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Trump Ups Pressure On Countries To Help Secure Strait Of Hormuz; NATO Pushes Back On Trump Call To Help Reopen Strait Of Hormuz; Bad Weather, Long Security Line Creating Mess At Airports. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired March 16, 2026 - 11:00   ET

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

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: -- in the history of the tournament.

[11:00:01]

Finally, take a look at this map. See this red line going right down the middle of the screen. So since 1997, every single champion has come from east of that line. Michigan's over here, Duke's over here. Good news for them.

Arizona's the one team over there in the west. But in '97, who won? It was those Arizona Wildcats. I think the 29-year drought is finally going to come to an end. I'm picking the Arizona Wildcats to go all the way and win it. Wolf and Pam, if this doesn't work out though, don't blame me. Blame the numbers.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: So then maybe West is the best. I don't know. Who do you have winning?

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: I like Duke.

BROWN: Wolf.

BLITZER: I like Duke.

BROWN: I went to UNC Chapel Hill and grew up in Kentucky. How can you be rooting for Duke?

BLITZER: I like Jon Scheyer, the head coach of Duke. I've met him.

BROWN: We're going to have to discuss this off air.

BLITZER: Yes.

BROWN: All right. Andy Scholes, we appreciate it.

BLITZER: And the next hour of The Situation Room starts right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.

BLITZER: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown and you're in The Situation Room. And we're following some major breaking stories this hour. We're expecting to hear directly from President Trump as he heads to the Kennedy Center for a meeting with the board.

Any moment now, we're also expecting an update from the Michigan Attorney General in the wake of that horrible terror attack on a Detroit area synagogue.

BROWN: Plus, millions under threat for severe weather. We're tracking snow and the possibility of tornadoes from the Midwest to the Mid- Atlantic.

And then later this hour, former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene joins us in The Situation Room to talk about the war with Iran and the race to fill her seat.

BLITZER: But first, happening now, President Trump warning U.S. allies that NATO faces a, "Very bad future if they fail to help secure the Strait of Hormuz."

BROWN: The President says some countries have responded positively to his call to help the U.S. secure the Strait. U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer says they're working with allies to get it back open. But others, like Germany, say, "It's not NATO's war."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We are talking to other countries about work on the policing of the Strait, and I think we're getting a good response. It'd be interesting to see what country wouldn't help us with a very small endeavor which is just keeping this Strait open.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: All right, let's go live now to CNN White House correspondent Alayna Treene. Alayna, what has the reaction been to the President's call for help?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is interesting from that clip you just played, Pamela, with the president saying it's a very small endeavor, from kind of the response we've been seeing from a number of United States allies that the Trump administration is calling on for help here in reopening the Strait. They don't necessarily see that that way.

But when you talk to Trump administration officials, essentially they do believe that they will be able to get this coalition together that they've been talking about. They do think they'll ultimately be successful in that. But the question really is who will that actually consist of, as well as what exactly would they be committing to? Those are all still open questions.

Now, you know, we've heard an extreme amount of caution, as I just said, from a number of U.S. allies about sending Navy ships to escort these tankers through the Strait. We've reported extensively on just how dangerous and risky that really is. But we've also seen this immense amount of pressure from the President himself, an extraordinary amount of pressure, I would argue, really building throughout the weekend.

And we heard him last night kind of give this ominous warning to NATO allies, essentially saying that if they do not aid right now in what he is calling for, that essentially we will remember. And given this is coming from a President who has threatened in the past multiple times to potentially withdraw from NATO, it is a serious threat. But I do want you to listen to exactly what the president said here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: It would have been nice because I said to the prime minister of the U.K. he was reluctant to put his new aircraft carriers into harm's way. That would be two weeks ago. As soon as we demolished essentially, pretty much demolished, it's not over yet but pretty much, we're pretty much in great shape. As far as everybody knows. He said we'd like to send our aircraft carriers. I said I don't want them after we win the war, I want them before. So whether it's -- we get support or not, but I can say this and I said it to them, we will remember.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: You saw that there. He leaned in looking at the camera when he said we will remember. But what's interesting, just to put some of these comments from the President in context, Pamela and Wolf, you know, in a lot of ways this is the first time the President has really actually seemed eager to bring other countries into this war. And I'd remind you that many of these allies that the President is calling upon now actually weren't even consulted properly prior to the U.S. helping Israel in launching these strikes against Iran.

