Toward defending our shared democracy. Thats the defining challenge of our times now. And thats your reality check. We had a national tragedy. We had covid. We know for a fact that there are those unwilling to come together. Im not sure its equal blame on all sides. Its not. In this case, but it is notable. John avalon, Thank You. Thank you. You can join jake tapper, Wolf Blitzer and Paula Reed as we remember 9 11, 8 00 a. M. On cnn. And New Day continues right now. Good morning to viewers here in the United States and around the world. It is thursday, september 9th, and i am Brianna Keilar alongside John Berman on this New Day. We begin with Breaking News and what could soon be the most consequential mandate in the country. The nations second largest School District, Los Angeles, set to require Covid Vaccinations for students who are 12 and older who attend inperson classes. The Board Of Education is meeting later today and one member tells New Day that the measure is expected to pass. It would be the most sweeping and aggressive Safety Measure instituted anywhere in america. Children represent about one in four new coronavirus cases in the u. S. We do want to Notah E among alle groups, it hadnt dropped, but now it is rising again. President biden delivers what the White House is calling a major speech on covid tonight. He is expected to layout a new Sixpart Plan which will include an emphasis on extending certain vaccine requirements. Joining us now is one of the members of the Los Angeles unified School DistrictBoard Of Education, Tanya Ortiz franklin. Thank you so much for being with us. Tell us what you are expected to pass today. Good morning and Thank You for having me. Yes, the board this afternoon will look at a resolution where superintendent, interim Superintendent Megan Riley is asking us to approve a Vaccine Mandate for all eligible students without a legal exemption 12 and up. We imagine by second semester, our Middle School and High School Campuses will be absolutely even safer than they are today. Why are you making this decision . You know, as you mentioned, cases are on the rise and children are at risk from the Delta Variant in ways we didnt see last semester. And our responsibility to children and our communities is their safety and wellbeing. We have done Air Filtration upgrades, we have done masking. Were doing weekly testing. Were doing all we possibly can up until the vaccine. After today i anticipate, and i join i hope my colleagues will join me, that we will have the safest standards with all of our students and staff. Actually, the Staff Vaccine was already passed by the board. So by october 15, staff will be vaccinated. So i just believe that our colleagues, our School Board here in Los Angeles, were trying to do everything we possibly can to keep our schools safe. The vaccines are still under Emergency Use Authorization for 12 to 16yearolds. The full Fda Approval for 16 and up, does that play into it at all in terms of timing . Kyou know, its not. We have had school doctors, partnerships with ucla and other medical experts really bringing the board along the science the last several months. Once we got the authorization for the pfizer vaccine, which weve been giving at our School Campuses to our students, staff and families, we understand that the benefits far outweigh the risks and so the Emergency Use Authorization really isnt weighing into our decision here. It is about the access, and that we can provide it in this country to our children. And we want to do that as quickly as possible. What happens with students, i imagine, parents of students who do not want their children vaccinated . Understandably so, for students who dont get the vaccine, who dont have a medical exemption by the spring semester, they will enroll in our independent study program. We have about 15,000 of our over 600,000 students right now currently enrolled in independent study for a variety of decisions and needs of students and families. And if families choose to do that, thats their choice, but on campus, our decision is that students and Community Members will be as safe as possible. Independent study is the option for those who dont get the vaccine. How many do you need to get vaccinated at this point to meet your goals . Where are you vaccinating 12 to 16yearolds . How many more do you need to get the shot . Our team has done the number crunching. We anticipate just based on what were hearing so far, and we have a great system where students is and staff are letting us know their Vaccination Rates. We have a ways to go. We have quite a ways to go. We anticipate at least 150,000 vaccine doses needing to be administered, potentially more, depending on the information were getting from our students and families. But we have the doses in l. A. County and we have the Staff Capacity and the time and a week by Week Plan working with our School Staff and our Community Partners to get this done by The End of first semester. Talk to people in different generations. They remember showing up at their schools and lining up to get Polio Vaccines in the gym. Wasnt at all controversial at that point. Its become clearly more so. Tanya ortiz franklin, Thank You for being with us this Morning A. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Today President Biden is facing hard truths about the coronavirus as he outlines the Road Map in a major speech geared toward ending the pandemic. The White House promising specific goals that will be laid out as part of a Sixpoint Plan. Joining us now to talk about this is Kasie Hunt, Cnn Anchor and chief national affairs analyst. Welcome. Im so excited to introduce you on air. Ive known you for years and im thrilled to have you here. Im thrilled to do this with you. Makes it more fun. Im sitting right here. Sorry. John and i have also known Each Other for a long time. Ive been watching the early mornings for so long, john. Its great to finally be on with you. Thank you. Ill go away now. Ignore me. I played softball with her. Whatever, berman. Lets get down to business. So, theres this the president has a plan hes putting out, hes giving a big speech. What are you zeroing in on here . I think the reality here for the White House is that they have to demonstrate that they have a plan to deal with this. Looking at these worldwide maps of covid, you can see very clearly in color just how difficult of a time were having here in the United States in battling this virus, even though we have better Vaccine Access than almost anyone else. So i think the president knows and his team has said since he stepped into office that the number one thing hes going to be judged on is the job that he is doing fighting this pandemic. And right now people are taking their kids back to school. Theyre worried about closures. Theyre nervous about Mask Mandates. It does not feel if you are living here like we are past this pandemic, and if were not, Thats Something Biden is going to have to answer for in the midterms and eventually potential reelection bid. Sanjay said to us yesterday, kasie, if you told him a year ago we would have this Hospitalization Number that we have, 101,000 hospitalized just after labor day, he would have said, oh, it must mean the vaccine didnt exist or they didnt come up with a vaccine. But we did, and theres still 101,000 people hospitalized. Jen psaki was on, i asked about the school Vaccine Mandate. She said good for them. I wonder if the White House is going to lean into more this idea of requiring vaccinations. They talked about businesses being able to mandate vaccines. Weve seen this fight playing out in florida. I think there is a sense among a lot of politicians, certainly people i talk to on capitol hill, the more big companies essentially say to americans, hey, you want to come to work today, you have to get a vaccine, the more success the country as a whole will have getting the Vaccination Rate up. Weve already seen some companies go to war essentially with governors who are saying, no, youre not allowed to do that. Just look at the cruise lines, ron desantis, the governor of florida. I think youre going to see the White House trying to walk a careful line here. They know that in some places where they have to win some of these tougher elections, in the midterms coming up, this is a difficult topic in some cases, but on the other hand, they also know that the reality demands that we get this rate up and these Case Rates down, both, of course, for the Health And Safety of all americans. But also for political reasons we were just walking through. I want to ask you about something thats kind of popping today, which is President Biden has demanded the resignations of a number of appointees. These are political appointees to service academies. Westpoint or the naval academy. These are you look at a lot of these names, obviously theyre very politically aligned with the president. Kellyanne conway, sean spicer. I wonder what you think about this, if this is something that actually is there going to be any blowback, do you think . Well, this is one of those tricky situations, brianna, where there are definitely some names on this list where, if youre the biden administration, youre President Bidens national security team, you think about sean spicer, the role he played, kellyanne conway. Other names include h. R. Mcmaster, those who served many years in the national security community. One thing that might be worth pointing out, what is the precedent here . The precedent is these people do serve out their terms and oftentimes the outgoing administration will make these appointments at The End so that their influence continues or the Trump Administration still in office was doing this. I think we might be focused on what is the precedent here. Now, that said, of course, President Trump broke all of these norms and we know that many of these people he put on these boards dont necessarily bring that expertise to the table. Unprecedented who he put on. Exactly. So, you know, i think clearly theres going to be some blow back here. At The End of the day, the president is able to demand these resignations, is able to fire these people it seems, although obviously the push is for these folks to insist, no, were not going to do it, were not going to resign voluntarily. All right. Kasie, you have to stick around for us because we happy to. We have not gotten enough of you here on your debut on cnn. Cnn has learned that the taliban is allowing 200 people this includes many americans to leave afghanistan on a flight. Lets talk about this now with sam kiley. Sam, what can you tell us about this . Do we know who is on this plane . Reporter well, we know from qatari officials, a qatari airliner that is currently on the ground in kabul, due to fly back here to doha, effectively a charter rather than a scheduled airliner. There were 200 foreigners on it. We understand some of them are americans. Some are other Coalition Partners from the past. We dont know if any afghan nationals are on this flight or whether its restricted entirely to foreigners who want to leave the country. But it is part of these efforts led by qatar to reopen kabul international airport, part of the attempts to normalize Afghanistans Place in the world in order to try to encourage the taliban government to take a more moderate line, although after