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Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX) On Acting AG Blanche Defending DOJ's $1.8 Billion "Anti-Weaponization" Fund; HHS Sending Experimental Ebola Antibody For Exposed Americans; Colbert To Sign Off "The Late Show" As CBS Ends Iconic Show. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired May 21, 2026 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Growing backlash this morning to the so- called "Anti-Weaponization" fund established by the Trump administration. Democrats and some Republicans are slamming the nearly $2 billion fund that's designated to compensate people who claim they were unfairly targeted by the government. Those who could be eligible for the money, any one of the nearly 1,600 people who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021 -- even the violent ones who assaulted police officers.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spoke to CNN defending the fund and saying the American people will defend it too.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TODD BLANCHE, ACTING ATTORNEY GENERAL: I very much disagree with the idea that the American taxpayer is indignant about the fact that a victim of weaponization, OK -- a victim who suffered, where it was legal fees, loss of job, had their life turned upside-down in a way that was not appropriate. If it was appropriate there should be no compensation, and that's why we have five commissioners who will take a look at it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: With me now is Democratic Congressman from Texas Marc Veasey.

I guess there's a couple of things here. You heard from Blanche. He spoke to CNN yesterday.

Do the American people really want their taxpayer dollars going to potential violent offenders convicted or even confessed in this recent blanket pardon from the president?

REP. MARC VEASEY (D-TX): It's really a shame that we're even talking about this. Under any other president, Republican or Democrat, this would have never even been thought of.

And the fact that Trump and Blanche, and Republicans are OK with someone that has been convicted of molesting children and said that he was going to use reparations from this fund to pay -- if the victim -- if the victims would stay quiet, and that we're going to reward people like that -- people that committed insurrection against the United States government, people that assaulted children, people that have committed very heinous crimes since being pardoned -- we're going to give them your taxpayer dollars, free government money, free reparations for being really terrible people. I don't think that's going to happen in this building. If it is, this is -- it's going to be a very low day for America. It's going to be a sad day for America.

SIDNER: Congress has the power of the purse -- at least it has in the past -- and that is still the law of the land.

Is there anything that Congress can do to say we're just not going to fund this?

VEASEY: There absolutely is something that Congress can do. Of course, you need a strong speaker to do that. This speaker has continually shown himself to be weak and to basically be a tool of the administration.

But I don't think that this is a fight that Republicans want going into the midterms. Imagine right before the November elections and this guy that literally is in prison for sexual assault of children gets a reparation check because of this fund. I don't think that is what the Republicans want. I don't think that anyone in their right mind would want that going into the midterms, and I think they would be crazy to even continue having this conversation. It's ridiculous that we're even here discussing it today to be quite honest with you, but it just shows you how reckless and radical these current Republicans are.

SIDNER: Um, I do want to ask you about one more part of this and this is a part that does have a lot of people upset, including Republicans as well, that in the settlement the day after the settlement details were announced. There was an addition and that addition barred the IRS from forever looking back into auditing the president, his family, and his businesses from any past potential malfeasance.

What do you make of this, and is this something that you think is going to be able to stand legally?

VEASEY: That sounds like a smoking gun to me. That sounds like an admission of guilt knowing that he has committed tax fraud in the past.

Why would you even put that in there? That's pure insanity. I don't believe it's legal at all. I don't think that anyone should have immunity from past crimes that they have committed regarding not paying their taxes, especially someone that is the President of the United States and their family. That's crazy. It's cronyism.

And had any other person done this, especially a Democrat, every Republican in this damn building would be crying and moaning and whining right now. But instead, they go along with this. They nod their heads. They're so afraid to lose their primaries instead of standing up and doing the right thing.

SIDNER: Yeah. And they are losing their primaries, which is a real issue. When you look, the voters are voting --

VEASEY: Yeah.

SIDNER: -- for the people, for the most part, that Donald Trump backs.

I want to move on now to Iran. We have some brand new reporting from sources familiar with the intelligence that Iran is actually rebuilding its drone and other military capabilities faster than the Pentagon initially believed.

I'm curious what you make of this and, you know, CENTCOM saying look, we've destroyed 90 percent of its -- you know, its missile capabilities -- it's ability to rebuild -- and now this. What does that tell you?

[07:35:00]

VEASEY: I'm not surprised at all. You saw this regime and the threat that they were facing -- that Trump said that he was going to wipe them into the Stone Ages. They don't care. The theocracy absolutely does not care about their own people because they know that they are going to survive, and they know that if they have a handful of drones that they can basically control the flow of who comes in and out of that strait.

