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Trump's Name Removed From Kennedy Center; Trump & Iran Say Framework For Potential Agreement Within Reach; SpaceX Closes Week On Winning Note After World-Record IPO; Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-IL), Is Being Interviewed About United States foreign policy decisions; Trump Announces Strike Killed Leader Of Tren De Aragua; Judge Indefinitely Blocks Trump's "Anti-Weaponization" Fund; Now: Royal Family Will Watch Air Force Flypast From Palace Balcony; United States Dominates Paraguay In 4-1 Opening Win. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired June 13, 2026 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN THIS Morning. There is a lot happening today, starting with the Kennedy Center. Live look for you now.

Letter by letter, President Trump's name is being removed. It's being covered by a tarp now. But we'll get you caught up on the legal fight that sent those crews there to remove the president's name early this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The U.S. dominated in its opening World Cup match against Paraguay. Andy Scholes is standing by with the highlights and a look at how the next match-up is shaping up.

The Trump administration was hit with another legal setback over this so-called anti-weaponization fund. A judge does not believe the fund is truly dead. And we'll talk about what she wants from the White House to prove it.

Plus, Elon Musk now the world's first trillionaire. Yesterday, after SpaceX's historic IPO, what that means for his own personal fortune and the many companies he runs. That's coming up.

Saturday, June 13. Welcome to your weekend. Thanks for starting with me. I'm Victor Blackwell.

The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts no longer shares its name. Just a few hours ago, work crews started removing the name, Donald J. Trump. A live look -- here's what it looked like as last night as they started the work. This is not live. This is from last night.

The Center board tried to stop this from happening. They asked a judge to delay the removal. That request was shot down Friday afternoon, and an appeal was rejected last night. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is not what democracy looks like. Shame.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Protesters, you heard there, made it clear they were not happy with the delay in removing Trump's name. But finally, work crews started taking it down hours after the judge's midnight deadline. It was blocked from public view by workers with that tarp, and that work is still continuing this morning.

We now turn to the latest on the war with Iran. U.S. Central Command says that the U.S. shot down multiple Iranian attack drones close to the Strait of Hormuz. In a social media post last night, the U.S. military says the drones were attempting to disrupt commercial shipping.

In the meantime, the U.S. and Iran say that they may be within reach of a possible agreement to start talks over ending the war. But there's conflicting information about the actual terms of the potential memo of understanding. CNN's Leyla Gharagozlou joins us with more now.

Final work to do. Still, some questions about those specific stipulations.

LEILA GHARAGOZLOU, CNN PRODUCER: Yes. We're seeing quite a lot of speculation of what is in this MOU, this memorandum of understanding between Iran and the U.S.. Iranian state media just yesterday published what they said were the 14 points included in this MOU. And President Donald Trump very quickly took to Truth Social to say that this was fake news.

Now, just about ten minutes after Donald Trump's post on Truth Social, we got a post from the Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, also pouring cold water on any sort of media speculation over this memorandum. He wrote, the Islamabad memorandum of understanding has never been closer. Pending its finalization, the media should refrain from entering speculation about its content. He also went on to say that all details would be shared with the public in due course.

Now, just after he posted that, we saw the @realdonaldtrump account on X retweet this. And we saw a post from Vice President JD Vance echoing what Abbas Araghchi was saying in his post. So, we're really seeing both sides try to contain any sort of speculation around this memorandum because it is quite a fragile time.

And as we've seen over the course of this conflict, things can really change in a matter of hours, if not days. Now, Abbas Araghchi did go on. Iranian state media to also discuss some of the other points. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABBAS ARAGHCHI, IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through a translator): The topic of the nuclear issue has been postponed to the final agreement. So, there are different reasons for this. And we cannot discuss that. The demands were not acceptable. So, there are issues on which we could agree.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GHARAGOZLOU: Now, it is expected that we will hear more about the nuclear program and even sanctions getting lifted after the 60 days, once this memorandum if this memorandum is signed. So, we're going to have to just wait and see what happens. Those key issues still, as I said, need to be agreed upon.

