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The Lead with Jake Tapper
Secret U.S.-Iran Proposals Reveal Fragile Path Toward Deal; Trump Awards Medal of Honor to Three Veterans for Heroism; Trump's $14 Million Reflecting Poll Renovation Still Overtaken by Algae. Luigi Mangione's Attorney's Plan To Withdraw Psychiatric Defense; The Epstein Files: New Mexico House Commission Publicizes First Set of Subpoenas. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired June 18, 2026 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to The Lead. I'm Phil Mattingly. Jake Tapper is on assignment.
This hour, the White House has now briefed top lawmakers about the specifics of its agreement with Iran, as a growing chorus of Democrats and Republicans criticize the terms. What CNN is learning tonight about the next phase of negotiations with the regime.
Plus, New Mexico lawmakers meeting today about their investigation into the dead pedophile, Jeffrey Epstein, in a property he owned in the state called Zorro Ranch. One of the state representatives leading that probe will join us live ahead to explain the new subpoenas they issued and what they're hoping to learn from that information.
Also, this afternoon, President Trump presented three American heroes with the Medal of Honor, including retired Army Major Nicholas Dockery. When Dockery's unit was ambushed by the Taliban in Afghanistan, he ran through enemy fire, killed terrorists who were trying to drag away an injured soldier, and performed life-saving medical aid. We are honored to have him joining the show to share his story and how he's using his time post-service to help others.
The Lead tonight, Vice President J.D. Vance says people just need to, quote, have a little bit of faith in the president, as questions mount about the new U.S.-Iran agreement some of the loudest detractors from inside the Republican Party. Texas Senator Ted Cruz railed against the framework's $300 billion economic fund for Iran, adding Trump is getting, quote, really bad advice, while Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana called it, quote, the worst foreign policy blunder in decades.
This afternoon, President Trump sought to clear up any lingering confusion, posting, quote, we expect a complete ceasefire on all fronts, including Lebanon, Hezbollah, and Israel.
We start things off with CNN's Zach Cohen. Zach, you have some really great new reporting about kind of the fragile state of these next steps forward. What are you learning?
ZACHARY COHEN, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, Phil. A lot of the criticism around this memorandum of understanding has been about the secrecy behind it, and we're learning new details tonight about secret proposals that the U.S. and Iran have been working on that are really geared toward how to implement those 14 points in the document that was signed this week. And that includes details about how to address concerns about Iran's nuclear program going forward.
Now, Vice President J.D. Vance today in the White House Briefing Room effectively confirmed that these proposals are what administration officials have been referring to as, quote, gentlemen's agreements. But he also confirmed to our Kristen Holmes that some of these proposals are in fact written down on paper.
And take a listen to what Vance said when he was questioned by Kristen Holmes earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J.D. VANCE, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: Whether they're written down or spoken, this is why we structured the deal that we did because we don't trust words, we trust action.
Words don't matter, ladies and gentlemen. We're about verification.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COHEN: So, words don't matter according to Vance, but the words in that signed memorandum of understanding very much matter, and it prompted a lot of criticism, as you mentioned, from members of Donald Trump's own party, Republicans voicing significant concerns even as they've received their first briefing from top administration officials on the negotiation with Iran today.
And we're learning from a source, too, that in that briefing with top lawmakers, select top lawmakers, Republicans really pushed administration officials on this idea, this question of whether there are any, quote, side deals happening in addition to the memorandum of understanding that's been released publicly.
My understanding is that administration officials really dismissed that idea but did acknowledge, as Vance did, that there are some documents that haven't been released publicly, and that includes an alleged letter from the Iranian government to the IAEA, the nuclear international watchdog, inviting them to start their inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities, start to try to locate and figure out how to deal with Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium, and invite American nuclear experts to participate in that process.
So, while there's still a lot of questions about this process, what happens next, there do seem to be a lot of developments happening behind the scenes, and that is a source of consternation for Republicans and Democrats alike.
MATTINGLY: Yes, no question about that. Zach Cohen, great reporting as always, thanks so much.
Well, joining us now, staff writer for The Atlantic, Tom Nichols, and Kim Dozier, CNN global affairs analyst. Thanks to you both for joining.
I want to start with something that I think maybe hasn't gotten as much attention as we've all tried to figure out what gentlemen's agreements actually mean, what's in writing, what's not in writing, and that's what the vice president said when asked about Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's relationship. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VANCE: Donald J. Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time, and he happens to be the head of state of the world's superpower.
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If I was in the cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world.
