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New Strikes In Israel And Iran As Conflict Enters Second Week; CNN Goes Inside War Room Bunker In Haifa, Israel As Conflict Escalates; Trump Says DNI Tulsi Gabbard Is "Wrong" On Iran's Nuclear Capability; Combs' Former Assistant Brendan Paul Testified On Friday; Jury Deliberations Could Begin As Soon As Next Week. Senate Republicans Gearing Up for Potential Vote Next Week; Conversation with Olympic Gold Medalist Simone Manuel; CDC: Drowning is Leading Cause of Death Among Young Kids; How Cuomo and Trump are More Alike than Different. Aired 1-2p ET

Aired June 21, 2025 - 13:00   ET

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

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[13:00:00]

JENN SULLIVAN, CNN NEWS REPORTER (voice-over): -- a taser, gloves, rope, and duct tape inside Abston's vehicle when he was arrested Wednesday.

BENNIE COBB, PUBLIC SAFETY EXPERT: I believe that this will have some prior planning to know how to get over the gate, to know exactly where the mayor lives.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): Police say he was angry about crime in the city. Mayor Young opening up about the incident on Instagram, saying in part, "Political violence and intimidation, whether threatened or enacted, simply cannot be our norm."

The attempted kidnapping comes less than 48 hours after a man in Minnesota shot two state lawmakers and their spouses inside their home Saturday morning. Democratic Minnesota Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark were killed. Democratic Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette were shot multiple times and underwent surgery.

Police charged 57-year-old Vance Boelter with federal and state charges in connection to the shooting. He had a long list of intended targets, including some congressional leaders.

SEN. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN (D), MARYLAND: We do need to increase security. We had a Senate meeting, bipartisan Senate meeting just last week to discuss additional security measures.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): I'm Jenn Sullivan reporting.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

And we continue to follow breaking news out of the Middle East, where Israel and Iran are exchanging a new round of strikes today as the conflict extends into its second week. Overnight, Israel says it killed two Iranian commanders of an elite branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Israeli military also saying that two Iranian drones managed to penetrate Israel's air defenses, which they rarely do.

Officials say one struck this northern town near the Jordanian border. But so far, no casualties have been reported. They say the other landed in an open area in the south. And it comes as The New York Times is reporting today that Iran's supreme leader, the Ayatollah, has named three senior clerics as candidates to succeed him should he be killed.

President Trump says he will wait a maximum of two weeks for a possible diplomatic solution before deciding on U.S. involvement in the conflict. So far, diplomatic talks in Geneva and Turkey have yet to produce any breakthroughs. In Istanbul, Iran's foreign minister told reporters that if the U.S. gets involved in the conflict, it would be, quote, "very dangerous for everybody," end quote.

For the very latest, let's bring in CNN's Nic Robertson in Haifa, Israel, a town that has been hit hard in recent days by Iranian strikes. Nic, bring us up to speed on these latest developments.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, the idea says that they used 50 aircraft last night to target the Iranian nuclear facility in Isfahan. The IAEA, the International Atomic Energy Agency, says that a workshop at that facility, a uranium enrichment workshop, was damaged in that strike. And the three important military commanders, Iranian military commanders, that the IDF said that they were able to target through intelligence, one of them, they said, was involved in Hamas' October the 7th attacks. He had been on their target list for some time.

Another of those senior commanders in the Quds Force of the elite IRGC, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was involved, they say, the IDF says, with supplying weapons to Hezbollah in Lebanon. That's why he was on the target list. But it sends a very chilling message to other Iranian political and military figures that Israel has, it appears, accurate intelligence and precise ways of executing on that intelligence.

Today, across the country, apart from those two UAV impacts, has been relatively quiet, not so much yesterday, less about 24 hours ago. In this town, it had started quiet, but it didn't go that way.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

ROBERTSON: And we're going underground now.

LEONID REZNIK, HEAD OF EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS DEPT., HAIFA MUNICIPALITY: We're going underground.

