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The Lead with Jake Tapper

Trump Says, Iran Options Are A Deal Or Blast The Hell Out Of Them; Voters Sue After Louisiana Governor Delays Primary; Cameras Capture Suspect's Actions Before Saturday's Shooting; Gas Prices Surge Again Overnight, Now At $4.39 A Gallon; Adam Scott On His Career And New Horror Movie "Hokum". Aired 6-7p ET

Aired May 01, 2026 - 18:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Welcome to The Lead. I'm Jake Tapper.

This hour, President Trump rejects Iran's latest peace proposal, telling the country that it now has two choices, make a deal he likes or the U.S. military will quote, blast the hell out of them and finish them forever, unquote.

[18:00:06]

Meanwhile, the Strait at Hormuz remains closed. Gas prices are up 33 cents in the past week and a new poll shows most Americans think starting this conflict was a bad idea. So, what now?

Plus, a rare moment of bipartisanship on Capitol Hill, there is a new push to ban A.I. chatbots for kids. But is this a decision the government should be making or should it be left up to parents? One of the lawmakers leading the charge joins me in moments.

Also, early voting was set to begin Saturday in Louisiana. Some ballots had already been mailed out, but now U.S. House primaries have been postponed after the U.S. Supreme Court threw out Louisiana's maps. One of the Democrats who could be affected by these changes will join us live ahead.

And you surely know him from the hit shows Parks and Rec and Severance, the movie, Step Brothers, Actor and Comedian Adam Scott is here to tell us about his brand new film out in theaters now. It might not be what you would expect.

The Lead tonight, President Trump says he's not satisfied with Iran's latest proposal to end the war. Trump warning only two options are left. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We want to go and just blast the hell out of him and finish them forever or do we want to try and make a deal? I mean, those are the options.

REPORTER: Do you want to go blast the hell out of them?

TRUMP: I prefer not. On a human basis, I'd prefer not, but that's the option.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Trump also signaling he will not seek official permission from Congress to extend the war with Iran. He called the 60-day war powers deadline, quote, totally unconstitutional. 60 days ago was when President Trump formally notified Congress of the military action.

But the Trump administration appears to be making some type of effort to comply with Congress by sending a formal letter. The letter notifies Republican leadership of changes to the U.S. posture when it comes to Iran as part of his efforts to keep the Congress fully informed consistent with the war powers resolution.

All of this coming as a new poll shows just how unpopular this war is with the American people. The Washington Post, ABC News, Ipsos poll shows 61 percent of Americans say it was a mistake to use military force against Iran. That sentiment could get worse because gas prices continue to surge, jumping 9 cents from yesterday, now $4.39 a gallon.

CNN's Kaitlan Collins is here. CNN's Nic Robertson is in Pakistan. And, Nic, to you first, President Trump said Iran is asking for things he cannot agree to. What are your sources saying about what's in Iran's latest proposal?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: We don't have specific details on what's inside of it, but we got an insight in it today, meeting with a senior Iranian official. And at that time, a couple of hours before Iran dropped its new proposal, I asked him if they were going to drop a new proposal and he said, I don't know. But within an hour of service getting out of that meeting, they did. So, I can only view what he said in the sort of prism of this was his spin on how to interpret what they're doing.

And he said, okay, how do we move this situation forward? And then he answered his own question by saying, we need to have a simultaneous suspension of the blockades on the Strait of Hormuz. Then he went on to say, but who's going to guarantee that the U.S. Navy doesn't move in and take our places? So, clearly, if that is the opening gambit here, he is also saying there may be some conditionality on it.

I asked him about the nuclear enrichment and he continued to say, we haven't got an agreement with the U.S. to hand over highly enriched uranium. We would dilute it ourselves, he said. It's the latest position on an enrichment itself, period. He says, other countries in the region get to do civilian enrichment. We're entitled to do that as well. So, it appears no change on the Iranian position there.

I asked him about the state of economy. He said, we're ready to continue suffering. And I also asked about the -- what the president's talking about, this disrupted leadership. I said, are you able to speak to the supreme leader? Are you able to get messages to him and clear messages back? And what about all these different factions? He admitted there were different groups, but he said the supreme leader takes all these different views and, as he described it, takes the logical parts out of those different views, puts them together, and he said the supreme leader absolutely directs the big picture of how we negotiate with the United States.

