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Trump Approves $2.8 Billion Arms Sale to Israel, Including 40,000 One-ton Bombs; High-ranking Texas Republicans Demand Bo French Delete Racist Post; Senate Confirmation Hearing for Three Trump HHS Nominees; Cassidy Presses Saphier on Vaccines and Debunked Autism Claim; E.U. Proposes Making Canada Its First Associate Member. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired September 16, 2026 - 13:30   ET

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

[13:30:00]

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: -- of course, in Lebanon and elsewhere as well. In Gaza, we have seen the kind of impact that these weapons can have when they are dropped in such densely populated areas. They can be lethal at more than a thousand feet in radius. They can leave craters as deep as 50 feet, as wide as 40 feet. And so you can just imagine that dropping it in such a densely populated area as Gaza is bound to cause civilian casualties.

And that is why there has been so much scrutiny and uproar in the past over the sale of these weapons to Israel. And there's certainly going to be a lot of scrutiny from congressional Democrats now that the Trump administration is apparently approving this to go forward.

It also goes to show that despite some of the tension that we've seen in the relationship between President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu, there's still a very close Israeli-U.S. security relationship here that's allowing for this kind of sale to go forward.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CO-ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWS CENTRAL": And separately, Jeremy, there was a story about a six-storey building collapsing in Gaza. More than 20 people killed, several trapped under the rubble. What's the latest on the search and rescue?

DIAMOND: Yeah, there are still dozens of people who are missing, Boris. Believed to be trapped under that rubble, whether they are dead or alive simply is not clear right now. What we do know is that 21 people have so far been confirmed dead as a result of this building collapsing. It's important to note that this is one of many buildings in Gaza that were damaged over the course of the war.

This building in particular was struck in the early months of the war in Gaza back in 2023. Clearly, it was structurally unsound and collapsed on top of dozens of families that were living in that building. Gaza's housing ministry is now saying that there are thousands of other families that are at risk of this kind of structural damage. It is a reminder of how much reconstruction Gaza still needs and of the need for heavy equipment to be brought into Gaza, which so far has been blocked by Israel. Today, the U.N.'s Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory said that he is calling for urgent approvals of that kind of heavy equipment to enter the strip. Boris?

SANCHEZ: Jeremy Diamond, live for us in Jerusalem. Thank you so much for the reporting.

Still to come, two University of Texas students went to bed Saturday night after celebrating a huge win for their school's football team. They woke up to find themselves the target of a racist attack by a Texas Republican running for state office. We're going to talk to two of these students when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:36:46]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CO-ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWS CENTRAL": A Republican candidate for a statewide Texas office is refusing to back down from a racist online post. Bo French posted a picture of a group of University of Texas students who appear to be of South Asian descent celebrating during UT's recent come from behind win against Ohio State, saying, quote, "I heard U.T. graduation this year looked like this," and going on to say, "The problem is now obviously far worse than anyone imagined."

French is the Republican candidate running for a seat on the Texas Railroad Commission. It's a key role in regulating oil and gas in the state where, obviously, oil and gas are king. And on a conservative radio show this week, French deflected criticism about his remarks as the establishment coming for him.

But the Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, Dustin Burrows, who is one of the prominent Republicans blasting French, says that what he said crossed the line and he's called on French to delete it. Senator John Cornyn questioned whether Republican officials would, quote, "condemn the intolerance and racism or look the other way while it becomes normalized."

We're joined now by two of the Texas students who are actually in that photo. You can see them here on the lower right hand side, up in the front. They are Rahul Kodali and Dhairya Gupta.

Gentlemen, thank you so much for being with us. Dhairya, first off to you. I mean, it looked like it was a really fun game, and I'm sure that that part of it was simply amazing. But what was it like once you realized that Bo French had put up a picture of you in a racist post and then it was going viral?

DHAIRYA GUPTA, UNITED OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN STUDENT: Honestly, it was, you know, like there was this like moment of elation when we first, you know, found out -- that when we saw our team win the game and then celebrating all of that. And then when we did see the tweets, I think it was a little bit concerning to say the least. And it's very jarring seeing our own faces on the front of like a political campaign or like someone running for a position with a platform. And I think, you know, it's somewhat appalling as well. It's just -- it's something you don't want to see when you wake up or just in general.

KEILAR: Rahul, what did you think? And what did you think about the other comments that came? Did you see some of them as supportive of you? How much of it was also racist?

RAHUL KODALI, UNITED OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN STUDENT: Yeah, I think one of like the -- like whenever I first saw like the comments in the post, they started like immediately after like the video was posted or like the tweet was tweeted. And at the end of the day, it is social media. So, I mean, it's not like unexpected. And I wasn't really like fazed.

