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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson
U.S. Indicts Former Cuban President Raul Castro; Trump's $1.8 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund Draws Bipartisan Backlash, January 6 Rioters May Benefit; Former Congresswoman Katie Porter Has Secured Key Editorial Board Endorsements From Several Major California News Outlets; WHO Concerned About Scale And Speed Of Ebola Outbreak; Interview with Epidemiologist Dr. Anne Rimoin; NBA Playoffs; January 6 Rioters and Election Deniers Eager for DOJ Payouts; SpaceX Files for IPO. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired May 21, 2026 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:00]
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: Out of New York City after thunderstorms triggered flash flooding. Storms dumped almost two inches of rain in less than one hour in some areas and caused flooding and downed trees in parts of Queens and Brooklyn.
Social media posts and emergency scanner traffic indicated possible water rescues involving stranded drivers. Similar scenes in Atlanta where heavy rain flooded a highway ramp. Storms are part of a larger system that brought flooding and tornadoes to the Midwest in recent days.
That's it for the first hour of The Story Is, but the next hour starts right now.
The story is in Cuba. The island government says the charges brought against Raul Castro are just a quote, fraudulent narrative.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: They've really lost control of Cuba.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: The story is the California gubernatorial race. Former Congressmember Katie Porter live on set discussed her potential path to victory in the final days.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We expect those numbers to keep increasing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: The story is Ebola. Could we soon get a treatment for High risk Americans? Dr. Anne Rimoin here live to discuss. And the story is the Western Conference finals five time NBA champ Derek Fisher here to break down the thunder versus the Spurs.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Los Angeles, The Story Is with Elex Michelson.
MICHAELSON: Thanks so much for watching The Story Is. I'm Elex Michelson live in Los Angeles. Tonight our top story is in Cuba where the country's government is condemning the U.S. indictment of former Cuban President Raul Castro.
The Trump administration has brought charges against the 94-year-old for his alleged role in a fatal attack on two planes back in 1996.
The downing of the civilian aircraft killed four people, including three Americans. The Cuban government is dismissing the charges as politically motivated.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HUMBERTO LOPEZ, ANCHOR, CUBAN STATE MEDIA (through translator): This spurious accusation against the leader of the Cuban revolution is yet another desperate attempt by anti-Cuban elements to construct a fraudulent narrative in an effort to justify the collective and ruthless punishment of the noble Cuban people. This through the reinforcement of unilateral coercive measures, including the unjust and genocidal energy blockade and threats of armed aggression.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: The Trump administration says the move is not a show indictment but the result of an investigation 30 years in the making. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed Cubans directly in a Spanish language video. Rubio, who is Cuban American, said the suffering of Cubans is the fault of their own government.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Today, Cuba is not controlled by any revolution. Cuba is controlled by GAESA. A "state within the state" that is accountable to no one and hoards the profits from its businesses for the benefit of a small elite. And the only role played by the so-called "government" is to demand that you continue making "sacrifices' and repressing anyone who dares to complain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: CNN's Carolina Peguero is in Miami taking a look at how Cuban Americans are reacting to the indictment.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAROLINA PEGUERO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now after the news of Raul Castro officially being indicted by the Department of Justice here in the United States, we're in one of the most iconic places in Miami. I'm talking about the Versailles restaurant here in Little Havana where a lot of Cuban exiles residents are here in a way celebrating, they are uniting and they are here declaring victory of some way, some sort after this announcement.
Now they hope that after this action there's also going to be a free Cuba where the United States takes action for the crisis that's going on.
Now, a lot of the Cubans here feel some sort of relief after this indictment. We know that it's related to the destruction and the killing of Americans that belonged to the humanitarian group Brothers to the Rescue that used to just fly across the Florida Strait and help a lot of Cubans in the international waters escaping from the communism of the government of Raul Castro and Fidel Castro. I'm here with a lot of the Cubans, including Catalina, that she's been here for several hours.
Tell me how you feel and what this means to you.
CATALINA VAZQUEZ, MIAMI RESIDENT: OK. First of all, we don't celebrate the victory. We're enjoying the moment because it's one of the steps, steps to the freedom of Cuba. The only thing that we want that all the people Cuban wants is freedom for all the island that the kids has medicine, the people can get food in the stores.
