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U.S.-Iran Nuclear Talks to Continue Next Week; Hillary Clinton Calls Out House Oversight Committee on Not Making the Hearing Public. Aired 3-3:45a ET

Aired February 27, 2026 - 03:00   ET

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

[02:59:54]

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to all of you watching us around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is "CNN Newsroom."

[03:00:03]

The U.S. and Iran are set to have more nuclear talks next week, even as a source tells us that President Trump has been briefed on possible military options.

Afghanistan and Pakistan are trading cross-border attacks, putting a fragile ceasefire in danger of collapse.

And former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton testifies on what she calls the lack of connections to Jeffrey Epstein. She criticized Republicans in Congress for not making the hearing public.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Kim Brunhuber.

BRUNHUBER: We begin in Washington, where a source tells CNN that U.S. President Donald Trump has been briefed on potential military operations in Iran over its nuclear program. The commander of U.S. Central Command met with the President on Thursday.

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs was also in attendance. The U.S. and Iran are set to continue nuclear talks in Vienna next week. They wrapped up discussions in Geneva on Thursday with signs of progress, but no major breakthrough.

The Iranian foreign minister says the two sides identified the main elements of a potential agreement, though differences remain. More U.S. military forces are en route to the region.

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance told The Washington Post on Thursday there's no chance the U.S. will become involved in a years-long war in the Middle East. CNN's Kristen Holmes is in Washington with the latest on the nuclear talks with Iran.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, both U.S. and Iranian officials are signaling some kind of progress when it comes to those talks today in Geneva. We know that Steve Witkoff, the Middle Eastern envoy, had direct talks with the Iranian foreign minister. U.S. officials say, again, that there was some positivity, some movement in the right direction, but still there was no deal made.

Now, this is really largely viewed as the last chance at diplomacy before President Trump decides to potentially strike in Iran. Now, one thing to keep noting is that we have talked to a number of U.S. officials and White House officials who say that President Trump is fixated and focused on a diplomatic approach. But, of course, we know that that won't stop him from issuing those strikes if a deal can't be reached.

So, we'll be watching very closely to see what happens next. I do want to note one thing, which is that we have learned that the mediators have arranged for further technical discussions between the two sides next week. We don't have details on what exactly that means.

I also want to tell you exactly what it was that the Iranians said. They said they have elements of an agreement. We still do not have more details from the U.S. side of things.

Kristen Holmes, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: And last hour, I spoke with Maha Yahya, she's the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center. I asked her what she makes of the current state of the nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAHA YAHYA, DIRECTOR, CARNEGIE MIDDLE EAST CENTER: It's a step in the right direction. Everybody was gearing up for war breaking out over the weekend.

The U.S. embassy evacuated some of its non-essential staff and their families from Beirut. So from where we're sitting, the tension has been really high.

So it is a step in the right direction. My understanding is there's going to be even some technical talks in Vienna, probably Monday between U.S. and Iranian teams, and then Geneva also towards the end of next week.

So we'll see where this goes. I'm not a betting person, but all the indications so far point more to a military confrontation than a negotiated settlement and if there's going to be some sort of negotiated settlement, it'll be something, I think, short-term. Both positions, both parties are starting from a position of deep mistrust.

The bottom line of what the Americans are willing to accept doesn't anywhere meet what the Iranians are willing to offer. But there is room for maneuver. For example, the Iranians would like to see full sanctions relief,

economic sanctions relief. They're offering the U.S. investments in its oil sector, but also in its critical mineral sector, which we know is quite important to President Trump.

But the U.S. is saying, no, we're not ready to go down that road yet. We'll look at U.N. sanctions, for example.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: We're following a developing story in South Asia, where forces from Afghanistan and Pakistan are trading cross-border attacks.

Video from Afghan forces released Thursday shows military vehicles on the move with the sound of heavy gunfire in the background. A fragile ceasefire has been in place between the neighboring countries since October until last weekend.