And as the supreme leader just yesterday said that they wanted to make money out of the Strait of Hormuz, I mean, that position, we don't know if that's in the proposal, but it's all adding up to a picture there that would be deeply problematic for President Trump.

TAPPER: And, Kaitlan, it was only one week ago, although in Trump years, that's a full year ago.

[18:05:02]

One week ago, we were talking about Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff going to Pakistan for these peace talks. Now we're here. What are you hearing from your sources in the White House about how they view this current status of the war?

COLLINS: I mean, they're basically making clear that we're nowhere near talks happening. Certainly not in person, certainly not in Pakistan. The president today was saying it's far too long to get there and it's not worth sending people, like Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff all the way there for these talks.

And he was citing how disjointed the Iranian leadership is. He's saying, I don't like their proposal, but I don't even know the proposal's merits. He was talking about how -- you know, they're hearing all kinds of things and how chaotic it is of the messages they are getting out of Iran right now. And he also said this in terms of where these talks stand in this moment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We had a ceasefire, so that gives you additional time.

I don't think that it's constitutional what they're asking for. These are not patriotic people that are asking.

Many presidents, as you know, have gone and exceeded it. It's never been used. It's never been adhered to. And every other president considered it totally unconstitutional. And we agree with that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: What's clear from the comment there about what's happening here in Washington is that, you know, there's no endgame in sight or no end date, I should say, for this war right now. And so the president is pushing back on these limits by even Republicans here in Washington to at least kind of define this conflict. That's how Lisa Murkowski framed it yesterday in terms of wanting to vote on the authorization of force.

And the arguments from the White House are simultaneously -- and the administration are simultaneously that it doesn't matter. The clock doesn't matter because it's unconstitutional. But also if the clock does matter, it doesn't matter right now because they're in the ceasefire and there's no active war happening. But, I mean, you could argue there are hostilities. And when you read the war powers resolution, it's only three pages. It says if there are hostilities, that is something they need to go to Congress for.

TAPPER: Yes, they have a blockade.

COLLINS: There's a blockade in effect right now, and obviously the Strait of Hormuz is also closed. But obviously the president is making the argument that a lot of his predecessors have also made. And so there's none, you know, this groundswell of Republicans demanding he come. There's a lot of them also saying, well, he doesn't really need to, which is what he's arguing, saying it's unconstitutional.

TAPPER: Yes, and also not a groundswell of members of Congress who want to vote on a war. They like to avoid that, in general.

Kaitlan Collins, Nic Robertson, thanks to both of you.

And, of course, don't miss Kaitlan on her show, The Source with Caitlyn Collins. Tonight, her guests include Democratic Congressman Jamie Raskin of Maryland. That's tonight at 9:00 Eastern on CNN.

Let's bring in a Democratic senator, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. He sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Senator, what's your response to President Trump calling the 60-day war powers resolution totally unconstitutional?

SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): It is constitutional. Congress has not only the opportunity -- it has an obligation to vote on whether to declare war. And the president's saying that hostilities have terminated clearly is a false distraction in a war of delusion. Hostilities are continuing, as Kaitlan Collins said so well. The blockade itself is an act of war and it is continuing along with other military operations and the president's own threats to destroy Iran civilization, to bomb its oil wells and storage facilities. Clearly, hostilities are continuing and the president's required under the law to come to Congress.

TAPPER: Turning to a different topic, you're leading a bipartisan bill which would ban artificial intelligence chatbots for kids. It would require A.I. companies to implement an age verification process. The Senate Judiciary Committee, which you also sit on, unanimously voted yesterday to advance this legislation. Do you think Senate Majority Leader John Thune will bring it to the floor for a vote?

BLUMENTHAL: This measure has overwhelming support, as you know from the excellent reporting you've done on technology, and you've had some of the parents on your show, and they have been so powerful, so eloquent and credible. I think John Thune will put it on the floor. It is totally bipartisan. Senator Josh Hawley has said he will seek a unanimous consent, and I will join him if it's not put on the floor.

And I think that this ban on companies, A.I. companies entering into toxic, false relationships with fictional machine characters, is destroying lives. It is enabling and enticing suicides and other self- destruction. I'm done with the reliance on companies to police themselves. I'm done with trust us. And I think the majority of Americans are as well, and certainly my colleagues are going to listen to the parents over the tech companies.

