Sen. Cassidy Bucks Trump on Iran, Ballroom after Primary Defeat

24:19It shows that they're completely scared of my campaign and my ability to ultimately win this race. Look, we are building a broad coalition here in this runoff election. And just days away from May 26, we are seeing everybody in our communities in this state throughout the nation coalesce and uplift our campaign at a time where Republicans are meddling in this election. They are now spending nearly a million dollars to uplift a weaker Democratic opponent in hopes that they're able to fool the voters of this district. We already know that Donald Trump called Greg Abbott to redraw this district in an attempt to give themselves an easy win.

25:01And you're seeing their same playbook play out in this attempt. Here in Texas, we are drawing the line in the sand to say, no te metan con Texas. Don't mess with Texas. We as Democrats are standing strong in this race. And we're ultimately going to send the message that we have the ability to win in November. We just need to make sure that we come out on May 26 and elect a right candidate to represent us in November. Before Galindo had suggested that Zionists should be put in camps, she told Texas Public Radio's podcast The Source something just as anti-Semitic. This was May 13th before the Instagram post.

25:42Take a listen. I'm not anti-Semitic. In fact, my last serious relationship was with a Jewish man. Not a big deal to me at all. I am against Zionist Jews. When I said that the Jews who own Hollywood are doing this, do all Jews own Hollywood? Yeah, no. The Zionist Jews do. The Zionists own our media, our banks, and all of our politicians, including San Antonio. And there's plenty of evidence for that. There's plenty of evidence for everything that I'm saying inside of the Epstein files. What was your reaction when you first heard that? Look, it just goes to show how untethered she is from reality.

26:29Her doubling down on anti-Semitic remarks, conspiracy theories, and just her belief of what she thinks is reality when in fact it isn't. The reality is that we as Democrats, we don't have the luxury to lose in this election. As I say in law enforcement, I'm a sheriff's deputy that I've served my community nearly two decades. In law enforcement, when we lose, people die. And we know in this midterm election cycle, there is so much riding on the line. And Democrats across the board are doing everything that we can to fight against this Republican opposition that we're seeing in this race. Now more than ever, we need to put forth the best candidate that's ultimately going to win this seat here in Texas and make sure that this gerrymander turned into a dummy mander for Donald Trump and Greg Abbott.

27:17Johnny Garcia, thanks. Really appreciate it. Coming up, President Trump racking up the primary win. Some of his toughest critics just lost their races. Can the trend continue through November? The man behind President Trump's midterm agenda, White House official James Blair coming up here on the lead.

27:59And our politics lead nominees backed by Trump won big in last night. wide slate of Republican primary elections across the country. In Kentucky, for example, Congressman Tom Massey, a longtime thorn in Trump's side, lost to the president's pick, former Navy SEAL Ed Galrin. In Georgia's governor's race, another critic of Trump's has fallen, Brad Raffensperger, Georgia's secretary of state, drew Trump's ire in 2021 when he rebuked Trump's claims that the 2020 election results in a state weren't accurate. Joining us now to discuss James Blair. He is senior advisor to the president, in many ways the architect of Trump's midterm strategy.

28:34Is that fair to say? One of the architects. Well, Trump's the architect. My job is to get it done for him. Deputy architect. Okay. So those five out of the seven Indiana state senators defeated. Massey defeated. Senator Bill Cassidy, Louisiana, defeated. Who's next? Well, we've got a few more primaries to play out where the president is endorsed. And I expect that he will have a very strong record and probably win all of those endorsements. But there's Paxton versus Cornyn. That's Tuesday for Senate in Texas. Are there any other big ones that I'm ignoring? I think that's probably the biggest one.

29:09We'll see if he weighs into the Georgia Senate runoff. You know, that's probably the only other big race out there that he hasn't weighed into that I can think of off the top of my head. For the most part, it's on to Democrats. You know, we're starting to wrap up primary season and that'll be getting on with the process of beating the Democrats as we turn into the summer and the fall. I will get to that in one second. I will note that the endorsement of Ken Paxton, the attorney general, who has been indicted, not convicted, impeached, not convicted. His wife filed for divorce on biblical grounds just a year ago.

29:39The NRSC was highlighting that. That's the only reason I bring it up. There are a lot of Republicans on Capitol Hill who wonder, maybe that's going to make the seat more competitive for Democrats. Yeah. I mean, obviously, I guess it depends on what lens you view it through. I think we would say that the Democrats have put up one of the most radically left candidates that they've put up anywhere for any Senate race ever and certainly in the state of Texas with James Tallarico and obviously we're going to be highlighting that for the next five months. He is way out of step with Texas voters. You know, all of his positions.

30:10I mean, there's too many to list here. Everything that you can say that is he's like a far left fever dream. And the voters of Texas will know that. You're very on message, but I was talking about Paxton versus Cornyn. Let me just ask you, the primary, yeah, the primary is Tuesday. The runoff is Tuesday. Is the president going to go to Texas? Is he going to campaign for Paxton? Is he going to try to do anything to help Paxton between now and election day, primary day? I can't speak for the president. Obviously, he could always make a decision to do something that he's not planning to do today.

30:36I don't. There's not a Texas trip on the schedule. I expect that the AG will be successful there. Obviously, he said that John Cornyn's a good man, but he just thinks it's time to have a new senator. And I think that the Republican senator will win. So we just had on swing state congressman, former swing state congressman, Charlie Dent, who used to represent the Lehigh Valley, as I'm sure you know, in Pennsylvania. His argument is there need to be some people who piss off the president every hour now and then because they're in the swing districts. The president took aim at one of those individuals, Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, earlier today, answering report questions from Fitzpatrick's fiance, who happens to work for Fox.

