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Iran Disputes Trump's Claims on Agreement; Trump Says Hormuz is "Open" but U.S. Blockade Will Continue; Lebanese President Calls for "Permanent Agreements"; Defense Argues Media Prejudiced for Alleged Charlie Kirk Murderer; Dr. Erica Schwartz Picked to Lead CDC; Shakespeare's London Home Site Now Identified. Aired 5-6a ET

Aired April 18, 2026 - 05:00   ET

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

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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Welcome to all of you watching here in the United States, Canada and around the world, I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSROOM.

The state of peace talks with Iran: President Trump says the ceasefire is holding but warns he may choose not to extend it. Iran, meanwhile, once says to be restricting traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, we'll have live reports just ahead.

Plus, yet another shakeup at the Centers for Disease Control. We'll take a look at the state of health care in the U.S. in the age of "make America healthy again."

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Kim Brunhuber.

BRUNHUBER: And we begin with breaking news just in to CNN. Iran's military says restrictions on the passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz are being reimposed, alleging repeated breaches of trust by the United States in the two sides' ceasefire.

Tehran had previously threatened to close the vital waterway again unless the U.S. lifted its blockade of Iranian ports. Only a handful of ships passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, despite Iran's foreign minister saying it was open to commercial vessels.

Now all this comes days before the next round of peace talks are set to take place in Pakistan on Monday. That's according to Iranian officials. The U.S. still hasn't confirmed the talks are happening. President Trump says he may not extend the ceasefire after it expires on Wednesday if there is no peace deal. Here he is.

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DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Maybe I won't extend it but the blockade is going to remain. But maybe I won't extend it. So you'll have a blockade and, unfortunately, we'll have to start dropping bombs again. Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you. I think it's going to happen.

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BRUNHUBER: Our team of reporters is covering all angles of this story. Leila Gharagozlou is standing by in London. But first let's go to CNN's Eleni Giokos, joining me live from Dubai.

So Eleni, obviously, let's start with that news. Iran said to be restricting the strait again. Take us through what we know and what it means.

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, really interesting just looking at the timeline of all of this. And then the spokesperson of the IRGC comes out with something that's very, very overtly, you know, obvious in terms of Iran's military still has control of the Strait of Hormuz.

And you can only pass and transit the strait if Iran gives you authorization to do so. So this is what Iran's military are saying. They're saying they're reimposing all the rules because of repeated breaches of trust by the United States in the two sides' ceasefire.

We also -- I just want to bring you back to what we heard from the foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, yesterday, you know, this massive declaration about the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and really just putting it down to the ceasefire that was agreed upon in Lebanon.

And also giving a timeline that it would only last for as long as the ceasefire lasts. And then a few hours ago, we heard from the Iran's parliamentary speaker, Ghalibaf, who said that Iran still has control. You need to get any clearance from Iranian forces, as well as use the Iranian designated route.

And then this explicit message from the IRGC is just really embedding the issues that we've been seeing this morning with all the tanker traffic. I want to show you this image, which depicts around 12 vessels attempting to cross through the Strait of Hormuz, then stopping and turning around.

Now we don't know why but we suspect that they might have received a warning message or a threat could have emerged at that moment. But we've also seen something interesting emerging over the last few hours, where at least four tankers have been able to transit the Strait of Hormuz unchallenged.

And these four vessels, according to the experts we've been speaking to, say that they are part of Iran's shadow fleet. At least two have been sanctioned by the United States. Now technically speaking, they will hit the U.S. Naval blockade at some point in the Gulf of Oman.

Now according to the United States and CENTCOM, they've been able to deter around 21 vessels, make them turn around because of the warning messages they've given out. But the U.S. has also said they're going to be enforcing this naval blockade in any seas, any waters around the world. So we wait to see.

But interestingly, you've got vessels that are testing Iran's blockade over the past few hours. You've seen vessels now that are going to potentially test the U.S. Naval blockade.

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But the messaging from the IRGC saying the status quo, before the announcement of the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, is now back in play. That means any vessel wanting to transit needs to negotiate directly with Iran and, of course, use the Iranian territorial waters that have been in play.

I also just want to mention this, Kim, because I think it's really important that this has been one of the big flexion points in the war. And it's going to be one of the big issues when Iran and the United States get back to the negotiating table.

BRUNHUBER: Well, absolutely. And that's why I want to bring in Leila in.