ROBERTSON: Into this bunker.

REZNIK: It's -- exactly, it's a bomb shelter, bunker.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): It's Haifa's war room.

ROBERTSON: It's very quiet in here right now.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Almost 24 hours since the last missile strike.

REZNIK: We are trying to let the people at least to go to their houses to buy something and to be a little with their families.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): We don't know it then, but they'll soon be running back here. Haifa's missile response and resiliency in their hands.

Back out on the streets, people enjoying the lull until the sirens go off.

ROBERTSON: People are running for the shelters. The sirens have just gone off. It's the middle of the afternoon here and everyone's going to try and take shelter.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Iranian missiles have killed three people here in the last week.

ROBERTSON: We're just going to follow the people where they're going to a shelter.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): It's a desperate rush.

ROBERTSON: So we've followed everyone and this is where we've come to. It seems like it's an underground car park underneath a shopping mall.

[13:05:01]

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Life on hold. People with babies and pets waiting. Scouring their phones for news of what's happening above ground. A week of missile strikes taking its toll.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My first time here.

ROBERTSON: Really? Why now?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just couldn't stay at home anymore. I was too scared.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): And with good reason.

While we were underground, a missile struck about a mile away.

ROBERTSON: Just arriving on the site less than an hour after the blast, you can see here water pouring out. The damaged cars here as well. This is a scene at the aftermath of a strike here and it's looking at the damage. It's big. Just turning the camera over here.

You can see here the building has been blasted. Rubble everywhere.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Already the rescue teams coordinated by the war room on site. Sniffer dogs to locate those trapped in the rubble. Drones to scour the debris. Then the rescue teams looking for unexploded missiles.

The city's mayor who runs the war room, one of the first officials to arrive. Where is diplomacy not working fast enough?

ROBERTSON: President Trump waiting two weeks to make a decision. What do you think about that?

MAYOR YONA YAHAV, HAIFA ISRAEL: It's too much.

ROBERTSON: Why?

YAHAV: Because we have no time. You see what's going on in the middle of time.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): What -- there's more destruction.

YAHAV: They have to sit now and negotiate and design a treaty. It's not a big deal, and do it.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Israel's foreign minister next on the scene. For him, a deal with Iran nowhere near in sight.

ROBERTSON: And what's your understanding of the diplomatic talks between the Iranian foreign minister and the European foreign ministers in Geneva? Are they making progress? What is your assessment of what's happening there?

GIDEON SA'AR, ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER: Well, frankly, I was always skeptical with regard to diplomatic talks with the Iranians because they are misleading. And even until now, we hadn't heard anything from them, which hints they want to change direction.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): By morning, the roads here will be open again. The path to lasting peace still blocked.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

ROBERTSON: Yes, that path to lasting peace right now in Istanbul, not seeming to move along at all. The road outside the building that was struck yesterday, yes, that's open. But I think, you know, look, to give you a real sense of this place, this is a district I'm in now where you would expect it to be really busy on a Saturday evening. Lots of people out enjoying going to the cafes.

It's not that way. It's really quiet. It's empty. There are some people out. But I think that reflects more broadly the situation across the country.

People, you know, just are still anxious. They don't want to go out. They don't want to, you know, have a good time with their families at the weekend. They just want to stay close to the shelters. WHITFIELD: Sure. Still lots of uncertainty.

Nic Robertson, thanks so much.

As President Trump considers the possibility of the U.S. joining Israel's conflict with Iran, he and his Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, appear to be at odds over Iran's nuclear program. Back in March, Gabbard told Congress that Iran was not actively pursuing a nuclear weapon, an assessment Trump disagrees with.

Gabbard now says her congressional testimony on Iran intelligence has been taken out of context to sow division with Trump. And she insists that she and the president are on the same page.

CNN's Tom Foreman has more on the apparent disconnect in messaging.

