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New Wave Of Strikes Tests Fragile U.S.-Iran Ceasefire; 12 Injured As Shooting At Ohio Festival Triggers Panic; Democrats Divided Over Senate-Hopeful Graham Platner's Past; Pope Leo Calls For Peace & Unity During Spanish Tour; Fans Of Far-Right Streamer Nick Fuentes Talk To CNN. Aired 5-6a ET

Aired June 07, 2026 - 05:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:00:31]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Lynda Kinkade.

Just ahead, negotiators head back to Iran for another round of talks as the U.S. and Iran trade fire. We'll go live to the region for the latest.

Plus, the Senate candidate may mirror it in controversy after another. We'll take you to the side of a rally today to find out why some Democrats say they'll still vote for him in Tuesday's primary.

And we're live in Spain as Pope Leo tours the country, how he's confronting a dark part of the church's history.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Lynda Kinkade.

KINKADE: Pakistani mediators have arrived in Tehran for a new round of negotiations to end the Iran war. Now, this move comes after a senior Iranian official told CNN the talks are currently at a deadlock. The fragile ceasefire is being put to the test following a new exchange of strikes between U.S. and Iranian forces.

And the U.S. military says it shot down two Iranian attack drones Saturday that it claims were threatening traffic in the critical Strait of Hormuz. And it comes just a day after the U.S. intercepted ballistic missiles and drones fired by Iran towards multiple Gulf nations. U.S. Central Command says it's also launched its own attacks. This video is showing U.S. forces hitting Iranian radar sites that monitor shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

CENTCOM said the strikes were to defend against further attacks. CNN's Oren Liebermann is joining us live from Jerusalem with the latest.

Good to see you, Oren. So, the ceasefire is seriously being tested right now. Let's start with Iran, which is, of course, accusing the United States of violating the truce. Where do things stand at the moment? OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Lynda, over a 24-hour period from early Saturday morning until early Sunday morning, we have seen tremendous pressure on a very fragile ceasefire, perhaps the greatest pressure since that ceasefire went into effect in April. It begins on Saturday morning when the U.S. says they intercepted four one-way attack drones that threatened shipping in the Gulf region and around the Strait of Hormuz. In response to that, the U.S. carried out strikes, as you pointed out, on surveillance radar sites along Iran's coast. Iran considers that a violation of the ceasefire. Shortly thereafter, we saw seven ballistic missiles fired at Kuwait and Bahrain. Those were condemned by not only, of course, Kuwait and Bahrain, but a number of other countries in the region, including Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and others. The U.S. then says overnight, late Saturday night into Sunday morning, that they intercepted two more one-way attack drones.

Meanwhile, Pakistan's interior minister is in Tehran holding meeting with Iranian officials trying to make sure there is some sort of diplomatic path forward. But as we see the ongoing fighting between the U.S. and Iran, it becomes more and more difficult to envision a diplomatic path here, even as President Donald Trump has claimed they're moving very fast on negotiations and they're close to a deal.

Even if that was true several days ago, it looks more and more difficult now to try to keep negotiations moving forward in some way, even if Trump signals that's his intent here. So, we need to see where this goes from here, and we need to see if Pakistan and the mediators here are able to salvage those talks moving forward.

KINKADE: Yeah, exactly. Of course, the U.S. is considering allowing Iranian assets to be used to help rebuild Gulf countries impacted by any future Iranian attacks. Just walk us through this plan and any reaction you've heard so far.

LIEBERMANN: CNN spoke with a source familiar with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's thinking here, and the idea is to use those Iranian assets as a way of paying for the damage or potential damage from future Iranian attacks. Just last week, we saw an Iranian attack on Kuwait's airport kill one person, injure at least 60 others, and cause tremendous damage. So, it's the idea behind using those Iranian assets to pay for the damage of future attacks. And that source also says they're looking at the possibility of using it to pay for past attacks as well.

The U.S. is considering asking Gulf states for their assessment of damage to look at the feasibility of this. We'll see if this plan comes to fruition, Lynda.

KINKADE: And I just want to turn our attention to southern Lebanon, Oren, because the death toll there continues to rise on both sides of the conflict as the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah intensifies. Just bring us up to speed with the latest on the ground.

