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The Lead with Jake Tapper

Outrage Grows As New Details About Fatal ICE Shooting Emerge; Satellite Images Show Iran May Be Rebuilding Nuclear Sites; Graham Platner Formally Withdraws From Maine Senate Race; Trump Posts Deepfake Video "Treating: Celebs For "Trump Derangement Syndrome"; Rare Access Aboard U.S. Warship Near Iran. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired July 10, 2026 - 17:00   ET

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

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[17:00:05]

KASIE HUNT, CNN HOST: All right. Thanks to my panel. Really appreciate you all being here. Have a great weekend. Thanks to you at home for watching as well. Have a great weekend. Don't forget, you can watch much more of The Arena tomorrow. The Arena Saturday airs at noon and again at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time right here on CNN. I'd be honored to have you join us.

But for now, don't go anywhere. Jake Tapper is standing by for The Lead and a key is, of course, hosting State of the Union this Sunday. Hi, Jake.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Hello. But between The Lead and State of the Union on Sunday will be The Arena Saturday at noon and 4 for people just to remember. Have a great weekend, Kasie.

HUNT: Thanks. Have a great day.

TAPPER: We'll see you back in The Arena next week.

HUNT: See you soon.

TAPPER: Is the Trump administration telling the truth about this latest deadly shooting? After all, they have lied before. The Lead starts right now.

New questions tonight about what really happened in the moments before ICE agents killed a man Mexican national in Texas. And now local officials are calling for a formal investigation into the death of Lorenzo Salgudo Araujo. We're going to go live to Houston for new details and moments.

Plus, President Trump again today declaring the ceasefire with Iran over. But images exclusively obtained by CNN show that Iran may have used the break in fighting to rebuild and fortify some of its nuclear sites. So what does that mean for the war?

Plus, a famous actress and comedian and talk show host continue continuing to draw Donald Trump's ire even after she moved out of the country. Now Rosie O'Donnell is back in the United States and hawking with The Lead.

Welcome to The Lead and Happy Friday. I'm Jake Tapper. We're going to start with our National Lead and fresh public outcry in Houston, Texas after Tuesday's killing of Mexican national Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer, or ICE. A source tells us that Salgado Araujo was not the target of this operation.

The 52-year-old was just on his way to work and apparently in the wrong place at the wrong time. But now there are new questions about ICE's account of the shooting, which does not match up with the surviving witnesses account. Here's what we know.

Three other men were in the white work van owned by the man who was shot and killed when ICE agents tried to stop the van. ICE's statement says Salgado Araujo tried to ram into an ICE SUV and tried to run over an officer. Here's attorney Hugo Balderas-Ibarra representing two of the three other men that were in the van.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HUGO BALDERAS-IBARRA, ATTORNEY: At no point did they ever use the van to ram into the ICE agents, and at no point were these ICE agents lives ever in any danger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Now, the attorney also told the Washington Post that the work van slowed down before ICE vehicles rammed into it, not the other way around, adding that an ICE agent then got out of his car and started shooting almost immediately. To be clear, we do not have video of the moment of death, only surveillance videos of the unmarked SUVs following the van and the disturbing video of the aftermath that you're watching now. Salgado Araujo's son Ronaldo spoke about his father earlier this week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RONALDO SALGADO, LORENZO SALGADO ARAUJO'S SON: He did not deserve to die. He did not deserve to be reduced to a headline of Mexican man shot and killed by ICE. He deserved to quit to live a quiet life as Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a husband, a father and a job creator for dozens of men who also wanted the American dream.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Now, Salgado Araujo's death is the first deadly shooting involving federal immigration agents and agents since U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti were killed in Minneapolis about six months ago. Now, it's not just Trump's immigration officers under scrutiny. Deployed Tennessee National Guardsmen, part of the administration's Memphis Safe Task Force, shot and killed two people in the span of four days this week. We'll have more on that in a moment, but we're going to start our coverage in Houston, where CNN's Carolina Peguero is.

And Carolina, the attorney also revealed what Salgado Araujo said right after he was shot.

CAROLINA PEGUERO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That is true, Jake. Lots of information and many questions unanswered here in the east end of Houston. As you can see, there's still people that are coming here to pay their respects to Lorenzo Salgado Araujo. And the family of Araujo have yet been able to claim his body.

