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CNN Headlines: Trump Strengthens Grip On Republican Party With Rep. Massie Loss; WHO Chief: Central Africa Ebola Crisis "Warrants Serious Concern"; Trump Temporarily Pausing New Attacks On Iran. Aired 5-5:30a ET
Aired May 20, 2026 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[05:00:25]
BRAD SMITH, CNN ANCHOR: President Trump's political retribution campaign steamrolls another Republican rival. We'll show you who won and who lost in yesterday's key primaries.
And fears are mounting over how the spread of a deadly Ebola outbreak in Central Africa can be contained.
Plus --
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I won't lie. We -- my friends and I have been a little bit scared about entering the workforce.
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SMITH: New college graduates are already facing a grim job market, but now, there's a new tech threat to their prospects.
And is this the solution to pain at the pump? We'll show you. This guy driving down high gas prices in a pink Barbie car.
Good morning, everyone. I'm Brad Smith. This is CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS. Glad that you're with us this morning.
Let's get this started.
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SMITH: The World Health Organization chief is warning the world about the deadly Ebola outbreak that is fueling a health crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. The public health agency head says that the virus, quote, "warrants serious concern". That's after more than 130 deaths and more than 500 cases are suspected in those countries.
We now want to take you to a briefing from the World Health Organization as they address the outbreak.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you. Is it a point of order? Russia.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, I just need five seconds to finish.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Please wait.
As Russia has not supported and requested for a vote, we have given an opportunity to Russia. And similarly, as Ukraine has asked to speak, we have also apologized. As Ukraine has also asked to speak, we have also given the opportunity to speak for Ukraine as well.
Thank you, Ukraine. Please continue.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you. Just to finish it, if the voting will be conducted. So we request to have a recorded vote in both cases. Thank you.
(INAUDIBLE)
SMITH: We are going to go back to that press conference in a little bit, get you the latest update on that Ebola outbreak as the WHO continues to discuss it with world nations.
Let's move to some other news. This morning, we're also tracking another victory for Donald Trump in his campaign against his Republican critics. Tuesday marked a day of primaries in six states. We've got them lit up here on your screen for you.
It sets the stage for crucial November midterms, which could change the balance of power in Washington. Now, one of the most contentious and closely watched races was the battle for Kentucky's fourth U.S. House district. Republican Thomas Massie versus former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein, Trump's hand-picked challenger. Massie fell short and conceded, but claimed the high road.
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REP. THOMAS MASSIE (R-KY): We stayed the course. We did not. We didn't bend the knee. We didn't throw a foul ball. We didn't do any of those things.
We didn't kneecap anybody. We had lots of opportunities to try a lot of stuff like that, and we never did it. We ran a clean race.
ED GALLREIN, REPUBLICAN NOMINEE, KY-4 HOUSE: Now my focus is on advancing the president's and the party's agenda to put America first, and Kentucky always.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SMITH: Massie is just one in a line of Republicans steamrolled by the president's revenge.
CNN's Jeff Zeleny is in Kentucky with more on this fiercely fought match-up.
[05:05:02]
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JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: President Trump's retribution tour continues with a stop in Kentucky, taking out Congress Congressman Thomas Massie. After serving 14 years in Washington, he was handily defeated Tuesday night right here in Kentucky by a farmer and former Navy SEAL named Ed Gallrein.
But make no mistake, this was a race between President Trump and Thomas Massie. The president spoke about this congressman again and again right up until the very closing hours of Election Day.
But after conceding defeat, Massie made clear he's going nowhere.
MASSIE: To start out as an election, and it turned into a movement. We -- we stirred up something. There is a yearning in this country for somebody who will vote for principles over party.
And we have to figure out what was the purpose of having the biggest fight ever. Biggest fight ever. Why did it -- why did it converge on one of 435 congressional seats right here in Kentucky? What was God's purpose? What is he showing us tonight?
ZELENY: Now, Massie does have more than six months left in his term in Congress, but after that remains an open question. But in a concession speech that sounded anything but, Massie praised his young supporters as they chanted "2028, 2028."
Of course, it's far too early to know if Massie will actually try and run for president in 2028, but he made clear that he believes this is the very beginning of a movement.
So even though he lost his congressional race falling to President Trump and his retribution tour, Massie made clear he's just getting started.
Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Hebron, Kentucky.
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SMITH: Thank you, Jeff.
