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Second Day of Manhunt Underway in Shootings of Minnesota Lawmakers; Israel and Iran Launch New Salvos as Conflict Deepens; Israelis Run to Bomb Shelters as Conflict with Iran Escalates; Trump Heads to G7 Meeting in Canadian Rockies; Lone Survivor of Air India Crash Describes Ordeal; Voice of America Brings Back Staff Amid Israel-Iran Conflict; North Korean U.N. Diplomats Reject Trump's Letter to Kim Jong-un. Aired 8-9p ET
Aired June 15, 2025 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[20:01:14]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jessica Dean in New York.
And we begin with breaking news out of Minnesota, where the suspect in a political assassination is still on the run tonight. Investigators are now focused on a vehicle and a cowboy hat found in Sibley County, Minnesota, that officials believe that hat did belong to the suspect.
And tonight, we're also learning more about the two surviving victims, State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. Senator Amy Klobuchar just moments ago sharing a text she received from Yvette Hoffman. She says, quote, "They're both incredibly lucky to be alive. She says her husband has undergone several surgeries after suffering nine bullet wounds. She says she was struck by eight bullets."
I want to go straight out to CNN's Whitney Wild, who was at the news conference where officials updated everyone just a few minutes ago.
Whitney, officials saying they've received more than 400 tips. They've been trying to sort through all of that, describing today as a very fluid day. What more did we learn from that news conference, and where do things stand right now?
WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: There is a nationwide warrant for Vance Boelter's arrest. He is the man, of course, the suspect who police say shot and killed Melissa Hortman and her husband, shot multiple times State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. So there's a nationwide warrant for those murders and the attempted murders.
And then further, Jessica, there's a federal warrant that has been issued for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. At this moment, he is not in custody. But the search continues. And I'll take you to Sibley County, Minnesota. This is an area that's 50 miles southwest of Minneapolis. And this is where the bulk of the activity happened today. So law enforcement was able to identify this vehicle they say they were interested in.
They stopped short of saying whether it was his, whether he stole it. And, you know, not simply clarifying it, you know, the key detail, which is did he drive it there? But they were interested in this vehicle associated with this case. This was found on the side of the road in Sibley County. And what we saw were dozens of law enforcement officers approaching that vehicle. Looking through that vehicle.
Law enforcement here says that they did find evidence that is relevant to this investigation in that vehicle, but they declined to say exactly what it was. Meanwhile, there was a search in the field surrounding that vehicle, in the forest surrounding that vehicle. And as of a few minutes ago, Jessica, that search in Sibley County was ongoing.
Law enforcement made very clear this is a partnership from top to bottom. So local law enforcement here, state, federal officials, everybody with a badge and a gun in Minnesota knows that this is a top priority and has information they need to try to find Vance Boelter. And then further, Jessica, they are spreading that information throughout the country. So again, we have those nationwide warrants that federal warrants. So they want everybody, every cop in America on the lookout for Vance Boelter.
As you said, there are 400 tips that have already come in to law enforcement. They are urging the public to come forward with anything because what we see so often in cases like this, Jessica, is little things people think are not relevant are actually critical and can shift the landscape in such a way that it really helps law enforcement zero in on where Vance Boelter might be at this very moment. The big question had been whether or not he was receiving assistance and law enforcement said that basically anything is on the table.
They said that he has been in contact with individuals, but they did not say that at this point they know definitively that he was getting assistance from anyone else. So that is an outstanding question that they're looking into. But they have no reason to believe that that is happening at this very moment.
This is a very complicated case. He's, you know, as we know, this has been going on for, you know, more than 24 hours, almost 48 hours.
[20:05:02]
He could be on foot, he could be in another vehicle. He could be on another mode of transportation.
Here's what Drew Evans, the head of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension here in Minnesota, said about how difficult this case is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DREW EVANS, SUPERINTENDENT, MINNESOTA BUREAU OF CRIMINAL APPREHENSION: We often want easy answers for complex problems, and this is a complex situation that our investigators are going to need time to sift through the information and evidence. And those answers will come as we complete the full picture of our investigation, and we will continue to provide that information as we are able.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WILD: They did provide a little bit more detail on what many people have been referring to is this manifesto. And what they clarified was that it's not really a manifesto. A manifesto is more like your intentions, and it's a, you know, more like a simplified document with the intentions and the planning. This was more like a hit list that had several musings and thoughts in it. So they were, you know, making that clarification that this is not a specific manifesto, but rather just, again, a hit list and a notebook full of his thoughts.