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TULSI GABBARD, DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE: The IC continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and her boss, President Donald Trump, appear at odds over what she said in March about Iran's nuclear aspirations and what he is saying now.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My intelligence community is wrong. Who in the intelligence community said that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your Director Of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard.

TRUMP: She's wrong.

FOREMAN (voice-over): As Israel and Iran pound each other, sources tell CNN, the clash between Trump and Gabbard has been heating up.

GABBARD: I recently visited Hiroshima in Japan.

FOREMAN (voice-over): Ever since Gabbard went, quote, "off message" and released this video just last week, which some close to Trump saw as a swipe.

GABBARD: Political elite warmongers are carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tulsi Gabbard.

FOREMAN (voice-over): Back when Gabbard was a Democratic Congress member seeking her party's presidential nomination, she hammered Trump's ideas about U.S. relations with Iran.

GABBARD: He has not put the national security interests of our country first. FOREMAN (voice-over): But as a member of the military who had served in Iraq, she gradually warmed to his largely anti-interventionist message.

GABBARD: President Trump has pledged to end wars, not start them.

[13:10:11]

FOREMAN (voice-over): Late last year, she turned Republican and endorsed Trump. He picked her for his intelligence chief, despite questions about her dealings with the now deposed dictator of Syria. And all seemed fine.

TRUMP: Most of you know Tulsi, she's a fantastic woman.

FOREMAN (voice-over): But now, Gabbard is under scrutiny for the way she is handling her job, for spending too much time polishing her own public image, and for how she is dealing with Trump and Trump with her.

STEVE BANNON, FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE CHIEF STRATEGIST: Why was Tulsi Gabbard not invited to the Camp David meeting all day?

TUCKER CARLSON, FOX NEWS HOST: You know why.

FOREMAN (voice-over): National Guard commitments reportedly kept her away from a key meeting on the Mideast battles. But that did not keep big-name Trump supporters from asking if she's lost his confidence. Louisiana Senator John Kennedy reportedly said, "She obviously needs to change her meds."

And although U.S. intelligence has said Iran may yet be years from having a nuke, the White House is sending a much more alarming message.

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Iran has never been closer to obtaining a nuclear weapon.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

FOREMAN (on-camera): Gabbard insists the media is misreading her take on Iran. And there is no clash with Trump. The vice president has stepped up to defend her, too. But there are whispers swirling around her at the White House. And usually, that's not good news.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.

WHITFIELD: Coming up, jurors in the Sean Combs trial could get the case as early as next week. We'll have analysis on where the trial stands.

Also, pool safety. The CDC says approximately 4,000 Americans die in drownings each year. An Olympic gold medalist joins us to discuss how to stay safe this summer and why this, too, is her mission.

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WHITFIELD: All right, the jury in the Sean "Diddy" Combs racketeering and sex trafficking trial could begin deliberations as soon as next week. Prosecutors and defense attorneys are expected to wrap up their cases by Wednesday, potentially. And then closing statements could take place as soon as Thursday.

So the jury heard testimony from two witnesses on Friday as CNN's Kara Scannell reports from New York.

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sean "Diddy" Combs sex trafficking and racketeering trial is nearing a close after six weeks of testimony and nearly three dozen witnesses. Prosecutors could rest their case as soon as Monday. On Friday, prosecutors called their final witnesses, including Brendan Paul, who was one of Combs' former assistants. Paul was arrested for cocaine possession the same time that Combs was searched by federal authorities last year.

Now Paul said that he didn't tell law enforcement that the drugs belonged to Combs out of loyalty. He testified on Friday that he had bought drugs for Combs between five and 10 times, so that included ketamine, cocaine, ecstasy and marijuana. He also said that he was reimbursed by Combs' security guards. This all goes to the prosecution's charge of racketeering conspiracy.

Now Paul also testified that he helped set up for the hotel nights where the alleged sex trafficking took place and cleaned them up. But on cross-examination, he said he never saw anything inappropriate taking place.

