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Quest Means Business
Wedding Celebrations Underway for Amazon's Jeff Bezos; Study Finds Most People Under 45 Experienced Financial Hardship; Anna Wintour Stepping Down as Longtime Vogue Editor. Pentagon Defends Iran Strikes, Says Mission Went as Planned; Q1 GDP Shrank 0.5 Percent, More Than Initial Estimate; Spain and Trump Clash Over NATO Defense Spending Target. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired June 26, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:09]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": Closing bell ringing on Wall Street, and I believe we have a record high on the S&P 500,
which is extraordinary bearing in mind. Look at that green across the screen as they say. I'm sorry. Wah-wah-wah-wah. It is settling below the
record, but I will let you know authoritatively one way or tother as we move forward.
Those are the markets and the main events you and I are going to chew over.
The Trump administration is standing by claims that U.S. strikes obliterated Iran's nuclear program.
The President is making tariff threats to Spain over its NATO spending. Tonight on this program, the Spanish Economy Minister.
And the wedding in Venice, Jeff Bezos' lavish Venetian wedding. We will talk about that and the protesters.
We are live in London. It is Thursday, June 26th. I am Richard Quest. And I mean business.
Good evening.
At any moment now, President Trump will host a rally that's supporting his so-called big beautiful bill. The administration says it expects the
President to sign his domestic policy agenda into law by July the 4th. Now, that's next week, this is despite recent setbacks in the Senate. So there
is a question of A, whether it is possible? And B, is it probable?
Pentagon officials are now saying that the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites went according to plan as they laid out new details of the attack.
They also criticized the media for reporting early intelligence, suggesting that the sites were not obliterated.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE HEGSETH, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE SECRETARY: In hunting for scandals all the time, in trying to find wedges and spin stories, this press corps
and the press corps miss historic moments.
Whether its fake news CNN, MSNBC, or "The New York Times," there has been fawning coverage of a preliminary assessment. I've had a chance to read it.
Every outlet has breathlessly reported on a preliminary assessment because you want him not to be successful so bad you have to cheer against the
efficacy of these strikes. You have to hope maybe they weren't effective. Maybe the way the Trump administration has represented them isn't true.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Stephen Collinson is in Washington.
Stephen, was I watching a Fox commentator or was I watching the Defense Secretary of the United States? It is, of course, noticeable that he didn't
mention his former network as the critics, because maybe they weren't commenting on that particular initial report. But it wasn't a particularly
edifying sight.
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: No, it was rather a pantomime, in fact. That performance, I think, was designed mostly for the
President himself, and to be chopped up into little soundbites that could go on conservative media and social media for the White House to attack the
media.
I think the problem here is this: The President came out while the planes were still aloft, and declared that the raid had totally obliterated Iran's
nuclear program. That's not what presidents usually do after a raid, a military action. They wait to get the intelligence.
During that Hegseth briefing, there was a much more interesting presentation by General Dan Caine, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff. He did give more details about exactly how the bombs were targeted, what the ventilation shafts that went down at Fordow and he made a much
more conclusive case that this might have done a lot of damage. But at the same time, as yet, the administration has given no evidence that this
nuclear plant was eradicated or obliterated as the President said.
A lot of this is politics. A: Trump wanted a massive win and he wanted the credit. B: If this wasn't a success, everyone's going to ask, okay, so are
you still -- are you going to go back and will the war start up again?
QUEST: Will we ever find out? So I know that's a difficult question for anyone to answer, but is it likely that we will find out the full extent?
Because the IAEA says that serious damage was done that may have put the Iranians back by decades, and they're doing -- they are basing their
assessment purely on, if you will, common sense of the amount of bombs and what they known that can be done -- that can be done with them.
COLLINSON: I think we are going to get more information as the months go by. The intelligence agencies have got a lot of tools here that they can
use, not just surveillance, but human intelligence.
[16:05:07]
The Israelis seem to have penetrated the Iranian nuclear program right from the start. I think the question is, what happened to that uranium that the
IAEA said was taken out of Fordow? Is there another secret Iranian plant we don't know about? That, I think is the real question here even though
everyone is getting excited about what the bombs did in Fordow and the other plants.
It was interesting actually, today that the Pentagon briefing, they didn't talk about Esfahan and Natanz, the other plants that were hit. So that does
lead you to believe that perhaps those strikes weren't as successful as the President said as well.
QUEST: Good to talk to you, sir. We will wait and hear more and we will analyze further. Thank you.
So to our nightly business agenda. New economic data shows signs of weakness as President Trump implements major policy shifts. GDP growth in
Q1 was revised lower, showing an even bigger loss than earlier estimates.
Markets are shrugging it off. Stocks are at record highs. I don't know -- are we at records? I am just -- we are very close if we are not.
ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: We're just shy of a record close for the S&P 500, which is quite extraordinary on a day where GDP is revised down,
declining half a percent in the first quarter. What will it take to move markets, Richard? It was only the beginning of April that you and I were
talking about bear market territory, a complete shift for equities and potentially, you know, should we all be getting out of various investments?
QUEST: But what has changed? I mean, lets -- the market sentiment. Let's put that to one side for a second. The economic fundamentals are they are
not dreadful, but they are deteriorating.
STEWART: So if we look at consumer sentiment, it is tepid. If we look at economic growth, it is slow. Now we could say maybe that's because there
was front loading of imports in the U.S. because of people worrying about tariffs. We can excuse it.
But we can point to inflation. It is not terrible, but it is not great. This isn't a booming economy. This isn't the economy that you would expect
to see record highs in equities. So the question is why? There is still a trade war going on, 10 percent on practically everything from everywhere,
30 percent on China, 25 percent on metals in less than two weeks.
QUEST: And the Fed says or Jay Powell says that we haven't really seen the effect of the tariffs that is expected in the next few weeks and months.
STEWART: Which is why there is no rate cut yet, because while inflation maybe hasn't quite come through, there is an expectation, at least from the
fed chair, that it could still come through.
QUEST: So answer your own question, why is the market off to the races?
STEWART: I think we can point to tech. We can point to earnings. We can point to NVIDIA, for instance, being, you know, going gangbusters and A.I.
boom, or perhaps investors just aren't concerned. Perhaps the TACO trade of Donald Trump means that people don't take the trade issues, the trade war
seriously, because in less than two weeks' time, the pause on the so-called Liberation Day tariffs that comes to an end.
QUEST: And as far as I can tell --
STEWART: One trade deal.
QUEST: One trade deal and not a particularly good one.
STEWART: Not a good one, and a sort of loose truce with China and that's it. That's all, folks. That's all we have right now.
QUEST: Thank you. We'll talk more.
The U.S. dollar is falling amid concerns over the independence of the Federal Reserve. "The Wall Street Journal" says President Trump could name
a replacement for Jay Powell well before his term is up, Jay Powell's, not the President.
Mr. Trump apparently has repeatedly criticized Powell for not lowering rates. There you see, the way the currencies have moved.
Mohamed El-Erian is the president of Queens College at Cambridge University. He joins me now.
Gosh, there is too much for us to talk about tonight. We shall tackle it head on.
First and foremost, what is driving this market higher in seeming against the headwinds of mediocre numbers? And now the question is perhaps a shadow
Fed.
MOHAMED EL-ERIAN, PRESIDENT, QUEENS COLLEGE AT CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY: So you would have heard the saying the market isn't the economy, and the economy
isn't the market. So market participants are focusing on the health of the corporate sector and a handful of companies in particular that are going
from strength to strength.
They are also making a very interesting distinction between corporate U.S. where there is enormous trust and sovereign U.S. where there is concern
about the dollar and there is concern about U.S. Treasuries.
QUEST: The markets are not the economy and vice versa. But at some point they coalesce or collide and I am guessing that's the issue, if you will,
the hangover of the market.
EL-ERIAN: Correct. They will collide if the economy slips into recession. The Fed just lowered its growth projections from 1.7 to 1.4.
[16:10:05]
One point four is good enough for the corporate sector. If, however, we get below one, then you will start hearing that the economy can have and will
have an impact on the market.
QUEST: So why have I got this feeling, you know that there is something rotten out there, that there is something waiting to go wrong, that the
market is overvalued, not justified on its current fundamentals and therefore, the smart money, like Buffett a few months ago, got out.
EL-ERIAN: Correct. And you know, there are three drivers. And right now, two are telling you to be careful. One is telling you stay in there. The
first one that's telling you to be careful is fundamentals. The economy is not weak, but it is weakening. The second thing that's telling you to be
careful is the valuations levels. They are high.
However, technical, the willingness of people to put money in the market because they're not sure where else to go is proving to be stronger than
the first two and we often are in phases, Richard, where these technical can take control of a market for a while.
Ultimately, fundamentals assert themselves. Valuations assert themselves. That can take time.
QUEST: Where do you stand on this debate within the Fed? I mean, Chair Powell will not or does not want to find himself on the wrong side of his
own FOMC. But with two members now breaking ranks, the chair is still saying no, no reason to cut rates just yet. Where do you stand?
EL-ERIAN: So I will answer the policy question in a minute. But I am very worried about the politics. So first you mentioned two Republican leaning
Central Bankers who suddenly, almost out of nowhere, want July to be live, want the Fed to consider a cut in July that came out of nowhere. And people
are asking, is that political?
Second, you mentioned it: The possibility that President Trump appoints a Fed shadow chair, which undermines the authority of the current chair, and
then linking to policy, there is the concern that Chair Powell himself is now playing politics, that he wants to go down as the Central Banker who
defended Fed independence and doesn't want to be seen cutting rates because of pressure from President Trump.
