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The Situation Room
Hegseth: "Ceasefire is Not Over"; UAE: Air Defenses Currently Responding to Iran Missile Threat; Fulton County Tries to Block DOJ Subpoena to Election Workers' Info. Aired 10:30-11a ET
Aired May 05, 2026 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:30:00]
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: We're continuing our breaking news coverage of the war with Iran. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth saying this morning the ceasefire with Iran is, quote, "not over." He also said the U.S. military effort to guide commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz is being run separately from the main Iran operation.
Joining us now, Barak Ravid, CNN global affairs analyst and global affairs correspondent for Axios, and CNN military analyst, retired U.S. Air Force Colonel Cedric Leighton.
Barak, let me start with you. Here's what General Caine, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said just a little while ago about the ceasefire. He was speaking at this morning's press briefing. Listen to this.
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GEN DAN CAINE, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: Since the ceasefire was announced, Iran has fired at commercial vessels nine times and seized two container ships, and they've attacked U.S. forces more than 10 times, all below the threshold of restarting major combat operations at this point.
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[10:35:00]
BLITZER: So, clearly the U.S. considers the ceasefire still very much intact, but does Iran consider the ceasefire intact?
BARAK RAVID, CNN POLITICS AND GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST AND GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT, AXIOS: I'm not sure, Wolf. Just a few minutes ago, the Emirati Ministry of Defense announced another Iranian attack against the UAE, the first one today. Yesterday, there were three ballistic missile and drone attacks from Iran against the UAE, unprovoked. And I think today, it seems that there's another attack. So, I'm not sure Iran sees things exactly as Secretary of Defense Hegseth and the chairman, General Caine, see it.
And again, yesterday, we had two U.S.-flagged merchant ships that passed through the Strait of Hormuz. Today, as far as I know, no ships across the Strait. So, we have, on the one hand, Iran continues its attacks. On the other hand, no ships went through the Strait of Hormuz. I don't know. It seems to me that there's a problem.
BLITZER: Colonel Leighton, the Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, said this morning that the operation to get ships through the Strait of Hormuz is a defensive operation and also separate from the main operation against Iran. What do you make of that?
COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST AND U.S. AIR FORCE: Yes. It's a very interesting development, Wolf. They're calling it Project Freedom. And Project Freedom is somewhat akin to the operations that we had against Iraq back in basically at the end of the first Gulf War leading up to the second Gulf War. So, those were Operation Southern Watch and Operations Northern Watch. Now, those were air operations primarily designed to prevent Saddam Hussein in Iraq from using air power against various things. But these were long- term operations. This is different in scope. And basically, the first phase that would have gotten us to an operation like that has not really been completed.
So, you have the war phase, in essence, that is in a ceasefire. But now, you're using a military effort to, in essence, open up the Strait of Hormuz, which is a valid goal and actually a goal of the war effort. But calling it by a different name obviously has political and diplomatic implications. And that may very well be the reason they're doing it because they want to attract other countries to help them with those efforts.
BLITZER: Let me go back to Barak. Barak, the UAE, the United Arab Emirates, says its air defenses are responding to another missile threat from Iran right now. There are also a lot of reports, and I'm sure you've seen them, that Israel has done something pretty amazing. It's lent its Iron Dome air defense missile technology to the United Arab Emirates and sent Israeli military personnel to the UAE to help operate the Iron Dome over the skies of the United Arab Emirates. How significant is that?
RAVID: Well, Wolf, I think it is very, very significant. We published this at Axios last week, that Israel did this unprecedented thing, sending its Iron Dome system to the UAE, plus Israeli troops that are stationed in the UAE. I think a lot of what the Iranians have been doing over the last few days is trying to test those systems.
And I think it just shows you why the Abraham Accords were so significant, the Abraham Accords that were brokered by President Trump in his first term, why they were so significant for Israel, for the UAE, and for the whole region, that you have Israel and another Arab country cooperating like that with the United States to prevent and defeat attacks by Iran.
BLITZER: The Abraham Accords during the first term of the Trump administration were very significant in formally establishing full diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab states, including the UAE, the United Arab Emirates. Very, very significant indeed.
Colonel Leighton, President Trump has warned that Iranian forces will, quote, be blown off the face of the earth, his words, if they target U.S. ships. Does the U.S. have the military resources in place right now to launch yet another all-out assault on Iran?
LEIGHTON: Yes, in general terms, yes, Wolf. Basically, the United States does have, in addition to the forces, they already have about 15,000 extra troops that have been placed in the region as part of the operations to open up the Strait of Hormuz.
