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The Situation Room

Interview With Eric Church; Interview With Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA). Aired 10:30a-11a ET

Aired May 15, 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]

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[10:33:17]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Happening now: President Trump is on his way back to the White House after concluding a historic summit with the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping.

While on Air Force One, President Trump said he made -- quote -- "no commitment" on Taiwan and signaled that a decision on future U.S. arms sales to the self-governing island has not yet been finalized.

Meanwhile, right now, Cuba's government -- Cuba's government oil reserves have run dry. Cuba has been cut off by the U.S. from any oil shipments for more than four months, and one shipload of donated Russian oil has been exhausted, according to officials.

It's embattled Fed -- and it's embattled Fed Chair Jerome Powell's last day at the helm of the U.S. Central Bank. Today marks the last day of his eight-year term, which was marked by several economic crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic. Kevin Warsh is set to take over after being confirmed by the U.S. Senate in what was the most partisan Fed chair nominee vote in history.

And dashcam video in Arkansas shows a toddler emerging from a crashed vehicle after a high-speed chase. The car was trying to run -- to outrun state police when it spun out and flipped over. Moments later, the rear door opens, and a visibly upset little child runs towards a trooper.

The mother is being charged with speeding, reckless driving and driving with a suspended license.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: Hope that toddler is OK.

BLITZER: Me too.

BROWN: And happening now: The Trump administration is racing to fill a widening leadership vacuum within the Department of Health and Human Services ahead of the midterms.

A source tells CNN that senior health officials plan to settle on a new nominee to run the FDA within the next few weeks, the goal, to stabilize an agency whose prior leader alienated several elements of President Trump's coalition.

[10:35:06]

The White House is also pushing for the quick confirmation of new picks to head the CDC and serve as surgeon general after repeatedly failing to advance candidates aligned with HHS Secretary Kennedy's Make America Health Again movement.

Joining us now is Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. He is the chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. He is also a physician and has a primary tomorrow.

Senator, nice to see you. Thanks for coming on the show.

So your panel oversees the country's public health agencies. Where do you stand on this new effort by the administration in the lead-up to November's elections?

SEN. BILL CASSIDY (R-LA): It's great.

We absolutely need leadership in those agencies. We just had the hantavirus. We don't -- we want to make sure the hantavirus remains isolated among a few and doesn't become more common. We have seen outbreaks of measles, a vaccine-preventable disease.

Fortunately, parents are now getting their children vaccinated for measles. But we need a clear message, make America healthy again. Make sure your child has been vaccinated for those vaccine-preventable diseases. We need that leadership. I'm glad we're getting it.

BROWN: But do you think right now the administration is prepared for, say, the hantavirus? I know that they say that it's a low emergency, low-level emergency, but what do you think? Are you concerned?

CASSIDY: I think that the CDC employees can respond to it, absolutely.

But you need leadership, because what you want is to be prepared for no matter what comes. What if another COVID came? We need to have preparation for that. What if we just want to deal with the burden of chronic disease, which is in our society?

I'm a doctor who worked in the public -- in a public hospital for the uninsured, but just in my practice in general, I know these are issues. So we need leadership. We need folks prepared, leaning forward. Let's get it there.

BROWN: All right, according to CNN's reporting, White House officials decided earlier this year that HHS under Secretary Kennedy required an overhaul following a tumultuous period marked by controversial vaccine policies, personnel issues, and messaging missteps that hurt the administration with voters and with lawmakers.

You were the key vote in advancing and effectively sealing Kennedy's nomination. Do you have any buyer's remorse now?

CASSIDY: The president -- the -- first, you live life forward.

But RFK has done a very good job highlighting the issues of ultra- processed food. And even his worst critics -- I just saw you nod your head yes. I'm not saying you're his worst critic, but you will acknowledge and we all acknowledge he's done a really good job of highlighting that.

BROWN: It's been a priority of his, for sure. It's been a priority, absolutely. That's a fact.

CASSIDY: More so than anybody else in that office. So he's to be congratulated.

