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Massive Turnout for Funeral of Iran's Late Supreme Leader; Deadly Strikes on Kyiv Ahead of Trump Trip to NATO Summit; Trump to Join Summit After Calls with Zelenskyy, Putin; U.S. Expects NATO Leaders to Discuss Strait of Hormuz Security; Controversy as FIFA Reinstates U.S. Player Despite Red Card; Belgium Appeal FIFA Decision to Allow USA's Balogun to Play; Trump Launches $1k Investment Accounts for Eligible Newborns. Aired 9-10a ET
Aired July 06, 2026 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: In half an hour, a first for the Oval Office, the U.S. President will ring the opening bell on Wall Street
remotely to launch a new savings scheme for eligible newborns. It is 09:00 a.m. in Washington. It's 05:00 p.m. here in Abu Dhabi.
I'm Eleni Giokos. This is "Connect the World". The U.S. President is also stirring controversy in the world of sport. The star U.S. goal scorer will
now play in tonight's World Cup knockout clash, despite a red card in the last match. Thanks to Mr. Trump's intervention reaction is pouring.
And also coming up, mourners line the street in Tehran for the funeral procession of Iran's late Supreme Leader. And rescue operations are
underway after deadly Russian strikes on Kyiv ahead of President Trump's trip to the upcoming NATO summit. Right, as we said, 30 minutes to go
before the start of trade in New York.
And as we said, first for the Oval Office, the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ will start trade right there from the White House. Markets are
looking positive, DOW slightly lower, S&P and NASDAQ looking a lot stronger today. We'll delve into what is driving the markets a little late, and
importantly, oil prices continue to come lower.
We'll delve into that as well. It seems that there's a lot of reaction in terms of increasing oil supply across the board. But for now, we begin in
Iran, where evening is approaching for a nation in mourning. Hundreds of thousands of people have been turning out for the funeral of slain Supreme
Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The main procession has been taking place in Tehran today, though commemorations began over the weekend. Events will be held in both Iran and
Iraq and are set to end on Thursday. Along with the displays of grief, public anger mourners have been waving red and white flags, which symbolize
martyrdom and revenge in the Shia Muslim tradition.
They've also been frequent cries of death to America, death to Israel heard from the crowds. CNN's Fred Pleitgen is in Tehran and watched as the
coffins for Khamenei and other family members pass through the crowds. Reminder that CNN operates in Iran only with the permission of the
government, but maintains full editorial control of its reports.
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is as close as they're going to get to the casting of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah
Ali Khamenei, as well as several of his family members who were killed in that joint U.S.-Israeli airs on February 28, as you can see, as we stand
here, the atmosphere is extremely charged up.
Many of the people here, and it's a big, big crowd, are screaming death to America, and they're vowing revenge, both against the United States, as
well as President Donald Trump, and of course against bonds rail as well. The government has certainly brought out people in force here.
They say they expect several -- people to come out on the streets and to witness this. The casket is now making its way through Tehran to then at
some point be brought to other cities -- in Russia. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran.
GIOKOS: Now to news. Just into CNN, Hamas has begun the process of dissolving its government within Gaza after nearly two decades in power.
The announcement was made a short time ago by a Hamas spokesperson. It makes way for a panel of Palestinian technocrats to take over governance of
the Gaza Strip.
That's a key point of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire plan between Hamas and Israel. Talks on the implementation of that ceasefire have largely stalled.
CNN's Jeremy Diamond is tracking the story for us from Jerusalem. Jeremy, thanks so much for joining us. Look, you know, hearing this announcement to
allow room for technocrats to step in.
Why do you think Hamas is making this move now? And what's the timing? What's behind the timing here?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, it seems like Hamas is trying to demonstrate its commitment to at least one key part of this
broader ceasefire agreement and President Trump's 20-point peace plan for the Gaza Strip, and that is the handover of governance of the Gaza Strip
from the Hamas-run government to this commission of Palestinian technocrats that is working under the Board of Peace.
[09:05:00]
But what Hamas has not done here is it has not committed to disarming inside of the Gaza Strip. What it is doing by focusing on the governance
aspect is trying to show its commitment to part of this ceasefire agreement, and also to kind of push the focus back to Israel, and what
Israel has not upheld in terms of that very same ceasefire agreement.
Hamas has repeatedly said that it is not going to agree to disarm until Israel stands by its commitments under the ceasefire agreement, namely
stopping strikes on Gaza, where we have seen near daily Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip, killing more than 1000 Palestinians since October of 2025.
And also, in terms of the entry of humanitarian aid, which Hamas, as well as numerous humanitarian organizations, say has not come close to the 600
trucks per day that Israel must allow into Gaza, based on that very same agreement. And so, this is a strategy on Hamas' part, whether or not it
will work remains to be seen.
But it does come at a time when we have seen the Board of Peace and perhaps even members of the U.S. government starting to try and put more pressure
on Israel to also uphold its commitments and to allow for some of the other steps of this ceasefire agreement, including the entry of an international
stabilization force that would take over some of the Israeli-held territory in Gaza to allow for some of those steps to move forward.