Now, when it comes to when we could see this memorandum signed, some sources have said it could be as early as tomorrow, on Sunday. However, Iranian sources are saying it's unlikely to be that soon. There are still elements of this that need to be finalized.

We could see it happen early next week, around the G-7, when President Trump is expected to be in Europe. So, it's just a matter of time for something to come together. Victor.

BLACKWELL: We'll see if it indeed does come together. Leyla Gharagozlou from Abu Dhabi. Thank you.

Team USA kicked off its World Cup run on home turf last night in LA, and it could not have gone any better. CNN's Sports Andy Scholes is here in his Team USA fit.

[07:05:10]

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes. I might wear this for a month, Victor.

BLACKWELL: I mean, listen, if you had it on yesterday, maybe you're the lucky charm.

SCHOLES: What a start, Victor.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

SCHOLES: I mean, like you said, it could not have gone any better. And ever since we were awarded this World Cup eight years ago -- you know, we had been waiting for this moment last night, a World Cup game on home soil. And boy, did the team come through with just an awesome performance in all the stars were out for this one.

You had Tom Cruise, David Beckham. Leonardo DiCaprio was there as well. It felt like a Super Bowl there in LA. And Team USA wasted no time getting on the board.

Captain America Christian Pulisic. He was awesome. Here, he splits the defenders. He forced an own goal. The seventh minute goal, third fastest scored by a host nation in their opening match.

And the USA would just dominate possession in this one. Folarin Balogun -- he was born in Brooklyn, grew up in London but he had an amazing World Cup debut. He scored twice in the first half and the second one right here. I mean, an awesome move and strike.

Balogun, the first U.S. player to score two goals in a World Cup match since the very first tournament back in 1930. In the second half, Gio Reyna comes in. He adds the cherry on top. USA ends up winning four to one. The four goals, the most ever by a USA team in the World Cup and already more goals than we scored in the entire tournament four years ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FOLARIN BALOGUN, SCORED TWICE IN OPENING WIN: I visualized, you know, my debut, you know, in the World Cup scoring. But yes, you know, the reality did surpass that with scoring two goals. And, you know, the second goal was a fantastic goal as well. So, you know, as I said, a very dreamy, dreamy night.

CHRISTIAN PULISIC, UNITED STATES FORWARD: To be in America, having this crowd around us, seeing the red, white, and blue, all the -- all our red and white striped shirts in the crowd. It's awesome. I mean, here in the USA, chants it's really pushing us forward. So, we just hope it continues like that. And I'm sure it will. We're just thankful for it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Yes. And you know, Victor, the thought before the tournament is we're the host nation, but U.S. isn't going to win the World Cup. Coach Mauricio Pochettino said before the tournament. Why not us?

BLACKWELL: Yes.

SCHOLES: You know, that's kind of like the rallying cry around the team after. That game, why not us? Right? Like it's a --

BLACKWELL: Why not us?

SCHOLES: Come on. That was an awesome performance.

BLACKWELL: All right. Well, we got to see Australia right in front of us. So, let's --

SCHOLES: Australia next week in Seattle. Yes.

BLACKWELL: One step at a time. Andy Scholes, thanks so much.

SCHOLES: All right.

BLACKWELL: Headlines this morning for you. The Trump administration has given Paramount Skydance the green light to take over Warner Bros. Discovery. Paramount made no significant concessions to the Justice Department in order to get the regulatory sign off. The merger would combine two major media companies, which include CNN's parent company, and lead to a major realignment of the media landscape.

Now, this fight is not over. A coalition of state attorneys general is still threatening to block this through some legal action. The EU and the UK -- they're also reviewing the merger.

President Trump says the top leader of the notorious Tren de Aragua cartel was killed in a U.S. military strike Friday. The president said that Hector Guerrero Flores, known as Nino Guerrero, was targeted in a swift and lethal, in his words, joint operation with Venezuelan forces. Guerrero is credited with transforming a local prison gang into a transnational terrorist organization with a growing violent footprint inside the U.S.

