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Trump Says U.S. Having "Very Positive Discussions" With Iran; Israel And Hezbollah Intensify Strikes Despite Lebanon Ceasefire; Interview With Representative James Walkinshaw (D-VA); Americans Feeling Frustrated Over High Gas Prices; U.S. To Withdraw 5,000 Troops From Germany; Talks Aimed At Ending Russa-Ukraine War Lose Momentum Amid U.S. War With Iran; FCC Target ABC Licenses As Trump Demands Kimmel Be Fired; Yemen's Houthis Seize U.S.-Funded Equipment After Slashing Of USAID. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired May 03, 2026 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:00]

ANTHONY VACCARELLO, CREATIVE DIRECTOR, SAINT LAURENT: It's such a beautiful job. It's such a beautiful, it's such a privilege to do that.

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Jason, thanks for that.

Tonight, a look at one of the most powerful and influential people in the fashion industry, "BEHIND THE BOB: VOGUE'S ANNA WINTOUR," tonight at 8:00 Eastern and Pacific on CNN. You can also watch on the CNN app.

A new hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. Hi, everyone. I'm Jessica Dean here in New York.

We are following breaking news this evening as President Trump announces on social media starting tomorrow, the U.S. will be guiding stranded ships out of the Strait of Hormuz. He's also suggesting there's progress in reopening peace talks, saying U.S. representatives are having very positive discussions with Iran. This comes after Iran's Foreign Ministry said the U.S. had responded to its 14-point proposal, and Tehran is reviewing that reply.

Let's bring in CNN's Betsy Klein from Florida. She's been traveling with the president this weekend.

Betsy, what more can you tell us?

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, there appears to be a major shift, at least in messaging for these peace talks between the U.S. and Iran. After a bit of a stalemate, the back and forth exchange of proposals appears to be picking back up. But this is all very fluid. So let me just take you through a timeline here. It was just on Friday that President Trump told reporters as he was leaving the White House that he was not happy with the latest proposal put forth by Iran and that the U.S. might be better off if they did not reach a deal at all.

Then on Saturday, as he was making his way here to Doral, telling reporters that he had received a new proposal from Iran and would be reviewing it. But I want to be very clear about the president's headspace at the time. He posted on social media that he couldn't imagine that this proposal would be acceptable in that, in his words, Iran has not yet paid a big enough price for what they have done to humanity. Now, it's not clear at this point what kind of price the president is looking for Iran to pay.

Then on Sunday, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that the U.S. had submitted a response, and Iran was then reviewing that response. And then we heard from President Trump in a very lengthy post to social media casting a very different tone. He says, quote, "I am fully aware that my representatives are having very positive discussions with the country of Iran and that these discussions could lead to something very positive for all."

Now, the president spent hours here Sunday at his golf course in Doral, where he was joined by Steve Witkoff, his special envoy, one of the officials leading the negotiations on behalf of the U.S. with Iran. And Witkoff told our colleague Peter Morris, we are in conversation with Iran. There is also another notable development. President Trump in that same post to social media announcing that the U.S. will begin to guide ships through the Strait of Hormuz. That is that critical oil thoroughfare.

And he says this is going to be a humanitarian gesture. He's calling this Project Freedom. He says it will begin on Monday. He says the U.S. will be helping to guide these ships safely out of the waterway so they can get back to their business. We asked the White House for additional details on how this might work, but for months now, CNN estimates that there are about 20,000 sailors who have been stranded in this strait.

And that announcement comes as we are seeing major economic impacts from this U.S. blockade on the Strait of Hormuz. Gas prices up $0.34 just in the past week to a national average of $4.45. So all of this weighing on President Trump as he makes his way back to Washington to start the week -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right, Betsy Klein, thank you so much. We really appreciate that reporting.

And as the U.S. and Iran are reviewing peace proposals, clashes between Israel and the Iranian-backed group Hezbollah are heating up, threatening to undermine the fragile ceasefire in Lebanon. Earlier today, the Israeli military issuing a new evacuation warning in southern Lebanon.