Whether or not those are disconnected and how much they are impacting this investigation we simply don't know at this moment, Jessica, but that is a very key piece of detail at this point -- Jess.
DEAN: Yes, it certainly is. All right. Whitney Wild, thank you so much for your reporting all throughout the afternoon and evening. We really appreciate it.
Joining us now, former FBI special agent Mary Ellen O'Toole.
Mary Ellen, thank you so much for being here with us. Look, we just heard Whitney kind of lay out what the current state of play is here. I know there's just this idea that this person that they are now searching for is kind of on plan, we don't know, B, C, D. Is he just winging it? How does that complicate or help investigators as they try to find Vance Boelter tonight?
MARY ELLEN O'TOOLE, FORMER SENIOR FBI PROFILER: Well, two ways to answer that. It complicates it for the offender because an offender doesn't factor in, geez, I'm making my plans and I'm really going to screw up here. And so then I have to have option one, two and three. They may plan for alternate options, but to really be able to identify this is how I'm going to screw up and therefore I need to take these alternative steps.
That's not likely. And so, and it's important to point out that he's not used to being a fugitive. He's not been in this situation before. And he's being searched by hundreds and hundreds of law enforcement officers. So physically and mentally, if he's still alive, he will begin to break down. And when you break down physically and mentally, your decision making skills break down as well. So that actually is a big help to law enforcement because he will be making mistakes.
DEAN: And just in terms of this is now, as Whitney was saying, going into almost 48 hours, it is going to get dark there soon. It's going to be Monday instead of the weekend. How do all of those factors impact this search?
O'TOOLE: For the offender, again, it's going to make it much more difficult for him because if he didn't come prepared with clothing and food and other items to sustain him, he's either going to have to go without or he's going to have to go and attempt to get them from somebody else. Go inside somebody's home, go inside a shed or a garage. So that's going to really negatively impact him. And if it impacts him, it will be a benefit to law enforcement who are
trying to locate him. And I think that's why law enforcement appears to be so circumspect about all the information that they were not telling us during the press conference because they wanted to be very careful not to alert this offender as to where they may be looking for him, because, again, they want to make it more complicated for him so that they can take advantage of his being disoriented, not knowing where law enforcement is. So to do that, what law enforcement had to do during that press conference is not tell us a lot about where they're looking.
DEAN: Yes. What else stood out to you as you were listening to that update?
O'TOOLE: Well, I thought it was very interesting about the manifesto and having worked cases with manifestos, they're all not written in a narrative. They can be very disjointed, providing just a limited amount of information. And then after the investigation, there may be a more detailed manifesto that was secreted somewhere. But it's still, I believe, once it's released, hopefully it will be at some point, it will give us ideas of what his thinking was and what led him to identify the victims that he did identify.
And once that information is scrutinized and analyzed, then what they can do is get a better idea of his motives and what went on in his life, especially at age 57. What was going on in his life, which caused him to decide that this is what he had to do. And usually you see a deterioration in one's life across the board that causes them to make that decision to engage in this kind of behavior.
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DEAN: Yes. And I think that is interesting. As someone who has a lot of experience in this, like yourself, a 57-year-old man who had never -- they can't see at this point any previous threats that he's made so far. They say it appears he worked by himself. The kind of profile you're looking at. What do you make of all of that?
O'TOOLE: Well, again, he doesn't seem to have a criminal record. He had a record where he looked like he was financially reckless. He had an extreme ideology in terms of, you know, people's religion, people's lifestyle, and all of those things can really come together at somebody's life, especially if they don't have a way to reach out and get help to better understand how they're feeling or how to fix the problems in their life.
That can cause them to make some pretty extreme behaviors. But I think there's something else that I expect to see in this case. I could be wrong, but I'd be looking for it. Once you decide to take such extreme action that you want to annihilate somebody because of their belief systems in lifestyles, in their outlook on their religious beliefs and so forth, there will be a self-righteous tone in that manifesto or in his musings that say, this is something I didn't want to do. This is something that I had to do, and I'm the one that had to do it.
DEAN: Very interesting. And we're looking at these photos that law enforcement has sent out, and you zero in on the one where he has appeared to put a mask on, this one right here that we're putting up, where he was dressed like a law enforcement, like a police officer or a law enforcement officer.
