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Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) Soon: Former President Clinton Gives Deposition Over Epstein Ties; Source: Trump Briefed On Potential Military Options In Iran; WBD Deems Paramount Offer "Superior," Netflix Drops Bid. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired February 27, 2026 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: He's expected to have all three candidates in the heated GOP primary join him. Senator John Cornyn, who is fending off challenges from Congressman Wesley Hunt and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

CNN's Kristen Holmes is at the White House. So what is the president's message today, Kristen?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well Erica, it now feels like we are really in midterm season. President Trump is taking that message from the State of the Union directly to the voters. He's holding a rally there. He's going to talk about the economy and, of course, he's going to talk about energy because he is in Texas.

Remember, President Trump is really trying to hammer home this message that he inherited this economy, that he understands that the economy is not where people want it to be, and talk about the policies that he has enacted that will hopefully help everyday Americans, at least in the future if they're not feeling it already.

But I've got to tell you there are some questions. You know, why Texas? Why this reliably Republican state? Usually after the State of the Union you see people heading to Michigan or Wisconsin, a more purple state. But if you cover politics at all Texas is the place to be right now. You have this Republican primary for Senate that has turned into an all-out MAGA civil war.

And you noted all these candidates -- they're going to be there with President Trump. He has not endorsed any of them and he has no plans to. He's close to all of them.

At one point it seemed like it would be a shoo-in for the incumbent senator, John Cornyn, as you mentioned. Right now though it looks like most certainly heading to a run-off here. And there are concerns within the Republican Party that if a certain candidate wins this primary, they might actually lose the seat to a Democrat in the actual midterm elections. So there is a lot to watch there.

Now all of this happening at the same time we're hearing President Trump ramping up the pressure on trying to get Congress to pass the Save Act. We know that he already wrote his executive order requiring more proof of citizenship when it comes to voting.

And it comes at the same time that we're seeing this new Washington Post reporting that outside Trump activists who are in touch with the White House are trying to circulate this 17-page memo essentially to the White House -- a draft executive order that would state that the 2020 election was rigged by China.

Keep that in mind. Remember what we know about 2016. Remember what we know about rigged elections. But is says that it was rigged by China. So in that case, President Trump could issue a national emergency, and it would give him this enormous power over voting.

Now I want to be very clear. We do not have any indication from the White House that they are actually considering this, but they are using -- they being outside groups, pro-Trump activists -- using President Trump's own rhetoric where he has talked about this idea of states maybe not being in control of election and that is what is really the impetus here of them starting to circulate this draft.

And I do want to read you one statement here. This is what they said about this reporting. They said, "The White House staff is regularly in communication with a variety of outside advocates who want to share their policy ideas with the president. Any speculation about policies the president may or may not announce is just that, speculation."

But, of course, we've heard President Trump talking about this election in all certain kinds of terms. We know it's something he is laser focused on.

HILL: Yeah, it absolutely is. And important to stay on top of that, so I'm glad you brought us up to speed on that as well.

Kristen, appreciate it. Thank you -- John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. This morning former President Bill Clinton is set to testify before House lawmakers in the congressional investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. It comes after former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton answered questions from lawmakers yesterday. This happened in Chappaqua, New York where the Clintons live.

With us now from Chappaqua, Congresswoman Nancy Mace, a Republican from South Carolina on the House Oversight Committee who is running for governor of South Carolina and was right in the middle of it yesterday and will be right in the middle of it today. Congresswoman, thank you so much for being with us this morning.

REP. NANCY MACE (R-SC): Um-hum. And good morning. Thank you.

BERMAN: So our MJ Lee, who has been reporting on these depositions -- you did three rounds with Secretary Clinton yesterday -- said you asked a number --

MACE: Um-hum. BERMAN: -- of questions about former President Bill Clinton, including whether the former first lady had any feelings about young women massaging her husband.

Why did you ask that? Why was that important?

MACE: Well, there were statements that had been made. I have to be careful about what I say because the transcript is not public yet and neither is the video from the interview. But statements have been made, I believe publicly, about President Trump and why he should be called in. And I think it's fair to ask questions about the standard of the types of people, who they are, and why they should be called in for the Oversight Committee.

And I was making a comparison based on certain statements made yesterday and making that clear that, you know, everybody should be treated equally and the same standard applied to her husband. That was the line of questioning I was going for.

BERMAN: All right. And so asking her what she knew or how she felt about her husband. By that standard would current first lady Melania Trump --

MACE: Um-hum.

