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Quest Means Business
U.S. Consumer Sentiment Plunges to All-Time Low; Gabbard Cites Husband's Cancer As Reason For Resignation; Russia: Six Killed In Ukrainian Attack On College Dorm; Misinformation Fueling Unrest Within Local Communities; Cuba's Raul Castro Facing United States Charges Including Murder; MLS Seeks To Gain Popularity In United States Amid Stiff Competition. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired May 22, 2026 - 16:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:19]
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: So what are we seeing? Is it a good omen for the new Fed Chair, Kevin Warsh? The Dow setting yet another record
here, as you can see settling at 50,576, it looks like and a couple more seconds left.
The President believes this record setting stock market is a good omen for his new Fed Chair.
Those are the markets and these are the main events. The Warsh era begins at the Fed as President Trump's pick takes over as chair.
Meanwhile, the Gabbard era coming to an end as the President's National Intelligence Director resigns.
And Major League Soccer, hoping to get a major boost from next month's World Cup. We visit with the New York Red Bulls training facility.
Live from New York. It is Friday, May 22nd. I am Paula Newton in for Richard Quest and this is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
And a very good evening to you. Tonight, The White House celebrates one high profile appointment and says goodbye to another. Kevin Warsh was sworn
in as chair of the Federal Reserve during a ceremony in the East Room. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas administered the Oath of Office.
Shortly afterwards, President Trump accepted the resignation of his Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard. We will get to that
decision. The decision she made to quit Cabinet in just a moment.
But first, Kevin Warsh said he is taking over the federal reserve during a time of great consequence. President Trump praised Warsh's abilities and
temperament and encouraged him to call his own shots.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Honestly, I really mean this. This is not said in any other way. I want Kevin to be
totally independent. I want him to be independent and just do a great job.
Don't look at me. Don't look at anybody. Just do your own thing and do a great job. Okay?
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now Warsh is facing some economic challenges, an important measure of U.S. consumer sentiment fell this month to a new record low. The
university of Michigan survey dates back to 1952. Remember, I just said it was at a record low.
It says consumers are pessimistic about gas prices and the cost of living. Rising bond yields this week suggest investors are also worried about
inflation.
In his first remarks as Fed Chair, Warsh said he plans to rise to the occasion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEVIN WARSH, U.S. FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: To fulfill this mission, I will lead a reform-oriented federal reserve, learning from past successes and
mistakes, both, escaping static frameworks and models, and upholding clear standards of integrity and performance.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Elisabeth Buchwald is with me. She has been watching this all day.
I mean, Elisabeth, look, he is a known quantity in the finance world, and just from the room and the dignitaries, he certainly does have a lot of
support and the support of number one, which is the President.
But when he talks about reform and the balancing act that he has with this economy right now at this hour, what lies ahead for him?
ELISABETH BUCHWALD, CNN BUSINESS ECONOMICS REPORTER: It is a crazy time for him to be coming into the Fed, as you pointed out earlier. Stock market at
record high. Consumer sentiment at record low. People are worried about inflation. People are worried about eroding their paychecks.
And the crazy part here is that Warsh might have to be dealing with colleagues that are in favor of a hike when Trump has been pushing for
cuts.
NEWTON: Yes, that is so significant in terms of what is happening right now. I mean, to remind everyone, Jerome Powell was also Donald Trump's pick
and he has soured on him and how and yet, he said his problem with Jerome Powell was that he wasn't cutting interest rates.
Now, Elisabeth, what kind of pressure will there be? Because at one point in time earlier this year, we thought the Fed would cut interest rates. It
would be appropriate. Where are they leaning now?
BUCHWALD: Very divided, and there is a lot of conflict between whether to raise rates, whether to keep them steady or whether to cut them. All
options are kind of on the table, and there is good reasons for each.
But the way that I was watching this swearing in earlier was, I think of it like two friends on a vacation. You start off, everything is great, and
then all of a sudden one person wants to go out to dinner somewhere that you don't want, and things start getting ugly quickly.
It reminded me a lot also of when Powell was getting sworn in. Everything was fine and dandy, and then things went south. But Trump did kind of
allude to what he wants Warsh to do. I will read you one quote. He said, "Kevin understands that when the economy is booming, that's a good thing.
We don't have to go crazy. Just let it boom." Kind of implying that, hey, don't cut or sorry, don't raise rates.
[16:05:10]
NEWTON: Yes, it is interesting because he said he could be independent, but then came out with that little economic nugget. Elisabeth Buchwald, thanks
so much for being here. Have a great weekend.
Now, Gene Sperling was the director of the National Economic Council for Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. He also worked for the Biden
administration, and he joins me now.
Gene, really good to see you. We just talked about the President. He did use the word "independent." How tough of a task will this be, though, for
Kevin Warsh because as Elisabeth was just saying, Donald Trump made it clear, hey, what's the matter with a little juice in the economy?