And from Kentucky, we go to Georgia now. Another Trump enemy, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is out of the running for the governor position in the peach state. The incumbent, Brian Kemp, is termed out. And Raffensperger, a Republican who famously pushed back against President Trump's claims of fraud in the 2020 election, faced a tough slate of Republican candidates in the GOP gubernatorial primary.
An ally of the president, Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, will advance a June runoff against newcomer Rick Jackson.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) LT. GOV. BURT JONES (R), GEORGIA: We're Georgians that believe in this state and believe that the great run that we've had for the last decade, it can continue on. It can continue on to the next eight years if y'all give me the opportunity.
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SMITH: The winner of the runoff will face former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms in the general election this November. We'll hear from her later on this hour.
Well, new this morning, an unprecedented move for the IRS. The agency is now barred from ever prosecuting or pursuing claims against President Trump for any past tax issues. It's part of the Justice Department's settlement with Trump to resolve his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS over the alleged mishandling of his tax returns. The addendum also covers Trump's family trusts, companies and other affiliates.
Democrats are calling it outright corruption. They're also denouncing the $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund that's included in the settlement. It would give taxpayer money to people who claim that they were unfairly investigated by past administrations. Critics say it's merely a way for the president to enrich his allies.
But the Trump administration says it's meant to be nonpartisan. Listen to Vice President Vance defending the fund yesterday.
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J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT: -- about. This is about compensating Americans for the lawfare that we saw under the last administration. The people that would get the money are people -- some of whom have been prosecuted completely disproportionate to any crime they've ever committed. Circumstances, let's say a person is accused, let's say, hypothetically, a person is accused of doing something that they never actually did, that they got a kangaroo court, that they had a judge who mistreated them. I think that we should look at those things case by case.
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SMITH: White House officials, including Vance, are not ruling out that the fund could be used to pay people who violently stormed the Capitol on January 6th, 2021, even those who attacked police.
We now know the identities of all three victims in the shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego. A security guard, a teacher's husband and the mosque caretaker are being remembered as heroes who died trying to draw the shooters attention away from the children inside the mosque. Police say that the security officer was able to use his radio to get the school to go into a lockdown before he was killed.
His daughter shared this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) HAWAA ABDULLAH, DAUGHTER OF GUARD KILLED IN SHOOTING: He stood against any form of hate. He took his job seriously to protect everyone here. He would want our community to stand together as one -- as one.
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That's exactly what he would want, and I hope this moment we can all come together and to be kind to one another and to remember who he truly was.
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SMITH: And we are getting new details about the two teenage shooters.
Disturbing new video shows the suspects, Caleb Vasquez and Cain Clark, firing into a nearby neighborhood just yards away from someone running with a stroller. And in the search of homes associated with the suspects, the FBI seized more than 30 guns as well as a crossbow and a lengthy written document.
Investigators believe that they were radicalized into neo-Nazi ideology online.
Developing overnight in southern California, lots of smoke in the quickly spreading Bain Fire. This started Tuesday in Riverside County, about 45 miles west of Los Angeles, and triggered mandatory evacuations. At last check, it spread to over two square miles. Dangerously close to home.
And it's only 10 percent contained. And take a look at this, it's aircraft video on the move near San Diego, fighting to contain this wildfire. Now people are ordered to leave their homes with 10 percent containment. This fire has grown to more than one and a half square miles after sparking Tuesday afternoon.
We have lots more to come on CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS. A teacher who was shot by her six year old student testifies in a trial against the school's former assistant principal. What she said on the stand coming up.
And the national average for gas is still above $4. And the president is asking the public to pack some patience.
And a woman leads police on a high speed chase through neighborhood streets, through a mall and major roadways. How it ended later in the hour.
Stay with us. You're watching CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS.
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SMITH: The World Health Organization is addressing the Ebola outbreak. We want to take you to that live.
DR. TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYESUS, CHIEF OF THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: The new and highest classification under the international health regulations. After declaring the PHEIC, I immediately convened an emergency committee under the IHR, which met yesterday and agreed that the situation is a public health emergency of international concern, but is not a pandemic emergency. WHO assesses the risk of the epidemic as the high at the national and regional levels, and low at the global level.
So far, 51 cases have been confirmed in the DRC. In the northern provinces of Ituri and north Kivu, including in the cities of Bunia and Goma. Although we know the scale of the epidemic in DRC is much larger.
[05:15:04]
Uganda has also informed WHO of two confirmed cases in the capital, Kampala, including one death among two individuals who traveled from DRC to Uganda. An American national who was working in DRC has also been confirmed positive and been transferred to Germany.
