Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

U.S.-E.U. Trade Deal Sets U.S. Tariffs On E.U. Good At 15 Percent; GOP Lawmakers Split Amid Ongoing Jeffrey Epstein Controversy; Israel Pauses Operations In Some Parts Of Gaza As Outrage Grows; Couple Killed At Arkansas State Park; England Beats Spain To Win Woman's Euro Final. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired July 27, 2025 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:22]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jessica Dean here in New York.

President Trump is adding the European Union to his list of new trade deals being cut before the deadline that is headed our way on Friday. Today, Trump announced the outline of a trade agreement during a meeting with the leader of the E.U. in Scotland, calling it the biggest deal ever made. It includes a 15 percent tariff on all goods from the E.U., including automobiles. Now that's much lower than the 30 percent the president had originally threatened to impose, but higher than the 10 percent the E.U. was looking for.

Let's bring in CNN's Jeff Zeleny, who is live in Edinburgh, Scotland, with more details on all of this.

And Jeff, the president going to Scotland to play golf and visit his golf courses. But this a really meaty development that has happened while he's been abroad.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: It definitely was, Jessica. And it really averted what could have been a transatlantic trade war. The European Union member nations were preparing a retaliatory strike in terms of their trade against the U.S. The U.S., of course, on Friday was prepared to raise the tariffs to some 30 percent, which would have really damaged or perhaps decimated some businesses.

But all of that was averted with that meeting at the Trump Turnberry golf resort. Shortly after the president played a round of golf this morning, he met with the president of the European Commission, the governing body of the E.U., and they came to this agreement that really had been a sort of in the works for several weeks, some fine sticking points. But one thing that Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said, she said one of the reasons that they agreed to this deal was they needed certainty in the markets.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: It's a huge deal. It will bring stability. It will bring predictability. That's very important for our businesses on both sides of the Atlantic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: So basically, certainty in uncertain times. But the question is how this is going to be received domestically here in Europe. Of course, the European Union is a 27-member coalition. And already we are hearing reports of some individual nations not pleased by the fine print of this deal. So tomorrow there certainly will be more sort of introspection and analysis of this. But neither country have released the details of this.

So many questions remain. But one example, perhaps, is France. Perfume, for example. A lot of perfume comes from France. Now that would have a tariff rate of 15 percent paid by consumers, of course, so there's no doubt that it's a win politically, domestically, for President Trump. Less clear if it's so here in Europe.

DEAN: And Jeff, meantime, U.S. officials are set to meet with their Chinese counterparts for trade talks in Sweden tomorrow. What more do you know about that?

ZELENY: We do know that China, of course, is one of the countries that there have been an on again, off again trade war. There's been a truce since May, but that expires on August 12th. So the question tomorrow, when Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent meets with his Chinese counterparts in Stockholm, will there be an extension to that truce or will there be going back to the on again, off again, tit-for-tat trade war between Washington and Beijing?

That is very much an open question. But the deal today reached with the E.U. certainly sends a message out to all other countries who have not yet signed deals, that perhaps it's better to try and do so, rather than face the threat of what the Trump administration is proposing. But the meeting in Stockholm tomorrow, certainly as significant as the Beijing-Washington trade war is anything but completed -- Jessica.

DEAN: Certainly. And August 1st looms indeed. Jeff Zeleny in Scotland, thank you so much for that. And joining us now to talk more about this is the former U.S. ambassador to the E.U. during President Trump's first term in office, Gordon Sondland.

Mr. Ambassador, thank you so much for joining us this evening. We really appreciate it. I want to just get your initial thoughts first on this agreement announced today.

GORDON SONDLAND, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE E.U. UNDER PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, this is a monumental agreement, Jessica. And your colleague Harry Enten was talking about how Donald Trump's poll numbers are in the toilet or in the basement to paraphrase him. They shouldn't be. And this is a communications problem. When the American people know what Donald Trump has pulled off here, I think those numbers are going to change very quickly.

He's been contemplating this for 30 years, long before he ever dreamed about running for president. [19:05:04]

And he's finally taken the first step to balance the trade relationship between the U.S. and the E.U. and many presidents have tried, but they gave up. And he came at them with a two by four and got their attention. And now here's what you get.