GENE SPERLING, FORMER DIRECTOR OF THE NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL FOR PRESIDENTS BILL CLINTON AND BARACK OBAMA: No, I don't think there is any
question that Kevin Warsh is both an immediate task and his long term legacy will be defined on how much he is a true champion for Fed
independence, and I never expected that he would be, you know, "a sock puppet" or do exactly what Trump says.
But the question is, will he truly stand up for the integrity of the Federal Reserve? Will he speak out or make clear he does not go along with
using criminal charges against Lisa Cook or Jerome Powell? Will he make sure he is not playing games with how federal, regional presidents are
chosen? These are the things people I think and markets will look at to see is he being truly independent.
But I think you had your report just right. He comes in at a difficult time. You know the issue is not can he be a firebrand and lower rates?
Really, it is going to be, can he use his skills to be a consensus builder? Because right now, there could be as much pressure to raise rates as there
is just to hold them steady. And then the last Federal Reserve meeting, you saw three dissents of people who, who didn't think the Fed did enough to
make clear that they could just as easily raise as cut.
NEWTON: Yes, and the committee itself and how it is put together is crucial here because it is a voting committee, one that Jerome Powell is still
sitting on. When you look at the U.S. economy, look, it is growing at a robust pace. But we point out, inflation is rising; job growth, if there is
any, is not impressive.
So this dual mandate pressure that he has from this minute that he is sworn in, do you believe that he can get this committee to perhaps run a little
hot on this economy? Like, where do you think he stands here?
SPERLING: Well, you're right. He doesn't, you know, inherit what we would think of as like stagflation, but this is a situation where you still see
weakness in the economy and not a particularly great job market.
At the same time, you actually have the last three months of inflation annualized at over seven percent, and you already have some states where
gas prices are over $5.00. That is a very difficult situation.
And I think, as you've had many guests discuss here, you know, we still do not see an end to the Iran conflict and almost worse, we see that even if
there is a ceasefire --
NEWTON: Oh, apologies, I believe we have lost Gene Sperling. But you heard him there saying that, look, there are plenty of risks to this economy. And
one of them still remains, the conflict in Iran.
Now, we do want to go to the resignation of the U.S. Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard posted on X that her husband has been diagnosed
with cancer, and so she will step down at the end of June.
Gabbard is a former Democrat who has opposed U.S. intervention around the world. She has sometimes found herself though at odds and out of favor with
The White House, particularly when it comes to Iran.
Kevin Liptak is at The White House for us. I mean, Kevin, we could go to first, right, her resignation itself. Some speculate it does have to do
with the fact that she is not always in sync with the President. But, you know, tragically, she did mention these personal circumstances.
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Right, and that does seem like it is the immediate reason for this resignation, her husband dealing
with a rare form of cancer. She is citing the necessity of being by his side as he goes through it.
But, you know, Paula, you know as well as I do, these things are sometimes a little fuzzy. Yes, that can be true that that's the reason she is
leaving. But it is also true that the President wasn't always happy with the job she was doing, and certainly she will have known that because it
was reported widely over the last several months.
And so even though the reason she is leaving is very personal, it was evident that she was on this collision course and this may have just
happened inevitably at some point.
[16:10:01]
One of the reasons I think that they seemed so at odds is that she really had built her entire political career, beginning as a Democrat when she was
in Congress and as a presidential candidate on this anti-interventionist stance, you know, she herself, as a veteran, she had talked very frequently
about foreign conflicts that she thought were foolish over the last several decades, only to come into the Trump administration and find that President
Trump was intervening all over the world.
And so it did seem like there was a disconnect in the two ideologies there, and it never really seemed like she found a lane in the foreign policy of
the second Trump administration. She seemed to have been cut out of a lot of the decision making.
And I think back to when the President was here at The White House convening his national security team to talk about Venezuela at the end of
last year, and she was posting pictures from a beach in Hawaii, apparently blithely unaware that any of this was happening and being discussed, and
she never really seemed to bounce back from that.
She did seem to try and find an avenue where she was looking into questions of election fraud, and so you saw her down in Georgia at the FBI raid in
Fulton County, at an elections office there.
She also put out a report trying to downplay some of the Russian election meddling claims. I think that was an attempt to put herself into President
Trump's good graces, but when it came to Iran, it just was always kind of awkward. You know, when she was up on the Hill a few months ago,
testifying, she said that Iran, according to the Intelligence, was not trying to revive its nuclear program after that U.S. bombing run last June,
which was very, I think, complicating President Trump's rationale for starting this most recent war in the first place.
And she sort of made the ridiculous, on the face of it, claim that only President Trump can determine what is a threat, not the Intelligence
Community.
