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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson

Iranian Infrastructure Being Targeted in Air Campaign; U.S. and Western Nationals Return on Repatriation Flights; Hegseth: Iran War Has Only Just Begun; CNN Gets a View Inside Iran; Trump Ousts Kristi Noem as Homeland Security Secretary; Oil Hits Highest Level Since End of Biden Administration; Limited Flight Services Resume in Middle East. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired March 06, 2026 - 00:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

LAURA COATES, CNN ANCHOR: Much for sharing him.

[00:00:04]

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COATES: And thank you all so much for watching. THE STORY IS with Elex Michaelson is next.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome to THE STORY IS. I'm Elex Michaelson, coming to you live from CNN's global headquarters in Atlanta.

And the top story is the war with Iran. Here are the latest headlines at this hour.

The Israeli military says it has begun a broad-scale wave of strikes on regime infrastructure in Tehran. An Iranian news agency reports sounds of fighter jets and explosions over Tehran.

The U.S. military has announced a strike on an Iranian drone carrier. Social media post says U.S. forces are not holding back on their mission to sink the entire Iranian navy.

Explosions are lighting up the skies over Beirut, Lebanon. Israel says it is targeting a Hezbollah stronghold after issuing expansive evacuation orders for that area.

Video from Bahrain shows an oil refinery hit by an Iranian missile. That country's Interior Ministry reports a hotel, two residential buildings in the capital were hit, but nobody was killed. The secretary of war, Pete Hegseth, says U.S. strikes on Iran will

only get more intense.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: Iran is hoping that we cannot sustain this, which is a really bad miscalculation for the IRGC in Iran.

You see, there's no shortage of American will here. We've got no shortage of munitions. Our stockpiles of defensive and offensive weapons allow us to sustain this campaign as long as we need to.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Analysis from the Center for Strategic and International Studies estimates the price tag for the first 100 hours of Operation Epic Fury at $3.7 billion with a "B." President Trump says the campaign is far ahead of schedule.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: They're tough, and they want to fight. And they're calling; they're saying, how do we make a deal? I said, you're being a little bit late, and we want to fight now more than they do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: We have team coverage around the world. Brian Todd is in Washington, but let's start with senior international correspondent Ivan Watson in Hong Kong -- Ivan.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Elex, the bombing campaign of Iran continues. Israel saying it's attacking, in a fresh wave of airstrikes, Iranian regime infrastructure.

Our team on the ground in Iran has heard jets flying over, jet activity twice in the area of Tehran. And we have reports of explosions coming from Iranian media in Central, Eastern, and Western Tehran.

The death toll, according to Iranian state media, is more than 1,200 people killed since Saturday, the deadliest incident being the bombing of a girls' school in the town of Minab, which killed at least 168 schoolgirls and 14 teachers.

The U.S. military says that, in the last 24 hours, the Iranian ballistic missile attacks have decreased by 90 percent. Drone attacks have gone down by 83 percent.

But if you go through the morning reports, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE all have air defenses working in the predawn hours against suspected missile and drone attacks.

Bahrain saying that it succeeded in putting out fires in a hotel and two residential buildings in the capital, Manama, that were hit.

On another main front in this conflict, that is Lebanon. You had scenes of absolute panic and chaos on Thursday evening after the Israeli military issued a blanket evacuation order for all of Southern Beirut and the Southern suburbs, which are believed to be home to some half a million people.

So, you had tens, if not hundreds of thousands of people clogging roads, trying to escape. I heard an eyewitness say that he saw people running out of their homes, barefoot, in their panic to flee.

This is a change from previous tactics, where the Israeli military would issue these evacuation warnings about a single building and give people time to flee before an airstrike. And that's part of the intense fear that this engendered.

Also, there was this statement that came from a hardline Israeli cabinet minister. Take a listen to what he had to say in a statement from the Israeli-Lebanese border.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEZALEL SMOTRICH, ISRAELI FINANCE MINISTER (through translator): We're here along the Northern border after the IDF issued an evacuation order to all the residents of the Dahieh. You wanted to bring Hell upon us and brought Hell upon yourselves. The Dahieh will look like Khan Younis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON: Khan Younis is a reference to that Southern Gaza city that has all been but flattened during two years of war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, which the Israeli military acknowledges killed some 70,000 Palestinians.

So, that contributed to the immense fear that Israel might use the same tactics in Southern Beirut of completely flattening entire neighborhoods.

Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon continues to announce that it is attacking Israeli -- Israel, both across the border in Northern Israel, as well as Israeli military units that have carried out incursions into Southern Lebanon.

It has warned the Israeli civilian population to move back some five kilometers from the Lebanese-Israeli border.

Israel, for its part, has told all Lebanese population, the entire population, to move North of the Litani River.

The Lebanese government has declared Hezbollah's military and security operations illegal, but it has been unable so far to stop this powerful militia from engaging in this war with Israel -- Elex.

MICHAELSON: A lot going on. Ivan Watson in Hong Kong, thank you. Thankfully, the logjam of people trying to get out of the Middle East

slowly starting to clear. Thousands of people have managed to leave the region as the conflict intensifies and flight schedules are in disarray.

But airlines are slowly resuming some flights. Governments around the world are organizing charter planes to evacuate their citizens.

The first chartered flight of U.S. citizens arrived back on American soil on Thursday afternoon, flying from Abu Dhabi and arriving in Washington, D.C.

Another flight from the UAE arrived at New York's JFK Airport. Passengers described the chaos of trying to get home and the relief upon arriving.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We reached out to a lot of just, you know, Senate and representative offices, as well. They -- it seemed like, organizationally, there just wasn't really a plan.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We could see the U.S. consulate in Dubai from our window. And for three days, I'm looking at it. I'm like, OK, it's right there. That's kind of cool. We ended up actually checking out that morning, and then that same night, actually, there was a drone attack on it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I spent the first night huddled on the floor next to my bed, worried about, like, the windows exploding. So, you know, it's -- you hear alerts going off, you hear explosions in the sky, and it's hard to know what's going on, but it's -- it's really unsettling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: CNN's Brian Todd is live in Washington. Brian, when we talked at this time last night, we didn't know where this flight was headed, and it headed to Washington.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Elex. You know, you and I have been tracking this situation for the past two nights of the plight of Americans being stranded in the Middle East.

We got our first glimpse, of course, of their plight when we learned of that one initial evacuation flight. And a little bit more detail of that flight, because when the first -- flight first took off, we didn't know when it was landing, where it was landing, and where it took off from.

Well, now we know that initial flight flew from Abu Dhabi to Dulles International Airport, landing here in Washington on Thursday afternoon.

A State Department spokesman said hundreds of Americans were on that flight. Now, what's interesting here also is that we're getting a little bit more detail on the way the State Department has tried to, I guess, control the flow of information about these flights.

Many relatives of those evacuees said that, while they were able to be in contact with their loved ones who were traveling, they were told to keep the evacuation flight a secret. And they were not given any information, such as a flight number, to track. So that's interesting there, Elex.

The State Department trying to keep some operational security in place here, telling people who were on that flight and their loved ones, Don't give any information about this flight: where it's taking off from, where it's landing, when it's landing. We've got to keep that a secret.

Now, we do know a little bit more information about who was on that flight. We were told that that that flight included some embassy workers from the U.S. embassy in Abu Dhabi and tourists who were stranded in Abu Dhabi.

There was one gentleman, Bruce Immel (ph) from Pennsylvania, who said, you know, he kind of reiterated what you and I, Elex, have been talking about the last couple of nights.

He said they struggled at the beginning to get any information from the State Department. And his quote is this: "It was tough at first, but then they started getting it figured out.

And that is kind of the way we have been tracking this, that gradually, after those first couple of nights of the war when there was no information and no coordination, that they really have ramped up the effort.

[00:10:07]

We have put an inquiry into the State Department tonight, Elex, just so you know this. We're trying to get information on how many other evacuation flights have left; whether they -- you know, where they -- we can't ask them where they're going. We just want to know about how many Americans may have left on these flights and whether they're surging more flights in, in the coming days.

We do know the State Department cannot give us the operational detail of exactly where these flights are taking off from and when, and where they're landing and when.

Those are critical pieces of information. You're not going to know that until these flights touch down and some of these people deboard these planes and start talking to reporters.

MICHAELSON: Yes. I mean, it's got to be so surreal to be on one of those flights, especially how good it's got to feel to land.

Also, in Washington today, really interesting comments from President Trump to NBC about leadership in Iran. TODD: They really are, Elex. And I'll just get right to it here.

He has weighed in again on who the U.S. wants to see leading Iran. He said that the United States government is, quote, "watching people" who he thinks are good options to run the country.

