associated with the houthi's weapons storage facilities as well as other weapons used by the houthis to target international shipping lanes. they responded to the strikes saying, we will meet escalation with escalation. those strikes came just one day after u.s. air strikes in iraq and syria. those were in response to the three american soldiers killed in a drone attack in jordan. natasha bertrand joins us now. what can you tell us about the latest round of strikes. >> reporter: this was a significant round of strikes. it targeted 36 targets in 13 locations inside yemen against the houthis. it's part of the larger campaign by the u.s. to try to deter the houthi's capabilities as they target assets in the red sea. this involved strikes on houthi

infrastructure, houthi targets, houthi weaponry and equipment, including radar and equipment, underground storage facilities, things the u.s. and uk believe the houthis have been utilizing to attack commercial shipping. the question is whether it's going to work. secretary of defense lloyd austin said in the statement last night that, quote, this collective action sends a clear message to the houthis that they will continue to bear further consequences if they don't end their illegal attacks on international shipping and naval ve vessels. the u.s. and its allies have been framing these strikes inside yemen as self-defense, because the houthis have been targeting u.s. naval warships, including just last week we should note when a missile came within just one mile of a u.s. warship, roughly eight times closer than they have come before. it forced the warship to use one of its last lines of defenses to

defend itself against this incoming missile. the u.s. clearly very concerned about this. they don't have a great idea at this point of just how many weapons and how much capability of houthis have. it's hard to say just how much the strikes have actually degraded their capabilities. we will see whether this actually deters the houthis long-term. the u.s. will continue taking these strikes as long as the houthis continue their attacks. >> natasha bertrand in washington, thank you so much. the united nations security council will meet tomorrow to discuss the recent u.s. strikes. russia's foreign minister says they requested the council to meet and criticize the u.s. for inflaming conflict and sowing destruction in the middle east. russia continues its own war in ukraine. let's go now to ben wedeman in jordan. middle eastern countries, how are they reacting to the latest

strikes? >> reporter: specifically, victor, the houthis said that they will continue undownaunted a result of the latest strikes. they will continue to target navigation in the red sea, specifically, they say, navigation heading toward israel until israel stops its war in gaza. they have had a huge impact on international shipping. four of the five largest commercial shipping companies have now diverted their shipping -- they no longer go through the red sea or the suez canal. they go around africa. that also includes british petroleum. so the yemenis will continue on like this. they have been able to overcome enemies stronger. between 2015 and 2022, a

saudi-led coalition was trying to defeat the houthis. in the end, they essentially gave up and the houthis emerged stronger than ever before. the iranians are condemning these strikes saying that the united states and the uk, which are the major partners in this coalition in the red sea, are fuelling what they say are chaos, disorder, insecurity, and instability. >> ben wedeman, thank you. >> the us has been clear that their goal is to avoid a larger conflict. joining us now, lieutenant general mark hertling and kimberly dosier. general, let me start with you. no one knows exactly where the line is that would escalate this beyond attacks in iran. the u.s. has taken that off the table. what else do you think the u.s. must avoid if they do not want to escalate this to a broader

scale? >> that's a big one. it's a constant weighing of options. the administration has said from the very beginning that they wanted to deter attacks. i did a little homework last night and looked up deterrence. it's actions or actions used by one to discourage another through events that instill doubt or increasing fear of consequences over time. we are in day two of this increased strategy or this increased effort to strategize against the houthis and against the rebels. i think we're seeing some people declare deterrence as a failure. it took 50 years for us to deter the soviet union in europe. this is going to take time. it's going to take more than military action. to get back to your question, what actions could cause an increase in actions by the iranians? i'm not sure. that's where the very difficult thing is of, how do you measure

the effects of both your military, your diplomatic, your informational and your economic deterrence against another nation state? we are attacking right now houthis and pmf forces as a military option. there are other things going on that we're not talking as much about against iran. so far, we are seeing potentially an increase in deterrence. again, it's going to take time to determine whether or not it's sugge successful. >> kim wha, what are other thin going on beyond the strikes to put pressure on iran and pressure on the proxies? >> secretary of state blinken is headed to the region again to try to use the diplomatic track to come to some sort of resolution to get some hostages out and some of the fighting in gaza stopped. that's aimed at stopping the root, the inspiration for a lot of this violence. to pull back to the 30,000 foot