He and I clearly differ on vaccines. I have seen people die from vaccine-preventable diseases or have to get a liver transplant or otherwise something terrible or something that could have been avoided with a $15 vaccine.

And so, obviously, I understand that better than the secretary. And so we have differed there. But let's give him his due. He's done a good job on the ultra-processed foods. And that's important for our society.

BROWN: But in detailing your support for Kennedy's confirmation, you said on the Senate floor that he committed to staying within the current vaccine approval and safety system, that he'd keep the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices unchanged, and leave CDC autism vaccine statements on the Web site.

Now there's an asterisk there saying that there's a lack of substantiated evidence behind it. When you look at Kennedy's tenure so far on the vaccine front, has he broken the promises that ultimately won you over?

CASSIDY: I think all that speaks for itself. You can look at what I publicly documented on that floor speech and you can look at his actions, and they speak for themselves.

But, again, we live life forward. And the point is two things. I will say living life forward. Going back to what we spoke of earlier, we need to have leadership at the surgeon general, at the CDC, at the FDA that are going to support solid science, mainstream science that has been proven over and over again to save lives.

By the way, living life forward, just to point out, I have an election tomorrow. And so I want to go back up there when I'm reelected and continue to work to make sure that Louisiana and the United States are healthy and that people are getting healthier foods and that the vaccines we receive are safe and effective and prevent disease outbreaks.

I am all about that, which is why I'm running for reelection. And just to remind people, the election is tomorrow.

BROWN: That's right. I said it in the intro as well.

And we're getting to that question now on the election on your Senate primary tomorrow. Many GOP strategists and even some of your colleagues believe your Trump-backed opponent, Congresswoman Julia Letlow, will win. What do you say to that and what are you preparing for?

CASSIDY: Yes, Bill Cassidy is going to win because the election is about who has delivered for Louisiana. I'm clearly the one who's delivered for Louisiana.

[10:40:01]

One example, in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which I helped negotiate, Louisianians receive $13.5 billion, most recently, $1.35 billion released by the Trump administration to make sure that everyone has access to high-speed affordable Internet.

But it could be the $150 million that went to a new bridge in Lake Charles, or $100 million for an I-49 north in Shreveport, another $100 million for an I-49 south in Lafayette. That's the money that I got for our state. She opposed that bill.

If she had had her way, we would not have received $13.5 billion, which on a per capita basis is among the most in the nation. There has also, by the way, been hundreds of millions of dollars to decrease risk of flooding, to rebuild our coastline, all of these things creating good-paying jobs, a lot of good-paying jobs.

People want someone who's delivered for our state, I'm that guy.

BROWN: The bottom line, though, as you well know, President Trump wants retribution. He wants you replaced.

And one of the reasons why is because of your 2021 vote to convict him for his role in the January 6 Capitol riot. So, I wonder, have you come to regret that at all? If you don't win tomorrow's election, if that proves to come back to hurt you, would you -- do you regret that at all?

I know you're trying to move forward, but I imagine that's on your mind.

CASSIDY: First, I'm going to win, just to set that straight.

And, secondly, you do live life forward, not just some of the time, but all the time. And the people in my state want two things, someone who's delivered and someone who can work with President Trump. He has signed into the law four bills that I either wrote or negotiated and were included as part of a bigger bill in the last several months.

My opponent has never had any legislation signed into law. One of the bills I wrote, the HALT Fentanyl Act, was to give law enforcement tools to push back on cartels bringing in fentanyl. I'm standing directly behind him as he signs it into law. He says, this will be one of the most important bills he signed this year. If you want someone with a proven record of working with President

Trump for the agenda important for our country and Louisiana, then you're going to support Bill Cassidy, and that's why I'm going to win.

BROWN: But, in your view, Senator, is there room in President Trump's Republican Party for a politician who is neither fully MAGA or MAHA, for a politician who doesn't go along with everything that he wants?

We just saw what happened in Indiana.