the allmale, almost entirely culturally and religiously Homogeneous New government announced by the taliban, a lot of those hopes have been not quite dashed, but certainly waning fast. This, however, a significant step forward. We dont know yet whether there will be a return to actual commercial flights, but it is clear that the taliban making good, it seems, on their promise to allow foreign nationals at any rate to leave the country, brianna. Sam kiley live for us from doha. Thank you so much for that report. Ahead, the capitol is on alert because next week there is going to be a rightwing rally. So see which lawmakers are declining invitations to it. Plus, antimask parents caught on camera laughing and heckling a student while he talked about his Grandmothers Coronavirus Death at a School Board meeting. He joins us ahead. And rejecting the release of his assassin. Ethyl kennedys explanation ahead. I got it, you got it i want it, you want it when i want it, youve got it when you want it, i got it, i got it, yeah when they want it we got it, yeah its time for the biggest sale of the year, on the new Sleep Number 360 smart bed. It helps keep you effortlessly comfortable by sensing your movements and automatically responding to both of you. And, its Temperature Balancing to help you stay comfortable all night. It even tracks your circadian rhythm, so you know when youre at your best. In other words, its the most energybuilding, wellnessboosting, parentpowering, proven quality nights sleep weve ever made. Dont miss the final days where all smart beds are on sale. Save 50 on the new Sleep Number 360 limited edition smart bed. Plus, 0 interest for 48 months. Ends monday. Liberty mutual Customizes Car Insurance so you only pay for what you need. How much money can liberty mutual save you . One two three four five 72,807 72,808. Dollars. Yep. Everything hurts. Only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Age is just a number. And mines unlisted. Try boost® High Protein with 20 grams of protein for muscle health. Versus 16 grams in ensure High Protein. Boost® High Protein also has key nutrients for immune support. Boost® High Protein. Life is full of surprises when you least expect it. woman laughs and open. What happened to all your things . I know you needed a place to study, so. And other times, it pays off knowing what to expect. At university of phoenix, you can count on fixed, affordable tuition from the moment you enroll to the day you graduate from your program. Learn more about our Tuition Guarantee at phoenix. Edu congress is about to return with a crowded and busy month ahead, and its not just the Biden Agenda thats at stake. Cnn congressional Correspondent Lauren Fox is here at the Magic Wall to explain to us. So, just give us a sense of what congress has on its plate. Well, look, i think busy doesnt even begin to describe what congress has ahead, brianna. They have a slew of deadlines. Theyre going to be working really around the clock. Look, the senate comes back next week followed by the house the following week after that. But they are already very busy doing some of their work and thats because the house has imposed this September 15th deadline. Thats when they want to be finished writing this Democraticonly Bill known as the reconciliation bill. Its really going to reimagine Health Care in the country, family paid leave and rewrite the tax code. It will be marked up in the house ways and means committee. That is one piece of the democratic agenda. This is a 3. 5 trillion bill that is already experiencing a lot of headaches over in the u. S. Senate because senator Joe Manchin, a moderate democrat over there, is arguing that that Price Tag is simply too high. So, brianna, expect a lot of negotiations because pelosi wants to bring the bills to the floor relatively close together, and she has already given her moderates a promise to bring that big bipartisan bill that already passed the senate on infrastructure to the floor of the house by september 27. So that doesnt give them much time. And we should just note also that the government runs out of funding on september 30th. So on october 1st, youd have a Government Shutdown if democrats and Republicans Cant agree to fund the government. Thats a lot stacking up in just the next couple of weeks. Lots of deadlines. Theres also some openended issues that are going to keep congress busy. That is exactly right. Look, we expected the president is going to speak today about what his plan is on coronavirus. That could be a major and important feature of what congress might need to be looking at. We also know that congress wants to do some oversight about what happened in afghanistan. Do they need to do more on the Visa Front . Do they need to do more in terms of congressional hearings to understand what went wrong as the u. S. Exited from that country in its 20year war . Expect thats going to be a focus for a lot of members. Its not just the fiscal deadlines. Its also the fact that they have to deal with those other issues. We also have an important deadline of the debt ceiling, and the u. S. Treasury secretary Janet Yellen sent a note to Congress Yesterday saying that she didnt know an exact date for when that needed to be raised, but the anticipation is its going to come sometime in mid october and that is going to be a bruising fight for republicans and democrats because democrats are arguing republicans need to help them out with that. Republicans are arguing democrats just need to go it alone on the debt ceiling, brianna. Yeah, the debt ceiling, okay. Come on, people, its not like you say im not going to pay the credit card. You have to address the spending if thats what you want to do. You dont just say, im not paying. Lauren fox, Thank You so much for that. All right. We want to bring back Kasie Hunt for her Secondever Appearance on cnn. The first was roughly 17 minutes ago, so its great to have you back, kasie. Nice to see you. Cant emphasize how important this moment is for Joe Biden and the biden administration. On The One hand you have covid which we just spoke about, the president speaking later today and White House officials will tell you everything politically and policy wise depends on getting covid under control. But then you have the specific legislative agenda which very much hangs in the balance this month. Yes, the bipartisan infrastructure, but then this overall reconciliation plan, 3. 