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Spirit Airlines Halts All Flights, Begins To Shut Down Operations; U.S.-Israel War with Iran; U.S. Gas Prices Jump to $4.43 a Gallon; U.S. Withdrawing 5,000 Troops From Germany; At Least 16 U.S. Military Sites Damaged by Iranian Strikes; Alabama, Tennessee Move to Redraw Maps after SCOTUS Ruling; Federal Appeals Court Blocks Access to Abortion Pill by Mail; Sports Highlights. Aired 5-6a ET

Aired May 02, 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 us here in the United States, Canada and around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSROOM.

Spirit Airlines is winding down operations. We'll look at what this means for the millions of travelers left in limbo.

President Trump says the U.S. could be better off without an Iran deal. We'll go live to the Gulf with the latest.

Plus, more states are looking to redraw voting lines after the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling last week. We'll look at how this is impacting elections across the country

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

BRUNHUBER: Thousands of employees are now out of work and millions of ticket holders left scrambling as discount carrier Spirit Airlines shuts down. A video shows what could be the airline's final flight, touching down at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport just after midnight local time.

A short time later, the company released a statement announcing that it's winding down operations. The statement said all flights are canceled and passengers shouldn't go to the airport. It also warns that customer service is no longer available. Other airlines have said they will help travelers and workers who've been stranded.

This is the first significant U.S. airline to halt operations in nearly 25 years. A last-minute bailout from the Trump administration failed to materialize late on Friday. The long-troubled airline filed for a second bankruptcy last August. An operating deal was reached in late February. But the war with Iran began just days later, and since then, the price

of jet fuel has nearly doubled, hurting Spirit's already narrow operating margins. Last hour, I spoke with Simon Calder, travel correspondent for "The Independent" and he explained what ticket holders can do to get their money back. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SIMON CALDER, TRAVEL CORRESPONDENT, "THE INDEPENDENT": They are saying that, if you booked a ticket direct from the airline, you will be able to get a -- get your money back because they will be refunding those charges. If you booked through a travel agent, then you need to talk to that agent.

But there's a whole category of people who are not going to be getting anything at all. And those are people who typically might have used a voucher or frequent flier miles to buy their Spirit ticket. They are now unsecured creditors and they just need to take their place in the long queue of people to whom Spirit sadly owes money.

And I don't think they will be getting much back from there. But as you say, other airlines stepping in. This is normal when, well, regrettably, we've seen a number of airline collapses. Other carriers will come in and offer so-called rescue fares. Those are less than they could be charging.

But unfortunately, there will be many people traveling this weekend who actually have no choice but to spend a fortune on another ticket.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, I was listening to you list the options there. You talked about you get a refund if you book directly, if you book through a travel agent.

I'm just wondering, if you book through online, let's say Expedia or something like that, where does that stand?

CALDER: Well, it's going to be messy, unfortunately. But, of course, all the big online travel agents will be looking at this most unfortunate situation. And I hope they will be addressing that on behalf of their customers.

But yes, for the many, many people who have a forward booking on Spirit, it's going to be tricky, not least extricating your cash.

But also finding alternative transportation, particularly in the weeks and months ahead, moving into peak summer, when a lot of people will find that actually the alternative flight is going to cost them an awful lot more.

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BRUNHUBER: President Trump is casting doubt again on a potential deal to end the war with Iran. At an event in Florida on Friday night, he said maybe the U.S. could be better off not making a deal at all. He says his options on Iran boil down to making a deal with Tehran or a major military escalation. Iran sent its latest proposal to end the war with the U.S. to

Pakistani mediators on Friday. The details of the proposal and the specific reasons behind the deadlock aren't clear. But president Trump says he isn't satisfied, even though he admits Tehran has made strides in negotiations. Here he is.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: They've made strides but I'm not sure if they ever get there.

Do we want to go and just blast the hell out of them and finish them forever?

Or do we want to try and make a deal?

I mean, those are the options.

PETER DOOCY, FOX NEWS WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Do you want to go blast the hell out of them?

TRUMP: I prefer not. On a human basis, I prefer not. But that's the option.

Do we want to go in there heavy and just blast them away?