Now, on Friday, the jury also heard from a law enforcement agent who served as a summary witness for the prosecution, all relating to the alleged sex trafficking of Combs' former girlfriend, who testified under the pseudonym Jane. The jury saw text messages from Combs where he was arranging for male escorts. They also saw some cash payments by the escorts.

Now, that agent is back on the witness stand on Monday. The defense team said that they expect to call just a handful of witnesses and that they could rest their case Tuesday or Wednesday. The judge said closing arguments could begin as soon as Thursday.

Kara Scannell, CNN, New York.

WHITFIELD: All right, it's all gone by pretty fast.

Joining me right now to discuss further is Court TV Anchor and Former Prosecutor Julie Grant. Julie, great to see you. So, has the prosecution done its job? Has it proven its case based on the charges that are being imposed on P. Diddy?

JULIE GRANT, COURT TV ANCHOR & FORMER PROSECUTOR: Fredricka, great to be with you. Thank you for having me.

As a former prosecutor, I say yes. But I'm speaking from my life experience, right? I can look at it analytically. I know the elements that they must prove. And if we're taking all of the witnesses at their word, believing what they're saying, everyone who's been an alleged victim, if we're taking all of them at their words and believing what they're giving us, then yes, they are in fact proving these charges.

However, not every juror comes in with the same life experience. And I can see how it would be very easy for someone on that jury to say, well, wait a second, show me this enterprise you're speaking about. Show me something where there's a business organization functioning in the carrying out of criminal activity.

WHITFIELD: Because that really is what's critical here for the prosecution.

GRANT: Correct. So that's the big charge, the number one, the racketeering conspiracy. And so below that, then there are two counts of sex trafficking, one that pertains to Cassie Ventura, one that pertains to Jane, Diddy's girlfriend up to present day, Fredricka. And then there are two counts of transportation to commit prostitution for respectively Cassie and Jane.

[13:20:01]

So if we look at those charges, I think without question, the government's proven the charges pertaining to Cassie. Jane's a little bit trickier because a lot of the testimony from Jane went both ways. And there are other witnesses who said that there was some seeming consent from her, that she was enjoying the lifestyle, that she was getting lots of money from him to live, that she didn't seem to be in distress when she was made to engage in those hotel nights, the king nights, the freak offs, whatever you want to call them.

WHITFIELD: So it's the willingness versus, you know, being forced to. I mean --

GRANT: Yes.

WHITFIELD: -- these are the arguments that, you know, at the crux there.

GRANT: Exactly.

WHITFIELD: So then there was Diddy's assistant, Brendan Paul, who, you know, in some circles, accusing him of being kind of like a drug mule, helping to provide, you know, drugs for Diddy for, you know, to prepare the evenings for these freak offs. But was his testimony either undermined? Was it solidified? You know what his role was? How did his testimony possibly advance the prosecution's case?

GRANT: Oh, Fredricka, I love that question. It went both ways. So in some ways, yes, it did advance it. So technically, he helped provide one of the predicate crimes that you and I have talked about before underneath the big racketeering conspiracy there have to be bad racketeering acts. These crimes, two of them in a 10-year period. Examples could be arson, Kid Cudi's car, kidnapping Capricorn Clark, Diddy's former assistant. Two instances of that, could be a number of things underneath the federal statute. Drug trafficking is another one of those things. So Brendan Paul talked about transporting drugs for Diddy. Even a small amount he got pinched with at the airport. It was less than a gram.

He took the felony for Diddy. It belonged to Diddy. And we're talking a very small amount. This isn't even a gram. It's not something that anyone would consider would be anything but personal use. But still, technically --

WHITFIELD: It's illegal.

GRANT: -- it's illegal, right. So he helped the government right there where he helped the defense. When criminal defense attorney Brian Steel got up and cross examined him, he said, I'm not a mule. And, by the way, I set up the hotel rooms for those King Knights, the freak offs. And I saw Jane going in and she didn't appear to be upset one bit. She seemed fine with it all. So right there, that could significantly undermine the government's case.