One person is dead, several others injured after a strong storm caused a tent to collapse during an outdoor service at a church in Virginia. The video shows the moment during the service that tent crumpled. You can see the wind shaking up the structure. 11 people were sent to the hospital. 11 others treated at the scene. Officials are still investigating that incident.

It's been ten years since the mass shooting at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando killed 49 people and wounded dozens more, the deadliest interview -- excuse me, the deadliest incident of violence against the LGBTQ community in the U.S. The nightclub itself is no longer standing. It was torn down earlier this year, and many survivors, family supporters, they were there yesterday to remember the lives lost, including Orlando's mayor, who had this to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUDDY DYER, MAYOR OF ORLANDO, FLORIDA: We will honor the 49 through our action. Our community will keep working to ensure that Orlando remains a place where every person, regardless of where they're from or who they love, is welcomed and respected.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: A permanent memorial is being built at the site where the shooting happened, but there's a call for more Hispanic representation. I'm going to talk more about that coming up in the next hour on, first of all.

Next. SpaceX has touched down on Wall Street, making it the largest IPO in history. The money moves behind this debut and how it made Elon Musk even richer.

[07:10:09]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: SpaceX shares close on a winning note for the week after pulling off the largest initial public offering of all time. Shares opened trading yesterday at $150 up from an IPO price of $1.35. Before ending the day, just over $1.61.

[07:15:03]

It's an historic $755 billion IPO. Valued the company at more than two trillion dollars on its first day, and made the founder and CEO, Elon Musk, the world's first trillionaire. CNN Global Economic Analyst Rana Foroohar joins me now from New York to break it all down.

Rana, good morning to you. Two-trillion-dollar valuation of this company that lost billions of dollars in 2025, posted billions in losses for the first quarter of 2026. For the majority of people who are watching from outside the market, make these numbers make sense. Is this all optimism?

RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Wow, Victor, you've really set me up there. Make these numbers make sense.

BLACKWELL: Please.

FOROOHAR: I'm not sure I can. No, listen, I'll give you -- I'll give you the story. I'll give you the story that Wall Street and SpaceX have been telling, which, for the moment, has paid off with this successful IPO.

This is a hugely loss-making company. The big bet is that rockets are going to be able to send equipment up to space. We're going to be able to build data centers to fuel AI in space.

Now, one of the advantages -- let's just -- let's just go sci-fi for a minute and say that you believe that that can happen. By the way, you know, rockets are kind of a tricky business. You know, you see, recently with the Blue Origin rocket blowing up. Pretty easy for things to go wrong in space.

But the idea of building AI data centers in space would save a lot of energy. And it would also kind of solve some of the problems that you're already seeing as AI grows. And, you know, you're seeing these data centers in places that are, you know, driving up real estate prices, taking energy, taking water away from communities.

So, the bet is if you can do this in space, that's going to be a good thing for everybody. The big question is, can you do it in space? You know -- and that's not at all proven yet.

The other thing that is interesting is that the reins of this company have been handed over almost entirely to Elon Musk in a way that is pretty unprecedented. So, it's also a bet on Elon Musk. Do you believe in Elon? Do you think that he can kind of do anything? You know, he's a superhero.

So, there's a lot -- there's a lot in this story in the prospectus that the company put out before the IPO that is head-scratching. And this is a bet for five years, ten years of what's going to happen in an area that is very much a fast-moving target.

BLACKWELL: On your point of handing over the reins to Elon Musk. I mean, he's now SpaceX's chief executive, chief technology officer, chairman of the board. I went back and read our reporting on the IPO prospectus. He'll "Have the power to control the outcome of matters requiring shareholder approval, including election of all of the directors, control of business affairs, can appoint or remove people from the board." It really is a stunning concentration of power. Does that give anybody pause.? FOROOHAR: One hundred percent, Victor. And, you know, you used the word concentration of power, which is exactly what, frankly, the whole market is right now. I mean, SpaceX is kind of the apex of a trend that has been building for some time, which is that the majority of the market capitalization of the U.S. stock market is tech stocks. It's five big tech stocks, and now it's Elon.