31:15He has at times broken with the president, including voting against the one big, beautiful bill. Take a listen. When her husband votes against me all the time, can you imagine? I don't know what's with him. You better ask him what's with him. Her husband, she's married to a certain congressman. He likes voting against Trump. You know what happens with that. It doesn't work out well. So I don't think they're married yet, but that's not the point. Fitzpatrick, like, that's one of three congressmen, as you know better than I, who are Republican, who represent districts that Kamala Harris won. Not a lot of them, but there are three of them.

31:55Don't you think that people like that need to be given a little wiggle room so they can maintain that seat for Republicans? It's the suburbs of Philly. It's fairly bluish. Well, I'd put it to you this way. The congressman does vote against our position sometimes, and you don't see the president attack him. Obviously, today, he noted that he votes separately. He didn't attack him. And, you know, he has a long history with Congressman Fitzpatrick. And I think the president understands very clearly that there's some things he disagrees on. And I think he'll be successful in the fall. And that doesn't mean we can't agree or disagree.

32:30And that's sort of the point. The president does allow for disagreement in the party. But there's some things that, you know, he's not going to allow for disagreement on. And that's what you've seen with some of the recent primary challenges that we've undertaken. Yes, sir. So let's talk about November because there's a new New York Times poll showing the president losing his hold on independence. which he's been successful with in the past. 69 % of independent voters polled disapproved of this job performance. It's up seven points from January. What are you guys gonna do to get those independents back in order to hold on to the House and Senate?

33:02It's really about giving them a clear choice. They can either vote Republicans back into power or they can vote Democrats into power. And it's about making them understand what the choice is, you know, depending on which party's in power. And with Republicans, you've got the party of lower taxes who's already moved to cut taxes and wants to cut taxes further, the party of tough on crime policies, secure borders, strong military. Or you've got the Democrats who voted for a$4 trillion tax hike, who tried to defund all interior immigration enforcement in this country, defund ICE and Border Patrol, which is what we're dealing with right now on Capitol Hill, as you know, Jake, and we've talked about before, who don't want to support increased military spending as we need in this pivotal time to keep America's military supremacy in the world.

33:42So this is the split screen that they have, no matter what you say about who the president is, These are the differences that play out on Capitol Hill, and it's about making the voters know very clearly. It's very easy in a presidential election to have a clear binary choice. You've got two candidates, and that is the key in the midterms. You've got to have two candidates in a given district and connect to the voters how that connects to the bigger picture for who's in control of the country. All right. White House official James Blair, good to see you. Congratulations on your primary, all the pelts you have on your wall.

34:09I saw Thomas Massey-sized pelt added to the Blair rec room last evening. Congratulations. Thanks for having me. I guess. Lawmakers putting aside previous policy differences for the American people. How often do we get to say that? Well, there is a new push to cap the price of insulin at just$35 a month and help some 8 million Americans who rely on the drug. We're going to talk about that next.

34:37Our health lead now there is gathering momentum on Capitol Hill to provide help for the millions of Americans who suffer from diabetes. According to the American Diabetes Association, that is more than 40 million Americans, and at least 8 million of them rely on insulin just to survive. Democratic Senator Jean Jehine of the great state of New Hampshire is spearheading a bipartisan bill that would cap insulin prices at$35 a month, and she joins us from Capitol Hill. Senator, tell us a little bit more about what your bill would do, and does it have a chance of becoming law? I assume many in the powerful pharmaceutical industry oppose it.

35:13Well, I think it does have a real shot at becoming law. Two years ago, we capped the cost of insulin at$35 a month for everybody on Medicare. We think it's important to do that for everybody who has type 1 or type 2 who needs insulin. Right now, we have 18 senators on the bill equally divided, nine Democrats, nine Republicans, and we're increasing that number every day. So now we're up to about a fifth of the Senate, more than we've ever had on this kind of a bill. and we think it's important to try and provide some relief to families who are struggling with the cost of health care and for people who have type 1 diabetes they don't have an option of whether they're going to get used by their insulin or not and when it's a choice between the cost of insulin or putting food on the table we need to provide some help and this is one way that we can do it where we would require all insurers to cap the price of insulin at $35.

36:13We would set up a pilot program for people who are not insured so that they could also benefit from lower cost insulin. And we would create an expedited pathway to get a biosimilar so that we could get a generic insulin to make it cheaper for people. So earlier this week on this matter of pharmaceutical cost, earlier this week, the president, along with others such as Mark Cuban, touted Trump Rx. That's his own effort to reduce drug prices. It's adding some 600 generic drugs eligible for discounts through TrumpRx. What do you think of that program? Do you think President Trump and Mark Cuban and others deserve some credit for that?

36:53Well, I think anything we can do to lower the cost of pharmaceuticals is a benefit to the American people. We have to see how it gets implemented. But I would hope that the president and Mark Cuban and the administration would support this legislation because this is a way to provide some relief to people who are really struggling with health care costs, which have gone up with the expiration of the premium tax credits. They're struggling with the cost of gasoline because of the endless war in Iran at this point. They're struggling with the cost of groceries. Anything that's transported, Americans are paying more for.

37:27And you add on top of that tariffs, which are costing families about$1 ,700 a year. And people are struggling. and anything we can do to help them, we need to do. And that's what this bill would do. While we have you here, let me talk about, ask you about some other stories in the news because you're on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the Senate Armed Services Committee. What do you make of Russian President Vladimir Putin's very chummy visit with China's Xi Jinping? Less than a week since President Trump went to China for the summit. Well, again, President Xi rolled out the same kind of red carpet for Vladimir Putin that he rolled out for Donald Trump.

