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Iran Denies Deadly Kuwait Airport Strike, Blames U.S. Missile; Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX) On House Passage Of War Powers Resolution In Rare Rebuke To Trump; Official: People Entering Sewers Could Be Scavengers, Thrill Seekers. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired June 04, 2026 - 07:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:31:30]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Breaking overnight we have new video of the strike on the Kuwait International Airport that authorities say killed one person and injured 63 others. Now Iran claims it was not them. The Revolutionary Guard says it was caused by a malfunctioning U.S. Patriot missile. CENTCOM says that claim is false.

President Trump has suggested the ceasefire remains in place and says talks have gone very well. But according to Iran's' foreign minister there has been no significant progress. So what is going on?

Let's get to CNN's Paula Hancocks live in Abu Dhabi this morning. Paula, what are you hearing?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well John, starting off with that video. This was released by the Kuwait Aviation Authority. They wanted to show just how dramatic this moment was. When you see the impact both outside and inside the airport you can only imagine how terrifying that would have been for passengers inside this international airport.

It's a terminal that was only opened on Monday of this week. It had been under refurbishment because it was damaged in the previous attack by Iran back in February. So just a reminder that things are still continuing here in the Gulf.

There was widespread condemnation about this attack. We heard from Kuwait. They had some 13 missiles, 17 drones that they had to deal with, they say, from Iran.

So, of course, the obvious question is, and it was put to the U.S. president, is this still a ceasefire?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Some people would say they were slightly provoked because we took a strong action for different reasons. So they were reciprocating. REPORTER: How do you define ceasefire?

TRUMP: Uh, pretty much the way it is. It's a different part of the world, you know. I'd tell you in that part of the world, a ceasefire is when you're shooting in a more moderate manner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: Now interestingly, the U.S. president there saying Iran provoked. But we certainly did hear condemnation from the Gulf Nations here about the attack -- not just on Kuwait but also on Bahrain.

Now when it comes to the actual talks themselves, we're still hearing positive words from the U.S. president saying that they're going very well. We are not hearing that from Tehran at this point. Now, of course, both sides are going to be playing to their domestic audience as well.

But we heard from the foreign minister of Iran, Abbas Araghchi, and he has said there are no formal negotiations at this point but there are still messages being passed back and forth -- John.

BERMAN: Status quo.

Paula Hancocks, thanks so much for that report -- Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: So on Iran, President Trump is facing growing resistance on Capitol Hill over the conflict. Overnight, the House passed a measure to rein in President Trump's war powers authority as the war stretches past three months -- a measure that directs President Trump to withdraw U.S. forces or come to Congress to win approval.

How'd that happen in a GOP-controlled House? Well, four Republicans joined Democrats in what is a clear sign of the growing opposition, or at least unease with how this war is going.

Joining us right now is Republican Congressman Pete Sessions of Texas.

You were not among the four who joined with Democrats to vote for this war powers resolution, just for clarity for everyone at home. But Congressman, more Republicans breaking from the president here wanting to put -- wanting to put more constraints on his war authority.

[07:35:00]

What do you think this means?

REP. PETE SESSIONS (R-TX): Well Kate, first of all, those four I think were opposed from the very beginning. So I don't know that it's growing or not, but I will assure you that your words still have some symbolism and that is that there is increased attention to this matter.

And the timing that we have attempted to pay attention to -- not just Republican leadership but Republicans -- is in a ceasefire circumstance where we felt like -- I, as a member of Congress, and I think my colleagues saw that there had been a lessening of not just the "war activities" but the activities across the Gulf. And so I think that the president was using a lot of limited action, only defensive.

I think the timing of this literally at this time is difficult, but the administration has no choice but to come and sell what we're doing, where things are. And it will require a series of very direct conversation not just with the Secretary of State, Secretary of War. It will need to take place, and I think that the president can offer that feedback for the American people to give them a little bit more structure.

So are we going to follow the law -- we need to follow the law.