What does that tell you, knowing that he's obviously trying to conceal his identity, but also that he truly, you know, again, we think due to his background, he had access to some of this equipment? But this is somebody that would seem, it's quite, in addition to all of these musings in this notebook, all of this suggests real premeditation.
O'TOOLE: It certainly does. Premeditation, pre-planning, thinking about it. Probably doing what I call a dress rehearsal, which I've seen in other cases where they decide I will wear this belt, I will wear this hat, I will put on, you know, on this item. So there's a dress rehearsal that probably preceded this. And it also to me shows a keen interest in law enforcement. So I'm not going to be surprised if at some point, and he did own a business that was advertised to sell items that were similar to those that were used and worn by law enforcement officers.
So there was a preexisting interest and maybe even more than an interest in law enforcement. Maybe it's something that he had applied to years ago and not been accepted. But there is that interest in law enforcement that I find quite interesting. Now, it did serve him well in order to access those victims because they answered the door thinking that he was a legitimate law enforcement person. But nonetheless, I think that interest in law enforcement may be a little bit over and beyond, just something that he had to do to access those victims.
DEAN: All right. Mary Ellen O'Toole, thanks so much for your time tonight. We really appreciate it.
O'TOOLE: You are welcome.
DEAN: Thanks.
President Trump says he wants to see a deal between Israel and Iran as the countries trade missile and drone strikes for the third straight day. We'll have an update for you.
You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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DEAN: The Israeli military tonight telling Israelis to stay near their bomb shelters, indicating the threat of Iranian strikes not over. A CNN team capturing an explosion in the skies above Tel Aviv this evening. Just one of a barrage being fired at as this conflict continues to escalate. Some missiles have broken through Israel's defenses.
Take a look at the scene in Haifa earlier, where emergency services say a building was struck that injured two people. CNN's Clarissa Ward did visit a village in northern Israel where
multiple people were killed when an Iranian rocket struck their home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Four members of the Khatib family were killed in this strike on their family home. A mother, two of her daughters, the youngest just 13, and a relative who was visiting.
You can see the scale of the destruction as a result of the impact of that missile hitting, and it really extends down the block. And in many ways, this strike, it really gets to not just the tragedy of this conflict, but also the complexity.
This town, Tamra, is a Palestinian Israeli town. And there was social media video online last night, verified by CNN, that showed people from a neighboring town actually cheering as they saw those missiles coming down onto Tamra. They could be heard rejoicing, may your village burn.
And it's important to mention as well that we've also seen videos on social media of Palestinians cheering as missiles rain down near the city of Tel Aviv.
We spoke to a priest, Father Khoury, who told us that he believes innocent people are losing their lives because of the actions of bad leaders.
FR. SIMON KHOURY, TAMRA PRIEST: We want all of them to sit on the same table and to sit like brother, sons of Abraham, and to say it's enough because violence caused violence and blood caused blood. It's easy to know how to start wars, but only God knows how it's going to finish.
WARD: Shortly after we finished talking to Father Khoury, the sirens went off again and we were ushered into a shelter in the house across from the Khatib family home, and the woman who lives in that house, who witnessed and lived through what happened last night, visibly shaken, crying, trembling, deeply fearful for her life.
The all-clear has been given. People are getting back to the work of cleaning up, and it's going to be a big job.
Clarissa Ward, CNN, Tamra, Israel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: Clarissa, thank you so much for that.
And joining us now is CNN global affairs commentator and former Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh.
Sabrina, it's great to see you on this Sunday night. We did hear from President Trump just a little bit ago, telling reporters as he left for the G7 conference that there's a good chance, he says, of a deal between Israel and Iran. Do you see any indications of a deal? Is there still a diplomatic path
here?
SABRINA SINGH, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Well, thanks, Jessica, for having me on today. There's always a chance for diplomacy. And I think that it is important that the administration continues to engage, not just with the Israelis, but making a path forward with Iran and saying, we need to come to the table. I think ultimately what you're seeing from this administration is that the United States does not want to be pulled in to a larger regional war within the Middle East.
And the fact that there were these original talks scheduled to happen on Sunday before these Israeli strikes on Iran, I think shows the administration's commitment to really wanting to see a deal through. Of course, ultimately, we would not be in this position had the Trump administration, the first time around, pulled the United States out of that original nuclear deal. But we are where we are. And I think diplomacy, there's always a path for diplomacy, and we have to continue to keep those avenues open.
