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The Situation Room

U.S.-Iranian Talks; Olympics Opening Ceremony; Judge Orders Release of CBP Shooting Video; Interview With Centers For Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz. Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired February 06, 2026 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:00]

DENNIS ROSS, FORMER U.S. ENVOY TO MIDDLE EAST: The Israelis have a new defense doctrine. It's called no surprises.

If you think you're going to be hit and it's going to cause, inflict great suffering and damage, you don't wait to be hit. These ballistic missiles, in fact, have the capacity to inflict a great deal of damage. I would even say, if the president decides to strike Iran, the Israelis are saying they will only respond if they're hit.

But there -- this surprise -- this no surprise doctrine means, if they think they're going to be hit, they're not going to wait to be hit. So I think they will join the U.S. if the U.S. makes this decision.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: And, historically, as all of us remember, going back to Egypt and Syria and the Yom Kippur War and all of that, if the Israelis feel that they're about to be hit, they launch a preemptive strike to try to deal with that in advance.

ROSS: In the aftermath of October 7, that overhang from October 7 is so profound right now that the instincts from the October war in 1973 really have receded into the background.

It's now a sense that we can't afford to be surprised and we will not wait to be hit, which is why I say, if President Trump makes a decision to hit Iran, almost certainly the Israelis are going to act with the United States at that time.

BLITZER: I suspect you're absolutely right.

And the book, "Statecraft: What America Needs to Lead in a Multipolar World," thanks very much for writing this book. Thanks for all your good work. Appreciate it very much, Dennis Ross.

ROSS: My pleasure.

BLITZER: Pamela.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: All right, Wolf, we have some breaking news.

Video of a shooting involving a CBP agent in Chicago will be released. That's the new ruling from a federal judge. Marimar Martinez and her attorney have been fighting for the release of that body camera from the shooting.

CNN's Omar Jimenez.

What is he saying about this ruling and what it could mean?

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so, right now, even though the judge agreed that this video will be released, what they need to do right now is, the prosecution, the government, and Marimar Martinez's attorney have to go through and then essentially work out a version of redactions that they believe -- that they agree on can go -- actually go out into the public.

So, even though we got sort of this indication that the video will be released now, I mean, the estimation he gave me is that the actual video won't come out no earlier than Monday, as he explained to me.

But there's another crucial aspect of this as well, is text messages that the agent was sending, the shooting agent, Charles Exum, was sending to his wife and others in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. And the reason that's important is, we have seen a few texts already out to this point that appeared to show him bragging about his accuracy in shooting Martinez.

So what Parente and Martinez have argued is that actually how other events have played out across the country, specifically naming the shooting and killing of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis, inform the idea that these texts need to come out because it is really a public good to help them understand how these agents and how DHS is processing things in the immediate aftermath of a shooting like this.

And they said that push was specifically spurred on by what's happened in places across the country as well. So, while we do have an indication of what's going to come out, the judge is expecting a modified protective order, which is what was keeping these things under seal.

And once that agreement comes out, we expect the video, in whatever form it does and whatever form of redactions it does, to come out in its entirety, as the attorney has said.

BROWN: All right, Omar Jimenez, thank you so much.

And just ahead here in THE SITUATION ROOM: With TrumpRx now active, a key piece of the president's health care plan is now in place.

We're going to speak with Dr. Mehmet Oz about efforts to get his other proposals passed into law.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:38:14]

BLITZER: A huge weekend coming up in sports, the official start of the Winter Olympic Games plus the Super Bowl.

BROWN: And after her injury last Friday, Lindsey Vonn completed a training run today ahead of Sunday's downhill. The Opening Ceremony is now just hours away at four locations in Northern Italy.

BLITZER: The ceremony, as always, becomes the world's biggest fashion show. What will all the athletes be wearing this time? And what about the presence of American ICE agents at the Olympic Games? There were more protests today against their presence at the Games.

Let's go live to CNN contributor Cari Champion.

Hi, Cari.

So let's start with Lindsey Vonn. A big test for her today.

CARI CHAMPION, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: A huge test for Lindsey today. I know everyone was shocked as we found out she crashed just a week before the Olympics.

And she has been very transparent if you follow her on social media. She's saying she's still going to compete. There's still a chance she tore ACL. I think, at this point -- and I have talked to Lindsey before in the past -- Lindsey is one of these athletes who will tell you she feels as if she's broken every bone, had every injury, and she is just relentlessly fearless.