BOLDUAN: Do you think the president, and the White House and the administration does need to do more? They do need to do more. They cannot --

SESSIONS: Well --

BOLDUAN: -- continue the -- in -- with the status quo.

SESSIONS: Well, let's put it this way. I think that the spirit -- since there was a vote they need to come and be more proactive. I know the Secretary of State has been in the United States Senate. I think he's going to have to come to the House.

But this is not a growing number of people who would vote this way. It's a growing number of people who want to make sure that we have a complete and better understanding about what is happening.

We've not heard from the Pakistanis in a while. There are intermediaries in this. It is not just the United States. And so I think the story could be told that we're on a pathway to peace.

To think that --

BOLDUAN: So --

SESSIONS: -- America is not responding back in a way that would be expected -- that's not war. That is simply conflict.

BOLDUAN: Let me ask -- as we speak -- as we were on -- as we were coming on, I'm just shown that the president took to social media to talk about the vote yesterday in the House.

Here is the quote. "Yesterday, in a meaningless vote, the House voted. Four bad Republicans and all of the Democrats..." -- the way he wants to write it -- "...to limit my war powers right in the middle of my final negotiations to end the war with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Who would do such an unpatriotic thing? They know where the negotiations stand."

Um, do you think it is unpatriotic that these Republicans voted the way they did? SESSIONS: I think it's -- if you could have put in -- Kate, I'll be quite blunt. This is an issue that the president obviously has strong feelings about.

But I think that conversation needs to take place on Capitol Hill in the House where we do hear from people who give us more of an update. Who give us these things. Timing -- I agree with the president. It's unfortunate.

Why would we want to limit us going into a negotiation? That would never be good. That wouldn't be good if it were two companies negotiating. It's not good between two countries.

To assume that the Iranians would be given a free hand to take advantage of this is something that the president's speaking of, and I think that could be something the Iranians use to lengthen the negotiation and the effect of this.

So, of course, I disagree. I support the viewpoint that the president holds. The timing was wrong. But I will also tell you I'm not sure it was a meaningless vote. I think it was a vote that the administration and the American people do want to hear more. I think they will be supportive of the president's position, and we need to hear from intermediaries also. And then that discussion becomes more pertinent.

BOLDUAN: Um-hum.

On the $1.8 billion compensation fund -- to fund that the president -- the anti-weaponization fund, as the president calls it. The acting attorney general said that was not happening, period. They were not going to move ahead with it, especially after all of the concern that many Republicans raised over it.

And then the president, just yesterday, basically suggested that fund might not be totally dead. He said that he loved it, and he thinks it's so important. And he said he'd have to talk to the lawyers about that.

[07:40:00]

Um, now you have Republicans like John Cornyn, of your state, echoing op-eds and writing this. "The way to ensure the Trump retribution fund is more than mostly dead would be for Congress to put a stake through it and pass legislation to kill it."

Would you support legislation to kill that fund?

SESSIONS: Kate, thank you.

I was a part of the lawfare by the Department of Justice. I was a person that was, so to speak, out several hundred thousand dollars and was taken advantage of. I think that it -- we should not be doing this. Perhaps I would want to be reimbursed a couple hundred thousand dollars.

I think the real question is do we know enough about it and its lawfare at its very worst elements? And I think as John Cornyn said, it --

BOLDUAN: I'm confused. You don't -- you don't --

SESSIONS; -- should not --

BOLDUAN: You don't think we should do this. What do you mean, we don't think you should do the fund?

SESSIONS: I -- I don't -- do not think we should do the fund. I think that the activity that happened is very aware to the American people, and that is the Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, did things including federal judges who were involved. If we want to go and move that further through testimony, we ought to do that. But I am not for the weaponization or the fund of the $1.8 billion.

BOLDUAN: Are you for legislation that would make sure there is no weaponization fund -- anti-weaponization fund?

SESSIONS: Well, I think it's only fair and I think it would be smart. It's smart for both sides. It's hard for me to know if that would be then considered bipartisan or not. But the $1.8 billion obviously to me is something that we cannot sustain to the American people nor to our self.