Let's bring in CNN's Oren Liebermann with more on this -- Oren. OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Since the beginning of

the war with Iran some two months ago, more than 2,600 people have now been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon, according to the country's Ministry of Public Health. There has been a ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese government for the past couple of weeks, but that has not affected in any serious way the ongoing fighting between Israel and Iran's proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah.

That conflict is not only ongoing, but from what we see on the ground is very much escalating. Israel continuing to carry out strikes across Southern Lebanon and issuing more evacuation orders, including evacuation warnings even north of the Litani River, outside of the area occupied by Israeli forces in Southern Lebanon.

[19:05:01]

The Israeli military says they have destroyed more Hezbollah tunnel infrastructure and targeted dozens of Hezbollah military sites and facilities as they continue to try to go after Iran's proxy there. Hezbollah, meanwhile, has responded with its own levels of drones and rocket attacks. Some of those intercepted above southern Lebanon and northern Israel, according to the Israeli military.

But all of that ongoing conflict means the diplomacy that the U.S. was trying to get on track and trying to push forward is in a very difficult spot right now. The Trump administration is pushing for a meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. But from where we sit right now, with an ongoing conflict, it's very difficult to see that happening.

Israel has said in the past that it will not stop the war, stop its strikes, in order to continue with negotiations. They say they will only do negotiations under fire, while Lebanon has said they will not negotiate under those circumstances. And that makes diplomacy -- that makes a more permanent ceasefire and certainly any sort of peace agreement between Israel and Lebanon a very difficult order from where we sit now.

Oren Liebermann, CNN, in Jerusalem.

DEAN: All right, Oren, thank you.

And we are joined now by Democratic Representative James Walkinshaw of Virginia. He serves on House Oversight and also the Homeland Security Committee.

Congressman, thanks so much for your time tonight. We really appreciate it. I do want to take us back to Iran, where we started this hour. President Trump has said that the hostilities in Tehran have terminated because of the ceasefire. And on Friday suggested the war powers resolution notify Congress within 60 days is unconstitutional.

I know that Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski says she's planning to introduce a measure to formally authorize the war this week if she doesn't see what she calls a credible plan that's happening -- that would be happening in the Senate.

Obviously, you're in the House. Where do you come down on this? Do you think 60 days applies even though there's a ceasefire in place?

REP. JAMES WALKINSHAW (D-VA): I don't think it's a question of one's opinion. I think the law is very clear. There's no language in the War Powers Act recognizing a pause in the 60-day time clock because of a ceasefire, partial or full. The War Powers Act is very clear. The clock starts 60 days from the beginning of hostilities. When you hit the 60-day mark, the president has 30 days to withdraw, 30 days for an orderly withdrawal.

It's clear that we've crossed the 60-day mark, and the law says he's got to start withdrawing troops, has 30 days to do it. Absent an authorization of force from Congress, that's what the law says.

My Republican colleagues, many of them, 30 days ago were saying the same thing. They said, let's wait until we get to the 60-day mark and then we'll make a decision. Now that we're at the 60-day mark, they've gotten very, very quiet about it.

DEAN: And so what -- again, Democrats are in the minority right now, but what do you think can be done? Is there any pushback here?

WALKINSHAW: Well, Democrats in the House are going to continue to put war powers resolution votes on the floor, calling on a withdrawal of forces. It's always been the case that Congress's enforcement mechanism for the War Powers Act is funding. And so the question for us as a Congress, are we going to take seriously our constitutional authority to withhold funding for an unauthorized war?

Count me as one who's willing to do that. I think it will be a good question for my Republican colleagues if they take that responsibility seriously or not.

DEAN: I also want to ask you about this announcement from the Pentagon that the U.S. will be withdrawing 5,000 troops from Germany. We heard from President Trump last night. He said that might just be the beginning, that more troops could be withdrawn as well.