So the risk here is that monetary policy will stay too tight for too long, Richard.
QUEST: It is just impossible. Look, I look -- I wish we were back to the old days, sell in May and go away. I mean, no one can go on holiday at the
moment with any -- what -- I remember your advice at the beginning of the last crisis, which is don't take any irrevocable decision. Don't do
anything that you could live to regret, that you can't put right. That still is good advice, but I suggest it has become harder when valuations.
I mean, you want -- one wants to be in this market.
EL-ERIAN: Yes, and many are, I understand, you know when the trend is your friend and other things. The market has been conditioned to fade any
geopolitical shock and it did. It bounced back so quickly from Israel's attack on Iran at a speed that no one expected, but it did. It bounced
straight back up, let alone how quickly we've bounced back from what you were talking with Anna, which is, of course, the Liberation Day
announcement.
This market has very favorable technical for now.
QUEST: And on that note, we will say thank you, sir, and wish you a good weekend when we finally get there and a good holiday when you finally take
one. Thank you.
Mohamed El-Erian joining us from Cambridge, thank you.
EL-ERIAN: Thank you.
QUEST: Thank you very much indeed.
Now Donald Trump is clashing with Spain over NATO spending. Spain's Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo, there he is. He will be with me next to discuss
where the country stands, in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:17:03]
QUEST: This week, Donald Trump turned his attention and singled out Spain over the country's NATO spending commitments. Spain won't commit to
increasing spending to five percent of GDP. In fact, it is barely at the previous level, two percent, almost never makes it.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez says, two percent, in his words, are sufficient, realistic and compatible with the welfare state. Donald Trump,
the President of the United States, says Madrid is looking for a free ride.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Oh, I think Spain -- terrible what they've done. No, I do. They are the only country
that won't pay the full up. They want to stay at two percent. I think it is terrible.
And, you know, they're doing very well. The economy is very well. And that economy could be blown right out of the water with something bad happening.
You know, Spain is the only country that -- are you from Spain? Good. Congratulations. You're the only country that is not paying. I don't know
what the problem is.
I think it is too bad. So we will make it up. You know what we are going to do? We are negotiating with Spain on a trade deal. We are going to make
them pay twice as much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Now, obviously, it is not clear how the U.S. can put tariffs on Spain because trade is the purview of the European Union and the E.U.
negotiates on behalf of all members and Spain's top exports include things like cars and car parts, pharmaceuticals, refined oils and various meat --
pork products.
The President could -- could -- tariff Spanish specialties like Iberian ham, black olives, and that's hardly going to make a massive difference to
the trade imbalance.
Carlos Cuerpo is the Spanish Economy Minister. He joins me now.
Minister, thank you.
Youve almost had a mafioso warning. You have a very nice economy, sir. It would be a shame if something nasty happened to it. You're on notice.
CARLOS CUERPO, SPANISH ECONOMY MINISTER: Well, as President Trump said, actually, Spain is performing -- outperforming its peers in terms of
growth. We were the fastest growing major advanced economy last year in 2024, and that's also the case for 2025, as foreseen by the IMF or the
OECD, as well.
But let me go back to NATO and the Spanish commitment, because I think it is an important element to really clarify.
There are two elements in the discussion, if you allow me, Richard. So the first one is how to split the cost of refilling NATO capabilities. And on
that front, Spain of course, will pay its fair share.
And then the second question is by how much does each and every country want to spend in defense and security? What percentage of its GDP? So what
Spain will do is as we've been doing for the past few years, so it is actually make those things compatible. Pay our fair share in terms of NATO
capabilities.
And at the same time defend our welfare state and also continue with our investments that are actually fostering growth.
[16:20:03]
QUEST: There is a problem with that strategy, sir. And it is this: First of all, there is the number of two percent that people sign on to. Now there
is the new number of five percent which people -- the U.K. and everybody is signing onto to 2030 and beyond.
You are equivocating. You are basically saying, well, we are not sure. Two percent is fine and certainly not five percent. That is not what this is
about at the moment.
CUERPO: Well, let me agree to disagree with you, Richard. So it is not that much about the two or the five percent. The way these is actually
calculated in NATO is first, you look the number of threats that NATO allies will actually face over the course of the next four years. Then you
look at what capabilities do we have now to face those threats and what increase in capabilities we need to provide for so that we all can protect
ourselves.
And you divide that increase amongst member states, and each and every one has to pay its fair share. That's what we are saying. We will pay our fair
share and we translate that into the amount that it will provide for Spain in terms of percentage of GDP. It amounts to 2.1 percent of GDP. It could
be another number.
So it is not that we are looking for the two percent. It is that, providing for our fair share will be -- actually will lead towards that spending, 2.1
percent of GDP.
QUEST: I guess we are talking about presentational issues here and the fact is the feeling is the -- you know, you get a NATO Summit and everybody
comes along and says, yes, we are going to do it, five percent, and you come along and say, well, not so fast.
