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Trump Speaks After Calling Off Iran Strikes; Interview with Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA): Trump Suggests Iran Deal Could be Signed This Weekend; Trump Nominates U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton as Permanent National Intel Director; World's Biggest-Ever Soccer Tournament Begins. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired June 11, 2026 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: We have breaking news just into CNN. President Trump is speaking at an event inside the Oval Office saying, we will have a signing soon on a Memorandum of Understanding between the United States and Iran. Let's listen to the president from moments ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We just had a big day. I know you'll never be satisfied, but that's OK. That doesn't bother me at all.

We just made a great settlement of the war with Iran. And we're going to be subject to finalization of documents. We should get done over the next few days.

Probably have a signing maybe in Europe. And it's a great thing. Stock market's up a thousand points.

That means they like the deal. See, that means they like it. If the market goes down, it means they don't like the deal.

But it's been up. Oil's dropped. Oil will start coming down to, I think, even lower than it was before.

I said I was in Iowa. It was $1.85 a gallon. I don't know if I'm going to get there, but we're going to get pretty close.

It's going to come down. And when oil comes down, everything else comes down. And most importantly, we have a deal that Iran will never have a nuclear weapon, which was the whole purpose of what we had to go through to get this.

So it was a big, very big thing. But we have a signing soon, and the documents are in pretty final shape. So we'll see.

We'll see. Very good.

[15:35:00] Should be done. That should be done pretty quickly. They want it every bit as much as everybody else wants it. And I think a lot of good relationships can ensue from this.

I just spoke with the leaders of many of the countries that were mentioned in the release. I just spoke to Bibi. I spoke to the head of -- great heads of nations -- Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, and others.

And we're going to be talking to Turkey. President Erdogan is great. And it's really a wonderful thing.

With a lot of spirit. Pakistan was fantastic. The prime minister and the -- I call him the general.

He's a general. He's a great general. He's so great that they -- that he's actually a field marshal, a step above.

And they're all very happy. The whole Middle East is happy. And long beyond the Middle East.

The strait will open as soon as we have it signed. We've been taking out many ships that nobody knew. Even the fake news didn't know it.

But over the last month, we've been taking out ships -- big ships -- quietly at night. You guys didn't know that. Pretty cool, right, as a captain?

He knows about -- more about ships than I do, but it's pretty cool. They turned off the lights. We bombed their radar and everything so they couldn't see what was going on.

We took out some nights 25 ships, some nights 15. The last four or five nights, we did 25, 22, 21, 26, 18, and 14. Who else would remember those numbers?

Nobody. And -- but a lot of ships. A lot of oil is out.

That's why oil, even before this, the market couldn't understand why it was so free. There was more oil than they thought. What they're trying to -- we took them out at night.

And that would -- the strait will officially open as soon as we sign, which could be soon, very soon, maybe over the weekend, in Europe. I won't be able to be there, but J.D. will be there, Vice President, and some of the people. Steve Witkoff did a great job. Jared.

So we'll take some questions, but right now we're here to talk about fishermen and fisherwomen.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: We've been listening to President Trump inside the Oval Office, remarking about what he's describing as a great deal, a great settlement with Iran. We're going to monitor the president's remarks and get back to him when he starts taking questions from reporters during this event with fishermen and women, as he's described it.

We're joined now by Democratic Congressman Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, a member of the House Armed Services Committee. Congressman, thank you so much for being with us.

I just want to repeat some of what the president said. Effectively, he says that right now this agreement is subject to the finalization of documents that there will likely be a signing in Europe soon, maybe over the weekend, adding that he will not be there, but Vice President J.D. Vance will, adding that the whole Middle East is happy. What is your reaction to these remarks and how optimistic are you, Congressman, that this deal is actually going to be finalized, given that we've heard some of this from President Trump before?

REP. SETH MOULTON (D-MA), ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: Well, this is apparently the 37th time that he has said that Iran's at the table, they're making a deal and the war will be ended. This is the same administration that said the war was terminated way back on May 1st. It's June. It's in June, folks, you know.

This is the same president who has demanded the unconditional surrender of Iran. Unconditional surrender means no conditions. There are no documents to be signed, things to be exchanged, no transaction.

I mean, he sounds like he's making a real estate deal here, buying a casino that he can bankrupt or something, not actually doing what we need to do to get the world economy out of the strangling grip of Iran. So we just can't trust anything that he's saying.

Maybe there will be a deal. Maybe there won't. So far, 37 out of 37 times thus far, there's been no deal, even though he's promised there would be.

SANCHEZ: The president there spent a bit of time describing his communications with leaders in the region, U.S. allies that have been impacted by this war. He specifically mentioned Bahrain and Kuwait and obviously Israel as well, saying that he spoke with Benjamin Netanyahu. But a source tells CNN that this announcement caught Israel off guard.

[15:40:00]

It's certainly possible that the officials that CNN has been speaking to were not made privy to this information or were not aware of what Netanyahu knew. But I do wonder that as Trump says Israel approved this agreement, do you think Netanyahu needs to be looped in on these negotiations before the president posts something like this?

