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100+ Democrats Vote Against Sending Aid to Israel; Gallup Poll: U.S. Opinion of Israel Drops 29 Points in 5 Years; Looksmaxxing the Military: Testosterone Testing for Troops; Todd Blanche Under Fire in hearings. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired July 16, 2026 - 06:00   ET

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

[06:00:08]

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: OK. Good morning, everybody. We're going to be talking about whether Israel's right-wing government is losing America. New criticism from the vice president and a stunning new vote by House Democrats.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, this is an important moment, because nothing will be the same on this issue ever again, I think, after this vote.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: And President Trump promising, quote, "really big news" in tonight's primetime address. Will it actually be old gripes about the 2020 election?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: I'm authorizing a new screening program for testosterone deficiency for our service members.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: So, the Pentagon plans to test the troops for low T. Is this really a problem in the ranks?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

J.D. VANCE, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: I say this with all candor. Like, we absolutely screwed up the comms of the Epstein files.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: A big admission from J.D. Vance. The question is, who could now take the fall for it?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): We're not going to do it. The American people don't want to stand for this anymore.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: OK. More evidence of a massive shift in Congress. More than 100 Democrats vote against sending aid to Israel. So, what does the vote mean for the midterms and beyond?

Good morning, everybody. I'm Audie Cornish, and this is where we start: this movement in the House to end U.S. military aid to Israel. It's drawing more support than it ever has.

So, 103 Democrats voted in favor of the amendment, which was sponsored by Kentucky Republican Thomas Massie. Ultimately, the amendment failed. The Republican majority and 98 Democrats voted it down.

For progressive Democrats, the vote signals a shift they once never thought was possible.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. DELIA RAMIREZ (D-IL): I believe, looking at this list, that we're going to pick up more members, people who are saying that we cannot use taxpayer dollars for endless wars.

OCASIO-CORTEZ: To me, what it says is that the majority of the Democratic Party is -- is most in touch with the American electorate, writ large.

REP. ILHAN OMAR (D-MN): There are many members who took votes that I was surprised to take that yes vote today. And I am proud of them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Joining me now in the group chat, Harrison Mann, former U.S. Army major and former executive officer of the Defense Intelligence Agency's Middle East and Africa center; Mike Dubke, a former communications director at the Trump White House; and Meghan Hays, former director of message planning at the Biden White House.

So, first, I just want to start with -- I always joke that Congress is a lagging indicator. They're usually not at the forefront of things.

So, here's Gallup poll in February showing the overall opinion of Israel. And the difference is from 2021 to now. And you can see the net favorables are down 29 percent. It's a massive shift in a very short amount of time.

Harrison, I want to start with you because full disclosure to the audience, you obviously left your job in government over Israel's actions in Gaza. So, this is very close to you. We know your opinion. What do you think of this moment and this shift in Congress?

HARRISON MANN, FORMER EXECUTIVE OFFICER, DEFENSE INTELLIGENCE AGENCY: I think on one hand, it's a massive victory for anti-war, pro-peace Americans who have been pushing for this for years, who want to reevaluate the U.S. relationship with Israel.

And, you know, on the other hand, we have to understand why we suddenly have up to two dozen new Democrats finally voting to -- to withhold aid to Israel.

And it's not just because they suddenly found religion or changed their mind about their sense of morality. It means they are finally more afraid of their own voters than they are of pro-Israel donors and PACs like AIPAC. That is the shift.

The American people at large, and specifically Democratic voters, have wanted to see this for a long time. You know, recent polling shows, I think about 15 percent, only 15 percent of Democratic voters are supportive of Israel. That's a fringe position. That's the same number of Democratic voters who want to ban abortion.

And so, we are seeing gradually elected Democrats catch up to where the voters are. But on the other hand, this is still quite an undemocratic outcome when you have half of Democrats in the House voting against the will of their voters.

So, to your point on public on polling, I looked at an A.P. poll. This was in June. Republicans' view on U.S. support for Israel. It's the 2024 versus now.

