Return to Transcripts main page
CNN This Morning
U.S. and Iran Trade Strikes: Is a Peace Deal Dead?; Knicks Take Game 4 with Historic 29-Point Comeback. Aired 6-6:30a ET
Aired June 11, 2026 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BRAD SMITH, CNN ANCHOR: Well, that does it for CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS. I'm Brad Smith. CNN THIS MORNING with Audie Cornish starts right now.
ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: New overnight, the United States and Iran trading attacks for a second straight day as President Trump promises more to come if Tehran does not immediately agree to a peace deal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We're going to be attacking them and attacking them very hard, and we'll see what happens with the deal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Plus, new revelations about how the White House handled the Epstein scandal, meeting in the Situation Room to game out a plan without President Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: You know what I really love? I love the inflation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: The president suggests, as you just heard, he doesn't mind the high prices right now. But what about Americans paying more for groceries and gas?
A stabbing in Northern Ireland sparking days of unrest. Police under attack. The streets in chaos.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GIANNI INFANTINO, PRESIDENT, FIFA: The soul and the heart is the fans in the stadiums. It's the fans in the fan zones.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: The World Cup officially kicking off today, finally. Could we also see a much-needed vibe shift away from the outrage over ticket prices and immigration issues?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shot no good. The tip-up's good. It's good, it's good. With one point. (END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: A historic comeback. Down 29 points. That last-second tip gives the Knicks a 3-1 advantage. Now just one win away from the NBA championship.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We were really close to a deal, but they keep tapping us along. They keep playing us for suckers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: President Trump choosing military might over diplomacy. But can he bomb Tehran into a deal?
Good morning, everyone. I'm Erica Hill, in on this Thursday for Audie Cornish. Nice to have you with us.
We do begin this hour with the tit-for-tat strikes between the U.S. and Iran and the promise for more from the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(EXPLOSIONS)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: The U.S. says it targeted Iran's surveillance capabilities, communication systems and air defense sites. Iran hitting back with attacks on U.S. bases in the region.
On a call from the Situation Room, President Trump told FOX News if Iran did not agree to a deal, he would bomb the expletive out of them, calling this the most violated ceasefire in history.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE HEGSETH, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: You can see when someone's trying to tap, tap, tap on a deal. Instead, they're going to have tap, tap, tap bombs dropping on key facilities in Iran from the United States of America.
If we need to negotiate with bombs, we'll negotiate with bombs. And we're very good at it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: So, will those threats actually get Tehran to the table?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AMIR-SAEID IRAVANI, IRAN'S AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS: No sustainable deal can be reached through threats, intimidation, or the use of force. The president of the United States should refrain from his recurring threats against Iran, including his renewed threat of force made today.
Iran has never negotiated under threats and pressure and will never submit to pressure or coercion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Joining me now, former defense intelligence official, Major Harrison Mann. It's good to have you with us this morning.
So, we heard from Secretary Hegseth there saying, you know, we will continue to negotiate with bombs. Is that actually the way to get Iran to the table? It does not seem to be working in this moment.
MAJ. HARRISON MANN, FORMER DEFENSE INTELLIGENCE OFFICIAL: Hi, Erica.
We know for certain from recent history that it is not the way to get Iran to negotiate. They tried bombing Iran for 40 days. It didn't work.
Then they tried the blockade for another two months. That hasn't worked. And they're out of ideas. So, I guess they're trying to bomb a second time.
It's -- it's unfortunate, because I think there is still a possibility for peace when the Trump administration gets serious about actually negotiating, which is going to require them making some concessions.
But for now, they're clearly not willing to do that. And so, they're going to start bombing again.
The -- the other really worrying escalation we saw yesterday was an apparent war crime: a U.S. targeted precision strike on a water reservoir for drinking water in Iran near Hormuz. And that's something Trump has threatened several times over the past eight weeks, you know, when he got frustrated with the ceasefire.
And I'm hoping we don't see more war crimes, targeting of civilian infrastructure, as a deliberate strategy to try and bring Iran to the table.
HILL: Certainly, there are a lot of --
MANN: It's illegal, and it won't work.
HILL: There are a lot of questions about that. And questions into CENTCOM for more clarity -- right? -- on what the exact targets were in terms of that, and whether that water plant was one of them.
