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CNN This Morning

IDF Says New Wave Of Strikes Launched Against Iran; Iranian Media: Iran Close To Choosing Next Supreme Leader; Israeli Military Vows To Go After Khamenei's Successor. Oil And Gas Prices Rise As Iran War Escalates; Gulf Nation's Report New Strikes After Iran's Apology; Trump Admin Falling Short On Plan To Build Housing For Vets; Lower 48 States Have Seen The Second Warmest Winter On Record. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired March 08, 2026 - 06:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:00:26]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.

VICTOR BLACKWELL: And welcome to CNN this morning. It is Sunday, March 8th. I'm Victor Blackwell. Thanks for being with us.

Israel has launched a fresh wave of attacks on Iran. They're targeting Tehran's energy resources like this gas storage facility in Tehran. A CNN team reported blackened rainwater fell this morning after the hits. And Iran's neighbors reported new strikes despite Iranian president's promise to stop.

The two Kuwaiti border security members were killed today. And we just learned that Iranian state media says the country is close to choosing its next supreme leader. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who ruled Iran for nearly 40 years, was killed in the first round of strikes. Israel's military is already promising to go after its new successor and anyone helping to pick him.

President Trump was asked last night aboard Air Force One if he wanted to be involved in the new leader selection. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You said you want to be involved in the selection of the next leader of Iran? Can you talk to me about that?

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Well, because I don't want to just come back every 10 years. And mostly you'll have presidents, mostly that won't do that because they don't get it. But we don't want to come back every five years or every 10 years and do this. So we want to pick a president that's not going to be leading their country into a war.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BLACKWELL: Now in the U.S. the decision to enter the war now faces

mounting scrutiny. The House's top Democrat, Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, told CNN Saturday the American people deserve answers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES, (D) MINORITY LEADER: These decisions of war and peace should actually be taken seriously. And Donald Trump should have made his case to the American people and to Congress on behalf of the folks that we represent as to why this has been done, why this war has been launched, why billions of dollars are being spent overseas in the Middle East as opposed to make life better for the American people. And the administration has completely and totally failed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Covering this story with our team of reporters around the world. Paula Hancocks is standing by. Nic Robertson as well. We'll start, though, with Oren Lieberman. Oren, what are you learning?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Victor, we are seeing now what appears to be the second phase or rather than the next phase of Israeli strikes on Iran. That, according to an Israeli source, as we see Israel's military targeting oil refineries and fuel storage facilities. The first eight or nine days of the war focused on the regime itself, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other mechanisms and apparatuses of the regime and its efforts to control the country effectively, its centers of power.

Now, it seems in these strikes we're seeing in Tehran and other parts of the country, Israel, likely in coordination with the U.S. of course, at this point is going after the economic and financial means of the regime to support itself and to support its military. The Israeli military saying late last night and this morning that it's striking those fuel storage facilities and oil refineries.

And that is perhaps what Israel's military Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, had hinted at a couple of days ago when he said Israel is ready to move on to the next phase of the war. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a prerecorded statement late last night, said this was coming and the strikes themselves will expand.

Meanwhile, in terms of what the next phase of leadership is, what is it that Israel or the United States want to see after Iran's supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed, that part remains unclear. Netanyahu simply said that it will soon be the turn of the Iranian people to rise up and overthrow the regime to.

So there's still not a clear plan from Israel or from the United States on where this goes from here, other than an escalation, because it's quite clear that neither country is interested in or looking for an off ramp at this point. Meanwhile, from where we stand here in Tel Aviv, we have seen Iran able to fire back, at least to some extent. At about 7:30 this morning, there was a siren warning of incoming missile fire. Iran has been able to keep up a somewhat steady drumbeat of ballistic missile fire at Israel, the vast majority of that intercepted.

But here on day nine of the war, it is still somewhat noteworthy that they're able to fire because the U.S. and Israel have made it a point of going after ballistic missile arrays and ballistic missile launchers as no side of this war, not the U.S.-Iran or Israel, indicates that there will be any deescalation anytime soon. On the contrary, it seems like we're very much still on the ramp up as we see the strikes grow with every day here.

[06:05:08]

BLACKWELL: And there's a lot happening on day nine. Oren Liebermann reporting from Tel Aviv. Thank you.

