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Vance Won't Rule Out Paying Jan. 6 Rioters Convicted Of Attacking Police; Vance Says Iran's Negotiating Position Is Still Unclear; Trump Endorses Paxton, Upending Senate GOP Plans In Texas Race>. Aired 2-30p ET

Aired May 19, 2026 - 14:30   ET

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

[14:30:00]

J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Immigration. As you look, one of the problems that we have in all of Western societies is that we have a lot of people who have decided, Wall Street bankers, corporate lobbyists and government officials that what the United States and what the west need is more and more cheap labor. What we believe in this White House is, what we need more and more of is high wages for American workers and investing in our own people.

What you see all over the west, and it's kind of crazy, is this idea that the way to generate prosperity is to bring in millions and millions of unvetted people and drop them into your neighborhoods. And we simply reject that idea. So to everybody in the U.K. who rejects that idea, I encourage them to just keep on going. It's OK to want to defend your culture. It's OK to want to live in a safe neighborhood.

It's OK to want your job, to go to yourself and your neighbors and not to a stranger who you don't even know. It is reasonable for the people in Western societies to want to control who comes into their country and who doesn't. A lot of people, frankly, a lot of people in the media have tried to persuade all of those people that it's somehow racist to want to protect your borders, even though very often the very people who are most affected by low wage immigration are lower income Black and Hispanic Americans right here in the United States of America. And I guarantee that's true in the U.K.

So we believe in making America great again. You can't do that unless you protect your borders. I'd encourage our friends in the U.K. to follow the same path. Thank you all. Good to see you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you, Mr. Vice President.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: We've been listening to Vice President J.D. Vance in the press briefing room at the White House answering reporters questions, mostly about Iran. He gave an update on the ongoing negotiations. He said that they've made a lot of progress, that Iran wants a deal, that we're in a pretty good spot, but if they don't come with it up with a deal, they've got option B. He said the U.S. is locked and exploded, ready to resume using force, which is not what the president wants.

Of course this comes after earlier today, the president said that he was an hour away from launching strikes, restarting hostilities against Iran, but Gulf allies asked him not to. He did say, notably about the Iranians in negotiations that he was a part of in Islamabad, that it's unclear about what they want to do. He said that Iran is a fractured country. He said he's not sure if that's bad communication or bad faith. But he did say that it's unclear what they want to accomplish out of the negotiations.

Among other things, he was asked about the new fund that DOJ has established to help victims of weaponization, as the administration describes it. Also notably asked about the endorsement of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over sitting Senator John Cornyn by President Trump.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. And what a stunning tone difference than what we saw from him earlier this year as he was talking about the death of Renee Good in Minneapolis at the hands of an ICE officer. I want to bring in Kaitlan Collins, who was there for this briefing.

Kaitlan, I think it's important that we should talk a little bit about sort of the contrast here and then we really should get into some of the substance. But the tone in itself, I thought was really part of the headline of this. We've seen Marco Rubio come into the press briefing room and seemingly almost like enjoy himself as he was kind of masterfully going through a bunch of questions, being self- deprecating even as he was defending the president's policies. And it felt a little bit like J.D. Vance, who even last week joked about there being a bit of a competition for who is the heir apparent to Donald Trump, sort of giving his hand at that, too, as he tackled these really important subjects.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's a good note, Brianna, because obviously this isn't every day that you have the vice president leading the briefing. And certainly there was an air of that after the Secretary of State Marco Rubio did so just a few weeks ago. And actually at one point a reporter had suggested that J.D. Vance is going to be a potential future presidential candidate or president himself. He pushed back on that and said he's enjoying the job as vice president. But obviously there is something to that in terms of the president himself doing that poll last week in the Rose Garden about who people preferred, whether it was Marco Rubio or J.D. Vance on the top of the ticket in 2028.

But certainly, obviously all of that was looming in the background as the vice president was answering questions from report about the Iran war and where these negotiations stand right now, something that he said he had just gotten an update from the president on before he walked out here into the briefing room. And they're simultaneously saying that they are making great progress in these negotiations while also saying, as the phrase that he used was, that the United States is locked and loaded to bomb Iran again. And so it's still not really clear, you know, how material or how close they are to any kind of agreement with Iran because the president himself has touted that for months, yet not actually obviously had anything materialize in that sense. And so there are big questions about that.

But the vice president himself also faced a lot of questions about that new fund that has been created by the Justice Department that anyone, as he noted, is accurate, can apply for this. But it is obviously something that we've seen major Trump allies push for, including Ed Martin, Steve Bannon and others for to have this kind of restitution fund for allies of the president who they believe were wronged by investigations or prosecutions under the previous Justice Department.

[14:35:21]

And one thing that the vice president himself said to me before he was actually the vice presidential candidate was that people who assaulted cops on January 6 should go to prison. That was something that he made very clear. That was when he was talking about pardons happening not on a blanket basis, but on a case by case basis. Obviously, it was pretty much a virtual blanket pardon that the president issued. And he is not ruling out that people who assaulted police officers on January 6th will potentially benefit from this new $1.8 billion fund.