They can get their or their own properties to sell to work, to do everything. We celebrate -- we don't celebrate this victory because we think there's a lot of -- a lot of things that need to came more. And we're going to celebrate when Cuba with really, really in freedom.
[01:05:02]
PEGUERO: Thank you so much. And it's like a sense of relief for a lot of them. But they say not until that action happens. It could be where they a lot feel that it should be a military action, an invasion or actually bringing Raul Castro here to the United States to be in a federal court.
We will see what that will look like and if that happens. But in the meantime, we are reporting from Little Havana, Carolina Peguero, CNN, Miami.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Meanwhile, in Venezuela, relatives of political prisoners are demanding accountability for those who have died in state custody. They marched in silence through the streets of Caracas on Wednesday, many of them with black tape over their mouths. Venezuela's government has always denied holding political prisoners.
But on Tuesday, the head of the National assembly announced that 300 prisoners will be released from jail this week, including police officers, people with medical conditions and those over 70 years old. Here's what one human rights activist had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREINA BADUEL, HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST (through translator): We want to think that they really will comply, but there have to be facts in order to regain trust. We have no trust in the institutions of the state, much less in the representatives of the regime who are also the main torturers of the country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: We're now learning new details about what is being described as a tense phone call between President Trump and the prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu over how to handle the Iran war. U.S. official tells CNN the two leaders held an hour long conversation on Tuesday.
When Mr. Netanyahu said that delaying a new round of attacks against Iran was a mistake. President Trump didn't like that and said that the prime minister will do whatever he wants him to do. He also told reporters that he's willing to keep negotiating a peace deal in order to save lives before mentioning that the war, talking about the war during a commencement speech at the Coast Guard Academy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We're respected all over the world. You saw that with China just recently. You saw that in Venezuela. You saw that right now in Iran. Everything's gone. Their navy's gone, their air force is gone, just about everything. The only question is, do we go and finish it up or are they going to be signing a document? Let's see what happens.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: The acting attorney general of the U.S. Todd Blanche, says violent conduct will be a factor when deciding who gets payout from the Justice Department's new anti-weaponization fund and who doesn't. He says the fund is, quote, nonpartisan. Critics argue it's merely a way to compensate allies of President Trump who claim they were unfairly investigated by the Biden administration. Blanche, who used to be President Trump's personal attorney says as a five-member Commission will decide who deserves compensation.
But Blanche is the one who would be appointing those commissioners. President Trump would have the power to fire them at any time. Blanche also wouldn't rule out the possibility that the January 6 rioters could end up with a piece of the nearly $2 billion pie that critics call a slush fund. He spoke with CNN's Paula Reid.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Top law enforcement official right now. Would you be okay with people who were convicted of hurting police getting taxpayer money?
TODD BLANCHE, ACTING U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: Just to be clear, people that hurt police get money all the time. OK. There's a process where -- where if you are -- if you are -- if you believe you have your rights violated, you can, you can apply for funds, you can sue, you can file a claim, you can go to court. In some of those cases, the state, the government, the federal government settles those cases. It's abhorrent to ever, ever touch a law enforcement officer, which is why anytime anybody does that and it's a federal officer, we'll prosecute them. But that's a completely different question with whether an individual is allowed to apply for a claim, whether they'll get a claim. Who depends. I can't -- it's not -- it would not be appropriate for me to talk about absolutes like, absolutely not, under no circumstances. I mean, we can talk about hypotheticals till we're blue in the face. But that really wouldn't be fruitful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Two police officers who defended the Capitol on January 6th are now suing to block that fund. Almost a third of California's Santa Rosa Island has been burned in a wildfire that has been raging since Friday. Santa Rosa is part of the Channel Islands National Park, which is home to dozens of rare or endemic plants and animals. The fire has consumed more than 17,000 acres, making it the state's largest wildfire this year. It's currently 44 percent contained.
Multiple other fires are burning in Southern California, including the Sandy fire in Ventura County. About 44,000 people have been told to evacuate. That fire is 22 percent contained.
Now the story is the race for California governor. The San Francisco Chronicle has endorsed former Congresswoman Katie Porter, one of several newspapers across the state to back her campaign.
[01:10:00]
In fact, every newspaper with an editorial board that's endorsed has backed her. But a new internal poll from the California Democratic Party shows that Republican Steve Hilton and Democrats Javier Becerra and Tom Steyer are the frontrunners to advance to the general election.