And so, Hamas seems to be trying to carry that momentum forward with this announcement today, but we should be clear that it doesn't necessarily mean
anything different on the ground in Gaza for the time being.
GIOKOS: Yeah, you mentioned the Board of Peace, and frankly, negotiations around the future of Gaza have taken a back seat over the last few months.
All eyes are on the war with Iran, that's taking center stage. What is the progress in terms of the mechanisms that were supposed to be instituted to
solve the Gaza issue?
DIAMOND: Well, let's be clear. You know, the broader ceasefire agreement here, and making progress on this 20-point plan, has been stalled over
disagreement about Hamas disarming. There have been multiple rounds of negotiations now led by the Board of Peace in Cairo, alongside the Qatari
and the Egyptian mediators to this Gaza ceasefire agreement to try and get Hamas to agree to disarm.
Hamas has repeatedly put the onus back on Israel that it must first uphold its own commitments under this ceasefire agreement. And for now, it doesn't
seem like much progress is being made on the disarming components. Nickolay Mladenov, the High Representative for Gaza under this Board of Peace said
that Hamas' announcement today quote, underscores the importance of bringing the road map discussions to a successful conclusion.
He, in the past, has made clear that this National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, this board of Palestinian technocrats who would run
the Gaza Strip in lieu of Hamas, that they will only enter the Gaza Strip once their security can be assured, and once they actually know that they
will be able to be effective in Gaza.
He has made clear that the last thing he wants to see is this Palestinian technocratic committee entering the Gaza Strip, taking on governance of
Gaza officially, but being unable to actually affect its policies on the ground, and for Hamas to simply quietly be in power from both a political,
but also from a security perspective.
And so that's why I said before, it seems unlikely that this announcement from Hamas is actually going to change anything until you see that
disarming component address until you see this international stabilization force actually deployed to Gaza. I don't expect that committee of
Palestinian technocrats to enter Gaza anytime soon.
GIOKOS: All right, Jeremy Diamond, thank you so much for that. Well, on the eve of a NATO summit in Turkey, Ukraine's capital came under another deadly
Russian attack, massive explosions lit up the sky overnight as ballistic missiles and drones hammered parts of Kyiv, killing at least 12 people in
the city itself.
In Russia, almost every region has been hit by a fuel crisis as Ukraine escalates its drone strikes. The war is expected to be a key topic at this
week's NATO gathering, which U.S. President Donald Trump will attend. CNN's Nic Robertson is standing by for us in Ankara for more information, more
insight.
Nic, really good to see you. You know, President Trump is set to head to Ankara Monday night. He spoke to both the Russian and Ukrainian Presidents
over the weekend. How might this reverberate through the summit?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: I think, because President Zelenskyy will be here in person, and he's a powerful and
emotionally connected figure, you know, with these NATO leaders.
[09:10:00]
He will be pressing the point that NATO needs urgent air defenses. I mean, just look at what happened overnight. Last night, 66 ballistic missiles, 29
of them got through. Ukraine used to be able to do better than that. Partly, Russia has got more sophisticated, faster jet-propelled ballistic
missiles that can penetrate where they couldn't penetrate before 350 drones, 18 of them landed, as you say, 12 people killed in Kyiv, 5 in the
Kyiv region as well.
So, it is a pressing need. President Zelenskyy really wants to be able to produce and get license for making patriot missiles, defensive missiles
inside of Ukraine. It's not clear that it's going to get that, but there is a defense investment fund forum meeting here tomorrow, where there's
expected to be financial significant billions and billions, tens of billion dollars financial commitment to Ukraine to support them this year, next
year in the war against Russia.
So that's what President Zelenskyy will be looking for. President Trump is going to be coming in here looking for something else. He's going to be
looking to make sure that his NATO European partners, that has been leaning on for a long time to up their defense spending, 5 percent of GDP is what
is required by agreement.
Last year of the Hague Declaration from the Hague leaders' summit of 5 percent GDP by 2035. So, President Trump's going to be looking to see who's
doing that, who isn't doing it, and I think it's been very interesting to see how he deals with countries like Spain that aren't stepping up and
haven't so far made a commitment to getting to that level of spending over the next nine years.
And I think there's anxiety here when President Trump walks into a NATO summit these days. There's worry. It was only a few months ago that he
wanted to take annex Greenland, which is part of Denmark, which is a NATO allies' country. And then on top of that, President Trump's been frustrated
with the way his NATO allies have not, in his opinion, stepped up sufficiently during epic fury, the U.S.-Iran war, he wanted more support.
So, all of that is in the mix here. President Zelenskyy will be very focused on what he needs. President Trump undoubtedly very clear and
determined to get what he wants out of it as well.
GIOKOS: All right, Nic Robertson, thank you so much for that analysis, watching very closely. Important NATO summit happening in Turkey. Right, a
stunning reversal by FIFA has shaken the World Cup, miring Team USA's impending match with Belgium in controversy.
