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Interview with Rep. Bill Keating (D-MA): U.S. and Israel Say Iran Truce Does Not Include Hezbollah in Lebanon; Strait of Hormuz Closed Over Strikes on Lebanon; Sean Combs' Lawyers to Appeal Prostitution-Related Conviction; Impact of Deep Space Travel on the Human Mind and Body. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired April 09, 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]

KARLI AYLESWORTH, LYNETTE HOOKER'S DAUGHTER: Had the keys. I have known past issues between them have not been good, so it's just weird that this is happening now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Now, Brian Hooker's attorney notes that he denies allegations made by Aylesworth.

The Hookers have been married for about 25 years. They've been documenting their sailing adventures on social media as well. They're very experienced on the water.

Brian told police that on Saturday night, they left about 7:30 in an eight foot hard bottom dinghy. But there were rough waters and they were headed toward their yacht at Elbow Cay. But that those rough waters quote bounced Lynette out of the dinghy that she was not wearing a personal flotation device and that the current carried her away.

Now, because he said she was wearing the key or the kill switch, the dinghy lost power and he tried to paddle but eventually just drifted to Marsh Harbor, where around four o'clock in the morning Sunday, he reported his wife was missing. Now, after days of searching land, air and sea, authorities in the Bahamas determined on Tuesday that this would be a recovery operation instead. John, it is important to note that Lynette has still not been found.

Her family says that they just want the evidence to lead them to wherever it goes.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And it seems like we still need to learn more here. Dianne Gallagher, thanks so much for covering this for us. Appreciate it.

A brand new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

Breaking this morning, word that traffic has basically stopped in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran says the conditions of the ceasefire already violated. So where does that leave the talks planned for this weekend?

Standing by to see lawyers for Sean Combs arrive at federal appeals court. They are trying to overturn his conviction, arguing he was just making amateur porn.

And the hunt for a hit and run driver who slammed head on into a school bus and then just drove away.

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

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: A lot of questions this morning about the two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran that can really only be described that ceasefire as fragile at best right now. A perfect example of why is one big question today is what exactly was agreed to as part of the ceasefire? After it was announced, Israel launched massive strikes on Lebanon.

Iran and Pakistan, who brokered the ceasefire, called that a violation of the ceasefire. But the U.S. and Israel say Lebanon and Hezbollah were never part of the deal. After the Israeli strikes, Iran says traffic in the Strait of Hormuz has now been stopped.

Once again, a time lapse shows very little movement there today, but there's also little evidence that traffic had even started back up before that. Vice President J.D. Vance says the confusion over what is or is not included in the deal is a, quote, legitimate misunderstanding. He's set to lead a U.S. delegation to Pakistan on Saturday for direct talks now with Iran.

Then came the president's new threat posted overnight. The president saying that the U.S. military will remain in the region, quote, "Until such time as the real agreement reached is fully complied with. If for any reason it is not, which is highly unlikely," he writes, "then the shooting starts bigger and better and stronger than anyone has ever seen before."

Joining me right now to talk about this is Democratic Congressman Bill Keating of Massachusetts. He sits on both the House Armed Services and House Foreign Affairs Committees. Thanks for being here, Congressman.

Is these strikes that Israel conducted --

REP. BILL KEATING (D-MA), ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: Yes, good morning, Kate.

BOLDUAN: -- widespread strikes in Lebanon? Now, today, we've actually heard from the IDF saying that that it killed the personal secretary and nephew of Hezbollah's deputy chief in one of the strikes Wednesday. And real confusion over this agreement or disagreement on whether Lebanon is part of the ceasefire.

Do you think that it should be part of the ceasefire?

KEATING: Well, thank you, Kate, for having me on. And number one, to make any sense of this, if we can, you have to look at fundamentally -- how fundamentally backward the Trump administration approaches really has been. You usually lead and historically to be successful, you lead with your diplomatic efforts to put the coalition together.