DEAN: And so, Ambassador, help people who are watching understand why you think that he should be given this praise. I think if they hear what Jeff just laid out, for example, if you like perfume and it comes from France, there's now going to be a 15 percent tariff on that. What is kind of the corollary to that, in your mind, of why this is a good thing for Americans?

SONDLAND: Well, I think at a 15 percent tariff, it's enough to generate if everything that we imported for a 15 percent tariff, that would generate about $450 billion for the United States treasury, which would make an enormous dent in our annual deficit. At 15 percent I think consumers will initially pay but I also think that this will be baked into the profit margins or a reduction of the profit margins on a lot of these products because the market will start to pull prices back down again as there's more competition.

If the tariff were 30 percent or 40 percent or 50 percent, that would be an absolute shutdown. So that wouldn't work. But 10 percent to 15 percent, I think we can swallow it. And I think it's going to generate a tremendous amount of money if Congress doesn't piss it away on other things.

DEAN: There's also, look, as is often the case with this, this framework was agreed to, there are still a lot of questions about specific details. When Ursula von der Leyen goes back to the E.U. and now has to get all of these over two dozen nations in agreement here, how does that go in terms of how each country might be impacted by this?

SONDLAND: Well, that's the beauty of this deal. I don't think the countries that are not going to go along with this are going to have a choice, because they're between a rock and Donald Trump. What's going to happen is Ursula von der Leyen, who is exactly the right leader to make this deal happen on the E.U. side, because she doesn't take a lot of garbage from all of the whining and the back and forth, because, remember, in many events or in many cases, the E.U. needs unanimity in order to do something.

And any single one of the 27 members can say no. When you have something this critical at stake Ursula von der Leyen is going to stare down any sort of recalcitrant members and shove this thing through, and I think the whining will go away. I think this deal will close. And then I think President Trump will even come back for more access to the European markets once these terms of this deal settle in. So I don't think this is the last bite at the apple for the United States, but it's certainly a great start.

DEAN: And there is this $750 billion investment in U.S. energy that's part of this. Is that part of Europe's plan to wean itself away from Russian energy?

SONDLAND: Well, when I served as ambassador we were trying desperately to get Europe to abandon Nord Stream Two and buy energy from us. And, you know, back then, they were hooked on cheap Russian gas. They didn't think that Russia posed a threat to Europe. Look how a few years have changed things. So now they don't want to buy from Russia. They want to buy from the U.S.

This is something that is tailormade for this kind of a deal. And I think very soon you're going to see what's, you know, what's known as a transatlantic highway of LNG tankers going across the Atlantic to Portugal or to other ports and depositing, you know, large amounts of LNG. And we will become the dominant supplier to Europe, which is in Europe's benefit and it's in our benefit. And it really, really screws Russia, which is exactly the goal.

DEAN: And just more broadly, before I let you go, just zooming out just a little bit in terms of the relationship between the U.S. and the E.U. and Europe. Look, when President Trump came into office, there were a lot of questions. He'd been quite -- he'd slammed NATO. He'd said maybe he was going to get out. Since then, we've seen him -- he came back and said he'd had his mind changed on NATO when he went to the meeting. Now we see, obviously, this deal with the E.U.

How would you categorize the U.S. relationship with Europe right now?

SONDLAND: It's excellent. There's a lot of crocodile tears for the cameras, but at the end of the day, the E.U. knew they had to do something like this. They realized that now President Trump has the mandate to push it. He did not have the mandate in his first term because he was fighting a lot of impeachments and other things that didn't give him the, you know, the power to do what he's done now.

[19:10:09]

So I think all the whining and complaining is for public consumption. But at the end of the day, we're very close to the E.U. We do a lot of things together, both public and classified, and, you know, this is -- whatever, you know, sore feelings there are over this negotiation or small bump in the road, and now we can move forward. I think this is a tremendous day for the United States. And I have to credit President Trump.

DEAN: Also, lastly, before I let you go, we look ahead to tomorrow. U.S. and Chinese officials set to meet in Stockholm as they try to figure out, you know, more on this -- on this trade war that's been going back and forth. What are your thoughts on that? Do you think that this deal with the E.U. gives momentum to the U.S. going into those negotiations or those talks?

