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First of All with Victor Blackwell

Any Moment: Ceasefire Talks Between U.S. & Iran, Led By VP Vance; Trump To Iran: U.S. Will Resume Military Action If No Peace Deal; Father Of Artemis Pilot victor Glover Reacts To Moon Mission Success; Mizzou Terminates Official Funding For Black Student Council; Exonerated Man Fights To Keep Job He Was Recently Elected To. Aired 8- 9a ET

Aired April 11, 2026 - 08:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:00:36]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: First of all, it is amazing what humanity can do when we're not fighting each other, right? I mean, watching the successful return of the Artemis mission overnight made it so clear. And this hour we're going to talk about that historic mission with the father of pilot Victor Glover, the first Black person to travel to the Moon and back.

And we're though, going to start here on Earth. More than 30 times the speed of sound they came back. It's not the hardest mission this weekend, though. Right now, Vice President Vance, he's in Islamabad, Pakistan. His mission is to firm up the ceasefire with Iran and work toward a peace deal.

Special envoy Steve Witkoff, the president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, there as well. President Trump is warning that if a peace deal is not reached, the U.S. will start bombing Iran again with even more intensity.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're looking forward to the negotiation. I think it's going to be positive. We'll, of course, see, as the president United States said, if the Iranians are willing to negotiate in good faith, we're certainly willing to extend the open hand. If they're going to try to play us, then they're going to find that the negotiating team is not that receptive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: All right, let's talk about it. Here for the conversation, U.S. Air Force veteran and Georgia Secretary of State candidate Kelvin King. He's also with us is retired Brigadier General Shawn Harris. You may recognize his face. He was a Democratic nominee in this week's special election to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene. We'll talk about that, too, in a moment.

But General, let me start with you and the potential that you have the 71 person delegation from Iran and the vice president, Kushner and Witkoff there, and the Iranian state media says now that the Iranians are giving some suggestions that maybe they will proceed, maybe not. You think there's a chance they get there to Islamabad? They're there now and not talk?

BRIG. GEN. SHAWN HARRIS, U.S. ARMY NATIONAL GUARD (RET.): Well, you know, the Iranians are experts in delayed tactics. And the reality of it is I don't think that's going to happen. But you never can tell with the Iranians, they may actually do something just to change things up. But Victor, I would tell you, if that happens, I think President Trump will probably start dropping bombs on them again.

BLACKWELL: Yes. Do you think it's possible?

KELVIN KING, (R) GEORGIA SECRETARY OF STATE CANDIDATE: I guess it's possible. Of course, anything's possible. But I think it behooves Iran to act a court. I mean, they put out a 10 point plan that I don't think was palatable to America. So I don't know if they're serious yet, but we will find out soon.

BLACKWELL: What do you think is within reach today? I don't know that anybody expects a full peace plan to come out this afternoon. But what's within reach in Islamabad?

HARRIS: I would tell you, in my experience of living and working in Israel and being in the Middle East today is nothing more than just the start of a conversation. If they can just have tea, if they can just say hi and be in the same room at the same time, that is a win for the United States and that's a win for the world. So with this, nothing's going to get solved in two weeks.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

HARRIS: That is -- that is, I think my group can agree on that. It's not going to happen in two weeks. This takes a long time. But if we can just get everybody in the same room, we could at least start the conversation.

BLACKWELL: And even that is historic. It would be the highest level talks between the U.S. and Iran in decades to have the vice president --

HARRIS: Correct.

BLACKWELL: -- and the speaker of parliament from Iran there together. Let me talk about one of the prerequisites that the Iranians set to even have these talks and that's to end the IDF attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon. And those have not ended.

HARRIS: Right.

BLACKWELL: The president said that Netanyahu would have to be a little more low key about that. Does the U.S. have the influence over Netanyahu to get him to pull back on that? Is that something he should continue to press, the president?

HARRIS: I would tell you I'll speak first because my last assignment was Israel and I know the prime minister, I know all the players. I would say that we should have the leverage. But right now I'm not 100 percent sure that if President Trump gave him a call, they could have a conversation. But I'm not sure if that conversation is going to change anything because between Hezbollah, Israel, it's a lot of bad blood. A lot of things are going on every day.

