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CNN This Morning

Keith Cowing is Interviewed about the Blue Origin Rocket Explosion; Rep. James Walkishaw (D-VA) is Interviewed about Iran and the Bondi Hearing; Rescue to Begin in Laos Cave; ABC Accuses Trump's FCC of Unconstitutional Retaliation; Race for L.A. Mayor. Aired 6:30- 7a ET

Aired May 29, 2026 - 06:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:33:43]

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody. I'm Audie Cornish. I want to thank you for joining me on CNN THIS MORNING.

It is half past the hour. And here's what's happening right now.

Most of the musical acts drop out of the concert series celebrating America's 250th birthday. Freedom 250 was supposed to be a non- partisan -- is a non-partisan group that's backed by President Trump. They're organizing this Great American State Fair. Seven artists, including Martina McBride, Bret Michaels and The Commodores say they were unaware of the political connection.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FREEDOM WILLIAMS, RAPPER, C+C MUSIC FACTORY: We're talking about, you know, free, you know, you're doing the Trump freedom show. Yo, you're you doing the show on the 25th -- 250th anniversary of the U.S. with Donald Trump? I'm like, what are you talking about?

He didn't say nothing about Trump. He didn't mention Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: So far rappers Flo Rida and Vanilla Ice have not said if they will still perform.

And tensions rising outside that New Jersey immigration detention center. It's at the center of a controversy. And protesters clashed with armed federal immigration officers last night. Demonstrators have been outside Delaney Hall for days claiming people detained there are on a hunger strike over inhumane conditions. So far at least six protesters were arrested.

[06:35:02]

And I'm going to show you this Blue Origin rocket that exploded during a test launch in Cape Canaveral. This happened just last night during an engine firing test ahead of the satellite launch planned for next week. Now, Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos says they're working to figure out what caused it. There are no injuries. Nobody was hurt.

But joining us now, Keith Cowing, he's editor of nasawatch.com.

You're looking at this video, like the rest of us. Blue Origin is calling it an anomaly. What do you see, Keith?

KEITH COWING, EDITOR, NASAWATCH.COM: Well, this is, you know, one of those instances where the video pretty much tells us everything we know. The rocket blew up. They were testing the engines to be sure that it was ready to go. They had tried it. It didn't work. They tried it again. And just as they started to do that, it blew up. And so, at this point, one of the lightning towers was blown off. The tower was rocking. The rocket's completely destroyed. And a lot of the buildings around it, including apparently some other rocket stages, were destroyed. So, not a good day, as we would say at NASA.

CORNISH: Is it not a good day or is it indicative of something more for Blue Origin? Where are they in the space race?

COWING: Well, they were just getting started. Their rocket had flown three times. The last time it flew, it had an upper stage problem, which had already caused some concern. This time it's the -- apparently the first stage.

If you listen to the rhetoric about going back to the moon, it pretty much requires a rocket to get us there. And it was either going to be a SpaceX rocket, which also had problems last week and the FAA has grounded.

So, our two ways of getting to the moon may -- which may be rather amazing, aren't working. There's a mission coming up in earth orbit to test both landers, which are not ready, on rockets that aren't -- apparently not going to be ready.

So, the whole beat China to the moon thing is somewhat in question. We'll have to find out what happened.

CORNISH: OK. Well, thank you so much, Keith. We're going to learn more about what happened in the coming days. Appreciate your time.

COWING: My pleasure.

CORNISH: Now, I want to turn to the issue of Iran, because U.S. officials say they have reached a tentative agreement to open the Strait of Hormuz and start nuclear talks. The question is whether the president will sign off.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I can't guarantee that we're going to get there, but right now I feel pretty good about it.

Hopefully, we'll continue to make progress. The president will be in a position where he can endorse the agreement, but obviously that's still TBD.

