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Iran Claims Photos Show Downed U.S. Fighter Jet; U.S. Intel Shows Iran Has Significant Missile Launching Capability; Trump Fires Pam Bondi, Names Deputy Todd Blanche as Acting Attorney General; American's Views of Both Parties Deeply Negative. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired April 03, 2026 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: On getting questioned quite that rigorously. So this is something to watch. And Jean, I know you'll be covering this all day again.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And he's facing life in prison.

BERMAN: Appreciate your coverage. Thank you so much. Brand-new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Pam Bondi is out. Now, the new reporting on what led to the president's firing -- led to the president firing the nation's top law enforcement officer and what he's looking for from the person he brings in next.

And a CNN exclusive, sources say roughly half of Iran's missile launchers and half of its drone capabilities are still intact. What is that going to do to the president's two- to three-week timeline now to end the war?

And police in Florida just released new video of Tiger Woods and the field sobriety test that led to his DUI arrest.

I'm Kate Bolduan with Sara Sidner and John Berman. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

New reporting into CNN raising new questions about how long the war with Iran could last. After more than five weeks of fighting, President Trump says Iran's weapons capabilities have been destroyed. Now, three sources tell CNN, recent U.S. intelligence assessments show something else, that about half of Iran's missile launchers remain intact, and thousands of one-way attack drones are still in reserve.

And this morning, also, Iran says it has proof of its firepower. State media has released these images that we're showing you right here. It's a series of images claiming to show debris from a downed American F-35 stealth fighter jet. A closer look, though, reveals that the wreckage appears to be from a U.S. Air Force F-15 jet. But there's much more going on here and a lot of questions around all of this.

Let's get to seen as Jim Sciutto in Tel Aviv for us. Jim, tell me, what's the latest that you're picking up?

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: So, Kate, we need to be very careful with this, because Iran and Iranian state media have made previous claims of shooting down U.S. military aircraft, and those claims have turned out to be false. What's different about this one is that there are pictures that appear to show pieces of wreckage consistent with a U.S. military aircraft, specifically an F-15 section of the tail section that appears consistent with such a plane. Now, CNN has reached out to Central Command for comment. We have not received comment from them yet, but we are watching these reports very closely as more and more videos come in.

And again, we need to confirm those videos to be clear as to whether they're true. We should note that U.S. aircraft are flying over Iran with enormous frequency every day. to strike targets there. And while the U.S. has taken out the vast majority of Iranian air defenses, as the president has noted, there is still danger in Iranian skies. So this is a story we're going to watch very closely.

As I noted at the top, Iran has made such claims before. They've turned out to be false. What's different with this one is that there is at least imagery that we have asked experts about at CNN to see if it's consistent with the U.S. military aircraft. And one of those pieces of wreckage does appear to be.

BOLDUAN: And Jim, I also want to ask you about your reporting. I kind of summed it up at the top here, but this is some of your exclusive reporting about what you're learning. The U.S. recent U.S. intel assessments say, show, suggest about Iran's missile capabilities still.

SCIUTTO: That's right. Reporting along with my colleagues, Natasha Bertrand and Haley Britsky, this is what we're learning, that a U.S. intelligence assessment has found that after, well, more than four weeks, nearly a month of war that Iran retains a significant portion of its missile capabilities. Specifically an estimated 50 percent of its missile launchers, 50 percent of its one-way attack drones, as well as a significant portion of its coastal defense missiles. Those, of course, key because that is one way of several that Iran continues to threaten the Strait of Hormuz and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and any U.S. naval activity that might take place there to secure the Strait of Hormuz.

It helps explain, frankly, Kate, the kind of incoming fire we've continued to see here in Tel Aviv every day and with some increased frequency in recent days that Iran continues to be able to target Israel with long-range ballistic missiles, and some of those missiles are able to get through Israel's air defenses. In fact, in the last 24 hours, one of those missiles struck -- and I believe he just showed the video of that -- struck with force in a part of Tel Aviv.

[08:05:00]

Now, what U.S. -- what the assessment has found is that U.S. forces have found some difficulty destroying all the mobile missile launchers which Iran has but also buried underground missile launchers. And in response to that what U.S. forces have attempted to do is in effect, bury, bury those launchers, bury those missiles.

But to date, they have not been able to entirely neutralize Iran's missile capabilities. And it fights the rosier assessments we've heard from the president and the Pentagon prior to this.

BOLDUAN: Yes. Jim, thank you for your reporting. Really appreciate it -- Sara.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, now to some news here at home.

This morning, the firing of loyalist Pam Bondi, Attorney General. Has some questioning who might be next. Bondi is leaving after the shortest tenure for any attorney general in the past 60 years.

Sources say the president was frustrated with Bondi on several fronts, but in particular her handling of the Epstein files, but also her failure to carry out his retribution campaign against perceived political enemies. Among them, the failed indictments of FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. The Justice Department's case against them thrown out by a federal judge last year.