[06:05:08] As we look at where things stand this morning, to your point about getting serious about the negotiations, we have heard so much from President Trump publicly. You know, and CNN did an excellent analysis by our colleague Aaron Blake earlier this week about the number of times that President Trump has said, We're close, close to a deal. We've heard it in the last several days.
There is so much public posturing from this president. Are you concerned at all that that could weaken the U.S. position?
MANN: I think it already has weakened the U.S. position. What the Iranian side understood at the start of the war -- which, let's remember, began when Trump and Netanyahu bombed in the middle of negotiations -- is that it's very hard to trust Donald Trump.
And Trump's constant lying. you know, both in public and maybe to the Iranian side, has only further undermined that trust.
So, when it looks like maybe they're making progress towards a deal, and then Trump comes out and leaks some of the details, or he just starts making really outrageous threats, that's going to make it even harder for him to earn the trust of his negotiating counterpart and get them to actually agree to something.
And I think that's why we're seeing an increased willingness from the Iranian government to go back to full-scale war, because they don't really think at this point that there's any other way to convince Trump to negotiate in good faith.
HILL: When this war began -- of course, it was the U.S. and Israel when this war began. When it comes to Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu put out this statement yesterday, this message, I should say, for the people of Lebanon. I want to play that for you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: I have a message for you, the people of Lebanon. Israel is not at war with you. We're at war with Hezbollah that has taken your country hostage, that does Iran's bidding, that uses your territory to launch terrorist attacks against Israel.
Do you remember what Lebanon was like before Iran and Hezbollah turned it into a nightmare? Once Hezbollah is dismantled, the possibilities are endless, and they are sky-high.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: That's notable, of course, coming on the heels of Iran and Israel trading -- trading strikes earlier in the week, specifically on Sunday.
On Sunday, too, in the wake of Iran's missiles, President Trump told "The Financial Times" in an interview that Israel is going to have to accept whatever deal the U.S. makes with Iran and that Israel doesn't call the shots. Based on what we're seeing, how much sway, how much influence do you think this president actually has when it comes to Prime Minister Netanyahu and the decisions that Israel is making?
MANN: So, a reminder that President Trump and any U.S. president has nearly infinite leverage over the Israeli government. Essentially, their air force can't fly without our support.
You know, it's not just bombs and aircraft and reply [SIC] parts -- supply parts. You know, we have U.S. troops on Israeli soil, defending the skies of Israel, so those planes can safely land. We supply the fuel that goes into those aircraft.
So, if Trump wanted to use it, I'm pretty confident that he could end any Israeli military aggression that he wanted to. And we can see that he wants to do that a little bit, but clearly, not enough that it's deterred Netanyahu from launching what potentially started this escalation, which was an Israeli strike on Beirut on Sunday.
So, Trump is still kind of trying to end the war with half measures. And it's clear that that's not going to work. He's going to have to do some difficult things, including actually putting his foot down with Netanyahu, as well as possibly making some concessions to the Iranian government.
And unfortunately, I don't think he feels the urgency to do either of those things, because they can both be politically costly. And he's not going to feel that urgency until maybe we've seen another round of full-scale war that's totally unnecessary.
HILL: Major Harrison Mann, really appreciate your insight this morning. Thank you.
MANN: Thanks.
HILL: Coming up here on CNN THIS MORNING, President Trump doubling down on his temporary pick for national intelligence director, a man with questionable qualifications, including a lack of actual intel experience.
And Social Security at risk. New estimates on when the funding will run out. And the bleak warning signs for younger workers.
Plus, a shot for the ages. Knicks fans celebrating that last-second win in game four.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And it's 107-106.
O.G. ANUNOBY, KNICKS PLAYER: It feels cool. I mean, everyone's pretty excited. I'm excited, too.
(END VIDEO CLIP) (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:13:43]
HILL: Thirteen minutes past the hour. Now, here's your morning roundup.
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates telling lawmakers on Wednesday he made a, quote, "huge mistake" in meeting with Jeffrey Epstein. He has denied any wrongdoing.
Gates testified before the House Oversight Committee in a closed-door meeting, saying he was aware Epstein had been convicted of a horrific crime but continued to interact with him to seek money for his foundation.