But are you worried that the President is going to target Spanish exports and the trade relationship?
CUERPO: Well, again, let me go back to what I just said. Spain will be a reliable partner within NATO and we will pay our fair share.
And then when it comes to trade, as you said yourself before, the current negotiations are between the E.U. -- the European Union and the United
States, because we, European Union countries are a customs union and of course, as you know, the negotiating capabilities are within the European
Commission.
QUEST: The economy, you're right, is doing well and we are about to enter the summer and the holiday. In fact, I am going on holiday myself in Spain,
and excellent holidays they are, too. And I am just -- you know, the Spanish economy has recovered better than anybody expected or thought it
would.
What policy do you now need to put in place to ensure the sustainability of that growth?
CUERPO: Well, that's a great question actually. Now, that we look at the Spanish figures, as you said, we've been outgrowing and outpacing our peers
and going forward, what we look at is that maintaining the balanced growth model that we have, because this ensures sustainability. We have a very
competitive external sector, great figures in terms of labor and job creation, in terms of the labor market. And also, we've been fiscally
responsible.
So this is a way for us to square the circle and ensure that with increases in productivity, this will lead the way towards being -- also maintaining
this strong growth momentum going forward.
QUEST: Minister, I am grateful as always, sir. Thank you for taking time tonight and we will talk more.
CUERPO: My pleasure.
QUEST: Always kind to have you on the program. Thank you.
CUERPO: And enjoy your time in Fuengirola.
QUEST: Oh, I shall indeed. I shall indeed. I will send you pictures. There will be pictures on the program. Thank you very much. Or maybe not me on
the beach, it is not the sort of thing you want to see in the evening.
President Trump is speaking at a Big, Beautiful Bill event. We will join him for a moment or two.
TRUMP: Russell Vought, thank you. Thank you. Russ.
(APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: And also, I want to give a very special thank you, this is a hell of a group we have here. This is amazing, the quality of people. But actually,
I like these people and most of those people much better than the people I just named, okay.
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: But a very special thanks as well to Speaker Mike Johnson, whose great, legendary guy. He is going to go down as a legend.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: A great friend of mine, the fantastic Senator Roger Marshall, wherever you may be. Roger, thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you.
Bernie Moreno, great win Bernie had in Ohio. Bernie, great win.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: That was a tough race. They said that was not winnable anyone by about five points. So that was pretty good. So much for not winnable.
Mike Lee is here. Mike, hi, Mike. Thank you, Mike.
(APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: Tim Sheehy, another tremendous win. Way to go, Tim. Young and handsome. That was another race that wasn't supposed to be able to be won.
They said we have a very young handsome guy. I said does that matter. Looks don't matter, do they, Mike? Looks -- anyway, great --
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: Great job. You can't help it. You can't help it. Great. That was a great race.
[16:25:01]
Along with Representatives Paul Gosar, Greg Murphy, Tom Kean, Jen Kiggans, Rob Bresnahan who is a -- where is Rob? Stand up. Rob. Let me see you.
Good. He has done a fantastic job.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: And Ryan Mackenzie. Thank you, Ryan. Thank you all. That's great.
It's a big group of people.
We are here this afternoon to share the stories of an incredible group of patriots from across the nation whose future we are defending with the one
Big, Beautiful Bill. This is the ultimate codification of our agenda to very simply, a phrase that has been used pretty well by me over the last 10
years, but maybe even before that, Make America Great Again, very simple, Make America Great Again.
When Joe Biden used to get up and say, we will stop this horrible MAGA, we are going to stop MAGA, we're going to fight it. We're going to slice it. I
said, Joe, loosen up. It is called Make America Great Again. It's okay.
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: Remember, he got up so angry. He was so angry. I said, Make America Great Again, but we will deliver a record tax cut, a record spending cut, a
record investment in border security. We've done so well on the border.
You know, last month we had zero people that crossed the border, zero.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: So Kristi and Tom Homan and some of the people, what a job you've done. What a -- but you know, people forget about that. They don't care
that the border has been fixed. I wanted to talk about the border two days ago at a big group. Sir, they don't want to hear about the border. Why?
It's fixed. You know?
It is the second time it happened to me. In 2016, I won on the border. I fixed it in about three months. It was beautiful. And they wouldn't let me
talk about the border. Sir, nobody wants to hear about the border.
But we are going to talk about it anyway, right, Tom Homan? We are talking about it anyway.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: So we have a big number of dollars that's coming here because we want to keep it that way, and we want to keep it fixed.
And a record number of deportations. We are bringing criminals out by the thousands. Nobody can even imagine. They let people in that were murderers,
11,888 murderers, gang members, people from mental institutions and insane asylum. You know what that is? That's insane asylum. That's a mental
institution on steroids.
And during the campaign, I talked about the late, great Hannibal Lecter. Do you know who that is? Hannibal Lecter? "Silence of the Lambs."
