Federal judge scolds Trump Administration for not returning wrongfully detained man; why some democrats in Atlanta support school choice program; Ravyn Lenae on soul-inspired sound and upcoming shows.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Tonight, the standoff over that wrongly deported immigrant sent to prison in El Salvador.
00:08The legal showdown between the White House and courts over a mistakenly deported husband and father.
00:14President Trump says he has no plans to have him return to the U.S. despite a unanimous Supreme Court ruling.
00:20So what happens now?
00:22Tonight, the battle is escalating between President Trump and Harvard,
00:26hours after freezing $2 billion in federal funds for the school.
00:30The president is now making a new threat, as top schools indicate they will push back as well.
00:35The chilling scene, a man wearing a gas mask appearing to deploy pepper spray as he forces his way into a courthouse.
00:43Plus, for me, education is not Democrat, it's not Republican, it's not conservative.
00:49Education is a human issue. It is a human right.
00:53The unlikely alliance of black educators agreeing with conservatives on how their hard-earned tax dollars should be spent on their children's education.
01:01It sounds like a movie. Millions of dollars of jewelry snatched from a high-end store.
01:06Investigators are looking into whether they cut their way through a wall.
01:14She's played at Coachella, just broke into Billboard's Top 100.
01:18Tonight, rising star Raven Lanay is here. How she's handling her rising fame.
01:23From ABC News World Headquarters in New York, this is Prime with Lindsay Davis.
01:32Good evening, everyone. I'm Lindsay Davis. Thank you so much for streaming with us.
01:36We do begin with the showdown between the president and the courts,
01:39a true test of powers that will determine the fate of a Maryland man who was wrongly deported.
01:44A federal judge said today that the administration has done nothing to facilitate the return of the husband and father,
01:51Kilmar Abrego Garcia, although the administration admits an administrative error wrongfully sent him to a notorious high-security prison
01:59for terrorists in El Salvador, where the lights are always on and 80 inmates are jammed into a single cell.
02:06That judge said today that every day he is imprisoned is further irreparable harm,
02:10adding, the Supreme Court has spoken, you made your arguments, you lost.
02:14This now is about the scope of the remedy.
02:17Justice Department lawyers said today that they'll facilitate Abrego Garcia's presence in the United States
02:22if he presents at a port of entry, but arguing that they cannot compel his release from prison.
02:28El Salvador's president and Trump ally Nayib Bukele says he won't release him.
02:33The White House maintains that Abrego Garcia is a gang member who entered the United States illegally,
02:38but his rapid deportation without being charged with a crime is raising alarms about rights to due process in this country.
02:45ABC senior political correspondent Rachel Scott leads us off.
02:49Tonight, a federal judge chastising the Trump administration,
02:53saying they've done, quote, nothing to comply with the Supreme Court's order
02:56to facilitate the return of Kilmer Abrego Garcia, a husband and father who lived in Maryland,
03:02before the administration admits he was mistakenly deported to a notorious prison in El Salvador.
03:08This is an image of Abrego Garcia in that high-security mega-prison known as Secon,
03:13his head shaved, dressed in white.
03:16There, 80 inmates are jammed into a single cell.
03:19The lights are always on.
03:20No books, no visitors.
03:22Inmates are never allowed outdoors.
03:24Judge Paula Sinise declaring every day Abrego Garcia spends in that prison
03:29is a day of further irreparable harm.
03:32Today, Justice Department lawyers insisting the administration
03:35is prepared to facilitate Abrego Garcia's presence in the United States
03:39if he presents at a port of entry.
03:41But they argue they cannot compel El Salvador to release him from prison,
03:46even though the administration is paying El Salvador more than $6 million to hold him there,
03:50along with more than 200 other undocumented immigrants.
03:54who they claim, without providing evidence, are members of violent gangs.
03:58The Justice Department pointing to these comments in the Oval Office
04:01from Salvadorian President Nayib Bukele,
04:04a close Trump ally who declared he would not release Abrego Garcia.
04:08Of course I'm not going to do it.
04:10It's like, I mean, the question is preposterous.
04:13How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States?
04:16Today, the judge brushing aside Bukele's words,
04:19saying they are not evidence.
04:21The White House claims Abrego Garcia, who is from El Salvador, is a gang member.
04:25He illegally came into our country.
04:28And so, deporting him back to El Salvador was always going to be the end result.
04:33Bring home and kill our now.
04:35But tonight, the ripple effects of this case being felt across the country.
04:39In Fort Madison, Iowa, Republican Senator Chuck Grassley
04:42confronted by angry constituents at a town meeting.
04:45Are you going to bring that guy back from El Salvador?
04:49Yeah.
04:50Yeah.
04:51Yeah.
04:53Why not?
04:55Well, because that's not a power of Congress.
04:59The Supreme Court said to bring it back.
05:01Grassley insisting it's up to El Salvador to send Abrego Garcia home.
05:05The president of that country is not subject to our U.S. Supreme Court.
05:10Ugh.
05:11To Trump, I'm not the president of the United States.
05:13I'm not the president of the United States.
05:15I'm not the president of the United States.
05:15I'm not the president of the United States.
05:16I'm not the president of the United States.
