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Numbers on Trump's Renovations in D.C.; Rep. Seth Moulton (D- MA) is Interviewed about Trump's Iran Threat; Maryland's Haitian Community Paralyzed Over Ruling; Flock Cameras Trigger Protests; CNN's "Coming Up" Series Speaks with Jessica Williams. Aired 8:30-9a ET
Aired August 21, 2026 - 08:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:31:29]
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, two big things happened this week pretty much at the same time. The national debt crossed $40 trillion. And then while that happened, President Trump was giving a tour of the White House grounds. Some of the home improvements being done there. And it does beg the question, how do Americans feel about all these building projects that the president talks about a lot?
With us now, chief data analyst Harry Enten.
It turns out there are some numbers on this.
HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: It turns out there's some numbers on this. Look, we got wannabe I.M. Pei over here trying to build up all of this stuff going on here. And the federal debt, adios, amigos, goodbye, see you later, north of $40 trillion. And Americans are pissed off. They're pissed off. And it's pretty clear here.
Net satisfaction of Trump's D.C. building projects. Look at this. Thirty-three points underwater. You can't really get worse than that. That is the dissatisfaction is 33 points higher than the satisfaction rating there. How about among independents. You think that 33 points is low. How about this, into the Potomac River we go, minus 52 points with independents. Americans want no part of these D.C. renovation building projects that Trump seems to be absolutely in adoration of. He seems to be perhaps the only one.
BERMAN: In this group, independents, do you think they'll be pretty important in the midterm election?
ENTEN: Yes, you know what, it turns out, we've spoken about this, Johnny B., independents seem to be pretty gosh darn important because they're in the center of the electorate. You win independents, you win elections. You're 52 points underwater with independents. You think those congressional Republicans like Trump talking about these D.C. building projects? Absolutely not, because these are the types of numbers that make election nights go very, very wrong.
BERMAN: So, if you ask people where they want the focus, what do they say?
ENTEN: Yes, OK. So, why don't we just ask them, right? It's one thing not to like something, but it's another thing to say, you know what want to be I.M. Pei or Frank Gehry, you're focusing too much on it.
All right, Trump administration is focusing too much on the D.C. building changes, 64 percent, nearly two in three say that the Trump administration is, simply put, focusing too much on these reconstruction projects. You know where they want the focus to be? They want it to actually be on the reasons that Donald Trump got re- elected to a second term that is lowering prices. But guess what they say? They say the Trump administration is focusing too little on lowering prices, 78 percent. We're talking four in five. About four in five Americans say that the Trump administration is focusing too little on the reason that Donald Trump got re-elected to a second term. No wonder that Donald Trump has historically high disapproval ratings on inflation, historically low approval ratings on inflation, and the only one ever to cross the minus 50 point net approval rating barrier on inflation, Donald John Trump, because they think he's not even focusing on the reason why he got re-elected.
BERMAN: What do they think about where the money is being spent?
ENTEN: Yes, I think this gets exactly it, Johnny B. You know what, I don't feel like we spoke about this enough yesterday, say most government spending is wasteful and inefficient. You know what, that number is always high, but now it's way, way high. Historically high. Look at this, 75 percent earlier this year compared to just 57 percent a little bit over a year ago. That number is going higher. And no wonder it is when they feel like the Trump administration and Donald Trump in particular is focusing on the wrong things and spending money that, simply put, is making the debt grow ever higher.
BERMAN: And it's Donald Trump, the president of the United States, who's the one out showing reporters the drive. And Democrats may very well be saying, keep showing us the grand (ph) driveway.
ENTEN: Democrats saying, thank you, thank you, thank you for this beautiful gift you've given us.
BERMAN: Harry Enten, thank you very much.
ENTEN: Thank you.
BERMAN: Kate.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: President Trump also is threatening an economic d-day against Iran now and also threatening any country doing business with Iran.
[08:35:02]
What that means outside of social media is that the president's vowing to impose what he is now calling "the most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country." And Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is teasing to a Monday press conference when he says he's going to lay out in much further detail what that's going to look like and mean.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCOTT BESSENT, TREASURY SECRETARY: The economic pressure means that we are going to all of our allies, and this is going to be the greatest coordinated economic isolation in the history of the world, and we are going to them and saying, you are either with us or against us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOLDUAN: One country that would likely be a target is now responding today, China, saying that Trump's threatened sanctions do not, quote, "fit the interest of any party."
Joining me right now is Democratic Congressman Seth Moulton. He serves on House Armed Services.
Thanks for coming in.
What do you think of this move as a -- it's a shift here in focus and strategy and trying now to force Iran to the table by choking them off economically, as we are now learning what they're planning to -- how they're planning to go about it.