[05:05:04]

LIEBERMANN: Just as we saw this weekend test the U.S.-Iran ceasefire, we have seen it test the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire as well, perhaps even more so. On Friday, Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health said Israeli strikes killed at least 21 people. And then on Saturday, according to the Lebanese military, an Israeli strike on a vehicle killed a general, as well as several other officers in that vehicle. The Israeli military says the vehicle was acting suspiciously or moving suspiciously in an area that had been under evacuation.

They said the strike would be investigated and insisted that any such movement of Lebanese military in that area, in the war zone, needs to be coordinated with the military. Meanwhile, Hezbollah, which rejected the ceasefire, the latest ceasefire, I should say, between Israel and Lebanon, killed two Israeli soldiers, or rather two Israeli soldiers killed in the ongoing fighting. One on Friday, one on Saturday.

And just this morning, since the latest ceasefire went into effect, Hezbollah launched projectiles at northern Israel, according to the Israeli military. That's the first time it's happened since the ceasefire. Other attacks had targeted Israeli forces in southern Lebanon.

So, you see here the pressure on that ceasefire as well. And, Lynda, it's worth noting that Iran has insisted that any U.S.-Iran ceasefire include Lebanon as well.

KINKADE: It's certainly a complicated mix. Good to have you with us, Oren Liebermann, as always, from Jerusalem. Thanks so much.

Well, President Trump sat down with "NBC News" and offered some more explanations as to where peace efforts stand right now. CNN's Julia Benbrook reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This recent exchange of fire leads to a lot of questions about the ceasefire and the peace negotiations, which seem to be at an impasse right now. As a top Iranian official tells CNN, those negotiations are deadlocked, over $24 billion in frozen Iranian assets.

Now, the most recent comments we've heard from President Donald Trump on all of this came in an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press," where he was asked if the Iranians are so desperate to make a deal, which he has said repeatedly, why have they not yet accepted his terms?

Take a listen to part of this exchange. This is with NBC's Kristen Welker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTEN WELKER, NBC NEWS ANCHOR: You have been saying for months, Mr. President, that Iran is begging to make a deal.

DONALD TRUMP (R), U.S. PRESIDENT: True.

WELKER: They are so desperate to make a deal. Why haven't they made a deal with you yet? TRUMP: Because they -- it's a very hard thing for them. They've had great independence. They've dealt with very weak and ineffective leadership on behalf of the United States and other countries, frankly, that were -- that allowed them to get away with murder. And I don't -- I think they can't believe they're in the situation where they've been virtually decapitated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BENBROOK: He then went on to say that the Iranians are strong and proud, and while it might take a while, he believes that ultimately they will have no choice but to make a deal.

Now, when it comes to timeline, shortly after those first joint U.S.- Israel strikes back in February, he said again and again this conflict would end very soon. Now, in this interview approximately three months later, he says that he believes that he's moving quickly, that these things take time, sometimes even years, to resolve.

Now, one of the last major updates on the negotiations coming from the White House was we learned last week, about a week ago, that officials said that Trump had sent back a proposed deal with Iran asking for tougher language when it comes to Iran's nuclear commitments and its pledge to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. allies in the Gulf were briefed on some of those conversations, and one foreign official told our team that those changes centered around a U.S. desire for assurances in those areas.

Traveling with the president in New Jersey, Julia Benbrook, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will meet with top European allies in the coming hours. The leaders of France, Germany and the U.K. will hold talks on Ukraine in London before they meet jointly with Mr. Zelenskyy. On the front lines, officials say three people were injured in new Russian strikes in the city of Zaporizhzhia. Saturday's attack damaged at least eight residential buildings and caused two fires. That followed back-to-back Ukrainian drone attacks on or near St. Petersburg this week. The second attack came as Russia was wrapping up its flagship economic forum there, sometimes referred to as Putin's Davos. Ukraine's long-range strikes are increasingly bringing the war home to cities deep inside Russia.

In the last hour, I spoke with Alexey Sorokin, a Deputy Chief Editor at the Kyiv Independent. And I asked him if Ukrainians are becoming more optimistic now that Kyiv has the ability to take the fight to major Russian cities.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OLEKSIY SOROKIN, DEPUTY CHIEF EDITOR, THE KYIV INDEPENDENT: The Ukraine right now is able to attack almost any city in Russia, right? We see what's happening in St. Petersburg right now and that lifts morale in Ukraine. It shows that Ukrainians can, impose their will on the Russians. So, obviously the mood is better than it was a few months back.

