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UK Politics; US War With Iran; Hantavirus Outbreak; Africa- France Summit. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired May 12, 2026 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:35]

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, everybody. It's great to have you with us. I'm Polo Sandoval live in New York and here's what's coming your way here on CNN NEWSROOM.

"Starmer on the Brink," the British prime minister fighting to save his premiership as Labour Party leaders urge him to quit. The US President says that the cease fire with Iran is on massive life support. And passengers from a cruise ship at the center of a deadly hantavirus outbreak return to their home countries as worries linger that the virus could spread.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from New York, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Polo Sandoval.

SANDOVAL: It is 9:00am in London right now where Britain's prime minister is facing some growing pressure from his own party to resign. More than 70 Labour MPs have publicly urged Keir Starmer to step aside or lay out a timeline for his departure. Last week's local elections, they were a disaster for his governing party, which lost more than 1,400 seats across English councils and control of the Welsh Parliament.

Let's head now to CNN's Clare Sebastian live at this hour just outside of 10 Downing Street with more in London. Clare, with the threat of being replaced, what the prime minister is facing is essentially a fight for his political life.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Polo, look, I think this has been building for a while for Keir Starmer, who has seen over the course of almost two years that he's been in office, a sort of gradual decline in approval ratings. And obviously, last week's local elections were a real confirmation of that, where the Labour Party lost more than 1,400 council seats in nationwide. So obviously we've seen the pressure building since then.

Yesterday on Monday, he made what was seen as a make or break speech which had mixed reviews. But afterwards we did see more and more MPs, more and more members of Parliament come out and call for him to at the very least set a timetable to step down. And among those, reportedly at least one cabinet member, and we're going to see a crucial cabinet meeting here this morning getting underway this hour. And I think the feeling is that, at least, something has to happen in

that meeting that perhaps a timetable could be set or something along those lines. But nothing is a given. The chief secretary to the prime minister was out speaking this morning saying, look, he'll be listening to colleagues but giving nothing away.

And there are those who feel that the timing here is not good. Tomorrow on Wednesday, we have a big set piece event in the British political calendar. The king's speech, the state opening of Parliament -- potentially some arrivals happening here this morning from cabinet members. So that is a big moment in the political calendar. They set out their legislative priorities.

It's also an unstable time for the UK in terms of the economy with the Iran war raising again the prospect of inflation. So it's not a given what will happen today. But I think the question for the prime minister going into this meeting is, are we at a point now where he can do anything to reverse the decline in popularity and perhaps it might be time to address the questions that are growing in number from his members of Parliament, Polo.

SANDOVAL: That's Clare Sebastian with that live report from outside Downing Street. Thank you so much.

I want to turn now to the war with Iran as the White House weighs a critical decision that could break the fragile cease fire. Sources are now telling CNN that President Trump is now giving serious thought into resuming major combat operations in the region. Police are saying, or they are saying that the President has been voicing his frustration and impatience with how Tehran is handling the negotiations to end the war. Here's what he said from the White House on Monday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, UNITED STATES PRESIDENT: A lot of people said, well, does he have a plan? Yes, of course I do have. I have the best plan ever. Iran has been defeated militarily totally.

They have a little left. They probably built up during this period of time. We'll knock that out in about a day. But I have a plan. You know, it is a very simple plan. I don't know why you don't say it like it is. Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: As for Iran's top negotiator, he took to social media to warn against any aggression, saying in part, "we're prepared for every option. They will be surprised," he wrote. Let's go now to CNN's Oren Liebermann who joins me from Jerusalem as he continues to follow the latest from the Middle East. Hey, Oren.

[04:05:00]

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Polo. And in that quote from President Donald Trump, you get at the disconnect between what happened in the war and what's happening now in the negotiations or the lack thereof of what's happening in the negotiations. The US and Israel destroyed much of Iran's military, decapitated Iran's leadership, and yet they haven't made or agreed to make major concessions in negotiations.

Quite the opposite, Iran clearly believes they're negotiating from a position of strength and refuse simply to give in or surrender to US demands. And that's why President Donald Trump, according to his aides who have spoken with CNN, is increasingly frustrated with the lack of progress in negotiations and seriously considering resuming military operations. That is, restarting the war against Iran and the attacks against Iran.

That decision, though, hasn't been made yet, according to the aides who spoke with CNN. And there are differing camps within the White House and the Trump administration. Some, including officials at the Pentagon, want to be more aggressive. They want to resume the strikes, whereas others want to keep pursuing a diplomatic track, even though it doesn't seem like there is a way forward right now or a clear option or window to push those negotiations forward.

Trump called Iran's latest response to the US proposal completely unacceptable. And when you look at what it has, according to Iran's state media, you can clearly see why. Take a look at this.