38:06And what we see continuously is that Putin and Xi and other dictators are playing Donald Trump. They understand that if they flatter him, if they make him think he's important, that they're going to be able to get something from him. And what we saw in that visit was President Trump offering our high-end chips to the Chinese so that they can increase their military performance in ways that help catch them up to where the United States is. And we saw Xi continuing to support Russia in this war in Ukraine in ways that are not in America's interest. So after seven failed attempts, Democrats finally picked up enough Republican Senate support to advance this measure that would rein in President Trump's war powers when it comes to Iran.

38:59Republican senators Rand Paul, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, and now Bill Cassidy voted with every Democrat except for Pennsylvania's John Fetterman. That brings the bill to the floor for a vote. Will those four Republicans also vote on passing the measure? Well, I hope so. We'll see when the bill comes to the floor for a vote. But I think more and more Republicans are understanding, they're hearing from their constituents that they're concerned about this war in Iran that has no end in sight, that hasn't accomplished any of the goals that President Trump set out to accomplish, that are driving up the costs that they're paying at the gas pump, at the grocery store, and everything else.

39:49And people are worried. They don't support this war in Iran. And they want to know when it's going to end. And the president has provided no plan. Every, you know, yesterday he said, oh, I was an hour away from ordering more airstrikes in Iran. Today we find out he was going to bring in former Iranian President Ahmadinejad, who was just as hard line as the regime that he replaced. So it's clear that there is no plan. There's no end game for this war. And that makes Americans very anxious. Senator Gene Shaheen of the great state of New Hampshire, thank you so much. Coming up next, what the State Department wants you to know about their response to the deadly Ebola outbreak in the Congo.

40:45Welcome to The Lean. I'm Dick Tapper. This hour, an American doctor with Ebola is now being treated at a hospital in Germany. and his family, as his family, is admitted to a special isolation ward. What we're learning tonight about their conditions and the experimental treatments being considered to treat Americans who are exposed to this strain of the virus. Plus, the Justice Department today announced the indictment of former Cuban President Raul Castro. The 94-year-old is charged with conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals over the 1996 shootdown of two civilian planes. The acting attorney general is saying he expects Castro will end up inside a U.S.

41:20prison. Also, Republicans in Congress signaling today they may not be able to give President Trump the nearly$1 billion in security funding that has been discussed. Some of that money was supposed to be used on his new White House ballroom. So what happens next?

41:40The lead tonight, the rare Ebola strain with no vaccine and no specific treatment as of now, is spreading fast and poses a high regional risk in Africa. That's according to the World Health Organization, which calls the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. Though the deadly outbreak is currently largely in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where there are now at least 148 suspected Ebola deaths and 575 suspected cases. The World Health Organization, or WHO, says the outbreak likely started months before it was first detected. it. 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.

42:36The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the overall risk to the United States remains as of now low. At least one One American citizen, Dr. Peter Stafford, tested positive for Ebola after treating patients in the DRC in the Congo before the outbreak was identified. And now six people who had contact with Dr. Stafford are being taken to Europe for observation. This includes Stafford's wife and his four children. They will be monitored at the same hospital where Stafford is in, in Berlin, Germany. And Dr. Patrick LaRochelle, another American citizen, will be cared for in the Czech Republic, we're learning.

43:14CNN's Fred Pleiken is near the hospital in Berlin. Fred, what is the latest on his conditions? Hi there, Jake. And I think what you see behind me is the flashing lights of the convoy that we believe just a couple of minutes ago actually brought the rest of the family of Dr. Peter Stafford here to Berlin to that isolation unit. We have gotten some updates from the German health ministry, but then also from some colleagues from Dr. Peter Stafford as well. The German health ministry saying that he is here in isolation. He, of course, was brought here late last night in the early morning hours of this morning.

43:46He's in stable condition, they say. And, of course, he is still in that isolation ward and already receiving treatment. Now, I was actually also able to speak to the director of the organization that sent him and his family to the Democratic Republic of Congo. They're called SAGE. And they say that he's actually currently in a condition where he's able to communicate with them via text message. So he certainly still has that capacity. They also say that he is still showing signs of possible Ebola symptoms, fever, nausea, also apparently lightness of the head as well, which they say is something that is very much in line with Ebola.

44:24He, of course, did test positive for it. At the same time, they say that they have cause for optimism at this point in time because they say when he was brought out here to Germany, When he was getting ready to go into that flight that brought him here, the medevac flight, he was having trouble even getting into the isolation container to get onto that flight. Now appears as though he is already a little bit stronger than he was yesterday. They say that possibly that is a good sign, but at the same time, of course, this is a very dangerous disease. And so therefore, they say that they are still quite concerned.

44:55As far as Patrick LaRochelle is concerned, the latest that we have is that he has been brought to the Czech Republic. He, of course, has also tested negative, as well as the family of Dr. Peter Stafford, whom we believe have arrived here just a couple of minutes ago. That would be his wife, Rebecca, and his four children, all of whom were in contact with him, were in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but have so far also tested negative for Ebola. All right, Fred Pleikin in Berlin. Thank you so much. Tonight, the U.S. State Department is taking exception with the account that we shared here on the lead last night.

45:36Specifically, yesterday we told you about the concerns of a former USAID official who had once been based in the Democratic Republic of Congo, or DRC. And that official says, a former official says, that because of the Trump administration's decision to end USAID funding, the response to the current Ebola outbreak was delayed and that cost lives. Now, the State Department disagrees and as part of their pushback, they pointed us to a document stating that on May 15th, the State Department, quote, leveraged its outbreak response and humanitarian assistance capabilities to establish an interagency coordination cell and incident management system in Washington, D.C.