[18:10:00]

TAPPER: So, the counterargument obviously would be that this bill is invasive, it harms free expression, it keeps kids from all the positive ways that A.I. chatbots can help them. What would be your response to that and also just the question about whether chatbots and A.I. companies, their services, are protected under the First Amendment?

BLUMENTHAL: It's an absolute ruse, Jake. It's the same argument that tobacco companies made. It's the same company the same argument that companies make when they design a defective product. It is about safe product design. These machines that speak individually to children and create these relationships of trust with fictional characters or offer professional advice to non-minors, to adults, are not making public statements. It is a product that has been designed, in essence, to make more money at the expense of children's and other's safety.

So, it is not about free expression of the First Amendment, and to invoke that shield is the height of arrogance and irresponsibility on the part of the tech companies.

TAPPER: I'm exempting you and some of your colleagues from this criticism, so don't take it personally, but it really does feel like the House and Senate are way behind when it comes to regulating what's going on in the internet and technology space. I mean, A.I. just in the last year has made such advances, some of it great, some of it really, really troubling.

Why is the House and Senate, why are our legislators so behind? Is it too complicated? Is it just there's so much to regulate? Or is there just so much tech money heading their way?

BLUMENTHAL: It's both. The topic is complex and challenging, and it is fast-moving, as you have covered so well. But I will say there's been a lot of bipartisan support in the Senate, the Kids Online Safety Act, which Senator Blackburn and I, she's a Republican from Tennessee. I'm a Democrat from Connecticut, we agree on very little, likewise Senator Hawley and I on the Guard Act, dealing with the chatbots. And if this measure is put on the floor of the Senate, it will pass like the Kids Online Safety Act did last session, 91-3.

But the tech money, the armies of lobbyists and lawyers, are very powerful. And last session, even after KOSA passed, they were able to stymie a vote. In fact, there was no vote in the House of Representatives.

I'm hoping that parents and kids' advocates and others who form such a powerful argument and the more visibility we give it will carry the day this time around. But I'm not underestimating. I'm very clear-eyed about the power and sway of the big tech companies. And, by the way, along with trust me, they say, oh, we're not against regulation, just not that regulation. You know, I'm done with trusting the big tech companies.

TAPPER: All right. Senator Richard Blumenthal, Democrat of Connecticut, thank you so much. I appreciate it.

My next guest could lose his seat in Congress after the U.S. Supreme Court decision this week. Congressman Troy Carter of Louisiana is here, as Democrats are filing lawsuits trying to fight back ahead of the midterms.

And this was the scene in Raleigh, North Carolina, today, as May Day protesters march through town, CNN's teams attended events across the U.S. and the world. We're going to have those images for you ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:15:00]

TAPPER: Our Politics Lead, votes already cast in Louisiana's upcoming primary elections will not count. That's according to the Louisiana Secretary of State Nancy Landry. But some voters are now asking a state judge to block the order of Governor Jeff Landry, no relation, delaying next month's election. This was issued one day after the U.S. Supreme Court tossed out Louisiana's long contested Congressional map, opening the door for Republicans to redraw the map to their advantage.

Joining us to discuss as a Democrat running for reelection in Louisiana's Second Congressional District, Congressman Troy Carter. Congressman, what's your reaction to the news?

REP. TROY CARTER (D-LA): Well, I think that it's unconscionable. The elections have already begun. We have servicemen and women who are serving at home and abroad who've cast their ballots. We have our senior citizens who have cast their ballots. These are potentially irreparable harms that can face them. Our military people, our senior citizens who, every time, at 80, 90 years old, when they vote, it could very well be their last. And the thought that their vote won't count is unconscionable.

You know, we've seen this test happen before four years ago when Garrett Graves had a similar situation where his district was deemed to be unconstitutional. It was said that it was too close to the election, so we'd wait two years. Two years went by, the district maps were redrawn, which is what gave birth to District Six where Cleo Fields now serves. That race was much further out than this one. This race is here. People have already begun voting. Early voting in place, early voting begins tomorrow at 8:00 A.M. It is a devastating blow to people who have cast their vote. And to have them nullified is just patently wrong.

