Trump Rejects Latest Proposal From Iran

26:01Well, when we can amend those dates and be able to push them back to allow us to be able to draw them, Alabama ought to have that opportunity. We have the ability to do so. The governor's acted proactively to give us the opportunity to adopt those new dates. And I think the legislature will act consistent with that. In the event, the Supreme Court removes the injunctive terms that right now are governed by in the prior case. The 2023 Alabama map, in addition to only having that one majority black congressional district, only had one Democratic leaning district. The current map, which changed the makeup of District 2, also means that the District 2 elected a black Democratic congressman.

26:39Now, it's not exactly a secret that the president and national Republican leaders are pushing for all this redistricting in the middle of the decade. This kind of thing usually happens after the census at the end of the decade. They're pushing for this in the middle of the decade because they're worried that Republicans are going to lose the House. this is going to give them a better shot of winning the midterms. Have you heard directly from the president or any administration or national party Republican officials? I haven't, but what I haven't heard is from our constituents. And the people of Alabama expect me to use the authority given to me as attorney general to make sure that their interests are represented.

27:21That's why we made that filing yesterday, that we're asking the court to be able to act, to then enable our legislature to act accordingly. and that is to be able to have a map that's consistent with those in our state and who they want representing. So theoretically, let me just ask you this as a philosophical question. Why is redistricting for more Republicans for purely partisan reasons? Why is that better than an effort to make sure historically disadvantaged minorities who haven't exactly had the greatest centuries in Alabama, making sure that they have more representation? Why is the partisan goal more important?

28:02Jack, one of the things I think this court did in Calais is recognize that the Alabama of 2026, again, is not the Alabama of the early 1960s. It's a new time and a different era. The individuals that are representing our state right now, when you look, We are a majority Republican state, ruby red, and those that are seeking to represent all of our constitutional officers are from the Republican Party. Our legislature should have the opportunity again to do what we saw in a very different way in the state of Virginia, in drawing a map that has changed the party representation of those in Congress for Virginia.

28:38Alabama ought to have that same ability. Lawyers for the NAACP filed a motion to oppose your injunction today. They write that the district court had found that, quote, Alabama had a pervasive and protracted history of discrimination, including multiple findings of intentional racial discrimination issued in the last 10 years. In sharp contrast, in Louisiana, this court noted a lack of evidence that black voters had faced intentional discrimination in recent years. Do you think it's reasonable that your state be treated differently in this case than other states with different historic backgrounds?

29:11And Jake, I disagree with the characterization of those findings. In fact, if you look at one of the reasons why the three-judge panel acted as they did is that Alabama's legislature refused to draw a map that right now, Collette has said, is patently unconstitutional. That is, you cannot draw districts using race as a predominant factor. The court found that Louisiana did that improperly. And the fact that Alabama refused to do so reflects that it acted consistent with the language of this Section two of the Voting Rights Act and didn't do something that would otherwise violate the Constitution.

29:42Alabama's Republican Attorney General Steve Marshall, thank you so much for your time today, sir. Appreciate it. Thank you. A rare move today from former President Joe Biden. We're going to talk about his new endorsement in a must-watch race for governor.

30:18Anyway, give it a try at MintMobile.com slash switch. Upfront payment of$45 for three-month plan, equivalent to$15 per month required. Intro rate first three months only. Then full price plan options available. Taxes and fees extra. See full terms at MintMobile.com. From Emma to Georgia in our politics lead, where Governor Hopeful Democrat Keisha Lance Bonham just picked up a notable endorsement. And then she came to the White House and served as a senior advisor. And I'll tell you, those same qualities that made her a great mayor made her invaluable to our administration. Smart, focused, gets things done.

30:54Georgia, she's ready. She's been ready. Keisha Lads bottomed for governor. Now I'm proud to be in her corner, just like she was in mine. Let's get this thing done. Former President Biden has been relatively quiet during the second Trump term in terms of his public events. Today's endorsement marks his very first four way into the 2026 midterm elections. My panel joins me now. Arlette, you covered Biden throughout his presidency. Why would he wade into this race? Well, for this race specifically in the Georgia's governor's race, it's really about loyalty. President Biden had a longtime relationship with Keisha Lance Bottoms.

