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The Situation Room

Lebron James To Leave the Lakers; Democratic Socialists Oust Another House Incumbent; Source: U.S. and Iranian Officials Hold Indirect Talks in Doha. Aired 11:30-12p ET

Aired July 01, 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: James is taking his talents and leaving Los Angeles. The big question, where will King James play next?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, three major egg producers are set to pay more than $3 million and donate 53 million eggs to resolve claims of price fixing. The states and federal government found the companies have been conspiring to, quote, "artificially inflate the daily price quotations." The donated eggs will go to food banks and nonprofits.

And ocean temperatures across the globe have reached record highs for this time of year. Marine data experts found that sea temperatures are 18 degrees above the previous record set back in 2024. The heat spike could be due to El Nino as well as greenhouse gases.

[11:35:00]

And the king is on the move. After eight years, LeBron James is leaving the Los Angeles Lakers. He won a title with them back in 2020, but the team has been middle of the road since then. Now, the big question is, where will he play his 24th season, the longest anyone has ever played in the NBA?

BLITZER: Also happening now, Democratic Socialists notch yet another big win against the party establishment, the New York Patriots. The New York Patriots are this time in Colorado. CNN projecting the 29- year-old Melat Kiros will oust Congresswoman Diana DeGette in the Democratic primary race. DeGette has held the House seat since before Kiros was even born. Kiros is the third progressive challenger to defeat a sitting Democratic member in just eight days.

Joining us now is CNN's Senior Political and Global Affairs commentator, Rahm Emanuel. Rahm, thanks very much for joining us. Kiros' win in Colorado, as you know, comes just days after we saw two progressive Socialist candidates winning in New York. What does this tell you about the future of your Democratic Party?

RAHM EMANUEL, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL AND GLOBAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR AND FORMER US AMBASSADOR TO JAPAN: Yes, Wolf, first of all, as you know, I've built my life helping Nancy Pelosi become speaker and both President Obama and President Clinton, not only to win, but to pick the lock on the electoral map.

You are not going to get to a majority turning blue districts to cobalt blue. The only way to a majority to investigate all the corruption that's going on to pass a minimum wage is flipping red districts held by Republicans to Democratic to blue districts. This does not get you to where you want to go.

Number two, there are seven states, 500,000 voters across those states, that have determined the last three presidents. None of those states is welcoming in a Senate campaign or a gubernatorial race, welcoming Socialists to come campaign in the general election. The only way to win in Arizona, Nevada, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, or Georgia or North Carolina is Democrats and Independents aligning together. The largest party in the country are Independent voters.

And lastly, the irony of this whole thing is if you really want somebody that will fight President Trump, you need a majority to have a gavel that actually investigates why he has a Qatari plane for $400 million and you're paying four bucks a gas, why he has become $2 billion richer and you're taking money out of your 401(k).

Holding the corruption and accountability and then progressively adding the minimum wage or adding a new benefit to Obamacare, you can only do that by flipping red districts to blue, not blue districts to cobalt blue. And that's where we are as a party. And we're going to have this big fight about it, about the direction.

But I tell you, to win and to get to a majority, it only goes to red districts where they think they have both a lock as it relates to redistricting or an electoral lock as it relates to the presidency. And we have to be strategic, not just emotional about this.

BLITZER: And you know your stuff. I want you to listen to what the Democratic strategist James Carville just said the other day. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES CARVILLE, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: I actually do think it's time for Democrats to talk the S-word, schism. I really do. Everybody's always said, no, no, we're a coalition, we're a big tent. And there's some -- there's just some -- that I can't be in the same tent with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: So, what do you think, Rahm? Do you agree with him?

EMANUEL: Well, look, I just laid out my view about this whole program, which is you got to flip red to blue, not blue to cobalt blue. And there is a difference. There are candidates out there, specifically like in New York City, who don't like America.

I happen to think being an American means you win the lottery ticket of life. There are challenges in America that it's not living up to its potential, as outlined here on the 250-year anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, where America falls short, but you always struggle for that better. There are people in the Democratic Socialist Party who literally do not like America, think it is a bad country. They don't have any identity. And that is not the Democratic Party that I'm a part of. It is not the Democratic Party that struggles to make sure that other people get a chance to be in the winner's circle.

Now, look, I also want to take back to the other point about this, Wolf. There are two great social policies by President Obama, President Biden. One was ACA health care, passed by a Democrat in Nebraska in the Senate. The other is the IRA under Joe Biden. And that was passed with a senator from West Virginia.