So, were not there yet, but we're very close.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: So, like you said, TBD. This TBD idea would kick start a 60- day negotiation period to address Iran's nuclear stockpile. President Trump has said, look, he's not going to be rushed, even if there are midterms coming up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT BESSENT, TREASURY SECRETARY: He is taking a statesmanlike position that he has a core belief. And he believes that the most important thing is for Iran never to have a nuclear weapon. So, I believe that both things can be true, that we can do well in the midterms, that we, you know, perhaps have the makings of a deal here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: So, joining the group chat is Democratic Congressman James Walkinshaw from Virginia.

Thank you so much for being here.

So, I wanted to ask you about what this whole conversation around midterms in Iran, because I think the argument is that the Iranians watch American media. They know the pressure that is on this president. So, are Democrats going to be campaigning on Iran and the war and these things come midterms?

REP. JAMES WALKINSHAW (D-VA): Well, I guess it remains to be seen where the situation in Iran will stand in the fall. But we know that gas prices have skyrocketed. Unlikely they're going to decline significantly by the fall. And I think that's going to be a significant issue whether this deal comes together or not.

At the end of the day, Donald Trump campaigned on ending foreign wars. Precisely the kind of foreign war that he got us into in Iran. And Americans are paying the price for him reneging on that commitment.

CORNISH: Well, one other question on this topic, which is that I know Democrats feel like this is a war the president should not have gotten into in the first place. I do hear that.

What I don't hear is what they would consider a good path out. If people are going to vote for you come midterms, they may want you to find a way to end this war, or at least to have a plan to talk about. What is the word in the caucus?

WALKINSHAW: Yes, look, obviously we feel -- I feel is a huge catastrophic, strategic failure to get into the war. Given the situation that we're in now. I think any deal that actually opens the Strait, and remember the Strait was open before the war, any deal that opens the Strait and guarantees that it stays open and at least leads to a conversation around the nuclear weapons is the best case scenario given the catastrophic decision that Trump made.

CORNISH: Yes. So, the path they're on is not a path you disagree with? Open the Strait and figure out the nuclear stuff.

WALKINSHAW: Well, I --

CORNISH: No matter what, those are the steps is what I'm hearing you say.

[06:40:01]

WALKINSHAW: Yes, that's what you -- that's what you have to do.

Now, look, I don't think Iran is going to agree to any significant -- certainly they're not going to agree to completely dismantle their nuclear program. Why would they? They're stronger today than they were before the war started. The regime is harder line. They control the Strait now in a way they didn't before the war. We're weaker. So, we got to get the best deal that we can at this point.

CORNISH: All right, I want to turn to something else, because you have been very involved in the issue of transparency around Epstein survivors. We had one on earlier today, and she had a question for you, I'm going to play for you, because Pam Bondi is set to go before your committee. It's not going to be public. We're not going to see it.

And here's what Danielle, our guest earlier, asked.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANIELLE BENSKY, EPSTEIN SURVIVOR: Redactions were an issue, of course we know over redacting and under redacting the release itself, and investigations. At the end of the day, all any of us have ever wanted was an investigation. And now we're seeing E. Jean Carroll be investigated, a survivor. She's -- there's a criminal investigation that's being launched into her and yet we haven't seen a single investigative lead even be followed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Can you answer this a little? I mean, I understand -- but look, we have an off -- a thing the rest of us can't see, right?

WALKINSHAW: Yes. Yes.

CORNISH: The legal sort of usefulness of it is very questionable. Can you answer some of the points she's making there?

WALKINSHAW: Yes. One, it's important to acknowledge why you won't be able to see it. That's a decision that Chairman Comer, the Republican chairman of the committee, made. He has the authority to say, we're going to videotape this. He chose not to based on negotiations with Pam Bondi.

But I think Danny nailed it. I mean, we have to understand why the law wasn't followed, why the files weren't fully released, why there were illegal redactions, why things that should have been redacted were not redacted. We need to understand why Ghislaine Maxwell was transferred to that lower security, cushier prison situation after the conversation with Todd Blanche. Those are things that survivors are asking. Those are answers we deserve from Pam Bondi today.