5 trillion over ten years. And Joe Manchin says, i aint going that high. Right now im only willing to go 1 Trillion or 1. 5 trillion. How does this book end, kasie . John, i think its important this think about this in the big picture. Because for the biden administration, i dont think there is a more critical time for the biden presidency. This is the next few months their only shot to actually get this definitive legislative agenda, which is really a sweeping change. I mean, one member of congress described it to me when i was chatting with him yesterday as the best chance since f. D. R. s new deal to remake the social safety net. So it is make or break. All of those deadlines, of course, are going to be Pressure Points around this. I think what we need to be focusing in on there is a lot of Nervo Nervousness on capitol hill. Theyre taking the temperature to reassure them, yes, they have their priorities in mind and to feel them out. Okay, what are your issues here . Because not only do they have to worry about Joe Manchin. Obviously they need every single vote, democratic vote in the senate. They also have to worry about the House Of Representatives where they have a lot of democrats who are really nervous about losing their seats come the midterm elections. And theyre going to have to do a lot of work to keep that incredibly narrow majority in the house together to get this done. I think the overall sense here, and i know you all have touched on this, but my reporting suggests that the White House strongly believes that at The End of the day theyre going to get it done. Theyre going to get the sweeping plan done because they have to because the alternative is simply too difficult for them to wrap their heads around. It would be such a disaster for them to fail to get this across the finish line, that that pressure would be enough to get everybody together. But i think as you point out, weve got a really long way to go here, and a lot of potential places for the White House and democrats in congress to trip up. All right. Because this is your first day with us, we want to make it as painful as possible. So, were not going to let you get through this without a little bit of Word Association so that everyone in the new Day Family can get to know you a little better. Im going to start. 4 00 a. M. Im late if its 4 00 a. M. And im late for something. Well see if that holds. Okay, the trail. What would you say about the trail . Barbecue. Pick your favorite food, one of My Favorite Things about the Campaign Trail. Marble hallways. You and i made the mistake of wearing high heels on those floors. Any aspiring journalist go straight to the sneakers. Brianna used to wear clogs. Rubber sole clogs. So attractive. Whats your Pet Peeve . My Pet Peeve, that is a great question. I dont think i can actually say it in public for fear that my husband will not speak to me again. Wow. Thats intriguing. We have to have you back for sure after that. All right, favorite team. The baltimore orioles. Lets go, os. Ive been a fan for my whole life. My dad grew up in the baltimore area. Its been a long road, but were lifelong fans, or i am for better or worse. Long road but loyal. Okay, mars. Mars is the name of my son, also a planet. I didnt realize when we named him we would be saying that on the phone. We love mars very much. Wolf blitzer. Wolf blitzer, a legend. I always think about Him Inat tiananmen square. I cant believe im here. Part of the wolf pack. The anyone asks you how youre doing, strong. Strong. Babes. The Bad News babes are the softball team, we play the Members Of Congress every year. The throw down has begun. We are out practicing on the field. And let me tell you, ladies of congress, we are looking pretty good. Okay, john, kasie is the ringer. I cant even tell you. This one year we played and she actually sprained her ankle in warm ups for the game. Did we lose that year . I dont remember if we lost that year. Im just saying we were very worried. We won so many times that basically Members Of Congress threatened to stop playing against us unless the rules were tweaked to make it apparently more fair. So you think reporters are competitive. Wait till you meet Members Of Congress. Never forget that. They dont like to lose. Its great to have you. Lets do it all again. Hopefully we didnt scare you too much. Absolutely not. Cheers. Love having you, kasie. Coming up, antimask parents seen laughing at a high School Student as he is discussing his grandmothers covid death during a school mask debate. Were going to have that student joining us live next. Plus Governor Gavin Newsom pulling out all the democrats heavy hitters to try to battle the california recall effort. Will it be enough to sway voters in this fight for his political life . If youre 55 and up, T Mobile has plans built just for you. Whether you need a single line or lines for family members, youll get great value on americas most reliable 5g network. Like 2 lines of unlimited for just 27. 