As a result of that, we saw the Republican chairmen of the Armed Services Committee, both in the House and the Senate, Senator Roger Wicker and Congressman Mike Rrogers, issued a statement saying they were very concerned and that prematurely reducing America's forward presence in Europe risks undermining deterrence and signaling the wrong signal -- sending the wrong signal to Vladimir Putin.

Again, these are the two Republican chairmen in each chamber issuing this joint statement, pushing back on this administration's decision.

What do you think about this? And do you anticipate that there might be anything that Congress could or would do about this?

WALKINSHAW: First, I think the two Republicans you quoted there are absolutely 100 percent correct. We know that Vladimir Putin recognizes one thing, strength. And Donald Trump has time after time after time shown him weakness and withdrawing 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany because of personal pique, because Germany hasn't participated in the war in Iran, I think is a huge, huge mistake.

I'm hopeful that as we look at the Defense Authorization bill, the Defense Appropriations bill that Republicans have put out, statements like that will put our money, put the taxpayers' money where their mouths are, and require the president to keep those troops in Germany.

[19:10:06]

DEAN: I do also want to ask you about this new polling that we're getting out that shows it's from "Washington Post," ABC News, Ipsos, 37 percent approval ratings for Trump's handling of the job. When you break it down by party, just 25 percent of independents approve of President Trump's handling. Now, you know, for Democrats, we're just saying in the last hour that looks to be an opening for them, independents swung Donald Trump's way in 2024, in these upcoming midterms, which at six months still far away but primaries happening now.

What do you think Democrats need to be capitalizing on at this moment to make their case to the American people?

WALKINSHAW: I think the reason we see those numbers, record low approval numbers for President Trump is because he hasn't kept the promises he made on the campaign trail. Right? He promised to bring prices down. His policies, especially the war, now are driving prices up with gas prices heading to $5 a gallon. I think Democrats between now and November have to lay out a very clear, simple and coherent agenda.

If you put us in charge, give us control of the House and Senate, here's what we'll do. We'll focus on affordability first and accountability. Affordability, bringing down price of health care, bringing down price of gas, bringing down price of housing and education. And then accountability for the laws that have been violated in the Trump administration. The chaos that we've seen. I think the American people want to see a check on that and see that brought under control. That needs to be our focus.

DEAN: And are you confident? I mean, I know you just ran in a special election, but do you think that the American people will be open to that? Because when you look at Democrats' numbers, they're not necessarily super popular either.

WALKINSHAW: Look, there's a lot of reasons for that. I think one of the reasons Democrats' numbers in polling isn't as strong as I hope it will be in the fall is there are a lot of Democratic aligned voters who have been frustrated. They don't feel like there's been enough action from Democrats in Congress, enough pushback. We've got to do a better job of convincing them of that.

I think as we get closer to the fall, you'll see those numbers for Democrats improve. But no question, we have to do a better job of articulating what we will do if we're in charge in Congress in January of 2027. DEAN: All right, Congressman James Walkinshaw, thanks for your time.

We really do appreciate it.

WALKINSHAW: Thanks for having me.

DEAN: Still to come, frustrated. That's what drivers say they're feeling right now. They're filling up their tanks as gas prices hit a new high this weekend. We're live with a look around the country. Plus the president is doubling down in his feud with late-night host Jimmy Kimmel. But this time, the fight between the FCC and Disney could be a bit different. We'll talk through that straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:17:23]

DEAN: Tonight, U.S. attorney Jeanine Pirro telling CNN the Secret Service agent injured at last weekend's White House Correspondents' Dinner was shot by the suspected gunman. That bullet hitting the officer's bulletproof vest. Video from that night shows an armed man raising his gun and aiming it at officers as he rushed through that security checkpoint. It doesn't make clear whether he fired his weapon, but Pirro now says they can prove that the bullet did belong to the suspect.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEANINE PIRRO, U.S. ATTORNEY FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: We now can establish that a pellet that came from the buckshot, from the defendant's Mossberg pump action shotgun, was intertwined with the fiber of the vest of the Secret Service officer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So it's definitively his bullet.