BOLDUAN: Hmm.

Congressman Pete Sessions, thanks for your time today -- John.

BERMAN: That's interesting.

BOLDUAN: Um-hum.

BERMAN: All right. Still new twists this morning in the drama inside "60 MINUTES," the most venerated news show in television history. The three remaining correspondents, Bill Whitaker, Lesley Stahl, Jon Wertheim, reportedly met to discuss their futures. Their colleague, Scott Pelley, was fired after he accused CBS leadership of "murdering" the program during a heated staff meeting. Now of note, the "CBS EVENING NEWS" aired a glowing tribute to Pelley last night.

I want to get right to CNN's chief media analyst Brian Stelter. Brian, as for the CBS correspondents, then there were three. Are there still three?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Right. There were seven on the program last season and now there's only three left. And my sources say that long meeting did happen yesterday without a resolution, but it does seem those three correspondents are likely to stay. They're inclined to stay. They want to keep the show going and they want to get it back on the air this September, and that's going to be no small task.

CBS News management is working hard -- working overtime trying to convince them that they will still have editorial independence and they will still have the production resources they need to put on the show.

You know, normally, "60 MINUTES" is in a quiet time of year. This is their summer break. But the show has been blown up by these management changes, and it has shaken the program to its core.

And it's not just about "60 MINUTES" here. We're talking about an American institution coming under pressure in the Trump era, and that's a story we've been telling here on CNN ever since Trump came back to office.

Now, CBS once again denied yesterday any political interference. They put out a news statement saying that has not happened at all, but Scott Pelley and others have charged that it has. So ultimately, viewers are going to be the judges about how this program moves forward.

And, of course, this is all happening as Paramount tries to buy CNN and the rest of Warner Bros. Discovery. So the stakes are very high.

But my sources inside CBS say that some of the "60 MINUTES" staffers have been having one-on-one meetings with the new producer, Nick Bilton, pitching story ideas for the upcoming season. And that Bilton has welcomed story ideas about the Trump administration. He thinks this whole idea that there's political bias and that there's a political cloud hanging over "60 MINUTES" -- he thinks that's nonsense and he wants the staff to get to work.

I've had sources at CBS say to me it's full steam ahead trying to get this program back up and running, but they're going to need more correspondents and most importantly, they're going to need the trust of the audience. That's what all of this is about and what's happened at CBS this week is a break in that trust with the audience. It's going to be hard for them to repair that, but industry analysts and insiders say they can do that through the reporting. Ultimately, it's all about what airs and what's published by CBS, John.

BERMAN: And there was something of a tribute to Pelley on the evening news last night. What happened there?

STELTER: Yeah, and I think that was an attempt to show the CBS audience that there's a lot of respect for Pelley even though this breakup was so ugly, even though the bosses think he was being sanctimonious and being stubborn. At least there is a respect for the years -- the decades of service he gave.

BERMAN: Brian Stelter, great reporting as always. Thank you very much. I am sure there will be more to come -- Kate.

[07:45:00]

BOLDUAN: A warning now about what could be a major threat to food production here in the United States. For the first time in decades, a case of a highly-destructive, flesh-eating worm known as the "New World Screwworm" has been confirmed in Texas. It feels like I just a read a Mad Lib's, but this is accurate. The worm had been declared eradicated in the United States decades ago

but recently there's been a surge in cases in South American countries sparking new concerns from farmers and health experts in the United States. An infestation of the worm could cause significant disruptions in food production and could cost the economy billions of dollars as a fear and also send already soaring beef prices even higher.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Kate, we want to give you a look at the White House this morning where you can see the giant UFC arena being built on the south lawn. You literally can't miss this. This week on "THE WHOLE STORY WITH ANDERSON COOPER," I sit down with UFC president Dana White to talk about his relationship with Donald Trump, the perception of UFC as a MAGA-aligned brand, and the unprecedented logistics and costs of staging a fight event on the south lawn.

Here's a look.