50 a line. Only at tmobile. Hey google. Usaa is made for the safe pilots. Like mac. Who can come to a stop with barely a bobble. With usaa safepilot, when you drive safe. You can save up to 30 on your auto insurance. Usaa. What youre made of, were made for. Get a quote today. Its moving day. And while her friends are doing the heavy lifting, jess is busy moving her Xfinity Internet and tv services. It only takes about a minute. Wait, a minute . But what have you been doing for the last two hours . Delegating . Oh, good one. Move your xfinity services without breaking a sweat. Xfinity makes moving easy. Go online to transfer your services in about a minute. Get started today. An 11th Grader in Tennessee Advocating for a Mask Mandate was mocked at a School Board meeting after he described how his grandmother died from covid. In a video posted online, a woman behind the student laughs, and others in the audience seem to engineer. Jeer. Im worried about my family. If i get covid, im going to bring it to my family. I talk to my grandparents a lot. Theyre higher risk than me, so i dont want to give them covid. This time last year my grandmother who was a former teacher at the Rutherford County School system died of covid because Someone Wasnt wearing a mask. This is a very this is a very shut up. This is shut up. Hey, guys. Were here to act professional. Please, go ahead. Thank you. This is an avoidable issue, and by not wearing masks in schools, its irresponsible. Were killing people. This is not something that we should be doing. For the education of our students, Thank You. Joining me now is the student that you just saw speaking, Grady Knox and his classmate will severn. Grady, Thank You so much for coming on. I have to tell you my heart hurts when i hear the responses you were talking about, obviously something that is so incredibly meaningful and painful. And i just wonder what was going through your mind during that moment. My brain was just like all over the place because i could hear them behind me, but it felt like the two things werent connected because i couldnt understand why people would, like, react like that to a statement that i made thats like so personal, you know. Incredibly. And so you were just trying to make a point of what was at stake, right . Exactly. So, will, i know that you have been advocating for masking in schools for months now. Tell us about what has motivated you to speak up. Well, Thank You for letting us Come On the air today. This is an issue that affects not just us, but students across the nation. Recently over the past few weeks, ive seen that a lot of students, not just at County Schools, but across tennessee have had to make a decision, and that is to prioritize their personal health or their academic wellbeing because right now a lot of the options available to students are limited. 20 of students were quarantined just last week alone. Because tennessee has no Distance Learning they are receiving no realtime instruction. So sometimes theyre hesitant to report symptoms or contacts outside of school for Fear Of Falling behind in class. And Thats Something no student should have to do. And so the County Schools there sent cnn a statement about masking policies that says this. We required masks last year, but the board voted previously to make masks recommended, but not required for this school year. It will be up to the board to decide whether to make any changes to the mask policy. Grady, what is it like being in school . What is the environment like . Its really weird because youll walk into a class some days and half the kids will be gone from Contact Tracing because theres so many kids that are getting covid and so many kids that sit around with them that its spreading so quick that, like the other part is the Vice Principals, The One thats Contact Tracing everyone, so kids will get called to the vice Principals Office and everyone is just like, oh, i guess theyre getting contact traced. And the Vice Principal knows this and has to specify when its Contact Tracing and when its not because students stress out about this. Of course. I mean, thats the tell if its one person doing it, right . You know, you said you were sort of disconnected from the moment, grady, as you were saying what you said about your grandmother and people behind you were laughing. You know, now you have this perspective. Youre not disconnected. You know what they were doing. What is your message to those parents who laughed at you . I just hope that they see that they have given me this chance now to speak in front of the entire nation and tell about how i believe masks are something that is really essential for schools to stay open. And i hope that they see that this is really just benefiting me and people that believe in masks all across the country. Well, grady, im so sorry for your loss and for the loss of your family of your grandmother. I know she would be very proud of you for what you are doing. And will severn as well, Thank You so much for coming on and talking to us, both of you. Thank you. Thank you. Impressive young men there. Right. Up next, Rfks Widow said she believes her Husbands Killer should remain behind bars, not paroled. The Assassins Attorney joins us live. Payday, payday monday, payday tuesday, payday wednesday, payday thursday, payday friday, payday saturday, payday sunday, Payday Payday, Payday Payday listerine® cleans virtually 100 . Helping to prevent Gum Disease and bad breath. Never settle for 25 . Always go for 100. Bring outhe bold™ you booked a cozvrbo mountain cabin. [laughs] with a kitchen where everyone can