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CNN This Morning

U.S. Military Releases Video Of New Iran Strike; California And Virginia Search Teams Arrive In Venezuela After Earthquake; Trump Rips Former National Security Adviser After Guilty Plea; Supreme Court Hands Trump Two Major Immigration Victories. Venezuelan Lawmaker Says At Least, 920 Dead, Over 3k-Plus Injured in Earthquake; Rescue Teams All Over the World Race to Find Survivors of Venezuela Quakes; Extreme Heat Blamed for More Than 200 Deaths Across Spain. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired June 27, 2026 - 06:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:00:29]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to CNN This Morning. Here's what's new this morning. The U.S. carried out new strikes after a drone attack in the Strait of Hormuz. The ceasefire is holding, but tensions between Iran and the U.S., they're not going away. We'll talk about what this means for the region.

Also, the race to find survivors continues, but with each passing hour, hope is fading. The struggles that crews and families are facing, digging through the rubble, trying to find more people alive.

Also, the big win for President Trump at the Supreme Court. The justices have cleared the way for his administration to move forward with a key part of his immigration agenda. We'll discuss what the ruling means for those who are in the country right now.

And World Cup group play is wrapping up today. The tournament is about to enter its most dramatic stage. We'll tell you what to watch as the road to the final begins.

Saturday, June 27th. Welcome to your weekend. I'm Victor Blackwell.

New video from U.S. Central Command shows the moment that the U.S. military struck Iranian military targets near the Strait of Hormuz. CENTCOM released the video Friday night and said Iran's Thursday attack clearly violated the ceasefire. Now, on Thursday, Iran attacked a commercial vessel near the strait. However, a U.S. official tells CNN that Friday's strikes do not indicate a return to major combat operations.

Iranian state media says it retaliated by also targeting the U.S. military in the region. But the military, the U.S. military is not confirming that.

With me now from Abu Dhabi is CNN's Paula Hancocks. Paula, how could this affect this really fragile MoU, the Memorandum of Understanding? PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Victor, this is the first time that we're seeing this kind of spark in violence since that MoU was signed. It's possibly an isolated case. The hours ahead will certainly be able to tell us whether that is the case.

But what we have seen is that the U.S. military, after they said an Iranian drone struck a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, did target military targets overnight here in the Gulf. Now, we understand that there were missile and drone storage locations in Iran that were hit. There were also radar sites along the Strait of Hormuz.

The Ministry of Foreign affairs in Tehran said that they have responded. They called it defensive strikes. They condemned what the U.S. had done, saying it violated the MoU. So what we have seen is again, this tit for tat. But it is the first time that we have seen this spark into these kind of strikes since the MoU was signed.

We heard from the U.S. vice president, JD Vance. He has posted on social media and I'll quote, Iran signed a ceasefire agreement. We have honored it. If they have disagreements about how the MoU is being applied, they can pick up the phone. But violence will be met with violence.

Now, we've heard from Bahrain, which of course, is where the U.S. Fifth Fleet is stationed. They have confirmed that they in fact were the target of the Iranian retaliation. No word on damage or casualty at this point. But what we are also hearing is from the U.K. Maritime Agency saying that they're receiving reports of a vessel that has been struck by an identified projectile in the Strait of Hormuz.

We are looking for more information on that. The UK Maritime Agency saying there were no casualties and no environmental damage. But what this has done really has just shaken confidence in the fact that the Strait of Hormuz was supposed to be free and open. It's what we heard from the U.S. President.

We are likely to hear today just how fewer vessels managed to transit that crucial waterway on Friday. And certainly it just shakes confidence in these talks that are ongoing. As it stands though, it doesn't appear as though either side has the appetite to return to two large scale military operations. This could well be a tit for tat. Both sides have shown their anger and displeasure through these military strikes. And then the talks continue. Victor.

BLACKWELL: All right. We'll see what the weekend brings. Paula Hancocks from Abu Dhabi, thanks so much.

[06:05:00]

New this morning, U.S. search and rescue teams from Virginia and California have now arrived in Venezuela to help find earthquake survivors. The State Department shared this video of those teams landing in Venezuela and said more will be on the way.

Now the window to find survivors, that really golden window, is narrowing, but we're seeing some really important hopeful moments. The video here captures rescue workers pulling a woman from the rubble. But there is a lot of desperation as well, and we're seeing that through looting of shops and supermarkets as people are desperate for food.