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: I talk about it and the fake news would go crazy. Why does he keep mentioning -- well, because we won in a landslide, that's why.
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: They don't want to have -- they don't want to have Hannibal in our midst and the day I signed this bill into law, almost every major promise
made in the 2024 campaign already will have become a promise kept and that's very important.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: Promises made, promises kept.
And according to the Council of Economic Advisors, these reforms will protect or create more than seven million jobs, add 3.1 percent to economic
growth, reduce taxes for the typical American by nearly 15 percent, and increase take home pay for the normal family of four by at least $13,000.00
and that takes place immediately. That's not bad, right? Look, I am looking at that guy back there, right? That's pretty good.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: And if we had a person over at the Fed that would lower interest rates a little bit, that would be helpful, too. It is hard to believe. This
is on top of, you know, we have to fight this guy. He is not doing the job.
Each point that he keeps it up is the equivalent of $300 billion, $300 billion. So if he lowered it two, it would save $600 billion. We have to
work hard with cuts on that, right? That's a lot of cutting and this guy could do it so easily. We don't have inflation.
Well, we might have inflation. Yes and if you do you raise the rate a little bit. That's okay. But we are going out because Biden gave us a lot
of short term debt. And given that short term debt, he did us no favor. So I think what we will do is, we will probably just extend the short term
debt and then go out, because I don't want to tie it up for 10 or 15 years at a high rate.
But every point is three, it is really more, it is $300 billion, so if we got it down to one percent, we are talking about almost a trillion dollars
in savings just with the stroke of a pen. No work, no missing anything, just like an accounting situation.
Oh, Doug Collins, I just see, Doug. Did I mention you, Doug? I don't think so, but I am glad I saw you. I am glad that -- somebody is going to be in
big trouble with you. They didn't write your name down, Doug.
(LAUGHTER)
TRUMP: Somebody is in big -- somebody -- somebody is in -- I got you. So we think of that, though.
We save -- and all you have to do is so simple. I am explaining to this guy and --
[16:30:12]
QUEST: President Trump in rare form there, talking on immigration. But I think I want to just focus on what he's talking about with interest rates,
because he's once again bashing the Fed chair, Jay Powell, for not cutting rates. And he says, you know, if he lowers them by 1 percent, they save
$300 billion in interest payments. And he's making the point of how much could be saved.
What I think is interesting of what the president said is he did acknowledge that if rates came down and inflation resurged, then he said,
well, you just put them back up a bit again. And so the pressure is definitely there. President Trump, we didn't really learn much about the
big beautiful bill there other than it's wending its way through the Senate.
QUEST MEANS BUSINESS tonight, the parties have begun for the Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, and his fiance, Lauren Sanchez. A short time ago, the
couple waved to onlookers as they left for the start of three days of celebrations. Celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, the Kardashians, Ivanka
Trump, Bill Gates, et cetera, all spotted there. In addition to the parties, there have been numerous protests at the extravagance of the
nuptials and the celebrations.
Now, Venice is a familiar place to "World of Wonder." A few years ago, I got a firsthand look at the city's challenges, as well as the beauty of the
place.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: There are three things people always say about Venice. The first, that there are too many tourists. The second that it's very expensive. And
the third that it's facing an existential crisis. It's literally sinking into the ground.
Now, all those three may well be true, but when I look at this view, those qualms disappear.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Melissa is with me, from Venice.
Melissa, good evening to you. What I was just talking about on my visit there is all true, and it seems as if Jeff Bezos's wedding celebrations has
absolutely split people right the way down the middle on where they stand.
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And people who are defending the causes that you speak of, protesting this
wedding and all that it brings, have brung their -- held several protests over the course of the last few days, Richard. And there's one going on
even now here in San Marcos Square. Just like to show you there on the clock tower, "No space for Bezos."
This is one of the local groups that have really started their protest over the course of the last three weeks. They've been joined, of course, by
Greenpeace, lots of climate change activists, extinction rebellion, were here on San Marcos Square earlier. All of them attracting attention to
their causes. And this group, "No Space for Bezos," is particularly focused on things like housing that here in Venice is too expensive. The ecological
concerns that you mentioned a moment ago.
Richard, you are quite right. This is an event, 200, 250 people who've been invited to this wedding that absolutely divides people between those who
are furious about Venice being used as a backdrop and those who are just happy to enjoy the show.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ivanka.
BELL (voice-over): Italy's floating city of love flooded with A-list celebrities. From Ivanka Trump to Oprah Winfrey and Kim Kardashian, they're
all descending on a sweltering Venice for the multi-million-dollar wedding of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and former news anchor Lauren Sanchez. Other
big names include Tom Brady, Orlando Bloom and Mick Jagger.