REP. SETH MOULTON (D-MA): I mean, first of all, the president ought to wake up and realize that the people getting choked economically are the American people, because gas prices have skyrocketed, fertilizer prices are way up. So, food is too expensive now. People can't afford just basic groceries at the grocery store thanks to Trump's boneheaded war.
So, this is an utter disaster. It's yet another -- throwing darts at the wall to try to get something to stick to end this war because this administration had no clue what they were doing when they started this war, and they're utterly clueless about now how to get out of it.
BOLDUAN: It sounds something -- look, we have to see the details, but it sounds something akin to kind of like the Russia sanctions package that had bipartisan support, where you would sanction secondary -- it would be secondary sanctions against countries who do business with Russia and try to choke off Russia in that way. Lindsey Graham, Dick Blumenthal, they loved this. They pushed it. The Senate moved on it. Why do you think -- do you think this could work in the case of Iran, though?
MOULTON: Because this is -- this is the same old tired sequence where Trump ups the threats on Iran, oil prices go up, and then he caves in. And how many times has this happened? I mean, he's said like over 40 times now that Iran is begging to come to the negotiating table. And clearly they're not. It's Trump who's begging to come to the negotiating table.
So, I think a more apt analogy would be his failed tariff policy, where he goes around threatening all these tariffs all around the globe, suddenly wakes up and realizes that it's American consumers who are going to be paying the price, and backs off. That's exactly what I expect to happen here.
BOLDUAN: Let me ask you also -- something else the Treasury secretary said in this interview. He was asked about the recent jobs report, the July jobs report, where the economy shed 23,000 jobs. Some see as a worrying sign that the jobs market may be weakening. But I want to play for you Bessent's take on this yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCOTT BESSENT, TREASURY SECRETARY: I think the jobs numbers are quite noisy. And, you know, again, Sara, the other thing that's important too is, like, the jobs that we're seeing are going to Americans after the deportations that we've seen during President Trump's administration and the closing of the border, that like this unfettered migration, we don't need to produce as many jobs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOLDUAN: We don't need to produce as many jobs. What he's getting at, it seems, is what economists call a break even point, and his -- but his suggestion that this is not a bad thing, are you open to that?
MOULTON: No. I mean, this administration is killing jobs. They're killing consumers. I mean, prices are so high. I mean, I hear this all across Massachusetts as I'm running for Senate. And it's all because of a war of choice that didn't need to happen. And the reality is, Kate, there are just too many people in Washington, starting with this administration, but a lot of other people in Washington who just mindlessly support these wars of choice, get us into trouble. It kills American service members, kills innocent civilians overseas, and crushes the American consumer. I mean, this is reminiscent of when George W. Bush said, oh, don't worry about the war, just go shopping, you know. I mean, look, I'm running against an 80 year old senator who voted for the Iraq War, who voted to send me and thousands of others to fight in a war of choice in the Middle East. And look at how that ended. I mean, we'll be lucky if Iran doesn't get that bad.
BOLDUAN: Last night -- to your point, last night you had your final debate for this primary -- before this primary election and your challenge against Democratic Senator Ed Markey. Early voting actually starts this weekend. Leading up to this, two statewide polls showed Markey up by double digits still. If the polls hold, in a year of a lot of anti-incumbent energy, out with the old, in with the new energy, it would mean that voters are not buying your generational change argument. Why?
[08:40:01]
MOULTON: I don't think there's a single poll that has held. I mean, in my first race against a longtime incumbent, I was down 53 points and won by 11. So, this is a very close race. And on the debate stage last night, Senator Markey explained to Massachusetts that he can't tell the difference between Claude and Siri. I mean, Americans are genuinely concerned about A.I., and they should be really concerned that the 80 year olds in the United States Senate don't even know what it is. Then he tried to explain and justify his comments by saying that A.I. is like an automobile, and we just need to regulate it the way we regulate seatbelts. I mean, this is just the reality.
You know, Senator Markey and I agree on a lot of policies. I respect his 50 years of service in the United States Congress. But it's a new world, Kate, and we've got new challenges, new opportunities as well. And it requires a new generation of leadership who understands these things and is going to have to live for decades with A.I. and these other technologies. It's required of us to take responsibility for managing them, for keeping them safe, protecting Americans, protecting jobs, and winning in this new world.
BOLDUAN: Well, a primary coming up September 1st. Early voting beginning this weekend. A very busy time. Clearly only getting busier right now for you.
Congressman, thank you for your time.
Sara.
SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, thank you, Kate.