However, the city and the district attorney's office have made information saying that they are aware that these ICE agents that were involved have been removed from the city of Houston. However, they are not aware or know if they are still conducting their duties. The lawyer, on the other hand, of the men that were with Lorenzo, including in that van, his brother, have given written statements of what they witnessed moments before.

[17:05:10]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BALDERAS-IBARRA: I am calling for the immediate release of my clients from Conroe from the Montgomery Processing Center. I believe that given the magnitude of this case and the implications that it carries, my clients may be pressured into signing documentation to sign for their voluntary departure.

I think it is extremely important that we preserve the integrity of this investigation. That will all be out the window if they are deported.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PEGUERO: And Salgado Araujo's the last words was they are trying to kill me. That's where a lot of those videos where people have been seeing all over social media, they don't know, however, those exact moments of when he was shot. However, DHS has given several statements including the following that the allegations of the ICE age asked residents and members of the public to delete their footage of the incident are categorically false. This is a total fabrication made up to demonize our brave ICE officers as well as it is categorically false. We would pressure someone to self deport.

Now we are going to continue to be here in the scene as well. We've heard that there are family members that have been coming to this site as well is a vigil that is expected for tomorrow morning. Jake.

TAPPER: All right, Carolina Peguero in Houston, Texas, thanks so much. CNN's Priscilla Alvarez joins us now. Priscilla, I'm just going to make an observation which is for a year and a half now we've been hearing ICE and DHS say things are false when they turn out to be true. It's happened time and time again. I don't know how much longer they expect the public to believe them.

OK, moving on. Tell us more about your reporting on all these conflicting accounts.

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, and to your point, Jake, these are conflicting accounts that also find themselves their way to the courtroom where judges as well have them to be not truthful. But in this case, multiple sources that I have spoken with said that what transpired here was that they essentially had embarked on this immigration operation with another target in mind. That target had actually come to their attention because of a tip from Texas authorities in some previous encounter where there were two men who were believed to not have legal status traveling in a white van.

Now, when the ICE agents were heading to that address of the property with a white van, a white van that they had been surveilling, they, they spotted another white van and they started to pursue that one.

TAPPER: Mistakenly.

ALVAREZ: Mistakenly. Now again, this is a case of which there were two similar vans and two vans on this property. So they figured they would follow it, and they thought that somebody in the van resembled their original target. So they follow this van.

We know that there's two vehicles that we have seen in surveillance. You can see some of that footage there. I'm told they were boxed in. So they boxed in Salgado's vehicle. They had known as they were following the vehicle, that he was the registered owner of it, and he, too, did not have a legal status. And then the shooting transpired.

Now, this is where we don't have as much information because the officers did not have body cam, and their vehicles, which are generally unmarked, also typically don't have dash cam. So that is why there are so many questions about what happened in that particular moment. Because up until now, and the footage that we've been seeing is from eyewitnesses or from areas, buildings nearby that had cameras on them.

So this is sort of the black box of information that everyone is trying to understand as to, did officers get out of the vehicle? Was there a ramming that happened? Did they try to ram into. Or they, being Salgado, try to ram into an ICE agent? The family says that's absolutely not the case and that he would have complied had he known it was ICE. And again, they are typically in unmarked vehicles.

TAPPER: Unmarked car. You don't know who it is.

ALVAREZ: So the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General, and the Harris County or Harris District Attorney, they're all investigating this. So we hope to get more answers soon. But right now, there are still so many questions to what happened in that, in that moment of the shooting. And the three passengers who are in ICE custody have been sharing some of what they experienced with their attorney.

TAPPER: Just quickly, Priscilla. ICE agents are not required to wear body cams?

ALVAREZ: They are, but they're distributing them slowly. They hadn't been. It's very complicated, but Houston had not. TAPPER: Distributing them slowly. That's interesting. Priscilla Alvarez, thanks so much. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo joins us now. Harris County Compasses Houston, Judge Hidalgo. Houston Mayor John

Whitmire said this about the federal investigation into Salgado Araujo's death. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR JOHN WHITMIRE (D), HOUSTON, TEXAS: They have the evidence in this instance, the van, the passengers, the deceased, and they're tightly controlling it. We've reached out to them and asked them share that information with HPD.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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TAPPER: So when he says they have the evidence, he's referring to the federal government, the Trump administration, and he says he wants an independent investigation. The FBI is going to meet with his investigators. Are you worried at all about the Trump administration potentially not sharing all this evidence, potentially, you know, covering it all up?