Meanwhile, prosecutors have been hesitant to move forward with charges after an investigation into Senator Adam Schiff. The president called for action against all three of them in a Truth Social. You'll remember this.

This was back in September. An online post that we now know was meant to be a direct message to Bondi overnight. The deputy attorney general, Todd Blanche, defended Bondi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TODD BLANCHE, ACTING ATTORNEY GENERAL: As President Trump said today, the attorney general made our country safe again. And she is a friend and she did a great job in the first year of this administration.

I have never heard President Trump say that the attorney general was anything that happened to her had anything to do with the Epstein files.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Blanche is now stepping in as acting attorney general until the president names a replacement. Sources say sitting EPA director Lee Zeldin is at the top of his list of candidates -- John.

BERMAN: All right. With us now. Elie Honig, senior legal analyst and former assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District for New York. Counselor, good to see you this morning. So given our reporting that the reason -- part of the reason Bondi was fired was she didn't successfully prosecute enough for the president's enemies. What does that say about the job qualifications for whomever might be next?

Why would someone want that job?

ELI HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Well, John, if we look at recent history, typically the job qualification for someone who's going to be AG is that they've held high government office, ideally that they've been a prosecutor of some type and that they have sort of cross ideological or bipartisan credentials. Whether you look at Janet Reno, Alberto Gonzalez, John Ashcroft, Eric Holder, Merrick Garland, even Bill Barr. I'm not saying these AGs have been perfect, but that's been the standard.

Now it appears there's basically two qualifications for the job. One is easy to find. One is really hard.

The easy one in Donald Trump's mind is somebody who's 100 percent loyal to him, who will not hesitate to carry out his political agenda. Pam Bondi certainly met that qualification. The second one, though, is that you need someone in Donald Trump's view who can actually succeed on these prosecutions, who cannot just investigate, but successfully indict and convict.

And Pam Bondi was 0 percent in doing that. All of the cases that she tried to bring that were political failed, rejected either by judges or by grand juries. I don't know that there's a human being alive who can satisfy that second criteria, because it doesn't matter who you are.

If you're Lee Zeldin or Todd Blanche or Pam Bondi or anyone else, if the evidence isn't there, you're just not going to get an indictment. And if you don't have proof beyond a reasonable doubt, you're not going to get a conviction. So I think the job standards here may be ultimately impossible for anyone to meet.

BERMAN: So given that sort of guidebook you just laid out there, what do you think it might be like for Todd Blanche as the acting attorney general, particularly if he's treating it like a job audition?

HONIG: Yes, he's got a very difficult, high tightrope to walk here. You know, if Todd Blanche does what he was trained to do as a longtime prosecutor at the Southern District of New York, he would take a fair look at each case. And if the facts aren't there, he would simply report back.

We don't have it. We're not proceeding. But if that happens, why wouldn't he meet the same fate as Pam Bondi?

So I think he's going to do what we saw him do in that clip we played last night, which is pay lip service to serving the president's agenda. And ultimately, it's a question of self-preservation. And if he stands up against these unfounded political cases, I don't know that he'll last much longer either.

BERMAN: We'll see if he stands up against the unfounded political cases. Elie Honig, the next few months will be fascinating. So glad you will be here watching it with us -- Sara.

SIDNER: All right, ahead. Brand new CNN polling this morning. Why double haters, those that dislike both parties, could have a big impact on the upcoming midterm?

[08:10:00]

Plus, we are just minutes away from the release of a new jobs report. We'll bring you those numbers as soon as we have them.

And a new legal twist in the Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively drama. A big win for Baldoni, just weeks before the trial.

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BERMAN: All right, we've got some brand new numbers from the latest CNN poll. I'm just going through them right now. This time, it's about the race for Congress.

[08:15:00]

Let's get right to CNN's political director, Washington bureau chief, David Chalian. What do these numbers say, David?

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Good morning, John. Well, yes, this is our brand new CNN poll that shows, in the battle for control of Congress, advantage Democrats. This is what we've been seeing right now in what we call the generic congressional ballot.

So, as of today, we asked people, would you be planning to vote for the Democratic member of Congress or the Republican candidate on the ballot? And it's a six-point advantage for the Democrats among registered voters, 48 percent to 42 percent. I want you to look at that by party ID, John, because I want to zero in on independents here.

Part of what's driving the Democratic advantage is the Democratic advantage with independents. Obviously, overwhelmingly, Democrats plan to vote for the Democratic candidate. Republicans plan to vote.

But look at that, 47 percent to 29 percent, that 18 percentage point advantage for the Democrats among independent voters.

BERMAN: We have seen just huge swings among independents over the last, you know, 12 or 14 months. And this is very much consistent with that. What's the Trump factor in all this, David?

CHALIAN: You know, we ask this question every time because we always talk about how midterm elections, John, are a referendum on the incumbent president. And usually, we get a plurality of Americans that say, ah, the incumbent president actually isn't going to impact my vote. That's not the case here.

Take a look at the results. You see that those that are going to cast their ballot in opposition to Trump, 42 percent of Americans say that. That's the plurality here.