According to Iranian state media, Iran is demanding an end of the war on all fronts, including Lebanon. That makes sense. It is a permanent ceasefire they're going for, but they're also demanding a compensation for war damages, an end to sanctions and the US imposed blockade on Iranian ports, a resumption of Iranian oil sales, a guarantee of no further attacks, and, crucially, Iranian sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.

These are maximalist demands that get at why there is such a big gap between what the US is trying to accomplish and what Iran is demanding. Iranian officials have called this a responsible and generous offer but, of course, to the US and likely to the rest of the world, that's not at all what they're seeing, which makes diplomacy very, very difficult at this point.

So where do we go from here? Well, Trump said at that same where he spoke -- where you saw earlier in the White House, he says he has the best plan ever to end the war. So we'll of course, wait to see what that is and when he'll implement it. And he also said that you have to be flexible.

He said, "you have to do different plans in different days." So I guess we'll wait to see if he has a different plan today. And then, of course, crucially, we'll wait to see whether he has a different plan after he meets Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week. Polo?

SANDOVAL: Yes. He says it's the best plan, but will it be an acceptable one for Tehran. Oren Liebermann, as always, really appreciate you breaking all that down for us live from Jerusalem.

And the war with Iran, it is expected to be top of the agenda for President Trump's trip to China, as you just heard Oren touch on. He leaves Washington, Washington today for talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing. They're also expected to discuss US tariffs and tensions over Taiwan.

Direct talks between Presidents Trump and Xi will begin on Thursday, with other events planned through Friday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Look, I have a great relationship with President Xi. We're doing a lot of business, but it's smart business. I respect him a lot and hopefully he respects me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And the White House does say that more than a dozen business leaders will be accompanying the president to China, including Apple CEO Tim Cook and Elon Musk from Tesla.

With the cruise ship at the center of a deadly hantavirus outbreak, it is now on its way to the Netherlands, where it's expected to be disinfected. There are still 25 crew members and two medical professionals on board the vessel. All remaining passengers, they disembarked the ship on Monday.

More than a dozen American passengers, they are now back in the United States where they're being monitored by healthcare professionals at facilities in Nebraska and in Georgia. Two of them were flown to Atlanta for further assessment and care at Emory University. And the rest, they are at the University of Nebraska. CNN's Diane Gallagher with more.

DIANNE GALLAGHER, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Eighteen American passengers on the cruise ship that was hit by hantavirus arrived in Omaha, Nebraska, in the wee hours of Monday morning. And 16 of them remain right here on the University of Nebraska Medical Center campus.

Fifteen of those are in the basement of this building right here. They're in the National Quarantine Unit, and that's because everyone who is still here in Nebraska is asymptomatic. Those 15 people in the quarantine unit, they're basically in what medical officials describe as kind of like hotel rooms.

They have exercise equipment. They can FaceTime and talk to their families. They can't have visitors, but these rooms have excellent ventilation, negative pressure. And what's happening right now is basically they're doing assessments of those passengers, trying to track if they had any close contact with somebody who has tested positive or shown symptoms, and trace their steps over the past few weeks on that cruise ship.

[04:10:03]

They're also doing monitoring, trying to determine if they have a fever or any other symptoms of the hantavirus. Now, there is one person who received tests before they got on the plane because Spanish health officials said that man had contact with a deceased passenger. Now, according to those Spanish health officials, the man took two tests.

They believe the first test was not conclusive, but American officials regarded it as a weak positive. When he took a second test that was negative. But out of an abundance of caution, American officials believed that he should be regarded as a positive test. And they put him in a biocontainment protocol to travel to the United States, where he was then put in a bio containment unit here in Nebraska.

Now, his protocol is a bit different. They will continue monitoring and testing, but so far he remains asymptomatic, according to health officials here. Now, there are two passengers who are not in Nebraska anymore, and that's because of a contingent contingency plan set up by the infectious disease experts in Nebraska. Basically, they only have so many biocontainment units, and one of those passengers began showing symptoms.

So that person and their travel companion were sent to Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, where they are currently being monitored and assessed by the experts there. Sort of a divide and conquer to make sure there is still room here in case other passengers start to show symptoms or get positive test results. Now, it's a long incubation period, and the monitoring will continue for at least 42 days. They're still trying to determine when day one is for each individual passenger.

But what is interesting is, they don't necessarily have to stay in these quarantine units. Everyone will be assessed individually, but some people may choose to go home and finish their quarantine out there as long as they have adequate medical facilities that can do daily monitoring and room in their home to isolate away from others. Although other people can stay here for the duration and have the contact with the medical officials here just in case, that is what some of those here in Omaha are encouraging people to do.

But again, it is dependent on each individual person, the assessment from the professionals and how they feel that goes forward. Back to you.