05:17The crowd's frustration on full display.
05:20These people have been sentenced to life imprisonment in a foreign country.
05:24Right.
05:24With no due process.
05:26Trump obey the Supreme Court.
05:28Trump's not obeying the Supreme Court.
05:30He just ignores them.
05:32Yeah.
05:32And tonight, outside court, Abrego Garcia's wife, Jennifer, an American, pleading for
05:38his return.
05:38I will not stop fighting until I see my husband alive.
05:44She vows to keep fighting for her husband and father of her children.
05:48Rachel Scott joins us now from the White House.
05:50Rachel, what's next for Abrego Garcia?
05:52Well, the judge has now given the Trump administration two weeks to prove that they are facilitating
05:56the return of Abrego Garcia back here to the United States.
06:00But at that point, it will have been three weeks since the Supreme Court first issued
06:04its order.
06:05And for all of that time, Abrego Garcia will be sitting in that prison in El Salvador.
06:10The only thing the family has heard about his condition is what the administration has
06:14said, that he's alive and that he is secure.
06:17Lindsay.
06:18All right.
06:18Rachel Scott for us from the White House.
06:19Thanks so much, Rachel.
06:20Now to a terrifying scene in Texas, a shooting at a high school.
06:25It's an all-too-familiar scene in this country.
06:27Students rushing out of their school after a shooting.
06:30Officials say at least one student was shot and wounded.
06:33This happened at Wilmer Hutchins High in Dallas, nearly one year after another shooting there.
06:39ABC's Maria Villarreal is in Texas tonight.
06:42Tonight, terrified students running out of this Texas high school after multiple shots fired.
06:48We've got an active shooter.
06:50Wilmer Hutchins High School, we do have reports of one student being one shot.
06:54First responders swarming the scene at Wilmer Hutchins High School in Dallas around lunchtime.
06:59The shooter at the school has reportedly run out of the back of the building.
07:03Authorities say four students were injured, three of them shot.
07:07Police still searching for the shooter.
07:10The senior forced to take cover.
07:12We heard a few gunshots and we were still standing there, confused, and then we heard more, saw a few students running, heard a few screams, and we had to go and take cover back in the band room.
07:24Students seen walking out with their hands up, parents desperate for answers.
07:30I'm glad this is my last child in school and I won't have to go through this anymore.
07:35You might wake up one day and your kids be beside you and the next day they're gone.
07:38America's wealthiest and most prestigious university is standing up to the Trump administration.
07:43The White House is raising $2.2 billion in federal aid after the university refused to yield to the administration's demands.
07:51But tonight, Harvard remains defiant.
07:53President Trump is now threatening to strip its tax-exempt status.
07:57ABC's chief national correspondent, Matt Gutman, reports from Cambridge, Massachusetts.
08:00Tonight, 24 hours after Harvard refused President Trump's demands, President Trump escalating his threats against the university,
08:09now suggesting the university should lose its tax-exempt status if it continues its defiance.
08:14The president posting today perhaps Harvard should be taxed as a political entity if it keeps pushing political, ideological, and terrorist-inspired-slash-supporting sickness.
08:23But critics of the president say it's Trump who's playing politics with academic institutions.
08:28What the Trump administration is asking of us is illegal.
08:32It's unconstitutional.
08:33And to submit to the federal government and allow the president to dictate what our faculty teach,
08:40what students are allowed to learn, simply because he likes some viewpoints more than others, you know, it's not sustainable.
08:47The White House freezing $2.2 billion in federal funding to Harvard after the university refused to comply with a series of demands,
08:54including reporting to federal authorities foreign students who commit conduct violations,
08:59submitting to an audit to ensure academic departments have diverse viewpoints,
09:03ending all DEI programs, sharing hiring data with the administration,
09:08and submitting to an audit of admissions data.
09:11The school's president, Alan Garber, writing,
09:12no government, regardless of which party is in power, should dictate what private universities can teach,
09:18whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue.
09:23And tonight, with about $7 billion in federal funds still on the line, Harvard doubling down,
09:29vowing it will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights,
09:34neither Harvard nor any private university can allow itself to be taken over by the federal government.
09:39So with the university saying that it's not going to surrender, where does this go next?
09:44One place it could go is court.
09:46What the Trump administration is doing is illegal,
09:48and the university has a very strong legal position here that the First Amendment and the Civil Rights Act
09:54do not permit what the Trump administration is demanding.
09:57The administration targeting about 60 universities and claims what's driving this is their effort against anti-Semitism.
10:03Harvard says it has taken steps to combat anti-Semitism,
10:06and critics of the president say this is about much more than that.
10:10What actually matters here is, does the American public think that universities matter?
10:15And right now, Harvard has responded not just with a letter to the Trump administration,
10:19but changing its website to show all of the research projects that the faculty and students are doing.
10:24Because ultimately, this is a question for both viewers and just the American people.
10:28Do we want U.S. universities to learn and teach what faculty and administrators think they should,
10:34or what Donald Trump wants us to learn?
10:37And tonight, the acting president of Columbia, also a target of the White House,
10:41addressing the university's efforts to restore $400 million in canceled funding,
10:46saying they're working with the administration,
10:48but would reject any agreement that would require us to relinquish our independence and autonomy as an educational institution.