A Venezuelan lawmaker says that so far, 920 is the count of those who were killed in these earthquakes. More than 3,300 people have been injured. Here's CNN's Stefano Pozzebon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR (voice-over): Panic on board as passengers braced through powerful tremors, just one glimpse of the chaos unleashed after two massive earthquakes struck Venezuela. This image from the public broadcaster Telesur shows large cracks splitting the tarmac at Caracas International Airport, underscoring the damage to critical infrastructure.

On Friday, authorities said almost 1,000 people have been confirmed dead, but this toll is expected to rise. Tens of thousands are still reported missing.

Emergency teams are racing against time to dig through shattered concrete, listening for any sign of life. In the Caracas district of Chacao, rescuers pull survivors from a collapsed apartment building while others remain trapped inside.

MAYOR GUSTAVO DUQUE, CHACAO, VENEZUELA (through translator): We have rescued three people and there are three more alive inside the structure. God willing, they will be rescued very soon.

POZZEBON (voice-over): As Venezuela struggles to cope with the scale of the disaster, international help is finally trickling in. The United States is sending elite rescue teams, military transport and $150 million in humanitarian aid. El Salvador, Mexico, Colombia and several other countries have also deployed search and rescue crews, medical teams and emergency supplies.

DIANA CORRALES, HEAD OF COLOMBIA'S USAR COL-1 TEAM (through translator): We specialize in urban search and rescue and collapse structures. Our team is trained to conduct search, rescue and recovery operations in structural collapse scenarios, the kind of emergency Venezuela is currently facing.

POZZEBON (voice-over): But the logistical challenges to mobilize the aid remain. These relief convoys loaded with food and water are heading toward the hardest hit communities as officials work to support tens of thousands of displaced families while the priority remains to rescue survivors before time runs out. Stefano Pozzebon, CNN, Bogota, Colombia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: A false report to police briefly separated Pete Buttigieg from his four-year-old twins. Michigan State Police say that it received an anonymous report alleging the former transportation secretary posed a danger to his children. The twins were separated from Buttigieg for a night and subjected to forensic interviews the next day.

Well, authorities determined that the allegation was false and Buttigieg says police told him they believe it was politically motivated. Buttigieg calls the 24-hour ordeal among the darkest hours of his life.

The Texas State Board of Education approved a mandatory reading list that requires public school students to read Bible verses. More than 5 million public school students will be required to read Bible verses in their entirety alongside classic American text starting in 2030. Most states just suggest books, but experts say Texas may be the first to mandate a specific reading list for every student.

And this pushes Texas to the front of the national conservative effort to bring Christian teachings into public schools. Critics say that it violates the constitutional separation of church and state. I'll speak with one of the Texas school board members about this decision. Coming up next hour.

A pilot of an American, correction, United Airlines passenger jet says that he nearly collided with a drone as he was coming in for a landing in New Jersey yesterday.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And we almost hit a drone right there at Gimme United 15 13 about 100 feet below us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right where you're at now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Exactly.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. And United 15 13, do you get a look at it? Do you know the color or any how much propellers or anything like that, whatever they're called?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it was -- it was like a circular shape and that was about it. Looked like it was about three feet wide.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

[06:10:00]

BLACKWELL: Now the plane landed safely at Newark Liberty Airport. Another pilot flying into Newark on a United Express flight also reported seeing a drone at about 2,000 feet. The FAA says there are about 100 drone sightings a month near U.S. airports. And the agency bans the use of drones in controlled airspaces or near manned aircraft without permission.

Still ahead, one of Europe's biggest music festivals is canceled because of school scorching heat. We're going to break down what the weather could be coming up.

Plus, the Supreme Court hands President Trump two big wins on immigration. We'll take a look at the consequences for millions of people here in the US.

And a new limited edition passport features the president also he offers a warning. We're going to dig into his message.

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[06:15:35]

BLACKWELL: President Trump on Friday blasted his former national security adviser, John Bolton after he pleaded guilty to unlawfully retaining sensitive national security information. In a truth social post, the president called Bolton a lunatic and said he hopes that he will be dealt with harshly. Bolton admitted to sharing sensitive information with his wife and daughter, which amounts to one felony count. His sentencing is scheduled for October 28th.