SONDLAND: Jessica, it gives a huge momentum. One by one, Donald Trump is nailing down other major trading partners and when it comes to China, that's going to be the biggest grand bargain. And the more deals we have with other countries, the more leverage it gives the president and his team, particularly Secretary Bessent, Trade Representative Greer, and Commerce Secretary Lutnick. We've got a formidable team. They're very, very smart people. And I

think the Chinese are going to come to the table and make a deal that benefits the United States.

DEAN: All right, Gordon Sondland, thanks for your time. We appreciate it.

SONDLAND: Thank you for having me.

DEAN: Coming up, Republican leaders on Capitol Hill looking to address the growing rift within the party over the Epstein case and what needs to happen next. Plus, Israel trying to blunt the impact of an escalating hunger crisis that has gripped Gaza by allowing more aid into the territory. This, as more Palestinians face the risk of starvation.

And Arkansas police launching an urgent manhunt after a suspected double homicide on a hiking trail that left the victims' two young children unhurt. Chilling details on that, straight ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:16:52]

DEAN: While President Donald Trump is in Scotland, thousands of miles away, back here at home, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson still trying to manage the political firestorm. The GOP is splintered over how the administration should handle documents related to the disgraced financier, with many prominent Republicans calling for all Epstein files to be released.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANU RAJU, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What do you think of the way that the White House has handled this Epstein matter, this sort of drip, drip, drip, rather than putting everything out?

SEN. KEVIN CRAMER (R-ND): I don't know, I'm kind of a rip the band-aid off sort of guy myself.

RAJU: Do you think the appearances that they're not releasing it because his name is on there, are you worried about that appearance?

CRAMER: Well, yes. I mean, I think that's a risk you run doing what they're doing. But I don't know everything that they may know.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): Release all the Epstein stuff.

RAJU: You think all of it? Justice Department should.

GRAHAM: Yes. Just, you know, release, release stuff. I want to protect victims, but be as transparent as you can with Epstein.

(END VIDEO CLIP) DEAN: CNN correspondent Julia Benbrook is joining us now.

Julia, what else are Republicans saying about this?

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, despite President Donald Trump's calls for his supporters to shift their focus elsewhere, the conversation surrounding the Epstein investigation continues and some of the largest calls for more transparency, more information are coming from the president's own MAGA base. But let's take a look back at the timeline, some of the comments made by members of the administration that have caused confusion.

Back in February, Attorney General Pam Bondi hyped up some soon-to-be released documents and even suggested she had these so-called client list sitting on her desk for review. Then, a couple of months later, Trump himself was asked about when the Epstein files would be released, and he said this. He said 100 percent of all of these documents are being delivered. New reporting shows that sometime in May, Bondi did inform Trump that his name appears in documents related to Epstein.

It's important to point out that does not mean that there's evidence of wrongdoing, or that Trump had any knowledge of Epstein's criminal activities. But fast forward to July. That's when the Department of Justice released an unsigned memo announcing it had not found a so- called client lists, and it would not be releasing more documents. This creates a delicate situation for Republicans, and in those sound bites that you played leading into this, you see that each of them are navigating it a little bit differently.

GOP Congressman Eric Burlison of Missouri, he spoke with CNN's Manu Raju earlier today. He's a member of the House Oversight Committee and has called for more documents to be released. He said that he believes it was a political mistake to hype up and really raise expectations when it comes to new findings. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ERIC BURLISON, (R-MO): Part of this problem is that there were some false expectations that are created and that's a political mistake. I think that, you know, saying that you're going to be able to deliver when you -- when you haven't even looked at all of the files and what's available was probably a misstep.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[19:20:05]

BENBROOK: Now, before House members went home for August recess, we did see some movement when it comes to these calls for more information. A House Oversight Subcommittee voted to subpoena the Department of Justice for more documents related to Epstein. House Oversight Committee chairman James Comer has told reporters that members of his committee have been very interested in this topic in recent weeks. It's still up in the air when he will sign off on that subpoena. A

member of his team tells me that we should expect it in the near future -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right. Julia, thank you for all that reporting.

And here to break this all down is Republican strategist and CNN political commentator, Shermichael Singleton and Democratic strategist and CNN political commentator Karen Finney.

Good to see both of you on this Sunday evening.

Shermichael, I want to start first with you.

Good to see you.

