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Confusion Over Strait of Hormuz; U.S.-Iran Truce Tested; Polling on Melania Trump; Meta Unveils New A.I.; Surging Prices Hurt U.S. Farmers; Hawaii Doctor Found Guilty. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired April 09, 2026 - 08:30   ET

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

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[08:31:55]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: So, this morning there is concern the ceasefire is falling apart already. Iran is accusing Israel of violating the deal by launching its strikes that we've been tracking on Lebanon. The IDF said that the attacks were their largest on Lebanon since the war began.

But the U.S. and Israel say that Lebanon and Hezbollah, Iran's proxy in that country, are not included in the truce. Of all of this, Vice President J.D. Vance calls it a legitimate misunderstanding.

So, after those strikes by Israel, Iran announced that it was shutting down shipping through the Strait of Hormuz once again. Time lapse of shipping data shows that there's essentially no movement that's happening there.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is in Abu Dhabi with much more on this.

The Strait of Hormuz and getting it reopened had become a central demand and focus that brought us to this moment through this 39 plus days of this war. What are you now hearing about the status of it?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kate, this really is turning into one of the biggest stumbling blocks in this truce, which is already fragile. This was the key, the fact that the Strait of Hormuz could finally be open. And for this two-week period of this ceasefire, there was a hope that hundreds of tankers, which have been trapped in the Persian Gulf for all this time, would be able to get on their way and to get some oil out into the world, try and ease that pressure.

We've heard from marine traffic, though, that these vessels are still sitting there. There are clusters of these vessels waiting to see what will happen. Now, we understood that before Iran decided to shut the Strait, there were two boats that got through. We understand that that's what we know. There may have been more. A Greek owned one. A Liberian flagged one. But then Iran decided that because they believed Lebanon should be part of this cease deal, ceasefire, and it wasn't, that they were going to close the Strait.

Now, of course, that is a concern going into these talks that if Iran is not happy about something, they have the ability, the power and the desire to just shut the Strait of Hormuz. That's clearly going to be something focusing on for the future.

But I do want to end on some positive news. Part of this ceasefire that does appear, at least for the past few hours, to be holding, is the fact that there have been no projectiles fired from Iran into the gulf nations this Thursday. As far as we can tell, we just had a report from the UAE ministry of defense saying, they "confirm the airspace free of any air threats during the past hours." That is something we haven't seen for the past 40 days. So, something positive to focus on. Of course, Wednesday, after that ceasefire was confirmed, there were projectiles. There was a hope, though, that the message just hadn't got to everybody.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: So interesting. Great reporting. Thanks so much, Paula.

[08:35:00]

John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, with me now, CNN global affairs analyst Brett McGurk and Karim Sadjadpour.

And I just want to pick up what they were talking about with the Straits.

Brett, let me just start with you. If the Strait's not open, that was the major concession as part of this ceasefire between the United States and Iran. So, the us stopped attacking, but Iran didn't open the Strait. So where does that leave things?

BRETT MCGURK, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Yes, John, you nailed it. I think sometimes in a very complicated situation, just keep it very simple. And President Trump's statement on the ceasefire said the ceasefire is subject to the complete, immediate and safe reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz is not open at all. And therefore, the key precondition is not being met. And that is a -- even in the Pakistani prime minister's first statement about what this was about, there'd be a ceasefire and the Strait would reopen, that has not happened.

So, therefore, where are we? I think this ceasefire is extremely fragile. I think there's a decent chance it's going to break down here over the coming days. But even if that holds together, there's no firing. I think that's very positive.

But, John, to have this meeting in Pakistan, in Islamabad, this would be the most senior meeting, a U.S. vice president meeting with Iran, ever. And to do that while Iran is controlling the Strait of Hormuz and not meeting this key precondition of what President Trump has said is a ceasefire, I think it would be extremely damaging.

So, I would -- I would be very cautious heading into that meeting. And I think we should hold very firm. The Strait opens or else. There's really no ceasefire and there's not going to be a meeting.

BERMAN: Karim, I want to put up just a headline in a "Wall Street Journal" article today. There was an article from David Cloud. It's great article. It says, "Why Iran Thinks It Won the War Despite Huge Military Losses." Take my word for it, the headline does exist in an article. There it is. "Why Iran Thinks It Won the War Despite Huge Military Losses."