Or do we want to do something?

They're not getting along with each other and it puts us in a bad position. One group wants to make a deal. The other group wants to make a certain deal, including the hardliners. The hardliners want to make a deal, too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Meanwhile, Iranian state media on Friday published a new statement attributed to the country's supreme leader, who says Iran, quote, "has emerged as a military power after years of effort."

The Israeli military is warning residents in parts of southern Lebanon to evacuate urgently. The Israel Defense Forces is telling people to stay at least 1,000 meters away from nine towns and villages and move to open areas.

The IDF gave the evacuation order Saturday morning. Both Israel and the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah accuse each other of violating the ceasefire.

Despite the extension brokered by the U.S., Lebanon's health ministry says Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon on Friday killed at least nine people, including one child and 28 people were wounded. CNN's covering the latest developments from across the region.

Leila Gharagozlou is in Abu Dhabi. But first, I want to start with our Jerusalem bureau chief, Oren Liebermann.

Oren, let's start with those new strikes.

What more can you tell us?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF AND CORRESPONDENT: Well, Israel has continued to carry out strikes in southern Lebanon, insisting that they are permitted to do so under the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement.

But we see the results of those strikes on the ground. According to Lebanese ministry of public health, at least nine people, including one child, were killed in Israeli strikes on Saturday as Israel continues issuing evacuation orders.

And we've seen this now multiple times in recent days for larger and larger parts of an area that Israel occupies in southern Lebanon, the first 10 or so kilometers in certain spots from the Israeli border, where Israeli troops have tried to eliminate unsuccessfully Hezbollah, the Iranian proxy with which this war is continuing.

There is a ceasefire agreement in place, at least nominally, between Israel and the Lebanese government. But Israel and Hezbollah have continued to exchange fire in what is an ongoing conflict and very much resembles what was taking place even before the ceasefire went into place several weeks ago.

Hezbollah, meanwhile, has continued firing drones and, on occasion, rockets at Israeli troops both in southern Lebanon and in northern Israel. So you see the difficulty here.

Even as the U.S. is trying to push forward a diplomatic track, even though that really doesn't look viable at this point.

The U.S. embassy in Beirut was trying to push for what president Donald Trump had said he wants to see, a meeting in Washington, direct talks between Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese president Joseph Aoun.

And the embassy in Beirut said this could lead to Lebanon's territorial integrity, suggesting a withdrawal of Israeli forces, humanitarian assistance and reconstruction efforts. But it's not clear that there really is a path forward here.

There were two meetings between ambassadors in Washington. A third is not yet scheduled at this point. And it's difficult to see a scenario in which the Lebanese president, who has condemned Hezbollah, would meet directly with Netanyahu.

At this point, it's also not clear that Israel would agree to withdraw its forces for simply a meeting between the two leaders here. But the U.S. is still trying to push forward that diplomatic track as we see the conflict on the ground.

According to the Lebanese ministry of public health, more than 2,600 people have been killed in Israeli strikes over the last two months. BRUNHUBER: All right. Oren Liebermann, thanks so much for that. I

want to bring in Leila now.

So Leila, on the U.S. war with Iran, take us through where things stand right now.

LEILA GHARAGOZLOU, CNN PRODUCER: Yes. So things right now are very precarious as we heard president Donald Trump says that the U.S. might not need a deal, they might not want a deal and escalation might be on the horizon.

But to really understand where things lay and how things could go, I think it's best to always look at what we're hearing also from Tehran. And Mojtaba Khamenei has said that Iran has emerged as a powerful military force.

And this really tells us what the thinking is in Iran, where they are coming into any negotiation with what they view as a upper hand and a very strong stance. So they're unlikely to capitulate to whatever pressure the U.S. is putting them under.

Now we are -- we've been in this ceasefire for a couple of weeks. The Iranian ports have been blocked as a -- as a way to put economic pressure on the Iranians and bring them to the table and get them to move a little bit on some of these red lines that they've had in the past. We're not seeing that.

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The U.S. also tried to take over a cargo ship. And as president Trump said, you know, they took some cargo and oil, another effort to pressure Iran to the table. It's still not working.