DEAN: I want to play a clip from Congressman Thomas Massie about what he said on this bipartisan push to release the Epstein files. This is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. THOMAS MASSIE (R-KY): He talks about political pain for Republicans, as if by invoking transparency and inflicting pain that should be very telling. What is painful about having this vote? I'll tell you what's politically going to be a liability is if we don't vote on this and we go into the midterms and everybody becomes, you know, they just check out because Republicans didn't keep their promise and Donald Trump. We'll lose the majority.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Shermichael, look, the midterms are a bit away. Life is long. But what do you think about what Thomas Massie is saying there? Could this spill out and be a liability for Republicans going into these midterms?

SHERMICHAEL SINGLETON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Absolutely not. With all due respect to Congressman Massie, I think if Republicans should be worried about anything as it pertains to midterms, it should be what's the state of the economy by next year? What's the state of the cost of everyday goods? Can the average American put gas in their tank? What about paying for rent or paying their mortgage, or buying a home? If you're a younger person or a Gen Z at that point, recently graduating from college, those are the more tangible things that I think Republicans absolutely have to deliver on.

Now to President Trump's credit, immigration, he's delivered on for the most part. You've seen some pretty interesting broker deals with Rwanda and DRC. We're trying to figure things out with Israel and Hamas. The European Union, you were just talking about this in your previous segment. The announcement of a deal. We'll see what the specifics are. Those are things to run on. Hopefully those things will broker a more stable economy.

I believe that the Fed chair will look at some of these deals and say, you know what, maybe it is time to lower rates if we can see predictability and stability within the market. Those are things to run on. Will the average voter, independent voters or even Republicans care next year about Epstein and compared to those kitchen table issues? I highly doubt it.

DEAN: Well, Karen, what do you think?

KAREN FINNEY, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, having done this for, you know, over 30 years, let me tell you, I think there's a couple of problems. If you -- you were talking earlier in this hour about the latest Gallup poll that showed how far behind Donald Trump is with independents. Those are critical voters in a midterm election. And if you look at that poll, he's down across the board from immigration to handling the economy to direction of the country to how he's handling his job.

And when it comes to the Epstein files situation, this is a crisis that he completely made on his own, right? And his administration has completely botched it. And part of that, I think, is because the president himself, you can see him trying to do what he always does. But here's the fundamental problem. He made a promise and that promise is now broken. And fundamentally, what this issue is about, are you on the side of the powerful or are you on the side of the vulnerable?

It's a lot like the Catholic Church. As a Catholic, it feels to me a lot like the Catholic Church scandal, where, you know, horrible atrocities were committed against young children and the institution protected itself. And one of the things that we know, certainly in crisis communications, is that, you know, he has broken faith with his people. And this is a real crisis for the White House.

DEAN: But Karen -- and Karen, we'll put that to the side. And you are absolutely right about his numbers with independents. Harry also talked about Democrats' numbers with independents being at a bottomed out. I think he said 19 percent. So what do Democrats do to convince those independent voters to come their way?

FINNEY: Well, I think one of the things -- certainly one of things I've been talking to Democrats about doing is, you know, it's not -- the Democratic Party is not just the inside the beltway, you know, Democrats. It's about our governors. It's about our attorneys general. It's about our state legislatures.

[19:25:03]

And there Democrats have won every special election since November 2024. And our Democratic governors are -- and our state legislators, they are running, winning and governing on our values and our progressive agenda. So I think, you know, part of it is I think there's a thing -- some things that are Democrats in Washington could learn from folks outside the beltway who are having to talk with voters every day.

DEAN: And, and Shermichael, while all of this is swirling, there's -- going back to Epstein for a second, there has been this talk about whether Ghislaine Maxwell is trying to get a pardon. This is what House Speaker Mike Johnson said about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): I think 20 years was a pittance. I think she should have a life sentence at least. I mean, think of all these unspeakable crimes. And as you noted earlier, probably a thousand victims. I mean, you know, this is -- it's hard to put into words how evil this was and that she orchestrated it and was a big part of it. At least under the criminal sanction, I think is an unforgivable thing. So, again, not my decision. But I have great pause about that as any reasonable person would.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: And Shermichael, the president didn't rule it out. He didn't say no, but he has certainly not said yes. He said it's something he's -- you know, hadn't thought about but he could do it if he -- he had the ability to do it. What do you think the speaker's statement says about how they're trying to thread this needle?

SINGLETON: Yes, it says what he said, I think, Jessica, which is hell no, this woman should not ever get a pardon. I mean, as someone who's a new father of a daughter and Karen has met my daughter.