WHITFIELD: And it really is about persuading the jurors. So the prosecutors still have a couple more stabs to do that before, you know, closing statements. What does it need to do? Because the burden of proof is on the prosecution, even though the defense will begin its case as early as next week as well.

GRANT: You're exactly right, Fredricka. They need to help the jury see the criminal enterprise, because I think what many people are seeing when they look at this case, you see a real close up and personal look at Diddy's personal life. And we see the salacious details and people are stuck on the baby oil and the Astroglide and all of the other things that were found at his house and used in these hotel rooms.

And the government has to get the jury to look beyond the baby oil and very precisely go through the elements and say, this is not that hard, members of the jury. It is not that hard to prove the crimes that we've alleged. And so if you have someone like Sean Combs, who has this massive enterprise, who's doing business in interstate commerce, so we know he's crossing state lines with the various products that he sells.

And if he's using business employees to carry out various types of criminal activity, and there is a pattern potentially with the sex trafficking, that is, in fact, a violation of RICO. So they have to make the jury see it and not get so focused on the salaciousness of it.

WHITFIELD: And so I know you're coming from a prosecutor's head. If you are a juror right now and you're feeling this way, that it looks like the prosecutors really did kind of nail things. What do you need to hear from the defense as early as next week? I mean, clearly, P. Diddy is not going to be taking the stand. No attorney is going to advise to do that, even if he says he wants to do it. So how do you change the -- how do you influence the minds that may already be made up?

GRANT: Well, that's such a great question. By being honest. They need to concede all of the bad things and let the jury know they see what the jury is seeing. That he is a violent guy, that he was a very abusive boyfriend, that he did terrible things that put these women in a lot of mental anguish and distress.

The jury seen the text messages for themselves, so they can't run from it. And I think by conceding all of that and saying, yes, he did bad things and he's remorseful, regretful. This has been life changing and very embarrassing for him. I think they earn some points in trustworthiness with the jury if they do that, Fredricka.

And if they say, look, he wasn't running this enterprise to do crimes, there might have been some crimes that came, some random crimes, but not organized crimes, which is what the government must prove. I think they've got a good shot. I really do.

I think the defense is confident because these witnesses, not all of them have completely clean hands. It gets messy with some of them. And so --

WHITFIELD: Yes, a lot of credibility problems.

GRANT: Yes. Bingo.

[13:25:09]

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, we're going to find out in a matter of days, potentially --

GRANT: Yes.

WHITFIELD: -- or maybe even under two weeks --

GRANT: Right.

WHITFIELD: -- some real resolution to this case.

GRANT: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Possibly.

GRANT: Exactly. We could be on a verdict to watch this time next week, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Right. OK. We'll be talking to.

Julie Grant, good to see you.

GRANT: Great to see. Thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: Thank you so much.

All right, coming up, Trump's agenda bill set to go before the U.S. Senate next week. Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, who is running for New Mexico governor, joins us with dire warnings about potential health care cuts.

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[13:30:05]

WHITFIELD: After months of negotiations, Senate Republicans are finally gearing up for a vote on the president's so-called big, beautiful bill. Republican leader, John Thune, has predicted the Senate could begin consideration of Trump's sweeping domestic policy bill as early as the middle of next week. It's a tight window to get the negotiations buttoned up and the bill ready for the Senate floor.

Joining me right now is former Interior secretary and Democratic New Mexico Congresswoman Deb Haaland. She's also running for governor of New Mexico. Secretary, great to see you.

DEB HAALAND, FORMER INTERIOR SECRETARY: Nice to see you.

WHITFIELD: So one of the issues Senate Republicans still need to work out in the bill is in regards to Medicaid. A number of them have made clear that they could vote against the Senate bill if there aren't provisions to ensure rural hospitals are protected from some of the changes to Medicaid in the bill. You say this is a catastrophe waiting to happen. Why?

