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Lawmakers Raise Alarm About Airline Safety; Israeli Defense Minister: Will Not Withdraw from Lebanon; IAEA Chief Says It Will Inspect Iran's Nuclear Sites; America's National Pastime With "The Tartan Army". Aired 11:30-12p ET

Aired June 24, 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, the jury is deliberating in the arson trial of the man accused of starting the deadly Palisades Fire in Southern California. If convicted, Jonathan Rinderknecht faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison, but he could get up to 45 years. That fire killed a dozen people and burned thousands of homes and businesses.

In Utah, smoke from wildfires is turning the sky completely orange. An air quality advisory is in place and officials are urging people to stay inside. Multiple fires are burning across the state right now, fueled by hot and dry conditions.

And lawmakers are raising the alarm about airline safety. This comes after multiple close calls between planes over the last few months.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JERRY MORAN (R-KS): These close calls did not become tragedies because of safety professionals, pilots, air traffic controllers and airport personnel responded to the dangers and our safety system worked. But regardless of that outcome, they still remain a warning call and a reminder that our aviation system is fragile and that we must act.

SEN. TAMMY DUCKWORTH (D-IL): In far too many of these incidents, the difference between a close call and a deadly disaster has come down to a single, highly trained and professional individual taking emergency action.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Happening now, the Secretary of State Marco Rubio is in Kuwait as he visits Gulf nations Iran has hit hardest during the war. He's also meeting with officials in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. And a new warning from Israel's defense minister. He says, quote, "Under no circumstances," end quote, with Israeli troops retreat from Lebanon, saying this position has been made abundantly clear to the United States.

CNN Global Affairs commentator Sabrina Singh is here with me in the situation room. She was deputy Pentagon press secretary during the Biden administration. First on this Rubio visit that's ongoing right now. How has the war with Iran impacted these relationships, the U.S. relationships with Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, these other Gulf countries?

SABRINA SINGH, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR AND FORMER DEPUTY PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY: This war has put a tremendous strain on U.S. relationships with these countries. You'll remember that these countries weren't even consulted when Israel and the U.S. conducted joint strikes starting this war back in February 28th.

So, there's a lot of concern among amongst these Gulf countries, especially some of the rhetoric coming from top administration officials. I mean, we saw Pete Hegseth just a few months ago say, you know, we might leave this trade and it's up for other people, other countries to figure it out. That is a huge stressor for these nations who are now saying you started this war. It's a war of choice. You've got to finish it through and you've got to clean up the mess.

And so, I heard Marco Rubio say yesterday this is a listening tour for him, as it should be, because we do need those allies back on our side. And we depend on them. We have many bases in the region, as I know you've visited many of them throughout your career. So, we depend on these allies a lot.

BLITZER: Yes. There's big major bases going on in Bahrain, in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates. I've been to so many of them over the many years. And they play a key role for the U.S. military central command, which is in charge of that region. How has the situation in Lebanon, Israel's war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, impacted what's going on in the broader picture?

SINGH: I think that's really the situation to continue to watch, because Israel and Hezbollah continuing to trade fire with each other is going to put this MOU, this peace deal, at further risk.

[11:35:00]

And that's why you're seeing people like J.D. Vance, Marco Rubio saying that both sides need to retreat and basically stand down on their hostilities. But just yesterday, we saw Israel engage and two people were killed in Lebanon. So, that is really an area that I would keep watching on how that's going to impact the peace deal. And frankly, that's probably conversations that Secretary Rubio is having with these Gulf countries. How can we get Lebanese Hezbollah to step back?

But again, part of this agreement that we have between the U.S. and Israel, I mean, sorry, the U.S. and Iran, Israel and Hezbollah are not party to the deal. They're not signers to this. So, therefore, they feel that they can continue to conduct their own kinetic actions against each other.

BLITZER: Is the Lebanese army qualified, able to disarm Hezbollah?

SINGH: You know, that was something that -- we were making assessments of that when I was in the Biden administration. And I don't -- and I think Israel feels that the Lebanese army cannot do that on their own, which is why Israel is taking the action that they are right now. It's very difficult to dismantle Hezbollah. And I think that would take a lot more resources going to the Lebanese army. And frankly, a lot more oversight into how dismantlement would happen.

So, to answer your question, it's almost like yes and no. If they have the resources to do it, maybe, but they don't right now.