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MATTINGLY: Kim, I think what I found most striking about that, look, there's been disagreements that have spilled more and more into the public of late. That was really overt. It was very different from the usual kind of backchannel frustrations or, hey we'll call you, but we're not going to talk about it publicly. That was very clear.
KIM DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, speaking just as clearly as some Israeli politicians speak. Look, he was mostly -- he was pushing back against members of the cabinet on the far right who he believes are not being grateful enough. It's also a sign of the White House's frustration with Israel. They thought Israel would be easier to manage than this.
And then Netanyahu had to come out in a public address this week and tell his people, I am not going to withdraw from Lebanon. I'm not going to pull away from the threat. We're going to protect you. And he also griped about, you know, here in Israel everyone says that Trump is telling me what to do, and in the United States everyone thinks that I'm telling Trump what to do. I'm doing what's good for the state of Israel.
So, I think that's what you're seeing in Vance's public remarks, some of that frustration also boiling out.
MATTINGLY: Yes. It'll be fascinating to see kind of how it continues to play out, roll out. We'll see very fraught dynamics on that space.
Tom, you had a great piece that there was one kind of portion of it that really struck me last night when I was reading it, and I want to read you the quote. Trump, more than ever, is unable to fathom what's happening in the world around him and has been reduced to turning all of his previous statements upside down. A regime that was once the epitome of evil is now a reasonable partner. Nuclear material that once represented an existential threat to America might now sit in Iran forever. Syria, and Iran, and Israel, and Lebanon will now do things that they would never do just because he wants them to.
The president posted today, a ceasefire is still the ultimate goal here. What is Trump's version of peace at this point?
TOM NICHOLS, STAFF WRITER, THE ATLANTIC: Well, part of the problem here is that Trump's version of peace requires other countries to just be basically wholly-owned subsidiaries of Trump Incorporated. He doesn't think of other people and other states as independent actors that have real interests. He only thinks in terms of what matters to him, what's good for him, and he's constantly flummoxed when other people simply refuse to cooperate with the Donald Trump Show.
And it's not surprising, the conversation you just had with Kim. It's not surprising that the Israelis who, you know, and I have to say I don't shed a whole lot of tears for Benjamin Netanyahu, who I think maneuvered himself and his country into this terrible situation, but it's understandable that when the president of the United States makes a deal with Iran, who is a dedicated enemy of both countries, and then tries to obligate the Israelis to do what that requires when they're not part of the negotiation, well, of course, they're going to push back.
And Trump just simply cannot comprehend when other people won't play the part that he has scripted out for them. When that happens, he gets frustrated, he gets humiliated and embarrassed, and so he just rewrites reality. Now, the Iranians are reasonable people, they care about their country, they can have missiles, everything's going to be fine, because it's the only way he knows how to deal with it when the rest of the world won't cooperate with him.
MATTINGLY: Yes. The seamless inversion of very clear red lines or points of interest is -- it's kind of wild to watch and see and play back, which, again, was part of why I found your that piece so striking from Tom.
Kim, J.D. Vance was asked today to clarify how the MOU and the structure of the negotiations going forward are different from President Obama's Iran deal, the JCPOA. Here's what he said.
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VANCE: The Gulf Coast Coalition loves this deal because they think that it makes Iran weaker. They hated the Obama deal because they thought that it made Iran stronger. They know more about this, and they have more to lose than anybody, including the United States of America, so I trust their judgment.
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MATTINGLY: Kim, not to nitpick, but like Gulf Coast Coalition not what it's --
DOZIER: Not what it's called.
MATTINGLY: -- not what GCC stands for. Is that really the main difference, in your sense?
DOZIER: You know, you can't yet compare the two because the Trump deal is not yet done. Yes, it front-loads a lot of cash in order to get the strait open and it promises this $300 billion investment fund. But look at other investment funds that the Trump administration has set up. The Gaza Rebuilding Fund has $17 billion promised to the $70 billion that's needed, but it's empty because the talks to solve that situation haven't gone forward.
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We're in a situation now where these technical talks, all the tough stuff has been left for the technical talks between Iran and the U.S. We will likely never see the day when that investment fund sees the light of day.
MATTINGLY: Important point. Kim Dozier, Tom Nichols, I really appreciate you both. Thanks so much.
Well, up next, we're proud to be joined by one of the heroes who received the Medal of Honor at the White House, Major Nicholas Dockery, who, even in retirement, is finding a way to help others. Stick with us. It's a conversation you just don't want to miss.