PIRRO: It is definitively his bullet. He hit at that Secret Service agent. He was -- had every intention to kill him, and anyone who got in his way on his way to the killing the president of the United States. This was a premeditated, violent act, calculated to take down the president and anyone who was in the line of fire.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: The alleged gunman, now facing multiple charges, including attempting to assassinate the president.

This weekend, drivers across the U.S. seeing yet another spike at the pump. According to AAA, the average price for a gallon of gas hit $4.45. Across the country prices today range from $3.85 in Georgia to over $6 in California. AAA says prices are up about $1.50 per gallon since the war with Iran began just over two months ago.

And CNN's Gloria Pazmino has been at a gas station here in New York today talking to drivers.

We were just looking at that map, Gloria. New York, not quite the most expensive, but it's certainly really up there. And it sounds like people are really feeling it.

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jessica. And you know, honestly, as we talk about gas prices throughout the week, we often talk about, you know, its increasing X amount of cents, a few cents here and there. But when you talk to people, working people, who are looking at their budget week to week, you really begin to understand how just a few cents' increase actually does make a difference in people's lives, especially if they're making a living by driving a vehicle.

We've spoken to a lot of cab drivers this week, Uber drivers, who tell us that their gas budgets have almost doubled since the Middle East conflict began in February. I spoke to a man who told us that if he fills up his gas tank, it might mean he doesn't have enough money to have lunch that day. I also spoke to a driver who told us that he's starting to work a sixth and seventh day in order to stay afloat.

[19:20:03]

We also got a little bit of perspective from some of the drivers we spoke to here today. They told us that they know, they understand that the prices are going to go up. They hope they can come down soon. The question is just how soon?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOHAMMED SOLIMAN, BUYING GAS TODAY IN NYC: Right now?

PAZMINO: Yes.

SOLIMAN: About 400.

PAZMINO: And how does that compare to, say, two months ago, before the war started?

SOLIMAN: Well, half of it. So 200, 200 something. Yes. Double.

PAZMINO: Wow.

SOLIMAN: So earning -- even less earning right now because no tourists, nobody want to come to the city. So it's affecting everyone.

AMRIK SANGH, BUYING GAS TODAY IN NYC: Now it's like almost 90. But up to 92.

PAZMINO: OK.

SANGH: If I put like a super, 150.

JEFF OLSON, BUYING GAS TODAY IN NYC: You get these, especially the gas and oil, they get the production systems up and running could be like six months to a year, they say. So it's like we're not going to see any respite from this for a long time.

(END VIDEO CLIP) PAZMINO: So let's break down the numbers, Jessica. Right now we're seeing a national average of about $4.45 for the gallon. There's been about a 35 cent increase in just the past week. Like I said, a question of cents actually does end up making a difference. In fact, since the conflict started back in February, we have seen an increase of almost $1.50 per gallon.

You talked about the most expensive prices around the country. We're here in New York, and I just want to show you, if you get a regular gallon this week or today, rather, $4.43. It actually has gone down $0.02, Jessica, since we've been here this morning. It was at $4.45 earlier today, right in line with the national average. And now as we are approaching the evening a little bit cheaper, $0.02. $4.43, $5.43 for the premium gallon. If you are in California, you're seeing some of the highest prices, up to $6.10 a gallon there -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right. Gloria Pazmino, hey, a little good news, $0.02 worth of good news there. Gloria Pazmino in New York, thank you so much for that.

Still to come here, a look at how the war with Iran may be pulling resources and attention away from Ukraine as President Zelenskyy urges allies not to forget about his country.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:26:48]

DEAN: Turning now to a developing story out of Morocco, where search and rescue operations are taking place in the North African country for two U.S. service members. U.S. Africa Command saying the two went missing in southwestern Morocco after taking part in scheduled multinational military exercises.

The service members were reported missing Saturday near a training area close to the city of Tan Tan. Officials say a coordinated search is now underway, on the ground, in the air, also along the coast, and that the incident is under investigation.