view of this, iran is fighting for influence and supremacy in the region. it's very effectively using its proxies, like the houthis, to portray themselves as david versus the goliath of u.s. and western powers, by using this choke point of the red sea to get the point across. even though the u.s. tried do things like -- it sanctioned settlers, it's cracking down on israeli military violence. the way the message is perceived across the middle east is the u.s. and west are largely bullies enabling israel to strike gaza. one of the ways that that has impacted recently is in the past few days, a u.s. plant in turkey was taken hostage by a single man over the gaza strikes. that kind of incident, the u.s.

intelligence community fears, is going to expand. the plant -- everyone has been freed. but it was a tense time. those incidents could multiply. >> general, i had this angle of this conversation last hour with major general spider marks in which i asked if the houthi conversation and the islamic resistance conversation are one, because they're both backed by iran, let me ask a different angle here, is there any residual impact on the other iranian proxies by the attacks that we see from the u.s.-led coalition on the houthis and the response to the islamic resistance? are they more likely, less likely to attack the u.s. based on response we are seeing? >> yeah, i'm going to say it depends. chime in to what kim said.

i saw your interview. it was a good one. what he was proclaiming -- it goes back to deterrence. if you strike some elements of the popular mobilization forces in iraq and syria and other places, others may say, we're going to fight on until they get struck, too. that's why it's part of a campaign plan, as spider was talking about. if you continue to see the houthis in yemen as terrorists, they are doing terrorist action against civilian shipping by use of power for a political end state, and that's the true definition of terrorism, and if you continue to strike them as part of a longer campaign plan, it depends how much you strike them with military, economically, diplomatically, and informationally. right now it appears they have the upper hand because those pmf forces, as i said many times, are spread out all over the middle east. there are hundreds of those small gangs.

if they continue to be struck to the point where they can no longer conduct their operations, or they are deterred from conducting the operations for fear of reprisal, that may have an affect. but again, that's going to take a very long time, because there are hundreds of those groups throughout the middle east. the houthis, as ben said, are a very powerful military force in that region. >> kim, there's this meeting of the u.n. security council meeting tomorrow. russia asked for this meeting. something all of us have discussed over the last couple of years in the context of russia's war or putin's war in ukraine is just how, i get, ineffective the u.n. has been, that nothing has come of the meetings. should we expect anything different of russia standing by iran and calling this meeting? what are you looking for out of the meeting tomorrow? >> just more posturing of the different sides. when you have contrarian positions on the u.n. security

council, you are not going to go anywhere except, perhaps, to come up with a statement that slams somebody for irresponsible violence, if you can win enough actors to your side. i think we're going to see moscow posturing and using this as another example to say to their followers, to the global south, we got beat up for trying to take our territory back, as moscow sees it, in ukraine, and now see the u.s. is doing the same. it's all the same thing. the u.s. is the bigger bully. of course, the u.s. will fight back against that. more posturing, more symbolic statements. but not any resolution to it. >> kimberly, lieutenant general hertling, thank you both. president biden, another landslide victory in south carolina. the first official democratic primary of the 2024 season. signs democrats are pointing to as good news for biden's

campaign heading into the general election. southern california, they will get some torrential rain, life-threatening flooding, mudslides starting today. we have a look at the forecast coming up.

more than 50 people have been killed, more than 370 are still missing as devastating wildfires rip through southern chile. the government has declared states of emergency and curfews in some areas. nearly 100 wildfires are actively burning.

they are impacting thousands of acres, damaging more than 1,000 homes. cnn chile reports at least one person has been detained in connection with the wildfires. parts of southern california are under emergency evacuations. a severe flooding threat is there. local authorities are ready with more than 7 million sandbags to protect from potential flooding. several school districts have canceled classes for tomorrow. we have more from los angeles. >> reporter: officials in los angeles saying there are a few ways to prepare. avoid unnecessary travel. have an emergency kit ready to go. stay informed. go to your local fire station before the storm to maybe pick up some of the sandbags if you live in an area where it normally floods. look behind me. a lot of people have been coming throughout the day to pick up those sandbags and to fill them up. that's the before the storm.

