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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson

U.S. Claims Iranian Ships, Minelayers Destroyed Near Hormuz; Israel Says New Wave of Strikes Hit Tehran; Authorities Investigating Suspects' Possible Ties to ISIS; 2 Men Facing Federal Charges after Devices Tossed Into Crowd; TSA Wait Times May Not Get Better Any Time Soon; Hegseth Sharpens U.S. Military War Rhetoric; Miami Heat's Adebayo Charts NBA's 2nd Highest Scoring Game. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired March 11, 2026 - 00:00   ET

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

[00:00:00]

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: And maybe we will get to that point.

LAURA COATES, CNN ANCHOR: Hater.

MICHAELSON: It's hard to imagine that somebody would -- nobody would have thought that Kobe's record would be beaten, So good. And certainly not by Bam Adebayo. You would have gotten very good odds on that today. But good for Bam.

COATES: Well, you know what, any mention of Kobe makes me smile, even if it's in relation to him getting bested, even for a moment. Great players.

Have a great show, Elex.

MICHAELSON: Bam will be booed by Lakers fans with an asterisk next to that for a while. Anyways, poor guy.

Laura, have a great night.

COATES: You too.

MICHAELSON: Time to start THE STORY IS with some breaking news.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

MICHAELSON: I'm Elex Michaelson. Welcome to THE STORY IS. It's 9:00 here on the West Coast.

And we begin with breaking news out of Iran, where state media says the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has launched its, quote, "most intense and heaviest operation" since the start of the war. This is the Iranian capital, remains under heavy bombardment. Just hours ago, video geolocated by CNN shows explosions coming from the direction of Tehran's international airport. Meanwhile, U.S. military says its forces destroyed multiple Iranian naval vessels, including 16 minelayers, near the Strait of Hormuz. Sources familiar with U.S. intelligence say that Tehran is laying

mines in the strait, which serve as a globally vital oil and shipping lane. President Trump, not happy about that. Back in the U.S., top Republicans are trying to downplay concerns about rising gas prices amid the war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): I think the -- the mission is being achieved is nearly completed, and the commander-in-chief himself said in the last 24 hours it will come to a close. So gas prices will readjust after that. You know most of this is because of the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz has been closed by the regime down there, but it will be reopened and it will take a couple of weeks, but gas prices will come back down. This is a temporary blip in an extraordinary trend of return to American energy dominance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: So Speaker Johnson there used the word temporary. But the Trump administration is not giving a definitive deadline of when that war will end.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Ultimately the operations will end when the commander-in-chief determines the military objectives have been met, fully realized, and that Iran is in a position of complete and unconditional surrender, whether they say it or not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: On Capitol Hill, Democrats are demanding transparency from the Trump administration as the Pentagon says around 140 U.S. service members have been injured since the start of Operation Epic Fury.

Here's what key Senate Democrats had to say after a classified briefing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TIM KAINE (D-VA): I know a lot I can't share with you, and I can't share with my constituents who want to know if their kids or spouses are going to be deployed and for how long. We want to drag this into the open and ask questions in front of the American public. And that's what we're asking for. We think this war is illegal. We think it's unwise. American troops are, you know, being injured. More than 100 injured, seven died.

SEN. JACKY ROSEN (D-NV): If he does want to put us in a forever war, which it seems like he does, he needs to come out and let us be able to have this discussion. But take that gag order off us that they put on because we're in the other party (PH).

(END VIDEO CLIP) MICHAELSON: Iran has begun laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz. Sources tell CNN that mining is not very extensive yet, but they warn that Tehran still has the vast majority of its small boats and minelayers. And then Iranian forces could feasibly lay hundreds of mines in that waterway.

Now the strait is the world's most important energy chokepoint, carrying about a fifth of the global crude oil supply during typical operations. President Trump says that if Iran put out any mines in the strait, he wants them removed immediately. He warns that Iran could face consequences at a level never seen before. U.S. Central Command says the military has destroyed multiple Iranian naval ships, including 16 minelayers, near that strait.

Millions of barrels of crude oil and refined fuels are now effectively stranded in the Gulf with no alternative to shipping through Hormuz. And the uncertainty around that vital waterway is having a major impact on global economies and trade.