Here's CNN's Katelyn Polantz.

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KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Victor here at this federal courthouse in Maryland right outside of Washington, D.C. this is where John Bolton pleaded guilty to a felony criminal charge on Friday. In his hearing, Bolton said that he did indeed retain national security information, classified information, top secret details about the U.S. government, about foreign adversaries, about military plans. He kept that when he was -- from when he was the national security adviser in the first Trump administration. And then he kept it in an unsecure way.

It was so unsecured that the Iranian hackers or an Iranian hacker affiliated with the Iranian government was able to get into his personal email account and put that information of the U.S. at risk, covert stuff that then was in the hands of a foreign adversary.

Bolton in court in his 90-minute plea hearing, he said that he did indeed admit to doing this whenever he was national security adviser and keeping that information afterwards in an unsecured way. He also said he was sorry about it. I'm sorry about it. Those were the words he said to the judge today.

This wasn't his sentencing, though. We're expecting there to be much more to discussion about what is next for Bolton, including whether he's going to be doing prison time. That's something the judge will have to decide at a sentencing hearing in October.

But one thing Bolton also agreed to that was a bit of a surprise today and some real irony. It's that he agrees to help the U.S. government now, someone who Donald Trump really, really has hated, has wanted to see convicted and now he's going to be convicted in this case as part of his agreement with the Justice Department to plead guilty.

He's going to be helping the Justice Department remediate any sort of leaks of classified information or national security information that may be insecure. I asked him if President Trump would want that, if that's something that he thinks this White House would want. He smiled a little bit. He didn't answer. His attorney has given us a public statement saying that this is what leaders do. Bolton pleading guilty and admitting to his crime.

And there's a very different contrast that his lawyer is drawing between what Bolton's doing here and willing to say here and Donald Trump who was accused of a similar felony charge, set of felony charges around classified information and mishandling them. Those charges didn't stick. They were dismissed. Trump was never convicted. He never went to trial.

But here with John Bolton in court, he says he's guilty and he will be sentenced by a federal judge to at a later date, becoming a convicted felon. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: All right, Katelyn, thank you. The Supreme Court delivered the president pair of significant immigration victories this week. Two six to three decisions allow the White House to terminate temporary protected status for hundreds of thousands of Haitians and Syrians. And that is a terrifying prospect for people living in Little Haiti in Brooklyn.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I love my country, but I love this over here too, because they help me do something for my family, you know, so I don't do anything wrong over here. Just working.

UNIDENIFIED MALE: Go back to Haiti now is dangerous. They have people in power in Haiti. They can't control the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The Supreme Court ruling also grants border authorities the right to physically turn away asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border. Bring in now Meg Kinnard. She's a national politics reporter for The Associated Press. Meg, good morning to you.

The deportation efforts of the administration have become, let's say, less muscular than they were during Operation Metro Surge. And what we saw across Minneapolis.

[06:20:00]

What does this ruling now mean for the administration? Is there a real chance that there's going to be this mass deportation of Haitians and Syrians in the country?

MEG KINNARD, NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER: Hey, good morning, Victor. It's great to be back with you. That is a really good question. And I think there are a lot of people across, people who observe politics like you and me, and also policymakers who are very curious and anticipating exactly what they're going to be seeing now that these rulings have been handed down. There is obviously an election in the offing in November. And so always there are political consequences to so much of this. But given what we saw earlier this year, given what people have pretty fresh in their memories from those ramped up enforcement efforts in cities across the country, starting with Minneapolis, I think that is definitely in the forefront of people's minds.

Are they going to be seeing those same kinds of actions? Is this going to be something more measured? Perhaps the administration trying to show, OK, yes, the courts have now sided with us. We perhaps don't need to be as dramatic in trying to carry out what we now are empowered by the courts to do in terms of enforcing what we want with these policies. So it kind of remains to be seen.

But what we do know is this is it's consequential at any point, but it's definitely consequential for the Trump administration, having come into office, run very much on immigration enforcement as a big signature plan for the president and his campaigns and also for those Republicans who are facing voters themselves in campaigns across the country, many of them aligned with the Trump administration and saying they support these policies. That is absolutely something that we are going to be seeing playing a role in the November midterms.