MOULTON: Well, if you remember when the initial ceasefire, as they've called it -- although it's a farce of a ceasefire -- but when the initial ceasefire was put into place, it was very clear from Pakistan and Iran's perspective that that meant Israel was to cease operations in Lebanon. But apparently Netanyahu didn't get that memo because they continued operations in Lebanon. And that's the excuse that Iran has often used for continuing the war. So the reality is that he does need to get everybody on the same page here because it's not just the United States acting unilaterally. And he doesn't seem to be able to do that.

SANCHEZ: Taking the president at his word that there will be a signing, perhaps even this weekend in Europe, what questions do you have about the Memorandum of Understanding and what concerns do you have potentially about what's in it?

MOULTON: Well, fundamentally, what are we giving the Iranians in this deal? What is this so-called transaction that he's talking about? It doesn't sound like unconditional surrender to me, it's far from it.

What are we giving to them? How many billions of dollars in blood money are we essentially paying the Iranians to reopen the strait? What are the conditions under which their nuclear program will be dismantled?

You know, one of the reasons it took the Obama team so many months, two years about to negotiate the Iran nuclear deal under President Obama is because we had very intrusive inspections. So Iran could not get away with breaking the deal. We were in their nuclear facilities.

We had constant electronic monitoring. We had international observers. That's why it was effective.

That's why even the first Trump administration certified that Iran was following that deal. Well, if those things don't exist under this new plan, then Trump can have a formal signing ceremony, you know, and get all the pomp and circumstance and boost the stock market for a few days. But we are not going to be able to have confidence that Iran won't still build a nuclear weapon.

SANCHEZ: Is your view, Congressman, that the U.S. at this point should have perhaps been more aggressive in trying to get concessions through military force? Because it was only a few hours ago that President Trump, before this was announced, was talking about potentially even taking Kharg Island, this hub for oil exports in the Persian Gulf that likely would have required not only American forces to take it in the president's words, but also likely an expanded presence to hold on to it. It's only a few miles away from Iranian territory.

MOULTON: No, absolutely not. I think this war is one of the dumbest in history because it's actually empowered Iran. I mean, the whole point of this war was to prevent them to stop their nuclear program.

Well, that has not been achieved yet. In fact, we were in a much better place than stopping their nuclear program under President Obama before Trump tore up that nuclear deal. Then he talked about stopping Iran's power projection.

Well, Iran's never projected more power in history. I mean, they literally strangled the world economy by closing the Strait of Hormuz. So this war has backfired from day one.

And my big concern that I've said for a couple of months now is that if Trump tries to escalate militarily, he'll only make things worse. One of the ways that he could make things worse is if he does an operation that entails a lot of U.S. casualties. And I'll tell you what, a great way to ensure U.S. casualties is to tell your enemy what you're about to do, which is exactly what Trump did a couple days ago when he said he wants to have an operation on Kharg Island. I mean, I can't imagine as a Marine veteran myself being a Marine off the coast, potentially with plans in hand to go into Kharg Island and have the commander in chief tell your enemy that that's what you're going to do. It's unbelievably irresponsible. And it's clear that Trump cares a lot more about the stock market than about our troops.

SANCHEZ: Congressman, before we go, there was another big breaking news story this afternoon, and that is that President Trump has nominated Jay Clayton, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, to permanently replace Tulsi Gabbard as the director of national intelligence. This, of course, comes after there was a revulsion on Capitol Hill to his naming of Bill Pulte as the acting DNI, someone who had no real national security experience. And that led to bipartisan negotiations over FISA Section 702, this important law that allows for the surveillance that empowers the intelligence community.

I wonder if you think the nomination of Clayton gets negotiations back on track. FISA, of course, is set to expire tomorrow.

[15:45:00]

MOULTON: Well, it sounds like it might because I've seen bipartisan comments about Jay Clark Clayton having bipartisan respect, but that was a few years ago. And most recently, he has spread this propaganda from MAGA Republicans, that the California elections are rigged, as the President has said, with absolutely zero evidence.

He's even defended Trump's anti-weaponization slush fund by trying to say that, you know, it was it was shameful that the government released Trump's tax returns. Well, first of all, it wasn't the government, it was a contractor. And it embarrassed the President, because the President is trying to hide tax fraud for the American people.

I mean, it wouldn't be embarrassing to release his tax returns if they were legal. So the fact that that Jay Clayton is now just defending these, these bogus claims, it calls into question whether he can be trusted to tell us the truth about intelligence. And so the fundamental question I have -- it's not that radical -- it's just what are your qualifications, Mr. Clayton, to actually understand intelligence? What are your qualifications to understand the national security implications of this job? What is your history, working in national security, that's actually a statutory requirement of the Director of National Intelligence.

This is a job that was established to prevent another 911, because the intelligence agencies didn't coordinate. It was not a position established to do the President's bidding, or to pursue farcical claims of election fraud, because that's what Trump wants to believe when he loses elections. We had a lot of questions for Jay Clayton. And I think that I certainly am not going to just approve his nomination here to go forward, whether that's in the House, by just rubber stamping the FISA legislation. And I certainly hope that in the Senate, they don't just let this sail through.