And so it shouldn't surprise anyone in the public that the president is over his skis. He doesn't know what he's doing. This was not well thought out. It was not planned out tactically well at all, and now he's in a complete quagmire and a mess that no one knows how to get out of, including himself.

And this is going to be something that the American people are going to have to continue to pay for the price for. We're going to pay the price for it at the pump. We're going to pay the price for it in taxpayers' dollars being spent. We're going to pay the price for it in all of our weaponry being really reduced almost down to zero now because this whole thing was just something that he concocted very quickly. It was not thought out. It was not well planned out. And again, we're going to continue to pay the price for this and who knows when all of this madness is going to -- going to end?

People are paying too much money at the pump. People are paying too much money for food. And the president looks like he wants to get us into some mess in Cuba.

SIDNER: Congressman Marc Veasey, thank you so much. I do appreciate you taking the time early this morning for us -- Fredrick -- Fredricka.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Sara.

This morning an American doctor infected with Ebola is showing signs of improvement. Dr. Peter Stafford is being given monoclonal antibody treatment at a hospital in Berlin, Germany. He was working for an international charity in the Democratic Republic of Congo when he tested positive for the virus. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE HOPPING, SENIOR DIRECTOR OF ENGAGEMENT, SERGE: Our leaders have been in touch with Peter today via text and so we're grateful that he's even able to do that just because a day ago he needed assistance to walk and was experiencing severe symptoms. So now that he's at the hospital in Germany, he's been able to eat. He's able to text and be fully present. So these are positive signs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Now at last check the Democratic Republic of Congo says at least 148 deaths are linked to Ebola and there are some 575 suspected cases.

Joining us right now is Dr. Carlos del Rio, the chair of the Department of Medicine at Emory University's Medical School. Great to see you, del Rio -- doctor.

So, you know, showing signs of improvement for Dr. Stafford, that's encouraging. Still, how concerned are you about the doctor and his wife and family also still being observed.

DR. CARLOS DEL RIO, CHAIR, DEPARTMENT OF MEDICINE, EMORY UNIVERSITY MEDICAL SCHOOL, PROFESSOR, GLOBAL HEALTH AND EPIDEMIOLOGY, EMORY UNIVERSITY ROLLINS SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH (via Webex by Cisco): Well, thank you, Fred. It's good to be with you.

I'm very concerned about the outbreak. The outbreak is one of the biggest outbreaks we've seen with this strain of Ebola. It's a rare form of Ebola. We've only seen two previous outbreaks by this strain in the past. And the problem with this strain is that we don't have effective therapeutics and effective vaccines against this strain, so controlling the outbreak will be hard.

I'm very pleased to hear that Dr. Stafford is doing better with the monoclonal antibodies he received.

There are two monoclonal antibodies that have been approved by the -- by the FDA to use in Ebola Zaire infection but not an Ebola Bundibugyo infection. And the fact that they're being used and they're being effective makes me feel good and makes me very happy because definitely this is a disease that has a high mortality -- 30 to 50 percent mortality.

WHITFIELD: Um-hum. I mean -- and the symptoms are horrific along with fever, vomiting blood, muscle pain.

Dr. Stafford is fortunate because he is being treated in Germany.

Tell me about who and how observations will continue involving the health care workers and others that the doctor actually worked with in the Congo and those not able to travel for treatment.

DEL RIO: Well, you know, what we know from the past here at Emory University in 2014, we took care of four patient with Ebola during an outbreak that occurred in Liberia and we were providing the care they needed and were able to show that the mortality was down to zero. None of those patients died. And that's because we have modern medicine. We have the ability to monitor electrolytes. The ability to give -- to replace fluids. The ability to do ventilator support.

So you need strengthening of health care systems. You need basic, you know, health care in order to provide survival from Ebola. The problem in places like DRC and in other places where these outbreaks have occurred is that you don't have the basic infrastructure necessary to take care of patients, and that's why the mortality may be so high.

So it's really -- you know, it really shows the difference between having a very, you know, severe disease in a -- in a country where there's no health care infrastructure, there's no health care capacity, and having a disease in countries like ours or Germany where there's health care capacity.

So in good hands with appropriate therapy I think that survival can be much better than we typically think it is.

[07:40:00]

WHITFIELD: Yeah. Well, tell me a little bit more about this monoclonal treatment. I mean, is it an infusion? You know, what is it? How is it administered for those who are fortunate enough to get to Germany and other places, you know, for this treatment?