And here's a quote from the president to NBC News tonight. Quote, "We want to go in and clean out everything. We want someone who would rebuild over a ten-year period." He told NBC that his administration is actually taking steps to ensure that those people survive the war.

His quote is, "We are watching them, yes," meaning he -- they're tracking people who they tangibly think, in their minds, could be allies of the U.S. who could lead Iran, you know, during this war and after this war and trying to keep those people alive. At least that's what he's intimating.

Now, the president told Axios earlier Thursday that he should be involved in the appointment of Iran's next leader. But his quote is, quote, "We want to go in and clean out everything. We don't (ph) want someone who would rebuild over a ten-year period." That quote to NBC News.

Clearly, the current Iranian leadership who's running things right now might beg to differ with a lot of what the president said tonight.

MICHAELSON: And really interesting, Brian, that earlier this week, he told ABC News that the folks that they wanted to take over the country, they killed them in the strikes.

TODD: Yes.

MICHAELSON: Because so many people were taken out. He said their --

TODD: That's right.

MICHAELSON: Their second, third, fourth choice to take over were all killed. So now, they've got to look at a new potential list of -- of people to lead the country. And we'll see if, as you mentioned, the Iranian current leadership, how they feel about that.

TODD: Right.

MICHAELSON: Thank you, Brian. We will check in with you throughout the night here on THE STORY IS.

Now, though, to this. After carrying out more than 2,500 strikes with more than 6,000 weapons, Israel said it is moving to the next phase of the war with Iran.

The Israeli military chief of staff says that next phase will be to further dismantle the Iranian regime and its military capabilities. He said additional surprises are coming.

The head of U.S. Central Command says Iran's ballistic missile attacks have decreased 90 percent over the last day or so. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADMIRAL BRAD COOPER, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: In just the last 72 hours, America's bomber force has struck nearly 200 targets deep inside Iran, including around Tehran.

And in just the last hour, U.S. B-2 bombers dropped dozens of 2,000- pound penetrator bombs, targeting deeply buried ballistic missile launchers.

Notably, we have also struck Iran's equivalent of space command, which degrades their ability to threaten Americans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Iran, though, has yet to back down; says that it launched hybrid drone and missile attacks against targets in the heart of Tel Aviv. Footage appears to show a cluster warhead.

No official reports of injuries, but there was some damage near the airport.

And Saudi Arabia says it intercepted three ballistic missiles targeting an air base that housed U.S. military aircraft.

With us now from Washington, the best person to break all this down, CNN military analyst, retired Air Force Colonel Cedric Leighton, who has literally been with us from the minute that this thing started.

Cedric, Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, says this war has, quote, "only just begun." What does that mean? And is that intimating boots on the ground?

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes, Elex, it's a really interesting thing to contemplate, because on the one hand, they are achieving all their goals in one set of statements.

And then, Secretary Hegseth says things like, well, we've only just begun and we've only just begun to fight, kind of, I guess, invoking John Paul Jones in a totally different context back in the revolution.

But yes, what this probably means -- and I'll go out on a little bit of a limb here, Elex -- is that this is basically the first phase of operations, and that's kind of normal in an air campaign.

We -- you have several different phases that you go into, and then you go into another type of target set, another type of area that you're going to basically bomb, destroy, or shape, as the term is, where you move certain things in certain ways so that the enemy behaves in a certain way.

[00:15:16]

But in this particular case, what I think we're seeing is an effort to mop up the ballistic missile systems that the Iranians have. The CENTCOM commander, the admiral talked about that, in his briefing.

And what that means is that they're basically taking the cue from the Israelis who really want those missiles to be destroyed. The launching capability and, basically the missiles themselves.

So, that's, I think, where the next phase is, is basically probably already started. And then what might be next might be the nuclear weapons sites that -- that the Iranians -- or at least the nuclear program sites that the Iranians have -- have built over the -- over the past few years.

MICHAELSON: Well, you mentioned the ballistic missiles. They just mentioned this idea of like a 90 percent drop-off on what Iran is putting up into the air.

How much does Iran even have left? I mean, how much fight do they have left in them? How much has been destroyed?

LEIGHTON: Well, that really is the question that all the intelligence analysts are asking.

So, there's -- you know, when the intelligence community looks at something like this, they're going to look at all the imagery that they can collect. They're going to look at other indicators such as signals intelligence and even human intelligence.