Why does Iran think it won the war and why does that matter heading into these negotiations if they happen?

KARIM SADJADPOUR, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: So, Iran had one main objective, which was survive -- to survive. And when President Trump first attacked on the eve of the attack, he called for people to eventually go out into the streets and said to the people of Iran, the country is yours to take. And so, that metric was set very high on our end. It was to potentially change the regime, to totally destroy their nuclear program, their missile program.

Now the conversation has shifted. President Trump, as recently as yesterday, suggested there could be a joint venture between America and Iran for the Strait of Hormuz. So, the conversation is totally shifted from regime change in Iran to potential joint ventures and peace with Iran.

And the other thing I'd say to accentuate something Brett said earlier, when you listen to the language of Ghalibaf, the speaker of parliament in Tehran, and J.D. Vance, the vice president, who are potentially going to meet, it sounds like Ghalibaf is the representative of the superpower in J.D. Vance is the representative of a regional power which is desperate for peace.

BERMAN: So, what does that mean heading into the talks? What does that mean in terms of how you think Iran will approach them?

SADJADPOUR: I think Iran is likely going to overplay its hand because it believes that President Trump is eager to move on from this war and to do other things. And this is an historic Iranian position. You know, they -- their only focused on kind of revenge and concessions. And I see no -- very little chance that they are going to agree to go back to status quo ante with the Strait of Hormuz.

BERMAN: Brett, you've been in rooms like this, albeit this will be at a more senior level than really, as you note, as ever happened here. But what do these U.S. negotiators need to know as they're sitting down with the Iranians about how the Iranians negotiate and maybe how they try to drag things out?

MCGURK: I think, first, John, it's a great question. Before you have the meeting, I think you have to have a good sense of exactly how the table's set, what we're going to try to agree on but particularly before you get a vice president into the room. So, that's some -- that's a key precondition. It's unclear that's been set.

But, yes, Iran will -- Karim is exactly right. They will come in. They will make their demands. Pakistan has an interest in showing that this was successful, that talks will continue. But meanwhile, if Iran is controlling the Strait of Hormuz, and we have just legitimized this new system with Ghalibaf or whoever's actually in charge, as they control the Strait of Hormuz, that is exactly what Iran wants. They want this historic meeting, the Islamabad meeting, which it will be called for all time, with the American vice president as they are controlling the Strait of Hormuz. That's the precedent they want to set.

And I do not think we should walk into that trap. I think we should be saying, look, we have -- it's very clear, the complete, immediate reopening of the Strait. That's a condition for us to sit down. But we should not go into that meeting without knowing what's going to come out, because Iran will try to say, everything went fine, we're now in negotiations with the Americans as they're controlling the Strait of Hormuz. I just -- I -- that's what they want. We should not give that to them.

[08:40:02]

BERMAN: Karim, two weeks? Possible to get something done in two weeks?

SADJADPOUR: Zero chance there's a deal in two weeks. I think at best we go from what is now a hot conflict to a cold conflict. But just for context, it took Brett and his colleagues in the Obama administration almost two years to sign just a nuclear deal with Iran. Now, we're not only talking about nuclear, we're talking about the Strait of Hormuz, missiles, drones, so many other issues. So, this is something which the Trump administration can't afford to ignore.

BERMAN: Karim Sadjadpour, Brett McGurk, great discussion this morning. Thank you very much.

We will note, as of now, the talks are still scheduled. So, that's something. I mean that is something tangible for now at least. Appreciate it.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: That's really interesting and setting the table for what is about to happen, or not. That was really interesting.

New -- we also have some new polling that is out showing that public perception of First Lady Melania Trump -- talking about First Lady Melania Trump and how polling about her is shifting.

CNN's Harry Enten is running the numbers on this, and he is here.

Good morning, my dear.

HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: Good morning.

BOLDUAN: What are you seeing about Melania Trump and how her polling is shifting?

ENTEN: Yes, I would say that the American people really don't care for Melania Trump. Take a look at this. All right, let's take a look at Melania Trump's

net favorable ratings. Look at this, the lowest ever. The lowest ever. We're talking about now 12 points underwater. If you go back a little bit more than a year ago, she was three points above water. You go back at this point -- about this point in term number one for Donald Trump, look at that, she was 30 points above water.