DEAN: Right. And so while that remains a possibility, we also know that Israel, that their main objective here is to make sure that Iran cannot and does not have a nuclear weapon, and that part of that is going after some of these sites, including one that is deep, deep underground, and that can really, Fordow, that can really only be accessed or really targeted, likely from the air with something called a bunker buster, which is what the U.S. has, but that Israel does not have.
How would you kind of assess that particular piece of this?
SINGH: Yes, those bunker busters are something that require incredible capability to be carried and executed on a strike like that deep underground facility. And that's something that the United States does have the capacity to help and aid Israel in their military operations. It's whether the United States decides to do that. And I think, you know, the America First doctrine and what the Trump administration has come in on, which is peace through strength.
They don't want to be brought in to a larger war in the Middle East, especially after some of the, you know, lessons of the past, whether it be Iraq or Afghanistan. I think what this administration is signaling is, you know, we're not going to help you in your offensive operations. But when it comes to the defense of Israel, as you saw under the Biden administration, where I served, you know, we did come to the defense of Israel in April and in October when Iran launched, you know, a series of ballistic missiles and drones towards Israel.
And you saw American fighter pilots working with the Israeli fighter pilots in the air shooting down these drones and ballistic missiles with our Aegis systems from our naval vessels as well. So ultimately, I don't think this administration wants a wider scale war where the United States is drawn into that. DEAN: We also know that Israel struck Iranian oil depots throughout
the weekend. Help people understand. How significant is that? What does that mean more broadly?
SINGH: I think it's showing that Israel has an incredible air capability in being able to strike deep within Iran shows they really have the power of the skies. They have demonstrated that they have been able to essentially eliminate a significant amount of Iranians' air defenses. And the fact that they're able to penetrate these oil fields, some of their nuclear sites as well, shows that Israel is really commanding the skies.
And that should really be a signal to Iran that ultimately the path forward here is diplomacy, and that I think, you know, the United States, Israel is going to use this moment to hopefully leverage Iran to come back to the table.
DEAN: How does the, you know, we have this reporting, CNN does, that President Trump waved off a kind of, as Barak Ravid said, not necessarily a plan, but this this idea, this potential idea of the Israelis taking out the ayatollah. Is that do you think an ultimate goal here, regime change, taking out the ayatollah?
SINGH: Well, you saw, you know, the prime minister of Israel, Netanyahu, speak today, sort of kind of on their goals. And they're certainly taking out strategic military leadership. They have not, you know, been able to or have held back on taking out the political leadership, which still controls the country. I mean, ultimately, it's going to be up to the people of Iran what they want to see happen in their country.
Of course, events like this can sort of catapult a change in the country. I mean, you saw I think it was in 2023, massive amounts of protests against the Iranian regime, you know, being led by women in the country who were tired of being oppressed by this regime. So there's clearly a sentiment here for a need to change, but ultimately, it's going to have to be up to the people of Iran if they can, you know, sort of amass political pressure on the regime right now and say, you know, we're ready for something different.
We're ready for something new, and we're frankly ready for someone that is going to be more moderate and work with, you know, countries like the United States, countries like Israel, and ultimately come to the table and chart a path forward, a diplomatic path forward for Iran and others.
DEAN: And we're told this will likely, that Israel plans for this to take a while. A series of days stretching into weeks. What might that look like as we head into a new week? Will we expect to see what we've seen in the last couple of nights, although it has been slightly quieter night in Tel Aviv tonight, even as Israel continues to strike Iran tonight?
SINGH: Yes, I think Israel, you know, has pretty well broadcast what they want to do. They want to destroy or eliminate some of these nuclear sites. Do they have the capability to do that without the United States? You know, I think that remains to be seen. I think they do need those bunker busters. And I don't know that the Trump administration is willing to partner with Israel on offensive strikes.
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So it remains to be seen, you know, how much more damage they will inflict on their military targets that they're going after in Iran. I think what hopefully comes from this is ultimately this is going to end in people speaking to each other at a table. It's going to be through a diplomatic path. And I think these strikes certainly weaken Iran's hand at the table. But, you know, we need to now see those diplomatic talks move forward. And I hope they do because ultimately what you want to see is a de-escalation of tensions in the region.
DEAN: All right. Sabrina Singh, thanks so much. We really appreciate it.
SINGH: Thanks, Jessica.
