Transcripts For CNNW CNN 20240704

Former georgia Lieutenant Governor and cnn contributor jeff duncan revealing to cnn today he will testify before a grand jury in just a few days. I did just receive notification to appear on Tuesday Morning at the Fulton County grand jury, and i certainly will be there to do my part in recounting the facts. I have no expectations as to the questions, and ill certainly answer whatever questions put in front of me and dont want to go any deeper than that to jeopardize or compromise the investigation. This is a story that is important for republicans to hear and americans to hear. Lets hear the whole truth and nothing but the truth in Donald Trumps actions and the surrounding cast of characters around him. Fulton County District attorney fani willis is expected to seek multiple charges against trump and his allays in the years long investigation into the efforts to overturn the 2020 election in georgia. We have Defense Attorney and former federal prosecutor shan wu for some legal analysis. Great to have both of you. Marsha, you set the scene for us. Walk us through the significance of what weve learned today. After all the talk, all the prep, all the witnesses, all the litigation, its finally happening. Its finally here. Based off the notifications that were sent today to that grand jury witnesses, it appears that the monday, Tuesday Grand Jury down in atlanta in Fulton County that meets regularly is going to get the trump case. Those witnesses were told to come in tuesday. The grand jurors will be there monday, presumably for a meeting with the prosecutors and fani willis and her team where they will spell out what they think is a strong case of election subversion by donald trump and many of his allies for what they did in 2020 down in fwa. We know as we just talked about that jeff duncan is going to be talking to that grand jury. We also have learned that theres a second person thats set to testify. What can you tell us about that . Thats right. A second person who will go in on tuesday, they announced it on their social media, his name is george cheatty. Hes an independent journalist based in atlanta. Hes interesting because he actually witnessed the fake electors meeting in the state house. He sort of stumbled upon them midway through the plot back in december of 2020, presumably hell be testifying about that element of the multipronged attempt to interfere with the election. Fascinating he just stumbled upon it being there. He was doing his job. Right, just doing his job. S shan, lets talk about what this is going to look like. What can they expect on monday and tuesday . First, it is still theoretically possible maybe they wont go in the grand jury. Theyve been subpoenaed. This is the regular grand jury, what i call the indicting grand j jury, and they may have had access to all. Previous testimony in the form of written transcripts or listening to it. They could be read in. Thats one of the terms we use, but the prosecutor may also be preparing for the fact that the grand jury may ask the live witnesses and they may want to have live witnesses to make it a more powerful presentation. What they will expect cannot go in with counsel. Your lawyer isnt allowed in there. Its usually a group of people. Theres no judge in there, and depending on the way its set up, it could look a little bit like a classroom. Sometimes its just a room with a table and you as the witness are sitting there. Theyll let you take breaks to ask your lawyers questions and such, but essentially the prosecutor is there kind of like an emcee in that circumstance. Prosecutor will be asking questions and kind of field any questions that the grand jurors themselves may have. So theres actually an era of informality compared to being in a Trial Situation and testifying. But at the same time, it can be fairly tense because it is a formal court proceeding. Yeah, and so interesting to remember that these grand jurors are afforded the opportunity to ask their own questions in this situation. Sources are telling cnn that the District Attorney is expected to seek more than a dozen indictments and has been eyeing these conspiracy and racketeering charges against trump and some of his allies. How much of a challenge do you think that is for the trump team to deafen fend against, and Als Racketeering charges, thats tough to prosecute and its probably tough to defend against. Yeah, i think the challenge on both sides for that kind of charge is the conspiracy eleme of it. So really challenging for the prosecution to make surean show there really is a conspiracy. People are kmaun kating, theyre taking overt actions. On the defense side, very when you have other people that were involved with you tking about it, that makes it much hard for you to do the denial aspect of it. If as expected were going to see multiple indictments, this looks like the kind of case jack smith would have done if he didnt have a Ticking Clock Shortening his charges. That is interesting. That kind of leads us into a good question for marshal. Just to remind everyone, this would be the fourth indictment, the fourth case. If we could go to the most recent one, this third case with jack smith on 2020 and overturning the election, how does this differ from that federal indictment that weve already seen. Its hard to keep track. Former President Donald Trump was indicted several weeks ago, federally here