And I don't know how do you do something low key between Israel and Lebanon when it comes to the, the, the enemy up there. So I would just say we're going to see. I don't think things are going to stop anytime soon and it's going to have great effect on what's going to happen at this peace talk today.

BLACKWELL: Well, Hezbollah, obviously a designated terror organization.

[08:05:00]

HARRIS: One hundred percent.

BLACKWELL: And we know that there are talks that are supposed to be happening next week between Israel and Lebanon in the U.S. over a potential ceasefire deal between those two elements. But of course they're not sitting down with Hezbollah, they're sitting down with the Lebanese government, which they don't think can control Hezbollah.

KING: And Israel have -- has every right to defend themselves.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

KING: You know, our conversations with Iran did not include Lebanon and I think it showed. And when Iran is using these off -- these off situations as an excuse to not comply with our demands, I mean, it shows that they may be a little unserious.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

KING: But in this case, Israel has every right to defend themselves against.

BLACKWELL: Of course, Iran says that the cessation of attacks in Lebanon was part of the initial deal of the ceasefire. The U.S. says of course -- and Israel says, that they were not. Let me ask you about the Strait of Hormuz because of course that has been the pinch point, if I'm using the term correctly, of this war, of the international economic stress of it. The president has vacillated between it's going to open naturally to open the effing straight, you crazy bastards to it'll just open on its own time to a civilization will die tonight. Here's the latest from the president on Friday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The strait will open up. If we just left, the strait is going to -- otherwise they make no money. So the strait is going to open, but what we have is no nuclear weapon. But we'll open the strait anyway.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Does that undermine what the vice president is trying to do in Islamabad? If the president's back home saying, oh, it'll open on its own, well, then what's the pressure point for the Iranians?

KING: I mean, we all know that economically and logistically the strait is really the linchpin, right? We need to have that. We need to control it, honestly, I think. But I mean, the President is smart.

BLACKWELL: When you say --

KING: I think -- I think --

BLACKWELL: -- we need to control it, you're saying the U.S. needs to control it?

KING: It needs to be open. It needs to be a free flow of oil containers, ships and that sort of thing. And I think that we understand that. And I trust America a lot more than I trust Iran --

BLACKWELL: Sure. But when you say --

KING: -- to conduct that. So we need to make sure that that is non- negotiable when in terms -- when -- in terms of free access through that strait, because that controls a lot of the oil throughout the world.

BLACKWELL: And when you say -- go ahead. Go finish your point.

KING: But there's a strategy behind it too, right? Right now Iran is allowing, you know, their allies to move up and down the strait. But we want to make sure that if it's -- if it's closed, it should be close to Russia, it should be close to China. But, you know, that's not the right move economically for global economics.

BLACKWELL: But what do you make of the President's point to Jonathan Karl of ABC News earlier in the week when he said if Iran is charging tariffs or charging a toll, maybe it'll be a joint venture and we can essentially, I'm paraphrasing here, get in on the action for the United States.

KING: Yes, I mean, lots of things are being thrown against the wall. I don't -- I don't -- I don't think it's -- it behooves America or it's even wise to take, you know, ideas or things you're throwing against the wall and say that, oh, that's our strategy going forward. No, no, it's not. It's an -- it's an idea, it's a thought. Several things are going to come up.

Like the general mentioned earlier, we're not at a ceasefire. I mean, this is not the end of this interaction. We are -- we're in negotiation. This is a fluid situation. And I mean --

BLACKWELL: Yes.

KING: -- you just -- you just can't think offset -- take offsets as our strategy.

HARRIS: Well, I agree with my colleague. But I will also say this. Prior to this war of choice that we actually in, everything was going through the Strait of Hormuz just fine. Matter of fact, Iran had never charged anybody. You freely went through it.