I want to bring in CNN's senior international correspondent, Ivan Watson, following the story live from Hong Kong. So Ivan, take us through where things stand. What brought us to this point, and whether this has the potential to escalate even further?

[03:05:02]

IVAN WATSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the trends are all going in a bad direction right now, Kim. You've had another round of deadly fighting across borders between these two neighbors.

The Afghan government, that's the Taliban government, it announced that it was carrying out a series of raids across the border on Thursday night into Pakistan along the Durand Line. That's the 1600- mile, around 2600-kilometer-long, mountainous, rugged border between these two countries.

And then Pakistan said on Friday that it was striking back, and the Taliban government in Afghanistan says that there were airstrikes in Kandahar, in Paktia province, and in the capital of Kabul as well. And you're looking at footage that the Pakistani government actually put out of some of these purported airstrikes. Both sides claim, and we can't confirm any of this, that they have killed scores of soldiers.

The Pakistanis, for instance, they say that they targeted an Afghan Taliban battalion headquarters, a sector headquarters, an ammunition depot. They're hitting the Afghan military, in their own words. There are also unconfirmed reports of civilians being wounded in this.

Now, I find this very striking, because for decades I heard critics accuse the Pakistani government of supporting the Taliban in Afghanistan, when the Taliban was an insurgent force fighting against the now-defeated U.S.-backed government in Afghanistan.

And when I sat down with Pakistan's defense minister back in November, I asked him about this. This issue came up, and listen to how he dealt with it. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON: But are some of the Taliban officials that have been fighting with Pakistan, some of the same people who used to live and take shelter here?

KHAWAJA MUHAMMAD ASIF, PAKISTANI DEFENSE MINISTER: Yes, yes. That's correct, you know. They still have properties over here.

WATSON: Is that the definition of blowback?

ASIF: Yes, I think so. I think so.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON: So a remarkable reversal here.

That same official has gone on social media in the last 24 hours and basically said that this is now open war between you, the Afghan Taliban, and us. Part of the anger here, coming from Pakistan, is that Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of supporting the Pakistani Taliban, which has been waging an increasingly deadly insurgency inside Pakistan that has claimed more and more lives with every passing year.

And that is something that the Afghan Taliban denies. But this is not going in a good direction. Trade has been frozen across these borders, travel has largely been frozen, whereas you had refugees on both sides of the border for a long time.

And the ceasefire that was brokered back in October barely seems to be standing anymore.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, I thought it was interesting he was laughing at your question about blowback back then. Not sure he'll be laughing about that now.

Ivan Watson, live in Hong Kong. Thank you so much. I appreciate that.

The war in Ukraine drags on as negotiators push for peace in Geneva. When we return, what we're learning about post-talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the U.S. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: The Green Party in the United Kingdom has made history. Voters have chosen its candidate, Hannah Spencer, to fill a vacant parliamentary seat. It's the first time the Greens have won a one-off election for a seat in Parliament in the north of England.

The win is an embarrassing defeat for Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his Labor Party. Their candidate came in third place, even though it was considered one of the Labor Party's safest seats. Labor has dominated the Greater Manchester area for almost a century.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the next round of peace talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the U.S. is expected to take place next month in Abu Dhabi. That comes after Kyiv's delegation met with top U.S. officials Thursday in Geneva to discuss a prosperity package for the reconstruction of Ukraine.

Russian state media report that the U.S. also held talks with Moscow's special envoy in Geneva. Zelenskyy says Russia is showing no signs of ending the war. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The recipe for this is well known all over the world. Russia will be itself stopping the war of its own accord when the world will definitively stop Russian oil and other Russian energy supplies and Russian banks. This is totally feasible, global sanctions must achieve this real enduring peace.