DEL RIO: So monoclonal antibodies are new approaches to therapy, which what you do is you take part of the virus -- you take the part of the virus that the immune system responds to and then you develop this monoclonal antibodies in cells. And it's a little bit like developing a vaccine or a therapy and then you create this monoclonal antibodies. They're -- instead of waiting for the body to produce the antibodies after a vaccine or after an infection, you go ahead and you give a big dose on the monoclonal antibodies by vein -- by an infusion -- and essentially you're trying to overwhelm the virus by having this antibodies -- this proteins in the immune system grab the virus and essentially inactivate it.

So it's a really cool way of therapy. It's not an empty viral. It's really using modern -- mimicking the immune system in doing therapy.

WHITFIELD: All right, Dr. Carlos del Rio. We'll leave it there for now. Thank you so much -- Sara.

SIDNER: Thank goodness for scientists. That was really interesting.

All right. This morning gas prices now at a four-year high at $4.56 a gallon on average. That's up 54 cents just since last month. The pain at the pump comes as oil inventories in the United States are plunging as the global disruption to the energy market drags on because of the war in Iran.

CNN's Matt Egan joining me now. You look at these prices and that is a stunning jump over a month -- 54 cents a gallon more. MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yeah, it is, Sara, and now we've got new wartime highs just in time for Memorial Day weekend. So the national average for regular gas only up by about a penny today but that is enough to be the highest level not just since the war started but since July of 2022.

And remember, before this conflict, gas was cheap, right -- below $3.00 a gallon. Now you basically can't escape $4.00 a gallon, not even in those historically low-priced gas states, right -- Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia --

SIDNER: Georgia.

EGAN: -- Indiana, and Texas. All of them are now above $4.00 a gallon. AAA says this month marks the first time where all 50 states and Washington, D.C. are above $4.00 a gallon in four years. So it's just -- it's just stunning to see this.

And it's obviously happening because of the war. Because the Strait of Hormuz being closed. It's completely destabilized the global energy system. This is the biggest shock in terms of energy supplies in world history.

Now some people have wondered why haven't prices gone even higher --

SIDNER: Yeah.

EGAN: -- and that's because, in part, the world entered this crisis with a pretty sizable rainy day fund, right? Oil inventories, which act like shock absorbers -- they were really high. However, now they're shrinking rapidly. Total U.S. oil inventories last week alone plunging by 18 million barrels. That's the most on federal data that goes back to the early 1980s.

And emergency reserves -- they're also shrinking. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is down by 10 percent since the war started, falling to the lowest level in almost two years.

Now this is what those reserves are there for, right?

SIDNER: Yeah.

EGAN: They're designed to try to absorb a shock. It's kind of like savings in a bank account, right? It can help you ride out a storm, get through a financial emergency. Of course, it's not going to last forever, right? Eventually you're going to run out. And so that's where the concern comes as far as the supply shock.

And look, I know the president this week -- he dismissed high gas prices as "peanuts." But I've been talking to people who have been telling me that it's really, really painful.

I talked to a computer technician in Pittsburgh, and he said he drives by the gas station every day and he says the prices are just insane. But it's not just energy, right? It's also the cost of groceries. The cost of everything. He said everything is going up right now except your paycheck.

And Sara, I do think that this is just another reminder of how painful high gas prices are, especially for people who are living paycheck to paycheck, right?

SIDNER: Yeah.

EGAN: This is just something that they can't avoid right now.

SIDNER: It has a big impact. You've got to get to work. You've got to get in a car to do that. And so you're paying more just to go to work, and you can't pay for the other extra things -- especially, as you said, this is travel season. This is summertime. A lot of people are going to be upset with this.

Matt Egan, thank you so much --

EGAN: Thank you, Sara.

SIDNER: -- for breaking that down for us -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Elon Musk may be adding another title under his belt, world's first trillionaire. It could happen after SpaceX filed plans to go public with the biggest initial public offering in history. The 277-page ruling lays out an ambitious mission building technology to make life multiplanetary, power massive AI systems in space, and eventually create cities on other planets.

Musk, who is already the world's richest person, would only receive the highest payout if SpaceX reaches those goals, including establishing a permanent human colony on Mars.

[07:45:05]

The stock will trade under the ticker SPCX.

All right -- do you like that?

SIDNER: I --

WHITFIELD: You got a comment?

SIDNER: I just wonder if you would go to Mars with me.

WHITFIELD: No.

SIDNER: No?

WHITFIELD: I mean -- I mean, I'll go with you anywhere but Mars, I don't know. OK, get back with me on that one. I'll think it over. I'm a little too impulsive.