SANCHEZ: Congressman Seth Moulton, we have to leave the conversation there. Thank you so much for your time.

MOULTON: Good to see you.

SANCHEZ: Of course. So the wait is over. The World Cup officially underway in North America. The latest next.

[15:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: The biggest soccer tournament in the world is now underway. Just moments ago, Mexico and South Africa officially kicked off the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. And for the very first time, 48 teams are competing for the coveted solid gold trophy. And of course, bragging rights for the next four years.

We're joined now by -- we're joined now from L.A. with Jeff Rueter, who is a soccer correspondent for The Guardian. Jeff, I mean, I can't believe you're not glued to your TV.

This is so exciting. And I thank you for being with us here. Let's talk a little bit, of course, about the U.S. men's national team, because they're looking to make a statement this World Cup.

How long do you think they can last in this tournament?

JEFF RUETER, SOCCER CORRESPONDENT, THE GUARDIAN: The big question will be whether or not they can exceed what they did in 2022 in Qatar, where they finished in the round of 16. Now the tournament field has expanded. There are 48 teams, which means an additional round to get through.

But there really is the potential in this group if the bracket falls the correct way, as any March Madness enthusiast knows, for them to make it to the quarterfinal. Realistically, I think matching their 2022 results to the round of 16 is a realistic expectation for a program that is really aspiring to be one of the dominant powers in the sport.

KEILAR: And so I also think we're watching this because it's likely going to be the last World Cup for a few of soccer's superstars, right? What do you think we're going to see from Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Neymar Jr.?

RUETER: All three of them are arriving at this tournament in very different states. Lionel Messi has been in America actually for a few years playing for an MLS club based in Miami, and he is arriving in pretty good fitness and definitely in great form. Argentina is still very reliant on him, and I would expect him to start. Neymar Jr. was a surprise pick for Brazil. He has not been playing regularly over the last couple of years, but he is a very crucial emotional figure for the locker room. And so even if he doesn't play many minutes, I would imagine that he will be crucial to Brazil's success.

Cristiano Ronaldo is arguably the most contentious of the trio because Portugal has actually tended to play better when Ronaldo is not on the field or certainly when he is not going for 90 minutes. But of course, he is one of the biggest names in all of sport, and so there is some pressure for Portugal to get him on the field. And we'll see how that complicates what could otherwise be a team with aspirations to win this tournament.

KEILAR: This is just so huge, and FIFA's billed it as being as big as 104 Super Bowls, and kind of with that we're seeing these Super Bowl- like prices, right? They are just skyrocketing. As we're looking at these live pictures in Mexico City, you can see how excited fans are there.

But what we're hearing is, you know, people who are managing to go to these games, they're paying so much money to go. How is that kind of affecting the spirit of going in person to these matches, and do you think we're going to see 104 sold-out stadiums?

RUETER: I think that 104 was already a pretty ludicrous sort of expectation, just given the nature of these World Cups. There are inevitably games that are going to be of a lesser billing than you will see when you get to the semi-final and further. This is the first World Cup to utilize dynamic pricing, which of course a lot of people in the United States will be very accustomed to from concerts, for example, where the demand escalates the price.

And the reality will also mean that on the day of games, prices are very likely to dip. You will be able to see more affordable tickets pop up. Inventory from resellers has not moved.

The other thing to keep in mind here is that this is a tournament unlike any other. We have never seen a 48-team World Cup.

[15:55:00]

We've never seen three different countries host this tournament before in tandem. And so there are a lot of different logistical concerns that come with that. And I think that you couple that with issues with tourist visas currently to get into the United States, not just for fans but also for participants, whether they're officials or players. It has made it a very prohibitive sort of tourist destination tournament in a way that we are not used to seeing and certainly unlike what we saw in 1994 when the World Cup last came to the United States.

KEILAR: So Jeff, who should we be watching? I mean, tell us about maybe someone that we are not -- some team that we're not particularly geared in on. Any surprises we might be looking around the corner for? RUETER: Yes, I think that popular picks are the teams that have won it before. People will talk about Spain, France, England as three of the true prominent powers. And of course, Argentina is the defending champion. And as long as Lionel Messi is playing, they will have a chance in games like these.

One nation I would urge people to consider is actually Ecuador, who has not historically had a lot of success in this tournament, but arrived as the second ranked team from South America, actually faring very well over Brazil, which is another past champion. Ecuador arguably has the best defense in this tournament in a very good midfield, which will be crucial for a tournament that is played in the sweltering summer heat of North America.

So I think a team that is actually very used to and comfortable with defending and retaining the ball will fare very well in this tournament. I think they could make a run to the semifinal.

KEILAR: All right. Keeping our eye on Ecuador. Jeff Rueter, thank you so much.

As we look at live pictures here out of Mexico City and we head to "THE ARENA" with Kasie Hunt, which starts after a quick break.

SANCHEZ: USA.

END