And so there are all these awkward situations that she found herself in. And I think it was evident both to her probably, but also certainly to
people at The White House, that this was not a job that was a particularly good fit.
And so while she is leaving now for quite an important reason, quite a personal reason that I think anyone can understand, it is also evident that
there were tensions there, and this was a very, I think, rocky tenure for her.
NEWTON: And we will wait to see. I mean, there is someone in the acting position, we will wait to see though which direction the President goes in
in terms of her replacement.
Kevin, it is Friday before a holiday weekend, Memorial Day. I don't have to remind you.
A lot of the politicians have left town without doing some of the key business that Donald Trump wanted them to do. I mean, can you take the
temperature of what is going on right now? This was a week I remind everybody of primaries where the President seemed to be victorious because
his candidates were the ones that, you know, by and large, came out on the winning side.
And yet Congress doesn't seem to want to do his bidding.
LIPTAK: Right. Well, I think the problem is that the candidates that he has endorsed and came out on the winning side are not the candidates who are
currently in Congress, who are currently in the Senate, who he needs in order to advance all of these very critical priorities. And you can see now
this very toxic dynamic emerging between The White House and Republicans on Capitol Hill.
Really, for the first time, you know, ever since President Trump became the Republican standard bearer, he has had the Republican Party really in an
iron grip. You are starting to see that break a little bit, and that is extraordinary when you think about sort of the trajectory of the Republican
Party under President Trump, it does seem to, at least according to the people I am talking to here, to have caught some of the President's
advisers off guard. It is not precisely clear how they are going to move forward here.
One of the things that Republicans are bucking the President on is this, "anti-weaponization fund" that has been established at the Justice
Department. They don't necessarily understand why the Justice Department has put aside $1.8 billion to pay people who think that they were wronged
by the system. They worry that it could go to people who assaulted police officers on January 6th.
What The White House is saying is that they are open to conversations with Republicans. But at least at this point, it doesn't seem as if they're
going to change that fund in any way. And in fact, President Trump was writing on Truth Social earlier today defending it.
And so how all of that sort of shakes out remains to be seen. There are all of these other issues, though, that they are willing to break with the
President on, I think, in part because they are so wildly unpopular.
You know, one of them is the ballroom that the President is trying to build. Republicans have inserted a billion dollars into the latest funding
proposal for security for the ballroom, but remember, President Trump once said that no taxpayer dollars would go towards that.
And so, they are having a hard time stomaching that, they sort of jettisoned that before this latest dustup. The other issue is the Iran War.
You know, you have these votes in Congress asserting their war powers constitutional responsibilities, telling the President that he has to end
the war, also underscoring just how unpopular that is as well.
[16:15:05]
You know, at the end of the day, this is all just a numbers game, I think. You know, there are 53 Republicans in the Senate.
The more Republicans that the President starts to isolate or criticize or endorse their rivals, and he did that multiple times this week, whether it
was Bill Cassidy in Louisiana, John Cornyn in Texas. You have Thom Tillis, who is not running for reelection but still has a vote in the Senate that
the President has been criticizing, you get to a number of Republicans who don't feel any loyalty, who don't feel obligated to vote for things that
are his priority.
And when you have such a slim margin, that's going to become very, very difficult as he tries to get these things passed.
NEWTON: Yes, and these are key strategic issues that obviously The White House should have parsed out before the primaries, for sure.
Kevin Liptak for us. Have a good weekend. Appreciate it. Thanks so much.
Now, the war in Ukraine has pushed E.U. nations to boost their defense spending. I will speak to the CEO of a European company that makes
airstrike and air defense systems. You see him there. Looking forward to talking to him. Speak soon.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: NATO foreign ministers met in Sweden today with a backdrop of uncertainty over Iran and President Trump's stance towards Europe. There
have been changes to the presence of U.S. troops in Europe recently.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed that today. He says the changes are not in response to the friction between Trump and European
leaders, and are instead an ongoing process. Rubio also says The White House is still waiting for Iran to reply to its latest peace proposal. He
says there has been, "slight progress," but some sticking points remain. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We all would love to see an agreement with Iran in which the Straits are open and they abandon their nuclear
ambitions and so forth. Their nuclear weapons ambitions. That's what we would all hope for, and that's what we are going to continue to work on and
that work is ongoing, even as I speak to you now in that regard.
But we also have to have a Plan B, and Plan B is what if Iran refuses to open the Straits? What if Iran decides we refuse to open the Straits, we
are going to own the Straits, and we are going to charge tolls for it. Okay, at that point, something has to be done about it. And I would argue
that there are countries represented here today that are more deeply impacted by this than even the United States is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now, Russia's war in Ukraine also loomed large at the NATO meeting. Kyiv says it has killed scores of Russians in multiple strikes on occupied
regions in recent days. A Ukrainian Commander says more than 60 people were killed in a drone strike on a Russian drone pilot training camp in Donetsk.