Now, the U.S. has a considerable economic and military strength, and they could do this in the beginning. What we've seen here is a shoot first, ask questions later, where the Trump administration may be imbued because of what happened in Venezuela. Feels that it can just lead with the military, that the military side of this should be the line of first response.

[08:05:00]

And this is what we're seeing when the diplomatic side isn't there when objectives aren't up front. This is what happens. And the U.S. instead of dealing from the strength of a coalition using its military and economic power to be a force multiplier is now alone and we're in worse situation than we were when this war began.

BOLDUAN: But to my question, do you believe that Lebanon should be part of the ceasefire agreement?

KEATING: I do. I think that there was miscommunication is just another way of saying that they are prepared when they're dealing with this. There were talks evidently with Pakistan where they mediated this.

They had their own talks, then clued Israeli towards the end. And really, I think a ceasefire should mean a ceasefire in the region.

BOLDUAN: Traffic. Let's talk about the Strait of Hormuz, which is a key and central focus here. Traffic there remains largely at a standstill.

And then as I had read, the threat that the president -- the new threat the president leveled overnight, that if it doesn't open, you know, the strikes will be bigger and better and worse and stronger than before. How long of a grace period do you think there is before what seems to be, you know, the Strait doesn't seem to be open. Strikes still seem to be occurring, at least on Lebanon and confusion over that.

How much grace period do you think there is before this falls apart?

KEATING: Well, Kate, there's a question whether it's actually begun. Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, were all subject to attacks in the first day of this. The Strait was not open.

So there's a question whether we actually have a ceasefire fundamentally. And I hope that they can continue to discuss this. I hope that maybe the best we'll get is an understanding to extend it beyond two weeks.

They're not going to accomplish this likely in two weeks. So the U.S. should be looking at options other than military first and all of these options. It's overdue that we work with our Gulf, you know, allies. It's overdue that we start having serious discussions, including our European allies. There are other options on the table, I believe, other than the crazy statements by Pete Hegseth yesterday, where, again, with braggadocio and hubris and even divine intervention, he is saying that the U.S., through its military might, can go in on the ground and actually extract this uranium and take it out of there. No one believes that's going to happen.

So these empty military threats really aren't working. It's time to make sure the U.S. goes back and summons what strength it has with its considerable economic and strategic military power but do it in the right way. Do it in the right order.

Don't do it with no objectives, no end game, and then wonder why things fall apart at the end, because they were never constructed in the beginning.

BOLDUAN: There is now reporting that dozens and dozens of Democrats in Congress are calling on President Trump to be removed from office via the 25th Amendment, questioning his mental fitness. As this continues, and after especially the threat that the president leveled to destroy a whole civilization in Iran, we saw a letter from the minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, kind of laying the groundwork for this to start being a discussion amongst Democrats. Do you support this move?

KEATING: Well, the move is not going to be successful in terms of the fact that it's going to take Trump's cabinet, who barely raises their head to do anything but flatter him to say anything. However, I think it's important to bring this issue up. I think I join many people as I look at the president, I look at his railing, I look at the impulse, I look at his ability to communicate, and there are real questions here, particularly when he's asking our country to go forward with genocidal attacks, something that's never been done in the history of the United States, and something that should make every American concerned.

We're just not part of an international thing here. The Americans are paying the bills here. They're paying the bills through tax monies, and he wants a trillion and a half for defense, and we're paying every day through tariffs.

We're paying every day through this war cost.

BOLDUAN: Real quick, Congressman, on this, because this is becoming more and more of a conversation amongst Democrats pushing for a 25th Amendment here to be enacted.

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Are you concerned at all that this, even if you say it's not going to be successful, but even a big push for it by Democrats could backfire, as we've seen, largely seen as impeachment efforts and talk and push for the 25th Amendment previously, like a year ago, didn't work and didn't help Democrats?