I mean, this will no doubt complicate the negotiations. So, Leila, look forward for us. I mean, take us through where these talks are heading, if they're happening, given these new tensions.

LEILA GHARAGOZLOU, CNN PRODUCER: So the strait has already been one of the sticking points of talks and even of the ceasefire, the territorial control of the state. Iran obviously says that they have absolute right of having any control of the strait. So that's definitely going to come up again.

In addition, we also have the sticking points of Iran's missile program, its regional role and the nuclear program. Now the Iranians have said that talks are set to resume again in Islamabad.

We're going to see likely Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the parliamentary speaker; Sayed Abbas Araghchi, the foreign minister and Ali Bagheri Kani, leading those negotiations. They'll likely also bring technical experts to go into the details of any nuclear agreement. These technical experts really will be key to getting any nuclear agreement over the line.

Now again, Iran has set its red lines. It hasn't really moved. Despite that, president Trump says that the process is getting along well. Take a listen.

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TRUMP: And this process, we're getting along well but who knows, who knows with anyone but who knows with Iran in particular, this process should go very quickly. Hopefully that most of the points are already negotiated and agreed to.

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GHARAGOZLOU: Now obviously, this process is kind of up in the air again with like the Strait of Hormuz coming. The Iranians saying that the Strait of Hormuz is closed. We're not really sure where this is going to land.

He also says that things are moving along very quickly. He wants this to wrap up really quickly. This is obviously going to delay that. It's definitely taking a step back.

I want to point out that the JCPOA and that nuclear agreement took multiple years, hundreds of hours of negotiations to get to that point. And right now, we're not really seeing any of these gaps close between Iran and the U.S. So it still remains to be seen what Islamabad is going to achieve, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, appreciate that. Leila Gharagozlou and Eleni Giokos, thank you both.

Well, Israel says it will keep some residents from returning home in southern Lebanon despite the ongoing ceasefire. Senior military officials say the IDF will set up a so-called yellow line to mark areas held by Israeli troops; 55 Lebanese villages will be inside that line and off limits to civilians.

Now that's happening just as many displaced residents are rushing back home, defying Israel's warnings not to return.

Meanwhile, Lebanese officials are accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire, including a strike that killed at least one person on Friday. CNN's Oren Liebermann joins us live from Jerusalem.

So Oren, walk us through the latest.

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF AND CORRESPONDENT: Kim, the ceasefire that went into effect at midnight a couple of days ago is holding, from everything we're seeing. But it's essentially holding with the current state of affairs.

What does that mean?

Well, first, Israeli forces remain in Lebanon, up to 10 kilometers inside Lebanese territory, holding what Israel calls a security zone or a buffer zone that Israel will not withdraw from, at least not in the immediate future.

And this looks like this could very much be a long-term occupation of southern Lebanon here. Meanwhile, Lebanese officials say an Israeli strike on Friday afternoon killed one person in southern Lebanon, what would be a violation of the ceasefire, wounding two others, according to the Lebanese ministry of public health.

We have reached out to the Israeli military for comment on that purported strike. Now we wait to see where this goes from here. It is very clear that president Donald Trump essentially compelled prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept this ceasefire.

And Netanyahu effectively acknowledged that when he said that, he had accepted it at the request of Trump. And it looks like it was a prerequisite for any serious negotiations between the U.S. and Iran. And that's crucial because it links the theaters. It links Iran to Lebanon, which is something Israel had tried to avoid.

Now it's a question of where this goes from here. We had seen last week -- earlier this week, I should say, one day of direct talks between Israel and Lebanon in Washington, D.C., under the auspices of the United States, with secretary of state Marco Rubio.

But that doesn't mean this is over or there is an agreement. In fact, Lebanese president Joseph Aoun had declined to take a direct call with prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, what would have been the first in decades.

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Still, he realizes this is a big moment. And listen to what he says here. And it seems like he's addressing both Iranian proxy Hezbollah in Lebanon and Israel in this statement.

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JOSEPH AOUN, LEBANESE PRESIDENT (through translator): I am ready to bear the full responsibility of these choices and I am ready to go wherever necessary to liberate my land, protect my people and save my country.

Today, we negotiate for ourselves and decide for ourselves. We are no longer a card in anyone's game nor an arena for anyone's wars and we never will be again.