Everywhere else around the world you have to pay a toll. With that being said, because of this war chores that we're in, we have actually put the world in a worse position and potentially put the United States in a worse position. And like we mentioned earlier, these talks that actually happened in Pakistan is going to become very important because I think we're going to -- I know for a fact that we're going to win this war militarily, but we can lose this war politically because right now, the administration, every day they talk is a different goal, it's a different idea, it's a different strategy. So I'm not 100 percent sure when the vice president is in that room today, does he have the right piece of paper in front of his -- in front of him, or is President Trump going to say something different than what he actually has on a piece of paper?

BLACKWELL: Let me ask you this about domestic politics as we run out of time here. Marjorie Taylor Greene spoke this week. Of course, you were the Democratic nominee in the race to replace her, narrowed the gap dramatically. Here's what you said are the implications of your race.

[08:10:01]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE, (R) FORMER U.S. REPRESENTATIVE: I was never concerned about the 14th district of Georgia flipping blue, as some had said it could. I never thought that could happen. But I think Shawn Harris really did put a major dent in the -- in the election there. And I think that gives graver concerns to statewide elections in 2026, such as the governor's race, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, and also the Senate seat that is up for election in 2026.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: What do you say?

HARRIS: I would say first of all, that's the first time Marjorie Taylor Greene has ever said my name. And I will also say this, we will flip this seat in November because Democrats, Independents and Republicans are voting for me. And because they're -- this came into play, the Republicans got to spend a whole lot of money to keep me from winning it. And that's going to help other Democrats, not only here in Georgia, but throughout the United States.

BLACKWELL: And she mentioned your race for secretary of state. Do you think that -- that's in jeopardy of going blue?

KING: We're, we're on the same ticket this year. So I look forward to winning this secretary of state race. But no, I don't think he's in jeopardy. And as much as I respect the general, I don't really -- I don't really see the 14th going blue either. It's a ruby red district.

The Republican Party, especially if we can, you know, come to terms or end this engagement in Iran, if oil prices start to subside a little bit, we will have the momentum going into November, the Republican.

BLACKWELL: We will see the economic impact and how long they last. Consumer confidence at a record low in large part because of the inflationary elements caused by the war with Iran.

Kelvin, General, thank you both.

HARRIS: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: All right, more on the talks between the U.S. and Iran coming up. But first check out the smiles from the Artemis crew back on Earth after historic mission to the Moon. Pilot Victor Glover's father, Victor Glover Sr. is here with his first reaction.

Plus, I'll speak to the man who successfully proved his innocence after serving nearly 30 years in prison was inspired to run for office only to have his election win now at risk because Republicans in his state want to eliminate the office to which he was just duly elected.

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[08:17:06]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Integrity Splashdown. Sending post landing command now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Splashdown confirmed.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Copy Splashdown. Waiting on VLDR.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Copy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Splashdown confirmed at 7:07 p.m. Central Time, 5:07 p.m. Pacific Time.

From the pages of Jules Verne to a modern day mission to the Moon, a new chapter of the exploration of our celestial neighbor is complete. Integrity's astronauts back on Earth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Man, what a moment for the Artemis II crew and for humanity. And now the best countdown of the mission. The countdown to when the four astronauts will reunite with their families. And of course there's a countdown to our next mission to the Moon.

There are a lot of great quotes from this crew over the course of the journey, but one from Christina Koch really stands out. She was still near the Moon and they were asked what word they would use to describe the experience. And the woman, the sole woman on board, recognized the first who came before her.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINA KOCH, ARTEMIS II MISSION SPECIALIST: I'll be honest with you, the main word, because superlatives just don't do it justice is humility. We would never be here if it weren't for so many people that came before us, starting with Neil Armstrong, Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, civil rights movement leaders. We definitely didn't pass the record up here alone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Now, two women that Christina Koch mentioned, Katherine Johnson and Dorothy Vaughan, they were the hidden figures of the U.S. space program. Vaughan was NASA's black woman supervisor. She led the so called human computers. Katherine Johnson was one of those scientists and mathematicians who crunch numbers for missions while dealing with the systemic racism at NASA. And she calculated the trajectory for Neil Armstrong's mission to the Moon.