FIFA leadership delayed a one game suspension for Team USA Star Striker Folarin Balogun, invoking an obscure rule that will allow him to play in
today's match, despite the red card he received during Team USA's last match. And this breaking news just into CNN, Belgium have just filed an
appeal of this decision.
It was unclear if the team that will face the USA was going to make this official. What we know is this, that the Belgian FA asked FIFA for an
explanation of its decision, and FIFA constituted that as an appeal. And we will update this process as we get more information, of course, coming
through into CNN.
Right, a source tells CNN, in the meantime, the U.S. President, Donald Trump, spoke with FIFA President Gianni Infantino this week and asked for a
review of Balogun's red card. Team USA's Head Coach was quick to defend the decision. Listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAURICIO POCHETTINO, USMNT HEAD COACH: The power of this, that is poor, know, that is amazing. And of course I am listening to different coaches,
different, you know, federation that talk about, oh, the president called this everything wants to be involved. It's not surprised me.
I came from a culture, Argentina, Europe, that that football, soccer is more than really, is a religion, more than a religion, you know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: Well, Belgium's Head Coach was far more critical of FIFA's move.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUDI GARCIA, BELGIUM HEAD COACH: I didn't realize that at FIFA headquarters, July 5th was the equivalent of April 1st in Europe. The
Belgian Football Association isn't defending itself, nor is it defending the national team. It's defending football in general, the integrity and
ethics.
As far as I can recall, I think this is the first time in the history of the World Cup that such a decision has been made. That's it. As for me, I'm
the coach. I'm going to focus on my team and on the match, regardless of the USA starting 11.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: All right, we're going to have more details on this developing news later in the show, so stick around for that.
[09:15:00]
Now, heartbreak for World Cup co-host Mexico, who has now been eliminated after a hard-fought match against England. The Three Lions scored twice in
just 98 seconds during the first half and held on to their early lead with only 10 men on the field in the final half hour of play following a
straight red card.
England supporters celebrating in Mexico City had this to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fantastic match, some slightly biased judgments in there from the referee. I don't think it were a red, it was never a penalty, but
we've still got it there. It's coming home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's go -- unbelievable, great game, fantastic, fantastic host, great game, great atmosphere. Hello, boys -- was coming
home again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: Right. And for Mexican fans, on the other hand, it was tears, as well as disappointments. CNN's Valeria Leon shares their reaction with us.
VALERIA LEON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Mexico's World Cup dream has come to an end after losing to England. Fans here in Mexico City are completely
devastated and heartbroken. And that's because the expectation had never been as high as this one before.
And Mexico arrived at this match after making history, winning four consecutive matches without conceding a single goal, and that's something
the national team had never achieved before.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm half Mexicans. I want to experience it myself, but yeah, tough game to watch, but overall, it's fun to get a watch as well.
LEON: Tonight, that dream ended in the fifth and last World Cup match hosted here in Mexico City. Still, if there's something this tournament has
shown, it's the passion of Mexican supporters. They feel the streets, stadiums, and Fan Fest, believing this could finally be the year they can
see their dream in the quarter finals, but now that hope has turned into a heartbreak. Valeria Leon, CNN, Mexico City.
GIOKOS: After a stunning five-time world champion, Brazil with a two-one win, Norway has booked their first ever spot in a men's World Cup
quarterfinals. The Vikings will battle England this Saturday to stay in the tournament. Two late goals from Norway's Erling Haaland.
Sunday knocked out the South American team, despite a successful penalty kick from Brazil's Neymar. And still to come, the heartache amid the
wreckage. How survivors of Venezuela's deadly earthquakes refuse to give up in the search for their loved ones.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GIOKOS: Tyler Robinson, the man suspected of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk, is set to appear in court this week as part of a multi-day
hearing. The hearing, which begins today, will examine a number of key pieces of evidence, including a videotaped statement by Robinson's former
roommate.
[09:20:00]
The hearing comes 10 months after the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk on a Utah college campus. Robinson has not yet entered any plea relating to the
case. Venezuela's Acting President has ordered additional troops to be deployed to help emergency responders in the aftermath of the deadly twin
earthquakes.
On Sunday, Delcy Rodriguez announced a new military unit would be formed to respond to this and future disasters. It follows harsh criticism of the
government's response. Officials say the death toll has risen higher than 3300 lives, with many still unaccounted for. More than 17,000 people have
been displaced.
CNN Contributor Stefano Pozzebon went to meet survivors who say they could not think of the future while the present is still so painful.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR (voice-over): Zo Santander (ph) has not seen her son in 10 days. They were separated in the twin quakes that shoe
Venezuela on June 24 but her nine-year-old Xavier (ph) was trapped under the rubble. Four days later, she saw a video of a child being rescued at
night.
She believes it was her son, but in the chaos that followed, she hasn't been able to find him. She's not going to rest, but from here there is
little she can do.