[05:10:15]

KINKADE: And of course, Vladimir Putin has rejected Volodymyr Zelenskyy's call for a direct meeting. But Putin continues to reject confidence. You've spoken about the mounting pressure inside of Russia, saying it's more vulnerable than many outsiders believe. What evidence are you seeing that supports that view?

SOROKIN: Well, even the government-sponsored polls in Russia show that Russians are now caring more about the war because they see it happening above their windows, right? They see that Ukrainian drones can hit almost any city in Russia, in the European part of Russia. And so, we know that the population in Russia wants some kind of peace settlement. It doesn't mean that they want to see Russia lose this war. They want to see Russia win this war. But they feel that the war is continuing way too long, and there's pressure on the government in Russia, on their military, to maybe seek some kind of settlement.

KINKADE: Of course, Ukraine has shown it can repeatedly reach targets around St. Petersburg and also strategic military facilities deep inside Russia. Are these strikes changing the military balance? Can you talk to us also about the concerns about potential shortages in air defense systems?

SOROKIN: Well, I guess the problem right now for Ukraine is that it still has less drones and missiles than Russia has, right? And the air defense shortage is actually crucial right now. We see that with every Russian mass missile attack, more missiles actually pass, breach the air defense that Ukraine has, and more targets are hit by Russia.

So, there's definitely the sense that Ukraine is racing around the clock. Can it force Russia into meaningful negotiations? Can it gain air defense systems, air defense missiles from the West in time to defend itself?

And right now, the situation is not that clear. So Russia, in its turn, is thinking that with those attacks, every 10 days, every 5 days, it can force Ukraine into submission. Right now, it's not happening. But that's what's happening, right? It's a race against the clock. It's a war of cities now with the front line not moving and both sides trying to penetrate the defenses of the other and force the other side into submission.

KINKADE: There's a sad ending to the week-long saga of an American college student missing in Japan. Search and rescue volunteers located Weston Higginbotham's body in a mountainous area in Kyoto. The 20- year-old was visiting Japan with his family and disappeared after going off to explore on his own. The search involved helicopters, canine units, and more than 100 police officers. They say the cause of his death is under investigation, but they don't suspect foul play.

Police in Toledo, Ohio, are searching for a suspect or maybe two suspects after a beloved community event ended in gun violence and chaos. At least 12 people were wounded, but all are expected to survive. This was the scene when the festival was interrupted by gunshots.

(GUNSHOTS)

KINKADE: CNN's Gloria Pazmino reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDEN: That's right, panic at what was supposed to be a summertime festival in Toledo, Ohio. Scenes like this have unfortunately become such commonplace across the United States. Here's what we know according to law enforcement officials. They say it's believed at least two shooters were involved, 12 people were struck by gunfire, and two people are in critical condition.

Police said they're still looking for the suspects. No one is in custody, and an investigation is now underway.

Now, Toledo police said the incident occurred shortly after 5:30 in the afternoon on Saturday, local time, at what is known as the Old West End Festival. This is an annual two-day event that takes place in the city's historic district. The event had kicked off on Saturday morning with a parade and live music, and police initially said that many people were transported to nearby hospitals for treatment.

Eyewitnesses also told CNN affiliate WTOL they heard multiple shots followed by a panic among festival goers. The shooting is one of at least 170 mass shootings in the United States so far this year. That's according to the Gun Violence Archive.

[05:15:02]

Gloria Pazmino, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, this weekend marks the 82nd anniversary of the D-Day landing. Still ahead, some sharp criticism from the U.S. defense secretary towards European allies during his speech in France.

Plus, an update on the scandals threatening to upend Maine Senate primary election Tuesday. We'll bring you the latest, next.

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KINKADE: U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth criticized European allies as he marked the 82nd anniversary of the D-Day landings. He was at an American cemetery in France with American and French officials. But reports say he skipped a later ceremony with other European countries. The site is near the Normandy beaches where the tide of World War II changed, leading to the defeat of the Nazis.