Details of the nuptials are shrouded in secrecy, but we believe that 30 of the city's elite water taxis have been booked for the occasion, which is
unfolding from Friday through Saturday, as well as every yacht port. Several accommodation venues have also been reserved for the 200 or so
guests, including five Venetian luxury hotels and the Madonna dell'Orto Church, where Reuters reports the first night's open air festivities are
taking place on Thursday.
Bezos's $500 million superyacht Koru was expected to be one of the main wedding locations, but it's just too big to be allowed anywhere near the
city's most scenic waterways and will be anchored in the Venice lagoon instead. Some local officials in Venice are taking it all in their stride.
LUIGI BRUGNARO, VENICE, ITALY MAYOR (through translator): We're used to having weddings and celebrations. We had the G7 last year, the Holy Father
came. This is a city that was born to do diplomacy and trade. This is the history of Venice. The meeting of people and cultures.
BELL (voice-over): But not everyone is celebrating. Activists from Greenpeace rolled out a massive banner in San Marcos Square on Monday,
criticizing the lavish extravaganza.
[16:35:03]
Tommaso Castellari leads the "No Space for Bezos" protest group.
TOMMASO CACCIARI, ORGANIZER, "NO SPACE FOR BEZOS": When you see Venice not as a city anymore, but as a big theme park, a big kind of private
dancehall, where you can just hire parts of it or, like in this case, all of it, is exactly the problem. The message of this wedding party is that I
am super rich and I can buy all Venice.
BELL: Altogether, the festivities are expected to cost somewhere between $46 million and $55 million. That's according to the president of Venice's
local government.
In the last few days, the couple have reportedly donated to several charitable foundations here in Venice devoted to architectural and cultural
preservation. And according to a portion of the wedding invitation that was broadcast by ABC's "Good Morning America," they've suggested that guests
not bring gifts, saying rather that donations will be made to these causes on their behalf.
(Voice-over): For now, all eyes are on the tech billionaire and his bride, and whether or not they'll be able to tie the knot in relative peace.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BELL (on-camera): One thing is for sure, Richard, they will be doing it in stifling heat. It was 90 degrees today, and whilst there are a few flashes
up there in the sky, we expect that to continue over the next few days. Scorching sun that will accompany not just the festivities, Richard, but
also the protest. The main one is expected on Saturday when protesters are going to march from the train station of Venice to the town center.
Already there, they say that they've scored a victory in that the main events of Saturday have already moved outside of the city center to a
location where it's easier to keep them away, so determined where they to disrupt this event -- Richard.
QUEST: Melissa in Venice. Lovely, wonderful city. Thank you. Good to see you.
Now, in a moment, the fashion industry's latest shake up, "Vogue's" longtime editor-in-chief is giving up the reins. But exactly what is Anna
Wintour giving up? It doesn't sound like she's going far, as we'll explain in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: All this week on our regular series, "Call to Earth," we're on the Great Barrier Reef. We're following the work of the marine biologist Emma
Camp and her Coral Nurture Program.
[16:40:04]
It's all part of the Rolex Perpetual Planet initiative. Her team uses an innovative machine determining in real time which species of coral are the
strongest and target for reef restoration.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dr. Emma Camp is on her way to the very outer reaches of the Great Barrier Reef to find
heat-tolerant super coral.
DR. EMMA CAMP, CORAL NURTURE PROGRAM: For this particular trip, we focused on six different coral species and we'll take about 10 to 20 samples from
each of those that we'll then bring back to the lab and analyze.
WEIR (voice-over): This is Opal Reef, perched near the edge of the Australian continental shelf. It stretches 10 kilometers long yet it is
only a tiny part of the world's largest marine habitat.
CAMP: So I'm currently 28 weeks pregnant, so that means no diving for me on this trip. But luckily I have an amazing team who will be leading a lot of
the in-water activities.
WEIR (voice-over): This research trip is being led by Christine Roper, a former student of Emma's.
CHRISTINE ROPER, POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHER, UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, SYDNEY: So the idea is that we are going to be collecting six species of corals
from the shallows and the deep. I think we're probably going to aim for about a fist size for all of the fragments that we need for the various
analyzes.
WEIR (voice-over): It's her first major project since she finished her PhD in 2024.
ROPER: So what I'm hoping to achieve with this research is that we would find that we can identify coral species and coral individuals with greater
heat tolerance but that are still able to maintain other traits that are really critical. We want them to be fast growers. We want them to provide
good habitat for other organisms living on the reef.
WEIR (voice-over): If the species are found to be super, that is, they can thrive in harsh conditions, the Coral Nurture Program will prioritize
growing them on their nurseries.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you get excited for days like this?
ROPER: Yes, definitely. Like trust in the team and know your species and you might have to pivot a little bit. But, yes, it usually works out.
CAMP: Getting in the water, getting out to site is my favorite part of the job. So it's always exciting. You never know what you're going to see under
the water.
WEIR (voice-over): The team scour the reef for the specific coral. They're working against a strong swell and low visibility due to a recent storm.