It goes without saying we are discussing with America and with Europe every avenue to put pressure, diplomacy, frameworks, which can, which really should work. It is very important that partners continue to have resolve. Today I gave new instructions to the team outlining our next goals.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: A U.S. official tells CNN that a U.S. citizen was among four people killed Wednesday in what has been described as a shootout between Cuban forces and a speedboat in Cuba's territorial waters. A U.S. official said a second U.S. citizen was wounded and is now receiving medical treatment in Cuba. Havana insists the boat's passengers were trying to infiltrate the island.

CNN's Stefano Pozzebon has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Still so many questions surrounding Wednesday's incident of the coast of Cuba.

[03:15:00]

What the government in Havana is saying is that an armed group, ten people in total, tried to, quote, "infiltrate the island nation with a speedboat here." This area is called Falcones Cay and it's just over 100 miles from the coast of Florida. Cuban authorities say when they approached the U.S.-registered speedboat, one of the passengers fired at them and Cuban forces retaliated.

Four of the speedboat passengers were killed and the remaining six were wounded. Cuba says they are currently in custody and receiving treatment. An investigation is ongoing, but the country's interior ministry has been quick to brown the group as terrorists. UNKNOWN (through translator): According to preliminary statements from those detained, they intended to carry out an infiltration for terrorist purposes.

POZZEBON: Cuba says it arrested an 11th man. They said he flew in from the U.S. to, quote, "guarantee the reception of the armed infiltration."

Now, Washington says whatever this was, it was not a U.S. operation. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also seemingly skeptical of Havana's version of events.

MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: It's not something that happens every day. It's something, frankly, that hasn't happened with Cuba in a very long time.

But we're going to find out. We're not going to base our conclusions on what they've told us. And I'm very confident that we will know the full story of what happened here.

POZZEBON: The shootout happens as the U.S. is ramping up pressure on Cuba, the island nation facing severe shortages of basic food items, but also fuel. And that's because Washington has blocked virtually all oil shipments to the country since it captured Venezuelan leader and Cuban ally Nicolas Maduro in January.

The U.S. stricter stance, part of a more ambitious goal for the country.

RUBIO: Cuba's status quo is unacceptable. Cuba needs to change.

POZZEBON: As Cuba and the U.S. both carry out their investigations, more details of this incident should be made public soon, with tensions seemingly destined to rise even further.

For CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Bogota.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: And joining me now is Christopher Sabatini, who's a senior fellow for Latin America at Chatham House in London. Good to see you again. Thanks so much for being here with us.

CHRISTOPHER SABATINI, SR. FELLOW FOR LATIN AMERICA, CHATHAM HOUSE: Thanks, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: We heard Cuba, they're calling these people terrorists. The U.S. seems skeptical of Havana's version of events. From what you know so far, which account seems more credible to you?

SABATINI: Well, terrorists is probably a stretch, but it is hard to believe, as some people have been claiming that this boat was just patrolling the waters to basically pick up refugees and maybe even rescue a few of their family members from Cuba. They were armed. We know that. Maybe not with all of the weapons that the Cuban government is

claiming. And they were in territorial waters. And quite frankly, the boat itself was already jam-packed with the 10 people that were on it.

It probably couldn't have held any more. So we were looking more at perhaps a rogue group of Cubans in Florida who were trying to take matters in their own hands and trying to accelerate what they hope is a regime change in Cuba.

BRUNHUBER: Interesting. So on that, I mean, what does that then tell you about the state of sort of the anti-government activism that's going on right now in Cuba and here in the U.S.?

SABATINI: Well, inside Cuba, there isn't much activism.

First of all, because most Cubans are just struggling to survive, 40 percent of Cubans right now are in extreme poverty. Malnutrition is rampant, there aren't even any cars, many cars or buses on the streets right now because of the lack of gasoline.

So that revolution, if you will, is not going to come from the base in Cuba. We'll have to see what the Cuban regime, which has always been stridently resistant to any form of intervention or negotiations with the U.S. that would force it to cede power.

And then, of course, across the Florida Straits, you've always had a large Cuban-American diaspora. The vast majority of them are peaceful and hoping for democratic change. There always are a few, if you will, sort of fringe elements in that community.