So that means now the president himself has been asked about this, the acting attorney general has been asked about this, and the vice president has been asked about this. And neither of them have declined or gone out of their way to say that those people will not benefit for it. Instead, they have left it open for discussion and said it is certainly something that is obviously still very much on the table, Brianna.

SANCHEZ: Yes. And there are still questions about the legality of this fund, let alone the politics. Kaitlan Collins live at the White House for us, thank you so much.

Let's bring in CNN's Paula Reid and retired Army Major General James "Spider" Marks. He's now the head of geopolitical strategies for Academy Securities.

Let's pick up where Kaitlin left off, Paula, because there are a lot of questions about this fund. And as she said, J.D. Vance wouldn't rule out that people who attack police officers, people who riot at the Capitol on January six, would get money. J.D. Vance seemingly tongue in cheek, suggested that Hunter Biden should even apply to get some compensation.

PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AAFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that is their talking point. It's clear this is not partisan. Anyone can apply. And they, of course, point to Hunter Biden, who was prosecuted and convicted, subsequently pardoned by his dad's own Justice Department. But the concern here is the majority, this $2 billion doll in taxpayer funds will go to the president's allies. And no one has been able to explain how the process will protect that from happening.

And I think Kaitlan raised a good point comparing this a little bit to the pardon process, because I'm having deja vu. After President Trump was re-elected, there were instantly questions about whether he would use his pardon and commutation power for individuals convicted around January 6th. They started by saying, yes, we'll look at that. There'll be a process. We want to do it on the first day.

So we can't really have a process. Let's just pretty much pardon everyone. A few commutations. Even the commutations have been converted to pardons. This is starting to feel a little bit like that.

We're going to have a process. We can't really say what the process is. But there you see even the vice president after bipartisan blowback, not disclosing the possibility that people who assaulted were convicted of assaulting police officers could get money. So a lot of questions still about this fund.

KEILAR: Yes, he's trying to say this is about turning the page on lawfare. But the specifics are really tricky and very difficult for him to answer questions clearly on, as was the case with Todd Blanche on the Hill today, as well.

Looking at Iran, General, as he's talking there about the negotiation process and there being difficulties and sort of understanding what Iran wants to accomplish, what direction they want to go, even who's in charge. Did you get clarity on where things are headed?

MAJ. GEN. JAMES "SPIDER" MARKS, U.S. ARMY (RET.): No, clearly, I think it's fair to say that Tehran is probably a little bit mixed up right now. Their intent certainly is to delay some type of negotiation as much as they can. Clearly that works to their advantage. They've demonstrated immense resilience and a very high threshold for pain. They'd be out of negotiation for the next six years if they could, realizing, of course, that the United States cannot. We have elections upcoming.

We have a population, we've seen that, that is increasingly dissatisfied with the economic situation. So it's very difficult to talk about some strategic gains that have taken place as a result of epic fury, let's be frank about what those are. But trying to square that circle in terms of what's Iran going to try to do and how can we continue this negotiation. Clearly, what they've indicated, the Iranians have indicated. Let's put the nuclear thing over in the upper right hand corner of that whiteboard that we always deal with.

We'll get back to that. That apparently is a non-starter.

SANCHEZ: And quickly, General Vance was asked about the administration canceling deployments of thousands of troops to Poland and Germany. But it sounded like a European journalist asking if this was a gift to Vladimir Putin. Vance effectively parried that off by saying that no, we want Europe to advance its own interests and protect its own territorial integrity, I think is the phrase that he used. Is that the message that Poland and Germany and other NATO allies are receiving with this cancellation?

MARKS: I think the message now is incredibly confused. Clearly, the United States is very much a part of NATO, has been forever. And NATO's in a much better place when America is in a lead dog position, right? What we see specifically with the deployment to Poland is that was a brigade task force of about 4,000 soldiers that were going to go to Poland. It was put on hold. So it wasn't a decrement, it wasn't a decrease on the extant population of military presence within Poland.

[14:40:04]

It's simply that may be diverted someplace else. I've been a part of those before, so that's kind of routine.

The other message is the message it's being conflated here is the president's message to Germany, which is we're departing, we're taking 5,000 folks or whatever the number is. We'll work that out. And we're going to move those from Germany. Do they -- do those get repositioned or do those come back to the United States? That remains to be seen.

So within all of that, the problem is, is America with us or is America kind of moonwalking away from NATO? Let's hope that's not the case.

SANCHEZ: All right. General Marks, Paula Reid, thank you both. Appreciate it.

Still plenty more news to come this afternoon. President Trump upending the Texas Senate race with a shock endorsement. We're going to be joined in just moments by former Republican Senator Jeff Flake. Stay with us.

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[14:45:29]

KEILAR: We're following shockwaves. In a race for the U.S. Senate, President Trump has endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over incumbent Senator John Cornyn. The endorsement is a searing blow to Cornyn, who boasts a 99 percent voting record with Trump. And we're learning that some Republicans on the Hill are not happy about this. We're joined now by former Republican Senator Jeff Flake.