SANDOVAL: Dianne Gallagher, thank you. All right, let's go live to Kailua, Hawaii. And Dr. Scott Miscovich, he has extensive experience in virology, infectious diseases and tropical medicine. Doctor, thank you so much for joining us.

SCOTT MISCOVICH, PRESIDENT/CEO, PREMIER MEDICAL GROUP USA: Hi, Polo. How are you doing?

SANDOVAL: Well, as we try to get a better understanding of the potential risks here, perhaps you can help us with that. You have had a chance to review the virus's genetic sequence, doctor, what is your assessment of this strain's ability to replicate, perhaps even to mutate?

MISCOVICH: Well, the good news was a very high level facility in Switzerland, since we did have one positive patient there, was able to obtain the Andes virus and the Andes antivirus. And basically we also had a lot of data from the 2019 wedding infection that occurred in Northern Argentina. And then there was another earlier infection and those are the main infections that was back in 19, I believe, '96, where we also had a sample that was fully dissected into the virology.

And, you know, that's that long sequence of letters, et cetera. Well, you know what the great news that no one's talking about 99 percent of exactly the same of all of those cases is what the new genetic sequence is showing. It's not changing. And I -- when I talk to people about this, I like to explain it to say, you know, this virus is very happy spreading between the rodents that it is spreading.

It doesn't feel the competition to mutate because that's why viruses mutate to try to stay alive. And then, I had a long discussion with Kim on CNN the other night talking about the type of virus this is. It just is very slow to mutate. It's very complicated for it to mutate. And it doesn't do what we call recombination very well.

We saw that during COVID all the time we where one strain came into a person, another strain came in and all of a sudden they married, and they basically just blended all their DNA together and started producing a new strain. We saw that happening weekly. This doesn't do it. It's stable as a rock.

[04:15:04]

SANDOVAL: Yes, and that came with some challenges. So, essentially, based on your expert opinion, doctor, because this current virus appears to be unchanged, that would, in essence, make it less likely that it would be able to jump from human to human. Is that correct?

MISCOVICH: Well, it's going to still have a low risk to have human transmission, as we have seen. But, you know, one of the things that also experts are not talking about, you know, the public just started to hear about this virus when, unfortunately, Gene Hackman and his wife died. This virus has been around. We have known it.

What is there, 150 to 200,000 cases of the pulmonary variant in China and Asia every year. There's 5,000 cases, plus or minus, can be in Europe, and 50 percent of those are in Finland, and the rest are more concentrated in Germany and around that area.

Americas, we've only had about, I think it's 893 cases over the last, say, 20 years or so, but it's been around a long time. So it has had more than enough time to launch into human hosts and replicate, but it hasn't done it.

SANDOVAL: Doctor, I wonder if we could shift gears now and focus on this medical unit in Nebraska, which is where some of these ship passengers are being monitored. I wonder if maybe you could just give us a quick idea of what that facility is like, but also what are the protocols that are in place and in the event that some of these passengers were to test positive for the virus.

MISCOVICH: Wow, OK. Well, I had the fortune of speaking to one of my colleagues today who's an infectious disease physician. She was in the Air Force and actually was training in the Air Force and involved in the early development of that unit, which was the quarantine unit that didn't open until the 2019.

And she said you couldn't be more impressed that they had this design to contain everything from smallpox to all what we call level four infections. They even were looking at the potential infections that were sitting in labs that we see on movies, or you hear that people are saying that could be released that would be catastrophic. It was designed with all those things in mind and including the water flow.

The airflow is internal airflow. It doesn't go out. It's purified. It's treated all the workflow. It's like watching a movie. You would walk into a section before you walked in, and the room would then lock before you could walk through another door. So it is perfectly designed.

But in the quarantine unit, it is, as the last reporter really, really gave a great description of. They have a recumbent bicycle in there and they have a bed and that's it. It's just a real simple hotel room.

Now across the street, built in 2005, is the biocontainment unit that's been there a little longer. The biocontainment unit basically will look more like a hospital, just a standard hospital room or hospital bed. But they can immediately roll in ventilators, IVs and it can turn into, in a very quick period of time to look like an ICU unit. And all the doctors and staff there are trained to take people up to that level.

Now, they're only operating three to four beds in that capacity. The facility has 10 beds. One of the beds now, they have moved in extra laboratory equipment that is very specialized in detecting the hantavirus with the PCR units and the IgG, IgM blood testing, as well as normal blood work that they would look for because they're looking for any sign of illness.

Vital signs would be done at least every six to eight hours. And interviewing the patient for symptomatology, as we've heard, is very key. And that would be done continuous throughout the. And on initial intake, they also did a lot more contact tracing to discuss who they were next to, especially related to the people we already know who were the index cases, the deaths and the infected individuals.