And I think where this is going is looking like it's going to go toward an escalation. When I speak to different analysts, that is what they're seeing. We're not seeing a particular offramp. President Trump is looking like he's less into having some deal. And the Iranians aren't really moving past their red lines at this point. Kim.

BRUNHUBER: All right. Not a good sign. Leila Gharagozlou, thank you so much.

So as the U.S. continues its war with Iran, president Trump says he considers it, quote, "treasonous" for people to say that the U.S. isn't winning the war. Listen to this.

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TRUMP: The left to say, we're not winning. We're not winning. They don't have any military left. It's unbelievable. It's actually -- it's actually -- I believe it's treasonous. OK. You want to know the truth?

It's treasonous.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BRUNHUBER: A former special counsel at the U.S. Defense Department says treason isn't about speech but the act of assisting enemies during a time of war. Listen.

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RYAN GOOD, FORMER SPECIAL COUNSEL, U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT: It's a loaded legal term. And president Trump, himself in the past, has noted that treason comes with the death penalty.

There is a dark period of American history in the World War I in which there were the Alien Sedition Acts and they did prosecute individuals who had spoken out against the war. There was the purpose of it.

But that's a dark period. The Supreme Court would strike any of those laws down today. And the treason statute itself has nothing about speech. It's really about materially assisting an enemy at a time of war with intelligence information or something like that, nothing like what the president is talking about.

What he's talking about is rhetorical but it's still kind of sets a tone. And if it ever were pursued, the Supreme Court would eliminate it, I think, 9-0.

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BRUNHUBER: President Trump's calling the war powers resolution totally unconstitutional. Now the law says he has to get congressional approval for further military action in Iran now that the war has hit the 60-day mark.

But in a formal letter to Congress, the president argued that the hostilities ended after a ceasefire was put in place. At the same time, Trump wrote that Iran remains a significant threat that will be assessed as necessary.

The U.S. is reducing its military footprint in Germany, just days after Chancellor Merz criticized the war with Iran. The Pentagon says thousands of troops will leave in the coming months. President Trump is floating similar moves in other European countries that don't support the war.

For more, CNN's Larry Madowo joins us from Nairobi, Kenya.

Larry, take us through what president Trump said and the reaction.

LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kim, president Trump was upset by the German chancellor Friedrich Merz's criticism on Monday, that the Americans were getting humiliated by the war in Iran. And he didn't -- he didn't think that the Americans had an exit strategy. He thought this war was ill advised.

President Trump said that was most unfortunate. He said that the German chancellor thinks Iran should have a nuclear weapon. And this built on months of frustration from president Trump about Germany, the European nations, other NATO allies, their refusal to join this war, even though he said that we spent billions of dollars supporting them.

But when we need them, they're not there. Friday, the U.S. Department of Defense, which likes to call itself the department of war, announced that 5,000 troops will be -- will be withdrawn from Germany. This will take 6-12 months. That still leaves more than 30,000 troops that are stationed in Germany.

Germany has the largest U.S. troop presence in Europe and it is a key hub for medical training and logistical support. It includes facilities that -- like the Ramstein Air Base, which hosts the U.S. Africa Command and the U.S. European Command.

It also has the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, the largest U.S. hospital outside of the U.S. That's where a lot of the troops who are injured in theater, such as in the Middle East, get treated first.

The U.S. Department of Defense spokesperson saying that this withdrawal, after a thorough review of the requirements on the ground, the operational requirements in theater and the Department of Defense force posture in Europe.

There have been some within the department, the Pentagon, who have wanted this withdrawal for some time. They thought that there should be fewer troops in the Middle East and Europe and more troops in the Indo-Pacific region.

So this might play to their advantage. President Trump has also said that he's likely to withdraw more troops from Italy and Spain, that he's been frustrated with. He said they've been terrible and especially after the leadership of both Spain and Italy have failed to provide full support and encouragement for this Iranian operation.

There's about 12,000 U.S. troops in Italy, about 3,800 in Spain. So those might be next to go if president Trump makes good on this threat. Kim.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, if. Exactly. Larry Madowo, thanks so much.

All right.