So, at this point, historic lows for Melania Trump. These numbers are absolutely awful.

BOLDUAN: And one of the questions is why? Why the shift now? But also, I guess another -- just looking -- you need to look at this always in the historical context of how does she line up against other first ladies?

ENTEN: Yes. OK. If we look at this historically, the worst ever, the worst ever at this point in term number two. Look at this. We got her at 12 points underwater. Look at the rest of these first ladies on the board right here. They're all way above water. Forty-two points above water for Michelle Obama, 46 above water for Laura Bush, 25 points above water for Hillary Clinton, who always -- was not always the most popular, and 50 points above water for Nancy Reagan.

And I even looked at Jill Biden's numbers at this point in that presidency, of course that was term one, she was above water as well. So, this is the worst at this point in a presidency as well. Melania Trump breaking records in the way that you don't want to break records, historically awful she is. The American people really don't care for her.

BOLDUAN: And you also -- I'm seeing you have new numbers or another look at the impact or the appeal that she -- her appeal after her documentary came out?

ENTEN: Yes. OK. So, you asked -- in question number one you said why?

BOLDUAN: Yes. Yes.

ENTEN: What is one of the reasons why? And I think one of the reasons why was this documentary, And I think a lot of people saw it as political, even if she didn't want it to be. And you could just see it here. This is real world data. This is not just the polling data that shows the lack of appeal, historic lack of appeal that she has for a first lady.

Look at this, some of Melania's budget sheet. Look at this, the budget, rights in marketing, $75 million. That was what is estimated to have been spent by Amazon. Compare that to the box office, both domestic and international combined. We're talking about 17 million. That makes this a bomb.

There was a lot of talk when the film came out. Hey, you know, it had a good opening weekend, but then basically it stopped making money. So, unless Amazon is able to make this up through streaming, this is going to be an historic bomb. Amazon spent a ton of money on it. And look at that. Simply put, the money was not made back. That coalesces, that combines with the polling data to say that Melania Trump is historically unpopular for a first lady.

BOLDUAN: How interesting. Good to see you, Harry.

ENTEN: Nice to see you.

BOLDUAN: Thank you.

John.

BERMAN: All right, new this morning, Meta has unveiled a new artificial intelligence model as it works to keep up in the A.I. race with other tech giants. It is called Muse Spark.

CNN tech editor Lisa Eadicicco joins us now.

So, what's going on here? Tell us about it.

LISA EADICICCO, CNN BUSINESS TECH EDITOR: So, this is a big deal because this is the first model coming out of Meta's superintelligence lab. So, what that means for consumers is, when you use the Meta A.I. app, you'll now be able to switch between different modes. There's a really quick mode, if you just want an instant answer, there's one where it thinks a bit longer, and then there's a shopping mode as well. And eventually this model is going to roll out to Instagram and Meta's other popular apps. It's A.I. glasses, things like that.

But I think why this is a big deal in particular is because Meta hasn't really been very clear about it's A.I. strategy and how all of its massive investments in A.I., it's poured billions into things like A.I. infrastructure, acquiring companies, like Manus and MaltBook recently, building out its super intelligence team with a lot of really high-profile hires. And on its earnings calls, analysts and investors have been curious about what is the return on investment going to be? How are these investments going to shape your future products? And until this point, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been a little bit vague on those calls and has said they're working on things. They're in the process of rebuilding their A.I. strategy from the ground up, but they haven't really given concrete answers.

[08:45:06]

So, this is really the first sign of where things are going for Meta's future, I think.

BERMAN: There's been a sense that they've fallen behind some of the competitors.

EADICICCO: So, I think what happened here is ChatGPT had what they called the first mover advantage. They kind of came out of the gate and caught everybody by surprise and really became a household name. Then Google was really quick to follow up. So, it's been largely a two horse race between Google and OpenAI.

But now the space is about to get a lot more competitive. You have Meta's new model now. You have Apple expected to revamp its version of Siri this year. And it's partnering with Google to use its model on that. You have a lot of things happening in the space right now. So, I think it's a really critical time for Meta to be providing some clarity about its strategy.

BERMAN: I think it's interesting they're going to offer you two options. One, a quick answer and one, you know, better thought out. And that's sort of a test about you. What do you want? Do you want the quick answer or do you want one where it thinks a little bit longer?