46:17The key two words in that statement are May 15th. May 15th. The State Department was proving the point made by our source because May 15th is three weeks after the first suspected case in this outbreak, which was April 24th. And 10 days after the WHO received an alert regarding an unknown illness. That was May 5th. Well, in their conversations with us, the State Department continued to push and ask, So what would have been different if USAID had been there? So here is the official's more detailed explanation. First, number one, detection. The former USAID official says USAID would have acted at the very latest, the very latest, within 24 to 48 hours of the World Health Organization getting that alert, saying, quote, we would have been able to help facilitate to get the right test faster.

47:10we would have started with communication, isolation, and PPE distribution, unquote. Now, by the right test, this former official means a test that would have detected this particular strain of Ebola. And that's point two. The timing of the testing, because also on May 5th, the WHO received the alert regarding an unknown illness with high mortality in Itori province, including four health care workers. The testing, however, of what they had, that didn't happen until May 14th. Now, that's according to WHO. Now, more on that in a second, but that dovetails with point three, which is the quality of the testing, what the official meant by the right test.

47:58Because according to the WHO, the initial testing in Ettore was designed for the more common Zaire Ebola virus, not the Bundy-Bugyo strain, which is what this outbreak is. And it wasn't until May 15th that the Bundy-Bugyo strain was detected, the former USAID official told me, because that's because those on the ground at the time in Itori province did not have the ability to detect what this strain was. But, the official said, if USAID had been still on the ground, The former official says USAIDA would have helped to get a team there faster, to collect more samples and transport them. Now, where would they have been transported?

48:43Likely to the National Reference Lab in Goma, if the ongoing conflict in that region allowed that, the official said. Otherwise, to Kinshasa, which would have taken a bit longer since charter flights don't have sufficient range to get all the way across the country. So that's the answer. Now, in response to our reporting and conversations with the former USAID official, a spokesperson for the State Department told us in a statement, quote, USAID staff never did testing. Anyone pushing this argument is either lying or doesn't understand the facts. Core Ebola-related USAID programs were brought under State's Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy.

49:25State has also continued to fund partners in the field. The CDC, which does lead on testing, saw no cuts in staffing levels in the region. We see CNN agrees that the unfortunate reality is that WHO delayed in informing the world of the May 15th alert until May 5th alert until May 15th, breaking with past precedent. This has had an impact. We mobilized a wide ranging response within 24 hours of being informed, unquote. Now, to be clear, the official we talked to never said that USAID did the testing. Quite the contrary. The official said the USAID facilitated the testing. So what exactly the State Department is objecting to here is not really clear.

50:04In any case, the State Department generally denies that these severe cuts in USAID funding has had any impact. An official saying that what USAID did is now handled by the Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy, which is, quote, more aligned and effective, unquote. We will reiterate that there are many in the public health community, including former USAID officials, who point to the more than 140 dead bodies thought to be linked to the outbreak and disagree with that assessment. Joining us now is former CDC infectious disease expert Dr. Fiona Havers. She's contributed to multiple public health emergency responses, including a 2014 Ebola outbreak in Liberia.

50:45Dr. Havers, how worried are you that Ebola cases could start popping up in other regions outside this one and other countries outside the continent of Africa? Well, this is a very large outbreak and detection of the outbreak was delayed. So getting this Ebola outbreak under control is going to be very difficult. I do think that it is very likely that we will see further spread in Africa, in other regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring countries. So I think it is very concerning. Right now, there are no permanent directors of the CDC or the FDA. The U.S. is not part of the World Health Organization under Trump.

51:26USAID has been dismantled. Now, the CDC says the U.S. is at low risk with this current Ebola outbreak. But given that it is a rare strain with no vaccine, no specific treatment, detection was delayed for various reasons. Are you worried at all? Do you have confidence that the U.S. can handle potential cases here? I do think that the U.S., the public in the U.S. in general is at low risk. I don't think we're going to have a large-scale Ebola outbreak in the United States. And if there are some important cases, I do think we have the resources to handle that. However, I do think that the gutting of public health funding, the dismissal of senior leadership at CDC and thousands of other employees at CDC, as well as the dismantling of the U.S.

52:12Agency for International Development and withdrawal from the World Health Organization, including funding from the World Health Organization, is going to make it much harder to control this outbreak in East Africa. And this will be a concern, you know, a public health concern that will be ongoing for many months as a result. You helped create a guide for safe burial practices when it came to Ebola deaths in Liberia. Most burial practices in the DRC include touching the body. Given how severe this strain is, are funerals still safe in the Congo? Yeah, when I was in Liberia, I was the CDC lead for safe and dignified burials, which, you know, funeral practices can be, funerals can be a center outbreak points where the disease is spread.

52:57Infectious bodies are, bodies of people who've died from Ebola are very infectious and funeral practices can be, can further spread the disease. This is one, actually one of the parts where the dismantling of the US, of USAID is going to hurt our response, our Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of Congo. USAID funded organizations would be the ones that would have like clinics and workers on the ground that, you know, we're doing other, other aid or development activities, but then could pivot and support large-scale responses, doing things like providing the logistics for getting personal protective equipment to healthcare workers, but also training and getting personal protective equipment and ambulances and other things to burial teams that would be trained to how to safely bury people who have died.

53:48And all of these things are huge logistical challenges and are very important to controlling an outbreak of this size. So you agree with the basic premise of the former USAID official that we spoke with who worked in Congo, that the absence of USAID meant that this detection came later than it should have been and would have been had USAID still been there? Absolutely. But I also think that the ongoing response and the ability to respond to the outbreak is greatly hampered. The U.S. provided the majority of development aid to DRSA in the past. And that involves employing like thousands of community healthcare workers at local clinics and others.