And you know, there's this pyramid. And what happens if things start to crumble? What happens if things go wrong? It only takes bad news at a few companies to really affect the entire market.

And so, that's the concern. My concern is that as SpaceX is being held in everybody's portfolio in retirement funds and pension funds, and, you know, the 401-Ks of individual investors. You don't have to actually buy SpaceX yourself to be invested in space because guess what? Your portfolio manager is.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

FOROOHAR: So, we are all now taking this rocket ship ride -- very risky rocket ship ride, profitable for the moment with Elon. But we'll see.

BLACKWELL: So, you've got the SpaceX IPO. OpenAI, anthropic. They're filed for their IPOs as well. You could have, or we could have $3 trillion IPOs in a matter of months of one another, all AI companies. Talk more about the changing landscape as these companies now go public.

FOROOHAR: Yes, I love that question. I was -- I was just actually talking to a friend. I live in New York. I was talking to a friend in Silicon Valley.

Both of us have noticed that in -- these in these markets -- in these property markets, which were frankly already nosebleed high, you're seeing property prices go up. You are going to see that any place where there is somebody that is in tech that is potentially profiting from SpaceX and Anthropic and all of these new IPOs. You're going to see a money dump of a kind we have never seen.

[07:20:07]

And one thing I worry a lot about is that that is going to increase inflation and cost-of-living crises in some of the cities and places where things are already really, really expensive. There's also, as I say, the individual investor risk -- the portfolio risk. Now, I want to be fair, and I also want to look on the potential upside if these bets pay off. And that is a huge if.

You could see wealth creation of a kind that would make, you know, the 19th Century turn of the, you know, railroad barons, gilded era sort of wealth look minor by comparison. And that's going to reshape everything. It's going to reshape markets, political power. It's -- we're at a huge turning point.

BLACKWELL: Yes. I mean, we've run out of time for this conversation, but I'd suggest people go read your piece. People are starting to eat the rich. And as were talking about new millionaires and billionaires and our first trillionaire, how this might feed 2026 and 2028 and the turn of economic populism that we're seeing that could lift some maybe once fringe ideas of candidacies and bring those back to the center. Rana Foroohar, I appreciate the conversation this morning.

FOROOHAR: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: All right. Storms may put a damper on historic fight at the White House. You know which one I'm talking about. UFC Freedom 250 scheduled to happen tomorrow. Seven bouts are scheduled to happen in the Octagon under the claw. A look at what went into the planning of this massive event and how the weather could impact it. Next.

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[07:26:05]

BLACKWELL: An agreement to begin talks to end the war with Iran seems to be closer, both sides say. But there is conflicting information about what the U.S. and Iran have actually agreed to. According to the Trump administration, Iran will reopen the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. will lift its blockade of Iran's ports.

A senior Trump administration official says Iran will also dismantle its nuclear program and allow the U.S. to take its enriched materials. Iran's foreign minister confirmed that a deal has never been closer. He says the agreement includes an end to the war on all fronts.

Let's bring in now Democratic Congressman Jonathan Jackson of Illinois. He's a member of the House Armed Services Committee. Congressman, good morning to you.

So, they say that they've never been closer. What's your degree of confidence that the Trump administration, the regime in Tehran, can get to this agreement to get to the next phase?

REP. JONATHAN JACKSON (D-IL): Well, I would take both parties at the face value. One of the challenges we have ongoing, Victor, is that our Secretary of State is not personally involved in these negotiations. He came before the Foreign Affairs Committee last week, and we were able to talk with him.

But Mr. Jared Kushner, a volunteer that is leading these negotiations on behalf of the United States government, has not been before the foreign affairs committee. So, we're at a bit of a loss. The president says this is not a war.

Specifically, he called this an excursion. He said we'd be in there just for a few days. Secretary Pete Hegseth has misled and gave the president poor advice. So, we're on standby in the Foreign Affairs Committee to find out exactly what's going on.