DANA WHITE, UFC PRESIDENT AND CEO: I've been dragged into this whole manosphere thing and toxic masculinity, and you name it. It's all been through my way. I'm in the fight business.

SIDNER: You mentioned the manosphere so now I'm going there. Yeah, you brought it up.

WHITE: I walked into this one.

SIDNER: You walked right into it. For those who may not be familiar, sort of a conglomerate of different dudes that are online that a lot of people saw -- Joe Rogan, for example, who I know you know well -- saw as, you know, promoting Donald Trump and helped him win the presidency.

Is that how you saw it? Did you introduce him to sort of this manopshere that -- sort of to go on podcasts as opposed to, you know, doing your typical interviews?

WHITE: Yeah. Well, I felt like that if the president stayed on Fox he wasn't going to win. And, you know, every other network out there was saying horrible things about him. So what I do know is he can sit on a three-hour podcast and be relatable to a lot of people.

SIDNER: We talk about everything from the confluence of politics and sport to the fighters themselves who are going to be there on the south lawn. A new episode of "THE WHOLE STORY WITH ANDERSON COOPER: UFC AT THE WHITE HOUSE" premieres this Sunday, June 7 at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: And there is a lot to see there.

All right, new reporting on the mystery of the manholes. Why groups have been spotted on video descending below the New York City streets. And a crash leads to a child being thrown from a vehicle right onto

the hood -- oh my goodness -- of a police car. An update on the condition of that child.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:52:08]

BERMAN: This morning officials in New York City are investigating multiple sightings of people caught on video climbing into sewers in the middle of the night, lifting up manhole covers and just going underground. At least three separate instances of groups doing this and then going into the tunnels and exiting hours later.

CNN's Mark Morales has been looking into this. I asked you if you've gone underground yourself. Not yet. I know you're willing to. But what are you learning?

MARK MORALES, CNN REPORTER: Well, the prevailing theory right now is that these are these scavenger hunter types, thrill seekers. Believe it or not, there's actually a precedent for this. They've seen this in the city before of people that actually like to go underground and look around.

The important thing to note here is nothing was damaged. There was no issues. There's not threats to public safety. The NYPD's ESU team, which is basically the really elite unit -- like, basically their SWAT team -- and members of the Department of Environmental Protection went into those exact places and looked around. They checked everything. Nothing was tinkered with, nothing was taken, nothing was damaged. They retraced their steps. It looks like they just went down there and took a look for a few hours and then left, which is even stranger.

So now we're left with what happens now, right? We don't know who these folks are so now the work is to identify who they are and where they're going. There are -- there are a little bit of clues here. There is the car that they took off. There's some eyewitnesses. There's surveillance camera. And although that's not quite enough, building them together will help build you the profile as to who they are.

If you think back to Frank James, he was the shooter in the subway system a few years back. They identified him by actually using surveillance cameras and actually retracing his steps. And they were able to find some really important clues. So you can imagine that's something that they're going to be using in this scenario.

BERMAN: Just to be clear, it's not legal, is it?

MORALES: No, no. They're looking at at least a trespassing charge.

BERMAN: All right. And just general weirdness and concern I think and to allay the fears I think of the people in New York.

Mark, thank you so much for your reporting on this.

MORALES: Sure.

BERMAN: Kate.

BOLDUAN: General weirdness. Again, welcome to CNN NEWS CENTRAL. Mark Morales for you, everybody.

Let's turn to this. Nothing short of a miracle. That is how police in Georgia are describing what happened after a boy was thrown from a pickup truck during a crash. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

Police-pickup truck crash. Boy thrown from truck.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh.

Another car slammed into the family's pickup truck. The boy crashed head first into the police officer's car. He walked away though with minor injuries, they say. Police say the crash is a very important reminder that everyone should be wearing their seat belts, especially children.

[07:55:00]

And a new study shows popular weight loss and diabetes drugs could also help lower the risk of breast cancer. A study of more than 100,000 women found that those prescribed GLP-1 medications were about 30 percent less likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer compared with women not using GLP-1s. Hopeful news perhaps but also researchers stress though that this is an observational study and does not prove that these medications prevent cancer.