Former Congresswoman Katie Porter joins us here live right now in the studio. Congresswoman, welcome back to The Story Is. Great to have you in person here for the first time.
KATIE PORTER, DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE FOR CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR: It's great to be here.
MICHAELSON: So how do you see the state of the race? We've had this interesting phenomenon where ballots were mailed out a couple weeks ago and yet people are holding on to their ballots in a way we've never seen before.
PORTER: Ballot return is slow and particularly slow among Democrats. I think that's because a lot of people are still making up their mind. I think there was a lot of concern a few months ago about whether or not two Republicans could get through. That is now not a concern.
And I think some Democrats are starting to realize, oh, actually we should just get to know the Democratic candidates and pick who we think is going to be the best leader. And they're having a chance now to do that. MICHAELSON: Why do you think Javier Becerra has sort of rocketed up after the Swalwell dropping out?
PORTER: I can't really figure that out entirely. But I will say that I think the way that we've conducted this campaign, focusing on what we would actually do to lower costs for families, has been a real contrast to what he's talked about. There's a lot of all get done. A lot of all have a meeting.
And I think what we've really tried to say is look at your paycheck, look at how much is coming out for California state income taxes. If you're earning less than $100,000 when I'm governor, you won't have that money gone from your paycheck. Talking about, you know, saying to people, look at what college is going to cost. Imagine being able to raise a family here knowing that you could have free college, period, full stop.
These are real solutions to bring down costs. And I think that for people who care about the future of California, you ought to be looking for concrete, real policy solutions. And I think that's what drove those newspaper endorsements.
MICHAELSON: And it's interesting that you and Steve Hilton, the Republican in the race, are both for this tax cut for people under $100,000.
PORTER: Well, I think it reflects the fact that both of us are really focused on not doing the same things that Democrats have been doing. I'm a Democrat, Steve's a Republican. We are very different on so many issues, including the environment and obviously on Donald. But I think what we're seeing from a lot of politicians is describing the problem of unaffordability.
You hear this from Tom Steyer all the time. He says, you know, I've heard that California is unaffordable. Well, we would have to hear it because it's not unaffordable for Tom. But I think --
MICHAELSON: He's a billionaire.
PORTER: He's a billionaire.
MICHAELSON: He spent almost $200 million on the campaign.
PORTER: Making this now the most expensive gubernatorial race in the nation's history. But I think what I'm focusing on is what do we do about that problem? I don't need, as a single mom of three kids, I know it's expensive here. I'm the one who pushes a shopping cart.
I'm focused on what could we change? What are the levers, what are the tools that the governor has to actually bring down costs and quickly because we need to keep growing our population, we need to keep adding people to our state.
MICHAELSON: One of the biggest costs for families is health care. And you have been very clear that you believe in single payer health care in California. Javier Becerra has not been as clear in terms of what he's going to do. That's something we got into during the debate on CNN.
But let's drill down on what single payer health care costs, because an estimate by UCLA said it would cost over $700 million, which would make it --
PORTER: Billion.
MICHAELSON: Billion dollars. $700 Billion which would make it three times more expensive than the entire state budget right now. How do we afford that?
PORTER: Well, so let's remember, health care today isn't free. Employers are paying for it. Employees are paying for it. People are paying. The military is paying for it. Medicare is paying for it. It's a big chunk of our federal budget. So the real question with single payer is, does single payer allow us to reduce as an economy, as a society, looking across all the different people who chip in for health care, which right now is businesses and workers and the state and the federal government is does it let us deliver care more effectively?
Look, Medicare spends only 2 percent of its health care money on administrative costs. Private health insurance spends 17 or 18 percent. So the question is, people hear that price tag, they're forgetting to add up all of what we spend on health care right now. It's a big reason that employers are struggling.
They're spending more and more of their budget. Families are spending more of their budgets, especially after what Donald Trump's done on health care. So the question is, does single payer let us drive down the total cost of care and put more of our health care dollars toward making people healthy and curing illness, rather than toward pushing paper and denying claims?
MICHAELSON: If we do that here in California, but other states don't do that, what's to stop people from coming to California, taking advantage of our health care, not necessarily paying into the system? And then, you know, us all having to pay for that?