in the District Of Columbia by the Justice Department in connection with the National Plot to subvert the ele election. In the words of the prosecutor to disenfranchise voters and change the electoral count illegally. Thats federal. A lot of the georgia activities were in that indictment. You can read it for yourself. You can see what donald trump said to brad raffensperger, the secretary of state trying to twist his arm to flip those vote. Its all in the federal indictment, those are federal charges. This is a statement investigation. The question on everyones mind is if trump wins next year, he would be the Chief Executive of the United States and theoretically would have the power to shut down the federal probe, maybe even pardon himself. Cant do that in georgia. So shan, walk us through that. That is the big difference here, that it is a state probe versus a federal probe. He is running to be president of the United States and is currently leading the gop field by a wide margin in a lot of polls. But the georgia indictment and if there was if they were able to prosecute this S Successfully that would stick, even if he was president. Its the dual sovereign concept. Georgia as a state is a different sovereign than the United States of america, and so thats why sometimes you might even hear people talking about isnt that Double Jeopardy if someones tried once by a state, once by the feds. Its not. They are different governments really that way, and whale its true that, you know, trump could try this untested route of pardoning himself hed have no shot at all trying to do that with a state prosecution. What do we know about this judge in this federal case . We have seen this judge thats overseeing that case issue a protective order thats barring trump from publicly disclosing some of the sensitive information, and shes even gone as far as to say if trump makes any inflammatory statements that she could speed up the trial, which we know trump and his defense team does not want. What do you make of how shes approaching this . Well, judge chutkan, a very experienced trial attorney. I was a prosecutor when she was in the public defender services. I was rejected when i applied, just full disclosure. But shes very, very skilled, and she really knows her way around the courtroom as a prosecutor excuse me, as a Defense Counsel, and i think you see that in the way that shes dealing with this very complex, h high profile case. Its clear shes not going to put up with delays which arent justified, but as a former Defense Counsel shes going to make sure she protects the trump teams rights as well, which is why she narrowed down what the prosecution wanted. She said no, show me whats really sensitive and those things wont be disclosed. I do have a little bit of skepticism with her making that statement, if youre going to make inflammatory remarks, were going to speed up the trial. She can certainly discipline him, from an appellate p standpoint, if you rushed the defense as kind of a punishment for making these bad remarks, it could create a problem if they get a conviction on appeal. Thats a very good point to make. Marshal, i know youve been keeping your eye on the president s son, hunter biden, and all the legal cases surrounding him. What do you make of the Justice Departments decision . Lets just remember the crazy moment were living in. There are three Special Counsels right now in the Justice Department investigating the president for possibly mishandling classified documents, the president s son for his tax problems, and the former president , donald trump. The hunter biden situation, look, just three weeks ago it appeared that this thing was basically done, a plea deal, a controversial plea deal but a deal that was heading towards approval with a judge. It derailed in court three weeks ago. They tried to negotiate an agreement in the last few weeks, but we learned from Court Filings yesterday that those talks had collapsed, and what we learned from the attorney general Merrick Garland is that it was now time to take that prosecutor and turn him to a special counsel, potentially to take this case to trial. If he doesnt, if they cant figure out a deal, that would be very bad for the president and his son. We were talking about misdemeanors and if this is going to trial, it is probably going to be felonies. And shan, do you feel like the attorney general Merrick Garland really forced his hand here . I am puzzled as to why the attorney general did this. Obviously if he was asked by weiss, i get the fact that he would feel like he couldnt refuse. But to me, Merrick Garland on day one could have appointed a special counsel, say look, its the president s son. He didnt. He kept on the trump prosecutor, which was very food. Let weiss do his thing. Im not sure why he changes his mind now. Weiss could have tried the case outside the jurisdiction. In fact, he and garland both said many times. Many times. That was his authority for the asking. So im not sure why that would make the deal. On question for biden, not a good look for his son. If the plea bargain breaks town theyre going to charge you with more serious crimes than before. On the other hand if i were his Defense Counsel i wouldnt be running too scared. Id say you had five years to investigate this case. This is the best youve come up with. You really want to try my client on tax charges when hes already paid back the taxes, be my guest. Thanks to both of you, shan wu and marshal cohen. Great to have you both here with us. While the grand jury is greating ready to meet in georgia, donald trump is in iowa. Were going to take you there live, thats next. The roizing death toll from the maui wildfires. 