Another set of strikes hit Russian targets in the Kherson Region, killing and wounding nearly a hundred Russians.
[16:20:13]
Today, Russia acknowledged a third mass casualty attack in Luhansk.
Melissa Bell has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We heard from the Russian President today this criticism of what had happened in Luhansk
Province. This is a university campus. There were six killed, 39 injured, we understand. And what the Russian President was suggesting was that this
had been no accident. There were no military facilities there.
This had been a targeted attack over three different waves of drone strikes on a civilian structure, really reflecting the kind of things that you
would hear from Ukrainian side. You'll remember about the nature of Russian strikes against civilian targets. Similarly, Russia has now opened a
criminal investigation into it and intends to raise it at the U.N. Security Council.
So that is the latest from the Russian President with regard to that attack. Marco Rubio also spoke to those negotiations now pretty well
stalled. There had been pressure from Europeans that the United States sort of really get its hands back into these negotiations and help get them back
on track.
He suggested, the American Secretary of State, that if anyone else was interested now in sort of picking up these negotiations, and they were more
than welcome to do so, essentially confirming for the time being that Washington apparently has its attention focused very much elsewhere.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Our thanks to Melissa Bell.
Now, the war in Ukraine has forced E.U. nations to focus on the threat from Russia and with the Trump administration sending mixed messages about NATO,
it is no surprise that many European Nations are taking more responsibility for their own defense.
Mikhail Kokorich is the CEO of Destinus, a European company that makes air strike and air defense systems and he joins us now from Madrid, and I
believe you are joining us from one of your manufacturing facilities. Thanks so much for being with us.
I mean, I don't have to remind you that the strategic assessments seem to change week to week, if not month to month on the battlefield, especially
in the last year when it comes to the war between Russia and Ukraine.
You are a producer of long range drones and cruise missiles. What do you see in the future here? Can Europe handle this and how are you helping them
pivot?
MIKHAIL KOKORICH, CEO, DESTINUS: Yes, thank you for inviting me and I think it is important that Europe needs a defense industrial base that can move
fast from prototype to production quickly.
In crisis, dependency is not a strategy and now this is what we are doing in distance. We are one of the biggest, if not the biggest producer of
cruise missiles in the world. We are producing 200 cruise missiles per month.
NEWTON: It is significant though, and sometimes cost is very significant as well. I am not sure what we are looking at behind you, but you know,
European capacity has been questioned, in terms of timeline, in terms of investments, what do you see in terms of Europe's preparedness and how what
you do -- and I hear you, you're not the biggest supplier, but can you scale up? Are you being asked to scale up?
And again, we have seen in so many conflicts how those who are nimble and adapt more quickly are usually the ones that given time really do win on
the battlefield..
KOKORICH: Yes, so modern defense is increasingly an economic problem. You cannot use multi euro missiles forever against cheap drones and mass
attacks. So independency means that when the crisis comes, Europe is not waiting for export licenses and the distance supply chains political
permissions.
And this is what we built exactly, this gap. We build affordable cruise missiles and interceptor systems. Yes. And we scaled in the last like two
years, basically more than ten times in our production.
NEWTON: Specifically on your interceptor systems and what you can do to help Europe on that. Have you seen a lot more interest from them? I mean,
do you believe they are prepared to do what they need to do in the next five year span to really, you know, fill the breach? Because the United
States has made it very clear they will be moving away from defending Europe.
KOKORICH: Yes, we still believe that the United States will remain a vital ally, but Europe must be able to defend Europe even when Washington
priorities shifts. And peace in Europe, it requires a credible deterrence, which not only the interceptors, which is extremely important, but also
strike systems and we see it is a big change now, and also like politics.
Because when we started to produce our cruise missiles two years ago, it was, I would say, a little bit toxic topic. And now, we definitely welcomed
the procurement agency moving from multi-year procurement processes to extremely fast and shift processes, that takes basically months, if not
weeks.
[16:25:10]
NEWTON: Wow. And I am sure that the shift in attitude has really been breathtaking. I want to ask you, we've seen the United States and Israel
were perhaps not prepared for the asymmetric tactics employed by Iran.
Given your company's experience and how you've seen the Ukraine war progress. What are European armies missing here? I mean, how can they pivot
more quickly to some of the systems that you produce? And I guess key here as well are autonomous weapon systems.
KOKORICH: Yes, this is what we see. So Ukraine give a lot of examples in the future of the warfare, yes and we see the cycles of this warfare. For
example, two years ago we started with a long range strike drones. And now, basically, we decided fully to move to the missiles. Why? Because the
modern interceptors, both on Ukrainian and Russian side now becoming more and more efficient against slow piston driven drones.