TAPPER: You and Congressman Cleo Fields, who you just referenced, the state's two black Democratic House members could be affected by this redrawn map, either endangering your seats or forcing you to run against each other. Have you spoken with Congressman Fields about either of those potential outcomes? CARTER: I have. He's we serve very well together. He's a friend. We represent the same state. We served in the State Senate together, and we are working in tandem to defend both seats and to defend the right for individuals to cast their votes.

[18:20:07]

This ruling from the Supreme Court was a punch to the belly to the democracy of our country. When you look at a ruling that says it's okay to partisan gerrymander, to singularly cut out people of your party and choose a district so it favors a party, but on the other hand, make it next to impossible to prove that you've been discriminated against.

The notion that you would have such a difficult task of saying that you have to prove intent, proving intent is a throwback to Jim Crow when African Americans had to look at a jellybean jar and guess how many jellybeans were in that jar in order to vote. This is tantamount to the jellybean jar test. How do you prove intent of someone that is attempting to draw a line that discriminates against you?

People have a million ways to disguise their nefarious acts. We know this. When you start breaking up pockets of African American votes, you're discriminating against them because you're watering down their ability to coalesce and vote and block. But on the other hand, you allow them to use that same block with a party. That's just unconstitutional, in my estimation, and certainly unconscionable.

TAPPER: What's your reaction to the Supreme Court's basic reasoning, the majority on the court, that the Voting Rights Act has served its purpose and black Americans now vote at similar rates or even better as the rest of the electorate, and so it's not needed?

CARTER: If we were living in a colorblind society, if we were living in a society that was post the generations of discrimination where we no longer had race as an issue, perhaps that would be an acceptable premise. But we know, particularly in the Deep South, that just isn't true, hence the fact that we have never had an African American elected statewide in the state of Louisiana.

The last person, the first person, was John Willis Menard, an African American from New Orleans who was elected to -- the first African American elected to United States Congress 150 years ago in the very seat that I sit in, but he was never seated because someone went to the well of the House of the floor of the United States Congress and said, Congress is not ready for a negro to be a part of this body. And, summarily, they chose to not seat him.

Here we are 150 years later facing those same battles. People having the right to be elected, but powers that be determining, no, you won't. Look at what happened here in Louisiana with Calvin Duncan, a duly elected person to serve as clerk of criminal district court. This governor decided summarily they would do away with his seat. Even though the people of New Orleans voted him in overwhelmingly, his seat has now been eliminated. That's not democracy. That's not democracy. That's something else. Last I checked, this was still America. But if you look at the actions and what's happening, this is not demonstrative of a free country. This is not demonstrative of America or free and fair elections.

TAPPER: Congressman Troy Carter, Democrat of Louisiana, thank you so much, I appreciate it.

Prosecutors releasing new images, they say, show the weapons that the suspect had on him when he tried to storm the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner last Saturday night. CNN's Tom Foreman is digging into how these new images help build this timeline of what allegedly happened.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:25:00]

TAPPER: We're back with our Law and Justice Lead and a closer look now with the new video showing the suspected gunman who prosecutors say tried to assassinate President Trump and members of his cabinet at last Saturday night's White House Correspondents' Association Dinner.

CNN's Tom Foreman zeroed in on the actions captured on the surveillance video inside the hotel and the timeline that starts exactly one week ago today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Friday, April 24th, the FBI says this video shows the suspected shooter just before 9:00 P.M. on the day before the correspondents' dinner, walking down a hallway and gesturing in the host hotel where he was a guest. The man enters the gym, chats with an attendant, checks out the equipment, then leaves, once again, glancing at doorways in the hall.

For this investigation into what officials say was a plot to kill the president, these videos, the man's movements, his actions can all be critical evidence.

JEANINE PIRRO, U.S. ATTORNEY FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: To find out whether or not he had the intent to, and whether we can prove he had the intent to kill additional people by name, based upon what we determine from the investigation.

FOREMAN: Saturday, April 25th, the night of the dinner, the FBI released this video, which seems to show the same man in a long coat heading down the same hall, at the end of which, a third video shows law enforcement officers working on a magnetometer, a metal detector used to screen dinner guests. Investigators say that's the alleged gunman in the background, ducking through a set of doors.

