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Interview with Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-NH): Hegseth Testifies on Capitol Hill for First Time Since Iran War Began; FCC Targets ABC Licenses as Trump Demands Kimmel be Fired; Paramedics Help Passenger Deliver Baby Mid-Flight. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired April 29, 2026 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

ZACHARY COHEN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: ... willing to answer them.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Yes, she has so many deployed Marines from her district and also a lot who are on standby.

COHEN: Absolutely.

KEILAR: They have to go, I think tens of thousands of people deployed at this point. Zach, great reporting. Thank you so much.

And we're going to speak to a lawmaker ahead about the questioning from this hearing that they experienced there and the answers that they got and did not get. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:35:00]

SANCHEZ: Back now with our coverage of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth testifying before House lawmakers for five hours now and counting about the ongoing war with Iran and other issues.

With us now to discuss, a Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, Congressman Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire. She also served as an intelligence officer in the Navy Reserves. Congressman, thank you so much for being with us.

I want to get your reaction to something Secretary Hegseth said earlier in the day. Here is that specific soundbite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE HEGSETH, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: The biggest challenge, the biggest adversary we face at this point are the reckless, feckless, and defeatist words of Congressional Democrats and some Republicans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: What is your response to the Secretary?

REP. MAGGIE GOODLANDER (D-NH), ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: Well, thanks so much for having me, Boris. Look, the tragedy here is we have a person serving at the helm of the Department of Defense who is totally unprepared, who lacks the judgment to be leading this important organization. He came before our committee today to testify to make the case for our request to Congress for the biggest military budget in American history.

And this is the second year in a row that he's done it. He asked for a trillion dollars last year. He's asking for $1.5 trillion this year. He was unable to answer the most basic questions that every American taxpayer deserves answers to. He was unable to answer what the endgame is in his war of choice in Iran. And that's a huge problem.

SANCHEZ: Would you support that 2027 budget request from the Pentagon? As you said, $1.5 trillion, a 42 percent increase from last year. What would you need to see in order to support it?

GOODLANDER: Well, Boris, part of the problem here is, remarkably, this massive budget request doesn't include the $25 billion that these witnesses today, including Mr. Hegseth, said has already been spent on the war in Iran. They haven't budgeted for this war. We need transparency and we need answers to basic questions.

And those questions include what are our objectives here? What is the endgame? And how is this going to be these massive investments in taxpayer dollars and in American lives?

We've lost 14 patriots in this war already. How are these sacrifices and costs going to actually benefit the American people who are right now being crushed by the sky-high cost of gas? And I'll just note, I asked Pete Hegseth a very simple set of questions about the costs that American taxpayers are bearing right now.

He couldn't answer. He's so out of touch. He couldn't answer the most basic questions, including about gas prices.

SANCHEZ: Congressman, hostilities with Iran began exactly 60 days ago. And I should note, there's some disagreement about when the clock actually starts on the War Powers Act and the legal deadline for President Trump to seek approval from Congress. There's also debate about whether or not the ceasefire alters how those days are counted.

Nevertheless, I do wonder whether you think congressional leadership will soon demand the president seek approval for this war.

GOODLANDER: Well, we've heard on a bipartisan basis, members of Congress raised serious concerns about this unauthorized war of choice that the president launched 60 days ago. I believe that every member of Congress should be forced to vote every day on this war as long as it continues, because this is where we're going to get the accountability that the American people deserve. This is where we're going to get the answers to the most basic questions that we all need answers to and urgently.

So I am a firm believer that every member of Congress should be forced to vote. And that really is because we know we've seen this movie before. We know from recent history what it looks like when the Congress shirks its responsibilities, the most basic ones under the Constitution, doesn't ask the hard questions, doesn't take the hard votes.

We know where that leads us into forever wars that cost this country trillions of dollars and thousands of American lives.

SANCHEZ: And Congressman, there's new reporting that indicates that President Trump wants to continue this blockade on Iranian ports, setting up the U.S. Navy on the Gulf of Oman. He wants to continue it apparently long term. He's discussed this with allies and advisors to try to make preparations for that.

In the meantime, we're learning that the Iranian oil minister has come out urging the Iranian public to cut consumption of energy. He's called for conservation and saving, describing it as a religious duty, even as he downplays the impact of the U.S. Naval blockade. Government offices across Iran have been instructed to cut electricity use by up to 70 percent.

[15:40:00]

Is that a sign to you that the blockade is working? Is this sort of an indication that Iran is starting to really feel the pressure?