CNN's Richard Quest has the story from London.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICHARD QUEST, CNN ANCHOR, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS: The geography is extremely well known and understood, and perhaps because of that, the risks currently being faced are so severe. Take, for example, Maersk Shipping, which has got at least 10 ships that it says stranded in the northern part of the Strait of Hormuz, and many more on the outside that it can't get in or out because obviously the waterway is so difficult.

In addition, they are refusing to send now ships up through into the Red Sea because of the possibilities of the Houthis and the risks around Yemen. As a result, something like Maersk is saying, the current situation is absolutely uncharted and unprecedented.

VINCENT CLERC, CEO, MAERSK: Some of the hubs on which global trade does rely on are actually being affected, are being closed by the situation right now. It's true from Jabal Ali. It's true for Abu Dhabi. It's true for a few of those hubs. And this is going to create ripple effect I think for a while as we -- as we need to see how this is going to sort itself out in the short run we can we can manage this but if this was to endure, this would create I think serious congestions and serious issues across the global supply chain.

QUEST: What happens next is anybody's guess. The very idea that this area is being mined by the Iranians, or indeed that the U.S. is going in and starting to attack those various rubber dinghies and ships that's doing the mines, it's simply unheard of. And frankly we don't know how it will develop. The only thing we can say with any degree of certainty is that as long as that waterway remains closed, then the price of oil just keeps rising.

Richard Quest, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE) MICHAELSON: Richard with red dollar signs is not a good thing.

CNN's Mike Valerio joins me from Beijing with more. Hopefully bringing us better news -- Mike.

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, I'm not sure if it's better, but it's deeper reporting into what exactly is happening with the Strait of Hormuz. I'm sorry I can't be the bearer of great news but it is key to understand what is happening with mine clearing. So we're sharing this reporting with Brad Lendon, who's our senior global military affairs reporter, who filed this story in Japan out of the Beijing bureau, where we're coming from right now.

We just spoke with our naval expert Carl Schuster, and we want to put up on the screen pictures that we think you should see. These are the former ships that were tasked with mine clearing, that were decommissioned in September, and were taken out of Bahrain towed on this ship. You see the four avenger class mine countermeasures ship right there put on that red ship and sent out for scrapping.

So the headline that now is on CNN.com is that, Elex, there's a different class of ship that is being tasked with potentially removing mines that Iran puts in the Strait of Hormuz. And this class of ship, literal combat ships -- littoral combat ships, I should say, littoral meaning by the coast rather than deep ocean waters. They have a checkered history of maintenance and engineering issues.

These are not exactly new ships that are entering the equation. They first entered service in the late 2000s, but with littoral combat ships, they were meant to do a suite of different things from anti- submarine warfare, a whole host of other defensive capabilities, and the only engineering tests that they were able to pass were clearing mines which is now what they're tasked to do, and surface warfare.

So the architecture of the ship was essentially made before these design mechanisms were finalized. So what we're trying to convey here is that there's this new kind of ship that is entering the theater before hostilities started. Our CNN radar tracking was able to find three littoral combat ships in the Persian Gulf region. Again, just before the conflict started. So now the question arises when this huge task is before the U.S. Navy, we have a class of ship that has not been tested in this way before.

But the good news is that its counter mining module, it's called, was the first module to pass all of its engineering tests. Tests that, you know, measure what the ship is capable of doing. But, you know, when I was speaking -- wrapping up here -- with our naval warfare expert, retired naval captain or Navy Captain Carl Schuster, who's based out of Honolulu, he was saying, Elex, and wanted to convey to our viewers that the stakes are incredibly high here.

There are no perfect decisions that the Navy can make, but it only takes one mine to explode to cause chaos with the psychological damage done by Iran. So what these ships need to do, they need to be quiet. They need to have a minimal magnetic signature. These littoral combat ships that we're talking about, which replaced the four on your screen, they are equipped with unmanned vehicles that go underneath the water to take out and disable mines.

[00:10:01]

So the point is, it's a lot that's resting on the capabilities of these ships with a checkered record in terms of their engineering and capabilities -- Elex.

