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Soon: U.S. Military to Enforce Strait of Hormuz Blockade; Rep. Swalwell Drops Out of California Governor's Race; Pope: I Have 'No Fear' after Trump Calls Him 'Weak'. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired April 13, 2026 - 06:00   ET

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

[06:00:10]

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Today in the group chat, President Trump wants the Strait of Hormuz open. So, why is he sending in the U.S. military to block it?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MARK WARNER (D-VA): I don't understand how blockading the strait is going to somehow push the Iranians into opening it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: So, new concerns about oil this morning as the navy moves in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIKKI HALEY, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: This is a game of chicken. It's who caves first.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Talks to end the war fail. Is diplomacy dead between the U.S. and Iran?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel amazing. It's really amazing. Like, I've never thought this could actually happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: And celebrations in Hungary, where the far-right, Trump- backed candidate was defeated. So, what does this mean for right-wing movements around the world?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA): These allegations of sexual assault are flat false. They're absolutely false. They did not happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Democrat Eric Swalwell ends his bid for California governor. Will he be forced out of Congress next?

CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We have a blockade going into effect. Their promise was that they were going to open the Hormuz Strait. They didn't do it. They lied.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Diplomacy didn't work. So, Trump's trying military force once again.

Good morning, everybody. I'm Audie Cornish. We're going to begin with this breaking news.

In just a few hours, the U.S. military will move into place to enforce a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz. They're not going to allow any ships to enter or leave the strait.

And Iran's military issued a dire warning, saying that any military vessels attempting to approach the Strait of Hormuz under any pretext or excuse, will be considered a ceasefire violation and will be dealt with harshly and decisively.

Now, by closing off the strait, Trump could cut off key funding for Iran's government and military. But 20 percent of the world's oil supply travels through the strait, so it could also drive up oil prices.

This morning, we're already seeing some of that. Oil prices surging to more than $100 a barrel yet again over the weekend.

To get the details on this, we've got CNN's Eleni Giokos in Dubai.

So, Eleni, I want to start with this, because I'm under the impression that this is a blockade of just the -- the Iranian ports, specifically. So, who were the countries that were getting oil from Iran? And how does this change things?

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, really interesting, because CENTCOM actually clarified what President Trump had announced as all-encompassing naval blockade.

And CENTCOM says it's going to be enforced impartially against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas.

Now, this could open the door for other vessels that would be perhaps taking another route. But now, shippers are telling us that they're facing a double dilemma. Who do you negotiate with? With the Iranian side that's had de facto control of the Strait of Hormuz since the start of the war? Do you also need to negotiate with the Americans to secure safe transit?

And we also know there's enormous amount of reticence, because the Iranians are saying they're going to be targeting any vessel that hasn't coordinated directly with them and with military forces there.

And the Americans are saying something completely different, as well, saying you need to negotiate with the American side so that you can pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

But it just whittles down to this enormous point: that we are in uncharted territory. This has created a new paradigm. You know, part of, you know, the notion of globalization has been free seas, open seas, international maritime law. And that has completely changed, firstly, with Iran -- Iranian blockading the Strait of Hormuz, and now with the United States bringing in this naval blockade.

Now, what does enforcing mean and how is this going to be implemented, come 10 a.m. Eastern Time? Does this mean that the United States is planning on seizing some of these vessels, striking the vessels? Are we even going to see any vessels attempting this transit? How is Iran going to respond?

They're digging in their heels. And they're saying they're going to use their proxies in Yemen, which is the Houthis, to consider blocking the other maritime choke point, which is the Bab El-Mandeb choke point, Audie, which leads into the Red Sea.

[06:05:11]

That has been a release valve for some of the oil that has been trapped in this region, and so vital for the entire world.

CORNISH: OK. Eleni Giokos. Eleni, thank you. As always, you give me more questions to answer.

And I'm bringing in some folks in the group chat who can help: Sara Fischer, CNN senior media analyst and senior media reporter at Axios; and Sabrina Singh, former deputy Pentagon press secretary and CNN global affairs commentator; Ron Brownstein, CNN senior political analyst and Bloomberg opinion columnist; and Francesca Chambers, White House correspondent with "USA Today."

Sabrina, can I turn to you for some of the questions that she raised, which is what does it mean for the U.S. to be involved? She brought up the idea, does it mean they would actively seize a ship that tries to move?

And the second thing about Yemen. We know that it's possible for the Houthis in Yemen to interfere in the strait. Is that an active concern now?

SABRINA SINGH, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: So, taking the first two questions: what the U.S. is trying to do is essentially cripple Iran's economy.

They've done a very effective military campaign: taken out over 13,000 targets. Now, they're turning their attention to the economic measures to put more pressure on Iran.

We've seen the United States do this before under previous administrations. Under this one with sanctions, but now they're really trying to go after their oil.