BERMAN: -- be a fair witness before your committee?

[07:35:00]

MACE: Uh, I don't believe so, and I don't believe that President Trump because -- should be called before the Oversight Committee. He has answered questions. And the victims that I have spoken to actually exonerated President Trump.

And so the victims I've spoken to and their family members have not exonerated people like former President Bill Clinton who has denied being on the island. But I will bring out some documents today that show that Jeffrey Epstein was directing victims and/or witnesses to deny he ever was at the island.

And I think this is going to be -- there are going to be a lot of people that need to come before the Oversight Committee today -- this morning. I said that Howard Lutnick needs to come before the Oversight Committee. He should answer questions about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.

I think these are all things that are on the table, Republican and Democrat alike -- not Melania and not President Trump. Because of the information I've gathered talking to victims I'm focused on getting justice for the victims, getting the facts right, and ensuring that the truth eventually comes out.

BERMAN: There is this matter of the documents from 2019. These FBI documents of a witness interview --

MACE: Um-hum. BERMAN: -- who said that she was victimized by then-citizen Donald Trump. Those documents not turned over by the Department of Justice.

So do you have questions about those documents?

MACE: Oh, absolutely, and I actually wrote a letter to the DOJ. I've written a letter to the CIA and to the Southern District of New York about missing documents. My understanding is the DOJ responded, I believe yesterday, that those other documents were duplicates --

BERMAN: Um-hum.

MACE: -- potentially. I'd like to know if that is the truth.

And then the other thing is that my understanding is after that interview or series of interviews, the FBI deemed the witness -- or excuse me, the alleged victim not credible. I do not believe she received a settlement from the Epstein estate either.

I have warned the media that 2019 and later some of the claims in there are crazy and wild, and insane. I'm even in the files after 2019, which is just oddly bizarre.

But we've got to be careful, and we don't want to mention names on the floor, for example, that aren't real individuals involved, you know. But I want to take everything seriously and I'm not looking at this through a partisan lens. And when you see me come out with a list of people that need to be interviewed by Oversight, you're going to see Republicans and Democrats alike. You're going to get to see women who I believe were selling other women to Jeffrey Epstein.

BERMAN: Yeah. And again, and that's where I just go back to the first line of questioning I had there because Hillary Clinton said that she --

MACE: Yeah.

BERMAN: -- has never met -- doesn't remember ever meeting Jeffrey Epstein. Melania Trump did. I mean, we have pictures of Melania Trump with Jeffrey Epstein. If you're going to question former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton about someone she's never met -- at least if you're throwing a wide net -- why not question Melania Trump?

MACE: Well, are you going to throw a picture up on the screen of Hillary Clinton with Jeffrey Epstein? I believe there are photos out there of her and Jay-Z and Jeffrey Epstein in a -- in a photo. There are photos of president -- former President Bill Clinton and Chelsea Clinton with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell at a wedding. There are, I believe, more pictures of the Clintons with Epstein and Maxwell than there are of Trump.

But again --

BERMAN: Look, Bill Clinton --

MACE: -- you know -- again, Epstein was involved with people who are very powerful and very rich, and how did he have that kind of access? And I think it's not just the sex trafficking; it's the access to power. The access of power. It is was he an asset? Was he getting information --

BERMAN: Um-hum.

MACE: -- trading information? What country was paying him? I think there are multiple countries he could been a multiple or dual agent. And how did he have all this access, and I think that's important -- equally important to the sex trafficking and prostitution that was happening.

BERMAN: Sure, absolutely. And you have thrown a wide net on the people you want to talk to. It's just -- I'm just curious about why the line stops at first lady Melania Trump if there are -- you know, if there is a clear relationship that she had there or knowledge of something potentially.

MACE: Because of the statements victims have made. I met with the victims multiple times. It's been covered widely by the press. Every single person I've talked to have exonerated the Trumps. The same cannot be said --

And if we believe that victims should be believed, like Virginia Giuffre Roberts, who can't say anything today because she's dead, she has named certain individuals and exonerated President Trump, for example.

And, you know, I think we just need to follow the facts and that's what I'm doing. And I've always been -- tried to be nonpartisan and that's why you see me taking on both parties alike. I'm doing it with my resolution to expose sexual harassment in Congress next week by forcing a vote. I don't care if you're Republican or Democrat, if you've done something wrong, we should expose it.

BERMAN: So I think you're talking a little bit about Tony Gonzales there, Congressman from Texas, Republican. His primary election --

MACE: Yes, I sure am.

