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New Bipartisan Push to Limit Extreme Redistricting; Jeffries Demands Trump Reverse Pulte Selection; Israel Strikes Lebanon as Trump Says Peace Deal is Close; Nearly 4 Million Fewer Canadians Visited the U.S. in 2025. Aired 11:30-12p ET

Aired June 09, 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]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, Sam Bankman-Fried is officially asking President Trump for a pardon. The former crypto billionaire was convicted of multiple counts of fraud and conspiracy and he was sentenced to 25 years in prison back in 2024. According to the U.S. Justice Department, a pardon would not erase his conviction but would restore civil liberties to Bank and Freed after his prison release, such as the right to vote.

The new world screwworm is spreading the U.S. -- spreading around the U.S., the Department of Agriculture is now confirming a dog in New Mexico. The flesh eating -- was involved with a fresh eating parasite. Screwworm was considered eradicated in the United States for decades but there have now been five confirmed cases in the past week alone.

And here's something you don't see every day. This is Beaumont, Texas, where an eight-foot-long alligator made its way into a horse stable. And in true Texas fashion, one of the stable employees lassoed the gator and pulled it into an empty stall. Game wardens then helped get massive reptile, get that massive reptile back into the bayou.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Quite the video there, Wolf. And happening now on Capitol Hill, there is a new bipartisan effort underway to rein in extreme redistricting. This new gerrymandering working group is part of the Problem Solvers Caucus and it's made up of five House Democrats and five Republicans because the technique of gerrymandering is deployed by both parties, as we've seen. The goal is to redraw electoral district lines to maximize the voting power of one party while watering down the voting process. The group says that imbalance has led to greater political polarization.

So, I want to bring in two congressmen who are part of this effort.

Salud Carbajal is a California Democrat and Jeff Hurd is a Colorado Republican. Gentlemen, thank you so much for coming on to speak with us.

Congressman Hurd, I want to start with you. Both parties, as you know, have been redrawing maps ahead of the midterm elections. We've seen a number of lawsuits challenging those maps. Is this a matter for Congress to decide or the courts, in your view? REP. JEFF HURD (R-CO), GERRYMANDERING WORKING GROUP: I think it's important for both to be looking at, but certainly in Congress, we have a rule, Article I, Section 4, specifically says Congress has a role with respect to elections and we need to make sure that it is voters choosing their politicians, not politicians choosing their voters.

And that's why we as Republicans on my side and Representative Carbajal and the Democrats that are coming together to look at ways that we can restore and increase trust in our electoral system here in Congress.

BROWN: Congressman Carbajal, gerrymandering is almost as old as our nation's political system. Why is reform needed now, in your view?

REP. SALUD CARBAJAL (D-CA), GERRYMANDERING WORKING GROUP: Well, we've seen the recent redistricting wars that have resulted in our country and certainly that's a race to the bottom. And we've seen how redistricting has gone in the past decades. And it's become extremely hyper-partisan. And we really need to look at a framework that would create a uniform standard for the whole country and in a way that brings everyone to the table, makes it transparent and creates a more fair process where you don't have the extremes, the left or the right constantly vying for the seats and only adhering to, appealing to a small group of universal people.

We need people to adhere to a broader sense of our communities and get rid of this hyper-partisan gerrymandering that has gone on for decades.

BROWN: Right. And, Congressman Hurd, as you know, the Constitution says elections and so forth are left up to the state. You've seen the courts allow some of these states to go ahead with their redistricting efforts. So, what do you do about that when some of this redistricting has already happened just recently?

HURD: Well, certainly this is something that's ongoing. We need to address it here on the congressional level just because I'm worried that if we don't, we're just going to have this continuing retaliation back and forth every two years.

It's not good for us as an institution to constantly be changing these boundaries every two years. But more importantly, it's not good for the people that we represent. We don't know who we're, if we don't know who we're going to be representing in two years, how can we possibly learn our districts? How can we effectively work on behalf of the people we represent? It's not good. It also erodes trust, and this is an institution. And when voters don't know who their representative is going to be, it's going to be difficult to work with them.

So, it's something that we need to be addressing as Congress. We should have been doing it earlier, but here we are right now, and that's why I'm glad that as Republicans and Democrats, we're coming together to work on this issue.

[11:35:00] BROWN: All right. I want to turn to some other news of day. Congressman Carbajal, CNN has learned that House Speaker Mike Johnson has been at the White House. He's expected to discuss Congress's looming crisis over expiring surveillance powers. That's known as FISA.