And CNN was the first news organization with journalists in Iran since the start of the war. And coming up, we'll hear from CNN's Fred Pleitgen in Tehran about this latest round of strikes.

Now Gulf nations say more strikes are coming in this morning even after Iran's president insisted Iran would not hit them unless they were hit first. Now we're still seeing several U.S. diplomatic buildings where American troops are based targeted by Iranian strikes. In Kuwait, officials say they've been fending off drone and missile attacks.

One strike set fire to a high-rise government building. You can see what's left of it here. The smoke is still rising as firefighters work to put out those flames.

We're also hearing reports of more attacks across the region in Dubai, in Bahrain, in Saudi Arabia. Outside the war zone, officials in Oslo are now looking into whether an explosion at the U.S. embassy is linked to the Middle East conflict. Good news is no one was hurt there. CNN has reached out to the embassy and to the State Department.

Let me bring in now CNN correspondent Paula Hancocks from Dubai. Paula, what can you add?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Victor, just a few hours ago we had the emergency alerts and interceptions overhead here in Abu Dhabi, a similar situation. Excuse me, here in Dubai, a similar situation. An hour down the road in Abu Dhabi. We have been seeing what feels like almost more of an impact of incoming since we heard from the Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, apologizing, saying that Gulf nations were not going to be targeted so long as there weren't attacks coming out of these Gulf nations.

Now those comments have certainly been walked back somewhat and we're seeing on the ground that you it clearly was not the case that the Iranian president was able to claim or at least to have the control over those people who are firing the missiles and the drones. We have had more than 1,500 missiles and drones fired at the UAE in the past nine days. That is more than any other nation. So, the UAE really bearing the brunt of this Iranian retaliation.

We saw on Saturday night as well, there was another person killed here in Dubai, someone in their car, a Pakistani national. And the car was hit by debris from one of those interceptions. We saw Dubai Marina as well. One of the buildings there was hit by debris. A number of buildings had to be evacuated so there is no letup when it comes to the UAE at this point.

We have seen something very unusual here that we have seen an interview with the UAE leader, Mohamed bin Zayed giving comments which we just don't see. And he has referred to Iran as the enemy of the UAE.

So that is a remarkable step by the UAE leader also saying to Iran, do not see the UAE reaction as weakness. The UAE is strong. All of these Gulf nations still saying they reserve the right to retaliate. And we've certainly not heard publicly from these countries exactly what they intend to do. We are very unlikely to hear publicly of their plans. Victor.

BLACKWELL: And we'll get into more of the contradiction between possession promise and the drone and missile strike since a little later in the show. Paula Hancocks, there for us, thank you.

Demonstrators gathered in Washington, D.C. and in New York to protest the U.S.-Israel war in Iran. Some carried signs that read hands off Iran. Others held banners telling the U.S. to stop arming Israel.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ETAN MABOURAKH, ORGANIZING MANAGER, NATIONAL IRANIAN AMERICANC COUNCIL: It seems clearer and clearer each day with the comments from this administration that they don't care about the Iranian people, that they don't care about our American people. And it's very frustrating. But I keep hope alive because most Americans actually agree on most things and want the same things and they don't want their tax dollars going to a war of choice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: In Los Angeles, a crowd of Iranian-Americans cheered the U.S. an Israeli military operation that resulted in the death of Iran's supreme leader. Yesterday marked a somber return for the six U.S. Service members killed in this war with Iran. President Trump and the families of the soldiers watched as their bodies were brought home during a dignified transfer Saturday afternoon. All six were members of an Army Reserve unit out of Iowa. CNN's Michael Yoshida has more.

MICHAEL YOSHIDA, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Victor, a somber and solemn day here at Dover Air Force Base. This dignified transfer happening as six U.S. service members were brought home. U.S. President Donald Trump, the first lady, the vice president and others watched as these transfers took place. And we are learning more about these six U.S. soldiers.

[06:10:10]

We know one of them, Sergeant Declan Coady, a 20-year-old from Iowa, he had been updating and speaking with his family throughout the weekend right prior to this deadly strike. We also know he wanted to be a commissioned officer. Then there was Captain Cody Khork, a 35- year-old from Florida who from an early age he had a calling to serve. He was described for his great leadership and caring for his team.

