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U.S. Intel: Iran Could Fully Rebuild Drones in as Soon as 6 Months; Acting Attorney General Blanche Defends DOJ's $1.8 Billion Anti-Weaponization Fund; U.S. Doctor with Ebola Receiving Antibody Treatment in Germany; SpaceX IPO Could Make Elon Musk a Trillionaire. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired May 21, 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]

CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: And this is, of course, a trend that we are seeing across the tech industry, in particular, companies making cuts either because they are replacing some employee work with A.I. or because they're trying to spend more money on A.I. infrastructure. According to the last shocker, last FYI, more than 114,000 tech employees have been laid off this year alone.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Well, understandably, so many on the fence about the whole idea about A.I. technology, especially if, you know, it means sacrificing your job. Absolutely. Yes.

All right, Clare Duffy, great to see you. Thank you so much.

DUFFY: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, a new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, breaking overnight, Iran is rebuilding its arsenal faster than initially estimated. That is brand new CNN reporting from sources saying Iran is rapidly rebuilding its military capabilities during the ceasefire. What this means is President Trump weighs his next move on Iran.

And backlash growing at the Department of Justice's anti-weaponization fund. Even some Republicans angry. Now, two January 6th police officers are trying to block the fund.

And it is the end of an era in late night. Stephen Colbert signs off tonight from the late show, ending his run and the iconic show itself. The surprises he's planning for this highly anticipated finale.

John and Kate, they're out today. I'm Sara Sidner in with Fredricka Whitfield. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

All right, breaking for you this morning, Iran already building new drones and rearming at a pace that's blown past U.S. intelligence timelines. That is according to brand new CNN reporting. One U.S. official tells us that Iran could restore its drone fleet in as soon as six months. That's according to some intelligence estimates. But the Pentagon seems to be telling Congress something very different. The head of U.S. Central Command testified this week that strikes destroyed 90 percent of Iran's defense industrial base and that Iran cannot reconstitute for years.

All of this comes as President Trump is weighing his next move on Iran. He said he called off a new round of strikes on Tuesday that he had planned. And CNN has learned that decision led to a tense phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who pushed to resume kinetic operations.

CNN senior national security reporter Zach Cohen is joining me now. Look, this is some of your reporting on Iran's military capabilities now. What did you learn? What can you tell us this morning?

ZACH COHEN, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, Sara, we've learning that Iran is working to actively rebuild its production facilities and replenish its weapons inventories after taking on significant damage in those initial U.S.-Israeli strikes. And look, one example of this, that sources said is reflected in the U.S. intelligence assessments, is that Iran is already producing some of its drones and trying to restore its drone attack capability, which was among those degraded in those combat operations that we saw previously play out.

And as you mentioned, a U.S. official telling us that Iran could restore its drone attack capability in a matter of six months, which, of course, is a very accelerated timeline, especially compared to what the U.S. intelligence community had initially estimated. And that's true for a variety of weapons components. We're told that while the timelines do vary from weapon component to weapon component, that more broadly, the Iranians are proving that they can rebuild more quickly than anybody really thought.

And so this is a little bit different than the messaging we're hearing from top Pentagon officials, including Admiral Brad Cooper, the CENTCOM commander, who testified just this week that Iran -- 90 percent of Iran's defense industrial base had destroyed and that has set them back years before they could reconstitute their military capabilities. Take a listen to what Cooper told the House Armed Services Committee on Tuesday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADM. BRAD COOPER, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: Operation Epic Fury significantly degraded Iran's ballistic missiles and drones while destroying 90 percent of their defense industrial base, ensuring that Iran cannot reconstitute for years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COHEN: So we're also told that Iran still maintains significant ballistic missile capability and thousands of drones that it could use if combat operations resume. We know Donald Trump is currently weighing whether or not to restart this war as these negotiations play out. But ultimately, the top line here, Sara, is that Iran remains a threat at the moment with its remaining missile and drone capability and its ability to reconstitute more quickly than the U.S. initially anticipated means that it could continue to be a threat for the long term.

SIDNER: Yes, those drones are sort of the new way of warfare.

[08:05:00]

I know you'll be watching and learning all that you can about this. Thank you so much. Great reporting from you, Zach Cohen. Appreciate it this morning -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, this morning, both a strong defense and mounting criticism of the nearly $2 billion so-called anti weaponization fund established by the Trump administration. Critics calling it a slush fund and warning that it could benefit 2020 election deniers and January 6th Capitol rioters, including those who assaulted police officers at the Capitol.

But acting attorney general, the acting attorney general, Todd Blanche is defending the fund. Here's how he responded to the criticism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TODD BLANCHE, ACTING ATTORNEY GENERAL: Just to be clear, people that hurt police get money all the time. OK. There's a process where if you believe you have your rights violated, you can you can apply for funds, you can sue, you can file a claim, you can go to court. In some of those cases, the state, the government, the federal government settles those cases.