This morning, many Haitian communities in the United States are frozen in fear. A recent Supreme Court ruling cleared the way for the Trump administration to end deportation protections for 350,000 Haitians living and working here under temporary protected status, or TPS as it's known.
CNN correspondent Priscilla Alvarez traveled to Maryland, where the immigration crackdown has paralyzed a once very busy community.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHELLE CHARLES, OWNER, GLORY CARIBBEAN EXPRESS: Nothing. Nobody come over. Nobody buys anything.
PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Business for Michelle, a U.S. citizen who emigrated from Haiti, has plummeted. Her customers, primarily Haitians, have gone into hiding over fear of ICE, leaving her store, which was bustling only a few weeks ago, largely dormant.
CHARLES: My freezer are empty right now. I try to cut down. I shut two freezers down because --
ALVAREZ: When did you make this decision?
CHARLES: Last week.
ALVAREZ: Freezers for right now.
CHARLES: You just have to do what you have to do.
ALVAREZ (voice over): In Salisbury, Maryland, around 10 percent of the population is Haitian. Now they're the target of ICE operations.
CHARLES: We used to be, you know, together everywhere. Now, like, they took my brother. You can't be like in a group, three, four people. You feel like you're going to get arrested.
ALVAREZ (voice over): The tipping point happened in late July when the Supreme Court effectively allowed the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status for Haitians. A day later, Michelle's brother, who previously had TPS, was detained by ICE.
CHARLES: Well, he's my brother.
ALVAREZ: Oh.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bowie Sanaa (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is calling you from --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Winn Correctional Center.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello.
CHARLES: Hey, Mr. Mo (ph).
ALVAREZ: Has anybody spoken with you in the facility --
ALVAREZ (voice over): Maurice (ph) told us that he was asked to sign papers with the promise of money if he were to leave the U.S. Maurice, who had previously applied for a green card, was arrested by ICE at this garage where he worked, about five minutes down the road from Michelle's store.
CHARLES: That's basically where they took him.
ALVAREZ: What was that moment like for you getting that phone call?
CHARLES: Devastating, because he's been here for more than 20 years. And then something happened like that. And he hasn't prepared for it. It's happening suddenly. Everything changed.
ALVAREZ (voice over): The economy here depends in large part on Haitians. They work at the nearby poultry plants, among other industries.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I like the goat (ph) meat.
ALVAREZ: Oh, really?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
ALVAREZ: All right, I'm going to give it a shot.
ALVAREZ (voice over): Restaurants, once frequented by Haitians, are examples of a community paralyzed.
ALVAREZ: So, how have you experienced that switch just turning off?
DR. MARIE D. BERNARDETTE FOUCHE, FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SAFE HARBOR CIRCLES: I cannot find words. It's like a nightmare. I have two men, actually, who reach out asking me if I would be willing to sign the standby guardianship for their kids.
ALVAREZ: Have you gone to homes where children didn't --
FOUCHE: Yes.
ALVAREZ: Their parents didn't make it back?
FOUCHE: Yes, we had to visit them. We have to step in.
ALVAREZ: How old were they?
FOUCHE: We are talking about a four years old, dad was taken. We are talking about another girl, she just turned three, dad was taken.
NATALIE SAINT-PHARD, OUTREACH DIRECTOR, SAFE HARBOR CIRCLES: It's a ripple effect when you decimate one group or you disrupt one group. Everything that that group touches also gets affected.
[08:45:06]
ALVAREZ (voice over): That's true for Michelle. Her business and her brother's future are now uncertain.
ALVAREZ: So, how are you thinking about tomorrow and the next day and the next day in this moment?
CHARLES: We don't know what tomorrow will be. Tomorrow we just will put the faith on God.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ALVAREZ (on camera): The Trump administration says that temporary protected status is just that, temporary. The Department of Homeland Security told CNN that Maurice had been the target of an enforcement operation after illegally entering the united states on three separate occasions. They went on to say that he does not have lawful status to stay in the country, and that, quote, "he will remain in ICE custody pending removal."
Now, DHS says that people can self-deport, but Haitians, particularly those who have been here for decades, and legally living and working in the U.S., say that they have nowhere to go back to given that their country is still grappling with unrest.
Back to you.
SIDNER: Important reporting there from our Priscilla Alvarez. Thank you.
All right, ahead, the backlash growing over those A.I.-powered cameras popping up all over the country that track license plates called Flock cameras. Major privacy concerns sparking protests, including after the stalking case that accused officers of using the technology to stalk girlfriends. Some people so angry they're taking matters into their own hands. Plus, we are sitting down with actress and comedian Jessica Williams
to chat about her Emmy nomination and what it looks like and what it's like for her to work with Harrison Ford.