Also, Sergeant First Class Nicole Amor, a 39-year-old mother to a fourth grader and a high school senior. Her husband spoke with her just hours before the deadly strike saying, quote, "she was almost home."

Also, Sergeant First Class Noah Tietjens, a 42-year-old devoted father and husband who stood out for his professionalism and mentorship. And Major Jeffrey O'Brien, a 45-year-old husband who was also a father of three and had served in the reserves for nearly two decades.

And finally, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Robert Marzan, a loving husband, father, brother, uncle and friend. All six of these soldiers were part of the 103rd Sustainment Command, that's an Army Reserve unit out of Iowa. We know that several of them had a very close bond. Four of them had developed a kinship for a time they had previously served in the same unit back in 2019 in Kuwait. They all now back home here in the United States here at Dover Air Force Base.

As you drive in, there is an overpass with the writing about how all gave some, some gave all. The weight of that message never clearer than on days like today, this transfer happening as the soldiers are remembered for their service and their sacrifice. Victor.

BLACKWELL: Michael Yeshida, thank you. Next hour I'll speak with retired Major General Dana Pittard about the U.S. strategy in the war with Iran, including the president not ruling out deploying U.S. ground troops to the region.

All right, ahead on CNN this morning, a delayed tribute to those heroes from the January 6 Capitol riot, why visitors will not be able to see it. Plus, blackened and oily rain falling on Tehran. CNN takes you inside the war zone.

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[06:17:04]

BLACKWELL: This morning, Iran is close to selecting its next Supreme Leader. Iranian state media reports that the country's assembly of experts have come to, as they describe it, a decisive and overwhelming opinion on who should replace Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The Supreme Leader was killed in the opening strikes of the U.S. And Israel's joint war on Iran.

Joining me now is Jasmine El-Gamal. She's a former Middle East adviser for the Defense Department.

Jasmine, good to see you again. This assembly of experts, the 88 clerics who will choose the next Supreme Leader. They say that they have more or less decided who will succeed Khamenei. They've not announced the choice. A couple of things here. Another cleric told Reuters that, quote, "The candidate had been

picked based on Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's guidance that he should be," quote, "hated by the enemy and that even the Great Satan, a reference to the U.S. has referred to the name of the individual selected by the representatives." Who's at the top of the list? Likely.

JASMINE EL-GAMAL, FORMER MIDDLE EAST ADVISER: Well, that's really interesting, you know, Victor, and thanks for having me. It's very hard to tell. Look, I don't want to make exact predictions. We've heard names in the last week or two. Sorry.

In the last week, we've heard the late Ayatollah's son being at the top of that list, Mojtaba Khamenei which would be interesting because as you've heard, you know, Iran experts say this kind of hereditary, kind of passing on the title is not necessarily is frowned upon in the clerical establishment. It would be the same as the previous rulers, the monarchy. So, it would be a bit of a surprise. So, I think there are a couple of things to look out for here.

One is the Israelis have said that anyone who is announced as the next supreme leader puts themselves in the position of potentially being assassinated. So that's something to keep in mind. The other thing to keep in mind, of course, is what President Trump has said about wanting or needing the next supreme Leader or the next leadership of Iran to be okay with the U.S. to be okay with Israel to not pose a threat against them. So, the signs that are coming out of the clerics about the nature of this person, they don't bode well for deascalation in the next few days or following announcement, if that's how they're describing him.

BLACKWELL: Let me ask you about this contradiction between the apology from President Pezeshkian to the Arab Gulf states and the promise that there would be no attacks unless attacks on Iran originated from those neighbors. And since that promise, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, the UAE have reported drone and missile strikes. Is it that the president doesn't speak for the IRGC, or what do you glean from this contradiction inside Iran?

[06:20:07]

EL-GAMAL: Yes, that's a really good question. And of course that's the question that's been on everyone's mind. There are a couple of things that could be going on here. One is exactly what you just said, that the command-and-control structure has been decentralized. You have the IRGC operating independently from the political leadership and they're not necessarily in lockstep. The other -- the other potential reason that I'm hearing from my contacts is that once the President made that overture, before the Gulf states could retaliate in kind with some sort of conciliatory message, President Trump came out with his unconditional surrender comment and forced Iran's hand. And so, there are a couple of things that could be going on here.