POZZEBON: This used to be a golf course. La Guaira was a tourist hotspot by the Caribbean Sea, and so here is where tourists will come and play golf
and relax. Now, of course, it's a tent city for hundreds of displaced, many of whom actually used to live there in those blocks.
And every day they wake up and they see their homes and flats broken down by the brutality of the earthquakes. Sheyna Ceballos is also looking for a
loved one. She's lost hope of finding her mother alive, but will not leave the golf course until she recovers her remains.
SHEYNA CEBALLOS, EARTHQUAKE SURVIVOR: If I had the money, I'd dig her out, but I have none.
POZZEBON: This is what's left of Sheyna's home and entire life shattered in an instant. Now, like her, thousands of Venezuelans are only beginning to
grasp the magnitude of this catastrophe.
POZZEBON (voice-over): Before this tragedy, Venezuela was already in a deep humanitarian crisis, facing chronic shortages of food and medicines. War
Center Kitchen has been operating here since 2019. In response to the earthquake, they have stepped up with free meals for survivors and
volunteers.
POZZEBON: Can you describe a moment that Venezuela is right now when it's been 10 days since the earthquake?
MIGUEL TORTOSA, COMMUNICATIONS RESPONSE MANAGER AT WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN: The numbers keep increasing, and we are still in the first phase of the
operation. I would say this is still the emergency phase, and our teams are still like finding the exact numbers, so we can get the number of meals
needed to cover all the needs.
POZZEBON (voice-over): Survivors and relatives of the victims have criticized the government response as inadequate and delayed. Many points
to the armed forces, who they say showed up too late or didn't do enough.
DELCY RODRIGUEZ, ACTING VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT: Our officials were deployed immediately. You can count the hours between the quakes and when we signed
the emergency decree. There were 4000 officials out in the first 24 hours, 10,000 officials the following day.
POZZEBON (voice-over): The government also laying out credit agreements with the International Monetary Fund, and plans to begin the
reconstruction, but at the golf course in La Guaira, the present is too dark to look ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now I just want to find her remains to think about the future makes no sense.
POZZEBON (voice-over): Stefano Pozzebon, CNN, La Guaira, Venezuela.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: Cycling fans have been asked to stay away from the Tour de France today because of a wildfire burning in the southwest near the Spanish
border. Cyclists are due to cross the finish line just 60 kilometers or some 37 miles from the blaze. Only the riders and essential vehicles will
be allowed on the route.
Extreme heat and wildfires are happening across Europe, with blaze in Spain as well as France. The temperatures in Paris are swell clearing once again,
but now residents have visitors, and visitors have a new way to stay cool and to cool off by swimming in the River Seine.
CNN's Melissa Bell explains why that was impossible just two years ago.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Forget climbing the Eiffel Tower. The cool new thing to do in Paris is to swim
beneath it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's very quiet. Yeah, very nice, and you can see some very little fish in the water, yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Which women come hanging, where we come from, as well, so.
BELL: OK. So --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- we don't really mind, actually.
BELL: Others are still a little hesitant.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have not, like, entered the water, but I think the idea of, like, lounging by the Seine is really cool.
[09:25:00]
BELL (voice-over): It's hard to imagine that the Seine River was once a toxic mess, home to half of Paris's untreated waste water. In fact, for 100
years, swimming in it was strictly prohibited. Now, for the second year in a row, public swimming areas will be open till the end of August.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First, I would like to guarantee them that the quality of the water is very good. Secondly, it's an amazing occasion to discover
Paris in a different way.
BELL (voice-over): A swimmable Seine was one of the pledges of the 2024 Paris Olympics. 1.4 billion euros were spent getting the river clean enough
for the athletes to compete in it, but the idea was always to give ordinary Parisians their river back too.
BELL: A few years ago, the idea of swimming in the Seine River would have seemed crazy, but then again, this is a city of which it is often said that
the only sane thing is the river.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: Down from tragic to fun. Right, five children were among at least six people who died in Mumbai as monsoon rains caused devastation across
parts of India. They were killed when their home collapsed as a result of the heavy rain. Across the country there have been landslides, widespread
flooding and disruption to flights.
The monsoon came after India logged its fifth driest June on record, itself raising major concerns over farm output. The monsoon delivers about 70 per
cent of annual rains and replenishes India's crucial water sources. And still to come, a historic moment at the White House, as the New York Stock
Exchange and NASDAQ jointly open from the Oval Office.
We'll bring you this moment live right here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GIOKOS: Right, we're a few minutes away from the start of trade in New York. I want to take you straight to the Oval Office, where President Trump
is discussing the new Trump accounts.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: -- OK, I'll get over at the bell.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- yeah.
TRUMP: I want to stand next to these soon to be very well speaking --
SCOTT BESSENT, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: And good morning, I'm grateful to be with you on this historic occasion. The American dream belongs to every
child, and today we are equipping the next generation with the right to claim their rightful share of it. Through Trump accounts, our president is
creating an ownership economy, an ownership economy where all citizens become shareholders.