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Former President Donald Trump drawing huge crowds of supporters at the Iowa State Fair. Of course this coming after Former Georgia Lieutenant Governor jeff duncan revealed to cnn today hes been called to testify before a Fulton County grand jury about trumps efforts to overturn the 2020 election in that state. Joining me now is cnn political director David Chalian who has been there at the Iowa State Fair taking it all in, seeing all of the candidates, and david, lets just start by zeroing in on this incredible split screen, which is the former president in iowa campaigning for to be the nominee yet again ahead of what could possibly be his fourth criminal indictment. It is quite the split screen, jessica. Theres no doubt about that. It kind of captures the picture of the 2024 campaign that donald trump, the front runner both nationally and here in iowa, the Kickoff State to the process has all of these legal woes looming over his head and most pressingly now, this next potential fourth indictment in georgia this week, and yet, here he is making his way through the fairgrounds getting a ground swell of support, huge crowds as the president , the former president tends to get at events like this, and he is using the indictments as political fuel for his campaign. He is making his legal troubles, jessica, a political cause, and it is helping his Grass Roots Donations and fortifying his base of support as he portrays it as a political prosecution against him. Right, its like a playbook now. Every time he gets indicted, we sue him see him running that play book. When ive been there in iowa, i have not heard the voters particularly focused on indictment or this and that. They talk about him, they talk about whether they have fatigue around him or if maybe theyre still solidly in his camp. What is your sense from voters as youre talking to them at the fair and now that were just, you know, a few months out from the caucuses . Reporter jessica, im so glad you raised that. I have not found a voter who brings up the indictments to me. When we ask about it, theyll answer some questions about it, but i think it is worth noting this is while it is dominating trumps daytoday life, obviously, because he has a legal strategy to put in place and it is massive nauzews and headlines. It is not what is top of mind. Thats also why i dont think we see a lot of his republican competitors all that eager to contrast with trump on the issue of the indictments. They maek the argument perhaps that they dont think hes going to be in the best position to win for the party in 2024. Our colleague kyung lah asked some votes specifically about the indictment news. Give a listen to what they had to say. Like i say, in my area, its trump country. Are the indictments changing how you feel . No, because i do think a lot of that is for effect. A lot of those are trumped up. Beyond find the charges against him being trumped up at all. Thats my opinion. Reporter so you hear there in that voters opinion, it doesnt sway her. Shes clearly supportive of the former president. You hear some others say that perhaps it could be a distraction and it might be better to have a candidate that doesnt have to balance the Campaign Trail with going into the courtroom, jessica. But by looks of the crowds today, by where hoes in the po he is in the polls right now, right now with five months to go donald trump is the leading contender for the nomination is and here in iowa. And it has been consistent over the last several months. It will be interesting to see if it stays that way. Before you go, i do want to ask you about his republican rivals. All of them are there. Theyre all trying to breakthrough with voters in iowa. What are any takeaways youre seeing even from his chief rival ron desantis or others as they really try to make a difference in their standing with voters there . Z there was such a contrast on display today. Donald trump was in and out of iowa. Maybe he was on the ground in iowa for two hours. He was here at the fair forless time than that. Ron desantis had been at the fairgrounds for more than four hours. Hes with his kids and wife. Hes making a clear just by image, generational argument. It sort of was evoking the images of the young obama family back in 2007 at times, and that is an Argument Tedesantis is making, it is time for change. He also took trump on about not signing that rnc Loyalty Pledge to get on the debate page. Desantis is making the argument youve got to think about the whole here of trying to defeat joe biden and not just yourself, he was needling donald trump for not signing that Loyalty Pledge saying hes putting himself ahead of the party and there have the country. But you are seeing nikki haley, vivek ramaswamy, mike pence, theyre doing the glad handling, and they are trying to sort of wage a traditional campaign, and we know this campaign is anything but traditional. You hit the nail on the head there. Thats exactly right. Its traditional campaigning in a very nontraditional moment. David chalian for us at the Iowa State Fair this weekend, thanks