The Pentagon is preparing to withdraw roughly 5,000 troops from Germany. President Trump ordering the reduction after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz criticized how the U.S. was handling the war with Iran. Trump says more cuts could be coming in the future, despite pushback from NATO officials.

Let's bring in CNN contributor Jill Dougherty. She's also an adjunct professor at Georgetown University and former CNN Moscow bureau chief.

Jill, it's good to see you. The Republican chairman of the Armed Services Committees in both chambers, in the House and the Senate, say that this troop withdrawal risks sending the wrong message to Russian President Vladimir Putin. How do you see it?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Oh, I definitely agree. I mean, I think this is sending a message directly to Putin, and it's a message that he would welcome because, you know, 5,000 troops, when you figure we've got 36,000 in Germany, and by the way, they don't just protect Germany. They deal with operations in Africa and other places around the world. But 5,000 isn't a huge number.

But, you know, you were referring to this kind of fight, let's call it, between President Trump and Chancellor Merz. And there's certainly peak on the side of the American president that he's angry at those comments. And so this type of division among the allies is very good for Putin. That is what he wants to see. That is what he wants to sow between the United States and its allies.

And I would say there are a couple of other things that are more worrying, I would argue. One is that the United States has decided not to deploy a battalion of soldiers who are in charge of weapons, kind of like the Tomahawk long range weapons that were going to be deployed to Germany. But that is not going to happen. That's number one. And that was meant to answer what Putin was doing in Kaliningrad, where he has actually nuclear capable weapons.

And then finally, very quickly, you know, the United States is burning through a lot of ammunition, munitions, et cetera, in the Iran war. And now the United States has told allies in the U.K., Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, that they have to expect very long delays with more munitions at that type. So these are all things that you'd have to say do weaken the United States in various ways. And so Putin could be tempted to do something if he feels that, you know, the force posture isn't what it used to be. And it puts enormous pressure, by the way, on the Europeans.

DEAN: Right. Right. To fill that gap and kind of going off what you're talking about with the munitions. One assessment from CSIS says that the U.S. has expended at least 45 percent of its stockpile of precision strike missiles, and nearly 50 percent of its stockpile of patriot air defense interceptor missiles in this war with Iran.

So, there's that, but what does that mean for Ukraine?

DOUGHERTY: Well, it's bad for Ukraine because obviously they've been relying on weapons now, some from the United States. But basically, it's all coming from Europe and their own, the Ukrainians certainly build a lot of weapons, et cetera. But there's no way that they can make up for what the United States provides.

And this is one of the -- you know, if you stand back and look at the message that we should be getting from this, these drawdowns, these changes in forces, et cetera could have been happening, a lot of people expected that they would happen, but they're happening at a very rapid and kind of disorganized pace.

And so, the Europeans are trying to be prepared and create their own weapons, build their own munitions, et cetera. And it's a very difficult thing that you can't do overnight. So, this unpredictability and then rapid drawdown is very, very difficult for the Europeans, even with the best of intentions to match. DEAN: And then what about the impact on the diplomatic front?

Obviously, before the war with Iran, there were these trilateral meetings happening with the U.S., Ukraine, Russia. There was a lot of focus on ending that war. It seems like it's really stalled out but what is your sense?

DOUGHERTY: I do think it's stalled out. Now, you never know, if things are, you know, changing. Interestingly, Iran is changing a lot in Ukraine.

But I think, you know, one of the problems right now is precisely the weapons. The Ukrainians are doing quite well compared to what you might expect at this point and Russia does have problems, but that does not mean that anything is going to come to fruition. And remember, the motivation or the involvement by the United States in this really seems to have waned. It's on kind of the back burner.

You did, interestingly have Putin call President Trump. I think that was very important and say, yes, I could help you if you want, on Iran by taking the enriched uranium that is a big problem. Take the Iranians enriched uranium to Russia and that would help my friend, President Trump. He did not do it because he is a friend of Donald Trump. He's doing it to get back on the world stage. He's been off the world stage for a little bit. This is a way of him, you know, for him to say, well, I can help to solve the problems of the world and namely the Middle East.