So, how much do they have left? The real answer is we don't really know. And we can't be 100 percent sure. But my guess is that they probably have somewhere between 20 and 30 percent of their original inventory left.

So, that's a guess on my part. I might be way off, depending on how they've been able to hide things, which they're pretty good at doing. So, it could be anywhere from the 20 to 30 percent that I think to maybe even as high as 40 percent.

But I think they've been degraded significantly. But that still means that they have a capability to threaten the Gulf states and Israel.

MICHAELSON: We just talked about the concept of a -- a cluster warhead. What is that? How does that work?

LEIGHTON: Yes. So, basically, how that works is it's kind of -- well, it's -- they're two different things here. But it's kind of like a multiple entry, reentry vehicle that you have on some intercontinental missiles. But this is much more diffuse, and it's much more numerous.

So, a cluster munition is designed to go off and, basically, throw a whole bunch of -- from one warhead or one -- one bullet to basically throw out a whole bunch of armament in all kinds of different directions.

So, for example, one cluster could contain anywhere around, you know, 50 to 80 different bomblets in it. And those bomblets are then the ones that explode everywhere. So, it's an extremely, potentially at least, an extremely destructive

weapon that could cause a lot of havoc. So, it's just one missile. But it could impact, you know, 80 different targets, potentially.

MICHAELSON: One of the leaders of Iran told NBC today that they are expecting ground troops from the United States. Are you?

LEIGHTON: Well, I certainly hope not. And I think, at present, the answer is that there won't be ground troops from the United States.

But what the Trump administration seems to be looking at is using local proxy forces -- in this case, we're talking Iranian Kurds -- to do some kind of ground incursion into Iran.

Now, that's going to have a lot of different implications. But so far I don't see boots on the ground from the U.S. as being the -- the answer to, you know, to the military situation right now.

And I don't think the administration thinks they need them at the moment, but they've left the option open. And they do say that that could change, depending on -- on how things go.

MICHAELSON: We will have a deep dive on the Kurds and what they're doing a little bit later here on THE STORY IS.

But for now, retired Air Force Colonel Cedric Leighton, thank you so much for staying up late for us once again.

Right now, CNN correspondent Fred Pleitgen and his photojournalist and producer, Claudia Otto are in Iran. CNN is the first U.S. network in the country since the start of the war.

It's important to note that CNN is operating in Iran only with permission from the government. Here is Fred's report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're making fairly good progress towards Tehran. It is a very, very long drive, though.

Some things that we are seeing, we already went past one place where, apparently, there had just been an airstrike. There was thick, black smoke billowing over one place, so it seemed like a fairly fresh airstrike.

[00:20:04]

Also, some destroyed buildings that we saw from our vantage point as we were driving past.

The other thing that I would also say is that there are definitely more checkpoints than usual. We did see checkpoints with fairly heavily armed security personnel.

Other than that, though, it seems as though things are going on and we certainly don't see any sign of order collapsing here.

Taking a quick break for a coffee along the way. We've been driving for several hours. There's a couple of things that we've noticed.

No. 1 is that, first of all, all the shops are open. All the shops are really well stocked, even with -- with fresh things like for instance, fruits and vegetables. Coffee, obviously also available, as well.

And then also, the gas stations. There's no long lines at gas stations. Fuel seems readily available. And you just don't see any sort of degree of panic anywhere.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAELSON: Fred Pleitgen in Iran. We will be following his journey over the next few days.

Back in the U.S., there has been a shakeup at a major government agency. Why President Trump fired Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and who he tapped to replace her. A live political panel here in Atlanta, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:25:44]

MICHAELSON: Congressman Tony Gonzalez is ending his reelection bid. This comes after the Texas Congressman admitted to an affair with a former staffer, who later died by suicide. Gonzalez says he plans to finish out the rest of his term.

The announcement came just hours after Republican Party leaders called for him to withdraw his candidacy. He was set to face fellow Republican Brandon Herrera in a runoff for the Republican primary for Texas's 23rd District on May 26.

Meanwhile, a major shakeup in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. President Trump firing Secretary Kristi Noem. He plans to replace her with Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma.

Trump says Mullin will take over at the end of this month, though he will need to be confirmed by the Senate first. As that process kicks into gear, Mullin says he'll work to earn everybody's vote.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MARKWAYNE MULLIN (R-OK): I want to try to earn their support, and I'm going to be very open and honest with them. And at the end of the day, all I can do is do my job. And -- and so I don't -- I'm not going to get in the, you know, a tit-for-tat. But if they have real concerns, I'm going to listen to it. I'm going to see if it's practical.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: As for Noem, she'll remain a member of the administration. She'll serve as special envoy for a new security initiative in the Western Hemisphere called the Shield of the Americas.