SANDOVAL: It's absolutely remarkable when you see these healthcare professionals essentially preparing for worst case scenarios and hoping that we'll never have to implement those protocols. But now here they are as they work hard to monitor these folks.

Dr. Scott Miscovich, as always, thank you so much for coming on and sharing your expertise.

MISCOVICH: Thank you, Polo. Glad to help.

SANDOVAL: Thank you. And straight ahead, Trump's plan to help enlist the United States Postal Service to determine who's eligible to vote. The very latest on the legal challenges and also the questions about whether it can be done anyway. Plus, financial reforms, peace and security, they are on the table for discussions on day two of the Africa-France summit. Live from Nairobi, Kenya, with the very latest from there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANDOVAL: The US Supreme Court's currently facing a flurry of redistricting cases ahead of the midterm elections. It's now cleared the way for Alabama to use a congressional map more favorable to Republicans. A lower court had blocked the map for violating the Voting Rights Act, but the Supreme Court is sent it back for additional review.

In the meantime, Virginia Democrats they are asking the Supreme Court to reinstate a congressional map benefiting their party. The emergency appeal follows last week's Virginia Supreme Court decision, voiding an attempt to redraw the map.

[04:25:10]

And on Thursday, a federal judge set to hear arguments on whether the US Postal Service can help enforce new restrictions on mail-in voting. The case centers around President Donald Trump's executive order demanding that the USPS use so called state citizenship lists to determine voter eligibility.

Here's CNN's Gabe Cohen with more.

GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, what this executive order does is direct the Postal Service to essentially police absentee ballots coming into their system to make sure they don't deliver them to or from anyone who is not on a specific approved mail voter list that states are expected to hand over to USPS before the midterms. The White House says, it's to ensure that mail ballots only go to eligible voters.

But it's already sparked several lawsuits from states and voting rights group groups who argue that it's unconstitutional for the Postal Service to take on that kind of expanded role in elections. And that concern, as well as others, are present right now in and around the Postal Service. These questions about whether they have the legal authority to cross check lists and potentially reject ballots or if they even have the capability to do it.

A cash strapped agency potentially implementing a massive program just months before a major election. And some say since it's an independent agency, that USPS could push back or even reject the President's order. But so far that has not happened, at least not publicly.

It appears that Postal Service leaders are trying to comply. They've started the rulemaking process, that first step toward figuring out how they could implement the order. And look, USPS has a very good reason to want to avoid a confrontation with either Congress or the White House. And that is because right now they need their help.

The postmaster general recently told Congress that they could run out of cash in less than a year unless lawmakers step in and grant them a major financial overhaul that would lift several longstanding restrictions. But that overhaul hinges on approval from lawmakers and ultimately a sign off from the White House.

So even as the Postal Service faces ongoing criticisms from Trump and these threats to strip away its independence, it's not clear if they'll actually challenge the President's authority on this. Though that authority is being challenged in some of these federal lawsuits.

Gabe Cohen, CNN, Washington.

SANDOVAL: President Donald Trump floating a potential 2028 Republican dream ticket. Here's how it went down on Monday night. He turned a White House Rose Garden dinner into an impromptu political testing ground, pitting his vice president against his Secretary of State. Here's how it went down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Who's it going to be? Is it going to be JD? Is it going to be somebody else? I don't know. Who -- does anybody have -- OK, let's go. You ready? Who likes JD Vance? Who likes Marco Rubio? All right, sounds like a good ticket.

JD, it's a perfect -- that was a perfect ticket. By the way, I do believe that's a dream team. But these are minor details. That does not mean you have my endorsement under any circumstance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Rubio filled in on just last week for as White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who's on maternity leave at the moment. Then this prompted some speculation about his 2028 ambitions.

So right now, the final day of the Africa-France summit is getting underway in Nairobi, Kenya. More than 30 African leaders, they are gathering there for meetings with French President Emmanuel Macron. Paris seeking new deals and partnerships on the continent and Kenya is currently hoping to attract French investors looking to take advantage of the Pan African Free Trade Area. CNN's Larry Madowo is live in Nairobi for more as he continues to follow this.

Larry, there was -- I know there was a particular moment where the French president appeared to, to scold some members of the audience. I mean, what led up to that?

LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. The room was a bit noisy, Polo, and the President appeared to be upset by the noise coming in. People were not paying attention. And I can -- I know how frustrating that can be. I do events and it's annoying when people are not paying attention.

And some people are praising President Emmanuel Macron for standing up and saying, listen to the young people on stage. They are inspiring them things to say. But there are Africans who are offended, who found it rude and disrespectful for the French president to come here on African soil and tell them what to do, how to behave.

They consider it offensive, and another sign of the French condensation toward Africa. He stood up in front of a room full of Africans and said this.

[04:30:00]