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When we come back, what president Trump is saying about the state of the U.S. economy as he faces slumping poll numbers over the Iran war.

Plus, our Harry Enten has been crunching those poll numbers. So just ahead, what Americans are saying about the reason behind the rising gas prices. Stay with us.

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(MUSIC PLAYING) BRUNHUBER: New polling shows that a majority of Americans are blaming

president Trump for rising gas prices. AAA reports that the national average has jumped again to $4.43 a gallon. That's the highest level since July 2022. President Trump insists prices will drop when the war ends. Here he is.

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TRUMP: It's going to come tumbling down. There is so much oil out there. It's pent up. It's locked up in the Strait of Hormuz. When all of that gets released, when all of that comes out, these people tried to hold up our country for years and years.

The world, by closing up the Strait of Hormuz when all of that stuff comes out, you're going to see prices dropping on gasoline like you've never seen. And all of that electricity, gasoline, anything having to do with energy. Grocery prices are way down. Used car prices are way down.

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Look at eggs. Eggs are down by four, even five times.

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BRUNHUBER: So Americans say the war with Iran isn't worth the gas price increase. CNN's chief data analyst Harry Enten breaks down the poll numbers.

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HARRY ENTEN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Take a look at the change in gas prices each week. You know, at the beginning of the war, they shot up like a rocket. But then the last few weeks, they had been pretty stable until this week. Because just take a look here.

Changing gas prices each week. Two weeks ago, the weekly change was -- it was actually down 2 percent. One week ago, the weekly change, it was flat.

But look at this. Over the last week, we're talking about a rise in gas prices of 8 percent over just the last seven days. And, of course, over the course of the war, we're talking a rise in gas prices of 47 percent.

That's the largest increase over a two-month period, dating back since at least the beginning of this century.

Is the Iran war worth higher gas prices?

Just 34 percent of Americans say yes. About two in three, 64 percent, say no, no, no, nein, nein, nein. They do not like this one iota. So when they hear Republicans saying what they're saying about the war being worth it in terms of higher gas prices, they say, what are you, out to lunch? I see these numbers and I go to myself, my God, these are bad. And it's happened over just two months. It has happened over just two months. So I was interested, looking back through history, how long did prior wars, I mean, just look at this.

At least 60 percent say the war was a mistake. Months it took Iran was 2. You go back to the Iraq war. It was 51. It was 51 months it took. That is, what, 25 times as long for the Iraq war to get at least 60 percent of the public to say it was a mistake.

And Vietnam, look at that. It took 74 months, 74 months. So this is just a completely different planet. This war is horribly unpopular. And Republicans completing their political message, like we heard in those earlier clips, it is a political loser.

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BRUNHUBER: Massive International Workers Day or May Day rallies were held across the U.S. on Friday. A key theme this year was rising energy prices, living costs and immigration crackdowns.

In downtown Los Angeles, thousands of people gathered to protest against immigration raids and to demand higher wages. There were also many protests across New York City. At this one, hundreds of people took a stand in favor of unions and against large corporations.

Marchers in Washington focused on Immigration and Customs Enforcement. And at one point, some people chanted, "ICE has got to go."

And in Minneapolis, organizers pushed for better wages and benefits and against immigration crackdowns. Here's what one protester had to say in South Carolina.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're here to unite as one working class, as one international working class, no divisions. We won't fall for the scapegoating of immigrant communities. We won't allow ICE to terrorize our neighbors, because an injury to one is an injury to all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: People around the world marked International Workers Day with large protests. Cuba celebrated with a large pro-government march, while U.S. president Donald Trump quipped about taking over the island.

He joked about the military moving on the country on their way back from Iran. Now this comes as Cuba faces an energy crisis and scaled back its May Day events. CNN's Patrick Oppmann reports.

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PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So May Day is usually one of the biggest pro-government marches you see in Cuba each year. This year, it's had to be stripped down. It's much less people than you usually see because of the severe energy crisis that is taking place on this island at this moment.

The United States has been preventing, for the most part, all fuel from arriving to Cuba. So you see less cars on the street, longer and longer blackouts. And that is why instead of doing this march in the Revolution Square here, which can fit up to 1 million people, we're in front of the U.S. embassy.