Winning red areas with Democrats allowed us to advance the most progressive legislation. And I keep getting back this, winning something on the Upper West Side doesn't help you flip the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

[11:40:00]

And that is the only way to not only advance progressive agendas, win and unlock the electoral map that has kept Democrats out of the White House. But it also allows you to hold this administration accountable for its corruption. This is the most corrupt administration in -- literally, I would say this coming from Chicago, the type of corruption here would make an alderman blush in the City of Chicago. And you cannot do it from a minority state. You can only do it when you have your hand on the gavel and have people come up and testify.

How is it that you got this kind of cryptocurrency and why is it the UAE investing it? How is it you got that jet and yet the American people are left with four bucks gas? And unless we start flipping red to blue, you're going to just hear it get red in the face. And that's all the only red you're going to see.

So, I'm not impressed with flipping blue districts. I want to spend my resources taking red districts to blue and having new Democrats that know how to deal with corruption, hold this administration accountable, and advance the progressive policies of either health care, minimum wage, or financial reform, or in fact creating jobs that help American people. That to me is the ticket. And Democrats have to wake up, smell the coffee. Other than that, we're just basically messing around.

BLITZER: A very sensitive moment for the Democrats out there right now. All right. Rahm Emanuel, as usual, thanks very much for joining us.

EMANUEL: Thanks, Wolf.

BROWN: All right. Coming up here in The Situation Room, President Trump dismisses reports that he's unhappy with Iran as Washington and Tehran struggle to move forward with plans to end the war.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:45:00] BLITZER: Happening now, a diplomatic source tells CNN that U.S. and Iranian officials are holding what are described as indirect talks in Doha, Qatar. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and President Trump's son-in- law Jared Kushner met today with Qatar's Amir but are not attending these lower-level negotiations.

Meanwhile, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has visited IDF troops in southern Lebanon where a U.S.-brokered truce between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah is facing new strains right now. Israel says it struck a Hezbollah operative yesterday in a continuation of weekend fighting.

Joining us now is CNN Global Affairs Analyst Karim Sadjadpour. He also focuses in on Iran for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Karim, thanks so much for joining us. We're now, what, two weeks since that memorandum of understanding, as it was called, was finalized. Do you get the impression now that progress is in fact being made in these negotiations or are things falling apart?

KARIM SADJADPOUR, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST, SENIOR FELLOW, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND IRAN EXPERT: I don't get the impression, Wolf, that progress is being made from the U.S. perspective and that the priority for the United States in this 60-day period was to begin intense discussions about Iran's nuclear program, about curtailing Iran's nuclear program.

But instead, the focus has continued to be about the fate of the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran wants to continue to control, and Lebanon, which Iran wants to continue to exercise veto power over. So, I'm not optimistic that things are on track.

BLITZER: The president, President Trump, spoke about U.S. dealings with Iran earlier this morning over at Joint Base Andrews. I want you to listen to what he said. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I think they've come a long way. We hit them very hard last week. I think they're fine. I think we're getting it. It's the denuclearization of Iran. It's very simple. And Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. Otherwise, all of this stuff that we look at, all of these things that we do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The president says the talks, as you just heard, between the U.S. and Iran are going, in his words, very well. In your opinion, has Iran seized control of this power dynamic?

SADJADPOUR: Wolf, when I listen to the rhetoric of Iranian officials, it's very different. They obviously feel that they prevailed in this war. And when they talk, it's about their demands to continue to control the Strait of Hormuz, to continue to fund and arm their regional proxies like Lebanese Hezbollah.

And so, I think President Trump is going to have some difficult decisions in the weeks and months ahead, because if indeed he has not made any progress on his goal of denuclearizing Iran, taking the highly enriched uranium out of Iran, he's going to have to decide whether to return to a pressure campaign, an economic pressure campaign, or even potentially military action.

BLITZER: Sources are telling CNN, Karim, that the U.S. ally Oman has given the administration a proposal on the future of the Strait of Hormuz. It's a plan for shipping companies to pay what are called service fees to use the Strait, but they would not be called tolls. President Trump dismisses this as what he calls fake news. Would the charging of any fee deliver a win for Iran as it seeks to control this truly critical waterway?

SADJADPOUR: Indeed. And, Wolf, that's exactly right, which is Iran believes that the Strait of Hormuz will not go back to the status quo ante of being an international waterway. This is now essentially, in their view, an Iranian-controlled waterway. Now, Oman is on the other side of the border of the Strait of Hormuz, so whatever Iran wants to do in the Strait, it needs to say it's doing in conjunction with the State of Oman. And Oman is in a very difficult position, because it has been a longtime U.S. ally, and it's really going to alienate the United States if it's seen to be trying to cooperate with Iran on a scheme to monetize the Strait of Hormuz.

BLITZER: We're showing our viewers, by the way, pictures of the president who just arrived in North Dakota, where he's going to be giving a major speech in a little while. We'll see what he says.