But whenever I saw that one, I was like, OK, like it's just another post. But then you see all of these like people like that are like, hey, like what's going on? And I was like, oh, I guess it's -- this is like getting kind of important. I didn't realize he was like a political candidate.

And I was like, this is this is unacceptable. We can't have like people running for positions of power saying things like this.

KEILAR: And he is now, I think, a lot of people know who he is. They didn't necessarily know who he was before. He's standing by his posts. This is what he told a conservative radio show on Monday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BO FRENCH, REPUBLICAN NOMINEE FOR TEXAS RAILROAD COMMISSIONER: I don't have anything against the people specifically in that picture.

[13:40:00]

The bigger conversation is, are we going to have policies to prioritize Americans and the exceptionalism that I believe Americans have, or are we going to have policies that prioritize foreigners? And I think most people in the America First movement think we ought to be prioritizing Americans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: You both are Americans, Dhairya, what do you say to him when he says that as he's doubling down on his comments?

GUPTA: I'm honestly not quite sure what he's even getting at, you know, knowing that we are Americans. So even if you were to say we need to prioritize Americans anyway, like looking at that picture, you can't tell if someone's American or not.

There's really no way of, you know, deducing from just looking at a picture that there's this problem or that, you know, there's this idea of it just being a bunch of foreigners in a stadium. At the end of the day, we're all, you know, at the same school and we're all Texans, we're all Americans watching the game and having fun. KEILAR: Rahul, you've heard of the criticism of French's comments. There's been a lot of it publicly from public officials, including from a number of Republicans in your state. What have you thought about how they have been coming out against Bo French's comment?

KODALI: Yeah, I think I have a lot of respect for the political officials within our country and seeing them like kind of tell this man to take accountability and like really force upon him is, it's always really good to see. But at the same time, there is all kinds of statements that are being said and some of them are like not as like forcing him to take accountability as others.

And I think we as like a nation have to do like a good job of keeping these people accountable for things they say. Like this is, they can't -- they can't say stuff like this.

KEILAR: And Rahul, a lot of Republicans, they were really full throated in their criticism of French. But for instance, Ken Paxton, who's running for Senate, the governor, Greg Abbott, they spoke out against racism. They wouldn't have done it, it seems, if it wasn't in the context of what was going on with this Bo French post.

But they didn't name him by name. They weren't as specific as other Republicans had been. Did you think that that mattered?

KODALI: Yeah, I think that definitely does matter. I think, like I've been saying before, I've been saying like, I think accountability so much. And it's like really important for us to like single out these individuals, especially like whenever they're saying stuff like this. And I get the blanket statement. And I know like, it looks good for like, social media.

And at the end of the day, it's something that I feel like was just forced upon them. But yeah, I think like having to specify and like actually like, name drop is important, especially in this case.

KEILAR: Dhairya, what's the reaction been like from the school and from other students?

GUPTA: I've heard back from a few professors, and they've been very supportive of us. So it's been very encouraging to see. And then, you know, there's a lot of other students that have like reached out to us and talked to us. People that are our friends, people that we haven't talked to in years, people that we might not even individually know, but, you know, they're all coming to our support.

A lot of them are reposting things on social media, or they're going out of their way to talk about it themselves as well. And it's just very like encouraging seeing that our whole campus community is willing to stand behind this. And you know, it's not just us, and it's not just individuals that are on this.

It's really the community and the campus itself.

KEILAR: Dhairya, what would you say to Bo French? GUPTA: I'm not -- I'm not truly sure what I could say. But at the end of the day, you know, like, we're all Americans. I've said it before. We're like all students at the same school. We're trying to have fun watching the games.

We're here to enjoy the game itself. We're here to study all that kind of stuff. There's really nothing I could say to him individually, but in general, you know, we are here to be Americans and to learn, to study and to provide.

KEILAR: Dhairya Gupta and Rahul Kodali, thank you guys so much for being with us. We really appreciate the conversation.

GUPTA: Thank you.

KODALI: Thank you.

KEILAR: Still to come, could a social media influencer change public health in America for the better? A closer look at President Trump's nominee for Surgeon General straight ahead.

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[13:49:00]

SANCHEZ: Three of President Trump's nominees for critical posts at the Department of Health and Human Services wrapped up their Senate confirmation hearing just a short time ago. The most closely watched nominees are Chris Klomp vying to become Deputy HHS Secretary, the second in command is Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. And also Dr. Nicole Saphier who is seeking to become Surgeon General. She's President Trump's third pick for that position.

Let's bring in CNN medical correspondent Meg Tirrell. So Meg, what were the big takeaways from their testimony?

MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris, there was a lot of focus. Both from the Republican Chair of the Committee, Bill Cassidy, who is himself a doctor, as well as from Democrats about what these nominees' views are on vaccines. Especially as we now have tallied four deaths from measles in this outbreak centered in Pennsylvania, which is just a record number going back to 1992 for the United States.

And so you have Dr. Saphier who has been a Fox News contributor. She is a doctor, a radiologist previously at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

[13:50:00]

And she's also been a podcaster. And so you heard this exchange from Senator Bill Cassidy, trying to ascertain what her views on vaccination are. Here's that exchange.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. BILL CASSIDY, (R-LA) CHAIRMAN, SENATE HELP COMMITTEE: If she asked you, the mom asked you specifically, and obviously this is topical, does the MMR vaccine cause autism? What do you say?

DR. NICOLE SAPHIER , U.S. SURGEON GENERAL NOMINEE: Well, humbly, I don't know what causes autism, but I have not seen reputable evidence that would suggest that vaccines cause autism.

CASSIDY: Can you tell the parent -- I assume you've reviewed the literature?

SAPHIER: Certainly.

CASSIDY: -- that there is no credible evidence that vaccines cause autism?

SAPHIER: Certainly, I have not seen any evidence presented to me that is reputable or respectable.

CASSIDY: There's a little bit of a wiggle room there. And I'm so sensitive to this because I've had wiggle room from people sitting there, as Senator Baldwin said, who later used that wiggle room to do things which are quite contrary.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TIRRELL: Now, of course, Cassidy has been grappling with this ever since he cast his vote in favor of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. himself to become HHS Secretary, worrying about the effect that could potentially have on vaccine confidence in the country.

Similar questions were posed to Chris Klomp as well as number two at HHS. He unequivocally said that promoting vaccination with the MMR vaccine is the best way to try to reduce measles cases and try to regain our measles elimination status in the United States. So that was a key focus of the hearing today, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Meg Tirrell, thank you so much for the update. Just minutes away from the Federal Reserve announcing a decision on interest rates. We're going to bring you that breaking news when it drops in just moments.

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[13:56:38]

KEILAR: An unprecedented proposal from the European Union, the E.U. says Canada should become its first ever associate member. It's a move that could bring the two allies even closer as Canada navigates an escalating trade war with the U.S. and repeated calls from President Trump to become the 51st state.

CNN's Paula Newton is with us now. Paula, really extraordinary proposal here. What would this partnership look like?

PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the E.U. leader is saying that, look, this is going to be an alliance for the future. But your guess is as good as mine as to what this would actually look like. But there isn't the meat on the bones on this yet. There may be more coming.

The E.U. and Canada will have a summit in Montreal at the end of October. But Brianna, I want you to listen very carefully to the E.U. leader right now, as she made this announcement a few hours ago. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION: This is not a partnership against anyone else, but for our common strength. In short, we want to bring the relationship with Canada to the highest level possible. And dear Mark, I said we must urgently re-imagine our partnerships. So I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada to being the first associate member of the European Union.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Two things there, Brianna. First off, the dear Mark really strikes you. They really want to have a front-facing relationship that looks as warm and close as possible, but also the fact that this isn't a relationship against anyone, clearly aimed at the Trump administration.

And despite those claims, I think the next thing we have to look at is a map, right? If we look at Canada, if we look at Greenland specifically, this is quite strictly blowback coming not just from Canada, but also definitely from the E.U. and about the Trump administration's claims on Greenland.

I quote again the E.U. leader saying that between Canada and the E.U., this, the Arctic will be a flagship joint project. And so I tell you, Brianna, to watch this space. There is more to come and it does have a lot more to do perhaps with defense and security, and a capricious Trump administration than it has to do with Canada and the E.U.

KEILAR: Yeah, certainly. Very interesting. Paula Newton, thank you. Boris?

SANCHEZ: Some more news from the E.U. and the other headlines we're watching this hour.

The European Union is moving to ban all social media for kids under 13 and impose restrictions on interactions and screen time for older kids. The proposal would also require tech companies to prove their platforms are safe for minors. This could obviously take years for the E.U. to approve this, though some member nations like France have already enacted their own social media bans.

And Fiji has declared a national HIV emergency as the tourism hotspot faces one of the fastest growing outbreaks in the world. Health officials estimate one in 60 adults there have been infected. The crisis is driven in part by a surge in intravenous drug use, particularly methamphetamine. Experts say other factors include low condom use, limited testing and stigma.

And a Paris court has awarded Kim Kardashian a single euro after being the victim of an armed robbery back in 2016. Her lawyer says that that's how much she asked for. In a joint statement, Kardashian and her stylist who was present during the heist said, quote, "Today's decision is not about the --