DEAN: Right now as we just walked you through Israelis being told to stay close to their bomb shelters as the threat of those Iranian missiles remains active, our Oren Liebermann reports on how one family is coping with those warnings.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Glued to the news, Rivi Ginzburg waits for the order she knows is coming. Her husband, who doesn't want to be on camera, checks his phone for the latest from Israel's Home Front Command. The last two nights have been a race between the bedroom and the mamad, the Hebrew word for bomb shelter.
This is our shelter, Rivi tells me. You see how we get used to it here. We have mattresses. We came to realize that most of the action is at night.
An afterthought for so long, the room has become a home within a home, cleared out to make room for 10 people and three generations.
We have mattresses so three kids can sleep on them at night, some toys, coloring books. We just don't know, Rivi says.
Red alerts warning of incoming missiles and drones across the country have sent families scrambling to bomb shelters and reaching for their phones.
Everyone checks everyone, she says. Immediately, you're in touch with everyone.
As soon as Israel carried out its first strikes on Iran late Thursday night, Israel's government ordered its citizens to stay near shelters for safety. But the system has not been perfect, and Iranian ballistic missiles have pierced Israel's missile defenses. The damage and the deaths have brought the realities of war once again directly into Israel's homes. We would have preferred that they first sort out the operation in Gaza
that's lasted so long and the hostages are not returned. And only then turn to other fronts. No one asks us.
In what could be the early days of another war, Ginzburg has tried her best to find moments to laugh with her family.
The situation is far from funny, she says, but you have to keep your sanity, you have to keep your normalcy with the family, you know?
Oren Liebermann, CNN, Central Israel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: Oren, thank you.
That conflict between Israel and Iran will likely take center stage when President Trump meets with other world leaders in Canada this week. He'll also face some tough questions about his global trade war with his new tariffs set to kick in in just a few weeks. More on this when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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DEAN: Tonight, the governor of West Virginia has declared a state of emergency as intense flash flooding left four people dead. Rescue crews are searching for at least four others who are still missing. The massive downpours have damaged roads, bridges and highways in Ohio County and the northern part of the state, and the governor is asking people to stay in place and stay off the roads in those affected areas.
World leaders including President Donald Trump are headed to Canada for the annual G7 Summit. The conference coming just days after Israel launched an attack against Iranian nuclear facilities and less than a month before Trump's July 9th deadline for trade deals with several countries.
CNN's senior reporter Kevin Liptak is joining us now from Canada.
Kevin, set the table for us this week. What are you expecting?
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And this will be the first international summit of President Trump's second term. So I think it will be a good window of how he plans to use these kinds of forums to address some of the sticky issues that are facing the globe right now. Chief among them being the conflict between Israel and Iran that I think is sort of the overhang of this entire summit.
And the leaders who are meeting here we've been seeing them arrive one by one over the last couple of hours I think really do want to get a sense from President Trump about where exactly he sees this heading. You know, he's talked about the idea that he thinks this can all be resolved diplomatically, but I don't think it's clear to some of these leaders from Europe, from Japan, from other parts of the world about what exactly that means. And so I think they will have some questions for the president on that front.
Already today, we've heard the president say that he thinks that the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, might be able to be a mediator in this conflict. But already you've heard at least one G7 leader, the French President Emmanuel Macron, say that he doesn't think that that would necessarily be workable. So you're already starting to see some of the differences emerge here.
You know, at the end of the day, these world leader summits during President Trump's first term were really colored by a huge amount of acrimony, discord. I'm thinking of the last time that Canada hosted the G7 back in 2018, sort of the enduring image of the entire conference was of President Trump, you know, his arms crossed, sort of glowering as Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, and Shinzo Abe, the Japanese prime minister, sort of towered over him as they tried to work out a joint communique.
[20:35:06]
The hosts of this week's summit, I think, are trying to avoid that level of open discord. They don't plan to put out a joint communique, which is what caused that image, that acrimony back in 2018. They're planning on sort of shorter summit sessions, the big group sessions that tend to go on and on, which will leave time for more one-on-one discussions for the president to have with his counterparts, be it on Ukraine and this idea of potentially applying new sanctions on Moscow.
President Trump seems reluctant to do that at this point, but it's something that the Europeans want to push. And this idea of trade, you know, President Trump was just leaving the White House and was asked about the prospect of getting new trade deals done. Listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Look, we have our trade deals. All we have to do is send a letter. This is what you're going to have to pay. But I think we'll have a few new trade deals. Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIPTAK: And you know, we're butting up on that July 9th deadline that the president has set for himself to strike these new trade deals or risk new tariffs. And so all of this, I think, will be a point of discussion as these leaders gather around the table up here in Canada -- Jessica.