DEAN: Congrats, by the way.

SINGLETON: Thank you. There is no way in the world I would ever advocate for someone like this getting a -- even being considered for any type of a pardon or commutation or anything of the sort should absolutely be ruled out. And so I think Speaker Johnson's words speak for themselves. Hell no, she should not get a pardon. It should not be under consideration under any circumstances whatsoever.

And to Karen's point about people wanting transparency on this, look, I agree. Republicans should, as many are asking for, just let the names go out there. Let the chips fall wherever they may so that the party writ large can move on and focus on some of those more tangible things. Victories, I would argue, Karen may disagree with me, that Republicans can run on in midterms next year. Pardoning Ghislaine Maxwell should not even be a part of the equation at all. Absolutely not.

DEAN: And Karen, just -- I'll give you the final, go ahead. Your final thought on that.

FINNEY: Well, I think on this, we agree. I mean, I think anyone who is involved in these kinds of crimes against, remember, these were children. Some of these young women were 12 and 14. You know, let's lock them away, throw away the key. But again, I think the challenge for the White House is that this is not going away. What are we now? Almost in week three. And Donald Trump has been doing all of the classic things deny, deny, deny.

You were just showing the timeline. We know he was told he was in the files. He says no, you know, and now he's sort of throwing out all kinds of, you know, he's attacking Obama, he's attacking Hillary. And I just don't -- even, you know, the conservative right-wing media are saying, what are you doing? Just keep your promise. And, you know, so I do think this is going to continue to be a problem for Republicans back, you know, when they come back in September, this is not going away anytime soon.

DEAN: All right, Karen and Shermichael, our thanks to both of you. Have a great Sunday night. Thanks for being here.

FINNEY: Thanks.

SINGLETON: Thank you. You too, and good to see you.

DEAN: You too.

Still ahead. How Israel appears to be loosening its grip on aid to Gaza, slowly allowing food to go into the territory amid a starvation crisis.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:33:08]

DEAN: Aid is moving into Gaza as Israel today paused fighting in three regions but apparently it is just a drop in the bucket of what is needed. The Palestinian Ministry of Health saying another six people died of starvation in the last day. And today, President Trump said the U.S. will provide more aid to Gaza.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Israel is going to have to make a decision. I know what I'd do, but I don't think it's appropriate that I say, but Israel is going to have to make a decision.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: CNN's Nic Robertson has more now from Jerusalem -- Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: It's not really clear if President Trump there is pushing Prime Minister Netanyahu to make a deal or do what the President said a couple of days ago, which is go in and finish it off.

But for right now, the aid is beginning to flow a little more freely than it was. Jordanian and Emirati aircraft dropped 25 tons of food and humanitarian supplies, airdropped it into Gaza today. A hundred trucks were on the move from Egypt, with 840 tons of flour, 60 trucks on the move from Jordan, all headed for Gaza for these new humanitarian corridors that the IDF is putting in place and those tactical pauses.

Now, the IDF says that they're still fighting Gaza, that are still fighting Hamas, that Gaza is still an active conflict zone. But these temporary tactical pauses of six to eight, to ten hours in certain areas are designed to allow the U.N. and other organizations to get those aid trucks in safely and disburse the aid. And this really looks like something of a climb down by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to allow this greater amount of aid coming in. And he's taking a lot of heat for it politically from ministers in his own government who are saying the only thing we should be sending into Gaza right now is bombs.

So, the Prime Minister does seem to have walked back from a very tough position. That said, he is saying that it's the U.N. that's been lying about the aid situation, that it's Hamas' responsible for the shortages of food, and that Israel is doing nothing more, nothing different than what it's been doing over the recent months that these aid corridors, if you will, have always been available to the U.N. That doesn't seem to correlate with what the U.N. understands. But bottom line, it does appear to mean that more aid will get in for how long, it's not clear.

[19:35:36]

DEAN: All right, Nic Robertson there in Jerusalem, thanks so much.

People in Gaza are getting increasingly desperate with hunger driving some fishermen to risk their lives for the chance of food. And CNN's Jeremy Diamond has this story for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The sea once fed Gaza's children shut out from the world under an 18-year Israeli blockade. Now, this is what's left after a lifeline became a kill zone.

(FAYZA speaking in foreign language.)