38 percent of American families do not have any exposure to our great equity markets, but with Trump accounts over time, we can get that number
to zero.
[09:30:00]
Already, 6 million American children have signed up, 86 percent of them with families earning less than 200,000. So over time we can get that
number to zero. Already 6 million American children have signed up, 86 percent of them with families earning less than $200,000 U.S. Treasury.
1.4 million of those accounts will receive $1,000 from the U.S. Treasury to cede the accounts when the markets open in just a few minutes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- right now.
BESSENT: Trump accounts will benefit, so ring the bell, Mr. President. So, I will just finish by saying on the eve -- of our on the heels of our 250th
anniversary, that this will be one of the president's most enduring legacies, and the great bounty of this will go for generations to come.
Is my privilege to invite President Trump to the speak after we had two firsts today, first time we've ever had the New York Stock Exchange and
NASDAQ, they do a joint opening, and first time they -- we've ever had the opening bell run in the Oval Office. So, Mr. President.
TRUMP: Well, this is very exciting and amazing achievement. People, we don't know this, Michael, but people have been trying to do this for 30
years, and they were so generous. He put up, and she put up, I think she more than him, maybe. Both very much involved, but Michael and Susan put up
$6,250 million and I'm sure if I make a phone call, they'll do it again.
The job they've done is incredible in life. So, we want to thank you very much. Amazing, really amazing. And our friend from Micron, by the way,
called me on Friday, and he said Micron is putting in $250 million and he's done a phenomenal job. And 250 million, and many other companies and people
are putting up tremendous amounts of money.
And it's something I'm very proud of, some people think it's going to be go down as one of the most important things we've done during the
administration, so after a truly historic weekend celebrating the 250th anniversary of America, today we're thrilled to officially launch the Trump
accounts, and we had some beautiful people and speeches and tremendous crowds, we had the biggest crowd anyone's ever seen, that unfortunately
lightning caused it to leave, and everybody said, well, we'll do it another time.
When I heard that, I said, no, we won't. Everybody had left. I said, we're not doing it another time. We're doing it on the fourth of July. And we
actually started the speech on the fourth of July. We had to wait a little while, like a couple of hours, let the lightning pass, and everyone had
left.
And we came back, and they had 150,000 people came back from the -- they took their car, they're going back home to Texas. They turned their car
around, they came back. You wouldn't believe 150. I think the 150 was more impressive than the 425 or whatever it was.
It was pretty amazing. And Mount Rushmore, likewise, was so incredible. So, people love our country. Our country is doing incredibly well. Strongest
military in the world has been displayed with Venezuela, who we're getting along with fantastically now. We've taken hundreds of billions of dollars
of oil and given them hundreds of billions, they have more money than they've ever made, and we're doing very well.
Paid for the war many times over. And then Iran, we're doing actually equally as well. We're just not getting the kind of coverage that we
should, but we have eviscerated them military, and the bottom line is our country is strong. We have the greatest military anywhere in the world, I
was with President Xi three weeks ago, and I said that, and there was no argument.
Nobody is arguing. We built it during my first term, and we're using it now for very good reasons, because in this case, Iran can never have a nuclear
weapon. We can never let that happen. On Saturday, July 4th, our administration deposited one-time seed contributions, $1,000 each, into the
Trump accounts of over 500,000 American children.
[09:35:00]
It's a lot, and millions more will be getting additional contributions from generous donors, like, as I mentioned Michael and Susan Dell, they are
truly incredible. Go out and buy a Dell computer. He's not doing it for that, but I'll bet his business, Brad, has gotten even bigger.
I have a son that loves their -- he loves their laptop. I have to tell you, no, I wonder, Dell, we're going to get him that money back one way or the
other. And then I'll ask for another $6,250. We'll start the whole process all over again. No, he makes an incredible product, and right from the
beginning.
And Brad Gerstner has been pushing this, so he's a very successful man, not quite as famous as the Dell family, right, Michael, but you are.
MICHAEL DELL, CHAIRMAN & CEO OF DELL TECHNOLOGIES: Thank you.
TRUMP: He's an amazingly successful guy, and he's put up a tremendous amount of money. And again, I want to thank Michael -- and all of the
companies that have already called me, and they're putting up a lot of money. This is nothing, this is not me. And putting the name on it was not
my idea, that was a whole group of people that passed legislation, because this is all made possible only by the passage of the great big beautiful
bill.
and I knew that this was happening, but I didn't know. All of a sudden, I see my name on the bill, but I'm very proud to have my name. They think it
would sell. They said it'll sell better if your name is on. I said, look, leave it on, but I did not. I just want to -- I did not ask for it.
Michael, is that a correct statement? Did I ever go to you say, Michael, don't put up the money unless they use my name? Know, but I have done that
in other cases I will -- in certain other cases, I've done that, right, Scott? But not in this case. This is a very special kind of a thing that
took place.