10:55Our thanks to Matt Guttman. Joining us now is the managing editor of the Harvard Crimson,
11:00the student-run newspaper, Tilly Robbins.
11:02And Tilly, thanks so much for joining us.
11:04Your college, of course, is at the epicenter of this brewing battle between the administration and institutions like yours.
11:10Give us a sense of the mood on campus tonight.
11:14Absolutely. So I'd say the mood on campus,
11:16since President Garber made his announcement yesterday afternoon,
11:19has in some senses been both celebratory and defiant.
11:22I think that, you know, as has been evidenced by student protests, faculty protests,
11:28there is a large contingent within the student body and within the faculty
11:31that was waiting eagerly for Harvard to make some sort of statement,
11:36while at the same time, I think, experiencing trepidation that, you know,
11:40Harvard could go the way of Columbia.
11:42Actions on campus, such as, you know, personnel changes at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies,
11:48provoked outrage from faculty who saw it as preemptive capitulation from Trump.
11:52And I think that this group feels a sense of reassurance now that Harvard is taking action.
11:57At the same time, obviously, no one is unanimous.
12:01The Harvard Republican Club, you know, seems to release a statement saying that
12:07Harvard has no constitutional right to its funding and has fallen victim to ideological capture.
12:13And at the same time, some pro-Palestine students think that Harvard already has not done enough
12:17to protect their speech and to take action against the war in Gaza.
12:20So I would say the student body is perhaps more united than it's been in quite a while
12:25behind President Garber, but at the same time is far from unanimous.
12:29Of course, many of us have seen that $2 billion headline.
12:33What does this mean practically for your school if this funding is taken away?
12:38Yeah, so I think one thing we've started seeing today, researchers have received stop work orders.
12:46Most of that so far has been at the medical school, where many research teams are reliant on federal funding,
12:53and where, you know, both studies and actually faculty and staff positions can be reliant on federal grants
13:01or federal contracts as opposed to directly funded by the university.
13:05At the same time, I think that, you know, Harvard is clearly bracing to weather this kind of storm
13:13and whether that means taking legal action, whether that means diverting funds from elsewhere in the university
13:17to support the continuation of this research.
13:19I think we just don't know what's going to happen next.
13:21You're, of course, a journalist.
13:23Are you concerned at all about doing your job on campus now that everything that's happening
13:27seems to have the attention of the entire country?
13:32I think it's our job to be Harvard's paper of record to serve our readers,
13:36and, you know, we're proud to do that.
13:37We're going to keep doing it.
13:39Harvard Crimson Managing Editor Tilly Robinson, we thank you so much for your time.
13:43Appreciate it.
13:47Next tonight, a top aide to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been put on leave
13:51as part of a leak investigation.
13:54ABC's chief global affairs anchor Martha Raditz joins us now.
13:57Martha, what can you tell us?
13:58Well, Lindsay, Pete Hegseth has been adamant that leaks will not be tolerated in the Pentagon,
14:03but this was surely a huge shock to Hegseth that one of his own top advisors, Dan Caldwell,
14:10has now been kicked out of the building after a leak investigation.
14:14Caldwell was escorted out of the Pentagon today by security and is now on administrative leave.
14:20Caldwell has such close ties to Hegseth that he was his point of contact with the NSC
14:26for strikes on the Houthis in Yemen during that signal chat last month.
14:30Caldwell was on that signal chain.
14:33Of course, Hegseth himself has been under fire for passing on attack plans on the signal chain.
14:38But this leak investigation began after a story about a possible top secret briefing for Elon
14:44Musk was leaked and that a second aircraft carrier would be heading to the Mideast.
14:49But it is unclear, Lindsay, exactly what story led to Caldwell being escorted out of the building.
14:55Lindsay.
14:56All right.
14:56Martha Raditz for us.
14:57Thanks so much, Martha.
14:59Now to that scary situation in the sky.
15:01United Airlines flight with flames spotted shooting from an engine just after takeoff.
15:06The pilot can be heard reporting a possible rabbit strike.
15:09Of course, the question now, how did a rabbit get into the engine before takeoff?
15:13And if not a rabbit, what was it?
15:16Here's Gil Benitez.
15:18Look closely tonight.
15:19That's United flight 2325 packed with passengers bound for Edmonton.
15:24It's right engine in flames after officials say a rabbit made it inside during takeoff.
15:29Uh, yeah, I was involved thinking that the rabbit through the, uh, number two.
15:33Rabbit through the number two.
15:34That'll do it.
15:35All right.
15:35Harrowing video from inside the plane shows the midair scare.
15:38Large flames shooting from the engine.
15:41The Boeing 737 in the air for just 75 minutes before turning around.
15:45We, uh, lost the right motor.
15:47The pilots at one point thinking the fire compromised the landing gear.
15:51Scott Wolf was on board.
15:52Someone near the rear of the plane, uh, started to shout out that the wing was on fire.
15:57Thought to myself, all of a sudden, I shouldn't be recording.
16:00I should be texting.
16:01On takeoff, the engines are going at their maximum rate.