so much. The death toll in maui now stands at 80 from the devastating wildfires there and update there next, were also going to speak with a man whos documenting the tragedy. Youre live in the cnn newsroom. Mlb papartners with tmobile to not only enhance the fan experirience, but to advance how the gameme is played. Aaa relies on tmobiles network to stay connected nationwide, so they can help get their members back on the road. And were helping pano ai innovate, to stop the spread of wildfires. Nows the time to see what americas largest 5g network can do for your business. Planning to move . Join the 6 million families who discovered a smarter, more flexible way to move, with pods. Save up to 30 now for a lited time. Ether youre moving across town or across the country. Save up to 3 at pods. Com today. Good checkup . No, great checkup [laughs] nailed it again keep up the good work for great checkups, crest has you covered because crest prohealth protects 100 of your mouth for 24 hours. Look, ma no cavities crest. We never just see the numbers. We see the people. Marcus detroit, its just changed so much. You can see what it once was. And then, i think about what it can be. 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As teams search the area of lahaina now with the help of cadaver dogs, were seeing more video of harrowing escapes. We got to walk somewhere over there by the beach. Just keep going [ bleep ]. No, no, no, no, no, not like this not like this. No. [ bleep ]. Just horrific, more than a dozen federal agencies including fema and the National Guard have now been mobilized to help with those recovery efforts, cnns mike valero is on the ground in maui. Well, jessica, this is the main roadway that leads into lahaina. About a 20 minute drive that way. If we spin around, this is what people who work and live in lahaina have to deal with, a queue, a line to get in that spans right now about a mile and a half behinds. So what you need to know is that people have been waiting to get in for more than 14 hours in some cases. As we zoom in, you can see a mix of utility workers, families, parents, college kids, people who are just waiting to see if their home survived the Inferno Tuesday night into early wednesday among. We spoke with two drivers before dawn, one of them ended up making it in, the other did not because of a traffic jam after this roadway was reopened just after dawn today. Listen to what both of those drivers told us. I got out here by 11 00, made it all the way to the other side. I was done by 3 00, picking up all the supplies i got, and then got to here, and ive been here since 3 00 in the afternoon. Youve been here since 3 00 . None of us have moved, our coworkers. I got three other coworkers, theyre back there, theyve been here the whole time. Its either laughter or tears, you know. When i talk to all the people in our business that have been affected, they have about 14 people that have lost their houses and so were just trying to do the most good we can, but its really frustrating when you cant. So in terms of the wider picture, there are new figures that are out from Fema Estimating that its going to cost 5. 52 billion to rebuild lahaina, 2,207 structures either damaged or destroyed. 4,500 people, that is the estimate for the number of people who need to be sheltered in both the near and the longterm. But this, what we are seeing here is the first chapter to both rebuilding, seeing what survived, and seeing what is left of a place that was so integral to the Heart And Soul of maui. So much need there, thank you so much. My next guest is a resident of maui, tdaniel sullivan. Thanks so much for making time for us this afternoon. You posted on your instagram that it was one of the most terrifying nights of your life. You were surrounded by three raging fires at once. Will you just tell us about that moment . Yeah, we were really it was a difficult spot. We had the wednesday that started in the afternoon had knocked down many trees, so many of the roads were blocked, and then the fires were tiss We H Big Fire below the house. We had one coming from one direction, and then we had a Big Forest Fire above us, and no one was sure, you know, how fast that was traveling. They said, you know, if its two miles away, youve got to evacuate, and we could see flames, and i just sat up on my roof that night and end up photographing, im a professional photographer here and just with my family down belo below, we had the van packed. The problem is we couldnt get out. The roads were blocked. There was really nowhere to duobdgo because we were completely surrounded by fires. Just the videos and photos are absolutely overwhelming. I understand your home is okay, which is great news, and im so happy for you and your family, but i think what youre trike is like having your car packed and knowing you may have to go, but you couldnt. Theres no roads. The fieres are just enclosing yu all around. That must have been really, really scary. Yeah, it was terrifying. The whole island was in that situation, you know. People had even gotten away to evacuate at the shelters were then being evacuated because the shelters were burning. It was just nobody had seen anything like it. The winds were just so strong and that fire was just whipping around the island, and we were just all affected by it. This whole islands been affected, you know, so terribly by this fire. Theres no