understanding of the world. >> really. >> at that young age. she was like 11 or 12. >> extraordinary. i mean, dual life mission. starting very early. well, she's extraordinary. so glad you got a chance to spend time with her and now we get to reap the benefits to watch this incredible being billie jean king. dana bash, thanks so much. >> thanks, fred. being billie jean king airs tonight, 10:00 p.m. eastern and pacific only on cnn. hello again, everyone. thank you for joining me. i'm fredricka whitfield in new york. we begin this hour with this breaking news. donald trump just announced that he is now not going to testify at his new york civil trial tomorrow. just moments ago on a long rambling truth social sentiment, trump said, quote, i have already testified to everything and have nothing more to say other than that this is a complete and total election interference, biden campaign witch hunt, that will do nothing but keep businesses out of new york. i will not be testifying on monday. that from the former president. so for days, though, trump had vowed that he would be retaking the witness stand tomorrow in the high-stakes trial that threatens his real estate business. new york attorney general letitia james is suing trump for $250 million and seeking to bar him from doing business in the state. cnn's zachary cohen joining us now. zach, what more do we know about this sudden change of heart? >> reporter: yeah, fred. clearly a reversal here from donald trump, who had seemed adamant he wanted to take the stand for a second time in this new york civil trial. now as you mentioned posting on truth social just moments ago he will not be testifying, in all caps he says, will not be testifying on monday. he goes on to continue to attack the prosecutors and the judge in this case. calling it election interference, witch hunt, some familiar terms, familiar attacks we have seen from trump, fought only in this case but in others. i want to play the sound from trump's lawyer, lena habba from the other day when she said that lawyers had advised trump not to take the stand again, but he was adamant about doing so anyway. listen to what she said to reporters just a few days ago. >> he still wants to take the stand, even though my advice is at this point, you should never take the stand with a gag order, but he's so firmly against what is happening in this court and so firmly for the old america that we know, not this america, that he will take the stand on monday. he will open himself up to whatever they want because he's not afraid. people who are afraid cower. president trump does not cower. >> president trump doesn't cower. that's what she said about his willingness and desire to testify again, but just this afternoon, trump walking that back, clearly, you know, saying he's already testified and he has no reason to take the stand again, so an interesting kind of comparison there between the statement from trump's lawyer a few days ago and this decision to no longer testify on monday in the new york civil case. >> yeah, interesting indeed. all right, zach cohen, thank you so much. tell us if you learn anything more. all right, right now, joining me to talk more about this is harry lipman, former u.s. attorney and former deputy assistant attorney general. great to see you, harry. so your reaction to trump's decision to no longer take the stand tomorrow. >> yeah, i wasn't particularly surprised. i had always thought that was kind of posturing and that he might well back down at the event. it's the smarter legal move. he's got very little to gain. he would probably have taken the stand and given the same kind of infomercial that donald trump jr. gave, but it wouldn't have gone to the evidence and most dangerously, he would have faced cross-examination, which is the rules really permit a probing yes or no set of answers, and that could have put him in hot water for either having to tell the truth or commit perjury. so this is a case that he already realizes he's going to lose. and the only value, when it goes up on appeal, they're going to ask, did the judge below have enough there to say he was guilty? and whatever he might have added on his side of the ledger wouldn't really affect it anyway. plus, he has really nothing to say, i think, other than the magnificence of his empire and the like, and that wasn't going to impress the judge at all. >> yeah, so perhaps the prosecution was really looking forward to him taking the stand again tomorrow because there might be a misstep, that cross-examination moment could be pivotal for them. so then now, how does the prosecution redirect if it even needs to, since he is no longer making himself available in the morning? >> yeah, you're certainly right. you know, they knew he might have been faking, but somebody has been staying up all weekend with constructing very, very surgical questions. now, what happens, the prosecution has a couple, we're told, pretty ministerial quick work witnesses and then it goes to the judge. we'll probably ask each side for what the lawyers call conclusions of law and statements of fact, and within about three weeks or so, i think a blistering shellacking of trump and company will emerge from the judge, and then it will go up on appeal. i think that's what we can now expect. and i think a couple days from now, it will -- all the evidence will be in. >> those statements of fact would be like a closing argument, something you see in another kind of trial, like a criminal trial, for example, but since this is a civil fraud, you're talking about the statement of fact that the judge will review before rendering a decision on paying up. >> that's exactly right. each side gets to say here are the facts that the evidence shows. here are the conclusions of law, and those are the building blocks of this eventful decision. they will be night and day, believe me, in difference from trump's team and the a.g., and you can expect them to mainly go with the a.g. but it's customary for him to give each side a sort of shot at submitting those. >> harry lipman, great to see you. thank you for that breakdown. all right, a battle is brewing in washington where republicans and democrats in congress are locked in a standoff over critical emergency aid packages for israel and ukraine. and today, we learned that president biden will host ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy this week at the white house to discuss the stalled funding. here with us now is cnn's kevin liptak and alex marquardt. first, what do we know about zelenskyy's visit? is there any movement on negotiations for this