And, Senator, we just heard from John Thomas. Clearly, he is among those very much supporting John Cornyn. He calls him a principled conservative and a very effective senator for the state of Texas. But we just heard Vice President Vance say that this decision about Paxton is a message to incumbent lawmakers that their jobs could be at risk if they fail to serve the people who sent you. How are you seeing this?

JEFF FLAKE, FORMER U.S. SENATOR (R-AZ): Well, I think John Thune and other senators are right to be very concerned. You know, Republicans are going to face real headwinds come November in the midterms. And, you know, they may still win Texas, although this puts it in jeopardy, but they'll have to spend a lot of money and a lot of time at it, and that takes resources and focus from other races they're going to need to win. So, yes, Republicans all over Washington are really concerned today.

And this, I don't think it's a surprise given that he dithered know for so long after saying that he would endorse John Cornyn. But it's bad news for Republicans. KEILAR: So I wonder how you're watching all of these races, broadly. The Indiana state lawmakers who have been ousted, the Louisiana Senate race, Senator Cassidy losing in the primary, Thomas Massie in Kentucky, we're still waiting to see exactly what happens there. How are you watching all of this?

FLAKE: Well, it means that President Trump has a tight hold on that subset of a subset of a subset of voters who vote in Republican primaries. The problem for him and for Republicans in general is he doesn't have a hold on the broader Republican Party, those who vote, you know, in the general elections. And so this is -- this is bad news. It's why Arizona, frankly, has two Democratic senators, Democratic Governor, Democratic Secretary of State, Democratic attorney general. And this is a red state.

And so you're going to face those issues come November. And that's why Republicans are not happy today. And also this big slush fund that was just created, there's no other way to describe it. And this when Republicans likely will take control of the House with subpoena power and everything else, you know, a lot of Republicans ought to be concerned in Washington and having to defend this kind of thing. And that's why John Thune today wanted to distance himself from it wisely so.

KEILAR: You call it a slush fund. We heard the vice president talking about how this is about turning the page on lawfare, but he had a real difficult time, I think, answering questions about specifics. So did the acting attorney general, Todd Blanch, who was up on the Hill today. Keeping that in mind as they had difficulty answering questions about specifics. Does that go to what you are saying about Republicans having a tough time and explaining this ahead of the midterms?

FLAKE: Oh, you bet. If I were Republican, I would run so far and so fast away from this and condemn it because it's going to come back to haunt Republicans and this White House and anybody who's associated with it. The way the president has already directed the Department of Justice to go after his political enemies and now we'll use this to reward his political friends. This is something that if you're a Republican, you don't want to be anywhere near.

KEILAR: Do -- so as I hear you describing the difficulties this is creating for Republicans in the general election, do you think that President Trump exacting revenge in the way he's doing this, targeting some of these races, that that is actually going to cost Republicans in some way besides just this election? Is there some longer term beyond this upcoming election? Do you see -- what do you see President Trump doing there? What is he going to cost -- what is he going to cost --

FLAKE: Yes.

SANCHEZ: -- Republicans besides just perhaps some seats in this election, as you're describing?

FLAKE: Right. Well, after this election, I mean, the president will be a lame duck. And there's already going to be after the filing deadlines are done, after the primaries are complete, and certainly after the midterms.

[14:50:09]

You'll see a great migration of Republicans away from some of the president's policies, certainly on tariffs and on the war and some other things that they want to distance themselves from. But if there's something like this, that just smacks of corruption, directing money toward your political allies, that's something that Republicans, not just for this election, but for future elections. And just because it's not a good thing to stand up for the republic. I mean, they're going to want to distance themselves from this. This is a bad deal.

KEILAR: Former Senator Jeff Flake, thank you so much for being with us today.

FLAKE: Thanks for having me on.

KEILAR: Still to come, minutes from now, officials will be updating us on that deadly shooting at the San Diego mosque. And we'll speak with a Muslim community leader who knew the security guard killed in the attack.

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[14:55:42]

SANCHEZ: Just minutes from now, police are expected to give an update on the deadly mosque attack in San Diego. Two teenagers aged 17 and 18 are suspected of opening fire on the Islamic Center of San Diego, killing three people. Among the victims, a security guard identified as Amin Abdullah, a father of eight who's credited with saving lives. Investigators say the suspects were found dead in a car from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Hours before the attack, the mother of the younger suspect reported him missing along with her car and three weapons. We're told that hate speech was scrawled on one of the weapons and that a suicide note contained writings about racial pride. Let's discuss with Abdullah Tahiri, the president of the Muslim Leadership Council of San Diego. The Islamic Center of San Diego is a member of that organization.

It sounds like we're having some issues unfortunately with his connection. So we are standing by to try to fix that now.

We're going to head to a quick break and get this sorted out and hopefully get Abdullah Tahiri on the air as soon as we can. Stay with CNN.

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