[01:15:07]
PORTER: Well, look, everyone would in the single payer system, you would have employers making a contribution to it and you would likely have employees making some contribution. The money isn't going to fall from the sky, Elex. It would be funded. It was same way with Medicare. People pay for Medicare. Medicare is not free. Our seniors. Medicare is a single payer system. The government is the payer. But people chip in, they have copays, they, they have deductibles, they have supplements.
So it would be the same kind of system here. People who would come to California would be part of our society, would be contributing to that single payer system in the same way that we have seniors contributing to Medicare both while they're working, but then also when they're seniors using that care. MICHAELSON: What do you see as sort of the most important thing as we head towards the finish line of this race? For voters that are now looking at that ballot, they haven't been able to decide what's your message to them?
PORTER: So I think voters need to really focus on what kind of future do they want California to have. And I think that if they want California to just keep on going exactly the way it has been going, then I think that Javier Becerra is that candidate. He's been pretty clear.
MICHAELSON: You think he's the most like Gavin Newsom?
PORTER: No, I think he's the most like Sacramento the most. He's been a politician for 37 years. He's been doing this since -- he was elected I think the first time when I was in high school or college and I'm, as my kids remind me, an unk.
And so I think the question is like, do we want to actually tackle some of the biggest challenges we're facing? Housing cost is not going to come down and we're not going to grow our economy if we don't like the governor who has more bold policies on housing. The specifics that I'm offering are different. And look, Tom Steyer has been really clear on this race about who he's against. Right?
He's against the big utilities, he's against corporations, he's against billionaires. But I think what makes me different is what I'm for and what I'm offering to do. So I just invite California families.
Think about what it would mean to have free health care, free health care, to have free childcare. Think about what it would mean to have a corporate tax system where the most profitable corporations paid a little bit more and struggling small businesses paid less. That would be really good for California's economy. The race is about the future and I see a lot of voters trying to predict who's going to win.
But this is not a racetrack. You're not trying to bet on necessarily the winning pony, although obviously we want a Democrat to win. But you're trying to think about who will actually deliver the best life for you. And on that, I'm really proud of my platform, what I'm offering in this race.
MICHAELSON: And those -- if those policies got through, that would be a major change in policy for California.
PORTER: And we better hope we have a major change because if we keep going. We what we're going to see is families can't afford to live here. So we hear from voters that affordability is their top issue.
MICHAELSON: Right.
PORTER: Look at my policies on affordability then, because I think they are head and shoulders above the rest of the field.
MICHAELSON: Katie Porter, best of luck in these final weeks on the campaign trail. Voting ends on June 2nd and it has already begun for several weeks here in California and then the counting could go just as long.
PORTER: Absolutely.
MICHAELSON: Thank you so much.
PORTER: Thank you.
MICHAELSON: We appreciate it. Always great to see. The World Health Organization warns about a rapidly growing Ebola outbreak in Central Africa. What you need to know next with Ann Rimoin, an expert in public health and epidemiology.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:22:47]
MICHAELSON: The story is the deadly Ebola outbreak in Central Africa. The U.S. is coordinating a shipment of an experimental antibody treatment for potential use in high risk Americans exposed to the virus. Clinical trials are also being considered in the outbreak area in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Officials in Congo say the outbreak is thought to have killed at least 148 people there with hundreds of cases suspected. CNN's Larry Madowo has the latest on the international efforts to stop this Ebola outbreak.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right now there's a massive international effort to help the Democratic Republic of Congo bring an Ebola outbreak under control and cut the chain of transmission. The European Union sending 100 tons of medical aid. The U.S. saying it is sending a disaster assistance response team and the Africa CDC giving a million dollars so that more personnel can go there. Even Russia pitching in.
The international community has surged medical personnel, supplies, equipment, lab testing kits, PPE, everything they need to make sure that Ebola does not get out of control and spend spread to the rest of the world. At the same time, officials are investigating when and where this outbreak began. The work in theory the death of an individual on April 20th.
Two days later they were moved and then on May 5th there was a funeral that is believed to have been a super spreader event. They picked up on social media about the reports of deaths of several people linked to that funeral and they began testing immediately. It was confirmed that is likely where this could have begun. More investigations still going on, but here's the World Health Organization.
ANAIS LEGAND, TECHNICAL OFFICER, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: Given the scale, we are thinking that it has started probably a couple of months ago. But investigations are ongoing and our priority is really to cut the transmission chain by implementing contact tracing, isolating and caring for all suspect and confirmed cases.