question about it. And you mentioned youre a professional photographer. We know that youve been documenting this to the extent that you can. Walk us through what youve been able to see as youve been documenting this. So yesterday i was up with the firefighters. Theres still fires up there. These guys have been working around the clock since tuesday, you know, fighting these fires. A lot of them havent slept. I went out with the firefighters. We were hiking around some of the hot helicopters dropping, you know, hundreds of gallons of water, just trying to stay on top of it. You know, the winds are the real enemy up there, and luckily we had a couple of calm days, which was food. That ckind of helped them to ge on top of the fires. These are Big Forest Fires. This isnt something we are used to. When these trees are so underneath. Under the ground those roots are burning and it can jump up anywhere and you have these fires that would start and you would think theres no fire there, but when you take the temperature of the soil, its 180, 200 degrees because those roots are burning. Quickly before we let you go, there are so many people that are watching you right now, and they feel kind of helpless. This femaels so awful. How can they help you . What to you all need right now from people . I mean, its such a hard question because we feel the same way. You know, we were so lucky not to lose our home, you know, my wifes been volunteering down at the shelter. Its just its so hard because you know, theres a lot of donations and this island really has so much love, you know, everybodys coming together to support, but you know, youre talking about thousands of people and this island, were only, you know, 160,000 people. Were really small. So its a tough question. You know, theres going to knead to need to be shelter. The entire town was wiped out. Theres nothing over there. If you look at like the supply list, people are asking for barbecues, you know, just to cook food because they have no electricity, no running water. I grew up in new orleans, so i was there after katrina, and ive seen, you know, what it looks like, and its like ka tr trina, you know, its wiped out. Theres nothing left. I think theres so much thats needed and were just beginning to learn about, you know, the losses weve had here. Its a really hard situation. It is. It is devastating, and it sounds like just basic needs at this point. Its a struggle to meet those. Daniel, thank you so much for talking with us. Our best to you and your family and to all of your neighbors there in maui. Thanks again. Thank you. And for more information about how you can help the Wildfire Victims in hawaii, you can go to cnn. Com impact. You can also text The Word Hawaii To 707070 to donate. Well be right back. Un Monde Pliable by Jeongpill Song Camera Shutters Camera Shutters my cpa told me i wouldnt qualify for the erc tax refund, so i called innovation refunds. Their team of independent Tax Attorneys will work with your cpa to determine if your company is eligible. [whip sound] Takehe First Step to see if your Small Business qualifies. Struggling with the highs and lows of bipolar 1 . 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Start an easy to build, powerful website for free with a partner that always puts you first. Start for free at godaddy. Com there are major new developments in what could soon be Donald Trumps fourth indictment, just a short time ago cnn spoke with Former Georgia Lieutenant Governor and cnn contributor jeff duncan. He said he will testify in the next 48 hours before a grand jury in atlanta. Fulton County District attorney fani willis has subpoenaed duncan to testify about efforts by former President Trump and his allies to overturn the 2020 presential election in georgia. Duncan is now a cnn Political Commentato we also know an independent journalist tweeted today he was also called by the Fulton County District Attorney and also asked to testify before that same grand jury on tuesday. Meantime, multiple white house aides are telling cnn the Biden Administration is preparing to roll out a massive expansion of Background Checks for gun purchases. According to those sources, the Biden Campaign is Working Toward Making Gun Safety a central issue in his reelection campaign. And several people advising the campaign telling cnn that gun safety along with abortion are bidens opportunity to characterize republicans as extreme. Cnns Senior Reporter isaac doe vary broke this story. Great to see you. Tell us what your sources are saying about this. This is an Executive Action that biden started the process on in march but looks like its about to be approved through the internal process. The administration is going to be talking more about it. The president s going to be talking more about it. Its going to happen at the same time the Biden Campaign and the political arena will be talking about gun control much more and gun safety much more. To them, this as you say is an opportunity to say that republicans are out of whack with the mainstream. When you look at the mass shootings, the homicides, all these things that have really changed this issue and that biden really wants to try to tap into and say that the republicans need to catch up to where people overall have come to on this issue. Mmhmm, and what are you hearing from democratic leadership outside of the white house . Theres a feeling of