16:04And anything that is in front of them, uh, is probably going to get ingested.
16:10Our thanks to Gil Benitez.
16:12A new report from the CDC finds autism rates continue to rise with an estimated one in 31 children now
16:18diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.
16:20But medical experts largely attribute the rise to better awareness and screening and the broadening
16:26of how the syndrome is defined.
16:28ABC's Steve Osin-Sami is at CDC in Atlanta tonight.
16:32Authorities at the CDC are trying to explain what's behind new numbers tonight,
16:36showing that one out of every 31 children in America
16:39was diagnosed with some measure of autism in 2022, the latest figures available.
16:44Those numbers were one in every 36 children just two years earlier,
16:48and one out of every 150 children in the year 2000.
16:52And the report shows that autism was much more common in boys than girls.
16:57U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, who for years as a civilian helped blame autism on the use
17:02of vaccines, is underlining the new numbers tonight.
17:05His take on this has been rejected by the world medical community.
17:09In my generation today, the rate of autism is one in 10,000.
17:14And this is just one disease.
17:16Other health officials this evening are explaining that the larger numbers are because parents and
17:20doctors are now much more aware of the disease and are now correctly identifying more symptoms.
17:27Not a reason, they say, to buy into unproven theories that discourage Americans from using vaccines.
17:33So now we have better diagnosis, broader recognition of autism spectrum,
17:36so many children with less severe learning and behavior differences are being included in these new rates.
17:42Autism is not new, and it is not caused by vaccines.
17:45They point to the new measles outbreak as a big warning.
17:49More than 700 cases across 24 states, most of them children younger than 19 years old,
17:54and most of them unvaccinated or don't know if they were vaccinated.
17:58Healthy children should not die of measles.
18:01Health officials report that more than half of the country's cases, 561 of them, are in Texas.
18:0720 more since Friday, and two children have died this year.
18:10Our thanks to Steve Osin-Sami.
18:14A frightening scene unfolded at a courthouse in Woburn, Massachusetts.
18:17A man wearing a gas mask pushed his way into the building using pepper spray.
18:22Officers eventually tackled the man and held him down.
18:24ABC's Trevor Ault has more.
18:27Tonight, terrifying video of a man storming a Massachusetts courthouse in a helmet and gas mask Monday,
18:33firing pepper spray at an officer and rushing in.
18:36The court officer came, just pulled the door shut, and just told everybody,
18:40get out of the courtroom, get out of the courtroom, run, run out the back door.
18:43It happened in the city of Woburn, outside Boston.
18:46Watch as he pushes through the entryway, sprinting through the metal detectors.
18:50I started to hear screaming, and everybody just got up and ran.
18:53Video shows the first officer tackling him from behind, then multiple officers ultimately subduing him.
18:59The bailiffs were really quick and on point with what their training, I guess, is,
19:03and they handled the situation right away.
19:06In total, three officers were taken to the hospital, all of them later released.
19:10Authorities now identifying the suspect is 28-year-old Nicholas Ackerberg from Yarmouth,
19:15saying he had eight cans of pepper spray and two smoke canisters on him.
19:19He was scheduled to appear in court that same day on several charges,
19:23including alleged assault of a 67-year-old man.
19:26Tonight, his bail for those cases now revoked.
19:29Our thanks to Trevor Ault.
19:31A jury has been seated in Karen Reed's murder trial.
19:34Opening statements are set to begin in the high-profile case a week from today.
19:38Reed is accused of killing her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O'Keefe, in January 2022.
19:44Prosecutors allege that she hit him with her car and left him to die in a blizzard.
19:49She maintains her innocence.
19:51Her first trial ended in a mistrial after the jury was not able to reach a verdict.
19:55Now to President Trump's tariffs.
19:56A group of small businesses which import goods from countries targeted by the tariffs are suing,
20:02saying that President Donald Trump has no legal right to impose them.
20:06The lawsuit claims that the national emergency Trump used to justify his sweeping tariffs
20:10is unlawful and a figment of his own imagination.
20:13The lawsuit also argues the tariffs are an unprecedented power grab of the right
20:17that belongs to Congress and they're threatening to bankrupt their businesses.
20:21Joining us now to talk about the tariffs and potential impacts on small businesses
20:26is Sari Wise, founder of Baby Paper, a small business toy manufacturer in Chicago.
20:31Thank you so much for joining us, Sari.
20:34You say President Trump's tariffs are crushing the little guy.
20:38How so?
20:40We can't afford them.
20:41We can't afford 145%.
20:44When he first instituted the 10% and the 20%, we were figuring it out.
20:51We were working with our suppliers.
20:53We were going to get it through.
20:55But then he raised it to 50-something percent and then 145%.
21:00We just can't do it.
21:02We can't bring our goods in and still make any money.
21:06How is your business, would you say, already being impacted?
21:11So we're running really low on inventory and we were planning our holiday inventory
21:18and we can't bring it in.
21:20So we're already turning down orders that we can't fill.
21:25And we have no way of telling anybody when the products will be actually here.
21:31It's impacting the local retailers like the one that we were at yesterday.
21:38They pride themselves on carrying products that are not mass-produced
21:43and without having their shelves filled with specialty products like ours
21:47and thousands of others like ours who are all in the same boat.