[11:05:07]

And despite a lot of the pressure we are now seeing from the President, many allies from Germany to the U.K. and even Japan, whose prime minister is going to be at the White House later this week, all of them still giving this cautious approach to what they're going to do about trying to help the United States in reopening the Strait.

BROWN: All right, Alayna Treene, live for us from the White House, thanks so much. Wolf?

BLITZER: Also happening now, the Israel Defense Force says it has destroyed Iran's space and satellite center. This as Israel launches fresh attacks in Tehran. Iranian state media reporting loud booms in the capital city. Also this morning, airstrikes have rocked Beirut. Israel says its troops have expanded their, "Limited and targeted ground operation in southern Lebanon."

Let's go live right now to CNN correspondent Paula Hancocks. She's in Abu Dhabi for us. Paula, we're learning that there was a huge fire at the country's petroleum industrial zone after it was targeted in an Iranian drone attack. What more are you learning?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Wolf, this was in Fujairah, and it is not the first time that the Iranians have targeted this area. We could see thick black smoke emanating from the petroleum industrial area. It is a very key area. This is on the east coast of the UAE, and judging from last year's figures, some 1.7 million barrels a day were coming out of this particular area.

And it's one of the areas that doesn't have to go through the Strait of Hormuz to get to the open water to be able to export this oil. So it really is key to the global oil exports at this point. But we have seen it a number of times being targeted by Tehran.

We heard from the Iranian military officials over the weekend saying very specifically that they were going to target the UAE, they were going to target the ports and the docks, telling people to stay away from these areas. So Fujairah, we know, once again, has been hit. We also know that Dubai International Airport is another area that has had impact this Monday.

There was a drone incident, according to officials. There was a fire. They managed to put it out. There were no injuries, but it did disrupt an already extremely disrupted travel system out of that international airport for hours. All incoming and outgoing flights were suspended. We know that some were diverted to another airport in Dubai.

And then also here in Abu Dhabi, one person was killed as a strike impacted a car. A Palestinian was killed in that particular strike. This really has been one of the biggest targets, the UAE, for Iranian retaliation. Wolf?

BLITZER: Yes. Horrible situation. Paula Hancocks in Abu Dhabi, thank you very, very much. Pamela?

BROWN: All right, Wolf, still ahead here in the Situation Room, President Trump says people opposing his stance toward Iran are, "Not MAGA," arguing the movement is about stopping them cold. I'll ask former Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene how that squares with his America First agenda.

[11:08:20]

BLITZER: And a dangerous storm tearing across the country right now. Tornadoes and severe thunderstorms in the south, while blizzard conditions hammer the Midwest. The threat isn't over yet, by any means. Stay with us. We'll update you. You're in The Situation Room.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're following a number of breaking stories this morning. Right now, millions of Americans under severe weather threat. This is a live look at Milwaukee right now. People there are seeing blizzard conditions.

At any moment now, we're expecting an update from the Michigan Attorney General, Dana Nessel, in the wake of that terror attack on a Detroit area synagogue. We'll have live coverage of that. We're also expecting to hear directly from President Trump this hour as he heads to the Kennedy Center for a meeting with the board. Pamela? BROWN: And Wolf, we are back with the breaking news on the war with Iran. As Iran continues to disrupt shipping in the Persian Gulf, there's been a lukewarm reaction at best to President Trump's calls for NATO and other countries to help reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz. Joining us here in the Situation Room is CNN Global Affairs Analyst, Kimberly Dozier. Are you surprised that President Trump's calls for help in reopening the Strait of Hormuz has so far received this sort of cool, tepid response?

KIM DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Not at all. He didn't give U.S. allies any heads up that this was about to happen. He didn't do any of the things that you normally do before a major military operation to build a coalition of support, at least support diplomatically. So now he's asking through a tweet, demanding that they step in.

Germany has just gone on record saying, you started this war. It's not our problem with a couple of frigates to go try to help fix it. Basically, they're also saying, look, the U.S. military has the strongest Navy in the world. We don't really have the capabilities to put in harm's way. At least that's what we're hearing from those who've spoken so far.

The British prime minister is, of course, in conversations with the White House. But remember, only in the last week or so, President Trump had said of Keir Starmer, the prime minister, that he's no Churchill. And because they were angry that the initial assault had been denied the use of British airfields to launch attacks.