EADICICCO: And that's become kind of standard. They call this reasoning in A.I. There's certain things that you're asking. You might want it to think through certain scenarios and outline -- kind of show its work. It'll show you its thought process for answering a question. So, that's a really key, I think, area for Meta to be investing in here.

BERMAN: Lisa Eadicicco, great to see you. Thank you very much.

EADICICCO: Thank you.

BERMAN: Kate.

BOLDUAN: Always the quick answer. That's always the answer. Just kidding.

Eva Longoria is back. This time she's adventuring through France. She's exploring the rich history of French cuisine. Here's a preview ahead of Sunday's series premiere of "Searching for France."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love destroying my cake.

EVA LONGORIA, HOST, "SEARCHING FOR FRANCE": You do?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

LONGORIA: You find pleasure in that? I get anxiety, but you go. Oh, my gosh. Oh, you're right, there's a sound.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Uh-huh, the sound.

LONGORIA: There's a sound to it. Oh, wait. Look inside. Look at the inside. Look, look, look, look, look, look, look. Oh, my goodness. Look at all of this. This is the most beautiful slice of cake. Mm. Mhm. Wow. Wow. They're just like air. It's so fluffy. And this little cake at the bottom. And the crust. And all of that custard and whipped cream. Whoa. That is incredible.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

LONGORIA: This is extraterrestrial. Like, your brain is on another level to create something like this.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BOLDUAN: Oh, my God, I'm so hungry right now. That looks so delicious.

Eva Longoria's "Searching for France" premieres Sunday night at nine right here on CNN.

Coming up for us right now, the search for -- the search is on for a driver who smashed into a school bus head on and then took off.

Plus, the effects of the Iran War being felt here in the United States in many ways, including farmers. Farmers saying surging prices might be putting them out of business.

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[08:52:11]

BOLDUAN: So, surging oil, fuel and fertilizer prices, which is a big part of what goes through the Strait of Hormuz, that has been caused by this war in Iran, are having a real impact now on farmers in the United States.

In Iowa, a state that President Trump has won three times, farmers say they're at a breaking point right now.

CNN's Jeff Zeleny went there to find out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AARON LEHMAN, IOWA FARMER: A lot of farmer discouragement out there. Prices of our soybeans, prices of all our commodities started going down. Prices of fertilizer and other things we import to plant a crop started going up. So, for a year, we've seen some real chaos on all sorts of trade tensions.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There's always uncertainty, obviously, with farming. But as you start this season, are there more uncertainties than most?

LEHMAN: Oh, yes. I -- so many farms are reporting that they're on the brink of something bad, that their communities are on the brink of something bad.

ZELENY (voice over): Aaron Lehman is a fifth generation Iowa farmer and worried like never before, with fallout from the Iran War.

LEHMAN: No one anticipated that we would have a shock to the system, like a massive increase in fertilizer prices, because it -- all the experts did not see this coming when we would see this rise in fertilizer prices because of this war. And really, no one's really seeing a way out.

ZELENY (voice over): Spring planting is just around the corner here in Iowa, where the cost of fertilizer and diesel have soared since the war began.

LEHMAN: We're filling over 100 gallons in our fuel tank multiple times a week.

ZELENY: So, that cost will be thousands of dollars.

LEHMAN: Thousands of dollars. Thousands of dollars. And it's not just for what we put into our combine. It's not just what we put in our tractor. In addition to that, what it takes to get my grain to my market, the trucks that are using diesel fuel there, they're feeling it as well.

ZELENY (voice over): President Trump's promises on trade and tariffs faced even more scrutiny here now, in a state he won three times.

ZELENY: Have you felt the whiplash of that tariff policy this past year?

WES RIETH, MANAGER, LONGVIEW FARM: Yes. I mean it's -- I think it's hard to say for any farmer that we haven't, right?

ZELENY (voice over): Wes Rieth is farm manager at Longview Farms, navigating an ever growing set of obstacles.

RIETH: You can look at futures prices for soybeans, you know, again, and kind of watch the pendulum swing a little bit. And I think, yes, it -- that kind of lends itself to, you know, these parallels that we see in geopolitics or, you know, conflicts, Middle East, et cetera, that, yes, create some of this uncertainty.

[08:55:02]

ZELENY (voice over): This year, the optimism of a new season comes with even more risk.