21:52The specialty retailers are going to really struggle this holiday season.
21:56You say 100% of the products you sell are made in China.
22:01Have you ever looked for sourcing elsewhere?
22:04Yes.
22:05For the past 10 years, we've gotten samples from manufacturers in the U.S.
22:10We've gotten samples from other countries.
22:13The quality is lower.
22:14The prices are three times what we're paying now.
22:18So when you hear the Trump administration officials say,
22:21you know what, this is going to be better for America,
22:24for these products to be made in America,
22:26for the manufacturers to start actually creating the items here.
22:32Are you skeptical that that will be good long-term?
22:37I have not heard, I haven't heard any toy manufacturers talking about bringing sourcing here.
22:44And if they are, they're being very quiet about it.
22:47It will take way too long to get the infrastructure in place.
22:51We just can't do it.
22:53And then the raw goods are coming from China.
22:55So you're still getting tariffs on the raw goods.
22:58So how are you accomplishing this?
23:00President Trump has said that these tariffs are essentially a short-term sacrifice for long-term gain.
23:07Your response to that?
23:08Well, in the short term, so many businesses like mine are going to go out of business.
23:15And if someone like me goes out of business, then that means my fulfillment center loses business.
23:20My sourcing agent loses business.
23:22Our marketing company loses business.
23:24We have to lay off employees.
23:26We have sales reps who won't be able to make money.
23:29So now take me, and like I said, multiply at times thousands, and that's a huge impact.
23:36How do you ever recover from that?
23:38When the local retailers have to close, how do you bring back Main Street?
23:43If you had President Trump's ear directly tonight, what would you say to him?
23:48I'd say, please reconsider this.
23:51There's got to be an alternative.
23:52There's got to be a way that we can negotiate out of this.
23:55I understand that there may have to be some sort of tariff, but this is unattainable.
24:02The toy industry is getting decimated right now.
24:05What keeps you up at night?
24:06The fact that I may not survive after two months because that's about the inventory I have.
24:15You know, I've worked so hard to build a brand, and it's not an easy task when you're small.
24:22And, you know, we're in 700 retailers in the U.S. and Canada.
24:28I can't survive it.
24:30I just can't.
24:31Just two months, potentially.
24:34All right.
24:35Sari Wise, we thank you so much.
24:37Really appreciate you sharing your story and insight with us.
24:41Thank you so much for helping us bring it out to the public.
24:46Still ahead, jewel thieves pull off a heist by cutting through a wall.
24:51How many millions of dollars in merchandise they got away with?
24:54Many parents are pushing to use state funds to help pay for private school tuition.
24:58And it's an issue many Democrats are now siding with Republicans on.
25:01But lawmakers may be tough to convince.
25:05I'm like, my children, my husband and I, we're like, we feel like this is the path for us.
25:10And there's a lot of families out there that are too scared to say anything because it's not popular.
25:16But now it is more popular.
25:18I think that's the case now.
25:21Welcome back, everyone.
25:31When it comes to what parents believe their children need from their schools, some say it goes way beyond political partisanship.
25:37It turns out a number of Democrats are pushing for one particular policy championed by Republicans like President Trump,
25:43which could provide funds to pay for a private education.
25:46But many of those parents are getting a good deal of pushback from lawmakers.
25:49In tonight's Prime Focus, ABC's Stevo Sinsami talks to educators and parents in urban areas who are fueling the fight for more choices.
25:5810, 20, 30, 40.
26:04I'm very conflicted sometimes with talking about this issue openly because now people put you in a certain lane.
26:11Yes.
26:12All right.
26:13Let's go back to our classroom.
26:15For me, education is not Democrat.
26:18It's not Republican.
26:19It's not conservative.
26:21Education is a human issue.
26:24It is a human right.
26:25Denise Dixon is a teacher in one of the blackest counties in America who considers herself politically to the left in most ways.
26:33And she says it's conservatives who are getting it right about education today.
26:39Seven years ago, she walked away from public schools believing she could do better, starting this small private school of her own in the Atlanta suburbs.
26:47She has about the same number of students in two buildings that some of her old public schools would put into a single classroom.
26:54Hey, Caleb.
26:55My name is Cooper and he's Landon.
26:57And she agrees with the president and other Republicans who started giving families public school dollars to pay for private school tuition.
27:06It's safe for me to say you voted for Kamala Harris.
27:10Yes, that is correct.
27:11I did.
27:12You did not vote for President Trump.
27:14I did not.
27:14But I'm guessing that you like his position on school choice.
27:19I absolutely do.
27:21I absolutely do.
27:21I disagree with about 99% of the things that he does.
27:24Right.
27:25But when it comes to education, for whatever reason, I feel like he's getting it right.
27:29These parents are paying tax dollars to their local school system, and then they're paying tuition to come here.
27:36Those tax dollars should absolutely follow that child.
27:40Every person we spoke with us in this report was comfortable sharing that they did not vote for the president and say they're putting children above their personal politics.
27:49A broken clock is right twice a day, and I am adult and mature enough to realize that if someone's right, they're right.
27:59I think every parent should have the right, especially if their district is failing.