[11:15:14]

BROWN: Right. And all of this is happening as, you know, we're seeing gas prices rise, right? I mean, it's impacting not just the U.S., but these other countries as well. I mean, they do have an economic incentive for the 20 miles to reopen. Do you think at some point there will be some help?

DOZIER: It depends on how long this goes on. I mean, you could form some sort of NATO-like patrol that you've got right now in the Arctic or in the Red Sea. But at this point, I think you're going to have to see the White House exercise some more humble pie, at least behind closed doors, to get people on board. Because their populations are watching this, and they don't want to see their governments become patsies to what they see as a bully in the White House.

BROWN: The U.S. says that much of Iran's military capability has been destroyed. But we're seeing Iran continue these attacks on the neighboring Gulf countries that are aligned with the U.S. So what does that tell you?

DOZIER: Yes, hate to say I told you so. I think every single CNN national security analyst in the run-up to this said Iran fights with major military equipment, but they also know how to fight asymmetrically, and that's exactly what they're doing.

You can take out all of their missiles, but they're still going to be able to move drones on pickup trucks around the country. They could even, with some of the fast boats that they've got, you know, which are like speed boats. How do you find and destroy all of those? They can launch RPGs. They can attach a limpet mine to the side of something. They have a number of different ways that are very hard to stop to frustrate navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.

BROWN: All right, Kimberly Dozier, as always, great to have you on. Thanks so much.

BLITZER: Good analysis indeed. All right, I want to go to a live event right now. The attorney general of Michigan, Dana Nessel, is speaking to reporters about the anti-Semitism that has been growing not only in Michigan but across the country, including that attack on a synagogue outside Detroit just a few days ago.

DANA NESSEL (D-MI), ATTORNEY GENERAL: And only six weeks ago, Temple Israel welcomed the FBI for an active shooter drill to prepare for a mass casualty event. Sadly, these weren't held out of an abundance of caution. They were held out of an abundance of need.

Now, I'd like to thank my fellow Jewish elected officials, Oakland County Treasurer Robert Wittenberg, State Senator Jeremy Moss, State Representative Noah Arbit, and State Representative Samantha Steckloff, for joining me today as we discuss our concerns and the work that lies ahead as we continue to combat and tackle the growing issue of anti-Semitism and domestic terrorism here in Michigan.

Oakland County Clerk Lisa Brown sends her apologies. She would have liked to have been here, but she was not available for today. Now, I'll have more to say at the end. But before that, well, but before we open up for questions to the press, first I would like to welcome Treasurer Wittenberg to the podium.

ROBERT WITTENBERG, OAKLAND COUNTY TREASURER: Well, thank you, AG Nessel, and thank you all for being here today. And I'm speaking as a Jewish countywide elected official in Oakland County, and as you mentioned, Lisa Brown, my colleague, the Clerk Register of Deeds in Oakland County. And I want to take a moment to paint --

[11:18:53]

BLITZER: -- news conference and the statements from these Jewish members of the state legislature in Michigan. We'll continue to monitor it when we get back to it live once the questions begin from the journalists. Stand by. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're continuing to monitor these statements from these Jewish legislators in Michigan right now in the aftermath of that horrible terror attack against a Jewish synagogue outside of Detroit Temple, Israel. We'll get back to it once the questions start for the attorney general, Dana Nessel. In the meantime, Pamela, there's other news we're following.

BROWN: There's a lot of news we're following, including the fact that about 75 percent of the U.S. population is feeling or will feel the powerful effects of a dangerous storm system, dropping everything from blizzard-like conditions to potential tornadoes. At least four locations in the Midwest have more than 30 inches of snow, causing a true travel nightmare.

Here's a live look at Milwaukee, which is right now under a blizzard warning. And in Charlotte, North Carolina, where nearly 30 million people are across the Mid-Atlantic, they are under a rare level 4 of 5 threat of severe weather. So let's go live now to meteorologist Derek Van Dam, who is tracking the latest forecast. What is going on here with this weather system where there's a little bit of everything mixed in here, it seems?

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, that's right, Pamela. And by the way, you and Wolf and the entire crew at the D.C. Bureau are under a tornado watch until 7:00 p.m., so that information just coming in to CNN from the Storm Prediction Center. Here's a look at that tornado watch that is inclusive of Baltimore, stretching through portions of Virginia, including Norfolk and Toronto.