54:30Those are the people that you would employ to pivot to be, for example, contact tracers in villages. That infrastructure was completely destroyed by the dismantling of USAID. And in my work with CDC, we work very closely with USAID partners and organizations that were funded by USAID in West Africa to control that large outbreak that started in 2014. I am very concerned that this is the first time that the U.S. public is really going to realize the costs of just completely gutting USAID, as well as public health funding and CDC in the United States. Dr. Fiona Havers, thank you so much. And thank you for what you do.

55:10Is President Trump's White House ballroom in any sort of jeopardy? Republicans say funding for it might be in danger after a key Senate ruling. So where does the project go from here? Plus, CNN speaks with the outspoken and long estranged daughter of the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro as the U.S. ramps up its pressure campaign against the island and announces the indictment of her uncle, Raul Castro.

55:37And our politics lead. New signs on Capitol Hill today that funding for President Trump's ballroom could be in some danger. That money is part of the$1 billion the White House requested. in security funding. CNN's Manu Raju is on Capitol Hill. Manu, what are you hearing from Republicans about this? Well, Senate Majority Leader John Thune said that this bill, this proposal to provide that money for the White House ballroom has a vote problem and a problem with the Senate parliamentarian. And that is serious, meaning that this very, is in serious jeopardy of getting this proposal through. Because in order to get this passed along strict party lines and roll this into a larger package of immigration enforcement money, they need to ensure that it complies with the strict budget rules in the Senate.

56:20The Senate parliamentarian says it does not do that. And there are several Republicans who say that they will not vote for this package if it is included in there. And in the 5347 Senate, a handful of Republicans, more than three, could be enough to derail it. But some Republicans, like the Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, told me today that he's still trying to push to get this added to the bill. Do you think that Republicans want to vote for this ballroom money? Well, I think what Republicans want is to secure the president and future presidents as well as this president. And I think we need some security upgrades at the White House.

56:57There's no architectural plans. There is no environmentals. There's no engineering. there's no sense of when we ask how did it happen to cost exactly a billion in my mind that is they could cost a lot less it could cost a lot more i i i just don't get it the country's living paycheck to paycheck we shouldn't be talking about ballrooms uh no of course it doesn't for those last two members of the house are indicating both brian fitzpatrick who represents It's a swing district in Pennsylvania. And Kevin Kiley, who's now an independent, who represents a district in California, both of them indicating they could vote against this plan if it comes to the House.

57:41So even, Jake, if this does come to the Senate with this plan in there, it could get stripped out of this bill. If it somehow survives this pushback within the Senate and comes over to the House, then the Speaker has his own problems trying to get it through the House because just a handful of Republicans could be enough to derail this bill. and hearing from those two members suggests that this plan to provide this money is in serious danger. Manu Raju on Capitol Hill, thanks so much. There's growing backlash tonight against Israel's far-right national security minister, an anti-Arab zealot, after he posted a video of himself mocking pro-Palestinian activists from a flotilla who were under arrest.

58:21We're going to show you what happened next.

58:31And our world lead Israel's far right national security minister is facing international and internal backlash tonight after posting a video on social media showing himself taunting pro-Palestinian activists who are under arrest. They've been detained by Israel as they tried to sail to Gaza. Itamar Ben-Gavir, an anti-Arab bigot, can be seen holding the Israeli flag, calling the activists terror supporters and more. CNN's Jeremy Diamonds in Israel for us tonight. Jeremy, walk us through how this unfolded. Well, Jake, the latest video posted by Israel's far-right national security minister is earning him condemnation here in Israel and sparking multiple diplomatic incidents around the world.

59:14The video features him and hundreds of detained foreign activists who were taking part in the latest Gaza-bound flotilla, an effort to break Israel's maritime blockade of the Gaza Strip. In the 38-second video, you can see Itamar Ben-Gvir walking around and taunting hundreds of these foreign activists who were detained by Israel and are set to soon be deported. The activists are bound. Many of them are prostrate on the ground, their heads on the floor. One woman can be heard shouting, free Palestine at one point, before she's forced to the ground by an Israeli security officer. The national security minister responds by saying, good job.

59:55You can also hear him in the video saying, welcome to Israel. We are the landlords. But Ben Gvir is being slammed by a slew of top Israeli officials, including the Israeli prime minister, who said that while Israel has, quote, every right to prevent these flotillas from reaching Gaza, he said, quote, the way that minister Ben Gvir dealt with the flotilla activists is not in line with Israel's values and norms. He said that he has instructed that the activists be deported as soon as possible. We've also heard from other Israeli ministers, including the foreign minister Gidon Saar, and then Mike Huckabee, the U.S.

1:00:32ambassador to Israel, touting many of these criticisms by Israeli officials, calling Ben Gvir's actions, quote, despicable, saying that Ben Gvir had, quote, betrayed the dignity of his nation. We are also hearing fierce condemnation from a slew of European countries, including Italy, France, Spain, all of which summoned the Israeli ambassadors to their respective countries, many of them calling Ben Gvir's actions unacceptable and also raising serious concerns about the fact that Israel detained some 430 foreign activists in international waters, raising questions about the fact that that may be a violation of international law.

1:01:19But it's also important to note that this video is really just scratching the surface. Ben Gvir has spent the last two years boasting about worsening conditions in Israeli prisons. And of course, we've brought accounts of the treatment of some of those prisoners to your show, Jake, like the journalist Ali Samoudi, who lost about half his body weight in an Israeli prison. Jake. All right, our thanks to Jeremy Diamond in Tel Aviv for that report. Today, the Trump administration announced charges against former Cuban President Raul Castro. Coming up next, I'm going to get a reaction from a congresswoman who is the daughter of a Cuban refugee and who says she hopes today's news will lead to regime change in Cuba.