[10:40:00]
Now, what that does is it makes it possible for the other elements that have already been in place there, plus extra air power that has come into the region, to engage in an offensive campaign against Iran, should that be necessary. So, yes, the United States does have the capability, if it's called upon to do so, to go in and resume strikes against Iranian targets.
BLITZER: Yes. We'll see if that happens. All right. Colonel Leighton and Barak Ravid, to both of you, thank you very, very much. Pamela.
PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Wolf, new reporting into the Situation Room. A Georgia board of elections is trying to block the Justice Department from getting access to personal information for thousands of staffers and volunteers who worked the 2020 election in Fulton County. The board filed a motion yesterday requesting that a subpoena from the DOJ be quashed for what it called the latest attempt by the Trump administration to, quote, "target and harass the president's perceived political enemies."
CNN crime and justice correspondent Katelyn Polantz joins us here in the Situation Room. So, this is all very unusual, right? How is the Justice Department planning to use this personal information? And what more are county officials saying about this?
KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, great question. We don't know exactly because this is a new subpoena that is opening a new avenue of investigation that we had not really seen the Justice Department try before in this subpoena. And we are learning about this because the Fulton County Board of Elections has gone to a federal court to try and stop or end the subpoena.
They received, the office received a subpoena for all of the names, the home addresses, the email addresses, personal information, phone numbers of thousands of election workers who worked on the 2020 election. These are the types of people who would have worked on mail- in ballot, balloting or mobile voting, recounts, ballot tabulation, the people that were involved in transport or just administering the elections on Election Day in 2020.
And the lawyers for Fulton County now, they believe that this is the Justice Department continuing to try to harass the people who worked on the 2020 election because Donald Trump believes he was robbed of a victory then still, this election fraud idea. They write in this court filing asking a judge to stop this subpoena and protect these election volunteers, even temporary workers, their personal information. They write, this purpose, the subpoena's purpose is to target, harass and punish the president's perceived political opponents. It is grossly overbroad and untethered to any reasonable need. It cannot yield any evidence that could result in criminal prosecution because among other things, the statute of limitations have expired for any purported 2020 election crimes. It burdens the First Amendment rights of election workers and will chill their participation in elections and it unreasonably interferes with Georgia's sovereign authority to administer elections.
We'll have to see how the judge responds to this, but it is a really interesting new court filing that we're going to be watching very closely.
BROWN: So, big picture here, how is this connected to other actions taken in Fulton County by government officials?
POLANTZ: Well right now, we are not exactly sure. It would be speculation, but in this situation, the lawyers for Fulton County's Board of Elections, they're arguing to this judge that there is a possibility here that this subpoena is issued as part of a broader effort to interfere in Fulton County's ability to administer its elections in 2026. There was previously the FBI going into the Fulton County elections authorities to try and get access to ballots. This is a different request for who worked the 2020 election. Give us all their information.
BROWN: All right. Katelyn Polantz, thank you so much. We'll be right back.
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[10:45:00]
BROWN: Well, this morning, there is a brand-new push to help protect children from the risks tied to artificial intelligence. An independent media watchdog is launching a testing and research lab designed to, quote, "crash test" A.I. tools in hopes of arming parents and tech companies with better insights to help keep kids safe.
Let's go live now to CNN tech reporter Clare Duffy. So, they're trying to model this on vehicle crash test ratings. Is that right, Clare?
CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: That's exactly right, Pamela. And the hope is that they will similarly inspire or pressure tech companies to add additional safety measures to keep young people safe. This youth safety A.I. institute is going to be red teaming or stress testing A.I. products geared towards young people.
So, think the big foundation models, but also companion chat bots and education tools. They'll be publishing consumer friendly guides for parents and educators. And ultimately, they aim to develop standards that they hope the tech companies will incorporate into their product development. Big A.I. companies already use similar benchmarks to measure and compare their progress on other types of metrics. They're hoping to do the same for youth safety here.
This is being launched by Common Sense Media, which is a nonprofit that millions of families already use for their ratings of movies and video games and social media. And they brought in this really all store advisory board to oversee this new A.I. safety institute. You've got educators and health experts, medical doctors, but also folks like former Apple A.I. chief John Giannandrea and the chair of Stanford Engineering School's computer science department, Mehran Sahami.