Because the government here has been calling on the U.S. to lift this energy blockade. For the Trump administration, though, it's quite a different story.

They're saying that Cuba needs to open up economically and politically, that this island is being mismanaged and has been open to the enemies of the United States to set up a foothold just 90 miles from the United States. And so the tensions continue to rise here.

Cubans tell us, at least the pro-government Cubans here at an event like this one, is that they're willing to die to defend their country. And then no matter what the Trump administration demands of this government, they are going to resist -- Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: President Trump follows through with his threat against allies that don't support the war with Iran. Still ahead, what the move means for U.S. troops in Germany.

Plus U.S. bases in the Middle East take heavy damage from Iranian strikes. A CNN investigation looks into the fallout from the attacks, which have left some bases unable to operate.

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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.

U.S. discount carrier Spirit Airlines has shut down. A statement from the company says all Spirit flights have been canceled and travelers shouldn't go to the airport. Other airlines have said they'll help stranded passengers and workers. It's the first significant U.S. airline to halt operations in nearly 25 years.

President Trump is casting doubt again on a potential deal to end the war with Iran. At an event in Florida on Friday night, he said the U.S. may be better off not making a deal. He also says he considers it to be, quote, "treasonous" for people to say that the U.S. isn't winning the war with Iran. The U.S. will withdraw about 5,000 troops from Germany in the coming

months. The Pentagon says the move follows a review of the U.S. military posture in Europe. But the decision comes after German chancellor Friedrich Merz slammed the U.S. strategy for Iran.

So for more on this, were joined from Berlin by Steven Erlanger, the chief diplomatic correspondent in Europe for "The New York Times."

Good to see you again. So I said, you know, they say this is about a routine force posture review. But the timing here is obviously hard to ignore, coming days, as I said, after chancellor Merz said the U.S. was being humiliated by Iran.

How is this playing in Berlin right now?

STEVEN ERLANGER, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Well, it looks like childish pique. There's clearly a discussion. There's been a discussion since at least last February about a new force posture and Americans moving some troops out of Europe.

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And Europe taking over more responsibility for Europe's conventional defense.

But when Merz was in the Oval Office, Trump told him that there would be no troop drawdown. So this is clearly seen as Trump having a temper tantrum. And it does undermine further confidence in his judgment and in his commitment to the NATO alliance. That's the conclusion. And it's widely felt here.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, widely felt also being widely felt in the wider world, in NATO. We just got a statement from a NATO spokesperson. I'll read it here.

"We are working with the U.S. to understand details of their decision on force posture in Germany. This adjustment underscores the need for Europe to continue to invest more in defense and take on a greater share of the responsibility for our shared security."

Then they go on to say, "We remain confident in our ability to provide for our deterrence and defense, as this shift toward a stronger Europe and a stronger NATO continues."

I mean, what do you make of that?

Obviously, they are making a nod to the U.S. demands to contribute more to European security. And they say, you know, we are still confident. But I mean, certainly this is making reverberations around Europe.

ERLANGER: Well, it does. I mean, now, 5,000 out of some 36,000 -- it also seems to include artillery brigade that won't arrive, you know, as opposed to people who are already here.

But it is symbolic and NATO is doing as best it can. It really wants to keep the U.S. in. There's a summit coming up in Istanbul that people worry about.

How will Trump respond?

He's been dissing NATO for quite a long time. His relations with Germany, with Merz have been pretty good. They weren't so good with the previous chancellor. Trump doesn't really like the Germans and he's also felt that, for decades he's felt that the United States spends too much money on European defense.

And there are more American troops in Germany than anywhere else. But they're not there to really defend the Germans. They're there to help America set its power all over the world.

I mean, German bases were crucial for the Iran war, which hasn't finished; the hospital is in Landstuhl, it's where wounded American service men and women come to get healed. It's been, you know, very much, a relationship where the Germans provide the land for free and pay for a lot of local hires.

So to some degree, it feels like cutting off your foot a bit. It's not the biggest part of your foot but it will have reverberations.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. And there are still questions as to whether any of that will affect the troops that were supporting Ukrainian soldiers in terms of training and equipment and so on. As you say, it's not necessarily the numbers but it is symbolic.