1:01:56Stay with us.

1:02:05In our world, the Justice Department unveiled criminal charges earlier today against former Cuban President Raul Castro, the brother of Fidel Castro. The charges stem from his alleged role in ordering the 1996 shootdown of two civilian aircraft belonging to the Cuban-American group Brothers to the Rescue. Brothers to the Rescue was founded in 1991 as an anti-Castro organization headed by Cuban exiles. They flew humanitarian missions over the Florida Straits, searching for rafters, dropping aid packages for them, and coordinating with the U.S. Coast Guard to rescue them. Four people, including three Americans, were killed in that shootdown.

1:02:39Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the charges against the 94-year-old brother of Fidel Castro this afternoon. This isn't a show indictment. This is an indictment because we expect that there was a warrant issued for his arrest. So we expect that he will show up here by his own will or by another way and go to prison.

1:03:05Cuba's president blasted the indictment posting on X in part, quote, the purported accusation against Army General Raul Castro-Ruz just announced by the U.S. government merely exposes the arrogance and frustration that the representatives of the empire feel because of the Cuban revolution's unwavering steadfastness and the unity and moral strength of its leadership, unquote. CNN's Isabel Rosales spoke earlier with one of the former pilots from Brothers to the Rescue who personally knew two of the four men who were killed that day. How would you like for them to be remembered? Well, there were humanitarians that had big hearts, and they helped out.

1:03:46Sorry.

1:03:50Like ourselves and everybody in there, we all helped out, and we did a lot of things, a lot of good things, and that's how I remember them. But it's hard. Yeah, it's a lot of emotions for you today. It's been 30 years in the making, right? What does it mean to have Raul Castro, that name, at the top of this indictment? He deserved it. My next guest is one of the lawmakers at the forefront calling for this indictment, Republican Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis of New York, whose mother fled Cuba in 1959 as Fidel Castro came to power. Thank you so much for joining us, Congresswoman. I mentioned that he's 94 years old, Raul Castro.

1:04:31He might be the oldest person ever indicted by the federal government, we think. This still, of course, is important for you and your colleagues to do. Explain why and what comes next. Look, he should have been indicted 30 years ago. Unfortunately, we had administrations willing to turn a blind eye to the atrocities, to the murder of American citizens. The Trump administration is not willing to turn a blind eye. They are taking him to account, and they are going to deliver justice, I truly believe, for these families. And I think that this is the first step in real regime change. I mean, we know in 2021 the people of Cuba rose up and to great detriment to themselves.

1:05:08Remember, they don't have freedom of the press. They don't have freedom of speech. They get jailed. They get beaten. They've been even murdered by this regime over the last decades. And this is an opportunity for Cuban Americans to finally see some justice. It's not just been 30 years. Obviously, that atrocity happened 30 years ago. But they've been waiting for 67 years to see this Castro regime held accountable and to see it be eliminated. And hopefully we will see them leave this island, just let the people be. They have starved them. They have oppressed them. They have beaten them. They have tortured them.

1:05:43They have jailed them and murdered them. And I'll tell you, no government has the right to do that. These Cuban people have lived in poverty and misery with little access to food, to medicine, to basic necessities we hold so dearly here in the United States of America. And it's shameful, actually, that some of my colleagues want to act like this is because of America. It's not because of America's embargo. It's because the communist regime, they stole people's businesses, their property, their livelihoods. They've broke up families like mine who were forced to split, stole my grandfather's gas stations, stole many small businesses and homes from people, and they've lived as kings all these decades while the people have lived in misery impoverished.

1:06:25Yeah. Let me ask you. So the Maduro raid took place after an indictment against Maduro. Would you support a similar action in Cuba, a U.S. military raid to seize Raul Castro to bring him to the U.S. for trial? Well, if it's a limited raid that was executed flawlessly, by the way, in Venezuela, I think that that could potentially be a step. I would support that. But I would say that I think that they should just turn themselves over. they should leave the island, quite frankly. If they were to flee, I think at the end of the day, what real justice is, is not just seeing this 94-year-old man going to jail for a couple of years.

1:07:02Real justice is seeing the regime ending, being brought to its knees, being eliminated from the islands, and then actual democracy, being able to have free and fair elections, political parties be able to organize. And remember, this is about the Cuban people. We want them to be free. I certainly have family there that continues to suffer to this day. But this is also about America's national security. We know, right, that they have allowed terrorists to operate, that they have allowed our adversaries to operate. We believe the spy facilities, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Communist China, 90 miles from our shores.

1:07:39They are a real problem in the Western Hemisphere. And as we see country after country changing from socialist to now more center right in South and Central America, this is a real key to this. This is a real key to for freedom loving Americans to to to see prosperity in our region. It's about time we're paying attention to our own backyard. Secretary of State Rubio, who has a similar lineage as you in terms of your mother, released a message today directed specifically towards Cuban residents. By way of explanation, he refers to GAISA. That's an acronym for the military-run conglomerate that controls much of Cuba's economy.

1:08:20Take a listen. El presidente Trump ofrece una nueva relación entre Estados Unidos y Cuba. but it has to be directly with you, the Cuban people, not with Gaza. In the United States, we are ready to open a new chapter in the relationship between our people and our countries. And currently, the only one that is put on the path to a better future is those who control their country. So for those who don't speak Spanish, what he said is Trump is offering a new relationship between the U.S. and Cuba, but it must be directly with you, not the Gaisa. We're ready to open a new chapter in the relationship between our people and our countries.