But right now, I think Putin wants to make this a European Russia war over Ukraine to get the United States out of it, and then do a deal with the United States, restore relations, get back to the good old days, and have trade, which is not going to happen. But that is his intention. That is, I think, precisely what he wants to do.

DEAN: And good to, to keep that in mind as we move through all of this. All right, Jill Dougherty, great to see you, thank you so much.

DOUGHERTY: Sure.

DEAN: Coming up, some new insights into how American's feel about the future of artificial intelligence. And here's a hint, they don't feel great about it. We're going to break down new polling after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:38:40]

DEAN: President Trump rekindling a fight with an old foe once again taking aim at Jimmy Kimmel and his employer, Disney. After Kimmel made a joke, the First Lady had, in his words, the glow of an expectant widow, a few days before the White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting.

Kimmel says the joke was aimed at the couples age difference. Trump has called for Disney to immediately fire him. This, as the FCC is calling for an early renewal examination of eight ABC station licenses in the biggest markets in the country.

Trump officials say the request is part of a larger, ongoing probe into Disney's diversity initiatives. Let's bring in CNN chief media analyst, Brian Stelter to look at this and other stories.

Brian, what's different, do you think this time in ABC and Kimmel versus Trump?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: The difference this time is that Disney is not flip-flopping or wavering or giving in to Trump's demands, even temporarily.

You know, last fall, we saw the network briefly suspend Kimmel's show as some other stations were nervous about the show. This time, there's been none of that. And I think that does say a lot about the shifting political winds in America.

You know, back when Trump was first re-elected, Disney rushed to settle a lawsuit that he had filed against ABC and George Stephanopoulos. They paid a bunch of money toward his future Presidential library to make that lawsuit go away.

We're not seeing any of that behavior anymore. And I'm not just talking about Disney, either. All across corporate America, other institutions. We're seeing less of that capitulation or caving. We're seeing more institutional spine, institutional backbone. So, we've come a long way from Disney paying settlements. It seems like a capitulation and concession has been replaced by something resembling courage.

In the past week, Trump still generated a lot of noise about Kimmel. He complained about Kimmel repeatedly. He demanded Kimmel be fired. But if you look at the signal and not the noise, the signal was interpreted differently. And Disney so far has decided to stand with its star, to back the First Amendment and not to take any action at all.

[19:40:38]

DEAN: Yes, and then what about the FCC targeting these station licenses? What's the significance of that?

STELTER: Well, Brendan Carr, the FCC chair, he would say that he is ensuring Disney is not discriminating against anybody. But most people are not buying that at all. They don't buy this is about a DEI probe. Disney, by the way, has defended its diversity initiatives at a time in the past year when other companies have backed away, and the FCC itself is charged with promoting diversity.

So, what is this really about? Well, it's about putting Disney through a punishing administrative process. Once the stations have to reapply early to keep their licenses, anybody can file an objection about anything. So, all of a sudden, right-wing groups will be able to complain about Jimmy Kimmel. They'll be able to complain about "The View". And then there will be a really long process and Disney will probably

prevail in the courts. But I think this is about making an example out of Disney.

President Trump has called for several years now to have stations and owners he doesn't like lose their licenses and even though it's really hard to actually take those licenses away, this shows the FCC is willing to try to have the fight. So, Jess, I think it's all about trying to have the fight.

DEAN: Yes, I also want to ask you, we got this new polling from "The Washington Post" and "ABC News" that has a bunch of things in there. One thing we have not talked about is this question, which political party do you trust to do a better job of handling A.I.? And people are looking at the numbers, neither 51 percent. What does that tell you?

STELTER: I think this is utterly fascinating data. To me, looking at this stat, this is a preview of the 2020 election. It might be a little bit of a preview of the midterms this year, but really 2028. You know, look at what this poll shows, 19 percent of Americans say they trust Democrats more to handle the A.I. revolution, 18 percent say they trust Republicans more. But almost everybody up there, it's a tossup. You know, neither trust most, a majority trust neither party.