MICHAELSON: Yes, Mike. We've seen some back and forth launches on both sides. Strikes in Iran, Iran missiles towards multiple Gulf countries. What do we know about that?

VALERIO: Yes. So Iran, the IRGC is saying that it's launched its Khorramshahr missile, which is a very powerful long range ballistic missile, and, you know, if you're getting your missiles confused at home, I know there are a lot of them but with the Khorramshahr this is one that can handle a heavy payload which means a bigger warhead causing a bigger explosion. But, you know, we were seeing images like you showed at the top of the show of the airport in Tehran being struck.

In fact our own Jeremy Diamond and Erin Burnett in Tel Aviv had to take cover with the back and forth. They reported on the air in the 7:00 Eastern hour at least two loud explosions that they could hear in the stairwell. So Iran, the IRGC is saying this is their biggest attack yet. A quick snippet of their statement, mirroring language, Elex, that the president of the United States is using is that they're going to take this through until the, quote, "enemy's complete surrender."

So when we hear language about this thing theoretically wrapping up or no timeframe now, which is Kristine Holmes, our senior White House reporter is reporting tonight, you know, it's both sides that are mirroring each other's language, and this is not ending soon -- Elex.

MICHAELSON: Mike Valerio in Beijing, thank you for that live reporting.

Let's go to another part of the world now and bring in retired U.S. Army Major General Mark MacCarley, live from Armenia to discuss.

Thanks so much for being with us. Thank you for your service to our country. First off, when we're talking about these mines, what are they capable of doing and why is President Trump so concerned about them?

MAJ. GEN. MARK MACCARLEY (RET.), U.S. ARMY: Well, those mines are significant tools for degrading the ability of the world maritime ships to pass through the Straits of Hormuz. As we all know, the strait at its narrowest point is about 20 to 24 miles apart. That creates a choke point. It forces those ships to carefully navigate. Those ships must avoid the mines. But the mines themselves, the placement of the mines, create a challenge for the ship operators if those mines literally funnel those ships into a very small vector.

And as a result of that, there is potential for impact between those maritime, the oil tankers and the mines and the devastation that results, and the significant potential for blockage of parts of the Straits of Hormuz if two or three of those huge tankers are in fact taken out.

MICHAELSON: And so if that happens, what happens to the world's oil supply?

MACCARLEY: Well, that's a quick and easy answer. I think, as many of your contributors have discussed over the last few days, it significantly shuts down 20 percent, approximately 20 percent, and perhaps more of the petroleum supplies, and not only petroleum, but the LPG, MPEG, and significantly would impact the economies of most of the world.

MICHAELSON: So President Trump said, if you mess with these mines, we'll come at you far worse than we have before. What could the U.S. do that they haven't been doing? What does he mean by that?

MACCARLEY: I suspect because I don't have the targeting plans nor do any of us who are outside of the Pentagon at this particular point, but it would just mean a continued, a crescendo of ballistic -- our own ballistic missile systems and aircraft attack platforms striking additional targets within Iran. In a sense, pummeling Iran with the expectation that at some point, the leadership of Iran, which now with Mojtaba is changed, will come to its, quote, "senses," begin the discussions that could lead to what the president has addressed as unconditional surrender.

That's the thinking process. Now, whether that materializes and there's a lot of discussion about the history of using the term unconditional surrender, nobody knows.

MICHAELSON: Yes. So you are in Armenia. What's happening there? How do people there feel about what's going on right next door in Iran?

[00:15:06]

MACCARLEY: You are right. And that's the important part. Armenia's southern border is continuous. It shares that border with Iran, and there have been long standing cordial relationships between Armenia and Iran. And for the record, one of the significant access points for Iran leads straight through north-south, from the north of Armenia through what we call this border town, Meghri. And that is a conduit for equipment, for anything that could be transported by vehicle.

The last time I was down there just a month or so ago, and I should be down there later this week, I saw backup of transport vehicles five miles or so. I saw it on the Armenian side, and I was able to peer across the border into the Iranian side. And while I couldn't do a mathematical calculation of the distance in that same direction, the Iranians are running their trucks through that border into Armenia.

MICHAELSON: So who's Armenia supporting?