And I think so many of us are rooting for her. And I think she's going to really surprise us. But I'm not surprised that the show must go on for this one, because that's who she is. She's such a true competitor.

BLITZER: She's such a champion. There's no doubt about that.

Cari, the Opening Ceremony takes place in just a few hours. And that's where we're going to see what all the athletes are actually wearing. From what you have seen so far, what are your favorites?

CHAMPION: This is the best part.

I must be honest -- and I'm telling you this, Wolf -- I think that the Winter Olympics, they do their best to add all the bells and the whistles, because it's not as watched as the Summer Olympics, to be honest.

[11:40:00]

But the reality is, is that the fashion is everything. So, for me, I'm going through the list of all the designers. There's also an opportunity for designers to have a resurgence, if you will.

Haiti has a two-person delegation. And their outfits are by a designer named Stella Jean. She's represented them before. Very fashionable, fun, not necessarily winter-esque, but still giving us fashion and a tad bit of Winter Olympics wear.

And then, of course, Canada comes in with Lululemon. I think that's a resurgence for the brand. They have been representing the brand for a while, one of my favorites. I love Lululemon, period, just as in workout gear. And then, of course, what do we do best? Ralph Lauren. It's sleek.

It's elegant. The Americans will be fitted. They will look elegantly tasteful. I think, honestly, we have the best uniforms. I'm sure some people would disagree. Perhaps they like what they're going with there in Italy.

But I'm definitely going with the home team. We have the best uniforms on brand, courtesy of Ralph Lauren.

(LAUGHTER)

BLITZER: And for Team USA, as you point out, the uniforms were once again designed by Ralph Lauren.

We have got a breakdown of the costs, if you want to take a look and buy them. Take a look at this. Not cheap, are they?

CHAMPION: No, not at all.

I -- they're giving away -- this is the best part about folks who get to volunteer for the Olympics. They give away these kits. This year, it's a top designer, Italian designer, and they're giving away these Olympic kits. And these things are expensive. You can't just get them walking down the street.

I felt like maybe I should go and design -- or -- excuse me -- volunteer for them to see if I can get a kit. However, however, I am in San Francisco covering the Super Bowl, so I can't be in two places at one time.

BROWN: There you go.

All right, so, Cari, there's also been some controversy and protests over the presence of American ICE agents assisting with security at the Olympics. What's the latest on that?

CHAMPION: Yes, I have been watching most of the protests. A couple of people that I have spoken to are there who say to me that it's not so obvious that the presence is there, but there is an awareness.

And, as you well know -- and I want to make sure I'm understanding you correctly and I heard you correctly. As you well know, we're talking about the Olympics, not the Super Bowl. People are very well aware of what's happening there because of what's happening here in the United States. And they are not happy.

A lot of protests by students, who are suggesting that this is -- there's no need for that presence there. We're not going to hear from Olympians. We're not going to hear from those who are participating in the ceremonies about their feelings. They're focused on the main job and keeping the main thing the main thing.

But, as you can imagine, it's not a welcome -- a welcoming ceremony for ICE.

BROWN: Yes. And we should note, we interviewed a former head of ICE, and said, typically, in the past, they have been sent to the Olympics. It's the Homeland Security Investigations part of it, which investigates human trafficking and that kind of thing.

But, of course, this is all happening against the backdrop of what's occurring here in the United States and...

BLITZER: Yes. The Italians are not happy about that.

BROWN: No, they are not happy at all.

So, all right.

BLITZER: All right, Cari Champion, thank you very, very much. We will stay in close touch with you.

And coming up: President Trump's new prescription drug Web site is now up and running, but will it save Americans money, as advertised? We will ask Dr. Mehmet Oz. He's here with us in THE SITUATION ROOM.

And California Senator Adam Schiff and award-winning, yes, award- winning comedian Hasan Minhaj joins the fun on "HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU." That's on CNN, and the next day on the CNN app, Saturday night 9:00 p.m. Eastern.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:47:58]

BLITZER: New this morning, big savings could be on the way for some prescription drugs. The new TrumpRx Web site is now live and offering dozens of them at a discount. Obesity and infertility treatments are some of the first available.

BROWN: The site says the pill version of the popular weight loss drug Wegovy has been discounted by more than $1,000, and an infertility drug use to treat both men and women has gone down by more than 80 percent to $250.

Listen to how the administration is talking about the savings.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MEHMET OZ, ADMINISTRATOR, CENTERS FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID SERVICES: Mr. President, one in three families is having trouble having a baby. We're going to have a lot of Trump babies with these costs. Folks cannot afford these medications.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Well, joining us now, the official you just heard speak, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz.