RIETH: So, we get one chance to plant and we get one chance to harvest. And that's it for the year. So, we get one try every single year. And so, even like, in my lifetime, I might get 30 tries at this. That really puts things into perspective. Like, I only -- you know, the prices of fertilizer, seed, whatever, like, could go crazy, but, like, we can't not plant. We still have to go out and plant the crop.

ZELENY (voice over): For the next seven months, as the crops begin to grow --

LEHMAN: Just starting to poke through.

ZELENY (voice over): A political season will also unfold, testing whether any of these challenges influence the midterm elections.

LEHMAN: And in addition to that, I think farmers are becoming more and more aware that you need to say to our elected leaders, what are you saying about the fertilizer situation? What are you saying about the trade situation? Are we going to stand up to these things that are hurting us or are we not?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: It's just always great to see Nebraska's Jeff Zeleny reporting from farm country.

All right, major new developments this morning in the disappearance of a Michigan woman in the Bahamas. Authorities say her husband is now under arrest. Fifty-five-year-old Lynette Hooker was reported missing last Saturday after she and her husband, 58-year-old Brian Hooker, were returning to their yacht on a small dinghy off the Bahamas. The Coast Guard has opened a criminal investigation as search efforts have shifted to a recovery operation. No formal criminal charges have been made public at this time. An attorney for Brian Hooker says he denies any wrongdoing and is cooperating with the investigation.

In Tampa, a woman crashed into a pond, then frantically called police as her car started to fill up with water.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DRIVER: I lost control of the vehicle and a sudden. Please help me.

911 OPERATOR: Are you able to open the door?

DRIVER: No, the doors are closed. The doors are closed.

911 OPERATOR: Are you unable to open the doors?

DRIVER: Yes, I'm unable. I cannot swim.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So, the video you're looking at here is them pulling her out of the water. The stuff you looked at before is they used a rope to get her out and onto shore. She had only minor injuries and, pretty impressively, they were able to get the car out from the water as well.

Police in Mississippi are searching for the driver who crashed into a school bus and then just drove away. Video shows the bus stopped to pick up students crossing the street. The car hits the bus right after the last student crosses. Already hit it there. The driver then backs up and drives away. No injuries were reported. Officials are asking anyone with information about the crash to call the Hattiesburg Police Department.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: That is wild right there.

Let's turn to this. After just one day of deliberation, a verdict for the man in -- the man in Hawaii accused of trying to kill his wife while they were on a hike.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We, the jury in this case, finds the defendant guilty of attempted manslaughter based upon extreme mental or emotional disturbance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: That's the moment when the verdict was read. Forty-seven- year-old Gerhardt Konig was convicted of attempted manslaughter. The jury did not convict him on a higher charge of second-degree attempted murder. He faces now up to 20 years in prison when he faces sentencing.

CNN's Jean Casarez has much more. She's been watching this so closely.

Talk to me about this verdict, what you see in this?

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is interesting. It's not the top charge, just as you said. But the judge gave the jury a road map. And there were so many included offenses that they could go to. But here's the road map of where they reached this decision.

They had to find beyond a reasonable doubt that he was guilty of attempted second degree murder. Had to believe he wanted to kill her. And then they had to go to the affirmative defense of extreme mental or emotional distress. And they had to look at and determine if, by a preponderance of the evidence, more likely than not, he was under extreme mental or emotional distress, a disturbance. And if they believed that unanimously, then they convicted of manslaughter, attempted manslaughter.

So, it was a road map there, but they still had to believe that he killed her and wanted to kill her. She survived. But that the emotions just took the better of him and he went for it.

And if we look at the facts, we know that she had admitted she'd had an emotional affair. He couldn't get over it. He was going to books and counseling and everything. And his testimony was, that on that trail that day that she said, you know, by the way, I got to go on another trip with my colleague, but nothing will happen.

Now, did the jury believe that? We don't know. But they do believe there was an emotional disturbance.

Now, what does he face? Well, the prosecutor said that he faces up to 20 years in prison. But it is a possibly probationable defense. The defense attorney spoke out yesterday. Doesn't happen all the time after a verdict is read like this. Listen to the defense.

[09:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THOMAS OTAKE, GERHARDT KONIG'S ATTORNEY: You know, we just begin by thanking the jury. We respect their verdict.