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The Situation Room

Alleged D.C. Gunman in Court; King Charles Visits Arlington National Cemetery; Pete Hegseth Appears Before Senate. Aired 11:30a- 12p ET

Aired April 30, 2026 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:01]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: It's a sensitive issue. The president of the United States clearly has some different views, right?

MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's interesting.

If you juxtapose -- juxtaposition a lot of the moments from his speech against things that the president has said, they completely contradict. But I think what we saw there was a monarch, ironically, standing up for Western democracy, the transatlantic alliance.

This is very much part of that moment as well, showing the militaries have always stood together, not just the U.K., but also other parts of the commonwealth and the rest of Europe. So he's emphasizing that this is a Western ideal that we need to keep together, and that Congress should try to hold the executive to account to make sure that continues, because American law built on British law and the Magna Carta, and that the very premise of that was about democracy and liberal democracy.

So I think it's fascinating that the president is so keen to hear from the king on those thoughts. And I think the rest of the world is probably looking on, saying, actually, he's speaking for us, but, as I say, ironic, because he's a hereditary monarch.

BLITZER: Very, very, indeed.

It's interesting. From Arlington National Cemetery and all of the very beautiful events here in Washington, he's going to go where you are right now in nearby Virginia, Front Royal, Virginia.

Why was that the location decided on?

FOSTER: Well, he wanted to go to Main Street America. He wanted to go to a small town. He wanted to get out of the cities. He wanted to meet people. He wanted to show that this isn't just a connection between two heads of state and politicians.

This is about British people connecting with American people, showing we care, we have similar values, we come from similar cultures. And he wanted to just connect with everyday Americans. And it's amazing. I will show you again. The line is -- just isn't getting any shorter. And that's because it goes around the corner and on and on and on. One lady said this is the biggest thing to happen in the town since 1944, when Bing Crosby came here. So there's a bit of a novelty here. We met -- we heard from a royal fan earlier. There are some.

I'd say the majority of people here actually saw what was happening in Washington, had an opportunity to come and meet a king and queen, and why not? The kids are all here.

Are you a fan? Are you a fan?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

FOSTER: Of the royals? No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, I went to Windsor Castle too.

FOSTER: Oh, really?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

FOSTER: And now you're going to meet the owners of it in America.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... a title, MBE, by the queen.

FOSTER: Oh, congratulations.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. And he attended the funeral too.

FOSTER: Oh, really?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

FOSTER: You got the pearls on. The queen will relate to that.

So we're going to see them. I think the other thing, Wolf, is, after Saturday night, security has been so tight. I think it must have trebled for the Secret Service around the king and queen. They were hoping to meet more people out in New York.

But, actually, this is going to be the moment where you're probably going to see walkabouts, and you're going to see the king and queen walking up and down Main Street, as it's called here, appropriately. And we will see how they have gone down with the American people, which we haven't really got a sense yet about how ordinary Americans feel about the king and queen and that speech the other day.

BLITZER: Certainly, we will see a lot more of that. He's going to be going from Front Royal down to Shenandoah National Park as well. So there's still a few events in this area that the king and the queen will have before they move on to their next chapter.

But it's been a very exciting, moving moment. And I love those long lines waiting to try to get a glimpse of the visiting king and queen, similar long lines the other day when he had a little garden party at the British Embassy in Washington.

If -- those of you who know where the British Embassy is on Mass. Ave, the lines were so long for all the invited guests to get in. It just went on and on and on, a lot of excitement regarding this royal visit to the United States.

Let's take a quick break. Much more of our special coverage coming up right here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:38:41]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: Breaking news: A hearing just wrapped for Cole Tomas Allen. That's the suspected gunman who allegedly charged past security at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner on Saturday.

And it follows the Justice Department's release of new details about the weapons the alleged shooter was carrying during the incident.

CNN crime and justice correspondent Katelyn Polantz was in court for that hearing. She joins us now.

So what happened inside, Katelyn?

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE REPORTER: Well, Pam, there was more information that the Justice Department wanted to tell the judge about things that they had just told Cole Allen's defense lawyers about an hour ago, and they didn't need to.

And the judge said, why would you want to do this now? It's not the time. He ended up conceding being detained. So, that means that Cole Allen, even though his lawyers had filed arguments in court saying that these are the reasons he should not have to stay beyond bars until trial, today, he came into court, spoke to his lawyers and said, it's OK. Keep me detained.

At a later date, there is a possibility that Cole Allen may want to argue against staying in jail. But, right now, there wasn't much meat to any argument, because they didn't need to have one. So the judge shut down the Justice Department from putting more information out there than they need to at this time.