GOODLANDER: We've got the greatest military that the world has ever known. And I know from my time serving in the United States Navy, we have the greatest Navy that the world has ever known. I am amazed every day what our service members are able to accomplish, and I am praying for their safety and for their success in all that they do.

The bottom line is the president has created a global energy crisis by launching this war that was not planned for, that doesn't have a clear end game, and the American people are paying the price of this war every single day. And it's not just at the gas pump. It's at the grocery store. It's at the pharmacy.

These decisions and this decision to continue an indefinite war without any clear statement of objectives or end game is something that the American people are going to have to pay for every day. And as a member of Congress, my job is to ask the hard questions and to get the answers and accountability that this country needs and that the American people deserve.

SANCHEZ: So is it your view that the blockade is not working, even as Iran is cutting back on energy use?

GOODLANDER: Boris, as I sit here now, it's really hard to see how anyone could say that we are winning this war. The Strait of Hormuz continues to be closed. Gas prices have reached an all-time high with no end in sight.

So what we need is a president who's going to be clear in his objectives, who's going to get the support of the Congress to end this responsibly in a way that's going to be good for the American people. So far, this has been a costly and disastrous, unclear set of objectives in a war of choice that the president hasn't been able to answer the most basic questions that any commander in chief has got to answer on the front end.

SANCHEZ: Congressman Maggie Goodwinder, we have to leave the conversation there. Thank you so much for your time.

GOODLANDER: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Sure. Still to come, Jimmy Kimmel sending a clear message as the president calls for ABC to fire him. He is not backing down.

Stay with us.

[15:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Jimmy Kimmel has a message for President Trump. The show goes on. Kimmel didn't directly address the news that the FCC is calling for an early renewal examination of several ABC station licenses.

But he did poke fun at the president once again. During a speech yesterday, the president made a joke about his age and Kimmel had a response.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They were married for 63 years. And excuse me, if you don't mind, that's a record we won't be able to match, darling. I'm sorry.

Just not going to work out that way. We'll do well, but we're not going to do that well -- 63 years.

JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!: Wait a minute. Did he just make a joke about his death?

(CHEERING)

He should be fired for that. Only Donald Trump would demand I be fired for making a joke about his old age and then a day later, go out and make a joke about his own old age.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: We are joined by FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez. She is the only Democrat sitting on the FCC. Thank you so much for being with us.

So now the latest development there is how Jimmy Kimmel has responded. What did you make of it?

ANNA GOMEZ, FCC COMMISSIONER: Well, you know, Jimmy Kimmel is a comedian and he has every right to say what he wants to say. I don't think the FCC should be involved or anyone in government should be involved in telling broadcasters what they can broadcast and in telling comedians what they can what they can joke about. I also find it highly ironic that at a time when what we saw this weekend was violence at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, which is meant to honor the First Amendment, that we are now using jokes about that event or in advance of that event.

It was a bit about a fake White House Correspondents' Dinner speech that this administration is trying to now pull back on that First Amendment right.

KEILAR: The directive from the FCC to Disney on Tuesday suggested the license challenge is related to an ongoing FCC investigation of Disney's diversity initiatives that Trump opposes. The order is that Disney must start trying to renew its station licenses. So that's tough stuff, right?

It doesn't actually mention Kimmel, though. Does that matter in your view?

GOMEZ: Well, what we saw was the White House calling for the silencing of a vocal critic and this administration answering that call. I think it's a pretext to claim that it's not about this. This administration has been very vocal.

This FCC has been very vocal about the content of Jimmy Kimmel's broadcasts and about other content in broadcast television. So what this is clearly is an attempt to influence all broadcasters. Look at what I can do to you if you don't now toe the line to this administration.

It is an absolutely offensive assault on the First Amendment.

KEILAR: It's not the first time they've done it, certainly pertaining to ABC and Jimmy Kimmel. So we're seeing a pattern here, right? With that in mind, what do you think a broadcaster should do in the face of this kind of pressure and why?

How can they really withstand it?

GOMEZ: Well, one thing that everybody knows and should understand is that the FCC cannot actually take action on this.

[15:50:00]

It is a violation of the First Amendment. And if it actually goes to court, the FCC will lose. So what broadcasters need to do, and everyone needs to do, is to stand up and push back.

And Disney is, in fact, doing that. They are saying the right things. I am very heartened by that because broadcasters are at an inflection point.

They have a choice to make. They can either protect the freedom of speech, or they can surrender it.