HAALAND: Indeed, it is. It could close 15 rural hospitals right here in New Mexico. And if anyone's been here, they know that New Mexico is largely a rural state. We have a -- you know, we have like three fairly large cities. Everyone lives, you know, most of our populations are in these rural communities. If -- if these hospitals close, they have to drive hundreds of miles to get the health care they need. And I think that would be a really devastating effect of this terrible bill that -- that we hope doesn't pass.

WHITFIELD: That number is significant. And put in another way, you know, the centers for Medicare and Medicaid services says 32 percent of people in your state are enrolled in Medicaid. And a group of Republican holdouts is saying they, too, are very concerned about this, led by Senator Susan Collins of Maine. They're pushing leadership to create a kind of stabilization fund that states could use. In your view, would that be an answer? Would that help?

HAALAND: So, you know, yanking Medicaid away from folks who are already, you know, struggling to make ends meet? It's just, you know, it's salt on the wound. And, I mean, I think we yes -- we have to protect Medicaid in every possible way. I wish that folks in, in -- in the White House would kind of see that, you know, they don't understand how most people live.

And here in my state of New Mexico, people struggling to make ends meet, the last thing they need is to be -- is to have their health care yanked away from them. Add on top of that, the fact that the White House has fired, you know, thousands of workers from the veterans hospital -- Veterans Administration. We're facing, you know budget cuts and program cuts and folks being fired right and left. It has had a really devastating effect on New Mexico. And this bill would -- would really devastate so many communities across my state.

WHITFIELD: These are all really big concerns. Medicaid, health care, veterans care. And now even the issue of immigration enforcement. You are a border state. We know that there have been operations in New Mexico. In your view, how are they being conducted?

HAALAND: So I'll say that when, you know, we heard several months back that there were federal agents in New Mexico actually questioning Native Americans about their citizenship status.

And -- and so I'll say that here in New Mexico, we all care about our communities. And it's difficult when you hear stories like that. Tribal nations having to send out alerts to their membership to let them know how to respond if they're targeted in that way. This is -- this is know instilling fear in people. It's no way to run a country.

And so I -- I -- I feel, you know, everybody deserves to be treated with dignity and respect and -- and as -- if I'm governor of New Mexico, of course, I'm going to stand up for every single community in my state.

And so I just want to make that clear. It's a difficult situation that has been made a lot worse by the actions of this president.

WHITFIELD: And if elected, you know, you would be the first Native American, woman, elected U.S. governor. You're running for governor for all New Mexicans. How do you plan on potentially bringing people together and helping to educate, as you just mentioned, you know, is a -- a big obstacle, an ignorance of a population and -- and how would you help you think, rectify or bring together people in very divided times?

[13:35:15]

HAALAND: Yes. We are living in divided times, but here in New Mexico we -- there's something unique. Every person in this state, were all proud New Mexicans. I -- you know, I'm a -- I started my political career organizing, going out to communities, registering them to vote, making sure they had opportunities to get to the ballot box. And I'm going to do the same thing here. I'm going to travel to every community in New Mexico, meet voters where they are. It's -- it's important for voters to see someone in person and to hear them in person. And I think that for, you know, yes, we lost 3 percent of our voters to this president in the last election. And I'm going to get those voters back.

I feel that, you know, we need to bring our communities together, have conversations about our future. Everybody deserves to have -- to feel the success that of New Mexico. And so I -- I am determined to ensure that every voter knows that I care about them, that every community knows that they have a part in building the future for New Mexico. And I'm really excited about our campaign. If folks want to join us, they can go to debhaaland.com.

WHITFIELD: All right. Secretary Deb Haaland joining us from New Mexico. Thank you so much. All right. Coming up she won gold and silver in the swimming pools at the Olympics, several Olympics. Now Simone Manuel is using her expertise in the water to protect children from a leading cause of death, drowning. She joins us live next.