during the storm, officials are saying that your personal safety should be your first priority. avoiding those areas that normally flood. avoid going into, whether it's in your car or walking through area areas, that are flooded. the currents can be deceiving. officials saying they are preparing and ready to go. take a listen to what the fire chief had to say. >> we have our swift water rescue apparatus boats. we have our teams that will be fully staffed, ready to respond to any water-related emergency. these teams are highly trained in swift water technical rescue. they stand ready to respond on a moment's notice. we have bolstered our air apparatus, our helicopters, air resources, adding skilled pilots and rescue teams to our helicopter fleet. >> reporter: officials say they have crews ready in case there are power outages.

there have been outreach teams that are going to the homeless population to tell them to seek shelter, especially those that are in areas that normally flood or that are near the river. overall, officials telling people to take this seriously, because it could be dangerous. >> thanks so much. we are tracking the storm from the weather center. the rain totals you are talking about would be a lot for most communities. but especially for these parts of california. >> right. some of the areas could get a month's worth of rain in a single day out of this system. the fact that it's around for multiple days is in the a good sign. right now, the heaviest rain is coming down across northern and central california. we are starting to see that rain surge into southern california as well. that will be the case as we go through the day today. these are all of the areas that have the potential for excessive rainfall today. you can see the worst is really right there along the coastline, stretching from san francisco down through l.a.

l.a. specifically and places over towards santa barbara are under a level four out of four high risk. these are exceptionally rare to be issued. they are issued on fewer than 4% of the days annually on average. they account for more than 80% of the flood damage and nearly 40% of flooding deaths. l.a. specifically is under a high risk today but also tomorrow as well. it's that prolonged period of dealing with that extremely heavy amount of rainfall that's going to be one of the biggest concerns not only for flooding but other impacts as well. you have the dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding. you have mudslides, debris flows, especially across burn-scar areas. downed trees and power lines. that's coming from the high wind threat that we have for today. numerous wind advisories, high wind warnings, where you are talking wind gusts around 60 to 80 miles per hour. even this, for the first time ever, the san francisco national weather service office issuing a

hurricane-force wind warning gusts, upwards of 90 miles per hour. going to have big problems there. in addition to the damaging winds, the potential for waterspouts and tornadoes. that stretches from san jose for the day today. widespread rainfall across california, two to four inches. when you start getting along the coast and south, around l.a. and san diego, now you are talking three to seven inches. some of these locations, higher elevation, could be looking at ten inches of rain. the snowfall, this is measured in feet. you are talking the sierras looking at feet, three to five feet of snow over the next few days. that's going to lead to very dangerous travel conditions. >> watching it all. thank you so much. president biden heads to las vegas today for a campaign event ahead of nevada's primary tuesday. last night, the president cruised to an expected but significant win in south carolina. this was his first official

primary victory of the 2024 campaign season. it was also the first time south carolina kicked off the democrat nominating contest. we have more from south carolina. >> reporter: the results of the primary contest not surprising. this state still hugely consequential for president biden. it was south carolina and the black voters in this state that brought his campaign back to life in 2020. that is why he pushed so hard for this state to hold the first in the nation primary. when you speak to black voters across the state, the reviews are mixed. some are really excited about biden. they give him a lot of credibility for being obama's vice president. others have economic anxiety and feel as though routinely voting for democrats they have very little to show for that. then you have pragmatic voters, people who are so concerned about former president donald

trump returning to the white house they think voting for biden is a safe bet. democrats here, they say that they are excited about the black turnout, that they were able to get to rural parts of the state like never before via bus tours and other mechanisms. they say the enthusiasm here from black voters will be mirrors across the country. eva mckend, cnn, columbia, south carolina. nikki haley was a surprise guest on snl last night. >> okay. our next question comes from someone who describes herself as a concerned south carolina voter. >> yes. hello. [ applause ] my question is, why won't you debate nikki haley? >> oh, my god, it's her. the woman who was in charge of security on january 6th. it's nancy pelosi. >> for the 100th time, that's

not nancy pelosi. it's nikki haley. >> are you doing okay, donald? you might need a mental competency test. >> she appeared in the show's opening sketch. maybe you could tell from the accent there, the actors were playing charles barkley and gayle king. the actor playing donald trump was asked why he won't debate, his massive legal fees, his age. nikki haley got it all in last night. how trump's legal team is getting ready for a supreme court showdown after colorado decided he can't appear on the ballot for his role notice capitol insurrection.