BERMAN: -- is next week. He is -- he is accused of having --

MACE: Yeah.

BERMAN: -- an affair with a former member of his -- a member of his staff who later took her own life. Also sending her lewd text messages, one of them asking for a "sexy pic."

You've called on him to resign. Republican leadership is not.

MACE: I sure did.

BERMAN: And there are other Republicans saying you know what, we shouldn't be asking for him to resign because that will hurt our majority. That will shrink our majority.

[07:40:00]

What do you say to those members saying don't do this?

MACE: Well, we should have thought about that when we knew about this months ago, sat on it, and did nothing. And Gonzales isn't the only member of Congress I believe that has potentially harmed other women or has a reputation for that.

And as a woman here in Congress I want all women to be taken seriously. We are not second class citizens. And there should be no harassment of any woman on the Hill or anywhere, quite frankly, either as a member of Congress or as a female employee on the Hill.

And that young lady that committed suicide literally lit herself on fire. It's one of the worst ways to go and we're just going to brush it under the rug?

I can't as a woman, as a mom, as a daughter accept that answer, which is why I'm going to force a vote next week, joined by only a handful of my colleagues on this, to force Congress to say whether or not records of sexual harassment and the money paid out of the slush fund should be made public. I, as a woman, believe that it should. And I believe this will be hopefully a nonpartisan vote where both sides come together and say yes, let's expose this for what it is and shame these people out of office, regardless of the politics of it.

BERMAN: And again, if Congressman Gonzales resigns it's OK with you even if it costs you the majority?

MACE: I believe he should resign and I stated so a few days ago. I -- look, I have a lot of moral clarity and it's not just Epstein represents so much. It's the haves versus the have nots. It represents a story of millions of women --

BERMAN: Um-hum.

MACE: -- who have come forward and whose voices have been ignored, mine included. In my own case no one's been arrested.

And when I see this kind of behavior this is why women are afraid to come forward because no one is ever held accountable. And we're just showing the world that's what we believe in, and I don't. And I'm going to make sure that the truth of these activities get out there. People who have been wronged. I'm going to get justice for every victim that I possibly can.

BERMAN: Congressman Nancy Mace, we appreciate your time this morning. Thank you very much -- Erica.

HILL: New overnight, President Trump beefed by the commander of -- briefed, rather, by the commander of CENTCOM and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on military options in Iran. This as those critical talks over the country's nuclear program will now continue into next week. Iran's foreign minister saying that both sides came to a "general understanding" following Thursday's talks in Geneva. Joining me now to discuss CNN national security analyst Peter Bergen, and CNN global analyst Kim Dozier. It's good to see both of you this morning.

So we also have -- we're learning today the U.S. Embassy in Israel has authorized the departure of non-essential staff at this point. That is happening alongside talks being extended into next week. The Omani foreign minister is set to meet with the vice president today in Washington.

Peter, does this mean that in your view for the moment strikes may be off the table, at least this weekend?

PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: I don't think so. I mean, there are -- there are some talks that are taking -- one is President Trump said last Thursday that there was a 10- to 15-day window for talks to be resolved. That would put us into this coming weekend or next week for strikes if there isn't a resolution.

And there's another clock ticking, which is Congressman Massie and Congressman Khanna are both proposing a resolution that would basically block the president from Iran -- a war against Iran that could come to the floor next week.

So both of those clocks are ticking and I'm sure that Trump is aware that there is some opposition in the House, including from Republicans on this and that, you know, if he can do a quick strike that in some senses is performative, you know, that -- this may be the time.

HILL: A quick strike that is somehow performative still comes though with consequences, Kim. And as you've been talking to your sources both on the national security side and the defense side, how much concern is there that the president may have backed himself into a corner here and feels that is the way out is to do, even if performative, an initial strike?

KIMBERLY DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST (via Webex by Cisco): Well, if he does or chooses to do a performative strike, he'll be more boxed in afterwards if he thinks that's going to change Iran's decision calculus and then it doesn't.

But say he follows through with the strike. If he messages through backchannels, as apparently happened last time -- actually, diplomats have told me it did happen when he struck nuclear targets. If he signals to the Iranian regime we're going after your ballistic missiles, we're going after your nukes, but we're not going after your leadership, that there is a finite end to this, then the Iranian response may be also similarly calculated. They might pull their punches.

What both allies are worried about is that Iran will pull out all the stops and do things like its 2019 strike against Saudi oil fields, which shut down Saudi oil production for a couple of weeks -- about half the oil production -- until they could get everything back online.