1:09:01And currently, the only thing standing in the way of a better future are those who control your country. Even if Cubans, and I agree with your assessment of the poor Cuban people who have been oppressed for decades now, even if they want to align with the Trump administration, what is the administration expecting them to do? Well, look, first of all, in another part in that speech, Marco Rubio pointed that$18 billion have basically been held by the communist regime while all their people are suffering with nothing. I think there's so much opportunity here between the United States and Cuba. First of all, it would right away become another main tourist attraction, being that it's 90 miles, beautiful island from our shores.

1:09:39But they need everything. They're going to need everything. You'll see American businesses going in there to help establish, whether it's infrastructure, transportation, health care facilities. you'll see definitely a lot of investment. People have been waiting to do that type of investment in business in Cuba and bring some capitalism truly to the island. I think also people are going to want to see their homes. They're going to want to see what was stolen from them returned. So hopefully that could be part of this conversation. But really I think it's about having the support for the Cuban people as they try to establish free and fair elections.

1:10:13That means they're going to have to be able to have freedom of the press, see actual media being established there so they can learn what's going on. Right now, it's only what the regime tells them. They hardly have any internet or access to anything unless it's state-owned media that's telling them the reporting, which we know is obviously full of propaganda. So we want them to have freedom of speech, being able to go to the streets and protest and have their voices heard, freedom of assembly, freedom of press, and then, of course, free and fair elections, which means that they'd be able to establish political parties and to exercise their political will.

1:10:48So I think all of that the United States can be very helpful in, and we should be helpful in, because this would be a real key to national security and the Western Hemisphere. Congresswoman Nicole Meliotakis, Republican of New York, thank you so much. One member of the Castro family who has not fallen in line is the daughter of Fidel Castro. In fact, she's been estranged for decades. CNN's Carolina Peguero traveled to her home in Miami. Inside a modest Miami home, far from Havana and far from power. This is your home sweet home? Yes, this is my humble abode. Alina Fernandez, daughter of Cuba's Fidel Castro, is opening a deeply personal window into a complicated legacy.

1:11:33So this is your mother? This is my mother. I think she passed speaking about him. And who's him? about Fidel Castro. I think she lasted in love for as long as she lived, which for me is very difficult to understand. But as the coffee cools, stories about family memories slowly shift to politics and an uncertain future for Cuba as relations with the U.S. reach a near breaking point. With renewed pressure from President Donald Trump and Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel warning of a bloodbath should the U.S. attempt to attack the island. Do you see an invasion of the U.S. in Cuba territory? I think that at this point it depends on the Cubans, which is very worrisome.

1:12:21And why does that worry you? What do you feel will be? Who can desire or want an invasion for this country? As easy as it is to say it's sitting here. She says decades of sanctions and confrontation have hardened Cuba's leadership, creating a government she believes has learned to survive under pressure and respond when challenged. This is not the first time they are told that an invasion is coming immediately. We've been under invasion for the last 67 years or the threat of an invasion. I'm sure they are prepared. I will remind everybody that the capacity for reaction of the Cuban regime shouldn't be undermined and underestimated.

1:13:08That can make the difference between a bloodbath and something else. Alina believes Cuba will not cave to U.S. pressure. Yet she is short of saying an invasion is the only way to free the island from the revolution her father once led. I feel like every other Cuban these times, hopeful, frustrated, sad, hopeful again. Hope prevails.

1:13:38And Jake, I just spoke to Alina moments ago to get her reaction on her uncle Raul Castro's indictment today. And she says like many Cubans here, she is celebrating but now waiting on the next steps of the U.S. government. Jake. Carolina Peguero, thank you so much. Appreciate it. Reporting there live from Miami. President Trump exacted his revenge once again last night. And today he's signaling who might be his next target. Our panel weighs in.

1:14:11In our politics lead, now that the president has dispatched some of his perceived Republican foes, added a Massey-shaped pelt to his wall. He's now taking aim at Republican Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania. Here's Trump taking a question from the congressman's fiance, Jackie Heinrich, who's a Fox correspondent. This was this morning. When her husband votes against me all the time, can you imagine? I don't know what's with him. You better ask him what's with him. Her husband, she's married to a certain congressman. He likes voting against Trump. You know what happens with that. It doesn't work out well.

1:14:51I'll tell you what's up with him. He represents a district that Conal Harris won. Let's discuss this and more with the panel. Rob, here is how Congressman Fitzpatrick from suburban Philly responded just moments ago. I've been primary five times from the right. But if he pours millions of dollars into someone else. Listen, anybody can do what they want. It's not gonna change how I conduct myself. You know, I believe in the institution. I believe in democracy. I believe in giving people a voice. And, you know, that's the way I've always felt. Now, we had James Blair from the White House here earlier.

1:15:27He basically was saying, look, the president really isn't targeting him. He wasn't going after him the way he went after Massey. He just said that he doesn't vote my way. It's not really an attack. What do you think? Well, I think the president needs to strike the right balance here. Obviously, he's frustrated by some of Congressman Fitzpatrick's votes. Fitzpatrick himself, as you indicated, is one of, I think, three Republicans who won in districts carried by Kamala Harris. But at the same time, the margin is so narrow in the U.S. House that the president is going to need the congressman's vote on some key pieces of legislation before the end of the year, particularly if they're serious about getting another reconciliation package through the House.

1:16:03Yeah. Let me assure you, and I don't need to tell you this, the Philly suburbs are not rural Kentucky. I spent a lot of time and money in this district trying to beat this guy. And this guy relates a lot with working class, blue collar folks who live in those suburbs. We threw everything and he still wants. So when he's in Congress, he likes to play both sides a little bit because it's good politics for him in this Philly suburbs district. Yeah. Republican Congressman Mike Collins and Derek Dooley are now advancing in the Georgia Republican Senate runoff. The winner will face Democratic Senator John Ossoff.