i'm daniel lurie and i've spent my career fighting poverty, helping people right here in san francisco. i'm also a father raising two kids in the city. deeply concerned that city hall is allowing crime and lawlessness to spread. now we can do something about it by voting yes on prop e. a common sense solution that ensures we use community safety cameras to catch repeat offenders and hold them accountable. vote yes on e.

more on our top story. u.s. forces destroyed an anti-ship cruise missile in yemen. u.s. officials said the strike was in self-defense to eliminate an imminent threat posed by the houthi missile. separately, the u.s. and uk targeted more than 30 houthis

sites. it follows air strikes in iraq and syria carried out in retaliation for attacks that killed three americans in jordan. the houthis have warned of reciprocal measures. the supreme court will hear arguments on whether or not former president trump can be on the ballot in colorado. right now, both legal teams are preparing their strategies. the case was kicked to the high court after colorado courts determined he should not be allowed to be on the ballot. the similar ruling was made in maine. we have a look at how the attorneys are preparing. >> lawyers who will argue next thursday at the supreme court in the dispute over whether donald trump can remain on the ballot. one of the lawyers, jason

murray, representing colorado voters who want to keep trump off, has never argued about the justices before. jonathan mitchell, representing trump, has some experience but nothing that compares to the record of big-time appellate advocates who appear before the justices in major cases. they simply have not stood at the lectern and faced these nine justices. they moved their operations to washington, d.c. and are tapping into a network of lawyers who can help them prepare for the nine justices and their intense, rapid-fire questions. they are undergoing dry runs known as moot courts. rather than nine judges, there will be four or five lawyers pretending to be the justices. these moot courts work to expose the weaknesses in a case. so a lawyer can amend what isn't working.

there are so many legal issues. these lawyers need to be ready for all manner of question, but they also need to keep the core legal points right at the forefront that will help their respective side. who do attorneys get to help them ensure they can keep some control during these arguments? lawyers who have argued dozens of cases and know how to channel these justices. the ideal candidates are former law clerks for the justices. they understand this bench, which is what lawyers call, quote, a hot bench. yea they will have to watch out for hypotheticals. they have an ability to finger the weaknesses in any case. they have to keep their eye on

key justices at the center of the bench. they can make or break a case and are likely to be crucial to the dispute next thursday. with mree now, former u.s. attorney michael moore. let's start here. there's a way the court can say that the colorado court, their ruling stands, but they do not have to answer themselves the question about whether trump engaged in insurrection or gave aid or comfort to those who did. do you think that at the end of this that the court will say,se, whether he engaged in this? >> there was no process here under the 14th amendment to decide if someone was an insurrectionist. it doesn't spell it out.

there's a later clause that we don't talk about that says congress can enact laws to af affe effectuate this. they are not spelled out clearly. the problem going forward for the people trying to have trump thrown off the ballot is that there was no process to make that determination. in fact, if you look at just anthe congressional process, that's all we have is the impeachment trial. he was acquitted at that trial by the senate. >> that answer takes me two different questions. the first is, what's unfortunate but completely plausible is that we could face in this country a january 6 moment again, right? do you think that this will at least give us as a country some direction so we don't face this

again about who decides? >> i think so. i think probably while the court -- the justices are not really to concern themselves with the outside political implications and that type of thing, they can't -- they don't live in a vacuum. they were there. they know what happened january 6. they know what it meant. they know what it meant to the nation. i think they will make a decision that's clear. i think they will say, this is how we have to move forward or how we interpret this. they placed a lot of reliance -- some of the briefing -- those wishing to have him thrown off the ballot, place reliance on scalia. somehow he was a framer of the constitution. he was not. he was just one of nine about 220 years after the constitution came out. they are trying to tag into thoughts people had. the court is not going to be shackled by precedent. if you think they are bound by precedent, read what they did to roe v. wade. they could come up with

something that fits the scenario. the off ramp for the court will be to say, there's no process in place that congress has put in place to make this determination. we're not going to get into finding he is an insurrectionist. that's not our job. >> you don't think he will be removed? >> i can't imagine he would be. i fear the ramifications if they do. i remember january 6, too. i can't imagine if you pull him off the ballot. that's probably a good lesson as well for democrats. you gotta beat him. if you beat trump, you beat him at the ballot box. that's probably where the energy should go. >> talk about what's happening in fulton county. willis has acknowledged in a filing that she and the top prosecutor in the state election subversion case, nathan wade, had a personal relationship. she says it does not qualify or disqualify her from the case.