But like I said, Victoria, as we continue to look for ways that the two parties could deescalate and find some sort off ramp in the coming days, statements like these are not helpful and are pointing us to the direction of further escalation in the coming days. BLACKWELL: Again, we just got in greater confirmation that the

assembly of Experts have indeed chosen a supreme leader. They again have not given a name. So, we'll be standing by for that.

There was also a call that happened speaking about the Gulf states. There was a call between the Qatari Emir and President Trump yesterday in which the Emir warned the President that continued escalation would result in dangerous repercussions to international peace and security according to state media there. He urged a return to negotiations, a return to diplomacy. What is the significance of that warning coming from that U.S. ally with the massive Al Udeid base that is there, the U.S. base, 10,000 American service members there, a close apparently relationship between the President and the emir at this point in the war from that ally and that characterization.

EL-GAMAL: Exactly. I mean, that tells you a lot about how worried the Gulf states are about the escalation that you and I are just talking about now. You know, Qatar had to stop LNG production completely liquefied natural gas. They declared a force majeure and basically are not honoring those contracts. And the longer this goes on, the more oil and gas and energy facilities in the Gulf can be targeted, the more of a global ripple effect the this has. And it's such a bad situation, Victor, for a region that basically its calling card is safety and security.

The whole premise of the Gulf and their plans, Saudi's Vision 2030 is that it is a safe place to live, work and invest. And the longer this drags on and the more opportunities there are for escalation and miscalculations, the more that premise is in danger and the more and the longer it takes for this damage that's been done to be reversed. So, it is absolutely no surprise that countries in the Gulf are trying to use that relationship that they have with the president to say calm down.

BLACKWELL: Jasmine El-Gamal, thank you for the analysis. Attacks on oil storage facilities in Iran. 10 million people woke up to thick black clouds and oily rain falling from the sky. CNN has a crew in Tehran and we'll check in with Fred Pleitgen after the break.

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[06:28:19]

BLACKWELL: New this morning, people in Tehran, they woke up to thick black clouds after Israel struck the country's oil storage sites. Take a look at the video.

It's geolocated by CNN. It shows the massive fire and smoke pictures plume at a facility just outside of Tehran. It's just one of several oil facilities that were hit and are still burning this morning.

CNN is the first U.S. Network to start reporting from the ground in Iran since the conflict started. We're operating there only with the government permission. Our senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen and producer Claudia Otto, they filed this report on the black rain falling after those airstrikes. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is what Tehran is waking up to this morning. The sky above the city is covered in very thick black clouds. You can see that everywhere. That's the west of the city over there. And this is the north of the city.

Normally if you look to that direction, you could actually see the Alborz Mountains. But now all of that is also covered in clouds. That comes after major airstrikes in the south and the west of the city happened last night where oil installations were hit. Oil storage facilities apparently also a refinery might have been hit as well.

And now you can see this morning that the sky is still very dark. We saw thick black plumes of smoke in the sky. Yesterday there were massive fires in the south of the city. But I want to show you something else because it's also raining.

But you can see that the rain water is actually black, also saturated, it appears with oil. And then if we look over there, you can see that the water that's running down here also is black. So that's what's coming down this morning. This sort of oil filled rain that we have right now on the Iranian capital after the strikes took place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Fred Pleitgen reporting there for us. Thank you.

The war in Iran is impacting the economy in the U.S. According to AAA, the average cost of a gallon of unleaded gas is up 11 percent over last week. That's $0.34 per gallon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRACY SCOTT, ATLANTA RESIDENT: The people that may have started the war, they don't have a clue about the price because they don't drive cars. They have people that drive for them.

So, it's the middle class and the poor that sees it the most and suffering the most.

TAMIRA MONCUR, ATLANTA RESIDENT: The war. Yes, the gas is because of the war in the oil. And, you know, we're going to pay for this. We're going to pay for the choices of other people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Ted Rossman is a senior industry analyst with Bankrate. Ted, you've been tracking these numbers. I just want to start with. I mean, we think oil and then gasoline immediately. Right. Because we got to fill that up. But there's also heating oil and the rest.