Democrats are refusing to back the measure unless Trump pulls Bill Pulte as his acting director of national intelligence. You've spoken out against Pulte. Tell us about your view on this. Would you also withhold your vote on FISA?

CARBAJAL: Well, I think that's what negotiations are for, working together to find common ground to make sure that the best measure moves forward, one that we can all have confidence in in terms of our privacy, in terms of our rights and due process. And I believe that at the end of the day, as long as we adhere to good faith negotiation, we're going to have a good product. And it's important we do that because our national security is at stake.

BROWN: What about you, Congressman Hurd? Some of the Republicans in the Senate who didn't vote for this cited warrantless surveillance of Americans as part of their issue. Where are you on this issue?

HURD: Well, it's certainly an important issue. It's something we should be looking at. We did institute some FISA reforms two years ago. We need to make sure that those are working the way that they should. But I will tell you, national security is paramount for, this is not a Democratic issue or a Republican issue. This is an American issue. We certainly need to protect the rights, the Fourth Amendment rights, Fifth Amendment rights of citizens here in this country.

But we also need to make sure that our country is safe and that we're protecting ourselves from international threats. And finding that right balance is key. And I know that's something that's not just going to happen on the Republican side or on the Democratic side that we need to be working on together.

BROWN: So, as it stands today, how would you vote, Congressman Hurd?

HURD: I would vote to reauthorize FISA. I have voted to extend FISA in the past. I would vote to reauthorize it. But I think, again, we need to make sure that we're protecting the civil liberties of Americans. And that's something that we're going to be looking at carefully here, certainly on the Republican side. And I know my colleagues on the other side of the aisle will be as well.

BROWN: And just to follow up quickly with you, Congressman Hurd, what about Bill Pulte? Do you think that this is a good idea for him to oversee 18 intelligence agencies in this acting role?

HURD: I've certainly heard some concerns. I think this is something that we should be looking at carefully. We need somebody in this role that is familiar with the area that has the substantive expertise and knowledge. And that's something that I expect our senators will be looking at carefully. And certainly, we are on the House as well.

BROWN: So, it sounds like you have some concerns with him.

HURD: Certainly, we'll have to see exactly what the administration is thinking, what the appointee is thinking about. But certainly, this is something we need to be taking seriously because national security is paramount to all of us. And we need to make sure that we have the best men and women in these positions that are protecting our constituents and the American people.

BROWN: Congressman Carbajal, I want to go back to you and ask you about the war with Iran. President Trump says a peace deal is just a few days away. We've heard him say that before. And I'm wondering how your constituents are looking at this as this war drags on and as they face higher prices at the pump.

CARBAJAL: Well, clearly this was a choice, a war of choice. The imminent threat was not there. It's costing us a billion dollars a day. It's been chaos. We've seen the increase in costs for goods for the American people. And this president one day says there's a ceasefire. In another day, he'll say there's not. It's so chaotic. It's hard to believe anything that comes from this administration. It's really unfortunate because it makes our job here as members of Congress challenging to be able to move forward legislation.

We recently passed the War Powers Act, which I think sends a powerful message to this president that the American people do not want this and Congress is very concerned.

BROWN: Congressman Hurd, how do you see this? And I'm sure you're hearing from your constituents. Are you concerned about how the war is impacting domestic affairs like higher prices for your constituents?

HURD: Well, this is one of those areas that I think Congressman Carvajal and I can disagree on without being disagreeable. I certainly think the threat of Iranians having the nuclear weapons and a ballistic missile shield system protecting those are dangerous. We need to neutralize that threat. But we also need to make sure that Congress has a role in overseeing and fulfilling its constitutional responsibility to be engaged when there are military activities. And I expect that we will continue to see that. And I'd certainly be pushing for it here on the Republican side as well.

BROWN: All right. Congressman Jeff Hurd and Carbajal, thank you so much. It was nice to have a bipartisan civil conversation. We appreciate it.

CARBAJAL: Thank you.

HURD: Thank you.

BROWN: Wolf.

BLITZER: Nice to see it as well, a little bipartisanship going on.

BROWN: Yes.

BLITZER: And coming up, the U.S.-Canada relationship. What's the state right now? One-on-one with Doug Ford. The Ontario premier, he's weighing in on several key issues, including a key economic agreement between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

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[11:40:00]

BLITZER: New this morning, there are growing questions about the terms of the USMCA. That's the trade agreement between the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The agreement, which was signed back in 2020, includes a mandate that requires a joint review of the deal every six years. While President Trump has scheduled several meetings with Mexico to discuss the agreement, he's effectively cut off formal talks with Canada after the Ontario government released a television ad opposing U.S. tariffs.