A police dog quickly follows the man through the doors. The dog's handler pulls him back. The dog returns to the man again, but is pulled away once more. Then the suspect rushes out and toward the security checkpoint with what appears to be a shotgun in his hands. SEAN CURRAN, U.S. SECRET SERVICE DIRECTOR: It was immediate. It was right at the mag checkpoint which was just remarkable of speed when you talk about an individual who is determined to do what they do. And that speed, you're talking almost about four seconds from start to finish there.

[18:30:00]

FOREMAN: A single officer draws his weapon as the man in the video appears to raise his gun and court filings say the suspect fired once, although that is not clear in the video. Those same filings and the FBI videos show the officer fired repeatedly, never hitting the suspect nor, fortunately, any of his fellow officers in the background.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOREMAN (on camera): The thing is, as much as there are questions about what the gunman did, a lot of this video raises reasonable questions about what the officers did too. What did the officer with the dog see or not see when he was clearly right next to this man and turned away to have this man, he had not taken three steps before that man started running this way.

And just as importantly, Jake, this is a country at war right now. What if it hadn't been one gunman, but two or three or more? How far might they have gotten in that particular situation?

TAPPER: Also, that one officer fired his gun in the general direction of other --

FOREMAN: Yes, he's going right across the other officers there. I mean, I think there are a lot of questions here. It ended, I guess, as well as something like this can in.

TAPPER: Yes.

FOREMAN: But if it had ended differently, I think many of these questions would be very pointed right now.

TAPPER: Again, just to underline it, the Secret Service has an impossible job and bad guys only need to be effective once and the guy didn't even make it to the floor where the president and the team was. Still, we can learn from it.

Tom Foreman, thank you so much.

Across the U.S. and around the world, tens of thousands of protesters on this May Day, our team of correspondents spoke with demonstrators about what they hope to change.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:35:00]

TAPPER: In our National Lead, activists, workers, teachers, more, marching in today's May Day demonstrations, a global movement calling for world peace, higher wages, better living in working conditions.

CNN's Whitney Wild is at the rally in Chicago. Whitney, tell us what you're seeing.

WHITNEY WILD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jake, thousands of people are coming to the heart of Chicago, right here at Union Park to protest a long list of issues. There is not a single issue that is driving people coming out today. They are here because they're angry about the war in Iran. They are angry about what they're seeing from the administration.

They're angry that there are people in the United States who are hungry and yet billions of dollars are being spent on a war overseas. They are angry with what they have seen from immigration agents over the last several months. And, of course, the heart of this, the core of this is a protest to protest for better working conditions, better wages. This is the heart of the labor movement.

And so while these things seem disconnected, the people that I've spoken with say, no, it is all connected. And it is important to come out and make their voices heard in the city of Chicago.

And let me just show you how people are doing now. You see a long list of different types of signs here, people very angry with the president, one sign saying, Trump must go now. There is another sign with the photo of Alex Pretti, the man who was killed by immigration agents in Minneapolis.

Again, it is not a singular issue driving people out today but they say the solidarity that they feel here is giving them hope. Here's more from the people we spoke with on the ground.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All these issues that seem unrelated, Iran and Gaza and ICE raids and all those, I think, actually are related. They're about concentrating power and wealth in the hands of a few people. And that's not good for any of us, so I'm here to protest that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I've got grandchildren and great grandchildren, and I see their way of life being stolen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILD: This is, of course, Jake, a global movement. There are protests happening all around the world, but it is special in Chicago, and it is special this year. This is the 140th anniversary of the Haymarket Affair. That was the very first May Day protest. Thousands of people came out to downtown Chicago to protest for an eight-hour workday. That protest became violent. It became deadly, and it is not far from the memory of Chicagoans here.

Today, they are reflecting on the 140th anniversary of that moment that really kicked off a new chapter and protesting for civil rights, protesting for better worker conditions. And so today, they are taking special pride and having been really at the heart of the beginning of a movement that continues. Jake, back to you.

TAPPER: All right. CNN's Whitney Wild in Chicago for us, thanks so much.

Farther South in Havana, Cuba, rally goers are marching to celebrate the workers trying to just keep the power on, as Cuba faces blackouts worsened by the cutoff of fuel imports after the U.S. military actions in Venezuela earlier this year.