BLACKWELL: So, let's talk about some of the elements that could be in the deal. First, let's talk about the money. The supreme leaders, military advisers says that the U.S. has agreed to unfreeze Iranian assets. The vice president has said that that's not true. They will not get any money for just this phase of an agreement or going to a meeting.

It was -- I think it predates your time in Congress. But you supported the JCPOA, which gave more than a billion dollars back to the Iranians as part of a comprehensive deal. What's your view on the release of funds at this level of the game with Iran? Would you be supportive of unfreezing some of those funds in order to get to the next phase?

JACKSON: Absolutely. I think we should give peace a chance. I think we should have stayed with the Obama negotiated agreement, only to turn to the Trump administration, where they've torn up that agreement. And now, they're looking at that as the golden days, as the best days for the best deal that we could have had.

And the Strait of Hormuz was open under President Obama. Now, it's closed. The Iranians were in a very peaceful state, and now they're having to defend themselves.

The United States and Israel were the aggressors in this. The president told us that all of their nuclear ambitions had been eliminated last October, only to say that there was an imminent threat, under the advisement of Mr. Netanyahu. It's two weeks away. It's two weeks away. He says that every time he starts waving the saber to get us to go to another country -- a neighboring country for war.

So, we have to give peace a chance. Bring people to the table. And once again, I would think we have to get our professional personnel to get to the table.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

JACKSON: Mr. Jared Kushner. Mr. Witkoff is leading this discussion -- these negotiations. They don't come before the United States Congress. The Secretary of State, Secretary Rubio, is not personally involved in these negotiations. So, I would like to see the professionals get back to the table.

BLACKWELL: Let me ask you about the money, because you said you'd be OK with releasing some of those billions of dollars to the Iranians. The administration's concern is that, that money would be used to fund the proxies in Lebanon, in Yemen, in other parts of the region, of course, also toward that nuclear program. You discount those, or are they less important than getting to the next phase?

[07:30:11]

JACKSON: I think it's less important than getting to the next phase, it's a nation that has to feed its people. They need medical supplies. We can't, like, do this economic asphyxiation. It has not worked. Let's give peace a chance. All nations have to survive. They have to trade. I certainly appreciate the transparency.

Bring things above, bring them back into the family of nations. Let's get to the table. Let's not strike them in the middle of the night, while they are on the middle of saying that we are having negotiations on extending peace treaties and assassinate their leadership.

So, I would like to see us go in a much different direction.

BLACKWELL: Let me get your reaction to the president's announcement overnight of this strike earlier this week that killed one of the leaders of Tren de Aragua. He said it was a joint operation with Venezuelan security forces. Tren de Aragua, designated by the administration last year as a foreign terror organization. Your thoughts.

JACKSON: Well, I am very much concerned on just labeling people and assassinating people. Where are these labels coming from, and who's generating them? The state department is understaffed. We can't keep up with what's going on. These policies don't have a particular objective. What is the objective, for example, going into Iran? What were the American people told? What's the objective, and being in Venezuela? And when does that end? What's our objective in increasing tensions and threatening the country of Cuba?

So, we are not getting a clear message, we are not -- people isn't coming before the United States Congress and sharing with us what their goals are. We go to war, that's supposed to be the purview and under the strict guidance of the United States Congress, taxation, tariffs. So, they are doing foreign policy without the consent of the United States Congress.

BLACKWELL: Representative Jonathan Jackson of Illinois.

(CROSSTALK)

JACKSON: There is no balance. Thank you.

BLACKWELL: Thank you very much for being with me this morning.

A federal judge has indefinitely blocked President Trump's so-called anti-weaponization fund. The Justice Department claimed the plan is already dead, so, the injunction is not necessary. But this federal judge of Virginia says she is not buying that.

CNN's Katelyn Polantz has more on the ruling.

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Victor, the judge was pretty clear on Friday that she just doesn't believe the Trump administration and the Justice Department, that they are not still making some sort of plan to take taxpayer money and give it to people that Donald Trump believes have been victims of a so-called weaponized justice department or federal government's people such as January 6th rioters and others.