ROB BLUEY, PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE EDITOR, "THE DAILY SIGNAL": Well, Congressman, one thing I'd -- that I'd be curious about is, you remember that famous scene at the White House where all those social media influencers were holding up those big binders. What was going on? What was the strategy behind that? Why did they decide to do it? Why did Bondi go on and say on multiple TV interviews that she had the client list and then the Department of Justice didn't do it?

WALKINSHAW: Yes. Yes.

BLUEY: So, I think that there's bipartisan -- a bipartisan opportunity here probably to invoke through the spirit of transparency and hopefully get some answers.

WALKINSHAW: Yes, I think that's right. I mean and the timeline is important here. President Trump campaigned on releasing the files and the client list. Pam Bondi said she was reviewing the client list on her desk. Those social media figures had those binders that supposedly had the files.

After that, we know that Pam Bondi went into the Oval Office or somewhere and met with Donald Trump and said, Mr. President, you need to know, you're in the files 38,000 times. At that point, the administration's posture changed and they shifted to cover up mode.

CORNISH: Yes. Elliot made a point earlier that if those are under deliberation, like, there's areas where she may be able to say, I can't talk about that.

ELLIOT WILLIAMS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, I'm genuinely curious about that. Like, to what extent can she plausibly and, quite frankly, legally say those are internal deliberations of the Justice Department and I am not able to talk about them in this forum. Like, how will you -- how will you deal with that?

WALKINSHAW: Yes, that will be interesting to see.

WILLIAMS: Yes.

WALKINSHAW: I mean, a, because it's a transcribed interview and the chairman hasn't held her to the deposition that the subpoena called for.

WILLIAMS: Yes.

WALKINSHAW: She's technically appearing voluntarily. So, she could say, I'm not going to answer that question.

I think what she will have to think about is a future Congress where perhaps a subpoena is truly enforced and there is a deposition where she has to answer questions. Does she want to put herself through that in the future, or just answer the questions openly and honestly today?

WILLAIMS: Yes.

CORNISH: OK. Well, we hope to have you back so we can find out more about what happened. In the meantime, thank you so much, Congressman Walkinshaw.

I want to give you this update.

Rescue teams in Laos about to begin the perilous rescue to save five people trapped deep underground. There are specialist cave divers who have successfully cleared an access route. They've pumped out water. All hangs on the weather.

And we're got Will Ripley on the scene in Laos.

Will, give us the update on these gold miners who ended up trapped in this cave.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Audie. Yes, so they're just about a 40 minutes' walk up this road, which they have dug out just in recent days with heavy machinery. And we've seen -- we've seen vehicles, we've seen ambulances coming in and out. And we've gotten word from cave divers that we've been in touch with that they've now begun the operation to try to bring these five villagers to safety.

But this is a very dangerous and perilous moment because, just for somebody who's a strong, experienced cave diver, we're told getting from the location where these villagers are trapped, climbing up at times, you know, 45 degree angles to get towards the surface, even though the water levels in the cave are now down, it's still slick.

[06:45:04]

And they say for somebody who's strong and healthy, that could take two to three hours.

But these villagers, some of them have been complaining that their health has been deteriorating, especially in recent days, breathing in a lot of that stale air. So, it could really be even longer than that.

And this rescue is contingent on these villagers being able to leave, to walk and crawl out on their own power. If they have to be carried by stretcher, or if the rain were to begin again and the caves were to flood, then the whole operation would have to be called off.

I mean, just a couple of weeks ago in the Maldives, there was a rescue diver who was killed in a rescue operation. So, these next hours are really going to be touch and go. But people here seem to be encouraged. We've talked to a woman whose husband is one of the five villagers trapped in the cave. She said for the past nine days she hasn't been able to sleep, she hasn't been able to eat, and she's praying that her husband is going to be one of the five who successfully is able to walk out. Also, two divers are still -- sorry, two villagers are still

technically missing, but there is hope, we're told, from cave divers on the scene that those two could also be located in a different chamber a bit deeper and farther into the cave. And they're going to try to perhaps find them. And if they're still alive, try to extract them as well.

