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FEMA in Crisis; Poll son California Primary; Loryn Brantz Slams Buzzfeed. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired June 01, 2026 - 09:30   ET

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

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[09:32:21]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: A CNN exclusive highlights chaos and dysfunction at FEMA over the last year. New reporting reveals a major staff exodus, billions in disaster funding stalled, and even issues paying utility and internet bills. It is an agency at odds. And insiders are warning it's weakened at a critical moment because hurricane season, by the way, begins today, June 1st.

Let's go to CNN's Gabe Cohen for the exclusive reporting he has for us this morning.

What did you learn as you sort of got information about what's happening inside of this really important agency, especially now?

GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Sara, as I write in the piece, for some this past year of chaos at FEMA really stands as a much bigger example of what happens when this sort of half-baked presidential talking point collides with the machinery of government, where we saw this rushed attempt to tear down this disaster agency that instead left it weakened, isolated and exposed. And now we're seeing this frantic effort to piece some of it back together.

Because if you remember, it was back on the campaign trail that Trump had blasted FEMA's response to Hurricane Helene. He spread these falsehoods about the agency. It was a successful talking point. And so, as he took office, he said, well, maybe we'll just get rid of this agency. And Kristi Noem and Corey Lewandowski ran with that and really took a sledgehammer to FEMA. They drove out the vast majority of senior leaders, about 20 percent of the workforce. They instilled this culture of fear. They installed several political appointees. A really interesting cast of characters that I talk about in this piece, some of whom, according to court documents that have been recently filed, showed a serious disdain for the agency and its workforce and at times were even at odds with one another, which led to this remarkable dysfunction where almost nothing could get approved. The basics, like electricity, internet, email services, all of them almost went down because bills were not getting paid and secure government sites that house dangerous materials, like ricin and anthrax, according to sources, were hours away from losing security coverage because contracts had been left to expire.

And at that same time as all that's happening behind the scenes, Sara, that stranglehold became a political liability for the administration because Noem and Lewandowski and their loyalists were blocking billions of dollars, about $15 billion in disaster aid and grants that were supposed to be going out to states and communities. And lawmakers, even prominent Republicans, started publicly going after them, asking why they would be withholding money, especially from communities that supported President Trump.

[09:35:02]

It really hit a boiling point in the days before Noem was fired.

And, Sara, now we are seeing this administration starting to play cleanup with the new Homeland Security secretary, Markwayne Mullin, having undone a lot of Noem's policies and cuts.

But today is the start of hurricane season, as you mentioned. And one high ranking official told me it could be a decade, "it could take a decade to fix what they broke. And if we have a major disaster this year, we are screwed." Not what you want to hear when not just hurricane season ahead, but we also have wildfires, tornadoes, and then the domestic threats from Iran, the World Cup, America. 250 and there's a lot of concern about FEMAs capabilities.

SIDNER: Yes. I mean, with the climate the way it is, we have a major disaster every year. Like, I don't think we've gone a year without one, Gabe Cohen. So, we'll see how the agency responds when that happens.

Thank you so much. I do appreciate your great reporting there.

John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, breaking overnight, rescuers investigating what they're saying are knocking sounds deep inside the flooded cave. Five people came out over the weekend. Two could still be trapped inside. So, what are these knocking sounds?

If a dog runs a marathon, is it measured in dog years? So, 26 times seven? The answer, ahead.

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[09:41:03]

BERMAN: All right, primary day in six states across the country tomorrow. A lot of eyes on California, which has been a really -- I don't know if there's another way to put it, kind of weird primary race there. The way they do it is unusual, different than most states in and of itself. They have a primary. The top two candidates, they move forward no matter what party they're in.

With us now to see where things stand today, before tomorrow, CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten.

Good morning to you, sir.

HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: Nothing wrong with being weird, I will note that.

BERMAN: It's just -- it's just different, right?

ENTEN: Yes.

BERMAN: It's just different. So, what are we looking at in California?

ENTEN: Yes, what are we looking at?

You know, Johnny B. teed it up right, all the candidates, regardless of party, run in one primary. The top two advance to the November general election. And there has just been some massive movement over the last month. I mean just take a look, chance to be in the top two in the California gubernatorial primary. Right now it's pretty clear there are two folks who have a much better chance, according to the Kalshi prediction market. Xavier Becerra, of course, the former Biden administration official, Democrat, and then Republican Steve Hilton, 77 percent and 92 percent chance. But look at Becerra's chances, up like a rocket, from 52 percent to 92 percent. Hilton staying pretty gosh darn steady.

And then, of course, you got Tom Steyer, the billionaire, whose chances have fallen considerably, from 65 percent now down to 35 percent. But I will note, 35 percent chance isn't nothing. It is possible that two Democrats advance and actually no Republican advances at all.