Now, what Judge Brinkema, this is the judge in the Eastern District of Virginia. She held a hearing on Friday. There was a previous hearing on Wednesday before a different judge, both looking into whether the Justice Department was actually sincere when they said publicly. When the acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, said the fund was not moving forward. That $1.8 billion that the federal government and Donald Trump had agreed to put aside for this fund. What Judge Brinkema said is that there is evidence, actually, that it still may happen, and also that there is a possibility this fund could rear its head. That was her quote in some other guise.

What she specifically said then was that the acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, when he spoke to Congress back at the beginning of June, he said that he was unwilling to swear to statements before Congress, or rather put in writing, he wasn't under oath whenever he spoke to Congress and told them the fund wasn't moving forward.

And then, she also noted that the president, Donald Trump, he has talked about how important this fund is to him, how he feels that it should still go into effect, and that these people deserve compensation.

And the judge then said, "When the president of the United States says he is going to be disappointed if something doesn't happen, that's a pretty good indicator that there is going to be some incentive or motive to make it happen.

And so, the judge said she is going to step in. She is going to put a court order out there saying, any weaponization fund or anti- weaponization fund that the Trump administration wants to try and put money into, that is not going to be allowed indefinitely.

This Court will continue keeping an eye on this, as will another federal judge in D.C. So, the issue isn't dead over this so-called Trump fund for people, including January 6th rioters. But it is something the Justice Department has said they don't want to move forward, especially as the acting attorney general awaits his confirmation hearing to be attorney general, potentially as early as next month. Back to you.

[07:35:00]

BLACKWELL: All right. Katelyn Polantz, thank you very much.

A federal judge is now given the go-ahead for President Trump's planned UFC fight tomorrow at the White House.

The judge rejected the claims from two Virginians, including a Vietnam war veteran who sued to stop the event. The judge did not rule on the legality of the fight, but said the plaintiffs who brought the suit did not have the legal right to challenge the event. So, they didn't have standing.

He also acknowledged that the Trump administration's claim that there would be substantial financial harm to those involved, including Trump, if it were stopped. The fight has cost the UFC more than $60 million.

JOE ROGAN, HOST, THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE PODCAST: If I was running the UFC -- I would never run the UFC. But if I was running the UFC, I would have never wanted to do it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. ROGAN: I would have said, "We can't do it. They have to be in a controlled environment. We can't have a world championship fight. We can't have someone win or lose because they are outside and it's muggy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

ROGAN: That doesn't make any sense to me. It's going to affect the grappling. It's going to be like hot oil wrestling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Hot oil wrestling.

The Trump administration says the UFC fight is part of celebrations related to America's 250th birthday. It also falls on President Trump's 80th birthday.

Storms moving through the east this weekend could be an issue for that UFC fight and all their hot oil.

Meteorologist Allison Chinchar is with me now. It's going to be a close call.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And extra hot, you know.

BLACKWELL: Extra hot.

CHINCHAR: Because you have got the temperatures that are going to be fueling some storms too. So, that's going to be a concern. Lightning possibly causing delays, even just the rain showers themselves, and it's all from the same system that we're going to start to see begin to ramp up today.

Here is a look at where we expect the best chance for severe storms today. You can see it's from Michigan all the way back into the panhandle of Texas.

Now, the main threat is still going to be damaging winds, but we can't rule out the potential for an isolated tornado or two, and also some large hail, perhaps the size of tennis balls coming down, or even as early as this morning. You've got several clusters here of some showers and thunderstorms. We have had warnings off and on the last couple of hours into portions of Nebraska, right now, not dealing with too much in the way.

But the other concern is flooding, because a lot of these areas have had day after day of storm, so that ground is saturated. It's not going to take much to trigger some additional flooding, even if it's a just an extra one or two inches on top of what they have already had, especially in that red bullseye area there. That's a level three out of four for the excessive rainfall.

That's just today. Then, tomorrow you can see this very elongated path where we could have the potential for some flooding. Now, one of the things to note is that we do have those ongoing showers this morning, but once we get to late afternoon, say 4, 5, 6:00, and continue into the evening, you are really going to start to see the majority of those storms fire up.