CNN's Patrick Oppmann is in Havana. Patrick, tell us what it's like there today.

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN HAVANA BUREAU CHIEF: So, May Day is usually one of the biggest pro-government marches you've seen in Cuba each year. This year, it's half to be stripped down. It's much less people than you usually see because of the severe energy crisis that is taking place on this island at this moment.

The United States has been preventing, for the most part, all fuel from arriving to Cuba. So, you see less cars on the street, longer and longer blackouts. And that is why instead of doing this march in the Revolution Square here, which can fit up to a million people, we're in front of the U.S. embassy because the government here has been calling on the U.S. to lift this energy blockade.

For the Trump administration, though, it's quite a different story. They're saying that Cuban needs to open up economically and politically, that this island is being mismanaged and has been open to the enemies of the United States to set up a foothold just 90 miles from the United States.

And so the tensions continue to rise here. What Cubans tell us, at least the pro- government Cubans here at an event like this one, is that they're willing to die to defend their country, and then a matter what the Trump administration demands of this government that they are going to resist.

Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.

[18:40:01]

TAPPER: All right, our thanks to Patrick Oppmann for that report.

Is Pope Leo trying to send President Trump or anyone else a message -- with his latest appointment? Well, our political panel's here to weigh in.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TAPPER: In our Faith Lead, Pope Leo just named a one-time undocumented immigrant who was smuggled into the United States in the trunk of a car as the brand new bishop of West Virginia. Bishop Evelio Menjivar- Ayala, originally from El Salvador, became a U.S. citizen in 2006. He has publicly called for Catholics to speak out against President Trump's treatment and policy toward immigrants.

My panel joins me now. Terry Schilling, welcome to The Lead. Good to have you.

Is the pope sending a message here and what is it?

TERRY SCHILLING, PRESIDENT, AMERICAN PRINCIPLES PROJECT: No. Look, I think there's something very beautiful happening in the Catholic Church, especially in West Virginia. The church is growing. We have a numerous number of converts entering the church.

But I think what's hard for most Americans to understand about the Catholic Church is that it's timeless. We have outlasted empire after empire, especially the ones that persecute us. And it's easy to look at everything the church does in a political lens,

[18:45:02]

But that's just not what's happening here. And I do think that Democrats are trying to create a wedge in the Catholic Church. They see this resurgence happening.

But the reality is, I think, is that Catholics know who our friends are. They know -- they saw what happened under Biden with the weaponization of government. They saw what happened in those Senate hearings with Kamala Harris questioning about the Knights of Columbus.

They know who their friends are, and they know who their enemies are. And I don't think this is going to work. I don't think the Catholics are going to ditch the Republican Party or Trump for the Democrats over deporting illegal immigrants or MS-13 members, theyre going to be much more fired up about all the other stuff that the Democrats do.

TAPPER: May I assume that you're also Catholic? Is that --

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I am Catholic.

TAPPER: OK.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: I am -- I am very Catholic, a practicing Catholic. And I will say that the pope is very much sending a message.

If you think about what bishops are, theyre kind of like a cabinet for the pope. That's why when a new pope comes in, you're seeing all these changes happening, right? In New York, the old comes out and new people come in.

And by moving someone like this to a very white state, he is indeed sending a message. I think, first of all, the message is of universality, right? That it doesn't matter your skin color, it doesn't matter your story that, you know, the church embraces all of that.

But the second thing, I think the pope has been very clear on is that immigration is an issue that the Catholic Church feels very strongly about. It is part of their canon, and that is not a left or right issue. You are right. That is a Catholic Church issue.

TAPPER: It started with Jesus, right? GARCIA-NAVARRO: It started with Jesus.

And the Catholic Church, and Catholic Charities have always been involved on immigration. I'm a longtime immigration reporter. You go to the border there. The people that are actually dealing with migrants, are often Catholics, nuns and priests, et cetera.

So this is part of, I think, a refocus that he is doing in the church to move away from issues like abortion into issues more like immigration. You can look at that in a political lens, or you can say, this is just the pope being the pope and maybe moving the church in a different direction.

TAPPER: And we should just note, Terry, jump in there. But the immigration issue is not just an issue here. It's a huge issue all over the world, but especially in Europe as well.