LINA HIDALGO, COUNTY JUDGE, HARRIS COUNTY, TEXAS: Of course. I mean, first, let me. Let me be clear. My title is judge, but I'm the executive for Harris County, and that includes funding our district attorney's office, sheriff, the jail, et cetera.

One of the issues here, of course, is this is a long time coming. And it goes to the conversation you were just having about the body cameras. Sure. We don't have the footage and we're not getting certain information. You can sort of imagine what it would look like. I've been hearing for many months from community members, from teachers, about kids not showing up to school, about people not showing up to work because they're too scared to be out and about.

And as we've talked about before, if you see an unmarked vehicle, what is the most likely thing you're going to do, whether you are an immigrant or not? Our district attorney here, Sean Teare, has launched an investigation as well. I'm glad to see that the city of Houston is also launching an investigation.

For me, it's not important who does it, as long as it's not, you know, the fox guarding the hen house. That's not picking on ICE or the federal government. And as long as we get the information that we need. The attorney today called for a private investigation. I'm happy for Harris County to support that as well.

And I think what we all are united on, whether it be the city mayor, the county executive, myself, or the other stakeholders, is we would like to get this information. But either way, either way, it's absolutely unacceptable. We just had our last FIFA match. We showed the world the most beautiful side of Houston, and now it's this horrendous underbelly. And so I'm hoping that this will be another watershed moment. Not to

say, hey, let's all have body cameras, but for everybody in the country to say, that is enough. It's embarrassing, it is unfair, and this is not something that should be happening in this country.

TAPPER: So Salgado Araujo's son said that his dad would have pulled over if he knew that the unmarked cars belong to ICE agents. Are they required to identify themselves before they pull people over? Do they announce on the loudspeaker? This is ICE. Pull over. Because obviously a van just pushing on, somebody blocking them in could be interpreted as maybe it's not law enforcement, maybe it's -- maybe it's a criminal activity.

HIDALGO: Yes. I mean, they're not, right. And so that's where we've had meetings with teachers and from public schools. We've had meetings. We run also the public health department in Harris County. So our doctors, heads of clinics, people are not coming in because you don't know at what point an unmarked vehicle might approach you and then what?

And I have to believe that this gentleman, there's no reason for him certainly being an immigrant, certainly in this climate to try to disobey law enforcement orders. And let me just add something else is I might be the county executive of the third largest county in the country, but I'm also an immigrant and I immigrated in 2005. I didn't have my U.S. citizenship until 2013. And we did it the right way and it takes time. OK. And the state has fought for illegal immigration to be a crime because it wasn't. And that's still in the court.

So let's not get bogged down in the details. Let's honor the life of this gentleman and let's do that, but by demanding an end to this police state type behavior that we've been seeing.

TAPPER: Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, thank you so much for your time today. Coming up next to CNN exclusive finding that Iran might be attempting to rebuild some of its nuclear sites. We're going to show you those images in moments.

Plus, President Trump says he's laid out specific plans for how the U.S. should respond if Iran attempts to assassinate him. The president going on to say he's number one in Iran's kill list. Those details ahead.

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TAPPER: A major CNN investigation tops our World Lead today. Satellite images obtained exclusively by CNN appear to show that Iran is rebuilding nuclear and missile sites throughout the country in the past several weeks. That timeframe puts Iran in violation of the Memorandum of Understanding agreed to by the U.S. and Iran, an agreement that's now in serious jeopardy amid renewed fighting. Here's CNN investigative reporter Katie Polglase.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KATIE POLGLASE, CNN INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER (voice-over): This image, one of several shared exclusively with CNN, may show signs of Iran attempting to rebuild its nuclear facilities. This is one of several locations across the country where we've identified recent activity both at nuclear and missile sites.

The activity in nuclear sites in particular raises questions as to whether Iran violated the Memorandum of Understanding it signed with the U.S. in late June. Even before President Trump seemed to signal its end by launching fresh strikes in it, Tehran had agreed not to procure or develop nuclear weapons.

This site in Parchin is believed to be holding explosive material for nuclear weapons. Before the U.S.-Israeli strikes, Iran built this concrete shield around it, a sign of its importance. It was then struck multiple times during the U.S.-Israel bombing campaign this year. The targeting was precise. You can see the holes left behind by bunker busting bombs.