And as Johnny said, this has been weird. It has been wild. There are a ton of other candidates running, but all their chances are less than five percent chance of advancing according to the Kalshi prediction market.

BERMAN: OK, these are the odds who advances tomorrow. What about winning in November?

ENTEN: Yes, OK. SO, you see right here, you know, Steve Hilton has a pretty gosh darn good shot of advancing to the November general election. So, you might be saying, hey, could California elect a Republican? Ah, probably not. And it's really simple here. Chance to win California's gov election. Take a look here. Again, the clear favorite here, Xavier Becerra, up like a rocket, from 39 percent now to a 68 percent chance of, in fact, being the next governor of California.

But look who's number two. It's actually Steyer. It's actually Steyer, the other Democrat. His chances have fallen in half, but still 21 percent chance to, in fact, be the next governor of California. You can see right here, Steve Hilton, still below 10 percent, eight percent to nine percent. And again, no other candidate above five percent.

So, you know, you look to tomorrow, what we're probably looking at is Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton advancing, a Democrat and Republican. It's still possible that Tom Steyer, the Democrat, also advances, knocks Hilton out. Maybe knocks Becerra out. We'll have to wait and see. But come November, chances are that California is going to elect a Democrat. Becerra being the favorite. But it could be Tom Steyer as well.

BERMAN: One of the interesting dynamics in this race is that the Democrats have all run against President Trump and the Republicans, and to a certain extent a Democrat or two, running against incumbent Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, at least against his policies. So, how do those two men measure up against each other in California?

ENTEN: Yes, if you go to California, I know a lot of Republicans like to rip on Gavin Newsom. But Gavin Newsom's actually popular in California, at least relative to the president of the United States. I mean take a look here, net approval ratings in California. Gavin Newsom is actually on the plus side of the ledger at plus eight percentage points. Look at where Donald Trump is. He's 40 points under water. The Pacific Oceans is right down in there. And you would have to go pretty much way in from the sand beaches to get 40 points underwater. He's swimming down there with the little mermaid.

So, Gavin Newsom, if anything, is a little bit of a boost to the Democrats running in California. Donald Trump, however, is, to keep up with the water analogies, he's an anchor.

BERMAN: What are the trends in terms of partisan politics in California?

ENTEN: Yes, OK. So, you know, you're talking right now, we're talking about who's a boost, who's down. We're talking about the November general election, right? Chances are that either Becerra or Steyer will, in fact, advance.

And you know what? I think this will translate down the ballot as well. Because just take a look here. OK, Democrats' margins in California. In the 2024 presidential election, Kamala Harris won easily in that state, but by a considerably lower margin than Joe Biden. His margin was closer to 30 points. Harris at 20 points on the win.

[09:45:01]

But look at this. Now all of a sudden Democrats running for the House, they are doing considerably better than Kamala Harris did back in 2024. At least they're polling better. A 29-point lead on the generic ballot. That translates, you put it together with the redistricting, Democrats are going to have an absolute field day come November. And I think that, of course, is just emblematic of the chances that Democrats have to retain the governor's mansion. There has not been a Republican elected in the great state of California, governor, since Arnold Schwarzenegger back in 2006. And I was still in grade school back then. So, we know it was a long time ago.

BERMAN: He's not even a Republican anymore.

ENTEN: That's right. That's even --

BERMAN: All right, Harry Enten, they will vote tomorrow. Thank you very much for being with us today.

A lot of news. We'll be right back.

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[09:50:17]

SIDNER: All right, we have some big, breaking news to bring to you right now.

Iranian state media is now reporting that Tehran has suspended talks with the United States in protest of Israel's strikes on Lebanon. Earlier today, Israel told its military to strike an area of Beirut that is a Hezbollah stronghold. An Israeli official tells CNN that plans to strike Beirut were coordinated with the United States. All of this coming as the U.S. military says overnight it intercepted two Iranian ballistic missiles targeting American forces in Kuwait, adding no American personnel were harmed. But the headline here is that Iran's state media is now saying that talks have been stopped between Iran and the United States. Those peace talks on hold.

Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Much more to come clearly on that.

We're also tracking this. The creator behind a popular animated series now finds herself in the midst of what could become a major fight between creatives and A.I., now slamming her former employer, "Buzzfeed," for a new licensing agreement with Amazon. This is all about Cuppy, the "Good Advice Cupcake," an online series that features, as it's described, an aggressively optimistic cupcake taking everyday situations and offering some tough love advice.

Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CUPPY: Sometimes you'll meet someone new. And for no apparent reason, they just don't like you.

Well, guess what? Who cares? Their loss.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: The cupcake -- this lovable cupcake has won a huge fan base. But now "Buzzfeed" has announced that it's partnering with Amazon to produce an A.I. created animated series about the character. But Cuppy's creator is saying, not so fast.