[06:05:10]

And we're seeing some shift there, as well. It's a little more of a divide, obviously, than Democrats, but we're seeing a shift.

Then you have people like J.D. Vance. He was just -- he's on his book tour. He's still talking. And he was --

MIKE DUBKE, FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Still on the book tour?

CORNISH: He's still talking.

MEGHAN HAYS, FORMER BIDEN WHITE HOUSE DIRECTOR OF MESSAGE PLANNING: Keep on talking. Still talking.

CORNISH: I mean, well, he's no longer on a ceasefire deal, OK? Because that's toast.

So, he's still talking. But on that deal, he was saying that it was the Israeli government that was sort of undermining the atmosphere around this deal. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VANCE: There's a lot of talk about how -- how much is the Israeli government influencing American politics? And there are certainly certain people within the Israeli government who hate the deal. And we see exact evidence.

There's a lot of talk about how -- how much is the Israeli government influencing American politics? And there are certainly certain people within the Israeli government who hate the deal. And we see exact evidence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: So, he's not saying, "Joe Rogan settle down. Joe Rogan, we -- our relationship with Israel" -- you know what I mean? He's saying, Look, I understand. I hear you. What do you make of how he's trying to navigate the politics of this?

DUBKE: Well, I --

CORNISH: Like he's at the heart of it. He actually --

DUBKE: He's at the heart of it. But I do think that there's two separate -- two separate thoughts here, one of which is I'm not -- I'm not sure that this -- what the vote yesterday that we saw, to me, was less about America and more about this ongoing civil war that I think is emerging within the Democratic Party.

CORNISH: Despite the Republican conversation, as well?

DUBKE: Yes.

CORNISH: Tucker leaving the party?

DUBKE: Well, I think -- look, I think on the Republican side, a lot of this revolves around just the morality of foreign aid, whether or not we should be giving U.S. taxpayer dollars to any country.

CORNISH: Right.

DUBKE: Let alone -- or let alone --

CORNISH: Yes.

DUBKE: -- holding Israel out.

CORNISH: So, then let me play for you Jasmine Crockett, because I don't think you usually agree, but here's what she had to say after the vote.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JASMINE CROCKETT (D-TX): I don't want people who are already hurting, especially as we're heading into these significant midterms, to look at the Democrats and say, you know what? We can't afford gas. We can't afford food. Yet, you guys are still sending money elsewhere.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DUBKE: And that's a very Republican position. I'm surprised she didn't win her primary.

HAYS: So, I actually think that is more about what this is than necessarily the Israel-Gaza conflict. I think a lot of the voters and constituents in their districts are saying, We can't afford our own groceries and gas, but we're spending a significant amount of aid to foreign countries, and our debt is increasing. But I also don't want to overcrank on this. In swing districts, this

is not even a top five issue for voters. So, we are not seeing this movement as we are seeing online. This might be an issue in New York City or in some of these very blue districts.

CORNISH: Or in 100 districts, right?

HAYS: But that's -- that's my -- like, this is not something that I think is really impacting the Democratic Party. And I do think this is a fair conversation that we need to be having as a country. And Congress needs to have. How much foreign aid are we going to be sending places?

I don't think this is special to Israel. I think it is in general, when we have such a crisis here with affordability, that we are spending so much of our taxpayer dollars abroad. And I think that's what this about.

CORNISH: Well, let me add one more thing.

DUBKE: Well --

CORNISH: Because Rahm Emanuel went to Israel. He's trying to obviously lay down some -- some stones on the road to 2028. And here is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAHM EMMANUEL, FORMER OBAMA WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: So, I told the Israeli public, this is the price. You have lost America. It's not a Democratic Party problem.

When two-thirds of the American people are not supporting Israel. And for ages 30 and younger, it's down to 21. That's not a Democratic Party problem. That's an America problem. And I thought it's better to be honest, better to be direct.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DUBKE: It's crazy to me that every Democrat running for president is going to Israel. First we had Ro Khanna there this week, basically trying to --

CORNISH: I think that's two. It's Rahm and Ro.