Now in new imagery from June and July, analyzed by CNN in conjunction with the Institute for Science and International Security, we can see Iran appeared to be taking steps to repair and reconstruct the site.

[17:20:10]

You can see temporary covers placed over the impact holes. Then, weeks later, with the memorandum still in effect, the covers are removed and replaced with a mesh, concrete mixing trucks are visible nearby. Experts say these trucks are a sign the Iranians are intending to seal the holes.

POLGLASE: For weeks, we've only had glimpses of what's been happening on the ground inside Iran. Providers have been withholding satellite imagery across the region at the request of the U.S. government. Now those restrictions are loosening and we've been able to see new images across Iran of which sites they've started to clear and repair first, a sign perhaps of which they see as the most important.

POLGLASE (voice-over): This is Pickaxe Mountain, another site where Iran is believed to be advancing its nuclear capabilities deep underground. And in recent weeks, vehicles could clearly be seen going in and out of the tunnels. Experts told CNN this was likely a violation of the terms signed with the U.S. which required Iran to maintain the status quo regarding the nuclear program.

In contrast, other prominent nuclear sites did not seem to have been touched, like Isfahan here, Fordow here and Natanz. There has been activity at some missile sites. The US and its allies have long been concerned about Tehran's missile capacity. And the latest imagery suggests Iran has already started repairing some storage sites.

This is new paving laid out at Tabriz missile base in recent days. And at another missile base in Kermanshah, we can see excavators and tunnel entrances being cleared. Lastly, we've also spotted repairs at air bases in recent days. You can see a crater being filled in here at Tabriz Air Base. With the U.S. resuming its attacks on Iran, a peace agreement is seeming increasingly out of reach. Katie Polglase, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TAPPER: And our thanks to Katie Polglase, CNN reached out to the Iranian government for comment on the activity detected. Responding to CNN's findings, a Pentagon official said they would not discuss battlefield conditions or intelligence matters due to operational security. Joining us now to discuss, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton. He's also a former national security adviser for President Trump during Trump's first term.

We should note he is not able to discuss the classified information case against him which he pled guilty to in June. So I'm not going to waste anybody's time.

Ambassador, what is your reaction to these exclusively obtained satellite images showing recent activity at Iranian nuclear and missile sites? That seems like a clear violation of the Memorandum of Understanding, right?

JOHN BOLTON, FORMER TRUMP NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Well, of course it is. And of course, nobody should be surprised. There has never been a single bit of evidence, to my knowledge, that Iran has ever made a strategic decision to give up its pursuit of nuclear weapons. It pledges over and over again that it's not seeking nuclear weapons, but it has been for 30 or more years, and it is today. There's no doubt in my mind about it.

TAPPER: President Trump seemed to confirm that Israel recently shared with him new intelligence about an Iranian plot to assassinate the president. The president told the New York Post today, quote, I've left instructions if anything happens to just literally bomb them at levels that they've never seen before, unquote. We know there have been similar threats before against President Trump. You've also been the target of an Iranian assassination plot. How credible do you believe this Israeli intelligence is?

BOLTON: Well, without seeing it, it's obviously hard to judge it, but to me, it sounds very credible. I mean, one of the problems that we face in Iran today is there's not a functioning government. I think it's a dangerous illusion that although it's been wounded, the government kind of continues as it was before.

Indeed, the memorandum of understanding was negotiated with a bunch of civilians who don't have control of the weapons that are now being used in the Gulf and in the Strait of Hormuz against commercial traffic. And it's the Revolutionary Guard, not the civilians, who are in control of the nuclear program.

So I think all of this puts it together that it's entirely possible that either Revolutionary Guard or the Ministry of Information and Security, the MOIS, is continuing to plot Trump's assassination, as it has since the strike against Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Quds Force back in January of 2020, where the first death threats, more than threats, the activity to try and assassinate President Trump and a number of others of us down the line for that strike. I suspect the list is even longer today.

Let me just say one thing about the Israeli intelligence, because I've heard this speculation that the Israelis are trying to con the United States and poor, naive Donald Trump into thinking that there's an assassination plot where none exists.

Presumably, everything that the Israelis had and was given to the United States was reviewed by American intelligence agencies.