And quite frankly, we don't even know if these ten individuals may have actually, in fact, been plants by the Cuban government or been, if you will, sort of stoked by the Cuban government to carry off such a ridiculous stunt, if indeed it is as a Cuban regime has claimed.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, we still don't know too much about them in particular, but certainly questions are being asked about all of this. And in terms of sort of the larger picture that you were painting about the regime and so on, I mean, Secretary Rubio has said that Cuba's system is in collapse. President Trump has said he thinks the government's just going to fall on its own.

I mean, do you think the Cuban government is as close to the edge as Washington seems to believe?

SABATINI: I think it's close to an edge, but I don't think it's close to actually reforming any of its policies in any dramatic way. Even opening up the economy, which is what Secretary of State Rubio now is advocating for, would really threaten the regime's suffocating control over the economy and society that has allowed it to survive for more than 60 years.

So we'll have to see. The Cuban government historically has always been very good at slow walking any sorts of reforms, resisting anything that threatened even a modicum of independence within the island. [03:20:08]

And if any of these conditions that Marco Rubio and even Cuban- American legislators were to be accepted by the Cuban government right now, it would threaten their very survival.

So we'll see. But they've always been mostly primarily concerned about their own survival. Sadly, not that of their own people.

BRUNHUBER: So if it's unlikely to fall by itself, I mean, what about a push? President Trump has been pretty explicit that he wants regime change in Cuba by the end of the year. I mean, could we see a Venezuela-style military operation there?

SABATINI: I think the Trump administration is having second thoughts about that. First of all, there's no obvious second candidate, as there was in the case of Venezuela and the now interim President, Delcy Rodriguez.

The Cuban government has had 60 years to consolidate its power. The Communist Party controls the entire state. The military is deeply indoctrinated, the society is atomized.

It's unclear how you would actually extract someone and promote the regime change that the U.S. is trying to achieve in the case of Venezuela. And if there even were an intervention of some sort by the United States, the situation is so desperate in Cuba, it would likely provoke a mass exodus of refugees, many of whom will be seeking refuge in the United States at a time when the administration is facing midterm elections in October. So it has to be very careful in this situation right now, not to worsen the situation.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, absolutely. A situation you say is quite desperate, but I mean, Cuba's been through devastating economic shocks before. What makes this moment, do you think, different from all the other crises that the island has survived so far?

SABATINI: You're right, Kim. Cuba has suffered massive economic decline, especially with the end of the Soviet Union, which had been subsidizing Cuba and sending subsidized oil to the island. That ended with, as your report mentioned, with the extraction of Nicolas Maduro from Venezuela.

So what makes this time different is really the lack of fuel and oil. Right now, there's no one on the streets, basically.

The government has closed down except for essential workers. There's mass starvation, or at least extreme poverty and malnutrition. This is far more serious, and it's really collapsed the entire economy.

Hospitals aren't open, many hospitals aren't open. Schools aren't open. Basic daily life has ground to a halt.

And if you look at a satellite image of Cuba at night, you'll see that basically the island is dark. There are massive blackouts that are affecting Havana and especially the provinces that have prevented even the storage of food and daily life as we would know it inside Cuba. It's a different and far more severe situation than the past.

BRUNHUBER: We'll have to leave it there, but I always appreciate your analysis. Christopher Sabatini in London, thanks so much.

SABATINI: Thank you.

BRUNHUBER: Hillary Clinton fights back, but seems exasperated after she was questioned for hours about Jeffrey Epstein. We'll have the details on her deposition coming up, stay with us.

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[03:25:00]

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BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom," I'm Kim Brunhuber. Let's check today's top stories.

The U.S. and Iran wrapped up nuclear talks in Geneva with signs of progress, but no major breakthrough. The Iranian foreign minister says the two sides identified the main elements of a potential agreement. Sanctions relief was a key topic of discussion on Thursday, the talks are set to continue at a technical level next week in Vienna.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he spoke with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner following peace talks in Geneva. He says negotiations to end the war in Ukraine are expected to resume early next month. Officials from Russia, the U.S. and Ukraine will most likely return to Abu Dhabi for the next round of talks.