DUBKE: Well, I think more of them will go.

CORNISH: OK.

DUBKE: I do. I -- I think that they are trying to create this divide. And this is where I come back to the civil war within the Democratic Party.

I think we're seeing this issue really take root within the Democratic Party debate. I think on the Republican side is exactly what Meghan saying, that it's foreign aid or not foreign aid. This is specifically about Israel with the Democrats.

CORNISH: What do you see?

MANN: Well, first, for the Republicans, I'm not sure it's about foreign aid, because every single Republican voted against this bill to restrict aid to Israel, except for one, Thomas Massie, who Trump has chased out of office.

And within the Democrats, it absolutely is a civil war. But again, within elected leaders, because the voters are solidly on one side of this.

And I do think there is something specific to Israel because of the horrific nature of the crimes in Gaza, voters understand that this this is an accurate litmus test for whether or not a politician shares their morality and whether or not a politician is beholden to their donors over their voters. And that's why this is a special issue.

[06:10:12]

HAYS: I don't necessarily agree with that in the Democratic Party, because I think that there are a faction of Democrats that think that. And then there are the Democrats who are middle-class working people who are like, why are we spending money and can't afford things?

So,, I don't necessarily think this issue is 100 percent morality for every single Democrat. And that's not where the party stands writ large.

And you can see that in some of these races, that they are not voting for people based on their stance on Israel or Gaza, or whether they called it a genocide. They're voting based on whether they can afford groceries and gas, and that is where they're coming down on this.

So, I just think that there's a split and that that is, to your point, a civil war in the Democratic Party.

CORNISH: OK. Coming up on CNN THIS MORNING, we're going to talk to a congressman about his vote on aid to Israel. Representative Kevin Kiley. He is an independent, and he joins us in the next half hour.

Plus, top Trump officials confiscating phones as the hunt for White House leakers reaches a new level.

And then the Pentagon, they want to test the troops' testosterone. Is Hegseth looksmaxxing the military?

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[06:15:45]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HEGSETH: I'm authorizing a new screening program for testosterone deficiency for our service members, ensuring you have the right testosterone levels to operate at your absolute best. (END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wants our troops to be tested for testosterone deficiency. He says it will make them stronger.

So, here's how the plan will work. Anyone 30 years and older will be required to test. Those under 30, they can volunteer. And anyone diagnosed with a deficiency can voluntarily choose to receive treatment.

The Trump administration has been pushing for easier access to these therapies. In December, the FDA hosted an expert panel focusing on the benefits of testosterone replacement therapy for members of the military.

And there are concerns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Testosterone replacement therapy can actually affect deployability and eligibility for special duty status. There are service members who work their entire careers to get these special duty statuses that are very highly sought after, and they worry that, if they get seen for this disease and treated for it, that they may lose that status.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: The group chat is back. Just to help clarify that point for people: testosterone at a certain level is an anabolic steroid, and in world sports competitions, it is considered a performance-enhancing drug.

So, that's why he's talking about people getting in trouble for it in the past.

Now, since it was me and Meghan and Mike, we had to bring in more testosterone. That's why Harrison is here. And right now, I was looking at a tweet. Chrissy Houlahan saying online, "I'm sure the testosterone industry is thrilled. Taxpayers should ask, who benefits from this latest culture war obsession?"

Is this something people might be excited about? Young men in the military?

MANN: Yes, they might be, but they need to consult their -- their doctor. Like, we've got to first be clear: Pete Hegseth is not somebody who -- who understands or cares about the health of the troops under his responsibility.

CORNISH: Why do you say that? He's always talking about their weight.

MANN: Yes. Let's -- let's --

CORNISH: Always talking about exercising.

MANN: We've got --

CORNISH: Facial hair.

MANN: Yes. I've got to remind the viewers his last big medical announcement was canceling mandatory flu shots, a policy he had to reverse when a bunch of people at Air Force basic training got sick, and one died.