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MATTINGLY: In our National Lead, President Trump awarding the Medal of Honor to three members of the armed forces in a ceremony this afternoon at the White House, Retired Major James Capers Jr. and Colonel John W. Ripley, who was awarded posthumously, and U.S. Army Major Nicholas Dockery, who served as a platoon leader in Afghanistan.
At one point during a patrol, his platoon was ambushed by enemy forces. Under intense fire, Major Dockery repeatedly crossed open ground to rally his soldiers, fought his way to those who were trapped, managed to rescue an unconscious soldier and bring him back to safety.
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DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: He signaled enemy positions with smoke grenades, allowing American gunships to come to the platoon's rescue. Major Dockery, you were the last man to depart the battlefield that day, and you left it a legend and a hero. We proudly award you the Congressional Medal of Honor.
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MATTINGLY: Jake Tapper sat down with Major Dockery earlier this week ahead of today's ceremony.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: And joining me now is Major Nicholas Dockery. First of all, Major, congratulations. The nation's highest military honor, tell me what does this symbolize for you?
MAJ. NICHOLAS DOCKERY (RET.), U.S. MILITARY: Thank you, Jake. This is a tremendous honor. I think anybody that enlists in the military may think one day they find themselves in a situation like this. And when you do, you certainly never know that it's going to be a Medal of Honor-like situation.
TAPPER: You don't even know how you're going to respond, really?
DOCKERY: I really don't. It's -- I'm still working with it right now. So, maybe in a few days, maybe I can come back with a better answer to that. But right now, I'm just incredibly humbled and gracious that I even found myself in the position I am today to receive it. And I'm especially thankful for all the people that I served with, the soldiers that were there, fought along me, and I'm just really thankful.
TAPPER: Wait until you get to go to your first Medal of Honor convention. I got to go to one of those a few years ago, and it's like you're in a room full of heroes. It's amazing.
DOCKERY: Yes.
TAPPER: Since leaving the military, you've started a foundation to address mental health. Tell me about that. Why is that issue important to you?
DOCKERY: I did. I really appreciate you sharing that or asking about that. I think we're at an exciting time with mental health in terms of how much support in general people have for addressing mental health.
TAPPER: And just how much candor people have. People talk about it in a way they didn't ten years ago.
DOCKERY: That's exactly right. And I think that if you just collectively look around the country, people are finally identifying the fact that they're comfortable with addressing it.
How we go about that isn't exactly clear yet, but one space that we're focused on is working to support organizations that are using alternative and experimental therapies through --
TAPPER: Oh, like psilocybin and/or --
DOCKERY: Evidence-based approaches, yes. That's one. We're exploring that. We haven't completely committed to it, but it's an exciting place to be right now. I know the government's just allocated a lot of money to investigate that and research, which certainly needs done. But our focus right now is addressing the organizations doing the hardest work in that space at the Nicholas Dockery Foundation. And we're a grant-making organization that works on scaling and funding and developing them to address some of the hardest issues, depression, anxiety, events relating to trauma, and suicidality. So, I think that this is probably the most exciting place we've been here. And the changes are going to be tremendous in the coming years.
TAPPER: How much progress do you think that the country has made in prioritizing mental health specifically for veterans?
DOCKERY: I think that we've made an appropriate response. And not that we could have done more, I think it's moving at a pace that is appropriate given the need to really understand what we're addressing.
I think we have a tendency now to lean a lot into medications or one quick silver bullet, but this is something that takes time, and people need to come back to understanding how to address these issues. I like to put it in the most easiest way, to think about the coldest you have ever been. And when you get really, really cold, it causes you to completely freeze, like depression or anxiety or just thoughts of suicidal ideation.
And that is the point where we want our organization to step in, is to help people come out of that frozenness. Because when you're in that point, when you're that cold, it's hard to move. It's hard to focus on anything but survivability.
TAPPER: Yes, you can't think about anything else.
DOCKERY: Nothing else. And anybody that's been in that point knows that they just need somebody to help them out, and that's what we want to help be.
TAPPER: So, I just want to show you, this is for conversation purposes. So, this is a bracelet I wear every day. It's the -- yes, it's the eight guys who died at Combat Outpost Keating in Afghanistan in October 3rd, 2009. But there's a ninth guy on there, Ed Faulkner Jr., he died of an overdose a year later. And one of the soldiers said to me, he won't be the last. And, sadly, he wasn't. Other guys from that same deployment, from that same attack, I can think of at least one other who took his own life. So, it is a lifelong struggle for a lot of these guys.