That story, and more, ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:50:32]
BERMAN: This morning, the Justice Department is defending the use of A.I. powered surveillance cameras that can read license plates.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN SARCONE, FIRST ASSISTANT U.S. ATTORNEY, NORTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK: Whoever is against having those cameras, what they called, Chief, Flock cameras, think about this, of what just occurred, what we prevented, OK. If you don't have Flock cameras, how are law enforcement going to detect and see somebody walking around, possibly looking to blow up your state capitol or commit terrorist acts?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Some critics see the use of these so-called Flock cameras as an expansion of the surveillance state.
CNN's Meena Duerson has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MEENA DUERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, we're in downtown Minneapolis, where hundreds of people have come out to protest against Flock.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED) Flock cameras, bro. I hate those things.
DUERSON: They're protesting what they say is surveillance that they didn't sign up for.
One of the biggest faces of this protest calls himself NoMark. He says he's a masked vigilante who's saving the country from Flock.
Flock license plate cameras use A.I. to track vehicles. Police contract with the company using its national database to find stolen cars and missing people. But dozens of officers are now accused of misusing the data, like a cop investigators say searched for his ex 717 times.
In videos that have gotten millions of views, NoMark destroys the cameras, making him a hero to a growing following angry over surveillance.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's go. Let's go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I took down a Flock camera in honor of you. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, actually.
Look at that.
DUERSON: Oh, wow, someone got this one.
NOMARK, ANTI-FLOCK ACTIVIST: Someone beat me to it.
It seemed like, you know, every, like, week, I would see a new article about how these cameras are being misused, how they're being used to stalk people.
DUERSON: When you hear law enforcement talk about all the uses, you know, for these cameras, what's your reaction?
NOMARK: Flock cameras haven't been here forever. Crimes, they can solve crimes without them. But I think for every crime that these cameras solve, there's ten issues with them.
DUERSON: What, to you, makes these cameras different? Because there's surveillance cameras everywhere.
NOMARK: They can look up exactly where you've been. It stores your information.
Like, if they put in your license plate, they can have it. You know, this person is right here, right now.
DUERSON: Do you feel like it's too much information?
NOMARK: I think it's way too much information and I think it's way too powerful, especially, you know, you don't even need a warrant to search it. You can look up anyone, even if they're, you know, suspected of a crime or not.
DUERSON: Flock is one of a handful of companies that make ALPRs, which is an automated license plate reader. And they work by capturing when your vehicle goes past them, the license plate, but also any markings on the vehicle that are distinguishing. Flock says they have over 120,000 cameras across 49 states.
Anger against Flock has now reached a fever pitch. We found its cameras have been vandalized in more than 33 states.
Earlier this month, in Winona, Minnesota, police announced that every single Flock camera in town had been stolen.
This is one of the eight cameras that Winona police say were cut down by vandals.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED) Flock camera.
DUERSON: Did you get that? This guy just drove by and shouted, (EXPLETIVE DELETED) the flock cameras! That seems like basically the sentiment that led to these getting chopped down in the middle of the night. JEROME CHRISTENSON, WINONA CITY COUNCIL MEMBER: Yep, that's the post.
You betcha.
DUERSON: So, somebody just cut this off?
CHRISTENSON: Uh-huh. Just got up here and meeee (ph).
DUERSON (voice over): Jerome Christenson is on the city council here in Winona.
DUERSON: What do you think should happen?
CHRISTENSON: I'd put them back right where they were. I think that they provide a useful tool for our local police catching the bad guys.
DUERSON: Do you think that these are legitimate concerns that people are having?
CHRISTENSON: Of course they are. A.I. is creeping into our everyday lives. We're on the edge of the profoundly unfamiliar.
DUERSON (voice over): Nearly two weeks after the cameras were stolen, Winona police announced they would not be replaced.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, so I had prepared to talk about the horrors of Flock cameras and surveillance, et cetera. I now get to say, thank you to all of you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: While I don't like rewarding bad behavior, I'm glad to see the Flock cameras gone.
CHRISTENSON: For the moment, we're not going to rush out and buy new cameras and put them up and make a big deal out of it. Just let it settle down. It'll go away.
[08:55:00]
DUERSON: Do you think people are going to forget about this?
CHRISTENSON: Oh, yes. Yes. Yes. As soon as the football season starts, if the Vikings start winning, nobody, nobody in Winona is going to pay a whole hell of a lot of attention.
DUERSON (voice over): Last week, Flock announced changes to address criticisms, shortening the time the company stores data and adding safeguards to flag inappropriate lookups. In an interview with CNN, CEO Garrett Langley apologized to those who felt they'd been victimized by the technology.