And so, what the U.S. -- what U.S. Central Command is going to do is basically limit access to Iranian ports only; sort of walking back the president's statement from yesterday that there would be an essential blockade.

CORNISH: Yes.

SINGH: But allowing ships to transit freely in and out to other countries' ports. So, that will still allow some flow of oil, but it will really hurt the Iranians.

To the Bab El-Mandeb and what the Houthis can do there. They can close that off. And that's something that we saw happen under the Biden administration. They did target ships transiting through the Red Sea that then have to go through the Bab El-Mandeb. And that really can disrupt transit.

And the Houthis have -- still retain immense capabilities to do that. So, this can now have an even further regional effect --

CORNISH: Right.

SINGH: -- which means even more and higher costs for Americans and prices all around the world. And in our sort of era of social media diplomacy, you have Afghans [SIC] Ghalibaf, I think, tweeting this, saying, "Enjoy the current pump figures. With the so-called blockade, soon you'll be nostalgic for 4 to $5 gas."

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: That nostalgic line. I mean, look, one of the challenges the administration has is this is another example, I think, of asymmetric warfare.

Dictatorships can absorb a lot more pain than democracies. I mean, you know -- I mean, this is certainly going -- as you're saying, it's going to hurt Iran's economy.

There may be less elasticity in the -- in the Iranian political system to have response to that than there will be in the American political system to the likelihood that this will also further raise gas prices.

We're not a year and a half away from the midterm election. Like, we're coming up on six months already.

SARA FISCHER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA ANALYST: Primaries already happening.

BROWNSTEIN: You know, and -- and even before this war began, like, two-thirds of Americans said they did not believe that Trump was paying enough attention to the problem they elected him to solve, above all, which was their higher cost of living.

And the war is inexorably raising their cost of living further.

So, you know, the question is which side can withstand more pain for longer? And I don't think there's a simple answer to that. CORNISH: When you look at the polling, new CBS polling showing that 66

percent of voters do not think the goals of the war have been explained.

And I think, when asked why, 64 percent said that they're just, like, changing; and they haven't explained it enough.

I know it may seem we're so far down, like, why are we still asking that question? But it has implications for the thing you're talking about. Patience.

FRANCESCA CHAMBERS, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, "USA TODAY": Yes, I was going to say, I don't know if you have the other numbers from the poll up there.

I mean, they also asked about the president's seemingly maximalist rhetoric and the threatening. I think that the White House has said and the Trump administration has said that they're speaking in terms that they feel the Iranians can understand, because this is the same type of rhetoric that they use that this this is intended for them.

But the American public is also watching those comments that the president is making on social media. And you can --

CORNISH: The American public; the pope, apparently.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

CHAMBERS: And you can see within the CBS polling, though, that within the MAGA Republicans, you know, they were more forgiving for the language, more likely to say, OK, we think that this is maybe not something he's actually going to do, but -- but things he's saying for strategic value.

Whereas, within the -- the broader public, they were more likely to say, I think it's a little bit of both.

CORNISH: Yes.

CHAMBERS: You know, we're not really -- we're not really sure.

And again, it's intended that way, because the administration wants the Iranians to not be sure if he's really going to do it. Because the threat doesn't work unless it's realistic.

But it's the American public that will be voting in November.

FISCHER: But the MAGA support is really still critical. And I think what we've seen throughout this war is that Donald Trump has completely lost some of the biggest social media influencers on the MAGA right, due to all of these new policies that make it increasingly clear we could have possible boots on the ground, or more of a physical involvement than we would perhaps like.

[06:10:08] Even with this blockade, like, you're seeing all of these voices --

the Megyn Kellys of the world, the Tucker Carlsons of the world, the Candace Owens of the world. These are people who do not want us to have any sort of physical presence in the Middle East, let alone start to put ourselves in a situation where we're policing boats.

And so, I think it's going to be a huge, huge problem for him ahead of the midterms, losing all these voices.

BROWNSTEIN: There's more of these in the Republican coalition than there is in the Republican elected leadership.

CHAMBERS: Yes.

BROWNSTEIN: I mean, depending -- almost every question you ask at this point now, both on domestic economy and on the war, somewhere between 20, 25, almost 30 percent of Republican and Republican-leaning voters say they disapprove of actions Trump is taking.

CORNISH: Yes.

BROWNSTEIN: Not many, not many of those voters --

CORNISH: Although, MAGA voters, in -- self-identified MAGA voters.

BROWNSTEIN: But that's only, you know, that's, what, 60 percent, half of the Republican coalition, you know, the other half of the Republican coalition that is beginning to show some fracturing around this.

They may not vote for Democrats in November. They may not vote.

CORNISH: Where will they go?

BROWNSTEIN: They may not vote in November.