SCHILLING: Well, I just got to say that, you know, Pope Francis, his message has actually been to both sides.

TAPPER: Pope Leo.

SCHILLING: I'm sorry. Yeah. I'm sorry. We just changed it. I -- we just had our eight kids a little bit foggy.

TAPPER: That's Catholics.

SCHILLING: That is Catholics.

TAPPER: A Jew just corrected you on the name. Anyway, keep going.

SCHILLING: So Pope Leo just last week or the week before was talking directly to the immigrants and was very clear that nations do have the right to secure their border and establish the rules around immigration.

TAPPER: Yeah.

SCHILLING: He told the immigrants that are coming here illegally to stop doing that and to focus on rebuilding their own country.

So I get it. But he is timeless. I don't think he's playing politics here. And I think the Catholic Church is really beautiful. I think we were seeing this resurgence and return to the beauty of the church. And by the way, happy feast of Saint Joseph, the Worker today. It's a wonderful day.

TAPPER: So just to keep talking about the pope thing, because this is so interesting. One of the things I again, I'm not catholic, but I grew up in Philly, big Catholic community there.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Big Catholic.

TAPPER: So, so you know, I'm well aware of a lot of the teachings. And when there was tension between Pope Leo and President Trump about war and Iran, I thought, this is what popes do. They oppose war. That's what -- I mean, I understand there's the whole just war thing, but I mean, ever since I've been alive, like popes have been for life in every -- from the moment of conception to opposing war to opposing capital punishment, to wanting people to live as long as they possibly can. And it always just seemed, in terms of the universality that you were talking about.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Yeah. I mean, that's absolutely right. And that's why sometimes that falls on the left of the political spectrum, and sometimes that falls on the right of the political spectrum.

But what I do think about that is different about this pope is, first of all, he's an American pope, and he understands the American context. Secondly, you know, popes are political. They are -- they are religious.

TAPPER: Not Democrat, Republican.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: No, Democrat or Republican, but issues. They embrace, issues they push forward on issues.

And when you look at this pope and what he is emphasizing, you can take some guidance as to his beliefs and where he wants to move the church. In the United States right now, there is a lot of energy around the Catholic Church, and actually that energy is coming from the more conservative side of the Catholic Church.

If you look at the priests, if you look at young members of the church, they are more conservative minded, than perhaps more progressive. If you want to use that sort of lens. That said, you know, this pope has already talked about issues like LGBTQ rights. This pope has already waded into some of the most controversial issues in the church. And so I do think that he is trying to reframe this in some way.

SCHILLING: Well, to be clear, though, he's not -- he's affirming the dignity of all human beings, regardless of their identities. But, you know, he's not wavering on the Catholic Church's teachings on, on the right to life, starting from conception or, or protecting children from gender ideology and all of that going on.

So he's not moderating. I think he's just emphasizing the, the issues that are coming up. And, and I do think that there's a lot of emphasis, more emphasis in coverage in the establishment with the more liberal stuff. And the conservative messages don't always get out.

[18:50:03]

TAPPER: All right. Well, thanks one and all. Congratulations on the eighth kid.

SCHILLING: Thank you, Jake. Thank you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TAPPER: He made us laugh in Pawnee, Indiana, and question everything at Lumen Industries. Adam Scott is here next to talk about his career in Hollywood, his new project that hits theaters today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TAPPER: And we're back with the politics lead and the panel.

Terry, the new national average for a gallon of gas is $4.39 a gallon. It's a four year high, 9 cents more than you were paying yesterday, 33 cents more than last week.

The president was asked today about the high cost of gas. He said gasoline is high. Other prices are way down, but gasoline is high. But when this is over, you'll have a world without a nuclear weapon with Iran.

That's been his message. Basically, the price is nothing compared to the idea of Iran with a nuclear weapon. The American people don't seem to be buying it.

SCHILLING: Well, look, I think obviously, these gas prices are hurting Americans, especially American families.

[18:55:04]

You know, minivans cost 100 bucks to fill up these days. I would know that.

But I think what's important for them, for everyone in this country to understand is that these price spikes with gasoline under Trump are temporary. This is a bug. It's not a feature. This is because of the Iran war. When that goes away, the gas prices will lower.

For Democrats, though high gas prices are a feature. They want it as part of their climate agenda. That's why the blue states have such higher gas prices.