MACCARLEY: Now, you've asked the geopolitical question that's so challenging. Armenia is a country, a wonderful country. It is small. It does not have significant military capability and for its own survival, it tries to maintain cordial relationships with most of its neighbors including Iran. And sometimes Russia, which has had -- Russia even now has significant investment and military facilities in Armenia.

So this is a significant platform. We want to maintain observation of what takes place in Armenia as I've discussed, we can look, at least to some degree, into Iraq from here.

MICHAELSON: Yes. And of course, so many Armenians live here in America, including in the city of Glendale, about five minutes from where our studio is, which has more Armenians than any other place outside of Armenia. And many of them watching right now.

MACCARLEY: You're so right.

MICHAELSON: Yes. Thank you very much for joining us, General Mark MacCarley from Armenia. We appreciate it.

Israel's military says a new wave of strikes is hammering the Iranian capital. This comes after a day of heavy aerial bombardment, which CNN's team on the ground witnessed. CNN operates in Iran with the permission of the Iranian government, as required under local regulations, but maintains full editorial control over what it reports.

Here's what CNN's Fred Pleitgen saw and heard in Tehran.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): There's been heavy bombardment in Tehran over the past 24 hours, as we both heard and felt. This morning, we visited a site when all of a sudden it was targeted again.

Yes, we should go. Yes. Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go. We go, we go.

PLEITGEN: Yes. OK. We're hearing jets overhead. There's anti-aircraft fire going on. They told us we got to get out of here as fast as possible.

So that just goes to show how fast things can turn bad here. We were filming at a site as apparently -- rid of this mask -- struck yesterday.

(Voice-over): Earlier, we'd spoken to folks caught in the attack.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I was in the basement. I was thrown against the opposite wall. I was under the rubble. That's it. I don't know what else to say. I'm sorry.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAELSON: Our thanks to Fred Pleitgen reporting in Tehran. In our first segment, we just took you from the U.S. to the U.K. to

China, to Armenia, and now to Iran. And we're just getting started.

Still ahead another key test of President Trump's endorsement power. This time in a special election to fill the U.S. House seat vacated by Georgia's Marjorie Taylor Greene. We'll break down those results next. Plus, many U.S. travelers are being told to get to the airport hours ahead of their flights. Why extra-long wait times at security checkpoints is becoming the norm at some airports. And millions of people across the central U.S. are under threat from severe thunderstorms. We'll show you the damage that dangerous tornadoes are causing after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:24:01]

MICHAELSON: Another special election is testing the power of president Trumps endorsements, this time in Georgias ruby red 14th district, where CNN projects that Republican Clay Fuller will face Democrat Shawn Harris in a runoff to replace former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene.

No one in the crowded field of more than a dozen candidates got more than the 50 percent needed to win outright on Tuesday, so the race now heads to a runoff between the top two vote-getters who happen to be a Democrat and Republican, didn't have to necessarily be that way.

As we look at that result, we see that -- we see that Harris is the leader. Now the winner of the April 7th runoff will serve the remainder of Greene's term, which ends in January. So as we look at this result, Fuller technically is in second place, but this district is overwhelmingly Republican, and Fuller got the endorsement of Donald Trump. So that endorsement seemed to be the key thing to get him over the top.

[00:25:01]

He is widely expected to win this runoff against Harris because it's going to be Republican versus Democrat in a very Republican district. Both candidates speaking out tonight. Here's some of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLAY FULLER, U.S. HOUSE REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE, GEORGIA'S 14TH DISTRICT: They support President Trump. I think you see that in the results tonight. They want to know who President Trump was endorsing in this race. And that's why they came out in droves to support him because they know they want an America first fighter on Capitol Hill, fighting for his policies that are going to make a difference for our community. And that's what they want to see.

SHAWN HARRIS, U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE, GEORGIA'S 14TH DISTRICT: The people of northwest Georgia is just excited, but not only about me, but excited to the fact that, guess what? Finally, finally, we can break through as a coalition of Democrats, independents and Republicans. Tonight you would imagine everybody was here as Democrats. No. It's also Republicans here because they want change. So I'm just thankful to have this opportunity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Now Marjorie Taylor Greene, who became one of the most famous members of the House, the one-time MAGA firebrand, resigned two months ago following that bitter split with President Trump.