CNN got an inside look at a monumental art installation that has taken over one of Paris' most iconic landmarks. Street artist JR transformer the Pont Neuf, the city's oldest bridge, into a massive inflatable cave nearly 60 feet over the Seine. It's held up by nothing but air pressure inside.

CNN's Melissa Bell spoke to the project's creative director.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Everyone who walks through here is doing it together. There's something about that.

CAMILLE PAJOT, ATELIER JR CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Yeah. Because for us, the main feature for the project is for showing the visitors. We had to inflate it, like, two weeks ago. And then for us it was really to create that expectation, and we want people to be surprised.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: So the installation was set to open tomorrow but the structure actually suffered wind damage over the weekend. Engineers are now assessing the damage before a new opening date is announced -- John.

BERMAN: Only in Paris would they appreciate the appetite for a giant, inflatable cave.

BOLDUAN: Yes.

BERMAN: New this morning, a CNN investigation into the Waymo self- driving taxis growing in use across the country. One man said they're driving like teenagers -- I don't think in a good way -- after one of them drove right into his car.

CNN's Kyung Lah has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He gonna go. He gonna go. Oh! Oh!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What the (bleep) is that Waymo doing?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, the Waymo is on the track.

KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): These are all Waymo robotaxis and you may have seen one of these videos on social media.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That definitely ran a red light. Oh my God.

LAH (voiceover): As Waymo aggressively expands to new and more complicated cities, our CNN analysis of public records, including calls for service, police reports, and city council meetings, finds hundreds of incidents where Waymos are confused in everyday moments, putting pedestrians, passengers and others on the road in potentially dangerous situations.

LAH: If you don't know what a Waymo is, this is it. There's no driver behind this wheel. It is a high-tech car equipped with cameras and sensors, and that's because Waymo is entirely self-driving.

You order a ride with your phone -- in some cities, even through the Uber or Lyft app -- and it takes you without any driver to where you need to go.

LAH (voiceover): On its website, Waymo says its robotaxis have driven more than 170 million miles through the end of last year. And it says peer review data shows that Waymos are better than humans at avoiding crashes that result in injuries.

The company shared this video with us of several close calls. Waymo showing off the ability to swerve last second and dodge people, possibly better than a human driver could.

This is all pretty new tech, learning in real time. But we found it's creating a whole new set of safety problems. The incidents are just a snapshot of the concerns because federal and state rules don't require Waymo to fully track near misses and other safety issues.

Waymo tells CNN it safely completes more than half a million rides every week. And those smooth, uneventful rides -- they don't go viral.

But here's some key themes we did see in records.

WAYMO CAR: Connected to rider support.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The car is going the wrong way. It's going on the wrong side of the road.

LAH (voiceover): Over and over again we came across reports of Waymos breaking basic traffic and safety laws, like in this video from Austin, Texas where a Waymo appeared to cross double yellow lines and drove on the wrong side of the road --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, (bleep). The Waymo is on the track. What an idiot. Here comes a train.

LAH (voiceover): -- or even going completely off the road.

This is in Phoenix. The Waymo drove onto the light rail tracks with a passenger still inside. Light rail workers responded and the passenger got out OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, get out! Get out! Get out!

LAH: There's any number of reasons for what might be happening in moments like this when Waymos appear stuck. The company says when their cars face an uncertain situation they'll pick the safest option, including coming to a stop.

Now another possible explanation. Waymo says that at any point in time they have 70 remote human assistance operators working. Half of them are based in the Philippines and Waymo doesn't require that they have a U.S. driver's license. When a Waymo faces an ambiguous situation, it may send a request to those operators who can give it a suggested maneuver, but the car can still decide to accept or reject the advice.

LAH (voiceover): Another problem we kept seeing, how Waymos respond to ambulances, police cars, and fire trucks, failing to stop or even blocking the route entirely. First responders are even having to move the Waymos themselves during an emergency.