KEILAR: The administration has made it clear, though, that they can make things very difficult for corporate owners of broadcasters, right? They have considerations. They have shareholders that they are accountable to.

What do you say to them when it comes to making decisions about how they stand behind the broadcasters that they own?

GOMEZ: Well, it is true that there are corporate interests, but these are corporations that have a very important part in our democracy, and that is the freedom of the press and the freedom of speech. And we need to protect our Constitution. These corporate owners also need to consider the long-term consequences of capitulation.

We saw what happened when Disney pulled Jimmy Kimmel off the air the first time. Everyone spoke up, and they had to bring him back on the air. And that is what we will see in the future because people don't want to have media fed to them that only gives you the view of one administration.

They want to see the content they want to see. They also have the right to actually see and hear the content that they want to see and hear.

KEILAR: Anna Gomez with the FCC. Thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

GOMEZ: Thank you.

KEILAR: And ahead, two paramedics and a baby, how they jumped into action mid-flight to help a passenger going into labor. It's quite the story. You'll want to stick around for it.

[15:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Little Brielle Renee Blair can say that she was born in the skies. Really, like, what does it say on the birth certificate? Friday. That's what it'll say because that's when it all started.

That's when mom Ashley, who's seen here holding Brielle, boarded a flight from Atlanta to Portland, Oregon, 38 weeks pregnant. By the time the Boeing 737 touched down, well, both the baby and the plane could boast an early arrival.

SANCHEZ: And between two paramedics who happened to be on board helped deliver the five and a half pound girl in the plane's cabin and their tools, blankets, scissors, some shoestrings, perhaps a butter knife. Yes, we'll get into that. We'll get into that as we spoke with the paramedics who helped bring baby Brielle into the world.

Kaarin Powell and Tina Fritz.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TINA FRITZ, PARAMEDIC: We moved everybody away from her and she just told us she goes, I feel like I have to pee. And we're like, no, no, you're going to have the baby.

SANCHEZ: Set the scene for us because this all started when you were dealing with a separate medical emergency on the plane, right? FRITZ: Yes, a call went out that there was an emergency. We went back. There was a nurse with that had showed up there. That was with the other person. And when we were talking to her, the other flight attendant came up and said, hey, we have a lady who thinks she's getting ready to have a child. Can you come up?

And we both looked at the nurse. She's like, I'm not that type of nurse. So we said, OK, well, we can do this.

So we walked up and we started timing our contractions. They were indeed three minutes apart, lasting a little over a minute to two minutes.

SANCHEZ: And Karin, what was going through your mind? What was your immediate reaction when you were told one of the passengers might be in labor?

KAARIN POWELL, PARAMEDIC: Well, I was hoping that it was not true. But I'm also a respiratory therapist, so I go to births all the time for the hospital. So I was just trying to channel my favorite OB doctor that I work with and just stay calm and coach her.

Tina did an amazing job coaching her through pushing. And so and then the flight attendant, when he came up, he was like, do we need to land right away or do we have time? And I was like, we have to land now.

And then he came back and he said, OK, we're landing, so you need to stop what you're doing. And Tina's like, well, the head's out, so we can't really stop. And then and so she pushed the head out and then the cord was wrapped around the baby's neck.

And so I took the cord off of the neck and then we had her push again and we'd lost the scissors in the melee. And so we tied up we tied up the umbilical cord to a shoestring from the flight attendant. And then they were handing me a butter knife and saying that they'd cleaned it to cut the cord.

And I was like, that's not going to work. And so we found the scissors and Tina cut the cord. And then and then I delivered the placenta and we bagged it up to send it to the hospital and then sat down.

The stewardess, the flight attendant, buckled me in with the baby. And I was like, are you sure you don't want to stow this in the overhead compartment?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ (on camera): Our thanks to Kaarin Powell and Tina Fritz. Congrats to mom Ashley Blair. I didn't know you could fly at 38 weeks pregnant.

There's so many things I don't know about this whole thing. Like you can't eat shellfish, but you can fly. It's crazy.

KEILAR: Maybe not advisable, right? That you fly it. But that wow, that I mean, I guess you think you still have two weeks left. You can maybe roll the dice. But you know what happens?

SANCHEZ: Well, you're lucky that you've got Kaarin and Tina on board and handed them the butter knife. They didn't use it, but solid improvisation.

KEILAR: Nice alternate try there.

"THE ARENA" with Kasie Hunt starts right now.

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