Look at this long line that extends essentially from Chicago all the way back to Amarillo, that's where you are going to have some of the strongest storms that are embedded within that line. It will continue to slide off to the east and become a bigger concern for the mid- Atlantic and the Northeast, including Washington, D.C. tomorrow.

BLACKWELL: All right. We'll be watching closely. Allison, thank you very much.

So, there is a problem with the pope's plane, and he got some help from some royals. How the King of Spain stepped in when Shepherd One was grounded.

And remember, Allison and I were ready to ride. Anywhere you are going, you can stream the show right on the app anywhere in the U.S.

you can go to cnn.com/watch as well. We got the Statue of Liberty for you this morning. Good morning, New York.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:43:04]

BLACKWELL: So, the pope was stranded on the runway after his weeklong visit to Spain. Now, to get him back to the Vatican, the King of Spain offered up his private jet. It's great to have friends. The Vatican says there were technical issues with the commercial flight Pope Leo had planned to make. The pope had been in the Canary Islands on this historic visit to Spain.

The Iberia plane carried the pope and about 800 journalists covering the trip. But then, the captain told those on board there were engine problems.

We are on a royal watch in England this morning, as the country celebrates the official birthday of King Charles. Thousands of people in central London to celebrate the annual Trooping the Colour. It's the massive military parade held in June each year marks the birthday of the sitting British monarch. Their tradition dates back more than 250 years.

At least 1400 troops, 200 horses participating this year. Our Nada Bashir joins us again from London. So, the royal family soon gathering on the balcony at Buckingham Palace to watch the fly past. When are we expecting to see them again?

NADA BASHIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL REPORTER: Well, Victor, in just the next few minutes, really, we are expecting to see senior members of the royal family, including, of course, King Charles III and. Queen Camilla joined by the Princess and Prince of Wales and their children on that balcony, along with other senior members of the royal family. That is expected to take place shortly. What we have seen just in the last few moments is the arrival of the senior members of the royal family returning to Buckingham Palace, as part of that royal military procession. And, of course, as you can imagine, this has drawn wide spread. There's many people here gathered to view this procession. We have seen thousands of people taking to the streets outside of Buckingham Palace and across central London.

They have been waiting through the early hours of this morning to catch a glimpse of the royal family, and of course, they are still waiting to see that all important balcony moment that you mentioned.

[07:45:07]

But, of course, this is a significant annual event, Trooping the Colour. This is, of course, marking the king's official birthday. His actual birthday is in November, but typically and traditionally here in the United Kingdom, the monarch's official birthday is celebrated in June in the hope of better weather, and we have been lucky today with the sunshine, and of course, as we have seen over the last hour or so, that grand military procession taking place across central London, with the King's royal salute, and of course, the presence of his close family members as well, including, as I mentioned, the prince and princess of Wales.

We saw the princess of Wales, herself, in a carriage, along with her children. You can hear the cheers behind me as that procession continues. But we are still waiting for that all-important balcony moment, where they will get up on that balcony behind me to see the crowd. But also, of course, to watch the flypast. The Red Arrows, of course, taking part in that air show. Victor?

BLACKWELL: Great weather indeed for all the Brits and tourists who are there to see the royal family. Nada Bashir in London. Thanks so much.

Will it be Knicks in five? The New York Knicks are now just one win away from the first NBA title in more than half a century. We'll take a look ahead to tonight's Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

Also, comedian Craig Ferguson, no stranger to the right to free speech. But this week, he is diving deeper into the intent, the limits, and threats to this sacred freedom.

Catch a new episode of "CRAIG FERGUSON AMERICAN ON PURPOSE". Tonight at 9:00 p.m. on CNN tomorrow on the CNN app.

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[07:51:04]

BLACKWELL: Top stories for you now. President Trump's name is being removed from the Kennedy Center side. Talks went up to cover progress of removing the president's name overnight. A panel of judges ruled against last-minute efforts to stop the removal.

Just in, iconic "Today Show" movie critic Gene Shalit has passed away at the age of 100. He is known for his wits, puns, that oversized mustache. He worked for the show for 40 years until his retirement in 2010.