CASSIDY: Again, if you're helping the president complete an agenda that's good for the country and good for my state of Louisiana, I promise you that's what our people want.

I mentioned the four bills that the president signed into law that I wrote, negotiated. He came -- his team came into my office about, I don't know, a month-and-a-half ago now asking for my help to write a bill to further lower pharmaceutical costs.

Then they called shortly after that asking to work on judicial appointments together. We work very well together to come up with an agenda that's good for our country, good for my state. I'm delivering for my state. That's why I will win.

BROWN: If that's the case, why do you think Trump want you replaced?

CASSIDY: I can't understand the president's mind.

By the way, I'm not claiming the president loves me, no, but you can work with people even if you don't love each other if you got a common goal. And my goal is to make my country and my state and everybody who lives here better off.

Now, when you have that goal, people come to work with you. And that's why his team came to my office to ask for my help to write a bill to further lower pharmaceutical costs. I'm all in that. I want to make health care more affordable for every American. That's what I'm working on.

BROWN: All right, Senator Bill Cassidy, nice to have you on. We appreciate it. I know tomorrow is a very big day for you, so we appreciate you taking the time today.

CASSIDY: Oh, just again, election in Louisiana tomorrow. Vote in the Republican primary.

(LAUGHTER)

CASSIDY: One more thing. There's confusion in our state. "No Party" can vote in the Republican primary. They have to know that, and they have to check off that they want to vote in the Republican primary.

So, if "No Party" in Louisiana wants to vote for Bill Cassidy, check off that box, request a Republican ballot, keeps you "No Party," but it allows you to vote in the Republican primary.

BROWN: All right, we appreciate it, Senator Cassidy. Thank you so much.

CASSIDY: Thank you.

BROWN: Wolf.

BLITZER: And coming up here in THE SITUATION ROOM: using his guitar, his guitar strings, specifically, as a metaphor for life.

We will talk to Grammy-nominated star Eric Church about his message to new grads, and that message is going viral.

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ERIC CHURCH, MUSICIAN: I have been grinding on this for a little bit about how to do it.

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[10:48:50]

BROWN: Well, it's being called one of the best commencement addresses maybe ever.

On Saturday, at the University of North Carolina, which, full disclosure, also happens to be my alma mater, country music star Eric Church gave a rousing speech to new grads that ended up going viral.

BLITZER: Donning a graduation gown and sunglasses, Church strummed his guitar during his speech, using its strings as a metaphor for living a complete life.

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CHURCH: String one, the low E, that is your foundation. Your faith is the low E of your life.

String two is family. It gives a chord its body, its richness. It's the string that makes you feel like you're not alone in a room.

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CHURCH: The D string, the heart of a chord. Strike a full chord in a D string is what you feel in the center of your chest. That is exactly what the right spouse and partner will do for your life.

[10:50:00]

The G string, ambition and resilience both live on this string, and they pull in opposite directions. The B string is about community. Plant yourself somewhere. Put down roots with the full intention of growing there.

And, finally, the high E string. This is the thinnest string. It's the highest note. Someone's cold opinion is going to try to convince you to retune yourself to match what they think you should sound like. Do not let them touch your string.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: And joining us now, the Grammy-nominated artist Eric Church.

Eric, thanks so much for being here. Thanks so much for this beautiful commencement address. Tell us, did you think your speech would receive the kind of attention it's been receiving?

CHURCH: No, Wolf, I didn't think about that, I mean, in the moment.

I have such respect and admiration, as a born and bred Tar Heel for the university and the administration there and just being a North Carolinian. I really was just thinking about the moment and being in that stadium and being in that environment and being with kids of that age in a tumultuous time in their life, where the way I grew up is not the way that they grew up.

And, for me, it's interesting to look at now with what's happened with it. But I will admit it was a creative approach to get the message out there, but the message is a foundational message that has been around for many generations. It was -- it was faith. It was family. It was spouse. It was community. It was ambition, resilience and individuality.