So, there's a lot of hope, but certainly a lot of danger to come in the coming hours here as this rescue operation really kicks into high gear.

CORNISH: OK. Thank you to Will, who's there on the scene in Laos as that rescue operation is underway.

And up ahead on CNN THIS MORNING, Disney and ABC pushing back. Why they're claiming that the FCC is threatening free speech.

Plus, we're going to talk Spencer Pratt, locked in a tight race to become the next mayor of Los Angeles. Now, the former reality TV star is addressing some past controversial comments.

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[06:50:52]

CORNISH: So, ABC is accusing Trump's FCC of, quote, "unconstitutional retaliation" in a station license fight.

So, we got to "Lawyer Up" because Elliot is here, CNN's legal analyst.

So, first of all, why do we care about broadcast licenses and this fight with the FCC?

WILLIAMS: Right.

CORNISH: It feels like a very inside baseball media story.

WILLIAMS: It's very -- it's very inside baseball media and very sort of technical lawyerly stuff.

CORNISH: Yes.

WILLIAMS: But just big picture. To get on broadcast television, ABC, NBC, CBS, one must have a license. They typically last eight years. And without incident, they're renewed at the end of those eight years.

Now, the FCC can yank them, but usually for egregious conduct. You're talking about things like non-operating -- like not operating the station --

CORNISH: Yes.

WILLIAMS: Or foreign ownership or whatever else.

Here there is a specter, one might think, of the FCC having a problem with Disney's diversity practices and some of the content that's here. CORNISH: Interesting. So, this is different from the like Kimmel

conversation, the --

WILLIAMS: Well, it's all together. It's all --

CORNISH: Yes, yes. But like this isn't the Colbert --

WILLIAMS: Yes.

CORNISH: This is like an overall, we think there's a way you're running your business that we don't like.

WILLIAMS: Yes. Yes. There has -- look, there's no secret that in the news -- and when I say ABC, you know, I'm speaking about Disney because Disney being the parent company of ABC, that Disney has been at some odds with the administration over some things like diversity practices or Kimmel on ABC and ABC programing --

CORNISH: Yes.

WILLIAMS: Making jokes and content that certainly have offended people around the country, you know, of all stripes. And so the question is, can and should the FCC be talking about revoking licenses or at least dangling the hammer of revoking licenses on these things, which starts tiptoeing into the realm of censoring content that appears on air.

CORNISH: I want to turn it to this side of the table because the FCC commissioner, Brendan Carr, has spoken so much. He's very public about how he thinks he is righting the ship of the media ecosystem.

Here's an example. This is from last fall.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRENDAN CARR, FCC COMMISSIONER: We are in the midst of a massive shift in dynamics in the media ecosystem, for lots of reasons, again including the permission structure that President Trump's election has provided. And I would simply say, we're not done yet with seeing the consequences of that shift.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Permission structure. Doing a lot of heavy lifting there.

NOEL KING, CO-HOST AND EDITORIAL DIRECTOR, "TODAY, EXPLAINED" PODCAST: I don't understand why he's doing this. I would think Brendan Carr needs to -- if you're going to go about this, why not go about it quietly? I just -- I really -- and, Elliot, when it comes to legal challenges, does him yapping then turn into, OK, Brendan Carr said this?

CORNISH: Yes.

WILLIAMS: Yes.

KING: He said the quiet part out loud (INAUDIBLE) again. WILLIAMS: Oh.

CORNISH: And do you yap because you know it's not going to happen and therefore you want --

WILLIAMS: Or --

KING: Oh.

CORNISH: The journey is the destination.

WILLIAMS: Or, if you're Disney, do you start filing lawsuits and taking actions because you know something's coming and they're -- and they're getting ahead of it? I think that's part of what -- what's happening here.