Here with us in the Situation Room is Ontario's Premier Doug Ford. Premier Ford, thanks very much for coming in. You're smiling. It's a pretty tense time in U.S.-Canadian relations right now.

DOUG FORD, ONTARIO PREMIER: Well, Wolf, first of all, thank you for having me in and we're down here. So, let me start by saying that we're promoting something called Fortress North America.

BLITZER: What is Fortress North America?

[11:45:00]

FORD: Well, Fortress North America is about encouraging people to invest more in both countries and when they invest more, we're going to see more production, more jobs, lower costs, that's what we need to focus on. We have two of the greatest countries in the entire world and when we work together, there's nothing that can stop us. China can't stop us and we need to keep moving forward.

BLITZER: So, would your Fortress America agreement replace the USMCA?

FORD: No, it's just a little brochure right here. If anyone reaches out to our Ontario government and they go online, they'll be able to see what we've put together. It doesn't replace the USMCA. It's just a message for the American people. When I come down here, I meet business leaders, policy makers, associations, and it's going over very well. The biggest challenge right now, Wolf, is the uncertainty.

BLITZER: The uncertainty in the U.S.-Canadian relationship?

FORD: 100 percent. There's no investment when there's uncertainty. People want certainty, they want stability, and then we'll see both countries grow, the likes of which we've never seen before.

BLITZER: How would you describe the U.S.-Canadian relationship right now? Because for years, certainly when I was growing up in Buffalo, right on the border with Canada, there was no two U.S. allies who were closer.

FORD: Yes, and I feel the same way. I love the U.S., I love the American people. I know Canadians love the American people and Americans love Canadians. We just have to get through this hurdle. We have to make sure that we sit down as quickly as possible, get this USMCA deal. And again, it's going to create more jobs, more investment, more production, lower cost of goods, because we've seen cost of goods going up.

BLITZER: Because of the tariffs, you mean?

FORD: Yes.

BLITZER: Now, while you're here in Washington, are you going to be meeting with senior Trump administration officials?

FORD: I'm going to be meeting with senior senators and congresspeople and getting that message out. We've had a tremendous amount of meetings with other stakeholders and associations, no matter if it's the auto sector or if it's the agricultural sector, manufacturing sector. That's what we need to focus on.

BLITZER: But nobody from the Trump administration?

FORD: No, I'm going to leave that. That's strictly up to the federal government, our federal government, to deal with them. I'm boots on the ground. I'm dealing with the governors, dealing with senators and congresspeople and business leaders that get the message over the White House how critical it is to make sure that we sign a deal to bring certainty to both countries, bring certainty to markets around the world.

BLITZER: The criticism that you, the leader of Ontario, the largest province in Canada, is getting is because of an ad you put out opposing the Trump administration's tariffs, which directly affected Canada. Any regrets about that?

FORD: No, I don't think so. I think it's a message we're sending out to the American people that trade is great. It creates more jobs, more opportunities. And I just want to put that behind us. I want to move forward, get a deal as quickly as possible, because we're the U.S.'s number one customer and vice versa. The U.S. is Canada's number one customer.

BLITZER: Still?

FORD: Still. And 9 million Americans wake up every morning to produce a product, a widget, or a service just for Ontario alone. And jobs are -- they rely on jobs on both sides of the border. So, once we have certainty, there's going to be more jobs.

BLITZER: Did you notice that just last week, President Trump once again posted on social media the notion of perhaps Canada becoming America's 51st state? Did you notice that?

FORD: Yes, I did. But we're never going to be the 51st state. Canada's not for sale. We have two great sovereign nations. We're going to be the closest allies in the entire world. And we're going to move forward in a productive manner. BLITZER: But this clearly irritates people in Canada. Tourism from Canada to the United States. And I know this from all my family and friends who are still in western New York along the border with Canada. It has really deteriorated.

FORD: It has gone down. But there's -- it's never too late to rebuild and mend those relationships. And again, I love the American people. I love the U.S., and so do Canadians. So, we need to move forward as quickly as possible, get this deal moving forward --

BLITZER: Why do you think the president keeps bringing up this idea of Canada becoming America's 51st state?

FORD: I'm not too sure. You'd have to ask him. But again, Wolf, we're the two closest allies, the longest unprotected border in the world. And both economies are so integrated, especially the auto sector. Parts can go back and forth across the border seven, eight times. We met with all major auto manufacturers yesterday. And we're going to continue moving forward.