28:03The president, as he promised, is taking a sledgehammer to the U.S. Department of Education.
28:08We're going to shut it down and shut it down as quickly as possible.
28:11It's doing us no good.
28:12We want to return our students to the states.
28:15And in the last few weeks, he's allowed states to use some of the money they were getting from this building to follow the child and help pay for school choice programs, like the one in Georgia, where the deadline for applying is April 15th.
28:28Parents who meet the requirements will get $6,500 to send their kids to any private school of their choosing in the fall.
28:36So you will see your first students from this in August?
28:40Correct.
28:40Yeah.
28:40Correct.
28:41Yeah.
28:41Yeah.
28:41I can see the smile on your face.
28:43Super excited.
28:44This particular school year, I had seven students registered to come who, days before school, had to say, Ms. Dixon, I can't do it.
28:54They just could not swing it financially for their child to be here.
28:58You know, we do a lot of fundraising, trying to raise money to have, like, you know, our own scholarships and things like that.
29:03But at the end of the day, I have teachers to pay.
29:05I have an overhead to keep up.
29:06You feel that you would have to turn away fewer students if you had Universal.
29:11Absolutely.
29:12Absolutely.
29:12They need this smaller environment.
29:14So now they're back in public school, right?
29:16Quote, unquote, suffering because it does not work for them.
29:20At least 29 states have some sort of school voucher or scholarship program, as some call it.
29:26And 15 of those states have what they call universal programs that don't mind if the parents are wealthy or already have their kids in private school.
29:34And it's no surprise the money is incredibly popular.
29:38In Arizona, so many parents got the scholarships, it ruined the state's budget by $1.4 billion.
29:45In Georgia, lawmakers worried about what happened in Arizona are for now only allowing money for public school parents under certain incomes who haven't yet moved their kids.
29:55That means that the parents already at Denise Dixon School don't qualify.
30:01So they're taking regular field trips to the state capitol with their students.
30:09A lesson in lobbying.
30:10Most of the focus was on the other students in the class.
30:13Students who were behind.
30:14Yes.
30:14The kids are showing Democratic lawmakers that private school children aren't always who you might think.
30:20Thanks for coming down here doing the hard work of civic engagement.
30:24I'm generally opposed to public school funds going to other schools.
30:32Many of the Democratic leaders they talked with were against them, concerned that public schools will suffer if more state dollars go to private education.
30:40We have to come to a point where we just do what is best and on this issue and every issue and stop the infighting.
30:49One of the parents, Melanie Williams, left the statehouse frustrated.
30:54I just want what is right.
30:56I am a registered Democrat.
30:59I've been a Democrat all my life.
31:01I'm one of the loyal constituents.
31:03But when we ask for something, because we are the loyal constituents, you should hear us.
31:08We just want to help children.
31:11That's all.
31:11That's it.
31:12That's the bottom line.
31:13Over in Alabama, they have what she wants, a nearly universal program where starting in the fall,
31:19even parents who homeschool their children can get $2,000 from the state each year.
31:25We also can connect the dots.
31:27Most of my families are working middle class families who have made the sacrifice in order for their children to be here.
31:36Jennifer Duckworth, a school choice parent and tutor in Birmingham, says it's hard explaining to black Americans in particular why she'd want to pull her kids out of public education.
31:46Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, and segregation forever.
31:53After black families fought so hard and for so long to get their kids into these schools.
32:00My mother was a teacher of 35 years and was in the superintendent's office, and they're a little offended because of all the work that was done to create an equal opportunity for education.
32:14It's almost like you're slapping them in their face, and it's not.
32:19And now I'm like, my children, my husband and I, we're like, we feel like this is the path for us.
32:25And there's a lot of families out there that are too scared to say anything because it's not popular.
32:31But now it is more popular.
32:33I think that's the case now.
32:36Over at Tread Academy in Georgia, Denise Dixon says she's never worked harder and still can't afford to give herself a paycheck.
32:43You don't take a salary.
32:45I know.
32:46Every time people hear it, they're like, what is happening?
32:49She says she wants lawmakers, especially those on the left, to work as hard for her children as she does.
32:56This is not your personal money, right?
32:58This is money that belongs to the children.
33:00Let that money follow the child.
33:02I wholeheartedly don't believe that a parent should break the bank to get a good education or what we would consider a good education for that child because good education looks different for everybody.
33:14Politics aside, parents just want opportunity for their children.
33:18Our thanks to Steve Osinsami for that.
33:20Coming up, a teacher and principal partying and drinking with underage teens.
33:25What police say they witnessed at the principal's home.
33:28And the U.S. could lose billions as international tourists stay away.
33:32We take a look at just how much it could hurt the bottom line by the numbers.
33:41Welcome back, everyone.
33:42The United States was the third most visited country in the world in 2024.
33:47But foreign tourists are increasingly setting their sights elsewhere.
33:50Let's take a look at international tourism by the numbers.
33:53Following tariff announcements against our neighbor to the north, flight reservations from Canada to the U.S. are down 70 percent through September compared to last year.
34:02That's according to OAG Aviation Worldwide.
34:05Plus, U.S. summer bookings by European tourists have fallen by 25 percent, according to one hospitality group.