first, your reaction to that admission. then, what happens now? do you believe that at a hearing that's coming up, we will hear from d.a. willis? >> i was less concerned really about her relationship. i think that's personal business. what the admission in the filing that caught my attention was that she admitted that she has paid him money. if we look at what he and his law firm have been paid, it's around $1 million total. he is 600 something himself. she's admitted she paid him money and took money to travel. her argument, i also paid for trips for us. he pays. that's a little like a bank robber saying i didn't rob the bank because i made a deposit there. that doesn't float. take the money, you take the money. that's her biggest issue. i think going forward, what it will be -- i feel like that a prosecutor has a duty to avoid the appearance of impropriety. avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest of any kind.

that's to give the public confidence in the outcome of a case. i think that's what her issue is. i think we saw her have to wrestle with that and argue about that when it came to fund-raiser thing. i think this judge could say, look, you just need to step out of this case. this case belongs to the people of fulton county, not just you. i think probably we will hear that at the hearing. whether or not he makes her testify or she stands up and gives her own version, we will see. >> michael moore, thank you. >> glad to be with you. a group of republican governors will join texas governor greg abbott at the border today as the biden administration faces the escalation immigration battle with the governor. we will discuss.

more than a dozen republican governors will join texas governor greg abbott today in a small border town of eagle pass, a city that has become a flashpoint in the immigration crisis. governor abbott is in this escalating feud with the administration over the unprecedented migrant surge. let me start with what you told one of my producers. the stress of the migrant surgeon your office -- a lot of what i read about what you are experiencing is the increase of

workload and cost. let's start there, what this means for your job, your office. >> yes. thank you for having me. this immigration crisis has affected our small border town community immensely. what used to be in my office where we handle nothing but misdemeanors, we would have an average 1,200 to 1,500 cases in a given year. now, given the immigration crisis and operation lone star, we are looking at a caseload of almost more than 4,000 cases estimated in a year now. given the fact that we are quadrupling the amount of work we need to do, we have to have the resources in order to do that job. that goes from support staff to court staff to law enforcement and everybody in the chain. >> operation lone star is this border security mission that governor abbott started three

years ago now, almost three years ago. you say the increase, is that specifically related to now prosecuting these as criminal trespass as migrants come across the border? >> that's correct. operation lone star has increased our workload. the primary amount of cases that are coming through are going to be the criminal trespass cases. however, it doesn't just stop on the criminal trespass side. it continues into our felony side. it goes into human trafficking. it goes into the increased drug trafficking and everything in between. everything has exponentially grown given we have more coming through our community. >> despite the increased workload, i read that you support operation lone star. is that right? >> that is correct.

i actually am the project director here. >> tell me why. >> our community needs assistance. nobody was paying attention to us for years while this immigration crisis was going on. we consistently asked for help. operation lone star has been one of the only saving graces that we have had in our community. given the fact of whatever side of the aisle that you believe you are on, our community was impacted. our law enforcement community is inpa impacted. our first responders are impacted. our hospital beds get filled up with a few people. when you have thousands of people coming through your community, many need medical services, that puts our local citizens out of the way. we are about 2 1/2 hours from a major city. the stress it puts on our community is immense. something that people don't

understand is that we have, unfortunately, a lot of fatalities that come because of this immigration crisis. either it be from drowning or heat exhaustion. that puts a toll on our resources. we are running out of places to hold bodies. >> let me ask you about shelby park. this is this park in eagle pass. a little shy of 50 acres there along the border where texas state officials have now taken over and have essentially banned border patrol from operating largely inside the park. what's your view of that? from what i read, the people who live there are not happy with it. from a legal perspective, it's the authority of the federal government to enforce immigration laws, but the state has taken over this area in the middle of your county, or the edge of your county.