TRANSLATION: We have nothing to eat so we come. I wait for the fisherman to come out of the sea and give me some.

DIAMOND (voice over): What once provided relief, now stokes fear. Israel reissued a warning last week prohibiting anyone from entering the sea but hunger brings them back. Seen from the water, Gaza skyline tells its own story. A jagged line of tents and shattered buildings. Destruction is always present, even at a distance.

(AWAL AL AMOUDI speaking in foreign language.)

TRANSLATION: It is true that planes come and shoot at us. They do everything. But we have to go to the sea.

If a day passes without going to the sea, we will die of hunger. I know it is forbidden, but I have to.

(ZIYAD ABU AMIRA speaking in foreign language.)

TRANSLATION: We don't have any other source of food but this one. If I don't bring it to my children today, I die. I have no other place to get food from.

I will not run after trucks. This is my way.

(HUSSAM SAADALLA speaking in foreign language.)

TRANSLATION: I am throwing the net because we want to eat. Me and my friend made this net to catch fish and eat.

This is what I fished.

I'm always afraid of the naval boats. If we come a bit deeper, the naval ships shoot.

DIAMOND (voice over): They have reason to be scared. This video posted on social media shows what can happen to those who wade too far out.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)

TRANSLATION: The (Israelis) took them. They took them.

DIAMOND: In this video, filmed by a cameraman working for CNN shows Israeli projectiles striking close to shore. The Israeli military has not responded to CNN's requests for comment on these incidents.

(AWAL AL AMOUDI speaking in foreign language.)

TRANSLATION: I have friends who got martyred. Others got injured.

Me, as a fisherman, I'm waiting for my death. But what can I do?

DIAMOND (voice over): Once a source of life, the sea now full of deadly risk. Cut off, patrolled and punished by blockade.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: All right, Jeremy Diamond, thank you for that.

Still ahead here, two people are dead after Arkansas Police say someone attacked a family hiking on a popular trail. We'll have new details tonight on the manhunt going on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:43:33]

DEAN: A manhunt is underway in Arkansas, searching for a suspect after a couple was killed while hiking with their young children. The mother and father being found dead. The seven and nine year-old are said to be unharmed. This happened in Arkansas at Devil's Den State Park, a very popular destination for families, especially in the summer.

Police say they are looking for a White man in connection with what appears to be this double homicide. They believe he may have driven on highways near the park. They also know that he covered his license plate in tape, they say. Let's bring in senior national security analyst Juliette Kayyem to talk more about this.

Juliette, just the details, and we don't know a ton, but just the idea that this family was hiking and was attacked in a state park. This is really -- you don't hear this much.

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: That's exactly right. It's an odd, There's attention here, which is, we think it happens a lot. Because it happens a lot in movies and it, you know, people -- this is the thing of scary books, right? That you're sort of taking a beautiful day with your family and then someone comes and kills you.

This is very rare, and what's even odder and rarer about it is, of course, the two girls survived. We don't know the nature of the interaction but someone, this suspect appears to have entered the park area, which is very, very crowded at this time of the year and knew that he was going to do something bad.

And what we don't know in terms of covering up his license plate, trying to get out. What we don't know is if whether he knew the victims or not, that's going to be the focus of this manhunt.

[19:45:20]

DEAN: Certainly, and that will probably play a big role in all of this. You and I talk frequently when there are manhunts going on, just about the challenges of what that is like, walk people through, remind them what authorities are up against when you're trying to search for somebody like this.

KAYYEM: So, it's good news and bad news in remote areas like this, because at least what we're hearing so far is there is a car. They know what the car is. He has an identification. A White male medium build. That defines a lot of people but presumably there are some eyewitnesses who may have seen someone in the car. We also don't know what the daughter saw, so that may be helpful in terms of eyewitnesses.

And so -- and because it is remote, there's not that many cars on the highway. So, they might be able to identify either when the car left and also whether he abandoned it.

The challenging part, of course, is this is in a remote area of Arkansas. If he knew that he was going to hide out for some period of time, he might be prepared to have abandoned the car and hide. That's a piece we don't know, so the fact that its remote doesn't always mean that it's hard because of the limited number of roads in and out and because of various surveillance aspects at the park. We know that there's a park facility. We know that there's campgrounds. There's also cabins, sort of motel like facilities there. So, there's a lot of activity there and people may have seen things.