D-Day anniversaries are usually a showcase of allied unity. But while honoring U.S. service members, Hegseth accused European nations of allowing a so-called invasion of immigrants.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) PETE HEGSETH, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Sadly, today, different European beaches are stormed by different dangerous ideologies. Beaches in Spain, in Italy, in Greece, in Bulgaria. Boats and men arrive. When will European capitals do something about that invasion? Or is it too late? I pray not, and I believe not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[05:20:20]

KINKADE: Right now, some Democrats are distancing themselves from the Senate candidate Graham Platner, ahead of Maine's primary on Tuesday. He is set to hold a town hall in Portland later today as he deals with multiple controversies, including a tattoo with Nazi links that he has since covered. The latest blow came from a recent "New York Times" report. Three of his ex-girlfriends accused him of toxic behavior, heavy drinking and infidelity, among other things.

Platner addressed the growing backlash Friday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRAHAM PLATNER, DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE FOR U.S. SENATE: When hurtful things I said on the Internet a decade ago came out into the public, as I shared my personal journey through PTSD and darkness of recovery and accountability and growth, Maine had my back.

Now, as every single piece of that past and journey gets dug up, litigated and weaponized, you have my back. And when politically motivated, serious and false accusations are made against me, Maine, you have my back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Two other Democrats will be on the primary ballot with Platner, including State Governor Janet Mills, who suspended her campaign in April. Maine's race will help decide control of the U.S. Senate. The outcome could determine whether major legislation passes and how far each party can push its agenda.

Well, joining me now live from Portland, Maine, is "Portland Press Herald" reporter Billy Kobin. Good to have you with us.

BILLY KOBIN, PORTLAND PRESS HERALD REPORTER: Thank you so much.

KINKADE: So, the primary is just days away. I just want to get a sense from you as to the mood on the ground in this final stretch. And what we can expect from the rally tonight is Graham Platner shifting into damage control.

KOBIN: I wouldn't call it damage control. I think it was clear from this past week that he was expecting in a way and his campaign, some of these things to come out. And for people to initially, again, have perhaps a quick reaction to think that this might bring him down.

But he's also dealt with these types of things since October, for example, when the old Reddit posts that made controversial kind of incendiary comments had first come out from his past. And now I would say what was noticeable this past week was you had some Democrats at the national level saying, look, we need more assurances from Graham that nothing else will come out. We're not sure that we can trust him.

But then you go to a rally like I did the one Friday night, of course, that you just played from earlier in Bar Harbor, Maine, and the energy was high. People were giving him and his wife standing ovations for, you know, making it through this past week and really showing that they do stick with him. And you also talk to voters in the room or on the street, and a lot of them feel like this coverage and these national stories and the resulting kind of pressure on Graham is unfair. They don't feel like this is something that a candidate in the year 2026 needs to feel will take him down. They point to Texas and Ken Paxton being on the ballot there and everything surrounding a candidate like that as well. And they feel like, look, we can't judge Graham Platner and assume that this needs to hurt his campaign.

So, it's been an interesting dichotomy between national concerns and then local voters, state voters on the ground in Maine who feel much more strongly in support of Graham still.

KINKADE: Maine, of course, is seen as a critical Senate battleground. Democrats believe flipping the seat is essential for the control of the Senate. But a weekend nominee could hand the race to the Republicans, Susan Collins, yet again. Is there a growing fear the Democrats are headed towards another missed opportunity in what can be a winnable seat?

KOBIN: Yes, I would say that is a real fear. Again, it's interesting you hear from primary voters ahead of Tuesday. A lot of them have passed ballots already as part of Maine's early voting period. And so, I don't think it's a question for Tuesday of, oh, is Graham going to win the primary? I think everybody here who's followed this race in Maine closely knows that, no, he is still going to win. Governor Mills had suspended her campaign in late April and she has somewhat cheekily said, I'm still on the ballot Tuesday in the wake of these recent stories.

[05:25:00]

And yet Graham, other than facing a Brunswick Democrat by the name of David Costello, who hasn't campaigned nearly as heavily as Graham has, Graham is on the path to November. So, obviously looking ahead to November, you've already had attack ads from national Republican groups and groups that are spending on Senator Collins' behalf, digging up these old posts again, bringing up old things that Graham had said online in the past.

