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Sources: Pentagon Lockdown Over, Was Due To False Alarm; Trump Threatens To Expand War, Hit Iran "Very Hard Tonight"; Minnesota GOP Congressman Trolls Minnesota Dem Senate Candidate. Aired 12-12:30p ET

Aired June 11, 2026 - 12:00   ET

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

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DANA BASH, CNN HOST, INSIDE POLITICS: We start with breaking news out of the Pentagon. A lockdown there is now over. Sources familiar with the matter tell CNN the evacuation was due to a false alarm. A Pentagon spokesman says building systems detected an air quality issue, triggering precautionary measures to determine the threat.

I want to bring in our CNN national security correspondent, Natasha Bertrand. Natasha, I know you've been working your sources. What are they saying about what happened?

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Dana. The sources are now telling my colleagues, Haley Britsky and Pamela Brown, that this does appear to have been a false alarm. Now, leading up to all of this, of course, the Pentagon was taking extreme precautionary measures to ensure that there was actually no threat to people inside the building.

There were hazmat teams on site because there was an air quality issue that was detected on multiple floors of the Pentagon and multiple corridors that were then evacuated. But now, we're being told that this was all precautionary, and that as of right now, field tests have not detected that there was an actual threat in the air, and that the entire thing does appear to have been a false alarm.

But we should note that the Pentagon Force Protection Agency's hazardous materials response team showed up in force, along with the Arlington Fire Department to ensure that there was no threat, and now, we're being told that people are beginning, at least, to stand down, but of course, they take these situations extremely seriously, because if there was some kind of airborne threat, obviously that would pose a huge risk to the thousands and thousands of people that work inside that building every day, Dana.

BASH: Yeah. Well, it is very good news, and we're very glad to hear it. And as you said, they take it seriously, as they should. Natasha, thank you so much for giving us the latest. I want to now go to CNN chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst, John Miller. John, just talk about the way that the Pentagon kind of snapped into this, and your experience in law enforcement in national security, and what led them to react the way they did? JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: Well, I mean, a lot of this is kind of the fallout of the anthrax attacks from just after 9/11 2001 when you know for years they were trying to get to the bottom of that case and trying to figure out what that threat was. But what it caused was to really expand the kinds of sensors that were put in secure government locations, the sensitivity levels that they were set to, to make sure that if there was something in the air, they would be detected early, if not immediately.

So, you know, here we are 24 years later and counting. When you see a sensor going off for a hazardous substance in the air, now Sean Parnell from the Pentagon, the spokesman, you know, told our people the Pentagon has sophisticated systems reading the air. And what are they hunting for? They're hunting for chemical agents, biological agents, anything that could be used in the past.

The difference with a chemical agent, maybe a cleaning fluid or even something sinister would be -- people would feel that immediately, they would be affected immediately. One of the problems with some of the threats that they assay, like anthrax, for instance, is that the effects aren't felt immediately. They're felt days or multiple days later. So, the detection of where is it -- is it here, why is the sensor sending an alarm, and we don't know that that's what the alarm was for.

I'm just giving, as you asked, examples of how these systems work, you know, would cause a response where they would -- they would do the full on response within the sector where that was detected, false positives are more common than -- then obviously the real sensor detecting something like that, but that's because the equipment is kept sensitive.

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One other thing is, and you might remember this, you know, when I was in the FBI at the Justice Department, everywhere in Washington, you know, under your desk, you had that bag with what they called an escape mask. And if there was an alarm like this, you were supposed to put that mask on and evacuate. Over time, you know, we've seen that fade away from a lot of those locations, as either people moved on and took the masks with them, or they expired or weren't replaced. I'm sure this is one of these things where they're going to look back on this incident and say, what do we need to update here?

BASH: John Miller, I was a producer on Capitol Hill when anthrax was sent to the offices of Senators Daschle and Leahy, and I was on antibiotics for two months because of fear of exposure. So, I remember that very, very well, and the protocols were not in place, and people were very much on edge because it wasn't long after 9/11, which is another thing that I've been thinking, watching the Pentagon.