34:11All told, the International Trade Administration says that compared to last year, international arrivals have dropped by 10 percent, and that will certainly have an economic impact.
34:22According to tourism economics, spending by international visitors is expected to drop by $9 billion this year, as the U.S. is now perceived as a less welcoming destination.
34:32Alongside increased hostility and border policies, airfare, hotel rates, and car rental costs all fell in March.
34:39Airfares were down 5.2 percent compared to this time last year.
34:43That's all according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
34:45And hotel room rates saw a 3.7 percent decrease.
34:49This is prices for other items tracked by the BLS are sharply increasing.
34:54Visitor bureaus and major destinations, including the states of California and New York, are ramping up their marketing in an effort to keep the tourists coming.
35:02And still ahead, the Connecticut man held captive in his family home for more than 20 years speaks out about what he's endured for the first time.
35:10And Raven Linnea is here, the rising star of experimental R&B, now wowing crowds at Coachella, traversing genres, and breaking the Billboard Top 100.
35:21She opens up about her rising fame.
35:32Thieves dig a tunnel into the wall of a jewelry store and escape with $10 million worth of merchandise.
35:37The FDA issues a warning about counterfeit drugs.
35:41And are you still writing paper checks?
35:43Perhaps it's time to say goodbye.
35:45These stories and more in tonight's rundown.
35:51Police in Los Angeles say a family-owned jewelry store was robbed of an estimated $10 million of merchandise.
35:58Police were called to the downtown store Monday morning after it was burglarized overnight.
36:03The shop owner's son told KABC the thieves cut through a wall from a vacant store next to their business and disabled the security cameras and alarm.
36:1320 years of my father's work is just gone.
36:16According to the family, they lost nearly all their merchandise and they don't have insurance.
36:21The FDA released a warning today about the fake versions of Ozempic being distributed in the U.S.
36:28The agency said they were alerted by the maker of the weight loss drug, Novo Nordisk, that counterfeit one milligram shots had been found outside the legitimate supply chain.
36:38The FDA says patients and doctors should check the lot and serial numbers on their prescriptions to make sure they are valid.
36:45Body camera video from Florida reveals what took place at an underage house party in January where a teacher and principal were arrested.
36:56Cocoa Beach officers responded twice to the party and were engaged by teacher Carly Anderson.
37:01I'm concerned about a child that's being put into a machine.
37:06Anderson was cleared of felony charges and initially allowed to teach again, but placed back on leave today when the video was released.
37:14School principal Elizabeth Hill Brodigan, who owned the house, is reportedly suspended without pay.
37:21This tax day is the last opportunity to receive a refund via paper check.
37:26A recent executive order from President Trump will require the federal government to stop issuing paper checks for all disbursements to reduce costs and fraud.
37:36Once the order kicks in on September 30th, all refunds and payments to the government will be processed electronically.
37:44A Connecticut man held captive by his stepmother for 20 years released his first public statement today thanking those who helped him recover.
37:53The man, identified only as S, was allegedly kept in the home of Kimberly Sullivan until two months ago when he was taken out by first responders after intentionally setting his room on fire.
38:05S said he recently, quote, appreciated the chance to have his first ever birthday party to celebrate turning 32.
38:15With the first pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, the Dallas Wings select Paige Beckers.
38:24UConn star Paige Beckers added number one overall pick to her list of accomplishments.
38:29The guard, fresh off a national title, was selected by the Dallas Wings at last night's WNBA draft.
38:36Right behind her, the Seattle Storm taking 19-year-old Dominique Malanga from the silver medal French Olympic team.
38:43The 2025 regular season tips off on May 16th.
38:46The two American college students arrested in Denmark after a dispute with an Uber driver are now out of jail, but they still can't leave the country.
38:58Tonight, one of the students is speaking exclusively with ABC News.
39:01Here's our chief international correspondent, James Longman.
39:03Those two American college students who were arrested in Denmark after an alleged altercation with an Uber driver are no longer in custody.
39:12And one of them is speaking out.
39:14I feel good. I'm glad that the high court ruled in our favor today and allowed us to be released from the prison.
39:23And it feels good to be with my family.
39:25It was on March 31st when Owen Ray and his friend, who wants to remain anonymous, say they took an Uber back to their hotel, but realized they'd put in the wrong address and opted to cancel the ride.
39:36After we got out of the car, we walked a few blocks away.
39:41The Uber driver then drove around.
39:43He found us.
39:45He then got out of the car and started yelling at us, thinking he hadn't been paid for the Uber.
39:51But in fact, he had been paid for the Uber.
39:53He then got in our faces and was saying, I'm going to call 10 guys.
39:59We said we've done nothing wrong.
40:00We've done nothing wrong.
40:02He then started an altercation with us.
40:04A spokesperson for the rideshare company tells ABC News the driver reported to Uber that he was assaulted by two riders.
40:12Danish authorities detained them both at the airport the next day, declaring them a flight risk.
40:17We were both just very shocked about the fact that we were being arrested over this incident.
40:22We had done nothing wrong.
40:24We were the victims of an attack.
40:27Ray says they spent the next two weeks in a Danish prison.