BLITZER: Interesting. It's interesting that Iran's president says the country's missile program is not part of any agreement with the United States and says it never will be. Trump had previously used this as a rationale for military action. So, what do you make of what's going on with these goals?

SINGH: Well, the goals and the kind of mission of the war keep changing. At the very beginning of this war, you heard from Secretary Rubio, Secretary Hegseth, even the president saying that Iran cannot not only keep its nuclear enrichment program, but we have to dismantle their ballistic missile program. We have to address their support for proxies. And yet, in the MOU that was signed, none of that is addressed.

And so, I think that this administration is giving a lot of concessions to Iran. And you're seeing that all they want to do right now is open the Strait of Hormuz, something that was open before the war started and is a result of the war. So, it is really giving Iran this economic relief up front and frankly, allowing them to potentially keep their ballistic missile program intact and support for proxies. We just don't know what's going to happen with that.

BLITZER: Because if they reopen the Strait of Hormuz to free shipping, that would reduce the price of gasoline here in the United States.

SINGH: The president is feeling the political impacts. His parties, I mean, not just the president, Americans are feeling the impacts of this war. Every single day that an American goes to fill up the price, to fill up oil or gas, and they're seeing that it's a dollar more than when the war started, they're putting blame directly on the president and his party. And so, this is a political calculation that the president made to get the Strait open.

BLITZER: It's interesting. The head of the U.N. Nuclear Watchdog Agency says there will be inspections of Iran's nuclear sites as we hear contradictory messages coming from the U.S. and Iran on this sensitive issue. How critical is this piece of a final agreement?

SINGH: Well, it's critical to have inspectors going back in the country and to survey and inspect these nuclear sites. The issue that this administration, the administration is making a big deal out of the fact that IAEA inspectors would be going back in. But Iran is a signer to the nonproliferation treaty.

So, this was something that was instituted under the Obama agreement in 2015. Getting inspectors back on the ground is basically just restoring the line of regular inspections that should be taking place. We have yet to understand when inspectors will be going back in.

Obviously, Vice President Vance said it will be as soon as this week. Iran is pushing back on that. I think there's probably some middle ground. We'll see them in there soon, but we don't have an exact date.

BLITZER: We'll see what happens. A key issue indeed. Sabrina Singh, as always, thank you very, very much.

And new government numbers show the alarming screw worm outbreak in Texas is growing. Nineteen animal cases have been reported in the state over the last 30 days. That's up from 15 in the previous report. Officials say the flesh-eating fly spread from Central America, and now the race is on to contain what could be a major threat to livestock. The parasite devastated the cattle industry decades ago and caused millions of dollars in losses.

CNN's Senior National Correspondent Ed Lavandera shows us how ranchers are working to try to protect their herds once again.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When David Henderson makes the call, his cow herd listens.

LAVANDERA: So, this is how you come and inspect them?

DAVID HENDERSON, TEXAS CATTLE RANCHER: Yes. More than anything, just visually inspecting them.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): He's looking for any signs that his cows have been infected by the dreaded New World screw worm fly.

LAVANDERA: So, when you're out here, what are you looking for right now?

HENDERSON: Anywhere I see blood, cuts, wounds, anything like that.

LAVANDERA: This might be the most intimidating interview location I've ever had in my entire life.

[11:40:00]

HENDERSON: I don't need any cows my daughters can't walk in the field around.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): For almost 30 years, Henderson has raised cattle in this secluded spot in the East Texas woods. It's a tough business, but he's never faced a threat like the screw worm. The New World screw worm was eradicated from the U.S. in the 1960s and 70s and pushed southward. But over the last few years, the fly has been making its way back north from Central America into Mexico and recently discovered again in South Texas. At least a dozen cases have now popped up across the state and New Mexico, and ranchers fear it will spread wider.

LAVANDERA: What the screw worm fly does is it looks for open wounds on cattle and other warm-blooded animals. Then it deposits eggs, and when those eggs hatch, the larvae burrow their way into the tissue of the animal. And that's when the real problems begin.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): The screw worm can cause serious infections or damage to vital organs that can kill the animal. It's treatable, but it can also cause overwhelming costs in quarantines and animal care for ranchers.

HENDERSON: It's a strong concern of mine, a very strong concern. I mean, this is my livelihood.

LAVANDERA: Do you think this could threaten to put some cattle ranchers out of business?