Both Iran and the U.S. have signaled an agreement is close, but the terms are up for debate. A signed memorandum of understanding would trigger 60 days more to negotiate an end to the war.

All right. What a start to the World Cup for Team USA, a dominant win over Paraguay in L.A. Andy Scholes is here. He is a fan. Can you tell?

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: I may never take this off, Victor? Right?

BLACKWELL: Right.

SCHOLES: For the next month at least. You know, what a start for Team USA here at the World Cup as a host nation. You couldn't ask for a better start. And coach, you know, Mauricio Pochettino, he loves the 1980 Miracle on Ice Team, and he said before the tournament, why not us?

I'm starting to believe, Victor. I'm starting to believe the U.S. just putting on an incredible performance in front of a star-studded crowd there in LA. Christian Pulisic, he was awesome, creating some opportunities for the team early on. He did leave at halftime after being kicked in the calf, but he said he's going to do everything he can to play in Game 2 next week.

Folarin Balogun, meanwhile, he had an amazing World Cup debut. Coming the first U.S. player to score twice in a match since the first World Cup way back in 1930. Just want to start to the tournament as U.S. gets three points with the 4-1 win.

As you can imagine, all the fans leaving the stadium in L.A., jumping up and down, certainly, pumped after watching the U.S. score their most goals ever in a World Cup match.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMERICAN CROWD: USA! USA! USA!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Amazing. In my 40 years of life, I've never seen the USA play this tactical this amazing. It was spectacular.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Definitely puts a lot of belief in your heart that you think that we can do well, and just got to keep it going. Onto the next match, get another dub, keep it going.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The world better not underestimate them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Top of the group, top 16, for sure. Let's go for top eight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean, the way they played, just keeping the pressure on. I think we got this. Let's go, USA!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Love it.

Canada, meanwhile, also opening up their tournament on home soil against Bosnia, Herzegovina. Bosnia was up 1-0. Then, they come through with what maybe is going to be the same of the tournament. See, the defender deflects the shot off the post to keep the score 1- 0.

Canada would finally score the 78th minute to level the game, and that's where it would finish, so, both teams get a point with the tie.

All right, tonight the New York Knicks could win their first NBA title in 53 years. They take on the Spurs in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. The team and all of New York City still riding high after that historic 29-point comeback to win Game 4.

But Karl-Anthony Towns says the team is not approaching this like they need one more win.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KARL-ANTHONY TOWNS, CENTER, NEW YORK KNICKS: We got to approach every game like it's 0-0. We've got to have that kind of desperation it is to win Game 1 of a playoff series. We got to go in there with the understanding and no comfortability, you know, just really be desperate, execute at a high level.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: All right. And today, Victor is the first day we have got four World Cup matches. Brazil, Morocco, the best of them all, and that's also in New York, in New York, New Jersey Stadium. Can you imagine tonight if Brazil win, a Knicks win, what's going to happen into your city?

BLACKWELL: Oh, yes!

SCHOLES: I don't know.

BLACKWELL: We think about that. Well, we know what your day is going to be dedicated to, watching all of these matches.

SCHOLES: Oh, yes. Locked in.

BLACKWELL: All right. Andy Scholes, thanks so much.

"FIRST OF ALL" is coming up at the top of the hour.

Speaking of sports, it really is still jarring to say, but we are set to watch a UFC fight at the White House this weekend.

I want to speak with UFC Hall of Famer Rashad Evans about MMA popularity with a key demographic of black and Latino men, and the political considerations going into this.

[07:55:05] Also, four black candidates running in a majority minority district in Florida, they wanted to bring that list down to just one of them to try to block a white Democratic congresswoman from winning that seat.

Well, the plan failed. I'll ask one of the candidates why.

And question to celebrate or commemorate, Juneteenth is a few days away. How should we mark it with the holidays coming up? I've assembled a group of experts to answer that question. We have got those stories and conversations you won't see anywhere else. They are coming up after a short break on "FIRST OF ALL".

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