And from them there is a direct line to Victor Glover, now the first person of color to travel into deep space. And he talked about what that means. This was before headed out on the mission.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICTOR GLOVER, ARTEMIS II PILOT: That young brown boys and girls can look at me and go, hey, he looks like me, and he's doing what? And that's great, I love that. But I also hope we are pushing the other direction that one day we don't have to talk about these first. That one day this is just, and listen to this, that this is the human history. It's about human history.

It's the story of humanity. Not Black history, not women's history, but that it becomes human history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: With us now is Victor Glover's dad, Victor Glover Sr. Good to talk to you again, sir. Let me start here. Have you spoken with your son?

VICTOR GLOVER SR., FATHER OF ARTEMIS II PILOT VICTOR GLOVER: I have. He actually put a FaceTime call into me last night, so I can't tell you how exciting that was. I thought about being a child on Christmas day, walking down, seeing the Christmas tree and all the presents. So when that caller ID came through on my phone and I knew it was going to be him on the other end. The excitement was just unbelievable.

[08:20:09]

BLACKWELL: Now, this is not a first for you to talk to your son after splashdown or return on a glider. He's traveled to space several times. But what did you talk about? Give us some insight.

VICTOR GLOVER SR.: You know, it was. It was really more about just how was he doing? How was he feeling? He was still on the ship, the recovery ship. And it was just enjoyable having just a light conversation with him.

Him saying that he was feeling really, really good. And again, seeing that big smile that he always has on his face. And that's what made us feel good. So it was a -- it was brief call, but it was really nice to get that call and hear his voice and actually get a chance to see him.

BLACKWELL: So we talked just after the launch, and you told me that the entire family was there at Kennedy Space Center. You watched the launch. Now talk to me about where you were for splashdown. Set the scene.

VICTOR GLOVER SR.: So we attend a jazz event every year that's held at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, and it's called Earl Clue Weekend of Jazz. And we book it generally right after we finish the previous year's event. So this was something we had scheduled quite some time ago. So we're actually here in Colorado Springs at the beautiful Broadmoor Hotel. And the staff here has treated us like VIPs as a result of my son and the astronauts on this mission.

They set aside some space for us in one of their restaurants for us to have some big screens to be able to watch the splashdown. But the exciting part is that it reached so many people. As you heard the applause when they splashed down, the whole restaurant went crazy. So it wasn't just us. And when people saw us, we had our shirts on with my -- with my son's picture on it.

And so many people came up and shook our hand, said, congratulations, can we take a photograph with you? It was very, very, very exciting. And I don't think that word even does it justice.

BLACKWELL: I can imagine. And I'm glad the folks at the Broadmoor are treating you right because of your son's accomplishments. I want to play for you something that your son said. This is part of his Easter message. And I talked about this in the other show a little earlier today about just how many people were impacted by his words, especially in this climate here on Earth.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICTOR GLOVER: In all of this emptiness, this is a whole bunch of nothing. This thing we call the Universe, you have this oasis, this beautiful place that we get to exist together. I think as we go into Easter Sunday thinking about, you know, all the cultures all around the world, whether you celebrate it or not, whether you believe in God or not, this is an opportunity for us to remember where we are, who we are, and that we are the same thing, and that we got to get through this together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Inspired so many people. Proud Americans, proud fellow humans. Talk to me about the pride of a father, hearing your son say what he did on Easter. VICTOR GLOVER SR.: Well, I think when you and I spoke before, I said, you know, the word pride and proud just doesn't do it justice. He is an exceptional young man who's worked really, really hard to get to where he is today. And he really has a knack of being able to reach people, whatever the environment, whatever the circumstance, he can always come up with the -- with the right words to reach whatever the audience is. And in this case, I think he reached a worldwide audience and put a message out there that resonated with a lot of people around the world. And I think that clip has gone viral as a result of that, because he finds those words that come straight from his heart, and he speaks from his heart on a regular basis.

And in part of that mission, you know, I got the shout out from him for my happy birthday, which made me happy as well. But, yes, it's that pride, I think I had mentioned before. My chest was out to the Moon before they ever got there, and it's still out there right now. This was -- this was truly exceptional.

BLACKWELL: Victor Glover Sr., happy belated birthday to you. I've read somewhere it's also your wife's birthday was just passed as well. Congratulations to both of you. And hope we talk again.