More than 50 percent of Americans don't trust anybody to handle A.I. effectively. So, it's a huge challenge, but a huge opportunity for ambitious politicians. So, if I'm a candidate of either party thinking about 2028, I'm thinking about an A.I. strategy right now. And the other polls show the same phenomenon, there's a lot of excitement, but a whole lot of anxiety about A.I. And the more people try it, the more worried they get.

A majority of Americans say they're worried about A.I. putting them out of a job. A majority of Americans say the societal risks of A.I. are high. A majority of Americans want A.I. to be regulated and policed to ensure privacy. A majority of Americans say they oppose A.I. data centers in their backyards.

So, there are all these issues where Americans are thinking about A.I. and they're worried. They're also hopeful, though, that it will speed up medical cures and scientific advancements. So, when I look at that polling stat, and I see most Americans don't trust either party to take care of this right now, that is a huge space for leadership.

You know, the Trump administration has taken a let them cook approach to A.I., you know, less regulation, more innovation. Democrats have a huge chance here, but so do Republican candidates to grab that opportunity and figure out what their position is. Because I think that polling stat, we're going to watch that again for several years to come -- Jess.

DEAN: We certainly are, Brian Stelter, good to see you, thanks so much.

And still ahead, breaking news about the health of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, that's next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:48:26]

DEAN: Breaking news, we have heard former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani has been hospitalized. He is said to be in critical but stable condition. A spokesperson, Ted Goodman, posting to social media saying Mayor Giuliani is a fighter who has faced every challenge in his life with unwavering strength, and he's fighting with that same level of strength as we speak. It's still unclear why he's in the hospital.

It's been more than a year since the Trump administration completely dismantled USAID; the humanitarian arm of the federal government that helped deal with malnutrition and preventable diseases around the world.

One consequence beyond the aid lost to millions of people is how the agency's resources could end up in the wrong hands. And now, new CNN reporting reveals Yemen's Houthi rebels may have taken advantage of the opportunity by seizing U.S. funded supplies and equipment. CNN's Jennifer Hansler joins us now with more on her exclusive reporting.

JENNIFER HANSLER, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Well, Jessica, former U.S. government officials told me that this seizure was a consequence of the fact that USAID was dismantled so quickly and the foreign aid funding cuts were so severe.

Now, they explained at the outset of the Trump administration, when they were starting to freeze that humanitarian assistance, the aid to Yemen was not immediately affected. But come April of 2025, it disappeared almost overnight.

At this point, a lot of folks who have been working at USAID were already put on leave or had been furloughed, and the ones who were left did not have information to give their humanitarian partners on the ground about what to do next.

Typically, what would happen here is they would develop what's called a disposition plan to figure out what to do with the materials that had been funded by U.S. taxpayer money. They would either donate them to another group or dispose of them responsibly, that did not happen here.

[20:50:18]

Moreover, these former officials said that there was not guidance given to the partners, and they were not even allowed to communicate with them on what would happen next.

Now, this was especially complicated in Northern Yemen, where these Iranian backed Houthis are in control, because of that situation, the fact that the Trump administration designated them as a terrorist organization. These humanitarian partners were very scared; they didn't know what to do with these assets.

One former official told me that they knew that the partners knew the Houthis had kidnaped, tortured and killed U.S. government, U.N. and other nonprofit officials. And now that there were assets at play here, the Houthis were coming in and starting to take stuff by force.

Now, this particular seizure of the $122,000.00 in U.S. funded supplies was revealed in a USAID watchdog report released earlier in April. They said that the partners ultimately turned this equipment over, which was vehicles and other such things.

No weapons, I should add, because they were afraid for the safety and well-being of their staff. The USAID OIG report also said that USAID officials had attempted to do the right thing here in disposing and figuring out what to do with these assets, and they were not able to do so.

