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Trump Rejected Israeli Plan to Kill Iran's Ayatollah; Minnesota Shooting Suspect has First Court Appearance; J.J. Spaun Wins U.S. Open with Stunning Comeback; Predident's Sons Announce New "Trump Mobile" Cell Service. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired June 16, 2025 - 13:30   ET

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

[13:30:00]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: ... the hardliners in Iran to justify real pursuit, expanded, accelerated pursuit of a nuclear weapon using these attacks as justification, no?

IAN BREMMER, PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER, EURASIA GROUP AND GZERO MEDIA: But it would take months for them to do that. And if what the Iranians do is, as they say, go dark on their nuclear program and withdraw from the nonproliferation treaty and inspectors are all gone, then at that point, the United States and Israel are going to take that window and attack.

So I mean, Iran is not coming out of this with a nuclear program. They are either going to have to give up on that and give Trump the deal that he has for months now been hoping for, or they're going to refuse. And then they're going to get much more blown up than what we've seen over the last few days. Now, how the Iranians respond to that and how much escalation we see across the region and more broadly as a consequence, that's a very open question.

But it's not as if Iran has good options now for what they're going to be able to do to Israel, given all these attacks. And a dash to a bomb is not going to lead to an Iranian nuclear weapon. It is very clear that Trump and the Israelis together will not allow that to occur.

SANCHEZ: I also wonder what your thoughts are on the idea from Netanyahu that the Iranian people should rise up against their leaders and simultaneously President Trump, according to CNN's reporting, rejecting an Israeli plan to assassinate Ayatollah Khamenei. What do you make of that seeming disagreement?

BREMMER: Well, removing Khamenei, 85 years old, the theocrat that runs the theocracy, but is not actually the person that makes policy decisions, that would be the military in Iran. And a lot of those leaders have been killed by Israel. If there's going to be a regime change, it's not because the supreme leader's been taken out.

It's going to be because the Iranian people have suffered enough and are going to stand for themselves. Israel cannot make that happen. The United States cannot make that happen.

And frankly, even if there were an effort at regime change, it is probably at least the coin flip that it is brutally repressed and the military takes over. In other words, this is not Bashar Assad Syria, where you had a much less capable military that wasn't well equipped or trained or paid for. Iran is a much more robust domestic capacity to repress.

And it's not as if Trump is standing up and saying, I like this regime. He'd love the regime to go as well. It's purely the question of what's the right mechanism to help make that happen.

And neither of them have that at their fingertips at this point.

SANCHEZ: Ian Bremmer, thanks for the analysis.

BREMMER: Good to see you, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Still ahead, a Minnesota sheriff says the suspect in the killing of a lawmaker and her husband has inflicted unimaginable harm to the community. Up next, we're going to speak with a lawmaker who knew the victims in the tragic shootings.

[13:35:00]

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BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Next hour, the man accused of shooting two Minnesota state lawmakers and their spouses is set to have his first court appearance. He's now in federal custody, facing a growing list of state and federal charges. The FBI says the suspect went to the homes of four different state lawmakers with the intention of killing all of them.

They say he was dressed like a police officer, that he had a notebook that contained the names of more than 45 state and federal officials.

With us now is Minnesota Democratic State Representative Sydney Jordan. Representative, thank you for being with us.

You sat next to Representative Hortman on the House floor. You know Senator Hoffman. Can you tell us how you're feeling today now that the suspect is in custody?

SYDNEY JORDAN, (D) MINNESOTA STATE HOUSE: Yes, thank you. I just feel grief. I don't know.

I miss, you know, Speaker Hortman. She was my seatmate, but she was also more than that, my friend. She was somebody that, you know, we would, you spend a lot of time together when you're a lawmaker with your fellow lawmakers, and you spend a lot of time on the floor.

You spend a lot of time discussing bills, working through things, and it's just a complete vacuum from where Melissa was. And I know the Senate is reeling and is so worried about Senator Hoffman as well.

KEILAR: I know she was a part of your day when you were at work, and you've probably grown so accustomed to that. When you learned, as we all did, that there were other lawmakers whose homes the suspect went to, what did you think?

JORDAN: I'll be honest, I'm still processing that, but it's very scary. You know, we're part-time legislators. We have other jobs in our community.

It's a very scary time. I feel worried for my neighbors. I feel worried for my family.

[13:40:00]

And I just also, I'm just, the person who I know I would call in this time would be Speaker Hortman, who would be there to tell us what to do to make sure that we were feeling safe like she had done so many other times.

KEILAR: How do you -- as you mentioned, you're part-time lawmakers. This is a public service, and how are you all approaching this when you look at the security issues you have and the protection that you all may need? How are you looking at that?

JORDAN: You know, I think we are talking a lot with our Capitol Sergeant-at-Arms, they're working to make sure we're safe. We've been working with local law enforcement at different levels.

Depending on where you are, you know, every jurisdiction is different. But it's a time where I think we're all thinking a lot more about personal security. But it's hard to do some of those.

It's a very hard time to have to think about both your personal security, your family's security, and also just to reel from what a tragic, horrible murder of your friend.

KEILAR: Republican Senator Mike Lee of Utah posted this on social media yesterday. He said, this is what happens when Marxists don't get their way. He posted another with photos of the suspect, captioned, Nightmare on Wall Street.