HENDERSON: Yes, it do. If it gets bad enough and it starts affecting a lot of animals, you have death of animals. If you start losing and losing large quantities, it's definitely going to affect the beef industry in a major way.

LAVANDERA: Prices at the grocery store are going to go up.

HENDERSON: They don't have a choice.

LAVANDERA: It's nerve-wracking.

HENDERSON: It is. Yes, it is.

DR. JARED RANLY, VETERINARIAN: This cow belongs to a client.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Jared Ranly is a veterinarian in central Texas.

RANLY: We removed that eye lesion, and we were just monitoring it for a couple days.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): This is the kind of equipment you need to closely inspect a 1,300-pound cow. Since the return of the screwworm, his phone has been ringing off the hook.

RANLY: The last week has been sort of a storm. When the first case hit in Texas, everybody sort of panicked. People were extremely worried.

People were seeing pictures of flies on animals, on dead animals they found. They were texting in those pictures. Right now, we're not taking any chances.

So, any larvae we find, we want to send those off to be evaluated to determine if it's a screwworm larvae or a different larvae.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): To fight the spread, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Texas officials are releasing millions of sterile flies around infected zones to control fly reproduction. The ranchers we spoke to feel the sterile flies aren't being produced fast enough, and the cattle industry is bracing for a long fight.

RANLY: This is something that I may spend the rest of my life fighting.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Jared Ranly first learned about the screwworm fly in veterinarian school textbooks. Now, the past has come back to haunt the ranch.

RANLY: I never thought in my life that we would be battling screwworms again, to be honest with you.

LAVANDERA: There has been a great deal of criticism directed at the Trump administration for the way it's handling its response to the New World screwworm. A group of senators say that staffing cuts and funding cuts have hampered the U.S. Department of Agriculture's response to all of this. The head of that agency denies those claims, says there's plenty of funding, and goes on to blame Mexico for not doing more to prevent it from reaching the United States.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, Dallas, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And our thanks to Ed for that report. Coming up, the Tartan Army invades America's national pastime. Soccer fans visiting from Scotland take over the Miami Marlins game.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RANDI KAYE, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Can you explain the rules of the game to me here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As a Scottish man, I would say there's a man throwing a ball at another man who's trying to hit it out the park. And nine times out of 10, he misses.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: We'll take you out to the ballpark with the spirited Scottish fans.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:45:00]

BLITZER: And new this morning, a missing giraffe. Yes, a giraffe has been found alive. This is Gracie. Take a look. She was reported missing on Monday from a Texas ranch. Her owner offered a $5,000 reward to find her. The animal rescue shelter helping with the search says Gracie was found a little further out than expected from her home. We're so glad Gracie has been reunited with her family.

Also happening now, Scottish fans are gearing up to cheer on their team at Miami Stadium as Scotland takes on Brazil in just a few hours. These lovely Scots are known as the Tartan Army. And they're enjoying more than just World Cup games during their visit to America. Here's CNN's Randi Kaye.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) RANDI KAYE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If you're looking for the Scottish World Cup fans, they're not hard to find.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We love to party at any sport event. We love to drink. We love to party.

KAYE: Is the stadium going to run out of beer tonight?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, absolutely.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 100 percent.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need to phone up Scotland and say, can you send more beer? Because we're going to drink it all tonight.

KAYE: Scotland hasn't been to the World Cup in nearly three decades. So, the soccer fans who came here to the U.S. for the games are certainly making the most of it. But it's not just soccer that has them cheering. It's baseball.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We love baseball. We know the one song they've got. It goes like this.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And that's all we really know.

KAYE (voice-over): Scottish fans call themselves the Tartan Army. In between World Cup matches, they've been taking over stadiums in host cities. In Miami, the Marlins team dubbed Monday night's game the Tartan Takeover, after about 8,000 tickets were purchased by Scottish fans.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are here to see Scotland play Brazil. So, we thought we would just come and see the baseball and support the Fighting Fish.

[11:50:00]

KAYE: What do you think makes the Scottish fans so unique?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, no one else wears kilts. We have lots of fabulous songs.

KAYE (voice-over): And where the Scots go, the party follows.

[18:55:00]

KAYE: Many of these Scottish fans have never attended a U.S. baseball game. But that doesn't seem to be getting in the way of their club.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He throws it, and he hits it as far as he can. Is there more than that?