THE STORY IS the weather. New storms are bringing tornado activity to the central U.S. A supercell thunderstorm produced tennis ball sized hail and a tornado that moved through Illinois on Tuesday evening. Another video shot shows that the tornado hit the ground. The storm prediction center put the level of risk at four out of five when several strong to intense tornadoes could strike.

Several buildings have been damaged. So far, there are no reports of injuries or deaths. More than two million people are under severe thunderstorm risk as storms move east overnight.

Dramatic scenes unfolding on Hawaii's big island. A new eruption of the Kilauea Volcano. It began shooting lava foundation -- fountains more than 1300 feet earlier today. This is a live picture and look how spectacular it is. If you're watching us live in Hawaii right now, where it is 6:26, the U.S. Geological Survey has raised the volcano alert level to warning, meaning eruptions are underway.

The agency reports fallout is creating hazardous conditions in neighboring communities, and the National Weather Service issued an ashfall warning. But man, did it lead to some pretty cool pictures that we're looking at right there on Kilauea.

Now to Tel Aviv and Israel. You are looking at live images from there, where it is the next day, from where it is in Hawaii. The sun is just rising, the sun about to set in Hawaii. Looks pretty peaceful. A beautiful shot there from Tel Aviv, at least at this moment. This is just days after an attempted bomb attack near a home.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani says extremism and hatred of any kind will not be tolerated. He had this message.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR ZOHRAN MAMDANI, NEW YORK CITY: No matter the attempts, I will never be ashamed of who I am. I'll never be ashamed of my faith. I'll never be ashamed of the things that make me me. It continues to be a privilege to offer an example to this city, to people of all faiths, all backgrounds that you can be yourself and be proud of that and be a part of the same city that we all love.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Two suspects are accused of tossing makeshift bombs at a protest over the weekend in what authorities described as an attempted ISIS-inspired attack.

CNN's Michael Yoshida has more details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL YOSHIDA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The FBI detonating explosive materials found during a search of a Pennsylvania storage facility Monday night. This scene playing out not far from the homes of two teenagers arrested in Saturday's attempted terror attack in New York City.

JESSICA TISCH, NEW YORK POLICE DEPARTMENT COMMISSIONER: Motivated by extremist ideology and inspired by a violent foreign terrorist organization.

YOSHIDA (voice-over): 18-year-old Emir Balat and 19-year-old Ibrahim Kayumi, both of Pennsylvania, are accused of tossing makeshift bombs at an anti-Islam protest outside the New York City mayor's home. The mayor and his wife were not home at the time.

REBECCA WELNER, NYPD DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF INTELLIGENCE AND COUNTERTERRORISM: Had these IEDs functioned the way the perpetrators allegedly wanted them to, they could have caused death, destruction.

YOSHIDA (voice-over): The teens are facing federal charges, including providing material support to a terrorist organization, and using a weapon of mass destruction.

JAMES BARNACLE, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR IN CHARGE, NEW YORK FBI FIELD OFFICE: Balat and Kayumi sought to incite fear and mass suffering through this alleged attempted terror attack in the backyard of an elected city official outside.

YOSHIDA (voice-over): The incident happened during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, as protesters and counter protesters squared off near Gracie Mansion, the official mayoral home in New York City.

MAMDANI: Extremism and hatred of any kind will not be tolerated in our city.

YOSHIDA (voice-over): Police say both suspects claimed to be inspired by ISIS, with court documents saying after his arrest Balat pledged his allegiance to the Islamic State on a piece of paper.

TISCH: He also told investigators that he had hoped to carry out an attack even bigger than the Boston marathon bombing.

[00:30:03]

YOSHIDA (voiceover): Bilat and Kayumi had no criminal histories. according to police. Both are being held without bail.

I'm Michael Yoshida, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: Both suspects had initial court appearance on Monday. They are scheduled to appear in court next on April 8.