[17:25:00]

And if they doubted that there was a plot going on, you know, I think the president probably would have gotten on his shiny refurbished 747 instead of the old one. So I think it's just a little bit more than cynical to say that somehow the Israelis whomp this up without a basis. If American intelligence doesn't believe it, they should say so.

TAPPER: Despite all of this nuclear talks appear to be ongoing. This morning, President Trump posted on social media, quote, the Islamic Republic of Iran has asked us to continue talks. We have agreed to do so, but the United States has stated to them in no uncertain terms that the ceasefire is over, unquote. What's your reaction to that?

BOLTON: I'm not sure it's true. I think Trump makes up what he wants to make about these negotiations. And let's also be clear, the bulk of the negotiations are proximity talks. The U.S. talks to the mediators, Qatar and Pakistan. They then talk to the Iranians. The Iranians talk back to the mediators, who then talk to us.

And the idea that somehow negotiations are continuing is part of Trump's desperate effort to lead people to believe that the memorandum of understanding is still alive, which I think it's not.

TAPPER: Former ambassador John Bolton, thanks so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

BOLTON: Thank you.

TAPPER: Maine Democrats have less than three weeks to pick a Senate replacement for Graham Platner to be the Democratic candidate. One of the people who's already thrown their hat into the ring joins us live next.

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TAPPER: We have some breaking news in our Politics Lead. Graham Platner today officially filed paperwork to withdraw from the U.S. Senate race in Maine. Platner suspended his campaign Wednesday after a CNN interview with a woman who says he raped her in 2021 while he was heavily intoxicated. It's an allegation Platner denies.

Joining me now is one of five declared candidates running to replace Platner as the Democratic nominee, Jordan Wood. Jordan Wood is former chief of staff to Congresswoman Katie Porter and ran unsuccessfully to be a Democratic candidate for Maine's 2nd congressional district. Thanks for joining us, Jordan. So you entered the senate race in April 2025.

Months later called on Platner to drop out after his resurfaced Reddit posts and reports of a tattoo with Nazi symbolism. In an interview with "The Advocate," you said, "I believe deeply in second chances. But what I saw was someone who doesn't understand what's wrong with these statements, these Reddit statements, how offensive and threatening they are, not just to LGBTQ people, but to people of color and women."

After that, you left that race and then ran in the main 2nd congressional district race. Why did you leave the Senate field to begin with? And why did you leave it to someone that you think is a threat to so many people?

JORDAN WOOD (D), MAINE SENATE CANDIDATE: Yes. When the Reddit post came out, I took time to see what Graham's response to that would be. And again, he's to hear his explanation. I didn't find it to be truthful, called for him to drop out, which people would say is political opportunism. We have ranked choice voting in Maine, so you actually have no incentive for calling someone to leave the race. It'll upset their supporters.

But when I did that, my hope was that there would be other national and party leaders in the state that joined me. And nobody did. And I received a lot of just threats, people telling me I needed to get out of the race and I didn't want to continue on a campaign where that question of why are you trying to bring down Graham Platner persisted. It was not productive. Graham and I agree on the issues, we're both millennials, reformers. And so I left the race. It was a hard decision, but ultimately I didn't see that it was going to be helpful.

TAPPER: So why is it that so many Democrats stood by him after the Reddit posts, after the Totenkopf, the Nazi SS tattoo, after the extramarital sexting, after so many scandals? It wasn't until Monday after "Politico" and CNN ran stories, and then we ran on the record, on camera interview with Jenny Racicot in which she said that he raped her. He denies that.

That's when people finally started withdrawing their support. Why did it take all of that? By the way a lot of these details, not as in explicit detail, but a lot of stuff about him physically abusing a different ex-girlfriend, Lyndsey Fifield, were published by "The New York Times" before the primary.

WOOD: Yes, as I have thought about it myself, you know, when I left the Senate race, I said, whoever comes out of the Democratic nomination, I will support. And as I thought about it was we want to forgive people. We want to give them second chances. Especially for somebody like Graham, who's had a difficult life. I've been come to know him very well.

And that his behavior moving forward is what he should be judged on. And the allegations are of his past. They are disqualified nonetheless. But I think there is a real motivation, a real conviction among the people here. We're good people and want to give people that ability to transform, to be better people and improve their lives.