exhaustion from a lot of americans and certainly political leaders. I spoke with the mayor of baltimore that said to me that he is so tired of gun violence on the streets of baltimore that he feels like mayors need to stand up and say theres blood on the hands literally of the people who are stopping more legislation on gun control, senator chris murphy whos very associated with senator from connecticut, say that they feel like this is a way for democrats political lily not just to talk about the importance of winning the presidency, but to make a play for house races around the country and senate races and make this really into a litmus test issue faror a lot of voter it is interesting they are choosing those two issues. When you look at the data, republicans in their positioning is out of step with where the majority of americans are, not all americans, but the majority of americans, and we saw that play out in the midterms with abortion. So now to kind of couple that issue, which our cnn data shows is still as potent with voters, with this gun control issue, it is an interesting it is an interesting choice. Remember, in 2020 biden talked about the battle for the soul of america. I wrote a book about it called battle for the soul, they are going to be talking about it a lot more in a renewed way. And the president youll hear him talk about it. Think about the contrast and some of the biden advisers, talking about guns as part of that, and on the opposite side of it you have the leading republican candidate, former President Trump who will, it seems like be on trial for his role in what was a violent insurrection at the capitol. It is shaping up to be just absolutely an unprecedented election cycle. Isaac, thanks so much. We appreciate it. And for the first time there may be a complicating factor in upcoming elections. Artificial intelligence could play a major role in the 2024 election. That prospect has caught the eye of federal reglators. Cnns john sarlin is joining us with details on this. Weve seen some of this ai in ads. It is so eerily realistic looking. Whats happening with this . Stwl that is the key. The Technology Allows you to create misrepresentations with video, with audio that seemed to be from one person but is artificially generated. Is that allowed in a campaign . That is coyote key question. The fec now is taking a potential small step to regulating that. The Bipartisan Commission has opened a 60day Public Comment on whether existing federal regulations apply to ai in elections. As you mentioned, weve seen as this technology has rapidly improved it starts to work its way into campaigns. The Ron Desantis Campaign tweeted out a video that had ai images of donald trump hugging anthony fauci. Those were fake. Previously weve seen the rnc create an aigenerated ad about joe biden. The question, though, is that legal . Ive talked to Election Experts on this, and they say, look, lying in election ads is legal. That is the issue. What is not allowed it fraud. Tr fraudulent misrepresentation. And a Nonpartisan Group Public Citizen and a group of democratic lawmakers led by adam schiff are arguing that aigenerated ads are fraudulent misrepresentations. Now, the fec is a Bipartisan Commission. Its split half between democrats and republicans, and it seems like there are disagreements on whether fraud applies to ai in ads sfw. Were seeing it more and more where the Technology Gets ahead of where the regulation is, where the laws are. Before you go, i do want to ask you about this, cryptocurrency executive Sam Bankmanfrieds bail was revoked, he was acceptasent back to jail. The founder of ftx now disgraced, he was facing his trial in october. Is now in federal custody in brooklyn. Thats after prosecutors and then a judge said that Sam Bankmanfrieds repeated reach out to journalists crossed the line into witness tampering. Now, Sam Bankmanfried had made over a thousand calls to journalists in recent months according to prosecutors, and at the heart of that was caroline ell ellison, his former lover and the former coceo of alameda research, the hedge fund that he, Sam Bankmanfried founded and funded and was key to the prosecutors indictment of him. Now Caroline Ellison in december pleaded guilty to charges against her with the understanding that she would cooperate with the governments case against Sam Bankmanfried. Well, Sam Bankmanfried was telling journalists about carolyn ellison, including giving personal documents of hers a profile in the New York Times came out about carolyn ellison. The government said this is not protected speech, which is what Sam Bankmanfrieds lawyers argued. Prosecutors said that was witness tampering, and it sent a message to other witnesses who were reticent to testify against Sam Bankmanfried in october. So many layers there. Thanks so much for that reporting. We appreciate it. Gas prices are rising in some parts of the country, but falling in others. Well break that all down for you next. Youre in the cnn newsroom. Pn for Muscle Health versus 16 grams in ensure® high protein. Boost® high protein. Now available in cinnabon® bakeryryinspired flavor. Learn morere at boost. Com tv inspiring music start ur day with nature made. The 1 pharmacist recommended vitamin ansupplement brand. My dad was a hard worker. He used to do side jobs installing windows, charging Something Like A Hundred Bucks a window when other guys were charging four to fivehundred bucks. He just didnt wanna do that. He was proud of the price he was charging. My dad instilled in me, always put the people before the money. Be proud of offering a good product at a fair price. I think hed be extremely proud of me, yeah. If you plan on doing any driving th summer, be aware gas prices are up in a lot of areas. Take a look at this map from aaa. Youll see the dark red. It indicates states where the gas prices are the highest. The dark blue, thats where theyre the lowest for regular unleaded. The cheapest gas has been found in the south with Mississippi Clocking in at 3. 