And within 10 minutes, the first branching species is spotted, sampled and tagged.
CAMP: So this is one of our corals here. So what we'll do is take small fragments using these bone cutters, cut them up.
WEIR (voice-over): The team are able to do real-time heat tolerance testing on these samples, using this game-changing device. The phenotyping machine
can predict which species have the best chance of survival as water temperatures rise.
HADLEY ENGLAND, PHD CANDIDATE, UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, SYDNEY: This machine is basically able to expose the corals to stress, which is
indicative of what the corals go through in the natural environment during periods of coral bleaching.
WEIR (voice-over): The results are ready in under an hour.
CAMP: We have limited resources. We have limited time and we're up against it with the threats that the reefs face. So we really need to be smarter
with how we use our time and effort. And this is where phenotyping can be really valuable.
WEIR (voice-over): It ensures only the toughest species are out-planted on the reef.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: And you can see the full documentary, "SEARCHING FOR SUPER CORAL." It's this weekend and it's on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:46:58]
QUEST: The mayor of New York City, Eric Adams, wasted no time attacking the Democrat who's to challenge him in November. Mr. Adams accused Zohran
Mamdani of wanting to make New York a socialist city. Mamdani is poised to win the Democratic primary after vowing to make the city more affordable.
It was a point, he reiterated last night in his victory speech.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZOHRAN MAMDANI (D), NEW YORK CITY MAYORAL CANDIDATE: Today eight months after launching this campaign, with the vision of a city that every New
Yorker could afford, we have won.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: And at the same time, a new report says the financial distress is now normal, the norm for younger people. According to Edelman's latest
trust barometer, most people under the age of 45 have experienced financial hardship, which includes paying bills late, skipping meals or being priced
out of their home. And it finds consumers turn to companies they trust when they make decisions. And trust is just as important as price and product
quality.
Richard Edelman is the chief executive of Edelman.
Good to see you as always, sir. On this issue of the norm and financial, is this different? I mean, there's always been hardship, but go back to the
post-Second World War. Is this hardship that young or those under 45 facing? Is it different than before?
RICHARD EDELMAN, CEO, EDELMAN: I think that young people are reflecting five years of cumulative body blows, starting with COVID, locked down,
unable to go to school, isolated. Then we have geopolitics. Israel-Gaza, Russia-Ukraine, then we have inflation. And now we even have job loss to
A.I. 17 percent of high school graduates in the U.S. who are not going on to college are unemployed. So, you know, it's a serious set of challenges.
QUEST: Right. And this idea that people turn to the companies they trust is a fascinating one, because trust is a, A, it's a moveable feast. And B,
it's in the eyes of the beholder.
EDELMAN: So in fact, Richard, it's brands that now are the edge of the spear, point of the spear for the companies, and brands are now trusted
much more than any institution, business, government, media, because consumers feel as if they have some control over that relationship. It's
very similar to the way they look at my employer. So trust is close, trust is local, and trust has to be earned by action.
QUEST: How easy is it to lose?
EDELMAN: Incredibly easy. You know, if you get crosswise with the wrong creator or if you somehow are exposed as having problems in your supply
chain.
[16:50:04]
But really important is this idea that purpose has moved from ideas of -- about we to what you're going to do for me in making me feel, making me
feel as if I matter to you as a consumer.
QUEST: Is there a major shift underway, Richard? And I'm going to try and pull some strands together. First of all, you have this idea of the norm of
financial hardship. You have Mamdani, you know, an avowed socialist in New York. You do have, rightly or wrongly, or whatever the Bezos nuptials, and
we wish them well, in Venice or whatever it is, excessive consumption, very public consumption.
And whilst we can watch agog at all these things, people are making decisions and they feel, people feel that they're getting the wrong end of
the stick, as they used to say.
EDELMAN: I think brands need to comfort consumers. They need to feel as if the brand is reflecting them and inspiring them and giving them safety. And
on top of that, we also have to reflect rising nationalism. In the developed countries that we studied, there's a 30-point gap between a
product, for example, made in Germany versus an imported product.
People prefer to buy from domestic companies because they think that will create jobs and, lets be frank, the whole move towards nationalism in the
political sphere has encouraged this.
QUEST: Right. But how realistic is this? You know, I know, our dear viewer knows that every product has got parts from all parts of the world and in
many ways, we're being sold the real bill of goods, in a sense, by being told one thing when the reality is something different and it's just about
impossible to sort out the truth.
EDELMAN: Well, in fact, I think if you're a company that has headquarters overseas and is operating in the U.S., it's all about how many more jobs
you're bringing to the U.S., what is your supply chain look like, the idea that you're contributing to the growth of the domestic economy. And this is
why it's so interesting that price, quality and trust are now equal when you go to the store. I have to actually trust that brand is made properly.