Noem's firing comes amid a DHS shutdown and growing scrutiny over her conduct as secretary, particularly her handling of fatal incidents involving federal immigration agents, and an expensive ad campaign that showcased Noem prominently.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN KENNEDY (R-LA): You just add all of this up, and the other turmoil, and -- and -- and it's been stuck in my craw. And I'm -- I want to be a team player. And I want to secure the border. And I want to enforce our immigration laws. But -- but I'm tired of trying to explain behavior that is inexplicable to me.

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): Kristi Noem is gone. Good riddance. She was a disaster. And House Democrats made something very clear several weeks ago. We said, either Kristi Noem is fired or she's going to be impeached.

A change in personnel is not sufficient. We need a change in policy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Joining me now here live on our set in Atlanta is Democratic political strategist and commentator Frederick Hicks and Republican strategist Katie Frost.

Welcome to THE STORY IS for the first time, both of you. Good to have you live here on this set.

KATIE FROST, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Thank you.

MICHAELSON: Katie, your -- your thoughts. Why was Kristi Noem fired?

FROST: Well, if you look at this, you know, there's a good lesson for all of us in this. If you become a distraction, you become disposable.

And this -- immigration was a key part of President Trump's campaign for the presidency. And there's so many phenomenal accomplishments that have been happening in that policy area over the last year. We're not talking about it.

What are we talking about? We're talking about ad campaigns and private planes. She became a distraction, and it was time for her to go, in the opinion of a lot of people.

You could see the way the press was covering it. The knives were clearly out, because President Trump has had tremendous success. Encounters at the border are at a 50-year low. Crime is at a 125-year low. These are good things we should be talking about, and we're not.

MICHAELSON: Well, and there's this ad campaign that they're talking about that she testified before Congress saying President Trump gave her the A-OK for. And President Trump said, No, I didn't.

And that, apparently, was a big part of what happened here. What do you think is really going on here, Frederick?

FREDERICK HICKS, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, I think this is exactly what happens when you hire someone who's not qualified for the position.

And for an administration that has made a big deal about eliminating, quote, unquote, "DEI hires" and all of that, you hired someone who really couldn't handle this kind of an agency. And -- but -- and this shows what the president really valued, which is loyalty over competency.

And that's something that Democrats have been complaining about for the entire time this administration has been in office this go-round. Keep qualified people; put qualified people in there, and you don't have these issues.

MICHAELSON: Well, I guess it depends on what makes somebody qualified. One of the things that President Trump has liked is people that perform well on TV. Kristi Noem certainly wore a lot of different outfits in the process, and she had been a good TV performer over the years.

Now she -- they go to Markwayne Mullin. Why him? What do we know about him?

FROST: So, Senator Mullin is probably the only member of the Senate in history that is actually a mixed martial arts fighter, as well.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

FROST: So, he's three and "O." So, like, if you want a fighter, he definitely --

MICHAELSON: People like a fighter. He's literally a fighter.

FROST: He is literally a fighter. And he threatened to get into a fight with the head of the Teamsters union at one point, if you remember that --

MICHAELSON: Yes.

FROST: -- from the hearing.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

FROST: So, he's someone who is -- but he's also no-nonsense. He's very straightforward. He's been a very reliable Republican vote.

He does go on television and defend the president but not in necessarily a showmanship way. You know, you can run for president once you've been in the cabinet, but you shouldn't be trying to run for president while you're in the cabinet.

And also, as far as hiring good people, let's look at the stability of this term versus President Trump's first term. At this point in March of 2018, we already had five cabinet secretaries who were gone. Now, we're at a 20 percent turnover from where we were last time. So, I think things are pretty good.

MICHAELSON: And the other thing that's very different this time. The leaking, far, far less.

FROST: Exactly.

MICHAELSON: There is a lot more loyalty among Team Trump. Better or worse. But that means there isn't that infighting, at least publicly, that we've seen.

FROST: There's nothing like spending four years out of the presidency and then coming back to learn who's really loyal to you.

MICHAELSON: So, Markwayne Mullin now goes before the Senate, where he is a senator. So, he's friends with a lot of these people on both sides to begin with. Is he able to pass because of that?