Now, I asked the State Department about what these former officials had told me, and they didn't really give a clear answer to my questions, but they did acknowledge that the Houthis do have a history of kidnaping and detaining both governmental staff, as well as NGO staff here. Now, of course, the kicker here is that a lot of these cuts and the changes to USAID were done because the administration said they wanted to stop waste, fraud and abuse. And of course, what we saw here is U.S. funded materials ending up in Houthi hands -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right, exclusive reporting for Jennifer Hansler, thank you for that.

Checking some top stories we're following tomorrow, Britney Spears is expected to be arraigned in court, we do not expect to see her. She's charged with driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol after she was arrested. The 44-year-old pop star entered a substance abuse treatment. Now, because this is a misdemeanor charge, prosecutors say she will not be required to appear in court for that arraignment.

Oil futures are falling right now ahead of the markets opening across the globe. The worlds benchmark, Brent crude oil, standing at about $107.00 a barrel. This as AAA gas prices in the U.S. hit $4.45 average today.

On Tuesday, primary elections will take place in Indiana and Ohio. Ohio has open contest for governor with current GOP Governor Mike DeWine term limited.

Also on Tuesday, be sure to tune in at 9:00 P.M. Eastern here on CNN for a California Gubernatorial Debate moderated by Kaitlan Collins and Elex Michaelson. Again, that's happening Tuesday at 9:00 P.M. here on CNN.

Still ahead, CNN talks to the new editor in chief for "Vogue". Stay with us. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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DEAN: The all-new CNN flash doc "Behind the Bob: Vogue's Anna Wintour" takes a look at one of the most celebrated and powerful people in fashion. From her lasting impact on the upcoming met gala to the countless trends started by covers and issues of the iconic "Vogue" magazine.

Winter has revolutionized the world of fashion and CNN's senior style reporter Rachel Tashjian sat down with Chloe Mall, who was recently appointed as the new editor in chief of "Vogue" by winter herself, and Rachel joins us with more on that -- Rachel.

RACHEL TASHJIAN, CNN'S SENIOR STYLE REPORTER: Hi, Jess. So, Anna Wintour is probably the most recognizable fashion figure in the world. I think for many of us, she is just synonymous with fashion. So, it's fascinating to see how her profile only continues to grow even after she announced last year that she would step away from leading American "Vogue" on a day-to-day basis.

Now, her successor at the magazine is 40-year-old Chloe Malle, formerly the editor of "Vogue's" website, and we spent time with her in the days leading up to Monday's Met Gala. She spoke with us about how she is affected by the frequent and perhaps inevitable comparisons to Wintour, since she took on the job last year.

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TASHJIAN: There have been some social media posts about what you wear in your style, some people saying it's too casual, and some of these you've shared. Do you look at those things? How do you react to that?

CHLOE MALLE, EDITOR IN CHIEF, VOGUE: I do have a google alert for my name, so I do see when things come up, I like to know what's out there, but I'm not, I'm certainly not reading comments because I think that's' a dark place. But yes, I dress different than Anna does, and maybe that's confusing for people, but I like getting dressed and I've always been pretty consistent in the way I dress. And so, I plan to continue.

The fact that that leans a bit towards, if Katharine Hepburn was a librarian is just something people are going to have to deal with.

TASHJIAN: Did someone say that?

MALLE: No, but I like that?

TASHJIAN: It's my dream. There was a piece on Substack that someone wrote saying that Anna was staging a style intervention for you. Is there any truth to that?

MALLE: Theres not, but I'm happy to take advice from Anna.

TASHJIAN: Well, she knows what she's talking about.

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TASHJIAN: Now, leading up to Monday's gala, we will share more of our conversation with Chloe across CNN's platforms, and we will also have a behind the scenes look at the dress that she has chosen to wear to the Met Gala on Monday.

DEAN: All right, Rachel, thanks so much for that. And thank you for joining me tonight. I'm Jessica Dean, we're going to see you right back here next weekend. The CNN special "Behind the Bob: Vogue's Anna Wintour" starts right now. Have a great night everyone.

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