Apparently, he meant walls, misspelling the governor's name. What is your reaction to that? What are your concerns about that?

JORDAN: I hope that as lawmakers, it is our job to care for our constituents and to care for the people that we serve. It is not true what Senator Lee tweeted. It is our responsibility to make sure that we are only sharing truths that we can verify.

This is a time for all lawmakers and for people in positions of power to care for their community and to make sure that we are being very deliberate and very careful about not spreading misinformation. This is something that we should have as a big security. I know that my governor, Governor Walz, has worked very hard to make sure that I personally would be safe, that lawmakers would be safe, and it is not a time to be spreading misinformation or doing anything to promote political violence.

Political violence is never acceptable. It has no place in our democracy. Healthy debate has an important and integral piece in our democracy but spreading misinformation like this does not.

KEILAR: Minnesota State Representative Sydney Jordan, thank you so much for being with us. We appreciate it.

JORDAN: Thank you.

KEILAR: And we're thinking of you and all of your colleagues there in the State House.

Still ahead, President Trump calling for ICE to expand deportation efforts in Democratic cities and to do all in their power to achieve mass deportations. We'll look at the implications of this push coming up on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

[13:45:00]

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SANCHEZ: Talk about a fantastic finish. Golf fans who stuck it through a 90-minute rain delay at the U.S. Open were treated to one of the most spectacular endings in the tournament's history. CNN's Coy Wire joins us now.

And, Coy, that rain delay may have actually been a key to victory.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes, it may have helped them through some rough patches there. Boris, good to see you. Let's just call J.J. Spaun super dad. A spectacular Father's Day Sunday for the 34-year-old J.J. Spaun. His heroic win at the U.S. Open, coming after he had to play hero for his daughter in the middle of the night. More on that in a second.

Spaun surely feeling the pressure after bogeying five of his first six holes in the final round. But he would persevere, putting with precision. And on the final hole, a jaw-dropping 64-foot putt. What? For birdie. Spaun wins his first ever major title in stunning fashion.

His wife, Melody, young daughters, Emerson and Violet, there to see dad show resilience and tenacity on this treacherous course in Pittsburgh. He was the only player to finish the 72-hole tournament under par at one-under. Here's J.J. on what he was thinking ahead of that life-changing, seal-dealing putt.

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J.J. SPAUN, CALIFORNIA NATIVE WINS 125TH U.S. OPEN: About eight feet out, I kind of went up to like the high side to see if it had a chance of going in. It was like going right in. And I was just in shock, disbelief that it went in and it was over.

Just to finish it off like that is just a dream. To have my own moment like that at this championship is, I'll never forget this moment for the rest of my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WIRE: Now, Boris, listen to this. Afterwards, the 34-year-old father of two revealed that his daughter was sick the night before. And at 3:00 a.m., Boris, he had to go make a run to CVS to get something for the stomach bug his daughter was fighting. This is before the final round. And not all heroes wear capes, Boris. Some are just dads who love their families and their golf.

What an incredible moment for J.J. Spaun.

SANCHEZ: Congrats to him. Coy Wire, thank you so much for that update.

Still to come, there's a new player in the telecom wars, Trump Mobile. We'll explain in just moments.

[13:50:00]

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SANCHEZ: From the golden escalator down to the golden phone. Today, the Trump Organization launched Trump Mobile, a new wireless service. And it's doing so on the 10-year anniversary of Donald Trump's famous ride down the Trump Tower escalator when he announced his 2016 presidential bid.

KEILAR: The new phone unveiling comes days after the release of the president's financial disclosure forms. Reuters reports he made more than $600 million from his properties, crypto investments and more.

Joining us now, CNN Business Tech Editor Lisa Eadicicco. And Lisa, the Trump Organization is run by two of the president's sons, Eric and Donald Jr. And the president himself plays a big role in shaping U.S. telecommunications policy. So tell us about the conflict of interest here.

EADICICCO: So it certainly raises questions, because you have to remember the telecoms industry is one where there is a good amount of government right.

[13:55:00]

KEILAR: So tell us about the conflict of interest here.

LISA EADICICCO, CNN BUSINESS TECH EDITOR: So it certainly raises questions because you have to remember, the telecoms industry is one where there is a good amount of government regulation involved. The FCC oversees things like spectrum needs for the U.S., how 5G networks are deployed, how future networks will be deployed, and also investments in infrastructure. So now, you're talking about the Trump Organization getting into a business that is pretty closely tied to or in some ways reliant on those decisions.

SANCHEZ: And Lisa, we mentioned the release of the president's annual financial disclosure form. Walk us through the details of that.

EADICICCO: Absolutely. So, as you mentioned, some of the key findings included seeing how much the president has made from things like investments in crypto and his golf private club ventures. But we also learned more about how much he made in royalties from products that have been licensed -- that the Trump name has been licensed to.

So that covers everything from things like sneakers, to fragrances, to watches and even Bibles.

KEILAR: And how much money is he making at this point in time compared to before he ever entered the race for the White House?

EADICICCO: It's difficult to quantify that, but I think what we learned from those filings that came out last Friday was that there is a good amount of interest in these brands that are tied to Trump as well.

KEILAR: Yes, there certainly is. Lisa, thank you so much. Really appreciate it.

And minutes from now, the man charged with shooting two Minnesota state lawmakers and their spouses will make his first court appearance. We're going to bring you a live update next on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

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