VICTOR GLOVER SR.: Thank you, Victor. I appreciate you having me on.

BLACKWELL: Certainly.

All right. Talks are scheduled today in Islamabad at aimed at ending the war with Iran. Are we getting close to a peace deal or a return to war?

[08:25:01]

We'll get reaction from the leader of a group formerly known as Arab- Americans for Trump that has since dropped the president's name after some of his moves in the Middle East.

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BLACKWELL: Right now, Vice President Vance is in Islamabad, Pakistan. His mission is to firm up the ceasefire with Iran and work towards a peace deal. But if talks break down, President Trump is threatening to start bombing Iran again and harder.

Dr. Bishara Bahbah is with us. He's the chairman of a group called Arab-Americans for Peace, formerly known as Arab-Americans for Trump. And he was an interlocutor for discussions during ceasefire talks with Hamas last year.

[08:30:00]

Dr. Bahbah, welcome back to the show. Two lessons that you say have come out of this war so far. First, that Iran is not caved militarily or politically and is claiming victory. And second, that the world, its people and economies is worse off because worse off than before the war. Is there a win that's within reach for the U.S. today? You might have

heard what one of my guests, Sean Harris, said, is that the U.S. can win militarily but still lose this strategically.

BISHARA BAHBAH, CHAIRMAN, ARAB AMERICANS FOR PEACE: I don't think there is a win. I mean, first of all, this is a war that we should not have been in the first place. It was not our war. It was the United States being dragged by Netanyahu into this war, period.

Very much the same like the neocons were able to drag President Bush into destroying Iraq and killing 1 million Iraqis and at the same time losing so many U.S. lives and so much potential both in Iraq and the United States as a result of the war.

So this war was not necessary in the first place. The Strait of Hormuz was open prior to the Israeli-U.S. attack. And we have not had a situation where the Iranians really blocked the passage of oil ships through the Strait of Hormuz. Now Iran is claiming its right. One, to coordinate the passage of those ships, two, is to potentially charge fees for the passage of these ships in an international waterway that is not designated as a canal.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

BAHBAH: The canal needs upkeep. This international waterway does not need upkeep. So I don't see how the United States has won from this war.

BLACKWELL: So let me ask you this. On the point of you saying that the U.S. was dragged into this war, that the Prime Minister Netanyahu dragged President Trump into this war, let me play something for you that you told me on this show. This is May of 2024, during the campaign when you were the chairman and founder of Arab Americans for Trump. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BAHBAH: With those kind of promises coming from President Trump, whom we know very well, strikes fear in the heart of Benjamin Netanyahu. He is the only individual that can really affect Israeli policies at the present time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: And so then you said that it was Trump who would strike fear into the heart of Netanyahu. You tweeted this week, Bibi has proven yet again that he is capable of manipulating policymakers in D.C. to serve his destructive ambitions. You've long been critical of Prime Minister Netanyahu. You didn't name the president, but was the president played here?

BAHBAH: I believe that the president was plagued. And early on during the war, the president had admitted publicly that he was told that Iran was about to attack the United States. As a result, he went into this war. So I am not really sure what's going on. The story in Washington is not very clear. Clearly his advisers have

not told him with the exception of Vice President JD Vance, his advisers have not told him what he needed to hear. The consequences of such a war on the United States and to the region.

I mean, to my surprise, Iran attacked the entire region. And that was probably not calculated in Washington because they thought that by attacking Iran this time, Iran would retaliate against Israel and would not retaliate against Arab countries where U.S. bases are stationed.

BLACKWELL: Dr. Bahbah, I'm running low on time here, but I got to ask you the question. I've had you on three times since the inauguration and each time it was after the president broke a promise that he made to you during the campaign or equivocated on a point, whether it was ending the killing of civilians in Lebanon or his commitment to a two state solution, which he equivocated on since.

Do you regret your vote for the president? Do you regret getting other Arab Americans to vote for him?

BAHBAH: I can tell you that our community at the present time is up in arms. Our community is not happy with the current policies of this administration.

[08:35:00]

And our community is really lining up to vote potentially quite differently in the upcoming midterm election.