CORNISH: Well, hold on. You guys stay with us. We're going to talk about a couple of things today. We're also going to have a Democratic lawmaker here to talk about some of these questions, like a potential war powers vote. So, you guys stay with me.

Coming up on CNN THIS MORNING, the pontiff, the president, and peace. Trump calls the first American pope weak, terrible, and too liberal. The pope actually just responded, moments ago.

Plus --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. EUGENE VINDMAN (D-VA): We should not tolerate this behavior. And Representative Swalwell needs to go.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: So, Eric Swalwell has ended his race for governor. Could he get kicked out of Congress, as well? And history at the Masters. How Rory McIlroy got the green jacket for

the second year in a row.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RORY MCILROY, 2-TIME MASTERS CHAMPION: Some people probably thought it was outlandish to dream of the things that I wanted to do, but I had amazing support from back home and can't thank them all enough for -- for that continued support.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:16:17]

CORNISH: So, developing story this morning. Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell is dropping out of the California governor's race, as he continues to deny sexual assault allegations.

In a post on X, the Democrat apologized for his, quote, "mistakes in judgement." And it was fellow Democrats who forced his hand.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. PRAMILA JAYAPAL (D-WA): This is not a partisan issue. This cuts across party line. And it is depravity of the way that women have been treated.

VINDMAN: We need to be crystal clear on this. The accusations are absolutely heinous. And his admissions betraying his family are deplorable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: All right, so the group chat is back. I wanted to talk about this, because this statement came from Hakeem Jeffries. He said, "Following the incredibly disturbing sexual assault accusations against Congressman Swalwell, we call for a swift investigation into the incident" and said that this is "unacceptable of anyone, certainly not an elected official, and must be taken seriously."

Ron, why do you think that Jeffries spoke so strongly in this case, where we have seen Congress be very reluctant to expel lawmakers with their tiny minority and majority lines?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, you know, there's a fundamental difference between the parties in the way they have handled. I mean, I just --

CORNISH: Handled sexual assault issues.

BROWNSTEIN: I just look at the speed at which Swalwell unraveled and was forced out of the race with pressure from fellow Democrats.

I mean, Donald Trump had two juries, you know, in civil cases, adjudicate that he had committed sexual abuse, I think, is the phrase under New York law; defame someone by denying it. And, you know, there was -- there was nothing like that on the Republican side.

And that does not only reflect kind of views of elites. I mean, if you -- if you drill down into the way voters in each coalition view allegations of sexual abuse, it is quite different. And so --

CORNISH: But can I stop you here? The CNN reporting here -- and I'm just going to CNN reporting here. And he has denied this. But from CNN, their report was that a formal Swalwell staffer -- staffer claimed that he raped her.

BROWNSTEIN: And it's -- and what happened is what should have happened. I'm just saying it is striking the contrast between what didn't happen. I mean, the fact that -- the fact that Democrats --

CORNISH: Now you have the D.A.'s attorney actually investigating.

FISCHER: You know what's the big difference here?

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

FISCHER: Is the cell phone. OK? Eric Swalwell, our representative Swalwell did a lot of this communication on Snapchat.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

FISCHER: There's a lot of this talked about how he sent lewd pictures. And I think part of this, and why he swiftly stepped down, is because there might be a digital trail of some of the stuff that Donald Trump never had.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

FISCHER: And I think that makes it much harder for him to just say, oh, this never happened. I do think there's probably a digital footprint.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

FISCHER: And he is aware of that. And that is where there's a difference.

BROWNSTEIN: I think there's a lot of evidence of what Donald Trump did, as well.

FISCHER: A hundred percent.

BROWNSTEIN: You know, but -- but the point is--

CORNISH: I think I hear her saying that Swalwell is also trying to get ahead of what could turn out to be explicit messages or photos.

FISCHER: All of it. All of it.

CORNISH: And you've had multiple women.

BROWNSTEIN: It was instantly untenable for him to remain -- CORNISH: Yes.

BROWNSTEIN: -- in the race. And based on these accusations, it should have been untenable for him to remain in the race. I'm just saying that, you know, we are being reminded that we are operating in kind of very different political worlds.

CORNISH: Let me add another thought.

BROWNSTEIN: That reflect not only -- reflect not only the elected officials, but again, the electorates. The coalitions themselves.

CORNISH: Republican Tony Gonzales of Texas.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

CORNISH: OK, also facing an expulsion vote. He's been accused of inappropriate sexual behavior with a staffer. I'm bringing this up just to counter your point.

BROWNSTEIN: Sure.

CORNISH: That you may have a Congress looking at expelling two members.

[06:20:03]

BROWNSTEIN: And two more.

CHAMBERS: And I think that these allegations against Eric Swalwell put the focus back on Tony Gonzales in a way that I think, as we're discussing here, you know, it had moved away a little bit in the sense that you also had a recess.