TAPPER: All right. Thanks so much. Appreciate it.

Let's turn to our pop culture now. You might know him from the Emmy Award winning show severance, or his more light hearted works in "Parks and Recreation". Adam Scott now taking a different role in the new supernatural horror movie "Hokum", which --

(BEGIN VDIEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know if you've noticed, but there are some oddballs walking around this place.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are worse things than strangers out there, yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One of the members of staff is missing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What about the honeymoon suite?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's always locked.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: So it's very scary. I saw it last night.

Joining us now, Adam Scott.

Adam, thanks so much for joining us.

So, your career --

ADAM SCOTT, ACTOR: Thanks, Jake.

TAPPER: Your career has spanned a lot of different types of characters. First of all --

SCOTT: Yeah.

TAPPER: -- you play a lot of good guys these days. You used to do bad, bad guys like in 'The Stepbrothers", Walter Mitty era of Adam Scott. But you, you're -- you're more beloved characters now.

This guy, Ohm Bauman, he's a total douche. Is that fun to play?

SCOTT: It is fun to play. And I always kind of feel like playing comedy or drama doesn't really make a difference. You're just kind of -- it's the context and the and the story that make it funny or dramatic, but that's not really true, because if you drop like "The Stepbrothers" character into this story, it would feel off. So it's kind of a different type of douche than other ones I've played, you know?

TAPPER: No, he's much more troubled than it's terrifying. For a lot of your fans who know you from "Severance" and "Parks and Rec" and some of the comedies, they might not know you've been in a bunch of horror movies. You were in "The Monkey". You were in "Krampus".

SCOTT: Yeah.

TAPPER: Do you like making horror movies? Do you like horror movies?

SCOTT: Well, my -- the horror movies I like, for me, they need to be a really good movie first and a good horror movie second. So my favorites are like "Poltergeist" and "The Thing" and "Hereditary" and stuff like that. And I feel -- that's why I wanted to do this because it was a cool story and an interesting character first. And all the scary stuff for me kind of came second. But it does happen to be terrifying.

Did you get scared, Jake, when you were watching it?

TAPPER: I watched with all the lights on. I did everything I could to make it as scary as possible. Like every -- like I had a light here.

But I will say the movie also kind of -- I don't want to spoil anything, but the movie actually takes a turn at one point and actually like kind of packs an emotional punch that I didn't see coming, but makes it, it almost, it almost ends not as a horror movie. SCOTT: Yeah, yeah, you're right. I think its and it also has light

hearted, has some funny moments throughout. Like it's -- it's a real kind of full, it's a full evenings entertainment. It's -- it's -- Damian McCarthy, the writer/director, is a really talented guy.

TAPPER: So I do want to ask you about "Severance" because season three is about to start filming. We obviously were left at the edge of our seats last time, as you know. What -- do you -- have you read all the scripts for the next season? What can we expect?

SCOTT: Yeah, I think everybody's going to be really happy. We start shooting very, very soon and we all can't wait. Its been a little over two years since we finished shooting season two, so were all super anxious to get back.

TAPPER: And meanwhile, you have three movies out this year. You also have like of the of the three, the more, the most mainstream one, if you will, has you, Michael Keaton, Robert de Niro, it's called "The Whisper Man". It's going to be on Netflix. What was that about? What was that like?

SCOTT: Yeah. It was -- I mean, Robert de Niro, someone who I had like up on my wall in my bedroom at home. I had -- he and Scorsese taped up in my locker at school like this was a serious, lifelong dream. I couldn't even believe it. Every day I just I couldn't believe he was right there.

All I was trying to do the whole time was not annoy him with annoying questions.

TAPPER: You're the only person I know that has seen "The Irishman' twice in the theater, both times.

Adam Scott, the movie "Hokum" is out today. It's scary. It's moving. It's fantastic.

Adam, thanks so much. Good to see you again.

SCOTT: Thanks, Jake. Good to see you.

TAPPER: Coming up Sunday on "STATE OF THE UNION", U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C., Jeanine Pirro, former Congressman Barney Frank, who is currently in hospice care, Republican Senator Thom Tillis. That's Sunday at 9:00 a.m. and noon Eastern only on CNN.

"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts now. I'll see you Sunday morning.