MADOWO: Most of the suspected Ebola cases and the deaths are concentrated in Ituri. This is a remote northeastern part of the DRC that borders Uganda and South Sudan. But as more surveillance and contact tracing happens, we will know if it has spread for the couple of months that the World Health Organization suspects.
[01:25:08]
Latest numbers from the Congolese Health Ministry say the deaths are up to 148. These, again, are suspected cases. The number of confirmed cases are much lower, but they're surging the equipment so that they can do more testing and know exactly how many of the cases they're tracking.
The people who have come into contact with suspected cases are actually positive for the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola. But the DRC at pains to tell the world that they have experience maintaining these kinds of situations. They've had 17 Ebola outbreaks and brought all of them under control. And they will do the same here as well. Larry Madowo, CNN, Nairobi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Thank you, Larry. For more, Dr. Ann Rimoin is here. She's a professor of epidemiology at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and doctor welcome to The Story Is. Good to have you here.
You also worked for over 20 years in the Democratic Republic of Congo. You've worked on these issues. You say this may just be the tip of the iceberg, what we're looking at here.
DR. ANN RIMOIN, PROFESSOR OF EPIDEMIOLOGY, UCLA FIELDING SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: Absolutely. It's, it's very nice to be here. Thank you for having me. This is a really important issue to be talking about. Right now we're starting to see number of cases rise. It's definitely going to increase very, very quickly. We talked about right here on your on your intro here that they were talking about starting maybe a month ago, maybe six weeks ago. That means that there have been transmission chain after transmission chain that's gone unchecked.
And without the diagnostics on the ground, we really don't even have any idea of how many cases there are.
MICHAELSON: So real simply, how does Ebola work?
RIMOIN: Well, Ebola is what we call a viral hemorrhagic fever, and it belongs to a family of viruses that there are multiple different species. So this particular species, Bundibugyo species, is a little bit different from the Zaire that we've normally seen, both of them and all of them that we know of here.
What they do is you end up with a fever, maybe not feeling well, a headache, but it can progress very quickly and it can send the body into shock. You can have a lot of damage to blood vessels. People get very, very sick, vomiting, diarrhea, and people die. The way that it's spread is from person to person. So it's not something like measles, it's not something like COVID. It is person to person bodily fluids. And so that's why healthcare workers get very sick. That's why family members get very sick. And you see these funerals, like this super spreader event that they were just talking about. People are together, they're hugging, they're taking care of the body. So it's the perfect opportunity for this virus to spread very quickly in communities.
MICHAELSON: So how do you avoid it?
RIMOIN: Well, the good news is you really have to be symptomatic to be able to spread it.
MICHAELSON: OK.
RIMOIN: And so we know that there's an incubation period. It can be up to three weeks. So there is time to stop these transmission chains. It's just you have to be able to find the people who've been exposed, get them into quarantine, and make sure that they're not able to spread it onward from person to person.
MICHAELSON: And right now, for people watching us in America, should they be concerned about this?
RIMOIN: Well, we should be concerned about what's unfolding in the DRC right now because it is a tragedy and it is something that we can get in front of if we have every -- if we can throw all the resources at it to make it happen. Should we be worried about it here?
Not really what we can -- we know, of course, you can end up with an imported case, a couple of imported cases, but we have the capacity to be able to stop it here with good quarantine, isolation. We have the medical facilities that can be able to treat people. But the most important thing is you got to stop it at its source. Because when you start to see cases erupt all over Central Africa, you're going to have a lot of -- a lot bigger problems.
MICHAELSON: Well, and in terms of that, I know you say that when it comes to investing in studying infectious disease and treating this early, we're going in the wrong direction.
RIMOIN: Well, exactly. It is -- with infectious diseases, it is much easier and much less expensive to stay out of trouble than it is to have to get out of trouble. And right now, we are in big trouble with this. We don't have the infrastructure in place to be able to do the diagnostics, to be able to have treatment units out there.
We don't have disease surveillance out there. You know, funding to infectious disease research has been decimated, and that very much includes all of the work on Ebola and related diseases. It's been cut down to the bone. So we don't have any of those infrastructures in place to be able to -- when you see something like this happening, to be able to run and get in front of it. So we're going to be constantly chasing behind.
[01:30:02]
There's going to be a lot of people dying that a lot of -- a lot of suffering that doesn't need to happen.