[10:50:00]
So, really these leaders who can guide this institute on tech product development and youth safety and educational tools. All of this, of course, Pamela, in hopes of addressing some of these very serious risks that we've seen from A.I. to young people. And we should say, too, that this is being backed and supported by industry players. They have received funding from the Open A.I. Foundation and Anthropic, among other philanthropic donors.
Although Common Sense does say that this will operate independently so that they can create really these independent standards.
BROWN: Yes, seems like a positive development here to protect kids. Claire Duffy, thank you so much. Wolf.
BLITZER: And coming up, lots of NBA playoff action. We have the highlights. That's next.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jalen Brunson with the left 11 for New York.
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[10:55:00]
BROWN: Dolly Parton is speaking out in a rare health update after canceling her Las Vegas residency in September. The country superstar did not mention a specific condition but said she's responding well to treatments.
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DOLLY PARTON, COUNTRY MUSIC SUPERSTAR: I have some good news and a little bad news. But the good news is I'm responding really well to meds and treatments and I'm improving every day. Now, the bad news is it's going to take me a little while before I'm up to stage performance level because some of the meds and treatments make me a little bit swimmy-headed, as my grandma used to say. But let's think of me as like an old classic car that once restored can be better than ever.
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BROWN: I love it. She looks and sounds great. The 80-year-old legend said her immune and digestive systems got out of whack a few years ago but she's optimistic after doctors said everything she is facing is treatable. So, that is some good news. Wolf. BLITZER: Very good news. We wish her a speedy, speedy recovery. Finally, this hour, in sports, lots of playoff action on the hardwood. The Minnesota Timberwolves get a dramatic win in game one of the Western Conference finals. And the New York Knicks extend their historic postseason tear against the Philadelphia 76ers.
CNN Sports anchor Coy Wire is joining us right now. Coy, the postseason is really, really heating up.
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes, it's heating up like a laptop on 1 percent battery with 47 tabs open. The Spurs, they were 13.5 points favorites heading into this game. Victor Wembanyama, historic night. Game one of the semifinal series with the T-Wolves. He had 12 blocks in this game. That's a new playoff record. A triple-double with blocks. But the plot twist was it wasn't enough because the Timberwolves got their alpha dog back. Anthony Edwards returns from injury, dropping 18 points, bringing the spark Minnesota needed to steal game one, 104-102.
Now, the Knicks, they are not just winning, they are steamrolling history. Three straight playoff wins by 25-plus. It's never been done until now. Game one of the Eastern Conference semis, 39-point demolition of the 76ers. 137-98. Jalen Brunson cooking with 35 points. His sous chefs, Karl Anthony Towns, O.G. Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, all hitting on all cylinders. The Knicks adding to their historic playoff run. Game two is tomorrow.
Finally, from sweat to silk, stars traded jerseys and kits for some of this highfalutin fashion at the Met Gala. Venus Williams, co-chair of the event, along with sister Serena. Naomi Osaka must have seen Pamela's derby outfit because she went with this beautiful hat. Her red hands and nails, Lindsey Vaughn, shining after her scary crash at the Olympics. Russell Wilson and Ciara, white suit, golden crested shoulders to match that dress and that crown.
How about Olympic phenom Eileen Gu? Floating in this dress made of 15,000 glass bubbles. It took more than 2,500 hours to make. And there are real bubbles coming out of the bubbles. She says fashion is like sports. It's about pushing limits and expressing your truest self.
Wolf, I don't know if you and I could pull that off. Pamela, maybe, but --
BROWN: Pamela could have definitely done it. Pamela could have done it. I couldn't have done it. You couldn't have done it. Pamela could have done it for sure.
BROWN: I'll take it. Hey, I'll take it. All right. And also some great news. We were just talking about this yesterday. Coming up today, we're going to be joined by Cherie DeVaux, the first female trainer to have a horse win the Kentucky Derby. I have been looking forward to this segment all morning long.
WIRE: Yes, it's about dreams coming true. Can't wait for that, Pamela.
BROWN: I love it. It's such a great story.
BLITZER: Very exciting. We'll look forward to that interview. At the next hour, the Situation Room starts right now.
BROWN: Happening now, breaking news, ceasefire questions. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth insists the temporary truce with Iran is not over, despite attacks in and around the Strait of Hormuz.
Plus, a CNN exclusive, the Department of Veterans Affairs now investigating its own employees after they attended vigils for a man killed by federal agents in Minneapolis.
BLITZER: And angry at the world, that's how prosecutors described the man accused of starting one of the most destructive wildfires in California history. What else they're saying about the suspect?
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.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
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