40:30There were two of us in a pretty small jail cell in bunk beds.
40:36We spent 23 hours a day in the cell.
40:39We had one hour a day of yard time.
40:41We were allowed to make one phone call a week.
40:43The college student says their passports have been confiscated, but they haven't been charged.
40:48It's now an anxious wait for their families for what comes next.
40:52I'm not entirely sure on what the status is of the case at the moment.
40:58The Danish legal system hasn't been entirely clear about what's happening.
41:04But for as far as I know at the moment, we're still waiting for either the investigating police to decide not to pursue the case or for a trial date to be set.
41:15For Ray, he's hopeful he can be back home before May.
41:19I'm just going to try and, you know, stay in a positive attitude and hope that they can resolve the case.
41:26Our thanks to James Longman.
41:27She is proving to be 2025's emerging R&B pop star, receiving critical acclaim from Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, and Billboard.
41:36Raven Lene is soaring with her unique style and sound.
41:40Now the Chicago Southside native is making a splash with her debut album, Birdseye, featuring the song Love Me Not.
41:47That's gone viral, earning more than one billion views on TikTok as she prepares to play Coachella this summer
41:53and join Sabrina Carpenter's short and sweet tour this fall.
41:57Let's take a listen.
42:08And joining us now, Miss Raven Lene.
42:11Thank you so much for joining us.
42:13Thank you for having me.
42:14So let's start out with Birdseye.
42:15It really talks a lot about people growing up in their 20s.
42:19What was it about that particular time period for you that inspired you to write music about it?
42:24Yeah, I think approaching 25, I turned 25 while I was working on the album.
42:29I had a lot of feelings of doubt and questioning my position in the world, my position in music, my friendships, relationships.
42:37So that felt like the anchor for this period of my life and really getting raw with my expression in the album and as a person in general.
42:47So it was a big moment for me to kind of pull back the curtains of who I am and really shed light on these things that I deal with.
42:54And a lot of 20-somethings and 30-somethings and 40-somethings.
42:58Yes, exactly.
42:59But you also grew up singing on the church choir, like many of the greats.
43:04Yeah.
43:04And I'm curious, when you were there singing the gospel music, were you ever anticipating this?
43:11I can't say I was, honestly.
43:13My grandfather was a pastor of the church that I grew up going to, so that was an easy gig to get.
43:18But that being my first audience, I think really instilled that empowerment in me and got me comfortable to be able to go beyond, you know, the church doors.
43:31And you certainly went beyond the church doors because then also you went to a school for the arts in Chicago.
43:38You started being trained in opera.
43:40You can sing opera in multiple languages.
43:43The director, I guess at the time, really commended that you were able to distinguish between Mozart and Beethoven.
43:49So it seems like you always had an ear for music from a child.
43:54I would say that I definitely grew up in, I wouldn't say a musical household, but my dad introduced me to a lot of artists that inspire me so much today.
44:02My mom was a huge R&B fan, so I kind of got the best of both worlds with hip-hop, some alternative music,
44:09but also having that sound of soul anchor me and root whatever else I went into genre-wise.
44:17And, of course, on this album, you work with Grammy Award-winning producer Dahi.
44:22Yeah.
44:23He famously worked with SZA and Drake.
44:26What was it like collaborating with him?
44:28Dahi is a wizard.
44:29That's what I call him all the time.
44:31But really getting to know him on a personal level, and as a brother, I would say he really inspired me to really push myself
44:39and not settle in what I'm used to and really trust my instincts.
44:44And that's something that I'm still figuring out and still leaning into,
44:47and I think that he sparked that for sure in me with this recent album.
44:51And I got to get your reaction to SZA saying that your album, Birdseye, was one of her favorite albums of the year.
44:58I love SZA. I'm so inspired by her.
45:02So seeing that literally made my entire month.
45:05And I think it really made people discover me in new ways and discover the album, which is always a beautiful thing.
45:13I can imagine.
45:14And you're about to go on tour with Sabrina Carpenter doing Coachella.
45:17How do you prepare for these big events?
45:19I try not to be anxious.
45:22I try to sleep.
45:23I try to eat.
45:24But honestly, I really just want to welcome all of this amazing, beautiful energy that's entering my life
45:31and really step into it and not be scared and not question myself.
45:37That's something that I'm really learning.
45:39So I'm ready.
45:42We were talking before we started this official interview about the Chicago food.
45:47So I got to ask you, since you're here in New York, you like Chicago pizza, New York pizza?
45:51Chicago pizza.
45:52Oh, right.
45:52You like the deep dish?
45:54I never got into it.
45:55I don't know.
45:56It's a little like...
45:57We have square pies, too.
45:59So try the square pies when you come back.
46:01All right.
46:01Will do.
46:02Raven, all the best to you.
46:04I know you have new music coming out this summer as well.
46:06We're going to look for that.
46:07We want to let our viewers know you can listen to Birdseye anywhere you stream your music.
46:13Now we're hungry and here craving pizza, Flav.
46:15That's our show for this hour.
46:16I'm Lindsay Davis.
46:17Be sure to stay tuned to ABC News Live for more context and analysis of the day's top stories.
46:22Thanks so much for streaming with us.