There are several factors that warrant serious concern about the potential for further spread and further deaths.
First, beyond the confirmed cases, there are almost 600 suspected cases and 179 suspected deaths. We expect those numbers to keep increasing, given the amount of time the virus was circulating before the outbreak was detected.
Second, the epidemic has expanded, with cases reported in several urban areas.
Third, deaths have been reported among health workers, indicating health care associated transmission.
Fourth, there is significant population movement in the area. The province of Ituri is highly insecure. Conflict has intensified since late 2025 and fighting has escalated significantly over the past two months, with over 100,000 people newly displaced.
The area is also a mining zone, with high levels of population movement that increase the risk of further spread and PHEIC. This epidemic is caused by Bundibugyo virus, a species of Ebola virus for which there are no approved vaccines or therapeutics. In light of all these risks, I decided it was urgent to act immediately to prevent more deaths and mobilize an effective and international response.
I would like to thank the government of DRC, the National Institute of Biomedical Research, the National Institute of Public Health, and the local health authorities in the affected areas for their leadership and cooperation.
I also thank the government of Uganda for postponing the annual martyrs day celebrations, which can attract up to 2 million people because of the risk posed by the epidemic.
My thanks, especially to his Excellency, President Museveni, for taking this action. WHO has a team on the ground supporting national authorities to respond. We have deployed people, supplies, equipment and funds.
To support our response, I have approved an additional US$3.4 million from the contingency fund for emergencies, bringing the total to $3.9 million.
In the absence of vaccines and therapeutics, there are many other measures countries can take to stop the spread of the virus and save lives. With the emergency committee has outlined in its temporary recommendations.
To say more, I am pleased to invite the chair of the committee, Professor Lucille Blumberg, from the University of Pretoria in South Africa.
Professor Blumberg, thank you for your leadership at this time. And over to you.
PROFESSOR LUCILLE BLUMBERG, UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA IN SOUTH AFRICA: Sir, good morning. Dr. Tedros, and members of.
SMITH: You were just listening to the chief of the WHO, the World Health Organization speaking in Switzerland, saying that the Ebola crisis is not a pandemic, also giving us some new numbers, 600 suspected cases, 179 suspected deaths, and there are no approved vaccines. Therapeutics makes this conversation all the more important right now.
We will be right back here on CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS.
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SMITH: After failing seven times, the Senate has advanced a measure to require congressional approval on any future military action in Iran. Senators moved the measure forward on the eighth try by a vote of 57 to 40 yesterday, with four Republicans voting with Democrats, including Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy. It comes after Trump successfully pushed for him to be voted out of office.
The other Republicans who voted for the measure were senators Lisa Murkowski, Rand Paul and Susan Collins.
It comes as the president says that he was on the verge of launching new strikes on Iran and postponed the attack at the request of several Gulf nations. But officials from some of those countries say they were unaware of any impending military action.
Trump also says that despite polls showing Americans do not support the war, he thinks it's necessary.
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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Everyone tells me its unpopular, but I think its very popular. When you -- when they hear that its having to do with nuclear weapons, weapons that could take out Los Angeles to take out major cities very quickly. When they hear that, you know, when theyre explaining, [05:25:00]
I'll tell you what, when we explain it to people, I don't really have enough time to explain to people. I'm too busy getting it done when they understand. I think it's -- I think it's frankly very popular. But whether it's popular or not popular, I have to do it.
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SMITH: Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts to end the war are ongoing. But Vice President J.D. Vance says that the U.S. will be ready to launch new attacks if it comes to that.
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J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have an opportunity here, I think, to reset the relationship that has existed between Iran and the United States for 47 years. That's what the president has asked us to do, and that's what we're going to keep on working at. But it takes two to tango.
We are not going to have a deal that allows the Iranians to have a nuclear weapon. So as the president just told me, were locked and loaded. We don't want to go down that pathway. But the president is willing and able to go down that pathway if we have to.
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SMITH: Vance led the U.S. delegation at the last round of peace talks with Iran.
Well, straight ahead on CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS, evacuation orders remain in place for thousands as fires continue to rage across parts of California. We'll have the latest there for you.
And a good night for Trump-backed candidates in primary races across the country. In one Kentucky race, a Trump critic loses his congressional seat.
And Georgia is headed for a historic general election. Democrats nominate former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms as their candidate for governor. A roundup of some of the big races is coming up.
Stay with us. You're watching CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS.
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