32. Aaa finding the highest prices in the western states. In california, 5. 13, and youll pay a full 1. 81 more than you would in mississippi. Well talk now with patrick dohan, the head of petrolium analysis at gas buddy. We know that gas buddy is ing a rise in prices in some states this month compared to august of last year. Weve got this drop in other states. What do you make of that . Is there a reason for this . As you look at it, some of these states are now starting to get back beyond where they were a year ago, and unfortunately with gas prices likely to see more upward pressure as the price of Oil Continues to push things up, were going to see more states get into that territory. Ironically out west, as you just mentioned, california some of the nations highest prices, california is not one of the states, a lot of it has to do with refinery issues that happened last year or quite the opposite. There are refinery issues in areas of the south because of the tremendous temperatures weve seen. Some of those areas are now seeing prices high they are year due to sochl me of those snags compared to where they were last year. I do think for all the Inflation D Data that were seeing, unfortunately were going to likely start closing the gap. The National Average today only 0. 13 below where it was a year ago. Got you. It is interesting, though, because were looking at california, for example, i was actually there last weekend and the gas prices caught my eye. Youre saying its still actually lower than it was this time last year there . Californias about 0. 30 lower. If you look at it, theres about 25 states that are seeing higher prices this week compared to last year, and about 25 below that. The only good news really is that only about nine states so far have seen their average gas prices go up beyond what they were a year ago. Again, a lot of this happening b because of saudiled production cuts. Motorists may not see a break at a time of the year when we see gas prices easing. And you have Hurricane Season as well. Get your crystal ball for us, and if you look out at next several weeks or a month even, what should people expect then . I think for the next few weeks, its going to be a bit volatile. Weve seen the price of Oil Move Higher for six straight weeks. Dont expect price relief just yet. I to mid or late september we should see price relief. The key mark is when we switch back to cheaper winter gasoline. That happens september 16th. So between now and then, hold your breath. Hopefully were not see any major hurricanes. More relief should arrive in the fall. Thank you for breaking that town for us. We appreciate it. And new developments today in what could become Donald Trumps fourth indictment as the republican front runner arrives in iowa are other president ial candidates. We have an update next on cnn newsroom. From pep in their step to shine in their coats, when people switch their dogs food to the farmers dog, the effects can seem like magic. But theres no magicnvolved. dog bark its just arter, healthier pet food. Its amazing what real food can do. My cpa told me i wouldnt qualify for the erc tax refund, so i called innovation refunds. Their team of independent Tax Attorneys will work with your cpa to determine if your company is eligible. [whip sound] take the first step to see if your Small Business qualifies. Your Shipping Manager left to find themself. leaving you lost. You need to hire. I need indeed. Indeed you do. Indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. Visit indeed. Com hire [ applause ] the day you get your clearchoice dental implants changes your struggle with missing teeth forever. It changes how you eat, how you feel, and how you enjoy life. It changes your smile and how others smile at you. Clearchoice Network Doctors have changed over 100,000 lives with dental implants, and they can change yours, too. Because a clearchoice day changes every day. Schedule a free consultation. You are in the cnn newsroom. Hi, everyone, im jessica dean in washington, jim acosta has the day off. We are following a Major Development in what could become the fourth indictment of former President Donald Trump. The strongest indication yet coming from former Lieutenant Governor of georgia and cnn contributor jeff duncan. He revealed to cnn today a new subpoena from the Fulton County District Attorney asking him to testify about efforts by trump and his allies to overturn the 2020 president ial election in f georgia. Heres what he had to say. I did just receive notification to appear on t Tuesday Morning at the Fulton County grand jury, and i certainly will be there. I have no expectation as to the questions, and ill certainly answer whatever questions put in front of me and certainly dont want to go any deeper than that to jeopardize and kcompromise