BLACKWELL: All right. Dr. Bishara Bahbah, always good to have you on for the conversation. Thank you so much.

BAHBAH: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: First of All is available as a podcast. Just scan the QR code below for more information. You can follow and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

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[08:40:03]

BLACKWELL: You might have missed this during the week, but it is important. The country's only black student government just lost that designation and its school funding. The Legion of Black Collegians was founded at the University of Missouri. This was 1968. But now the LBC and other identity groups at the school are being undone.

Here's the context. Ten years ago, the campus in mid Missouri was the battleground of one of the biggest social justice protest in the country at the time. The collective concern student 1950 led a months long protest against a slew of racist incidents at the school.

Nearly 60 members of the football team joined as one student led a hunger strike. It ended with the school president and chancellor stepping down. But diversity and inclusion measures put in place in the wake of those protests, those are slowly eroding.

This week, university president Mun Choi announced that he was eliminating funding for those identity organizations. Mun Choi said it violated Title VI rules and that could put the rest of the school's federal funding at risk.

Each semester, Undergraduate students paid $304.80 in fees, according to student newspaper The Meneater. Just under $5 of that went to funding the multicultural student organizations, which some students say wasn't enough to start with.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know how much funding is needed just to throw one event and just to make sure that our students are feeling safe and secure in being here at the campus. The money that they're giving us is just -- it's not enough. And I don't think it was ever considered that at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Well, those affected organizations will now have to register as recognized student organizations for any shot at funding. And there are more than 600 RSOs on the school's campus. So those funds aren't guaranteed. Of course, we'll keep an eye on this to see what comes next.

In a statement, the LBC promises. We're not going down without a fight. Mizzou, there is more to come.

Also not going down without a fight. A man named Calvin Duncan. You may remember his story. He spent nearly 30 years in prison before he was exonerated. His conviction for a 1981 shooting was tossed by a judge in 2021. Duncan found evidence that police officers lied to lied in court.

After his ordeal, Duncan got a law degree. He ran for office specifically to be the clerk of criminal court in New Orleans Parish. Basically the chief record keeper for New Orleans. And Duncan says he was motivated by the hurdles he went through to get the records he needed to prove his innocence.

Well, last November, he won. He got the job. He's scheduled to be sworn in on May 4th. Now, I say scheduled because Duncan may not have an office in which to be sworn. That's because Louisiana's governor and the GOP controlled legislature want to eliminate that role. They say it's in the name of efficiency.

Well, Calvin Duncan says it's actually retaliation, and he joins me now. Calvin, good morning to you. And I just want to start here with the Republican author of this bill who says that this is not personal. This is about efficiency. This is about Right sizing. All other parishes have one clerk. Orleans Parish has two. What do you say?

CALVIN DUNCAN, WON ELECTION FOR ORLEANS PARISHI CLEARK FOR CRIMINAL COURT: Well, it's not about either one of those. That office that I ran for in was overwhelmingly elected to be the clerk of the Criminal District Court in New Orleans. That office had been dysfunctional for many years. It's not until I actually won that now they want to merge all the offices.

This is about retribution. And during my election campaign, the Louisiana Attorney General, Liz Morrow, she wrote a public letter threatening me, saying that if I do not stop talking about my innocence and talking about the failures of the criminal legal system that she was going to actually take. She was going to take further action against me. And now this is the action that is being taken against me at this point.

BLACKWELL: Let me give some people some history here. You were in prison for 28 years in connection with the killing of David Yeager. In 2011 you were offered a deal, sentence of time served in exchange for a guilty plea of manslaughter and armed robbery. Then in 2021, a judge determined that you had been unjustly convicted, vacated your sentence, and according to the Associated Press, the state attorney general threatened to go after your law license and said there would be, as you said, further action during your campaign if you continue to call yourself exonerated and you believe that this is the further action that you are now eliminating the role to which you were elected because you continue to say you're exonerated.