Well, we now want to take you to live pictures from Capitol Hill, where negotiations are at a virtual standstill on restoring funding for the Department of Homeland Security. We'll look at who's being hit the hardest during the shutdown just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:35:10]

MICHAELSON: It's been nearly a month since the U.S. Department of Homeland Security shut down, and there is still virtually no progress in negotiations, with one Senate Democrat saying lawmakers are stuck on the substance of the talks.

Democrats want reforms to immigration enforcement, including tougher parameters for search and arrest warrants, as well as immigration officers removing masks and wearing body cameras.

Republicans and the White House have resisted nearly all of those changes, blaming the stalled negotiations on Democrats.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: He wants the brave men and women of our United States Coast Guard to receive their paychecks, and he wants this department to be fully funded and fully reopened.

And so, to any American out there who is struggling without a paycheck, we know there's more than 100,000 of you across the country. To any American out there who is showing up to an airport and facing incredibly long wait times in lines, call your Democrat member of Congress and tell them to fund the Department of Homeland Security.

That's what President Trump wants to do. And it's completely ridiculous that the American people are suffering as a result of these partisan games that are being played by Democrats on Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Democrats say the White House isn't negotiating in good faith.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): We are constantly in communication with the White House. It's not that there's a lack of means of communication. We're sending things back and forth. It's a substantive problem. The White House will not budge on things that Americans want, like warrants, like demasking. Plain and simple.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: So, perhaps the biggest impact of the homeland security shutdown is actually being seen at the nation's airports. That's what average people actually see from this. Some passengers have been stuck in security lines for three hours or

more, and some airports are advising travelers to arrive 4 to 5 hours before their flights.

As the shutdown drags on, airport security workers are not getting paid. Many are calling out sick. Some are even picking up other jobs to make ends meet.

Lee Kair is a former TSA assistant administrator for security operations. He's now a principal at the Chertoff Group. He joins me now live from Washington.

Thanks for being with us. So, what should people expect when they show up to the airport in the next few days?

LEE KAIR, FORMER TSA ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR FOR SECURITY OPERATIONS: Thank you, Elex.

So, yes, this is not a good situation at all. The -- if you look back over the past five and a half months for this fiscal year, these officers, frontline officers at the checkpoints, as well as federal air marshals, dog handlers, and others, they have not -- they've been expected to come to work and not be paid for 45 percent of the days over the last five and a half months.

And to their credit, they are coming into work, and they are doing a good job of protecting the American public.

But, you know, it becomes a situation where they have to make decisions on if they have enough money to put gas in their car to get to work.

So, you know, passengers should expect more delays. I expect that across the country, you're going to see more wait times increasing. And passengers being inconvenienced because of the -- the partial funding.

MICHAELSON: Yes, I was just traveling this weekend from Atlanta to here, and it was unbelievable to see the lines in the airport there. Does safety suffer when the agents are this overloaded and stressed and stretched so thin?

KAIR: Absolutely. So, this is really, you know, while it's important to consider the passenger being inconvenienced, this is really about security.

This is probably the highest threat environment that we have seen in this country since 9/11. And the officers need to be focused on mitigating threats. And right now, they're focused on their paycheck and being able to make their ends meet.

You know, TSA has representatives around the world that are negotiating with other countries to raise security standards. They're supposed to be working with airlines and airports to mitigate security concerns in this heightened threat environment. And TSA's ability to do that is significantly diminished when -- when

they are -- when they, even at headquarters, are having to worry about funding and having people be at work and not be furloughed and have to work from home -- and not work at home.

MICHAELSON: And what about sort of the workers' lives outside of this? I mean, how are these people making ends meet?

KAIR: Yes. So, you know, when I was in TSA, you know, we would oftentimes, you know, as staff bring in, you know, just food for them to be able to have -- have lunch, you know, coming into work.

This really does impact these officers. A typical salary for a transportation security officer is a 35 to $40,000 base salary. And they were just now coming back after the last furlough and being able to get those reserves back up. And so, they don't have a lot of extra cash to be able to survive.

[00:40:09]

And so, they're -- they're concerned about, you know, feeding their families, having enough money to take the metro to get to work or to put gas in their car, particularly when the gas prices are up right now.

This is really impacting them. And their focus really does need to be on security, not about, you know, where their next paycheck is going to be.