And now they will certainly use this past week's series of stories to suggest that, you know, you cannot trust this nominee in November. You shouldn't believe what he's saying because we've seen more things come out about him.

So, I think looking ahead to November, we obviously can't really say clearly yet how many voters are going to flip and maybe not support Graham and will either not vote for anybody, they'll sit it out, or they'll vote for Susan Collins, or they'll still just feel like they don't know what they're going to do yet, given everything we've seen.

So, it's certainly going to remain a campaign issue, whether Maine voters, again, judge somebody by past stories, or whether they care more about what President Trump and Republicans are doing with control of Congress. And if they support Graham, they feel like they need a change in party in the Senate. That might be something that other people weigh more heavily than this. Again, this week's past string of revelations or stories.

KINKADE: Yeah, well, we all see what happens in November, but it certainly looks like he may very well get the win on Tuesday. Billy Kobin, we appreciate your time and for getting up so early for us. Thanks very much.

KOBIN: Thank you as well.

KINKADE: We are starting the week with an intense heat wave over the central and southern U.S. Starting Monday, temperatures will climb each day through the week, reaching up to 100 degrees throughout the Plains and into the Dakotas by Wednesday and Thursday. Temperatures are expected to run 10 to 15 degrees above normal from Texas all the way to the Canadian border. That heat isn't just bringing high temperatures.

It's also helping fuel several severe thunderstorms that are expected to develop across the Great Lakes and then move south. A severe weather threat may bring damaging winds and hail from Indiana to New England.

Still to come, we'll go live to Madrid, where Pope Leo has been celebrating mass at a public plaza. We'll have the latest on the huge crowds turning out in Spain to see the first American pope.

And the latest on the growing protests in Albania, over a land dispute connected to President Trump's family. Why demonstrators say they're taking to the streets.

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[05:31:17]

KINKADE: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom." I'm Lynda Kinkade, coming to you live from Atlanta. Great to have you with us.

Let's check today's top stories. Pakistan's interior minister traveled to Iran hoping for a breakthrough in stalled peace talks with the U.S. It comes as U.S. and Iranian forces continue to trade fire this weekend. Pakistan has been attempting to position itself as a regional mediator in the wake of the Iran war.

Three European leaders will meet with Ukraine's president in the coming hours. The French presidency says he'll hold talks with the leaders of Germany, Britain and France in London. According to the statement, they'll focus on coordinating support for Ukraine and dialing up pressure on Moscow.

Police in Toledo, Ohio are looking for two suspects after a shooting at a festival Saturday. At least 12 people were wounded. All are expected to survive.

Officials believe the chaos was caused by two people who are probably shooting at each other. A live look now at Madrid as Pope Leo continues his week-long tour of Spain, drawing a huge crowd as he celebrates mass at one of the city's plazas. Later today, he'll meet with members of the church's Augustine order and participate in a gathering of Spanish cultural representatives.

CNN Vatican Correspondent Christopher Lamb joins us live from Madrid. And a mass turnout there today to see the Pope. Just talk to us about the amount of people coming out to hear him speak.

CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lynda, it's estimated that more than a million people have turned out here in central Madrid for this mass led by Pope Leo. Really extraordinarily big numbers here for the Pope. There has been a lot of interest in this visit of a Pope who knows Spain very well, speaks fluent Spanish, has been engaging with the crowds and says he wants to bring a message of unity. He wants to bring a message that God's love cares for everyone. He's going to be focusing on protection of migrants during his visit to Spain. He's going to be going to the Canary Islands.

Today on Sunday was the celebration of a mass by Pope Leo here in a country which is traditionally very Catholic but has seen a lot of secularization. Pope Leo in his reflection at the mass saying that faith should not be something that is about nostalgia or something of the past but something that makes a difference today to people to build a better world.

Now the mass is coming to an end at the moment and after it's finished there will be a procession through the center of Madrid, about 400 yards or meters. We're expecting the Pope to lead that. This is the Feast of Corpus Christi that is the Catholic memorial for the Eucharist and that is what Leo is going to be celebrating today. It's a public celebration of faith but it is something that Leo wants the people of Spain to not see as something as a legacy of the past but something that has relevance today and into the future.