It's in a way, it's a miracle. Nobody thought it was possible. Think of it, children that are born without money, without any money. Great parents,
they can have everything, can be great, but they have no money. They can become very wealthy children at 18, and they can flip it over, or their
people can flip it over into other vehicles at a certain age, so that they don't take it out.
I would recommend they probably don't take it out, but they can have a lot of money, especially if the market continues. Can you imagine if you did
this during Trump, a year ago, a year and a half ago, where the market's gone up at levels? As an example, everybody said, when I got elected,
there's no way that during the four-year period, we'll ever hit 50,000 on the DOW.
And we hit 50,000 on the DOW. I would say in the first-year records we had records. What NASDAQ has done, what the New York Stock Exchange, all the
stock exchanges, 7000 on the S&P was impossible during the first year, but they really thought it was impossible in four years, and we hit it before
the first year.
So, if you had, if the children had invested the money a year and a half ago, we should have acted faster. Actually, it's too bad, but it's going to
go up. We have a hot country. It's going to go up. I think the market is going to go through the roof when all those factories open.
They're being built all over the country at record numbers. We have never built in the history of our country what we're building now. We have $19.2
trillion and much of that money is going toward building factories, plants, AI, automobile. We've never built as many automobiles' plants.
They're all over, and they're coming from all over the world. You know why, because they don't want to pay tariffs. If they build their cars here, they
pay no tariffs. So, Japan, instead of making them in Japan, or South Korea, instead of making them in Germany with Volkswagen and Mercedes and BMW,
they're all building plants here now.
They're coming out of Canada. They're coming out of Mexico. Mexico took a lot of our business, so did Canada. They're all coming back. I don't know
what the countries are going to do, but they're all coming back. So, today, with the ringing of the opening bell for the stock market, those accounts
will now begin to grow right along with our booming economy, and I really believe we're going to have the biggest boom of all right now.
You haven't seen anything yet between individual contributions and the seed funds, $800 million in new capital will be invested in the stock market for
America's children this week. And I also think that we're going to be putting numbers in the budget, which will be really spectacular, because
it's really not costing us anything.
Where we're giving this money to children, so they can have a good life very early on, they can have a good life. And we're going to be doing also
something we're working on later on, and it'll be also, I think, very popular. And I guess the best definition is they have a plan in Australia,
which people really like.
It's really worked out very well, incredibly well, and very respected, and we're going to be talking about that with Congress, and see if we can
implement it, and that would be more for grown-ups as opposed to children, but it's something that's going to be great, I think. If we can get it
done, and we're going to try very hard.
[09:40:00]
But again, I want to thank Michael and Susan, Brad and his son Lincoln as well, as Secretary of the Treasury Scott, who is really Scott Bessent, who
has really been an incredible, if you're casting a movie, you put him as the Secretary of the Treasury, because he's central casting.
Do we agree when you say he's done a more importantly, he's done a great job. SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler, who has been phenomenal, Chairman of
the SEC, Paul Atkins. Paul, thank you. What a job you do.
PAUL ATKINS, CHAIRMAN OF THE U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION: -- Thank you sir.
TRUMP: You know, there's always been a problem there, and with you, everything goes smoothly. Though I have to say, Jay (ph) did a very good
job also during my first term, but Paul's been incredible. Everybody, everybody wanted Paul, and he's exceeded expectations, I will say, and
everybody knows it.
Thank you, Paul. Great job you're doing. Director of the National Economic Council, Kevin Hassett. I didn't want to lose Kevin. I said, Kevin, you're
at a huge disadvantage, because selfishly for a certain other position, and we have another. We had the two Kevins, and they're both great.
And a friend of mine, Ted Cruz, we fought each other for a while, and he's a very tough competitor. And we became friends. We're actually great
friends before the campaign, and everybody said, will this ever end? In fact, he was doing a rally, said, could we do a joint rally?
That's like you people doing a joint bell ringing, it's like crazy, right? But he said, remember, we did the joint rally outside in Washington. We had
a big crowd, and the media was saying, will it ever end? I said, it will, but not yet. But it ended. But then it came together, better than I think,
better than ever before.
He's done a wonderful job as a senator, highly respected. Fact, somebody said, would you ever appoint him to the United States Supreme Court?
Because he's a brilliant lawyer, Ted. They said, well, he's the only one I can think of that's going to get 100 votes. All Republicans will vote for
him, all Democrats will vote for him, because they want to get him the hell out of the Senate.
You know, if I was having a hard time with getting the votes, I would appoint Ted Cruz. I get 100 percent guarantee, but when you look at all of
the different things that have taken place, and you look at the international nature of what we're doing, because these are all
international companies, so many I can't mention because they're too big to mention.
The kind of money that's being invested is really, really incredible. So, again, I want to just, because they're friends of mine, but the Exchange
CEO, Jeffrey Sprecher, is here today. We -- he's an amazing man, amazing success. His wife has done a fantastic job at small business, they call it
small business, but when you add it all up, it's probably the biggest business in the world, right?