[17:34:54]

And unfortunately, to do that, you must be truthful about your past. And what became clear through every single instance that you mentioned is that in each one of those times, Graham said, this is the last one. This is the last thing that will come out. That was also a lie. So -- but I have a great deal of grace for the people of Maine, that their hearts are in the right place.

TAPPER: And you want those people, you want the Democrats of Maine to support you. Why should they support you?

WOOD: Well, what we are facing right now is an emergency, but a challenge to put forward the best candidate that we can in a short amount of period to defeat Susan Collins. How does that candidate carry on the platform, the agenda that was voted for in the primary? I know this, and the voters may know this because we campaigned on it. Graham and I agree on many of the issues, Medicare for all, universal childcare, putting conditions on any aid to Israel, not taking corporate or lobbyist donations.

You know, there's agreement there. Voters know that. It's not a new question. My website has had it up there the whole time. But we also need to find a candidate that is able to separate on a moral or character level that can be trusted. You know, I am -- as the first Democrat that really called this out with the hope that people in my own party would join me, I think that there's a hard way to make an accusation that I didn't do what I could to try to prevent the disaster we're dealing with right now.

But I also am born and raised in Maine. I come from a working class family. My father is a pastor, raising my family in the same neighborhood that I lived in when I was in high school. You know, again, Graham and I, we're very different people, but we are also pushing an agenda platform that is aligned and I think that makes me uniquely qualified to be the candidate to carry in the Democrats we need, but also persuade over independents and people that have voted for Susan Collins in the past.

TAPPER: All right, Jordan Wood, thank you so much. Really appreciate it.

Comedian Rosie O'Donnell has long been on the receiving end of President Trump's attack. So why is Trump so seemingly obsessed with her? She shares her thoughts next.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[17:41:20]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You've called women you don't like fat pigs, dogs, slobs and disgusting animals. Your Twitter account --

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Only Rosie O'Donnell.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: In our Pop Culture Lead, Donald Trump being nasty about Rosie O'Donnell is not a new thing. It goes back quite a ways. And their animosity has been thrust back into the spotlight because not just of that moment during the summer of 2015 and the Republican debates, but more than a decade later, President Trump is still attacking the comedian, actress and former talk show host. Trump recently posted this A.I. slop on his social media platform.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Have you or someone you know been diagnosed with TDS? The symptoms can be relentless. Fortunately, I'm Dr. Trump and I have a treatment plan. Let's hear what some of my patients have to say.

ROSIE O'DONNELL, PERFORMER, "COMMON KNOWLEDGE": I have been suffering for over a decade. And after listening to Dr. Trump, I can see some results.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Again, that's the President of the United States posting that. And the Emmy award winning Rosie O'Donnell is here now. Thanks so much for joining us. What -- what's your reaction to that A.I. generated video sent out by the President of the United States showing you and Robert De Niro and Julia Roberts and Whoopi Goldberg, et cetera.

O'DONNELL: Well, I think I'm in good company, number one. And number two, you know, I seem to be the, you know, obsession he can't get rid of. You know, he's obsessed with Barack Obama And I think that's because he's innately a racist and he's obsessed with me because I think he's innately a sexist.

And I grew up not very far from where he grew up. Now he's 80, I'm 64. But I remember what a buffoon he was and how everyone in New York had his number. He never fooled anyone. He was never a guest on my show until we had a charity drive where if a celebrity would come in sweeping with the swifter, we would get $1,000 to charity.

So I let him sweep my stage one day and waved to him from. But I never interviewed him. I knew what he was and who he was, as did every New Yorker my age.

TAPPER: You actually sold your homes and you left the United States because of safety concerns after Trump was reelected. You're on the Jersey Shore right now.

O'DONNELL: Well, it was really. It wasn't real -- it wasn't really safety, Jake. It was mental health concerns.

TAPPER: OK. OK. O'DONNELL: I knew that when he was in last time. It was very difficult for me. I have an autistic child who's 13, and I have four other children. And I know with my diagnosis of major depressive disorder, I have to stay on top of my medication and of my mental health and my physical exercise and my joy and that I was so horrified when he got the Republican nomination.

I thought if he left after reading all of Project 2025, if he got elected, we would have to go. And I never thought that before in my life. I was never someone who would, you know, announce that to the press. I kept it very quiet. I did it for my own safety and my child's safety.