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LIEBERMANN: This is a critical moment here and Trump has said he will host -- or intends to at least host both Aoun and Netanyahu in Washington, D.C., as he tries to push forward negotiations toward potentially a landmark ceasefire and peace agreement between Israel and Lebanon.

But just like, when it comes to the U.S. and Iran, Kim, these are incredibly difficult diplomatic negotiations that would have to take place, including some that might require -- where Lebanon might require an Israeli withdrawal, something Israel has not signaled that it's willing to consider at this point.

So this is incredibly difficult, even if it is a momentous occasion that that we're at this point where we've seen direct talks between ambassadors and Trump is pushing for direct meetings between the leaders, the first in more than 40 years at this point.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, it would be historic. Oren Liebermann, appreciate that. Thank you so much.

Well, Pope Leo XIV will soon depart for Angola. The next stop on his 10-day Africa tour is home to one of the continent's largest Catholic communities. But for now, he's still in Cameroon, celebrating mass at the airport in the nation's capital. Large, enthusiastic crowds have turned out to greet the pontiff during

his visit. More than 100,000 people gathered for an open air mass Friday in Douala, the biggest crowd so far during his visit. And in his remarks, the pontiff referenced the problems Cameroon is facing. Let's listen.

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POPE LEO XIV, PONTIFF, ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH: Despite the richness of the land in Cameroon, many experience both material and spiritual poverty.

Do not give in to distrust and discouragement, reject every form of abuse or violence which deceives by promising easy gains but hardens the heart and makes it insensitive.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Crossing it. It just crossed. Oh, oh.

Oh, my god. Debris raining out of the sky.

BRUNHUBER (voice-over): All right, you're watching those scenes of destruction from Illinois. Tornadoes generated by severe storms swept across the Midwest on Friday. At least 20 twisters were reported across the region, along with baseball-sized hail and wind gusts of over 70 miles an hour.

More than 4 dozen tornadoes have been reported from Texas and the Great Lakes since Monday. The tornado threat is projected to lessen in the coming hours. But forecasters are warning that some storms could still produce damaging winds and flash floods as they move east on Saturday.

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BRUNHUBER: The lawyers for the man charged with killing Charlie Kirk argue their client may not get a fair trial. Just ahead, we'll have details on what they're asking the judge to do. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: A federal judge in California has blocked Nexstar's attempt to take over rival TV station owner Tegna. The judge wrote in his ruling that the merger is likely to violate antitrust laws. The two companies are now frozen until a trial can take place.

Nexstar spent months appealing to president Trump and lobbying regulators to approve the deal. But Friday's court action throws the company's plan into disarray. Nexstar is also vowing to appeal the decision.

Sources tell CNN that the Justice Department has removed a career federal prosecutor in Miami who is leading the investigation into former CIA director John Brennan. The sources say the DOJ's move came after the prosecutor resisted pressure to bring charges against Brennan quickly.

Maria Medetis Long has held the politically sensitive probe for months and amid demands from president Trump to prosecute Brennan and other critics.

The Justice Department said in a statement that it's routine practice to move attorneys around to, quote, "effectively allocate resources."

Attorneys for the Utah man charged with killing Charlie Kirk are arguing to keep cameras out of the courtroom during his upcoming trial. They say news coverage of the high-profile case could harm their clients right to a fair proceeding. CNN's Nick Watt has more from Provo, Utah.

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NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Mischief lurks in the dark. That is what one of the county prosecutors told the judge today in making his case to keep cameras in the courtroom for the proceedings against Tyler Robinson, the man accused of assassinating Charlie Kirk here in Utah last September.

That prosecutor went on to say, you know, there are conspiracies swirling around this case. The best thing we can do is keep it open and transparent, because that will retain public trust in this process. That is the best antidote to falsehoods.

Now Tyler Robinson's defense -- they do not want cameras in here. They said multiple times that that would infringe upon his Constitutional right to a fair trial. They do not want cameras.

They talk a lot about the conspiracy theories that they say are fueled by having TV images -- TV cameras in that courtroom. The judge is not going to rule on that yet. He's going to consider. He said he'll come back May 8 and rule on whether cameras can be in the court for the preliminary hearing for the trial.

Now the preliminary hearing in this one, you know, we'll hear some evidence when we might get a -- should get a plea from Tyler Robinson, that is scheduled for May 18.