DEAN: All right. Kevin Liptak with the very latest. Thank you so much. A big week ahead.
Still ahead tonight, hear from the only plane passenger who survived that Air India crash this week. That's next right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:41:06]
DEAN: And we are following breaking news out of Minnesota, where a frantic search is underway for Vance Boelter, the man you see right there. He is the suspect accused in the assassination of a state lawmaker and her husband. A nationwide warrant now out for his arrest. And the FBI offering a $50,000 reward for any information leading to his capture.
Right now, the manhunt has shifted to Sibley County, Minnesota. Now, that's just southwest of where those shootings took place. It's also where officials say they discovered a vehicle linked to that suspect this morning. They would not say what else they found in that vehicle, but they did confirm that they found what is likely the suspect's cowboy hat near the abandoned car. You can see him wearing it in surveillance video that was captured right there after the shootings.
In the meantime, the community of Brooklyn Park is in mourning tonight as neighbors, friends and colleagues try to wrestle with this senseless killing of Democratic State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband in their home. Many of Hortman's colleagues and friends say she leaves behind an enduring legacy, among them Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar, who says she's known Melissa Hortman since they were both young mothers starting out in politics.
The senator spoke about this with my colleague Dana Bash.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR (D-MN): And Melissa Hortman is the most incredible person that I wish everyone in the nation knew her, you know, went into politics with little kids. That's how I got to know her. We were both moms in politics, taught Sunday school, Girl Scout leader, balanced all of it and ends up moving up in the legislature to be a beloved speaker of the House, getting through with the governor free lunch, getting through with the governor all the work she did on paid family leave. And then this year, with a tied legislature negotiates with her Republican counterpart and is able to get a budget done. She was extraordinary.
And so when you hear about political violence, Dana, you got to look at the face of this woman and understand how real this is. In terms of this manhunt, $50,000 reward from the FBI. We asked people to come forward. The chilling picture for us is the one where he had put on a mask. He's very smart. He's very evil. And that picture is taken from a ring camera, from a doorbell that many Americans may have right before he killed our friends.
So you've got a massive manhunt, as you say, going on, and people are just following instructions from law enforcement. We want to get this guy.
DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. And as you're talking, we are putting up the picture of that chilling photo from the ring camera. Senator, you talked about the manifesto recovered from the suspect's
car. It also included all members of Minnesota's congressional delegation. Have you been briefed specifically that you were a target?
KLOBUCHAR: No, I haven't, and I will say that without me asking, they've added security, but not just for me, for other leaders in Minnesota. You know, for me, I think people know that elected officials get threats. A lot of them you never hear about. Judges, election workers. This has gotten totally out of hand with threats against members of Congress.
In 2016, there were like 1700 of them. Last year, over 9,000 of them. And so one of the things that we have done, our delegation with Congressmen Emmer and Congresswoman McCollum, Senator Smith and others, we actually put out a joint statement that said we speak with one voice in condemning political violence. I think we need to see more of this across our country. People need to call people out.
Some people need to look in the mirror and say, hey, I've got to stop this or stop my colleagues from doing this because it makes it much worse. We need to bring the tone down, and we also need to stand up when people do bad things, which is, I know you're going to be talking about later in the show, and I'm glad there was such turnout at these rallies because our democracy is something to protect, not try to bring down.
[20:45:08]
BASH: Senator, you said that without being asked you're getting more security. Do you think because of the reality you just described, that elected officials beyond Minnesota should have better protection right now?
KLOBUCHAR: I think just in general, there can be copycat crimes and people can get incentivized when they see things online. Something else I'd like to put more rules of the road in place on because that is, you look at the man that bludgeoned Speaker Pelosi's husband. Of course, he was off balance. Of course he was sick. But that case you could see a through line with him reading this stuff online.
So more has to be done on that front. And then of course more has to be done to protect elected officials regardless of party. And I appreciate that Senator Thune and Senator Schumer called me yesterday, and they're very focused on making sure there's added security.
BASH: Before I let you go, what's your message to the people of Minnesota and really around the country who are looking at what has happened, the tragedy in your state?