BLACKWELL: Let me ask you about this now. Back and forth between Senator Elissa Slotkin and the Congressional Black Caucus. The CBC responded to Senator Slotkin's remarks on congressional leadership. I want to play first what she told Stephen A. Smith this week. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ELISSA SLOTKIN (D-MI): We need new leadership in the White House, the House and the Senate and on both sides of the aisle. That includes Democrats. If people can't understand that the game has fundamentally changed and they can't adapt, then they need to let others lead.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: I'm going to read just the beginning of a pretty lengthy statement from the CBC that came out late yesterday with respect to Senator Elissa Slotkin, House Democrats don't need a lesson on reach the political moment from someone who handed Donald Trump one of the most corrupt cabinets in American history. Voting to confirm Kristie Noem, Pam Bondi and five other Trump Cabinet secretaries is not the posture of someone who understood the moment after 2024.

Before attempting a way -- in a House attempting to weigh in on House Democratic leadership, Senator Slotkin should account for her own role in enabling a racist administration whose policies have caused profound harm to the safety, security and economic well-being of the communities we represent.

That is an especially pointed response to the senator. And it's not -- she's not the only person who's saying this. What do we glean from this exchange inside the Democratic Caucus? KINNARD: There is in both major parties, but talking about the Democrats at this point, there is somewhat of a family feud going on between different wings of the party. We saw that in part with the victories in New York City this past week in primary elections with candidates. But it's backed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani. And I think part of what we're seeing here is again, it's an election year and the Democratic Party is a big party.

There are many different points of view, but for some, maybe more progressive members holding to account those elected leaders who have at times at least voted to advance, some people affiliated with the Trump administration, those cabinet officials. Clearly there's been debates about how all of that ended up. But I think that it is an election year. And so I know I keep always going back to politics.

But that is underneath all of this, It's an opportunity for different factions within these major parties to really make their perspectives known, to make their arguments known, to seize on the news of the day in terms of trying to advance where their candidates might be when it comes to facing the voters.

And I think that's what we're seeing here. I think there are other members of the Senate who perhaps could face similar questions in terms of, OK, well, you supported some, some of these people when you advance them through and look what happened. It comes up often, but I think that's what we're seeing here.

BLACKWELL: We are a week out from the 4th America's 250th, and the President posted an image of the special 250th passport available at the D.C. Passport Agency. We can put up a picture of that passport with his image included there.

[06:25:00]

The president posted the USA new passport. Welcome, but be good. Maybe the president forgets that there's no welcome. These are for U.S. citizens, not for people coming into the country. But putting that aside, the celebration of the 250th has become so partisan and political. Is this the mood that was expected or intentionally struck heading into this next week?

KINNARD: It's certainly not what a lot of those artists who signed up to participate in the Great American State Fair --

BLACKWELL: Sure.

KINNARD: -- thought they were getting into and that's why they pulled out. So I think, yes, this is certainly a series of events that President Trump is looking to make in his own image. We've seen that happening from the get go from that event that I just referenced being coming, becoming a Trump rally essentially on the National Mall.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

KINNARD: And the president has looked to have his imprint all across Washington. That's definitely what we're seeing with these events leading up to the fourth.

BLACKWELL: Meg Kinnard, always good to have you. Enjoy the Saturday.

Still ahead, aid is pouring into Venezuela after a pair of devastating earthquakes. We take a look at the massive task ahead for relief groups.

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[06:30:00]

BLACKWELL: We're following the developments in Venezuela after those powerful earthquakes struck the country. The window to find survivors is narrowing. But now, international crews are coming in to try to find people who are still in that rubble.

In the hardest hit part of Venezuela, video shows a woman, rescuers pulled out alive from the wreckage. A Venezuelan lawmaker says that the death toll is now 920, with more than 3,300 people injured.

This morning, crews from Los Angeles and Virginia have arrived to help with those rescue efforts. That's according to the State Department. Countries around the world are also responding. Several have already dispatched their search and rescue teams and committed to donating humanitarian aid to Venezuela. CNN's Isabel Rosales has more on the international response.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): International rescue teams are on their way and on the ground in Venezuela, bringing critical manpower, equipment and expertise to support search efforts, like this unit from the U.K.