[11:24:56]

This area is just part of an expansive spread of tornado watches that span from the Mid-Atlantic all the way to the Gulf Coast near the Florida Panhandle. So this is a large, expansive storm. It's covering over 20 states. As mentioned from Pamela just a few minutes ago, we had blizzard conditions across the Great Lakes. Look at the cold air wrapping in behind this system. It is actually snowing west of Atlanta near Birmingham.

Yes, that's drastic, right? So this is a very powerful cold front with lots of dynamics associated with it. Let's get right into D.C. Because just to the west, we're talking about over the next one to two hours, our first round of thunderstorms are really going to move through the greater D.C. and Baltimore area. We do have an active tornado warning just issued here near the border of Virginia and North Carolina.

And further south, ongoing active tornado warnings, radar indicated for central and southern Georgia and the Florida Panhandle. This is our greatest threat of severe weather, Storm Prediction Center, highlighting the region you see there with a level four of five with the potential of strong long-track tornadoes with that tornado watch and hurricane-force gust winds where you see that hatched area that, again, is inclusive of the nation's capital. So, yes, we've got to keep an eye to the sky, have multiple ways to receive your emergency notifications. Pamela?

BROWN: For sure. Derek Van Dam, thanks so much. Wolf?

BLITZER: Yes, it's an awful situation. We have to brace potentially, God forbid, for a tornado hitting the D.C. area.

BLITZER: Yes, schools, my kid's school's out early. I mean, it's serious.

BLITZER: Of course. It's a dangerous situation. Today's rough weather is also making travel delays even worse at some airports across the country where they're already dealing with extremely long security lines as the partial government shutdown continues. This morning, it's taken up to two hours to get through security at the Atlanta airport.

Nationwide, more than 300 TSA agents have quit after going a month without full pay, and others are taking unplanned time off so they can work second jobs simply to make ends meet. TSA workers say they aren't getting the same help they got during the last government shutdown, which affected the entire federal government.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE BOREK, UNION STEWARD AND TSA OFFICER: People are terrified. People are scared. They don't know what tomorrow is going to bring. A lot of them are trying, you know, they're having mental breakdowns. They're having, like, where am I going to get a meal?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: In the last hour, the Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on X, blaming Democrats for the partial government shutdown, saying, and I'm quoting her now, "As Americans across the nation face hours-long wait times at airports, Democrats continue to play political games while TSA officers and travelers pay the highest price." Our Ryan Young is over at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, maybe the busiest in the world right now. How are things looking over there, Ryan?

RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Wolf, this is the world's busiest airport, and I can tell you people are really angry and upset and confused by the lines they're having to face. And I step out of the way of one of the main choke points here. This checkpoint right here is the main TSA checkpoint into the airport.

At one point, this line was much longer than what it is right now. People missing their flights, confused about where to go. Some folks standing in this line for over two hours, as you stressed before. And in talking to people so far, they have started to split these security lines on either side of this massive airport to help move people through. But the reality is they don't have as many TSA workers showing up here.

So even on the pre-check lines on the other side, they still remain long. And then you add in the weather that Derek was talking about, and this just adds to the confusion. There's already been 300 delayed flights, 127 canceled flights. And as you know, on a Monday, stacking all that together with some people heading out for spring break, there's that choke point of pain that people are really starting to experience this.

I was told also by a police officer here that several agents from the TSA didn't show up. This morning they had to shut down the TSA for a short period of time, and that added to the backlog of people who were here. When you think about this airport that stays open for 24/7 to see the interruptions that they've been experiencing, you understand the frustration by passengers. And there's another checkpoint that's on the international side that's seeing sizable lines as well.

So this pain is being felt by the American flying public. A lot of people asking questions, what happens next? Obviously, if some TSA workers are not getting paid and not showing up, it's a problem that people are really feeling. Wolf?

BLITZER: Horrible situation indeed. All right, Ryan Young in Atlanta for us. Ryan, thank you very much. Pamela?

[11:29:40]

BROWN: All right, Wolf, still ahead, President Trump says Iran is completely decimated and that the U.S. has already won. So why is he now asking foreign ships for help ending it? I'll speak to former Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene about the administration's motivation behind the war with Iran and whether Congress should get more involved. That's next.

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