Dr. Oz, thanks for being here on the show.

So, first of all, just tell us how this site, TrumpRx, is different from other cash pay discount sites like GoodRx.

OZ: Well, these are U.S. government-negotiated most favored nation prices.

Let me explain what that means. Generally, in America, until just now, we would pay, on average, three times more for every medication we were taking, even if it was made in a U.S. facility, than they paid for that same drug over in Europe or in Asia. It doesn't make any sense. You might wonder, how's that possible?

Folks were getting away with it, so they charged. The president came in and said, we're not going to tolerate that anymore, confront these pharmaceutical manufacturers face-to-face, looking them in the eyes, and say, it's not fair, it's not right that there's global freeloading on American taxpayers.

We're going to make the prices fair. And that's called most favored nation pricing. We negotiated it all, but how do the people of America get those prices? TrumpRx.gov is that solution. It was built by Joe Gebbia, who built Airbnb. The wonderful engineer Ed Coristine actually made the software, which is why the site's work -- is working so beautifully.

And it is an elegant solution to the problem pacing so many Americans, especially cash-paying Americans, folks that don't have great insurance, folks who can't afford asthma drugs, insulin, they can't get the fertility drugs.

[11:50:00]

One in three babies -- families are under-babied. How do they make children if they can't afford the medications? And with 90 percent discounts, we have an ability now to completely reset expectations for the American people and be able to save money while also saving lives.

BLITZER: And, as you point out, the site works by targeting people who are willing to pay cash for their prescriptions, rather than insurance plans.

But it's unclear if all of the patients, especially those with insurance, will see cost savings from the site to buy their medicines. For Americans who are paying thousands of dollars in insurance premiums each year, what do you say to them?

OZ: Well, the best disinfectant is sunlight, transparency.

And this is a big part of our hope with the Great Healthcare Plan. Make it easy in plain English to understand what you're really getting. Now that everyone knows the true worldwide most favored nation drug prices, it's going to allow employers, insurers, and everyone in between to be able to take out the middlemen and drive those prices down.

But our primary concern was for a couple groups. We wanted people on Medicaid, we wanted state governments to get inexpensive drug pricing. We want to make sure all the cash pay patients can now get these medications.

Wolf, if you want to go on a GLP-1 drug, a weight loss drug, and you just announced -- and I will share this to make sure everyone understands it -- these aren't just shots. They're pills now.

BLITZER: Like Ozempic or Wegovy.

OZ: Exactly.

Now, Pam looks like a gazelle. You probably don't need it.

BROWN: Well, thank you.

OZ: But there are plenty of people, plenty of people who need these medications desperately, and they can't afford them.

The number one zip code for these GLP-1 drugs is Upper East Side of Manhattan, because people have money. Why can't folks in the South Side of Chicago, or folks living in poverty in rural America get access to these meds? At $150 a month, not only can they get them. If they want to buy them on their own, they can.

And here's the best part. Within two years, we will save money for the taxpayer, because when you reduce obesity rates, you reduce high blood pressure, diabetes and all the downstream illnesses, heart disease, kidney disease, brain disease.

And now you're spending less money dealing with chronic illness because people are healthier and they feel better.

BROWN: Yes.

And, certainly, I think a lot of Americans welcome lower drug prices. That is a big deal. But, of course, you have to look at the bigger picture too, right? I mean, you mentioned more families having kids. This could help with that. But then childcare costs, of course, are a factor, health care costs a factor.

I know "The Wall Street Journal" is reporting that you have held frequent talks with the president about health care in the U.S.

I want us to take a listen to Republican Congressman Greg Murphy of North Carolina questioning health insurance CEOs during a hearing last month. He was really fired up. As you may know, he was a physician for more than 30 years. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. GREG MURPHY (R-NC): But you all have been very derelict in your duty and abused this position of authority. There has been systematic denial and delay of care. It took me eight denials myself to get a medicine that I need to exist, a year-and-a-half. I'm a physician and a member of Congress.

It took me eight times through CVS to get that medication. I didn't pull any strings. I did what I was supposed to do. Imagine the average person in the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: I know, again, you talk to the president. Does he recognize what the congressman had to say about an insurance company and how they might take advantage of the average American and what can be done about this?

OZ: The president not only recognizes it. He's actually started doing things about it.

And I will give you one concrete example, which is I think a differentiating element of what the president's been able to do. He believes in the power to convene. He's a dealmaker. You bring people together who normally wouldn't talk to each other and you tell them to put their swords away, sheath them.