DEAN: And Juliet, this idea that this piece of information that we do have, this covering of the license plate. What does that suggest to you?

KAYYEM: So, I am just going to tell you what it would suggest to law enforcement, because we don't know enough yet. It either means that there is a relationship between the killer or the suspect and the mother and father. It means someone knew where they were going to be that day and knew he was going to do something violent, and therefore wanted to cover his tracks. We don't know this for sure, but this would be what any rational investigation would pursue.

Were there people that were threatening the couple and or people in the past that that they should be investigating the other, which is just as likely at this stage, is, of course, someone of ill-intent and criminal intent and horror decides to -- that this is the day that he is going to do something absolutely horrific, which has killed the parents with the with the daughters presumably close by and that would be a much harder investigation.

But I will tell you now, the investigation is focused on circles around the victims as much as it is on the manhunt, because both are potential scenarios at this stage.

DEAN: And yes, and your heart just breaks for those two little girls. Juliette Kayyem, thank you so much. We really appreciate it.

KAYYEM: They are, I should say they are with family members. So, that is good, I mean, yes.

DEAN: That is -- thank you, Juliette, we'll have more news when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:53:05]

DEAN: A spectacular finish on two of the world's biggest sports stages today from England's heart thumping win over Spain to a demanding and potentially treacherous final in Paris at the Tour de France. CNN's Patrick Snell joins us with more on this memorable day.

PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Well, scenes of joy in Switzerland, where England is celebrating victory in the Women's European Football Championships after beating world champs Spain in an absolutely thrilling contest that would ultimately be decided by one of those nerve jangling penalty shootouts.

A blockbuster clash between these two superpowers of the modern game, as the Lionesses, the defending European champs, look for revenge against their great rivals following that 2023 World Cup Final defeat in Sydney.

Twenty-five minutes in and it's La Roja ahead and it's the header from Mariona Caldentey really powerful header for the opening goal of the match. The world champions take the lead, but the spirit of the Lionesses should never, ever be doubted and early in the second half, England would draw level as Chloe Kelly delivers for Alessia Russo and it's another outstanding header that powers its way into the back of the net for one-all the teams couldn't be separated.

It goes to the penalty shootout, England's hero, their goalie Hannah Hampton, who made not one but two vital saves to shatter Spain's hearts and hopes. First, she denies Caldentey and then there was more to come from her. A terrific stop to keep Aitana Bonmati's well-struck penalty out. It's a great save as tensions really start to rise now, big time.

And so, it comes down to England's Chloe Kelly to win it and she makes no mistake, smashes the ball into the back of the net. She got the winner three years ago as well against Germany. And now, she's making history again. England win the shootout three-one. The Lionesses, champions of Europe again and just look what it means to their players. Scenes of joy. That the trophy lift -- this group of players rewriting the history books. They're also the first English team ever to win a major tournament on foreign soil. Let's hear now from a couple of their all-conquering stars.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHLOE KELLY, ENGLAND FORWARD: I'm so proud, so proud, in this team. So grateful to wear this badge. And I'm so proud to be English.

HANNAH HAMPTON, ENGLAND GOALKEEPER: This team is just unbelievable, incredible. We've shown throughout this tournament that we can come back when we go a goal down and we have that grit. We've got English blood in us, so we never die and we just keep going and we did that today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[19:55:33]

SNELL: And a champion is crowned at the toughest test in cycling. The famed Tour de France and an all too familiar name it is, as well. The reigning champion from Slovenia, Tadej Pogacar had a lead of over four minutes going into the final day on Sunday, but he wanted a moment to savor along the ceremonial finish into the heart of the French Capital but the Montmartre Circuit produced high drama with Van Aert denying the Slovenian victory on the final stage. As the Belgian increased his lead over the last few kilometers to seal the win on the famed Champs- Elysees.

It was an epic duel between the pair amid wet, soggy conditions, but nothing would deny Pogacar his fourth Tour de France title. What an achievement. And keep in mind he's still just 26 years of age and our congratulations to him. More history made by him and on that note, it's right back to you.

DEAN: Patrick Snell, thanks so much. The U.S. and the European union will avoid a costly trade war thanks to a new agreement inked just a few hours ago. How the Trump administration ended months of tension and threats with America's largest trading partner.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:00:00]