You know, they're coming back. This is squarely on the focus now. You have lawmakers are getting asked about it on television. Republican lawmakers who were saying on television yesterday, yes, I think both of them.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

CHAMBERS: You have Byron Donalds, who's running for governor in Florida. But Democrats, as well, who are -- you know, are being faced with this question.

CORNISH: Is it because it's one for one? Like, they're not worried about losing?

BROWNSTEIN: Yes, yes. Well, and look --

CHAMBERS: But -- but I'm saying with -- with the recess, there were accusations, accusations against various lawmakers; that there was a little bit of a break. Now they're all the -- the focus is squarely back on these things.

But I did want to also raise another point about the environment that we're in currently, which is the Jeffrey Epstein environment.

Ro Khanna brought this up yesterday and -- and made the point, essentially, that for Democrats who have been out there and have been really vocal about the -- the Jeffrey Epstein allegations, you know, this now comes front and center for them.

And Pramila Jayapal, you know, a point she raised is what does it say to staffers across the Capitol if we don't do something about this, about these allegations; that we seem to think, as lawmakers, that this is how bosses should just treat people who work on Capitol Hill?

And so, I think that's something that's really on the mind of lawmakers.

BROWNSTEIN: Meanwhile, it's worth mentioning, at least just in passing, that, you know, the California governor's race was a mess and a muddle before this happened. So, like mess and a muddle squared is now what you're dealing with.

You know, in a state where Democrats are probably going to win 60 to 65 percent of the general election vote, they do not have a clear candidate who is, you know, in position to claim a -- claim a piece of those top two -- top two finishers.

I mean, you know, there are more Democratic votes now to go around with Swalwell out. But if you're talking about a race with Katie Porter and Tom Steyer as your best chances to get into the top two, that is not something a lot of Democrats feel really comfortable with.

CORNISH: OK, you guys, after the break on CNN THIS MORNING, as we just said, Congress is back. A lot on their plate. And things we have not forgot, like that DHS shutdown and calls to invoke the 25th Amendment. And as we talked about, two possible expulsions.

We've got a congressman to talk about it with us today.

But there's this other thing, moral authority versus military might. We're going to talk about the pope's veiled shots at President Trump and Trump's war with Iran.

In the meantime, good morning, Baltimore. A look at the sunrise over the water.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:26:49]

CORNISH: All right, new developments overnight in the holy war of words between President Trump and the pope over the war with Iran.

So, just hours ago, Trump went on this, like, social media rant. He was slamming the pope's criticism as weak and terrible and saying that the pope should, quote, "get his act together."

Then, Trump posted this image, where he depicts himself as a Christ- like figure. OK, so late last night, he also said this to reporters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I don't like it. I'm not a big fan of Pope Leo. He's a very liberal person, and he's a man that doesn't believe in stopping crime. He's a man that doesn't think that we should be toying with a country that wants a nuclear weapon, so they can blow up the world. I'm not -- I'm not a fan of Pope Leo.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Just moments ago, the pope responding, saying he has, quote, "no fear of the Trump administration."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POPE LEO XIV, LEADER OF CATHOLIC CHURCH: My message, the message of the gospel, blessed are the peacemakers. I do not look at my role as being political or a politician. I don't want to get into a debate with him. I don't think that the message of the gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Joining me now to discuss, Christopher Hill, the publisher of the "Letters from Leo" Substack. Thanks so much for being here, as the story honestly is continuing from overnight.

Can we talk about what you just heard from Pope Leo just there, where he said some things I expect to hear: "Blessed are the peacemakers." But I also heard him say that he doesn't believe he is political.

Is that fair, given how he's been talking?

CHRISTOPHER HILL, PUBLISHER, "LETTERS FROM LEO": Yes. I think that what he always has been very clear on is if you look in the gospel, Jesus tells us that God's domain stretches everywhere.

And so, he's only touching politics where it touches core gospel values. And the core gospel value that it touches here is peace.

Jesus Christ had risen from the dead. His first words to his apostles are, "Peace be with you."

Pope -- Pope Leo XIV, those were his first words to the faithful. It's the core of his identity, is to be a messenger of peace.

He sees this war as unjust, unprovoked, immoral, illegal. So, this is why he's speaking out. He's speaking in a language that Donald Trump clearly doesn't understand. But any Catholic, any Christian understands why this pope is speaking so clearly on this issue.

CORNISH: Yes. Now you're seeing any Christian, but there is a Christian right now who is Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. And here is how he has been talking about the war and strikes against Iran in the last couple of weeks. I want you to respond on the other side of this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle.

Pour out your wrath upon those who plot vain things and blow them away like chaff before the wind. Give them wisdom in every decision. Endurance for the trial ahead. Unbreakable unity and overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy.

May almighty God continue to bless our troops in this fight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Can you talk a little bit about this? I know Hegseth is a follower of Doug Wilson.

[06:30:00]