The Pentagon, obviously, it was a long time ago, but there's got to be people in that building who still remember the horrible, horrible day of 9/11 2001, and the Pentagon, and the precautions are so important, and I just thank goodness that it was just a false alarm.

MILLER: Yeah. And today was all protocol, no hazard, and that's a good thing.

BASH: Yeah.

MILLER: It's never a good thing to have a false alarm, but it is a way to test the systems, maintain them, but it's also a way to see how did that response snap together? How did it work? Was it efficient? Was the evacuation right? Did people move out who self-evacuated? All of that is part of the learning that we got out of today, however inconvenient it might have been.

BASH: Yeah, and scary. John Miller, thank you so much. Really appreciate you being here, and thanks to Natasha as well. Actually, before you go, I do -- before we go to break, I was just told we have Sabrina Singh, who is, of course, our colleague here, a former Pentagon press secretary.

Talk about what was going through your mind when you saw this, and some of the protocols that you went through as somebody who worked in that building, which John Miller was talking about earlier, isn't just your average government office. I mean, it is a huge building, the size of a small city.

SABRINA SINGH, FORMER DEPUTY PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY & CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Yeah. I mean, the first thing that I was thinking about was how many people are working there every single day. I mean that building houses over, you know, 20,000 people on any given day going in and out of any office, and so there's so many people that work there.

And so, one of the things that I was thinking about is just the fact that the Pentagon is a planning organization. They are prepared to execute plans like this if an emergency like this ever happens to protect the people that work in that building, the personnel, but of course to ensure the safety and security of the secretary, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the other service secretaries as well.

So, there's a lot that, you know, when you think about, you know, drills that you go through, whether it's a fire drill or something more. This is what the Pentagon plans for. So, I have absolute faith in the people and the Pentagon police that are working this building to ensure the safety of the personnel that are there. But it obviously is disruptive, and we're learning more that, you know, this was a sensor malfunction. That's a good thing, but what they had to do was take these precautionary measures to ensure safety.

BASH: Yeah, no question. Thanks for jumping on with us. Appreciate it. We're going to sneak in a break. And on the other side, talk about the fragile ceasefire that seems to be no longer. President Trump is threatening to amp up strikes in Iran and take over Kharg Island. How willing is he to expand this war that doesn't have a lot of support with the American public right now? And later the White House is about to throw down. You'll see all the preps for what maybe the most unusual event ever held at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

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BASH: The war in Iran may be taking a sharp and more dangerous turn. This morning, President Trump is threatening to expand it, announcing the U.S. will hit Iran quote, very hard tonight. He's also floating one of the most consequential targets imaginable, Kharg Island, which is the oil hub at the heart of Iran's economy. Here's what he said about that on Fox this morning.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (voiceover): I don't know that America has the stomach for it, to be honest with you, you know, make a fortune, but I don't know that America has the stomach. I think they'd like to see us come home, but we did it with Venezuela.

I mean, I'd like to get a deal now less than three or four weeks ago, because you know, once you do this, you can just go a step further, but I don't know if America has the appetite to do what I would really much prefer doing.

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BASH: Here's what's going on. Sources tell CNN that President Trump is growing more and more furious, especially this week after he ordered new strikes in Iran. They say he felt both Tehran and the media didn't view U.S. military action as powerful enough. So, he ordered another round of strikes yesterday in the hopes of forcing Iran to come to the table in a way that they will accept a deal. But today he's still clearly frustrated that Iran doesn't seem to be taking the strike seriously, which is why he's raising the stakes again.

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I'm joined by a terrific group of reporters. First of all, let's just talk about the what and the why, if we can in the same. The what is, what are you hearing from your sources at the White House about whether or not the president is going to go ahead with these strikes on Kharg Island, which is an escalation that we haven't seen in a very long time.