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[13:41:38]

WHITFIELD: All right, it's officially summer and many of us will be cooling off in swimming pools, beaches and lakes. And it's also a time when water safety takes center stage.

A recent CDC study found that around 4,000 Americans die of drowning every year. For young children, the stakes are even higher. Drowning is the leading cause of death among children under four, and the second leading cause for people 5 to 14 years old.

Safety in and near the water is a year-round commitment for Olympic swimmer Simone Manuel. She won two gold, two silver medals in the 2016 Rio Games, and she took home a silver medal in the 2024 Paris Games, and she is still nonstop. In 2023, she launched the Simone Manuel Foundation, which is dedicated to increasing swim education and access among Black, indigenous and people of color, and she is with us right now. Great to see you. Congratulations on your so many accomplishments. But I want to know how gratifying this one is. Your foundation that is helping to get more children of color into the water safely.

SIMONE MANUEL, OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST, U.S. SWIMMING: Oh, this is right up at the top with my gold medal. It's so gratifying and satisfying to launch my foundation and truly help people learn how to save their lives. Swimming is a lifesaving skill, and just as you mentioned with those statistics, it's something that affects everyone. But so disproportionately affects the Black and Brown community. So to use my platform to hopefully save someone's life and then maybe give them the possibility of pursuing swimming as a passion is something that I'm so grateful for.

WHITFIELD: I mean, you exemplify so much, you know, in your -- your Olympic pursuits just being an elite athlete and being a model, you know, for so many young people on -- on so many levels, I wonder if there was kind of a -- if there's a way in which to, you know, zero in on a secret ingredient for you and your many successes in your upbringing. What distinguishes your success in your view?

MANUEL: Definitely my family support. That has been really huge for me, especially being in a sport where I am the minority. It really helps to have a great support system. But then on top of that, really just pursuing my passion. I think when you go for goals and dreams, sometimes you have doubts. Sometimes there's people that tell you that you can't do it. But if it's really important to you, it's important for you to protect it and to keep it and to harness the power that you have within to really pursue what is important to you.

WHITFIELD: And it seems like you are sending a message. Kind of a multifaceted message in -- through your foundation. Not only are you trying to help promote swimming, prevent drowning, help impress upon people this is a lifetime, you know, commitment and sport. Like you said, you're also, you know, a groundbreaker in so many levels. When you set out to put this foundation together, were you thinking about all of those many, you know, facets that you were tackling?

[13:45:05]

MANUEL: No. Honestly, the biggest one -- the biggest mission is to provide the lifesaving skill of swim lessons, to give BIPOC youth positive swim readiness experiences. I know that sometimes being in the pool space, it's not always positive. You are one of you. And so I want to create this community where people feel welcome, but also a place where they can learn to hopefully save their life.

And I think what comes from that is all the extra stuff that hopefully other people can accomplish and pursue once they learn how to swim. It can be an Olympic gold medal, it can be a college scholarship, it can just be having a better way of life. Being able to go to the pool and feel safe, being able to go to a water park or on vacation and feel more comfortable around the water.

WHITFIELD: What are you seeing in some of these kids? You know, whereas at first there is trepidation, maybe they don't even believe in themselves to be able to get into the pool and then suddenly you see this transformation. Describe what that's like for you.

MANUEL: It's -- it's life changing for me. It's so satisfying and gratifying just to be in that space and just see someone overcome their fears. It's a fear that a lot of people have. But just to overcome it, I think, is really special. And it kind of reminds me to continue to overcome the fears that I have. 28 years old, accomplished so much in the sport of swimming, but I still have fears myself. And sometimes you just have to dive in, put your head in the water, blow bubbles and try. And they are simply a reminder of what's the most important thing. And that is definitely saving your life. But more importantly, continuing to overcome your fears.