So, I don't trust him for medical advice.

Is it good to offer everybody in the military gender-affirming care who wants it? Absolutely. I don't think that privilege should only be reserved for Pete Hegseth's conception of his ideal man, and that's what he's doing right now.

CORNISH: I do think, though you've now hit on the culture war nerve center when you said "gender-affirming care."

MANN: Yes.

CORNISH: This is what a lot of people are saying here. Senator Tammy Duckworth saying, "It sounds like gender-affirming care to me."

And of course, like, I'm not holding my breath for his perimenopause screening, but it's obviously --

HAYS: Yes, they don't promote women --

CORNISH: Yes.

HAYS: -- so they don't -- doesn't matter.

CORNISH: Obviously, this is an issue that's at the next -- I think it's at the junction of, like, Chad Looksmaxxing Boulevard and RFK Way. Like, there's a world that is obsessed with testosterone, because they're also obsessed with a couple other things that have to do with population decline or these other issues affecting men.

DUBKE: There is one thing that Pete Hegseth and this administration is focused on, and that is recruiting more young men.

CORNISH: Yes.

DUBKE: Especially. But young people to the military.

CORNISH: Yes.

DUBKE: We went through years of having our -- missing our military recruitment numbers.

CORNISH: Yes. I want to show that.

DUBKE: And while this may seem --

CORNISH: The military news has been reporting about the best numbers in 15 years. DUBKE: Yes.

CORNISH: Show that while you're talking.

DUBKE: And -- and I think this is part of it.

MANN: That has to do with the economy.

DUBKE: I think this is part of it, that we are -- that -- that they are focused on this. And this may seem bizarre on its face, that video that you showed. But it is part of this recruitment of young men joining the military.

CORNISH: I don't think it's bizarre. Have you seen the commercials for testosterone? Like, this is a massive industry.

DUBKE: Yes, Doug Flutie. Doug Flutie has a great one. That's -- but this is my point.

CORNISH: But can I get -- Harrison just said something here under his breath. You don't think it is vibes. You think it's something else that's drawing people?

MANN: Yes. I mean, it's not -- it's not vibes. It's part of -- like, this -- this video is --

[06:20:05]

CORNISH: This is what will happen to you, by the way, if you take it. Yes.

MANN: Yes. Like the video's goofy. Pete Hegseth posting we're going to have a high T military, I guess implying that up until now it was -- it was low T is goofy.

But the vision is not silly. And that's basically a white male military in Pete Hegseth's image. Like that's -- that's why he thinks about this stuff.

DUBKE: I think -- now I think you're -- Now you're going overboard with this.

MANN: He's -- he is firing or killing the careers of every black or female senior officer he can get his hands on. And we can't understand the other culture war stuff outside of that context.

He has his vision of, like, sweaty masculinity, kind of Pete Hegseth type of guy. He is trying to make the military look like that.

I don't think he'll be successful. But these, you know, seemingly kind of incongruous announcements for a man who's supposed to be managing a massive war right now are -- are a little more frightening than they seem.

HAYS: But also, we are now living in a place where we have canceled or we have canceled funding for HHS for -- HHS for a lot of different medical research and for science.

And we now have a massive outbreak that people are getting from their food, because we don't have people monitoring food anymore.

Where is the scientific research that has said this -- that this -- this could actually cause infertility in men. This can cause a lot of damage to men. Where is the research, and where is the warning to the men?

CORNISH: Well, to be fair, I do want to offer some facts. There's a man named Dr. Hagai Levine in Israel. They have done massive studies and meta-analysis, and male sperm counts and testosterone, it's down.

What is not in agreement within the scientific community is how to deal with it, or what is causing it. Is it obesity? Is it diabetes? Is it sitting around in the pandemic? Right? There's a number of things.

HAYS: A hundred percent.

CORNISH: So, it's not even clear that giving TRT on the government dime to a bunch -- a male population is the absolute solve.