And we see that the only way to push further is actually build much more efficient, still, low-cost systems. And this all happens in basically in a
one to two years horizon, the change of the warfare.
NEWTON: What are we looking at behind you, Mikhail? What can you tell us? What is that? I am seeing a missile, I believe.
KOKORICH: Yes, yes. So behind me is -- this is our Ruta cruise missiles, which, now again, we produce in a pace of a couple of hundred per month. It
is actively also fielded in Ukraine and have great success and success rate.
And, yes, we are building here, it is one of our production facilities. And as our production facilities in Netherlands and Germany, but here in
Madrid, we have huge, big production facility.
Unfortunately, it is almost night here. So it is actually just finished.
NEWTON: We understand. How much for each one, I am curious.
KOKORICH: Yes, it is like a -- so, this is my background. So when I am thinking always orders of magnitude. So we would like to be always an order
of magnitude cheaper than traditional systems.
NEWTON: Okay.
KOKORICH: So ten times cheaper.
NEWTON: So how much for the one behind you?
KOKORICH: Just a few hundred -- small hundreds.
NEWTON: Okay
KOKORICH: Thousands, yes, few hundred thousand fewer, so small cost.
NEWTON: I get it. Cost of a house. I get it. Mikhail Kokorich, thank you so much. We've learned a lot. Appreciate it. Thank you.
KOKORICH: Thank you very much.
NEWTON: Now the FIFA World Cup kicks off in just three weeks. Matches are back on American soil and Major League Soccer teams are hoping to cash in
on the excitement. My visit to the New York Red Bulls training facility. You'll want to see this story up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:31:02]
NEWTON: There is growing unrest in the Democratic Republic of Congo as Ebola continues to spread.
On Thursday, protesters set fire to an Ebola treatment center, demanding the return of a body. The WHO warning that misinformation in local
communities is hurting the response.
Larry Madowa reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LARRY MADOWO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Tensions ran high at this hospital treating Ebola patients in the Eastern Democratic
Republic of Congo. This local politician was on the scene.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I'm at Wampara Hospital. We are locked down here. Look at the protesters, they are angry. They are setting
fire to the tents of Ebola patients, because they want to forcibly retrieve the bodies.
MADOWO (voice over): Residents grew angry after health authorities refused to hand over the body of a young man who died from Ebola. This father says
--
LEOPOLD KATABUKA, RESIDENT, WAMPARA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO (through translator): We came to bury my son, and then, we saw these people coming
in numbers, asking for the body of someone called Eli (PH). They started throwing stones and set fire to the tents, and my son's body was left
burned there. I don't know what to do.
MADOWO (voice over): Police were quickly called in to control the scene after protesters set fire to tents where patients suspected to have Ebola
were being isolated, according to eyewitness accounts.
And while health workers have been working hard to fight off the virus, a second battle has also been underway, the fight against disinformation.
LUC MALEMBE, CONGOLESE POLITICIAN (through translator): This lack of communication, this absence of communication from the health authorities in
the province, is what allowed rumors to take over, and it is what continues to this day.
MADOWO (voice over): The key tension seeming to lie between the sanitary protocols put in place by authorities and the wishes of the local community
to uphold traditional burial rights.
MADOWO: The community wants to bury the dead with dignity, but Ebola often spreads at funerals. It's still under investigation, but even this current
outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is believed to stem from a super spreader event, a funeral on May 5th. That's because some people
touch the corpse of the dead as a fan of farewell.
The fluids from the body of Ebola patients are still infectious, and that's why authorities in Ituri, the epicenter of this outbreak, have now said all
funerals have to be carried out with strict protocols, and they banned all wakes.
MADOWO (voice over): In the region's capital, residents have been calling on their neighbors to take the virus more seriously.
Yes, the message I would like to convey now to those listening to me right now. We are in the town of Bunia, and this affects us too. We feel it. So,
what I tell people, wherever they are, is to know that they have to protect their families, to protect those close to them, because if I become
infected, that means my family is infected too.
MADOWO (voice over): The World Health Organization also raised the alarm once again on Friday.
TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYESUS, DIRECTOR-GENERAL, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: We are now revising our risk assessment to very high at the national level,
high at the regional level, and low at global level.
MADOWO (voice over): The WHO warning that a potential vaccine may still be as far as nine months away. News that is sure to deal another blow to
communities struggling to come to terms with so much loss already. Larry Madowo, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Now, thousands turned out in Cuba to protest U.S. pressure against the country and to support the island's former leader, Raul Castro. This
was the scene outside the U.S. Embassy in Havana. Cuba's foreign minister is accusing the U.S. of trying to incite military aggression.
And earlier this week, the U.S. indicted Castro on charges, including murder. CNN's Havana bureau chief Patrick Oppmann is in Cuba with the
latest on these tensions.