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Robinson's defense has said they need more time, particularly to analyze large data files relating to the DNA evidence against Tyler Robinson.

One of his attorneys said that they want four months. Again, no ruling on that today. We're going to hear May 8, whether TV cameras will be in the court and whether that preliminary hearing is actually going to take place later in May as scheduled. Back to you.

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BRUNHUBER: President Trump is trying to get out the vote in Arizona. He told supporters at a conservative event in Phoenix on Friday to show up for the midterm elections this year. He brought up the historical tendency for people to vote against the party in power during midterms.

He also said the government will release files on UFOs, quote, "very, very soon." He said the process is well underway and they found many very interesting documents. Some attendees on Friday spoke with CNN about their support and concerns heading into the midterms. Listen to this.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think you are starting to see concerns. We're OK with mean tweets as long as we get low gas prices.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just trust him. So I know it kind of hurts right now with the gas and all that but I see it coming down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I voted for him like this is kind of what I expected. But look, after the Easter though, it's kind of like what is going on here. Yes.

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BRUNHUBER: The Trump administration has been saying gas prices will come down eventually. Now we have an idea of how long that might actually take.

The petroleum tracking app GasBuddy estimates that reopening the Strait of Hormuz could lead the national average price of gasoline to fall to $3.65 by Memorial Day. Prices could drop down to $3.35 by Labor Day, just in time for hurricane season.

Now those high fuel costs right now are already impacting summer plans, including the grand American tradition of road trips. CNN's Isabel Rosales looks at how the pain at the pump might impact this year's special celebrations along America's most famous highway.

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ISABEL ROSALES, CNN SOUTHEAST NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's the all American road trip. Route 66 is one of the most famous highways in the U.S. connecting the Midwest to California. More than 2,400 miles or nearly 3,900 kilometers of open road lined with small towns and panoramic landscapes.

And this year, the legendary road turns 100. But some motorists say high gas prices caused by the U.S.-Iran war are putting the brakes on their travel plans. BEAU HAAN, ROUTE 66 TRAVELER: You can't stand for America and then make it impossible people -- for people to actually enjoy the best parts of America. Route 66 is one of those things where it's like, you can go to a diner in Maine or you can go to Japan. You can go anywhere and people know what Route 66 is.

ROSALES: Hotels, restaurants and gas stations along Route 66 are frequent pit stops for passing travelers. But filling up can be costly, especially in California, where gas prices are usually higher than the national average. A regular tank of gas was recently $7.49 a gallon at this roadside motel and cafe, a bargain compared to $9.89 down the road.

KEN LARGE, ROY'S MOTEL & CAFE MANAGER: My concern is that it'll deter tourism overall. If it's -- all of a sudden your travel expense becomes 20 percent more or something like that -- that is a number people start looking at.

Few pennies a gallon, $0.10 or $0.20, I don't think most of us would scoff at that. But when it starts becoming , that's that becomes a big deal.

ROSALES: At this burger joint and roadside attraction in Arizona, one couple says they're still traveling, just going shorter distances.

JAMES O'CONNOR, ROUTE 66 TRAVELER: To fill up my truck is a $175. Yes. It's bad. So when we do choose little trips like this, we are much closer to home than we would normally go.

ROSALES: This man attending a rodeo off Route 66 says he also drives a big truck for work and knows gas prices are hurting some families and businesses but says the war will be worth it in the end.

CLAYTON CHAMBERLIN, RODEO ATTENDEE: I would say that the actions that we're taking are for the greater good of not only our country but the entire world. And we're trying to make things better for everyone. So if we got to pay a little bit more for fuel for a little bit, I'll take it.

ROSALES: But for this couple, spending their honeymoon traveling the iconic highway, gas has been one of their biggest expenses so far. So they say they're taking pictures in a lot of places instead of spending money.

MARLA BOWER, ROUTE 66 TRAVELER: I mean, it's still worth it considering all of the history behind Route 66 in America. So I think no matter what, even if prices were still kind of continue to go, I mean, it would still be worth at least seeing a portion of it even if you couldn't afford to do it all.

ROSALES (voice-over): Isabel Rosales, CNN, Atlanta.

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BRUNHUBER: Israel takes a tactic it used in Gaza to keep some Lebanese residents from returning home. Still ahead, the IDF literally draws a line for civilians trying to go back to southern Lebanon.

Plus, Russia's sanctioned oil will keep flowing to world markets with a blessing from Washington.