DOCKERY: Yes, I just -- I hear you saying it. I have chills. I've told my own friend. I know anybody that's going to hear this broadcast knows that. They never know how to respond. It's always who you least think, and then at the same time, it's who you most think it's going to happen to.
And I think, collectively, since we're conscious as a country that this is an issue, this is part of what I feel is this abandoned community service and leadership where people that can do something should do something, which is the primary fueling motivation I've had for being in this space.
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TAPPER: It's so special that you're using your platform as the most recent Medal of Honor recipient to talk about these issues. We're honored to have you here today. DOCKERY: Thank you, sir.
TAPPER: Thank you so much.
DOCKERY: I appreciate that.
TAPPER: Medal of Honor recipient Major Nicholas Dockery, congratulations again.
DOCKERY: Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY: We're getting breaking news about the upcoming trial of Luigi Mangione. What his attorneys just told the judge about his defense, that's coming up.
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MATTINGLY: In our Politics Lead, important new developments in what's been a year-long controversy over where and how the Trump administration deals with undocumented immigrants who were swept up in its raids.
Today, The New York Times reported the Department of Homeland Security, in a major reversal, now plans to sell or transfer to other government agencies the 11 warehouse facilities it purchased at a total cost of a billion dollars in order to convert them to immigrant detention facilities.
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The Times article says facilities in Michigan and New Jersey are among the ones being offloaded.
I'm joined now by New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill. Governor, I appreciate your time. I was just reading through your statement with the joint statement with the attorney general. There's a lot of, I think, details and information that we're still trying to figure out at this point. What can you tell us about kind of what you've been told, what's happening here?
GOV. MIKIE SHERRILL (D-NJ): This warehouse never made sense. It's a warehouse. It, the road it's on doesn't have the capacity for the traffic that 2,000 detainees would create and their families and the workers there. It doesn't have the sewering to handle that capacity. Right now, it's a warehouse with only two bathrooms. They wanted to put about 2,000 people there, as I said. So, it never made any sense.
But it was going to cost the town a lot of money, which is why in a bipartisan way we went to court. We've already blocked this for more environmental review, so really getting rid of it, for the federal government getting rid of it is the only thing that really makes sense.
MATTINGLY: Have you heard from DHS at all? Like the -- I remember talking to Michigan officials when they were dealing with a very similar thing, and they were like, we have not heard anything. We are going to win in court but no one is talking to us about anything. Has that changed now that there's a new DHS secretary?
SHERRILL: No. Again, I think we're in the same spot. We're already winning in court. We've already blocked construction. And so I think we'll continue to do that. We're not stopping our court case because of The New York Times article. We're going to keep plowing ahead and make sure that thing never gets built.
It's -- you know, it's so kind of what we see this administration doing again and again, costing working people money. This would have cost the town of Roxbury huge sums of money to put in place the sewering and the roads they would need, and there's no benefit.
And at the same time, you know, we're seeing again and again the people that seem to make money are Trump and his cronies. We see it in something like this. We saw it when he, Trump tried to block the Gateway Tunnel construction money. He laid off about 1,000 workers who were already on the job. We went to court and we fought that back. We see ICE agents on the ground in mass. That's illegal here in New Jersey, so, of course, we're in court again because the Trump administration doesn't follow the rule of law.
Again and again and again, he completely ignores the things like public safety, like the affordability crisis that make a difference for the people of New Jersey. That's why we're fighting back.
MATTINGLY: I should note, CNN reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for reaction to the Times article. The agency gave us this statement, quote, from day one, DHS has remained singularly focused on removing the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens from the United States, and is always evaluating the best methods to do so. These heinous criminals, once arrested, should be removed at lightning speed, not housed on American soil at the taxpayer's expense. DHS is moving swiftly to utilize existing detention space with our state and county partners.
Governor, the emphasis on existing, I think is -- lays quite bare. The Times story is on the mark here. I think your reaction to kind of how they're framing things right now, which seems to be a pretty significant shift.
SHERRILL: Like every other statement from the Trump administration, it's filled with misinformation. So, they're not focused on housing the worst of the worst. In fact, at the private detention facility here at Delaney Hall, that is not for high-level criminals. In fact, most of them are non-violent offenders. Many of them showed up for their court dates, were going through the process legally, and got picked up by ICE and thrown in Delaney Hall. We had 18-year-olds in there. We got them out. We had pregnant women in there that weren't getting medical treatment. Luckily, we got them out of there.
I mean, these are just people who are working, many of them going through the process the right way, that were scooped up and thrown in a private detention facility. So, again, that statement doesn't even hold water. Even as they're defending their decision, it doesn't make sense.