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, the location for this demonstration the Cuban government has put on could not be more telling. We are in front
of the U.S. embassy in Havana. We have heard officials outraged that Raul Castro is now facing federal charges in a Miami courtroom.
[16:35:04]
They say they will never turn him over. That he is not going anywhere. You hear people who are supporters of the government, of course, come out here,
that Raul Castro was like a family member to them. They said he is like a grandfather.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARIELA CASTRO, DAUGHTER OF RAUL CASTRO (through translator): No one will capture him, I can assure you. Not him, not anyone. Here, we are ready to
fight imperialism. We are a small, poor country. But with combat experience against the U.S. imperialism.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OPPMANN: Of course, this is very, very serious. The Trump administration is raising the stakes here by charging Raul Castro. There are Cubans you talk
to say they are very concerned that the next step could be some sort of military attack, like we saw in Venezuela. That now, the U.S. has some kind
of legal veneer to take action against Cuba, and that would be incredibly disruptive for an island, where the electricity is now off most of the
time, most days. And so, people are suffering under the consequences of their government's economic mis-choices and the energy blockade that the
U.S. has put on this island.
So increasingly, despite the government's defiance in the face of U.S. action, you do hear Cubans, who say they're worried that we are not getting
any closer to a deal between Cuba and the U.S., and the next step could be some kind of military intervention. Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Nevada.
NEWTON: The FIFA World Cup kicks off exactly three weeks from today, and the U.S. is hosting matches for the first time in 32 years.
Now, Major League Soccer, MLS is hoping the event will create some new fans. I spoke to the New York Red Bulls about the opportunity for this
league.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON (voice over): For Major League Soccer, the World Cup on home turf is supposed to be, as they say in the game, a give and go, an effective
passing tactic that will enable the league to score.
Score what you ask?
JULIAN DE GUZMAN, HEAD OF SPORT, NEW YORK RD BULLS: Seeing it at a very high level in Europe, I want soccer to get to that level here in North
America, and America's specially.
LEANDER SCHAERLAECKENS, AUTHOR, "THE LONG GAME": You want a World Cup to leave a legacy. The last World Cup that was here in 1994 kind of changed
everything for the sport. It started Major League Soccer, it brought in tons of new fans, lots of people got exposed to the sport.
NEWTON: (voice over): So far, so successful. The MLS final drew in a record 4.6 million viewers last year across all platforms.
Drawing in those eyeballs? Global stars like Lionel Messi. No doubt he brought his fans to the U.S. when he signed with Inter Miami in 2023.
SCHAERLAECKENS: They have grown and grown and grown, built stadiums, added teams, and now, the question is, how do they truly break into the big time?
NEWTON (voice over): Here in Whippany, New Jersey, the New York Red Bulls are hoping to make their own mark on the game. We are just steps away from
the World Cup stage here at New York, New Jersey Stadium.
The team's head of sport tells me the key to lasting success is building soccer icons from the ground up.
DE GUZMAN: It's not just about bringing in stars, past stars, it's about now creating your own stars, and that's when you become now a more
fulfilled country soccer nation.
NEWTON (voice over): But creating stars at just the club level may not be enough to retain fans. This sports analyst and author says MLS also needs a
presence at the national level.
SCHAERLAECKENS: You need to develop a ton of players in order for the national team to start to look like it was fully produced by MLS, and that
takes a lot of time, and it takes a lot of money.
NEWTON: Now, remember, the MLS is no longer a startup league with the World Cup on home soil. This is supposed to usher in a whole new era of soccer on
this continent.
NEWTON (voice over): And young players like Julian Hall already know exactly what's at stake.
JULIAN HALL, PLAYER, NEW YORK RED BULLS: The World Cup is probably the biggest tournament in the whole world, and that being in America is just a
huge chance for the U.S. and the MLS.
NEWTON (voice over): His veteran teammate Emile Forsberg honed his footie in both Sweden and Germany. Since coming to play here, he's already seen
soccer climbing the ranks.
EMIL FORSBERG, PLAYER, NEW YORK RED BULLS: The stadiums, the people who come to support. I think, it's been growing more and more every year. The
interest is getting bigger. And with this World Cup coming, I think it's going to do even more.
NEWTON (voice over): Sustaining this popularity once the World Cup is over won't be easy, especially, with the U.S. devotion to its other sports.
Data platform SponsorUnited says MLS brought in an estimated $716 million from team sponsorship revenue in 2024. Still far off its competition.
DE GUZMAN: Will ever become number one in America? It's hard to say.
[16:40:01]
NEWTON: But it takes money.
DE GUZMAN: It takes money.
NEWTON (voice over): The legacy the World Cup leaves here will put that to the test. The beautiful game on North American soil is a winning
opportunity for MLS. Now, it's time to convert.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON (on camera): And we will see what the World Cup will do for that league.