But also Trump is floating the same thing with Italy and Spain now.

I mean, how more widely are European governments talking to each other about all of this behind the scenes?

ERLANGER: Well, they're talking to each other a lot, frankly, because, you know, first of all, they've agreed that European members of NATO need to do more for their own defense.

I mean, they believe that the Trump administration is right to demand that, that Europe is rich enough. But the deal has been that America would only withdraw capabilities once European allies were prepared to take them over. Now that's proceeding. It never proceeds fast enough.

But the general assumption is, by 2029 or so, there'll be, you know, more European capability and less American capability.

The issue, in a way, is more like, would the United States come to the aid of European allies should Russia attack?

I mean -- and so this is partly a question of exercises.

Will America cut back on NATO exercises?

Will it cut back on rotational troops who kind of stay in European bases for a period of time and then go home?

So I mean, there are larger issues at play. And their other worry the Germans have -- and maybe it's a bit fantastic but this happened right after Trump had a 1.5 hours conversation with Vladimir Putin.

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And the Russians have been very much against sending this artillery brigade, which has long-range missiles that could hit Russia. They've been complaining about this for quite a long time.

And this is one of the things that the Pentagon said would not be coming to Germany. So the Germans are wondering, you know, they don't know whether this came up in the Trump-Putin conversation.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. We won't know, I suppose. Good point though. We'll have to leave it there. Steven Erlanger, thank you so much.

ERLANGER: Thank you, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: The U.S. military presence in the Middle East could also see some changes. But in this case, it's because of Iran.

A CNN investigation finds that the majority of U.S. bases in the region have been struck by Tehran and some are practically out of commission. As Tamara Qiblawi reports, the attacks have shattered the image of U.S. invincibility among regional allies.

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TAMARA QIBLAWI, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER-WRITER (voice-over): Camp Buehring, Kuwait, American soldiers enjoying a karaoke night at one of the biggest U.S. military hubs in the Gulf. That was then.

This is now. A once-bustling American micro city in the desert, nearly empty and heavily damaged after a weeks-long barrage of Iranian missiles and drones, one of many U.S. military facilities in the oil- rich Arabian Peninsula targeted by Iran, even as the U.S. and Israel pummeled the Islamic Republic's large Arsenal.

So what impact have Iran strikes had on America's footprint in the Middle East?

A CNN investigation found evidence of unprecedented destruction. We can reveal that strikes damaged at least 16 U.S. installations across eight countries. According to our analysis and sourcing, that's the majority of American military positions in the region and some of them are virtually unusable now.

A U.S. source familiar with the situation told us that they'd never seen anything like this at American bases, that these were rapid, targeted strikes using advanced technology. Iran's main targets, multi-million dollar aircraft, like this Boeing E-3 Sentry, which gave the U.S. a huge amount of visibility over the Gulf.

It's out of production and in today's money, it's worth nearly half a billion , critical communications equipment.

Look at these giant golf balls. They're known as radomes and they protect satellite dishes vital for data transmission. In this space alone, Iran destroyed all but one of the radomes less than a month into the war. And crucially, radar systems, highly sophisticated, expensive, difficult to replace and critical to air defense.

A second U.S. source, this one, a congressional aide familiar with damage assessments described these as the most cost-effective of the targets. Our radar systems, they said, are our most expensive and our most limited resource in the region.

QIBLAWI: For U.S. allies in the region, there is a dilemma. In some ways, Iran's show of force makes the U.S.'s presence in the region even more necessary to Gulf security. But there is a new reality here, which is that U.S. military installations, previously seen as formidable fortresses, have turned into sitting targets.

As a Saudi source told me, the war has shown Saudi Arabia, that's the U.S.'s longest standing Arab ally, that the alliance with the U.S. cannot be exclusive and it is not, in their words, impregnable.

QIBLAWI (voice-over): To get a sense of just how vulnerable U.S. facilities have become, have a look at this. It's the War Room at Qatar's Al Udeid Air Base, the theater command and control hub for U.S. air power across 21 nations, struck not just once but twice and according to a U.S. source, causing significant damage.