Let's just start with the scope of the impact of this increase per barrel of oil and how we'll feel that across the economy. TED ROSSMAN, SENIOR INDUSTRY ANALYST, BANKRATE: Yes, we're definitely feeling it most acutely at the gas pump right now. I feel like every time I check that AAA website, prices are higher. I mean, right now we're up to about $3.45 per gallon of unleaded gas nationwide. That's up almost $0.50 from the same time a week ago. So, we're talking a jump of about 16 percent in a week.

Now, that obviously has a very psychological impact. It impacts how much it costs to fuel our cars. The average U.S. household spends about $2,400 a year on gas, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. So, you know, these percentages actually work out to about $400 a year in gains. So not that we want to be paying $400 extra, but that in and of itself is not a tremendous amount.

But it's the psychology behind it. We can't miss the signs at the gas pump. But it's also the ripple effects for other things, because that's just fuel costs for your car. What about airline fares? What about goods that need to be transported from point A to point B? That's where the impacts are potentially more significant. If clothes and groceries and other things that need to be transported are also going to cost more, that's going to apply overall upward inflation pressure at a time that inflation was already a little bit above the Fed's target and very much straining consumers.

BLACKWELL: And of course, that brings us to the question of stagflation, which we saw after the recovery from COVID and the shutdown of much of the country. Talk about that, if you would, and how those concerns are growing

ROSSMAN: That is definitely a concern. The fact that job growth was virtually nil in 2025. We saw a bit of a pop in January, but then February's jobs report was very downbeat. So, this has overall effects on the economy

When we're talking about a relatively slow growth economy, the cumulative effects of inflation being very significant. Most recently, inflation has been rising about 3 percent a year. The Fed would like that to be more like two. But it's not just what's happened the past year, of course. It's what's happened the past five or six years. The fact that in total, prices were already up 25 percent on average since the pandemic.

That's really what's straining households. That's what's leading people to take on debt and dip into savings. And really, anything that applies upward pressure is not going to be welcome. It has broader effects, too. We actually saw mortgage rates dip recently. They fell below 6 percent, according to Freddie Mac, for the first time in a few years. Well, now this has the potential to be inflationary and lead to higher rates for mortgages and other products.

So there really are some ripple effects throughout the economy. It's certainly not just what you're paying at the gas pump.

BLACKWELL: Yes, we get the latest read on inflation at the middle of the week. I think the CPI report comes out on Wednesday. And the February report showed that it cooled to 2.4 percent. But that was on the back of lower energy costs. And now that that's going in the opposite direction, we could see, as you were discussing the potential for stronger inflationary pressure.

I want to talk more about this housing element, because I find that to be interesting. I heard an interesting point you made recently about what history tells us. Typically, about geopolitical crises and the impact on housing purchases, we may not see that this time around.

ROSSMAN: That's right. Normally, in times of geopolitical strain, whether we're talking after 9-11, or we're talking the pandemic, a lot of times interest rates fall, because any sort of tumult in the economy is often an excuse for the Fed to cut rates. Mortgage rates are not set directly by the Fed. They tend to track 10-year Treasuries. But it's kind of the same principle where if there's some sort of flight to safety, and people are very interested in government bonds, that can actually push rates down.

[06:35:13]

Now, this could be different because this is more of an inflationary situation. So usually, inflation necessitates higher rates. So we've seen the Fed push rates higher by five and a quarter points in recent years to fight inflation. They've unwound point and three quarters of that, but it doesn't seem like the Fed's going to be in a rush to cut rates anytime soon. And by extension, 10-year treasury yields have actually risen a bit, about 20 basis points over the past few days.

So that could actually cause mortgage rates to go up. And, you know, if the Fed's not cutting, well, then your credit card rate stays high, your car loan, those rates are going to stay high. So this could actually behave a little bit differently than a lot of geopolitical events where if the inflation fear of higher energy prices keeps rates higher, that's not great for borrowers. And that's something to be aware of.

BLACKWELL: Ted Rossman with Bankrate, many consequences of this war that we're watching on day nine. Thank you so much for helping us understand it.

Iran still firing across the Gulf, even after its president apologized and suggested that strikes would stop. Gulf nations say more attacks came in overnight, including drones and missiles aimed at Kuwait and Bahrain and Dubai and parts of Saudi Arabia.

Let's go now to CNN's international correspondent Nic Robertson in Saudi Arabia.