And we're seeing it, too, with, you know, just the Iran war. I sat on the House Armed Services Committee. And so here, Trump couldn't even come up with a plausible excuse for getting into war, things like saying he was going to have regime change, he was going to get rid of the nuclear weapons, he was going to get rid of the missiles. And at the same time, he's done none of that, and somehow acts like this is a great deal. It sounds like we're going to have to spend $300 billion rebuilding Iran as everybody else pays more money for gas prices.
Again and again and again, we're seeing an administration that doesn't care about working people. Trump said he loves inflation. Guess what? I don't love inflation. The people of New Jersey don't love inflation, and we're going to keep fighting for a better opportunity and better future for our kids.
MATTINGLY: New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, breaking news, I really appreciate you popping up with us in the conversation. Thank you so much.
SHERRILL: Thank you.
MATTINGLY: Well, first it was algae. Now, blue material is peeling off the bottom of D.C.'s Reflecting Pool, yes, the same pool the Trump administration just finished renovating. CNN's Tom Foreman is there with a live look, next.
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MATTINGLY: We're back with the Politics Lead. The Interior Department says the nano bubbler technology has killed the algae already growing in the Lincoln Reflecting Pool since President Trump's more than $14 million renovation, reopening last week, saying in a post that the national parks team is now vacuuming up the rest of the bottom of the pool, quote, just like the destroyed Iranian navy resting on the bottom of the Persian Gulf. On top of that, CNN crews have now seen blue material is peeling off the bottom of the pool.
My panel joins me now. I'm not really sure --
MELIK ABDUL, GOP STRATEGIST: What a fun topic. What a fun topic.
ADRIENNE ELROD, FORMER SENIOR SPOKESWOMAN, HARRIS-WALZ CAMPAIGN: What do we even say?
MATTINGLY: You know why, like these are the things that, like I genuinely don't care about, but the fact that the White House, the administration, the Interior Department genuinely do, I think, is significant at this moment in time when there's a lot of more important things going on.
ABDUL: I think that it's pretty disgusting for the Interior Department because what they were kind of making this sort of analogy to me, between what our soldiers, and some of those who actually died, what they went through, and comparing that to scraping the algae off the bottom of a pool.
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I'm -- the rest- the renovation project or the restoration project or beautification project, I think it is an excellent idea. People misunderstand and assume that this is a D.C. responsibility. It has long been a federal government responsibility. So, Donald Trump is doing what the federal government has always done, but we're seeing now because they rushed this pool project, by not flushing it initially, we're dealing with the algae, and now you're seeing that this is peeling.
If they had done a job where over a longer period of time instead of rushing it, we wouldn't be having this conversation.
MATTINGLY: Adrienne --
ABDUL: I hate to do Adrienne's. I really hate to do her job here.
ELROD: What he just said, that's what I'm going with.
MATTINGLY: Yes, seconded.
ELROD: Yes.
MATTINGLY: So, we have some more information. The company that just did renovations on the pool, including painting the bottom blue, says it's coming back to do renovations. Do you think Democrats are like -- apparently Democrats don't need to highlight. We just (INAUDIBLE) just going to do, but --
ELROD: I was going to say, spokesperson here.
MATTINGLY: One of the things that I'm always struck by in these moments is like there are so many things that Democrats could focus on, attack on. And I think sometimes that's a pretty significant superpower for the president, that like it's hard to pick one.
ELROD: Well, what do you go with exactly?
MATTINGLY: Should this be one?
ELROD: Well, no. Well, you just hit the nail on the head. I mean, if we followed every single sort of disastrous thing that Trump does on an almost daily basis, then you're not actually talking about the issues that are important to voters who are going to ultimately decide what happens in the midterms. And those issues are affordability and ridding the government of corruption, or at least reducing corruption as much as possible. Those are the two big issues that are driving the midterms.
Sure, you can put this under the umbrella of, you know, corruption because Trump is not focusing, he's putting money into something that is not manifesting itself the way it should, and he's using taxpayer dollars irresponsibly. But, ultimately, I mean, this is where Trump can be relatively effective, where he wants us to kind of like throw our eyes off the curve ball and focus on something that is not what the American people are caring about.
This is, I think, another line or another demerit under his, you know, numerous demerits of ineffective governing or doing something too hastily or too fast. But, ultimately, for the average voter, ordinary American sitting out there in America trying to decide who you're going to vote for in the midterms, I don't think what's happening on the Reflecting Pool is going to decide that for you.