chef. [laughs] a Family Room where you can let your hair down. And a backyard that is a treelined living room. But the Thing Theyll remember forever . Watching the game together once again. The time for getting back together is now. Find it on vrbo. Someone once told me, that i should get used to people staring. So i did. Its okay, you can stare. When youre a twotime gold medalist, it comes with the territory. My auntie called me. She said uncles had a heart attack. I needed him to be here. Your Heart Isnt just yours. Protect it with bayer aspirin. Be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. I was drowning in student loan debt. I was in the process of deferring them, paying them. Then i discovered sofi. Completely changed my life. Lower interest rate. My principal is going down. Sofi is a place where you can start to tackle those money goals today. Compared to where i was three years ago, im kinda killing it. Aaaand welcome back to guess the price. Sal. What do you do . Oh, im a retired postal worker. Fantastic. Are you ready to play . Oh, heck yeah. Ok johnny, tell him about eargo. These top of the Line Hearing Aids from eargo are straight out of the future. Theyre rechargeable and virtually invisible in your Ears Host ok sal, how much do you think they cost . Oh gee i dont know. Um er 5000 . Well, actually for you they dont cost anything holy heck. Thats because federal employees, retirees and their families get these life changing Hearing Aids at no cost. Holy heck and you dont need to visit a doctor because they ship right o your home and they come with lifetime remote support. Convenient right . Heck yeah. Heck yeah heck yeah eargo 5 is here. Our Latest Device that allows you to personalize your hearing experience. Get yours today. And if youre an active or retired federal employee you may qualify to get eargo at no cost to you. Ethel kennedy, wife of robert f. Kennedy, says her Husbands Assassin should not have the opportunity to terrorize again. She said his in humanity has caused enough suffering for her family and the country, and Tom Foreman is joining us now for a closer look. This got a lot of attention when he was recommended for parole. Yes, like a bolt from the blue. Think about it this way. If Robert Kennedy had not been assassinated, and if hed been elected president and he had a very real chance of doing that, everything we know about our Politics Today could be different. Now the question is how much should that or should that not be considered when you think about the fate of the man who pulled the trigger . He should not have the opportunity to terrorize again. Those words in a written statement from 93yearold Ethel Kennedy who scrawled in her own hand at the bottom, he should not be paroled. Who is she talking about . Sir Han Sir Han who assassinated her husband a half century ago. I cant remember the exact moment. My body, whatever it was located, and i dont remember any Human Being i dont remember any of that. Reporter the palestinianborn gunman who said he remembers almost nothing of the attack has been denied release more than a dozen times. Now the Twoperson California Parole board wants him out from behind bars, creating a firestorm. I thank all of you. Reporter in 1968, kennedy had just won california in his quest to become the democratic nominee for president. He was celebrating at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles when he passed through the kitchen and shots rang out. His condition, i dont know, his Wife Ethel was with him. Reporter kennedy was mortally wounded. The gunman was grabbed. His name appears to be serhan. Reporter he was convicted to die. I was facing death row. Reporter how many months later was that . I would say maybe a year, two years. Reporter in the 1970s, his sentence was commuted to life behind bars. Six of the children said in late august he should stay there. Noting this wasnt just a personal tragedy. He committed a crime against our nation and its people. Yet two of kennedys surviving sons support parole, including Robert Kennedy, jr. , who has previously questioned his guilt. Saying he believed his father would also favor release because of his impressive record of rehabilitation. Governor Gavin Newsom will have the final word. He wont say how hes leaning, but the only Photograph Youll see in my office is a picture of Bobby Kennedy and my father just days before Bobby Kennedy was murdered. Reporter this is a tricky thing for newsome. Hes facing a Recall Election out there. He has presented himself as a champion of Criminal Justice reform, and he has commuted some other sentences. But its also tricky because of this. When Serhan Serhan committed this murder, Gavin Newsom was a toddler. So the sernse of history for soe people in this country is very strong around this case. And for others it truly is just history that theyre trying to deal with. Tom foreman, great report. Thank you so much. And joining me now is the attorney for Serhan Serhan, angela berry. What do you say to Ethel Kennedy, widow of rfk, who implored california not to release your client. So, good morning. Mrs. Kennedy lost her husband. She lost the father of her children. The country lost an icon. However, we are a country of laws, not a country of emotions. And California Law dictates that if a prisoner has served his minimum period of parole, which serhan has, if that prisoner does not pose an unreasonable current risk of danger to society, the law presumes the person to be released. In terms of a danger to society, does this incentivize wouldbe political assassins to commit atrocities . They can look at this and say, you know what, well get out eventually. You know, whether