[11:50:00]

The Wall Street Journal, Karim, is reporting that the president is being briefed on the option of relaunching what is described as an all-out war with Iran, despite the administration's suggestions of diplomatic progress. The president has been briefed on the option of relaunching Do you think patience is running thin right now and an all-out war could resume?

SADJADPOUR: It's possible, Wolf, although the big question is, what will a return to all-out war achieve now, which it didn't achieve in the four months in which there was all-out war? And so, here the president is in a difficult position, because the Iranians are showing no meaningful signs that they're preparing to compromise or even speak about compromise on the nuclear file. And after 60 days, if Iran is controlling the Strait of Hormuz and it's not talking about the nuclear file, that's a major defeat for President Trump.

So, he's going to have to make some big decisions to make. It's perhaps a decision he'll want to make after the midterm elections. We'll see what he does.

BLITZER: All right. Karim Sadjadpour, as usual, thank you very, very much.

SADJADPOUR: Thank you.

BLITZER: Pamela. BROWN: All right. coming up, Wolf, move over. Fourth of July, it may get overshadowed by what can only be called a blockbuster wedding. How New York City and Swifties are preparing?

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[11:55:00]

BROWN: Happening now, all eyes are on New York City's Madison Square Garden, and this time, the Knicks have nothing to do with it.

BLITZER: After months and months of speculation, two sources are telling CNN that Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are set to have their highly anticipated wedding celebration there this week. Let's go to CNN's Brynn Gingras. She's outside Madison Square Garden for us. Brynn, what do we know about these festivities?

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Wolf and Pam, you said all eyes. Yes, we are starting to see a lot of eyeballs come here to Madison Square Garden and set their eyes on all the flurry that is happening here behind me.

We're taking a look at it ourselves. I mean, you could see a number of fork lifters going to this truck to the side here, unloading equipment. Of course, we don't know if this is directly related to what's being set up inside Madison Square Garden, but of course, we are looking for any little clue that we possibly can that might be connected to this massive wedding.

I would say America's sweethearts really are getting married at this point in the next couple of days. What we know is that this rehearsal, as it's being called from a source, is happening tomorrow, beginning at 6:00 p.m., about 100 guests. The New York Times is actually reporting that that is going to take place in a theater inside Madison Square Garden, with a big event happening, the big celebration on Friday, beginning about 4:00 p.m., going all the way till 4:00 a.m., and about 1,000 guests are expected to attend.

The Times also reporting that's a black-tie event. No phones are going to be allowed inside from guests, vendors, security. It is going to be locked tight. So, if you were wondering why Taylor Swift, who literally can get married anywhere on this planet, would choose Madison Square Garden, that might be one of the reasons. It is going to be secured. Nothing can get inside unless you are invited, which reminds me, we've learned a little bit more about the security that's happening around this area.

Our understanding is it's not going to be like we saw during the Knicks' celebration of Frozen Zone. There will be pedestrians going back and forth, but there is going to be a heightened amount of security. And across on 31st Street, they're going to put up tents to block any guests who might be arriving.

So, if Swifties do come out here to try to get a peek at what's happening in the next couple of days, it's very likely they won't see much. I did actually talk to a few people who have been showing up, guys. And one person I talked to, two little girls, and they went to her concert in Vancouver two years ago. They said they just had to come and see what's happening. They're super excited to learn about Taylor Swift getting married to Travis Kelce.

We can confirm those activities, and we're just waiting to hear more about what's going to happen inside for these amazing festivities happening. Really, guys, real parties happening in New York between the World Cup and this, and this heat wave, and also the fact that it's July 4th celebrations coming up, guys.

BROWN: Lots of excitement going on right now. Brynn Gingras, thank you so much.

BLITZER: And before we go, we want to congratulate two of our own here at CNN who received awards last night from the Radio and Television Correspondents Association. Big dinner here in Washington. Manu Raju received the Joan Shorenstein Barone Award recognizing excellence in coverage of Capitol Hill. I had the honor of giving that award to Manu. In his acceptance speech, Manu explained his key to success.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: But over the years at CQ, The Hill, Politico, and now nearly 11 years at CNN, I learned that success in this business isn't about avoiding rejection, it's about persistence. It's about showing up again the next day, asking one more question, making one more phone call, and trying again.

And every now and then, that persistence actually earns some recognition, like when Harry Reid called me the biggest pest in Washington, something I gladly accepted and could not deny.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Very true. Very good advice there from Manu. Khalil Abdallah received the Jerry Thompson Memorial Award for his excellent photojournalism work.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KHALIL ABDALLAH, SENIOR PHOTOJOURNALIST: The world is full of stories, and it needs journalists to tell them. We must stay strong. We must keep the reporting alive. And to the people living in the shadows, you know who you are. We see you. We hear you. And you might not be in the headlines today, you might --

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