On Monday Leo will be addressing the Spanish Parliament, the first Pope to do that. He'll have, we expect, a message focused around unity, particularly relevant given the polarization that exists in Spain. Leo has really a very intense schedule but by all accounts when I've seen Leo seems to be enjoying himself, he's been engaging with the crowds, he knows Spain very well and we are expecting more big moments from him in the days ahead.

[05:35:10]

KINKADE: Yeah certainly no doubt about that. He doesn't shy away from tackling controversial issues. You mentioned immigration and how divisive that can be. He's also expected to address abuse within the church. How will that be handled? LAMB: Yes, I mean we're expecting Leo to center his message around how to overcome those big political differences that exist, to try and find ways to overcome the divisions that exist in Spain. The Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, is someone who is aligned with the Pope on the war in Iran for example but there are other tensions that exist between the Catholic church and the Spanish government.

But I think what Leo's whole visit is about doing is trying to bring people together and you know even before he's spoken to the parliament he has shown that just being here he's able to draw these big crowds who are all unified around coming to see the Pope and their shared faith.

KINKADE: Yeah, a lot of smiling people there greeting the Pope there in Madrid. Christopher Lamb, thanks so much for joining us, we appreciate it.

Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Albania's capital Saturday, part of the ongoing demonstrations against a planned luxury resort tied to President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and wife Ivanka Trump.

Demonstrators across the country are calling for political resignations over the sale of the land, arguing that the 1.6-billion- dollar project threatens a protected coastal wetland. The results developers say the project will move forward responsibly, the protesters insist that Albania is not for sale.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TEUTA ZILJA, DEMONSTRATOR (through translator): I am against the resort, I am against construction and I am against the sale of Vlora. I live in Vlora, they are selling Vlora and this resort they are telling us is development is nothing but destruction. It is the sale of Albania and the moment a fence is put up here there will be no place left for Albanians.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, still ahead cashing in, that's part of the White House's latest proposal to look into claiming a stake in the booming A.I. business.

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[05:40:37]

KINKADE: The Trump administration is considering equity stakes in artificial intelligence companies. Profit-sharing with the American public is on the table as well. President Trump told reporters on Air Force One Friday that he plans to host A.I. leaders at the White House this week. He said he's already been talking to them about partnering with the government so the U.S. doesn't fall behind China and other countries in the A.I. race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) TRUMP: I will tell you, yeah, I have -- I have spoken to all of them. There's something very interesting about it where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public. And we'll look into that. We're going to -- we are looking -- I actually have a meeting scheduled in the very short -- very near future with -- did you know that, with all of the companies. And we're talking about it where the American people can benefit from the success of A.I. And by doing that, they're going to like it better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Lisa Eadicicco has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LISA EADICICCO, CNN BUSINESS TECH EDITOR: President Donald Trump said that he plans to meet with A.I. companies next week to discuss his administration, potentially taking a financial stake in them. And he also said he's been discussing ways for A.I. firms and the government to work together to ensure that A.I. benefits the American public financially.

And while we don't have additional details at this time, when you look at what's been happening over the past year in the world of A.I., you can kind of start to understand perhaps why those conversations might be taking place. There's been a lot of questions about how A.I. will impact jobs, how it's going to impact the economy, especially the rate at which A.I. is evolving. And we also know that A.I. has been a major cornerstone of Trump's second term so far.

And companies like OpenAI and Anthropic have also in the past raised a lot of concerns about how AI's impact on jobs will impact the economy and the everyday person and whether our current economic infrastructure is really prepared for that.

OpenAI actually earlier this year released a set of policy recommendations. And in that document, it describes a public wealth fund that would entail the government and policymakers working with A.I. companies to cede a public fund that would benefit ordinary citizens, even if they are not invested in the financial markets.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Thanks very much. Well, the far-right American live streamer Nick Fuentes is known for loudly proclaiming offensive beliefs, which are often racist, misogynistic and antisemitic. Now, he seems to be growing in popularity and political influence, especially among many young people. His listeners he calls groypers.

CNN's Donie O'Sullivan met two of Fuentes' fans in Miami. But it's what happened after the CNN interview, that was a surprise. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) RICH: I broke up with my last chick. She was a pain in the ass, so.

DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): So, I've come to Miami to meet Rich and John. They're both groypers, the nickname given to fans of the far-right streamer Nick Fuentes.

RICH: Like we don't hate women. We just find feminism annoying.

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): Fuentes is known for his sexist, racist and antisemitic rants.

JOHN: So, when I first heard of him, I was actually in 2022 when him and Kanye went to visit Trump.

O'SULLIVAN: They had dinner at Mar-a-Lago.

JOHN: They had the dinner Mar-a-Lago. And I heard he's just like this white supremacist Nazi. I was always skeptical of those accusations because I'm like everyone gets called that nowadays.

O'SULLIVAN: What is it about Nick do you think that makes him so appealing to particularly young men?

RICH: There's a side of comedy like there's politics and it's kind of like Trump, you know, Trump is just genuinely funny. He's a funny guy. And that's very attractive.

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): Fuentes fans try to write his hate off as humor.

JOHN: And sure, maybe he does stuff to be edgy and make jokes. But we're young, we just want to have fun. And with these older people, we want to get a rise out of them, especially these mega Fox News boomers. Like we want to get a rise out of you.

NICK FUENTES, FAR-RIGHT STREAMER: I would just take away the right to vote for tons of people. Women, for sure.

O'SULLIVAN: How do you know when he's joking and how do you know when he's not? Because he says like women shouldn't vote. But that's not a joke, right? He means that.

[05:45:02]

RICH: Yes, it's still a joke, though. It's like, we're not going out of our way to repeal the 19th. You know what I mean?

JOHN: Trying to get on people's skin.

O'SULLIVAN: But you're saying you don't believe that Fuentes believes that women shouldn't vote?

JOHN: No, I think he does believe that.

O'SULLIVAN: You think he believes that they shouldn't vote?

JOHN: Yes.

O'SULLIVAN: Do you think that?

RICH: He probably does, deep down.

O'SULLIVAN: So, he's not joking?

RICH: Yes, but he wouldn't do anything about it.

JOHN: But we know that's not really in the cards.

RICH: We're not trying to change that.

FUENTES: When I say women's rights, what do we obviously need to do? Take them away. This is just what everyone knows needs to be done.

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): It seems that even among the groypers, it isn't always clear when Fuentes is joking and when he's not.

JOHN: I think women should only be allowed to vote if they're married, because I think if they were married, they would vote with their husband.

O'SULLIVAN: Rich, do you think women should vote?

RICH: Sure. Let them vote. I don't have an issue with it.

O'SULLIVAN: You don't?

RICH: No. Let them vote.

O'SULLIVAN: You're charting some heads here, guys.

JOHN: That's for sure.

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): Rich is 23. John is 25. Both came of age during the rise of Trump, COVID, the MeToo movement, and what many young men like them view as the excesses of cancel culture.

JOHN: We're going to an Orthodox church tomorrow.

RICH: I don't know where the nearest one is.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Orthodox?

RICH: I'm Orthodox. Are you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, but I'm Catholic, but all my friends are Serbian.

RICH: Maybe we'll go to a Catholic church tomorrow.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I can send you some if you want.

JOHN: Oh, really? What's your number? O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): These men have come to see themselves in Nick Fuentes. His cancellation across social media platforms for his spreading of hate they view as part of a broader attack on men like them.

JOHN: And you look at his audience, they feel like they can relate to him because they're young men. A lot of them can't get girlfriends. A lot of them are struggling financially.

They're not going to have the life their parents had, their grandparents had.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shut the f-- up. Nobody cares. You're not him, bro. You'll never be him. Just kill yourself.

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): Soon after I left Miami, pictures John posted of our interview on social media got Fuentes' attention, and he wasn't happy his followers had spoken to CNN.

FUENTES: How about that CNN thing? Oh, my gosh. These like two absolute chuds. Look at us. We're in our Nick Fuentes t-shirt and hat.

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): In online audio chats, groypers began to turn on Rich and John.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't wait for this guy to be dodged and have his life ruined forever.

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): Rich and John did not want to be interviewed again.

JOHN: How's everyone doing tonight?

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): But John posted a 30-minute video on social media where he tried to defend his groyper honor.

