel first experienced the strange debilitating symptoms appear to be on the rise, impacting U.S. intelligence officers and diplomats around the globe.

And CNN has learned that the CIA inspector general is carrying out a review into the agency's handling of the officers who have been sickened.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And nothing but the truth.

ATWOOD (voice-over): CIA Director Bill Burns said this week that there are a couple 100 cases of these incidents in total and about 100 of them among intelligence officers.

WILLIAM BURNS, CIA DIRECTOR: I'm certainly persuaded that what our officers and some family members as well as other U.S. government employees have experienced is real and it's serious.

ATWOOD (voice-over): The Biden administration says they still do not know what or who is behind these incidents that they're calling UHIs, unexplained health incidents.

Just this week, the State Department said they're now investigating reports of Havana syndrome experienced by U.S. diplomats in Vienna. Former CIA intelligence officer Doug Wise explains why more cases may help probe this mystery.

DOUG WISE, FORMER DEPUTY DIRECTOR, DEFENSE INTELLIGENCE AGENCY: It's kind of like a serial killer, where it requires further victims to generate evidence and data. It's an unfortunate fact.

ATWOOD (voice-over): At the CIA, someone new is in charge of the investigation, an experienced intelligence officer who led the successful hunt for bin Laden.

BURNS: We're throwing the very best we have at this issue because it is not only a very serious issue for our colleagues as it is for others across the U.S. government, but it's a profound obligation, I think, of any leader to take care of your people and that's what I'm determined to do. ATWOOD (voice-over): The CIA IG review comes after deep frustration

among those second about how their concerns were initially handled, saying they had not gotten the medical and institutional support that they needed.

MARC POLYMEROPOULOS, FORMER CIA OFFICER: I had a really hard time initially at the agency because people didn't necessarily -- the medical staff, the senior medical staff didn't necessarily believe me.

ATWOOD (voice-over): But things have changed in the last few months. Burns met with victims, visited Walter Reed where they're getting medical attention, surged agency resources to work on this challenge and replace some of the officials viewed as hindering the investigation. His intense focus matters to those who have suffered.

WISE: I believe that the victims are now being well served under Burns' leadership and the emphasis he's putting on their wellbeing, which has always been the ethos of CIA.

ATWOOD: Now back to the idea of culpability here.

Who and what is behind these mysterious incidents?

Current and former government officials say that they believe Russia is behind this. But officially the U.S. government has not identified the perpetrator and that is one of the main things that they continue to investigate -- Kylie Atwood, CNN, New York.

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HOLMES: Fire crews are battling an uphill battle against a massive wildfire in the U.S. and they say that work is not for the faint of heart.

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QUESTION: Is there any fear or adrenaline kicks in?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Adrenaline, sure, yes. If you have fear of this, this isn't the job for you.

HOLMES (voice-over): Next up, we'll take you to the fire lines and see the dangerous phenomenon that makes their job even harder. We'll be right back.

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[03:50:00]

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HOLMES: All right. We want to take you inside one of the massive wildfires now burning in the U.S. But heat and flames and smoke, well, they're not the only dangers created by the so-called Bootleg Fire. There's also a phenomenon called pyrocumulus clouds.

In a nutshell, it means the fire produces so much heat, it literally creates its own weather system. As Lucy Kafanov reports, it is not making the firefighters' job any easier.

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LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A massive wildfire scorching more than 400,000 acres. Flames reaching the tops of trees spread by the whipping winds.

These videos shot during the height of Oregon's Bootleg Fire so volatile it created its own weather system. You're looking at a cloud generated by the fire's intense heat called a pyrocumulus cloud.

JOE TONE, INCIDENT MANAGER, BOOTLEG FIRE: I haven't been in a fire that has had as many pyrocumulus developments as this one.

KAFANOV: Here's how it happens, just as the sun heats the air creating clouds, the fire's heat, smoke and water vapor rise, sometimes creating thunderstorms with lightning, high winds, even tornados, spreading the fire.

Watch this time lapse video of a pyrocumulus cloud forming over a fire in northern California. The pressure building up inside can be dangerous to firefighters on the ground.

TONE: It falls apart, but it falls apart much more violently than a typical rainstorm and winds come down right back towards the ground. The winds go every direction, and they could be 30, 40, 50 miles an hour and that's happened several times on this fire.

KAFANOV: We joined fire crews deep in the mountains where progress is now being made on containing the Bootleg Fire.

Dixon Wesley Jones is cleaning up spot fires now. But just a week ago he was caught in the fire's unpredictable weather pattern. This video showing him pulling back as a helicopter drops water over a fire raging out of control.

DIXON WESLEY JONES, WILDLAND FIREFIGHTER: It sounds like a train almost. It sounds like something crashing through the floors.

[03:55:00]

KAFANOV: This is the view from underneath the intense skies created by the bootleg fire. Justice as firefighter Eric West was pulled back for safety.

Is there any fear or adrenaline kicks in?

ERIC WEST, WILDLAND FIREFIGHTER: Adrenaline, sure, yeah. If you have fear, this isn't the job for you. KAFANOV: More human air and wind shifts are helping the firefighters up the containment levels. But the ground is so dry, the fire is still not under control.

You can see and hear this little fire behind me. It's one of the many challenges firefighters are dealing with. Conditions are so incredibly dry, there is just all of this fuel on the ground. This stump is on fire.

And then this fire migrated over. It's going to burn this tree but firefighters aren't concerned because it's already burned so much of this area there's really not that much more left for it to burn.

Overnight, the fire jumping the containment line. More evacuations issued firefighters still working to secure the outbreak. In the line of fire, this is part of the defense. Crews thinning trees to create a fuel break. The bigger the fire, the more trees they have to remove. It's the new reality of fighting mega fires in the American west.

TONE: I hope it's not our future and maybe it's just a cyclic event and things will calm back down. But it doesn't look great.

KAFANOV (voice-over): Lucy Kafanov, CNN, Lakeview, Oregon.

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HOLMES: You can help the victims of the western wildfires and their families. Head over to cnn.com/impact. You will find links there to charitable organizations verified by CNN. Again, cnn.com/impact.

Thanks for spending part of your day with me. I'm Michael Holmes. You can follow me on Twitter and Instagram @HolmesCNN. My colleague, Alison Kosik, picks it up with more CNN NEWSROOM after the break.