[08:45:04]

DUNCAN: Exactly. I was totally exonerated. During my second year of law school, they passed a law in Louisiana that allowed people that had evidence of innocence to return back to the court with the exceptions with the prosecutor and the judge and my lawyer actually agreeing to present evidence and over and not considering whether the petition I obtained the evidence later like I did, they allowed me to go back to court and to be exonerated. And that is exactly what happened.

And for, you know, all the words in the world, why would attorney general have a problem with one word exonerated? I was totally exonerated.

Now the people of New Orleans has elected me to straighten out a clerk of court that has been losing evidence, causing people to be wrongfully convicted and throwing out the records in a trash can, in a dump, in the landfills. Now all of a sudden they want to merge the courts. It has nothing to do about efficiency. This is a message.

And what this is amount to is this is undemocratic. The great democratic process is you run for office. If a person is elected, the whole the government should honor the citizen's decision. But in my case, the governor is saying no. And now he has presented got the legislatures to present bills to abolish the whole the office. That's unacceptable. That amounts to fascism when a government doesn't agree with the will of the people.

And furthermore --

BLACKWELL: Yes. DUNCAN: -- the clerk of court in New Orleans is not just responsible for the records, criminal records, district court records, they're also responsible for the election. I would be the chief election officer.

BLACKWELL: Let me add this, that the AG Murrow says that she has no involvement in the elimination of the office just to get her side in, as I certainly hear what you're saying. Calvin Duncan, we will be watching this because when the governor signs this bill, if it gets to his desk, it will be effective immediately. No transition period. That office will be gone. Thank you so much for your time and explaining your story.

DUNCAN: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: All right, here's something you didn't expect you'd hear. OK, babies, now let's get information. Coming up, you'll hear from the founder of a music company that's turning Beyonce's album "Lemonade" into lullabies. And wait till you hear these reimagined songs. Got it for you next.

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[08:52:18]

BLACKWELL: Time flies. And this month we're coming up on 10 years since Beyonce's "Lemonade" album dropped. And of all the ways to pay tribute, I did not expect this to go so hard. It's a cover album with songs from "Hold Up," the "Freedom" reimagined as lullabies.

It's from a music company whose co-creator says she was working at a record label 20 years ago and found herself shopping for a baby shower gift. She wanted something musical but had trouble finding the right present. Well for Art is Life, I spoke with her about how that led to now getting babies in formation.

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LISA ROTH, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, ROCKABYE BABY: I'm Lisa Roth, I'm in Pasadena, California and I am the co-creator and brand manager of Rockabye Baby. Creating music that's for the adult but also the baby. We chose "Lemonade" because every once in a while we pick a full album cover to do. The first one was Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" and Lauryn Hill's "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill." We pick albums for this that we feel are iconic.

My marketing person at the time nominated "Lemonade" and we all went. Of course. This album was revolutionary in a thousand different ways. Freedom. Daddy lessons. My favorite track, I think is "Hold Up." The subject matter of this album alone is important and heavy and celebratory. We didn't want to diminish or belittle it at all.

And hopefully capturing the meaning of the song with a little lightness. We've created a great bridge between who you were, who you are now, and the baby is benefiting.

[08:55:05]

And you can share your favorite music with them from day one.

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BLACKWELL: Lisa tells me that Rockabye Baby now has more than 130 releases which have racked up more than 4 billion streams. Lullaby renditions of Beyonce's "Lemonade" available now. For more, check out rockabybabymusic.com.

If you head to my Instagram, you'll find a bonus Art is Life. The Masters are this weekend and we take a look at a new monument in Augusta that honors the black caddies. You can also keep up with me on the show on TikTok, X and Bluesky. You can listen to our show also as a podcast.

And tonight tune in to the series premiere of "Kara Swisher: Wants to Live Forever" as she explores the booming longevity industry. "Kara Swisher: Wants to Live Forever" premieres tonight at 9:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN and then tomorrow on the CNN app.

And before we go, some breaking news. The talks between Iran and the United States have begun in Islamabad. That's according to Iranian state media. It is unclear whether the negotiations are being conducted directly or through intermediaries. We'll of course follow it throughout the day.

Thank you for joining me today. I'll see you back here next Saturday at 8:00 a.m. Eastern. Smerconish is coming up after the break.

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