A contradiction here that asks how much the -- the President actually speaks for the military in Iran.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (on-camera): And that was a question that was being actively asked yesterday afternoon, because I think already before this, the President Pezeshkian in Iran was not believed to have a lot of power and influence in the country even before this war began. So, it was really a point yesterday afternoon when it was heard around here that he'd made this apology for attacking Gulf neighbors. And indeed, Bahrain responded to that, welcoming the apology and saying very clearly, you know, they're a country like the others in the Gulf that want to de-escalate, that want discussion, but said, quite frankly, if you -- if you say this, but you don't act in accordance with this, it means nothing. I mean, that was the simplicity of the message there. And that's exactly what happened.

And look, just a few hours ago, behind me here, you can't quite see it, but the diplomatic quarter where the U.S. embassy is here in Riyadh, a drone was on the way to the diplomatic quarter again last night, civilian neighborhood, and it was intercepted a few nights ago. Four drones got through hit around the U.S. embassy.

But this is the -- this is the image here that's happening. It is not just Iran trying to target military locations that we've seen. There was a real effort over the last few days to try -- by Iran to try to hit a major airbase just outside of the capital here, Riyadh. No indications that they've been able to hit it with ballistic missiles, drones, cruise missiles. But they've also been trying to target the energy infrastructure. And what these Gulf countries saw last night was Iran. You know, the message from the President was, if you're not part of the attack against us, we won't attack you.

But very clearly, and this is read very loudly and clearly here last night in Kuwait, for example, it was a government building that was hit. It was oil fuel. It was oil storage tanks at the international commercial airport in Kuwait that was hit. In Bahrain, it was a water desalination plant, which fortunately is still working and a university that was hit civilian infrastructures. And in the terms of sort of international humanitarian law, that that's a breach of international humanitarian law.

So from the perspective here, they can see this escalation, the escalation in the rhetoric about what President Trump wants to do and an escalation in the rhetoric from Iran's sort of perhaps effective leader at the moment, (INAUDIBLE), upping the rhetoric yesterday.

BLACKWELL: Nic Robertson, thank you so much.

Next, President Trump made a big promise to veterans. It was aimed at getting homeless veterans off the streets. And now there are signs that he will not be able to keep that promise.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This land is supposed to be for people exactly like you.

GEORGE FLEISCHMAN, VETERAN: Yes, I'm familiar with Sadin (ph). It's not for us.

They're not housing us, and we're dying over here.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BLACKWELL: And remember, if you're heading out, you can stream our show from anywhere in the U.S., right from the CNN app. You can also go to CNN.com/Watch.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:44:40]

BLACKWELL: Other stories we're following this morning.

In New York City, two people accused of throwing what police described only as ignited devices outside the mayor's mansion. Police say tensions rose between two opposing protesting groups. A pardoned January 6th rioter leading an anti-Islam protest and those against him. Six people were arrested, including the two charged with throwing the devices. No one was hurt.

[06:45:06]

A federal judge ruled that Kari Lake ran the U.S. Agency for Global Media illegally. The judge voided her actions, including the mass layoffs at Voice of America. Lake, who was a failed Arizona gubernatorial and Senate candidate and a fierce Trump loyalist, called the judge an activist and said the agency planned an appeal.

A new plaque honoring officers who defended the Capitol on January 6th was quietly installed. Workers put it up early Saturday morning after years of delay.

The plaque praised officers who protected Congress during the attack. Now, it came years after it was required by law to be installed by 2023. The plaque has been placed just inside an entrance on the west front of the Capitol, which is not open to the public.

President Trump signed an executive order last May with the title, Keeping Promises to Veterans and Establishing a National Center for Warrior Independence. And that center for homeless veterans will be in Los Angeles on land that has been seen -- has seen rather controversy and legal battles. Will President Trump be able to keep his promise?

Here's CNN's Nick Watt.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WATT (voice-over): The Center for Warrior Independence will be here on a vast VA campus given to veterans in the 1880s for a home, but used over the years for a VA hospital, as well as parking lots, dog parks, oil wells, UCLA's baseball field, and the exclusive Brentwood School's sports facilities.