TAPPER: And you're back in the United States right now. We should note, because ahead of your one woman show, "Common Knowledge," which opens off Broadway for a limited run starting July 22nd, it is a personal story about your move to Dublin, Ireland, with your youngest child. What has that move been like? Do you have any regrets about leaving, or was it clearly the right decision?

[17:44:58]

O'DONNELL: It was very clearly the right decision. The people of Ireland are so unbelievably welcoming and kind, and I have had nothing but love from everyone. And one cab driver was a Trump fan. And when I got in the car, he said, are you Rosie McDonald? You're the reporter that hates Trump. I said, well, close, sir, but not exactly. But, yes, that's. I'm who you're thinking of.

He's the best president in the world. I said, you're going to have to shut up or pull over. Those are your two options at this point. You know, but everyone else in this country has been like, I'll be at a pub with my family and friends and somebody will come over. I just like to buy you a paint, Rosie, because I hate them, too. And I'm like, well, thank you very much. I appreciate your understanding.

TAPPER: Before, I mean, you note that you called it an obsession. It is clearly unusual how much he posts about you. Before he posted that A.I. video, he posted these cartoon images of you with an image of himself in each of the thought bubbles and the caption, she is obsessed. She is, there's a question mark after she. He also called you a threat to humanity.

O'DONNELL: Yes, yes.

TAPPER: Said you should remain in the wonderful country of Ireland if they want her. And he said he was giving serious thought to taking away your citizenship, which I'm not sure he's legally allowed to do. Why is he still so fixated on you? You're being quiet in Ireland?

O'DONNELL: Well, I'm not being all that quiet on social media.

TAPPER: Right.

O'DONNELL: You know, I'm standing up for the --

TAPPER: Fair enough.

O'DONNELL: -- country that I love so much, and I'm calling him out at every turn where his blatant criminal behavior in the White House needs to be addressed. And, you know, he had a very long run of lies with the "Celebrity Apprentice" and those people who are watching and believing that it set up a cult like status for him where his people don't care about anything he does, apparently, even the sexual abuse of children.

And that's a line that I never thought we would get to in this country that there could be such a mediocre man with such horrible, horrible reputation could be running this great nation of ours. And I think it's the worst thing that ever happened to the United States. And if we don't wake up soon, it's going to be too late.

TAPPER: When you posted about leaving the U.S. you said you might return when, "it's safe for all citizens to have equal rights there in America." Does that mean that when Trump leaves office, presumably January 2029, you'll come back or it depends on who wants the election in 2028?

O'DONNELL: Yes. Well, I don't think, Jake, that he is going to survive that long. All the medical doctors that you can get accurate opinions of what's happening to him because his demise is visible and apparent to everyone who is not willfully blind. I mean, he called Zelenskyy, Putin. He makes the kind of mistakes that you would forgive at Thanksgiving dinner, but you would never let grandpa cut the turkey because it might be dangerous. He doesn't know what he's saying.

TAPPER: Don't forget he referred to the Islamic Republic of Japan, I think as well.

O'DONNELL: Correct. I mean, we can sit here and name them. There are so many obvious understanding of his dementia and how it's taking over. And I know there are millions of Americans who have lived through parents and loved ones going through exactly what he's going through.

And everyone just sits around and goes fotio-dodo (ph), you know, and I don't understand it. I think my displeasure with the Democratic Party's attack of him and the urgency by which they need to break the glass in case of emergency. It is an emergency. It's not like fascism might come here. Fascism has already arrived.

TAPPER: So the one woman show is "Common Knowledge." Starts July 22nd off Broadway. And then later in the summer you're also going to be substitute hosting on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Rosie O'Donnell, so great having you. Thank you so much.

O'DONNELL: And thank you, Jake. I appreciate it.

[17:49:13]

TAPPER: Tens of thousands of U.S. Naval personnel are at sea serving in the war with Iran and CNN is there with them. The rare access our crew's got aboard a ship and over the highly disputed Strait of Hormuz. That's next.

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TAPPER: CNN with rare and exclusive access aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, an aircraft carrier and the Navy destroyer that's protecting it. That destroyer is the closest U.S. ship to Iran as it sails the Arabian Sea. CNN's Pamela Brown shares with us right now a firsthand look at the mission of these warships. She also spoke with the commanding officer responsible for the safety of 20,000 people both on deck and below. And even in the skies above the disputed Strait of Hormuz.