Now, there is speculation that the head of the African Football Confederation may run for president of South Africa. Patrice Motsepe
addressed the chatter with CNN's Eleni Giokos. The mining tycoon also discussed the country's business relationship with the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PATRICE MOTSEPE, PRESIDENT CONFEDERATION OF AFRICAN FOOTBALL: We have got hundreds of thousands of South Africans who depend on the American
companies that I -- that I invested in our country. And I think, actually, the relationship is significantly better than sometimes appears from the
media. There are disagreements and arguments, and it's not just disagreements between South Africa and America, that disagreements between
South Africa and many other countries with either their neighbors or their biggest trading partners.
The most important thing is to work towards enlarging those areas where there is common agreement.
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN ANCHOR: There is been a lot of talk here in South Africa about a President Motsepe. What do you think of that? Would you do it?
MOTSEPE: It has arisen over the years.
GIOKOS: And this isn't. This is the second time, right? This has happened a few times over the years.
MOTSEPE: Well, I -- initially, I was less diplomatic. I said I'm not mad to enter into politics and to make myself available for political office.
But the truth of the matter is, what South Africa needs now is for all our people to come together, because that is the most exciting, enormous
potential we have as a country. No single political party can deal with the with the challenges, but also, take us forward in realizing the
opportunities.
So, I've consistently said that we will make our contribution, and I will continue to make my contribution outside politics.
I don't have to be a candidate to be president of South Africa.
GIOKOS: So, that's a categorical no for now.
MOTSEPE: Very clear.
GIOKOS: Very clear.
MOTSEPE: South Africa does not need me to be a candidate to enter into politics. What the greatest contribution I can make to the people of a
country that I love and that have -- that have given so much to me is focus on the unity, try and bring everybody together. Because that's what is
needed.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: OK, and that does it for QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. Up next, we are headed to the Cotswolds for "QUEST WORLD OF WONDER".
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:46:26]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome to Blenheim Palace. Come on in.
QUEST (voice over): This is Blenheim Palace. Built between 1705 and 1722. It was a gift from Queen Anne to the first Duke of Marlborough. Today, it
is considered by many to be the gateway to the Cotswolds.
This area of outstanding natural beauty runs through five counties in England, and is easily accessible from the U.K.'s two major cities: London
and Birmingham.
Blenheim describes itself as Britain's greatest palace. Well, we'll let you be the judge of that when we return later.
The Cotswolds, where posh doesn't even begin to come close to describing the people and places we're going to visit here. After all, the king
himself even calls it home.
Highgrove House is the private home of King Charles and Queen Camilla. The king arrived here in 1980 when he was still the Prince of Wales. He has
devoted much of his time and energy to transforming the gardens.
Normally, photography is strictly bear-bitted, but we have been granted special permission to visit and spend time with the head of horticulture,
Melissa Simpson. She is been working at Highgrove for the past year.
MELISSA SIMPSON, HEAD OF HORTICULTURE, KING'S FOUNDATION: It's a gorgeous place. It's just short of 15 acres. And as part of that, we have got a
lovely four acres of wildflower meadow. We have got a whole host of different features, lots of statues, and really lots of things that His
Majesty's experienced and loved and seen around the world. He has brought and put into his garden.
Color is important because His Majesty's got a great eye for color and for design. So much crammed in. It is kind of like his life in a garden.
QUEST (voice over): I have covered the royal family for many years, and to be given these insights into the life of the king was truly surprising.
Every twist and turn around the garden provided new anecdotes about His Majesty.
QUEST: How did you decide where to put all the pots?
SIMPSON: Well, again, that's His Majesty. He'll look at something, find a place, and that will be the position.
The wall kitchen garden. Isn't that beautiful?
QUEST: Wow.
Do you plant in sufficient quantities that it serves the house?
SIMPSON: Well, it serves His Majesty, and then, a surplus goes to be sold in the shop.
QUEST: Right.
SIMPSON: And make into jams and things like that.
QUEST: Right, right, right.
To be here and see it, feels a bit like interloping at one level, but at the same time it's fascinating. Absolutely fascinating. It's like a piece
of the jigsaw just being put right on the table.
QUEST (voice over): In British etiquette, it is important to know when your time is up. And so, with no invitation to stay for the night, it was
clearly time for me to move on.
[16:50:01]
On this trip, I have been joined by Artful Andrew. He is responsible for these magnificent, beautiful images that we are bringing to you. And, of
course, plenty of advice to offer when I try to take a photo or two.
ARTFUL ANDREW, SPECIALIST, HORTICULTURE, KING'S FOUNDATION (PH): What about a postcard shot here?
QUEST: Oh, all right.
ANDREW: Can you capture that with a bit of water in the foreground?
QUEST: Hang on, but all those people.