RUSS GAUDEN, ISAR NATIONAL COORDINATOR, UNITED KINGDOM: So, as soon as we land, we will bolt into the network that's already there. We'll work with colleagues, international colleagues and the local responses to build that bigger picture. Teams will deploy straight away into the field.

ROSALES: Help is also coming from across Latin America, including specialized search and rescue units from Colombia, Chile, El Salvador and Brazil, as well as tons of medical supplies and hundreds of military personnel from Mexico. Mexican volunteer groups are also deploying.

VICTOR MANCERA, TOPOS MEXICO: Sometimes we have found people who have been buried for more than seven days. So, that is what we are going for, to try to recover more people alive, right?

ROSALES: The U.S. is pledging $150 million in aid, sending the USS Fort Lauderdale and dispatching its own elite rescue teams skilled in excavating collapsed buildings.

ROBERT SCHOENBERGER, SPECIAL OPERATION DIVISION, FAIRFAX COUNTY FIRE & RESCUE: Now, the first key is to detect, right? Just to make sure that we're even in the right vicinity. And then we move into not just detecting, but then the location of where we exactly start to dig.

ROSALES: Beijing has deep ties with Venezuela, and many Chinese funded companies are assisting with rescue and cleanup efforts. Teams from Spain, France, Germany and Switzerland are also on the ground.

But despite the outpouring of help, international agencies say recovery efforts will take months, and damage from the quakes is slowing. Some responses.

ELINOR RALKES, INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE: The airport is damaged. That is presenting a real obstacle right now to getting in supplies at scale. But for -- to meet the needs, we're going to need, you know, airport access, there are telecommunications issues, internet connectivity is very patchy.

ROSALES: Additional support also coming from Pope Leo, who sent an initial donation of more than $100,000 for the victims. Isabel Rosales, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: This morning, millions of people across Europe are still dealing with that historic and deadly heatwave. In Spain, officials say more than 200 people have died in the past week because of the temperatures. In France, at least, 40 people have drowned.

Many of them were just trying to cool off. The temperatures there have soared past 104 degrees. Now, because of this, several music festivals across Europe have been canceled and the heat is exposing a bigger issue.

Only about 20 percent of homes in Europe have air conditioning, compared to nearly 90 percent in the United States. Let's bring in now CNN's Fred Pleitgen in Berlin. And some of the homes, older homes across Europe are actually built to keep the heat in. What does it feel like there?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It feels pretty hot. It feels like we're all getting baked here, Victor. And I don't know if you can see behind me, I'm actually standing on the river that runs through Berlin.

And there are actually people who are still on tour boats here. And as you can see, they're all getting fried as well. They're waving to us, some of them have umbrellas because it is extremely hot here. This is the first time in history, Victor, that all of Germany has been under a severe heat warning that's going on right now.

The whole of the country, the hottest temperature on record, was actually measured here in Germany, in the west of Germany last night. That still has to become official, but it is extremely hot here.

[06:35:00]

And I think one of the things that you mentioned is absolutely correct. German homes are built because Germany is normally in a pretty cold place, are built to keep inside, to insulate the heat and keep it inside. So, when it gets hot, it gets extremely hot.

And I can only second what you've just said there. That statistic, that only about 20 percent of the houses and homes here in this country actually have air conditioning. Even the office that we're in doesn't have air conditioning. So, we actually spend most of our time outside during this heatwave.

As far as it's concern, this heatwave in Europe, which of course, as you've noted, has been extremely dangerous. People are being urged to stay inside. That has sort of moved from the west of Europe to France, and is really now centered on where we are right now, the eastern part of Germany and sort of the western part of Poland, as well.

As far as the forecast is concerned, and also for all of those international travelers who happen to be here in Germany, it's going to be exceptionally hot here today. It's going to be exceptionally hot in this part of Germany tomorrow as well.

However, by the end of tomorrow, there are set to be some thunderstorms and then some cooling coming by the beginning of next week. But certainly, this heat has taken a toll on the city, pretty empty right now here in Berlin. Victor.

BLACKWELL: Management needs to get you all an air conditioner, something that's crazy that the office doesn't have --

PLEITGEN: Yes --

BLACKWELL: Cooling there. Let me ask you. I've -- I have learned that Germans tend to bathe nude in the rivers and lakes there when it gets hot. Yes, or no?