The base had been largely evacuated at this point and no casualties were reported. Iran's visibility over its targets has never been clearer.

In 2024, according to the "Financial Times," Tehran secretly acquired a Chinese satellite known as the TEE-01B, a massive upgrade from its own satellites. That means that Tehran went from looking at images of this quality to this.

This is the first time America has fought an adversary with satellites that capture high-res imagery, almost as detailed as its own.

As the scale of the damage comes into focus, many will wonder whether America's presence, once a protective shield in the Middle East, has turned into its Achilles heel -- Tamara Qiblawi, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: And responding to CNN's findings, a Pentagon official said that the Department of Defense doesn't discuss damage assessments but the U.S. forces remain fully operational with the same readiness and combat effectiveness.

CNN also understands from its sources that the vast majority of U.S. troops evacuated their positions in the Middle East, with many working from the relative safety of hotels and apartments in the Arabian Peninsula.

[05:40:05]

The battle for control of Congress is heating up as more states join the effort to redraw congressional maps. We're tracking the latest developments ahead on CNN NEWSROOM. Stay with. Us

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BRUNHUBER: Tennessee and Alabama are now joining Louisiana in a move to redraw their congressional maps ahead of the November elections. The states' Republican governors announced special legislative sessions next week to pave the way for redistricting.

That comes after a Supreme Court decision this week, further weakening what's left of the Voting Rights Act. Wednesday's ruling threw out a Black majority district created in Louisiana, making it much harder to challenge redistricting plans as discriminatory.

Joining me now is Atiba Ellis, the Morris G. Shanker professor of law at Case Western Reserve University School of Law. And he's also the associate dean for enrichment and engagement.

Thanks so much for being here with us. Really appreciate it. So within 48 hours of the decision, we have Louisiana delaying its primary. And now Alabama and Tennessee calling these special sessions to redraw their maps.

Are you surprised how fast states have moved on this?

ATIBA ELLIS, MORRIS G. SHANKER PROFESSOR OF LAW, CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW: I'm shocked but not surprised. I think that this shows the danger that has been held back by the Voting Rights Act for decades.

That, without its protections and, in addition, given the Supreme Court's decision in Rucho v. Common Cause, saying that there's no federal action against partisan gerrymandering, states -- state legislatures are free to pick their voters rather than the voters picking their legislators.

It the storm of mid-decade redistricting designed to game the process.

[05:45:00]

And in this political environment for the Republican majority to try to preserve itself, is just heading out with no legal constraints.

BRUNHUBER: It's a bit confusing because the court said back in 2019 that it can't touch partisan gerrymandering and now saying states can basically defend any map by calling it political instead of racial. So basically, you can gerrymander for politics, not race.

I mean, how do those two rulings work together?

ELLIS: Well, without partisan gerrymandering, there's no claim that you can bring under the Constitution that says, hey, the Republicans are making it unfair for Democrats or Democrats making it unfair for Republicans. Oftentimes, these things get litigated under the guise of racial gerrymandering.

And as we've seen, up to the court decision Wednesday, in Texas and California, those arguments were raised. And the courts had said, hey, there's not enough evidence here to for us to step in.

But after Wednesday's decision, which puts Section Two of the Voting Rights Act, the piece of the Voting Rights Act that was designed to prevent this, to too high of a standard, you have to show intentional discrimination that state legislatures on purpose wanted to hurt minority voting power.

Without that kind of evidence, which no legislature is going to go on the record to say, then there're basically no constraints. So bits and pieces of the law become ineffective and the door is wide open to redistricting, as long as they call it partisan.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. The effect of this, I mean, some analysts say this could eventually put as many as 19 seats held by Black and Latino representatives at risk across the South.

I mean, is that a number that you've seen?

And you know, what is at stake here?

ELLIS: Well, 19 is a number that I've seen. I will also point out, on the other hand, that given -- I'm not a political scientist and certainly how voters actually vote may shift this a bit.

But the shift in representation, the likely loss of nearly 20 seats will, in the eyes of some, reverse history, right. The Voting Rights Act guaranteed representation. It facilitated communities of color to have an active role in the political process.