You know, on the 28th of February, they received a paycheck with about a third of their normal take-home pay. This weekend, they're not going to get anything in this next paycheck. So, that makes it really hard on their families.

MICHAELSON: It does. So, I guess the takeaways from this: expect longer lines. Get to the airport early. But once you get through that line, maybe say thank you to the TSA person who was working without a paycheck, not making much money to begin with, but there to try to keep all of us safe.

I'm sure they're dealing with lots of complaints. And hopefully, you can bring a -- put a smile on their face.

Lee, thank you so much for your service to our country, and thank you for joining us late on this night from Washington.

KAIR: Thank you.

MICHAELSON: Coming up, an Iranian palace that was once the setting for many coronation ceremony [SIC] now sits badly damaged. Ahead, how the war is putting cultural sites at risk.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:45:00]

MICHAELSON: Welcome back to THE STORY IS. I'm Elex Michaelson. Let's take a look at today's top stories.

Iran's state media says the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has launched its most intense and heaviest operation since the start of the war. Tehran claims its overnight attack involved missile launches against targets in Israel and at U.S. assets in the region.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon says the U.S. will not relent until, quote, "The enemy is totally and decisively defeated."

Millions of people in the central U.S. are under threat from severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. Tornado watches are in effect across eight states.

There are already reports of tornadoes touching down in Texas and Illinois. Several buildings in Illinois were damaged, but authorities say so far there are no reports of any deaths or injuries.

New Mexico officials are investigating a ranch formerly owned by the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Allegations about the ranch were included in recently released documents from the Justice Department. There's been no word on whether anything of interest has been found or how long the search will continue.

Kuwait, one of the world's most top oil producers, is cutting its production as a precaution. The country has come under Iranian fire. A Kuwaiti government building was in flames after getting hit by a drone.

The country's army says fuel storage tanks at Kuwait International Airport were also targeted by Iran, announcing its decision to slash oil production.

The state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said there were threats to safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

As the war with Iran drags on, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is taking on a more brazen tone when delivering updates on U.S. military actions.

CNN's Tom Foreman looks at how Hegseth's demeanor is breaking ranks with his predecessors at the Pentagon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: America is winning decisively, devastatingly, and without mercy.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ever since the first fighter launched --

HEGSETH: With brutal efficiency, total air dominance, and an unbreakable will to accomplish the president's objectives.

FOREMAN (voice-over): -- and the first missile landed --

HEGSETH: You act decisively in chaos. FOREMAN (voice-over): Pete Hegseth has been speaking unlike any other

secretary of defense ever.

HEGSETH: Death and destruction from the sky all day long.

FOREMAN (voice-over): Gone are the solemn, statesmanlike updates on warfare the Pentagon has long preferred. In their place, Hegseth has picked up the tone long established by the commander in chief.

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: He died like a dog. He died like a coward.

FOREMAN (voice-over): Blasting the Iranian regime --

HEGSETH: For 47 years, these barbaric savages in the Iranian regime have murdered our brothers in arms. My guys, your guys.

FOREMAN (voice-over): Ridiculing their attempts to stand up to the dual military powers of the United States and Israel.

HEGSETH: The combination is sheer destruction for our radical Islamist Iranian adversaries. They are toast, and they know it. Or at least soon enough, they will know it.

FOREMAN (voice-over): And even as he mocks the faith of Iranian foes and his department posts online about showing them no mercy. Hegseth is blurring the line between his private Christian beliefs and his secular public duties.

HEGSETH: May the Lord grant unyielding strength and refuge to our warriors. Unbreakable protection to them and our homeland and total victory over those who seek to harm them.

FOREMAN (voice-over): Like Hegseth, the White House, too, has taken a peculiar tack to spur support for the war, turning bomb blasts into a highlight reel on X, set to the song "Here Comes the Boom," snagging scenes from the video game Grand Theft Auto to underscore other explosive moments.

[00:50:03]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ah, (EXPLETIVE DELETED). Here we go again.

BOB ODENKIRK, ACTOR: You can't conceive of what I'm capable of.