ANDREW: Get down low. Get down low.
Come on, you need some foreground here.
QUEST: There you go. Standby, we are trying to connect you.
Acceptable. Maybe.
QUEST (voice over): While exploring glorious gardens in the Cotswolds, countryside on foot is fine. If we are going to talk about kingdoms, a
horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse.
QUEST: The Cotswolds is truly beautiful, but to really appreciate it, I need to see it from a different angle. And that means getting onto a horse,
because with your help, I'll truly appreciate this most magnificent part of England. Thank you.
QUEST (voice over): At the Bourton Vale Equestrian Centre, they have horses of all sizes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is Patrick. He is 17 hand at X.
QUEST: He is huge.
QUEST (voice over): Luckily, I have ridden horses of most shapes and sizes. Safely on board, and it's off to lower slaughter, this picturesque village,
named after the old English word slough, meaning muddy. It's nothing to do with referencing any brutal events of the past.
QUEST: Great! Make a bit of a splat.
QUEST (voice over): In the water, Patrick needed no encouragement to play for the camera.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's his favorite thing to do is have a good splash.
QUEST: Oh! I'm drench! This is magnificent. What a brilliant day.
QUEST (voice over): I'm in the Cotswolds, where I'm enjoying the country lifestyle, and that includes blasting inanimate objects out of the air.
ANDREW JONES, OWNER, COTSWOLD CLAY CLUB: Feet shoulder width apart, left foot slightly forward. I will then give you a loaded gun. OK? So, you can
see it in your blurred vision, but all your focus is going to be on that clay. OK?
QUEST: This is terrifying.
QUEST (voice over): Terrifying is one word for it. I have never done this before, so, was in much need of instruction, and now, pardon the pun, I was
ready to give it my best shot.
JONES: And as the clay goes up, you going to follow, follow, follow, pull. You are going to follow it up. Bang. OK?
QUEST: Pull! Yes!
Right. Mag work here is done. Pull!
QUEST (voice over): I was surprised. A success. How would my colleagues fare?
JONES: That's where the -- now. There you go.\
QUEST: Oh, obliterated.
QUEST (voice over): Of course. Artful hit it. He is annoying like that.
And our new producer, Kayla, had a go. Surely, she won't show me up.
JONES: Fresco.
QUEST: Wagga! You know, there is such a thing as a career limiting event.
[16:55:02]
And I think she might have just discovered.
QUEST (voice over): The Cotswolds covers an area of around 800 square miles. I began my journey in Morton-in-Marsh. An hour or so is enough time
to bring me to my next destination, Tetbury.
All that time with guns has inspired thoughts of the Wild West. No, here, I'm talking about the West of England.
Traveling round the Cotswolds, and I can't help but notice the beautiful wolds. They are features that really stand out. There is a name for this:
dry stone walling. It divides the fields, protects the properties, and tells you who owns what. Building a dry stone wall is like playing a Jenga
puzzle. You have to put the right pieces in the right places, because there is no concrete or cement involved.
ED BROWNE, DRY STONE WALLER, COTSWOLD DRY STONE WALLING ASSOCIATION: So, you're putting the stones in, you have a face on a stone, which then
creates a nice face to the wall, and you put them lengthways into the wall to create strength. They overlap then over each other.
QUEST: Why is this better than cement?
NIGEL CHIVERS, DRY STONE WALLER, COTSWOLD DRY STONE WALLING ASSOCIATION: Our stone is limestone, illicit limestone, and it expands and contracts. If
you surround it with cement, it will shatter and just fall apart. With this, the stones can move, they can breathe, they can expand, they can
contract.
So, we need to find something to go underneath that one, and then -- and then, there you go.
QUEST: Oh, look at that.
QUEST (voice over): Everything was going really well, until I stumbled across this strange looking shell embedded in one of the ancient rocks.
QUEST: But look at that, there is a shell.
QUEST (voice over): While we've been filming this later series, we are always looking out for opportunities to show how A.I. can truly enhance our
traveling experiences.
This month, we are using Claude A.I.
QUEST: Take a photograph.
QUEST (voice over): But this discovery of a shell in a stone needed explanation, and I was pretty sure Claude would do the trick.
QUEST: What can you tell me about the shell? Fossil shell in Cotswold stone? What a great find. That's a brachiopod fossil embedded in Jurassic
Kulick limestone.
QUEST (voice over): Claude went on, of course, to tell me far more than I ever wanted to know about this.
QUEST: Typical Cotswold limestone pack with shell fragments from countless marine creatures. Now, that to me is a good use of A.I.
QUEST (voice over): In the end, Claude was very good when it came to telling me about fossils, and absolutely useless, but actually building the
wall.
CHIVERS: But you got it fixed. Thank you for your help.
QUEST: All right. Let us send a bill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
END