It's abhorrent to ever, ever touch a law enforcement officer, which is why anytime anybody does that and it's a federal officer will prosecute them. But that's a completely different question with whether an individual is allowed to apply for a claim.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: With me now is former deputy assistant secretary for economic policy, Natasha Saron. Natasha, great to see you. I mean, what's your reaction to hearing the acting attorney general with that explanation?

NATASHA SARIN, FORMER DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR ECONOMIC POLICY: You know, I think we kind of have to evaluate the nature of this settlement by first understanding the nature of this case. And we're in a situation where the judge in this suit had actually asked the parties to brief on whether or not there was a case at all, because as the president himself has made clear, he was on both sides of this. He was suing the government that he himself runs.

And so in when you think about settlements from the government's perspective, you decide to pursue them when that's in the best interest of the government. In this case, it's really hard to argue that there was any case clearly to settle at all that would make such an action appropriate, even if the settlement made sense. And this is the type of settlement that we're talking about here, where we're talking about deploying $1.8 billion of taxpayers' dollars in ways that look like they're going to be rewarding political allies. And that is just unprecedented and, frankly, destructive to democracy and the rule of law in this country.

WHITFIELD: Yes, it's very contradictory because you've got the acting attorney general saying it's OK for people who were convicted of crimes on Capitol Hill, some of whom were caught on video committing crimes, to be compensated for committing these crimes and enduring the consequences. I mean, how can this not be anything but rewarding people who advocated for Trump by trying to disrupt Congress from certifying an election?

SARIN: Yes, and it's deeply problematic and harkens back, frankly, to the Nixon administration, which used the tax system in order to try and punish their enemies and benefit their proponents. And in response to that type of weaponization of government, you saw an incredibly aggressive push, a bipartisan push, with respect to making good government reforms. And you're starting to, frankly, hear that right now on Capitol Hill because it's not just that this is a partisan matter where one side is raising concern with the nature of the administration of this fund or what even it looks like in practice.

You're, frankly, hearing it on both sides of the aisle.

WHITFIELD: Right, in fact, Congress, I mean, what can it do since the Department of Justice unilaterally, you know, kind of agreed to this settlement? But at the same time, you have lawmakers who say we're the ones who control the purse strings.

SARIN: Yes, it's actually a really challenging question, right? Because you saw the judge in that case say this was a voluntary withdrawal of a suit. There wasn't actually space for her or capacity for her to weigh in on the nature of this settlement because it wasn't one that was filed with her.

And now you're in a situation where potentially there's a role for Congress to try to get involved and say, we actually don't think it's appropriate to take these funds and deploy them in this way from the perspective of the administration. But I think that's kind of a tenuous and challenging arena that's going to take time to play out. And in the interim, while Congress is trying to figure out exactly what capacity it has to act, you're in a situation where the American people are rightly frustrated by a system where they paid tax dollars into the U.S. government and are watching those tax dollars be deployed in this way. And I think, frankly, that's deeply problematic.

WHITFIELD: Yes. All right, Natasha Sarin, we'll leave it there for now. Thank you so much. Appreciate it so much.

SARIN: Thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: All right, Sara.

SIDNER: All right, Thank you so much, Fredricka.

Coming up, an American doctor infected with Ebola now slowly getting better. We have an update on his condition.

And Elon Musk on the brink of becoming the world's first trillionaire. Yes, with a T. Why is that happening? What's going on? Has to do with SpaceX. We'll talk about that ahead.

Plus, the home of video gaming grandmama gets swatted during a live stream. You've got to see this.

[08:10:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SIDNER: All right, breaking news. U.S. bound flights that are carrying passengers who were recently in the Ebola affected area of Africa must land at Dulles International Airport in Virginia, according to a new Department of Homeland Security document posted in the Federal Register. We have also learned that at least 10 CDC staffers are being sent to Dulles to screen passengers.

We also have new details this morning about the American doctor who is undergoing treatment after contracting Ebola while working in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Dr. Peter Stafford is now at a Berlin hospital where his family is also in quarantine.

The World Health Organization has deemed the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. The Democratic Republic of Congo says at least 148 deaths there are linked to Ebola and that there are 575 suspected cases.

[08:15:00]

CNN's Fred Pleitgen is in Berlin for us this morning. What can you tell us about the treatment that Dr. Stafford is receiving as we understand that he is doing better this morning?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, apparently, he is doing somewhat better than he had been during the time when he was actually still in Democratic Republic of Congo, Sara. That isolation ward that he's in is actually in this hospital compound that you see behind me. We've been in touch with the German health ministry and the health minister telling us that he is, as she put it, in stable condition.

We've also been in touch with the organization Serge that actually sent him to the Democratic Republic of Congo and they say they've been in touch with him and that he still has a fever, he has some nausea, he still has some lightness of head as they put it. But one of the things that they say is quite positive is that he is actually still able to communicate with them via text message and that's something that one of the members of Serge actually told our own Anderson Cooper last night. Let's listen in.