QUEST: Interesting. We'll talk more. I always love talking about the trust barometer, Richard, for the very simple reason, it goes to the heart of
what we all do in our economic decisions every day.
Thank you sir. I wish you a good weekend when it comes. Thank you, sir.
EDELMAN: Thank you.
QUEST: "Vogue's" editor-in-chief is stepping down after 37 years. Anna Wintour, a force in the fashion industry. The persona is simply legendary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MERYL STREEP, ACTOR: Well, it's comical how you think that you've made a choice that exempts you from the fashion industry, when in fact, you're
wearing a sweater that was selected for you by the people in this room from a pile of stuff.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: From a pile of stuff. One of my favorites from the "Devil Wears Prada." For years, fans have wondered, I mean, obviously "Devil Wears
Prada" supposedly based around Anna Wintour, whether it was or it wasn't. Well, it isn't quite the end of an era. Anna Wintour will oversee brand
content with "Vogue's" publisher, Conde Nast.
Amy Odell is with me, the author of "Anna: The Biography," and a new book, "Gwyneth," coming out at the end of July.
So I read what -- she's no longer going to be EIC, editor-in-chief, but she's got this weird job of global content editor. And interestingly,
they're not replacing that job like for life. So I'm wondering, is she still the power behind the throne?
AMY ODELL, AUTHOR, "ANNA: THE BIOGRAPHY": Absolutely. I think it's fascinating the way she's going about this. She's stepping back from her
day-to-day responsibilities, overseeing "American Vogue" as editor-in- chief. And she's going to handpick her successor, basically, and she's going to nurture and train that person and have oversight over what they're
doing so that, you know, presumably when she does fully exit Conde Nast, she's got "Vogue" in a place where she wants to leave it. So like much of
what she does, I think it's kind of brilliant.
QUEST: Do you think she just doesn't know how to say goodbye and leave? She doesn't know when to go.
ODELL: A lot of fans of Anna's and "Vogue," and you know, online, have been talking about her stepping down for a long time. That is true. She ties for
the longest serving editor-in-chief with Edna Woolman Chase, whose career at "Vogue" actually started amazingly during the Gilded Age.
[16:55:00]
But Anna is a workaholic. I mean, she gets up to work, and I think for most of her life she has been thinking about running "American Vogue" from the
time she was a child. So I think personally, for her, this must be a very emotional and monumental decision.
QUEST: The success of "Vogue" is without question, but I ask whether or not she has positioned "Vogue" and thereby the other titles within Conde Nast.
How well has she positioned them for the digital future?
ODELL: You know what, I talk about this a lot in "Anna: The biography," how Conde Nast made some missteps, you know, not just within the last few
years, not within the last 10 years, but, you know, 25 years ago, 30 years ago. There were executives at Conde Nast who were saying, hey, we should do
this to set ourselves up for the digital age. We should charge subscriptions so people can read our content online.
And there were just so many competing corporate concerns. It was kind of the classic innovators' dilemma where they were monetizing the business one
way, and they needed to start doing it another way, and it was very hard to make that change. And they just never did. Additionally, the recession of
2008 was really hard on the publishing industry, especially Conde Nast, and I think that was a real inflection point from which the business never
recovered, which means, yes, for much of Anna Wintour's career, she's really been managing a decline for nearly half of her career. She's been
managing a decline.
QUEST: I'm grateful that you've come with us -- to us this evening. So in true fashion, that's all.
Join us tomorrow on our first summer Friday of the year. We will be at Canary Wharf. We'll have the chief executive of the London Business
District will join us, and we'll be enjoying some summer sun. It is our first summer Friday tomorrow from Canary Wharf.
I'll have a "Profitable Moment" after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Tonight's "Profitable Moment."
Jeff Bezos has as much right to have his wedding in Venice as you or me or anybody else. The fact that he can afford to take over the whole city, the
waterways, the canals, good luck to him and Miss Sanchez. I wish them well. Because the real issue there is not Jeff Bezos and all the 90 jets that
came in, bearing in mind many of those people have to fly on private jets by insurance. But anyway, that's not the real issue.
The real issue is how places like Venice and to some extent Barcelona and Amsterdam and Prague and all these other places never really got to grips
with the issue of overtourism because they are real issues. And it's not surprising that people who live there are angry. They feel left out, they
feel disenfranchised, and they feel with the Airbnb of the world and the cruise ships and all of that, that it's just one thing after another.
The fact is that the tourism industry still has not really got to grips because they don't want to. They want to talk about it. They want to make
great noise about it. But policies to actually deal with it, that's far more difficult. I saw it in Prague after the pandemic. I saw it in Venice
in that program that you saw there.
So I wish Mr. Bezos and his fiance the very best. Enjoy Venice. You paid the money. You've made your choice. Now enjoy it.
That's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for tonight. I'm Richard Quest in London. Whatever you're up to in the hours ahead, I hope it's profitable. Join me
at Canary Wharf tomorrow.
END