MICHAELSON: Good reason to invest in public health --
DR. RIMOIN: Indeed.
MICHAELSON: -- and make those investments in advance.
Dr. Anne Rimoin, thank you so much for the work that you do to save lives. And great to have you here.
DR. RIMOIN: Thanks for having me.
MICHAELSON: Coming up, President Trump -- Donald Trump Jr.'s ex-wife, Vanessa Trump, has revealed that she has breast cancer. Vanessa Trump posted on social media Wednesday that she had a medical procedure earlier this week. She says she's working with doctors on a treatment plan.
When we return, five-time NBA champion Derek Fisher joins me to break down the latest in the league's conference finals. Big, big game tonight between, some would argue, the two best teams in basketball.
[01:30:42]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MICHAELSON: The NBA playoffs are heating up with game two of the Western Conference finals wrapping a short time ago.
The Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the San Antonio Spurs 122 to 113 this evening to secure a game apiece ahead of game three on Friday. Comes after Victor Wembanyama put up record-breaking numbers in the Spurs' thrilling double overtime victory over the Thunder earlier this week.
Meanwhile, the Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers are battling out in the Eastern Conference, with the Knicks with a great comeback as well.
For more on all this, we want to bring in five-time NBA champion Derek Fisher, who is currently an analyst for the NBA on NBC and just recently started as the co-host of L.A.'s "Derek and Decker" on Radio Online, 97.1, the fan brand new station.
Congratulations on that. Welcome back to THE STORY IS.
DEREK FISHER, NBA ANALYST: Thank you.
MICHAELSON: There's the poster.
FISHER: Appreciate it man. Yes.
MICHAELSON: Looking good.
FISHER: Two bald headed guys just talking sports.
MICHAELSON: Well, let's talk some sports then we'll talk about your show.
OKC and San Antonio. This just sort of extraordinary exhibition of basketball talent. It seems like the rest of the league should just go home at this point, right, watching this.
MICHAELSON: I'm sure a lot of team executives and coaches feel that way about these two teams. They've been the best teams in the league and in the Western Conference primarily all season long.
OKC started the season 24 and 1, and looked like they were going to run away with everything. But the San Antonio Spurs and that gentleman right there, number 1, Victor Wembanyama, seemed to have the algorithm or the formula to making it really difficult for the defending NBA champions.
MICHAELSON: How do you guard Victor Wembanyama?
FISHER: You don't. A lot of prayer, a lot of hoping that he just misses like it's -- he's a very unique combination of size, skill. He's stronger and more forceful than his wiry frame looks.
He shoots the ball, not like Steph Curry, but he shoots the ball much better than a seven-foot-four guy what we would all imagine, and he also plays with a lot of passion and competitive spirit.
So he's a difficult cover, and it's why the Thunder are going to have a really difficult series to try to get back to the NBA finals.
MICHAELSON: Yes. Who do you think ends up winning this thing?
FISHER: Well, you know, with the Lakers for so many years, we battled the Spurs to make it to the NBA finals.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
FISHER: I played for the OKC Thunder.
MICHAELSON: You did.
FISHER: We beat the Spurs once in the Western Conference finals. They beat us once in the Western Conference finals. I'm always going to go with my guys that I have experience with.
MICHAELSON: Sure.
FISHER: So I'm picking OKC this year.\
MICHAELSON: Yes. And they are of course the defending champions as well.
But it feels like San Antonio is kind of what's next in the NBA with Wembanyama. It's just a matter of when.
FISHER: It feels like it's next. But they play like it's right now.
MICHAELSON: Yes. FISHER: They really do. And that's what's so impressive to have
watched the first two games of this series is that they really -- both teams are playing as though they feel like this is their time.
MICHAELSON: Let's talk about what's happening in the East. It certainly looked like in game one of the Eastern Conference finals that the Cleveland Cavaliers were going to win.
Then there's this extraordinary comeback from the New York Knicks, a team that you used to coach.
FISHER: Yes.
MICHAELSON: How do you see that series going?
FISHER: Well, I felt like the Cavs had an opportunity to maybe win the series in seven. But it was going to take them winning that first game in order to try and flip home court advantage.
And it looked like they were going to do that until seven minutes and 50 seconds to go in the fourth quarter, everything changed.
And so right now it just really feels like the Knicks kind of have an appointment with the NBA finals in 2026. Madison Square Garden is an electric place to coach and play basketball in, and it was on fire, obviously, as the Knicks made that comeback.