military aid? might he even have a visit on capitol hill or strictly the white house? >> he will visit capitol hill, and he will be there at a very critical moment, and the fact that president biden invited zelenskyy to washington really does show you that the white house is looking for quite a dramatic move to try to break this impasse over ukraine aid on capitol hill. so he will meet president biden at the white house to talk about what the white house calls this vital need for new assistance, but he will also address all senators in a meeting in person on capitol hill, and he will also meet with the republican house speaker, mike johnson. so sort of making the rounds of washington to try and make the case that continued american investment in ukraine is necessary and certainly his challenge will be to try and convince some skeptical republicans that this additional $60 billion that president biden has requested can make a difference on the battlefield, when so far in this counteroffensive, ukraine has not necessarily been able to change the battle lines significantly. but certainly, these talks have not really yielded progress so far. we did hear from two of the key negotiators this morning, democrat chris murphy and the republican james lankford, setting out their positions. listen to a little bit of what they had to say. >> this is one of the most dangerous moments that i have ever faced in american politics and i wish republicans weren't holding israel aid and aid to ukraine hostage to the resolution of immigration reform. >> can you get ukraine aid passed separate from this? >> no. no, the focus is we hear from so many people, why would we deal with other people's national security and ignore american national security? why would we literally allow people across our southern border this administration labels national security risks by the thousands coming into the country separate from just the migrants that are coming for employment. we have individuals they have literally labeled national security risks coming into the country. why would we not work to stop that? we can do two things at once. >> so we did hear from president biden last week that he was willing to make significant compromises when it comes to these new border rules, certainly he is coming under pressure from all sides on this, certainly from republicans and some democrats who want him to do more to stem the flow of migrants across the southern border, but also from progressive and immigration advocates who worry that he will agree to too much and perhaps go back to some of the restrictive policies from the trump administration when it comes to migration. we did hear from senator murphy today that the white house plans to become more engaged in these talks over the coming weeks, but certainly it remains to be seen whether presidential involvement and even the involvement of president zelenskyy can convince some of these skeptical republicans to pass more aid for ukraine. the clock is ticking. the white house says aid will run out by the end of the year, fredricka. >> all right, kevin liptak, thank you so much. now to alex marquardt there in tel aviv watching the developments on the ground there in the region. so alex, where does israel seem to be focusing their forces right now today? >> reporter: well, certainly on the south, but there's still a lot of fighting in the north, fred. we heard from the idf earlier today saying some 250 targets had been struck in the previous 24 hours. that sounds like a lot, and it is, but it's actually lower than the average we have seen since that pause broke down some nine days ago. there was a strike on a house today that killed some 45 civilians, that's according to the wafa palestinian news agency. when israel says they're striking terror targets, locals in gaza say that so many of those targets, those buildings being struck, actually are civilian buildings, whether they're schools or mosques or homes. their there are also dozens of people killed according to local reports, as the israeli forces have been pushing south towards the city of khan younis. that's where the idf has been trying to encircle the city. they say they have broken through defensive lines in and around the city. and that is where they believe that several top hamas officials are. and may be underground. the israelis have also told residents and civilians of khan younis to flee even farther south. many of them had come from the north and went to khan younis. there was an urgent appeal issued on saturday for specific areas of khan younis and the people there to leave to go towards the southwest, toward the coast where israel says they will be more safe and where there are established shelters. we asked the idf what those shelters are? it's still not clear, but you have hundreds of thousands of people who are now fleeing to the southern most tip of gaza, around the city of rafah, and the shelters there are simply bursting at the seams and overflowing. a lot of people sleeping outside. an extraordinarily dire situation, fred. >> it certainly is. alex marquardt, thank you so much. all right, still to come, crews are searching for survivors after tornadoes in this country leave at least six dead in tennessee. we're live in nashville, next. . all right, welcome back. the storm system that left six people dead in tennessee is threatening the east coast today. 36 million are under a threat of severe weather in the southeast through the mid-atlantic. and 54 million are at risk of flash floods in the northeast. today, weather officials confirm the system created an ef-2 tornado in kentucky saturday. they received reports at least 25 tornadoes hit multiple states. the most are believed to have been in tennessee. emergency officials say half of tennessee's victims were killed by a tornado in the clarksville area, witnesses captured this video of the monster twister. >> oh, my god. >> wow. cnn's rafael romo is in the madison neighborhood of nashville, where three people were killed by the severe system. rafael, witnesses describe how whole houses are just simply gone. >> reporter: yeah, that is right, fred. full houses gone. lots of damage and devastation here, and take a look at this. a cleanup effort has just begun a few moments ago. this excavator showed up and just to give you an idea about the challenge that officials have here, there was a tree that had fallen on top of a house right behind us. so the excavator took the tree off and put it on the other side, right there. there is a pile of debris right there, and let me show you, it's not the only pile we can