Tensions are flaring again between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Rival Taliban factions have been trading cross-border strikes for the past few days. A fragile ceasefire has been in place between the neighboring countries since October, until attacks resumed last weekend.

Bill Clinton is set to be questioned today about his relationship with late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Documents show the former U.S. President rode on Epstein's private plane 16 times. He said his dealings happened well before the disgraced financier's crimes were exposed, but it was Hillary Clinton who Republicans deposed first.

She repeatedly and defiantly told the House Oversight Committee that she had no ties to Epstein or his crimes. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: I never met Jeffrey Epstein, never had any connection or communication with him. I knew Ghislaine Maxwell casually as an acquaintance, but whatever they asked me, I did my very best to respond.

We returned to answer questions repetitively, literally, over and over again. I don't know how many times I had to say I did not know Jeffrey Epstein.

I never went to his island, I never went to his homes, I never went to his offices. So it's on the record numerous times.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: The former Secretary of State blasted Republicans on the committee for fixating on her instead of questioning President Donald Trump and others named in the Epstein files. She also slammed Republicans for interviewing her in private when she requested a public hearing.

We get more now from M.J. Lee.

[03:30:08]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

M.J. LEE, CNN SR. NATIONAL ENTERPRISE CORRESPONDENT: Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton came out of an almost seven-hour deposition behind closed doors with members of the House Oversight Committee here in Chappaqua, New York, and she essentially said what she has been saying for a while, that she told these lawmakers that she didn't know Jeffrey Epstein, didn't have any information to share about his criminal activities.

But of course, the story tomorrow, as it concerns her husband, former President Bill Clinton, is going to be very different, because he is somebody that did have a relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, and his name and his photos are all throughout the Epstein files that have been released by the Justice Department. And one question that I asked the former Secretary of State when she came out to speak to reporters afterwards was whether she is 100 percent confident that Bill Clinton didn't know anything about Epstein's crimes. This is what she said.

CLINTON: I am, and I think the chronology of the connection that he had with Epstein's ended several years before anything about Epstein's criminal activities came to light, and that he was charged and sadly given a sweetheart deal, which as I said in my statement, had that not happened, perhaps his predatory behavior could have been stopped earlier.

But I think it is fair to say that the vast majority of people who had contact with him before his criminal pleas in 2008, were like most people, they did not know what he was doing. And I think that is exactly what my husband will testify to tomorrow.

LEE: Hillary Clinton also said that she found the questions during Thursday's deposition quite repetitive. She also said there were some unusual moments, confirming CNN's earlier reporting that at times Republican lawmakers were asking her about UFOs and also the Pizzagate conspiracy theory.

We also reported that one Republican lawmaker, Nancy Mace, had asked Hillary Clinton how she felt about young women massaging Bill Clinton, the former President, and I'm told that she responded by saying she's not here to speculate about things she's not aware of, and that she's also not here to talk about her feelings.

M.J. Lee, CNN, Chappaqua, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un appeared with his teenage daughter at a nighttime military parade. There's some speculation in South Korea that Kim could be potentially grooming her as a successor, CNN's Will Ripley reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): North Korea's first daughter is the spitting image of her dad, arriving at this week's military parade in matching black leather coats. The teenager even walks ahead of her own mother, a sign of her rising rank and status.

In North Korean state media, she's called Kim Jong-un's beloved dear daughter. And yet not once has state media ever mentioned her name.

It's believed to be Kim Ju-ae, a detail revealed by none other than Dennis Rodman, who says he held her as a baby when the U.S. basketball star made a controversial visit to Pyongyang in 2013.

DENNIS RODMAN, FORMER NBA PLAYER: If we could just open the door just a little bit for people to come here.