MICHAELSON: Basketball is really all about matchups. How do you think the Knicks would match up with either the Thunder or the Spurs? Would they have a real shot at winning?
FISHER: They do. You make it to the NBA finals, you have a shot. What separates the Knicks, one, is defensively they're still really, really connected. It's part of their identity that always gives them a chance to win.
Then you go to number 11. Jalen Brunson, one of the most clutch players in the NBA. He helps you finish close games. So their defense keeps them close. And then Jalen Brunson closes the deal.
So either team that advances out of the West that if the Knicks advance they will have a chance to win a title.
MICHAELSON: Well clearly you're very good at talking sports, which is why they've given you a new job. Congratulations.
FISHER: Thank you.
MICHAELSON: So it's airing here in Los Angeles right from 6:00 to 10:00. But people can also watch online all over the world or listen as well.
[01:39:48]
FISHER: Yes. 6:00 to 10:00 a.m.
MICHAELSON: Yes. 6:00 to 10:00 -- you're going to be up. You're going to be up in a few hours.
FISHER: Yes.
MICHAELSON: "Derek and Decker", what's it like? Did you ever think you'd be doing radio? How's it -- how does it feel? This just -- this just started.
FISHER: Yes, I did not -- I had no indication that I'd get into radio, leaning more into just broadcast. And for so long, just playing and coaching, there's a gap between you and the fan experience, and engaging and interacting with people in a different way.
And so at this point in my life, I felt like, yes, I love to coach and teach. And that's always going to be a passion I have.
But engaging with fans and people, especially here in L.A. that have supported me and supported the Lakers and our L.A. sports team so long, I felt like it was a great opportunity to just get out there and share more of who I am and connect with the fans.
MICHAELSON: Is it easier or harder than you thought?
FISHER: It's harder to wake up at 4:15.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
Well, it means a lot that you came in here late at night and going to be sacrificing some sleep for it.
But we of course, are big fans and excited to have more sports talk in L.A. is also great as well in a brand-new station, 97.1, going from news to sports.
Derek Fisher, best of luck.
FISHER: Thanks, Elex.
MICHAELSON: Check him out there. You're doing that. You're coaching in high school, right? You're an analyst for NBC, analysts on Spectrum.
(CROSSTALKING)
MICHAELSON: How much money are you making these days?
FISHER: Not enough. I have three kids in college.
(CROSSTALKING)
MICHAELSON: Clearly -- clearly -- clearly, you need some more jobs. Yes. No, no. I appreciate it. It's very cool to see.
FISHER: Thanks.
MICHAELSON: Thanks to all of you for watching THE STORY IS with me, Elex Michaelson.
For our international viewers, "WORLDSPORT" is next. For our viewers here in North America, I'll be right back with more news.
[01:41:32]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MICHAELSON: January 6th rioters and election deniers appear eager to cash in on the new fund, which could compensate allies of President Trump.
This week, the Justice Department announced a nearly $2 billion fund for people deemed to be victims of government weaponization and lawfare.
CNN's Donie O'Sullivan caught up with two people hoping for a payout.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRANDON FELLOWS, PARDONED JANUARY 6TH RIOTER: So, the number I've put in is $30 million. You know, $21.5 million is for the wrongful imprisonment.
DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: People who took part in January 6th are hoping for big payouts.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We endured a lot. Our lives are still not the same. So, I don't know what kind of price you can put on that.
O'SULLIVAN: Even before the DOJ announced its so-called anti- weaponization fund this week --
How long were you in prison for?
FELLOWS: Jail and prison, I combine those numbers 1,075 days.
O'SULLIVAN: People like Brandon Fellows had already begun making claims for compensation.
What's the reaction within the wider January 6th community to this fund?
FELLOWS: Some people are whining and saying it's not enough, and we're not even hearing numbers yet.
O'SULLIVAN: Fellows was sentenced on felony and misdemeanor charges for entering the Capitol on January 6th.
Seen here in a red beard costume, Fellows spoke to CNN's Elle Reeve during the riot.
FELLOWS: So, they were smoking a bunch of weed in there.
O'SULLIVAN: The charges against him were dismissed after a pardon from President Trump. Now Fellows expects compensation.