When Gates arrived on Capitol Hill, he told reporters he would cooperate with any investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL GATES, CO-FOUNDER, MICROSOFT: I'm glad to be here voluntarily to testify. I hope my testimony is helpful to the work, important work of the committee to find justice for the victims. Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Gates has not been accused in connection with Epstein's crimes.
If you are counting on Social Security as part of your retirement plan, well, listen up. The latest government projections suggest the fund could run out of money in late 2032.
So, that means the agency would no longer be able to pay 100 percent of benefits in the fourth quarter of that year. And in the years after, the monthly benefits will drastically decline.
Some new details for you on that upcoming UFC fight at the White House. Specifically, the cost: some $60 million. Now, that's according to court documents submitted by the Trump administration, which says the money will cover logistics; things like food and porta-potties.
The fight is set for Sunday night, which, of course, is also the president's birthday.
[06:15:01]
Still to come here on CNN THIS MORNING, a record-setting win for the Knicks. Will Leitch is here with more on New York's 29-point comeback and the push on to game five.
Plus, the World Cup kicking off across America, North America today. Not without controversy. How about a live look for you here in Mexico City, the site of the opening match between Mexico and South Africa.
So, can the action on the pitch finally offer a much-needed vibe shift?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I say, "New York," you say, "Yes!"
New York!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: New York!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: A little excitement there on the subway. Frankly, everywhere in New York after the Knicks pulled off the greatest comeback in NBA finals history, securing a two-game lead over the Spurs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At the top, one on one.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Brunson gets it, fires up a three. No good. The triplet's good! It's good! It's good with 1.20 left.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[06:20:06]
HILL: It was very good. The stunning end to a 29-point comeback. O.G. Anunoby's tip-in with 1.2 seconds remaining. The Knicks beating the Spurs by just one point, 107 to 106.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't believe it.
ANUNOBY: Feels cool. I mean, everyone's pretty excited. I'm excited, too. I'm excited, too. We're all excited. We're enjoying it right now, but we're just focused on the next game now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Knicks fans celebrating, perhaps not surprisingly, into the wee hours of the morning. New York now has the opportunity to clinch its first NBA title since
1973. The next game, game five, Saturday night in San Antonio.
Joining us now, Will Leitch. He's a contributing editor at "New York" magazine and a columnist with "The Washington Post." He's got his Knicks blue jacket on, his Jalen Brunson bobblehead somewhere.
I mean, Knicks in five. There is -- I know we've talked a lot about this. I have to say being in New York City. And it's true. You're on the subway. Everywhere you go, the excitement and the camaraderie, and the way this city has come together. It is something. And that was a hell of a game.
WILL LEITCH, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR, "NEW YORK" MAGAZINE: It's incredible to watch the streets everywhere. You know, I lived in New York for 13 years. My old street packed with people.
And what was amazing about that comeback last night, the vibes had been so off since Monday. This -- the scenes of -- of all those people in the street had been replaced by scowling billionaires courtside. Right? Like -- like scowling celebrities and upset people.
HILL: No one wants to see a scowling billionaire.
LEITCH: And that all changed in the course of last night. There's a lot of them. There's a -- there's a lot -- a lot of leaders and a lot of celebrities out there. And they -- everyone looked very sad. I looked very sad.
And so, to see -- to see that that comeback was really something incredible. And that O.G. Anunoby tip-in, it's something, frankly, that I place that piece that really not just Knicks fans will remember forever, but really NBA fans. That's an NBA historic play.
HILL: Yes. Absolutely. And it was quite a game. I mean, I -- full disclosure, I had to watch the highlights this morning and read about it, because some of us had to go to bed early.
But you know, the fact that this was this 29-point comeback. Just -- just set the scene for us. What are you seeing going into game five from both teams?
LEITCH: Certainly, you know, they'll go back to San Antonio for game five. And so, the next game won't have the Garden environment.
But the Knicks just won two games in San Antonio. And you know, the Spurs are obviously incredibly talented. I think everyone assumes Victor Wembanyama is going to win several championships throughout his career. But they are very, very young.
And I think that was kind of revealed last night. Wembanyama even talked about that, about how they felt like they'd lost their hunger in the fourth quarter.