it incentivizes one person or another, we all condone that sort of behavior. However, its important to remember this was 53 years ago and mr. Serhan committed 49 of those years, the last 49 years, he dedicated to his rehabilitation. And the psychologists and psychiatrists who were employed by the California Department of corrections for over 30 years have given him positive assessments with respect to risk. So this Isnt Somebody who committed a crime and is getting right out. 53 years, over half a century, and hes demonstrated to the board his rehabilitation, including recent correctional officers wrote letters on his behalf and the board was very impacted by the fact that current correctional officers who work with mr. Serhan on a Daytoday Basis stuck their necks out to write letters in support of his release based on the behavior that they see on a Daytoday Basis, as well as being very knowledgeable about the plethora of Rehabilitative Efforts hes made over the last 49 years of his incarceration. Understood, although it is worthy of note that robert f. Kennedy has been dead for all of those years. Again, in terms of rehabilitation. Look, what do you anticipate a decision what decision do you anticipate coming from Governor Gavin Newsom . I dont want to speculate what the governor is going to do. The governor will have 30 days to make that decision after the full Parole Board either accepts, rejects, or amends the recommendation of the twomember panel. We will wait to see what happens. If it does not go in the direction that the panel recommended, that is not our last course of recourse. We can then file documents with the courts. Angela berry, i do appreciate you being with us and answering our questions on this. Thank you very much. Thank you. Coming up, he brought a bear on the Campaign Trail and was served a subpoena in the middle of a debate. We will speak with the republican Hopeful Vying to unseat Governor Gavin Newsom. What happens when we Welcome Change . We can make Emergency Medicine possible at 40,000 feet. Instead of burning our past for power, we can harneness the energy of the tiny electron. Wewe can create new ways to connect. Rethinking howow we communicate to be more inclusive than ever. With app, cloud and anywhere workspace solutions, vmware helps companies navigate change. Faster. Vmware. Welcome change. In the race to succeed, does somebody always have to fail . Lets give everybody a fair shot. Because when that happens, weve all made it. This is wealth. This is worth. That takes wealth. But this is worth. And that thats actually worth more than you think. Dont open that. Wealth is important, and we can help you build it. But its what you do with it, that makes life worth living. Principal. For all its worth. As someone who resembles Someone Else. I appreciate that liberty mutual knows everyones unique. Thats why they customize your car insurance, so you only pay for what you need. [ nautical Horn Blows ] i mean just because you look like Someone Else doesnt mean you eat off the floor, or yell at the vacuum, or need flea medication. Oh, yeah. Thats the spot. Only pay for what you need. Liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty just five days to go now before the california Recall Election, and Governor Gavin Newsom is saving nothing to chance. He is enlisting the help from the biggest names in the democratic party, including former President Obama and Vice President kamala harris. And joining us now is john cox. He is one of the many republican candidates that is hoping to unseat newsome. Sir, Thank You so much for joining us this morning. Great to be with you. Thanks for having me on. As you are well aware, your republican opponent, Larry Elder is very much in first place. Second place is a very distant second at this time. Larry elder is now pushing baseless Voter Fraud allegations. He said this to Reporters Yesterday in Los Angeles. Quote, what i believe is that no matter what they do, and i believe that there might very well be shenanigans as it were in the 2020 election, no matter what they do, so many californians are angry about whats going on, we have a Voter Integrity Board all set up. Most of these are lawyers. So when people hear things, they contact us. Were going to file lawsuits in a timely fashion. This is straight out of the trump playbook. This is straight this is the expressway to the big lie. What do you say about him saying that . Well, im going to give you a slight correction, by the way. Undecided is running away with this race. Mr. Elder may be leading among people who made a decision. Yes. Something like 46 have not made a decision. Mr. Elder can talk about all those things, but im talking about getting housing affordable in this state, fixing homelessness, making sure that we have water and electricity, making sure that we have wildfires under control john, i understand and i want to give you a chance to talk about that. But this is essential. This is the Bed Rock of democracy. We need to talk about this. What do you say about him raising the spectre of this is a rigged election, and im going to file lawsuits . National politics doesnt have anything to do with this. We had an election in november when a lot of wild radical initiatives that Gavin Newsom endorsed, like a 10 Billion tax increase, like ending cash bail. We should talk about is this okay . This kind of behavior, raising the spectre you said national no, no, you said national politics has nothing to do with this. Okay, in this california recall race, he is raising the spectre of voter integrity. I was answering your question, and that is that all of these initiatives were defeated in november in