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Those stories and more coming up. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER (voice-over): Welcome back. I'm Kim Brunhuber. Let's check some of today's top stories.

President Trump says he may not extend a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran if negotiations fail to produce a deal by Wednesday. Iranian officials tell CNN they expect negotiators to arrive in Pakistan this weekend for the next round of peace talks on Monday. But the U.S. hasn't confirmed that the talks are actually happening.

Iran says it's reimposing restrictions on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran points to what it calls repeated breaches of trust by the U.S. during the ceasefire between the two sides.

An Iranian military spokesperson says the strait is under control of the armed forces until the U.S. ends its blockade of Iranian ports.

Israel says it will impose a so-called yellow line around dozens of villages held by its troops in southern Lebanon. That means residents will be banned from returning home, just as many of them are headed there because of a 10-day ceasefire. Israel has also used a yellow line to make areas off limits to civilians in Gaza.

For more on all this, we're joined from Beirut by Maha Yahya, the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center.

Good to see you again. Thanks so much for being on with us. So in terms of the ceasefire here, we've been here before. This is the second time in two years we're seeing a ceasefire. And the last one was basically ignored.

I mean, are you getting a sense that there's anything different in this 10-day agreement?

Or are we just watching a brief pause before the next round?

MAHA YAHYA, DIRECTOR, MALCOLM H. KERR CARNEGIE MIDDLE EAST CENTER: Good morning, Kim. Thank you for having me.

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Look, the -- again, it's a unilateral ceasefire and the 2024 ceasefire, Israel did not stop bombing Lebanon. I think there were something like 10,000 infractions of the ceasefire.

And since the ceasefire a couple of days ago, the bombing in south Lebanon, specifically, as well as the targeting has continued. And as you indicated in your report, unlike 2024, when that ceasefire took into effect, at the time Israel was occupying five hills on Lebanese territory.

This time, it's occupying almost eight kilometers into the Lebanese border, into Lebanese territory. So almost -- and it's preventing people from going back, even up to the Litani River. So we're talking about 15 percent of Lebanese territory where people are not allowed to go back.

Or if they go back, they go at great risk to their lives. Some of these areas, also the villages and towns, particularly the area that they're considering within the yellow line that they've now put as you mentioned, this is very much Gaza 2.0 in terms of strategy and approach.

Many of these towns and villages -- we are talking about upward of 30 towns and villages -- have been completely vaporized. They've been dynamited, they've been bombed and they're literally rubble on the ground.

So even if people were able to go back, there's not much they can go back to. The land is also, I mean, has been poisoned with phosphorus bombs. So agriculture, these are primarily agricultural areas. Agriculture is gone as well. So, it's incredibly difficult.

It's a ceasefire. it's a lull. People are relieved. They're happy to just be free of bombs. You know, the uncertainty of not knowing when the next one will drop but it's not really a full ceasefire or a peace deal yet.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. And as you say, it is unilateral. I mean, Hezbollah wasn't even at the table for the deal.

The picture that you paint there, the use of these, as you call them, the Gaza tactics and so on, I mean, what does it all mean when we're talking about going forward, when there are discussions around Hezbollah giving up its arms?

I mean, certainly what we're seeing now wouldn't lead there, right?

YAHYA: Absolutely not. Actually, it will reinforce Hezbollah's narrative of armed resistance is needed to oust Israel again and it's the only way to push back against Israel. That's the narrative they have.

And the longer Israel continues to occupy parts of Lebanon -- I refuse to use terms like buffer zones because these are not buffer zones; these are occupied Lebanese territories.

So the longer Israel maintains these areas, continues to have a military occupation of these areas, the more they reinforce Hezbollah's narrative. And I think, for the international community, for the past 1.5 years,

they've treated -- I mean, they've dealt with strengthening and helping central government do its job supporting the government and the demobilization and disarmament of Hezbollah as if they were two opposing agendas.

The bottom line is, one cannot happen without the other. If you don't strengthen central government, you don't help it reassert itself in the ways it needs to, don't give it the tools to carry out what is being asked of it, which is a gargantuan job. Then the demand to demobilize Hezbollah is not going to happen.

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BRUNHUBER: Yes. It would be --

YAHYA: -- Hezbollah but all non-state actors.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. Certainly, certainly it would be something that perhaps would be discussed if that meeting takes place. And that's the meeting that president Trump has floated the idea of hosting Lebanon's president and Israel's prime minister at the White House, which would be historic.