So, I think that we'll see. That's a lot to overcome. Generally, historically speaking, when you have that kind of loss or just a heart -- rips the heart out of your chest loss --
HILL: Yes.
LEITCH: -- like the Spurs just had, it's very difficult to recover from, even -- even if you -- you're at home. But even if they lose that game, the Knicks will be back for game six. I can't imagine what the Garden would be like for a game six.
HILL: Oh, wow. Yes. Me either. We'll deal with that when, if and when we come to it.
Let's talk a little soccer, shall we? Football, depending on where you are, you know, in the rest of the world.
This has been tough, heading into this moment: between ticket prices, immigration issues this week. First match today in Mexico City. Are we now getting into the heart of what this tournament is about?
LEITCH: I mean, I think certainly FIFA hopes so, because this has really been a real mess for them. You know. this was -- after Russia eight years ago and Qatar four years ago, this was supposed to be the World Cup that went smoothly.
They've been waiting for -- to get back to North America, you know, for -- since 1994.
Everything was supposed to be, like, this -- U.S. was a burgeoning soccer market. Everyone was supposed to be working out in that direction. And it just -- it's been the opposite of that in every possible way.
The hope is -- and frankly, historically, there is some signs that this happens -- once the ball is kicked --
HILL: Yes.
LEITCH: -- and once things get going, and once this incredible experience -- you know, one of the great things about the World Cup is that we'll see. And remember, there's 16 more nations involved in this one.
Every game takes on its own unique personality. The personality of the fan bases. And, you know, these games are still going to be -- the stands are still going to be full. As high as the ticket prices have been, these stands are generally.
And Azteca today with the Mexico game, that's going to be an incredible environment. The opening of the World Cup at the Azteca with the Mexican team.
These fans are -- like, every game takes on the personality of these varying fan base. The entire world is looking at this. Maybe the U.S. is not maybe looking at its best right now, hosting this tournament, in a lot of ways.
But once the game gets going, certainly, the hope is among not just FIFA, but I think a lot of soccer fans, that a lot of this will fade away a little bit. But you know, we'll see.
HILL: Yes, yes. As long as you don't have to, you know, pay for a train ticket into New Jersey.
LEITCH: Yes.
HILL: When we -- you talked about the stands -- stands being full, rather. What are the chances that some of those -- there are still tickets available, right? That they start to drop to make sure that the stands are full?
LEITCH: I think they will. You know, I'm -- I'm based outside of Atlanta. There's a game between Uzbekistan and Qatar that takes place at 7:30 on a Wednesday. The get-in price is $400.
[06:25:10]
Now I -- I suppose it's possible there's more Uzbekistan fans outside of Mercedes-Benz stadium in Atlanta than I think, but I suspect that's really because FIFA's kind of controlling the market a little bit on this.
HILL: Yes.
LEITCH: So, controlling the resale market, as well.
They're not going to want empty stands. I think that once these game gets going, once I think some of the realism that they do not want to see empty stands, I think you're going to see some of these prices go down.
Now, I don't want to imply that, all of a sudden, you're going to be getting $5 tickets to these games.
HILL: Right
LEITCH: But some of these obscene prices, given prices that you're seeing, I do think you'll fall.
Now, not for the larger games, right? Like obviously, the finals still going to be. Spain.
HILL: Sure.
LEITCH: You know, a lot -- a lot of the larger teams, Brazil, those are all going to be sold out and very expensive.
But I think there's 48 teams in this thing. There's a lot of games. If you want to be able to just say, I went to a World Cup game, a lot of these prices are going to fall. I think for -- for a reasonable amount to at least get in and see what's going on.
HILL: That's great. And you know, a watch party is always fun, too, having been to a couple.
LEITCH: I've seen more -- HILL: You know, almost 30 years ago when the World Cup was in France.
LEITCH: Really incredible.
HILL: Really good time. Will, appreciate it. Thank you.
LEITCH: Thanks for having me.
HILL: Straight ahead here on CNN THIS MORNING, President Trump's unique take on rising costs for Americans. Why he loves the latest inflation news.
And a stabbing, sparking days of unrest now in Northern Ireland. Why officials are worried this violence could spread.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