[11:40:10]

And it was quite an odd request from the Justice Department too, because they were winning. They didn't have to argue to keep him behind bars. He said that was OK. And the judge acknowledged how weird it was that the Justice Department did this, saying it's truly unprecedented that they would want to stand in court and make additional arguments, present some evidence today.

Pam, aside from that, we did get a little bit more about Cole Allen himself. Since the Correspondents' Dinner, since he's been held at the D.C. jail, he has been in a safe cell in 24-hour lockdown. Today, in court, he was in an orange jail jumpsuit, different than what he was wearing previously on Monday in his initial appearance.

He had a white T-shirt underneath. I believe he had restraints on his legs, but nothing restraining his arms. And when he was very confident in court on Monday for his initial appearance just two days after that shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, today, he was a lot more subdued.

You could see he was much more hunched over. He was a little bit less intense. And, obviously, he wasn't ready to go up against the Justice Department as they argued to keep him behind bars.

But there is a lot still in this case to come. Not only have we not seen an indictment by a grand jury of Cole Allen yet. There's going to be a hearing in a little over 10 days. And there are a lot of questions too in the case. Specifically, right now, the question that is unanswered is, did he intend to fire at the Secret Service agent who was shot in a ballistic vest on Saturday night when the first shots rang out, Pam?

BROWN: All right. Thanks so much, Katelyn Polantz. We appreciate it.

CNN senior justice correspondent Evan Perez is here in THE SITUATION ROOM, and CNN legal analyst Elliot Williams is with us.

So what do you make of that development, the fact that the suspect's lawyer said in court -- quote -- "We are conceding detention?"

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: I mean, they were going to lose. So, it's probably one reason why they decided to do that.

I mean, they were not going to be able to get him out of jail right now. The government lays out a pretty compelling set of facts, including the fact that, according to the filings that they made yesterday and overnight, they pointed out he'd been preparing this alleged attack, this attack since -- for over a month.

He bought a plane ticket -- or -- sorry -- a train ticket and started preparing back in April, about a month after the president announced that he was coming here. He did research, according to the prosecutors, on his phone about the layout of the Hilton, how the weekend was going to unfurl.

And then they also described not only the firearms, obviously pictures of the firearms and the knives that he had, but they also described how he leaves his hotel room minutes before the president arrives, watches him arrive on his phone.

So that's part of the reason why the government says this is an assassination against the president of the United States, and also what really went into this alleged -- this crime that he's alleged to have tried to carry out.

BROWN: And just to follow up with you, is it clear at this point if he discharged his weapon, how many times, if he actually hit that Secret Service agent?

PEREZ: Right.

Well, that -- that's one of the interesting parts of this. The defense has been trying to raise the question as to whether he even fired at all, because of the various statements that have been made. One of the things is whether the shotgun shot that he fired struck the agent.

I think we have a sound of Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney, who discussed a little bit of this. Listen to what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEANINE PIRRO, U.S. ATTORNEY FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: We also know it as a result of the fact that there were so many holes -- holes in the area that we knew were hit by that 9-millimeter. So the Secret Service agent did not shoot himself.

And you have got Cole Allen going there shooting off one round. And there -- I don't think there's any question of what happened here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PEREZ: And I think that's very important information, again, because we have not really heard from the government exactly how this went down. And so it's very important clarification from the U.S. attorney there.

BROWN: Elliot, I just want to bring you in. You're a former federal prosecutor. What do you make of all the information we have been receiving so far?

ELLIOT WILLIAMS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes.

So, number one, Evan is absolutely right. There is no universe in which this defendant was ever going to be released before trial. The standard for whether someone does remain behind bars prior to their trial is whether, number one, they are a risk of flight, there's a chance that they're going to go somewhere else, or whether they're a danger to the community.

Now, obviously, somebody who shows up with weapons at a hotel, perhaps discharging them, all the circumstances that everybody knows, would never be released. And so, yes, they conceded it. And, of course, that made sense.

I don't know why the Justice Department kept arguing what they did. I think they're just trying to put more information out into the record because this is a matter of tremendous public interest. And I think they wanted to get that out there, but they did not need to.

[11:45:07]

BROWN: All right, Elliot Williams, Evan Perez.

A rare instance where we're actually getting more information, right?

PEREZ: Right. Exactly. BROWN: We always like that covering DOJ.

PEREZ: Yes, definitely.

BROWN: Thank you so much.

And we're going to have more when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: All right, we're watching this important hearing, the Senate Armed Services Committee holding another hearing with the secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine.

[11:50:04]

He's now being asked some questions by Republican Senator Deb Fischer of Nebraska. I want to listen in and hear what he has to say.