All right. New this morning, also, Harvard is making it harder to get an A. University faculty just voted to cap A grades at 20 percent of students per class. It's a big change. More than 60 percent of Harvard undergrads have been getting A's in recent years. Faculty said the top grade has basically lost its meaning. The new rule kicks in fall 2027 -- just around the corner -- and it'll be reviewed after three years -- Sara.

SIDNER: I'm glad I'm not in school anymore. Anyway --

WHITFIELD: I'm with you. I mean, you know, that's what you're striving for, an A, and you're feeling good.

SIDNER: How can it be 20 percent? I don't -- I don't understand but OK, grade inflation. I get it.

All right.

WHITFIELD: Yeah.

SIDNER: Happening tonight, after nearly 11 years, Stephen Colbert will sign off "THE LATE SHOW" one last time. His final episode and the end of an iconic late-night TV franchise -- it comes less than a year after CBS canceled the show. The network said the decision was purely financial, but the move sparked accusations CBS caved to political pressure from the Trump administration.

Tonight late-night rivals Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel -- they will air reruns to show support for their friend. The big question, what's next for Colbert?

CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter joins me now. I have been able to go to the show in person. It is even more fun in person. Even funnier. This is a -- this is a big, big loss I think for just historically late-night.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Yes, it absolutely is. This is the end of an era for late-night television. And over the years Colbert has talked about his version of "THE LATE SHOW" being about love and being about loss. Those are definitely the emotions that his fans are feeling today. They have had about a year to prepare for this moment, however. CBS announced the cancellation last summer. So Colbert's entire final season has in some ways been a tribute to him, to his team, and to the show.

And we keep seeing all week long more surprise guests, more special guests. Here's just a few of them who showed up last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARTHA STEWART, BUSINESSWOMAN: I'm so happy to be here and I'm also very sad.

STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, CBS "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": Oh, OK, why?

STEWART: Because maybe I won't be here again.

COLBERT: You will not.

AUBREY PLAZA, ACTRESS, COMEDIAN: Everything's normal here. COLBERT: It is.

PLAZA: It's been weird.

COLBERT: You look lovely.

PLAZA: My water broke backstage.

COLBERT: Oh, great, great. I'll find --

PLAZA: They said it was going to take a couple of hours so I could still do this.

JOHN DICKERSON, CONTRIBUTING WRITER, THE ATLANTIC, FORMER CBS NEW JOURNALIST: How would you describe the rest of your life in five words?

COLBERT: My family, my friends, fun.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STELTER: A lot of fun he plans. He also has a job lined up writing one of the next "Lord of the Rings" movies. Colbert is a huge Tolkien fan so he's looking forward to that. But beyond that script that he owes Warner Bros., he says he hasn't thought a lot about the future because he feels like he's a college senior getting through his final tests and then he'll think about what he might want to do next. He's going to have a lot of options I suspect.

But, you know, you mentioned the political overtones here -- the cloud hanging over this cancellation -- and it's inescapable. Last night his performer -- his guest Bruce Springsteen said on air, "You're the first guy in America who lost his show because the president can't take a joke."

Certainly, Colbert's fans believe this is politically motivated even though Paramount says it's all about financial pressures in late- night.

Colbert's answer has been kind of perfect. He says, "Two things can be true at the same time. Yes, the broadcast business is in trouble in some ways, but the political cloud is there as well."

And I really admire how Colbert is taking all this in stride. He has talked about the gratitude he feels for all the years he's had at CBS. He says he'd rather be grateful than be angry that it's ending now.

SIDNER: It is remarkable, his run, and just the way that people love this man is pretty incredible to see, Brian Stelter. We will all be watching his last show.

Thank you so much for all your reporting. And you talked about it in your newsletter and your column, so go out and read that. It's great. Appreciate it -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Yeah. Straight ahead, major layoffs at Meta. They axed a tenth of their workforce as they pivot towards AI.

And an incredible moment caught on body camera. An officer catches a baby dropped right there from a second story of a burning home -- incredible.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:54:00]

SIDNER: These are crazy pictures from New York. This morning the NYPD says there was no suspicious activity behind this hybrid that caught fire and exploded. Look at that huge ball of fire. This happened near Wall Street.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(Car explodes. People screaming.)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Terrifying. The scene particularly frightening for New Yorkers given its proximity to Ground Zero. Yes, reminding folks of 9/11.

Police say an MTA worker climbed into their work vehicle and noticed black smoke after trying to start the engine. The worker was able to get out before the fire and explosion. First responders rushed to the scene and put out the flames. I don't know how this is possible with as busy as it is down there, but no one was hurt.