FELLOWS: According to ChatGPT and Grok and also my knowledge of January 6th cases, I'm in at least the three to five percent upper tier for how terrible and also how strong of a case I have.
RACHEL POWELL, JANUARY 6TH RIOTER: It's like surreal to me. I mean, look how angry I look.
O'SULLIVAN: Rachel Powell, a mom of eight and a grandmother to eight, spent three years under house arrest. We interviewed her before she began her prison sentence in 2024.
POWELL: I don't deserve this and my kids don't deserve it. Like, have we not been through enough?
O'SULLIVAN: She was released last year after being pardoned by Trump.
What do you say to people who are outraged and say people like you don't deserve a penny?
POWELL: A lot of people don't agree with what happened on January 6th, but when you step back and you look at somebody like me, for example, my major felony had to be struck down by the Supreme Court. It's my crime that day of breaking a window.
Technically, that's a misdemeanor charge. And yet I had three years of house arrest than having to endure everything I did through prison and getting a five-year sentence on top of that. That's clearly weaponization.
O'SULLIVAN: Brandon Fellows still believes the lies about the 2020 election, and even believes that January 6th was a setup.
FELLOWS: But that's why I rationalize people, even violent people, getting paid for that day, because the government set it up. And also, on top of that, they stole the election.
O'SULLIVAN: And both Fellows and Powell remain loyal to President Trump and thankful for the so-called anti-weaponization fund.
FELLOWS: I feel like he has kept us in his mind. Despite all the other issues that he's got to deal with as leader of the world, basically.
O'SULLIVAN: Are you thankful to the President?
POWELL: Of course, I'm thankful. If it wasn't for the President, I'd still be sitting in that prison.
O'SULLIVAN: Donie O'Sullivan, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Still to come, new details on how SpaceX operates as the company files for a public stock offering. What we're learning and how much Elon Musk could stand to make. It's probably going to make you a little bit sick.
[01:49:17]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) MICHAELSON: The White House could issue an executive order focused on artificial intelligence and cybersecurity as early as Thursday. That word from sources who say the order will push for a voluntary government review of new A.I. models before they're released publicly. Anthropic and OpenAI are among the companies said to have engaged with the White House on that executive order.
Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, has laid off 8,000 people, about 10 percent of its workforce. And 7,000 others have been reassigned to roles focused on artificial intelligence. Meta says Wednesday's job cuts will help offset the costs of its investments in A.I., which are expected to reach at least $115 billion in capital expenditures this year.
SpaceX has filed paperwork for a public stock offering. It's a major shift for a company that has long kept much of its business out of view.
CNN's Paula Newton has more on what we can expect.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: If you're looking to own a piece of SpaceX, your opportunity is just around the corner. The company filed the paperwork Wednesday afternoon to go public on the Nasdaq in what could be the largest IPO in history, and put founder Elon Musk on track to be the world's first trillionaire.
Reuters estimates the successful share offering could value the company at $1.75 trillion.
[01:54:48]
NEWTON: Though SpaceX is known for its rocket launches, the company revealed it currently makes most of its revenue from the satellite Internet business Starlink.
Now, according to the filing, the company's mission is, quote, "To build the systems and technologies necessary to make life multiplanetary. To understand the true nature of the universe and to extend the light of consciousness to the stars".
Musk's future compensation is tied, among other things, to the establishment of a human colony on Mars, with at least 1 million inhabitants.
SpaceX will also continue to be firmly in the hands of Musk. He will have more than 85 percent of the voting rights in the company once it does go public.
Paula Newton, CNN -- New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: That's crazy amount of money, Paula. Thank you.
How far do fans go to idolize their heroes? That's the theme behind the "Holy Pop" exhibit, which opened in London on Wednesday.
It shows objects, collections, shrines -- everything else that people keep to show their devotion to celebrities and icons like Elvis, David Bowie, Princess Diana, Prince, Harry Potter characters.
One of the highlights is a piece of chewing gum from the late singer Nina Simone. Fellow musician Warren Ellis collected it, inspired him to write her memoir, titled "Nina Simone's Gum".
Thanks for watching THE STORY IS.
Tomorrow, I'll be joined by Xavier Becerra, right now the leading candidates for California governor.
Plus, Nisha Rahman, who is running for L.A. Mayor. And Grae Drake to talk movies.
All that tomorrow on THE STORY IS.
Thanks for watching. We're a busy show tonight.
[01:56:23]
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