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PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): One fighter jet after another takes off from the USS Abraham Lincoln, overnight missions amid rising tensions with Iran. We're in the Gulf of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz, aboard a ship President Trump says has been attacked more than 100 times since the conflict began.

CAPT. DANIEL KEELER, COMMANDING OFFICER, USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN: You know, the Iranians were looking for opportunities to attack this ship. I think we're very well defended. They don't get close.

BROWN (voice-over): Earlier, we watched as missiles were prepped and loaded onto these fighter jets. The mission, as real as it gets.

BROWN: I want to show you these symbols right here. These are drones right here that this spider jet has taken out during this conflict that started five and a half months ago. These are missiles that have been taken out just by this fighter jet alone.

[17:55:01]

BROWN (voice-over): With the Lincoln under constant threat of attack, it's guarded by Navy destroyers for protection. On a chopper headed to the USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. Destroyer, high above the Gulf of Oman, we get our first look at vessels headed toward the Strait of Hormuz.

BROWN: We've seen about five vessels so far. We are seeing maritime traffic, in fact, right here if you turn around, you can see, there's a ship right there passing by. That's about the sixth ship we've seen.

BROWN (voice-over): The traffic is lower now as tensions rise again in the Gulf. Officially, the Navy reports 20 vessels around the strait as we head to our destination. The warship they say is at the tip of the spear.

BROWN: We are the closest Navy ship to Iran right now.

CAPT. CASEY MAHON, COMMANDING OFFICER, USS FRANK E. PETERSEN JR.: Correct. You're right on the, we call the picket line, the firing line right now. So if Iran were to attack, you know, the U.S. Naval forces, we'd be the first ones they'd be attacking. But don't worry, our radars are working, our guns work. You have a lot of well-trained folks down below. BROWN (voice-over): Threats are part of life out here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you don't obey my order, you will be targeted.

BROWN (voice-over): Like when Captain Mahon led this ship through the Strait of Hormuz in April. Radio transmissions between the U.S. and Iran were released by Iran state media. Mahon confirmed to CNN an exchange did happen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm ready to open fire on them without any warning.

BROWN: And so the Iranians were threatening?

MAHON: Correct. Yes, yes. They told us, hey, you have to turn around within 30 minutes or we'll open fire on you. We kept going. Obviously had to go through what was potentially a minefield to get there, which was, you know, not something I had in my bingo card for things I would do in my life go through a minefield.

BROWN (voice-over): The firepower aboard this ship is everywhere.

MAHON: We have this as our last ditch defense.

BROWN (voice-over): Captain Mahon calls the shots from a command center several decks below.

BROWN: Just with Iran being to the north, they're always on the lookout for all kinds of threats. Have you had any close calls?

MAHON: My flight really starts at that Iranian coastline and comes all the way back. I don't wait for it to come to me. I go out and I try to meet that threat.

BROWN (voice-over): Back on the Abraham Lincoln, it can be tough to keep spirits high for the nearly 5,000 people here. Because of its limited port visits, the Navy considers this deployment among the longest consecutive days at sea for any aircraft carrier.

RANDALL STONE, WORKS IN HANGAR BAY: I mean, I haven't stepped off the ship in the year 2026.

BROWN (voice-over): Most have been here more than three months under constant threat and change and missing their families.

BROWN: What kind of toll does that take on you personally?

LT. CMDR. JOE CAPSTAFF, USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN: It's tough. I said I had my first kid born in February. So very excited to get home, meet her.

BROWN: You've never met your daughter?

CAPSTAFF: Nope.

BROWN: She was born right around when this conflict started.

CAPSTAFF: She was born February 6th. So I was able to get on FaceTime, watch the birth, talk to my wife before everything went down, so.

BROWN: And you don't know when you'll be able to do that.

CAPSTAFF: Nope. We'll see. I mean, hopefully home soon, but unfortunately it's a common story on the ship. I think, you know, get in the Navy, this is what you kind of sign up for.

BROWN (voice-over): Pamela Brown, CNN USS Abraham Lincoln.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TAPPER: And our thanks to CNN's Pamela Brown.

President Trump takes aim at another group, officials who work on elections. And this time it's a bipartisan group and they're meant to keep elections safe, your voting safe. Those details next.

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