california. And if the elections were not valid in november, im sure the liberal majority in sacramento would have made sure that those initiatives passed. I dont know what happened in other states, but those elections in california were probably fine in november and i think theyre going to be fine now. I think the give and take between Newsome And Elder is all about all these issues that really dont matter as much to the people of california. They care about water, electricity, the cost of living, the tax burden. They care about having an affordable home for their families. They care about homelessness. These are the issues that we ought to be addressing. Im a businessman. Im not a radio personality. Im not a provocateur. Im not a politician. Im someone who is running for governor to fix this state, to get this state back to a livable level. And mr. Newsome is running around trying to scare everybody, claiming that the governor candidates are all going to kill everybody and hes not addressing these very important issues and they need to be addressed, they need to be fixed. I hope people think about having a Business Person that has developed a successful business 40 years is going to fix this problem. Im the only cpa running, the only businessman and im running to fix all these problems in california mr. Newsome has made worse. Last month you were served a subpoena on the debate right. You know, it was quite a moment. You were on the Debate Stage with other candidates there in this republican recall. A political Advertising Firm alleges that you failed to pay 100,000 in political ads and other costs from your 2018 gubernatorial run against newsome. What is the latest on this . Everybody got paid from that campaign except one bad apple, this guy who decided to make a Big Show at a debate. You know, im not going to pay people who do a bad job, and im not going to do that as governor. Im going to make sure that every penny thats spent in california is spent efficiently and productively. Did that work for you, though . You said he did a bad job. But he put in the work . He rendered service to the campaign and then didnt bill until after the campaign was over and billed an excessive amount. But the point is mr. Newsome pays a Software Company50 Million for software that didnt even work. He paid blue cross blue shield for Vaccine Management that was horrendous. He paid the people in the Employment Division untold amounts of money for software and for work, and the Employment Division has a huge backlog and paid out 30 Billion in fraud. Im not going to apologize for being a businessman who makes sure that people who render bills and who dont do the work dont get paid. And im going to watch every penny of Californias Money as much as i watch my own. Did you have a contract with the firm . Of course. Yes, absolutely. Absolutely. And this is the only vendor that did not get paid. Listen, i can afford to pay him. I did not pay him because he billed excessively and after the fact, and he did that he got paid a lot of money by the campaign. Trust me on that one. One bad apple, and you guys make a big deal of it because thats what he wanted. He wanted that to be the case. Listen, im a businessman who has been in business for 40 years and been a success. And i wouldnt have done that if i didnt pay people. I pay everybody who renders good service. But im going to make sure that the people of california get a fair deal. Im going to make sure that we cut taxes, that we dont tax people excessively. Im going to make sure that every penny in california is disclosed and is online. Im going to make sure that we spend every penny efficiently and productively, and thats what i think the people of california want in their leadership. They dont want somebody thats just going to rollover for a vendor who didnt do the job right. All right. Just days away now. Well see what they think. John cox, Thank You so much. Thank you. Great to be with you. All right, Breaking News here now. President biden will mandate all federal workers be vaccinated, no option for testing out of it. We have the details next. jackie ive made progress with my Mental Health. So when i started having unintentional Body Movements called tardive dyskinesia. I ignored them. But when the twitching and jerking in my face and hands affected my day to day. I finally had to say, its not ok. it was time to talk to my doctor about austedo. She said that austedo helps reduce Td Movements in adults. While i continue with most of my Mental Health medications. Vo Austedo can cause depression, suicidal thoughts, or actions in patients with huntingtons disease. Pay close attention to and call your doctor if you become depressed, have sudden changes in mood, behaviors, feelings, or have suicidal thoughts. Common Side Effects include inflammation of the nose and throat, insomnia and sleepiness. Dont take austedo if you have liver problems, are taking reserpine, tetrabenazine, or valbenazine. Austedo may cause irregular or fast heartbeat, restlessness, movements mimicking parkinsons disease, fever, stiff muscles, problems thinking, and sweating. Jackie Talk to your doctor about austedo. Its time to treat td. Td is not ok. Visit askforaustedo. Com. Very good Thursday Morning to you. Im jim sciutto. Hours from now President Biden will address the nation at a critical point in the battle against the coronavirus. Dr. Anthony fauci said this morning the pandemic in this Country Isnt even modestly under control in his assessment. The president hopes these new strategies will rein it in again. Again, biden is expected to layout a Sixpoint Plan to combat the Delta Variant surge. He will make a push toward