HICKS: Well, I think he will. And I think this is also a symbol or a sign that the administration realizes that its relationship with Congress is changing and has changed in 2026 from 2025.

And so, this is an effort to stabilize that relationship by taking someone from the upper chamber and putting them in his administration.

And that's a really smart move from a strategic standpoint, because, you know, they -- you've got to remember, a lot of the votes confirming secretaries came down to J.D. Vance. We're talking about Pete Hegseth and other things, other positions.

And -- and with the threats they faced in the Senate this past week is really important for the for the president to stabilize that relationship.

And of course, Oklahoma. Republican state, Republican governor would appoint a Republican replacement, who probably would not have a strong Democratic challenger going forward, as well.

FROST: And who had the best confirmation. Senator Marco Rubio received 99 votes and has largely been seen as one of the top players in this administration, as receiving great reviews for his job as secretary of state.

MICHAELSON: Indeed. Now Congress, meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security is not being funded, because there is still that shutdown that is underway.

Does this change the calculus for Democrats, now that they got you know, a metaphorical scalp in Kristi Noem? She's out, and we've got the war in Iran. Is it time to reopen the Department of Homeland Security?

HICKS: Well, for Democrats, it wasn't as much about the person as it was the policies. And so, I understand what Christie [SIC] says, that from a Republican perspective, that they have a lot of -- they've had a lot of successes. But what Democrats and, I think, Americans see, you see Alex Pretti.

You see Renee Good. Two people, two Americans who were killed under Noem's watch.

We see what happened with TSA and threatening to precheck. And all these things have happened under the under this administration, under -- under Noem.

And so, if those things continue, regardless of who the secretary is, the Democrats will continue to have an issue with that.

Now, if the -- if the new person -- if the new person, you know, makes -- marks a change in policy, then we could see something different. But it's going to come down to what he does.

MICHAELSON: What do you think? Is it time for this to end?

FROST: The shutdown?

MICHAELSON: Yes.

FROST: It never should have started, in my opinion.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

FROST: And look, we are now on a very precarious position on the world stage. If there's ever a time we need to be focusing on protecting the homeland, it's now. We need to just get the Democrats, and the Senate needs to go ahead and vote and get this funded.

MICHAELSON: You know, it's been interesting how one person's leadership can be so different, because there has been a fight at the top of Homeland Security since the start between Kristi Noem and also Tom Homan, who was the border czar, who clearly did not have a great relationship amongst each other. And there has been a battle for both of them.

And the way that Homan has handled the situation in Minneapolis, when he went in there, very different in terms of change in policy. So, maybe that notes that there could be something different coming here.

HICKS: Well, for sure, because what Democrats want, in order to end the shutdown, is really accountability and honesty and integrity.

You know, remember when Renee Good and Alex Pretti were both killed? Kristi Noem rushed to blame the victims. And we now know and we -- we had video evidence at the time that what she was saying was simply not true.

So, they brought in Homan there to stabilize the situation. We've seen the same kind of thing play out with FEMA, which right now is in disarray.

And so, again, if Democrats, we want accountability, we want transparency, we want truth. And we want America or the homeland to be protected, not an individual's political aspirations. MICHAELSON: What do you think is next for Kristi Noem? Where does she

go from here?

FROST: That's a very good question. Of course, she has this new position that they're talking about that she'll be taking. But there's also been some scuttlebutt.

MICHAELSON: Is that a real job?

FROST: Well, she --

MICHAELSON: I mean, come on.

FROST: Does she want to go back to South Dakota and run for something? I mean, look, she's clearly someone who has high political aspirations.

And Corey Lewandowski actually was speaking to a former Noem staffer. In her words, Corey has been, quote, "bossing people around" since 2020.

So, Lewandowski has been in the orbit for a long time. He is someone who saw her -- because remember where she was in 2020? She was governor of South Dakota.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

FROST: She was getting a lot of positive press for how she was handling her state during COVID. He saw her as the next political star that he could help rise to the top.

[00:35:06]

MICHAELSON: Was that all he saw her as?

FROST: I'm going to --

MICHAELSON: Was that -- was that -- was that all.

FROST: I'm going to be diplomatic -- I do not want to speculate.

MICHAELSON: -- that he saw her as? Come on.

FROST: I don't want to speculate. I know it's late night, but I don't want to speculate about that. But he clearly saw potential in her. Let's put it that way.