JOHN: I consider myself a groyper, and I know everyone's saying I'm not a groyper, and giving me death threats, and telling me to kill myself, and that they're going to rape me. And that's fine. I don't really care.

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): Even though Fuentes was mocking them.

FUENTES: Spilling to the CNN journalist he's going to make them look like complete idiots.

O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): Here was John, still trying to placate the hate.

JOHN: To anyone that, you know, I might have offended or thought that I was trying to sabotage the movement, I am sorry.

O'SULLIVAN: And you hear a lot of this sort of defense from people who support people like Fuentes where they try to write off hate as just jokes, that people are just joking around. But as you saw there, it's not so funny when that hate is turned back on you. There's a lot of young men out there like Rich and John.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Thanks to Donie.

Well, the 2026 World Cup is about to kick off in 16 cities across the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Coming up, we'll meet business people in Mexico who are working hard to communicate with a flood of international visitors.

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[05:52:48]

KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade. In just three hours, German tennis star Alexander Zverev will face off against Italy's Flavio Cobolli at the French Open's highly anticipated men's final.

Now, the women's final yesterday pitted two young opponents, each eager to lock down their first grand slam title. Despite an impressive run through the qualifying and tournament rounds, Poland's Maja Chwalinska was quickly beaten in straight sets by Russia's Mirra Andreeva. After a win, Andreeva unusually thanked herself for believing in herself and defending personal demons.

As for the war between her Russian motherland and Ukraine, she insisted that she focuses only on tennis while on the courts.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIRRA ANDREEVA, 2026 FRENCH OPEN CHAMPION: Well, of course, I think every person doesn't want to have a war in the world. So, what I can say is that when I play tennis, you know, the only thing that I think about is how to play and how to win and how to, you know, compete well and how to -- I don't know, just win matches. And I don't really think about that when I play because I have so many things in my mind that I try to focus on. So, I never think about those things when I play.

KINKADE: As Mexico City prepares to welcome thousands of visitors for the World Cup, local vendors are polishing their English skills to try to boost sales. CNN's Valeria Leon explains how small businesses are getting ready for the flood of international visitors.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VALERIA LEON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm just a few blocks away from the stadium in Mexico City. And this market called Mercado Huipulco is one of the changes, transforming the area ahead of the tournament.

As we walk through it, we find more than 15-foot stands serving some of Mexico's most traditional dishes. She's preparing pancita, which is this Mexican traditional dish. I'm going to try this dish. OK.

[05:55:02]

Some of the vendors here have been taking English classes to welcome the thousands of visitors ahead of the tournament.

Tere (ph) is one of them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello. Welcome to home.

LEON: Ola, Luis. How are you?

LUIS, RESTAURANT STAND OWNER: Fine. Good afternoon.

LEON: So you've been taking English lessons as well.

LUIS: Yes.

LEON: How's that going?

LUIS: Well, we -- we -- we have vegetables. We have potato, onions, pepper, cucumbers, peppers.

LEON: OK. So, we're heading to the classroom right now, where they're going to have their English lesson this afternoon.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good afternoon, teacher. May we come in?

BENITO, ENGLISH TEACHER: Everybody, please. Repetition is the model of learning.

LEON: How important is teaching all these students?

BENITO: It is very important to -- to deliver a great service and to improve the quality of the attention to the public.

GUADALUPE, FOOD VENDOR: Most probably, we're going to have everything for all the people come.

LEON: So, this is how vendors say they are ready to welcome the world, serving up Mexican flavors to football fans.

Valeria Leon, CNN, Mexico City.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Breaking news coming in to CNN. Medics in Israel say one person is dead and several wounded in a string of shootings in the central part of the country. Police are investigating this as a suspected terror attack.

Now this happened in a town that sits on the Green Line, demarcating Israel from the occupied West Bank. Five other people across at least three separate scenes were also wounded, including two in a serious condition. Police say they neutralized a suspect after locating a vehicle they believed was involved in the shooting. Police often use the term neutralized to denote killing a suspect.

Stay with CNN for more details as they become available.

That was "CNN Newsroom". I'm Lynda Kinkade. Thanks so much for your company.

For our viewers in North America, "CNN This Morning" is next, and for the rest of the world, it's "Connecting Africa."

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