1:16:33Senator Ossoff shared this reaction from his communications director, quote, Trump, puppets, Collins and Dooley have made themselves terminally inseparable from this toxic president. Now the failed congressman, who was only a congressman because his daddy was a congressman, and the failed coach, who was only a coach because his daddy was a coach, limp into a month-long race to the bottom that will surely leave both broke and unelectable. That doesn't sound like, you know, people talk about Ossoff maybe running for president in 2028. That doesn't really sound like a 2028 contender, though. It sounds like he's trying to raise some money and take some advantage online because that's where all the money's been given.

1:17:10He's one of the top fundraisers just off of small dollar donations. One in every four donations online for Democrats has went to Ossoff. And he can sit back for 30 days while these guys fight each other and fight it out. For the long term, he needs to figure out how to persuade voters around rural Atlanta and then turn out black voters in Atlanta if he wants to win. Well, what do you make of him like calling them Trump puppets? Yeah, it seemed a little immature. John Ossoff has been able to create this perception that he's some kind of a moderate. In reality, I looked up his score on the Heritage Action scorecard.

1:17:45This term in Congress is zero. His lifetime is 4%. Bernie Sanders has a 12 % lifetime score on the Heritage Action scorecard, Jake. So he is somebody who votes with the far left of his party. And I think that that is the winning formula for both of these Republicans is not necessarily to do battle with themselves and damage themselves, as we're seeing in Texas. Right, Chuck? But actually, actually turn it off. But anyway. One of the things going on right now with both parties is members of Congress who are basically AWOL. And there's a congresswoman, Federica Wilson. She's a Democrat from Florida.

1:18:15Congressman Tom Kane, Jr., a Republican from New Jersey. They're both seeking reelection. Both have been missing from Congress. they say because of medical reasons. Speaker Johnson was asked about Congressman Cain today, who has not voted since March 5th. Here's what the speaker had to say. I talked to Tom, it's been a few weeks ago now, on the phone, and he sounded good and optimistic, and we're expecting him back here soon. He's had a medical issue, and he's going to be fully transparent and disclose all that. I mean, that's what he told me. But I don't even know the details, And I, you know, I have to respect that.

1:18:49It's a member's personal privacy on whatever matters they're dealing with. But we expect to have him back soon. So he's missed more than 80 House roll call votes. And certainly people have medical issues. But don't his constituents deserve an explanation? Absolutely. I mean, I'm a huge advocate of transparency. I'm also a big supporter of term limits. And I think that right now, maybe U.S. Congress, both on the Republican and Democrat side, could benefit from having a debate about that again. It's been years since we've had a conversation, it seems. I know Rahm Emanuel's thrown out this idea of an age limit, I think of 75 for members of Congress, just because of some of the ongoing health issues that have popped up on both sides of the aisle.

1:19:26There are certain things that should be nonpartisan. Folks should be able to get to work. They work for us. They also should not be able to trade stocks if they want to have term limits. Let's have this conversation. When you run for Congress, you open yourself up to work for the American people. And if you don't come to work, they should know. Thanks to both of you. Appreciate it. Liberal icon, gay rights trailblazer, Wall Street reformer. Up next, we're going to remember the life and career of former Congressman Barney Frank, who left an indelible mark on those who knew him through his quick wit and passionate voice.

1:19:51We spoke with him just a few weeks ago. Stay with us.

1:20:02Some sad news in our politics lead. Former Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank has died at the age of 86. He was an outspoken progressive stalwart known for his sharp tongue and sarcastic wit during his more than three decades in Congress. Frank was also a trailblazer for gay rights, becoming the first member of Congress to publicly come out as gay openly in 1987. It was just a few days ago that I interviewed Barney Frank from Hospice Care in what would be one of his final interviews. A couple more questions for you, sir. They're more philosophical in nature. Yeah, I'm better than I sound. Okay.

1:20:40What do you want? I'm better than I look. You look great. What do you want people to remember about Congressman Barney Frank? Oh, that I was smart enough and learned enough about the reaction not to answer that question. On behalf of myself, who's enjoyed covering you for decades and admired your passion and your brain and your quick wit that I'll miss you. Thank you. But beyond that, what do you want young people watching to know? Well, okay, that's a good question. And I'm going to do it specifically with gay rights. There's a lot of angst among other gay and lesbian people. Oh, we're going to lose our rights.

1:21:27They're going to take things away. And my answer is no. In fact, the history of gay rights shows the positive capacity of our system. So I want younger people, all people, to understand that a political majority can get things done more than people think. Marty Frank was 86 years old. May his memory be a blessing. You can follow me on Facebook, Instagram, ThreadsX, Blue Sky, and on the TikTok at Jake Tapper. or you can follow the show on X and Instagram at The Lead CNN. If you ever miss an episode of The Lead, you can watch the show on the CNN app. Erin Burnett out front starts now.

1:22:14I'm Eva Longoria, and I'm setting out to really experience France to savor its world-celebrated cuisine and explore the country's rich history. Eva Longoria, searching for France. Now streaming on the CNN app. I'm CNN tech reporter Claire Duffy. This week on the podcast, Terms of Service. What do we know about how much AI is contributing to energy consumption, energy demand right now? And how does that compare with other industries? The best resource for that is the International Energy Agency, which is sort of the global energy think tank that collects data on all of this. And what they predict is that about 8 % of the additional electricity that we're going to need by 2030, that will be for data centers.

1:22:58The other 92 % is for other things, industry electrification, electric vehicles. And AI is really only driving part of that increase in demand. Listen to CNN's Terms of Service wherever you get your podcasts.