PLEITGEN: Can I confirm that? Yes, so, yes, yes-no-yes. So, basically, there is that rumor out there, and I want to say it's absolutely true. We're standing on the part of the river right here because if we were in a public park, or if we were at a lake, I would say, about 30 percent to 40 percent of the people would be bathing nude.

And if you are out here in Germany, you will see that in a lot of the parks and lakes. And I do want to teach you one German phrase, the abbreviation is FKK, and in German, that stands for (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE), which is actually a very nice sounding, soft sounding word in German. But it means free body culture.

So, in Germany, being outside nude, being bathing nude is actually a cultural thing. And during the time of communism, they actually had a show on east German communist TV, that sort of celebrated and talked about nude bathing.

So, it's definitely a thing here, and certainly, something for anybody who comes to Europe might be a little bit surprised, but you do see it in a lot of places.

BLACKWELL: Well, now is the time to do it, considering these temperatures. Fred Pleitgen, appreciate -- PLEITGEN: Yes --

BLACKWELL: The report and the education. Thanks so much. All right, let's bring it back here in the U.S. This first widespread heatwave will begin this weekend and increase next week in the central and eastern U.S., Melissa Nord is with us. How bad is it going to get here?

MELISSA NORD, METEOROLOGIST: It's going to get really hot. We're talking about some heat indices, 100 to 110, some places 115. And this comes as we're actually experiencing some really critical fire weather across --

BLACKWELL: Yes --

NORD: The west as well. In fact, governor of Utah now saying, no fireworks all the way through the 5th of July --

BLACKWELL: Wow --

NORD: Because 75 percent of their wildfires this fire season so far have actually been human caused. So, I want to start off with that, because we saw some of these fires really blowing up on Friday. Winds were gusting near the cottonwood fire up to 45 miles an hour, not helping firefighters.

That's currently up to 70, almost 2,000 acres burned, 0 percent contained. And we've got poor air quality there. So, red flag warning today expected. You can see in that pink color, that fuchsia color, that's extreme fire weather.

And we've got the winds kicking up as a cool-down comes to the west. And that is part of the reason why we see such dangerous fire conditions there. Now to the east, we're seeing some showers and storms today. But then watch this heat building.

Look at those hotter temperatures building in where the orange colors are on the map, as we head through the week, that will start in the central U.S., build east. As we head through the work week, bottom line, it is not just a prolonged period of extreme heat, high humidity, but there's little over relief in the overnight.

And that's why if you don't have proper air conditioning, can be really dangerous. Already, some of those extreme heat watches up for tomorrow. Look at these heat indices coming in the plains and Chicago into the week, well over the century-mark. Victor?

BLACKWELL: All right, Melissa, thanks so much. We'll take a break; we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:40:00]

BLACKWELL: An L.A. County judge has declared a mistrial in the federal arson trial of the deadly Pacific Palisades fire. The jury deadlocked 10-2, with the majority voting not guilty for the defendant, Jonathan Rinderknecht. Prosecutors vowed to retry him. CNN's Nick Watt is in Los Angeles with more.

NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ten jurors, Victor, said not guilty, just two, guilty. And they could not reach a unanimous decision, hence mistrial. Now, the government's case here is entirely circumstantial. No one saw this guy light a fire.

There's no video of him lighting a fire. He didn't confess to lighting a fire, but they painted him as a troubled young man who was angry at the world, pissed off at the world, actually, to use their words, and that he lit this fire above the Palisades to get vengeance against the rich.

They cited a bunch of ChatGPT prompts he made that ended up with pictures of fire and rich people, and he once apparently asked ChatGPT, why am I so angry all the time? Now, one of the jurors came out and explained a little bit of what was going on inside that jury room.

[06:45:00]

She said, number one, she didn't like the fact that they maligned his character. She said, listen, I've suffered depression and anxiety. I've spoken to ChatGPT. Why are they painting him to be such a bad guy when he's human like all of us?

The other issue she had was the prosecution said he was the only guy on the Hill that night. She said the cellphone evidence was incomplete. The other key issue, Rinderknecht, is accused of lighting that fire in the early hours of New Year's Day, January 1.

Palisades fire was January 7th. He apparently lit that fire according to prosecutors, the Fire Department came, put it out, but then it still burned underground. It was what's called a holdover fire, which reignited when those winds picked up January 7th, causing all this damage, 12 dead, 6,000-plus structures burned.