[07:45:05]

HILL: As we're -- as we're looking at all of this and how it will play out, I guess in some ways the good news the talks are extending into next week. But Peter, this is also part of a playbook that we have seen from Iran in the past, which is to continue to drag things out.

You noted the looming, sort of unofficial deadline that the president had put out there. You talked about what could happen next week in Congress.

How long do you think this can continue, Peter, in the talks phase?

BERGEN: You know, the only person who can really answer that is President Donald Trump.

And, you know, picking up on what Kim just said, you know, it's also possible that if there was as strike the Iranians could then also backchannel to the United States. So look, we need to take action but, you know, we're planning action in certain places.

This is what they did in June. So they struck Al Udeid Air Force base in Qatar in June after the United States attacked those Iranian nuclear sites. There were about 100 American servicemen who had traumatic brain injuries of various kinds, ranging from mild to serious.

But, you know, the Iranians have given a heads up to the Americans so, you know, there's a -- these backchannels can be productive in a certain sense.

On the other hand, you know, if there's a total breakdown in trust, as there could be, there may be no backchannel and you risk the idea of further escalation, which going up the escalation ladder without control would not be good.

HILL: Yeah, a lot to watch for certainly in the coming days.

Peter Bergen, Kim Dozier, we'll have to leave it there. Thank you both -- John.

BERMAN: All right. New this morning sources tell CNN that Savannah Guthrie intends to return to the "TODAY" show at some point -- the timing unclear -- amid the search for her mother Nancy. The 84-year- old was taken from her Arizona home now a month ago.

With us CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter. Brian, what are you learning on this front?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Yeah, if Savannah does return -- does intend to return to the "TODAY" show at some point in the future but that timeline has not yet been determined. There's been a lot of online speculation and frankly, even some TV news insiders wondering if she would ever want to go back to work. And so I think this will try to start to answer that question that yes, she does intend to go back but she doesn't know when yet. When asked about Guthrie's status, an NBC source said to me, "Her Today show family will welcome her back with open arms on her timeline."

You know, for Guthrie, as hard as it might be to imagine resuming work, especially without any firm answers about the status of her mom, it might also be a comforting routine. This, of course, has been the most unsettling month of her life.

BERMAN: Brian, shifting gears in a pretty major way here, what about us? Big corporate decisions being made here.

STELTER: Yes. You're talking about Paramount suddenly being in the lead to take control of CNN and the rest of Warner Bros. Discovery. This is the top story in The Wall Street Journal this morning describing this as a sudden come from behind victory for Paramount.

That's because for months you and I have talked about Netflix having that deal -- that signed deal to buy Warner Bros. and HBO, but not CNN, as part of a corporate megamerger. Well, yesterday, Netflix walked away from the table. That's because Paramount had made a $31.00 per share offer for all of WBD and had sweetened the deal in so many ways that WBD decided that was the superior proposal.

And rather than continue to escalate the bidding war, Netflix walked away. Why? Well, for one thing, Netflix says that WBD was a nice to have but not a must have asset. In other words, it doesn't need the movie studio the way that Paramount does.

But there are also political questions because Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos was at the White House right before this announcement came, and there are some questions about whether Netflix decided that maybe the regulatory hurdles were simply too steep to get this deal done.

BERMAN: Nevertheless, it does appear that Paramount now is in the prime position to take over.

Thank you for that reporting, Brian, very much.

Authorities say a woman who managed to sneak onto a flight and cross the Atlantic, and not for the first time. She's apparently a serial stowaway.

And do not feed the birds alcoholic beverages. It's really not good for them. Also, it's illegal. One guy learned that the hard way.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:53:35]

BERMAN: New details this morning in the murder investigation of a 14- year-old girl. The singer known as d4vd has been named as the target in the investigation. That is according to court documents filed in Los Angeles. The body of the young girl was found dismembered last fall in the trunk of a car registered to the singer whose legal name is David Burke. CNN's Kyung Lah has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: You may not have heard of him, but your teenager probably has. His name is David, spelled d-4-v-d. But to prosecutors he's named as a target in court documents in the murder investigation of a 14-year-old girl. Now court documents say David Burke, as he is legally known, may be involved in having committed the following criminal offenses, and that includes one count of murder.

There has been a lot of mystery in the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez for months. There's a grand jury investigation and the LAPD has been extremely quiet about this case. Celeste's body was found last September in a black Tesla in a Hollywood tow yard. The car was registered to a David Burke, the singer d4vd.