KLOBUCHAR: The first, just to follow the advice of law enforcement right now because they've -- it's been a changing situation with shelters in place. And to understand they're just simply trying to get a madman. But the second is that people like Melissa or Senator Hoffman, who's struggling in holding in there with his life, along with his wife, Yvette, that these are real people. And before you start ascribing motives or going after them online,
maybe you should think about Melissa Hortman's life, right? A group just put out -- a local group put out a picture of her. And I didn't even know this about her, that she trained dogs for veterans in her spare time. This is a person that did everything for the right reasons and regardless of political parties, just look at her face and think about that before you send out your next post, or before you say something that isn't just about your views.
People can have different views on things, but remember that our democracy is something to cherish, and public service is a worthy thing to do.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: Dana Bash with Senator Amy Klobuchar there.
And tonight, we're also learning more about the two surviving victims, State Senator John Hoffman, who you're looking at there, and his wife, Yvette. Senator Klobuchar sharing this text she received from his wife, Yvette, saying they're both, quote, "incredibly lucky to be alive," that her husband's undergone several surgeries after suffering nine bullet wounds. She was hit with eight bullets in that attack.
Teams from the U.S. are on the ground in India to survey the site of that deadly Air India crash. The plane went down just moments after taking off Thursday. Dozens on the ground were killed and only one of the 242 people on board, only one survived. That man was even seen walking around shortly after that crash.
CNN's Tom Foreman has more on his story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Everything happened in front of my eyes. I don't believe how I survived.
In his first televised interview since the catastrophic crash, the sole survivor, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, told his harrowing tale of walking away from the wreckage to Indian public broadcaster Doordarshan, describing the first signs of trouble on a packed plane beginning its long trip to London.
After the takeoff within a minute, it felt like the plane came to a standstill for five, 10 seconds, he says. The green and white lights turned on in the flight. I could feel the engine thrust increasing to go up, but it crashed.
Ramesh is a British national who was returning home from India, traveling with his brother, who some reports have seated on the opposite side of the plane. A cousin thinks otherwise.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, they were sitting next to each other, but we don't know what happened to his brother.
FOREMAN: He is now being counted among the at least 290 people lost on the plane and ground.
So how was Ramesh alone spared? Evidence points to his window seat in the first row of the economy section, 11-A. There he had a clear view of the flight attendant service area, where he says he saw crew members and others trapped and dying on the right side of the plane, which he believes was crushed up against a building. But his seat, critically, was at an exit door on the left.
When my door broke, he told Indian TV, I tried to escape through a little space and I did. I don't know how.
In the fireball that followed impact, Ramesh notes he burned his hand. Otherwise, doctors say this man who miraculously emerged from an inferno is doing remarkably well.
[20:50:00]
DR. RANJISH PATEL, AHMEDABAD CIVIL HOSPITAL: He's very comfortable and under strict observation. No issues.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOREMAN (on-camera): This man will undoubtedly be a huge help to investigators, too, who often have no eyewitnesses to such events, let alone one who literally fell from the sky -- Jessica.
DEAN: Wow. Tom Foreman, thank you so much.
Still ahead, how the escalating fight between Israel and Iran is pushing the Trump administration to breathe some life into the network it's been fighting to dismantle. And next, are President Trump's efforts to reach out to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un being ignored?
CNN's Will Ripley has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: And we go back and forth. And then we fell in love. OK? No, really. He wrote me beautiful letters, and they're great letters.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DEAN: Several dozen staffers from the Voice of America Network were told to come back to work immediately. This amid the conflict between Israel and Iran. Many of the news network's staffers were put on leave and operations shut down by the Trump administration back in March.
[20:55:07]
Let's bring in CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter to talk more about this.
And Brian, why make the change now? What's going on? BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Right. Voice of America has
been mostly silence since March, but all of the Farsi speaking staffers were suddenly called back to work on Friday, dozens of them, as well as some other staffers who work in other language services. The idea is to get programing back into Iran, providing news and information to Iranians who otherwise are only getting censored or propagandistic content from the Iranian government.
So VOA, you know, it was sidelined in March. Trump administration trying to shut it down. But VOA staffers who are still on the bench being paid but not allowed to work they say this situation is proof that all the networks should be back online in some capacity.
Some allies agree. Here's Representative Don Bacon, a representative -- Republican congressman who said on X over the weekend, quote, "It is shortsighted to cut all these kinds of media that tell our American story and give light to the people living in these tyrannical regimes. VOA is now needed for Iran." That's Don Bacon commenting.