Undoing these rules and letting states redraw these districts for the advantage of the party that has historically not involved minorities as greatly as it could have or even should have, could basically undo what 60 years of having this law was able to do.

BRUNHUBER: On the other side, I mean, you've seen Democrats trying to fight back, I guess, in gerrymandering, you know, their own states. But those obviously aren't being done racially. They're just being done more politically.

But can that, do you think, undo some of the damage you're talking about, specifically in terms of disenfranchisement for minorities?

I mean, it is possible, right?

ELLIS: The advantage for the Democrats is, if the rules are off and, it's you can use gerrymandering by Republicans, the Democrats can do the same thing, right?

We saw earlier this year and late last year, Texas redrew its decades in the middle -- redrew its districts in the middle of the decade. California answered; Republican states, Democratic states went back and forth. So the door being open gives the opportunity for California and other

Democratic states to do the same and answer the Republicans.

BRUNHUBER: Yes.

ELLIS: The challenge, though, is that we don't think that -- there's lots of people who think that isn't the way democracy should work. And that's the long-term conversation that I think we need to have.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. And crucially, obviously, it won't help any Black and brown voters in those particular states that now have been affected by this, redrawn maps that we're seeing in the Republican states. Listen, a super important topic. Really appreciate getting your expertise on. Atiba Ellis, thank you so much.

ELLIS: Thank you.

BRUNHUBER: A federal appeals court has temporarily reinstated a nationwide requirement that abortion pills be obtained in person. The ruling restricts access to mifepristone, one of two drugs used in medication abortions.

[05:50:00]

The pill accounts for roughly two-thirds of all abortions in the U.S. Mifepristone's manufacturer has asked the court to put its ruling on hold for now, so it can appeal to the Supreme Court.

All right. Much more here on CNN NEWSROOM. Please stay with. Us

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BRUNHUBER: A nail-biting Friday night in the first round of the NBA playoffs in Houston, the Lakers dominated the Rockets, closing out their series to advance to the Western Conference semifinals. They'll face the defending NBA champion, the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Now over in the Eastern Conference, the number one seed Detroit pistons ruled the second half against the Orlando Magic to force a win or go home game seven. The Pistons are trying to overcome what was a three games to one series deficit.

And in Toronto, the Raptors stunned the Cleveland Cavaliers in overtime, winning 112 to 110 with a last second three pointer from RJ Barrett. The teams will meet again in their decisive game seven Sunday night.

Formula 1 is in the U.S. this weekend for the Miami Grand Prix. F1 racing had been on an extended break due to scheduling disruptions linked to the war in the Middle East. Races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were canceled in April.

[05:55:00]

Going into Sunday's race in Miami, F1 fans will be watching 19-year- old phenom Kimi Antonelli. He leads the field with 72 points ahead of his Mercedes teammate, George Russell, and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc. CNN's Elizabeth Perez sat down with Antonelli, who has some big shoes to fill after taking over Lewis Hamilton's spot on the team.

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ELIZABETH PEREZ, CNN EN ESPANOL ANCHOR: You have become the youngest championship leader in the tournament. How does it feel?

KIMI ANTONELLI, DRIVER, MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS F1 TEAM: Well, I mean, it feels good but I'm not thinking about it, to be fair. I still very early into the seasons. We still have a lot of races left.

So the goal is to try and keep and maintain, try to improve, level up, also raise the game, because, for sure, the others are going to get stronger and we got to keep pushing, because it's still very early on but definitely is a good position to be in, considering, as well, the car we've got at the moment.

Of course, I don't want to think too much about it. I want to just really focus race by race, because it's still a very long championship. But so far, it's been going good.

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BRUNHUBER: Well, it's that time of year again, big hats and horse races. The Triple Crown season is officially underway with the Kentucky Derby starting things off on Saturday. The favorite to win the race is Renegade, who has a 5:1 shot of taking the first leg of the Triple Crown.

All right, that wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. For our viewers here in North America, "CNN THIS MORNING" is next. For the rest of the world it's "AFRICAN VOICES."