(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)

PLEITGEN: So as you can see there, Sara, things apparently going somewhat better for him after Peter Stafford apparently was quite weak actually when he was still in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Also getting into that medevac flight apparently an issue as well. I can tell you from being on the ground here throughout all of yesterday when both Peter Stafford arrived and then in the evening the rest of his family, his wife Rebecca and the children also arrived here as well.

It is a pretty huge logistical operation that's been going on, a massive convoy with ambulances, police cars and cars from the fire department as well just to bring the family here to the isolation ward at the Charite Hospital in Berlin. The latest that we're getting is that the rest of the family are still asymptomatic. They've tested negative for the Ebola virus.

All of them though of course are still going to have to spend say around two weeks probably here in quarantine inside the isolation ward. Peter Stafford himself, of course a lot longer because he of course is positive for the Ebola virus. Nevertheless, as we've heard there from his organization, he appears to be doing somewhat better and they hope that does continue -- Sara.

SIDNER: That is some good news. It's just extraordinary when you see the amount of PPE, the amount of protective gear and the apparatus they use just to get one person to the hospital so that no one else contract it. It is dangerous. There is no known cure and there's certainly no vaccine for it.

Fred Pleitgen, thank you so much to you for sort of walking us through all that. It is remarkable and good to know that he's doing better. Appreciate it.

All right, ahead. Caught on camera, fire spreads through a house and a mother ends up having to toss her baby from a second-story window. The incredible moments an officer is there to record it all and ends up catching the baby.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FLAVOR FLAV, AMERICAN RAPPER: It's like when my daughters do something good, they want to be recognized for it.

SIDNER: There he is. Flavor Flav plans for a massive party on the Las Vegas Strip to celebrate female athletes in one step closer to becoming a reality and you know he has something wild planned.

[08:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: All right, new this morning, SpaceX has officially unveiled its plans to go public, pulling back the curtain on one of the world's most secretive private companies and it could make the world's richest person, Elon Musk, even richer. This initial public offering could put Musk on pace to become the world's first trillionaire but it's all contingent on hitting some lofty stock valuations and building technology to make life multi-planetary but those goals come at a huge cost.

CNN's David Goldman is with me now. OK, well we see the potential payoff for him but what are the costs?

DAVID GOLDMAN, CNN BUSINESS SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, I mean this is one of the wildest IPOs. I've been covering these for a long time but I haven't seen something quite like this. So just look at the mission statement from SpaceX.

They say they want to build systems and technologies necessary to make life multi-planetary, as you said, to understand the true nature of the universe and extend the light of consciousness to the stars. So that is what the company is wanting to do. How is it going to do it?

WHITFIELD: Yes.

GOLDMAN: To your point, it has to spend a ton of money. OK, so the company --

WHITFIELD: They have a lot of money.

GOLDMAN: It has a lot of money. It's making a ton of money. $18.7 billion last year and that's up a third from the year before. So we're talking about a lot of money coming into the company but it's losing almost $5 billion last year. Now that's last year. This year alone, right? 4.7 billion in revenue and it's already lost $4.3 billion.

WHITFIELD: Oh, well wait a minute then. This is not looking good. It's not looking great.

GOLDMAN: Why is it losing so much money?

WHITFIELD: Yes.

GOLDMAN: The reason is AI. This company wants to put data centers into space. Because if you think about it, once you build an AI data center, all you have to do is cool it and that costs so much money.

It's basically a giant refrigerator that runs, you know, computing. So if you put it into space, you don't have to worry about the cooling. You don't have to worry about the power. You got the Sun behind you. This is the ambition of SpaceX because with all of its satellite technologies that are beaming communications down to Earth already, it's got that infrastructure. We know that works.

Why don't you put AI data centers into space? And that's what they're doing. But they've already, last year, they spent $20.7 billion on all of their ventures. 12.7 billion was from AI. WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness. All right, so going public with these kind of losses, what does that scenario potentially look like?

GOLDMAN: Well, I mean, investors have given Elon Musk the benefit of the doubt for a long time, right? I mean, Tesla makes four cars.

[08:25:00]

So they're being treated, though, like an AI and a robotics company, a future-of-the-world kind of thing, even though they're not even making as much as GM. But they're worth multiple times more than that. This is going to be the same kind of thing, just with space and AI.

WHITFIELD: Yes, the vision is part of the potential capital.

GOLDMAN: Exactly.

WHITFIELD: Interesting. All right, David Goldman, thank you so much.

GOLDMAN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Appreciate that.

All right, coming up, straight ahead, the late show's swan song. Tonight, Stephen Colbert signs off for the final time and bids farewell to the franchise that has helped define late-night television.

And imagine one minute being on a hot-air-balloon ride and the next you're stuck more than 900 feet in the air. The daring rescue of a Texas Fire Department pulling off from towering heights.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SIDNER: I've got some new CNN reporting this morning and just how fast Iran is rebuilding its military capabilities after nearly three months of war. Sources say it's happening much faster.

[08:30:00]