HAYS: And then what happens when it does do something --

CORNISH: And whether the military should be solving this issue for us, societally.

HAYS: But also --

DUBKE: I'm not saying they're trying to solve the issue.

CORNISH: I know. I'm talking to Meghan.

DUBKE: I don't know. You're looking at me and talking to her.

CORNISH: We're friends. It's a group chat.

HAYS: I just -- I just think that there's a lot here that is underlying current of what we're trying to do to our military, and who we're trying to isolate from the military, and who we're trying to recruit to the military.

But one thing that you said that I actually think is important about the recruitment is we are in a terrible economy. People are joining the military, because it gives them opportunities. It gives them a place to live. It gives them food. It gives them money when they sign up.

So, I think that there's a lot of ways out for people who don't necessarily think that college or there's other jobs for them. So, I think that's another reason that recruitment is up.

DUBKE: Recruitment was down when we had an even worse economy. So, I'm not buying that. I --

CORNISH: It was down, yes. HAYS: Totally. But that also could be a reason. Getting -- getting your free, like, T shot from the military isn't going to drive people.

DUBKE: But here's the weird part, and this is why I'm saying it's bizarre. This is basically for those officers who are over 30 years of age, who have been in the military for ten, 12, 15 years.

But what it attracts -- and the point I'm trying to make is -- it attracts those young 16-, 17-, 18-year-olds who are buying into this cultural conversation of high testosterone.

HAYS: And this -- herein lies the problem.

CORNISH: Yes.

HAYS: Herein lies the problem of how we are -- how people are being recruited, and how people are being influenced --

DUBKE: Well --

HAYS: -- and what they want to make our military.

DUBKE: And we can have that debate. But I think this is a recruitment tool.

CORNISH: You can -- Yes, I could be testing T levels to come on the panel, too. I've been thinking about instituting that.

DUBKE: I am raged about this right now.

CORNISH: I just think that is only fair.

Harrison Mann, thank you so much for being here. Really appreciate your time and expertise and point of view.

After the break on CNN THIS MORNING, President Trump could return to a familiar playbook. Tonight, he's going to be talking about the 2020 election.

And Vice President Vance admits the administration messed up on the Epstein files.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:28:01]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VANCE: I say this with all candor, like, we absolutely screwed up the comms of the Epstein files. Like, we just did. But do I think the reason we screwed up the comms is because we were trying to hide something? No.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Vice President J.D. Vance admitting the administration screwed up on the Epstein files. This comes as the president's pick for attorney general takes the stand in his confirmation hearing, having to own up to that process.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TODD BLANCHE, ACTING U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: Any mistake that was made is not appropriate. And so, yes, I am sorry that, in about 1 percent of the -- of the documents, mistakes were made.

But what I will say on top of that is we put tons of resources to rectifying those mistakes immediately.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Joining us in the group chat, Igor Bobic, congressional reporter at "NOTUS."

Igor, can I start with you? We are starting here with the Epstein issue. Is that the issue that took over this set of hearings, or did something else kind of move to the forefront?

IGOR BOBIC, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, "NOTUS": It was one of them. I believe that Todd Blanche had to put that out there to sort of appease some of these Republican senators who believed that the administration ought to have done more about this Epstein issue.

But really, the overarching kind of thing that Republican senators wanted to hear is about this. You know, John Cornyn and Thom Tillis really wanted to get more information out of Blanche about this weaponization fund, anti-weaponization fund.

CORNISH: Let me play that exchange for people. So, this is related to the settlement that Trump and his family made with the IRS over -- they believe that the IRS was weaponized against them.

And the settlement led to a potential fund for reparations, reparations for people who felt they were wronged from the government.

And Texas Senator John Cornyn, who lost his primary, is the person who raised this very pointed question.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX): First of all, I believe you have said that the weaponization fund is a moot issue. Is that your position?

BLANCHE: Yes, it is a moot issue, meaning there is no weaponization fund. The weaponization fund is dead. It's not moving forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Did it feel like that was enough for Cornyn?