FOREMAN (voice-over): And even intercutting scenes from factual battle with clips from fictional movies and TV shows, all with the clear intent of selling the public on the proposition that everything is going as planned.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here it comes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: More! Now hit this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Flawless victory. FOREMAN: Of course, this fight has not been flawless for American

troops. Some have died. Others have been wounded, and it is not at all clear how long they're going to have to stay in the battle, even as what looks an awful lot like a marketing campaign marches on.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAELSON: Thanks to Tom Foreman.

We are learning about extensive damage to some of Iran's most historic and cultural sites in this war.

Video here, you see it. It shows the 400-year-old Golestan Palace in Tehran with shattered windows, its intricate mirror mosaics in pieces, and ceilings damaged.

This UNESCO World Heritage Site was rocked by nearby strikes.

And these images from the city of Isfahan. A stunning 17th Century palace compound was damaged after a strike hit a nearby government building.

UNESCO says it continues to monitor the situation regarding cultural heritage in Iran and the wider region.

Coming up, we talk basketball. Miami Heat's Bam Adebayo charts NBA's second highest scoring game ever, and there's some controversy, comparing him with Kobe Bryant. Segun Oduolowu joins us live to talk about it next.

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MICHAELSON: For all the NBA fans out there, the Miami Heat's Bam Adebayo hit a hot streak on Tuesday in a win over the Washington Wizards.

He finished with 83 points. His performance marks the second highest scoring effort in league history, surpassing the late Kobe Bryant, whose career best peaked at 81 points.

Despite his historic performance, he still fell short of the NBA's all-time record. That crown still belongs to Wilt "The Stilt" Chamberlain, with 100 points back in 1962. A bit of a different game back then.

Bam's stats, if you think about this, he had 36 free throws.

Segun Oduolowu, entertainment journalist, former college basketball player at the University of Houston, joins me live. There we go. There's that sweet jump -- is that a left-handed jump shot that we got there?

SEGUN ODUOLOWU, ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST: Yes, I'm lucky. Lucky lefty.

MICHAELSON: Yes. Your take. I mean, this is a huge deal. NBA history we all witnessed tonight.

ODUOLOWU: Elex, this is an enormous deal. And there are people out there who are going to want to compare it to Kobe's, and they shouldn't. It isn't that.

What it is, is the most unlikely 83 points you'll ever see in a -- in a professional basketball game, only because Bam Adebayo, if I gave the NBA players totally to pick amongst them 20 players that they thought could score this, he wouldn't be in that 20. He might not even be in that 30, because he's a dependent player.

Kobe was a guard. He handled the ball. He was going to shoot, and he was known for a -- for being a scorer.

Bam is more of an all-around player, a big guy that's dependent on people passing to him. It's why I find these 83 points so unique, because it was a total team effort from the coaching staff to his players who kept giving him the ball and fouling the Washington Wizards so he could get this record.

He was red-hot to start, and they made sure that he crossed the finish line as the second all-time single game scorer in NBA history.

As a proud Nigerian, I'm right here with you, Bam Adebayo. (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE) Yes, you did it for us.

MICHAELSON: Well, as -- as the Laker fan here, and the folks out on the West Coast are -- are comparing it to Kobe's thing. And they point out the fact that he hit 36 free throws and the fact that they were fouling intentionally at a game when they were up by 25 against one of the worst teams in the league, who were probably trying to tank. And all of this happened.

So yes, he got there, but he didn't get there the way that Kobe got there. And so, for him to be ahead of Kobe just seems kind of cheap and annoying. That's the way the Laker fans are seeing this.

ODUOLOWU: Elex, are we here for history or histrionics? OK? I am tired, in this day and age, of people whining about who did what and being prisoners of the moment.

Just enjoy the moment, enjoy it for what it was.

Kobe's 81 -- yes, Kobe shot a higher percentage from the field. Kobe shot less free throws. But I would also, as a student of history, say Bam's 83 comes almost 20 years. Actually, it is more than 20 years. Kobe did it in January of 2006. Bam does it in March of 2026.

Twenty years later, we are talking about this historic game that Kobe had, only because of what Bam has done.

Let's just enjoy it. Bam Adebayo is not Kobe Bryant. No one is going to confuse the two of them as being on the same plane.