That's what meet means. Put the sword away and actually talk. He asked us to go to all the insurance companies -- and Chris Klomp did this for us. He runs Medicare. And he got them all to say, listen, this does not work when you do prior authorization the way that Greg described.

He's a -- by the way, he still practices. He's a urologist. And so what he's describing is a real-life lived experience for him. And we got all these companies to agree that, by the end of this year, they're going to deal with the prior authorization crisis.

Prior authorization, again, you're having a precious discussion with your doctor. The insurance company puts their long arm in there, interferes with that sacred conversation, and that covenant gets violated.

From now on, they're going to rapidly, like hopefully real time, say yes or no to a treatment, come up with better ideas for how to actually use the system. We need some element of prior authorization, because it does reduce wrong procedures, things that shouldn't be done.

But I will give you an example of an idea that's been come up with, again, by industry, that we support, gold carding. What does that mean? If you're an insurance company that does not interfere with a doctor, because a doctor is so good, he doesn't need it, and your patients are getting great care, they automatically have to get to take whatever care they want, no one interferes.

No -- there's no delays on prescriptions or treatments. However, if you have got a problem, you don't get that gold card. Now all the doctors want to get the gold card. Why? Because every doctor I know of wants to be in the top half of his class. We all think we were, by the way.

And patients, more importantly, can pick the doctors based on who does better following evidence-based guidelines. This is a crisis that we can handle, and we have got our arms around it. And ones like that should be addressable, and we're going to make a lot of noise until we fix them.

The president will not tolerate being second best, whether it comes to drug prices, prior authorization, or half-a-dozen other issues, Like, when you get confused almost on purpose by the reports you get from hospitals and insurance companies, That's part of the Great American Health Plan. We're not going to allow that to continue.

[11:55:07]

BLITZER: Earlier this week, as you well know, you drew a little -- some sharp criticism when you said kids should work right out of high

school.

And older Americans, you said, should put off retiring by a year to help get rid of the national debt. Let me play a little -- a clip for our viewers of that. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OZ: If we could get the average American, because they feel healthy, they're vital, they're strong, they have agency over their future, to start working a year earlier, right out of high school, or work a year later, not retire, or work better during their lifetime because they're healthy, it would generate about $3 trillion, $3 trillion to the U.S. economy.

That would more than remove the debt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Why should average Americans have to pay for problems created by Washington and you can see that the national debt could also be eliminated by taxing the ultra-rich?

OZ: There are many ways of dealing with the debt, but, ultimately, my agency, CMS, we don't just regulate. We're the payers.

And we should be using the money we pay out to save lives and improve the quality of life of the American people by making them healthier. If we do that, we unlock -- Wolf, the greatest asset we have is our people, right? It's not the energy we have under our turf. It's not all these other things you might quibble about.

It's the people of America that are our richest asset. If we make our people healthier, they will want to participate in life. You shouldn't work longer because you have to. You should work longer because you want to. You should retire, but you won't. Why not? Because you love the job and you're good at it.

BROWN: He shouldn't retire. He's...

OZ: No, no, in theory, right?

BLITZER: I still wake up every morning and look forward to reporting the news.

BROWN: He has more energy than anyone at CNN.

OZ: That's it. That's what you want. You want to be here because you love it.

If people get out of high school and we don't hold them back from being able to get a job and get involved in the work economy, if we don't provide ways for folks to leave the work force or they're forced to because they don't feel well because we're making them healthier.

And if they want to work longer into their lives -- I don't want to retire. I'm 65, right? Why would we retire? We want to do more and we want to live the dreams that we still have. And that's what America should seek.

If we took the average retirement age from 62, right, not because you have to, not by a law, not because Washington says it, but because you don't want to stop working, that's a great thing. And we generate so much value for the economy. It happens to solve the deficit. That's not the greatest benefit.

BROWN: All right.

BLITZER: Thanks for coming in.

OZ: Bless you.

BROWN: To be clear, Wolf Blitzer will outlast all of us.

OZ: Exactly.

(LAUGHTER)

BLITZER: My dad used to say, when you're young, you work. When you're old, you play golf.

(LAUGHTER)

OZ: No, you work more because it's fun.

(LAUGHTER)

BROWN: There you go.

All right, well, thank you very much for coming on.

BLITZER: All right, thanks to all of our viewers for joining us this morning.

BROWN: "INSIDE POLITICS" with our friend and colleague Dana Bash starts after a quick break.