WHITFIELD: You talk about you too even have fears. It's hard to believe because you are just so amazing in the water and out. And -- and you know, just prior to, you know, the 2020 Games, we -- we really saw you reveal so much more about you or really just after that, you know, where you revealed so much more about some of the challenges that you, an elite swimmer, were also encountering and how it also showed you, you know, just how fearless you actually are with your diagnosis of overtraining syndrome? I think a lot of folks didn't know anything about that until hearing you talk about it.

And I wonder if you feel like the courage that it took for you to reveal that also helped empower a number of athletes to see that, you know, overtraining can, you know, mess with your physical game and your mental game. Is there a way in which you can kind of, you know, talk to me quickly about what that journey was like and how it is now fueling you for your next Olympic pursuit?

MANUEL: Yes, that journey was extremely difficult I -- I like to think that it helped other people. I did get messages from people who felt like they dealt with overtraining and wanted advice on how I was able to still make the Olympic team and how I continued to decide that I wanted to still pursue the sport of swimming beyond the Tokyo Olympics. But really, just through that experience, it just reminded me a lot about what was important to me and that was my goals.

But more than anything, it taught me lessons. And the biggest lesson is to give myself rest, to give myself grace. As a high achieving athlete, as a person who I like to think I'm a perfectionist, I always want to just be better and the best. But sometimes that can be self- depreciating. And so I'm really glad that I was able to overcome that experience. But more than anything, I'm so grateful for the lessons that I learned throughout it.

WHITFIELD: Incredible. And so grateful we all are that you're sharing those lessons to, you know, for elite athletes. And then, of course, for a lot of young people who are now getting into the pool for the first time, you're helping to empower them, to keep them safe around water and really make a significant contribution to helping to save lives. Simone Manuel, thank you so much for being with us.

MANUEL: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All the best to you. We continue to watch and cheer you on for your next pursuit.

MANUEL: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Coming up, Andrew Cuomo built up his image opposing Donald Trump. But new CNN reporting shows a different story of what these two men are like. They might be more alike than different.

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[13:54:25]

WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back.

Andrew Cuomo and Donald Trump, political nemeses, but some new reporting shows some commonalities. Senior CNN reporter Isaac Dovere is joining us now from Washington. Isaac, tell us what you've uncovered. The title of your new CNN article is "The Kings of Queens: Andrew Cuomo Seeks Restoration After Donald Trump Got His Own" Explain.

EDWARD-ISAAC DOVERE, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Well. Right, Fred. Look, Andrew Cuomo is running for mayor of New York City. Now he's trying to get a comeback after resigning as governor of New York just under four years ago.

[13:55:02]

And that is a continuation it might be of this intertwined relationship that he's had with Donald Trump over the years. Both of them from Queens. They both got their own distinctive twist on the Queens accent to prove it. And they are looking at each other all through the years. Coming up in politics as kind of rivals. People intersecting their lives in weird ways as I get into in the article. Trump recorded a video for Cuomo's bachelor party. Cuomo was at Trump's daughters wedding. It's -- it's a really intricate, involved thing.

And then when Trump was president the first time around and Cuomo was governor, they clashed in a bunch of different ways. And I got into three Oval Office meetings that they had over 2020. What happened behind the scenes and what happened behind the scenes when they were on the phone with each other? A lot of people may remember the dueling COVID briefings that they used to have in 2020.

But what part of what I reported in this article is how they were actually working together behind the scenes more and understanding each other in a way that made it work for both of them. A former aide to Cuomo said to me, they always did that charm dance with each other because they were Queens brawlers. Describing the way that they would actually talk to each other when the cameras were off.

And so by getting inside the Oval Office in these three meetings, I think, and a lot of people who were there and involved with it told me they think that could be what this relationship would be like if Cuomo is back as mayor, dealing with Trump again as president.

WHITFIELD: An interchangeable relationship that continues to evolve or continues to be and, you know everlasting.

(LAUGHTER)

DOVERE: Well, we'll see.

WHITFIELD: All right. OK. Isaac Dovere, thank you so much.

DOVERE: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: We'll be right back.

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