MICHAELSON: And he's out now. He's leaving the Department of Homeland Security, along with Kristi Noem, as well.

FROST: I would imagine. And -- and I will say, I know a lot of people who work at DHS. They're doing phenomenal work. And I would hate for tabloid fodder to overshadow the good work they're doing. So I look forward to good things coming out of DHS going forward.

MICHAELSON: Very interesting. Thank you both for coming here and unpacking a big, big night in American politics. And of course, a big night around the world, as well.

The war with Iran has effectively shut down the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz. Up next, we'll go live to Asia, where there are real concerns about gas shortages. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:40:38]

MICHAELSON: Days into the war with Iran, oil prices are hitting their highest levels since President Trump started his second term.

Brent crude climbed to -- you see it right there -- about $80 right now. Crude oil itself, close to 80, as well. We've seen some of the highest intraday levels since the final days of the Biden administration. We see things settling down a bit right now.

Now, experts say those prices are likely to continue to climb as long as the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed. Roughly one-fifth of the world's oil supply passes through that narrow waterway between Iran and Oman on a daily basis.

Mike Valerio joins us live right now from Beijing. Mike, thanks for dressing up for us.

MIKE VALERIO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, Elex, no problem. You know, really, how to compliment a guy.

We are just coming out with new reporting. Again, sorry for the wardrobe choice, but really, why we have this data that we wanted to bring you is just to convey that there is, certainly, the danger or the risk, according to this data, that CNN is just coming out with on CNN.com, that fuel supplies for so many nations in this corner of the world, in Asia, only have about a few weeks of fuel that is stored in strategic reserves in some cases.

We're about to publish this to our live story on CNN.com. But why that matters to our international audience. When you're thinking about the fuel that is allocated to certain nations, if there starts to be an impact with the fuel that's available to certain nations in this economic powerhouse of the world, if there's an impact their prices could start to rise. Shortages of some goods could also begin to come into play.

So, some of the reporting that we have right now, Indonesia, it says that it has approximately 23 days' worth of oil reserves. Australia around 36 days' worth of petrol, 34 days' worth of diesel, 32 days' worth of jet fuel.

Taiwan, which, Elex, of course is the hub for advanced semiconductor and chip manufacturing in the world, it has said, according to Taiwan's cabinet that there are no concerns about its natural gas supplies through the end of the month, and it's going to work to secure reserves into April. But its reserves, according to analysts that we're speaking with, are

not that great. Certainly, paraphrasing for the sake of our friendly conversation.

But when you have the cabinet of Taiwan that's talking about bolstering its supplies for the month of April, that certainly tells you something.

In comparison to that, Japan has about 254 days of oil reserves. South Korea coming in, according to our new reporting, at 208 days.

Just to give you some perspective, for the strategic reserve in the United States, they have about 3 to 4 weeks of oil in reserve.

But it's not as big a deal, because America is such a huge producer of oil.

But when you're talking about this corner of the world, in Asia, where so much of the energy for Asia comes through the Strait of Hormuz, when we have these figures about, perhaps, only weeks of fuel being available, that is certainly a concern.

But just a snapshot of where things stand in this very quickly changing situation -- Elex.

MICHAELSON: Yes, when you say weeks of fuel available, sort of what happens next? What happens if they run out?

VALERIO: Well, they're trying to make agreements like Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan. They're trying to come up with a framework of what happens if there's some regional shock.

India, for what it's worth, also has permission by the United States -- from the United States to buy oil from Russia for up to 30 days, which hasn't been allowed because of sanctions.

So, there are some fixes in the works, but a lot is thrown up into the blender because of this war.

MICHAELSON: We want to look at the average price of gas in the U.S. right now. We're at $3.25 per gallon, which obviously is much higher in certain states like -- like California. How could this impact gas prices in the U.S.?

[00:45:05]

VALERIO: Well, you know, I think that, when you have shortages from around the world, that certainly spooks traders, but I think that we do have to be careful when we're talking about the U.S. supply. The U.S. produces so much oil.

But again, when energy prices goes [SIC] up around the world, especially here. prices for stuff that we buy goes up, which means that inflation goes up. Even in the United States, potentially.

And that could mean interest rates go -- go up for people in the United States, which makes it harder to borrow, more expensive to borrow.

And of course, when we're talking about back home in America with the affordability crisis, with things still not great at the grocery store, people our age, Elex, not being able to buy a home when they could a generation or two generations ago.