So what realistically could come out of something like that?

And to start, do you think it will happen?

YAHYA: It's very difficult for it to happen. It'll be incredibly difficult for the Lebanese president to be at a meeting with Israel's prime minister, shake hands while Israel continues to occupy and bomb Lebanon. And it's incredibly difficult if not -- I won't say impossible because we've seen the way things are and we know how president Trump operates.

[05:35:00]

But literally, they would be burning him in a sense. It's -- there's a massive pushback and not just from people who are aligned with Hezbollah but broadly speaking in Lebanon. This is not a popular move.

This is something that should happen once we are at a point where a ceasefire is fully in place, there are guarantees and guarantors of that ceasefire, Israel has withdrawn from occupied Lebanese territories. There are things that need to happen before you get to that point where, you know, there's a handshake in the Oval Office.

Yes, we can get there but we're not there yet.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. Sounds like --

YAHYA: -- to do it now, it's totally preemptive.

BRUNHUBER: We'll have to leave it there. I appreciate your analysis of this, Maha Yahya. Thank you so much.

YAHYA: Thank you, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: The U.S. has given Russia the green light to keep selling some of its sanctioned oil on world markets. On Friday, the U.S. issued a second waiver that allows Moscow to sell its oil. It's already loaded on tankers. The waiver is valid until May 16th. A similar temporary license expired last week.

Russia's oil industry has been under sanctions because of its invasion of Ukraine but the U.S. is now allowing limited oil sales because of the spike in prices caused by the war with Iran.

President Trump has announced his latest nominee for director of the CDC after months of leadership shakeups and controversy. After the break, we'll speak to a public health expert about the nominee that many hope will bring stability back to the agency. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: President Trump has announced his latest nominee for director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He's tapping former deputy surgeon general Dr. Erica Schwartz to lead the agency after months of turmoil and leadership shakeups. CNN medical correspondent Meg Tirrell has more.

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MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: President Trump's pick to run the CDC, Dr. Erica Schwartz, is really getting glowing reviews, both from people who have worked with her in the past and from the broader public health community.

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That's because of her experience in public health. She's seen as a much more sort of traditional and strong choice from that world to lead an agency that's really just gone through turmoil over the last couple of years.

Now she served as the deputy surgeon general in Trump's first term. She's also been in the Coast Guard and has worked in public health for several decades. She's run disease surveillance programs. She's run vaccination programs.

And so that's giving folks in the public health world a lot of encouragement that she is the leader that this agency really needs. And, of course, this agency has gone through a lot of leadership changes in the second Trump administration.

Their first pick for the job, Dr. Dave Weldon, who was a Florida congressman, his nomination was withdrawn the morning of his confirmation hearing over concerns about some of his past anti-vaccine views. Then the next pick for the job, Dr. Susan Monarez, was confirmed into

the role but served only about a month before being ousted over clashes with secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over vaccine policy.

Then the administration put their NIH director, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, into the role overseeing CDC. So now this is a more permanent pick. She does have to go through the confirmation process.

But she is getting glowing reviews, including from the former surgeon general she worked with in Trump's first administration, Dr. Jerome Adams, who says, quote, "She has the expertise, credibility and integrity to lead the CDC effectively."

He does point out, though, a big concern we've been hearing from folks in the public health world.

Quote, "If allowed to follow the science without political interference, she'll excel."

That is a major concern public health folks are telling us, which is, will she have autonomy to operate under Robert F. Kennedy Jr.?

She's also facing some criticism from allies of Kennedy, including Aaron Siri, a lawyer with close ties to him, who said, quote, "Trump's pick would likely be a disaster," criticizing her roles with vaccination campaigns in the past.

So she will have to go through this confirmation hearing. She also has been nominated, along with a team of three other people, to come into the top of the CDC, which folks in the public health world who depend on the CDC are hoping will be a stabilizing force.

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BRUNHUBER: All right. For more on this, I want to bring in Dr. Georges Benjamin, CEO of the American Public Health Association.

Thanks so much for joining us here this morning. Really appreciate it. So the new CDC pick getting glowing reviews, according to our reporter there.

Your reaction, what's your take?

DR. GEORGES BENJAMIN, CEO, AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION: Listen, thanks for having me this morning.