KEATING: Well, this political strategy, Kate, that they'll use to try and bolster their base. But honestly, I think people will look back at this period of time and see what's going on, see the way the president has obviously deteriorated in front of us all, see the impulsiveness, the rashness, the lack of actually leading our country as a commander- in-chief should, and as people look back, if you're quiet during this time, if you don't speak up and even raise the issue, I think you do that at your own peril.

I think that people that feel this way are appropriate, including members of Congress. I'm hearing it from American people daily. They're concerned.

And so we're their voices. And we should bring this up. And it really should be addressed as an issue, not just result in more flattery every time the issue goes up by the cabinet members around him.

BOLDUAN: Congressman, thanks for coming in. Appreciate your time.

Ahead for us this morning, Sean Diddy Combs, his legal team heads back to court to argue that his conviction should be overturned. We're going to detail what the case they are going to be trying to make. That's coming up next.

Plus, a frantic call for help after a driver accidentally crashes into a lake and her car begins sinking.

And Artemis II, the crew aboard, they are almost back from their moon mission. How their trip to deep space could actually give and offer new insights when it comes to your health.

[08:15:00]

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BERMAN: This morning, we're standing by to see lawyers for Sean Combs in a federal appeals court arguing his prostitution-related conviction should be overturned and that he should be released immediately from prison. Let's get right to CNN's Kara Scannell standing outside the court this morning. What are the arguments here? What are they going to say?

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, Sean Daddy Combs' lawyers will be in court behind me later this morning, where they're going to try to convince the judge to overturn his conviction on those transportation for prostitution charges, and they're also asking for his immediate release from prison. They say that the judge who sentenced Combs made mistakes because he considered some of the conduct that Combs was acquitted on. That's including the racketeering conspiracy and the sex trafficking of his former girlfriends.

You'll remember, those former girlfriends had testified that Combs had drugged them and forced them to have sex with male escorts. Now, part of Combs' argument is also that he was producing amateur pornography and that he was not engaging in prostitution. In court filings, his lawyers wrote: "Freak-offs and hotel nights were highly choreographed sexual performances involving the use of costumes, role-play, and stage lighting, which were filmed so Combs and his girlfriends could watch this amateur pornography later. Pornography production and viewing of this sort is protected by the First Amendment and thus cannot be constitutionally prosecuted."

His lawyers are also going to argue that his sentence of 15 months will exceed sentences of people similarly prosecuted who received about an average of 15 months in prison. That's why they're saying he should be released immediately or resentenced. Now, prosecutors say that the judge acted properly when he considered the totality of the evidence, saying that he was allowed under the law to consider what's called any relevant conduct, and that is what the judge explained he was doing at the sentencing.

And as for the claims that Combs was engaged in pornography, the prosecutors say that his actions were not that of a director, they were not sophisticated in that way, but that Combs himself had received sexual gratification from watching his girlfriends have sex with these male escorts, and that in some instances Combs himself participated in the acts. Combs is currently serving his sentence, and he's been incarcerated since September 2024. He's currently scheduled to be released in September 2028 -- John.

BERMAN: All right, we will see how these arguments land before these appeals judges pretty soon. Kara Scannell, outside the courthouse. Thank you very much.

A woman crashes into a pond and calls police as her car fills with water. We've got new video of the rescue.

And Facebook's parent company, Meta, trying to catch up on AI, what they just unveiled, and how it could be all over your favorite apps.

[08:20:00]

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BOLDUAN: So the crew of the Artemis II, they're heading back to Earth right now, preparing for re-entry and splashdown tomorrow. While they're out there in space, each member of the team has, as we've learned, many duties and responsibilities. Including, though, daily exercise to avoid muscle and bone loss with the lack of gravity. The crew is also, while out there, studying the impact deep space travel has on their health.

CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, has much more on this and he's joining us now. Hey Sanjay, from a health standpoint, what is NASA worried about or focused on here?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This is really fascinating, I got to tell you. So it's NASA, so let me give this to you in acronym form. There's lots of things that they're sort of focused on but think of the acronym RIDGE. In terms of the specifics here -- radiation, isolation, distance from Earth, gravity and environment. Those are sort of the big bucket things.

And it's interesting because if you think of something like gravity, a microgravity environment, you just mentioned that within a short time, that can have an impact on muscle mass and bone mass. But another thing that happens, Kate, as well, is that fluids that are typically more in your lower body start to shift. And they go into your upper body, for example.

So if you look at the images of the astronauts side by side, back on Earth and in space, you see that they look puffier. That's because of those fluid shifts, but it even gets more specific than that. Your eyes start to change a little bit. So they're looking out at that bright moon, they come back and they look inside the capsule, their eyes can't acclimate as quickly. So these are things that they think about.

And even your taste buds change as a result of the fluid building up in their taste buds. They lose taste, and as a result, NASA sends five different hot sauces, for example, on the capsule because there's a legitimate concern that they won't eat as much if they don't taste as much. So all these like little things. They do exercise in space. There's this thing called the Artemis flywheel, and in part, as you mentioned, that is to maintain muscle mass and bone mass, but also to help recalibrate those fluid shifts, which are critically important, Kate.

[08:25:00]

BOLDUAN: That really is interesting. And you think about just the level, I mean -- it should be no surprise we're talking about NASA -- but the level of detail that is thought for and prepared for.

GUPTA: I know.

BOLDUAN: We need to send them hot sauce and multiple options. When it comes to the study of deep space impact on their bodies? What are the kind of the questions they really do want to answer?

GUPTA: Again, there's lots of them, but there's a couple that really jumped out at me. Dr. Platts, who's a NASA doctor, talked about this. But one thing that they're concerned about, a legitimate concern when you're in that micro or no gravity environment for a long period of time, the effect on the immune system. They're worried that your immunity starts to decline as a result of that sort of environment.

So they're doing this thing where they're actually -- it's just a piece of paper, basically a filter paper. They put it on their tongue. They keep that, and they can measure biomarkers for immunity when they get back on Earth. That'll be very, very important, especially for longer missions.

And also this idea that, and this is wild, but that microgravity might activate otherwise latent viral DNA in your body. So if you've had a viral infection in the past, you've totally cleared it, but some of the DNA is still in your body. Could microgravity potentially reactivate that? That is another question they want to answer.

And a big one, I'll just say really quick, Kate, radiation. Obvious, but what is the radiation like? How could they potentially protect themselves if there's a big solar flare, for example? These are other things that they're studying.

BOLDUAN: Real quick, how could all of this translate to meaning something for all of us here in our healthcare?

GUPTA: So they're going to carry these chips with them, which are basically their organs on a chip. They take bone marrow cells from each of these astronauts. They put it on a chip. I think we have an image of this. And they're basically going to have this chip in outer space.

Now, why are they doing this? Because the idea is that things that are happening in space could accelerate normal processes of cancer development or aging. So they're going to come back with those chips, study those chips, and see what happens when you sort of accelerate things. And that might provide some clues to what happens to humans here on Earth at a slower pace, but it kind of gives you that insight because of what they see on those chips.

BOLDUAN: Fascinating, always, when it comes to you, Sanjay.

GUPTA: It really is.

BOLDUAN: Really cool stuff. Thank you so much. It's really good to see you, buddy, thank you.

And don't forget, head to cnn.com, send us your questions about how space affects human health or what it all means. Dr. Sanjay Gupta will be back later to answer your questions.

Coming up for us, a Hawaii man is now facing sentencing after he was just convicted of trying to kill his wife while on a hike, how long he could be now spending behind bars.

And we are monitoring the price of oil it has been ticking up all morning, continues to at this very moment. We have details on a critical meeting that's coming up this weekend in Pakistan.

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