And these are things that I think, in this day and time, kids don't really watch television anymore. They're streaming or they're on YouTube or they're on their phone or they're gaming. And there's 50,000 different variations of how to do each of those pillars and principles.

And I think, for whatever reason, to be able to do it in that moment and to do a -- what was really a simpler message, but it was a message that maybe they're not hearing in a simple way in their lives that just made it turn out to what it was.

BROWN: Right, because there's so much noise now, as you pointed out.

CHURCH: Yes.

BROWN: I'm a Tar Heel as well, as I mentioned. And I had so many of my friends from college, even outside of college, text me your address and say, have you watched this? This is amazing. They have never done that for any other commencement address.

People have really become emotional hearing what you said. You could say it struck a chord. Tell us more about crafting this address and how your own life experiences helped shape it.

CHURCH: I think the crafting of it,so I have known that I was going to do this for about eight or nine months. And I agreed to do it, and a little -- I'm pretty comfortable when you give me a guitar, but I'm not as comfortable when it's something like a speech.

So, I had been working on it and grinding on it. And I just couldn't -- I just couldn't figure out how to do it. And in a fit of frustration one night, I threw what I was doing, and I grabbed the guitar to kind of soothe my soul.

And I just strummed the G chord. I did six strings straight down. And it dawned on me that, who am I kidding? I should -- excuse me -- I should do the speech like this. And then it became about building out six pillars. My wife was integral for helping with that.

I said, hey, I have got this idea and what if it's like this? And we started building out what the pillars were. And here's the thing about this that I have said to everyone since this has -- went worldwide is, I know about these things because I am guilty of not doing what I'm telling you to do.

There's many times in my life that a number of my strings have been out of tune. But I have also lived long enough that I have had moments in my life when they have been in tune. And the difference is unbelievable.

And what I'm -- what I was challenging these kids to do is, when you find where it is and something starts to go side -- one of those strings, one of those pillars, don't just let it stay there and keep playing louder and louder. Work on that thing to get it back into. Don't let more strings get out of tune.

And, listen, they're going to -- it's going to happen to them. Happened to me. So I think that being able to share that message in that setting, which is one of the most beautiful places in the world and something that was dear to me, is something that I'm very thankful that I got to do.

BLITZER: In your speech, you list six pillars that are key to living life, faith, family, spouse, ambition, resilience, community, and uniqueness.

[10:55:07]

Why those six?

CHURCH: Because I had been guilty -- at 49 years old, those were the things -- and I did it with the -- now, on a guitar, it goes from the thickest string to the thinnest string.

And I tried to build this out metaphorically, where the thickest string has to be your faith. It has to be a foundation. If that's out of tune, you will never play the right chord. It'll never sound right. And I tried to build on that.

The next string was family. The next string was spouse. The next string was ambition and resilience. The next one was community. And the last one was individuality.

And so, in going through this, it's, what would make the right chord and all of those are in tune? And it was really those principles, at least from my life experience, that will make the best music.

And what I challenged the kids with is, you have a chance now. You're walking out of here a graduate, and you have a chance to make your music. You have a chance to let the world hear your song. And it's important that, when you do that, that song is in tune. And each one of those strings has to be in tune to make that chord work.

BROWN: The message you had really is timeless. Thank you so much for coming on and to talk a little bit more about it here on the show. We really enjoyed having you.

Eric Church, appreciate it.

BLITZER: And, Eric, thanks from me as well.

CHURCH: Appreciate you.

BLITZER: Your words really inspired and resonated with me as well.

CHURCH: Thank you, Wolf. I appreciate both of you guys having me. Thank you.

BROWN: Thank you.

And here's what's coming up all new next hour: Cuba crisis deepens, reports of fuel running out, protests in the street. We are live on the ground, as the power blackouts now last up to 22 hours a day.

Plus: Targeted and terrorized, that's the allegation from almost two dozen people in Chicago, their building raided by ICE. Now they're suing the government.

And it is quite a day here in Washington. The Nationals have a new team dog, Natty. And the 8-week-old golden and Lab mix puppy is live here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

That's all new next hour.

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