Loryn Brantz calls this licensing agreement and this move toward A.I., "an assault on artists everywhere," and saying this, "I encourage you to boycott Buzzfeed and any A.I.-produced or adjacent animation."

Loryn Brantz joins us now.

It's really nice to have you here. Thank you.

LORYN BRANTZ, AUTHOR AND CREATOR, "THE GOOD ADVICE CUPCAKE": Thanks for having me.

BOLDUAN: It's quite -- you found yourself kind of in a situation where it feels like a lot of artists -- it's something that the industry is talking about, absolutely, from creatives to the bigger industry and how A.I. can be, should be, is going to transform everything. When you first heard that "Buzzfeed," your former employer, was entering this licensing agreement with -- having to do with Cuppy, with Amazon studios, what did you think?

BRANTZ: I was furious. I reached out to the CEO, Jonah Peretti, directly right after hearing it through the grapevine and told him, in no unclear terms, that it made me feel sick to my stomach to think that something that I created with heart and soul and art and my own personality could be taken and fed to A.I., potentially, to train it, to take jobs from young artists, to create slop (ph) for profit.

BOLDUAN: Loryn, is it that they're moving ahead in creating with Cuppy without you that is so upsetting, or is it that they're using generative A.I. as a tool to bring Cuppy, as a series, to life?

BRANTZ: It's that it's a dangerous precedent that anything that you made at a company can -- before A.I. even existed, or generative A.I., can be taken by them and used for this when you never agreed to it. There was nothing in my employee agreement. And they call it generative, but really it's just cannibalizing artist's art and spitting it out into less, I don't know what to call it, slop.

BOLDUAN: Cuppy really took off I think it was around 2017-ish. What do you think it was and is that really resonates with -- this character resonates with so many people?

BRANTZ: Well, it's funny that they would choose to push around this character because I think she came from a place that's like, you can be cute, you can be small, you can be feminine, but that doesn't mean people can push you around. And that doesn't mean you can't have rage and can't have a say and can't fight for yourself. And I think they picked the wrong character and creator to mess with.

BOLDUAN: What are your options? What do you want? What are you going to do?

BRANTZ: Well, I'm quickly acting with a friend of mine, Julian Nu (ph), to create legislation, to create a bill called the Human Creativity Protection Act, aka Cuppy's Law, to grandfather this in and help stop it from happening to other artists. And I'm talking to lawyers. I might have some options. But, you know, Cuppy, she would go down with the ship. She's nuts. She would -- this is a fight she believes in.

BOLDUAN: Let me -- let me read for everyone -- you talked about the president of Buzzfeed. Buzzfeed gave us a statement, and I'll read in part from the president of BuzzFeed A.I.

[09:55:02]

"We would have loved for Loryn to be involved as one of the people who worked to bring Cuppy to life while employed full time at Buzzfeed. We shared with her that human creativity would remain at the core of this project, with writing, storytelling and animation being developed by humans and A.I. being used as a creation tool to help facilitate that. However, she made it clear that she was categorically opposed to the use of A.I. in all of its forms, and we respected that she did not want to be involved as a result. That's absolutely her right. But her personal opposition to A.I. cannot determine how Buzzfeed develops I.P. that it owns, or deny the many other talented creators involved" in "this project" an opportunity "to do their work." Respond to that.

BRANTZ: It is difficult to respond to such a patronizing statement that's completely full of lies. I mean, lie number one, they didn't ask me to participate. Obviously, I wouldn't have. But that didn't happen. They haven't told anyone what they're doing with the A.I. and art. So, nobody really knows how they're centering humans and artists. I'm having trouble seeing how that's possible. It's just -- they're not artists. And if they want so badly to be artists, they should go to art class.

BOLDUAN: Loryn, it's very nice to have you. This is also -- it's really an example of a bigger conversation, a bigger debate, a bigger problem that artists across many industries face.

BRANTZ: Yes.

BOLDUAN: And how to work with or work against A.I., it's all part of this very big thing we're all finding ourselves in the middle of.

Thank you very much.

BRANTZ: Thans for having me.

BOLDUAN: We'll continue to follow what happens. Really appreciate it.

BRANTZ: Thank you.

SIDNER: Thank you.

BERMAN: They picked the wrong cupcake.

SIDNER: Yes, they did.

BOLDUAN: They picked the wrong cupcake.

SIDNER: They pissed off Cuppy. Damn.

All right, we're not mad just yet. Maybe we will.

BOLDUAN: But we wake up that way.

SIDNER: That's true, we wake up angry.

BOLDUAN: Yes, we do (ph).

SIDNER: That -- that's true, we wake up angry. "THE SITUATION ROOM," up next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)