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: ... magnitude and then are given the authority to cut through the red tape. That's the key. The success or failure lands with them, and they know it.

And, as a result, they're incentivized to ensure that program -- and then given every dollar and authority needed to move it as quickly as possible. So, whether it's Sentinel, whether it's F-47, whether it's Golden Dome for America, these critical strategic assets, the direct report construct, along with Deputy Secretary Feinberg, who is a national treasure and has changed the way we do business at this department, is giving us a chance to ensure these critical systems are delivered.

SEN. DEB FISCHER (R-NE): Thank you.

And, General Caine, can you give us your thoughts on why the Golden Dome received the -- why they must receive that requested $17 billion in funding for the fiscal year 27?

GEN. DAN CAINE, CHAIRMAN, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: Well, Senator, it's -- as you know, it's an essential part of our homeland security layered defense.

And as General Guetlein begins to do the work that you're asking about and, frankly, helping to advance the insurance around that down payment, charging the defense industrial base with those capital allocations will allow them to get after it much, much quicker. We appreciate the help.

FISCHER: And if there's a delay in that funding?

CAINE: Well, I -- hopefully, there won't be, Senator.

FISCHER: Hopefully, there won't be.

CAINE: Because we have got a leader on that account 24/7/365. But, if we do, we will always, of course, come back and talk to the

Congress, but also figure out what has to be true to help that constraint get removed in that production system. And that's really what we're asking these leaders to do, is to be able to get past the theory of constraints.

FISCHER: OK. Thank you.

Secretary Hegseth, I agree with your statement on nuclear deterrence, when you said nothing else matters if we don't get this right, so we will. We need a modernized nuclear triad and NC3 architecture that can credibly deter multiple adversaries, instead of an insufficient nuclear force structure based on fundamentally flawed assumptions made 16 years ago.

Our presidents must also have a more diverse set of options, so that they can effectively manage more complex nuclear escalation dynamics.

So, Mr. Secretary, how does this budget request achieve those objectives?

HEGSETH: Well, thank you for your leadership on this issue for a very long time.

First and foremost, it invests in it, $71 billion in our nuclear triad and NC3, understanding that, if you get that wrong, you get everything else wrong. Frankly, it's why the Iran effort is so important. Imagine what the situation in the region would look like if Iran also wielded a nuclear weapon and the limits it would put on our capabilities in those situations.

Our adversaries have to deal with that dilemma because of the strength of our nuclear triad. So that $71 billion investment, the DRPMs that have been put over top of it to move those systems left, as you acknowledged, it's just been a priority since we came into the building and we're funding it accordingly.

FISCHER: And, Chairman Caine, Secretary Hegseth, whoever would like to answer this, should our nuclear command control and communications systems like the SAOC be given the same level of priority as Congress considers the department's budget request as our triad?

HEGSETH: I think so, but I defer to the chairman.

CAINE: Yes, ma'am. We have got to be able to see to anything, so, yes, ma'am.

FISCHER: Thank you.

Senator Shaheen, you are recognized.

SEN. JEANNE SHAHEEN (D-NH): Thank you, Madam Chair.

Secretary Hegseth, Congress enacted $400 million to provide security assistance to Ukraine in January. Now, the committee received a notification just yesterday confirming only that the funding would go toward Ukraine. It contained no details about the type of equipment, no delivery timelines, nothing that is typically included in these notifications.

And when asked about the delay in funding, the committee was told that Bridge Colby was developing a spend plan, but we have received nothing. So when can we expect the full spend plan for this appropriation?

And, Madam Chair, can I -- if this is not all -- already part of the record for the committee, can I enter into the record?

FISCHER: Without objection.

[11:55:00]

HEGSETH: We acknowledge and are executing on the European capacity building amount of $400 million that you referred to.

Undersecretary Colby has done a great job looking at options and worked very closely with our European Commander, General Grynkewich. So his request of what makes the most sense will inform what ultimately is invested in.

SHAHEEN: Well, this notification says that EUCOM coordinated on the spend plan in March, but General Grynkewich told this committee on April 16 that he had not yet been asked to...

BLITZER: All right, we have been watching and listening to this important hearing. The Senate Armed Services Committee hearing will continue now. The questioning is only just getting started. Right now, Jeanne Shaheen, the senator from New Hampshire, the Democrat, is asking questions.

We're going to continue our special coverage. Stay with us for that.

In the meantime, we want to thank all of our viewers for joining us this morning -- Pamela.

BROWN: All right, Wolf.

"INSIDE POLITICS" with our friend and colleague Dana Bash starts after a short break.