So he is a factor, and it's a negative factor for his party, a motivating factor for the Democrats. Only 21 percent of registered voters in this poll say they're going to cast their ballot to support Trump. So opposition to Trump far outweighs, doubles the support for Trump.

And then more than a third, 38 percent, say my vote will not be a message about Trump.

BERMAN: So the six point advantage for Democrats is, you know, it's a big advantage, but it's not a jailbreak yet. We've seen larger advantages in the past. And what might be some reasons for that?

CHALIAN: Well, just to give you an example, in 2018, when the Democrats had a big wave year, Trump's first midterm, the favorable unfavorable on the Democratic Party was about even. Now Democrats are viewed very unfavorably by the public. So too are Republicans, but Democrats even more so.

Look at that. 28 percent favorable opinion of the Democratic Party among Americans. They're underwater by nearly 30 points.

That was not the case in 2018. You see, Republicans don't fare much better here. They're at 32 percent favorability.

So Sara, going into the break, said the so-called double haters. There are about a quarter of Americans, John, in our poll who say they do not like either party. Now, here's the thing, though.

Among that group, they overwhelmingly plan to vote for the Democrat anyway in the fall. Right now, anyway, by like 31 points. So the way I sort of describe this is the Democratic Party has a brand problem. There's no doubt about that. But it may not be an electoral problem when it comes to the midterms this fall.

BERMAN: No, and when campaigns turn into races for the double haters, one thing that happens, they get very, very nasty. So brace yourselves for a really friendly few months here heading into November. David Chalian, great to see you this morning.

Thank you very much -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: Severe weather could impact millions this holiday weekend, unfortunately, from western Pennsylvania all the way to Texas. We've got a full forecast for you just ahead on what's coming. And we are now hearing from the crew of NASA's Artemis II moon mission, speaking for the first time since liftoff, and just as they completed a crucial step to put them on their path to the moon.

[08:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SIDNER: Millions of people could be impacted this holiday weekend as a round of, sorry to tell you, severe weather is stretching from the Midwest into the central U.S. It could be strong thunderstorms, hail, possibly tornadoes as well, and bad news for spring breakers, a sharp cool down for some areas may hit as well.

CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam bringing us all the bad news on this Good Friday. Thanks. DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, yes, I try my best, right? My spring break plans are also impacted by bad weather, just so you know, an FYI. But look, there's no better way to display this push and the pull of the seasons between winter and spring than these two videos that I have flanked on either side of me, right?

So we've got a full-on ice storm, OK? This took place across northern sections of Wisconsin, a quarter inch of ice. Look at it, snap trees brought down, power lines.

There's still about 40,000 customers without power because of that ice. And then look at that, lightning striking the tallest tower in Chicago, the Willis Tower, which at the top of the antenna stands at about 1,700 feet. I'll let this one kind of ride out there so you can see this incredible lightning strike as it heads right towards that tower.

Wow, incredible footage, but it's all because of this storm system right there. It's lifting north into Canada. So that is going to be not really the big weather maker for the day.

It's what's happening to the west, another low-pressure system ejecting out of the Rockies. And this one's going to bring us some multi-day severe weather threat again. So here's today's.

Look at that, southern Iowa into northern Missouri. That's where we have our greatest chance, level 3 of 5. But we can't sleep on the potential of some isolated strong storms all the way south into northern Texas, central Oklahoma, and even portions of Arkansas as well.

So here's the setup. It's this low-pressure system that will bring the severe weather, really the time frame tonight for the southern plains. That would be around 7 or 8 p.m. into eastern time, also into Chicago, really just after the sun sets tonight. Then tomorrow morning, the storms will be ongoing but in a weakened form.

[08:25:00]

And we see them kind of fire back up once again tomorrow throughout the Midwest and into the Ohio River region. You can see the forecast radar taking it right through the weekend. Eventually this cold front will sweep eastward. A lot of spring break plans. Travelers along the I-95 corridor maybe heading south to Disney like this weatherman.

Yes, going to be impacted by cooler temperatures and chances of rain. So plan ahead. Certainly keep an eye to the sky today, though -- Sara.

SIDNER: At least we know. But I do have an unpopular opinion to share with you. I love thunderstorms. Watching that lightning, as long as I'm inside and safe, not working in it, they're beautiful.

VAN DAM: Me too, it puts me to sleep at night, right? I mean, when you get photos and video like that, I know, yes, it's phenomenal.

SIDNER: Unbelievable. It is beautiful, but it is dangerous as well. Thank you so much, Derek Van Dam. Have a great weekend. Appreciate you -- John.

BERMAN: We'll give you a golf club and send you outside next time.

SIDNER: Thanks, John.

BERMAN: All right, Kristi Noem out. Pam Bondi out. Will it stop there? New reporting on who could be next in terms of a Trump administration house cleaning.

And we are just minutes away, less than five minutes away now, from a brand new jobs report. All kinds of people looking for signs on what this means for the economy.

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