ZOLAN KANNO-YOUNGS, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, THE NEW YORK TIMES & CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, you know, from what I'm hearing, yes, it matches that the president is getting more angry. He is getting more frustrated by this entire process. Now, we have also seen a familiar cycle, you know, for weeks now, now months, you know, during this war, apocalyptic threats, these very aggressive, you know, threats that range from wiping out of civilization to attacking critical infrastructure in Iran to also focusing on Kharg Island.

We have seen that before, followed by another statement that says, OK, we're getting close. Iran wants to make a deal, you know, looking more sort to the diplomatic route. But we haven't actually seen it amount to anything sort of tangible, when it comes to a breakthrough since that ceasefire agreement that now seems to be crumbling here.

What's going to happen? It has been unpredictable in terms of this cycle, but we are hearing that the president is incredibly frustrated here. There's also, you know, some tension in different factions. There are those that are concerned -- officials that are concerned about the depletion of long-range weapons, about the fact that actually taking Kharg Island would almost certainly involve ground troops being deployed as well, and you can see the president's comments thereof, will America stomach this. Polls show no, as well. So, the president has actually few options here as he moves forward and the frustration is growing up.

BASH: He's been pushing, pushing, pushing publicly for a deal in a way that I talked to one ally this morning, makes it so that Iran smells the desperation, which is why the further he pushes, the further Iran pushes back. There were some other sort of tells about the president's frustration in his interview with Fox this morning. He tends to, when he gets, you know, agitated and feels like he doesn't see a way out of whatever situation he's in, he goes after the media, and he talks more and more about rigged elections. Here's some examples.

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TRUMP (voiceover): The only thing they have is fake news. You know, they have the New York Times write stories like they're doing great and they're not. They've been wiped out. In 2020, I got more votes than anybody in history. Republican Party, and I got more votes, but the election was rigged. And the media is crooked. They're just like our elections. The media is crooked.

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BASH: I mean, seems to be, you know, the F1 on the computer for him, that's where he goes when things are going poorly.

JAMIE GANGEL, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT: Right, no question. One security official said to me, Trump is not bored, he's stuck, and the problem is, where does that lead to? And you know, welcome to negotiating with the Iranians, this is not easy. They are playing for time. There is real concern. I spoke to intelligence and national security experts about the president's statements. It would not be hyperbole to say, heads are exploding because Military 101, you do not forecast strikes, you don't give advance warning, you don't put our armed forces.

BASH: You mean, it's something that he has said, Jamie.

GANGEL: Right.

BASH: Time and time again, when people have said, what are you going to do, x, y, or z? I'm not going to tell you that only, you know, presidents before who have done that have made a mistake. We don't tell our enemies what we're going to do.

GANGEL: 100 percent. And big picture, there is real concern that even after all this time, President Trump does not understand the Iranian playbook. That, you know, the other day, J.D. Vance said weeks, months, maybe a year, that they could very well be playing for time. This is not to say that this has not caused great pain and suffering there. But there's also real concern I keep hearing that the president is not getting or listening to the kind of national security advice he needs because so many people have been pushed out.

BASH: That's interesting. Mike Johnson, the House speaker, was asked about the potential of going into either by strikes or with ground troops, Kharg Island. Here's what he said.

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REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): I think he's communicating directly with our adversaries over there that I would not -- I would not put too much stock in the details of it.

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BASH: No, no, no, it's just a negotiating tactic.

SEUNG MIN KIM, WHITE HOUSE REPORTER, AP & CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: It's kind of an incredible quote, because you know, we are supposed to take the president of the United States' word, especially when he makes these really serious threats in an ongoing war. But what the president -- or what, sorry, what the speaker seems to be signaling, and we should note that the speaker has met with the president several times. This week to talk about other issues, but I'm sure the issue of the war came up.

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He's signaling that this is sort of this, you know, three-dimensional chess negotiation play, but again, that doesn't, you know, we do need to underscore how serious of a move -- of a move that would be, particularly on Kharg Island, because if you know, aside from the reason why it's such a critical target, obviously being where all -- nearly all the oil exports go through, it's also very close to the mainland.