This could play into an affordability crisis, if energy prices go up, leading prices in America -- America to go up.

MICHAELSON: Yes. And this President Trump quote on the screen right now: "I don't have any concern about it. They'll drop very rapidly when this is over. And if they rise, they rise."

VALERIO: Yes.

MICHAELSON: "But this is far more important than having gasoline prices go up a little bit." That from President Trump, who of course, has claimed credit for dropping gas prices in the past but that is one of those things that Americans can see with their own eyes every day.

We'll see what happens on that front. Mike Valerio, thank you for joining us.

And by the way, I do like the outfit. I'm jealous. I wish I could be in it. Great to see you. We'll see you more throughout the night.

Still to come, as flight cancellations have left thousands of people stranded, limited flight operations are just now starting to resume. How passengers are navigating this travel nightmare. That's next.

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[00:51:24]

MICHAELSON: Since the start of the war with Iran, over 11,000 -- 111,000 flights have been canceled, leaving passengers stranded, causing chaos at airports. Scenes like this.

But logjams slowly starting to clear up. See people hugging here. Governments are chartering evacuation flights. Airlines have resumed limited flight schedules.

As CNN's Lynda Kinkade tells us, many passengers are still left scrambling to find their way home.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR (voice-over): Relieved to finally be home. But it was a chaotic journey out of Dubai for this British couple, first traveling by bus to Oman, and then booking seats on a commercial flight out of Muscat.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I mean, it was absolute chaos.

KINKADE (voice-over): There are tens of thousands of stranded tourists across the Middle East, many stuck for days with little to no information, trying to find a safe way out.

MAIGORZATA MARKIEWICZ, POLISH CITIZEN STUCK IN DOHA: We want to go back home. So, we think about -- we're thinking about going to Riyadh and then taking a plane to Warsaw. But we don't know if transport is safe.

KINKADE (voice-over): Governments across the globe are ramping up repatriation flights to evacuate their citizens. Many of the initial flights transporting the sick and elderly, as well as children and families.

This German woman says she felt lucky to be on board.

BITA ALVAI, EVACUEE (through translator): We have two children and one that's due in eight weeks. If I hadn't got out within two weeks, then I wouldn't have been able to leave anymore and would have had to have the baby there.

KINKADE (voice-over): And there was a joyful reunion in Kenya after a group of schoolchildren arrived safely in Nairobi after being stuck in Dubai. The school's director says they could see missiles being intercepted in the air.

OLIVE TINDIKA, EVACUEE: It was scary. Every day you get alerts and the children will just lose it, and "Are we going to die?" Because we're not used to that. So, it was a very, very traumatizing experience.

KINKADE (voice-over): The U.S. State Department says it's also coordinating charter flights for its citizens. That move coming after the U.S. was heavily criticized for failing to have an evacuation plan in place when the strikes were first launched.

The administration claims the situation unfolded too quickly.

But even as governments work to arrange flights, there isn't a seat for everyone who wants one. some commercial airlines have resumed limited services, but snagging a spot on any flight remains difficult. And, for some, a safe return home may still be days away.

Lynda Kinkade, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAELSON: Our thanks to Lynda.

Panic and mayhem break out in Beirut after Israel ordered evacuations ahead of incoming airstrikes. A CNN crew was in the middle of all of it as people rushed to get away from expected targets.

You'll see that report from Matthew Chance in our next hour, as THE STORY IS continues.

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[00:59:00]

MICHAELSON: As we approach the top of the hour here on THE STORY IS, a quick look at our top stories.

The Israeli military says it has begun a broad-scale wave of strikes on regime infrastructure in Tehran. Iranian media report loud explosions in the capital. CNN staff on the ground say they are hearing sustained jet noises.

The U.S. and Israel have been targeting Iran's ballistic missile capabilities over the past few days.

U.S. President Donald Trump has ousted Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. He named Senator Markwayne Mullin as her replacement.

Noem has faced scrutiny from both Democrats and Republicans over her conduct as secretary. Trump says Mullin will take over on March 31st, but he still needs to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

The funeral for the late civil rights icon, Reverend Jesse Jackson, is set to take place Friday in Chicago. The service expected to feature remarks from former presidents Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden.

Jackson created the National Rainbow Coalition to champion the rights of minorities and working-class people. He died February 17 at the age of 84.

Thanks for watching our first hour of THE STORY IS. The next hour starts right now.