>> correct. a lot of people need to understand that as a prosecutor, i need to make sure the laws are upheld in my community and my citizens are protected. for a long time, we were left with just deal with it. the fact of the matter is, governor abbott and this operation is taking action. some people may not agree with it. some people may have issues with what it appears to be. however, the federal government continues to work down here on the border. remember, shelby park is a park. it's a small piece of land. we have an entire border that we need to protect and work on, which they continue to do. however, this is the only time that something is getting done. it may not look pretty. it may not look nice. i agree that at a minimum, it's bringing the attention of the rest of the united states to come and say that we need some assistance down here. >> the fear is that there will be in standoff between officials

on the ground, state and federal. we know that the department of homeland security says they are demanding access to this. the law does not give them authority over 99.9% of the border and immigration laws. it gives them authority over all of it. thank you so much for being with me ahead of this event that's happening at the park later today. we are hours away from the biggest night in music. an executive producer for the grammys is promising a night of surprises.

two leading candidates for senate. two very different visions for california. steve garvey, the leading republican, is too conservative for california. he voted for trump twice and supported republicans for years, including far right conservatives. adam schiff, the leading democrat, defended democracy against trump and the insurrectionists. he helped build affordable housing, lower drug costs, and bring good jobs back home. the choice is clear. i'm adam schiff, and i approve this message. the producers of the grammys say that it's going to be full of surprises. the show will be live from l.a. the producer promising some memorable performances. if the artists can get there in time. we have more.

>> reporter: music's biggest night is one big concert. >> you never know what's going to happen. >> reporter: nail biting for the executive producer. >> i say doing these shows is like running off a cliff and hoping that the parachute opens. >> reporter: last year, beyonce missed her first award, stuck in l.a. traffic. as was opening act bad bunny. nearly throwing off the whole show. >> then it happened that you can see as the show starts, he is pulling his jacket as he begins, because he literally -- we went -- somebody drone down the traffic in the golf cart and drove him and he got there with seconds to go. first time she's been on the grammys. >> reporter: in a first, u2 will perform and present from the sphere in los angeles. taylor swift could set a grammy

record. but will we see her on stage? >> she's got a show in japan a few days later. only three artists in the world have won album of the year three times. stevie nicks wonder, frank sinatra and taylor. if she was to win this year, that's the first time anyone won four. she will be a big part of it as she always is dancing in the audience, enjoying herself and having a great time. >> reporter: a moving 16-minute in memorium is planned. expect unplanned surprises, too. like that awkward shot that went viral last year. >> i think it was really unfair. i watched them, because i have 20 cameras where i sit. they were dancing, having the time of their lives. it was unlucky for that one moment. >> reporter: he says prepare to be shocked by the final presenter of the night. >> an absolute global icon. i think jaws will drop to the

floor. people will be on their feet. the only condition they gave is that it's a surprise.

two leading candidates for senate. two very different visions for california. steve garvey, the leading republican, is too conservative for california. he voted for trump twice

and supported republicans for years, including far right conservatives. adam schiff, the leading democrat, defended democracy against trump and the insurrectionists. he helped build affordable housing, lower drug costs, and bring good jobs back home. the choice is clear. i'm adam schiff, and i approve this message. how did martha stewart go from multimedia bars? find out tonight on "the many lives of martha stewart." >> there case is about lying. lying to the fbi. lying to the sec. lying to investors. that is conduct that will not be tolerated by anyone. >> a decision is made not to prosecute her criminally for insider trading and only charge her with obstruction of justice

and false statements. >> martha stewart is being prosecuted not because of who she is but because of what she did. >> were you surprised by the charges, none of which says insider trading? >> this is not about martha and who she is. yes, it is. it's entirely about that. >> stewart was -- with insider trading but lying to protect herself from the insider trading charges she wasn't charged with. >> there were questions raised by some. is this case being filed to send a message? >> it was an environment where white collar crime was regularly in the news. >> "the many lives of martha stewart" airs tonight at 9:00 right here on cnn. thanks for joining us this morning. "state of the union" is next. ♪