GARRETT LANGLEY, FOUNDER AND CEO, FLOCK: I'm sorry that the system has failed you. I'm sorry that you no longer trust the police department that's job is to protect you.
PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Does Flock take accountability?
LANGLEY: I think the whole -- the whole industry does. You know, we have an obligation to make everyone feel safe.
DUERSON (voice over): But the backlash shows no sign of slowing down. Anti-Flock activists behind the page Deflock say they've tracked over 100 cities who have stopped using the cameras. Politicians on both sides of the aisle are now calling for the cameras to be regulated, or even banned.
DUERSON: Do you think that there is a movement towards this kind of vigilante justice? You think it's like a dangerous way to go?
NOMARK: I think a lot of people feel that the system is not working right now. So, people are starting to take it into their own hands.
I mean, I wish people didn't have to do that, you know? I wish the system just worked. I think it is a little dangerous. I think it's a little scary that people do this. But, I mean, I do think it's nice to see people fighting back.
Meena Duerson, CNN, Minneapolis.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SIDNER: All right, on our radar for you, breaking overnight, we're learning new details about the deadly charter plane crash in Alaska that left all eight people on board dead. The flight departed from Anchorage and went down near Cape Newenham Airport, an Air Force airstrip that provides access to a remote radar site. The plane was a Cessna, like the one that we're going to show you here. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says it chartered the flight and two of its employees were among the victims. It was foggy at the landing strip around the time of the crash, according to the National Weather Service, and visibility was poor. The cause of the crash, though, has not yet been found.
All right, a Massachusetts municipal worker rescued after falling 20 feet down a sewer well. It took rescue crews about two and a half hours to get the worker out of the hole. They were using ropes, pulleys to get him up. They said that injured worker was alert and communicating the entire time. He was pulled out to a crowd of bystanders and other first responders who were cheering.
Hey, this one is kind of wild. Something old. Something new. Something borrowed. Something stolen. A wedding crasher in Washington state tried to ruin a couple's big day. Cameras captured a Jeep taking off with Bluetooth speakers and gallons of blues -- booze from the venue, booze causing blues because it was missing, just hours ahead of their ceremony. Fortunately for the bride and groom, two of the guests happened to be law enforcement. They recognized the Jeep, tracked it down and took everything back before the bride even knew it happened. That is some good friends right there. That's some good policing.
BOLDUAN: That's good friends, good guests and, man, that's just not nice.
SIDNER: That's wrong.
BOLDUAN: Just not nice to do this kind of thing, guys.
SIDNER: And bad karma for the person that stole it.
BOLDUAN: Bad karma is right.
So, what is it like to work with Harrison Ford? CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister sitting down with Emmy nominated "Shrinking" actress Jessica Williams to find out.
Here's a preview of their conversation.
ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Jessica Williams has earned three consecutive Emmy nominations for her role on the Apple TV Series "Shrinking," on which she plays a therapist opposite Jason Segel and Harrison Ford. I had to talk to her about what it is like to work with the legendary Harrison Ford.
Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WAGMEISTER: I want to talk about you and Harrison Ford.
JESSICA WILLIAMS, EMMY-NOMINATED ACTRESS, "SHRINKING": Yes. Right.
WAGMEISTER: Because you are like my favorite duo.
WILLIAMS: Thank you.
WAGMEISTER: What is it like working with him?
WILLIAMS: It's just like working with any 83-year-old. I don't know how many 83-year-olds you know, but they live their life, you know, they do their things and then they get to a certain age and they're like, look, this is who I am, take it or leave it. So, you just kind of take them as they are or you, you know, you have an issue with it.
And it's really nice to be able to play these two characters that are different versions of us that, you know, I get to kind of field all this love into, you know, playing Gaby and Paul. Gaby is obsessed with Paul. Jimmy's obsessed with Paul. And Paul's like, I don't want to be here. But you can tell that Paul does.
HARRISON FORD, ACTOR, "SHRINKING": Get out of here.
WILLIAMS: There's something really helpful to he and Maya's relationship in playing these two characters because it gives me like an outlet to put all those feelings that I feel about Harrison Ford as an actor. It's a really nice fit for us. And I -- it's one of my favorite relationships that I've ever played in a show or movie. And, you know, acting's all about relationships. And that one's really special to me. I can't think of too many times where I've seen that sort of pairing.
And it especially means a lot to me to do -- to be able to do that at this point in Harrison's career. [09:00:02]
It's sort of a pinch me moment where I just go, oh my gosh, this is like, I'm so lucky. I'm so lucky.
WAGMEISTER: You can tell that he has fun with you.