She is an extraordinarily good pick for the president. She's well qualified, well trained and experienced. And she's got a proven leadership record.

BRUNHUBER: OK. We heard the reservations though. The "if" -- the big "if" about her autonomy.

I mean, how realistic is that, given she'll still be reporting to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.? BENJAMIN: You know, the challenge is, of course, the last person Dr.

Monarez was an extraordinarily good pick. And she's going to have to be very artful in terms of managing both up and down in her agency.

I think the good news is that the administration is not letting Mr. Kennedy go wild, at least for a while. And what we hope will happen will allow her to get her hands around the agency and begin to rebuild confidence and the work of the agency that that needs to get done very, very quickly.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. I mean, confidence is a huge issue. I saw polls show that only, what, 40 percent of Americans have confidence that Kennedy is giving them accurate information. So I guess one of her first goals would be to restore that that credibility in the -- in the agency.

I mean, how is that done?

BENJAMIN: You know, if you're in command -- and I think she needs to go in and begin to strengthen the agency internally as her first step; externally, you know, we have a huge measles outbreak that she can get her hands around as well. And that would be consistent with good public health practice.

I need to point out that even Mr. Kennedy said that vaccinations for measles is the right thing to do. So she would be in line with at least what Mr. Kennedy has today said she should be doing.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, I want to get to his comments in a second. But just going back to the CDC in particular and, you know, talking about some of these health challenges, public health challenges, I mean, the CDC has a system called the Health Alert Network that warns doctors and hospitals about emerging threats.

You've said that system has basically gone quiet, that we're flying blind.

So if Dr. Schwartz is confirmed, is getting that back up and running something she should prioritize?

And what would happen if it stays quiet?

BENJAMIN: Yes, I think it's going to be very important for us to build up the urgent communication that our system is used to getting. That includes the Health Alert Network; that includes the "MMR," which is the CDC's most important public health science-based publication.

[05:45:05]

And correcting the errors that we have on their website, where things have been taken down and things that have been distorted by the administration in the past.

BRUNHUBER: All right. So I want to get to what you were talking about there, to RFK Jr., who was testifying before Congress this week. As you said, he told them that the measles vaccine is safe for most people. He even acknowledged it might have saved the lives of those two

children who died in Texas, which is very different from what he said before.

What do you make of that shift?

Do you get the sense that it's a genuine course correction?

Or is it is it kind of political as we head into the midterms?

BENJAMIN: It's political theater. Yes, he has a whole history of saying one thing and doing something different. This man has not changed his spots in terms of being an anti-vaccine person. So we all have to still be on our guard.

But let's take advantage of what he said. And the fact that we have a big measles outbreak right now and that that is not good for the health of the American people and tragically not good for the politics of the nation as well, we need to use that as an opportunity to really push forward and improve the health of the public.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. All right. Really appreciate getting your expertise on this important topic. Dr. Georges Benjamin, thank you so much for joining us.

BENJAMIN: Thank you.

BRUNHUBER: All right. Coming up here on CNN NEWSROOM, a humpback whale stranded off the German coast. We'll have the latest from its rescue operation. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: Well, this summer's FIFA World Cup has already drawn its fair share of criticism over ticket prices. Now soccer fans have a new expense to swallow: soaring train fares to and from the matches. CNN's Brynn Gingras visited New Jersey, where transport costs are set to spike.

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BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): World Cup excitement is at fever pitch. With less than two months until kickoff, fans more and more feeling sticker shock.

You had a big reaction when I said over 100.

THATZ SUNDARAM, HOBOKEN, NEW JERSEY RESIDENT: Yes. Yes but that's insane. GINGRAS: $150, that's not the price of a ticket to a match in New Jersey. That's how much it will cost to get there and back from New York City. The price tag announced today by state officials.

KRIS KOLLURI, PRESIDENT AND CEO, NJ TRANSIT: This is no ordinary event. In order to move 40,000 people and to pay for the cost of $6 million, we have to charge $150.

GINGRAS: Normally, the ticket for that nine-mile ride is about $13. Officials say, because of heightened security, there will be no parking for fans at the stadium, so public transit will be the best way to get to the games and partly why the cost is so high.

MAX LEVINE, NEW YORK RESIDENT: As a consumer, it'll push people away from going and I don't think it's fair to overcharge for that reason.