But Kelly has been incredible, and Jeff, thank you very much. New York Stock Exchange President Lynn Martin, we want to thank. And Nasdaq Chair
and CEO Adena Friedman and Nasdaq President Nelson Griggs, we have all of them. This is a fantastic group of people. Thank you very much.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.
TRUMP: We've got them all. Did you ever think you'd be in the same? Well, this is a great room. I always, when people walk in, the biggest people in
the world, people that are in many cases, on your exchanges, right, they walk in and they look around, they go, oh, I can't believe it.
I must -- I don't want to use names. Larry Ellison walked in, and he said, what? Where am I? This is so -- it takes a while. Actually, if you're
negotiating, you have people at a great disadvantage, because they're all screwed up, you know. It's a great place. I think it's the most important
room anywhere in the world.
So, I thought it would be good to do this here, right? We seldom do that, but this was the first ever joint bell ringing between the New York Stock
Exchange and Nasdaq, and hopefully it won't be the last. I think it's, you know, a lot of things you could do together that would be good.
It's amazing the way you came together, and it was really easy, and they're competitors, but it's a great tribute, I think, to all of you that you're
able to do this. It's people talking about it. The SEC Chair, let me ask you, are you shocked that they can.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Great.
TRUMP: This makes your job. Doesn't this make your job a little bit easier? Is it nice? Why can't we do that with Democrats and Republicans? Maybe
that's a tough one. I think that's that might be tougher. We like borders, we like things that they don't like, but if parents have not done so
already, and they are doing so in record numbers.
They should go right away to Trump accounts.gov and sign their child up for a free investment savings account.
[09:45:00]
And again, a lot of people that are uninvolved in terms of they don't have the children, but are their children are older, but they're putting
millions and millions of dollars into the accounts of poor children, financially poor children, and the parents can't even believe what's
happening so.
It's an amazing thing. But parents, loved ones, churches, and generous companies, and individuals will be able to contribute funds to these
accounts to grow throughout the child's life, and again, if we have a good market like we do now, they're going to become actually very rich.
They'll have hundreds of thousands of dollars. Think of that. Think of it, a child that has no money can have hundreds of thousands of dollars at a
very, very young age. Accounts could grow to be worth numbers that nobody ever thought even possible, just six months ago, before we did this.
And again, I have to thank Michael and Susan, because they were so proactive. It was actually -- it was really amazing. I just think they're
amazing people. So, Trump accounts are about giving every American child a stake in America's future and getting some of the upside, and nobody's seen
anything like it.
And senators like Ted Cruz were at the forefront, and they should be really commended. People have to remember it in the future. It's like so many
things I did were so good, and that's only got a two-year life. Like, as an example, Kevin, I closed the border. We have nobody coming into our country
illegally anymore, and I want to make it in my speeches.
And they say, sir, nobody cares about that. You've solved the problem. I said, I'd like to talk about it. They said, nobody cares about the border,
you've solved that problem. I said, what kind of a business you solve a problem you're not even allowed to talk about it. Nobody even wants to hear
about it's pretty tough.
But this is something that they're going to be talking about for a long time, because this is going to grow to levels that I think people have no
idea. I already see the numbers. So, there could be no better way to begin our 250th year. It is so appropriate. Think of that we're doing it just at
this time, this special time.
It's pretty amazing. So, I'd like to maybe ask Michael Dell to come up and say a few words, followed by Lynn Martin and Adena Friedman and Jeff, and
some of the people that had so much to do. I'd like to have our great Senator Ted Cruz say a few marks, and anybody else that wants to.
This is a big celebration. This is a much bigger situation than anybody can imagine. And then we'll take a few questions. OK. Thank you very much. Go
ahead. Michael, please. Why don't you start it off?
DELL: Thank you, Mr. President. Susan, I am very honored to be here as we celebrate the 250th. You know, 42 years ago I started a company in my dorm
room with $1,000 and today every newborn American child will start their life with $1,000 invested in America's greatest companies, compounding for
the future.
But Susan and I didn't want the children that were born just before to be completely left out. So, we are contributing $6.25 billion $250 to 25
million eligible American children born between the ages of 2016 and 2024. Invested in America's greatest companies for their future, for their
tuition, for down payments, for startup capital, for a business.
And to every business leader out there who hasn't already joined us, please join us. You know, 250 years ago our founders in the Declaration of
Independence, which is right there, pledged their fortunes to an idea. Today we're pledging our fortune to the next generation of children.
So, to tens of millions of American children, your American story starts now. Thank you. Susan.
SUSAN DELL, CO-FOUNDER AND CHAIR OF DELL TECHNOLOGIES: Thank you. Mr. President, I am so grateful to you for making the Invest America Act
happen. You have made investing in America's children such an important initiative for our country. These accounts are a statement of belief in our
nation's young people and believing in our country's children matters enormously. The incredible --
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[09:50:00]
GIOKOS: Right, you're listening to Susan Dell there, one of the sponsors of Trump accounts. We just heard from President Trump in the Oval Office.