Look, the -- one of the enduring sort of law and communications challenges of our era is that the president and the people around him do yap in advance of these things and actually do themselves some legal harm because of the fact that they can say I am -- you know, the people that they're suing can say, I was being targeted all along by the president or Brendan Carr.

CORNISH: Right. These phrases appear in court.

WILLIAMS: Yes.

CORNISH: These posts appear in court.

WILLIAMS: And it's -- so it's just sometimes --

CORNISH: Last word to you, Rob, because you're part of the rising media ecosystem that's doing pretty well without Carr's help. So, why dismantle what is considered the mainstream broadcast system, even as the right-leaning media ecosystem is more than healthy?

BLUEY: Yes, no, it is, I think because there's an appeal to a certain segment of the audience that's frustrated with the traditional broadcast.

CORNISH: Yes. But they're served (ph). You're here. They're -- like they're being served in a lot of ways.

BLUEY: Yes. Absolutely. But -- well, look, I mean, we could go back decades. Republicans always like thrive off these fights with the legacy media. So, that's why Brendan Carr is making these comments publicly.

KING: OK.

BLUEY: That's why you have Donald Trump constantly poking at reporters in the White House Briefing Room.

CORNISH: Yes, it pays off.

BLUEY: It pays off politically. CORNISH: OK.

All right, I want to turn to something else, talking about unserved constituencies. I think we're seeing that play out in the race for Los Angeles mayor. There's no clear front runner ahead of Tuesday's primary election.

[06:55:01]

There's a new U.C. Berkeley/"L.A. Times" poll that finds incumbent Mayor Karen Bass at 26 percent, City Council Mayor Nithya Raman at 25 percent, and former reality TV villain Spencer Pratt coming in at 22 percent among likely voters.

So, now Pratt's also dealing with the microscope that comes with being in contention. For instance, his past comments to conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, agreeing that 9/11 might have been an inside job. And then he was asked about those comments on CNN. And here is how Pratt responded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SPENCER PRATT, LOS ANGELES MAYORAL CANDIDATE: You know, regret. Of course I have 20 years of regret. I've talked about how many regrets. But that doesn't connect to my mission now. Once you lose everything, once your parents lose everything, once your neighbors lose everything, you become a new person. The person I am now is very different than the person before January 7th. So.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: OK, twas blind but now I see. Is that enough? Is it about him or is it about the constituency in L.A. that has had a rough couple of years and is looking for something?

KING: Twenty-two percent of Angelenos polled in that poll said they would pick Spencer Pratt. That is really something.

CORNISH: Yes.

KING: That is really something.

CORNISH: Though you looked closer and you saw that, if he doesn't make it, it's a different story.

BLUEY: Well, to her point, I think, what, 15 percent of Los Angeles residents identify as Republicans. So, he's outperforming the population there.

We just had -- opened up a California bureau at "The Daily Signal" last month.

CORNISH: Oh, look at that.

BLUEY: And so we've been following this story very, very closely.

CORNISH: Tell me Carr you're -- kidding.

BLUEY: Not only the L.A. mayor's race, but the governor's race --

CORNISH: Yes.

BLUEY: Where Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco are performing well.

So, I think it's a combination of things. Obviously, we live in a time when I think the traditional politician, Karen Bass, came from a traditional background, you know, where she served in Congress. People want something different. And I think Spencer Pratt offers that. Ultimately, if this goes to a runoff, that's where he faces the bigger challenge.

KING: Yes.

CORNISH: Yes. And I don't want to overlook the things that are issues in L.A. For example, as always, the conversation about crime always affects a mayor, right? There's the numbers versus the perception, how people feel. What do you see in this race?

WILLIAMS: I just think we're in -- we've entered the era of the celebrity politician.

CORNISH: Yes.

WILLIAMS: And look, I think -- look, going back --

CORNISH: But his messaging is the whole thing.

WILLIAMS: Yes.

CORNISH: It's the whole shebang. Yes.