RIPLEY (voice-over): North Korea has also never revealed Kim Ju-ae's age, thought to be around 13 or 14. This is the paradox of Pyongyang's princess, growing up in front of a world that knows almost nothing about her, but now cannot stop talking about her, speculating about whether she's her father's chosen successor.

Rumors began swirling after her 2022 debut, fittingly at a massive missile launch, a not so subtle signal to the world that the Kim dynasty will carry on with a nuclear armed insurance policy.

We do know she joined her father on his armored green train for an official state visit to Beijing last year, meeting world leaders like China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin.

One reason why South Korea's spy agency, the National Intelligence Service, told lawmakers behind closed doors Kim has now entered the stage of nominating his daughter as successor, and that she's no longer just showing up at big events, but also weighing in on policy decisions.

LEE SEONG-KWEUN, SOUTH KOREAN PARLIAMENTARY INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE MEMBER (through translator): She's giving her direct opinions on some policies during her on-site inspections.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Kim also just promoted his younger sister, Kim Yo-jong, a close aide and trusted confidant, long rumored to be his successor, before Kim Ju-ae's big reveal. Kim Jong-un is also believed to have other children. There's long been speculation about a possible older son, and if that son exists, the equation could change quickly if he ever steps forward.

Kim Jong-un himself had only a brief time in the public eye before his father died in 2011. He had been studying at a private boarding school in Switzerland before much of the world even knew he existed.

[03:35:04]

His father, North Korea's second leader Kim Jong-il, had decades in the spotlight before taking over from his father, the country's founding leader Kim Il-sung.

Seoul's latest intelligence assessment about Kim Ju-ae's future may be their strongest to date, but in North Korea, nothing is official until it's official, raising the question, has North Korea's next leader already been decided, or are there others waiting in the wings?

RIPLEY: North Korea just wrapped up an important political gathering, the 9th Workers' Party Congress, and it revealed no clear succession plan. Kim Jong-un was unsurprisingly unanimously re-elected as General Secretary of the Workers' Party. His younger sister, Kim Yo-jong, was promoted to full party director after years as a deputy in propaganda and agitation, and Kim's daughter appeared yet again at the parade in that black leather jacket, but still with no new title.

The parade did feature 14,000 troops, but interestingly, almost no major weapons, even as the U.S. and South Korea prepare to restart military drills next month.

Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: A media merger is brewing, but it's not the one everyone thought was coming. We'll have the latest on the sale of Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of this network. That's coming up after the break, please stay with us.

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[03:40:00]

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BRUNHUBER: This is your Business Breakout, and here are some of today's business headlines.

Netflix has dropped its bid to buy Warner Bros. Discovery. Paramount Skydance is now poised to acquire the media conglomerate, which includes the Warner Bros. Movie Studios, HBO, and this network, CNN. Netflix declined to match Paramount's current offer of $31 a share, plus a number of financial sweeteners; their regulatory review process will take months. Tech company, Block, is cutting its staff by 40 percent. The company

owns the point-of-sale system Square, the popular digital wallet CashApp, and the Australian buy-now-pay-later lender Afterpay. CEO Jack Dorsey says Block isn't making the changes because the company is in trouble, but because A.I. is making the business stronger.

Well, there's welcome news for homebuyers here in the U.S., Freddie Mac says the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate has fallen below 6 percent for the first time since 2022. Now compare that to a year ago, when rates were hovering around 7 percent. According to Zillow, a median income household will see a $30,000 boost in their buying power.

Well judges in Paris were slicing, smelling, and tasting baguettes at this year's Annual Grand Prix de la Baguette. On Thursday, bakers submitted more than 140 of the French loaves, made with just flour, water, salt, and yeast. In France, the best version of a baguette is called une tradition and is favored over inferior mass-produced breads; the winner received $4,700 in the honor of supplying the French President's table with baguette.

Well, that wraps this hour of "CNN Newsroom," I'm Kim Brunhuber. "World Sport" is next.

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(WORLD SPORT)