This woman said that theory is just not working for me. Either way, Jonathan Rinderknecht remains in custody, and the government says that the evidence is strong, even though 10 of 12 jurors disagree with him, and they're going to retry this case in October. Victor?

BLACKWELL: All right, thanks so much. Still ahead, the World Cup group stage ends today. And American fans think the U.S. could go all the way. We get into the World Cup action after the break. In a divided country, what does patriotism really mean?

Craig talks to Americans, from actor Jason Biggs to veteran of Omaha Beach about what it means today. Be sure to tune in a new episode of Craig Ferguson, "AMERICAN ON PURPOSE" airs tonight at 9:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN, and then tomorrow on the CNN app.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:50:00] BLACKWELL: The group stage of the World Cup ends today, after that,

you lose, you go home. England's players, they're breathing a bit easier this morning after Uruguay fell to Spain, and that pushed England into the knockout rounds.

Team USA already clinched their spot in the knockout rounds, which made Thursday's loss to Turkey hurt a little less. Joining me now, "USA Today" soccer editor, Seth Vertelney. Seth, good to have you on again. Let's start here with team USA.

So, there are a lot of reserves playing Thursday, because they didn't necessarily need that win to make it to the next round. So, how much can we glean from this loss? If anything, really, as they look ahead to Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday?

SETH VERTELNEY, SOCCER EDITOR, USA TODAY: Yes, I mean, outside of the actual result of the game, I think it actually went pretty well for the U.S., of course, they wouldn't have wanted to lose that game, especially in the way they lost it with Turkey scoring in the absolute last seconds of that match.

But like you said, it was a team full of reserves. And so, ahead of the knockout stage, it was good to get them some extended minutes. It was also good to get some of the team's key players some rest ahead of that game, which was a luxury they had because they clinched the group before that game even started.

And I think the biggest piece of good news for the U.S. from that Turkey game was the return of Christian Pulisic, who missed the previous game against Australia with a calf injury. He came on and played the last 30 minutes against Turkey and looked about as good as he did in the first game against Paraguay before he suffered that injury. So, that is really good news for the U.S. heading into the knockout stage.

BLACKWELL: So, what are the big games you're watching today?

VERTELNEY: Yes, we have a number of games today, England closes up their group against Panama, they have not clinched that group yet, because they drew against Ghana. So, they need to win that game, at the same time, Ghana and Croatia will face off.

Ghana has advanced, Croatia has not. But probably, the biggest game of the day is Colombia against Portugal. The two top teams in Group K, Colombia has already advanced with two wins in their first two games.

Portugal surprisingly drew their opener against DR Congo before coming back and beating Uzbekistan 5-0. So, Portugal actually has to win that game to win the group, although they have also advanced like Colombia. But that should be a really entertaining match down in Miami.

BLACKWELL: Can we give Cape Verde some love? I mean, this tiny country has now advanced to the round of 32. The beautiful story about Vozinha and his mom being able to come and watch now. I mean, this is -- even if, you know, you're not Cape Verdean, this storyline is just remarkable. VERTELNEY: I would love to give Cape Verde some love because they

have been one of -- if not the stories of the tournament so far. You know, they started out with that incredible 0-0 tie against Spain, a game that most people expected them to lose by a lot.

It was their first ever World Cup game. But what I think has been really impressive about them is that they've managed to kick on from that Spain result with two more ties. You know, they didn't let that kind of be the high of the tournament.

They managed to go on and tie against Uruguay, and then yesterday, we saw them tie again against Saudi Arabia in a result that gets them through to the knockouts.

[06:55:00]

They're the smallest country to ever make it through to the World Cup knockouts, and they finished second in that group. They finished behind Spain and ahead of a traditional power like Uruguay as well as Saudi Arabia.

So, a great story that is going to continue into the knockouts, and who do they have to face in the knockout round? But Argentina and Lionel Messi.

BLACKWELL: In Florida. So, especially might be pretty tough for them. All right, Seth Vertelney, always good to have you on a Saturday morning, thanks so much. Much more ahead on the next hour of CNN THIS MORNING WEEKEND.

Coming up next hour, we'll take you live to Venezuela, where rescue efforts are increasing today to find survivors after those massive earthquakes and the aftershocks are continuing to rock the country.

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