KAYE: Can you explain the rules of the game to me here? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As a Scottish man, I would say there's a man throwing a ball at another man who's trying to hit it out the park. And nine times out of 10, he misses.

KAYE: Do you think they should just use a bigger ball out here? Would that make more sense to you?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would say a bigger ball and a bigger bat.

KAYE (voice-over): The Marlins lost to the Texas Rangers 4-3, but that didn't dampen the Tartan Army's spirits.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We love our city.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And our thanks to Randi Kaye for that report. Joining us now, CNN sports analyst and sports columnist at USA Today, Christine Brennan. Christine, Brazil is favored in this match against Scotland, but could the so-called Tartan Army change the tide?

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST AND SPORTS COLUMNIST, USA TODAY: They could, Wolf, and if all those fans get their way and have any influence, they might. But even so, Scotland right now has about an 85 percent chance, according to the New York Times and the Athletic, of making it into the knockout round. And not only is that great news for those wonderful fans and for the Scotland team, but it's also great news for future cities that are hosting Scotland.

Because this is terrific. I know you and I absolutely agree, I'm sure you'd want to get them up to Buffalo for a Bills game. I mean, this is so much fun, I'm so glad Randi asked those questions. And something that wasn't in the report, but I read about with this game, first inning, there's a routine fly ball to right field, and it is caught. And the Scots go absolutely crazy. First inning, fly ball, it's an out, and they go absolutely nuts cheering for a routine out. And that is the kind of stuff that has every American sports fan laughing and enjoying it. What a boost for the country. What fun for us to see how they're reacting. They're terrific guests, and I think everyone wants much more of the Tartan Army.

BLITZER: Yes, I love those Scottish fans. The good news for soccer fans in general, Christine, is if you thought four World Cup games a day wasn't enough, today is the first day of six games. Which of these games are you focused on?

BRENNAN: Canada's playing at home in Vancouver, Wolf, and they can make it, and if they win, I think they win the group, and they will move on. Either way, they probably will. But that's great to see for Canada. Canadian men's team that has not been known for great play in World Cups in the past. And then again, that Scotland-Brazil game is just going to be terrific to see whether you're watching the games on the field or whether you're watching the fans in the stands.

And I'm sure some people are saying, why more games today? Well, this is the final game, final match for Group A, Group B, and Group C. And they play those games at the same time. So, you'll see that there will be two games going on at the exact same time. Six games today.

And the reason for that is simple. No shenanigans, no funny business. Goal differential, as I think people know, is important. You can, by, you know, just a whisker, make it into the knockout round. Others will be knocked out, although only a very few in this bigger tournament. So, they want the games to be played at the exact same time, so no one can be looking at the scoreboard or waiting, and then, hey, we only need to score one goal, or we can let this team join us. It's happened before in the World Cup back in the '80s, and they don't want any funny business this time.

BLITZER: As you know, Christine, seven teams have already advanced to the round of 32. Do any of this shock you?

BRENNAN: You know, not really, only because, again, there's so many more teams. And the balance. You know, we're seeing parity. We hear about that all the time in our beloved NFL, right, Wolf, for, you know, parity and the draft and everything about that. Well, we're seeing parity across the world with men's soccer as well. That's a good thing. We're starting to see it in the women's game, too, and have over the last few decades. That's what you want.

You want countries -- you know, Cape Verde, we talked about a couple days ago. They haven't yet made it, but they might. And the fact that, again, so there's more opportunities to move on. It's a bigger tournament. They've got 48. The 32 will then move on into the, so they'll take some third-place teams who otherwise from each group that would otherwise be knocked out and sent home.

But you know, the U.S. is playing really well, and I think that's an important thing to say.

[11:55:00]

But they haven't yet had to face all of those strong European teams. Interesting stat, there's not one player on the U.S. men's team, Wolf, who has ever had to play one of the top 10 European teams in either a friendly or an official game.

And you know, when that happens, maybe they could beat Spain. They might run into Spain in the quarterfinals, but then you're going to have to beat three or four of those teams. And that is going to be a tall order for the U.S. for those who think the U.S. is on their way to win it, not so fast, even though it's a great start for the Americans.

BLITZER: I'm with the USA. All right. Christine Brennan, thank you very, very much.

And to our viewers, thanks very much for joining me here in the Situation Room this morning. Inside Politics with our friend and colleague Dana Bash starts right after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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