So, again, I think it's important that Democrats, you got to pick your battles here. And I think on this one in particular, look, there will be oversight in Congress, that, of course, will happen. But in terms of like what we are choosing to really focus on as Democrats, we've got to focus on the issues that ordinary, everyday Americans are focusing on, and that's their pocketbook.
MATTINGLY: Yes. I'd point to governor of New Jersey, who I was just talking to, who won in an off-year, talking about affordability, affordability, affordability, and we were just talking about affordability and affordability. She knows what she's doing there.
Okay, so new records uncovered by the publication, NOTUS, show just last week the White House quietly shifted more than $350 million that was allocated for the Secret Service to now fund Trump's ballroom. Melik, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, including Republican Senator Thom Tillis, saying this isn't right, appropriators always very territorial on these types of things. What's your take on this part?
ABDUL: So, people can -- they're going to fact check me on this, and so I don't know if there's a direct connection, but remember the Madonna (ph), the parliamentarian. She -- when they tried to actually put some funding in there, she said that the way that they actually put the funding into the bill, that they couldn't do it, so because it involves, like other agencies --
MATTINGLY: Are you trying to draw me into a bird rule rabbit hole discussion?
ABDUL: Well, I'm just saying --
MATTINGLY: Hell, yes, control room is freaking out right now.
ABDUL: Yes. But I'm saying, I'm thinking that this is what it sounds like. Because what she said, the parliamentarian said that because other agencies, like Secret Service and other agencies are involved in the project, that you have to have separate funding out of those particular agencies.
I don't know if this has anything to do with it, but it was already understood, at least from the Senate parliamentarian, with the last bill that they tried to put through Congress, that they had to get money from taxpayers. So, that was already there. The taxpayer portion of it isn't new to me at all.
MATTINGLY: If we've learned nothing else, it's that the OMB under Russ Vought, they can get very creative very quickly. ABDUL: Yes.
MATTINGLY: And there's nothing people can do about it. It seems to be the case there.
Okay, President Trump posted today about Utah's decision to move towards an all mail-in ballot format similar to Colorado's. He wrote in part, all mail-in ballots dishonestly handled are a big advantage for the Democrats, whose only road to victory, because their policies are so insane, is cheating. Utah's lieutenant governor responded today saying, quote, we can be a supermajority Republican state and vote by mail.
The reason Utahns have been primarily voting by mail for more than a decade is because our most rural counties asked for it. Eventually, all 29 counties opted in because it's secure, works well, is less expensive, and voters love it.
Adrienne, a Democrat has not won a statewide race in Utah I don't think until since 1996 is what we've got. It's actually just second behind Texas with the longest GOP winning streak in the country.
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Republicans do really well in a lot of states with vote by mail, kind of like that's how they took over Florida.
ELROD: And a lot of local voters who vote --
MATTINGLY: The president votes by mail. What's the president worried about here?
ELROD: Look, I think he -- look, I don't know. I think that he has been harping on vote by mail for a long time. He's been saying it's fraud for a long time. Of course, the three of us on this panel and many of your viewers know that this is not fraud. This is a very effective way for rural voters and people who are traveling to vote. I mean, I vote by mail in Washington, D.C.
But, look, here's the bottom line. I spent three hours today watching President Obama's library grand opening in Chicago. It was a beautiful moment of bringing our country together. There were both Democrats and Republicans there. Obama was talking about inclusivity, bringing this country together, the message that he's been driving so much and for so long about hope and unity, and then we get this garbage from Trump.
So, I think it's an ultimate contrast. People are sick of this. It's not normal for a president of the United States to try to disenfranchise voters across the country. This is not normal and I think the contrast could not be more clearer.
MATTINGLY: Melik, I think we joke a little bit, but like Republicans need mail-in voting to win -- I remember talking to people in Pennsylvania, people in a bunch of states back in '24 say, like begging the president to stop, and eventually the RNC kind of got him to stop. He's obviously gotten back into it. Is there a tangible risk for Republicans related to this? Because the president's supporters believe him, and if they don't want to come out in a midterm year, which is already going to have a lower turnout, what happens?
ABDUL: I'll give you a great example of what that looks like, Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock. Because in the special election in 2021, they were being -- Georgia voters were being told, you don't even need to worry about this election because it is stolen. Donald Trump was pushing the stolen election theory, which, as we know, they haven't been able to prove at this point.
So, we ended up with Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff because Republican voters did not turn out in that special election at the same levels as Democrats. We're seeing now that Democrats are more motivated.