WILLIAMS: Yes. And going back to the founding of the country. You know, we wanted leaders that came from the people and of the people. I don't know if the reality star mayor is what America really had in mind when it was founded. But look, more people in the process is probably a good thing. I don't know.

CORNISH: All right. Well, let's talk about what is in our group chats, because it's a Friday, folks. I know that you guys got stuff going on. What's in your group chat, Rob?

BLUEY: Sure. Well, big game tomorrow in the NBA playoffs. The San Antonio Spurs came back last night to force a game seven. So, it sets up who will face the New York Knicks next week for the finals. And, will President Trump make an appearance at Madison Square Garden? That's the big question.

CORNISH: I would say no.

BLUEY: You don't think he does?

CORNISH: He doesn't -- he doesn't really do NBA.

KING: Yes, no, no, no.

BLUEY: He's been spotted at some Knicks games.

CORNISH: He has?

BLUEY: When he -- when he was a -- his own reality TV star.

CORNISH: Maybe he and Mamdani will be up in the nosebleeds. That's a photo I want to see.

OK, Noel, what about you?

KING: The America 250 anniversary concert. People --

CORNISH: Oh, yes, you're into the concert.

KING: The -- I am into the concert.

CORNISH: So, we reported earlier, folks, that a lot of people who are signed up to be part of what they thought was a nonpartisan concert series were unnerved by the connections that the committee running it has to the Trump administration, and they have dropped out.

KING: And even before they dropped out, it wasn't -- and I do like Martina McBride. It was not the coolest lineup ever. And I think many people --

CORNISH: Woo, Noel just throwing shade in her group chat.

KING: Many people were asking, could we -- 250 years of America. Couldn't we get some heavy hitters?

CORNISH: I'm sorry, you don't want to celebrate America with Flo Rida and Vanilla Ice.

KING: Actually, I like Flo Rida too.

CORNISH: Why do you hate America is honestly the real question I have.

Also, you.

WILLIAMS: Yes. And mine combines my two favorite things, trademark law and drag queens and --

CORNISH: I thought you were going to say "Star Wars," but continue.

WILLIAMS: Oh, no. No, no, no.

CORNISH: Yes.

WILLIAMS: And there are -- and there are no drag queens in the "Star Wars" universe, yet.

CORNISH: Yet.

WILLIAMS: Jinx. CORNISH: Don't tell -- don't tell ABC.

WILLIAMS: Yes, don't tell ABC. But this is fascinating. Pattie Gonia is -- the drag queen on the screen now --

CORNISH: Great name.

WILLIAMS: Is suing -- or was sued by Patagonia for $1 for the use of the name and also for selling environmental and outdoor apparel.

CORNISH: Yes.

WILLIAMS: Now, the interesting thing -- and here is where this is an interesting legal story. They sued her only for $1.

CORNISH: I was just going to say, what gives with the dollar?

WILLIAMS: Attorney's fees. So, she -- she or they are actually fighting the fact that, you know, this millions of dollars potentially. Patagonia can make it sound like they're just suing for $1, but, no, this is actually a big class act (ph) lawsuit.

CORNISH: So, they're trying to make a point, but they're not trying to make the point that will bankrupt someone.

WILLIAMS: Yes. And in fairness, this does weaken their brand. The fact that they are outdoor and lifestyle and sort of hiking equipment and things like that.

CORNISH: Yes.

[07:00:00]

WILLIAMS: It's actually the rare --

CORNISH: Though based on the clothing I've seen from Patagonia --

WILLIAMS: Yes.

CORNISH: I don't think you're going to mistake these things. Maybe that -- we'll let the court decide.

WILLIAMS: But this is -- real quick, this is the rare instance where you have a big company suing an individual where, wait a second, this individual really is stepping on some of the things that (AUDIO GAP).

CORNISH: Interesting. Well, as always, you guys bring a great mix of insight to the day. Thank you so much for being here.

We've got more headlines coming up for you. I'm Audie Cornish. Stay with us.