And we're now learning from these court documents some grisly details. LAPD detectives were called to open up the car because of a strong smell. Inside detectives found two cadaver bags, one with the girl's decomposed head and torso; the other, the rest of her dismembered body parts.

[07:55:05]

Now, d4vd has been a viral music sensation with hundreds of millions of views of his hit song "Romantic Homicide." d4vd nor anyone we are aware of has been arrested directly for the girl's death. I have called d4vd's attorney twice. She said that she couldn't talk to me because of the ongoing grand jury investigation. Now we are still waiting for the results of that grand jury investigation, but we do know that testimony has been ongoing.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: This morning a two-week search ended in the dramatic rescue of a Florida man. Deputies say Andrew Giddens was found shoulder-deep in mud at a sand plant. Days after friends reported him missing and worried about his mental health, workers spotted him. Initially, they couldn't reach him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you get him?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One, two, three. Bring him in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Fire crews spent more than two hours digging him out. Giddens was taken to the hospital in critical condition. He survived days outside without food or water. Uber is unveiling a new ride-sharing option to book air taxis -- that

thing apparently, right there -- but only if you're in Dubai. You can go on your app apparently in Dubai, click on these air options, and that thing will pick you up at one of the vertiports somewhere in the city. Obviously before any U.S. launch, the FAA would need to approve it.

We have a winner in the annual Grand Prix de la Baguette, an annual competition in Paris over bread. More than 140 loaves were entered this year. Only four ingredients are allowed: flour, salt, yeast, and water. The judges smelled, touched, and tested the baguettes. The grand prize about $4,700. The winner also gets to have their bread served to the French president.

Um, end of a bureaucratic battle between a New York driver and his local DMV. In January, a Long Island man received a letter telling him his vanity plate reading "PB4WEGO" had to go, saying the plate was not in compliance with local regulations. He removed the plate but appealed to the governor on social media. Kathy Hochul, the governor, called him directly posting that his tag was a public service.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SETH BYKOFSKY, GRANTED VANITY PLATE BY NY GOVERNOR: We have four -- three grandsons and a granddaughter -- all who proudly pee before they go.

GOV. KATHY HOCUL, (D) NEW YORK: Well, I'm going to get it back for you. I think everybody should be reminded to pee before you go. I have kids and grandkids, and I support the effort wholeheartedly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Your government in action -- Erica.

HILL: Your dollars at work for you.

BERMAN: Your dollars at work.

HILL: You can use -- all kinds of things we can throw at that -- OK. Before you take your potty break though, stay with us for this next story --

BERMAN: All right.

HILL: -- which may sound familiar and frankly, it should.

A convicted stowaway is in custody again this morning after allegedly sneaking onto a United Airlines fight to Italy from the United States.

CNN's Mark Morales is joining me now. OK, so who is this woman and how does she keep doing this?

MARK MORALES, CNN REPORTER: Well, she's certainly figured out a way to evade security, which is really notable because whenever you go it's take your shoes off, take everything out of your pockets. It's really, really secure. Yet she's figured this out and everything indicates that she did what she -- what she always does in this scenario here.

So Svetlana Dali, a Russian national. She's a permanent U.S. resident. Her move is that she waits until the gate agent is busy, either looking down or talking to another customer, and then she fits in with another crowd, and she slips past in through to the airplane.

It wasn't on this last flight until maybe midway through the flight that the flight attendants actually figured out that she wasn't supposed to be on that flight. And once they landed, they realized exactly who she was and how many times that she's done this.

Now it's important to note that she was convicted for this last year in Brooklyn. She served about seven months in federal custody for this. And she was on supervised release so this is clearly a violation of that supervised release, so it means that she could be in a lot of trouble from a lot of other jurisdictions.

HILL: Yeah. And to your point, she had to get through TSA to actually get to the point where she could evade the gate agent.

Is she on a no-fly list?

MORALES: Well, that's going to be something that federal authorities are going to have to be discussing because this was the sentiment that her previous attorney made in court, saying well, it's not like she can skip out on flights every day.

HILL: Hmm.

MORALES: And it's --

HILL: Really?

MORALES: Right.

HILL: Yeah.

MORALES: Yeah.

And so now here we are after her sneaking onto a flight to Paris, then ripping off her ankle monitor and trying to sneak her way into Canada. This happened in 2024 -- 2025. And now we have this latest incident. So now it really remains to be seen what's going to happen now.

HILL: Yeah. I mean, maybe she wanted to get to the Olympics.