All right, some new police body camera video from Michigan. A house on fire and a mother and her baby trapped on the second floor with flames raging. An officer tells the mom to kick the screen window and drop her baby -- watch.

[07:55:05]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL ARNETT, KALAMAZOO PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER: A good story.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) the police.

ARNETT: Come here.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) boy. OK.

ARNETT: OK, here I am. OK, yeah, yeah, yeah. I got it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. Do you see those cute little feet? Oh my gosh. The mom is so distressed -- whoa.

But you know what? The Kalamazoo Public Safety Departments says that catch was lifesaving. With the baby safe, officers put a ladder up and were able to go in the window to rescue the mom. Both are OK this morning. The officer later said of the mother she had zero hesitation on saving her baby first.

All right. A runway at New York's LaGuardia Airport set to finally reopen this morning after undergoing repairs because of a sinkhole, yeah. Port Authority officials said the sinkhole was discovered during an inspection yesterday morning. The runway was immediately shut down. LaGuardia only has two runways so, as you might imagine, the repairs caused some serious delays. Officials said the longest delay was about three hours.

Absolute chaos for Atlanta drivers Wednesday afternoon. Flash flooding left drivers stranded on one of the busiest stretches of the interstate right downtown. It was too much for some self-driving Waymo cars that -- yeah, they got stuck in that high water.

A similar story in New York. Strong thunderstorms triggered flash floods in Queens and in Brooklyn.

All right. Today a section of the original staircase inside the Eiffel Tower is going to hit the auction block. Melissa Bell is taking a look at this. She has more from Paris. Let's find out if she got a piece.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT: This is the very staircase that the man who created the Eiffel Tower. Gustave Eiffel used to use every day to get up to his office at the very top of the tower. Now this little piece of that very staircase is being sold at auction. But at 1.4 tons in weight, whoever acquires it is going to need a pretty big apartment and a pretty sturdy floor.

Ever since 1983, the staircase has given way to these elevators that take you all the way up to 280 meters above the ground. So less exercise but a lot easier to get to the very top.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We start at 100,000 euro and we will try obtain the best price.

BELL: This is such an iconic monument and such a draw towards Paris. And yet, whoever ends up acquiring this little piece of Parisian history will never get this view.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Wow, look at that view, but you can only imagine. I'm ready to bid. Not really.

All right. Meta, home to Facebook and Instagram, just laid off or reassigned nearly a tenth of its staffers. Employees got the notifications Wednesday if they were affected. The company's leaders say this restructuring is so that they can lean harder into AI. Meta said it is -- in its January earnings report that it plans to spend at least $115 billion this year on AI infrastructure.

CNN's Clare Duffy joining me right now. So, oh boy, how are employees being reassigned?

CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: Yeah, this is a huge restructuring --

WHITFIELD: Um-hum.

DUFFY: -- for Meta. As you said, 8,000 employees being laid off. They also said last month that they were closing 6,000 open roles. And then 7,000 employees -- other employees found out yesterday they were being reassigned to AI-focused roles. Those are employees from all across the company --

WHITFIELD: Whether they like it or not.

DUFFY: -- being shifted -- exactly -- to focus on AI.

Among the employees who were laid off it really sort of runs the gamut. But you've got trust and safety employees, data center infrastructure, advertising, virtual reality. They really came from across the company.

And this is, as you said Fred, all because the company wants to lean harder into artificial intelligence. And in particular, is spending a huge amount of money on AI infrastructure and needs to cut down the amount that it's spending on its staff. You said there Meta spent $72.2 billion on capital expenditures last year. It is planning to up that by 59 percent to $115 billion this year.

Now, Zuckerberg -- Mark Zuckerberg, CEO, in a memo to employees yesterday said that he is optimistic about where the company is going -- its plan to build personal superintelligence for all of its users -- but he said, "Success isn't a given.: He said AI is the most consequential technology of our lifetimes. The companies that lead the way will define the next generation."

He said, "That's why we're transforming our company to make sure it will always be the best place for talented people to have the greatest impact."

I have to say that maybe hurt if you are one of those employees --

WHITFIELD: Right.

DUFFY: -- who were affected by the cuts yesterday. But Zuckerberg did say that he doesn't expect any more full company layoffs this year.

WHITFIELD: Yeah.

DUFFY: And this is, of course, a trend that we are seeing across the tech industry --

WHITFIELD: Um-hum.

DUFFY: -- in particular. Companies making cuts either because they are replacing some employee work with AI or because they are trying to spend more money on AI infrastructure.