So, if you do have American troops there, it makes them very vulnerable to missiles, drone, other attacks from the Iranian mainland. And that is what the president is hinting at in his Fox interview that this is something that the Americans would not have the stomach for.

BASH: Listen to a little bit more of his interview on Fox, and specifically, his comments on American troops in other wars.

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TRUMP (voiceover): Remember in Iraq I said, don't go in, but they went in. They made a big mistake. It should have never let, you know, that war lasted 10 years, killed tens of thousands of people, millions of people on both sides, millions of people. Nobody ever reported that. We've lost 13 soldiers in two wars. In Venezuela, we lost none, took over the country. And in Ira -- in Iran, we lost 13. In Vietnam, we lost hundreds of thousands, 19 years. Nobody says that. They say you've been there for three months, three months.

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JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Look, long wars begin in small increments, in one hundred days, two hundred days, and we're not suggesting that this is going to be the duration or severity of Vietnam. Let's certainly hope not, or Iraq, or Afghanistan, but he did campaign against forever wars and that's how wars start. So far easier, more than a hundred days ago, to get into this than it is to get out. And to Jamie's point about him being stuck, I think that is a very apt word here, and he has made clear so many times, almost ending.

He's talking to the markets in some respects. He's talking to Republican voters. He's talking to farmers, almost done. The gas prices are coming down, but the reality here is Iran is watching every word of this. And to your point, Dana, about how they know that he is eager to make a deal, that is the case. I mean, Iran has all the time in the world in some respects, and he does not, and that's why he's becoming increasingly desperate in some things that he's saying. But the bottom line is there's an escalation, and that is not, probably what he wants, but that is what he's getting.

BASH: And the other dynamic that I don't want to lose sight of here is you mentioned the markets is the economy and the pain that the American people are feeling. We have even more evidence. Today, we saw evidence that wholesale inflation is up to 6.5 percent, the highest since November of 2022, and its outpacing wages. Check this out. I'll just give you a sense of what we're talking about.

If you look, I think you have the graphic. There you go. The red line is inflation, the orange line is wages, so this is not the direction you want either of those to go in. You have the inflation going up, you have wages going down, and we all know with our lives that is makes much, much more -- much more difficult to live everyday lives, and that is part of the pressure point that the president is feeling.

OK, coming up. It's brazen, it's calculated, it reveals so much about this election season. You're going to see how far politicians will go to gain an edge when Inside Politics continues next.

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BASH: OK, we're going to really go Inside Politics here and talk about this ex-post that caught our attention. Here's what you need to know first. There's a really competitive Democratic primary in the Minnesota Senate race. On one side is Congresswoman Angie Craig, she's running as a moderate. On the other is Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan, who's liberal. She's been endorsed by Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Ilhan Omar. You get it.

Most Republicans would rather run against the liberal, against Flanagan. So, with that in mind, check out this post from yesterday. It's Minnesota Republican Tom Emmer. He's in leadership, the majority whip. He says, always great to see my friend Angie Craig. She's one of the few Democrats willing to work across the aisle to get important legislation like Laken Riley Act across the finish line.

We got the feeling that was an entirely sincere. So does Angie Craig, a reporter for the Minneapolis Star Tribune says, Craig told her, Emmer posted it to boost Flanagan, and that Emmer's press team was in the room, ready to capture that hug on camera. These two are not known to be friends. They had an infamously heating -- heated exchange on the floor of the House of Representatives.

Look at that. That was back in January after federal agents shot and killed Renee Good in her car. Politics, man?

ZELENY: For sure. Sometimes minister nice is not so nice, but the reality here is this Senate race is one to keep an eye on. The voters of Minnesota know Angie Craig and Peggy Flanagan. The Democrats are not going to be likely swayed by something that Tom Emmer does, but it certainly raises the point that this is one of those primaries that has yet to be decided. I think in August, there are the primary.

But I remember back in the day, when home state members of either side, kind of like stayed out of races, that is obviously no longer the case.

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