There were a couple of firsts that happened today. Both the NASDAQ and the New York Stock Exchange bells were rung together and together in the Oval
Office by President Trump.
Markets, right now, as you can see, looking positive for the NASDAQ and S&P. Dow Jones slightly negative at this point in time, but of course,
today has really been focused on Trump accounts. And President Trump was sort of positioning this as really great incentive and opportunity for
families to invest in their children, as government also gives $1,000.
We've got Rana Foroohar, our Economic Analyst, joining us now. Really good to have you with us, Rana. I mean, really interesting, even listening to
Scott Bessent, there, and he was sort of describing the millions of accounts that have already opened up. You heard from Michael Dell, he was
saying, you know, the kids that were born before this specific cutoff date shouldn't be ignored, they're going to get about $250.
When you see all of this, I mean, what does it say to you in terms of investment planning for the future, and importantly, how different this is
to anything else that is being offered in the United States?
RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Well, all great questions. Let's start with how different this is. It is different, but only in the
context of the U.S. You know, we've seen things like baby bonds in the UK, there are many countries, in fact, that have done this sort of what might
be called pre-distribution, you know, you're essentially, you're not asking people to save, but you're giving them something and then letting the
interest accrue.
And you know, it's a good idea, it's a very good idea, you know, I used to live in the UK, and my had two children that had baby bonds, and they do
grow, and you do have something in your pot when you're 18, so no question about that. What's interesting to me, it reflects a larger political trend
in the U.S. right now.
You know, there's -- you're seeing the rise of democratic socialists that are saying actually we want higher taxes, we want to redistribute the pie,
we want to really have a wealth tax, have some radical changes in the way wealth is distributed in the U.S., and then you have a different group,
some on the left, many on the right, that are saying actually, let's do pre-distribution.
Let's start giving more Americans a stake in the market earlier on, and it's a different way of thinking about the fact that we have a very
bifurcated economy right now, and there are a lot of poor people out there, and something's going to have to change if we don't want to see real social
disintegration.
GIOKOS: Yeah, there's a big question around integrating and ensuring that poor families lower LSM are not left behind in this, you know, this
incentive to invest. How is this perhaps you know equalizing the playing field, or perhaps not thinking of equalizing the playing field effectively?
FOROOHAR: Yeah, it's -- again, it's a really good question. Look, I don't want to say anything negative about the idea of giving children a stake in
the stock market. That's a great thing. It's, you know, it's something that families, when they can do anyway, you know, in 529 accounts for college,
et cetera.
This is a good idea, but is it going to equalize the playing field in this country? Absolutely not, unless you see a bunch of other strategies,
starting with major changes in the educational system, major geographical industrial policies that kind of lift up poor parts of the country.
Right now, in the U.S., you've got about 12 areas, cities, and regions, mostly on the coast, a couple of them inland, which is where most of the
wealth is held. And then you have huge swaths of the population, many of them red states, inside the country, in the Midwest, in the South, in the
far west, where there's just no wealth at all.
And so, you have huge geographic disparity, you have huge regional disparity, you have huge socioeconomic disparity, and I think the fact that
the midterms and the 2028 elections are all going to be about affordability, equity, in some cases corruption. I think the president is
trying to get ahead of that and say, look, here I'm doing something for real people.
GIOKOS: Yeah, I mean, he was really quite strong about that, saying, and have been working on it for a long time. Actually, he was even sort of
joking around, not wanting his name all over this, but everyone was insisting. But then he conceded that he does like his name on some things,
but he didn't want it on this, which was quite interesting.
FOROOHAR: Yeah, he also took up a --
GIOKOS: I mean -- that exchange, right?
FOROOHAR: Yeah, he also took up a heck of a lot of air time in that conference on things that had nothing to do with Trump accounts or pre
distribution --
GIOKOS: Yeah, like Venezuela and military and Iran.
FOROOHAR: Yeah.
[09:55:00]
GIOKOS: Yeah, keep going, Rana.
FOROOHAR: Well, just to say, you know.
GIOKOS: Are you there?
FOROOHAR: Let's not kid ourselves. Yes, I'm here. Can you hear me? Let's not kid ourselves.
GIOKOS: Yeah, yeah.
FOROOHAR: You know, we're -- this is a president that likes his name on everything. I was struck by the fact that, yeah, this is a good policy.
It's a good plan, and as is often the case, when Trump has some good news, he then tries to hang a lot of other very problematic things off of it.
Venezuela, Iran, you know, the military, you know, the wellness of corporate America. Look in a very limited way, this is a great plan. I
certainly wouldn't say that it's going to reshape the American economy, and it's also interesting that this is coming at a time when a lot of people
feel the stock market is a bubble, and that it may be correcting at some point soon.
Not to say that these accounts won't be a great thing to have when you're 18, they're not going to change the American economy.
GIOKOS: Yeah, all right. Rana Foroohar, thanks for sticking around for that. Appreciate your time. I'm going to be back with another hour at
"Connect the World" right after this. Stay with CNN.
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