BLITZER: Are the U.S. tariffs still affecting all of that?

FORD: It is. It's affecting the auto sector, manufacturing sector. But what Ontario and what Canada brings to the table that will help the U.S. is energy. We give enough energy for 1.5 million homes and businesses in New York state, in Michigan, in Minnesota.

[11:50:00]

And we want to send more energy. We're leading the world in small modular reactors, nuclear reactors. And we're world leaders in critical minerals. And not to mention the other provinces that are shipping more oil down to the U.S. than anywhere in the world. Uranium coming from Saskatchewan, being refined in Ontario, shipping that down to Potash for our great farmers. So, there's so much that we can share together.

BLITZER: So, what needs to be done now to get U.S.-Canadian relations back to the way they used to be?

FORD: Well, I think we need to strike that deal. Both the prime minister --

BLITZER: Strike what deal?

FORD: The USMCA deal.

BLITZER: Yes.

FORD: The president and the prime minister need to sit down and get their differences cleared up and move forward for the common good of both countries. The common good of the average person that's working in the back of the factory, working in the auto sector, in the manufacturing sector, the tech, A.I. sector. They need certainty.

BLITZER: Have there been any talks at all, as far as you know, between the Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and President Trump?

FORD: I can't answer that. You'd have to ask the prime minister that.

BLITZER: You haven't heard of it?

FORD: I haven't heard of it yet.\

BLITZER: No big headlines in the Canadian media?

FORD: Not yet. No.

BLITZER: Nothing?

FORD: No.

BLITZER: You guys got a lot going on. And as you well know, I love Canada.

FORD: I know you do.

BLITZER: And I'm wishing for the best.

FORD: Well, thank you so much.

BLITZER: Thanks very much for coming in.

FORD: I can't wait to have you up there.

BLITZER: O Canada, O Canada.

FORD: Thank you. God bless America. And we'll get this going.

BLITZER: Let's hope.

FORD: Thank you.

BLITZER: Thank you.

BROWN: All right. And coming up, great interview, Wolf. Going inside the epicenter of the Ebola crisis. CNN has a look at the new isolation treatment center looking to curb the spread of the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:55:00]

BLITZER: Now, to our Situation Room special report. As health officials race to try to contain a deadly Ebola outbreak in Central Africa, an American NGO, a non-governmental organization, is opening a new isolation treatment center in Bunia. That is the epicenter of the crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo. CNN Chief International Correspondent Clarissa Ward was on the ground for us at its opening.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're here at a brand-new U.S.-funded Ebola treatment center at Bunia's General Hospital, which is just about to open. You can see people are working hard to get those first patients in.

WARD (voice-over): It's being built by American NGO International Medical Corps with funding from the U.S. government.

WARD: Everywhere you go, you see this. This is the new branding for the United States State Department, which has contributed more than $160 million to this Ebola crisis.

WARD (voice-over): Almost a year after dismantling USAID and slashing foreign aid across the board, the U.S. remains the single largest donor to this outbreak.

DR. AHMAD MAHARISHI, IMC COORDINATOR: It has been hectic. So, we have been working day and night just to make sure that we realize this. And it has taken us 10 days. It also involves a lot of hard work. So, normally, it takes 21 days to build. But because of the agency, because of the high number of cases that have been admitted across, it really requires this commitment to make sure that everything is ready in time.

WARD: So, each bed has a number and has already been designated a patient. Obviously, we can't show you that for patient privacy reasons. But what we can say is that this tent is for men who are in stable condition, and that tent is for the women.

WARD (voice-over): The following afternoon, the first patients arrive. One after another they come. The wait is over, but the hard work has just begun.

Clarissa Ward, CNN, Bunia, Democratic Republic of Congo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And our special thanks to Clarissa for that truly excellent reporting that she's been doing over these past few weeks on the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. She's courageous to go there with her crew in the midst of all of this and do this excellent reporting.

BROWN: It's really what journalism is all about. She has taken you there to the epicenter to see it, even though there is a risk to herself, right?

BLITZER: Totally.

BROWN: So, we are so grateful to her, and then we want to continue to showcase her work here on the Situation Room.

BLITZER: She's an amazing, a wonderful reporter indeed and her crew, too. They all risk going into an Ebola center like this in the Congo and risking their own lives in that manner, but they're doing a great job. BROWN: We're very grateful.

BLITZER: Totally.

BROWN: Well, thank you all so much for joining us this morning.

BLITZER: And we'll continue our special coverage. Inside Politics with our friend and colleague Dana Bash starts right now.

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