SUNDARAM: One of the reasons we have public transportation to be able to go to these things without having to pay extra.

GINGRAS: New Jersey's governor taking out her own frustrations on FIFA, the governing body of the World Cup.

GOV. MIKIE SHERRILL (D-NJ): FIFA is providing $0 for transportation to the World Cup, zero.

GINGRAS: Promising to not let everyday commuters shoulder the cost, in a statement, FIFA responded saying in part, FIFA is not aware of any other major event previously held at New York New Jersey Stadium where organizers were required to pay for fan transportation.

There are other options for fans but again, not cheap. A shuttle bus from New York City will cost $80. And you see MetLife Stadium there. Well, we're across the street at the American Dream Mall where there will be a number of parking spots reserved if you must drive but they'll cost at least $225. And that price, well, it's expected to also go up.

SUNDARAM: and you pay another $100 for your popcorn and your hot dog as well. So it's going to be expensive but I think ticket is expensive as is.

GINGRAS: It is. Right now, a top tier ticket for one of the seven qualifying games at New York New Jersey Stadium start at $1,800. The final, that's pricing out at more than $16,000 per ticket.

ALEXIS COLUCCI, JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY RESIDENT: It's not even worth it to me, because if I can't get into Penn Station, how am I going to get to -- and you can't drive to the Meadowlands. So what am I going to do?

And also like the ticket prices, so it's just not even worth it.

GINGRAS: You're not even looking?

COLUCCI: Nope. GINGRAS: There are other host cities like Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Kansas City that aren't jacking up their transit fares and New Jersey officials say that's because those stadiums are really within city limits. Therefore, fans have more transportation options -- in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Brynn Gingras, CNN.

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BRUNHUBER: A privately funded rescue group is continuing efforts to free a stranded humpback whale off the German coast. Named Timmy by captivated onlookers, the whale has been stuck on a sandbank since the end of March. Previous attempts to free Timmy haven't worked.

But there's hope a new rescue method may see him return to the Baltic Sea's deeper waters. Now this will involve rescuers using air cushions and a net to try to move the whale away from the shallow sandbanks to safety.

And 15 penguins have been released into the sea in Argentina following months of rehabilitation by a conservation group. The creatures came into the care of conservationists after suffering from dehydration, malnutrition and hypothermia.

Conservationists released them together because they're social creatures that tend to migrate in groups.

A life jacket worn by a passenger of the ill-fated Titanic hit the auction block later today. A British auction house says it's the only titanic life preserver ever to go under the hammer. First class passenger Laura Francatelli worn it while boarding a lifeboat as the so-called unsinkable liner went down in the Atlantic in 1912.

It's expected to fetch as much as $475,000. Remember, the Titanic sank after colliding with an iceberg, killing more than 1,500 people. Francatelli was among the 700 who survived.

Well, a chance discovery in an archive has revealed the exact location of the London home of William Shakespeare. Exactly where the Bard lived in London had been a mystery for centuries. James Frater went along to investigate the site of this historical discovery.

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JAMES FRATER, CNN PRODUCER (voice-over): It's long been known that Shakespeare owned a home in London. But where exactly has kept academics guessing for centuries.

That is until now. It's generally believed that somewhere between the river and Saint Paul's Cathedral here in Blackfriars in these narrow streets that his property used to be. This modest blue plaque cautiously declares that the playwright purchased lodgings near this site.

But in new research by Lucy Monroe at London's King's College, this plaque is actually spot on. This is exactly where Shakespeare lived at 5 St. Andrews Hill.

So what did his house actually look like?

Monroe says the property was L-shaped, not massive but relatively substantial. And it would have sat above the gateway to a 13th century friary that used to stand here. Seventeenth century Blackfriars would have been a lively mix of people, gentry rubbing shoulders with an increasing number of tradespeople according to Monroe.

In her research, there were tennis courts nearby, there was a bowling alley and many, many other entertainment venues. But also, there was the pub just next door where perhaps the bard enjoyed a drink or two.

Crucially for Shakespeare, it was less than a five-minute walk from the Blackfriars Playhouse and just across the river from the famous Globe Theatre.

The original house didn't survive the great fire of London in 1666 and is one of the reasons why the exact location has remained such a mystery. But at long last, no plague upon any houses as we now know exactly where his house stood.

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BRUNHUBER: Well, that wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. Stay with us. "CNN THIS MORNING" is next