see in this neighborhood. there's another pile here across the street. but you are right. there was a series of monster tornadoes that hit this area of tennessee. six people dead, three in this neighborhood, including a minor. another three in clarksville about 70 miles northwest of here, including a minor as well. just a few moments ago, i was t talking to a lady a few houses down. she told me her daughter had barely survived the tornado and they were trying to help her recover whatever of the belongings that were left behind. take a listen. >> everything just shook up. everything. she lost the side of her house, all her furniture, all the bedroom, downstairs, upstairs, but she is a tiny 5'3", 115 pound respiratory therapist and she held on to the door as much as she could as it shook up. >> half the house was blown away. so just family and friends just got together and all these wonderful people out here, and just to try to gather memories and help her get a fresh start again. >> reporter: and fred, in the middle of this tragedy, we have seen many beautiful things happening today. we have seen volunteers coming to help people in any way they can. i saw a gentleman with a truck loaded with bottled water. a couple that was bringing coffee to the people here. and that's the reason why tennessee is known as the volunteer state. we have seen it in many, many ways today. back to you. >> people pulling together. all right, rafael romo, thank you so much. coming up, former president donald trump doubling down on his comments saying he would be a dictator on his first day back in office should he win re-election. more on his comments next. you're probably not easily persuaded to switch mobile providers for your business. but what if we told you it's possible that comcast business mobile can save you up to 75% a year on your wireless bill versus the big three carriers? did we peak your interest? you can get two unlimited lines for just $30 each a month. there are no term contracts or line activation fees. and you can bring your own device. oh, and all on the most reliable 5g mobile network nationwide. wireless that works for you. it's not just possible, it's happening. all right, on the campaign trail in new york last night, former president donald trump tried to downplay and dismiss warnings that his potential victory in 2024 would represent a threat to democracy. last week, trump claimed he would be a dictator only on day one of his presidency if re-elected. he also openly talked about how he would weaponize government to exact retribution against his enemies if re-elected. cnn's alayna treene joining us now. trump spoke about these warnings last night. what more is he saying? >> reporter: he did. he actually doubled down again last night, fred. while giving these remarks at the new york young republican club. he's essentially repeated the claims that he had told sean hannity when he was on that town hall earlier in the week that he would be a dictator on day one if re-elected to the white house in 2024. in order to build a wall and to, quote, drill, drill, drill. as you mentioned, fred, he also tried to undercut the narrative that some of his critics are pushing that he would be a threat to democracy, by saying it's a hoax cooked up by the democratic party. take a listen. >> in the past few weeks the radical left democrats and their fake news allies have unveiled their newest hoax, that donald j. trump and the republican party are a threat to democracy. it's what it is, a hoax. we call it now the threat to democracy hoax. because that's what it is. >> reporter: now, fred, he also flipped the script during those remarks and tried to paint it as if joe biden is the one who is a threat to democracy. we have seen donald trump use this strategy before. he's trying to move the attention off him and reshape the narrative to make it seem like his opponents are the ones who are actually doing this. of course, there is no evidence that the white house has any involvement in the indictments that donald trump is facing. but look, in my conversations with republicans and those close to the former president, they do admit that there is a concern that his amped up rhetoric on this and continuing to talk about being a threat to democracy could actually hurt him. and especially if he were to win the nomination and go on to compete in the general election. how this would play with independent voters and voters in the general is something that they don't know. there is a concern around this. there's a couple other things worth pointing out. one is that we need to be very clear about what donald trump has been doing and saying himself. he's publicly said both on the trail as well as in interviews that he would use the justice department if re-elected to go after his political enemies and that he wants to move the doj underneath presidential control. and effectively give the executive branch a lot more power. but another thing that's also very interesting is what this is doing for democrats. by donald trump continuing to talk about this, he's effectively giving democrats and president joe biden an opening to attack him on this, because one of the big things they have been trying to do is not only try to paint the general election as a rematch between trump and biden, but they also want to make it a choice between authoritarianism and democracy, when donald trump continues to talk about this and say again that he would be a dictator on day one, that's just giving democrats more of an opening to continue with that narrative. >> all right, alayna treene, we'll leave it there for now. thanks so much. all right, coming up, a woman battles for a legal abortion after the texas supreme court blocked a lower court emergency approval. and the fda approves two new treatments for rare and life threatening blood disorder. how it could help tens of thousands next. a preginants texas woman must wait for her state's supreme court to decide whether or not she should be allowed to have an emergency abortion. kate cox says her unborn baby has a fatal genetic disease that is now putting her health at risk. a lower court ruled on thursday that it would allow cox to get the procedure. but texas attorney general ken paxton asked the state's high court for an emergency stay and has threatened to prosecutor anyone who helps cox get the procedure. here to discuss is amy hag sstr miller, good to see you. so, what's your view? if you are a woman in texas looking for an abortion, and it is an emergency case, just like kate cox, what are women trying to do? what are they deciding to do?