I do think that there are a lot, even for a John -- you know, Paxton in Texas, there are things that Republicans have to work with, but Donald Trump is going to Donald Trump, you know? Whatever that is, Donald Trump is going to do Donald Trump. But it is frustrating to members of the party who are really looking at midterms and trying to really kind of solidify the gains that we've had.
MATTINGLY: And who invest millions into ABEV chase operations and are very good at this.
ABDUL: The RNC is doing a mail -- they're doing an early vote mail-in ballot. Like all Republicans do it. All Republicans benefit from it, and that includes Donald Trump, irrespective of what he says.
MATTINGLY: Okay, I do want to get to this before we go. There's a fight Democrats are having over the future of the party. Today, Congressman Ro Khanna, who's considering a potential 2028 presidential run, endorsed Elijah Manley. He's one of four Democrats running against Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who jumped districts to run in a historically black district after state Republicans redrew Congressional maps.
Khanna posted this, quote, Elijah Manley refuses corporate money and opposes genocide. He understands the economic struggles people in his district face because he has to overcome them himself. I'm proud to endorse Elijah for Congress because we need leaders with his character and resolve in Washington.
Now, Wasserman Schultz has been in Congress since 2005. She's a former DNC chair. Adrienne, again, a House race, I feel bad for Hakeem Jeffries trying to navigate this one on some level, but does this have significant -- a broader significance in terms of how the party's thinking through future?
ELROD: Well, a couple of things. Number one, I mean, you just laid this out perfectly. This is a challenging situation because of redistricting and what the Republicans done, have done in Florida. Now, Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz is in a majority minority black district. She decided to run. She didn't have to. She just decided to. That's her own decision. But this is going to be a challenge for her.
Now, from Congressman Ro Khanna's perspective, I mean, he can endorse whoever he wants. I mean, we are a big tent party. He's the kind of person who is going to endorse, you know, someone who's a little bit far to the left. He's sort of in the Bernie Sanders progressive wing of the party. This endorsement does not surprise me one bit. It also wouldn't surprise me if Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz gets a bunch of members of Congress to endorse her who have been -- who have known her for a long time and have worked with her. So, we'll see how it goes.
MATTINGLY: Really great points. By the way, you gave demerits out. You were a vice principal today, along with your many other talents, which I couldn't let go of throughout the course of this conversation, which was great. Thanks to you both. I appreciate it.
Well, New Mexico lawmakers sending out multiple subpoenas as part of their investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and crimes that may have been committed at his ranch in this state. One of those lawmakers joins me live next to share what they've learned so far, and what comes next.
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[18:48:25]
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN HOST: Some breaking news in our law and justice lead, Luigi Mangione's attorneys have just announced they will withdraw their plan to argue a psychiatric defense in Mangione's murder trial. Mangione is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
I want to get straight to CNN's Kara Scannell in New York, because, what is this, like, 24 hours. It's a reversal. Explain what's happening here.
KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Phil, it is. And in the words of one former prosecutor, this is stunning and bizarre. It was just yesterday that Mangione's lawyers indicated that they would move forward with this psychiatric defense, where essentially Mangione would admit that he had committed the murder, but did so in a state of extreme emotional disturbance. If successful, that could lower his potential prison time.
But now today, 24 hours later, they have withdrawn that, saying that they are not going to move forward on that. There are no additional details. His lawyers have not returned our calls for comment. So there's nothing concrete to explain why they made this reversal.
Today was the deadline for the lawyers to give the prosecution the name of their expert and other information about this defense. We don't know if that occurred or if this withdrawal came in first or if it was the trigger for it.
I did talk to a former prosecutor, though, who was speculating that it could be after this hearing that Mangione himself changed his mind. It is ultimately his decision whether or not to move forward with this defense, or it's possible there could have been an issue with the expert or the experts' report. We don't know at this point, and it's not clear that Mangione's lawyers will ever have to explain that. I mean, one of the things that Mangione's lawyers had said in a sealed
hearing previously is that she wanted it sealed because if this came out and they didn't go forward, it could potentially prejudice the jury.
[18:50:00]
And now that issue seems to be a potential issue on the table. This trial is just three months away, Phil.
MATTINGLY: Major issue. It's going to be fascinating to watch.
Kara Scannell will be doing it for us. It's going to be a busy summer.
Also in our law and justice lead, New Mexico's Epstein Truth Commission just released six of its first 14 subpoenas, seeking records tied to the dead pedophile, the state's former governor, Bill Richardson, and Zorro Ranch, Epstein's private residence for 26 years. The commission established in February is a bipartisan subcommittee of the New Mexico House that has been digging into Epstein's activities at the property.