The administration did just terminate that school's long-term lease on the property, but the key Trump promise in that order is to, quote, restore the capacity to house up to 6,000 homeless veterans by January 1, 2028. There are, after previous legal battles, some units for homeless vets already here and more under construction. The Trump administration just announced in court after the VA lost a suit filed by needy veterans that they're working to fulfill the President's promise and laid out a vague plan to build around another 2,500 units. But I've done some math. That will only bring the total capacity here to maybe 5,000, and not until the fourth quarter of 2030. Could be later.

So, about a thousand units short of the President's promise to veterans and around three years late. Remember, the executive order's title, Keeping Promises to Veterans.

ROB REYNOLDS, VETERANS ADVOCATE: I want to see President Trump's executive order be successful. My big concern at the moment is that a lot of the VA executive leadership, they've all signed nondisclosure agreements, and they're not communicating with any of us.

WATT (voice-over): There are more than 30,000 homeless veterans nationwide by the most recent count, around 3,000 here in Los Angeles alone.

REYNOLDS: With the history of this property, there's always been a lack of transparency, and that's how a lot of the problems have gone on here for decades. You know, promises made have not been kept.

WATT (voice-over): For example, Air Force vet George Fleischman was told he'd be in one of these 8x8 sheds just for a few months before moving into a permanent home.

WATT: This land is supposed to be for people exactly like you.

FLEISCHMAN: Yes, I'm familiar with Sadin (ph). It's not for us. They're unhousing us, and we're dying over here.

WATT (voice-over): Fleischman, who says he was exposed to Agent Orange while stationed in Okinawa, has now been in this shed without running water for more than three years.

FLEISCHMAN: If I wasn't a Christian, I'd kill myself. It's not worth living like this.

WATT: I reached out to the White House. They punted to the VA. The VA declined an interview, eventually gave me a statement that reads in part, what VA outlined in court relates only to issues in the case, which is narrower than President Trump's EO.

So what they're trying to say is they laid out a plan in court, but there's another plan that fulfills the executive order. I asked to see it. They never replied.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: Nick Watt, reporting from Los Angeles. Thank you.

A lot of people on the East Coast, like those in Charm City of Baltimore, showing off the Inner Harbor there, who say it's been a brutal winter. But the data tells a different story. The Lower 48 just logged its second warmest winter ever. Can this warming trend be slowed?

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[06:54:00]

BLACKWELL: A lot of us will remember this winter for the brutal winter storms that swept the US. The ice, the snow, the blizzards. But 2026 will go down as one of the warmest winters on record.

CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam joins me now.

There are a lot of people wondering, how is that possible with storm after storm --

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST (on-camera): Yes.

BLACKWELL: -- that people have seen?

VAN DAM (on-camera): Yes, you're right. People across the Northeast are going to think this weatherman's out to lunch (INAUDIBLE).

BLACKWELL: Right.

VAN DAM (on-camera): With the words I'm about to say, we had officially in the Lower 48, the warmest, second warmest, I should say, winter on record. Remember, meteorological winter lasts from December 1st all the way through the end of February. So we just completed that. And the data doesn't lie, but it's all about where it's weighted, right?

So, you think about what's happening out west. We had our warmest winter on record for all of these locations. You see those red dots? Of course, the East Coast, that's where we have the majority of our population.

So, it certainly feels like we have had a cooler than average winter. But that's just not the case when you start to average it out across the entire Western U.S. And snow resorts, ski resorts, they know it because they have record low snowpack. Every single one of those red dots there, that is indicating these locations where they take measurements of snow, they melt it down, they call it snow water equivalent, and it's at its record lowest levels.

[06:55:19]

And we're feeling it because it's going to have impacts on our water availability into the spring and summer months. But it's also the snowpack. Anywhere you see those shades of red, those are locations that are running below 50 percent of average.

So we know, looking back at climatological data, since 1970, the U.S. has warmed about 3.9 degrees on average Fahrenheit, and this is the fastest warming season out of all four seasons.

But wow, to tell people across the Northeast that this is one of the coldest winters on record, they'd be like, that weatherman's lying. But the data backs it up.

BLACKWELL: All right, Derek, thank you.

VAN DAM (on-camera): You got it.

BLACKWELL: Much more ahead on the next hour of "CNN This Morning Weekend." China weighs in on the fighting in the Middle East ahead of a meeting with this month between President Trump and President Xi.

We have live reports from Beijing and across the Middle East.

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