Another U.S. funded broadcaster that the Trump administration is trying to shut down is Radio Free Europe-Radio Liberty. The broadcaster's grant money was pulled back in March, but it's been in court trying to get the money back. And in the meantime, it's still broadcasting on the air and online in some forms. You can see the Farsi language Instagram page for Radio Free Europe has 4.7 million followers on Instagram, so this weekend, Radio Free Europe is touting its high traffic and impact with programing into Iran. Quote, "Moments like this are why we exist."
Now Radio Free Europe said in an internal memo obtained by CNN's Jake Tapper, here's another part of that memo. It says, quote, "In one day, Farda's content was consumed in the millions exceeding the audience of any messaging that the U.S. government itself could push out via official channels."
So, you know, as in any conflict, there's a full-fledged information war underway. And these U.S. funded international broadcasters say they are pushing back on Iranian disinformation and getting the truth out to people who need it inside Iran.
DEAN: And I want to also touch on a separate issue while we have you here, Brian, which is that the "Washington Post" says hackers apparently tried to break into its system using the e-mail accounts of journalists.
STELTER: Yes.
DEAN: That's concerning. What's your assessment of that?
STELTER: This is developing tonight. CNN's (INAUDIBLE) and I have been talking with sources at "The Post," and so far there's no firm information on who may have carried out this hack, but it was troubling enough that everybody at "The Post" had to reset their passwords over the weekend.
Now, there's no mention yet of a foreign entity. There's an internal investigation going on, but this is reminiscent of a hack at the "Wall Street Journal" a number of years ago. Chinese hackers were suspected in that case, as that effort specifically targeted journalists who were reporting on China related issues. No word yet on who might be behind this hack at the "Washington Post" --Jessica.
DEAN: All right. Always good to see you, Brian. Thanks so much. Appreciate it.
STELTER: Thanks.
DEAN: Happening now, North Korea's leader pushing to expand his country's naval footprint. Kim Jong-un is ordering the construction of more ships to patrol the Pacific. And he says that move is a response to what he calls provocative threats from the U.S.
Now this comes amid reports President Trump is trying to engage with Kim Jong-un but North Korea is reportedly refusing to talk and could be turning to another U.S. rival.
CNN's Will Ripley reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With foreign policy setbacks piling up, President Donald Trump may be missing the good old days. Pen-pal diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Has the president tried to resume dialog with Kim Jong-un?
KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The president remains receptive to correspondence with Kim Jong-un.
RIPLEY: But that outreach might be hitting a brick wall.
CHAD O'CARROLL, FOUNDER, KOREA RISK GROUP: There were multiple attempts to deliver a letter drafted by President Donald Trump to the DPRK mission.
RIPLEY: Longtime Korea journalist Chad O'Carroll broke the story that North Korean U.N. representatives actively rejected Trump's letter, citing a high level anonymous source. CNN cannot independently verify.
TRUMP: He wrote me beautiful letters and they're great letters. We fell in love.
A great letter from --
RIPLEY: Trump shared 27 of those beautiful letters with Bob Woodward, revealing a relationship that unraveled in 2019. In his last known letter to Trump, Kim wrote, "If you do not think of our relationship as a stepping stone that only benefits you, then you would not make me look like an idiot that will only give without getting anything in return." Do you think the North Koreans and Kim Jong-un in particular were
happy to see some of the contents of those letters leaked to the press?
O'CARROLL: That's a good question. I think the leaking of that material could have been quite embarrassing for Kim Jong-un.
RIPLEY (voice-over): U.S. officials typically use three main channels to reach Pyongyang. The U.N. mission, the CIA's back channel, and the joint security area at the DMZ. Right now, all three, silent.
What do you think the North Koreans are thinking as they look at all of this in the U.S.?
O'CARROLL: Trump creates chaos and then creates relatively superficial remedies. And from a North Korean perspective, that doesn't really make sense. There's not much to gain from that.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Kim is now building his closest ties with Russian strongman Vladimir Putin, sending weapons and soldiers to fuel Russia's war in Ukraine. In this new season of global power plays, Kim has a new co-star, apparently leaving Trump's letters unread.
Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: Will, thank you so much.
And thank you for joining me this evening. I'm Jessica Dean. I'll see you next weekend. "EVA LONGORIA, SEARCHING FOR SPAIN" is next. Have a great night, everyone.