State representative Andrea Romero chairs the commission and joins me now.
I really appreciate your time. Just to start, we can now see six of the first 14 subpoenas that your commission has issued. Can you tell us what information you're hoping will come from?
ANDREA ROMERO (D), NEW MEXICO STATE HOUSE: Yeah, so the subpoenas are really focused on the root information that will help us lead to the various people that we'd like to investigate. This gets us to a foundational informational level of his operations. So that way, when we actually have the individuals who are of interest to us in front of us, we know which questions to ask. We know what investigations have been done, and we have the information to really go after the folks who we are seeking justice against.
MATTINGLY: You're looking into the communications of former Governor Richardson that he may have had with Epstein, including his time spent on Epstein's properties.
Do you have any insight into what you've got so far or what you are expecting to get in the future?
ROMERO: Yeah, so we're in the midst of compiling that information that goes back to the early 2000s. You know, there's a lot of records that we are currently overseeing and seeking out through these the subpoena process. Many of these subpoenas are going out of state. So domesticating those and making sure that we can deliver those properly is part of why some of them are not publicly posted yet.
But all that to say that this is about getting the record truth established in New Mexico and ensuring that no stone is unturned for what it is that we will reveal to the public and what it is that we need to uncover here. MATTINGLY: I'm glad you make that point because people should know a primary goal of the commission is to determine if any other people in your state should be prosecuted for crimes they committed tied to Epstein and to his ranch, bipartisan. At this point, do you have a sense of any institutions or individuals that you believe committed crimes here?
ROMERO: Well, that's already something that we're uncovering. So when we look at some of the banks that have already settled with the state of New Mexico after Jeffrey Epstein's death, you know, the Deutsche Bank, the JPMorgans of the world have already are part of our subpoena process.
And so, we're looking for that information. We know that the state has already settled with those banks. That's actually how our commission is funded. Now we want to get under the hood as to what actually happened there. What why were these settlements made and under what cause that they were able to do this.
And so, that's part of what we're trying to understand here.
MATTINGLY: What you've been describing, I think makes clear this is a methodical investigative process that is taking place right now. Walk people through kind of what the next steps are for this commission.
ROMERO: So as we've been continuing to update the public about our progress is really going into the various categories of interest, you know, the various crimes, but also centering survivors in the process, giving them an opportunity to come forward through this process and in collaboration with the current criminal investigation with the New Mexico Department of Justice, providing the wherewithal for folks to come forward, but collaborating on that effort to make sure that if we can seek justice today in a court of law, with the laws of New Mexico, we will do that.
Everything else falls under our purview to get the public information that they deserve, that over the years of Jeffrey Epstein's operations, we need to see that discontinue. So that's what we're trying to figure out here.
MATTINGLY: New Mexico State Representative Andrea Romero, really appreciate your time. Thank you.
ROMERO: Thank you so much.
MATTINGLY: And we'll be right back.
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[18:58:34]
MATTINGLY: This Sunday on Father's Day, CNN's Jake Tapper is sitting down with Senators Mark Kelly, Tim Scott, and former Senator Mitt Romney to learn more about how their unique relationships with their dads helped shape their own approach to fatherhood. Here's a preview from Jake's conversation with former Republican
presidential candidate, and Senator Mitt Romney in which he talks about his bond and admiration for his father, George Romney.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY, FORMER U.S. SENATOR: He was there for the major events in my life, but communicated frequently and thoroughly how much he admired me and thought I had huge things in store. When I lost in 1994 to Ted Kennedy, he said, oh, this is just the beginning. And my dad was insistent, oh, no, you're not finished. I became governor in 2003, so almost 10 years later.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: And then -- and then the Republican nominee for president and then a very well-respected senator. I mean, He missed all of that, but --
ROMNEY: I hope he got it -- I hope he gets a chance to look in, but my guess is -- my guess is he's not looking back. He's looking forward on the other side. It's like, I'm sure Mitt's doing great. I'm going ahead.
TAPPER: Is there any regret that he didn't get to see that, or does it matter?
ROMNEY: I'd love him to still be part of our life. I think from time to time what I would give, how much money I would give to spend a day with him.
TAPPER: Yeah.
ROMNEY: Just, I mean, I don't think there's a limit I would give -- I'd give it all to spend a day, and to have that chat.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MATTINGLY: Be sure to watch this very special edition of "STATE OF THE UNION", at Sunday, at 9:00 a.m. and noon Eastern on CNN.
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"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts now.