31:32She actually endorsed him very early on when he ran for president back in 2019 and then served as a senior advisor in his White House. But we really haven't seen Biden weighed into a lot of these political races, except for commenting kind of towards the end when they've started to wrap up. But Keisha Lance Bottoms campaign is betting that this is something that maybe might resonate with some Democratic primary voters, maybe particularly black voters in the Atlanta area down in Georgia. But there are real questions about whether Biden will be deployed in any other campaigns, especially as Democrats continue to harbor a lot of frustrations about the way that his final years in office played.

32:09Well, yeah, that's I mean, I guess that's one of the questions. When Biden left office, he had a 33 percent approval rating to be diplomatic. I don't think this ad will make people not think about what happened in 2023 and 2024. Is there a risk here? Of course, there's a risk here. But I mean, the pro Biden argument would be, look, he was the first Democrat to win Georgia in a generation. During that same cycle, you got two Democratic senators from Georgia. He has overperformed with black voters ever since he was Barack Obama's vice president. But then the risk is he looks old. And there was this great book called Original Sin.

32:51And in that book, they talked about the way that they would edit his videos. And so you look at that video and you notice you don't see more than about a half second of him before they go to a cut of it, which makes you think, could they even get through the entire take cleanly, which reminds people of, oh, yeah, that was one of the most painful periods of the modern Democratic Party. What happened in 2024? And does it make her look like she's looking towards the future or the past? And elections are best or when they're about the future. Sure. President Trump was asked today about his early 2024 campaign rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

33:31His term is coming to an end. It's a term limited in in in Florida. And he was asked whether or not there is a place for DeSantis in his cabinet. Should that happen?

33:51would you consider ron desantis for a cabinet position well i like him a lot so nobody did i like him a lot that's not a commitment but the same token um desantis has you know been friendly. He's redistricting according to Trump's desires. We know that he's tapped previous rivals to be in his cabinet. Look at the Secretary of State. Marco Rubio ran against him. As long as you show the loyalty towards Trump, he likes people that are good on TV. He likes people who have successful records. So then you think about, well, where could he go? A natural place would be Homeland Security because he's a former Navy guy.

34:30That job is already taken now. Attorney general is open. Ron DeSantis is an attorney. So could that be a place where he goes? Who knows? One other thing that they would still probably need to work through is that there's still lingering animosity in Trump world towards Ron DeSantis. Just for running against him to begin with? Running against him. But then there's also, I mean, think back to Susie Wiles and James Blair. They previously worked for Ron DeSantis. We saw a lot of that tension play out in 2024. Those are two key members of the president's inner circle. Chief of Staff and Deputy Chief of Staff.

35:05Exactly. And so it still kind of remains to be seen whether they would fully open their arms and embrace Ron DeSantis back in the cabinet. But Ron DeSantis also has to think about his own political future as his time in Florida and the governorship is running out pretty soon. And so does he want to mount another bid for president, whether it's in 2028 or 20 or beyond? And would a cabinet position help in any of that. There's also the question of 2028 and who is going to be the heir apparent to Donald Trump, who is going to be the Republican nominee. And President Trump obviously has J.D. Vance there.

35:37Right. Senator, Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he's not running and that J.D. Vance will be a great candidate, but one never knows. And I guess there's also the question, if he puts DeSantis in his cabinet, that would make another potential, that would help DeSantis if he chooses to run, too. Or potentially not. Right. Because you could make the argument that maybe Vance and Rubio would have the pro-Trump lane, and maybe Trump will not be polling that popular at that point. Among Republicans? Well, who knows? Look at what's happening with Iran. I mean, who knows? And so that could give him the ability to run to be the one against Trump.

36:12You would think that you're better off, but it's hard to be more pro-Trump at this point than J.D. Vance or Marco Rubio. What do you think about the 2028? I mean, I've also heard rumblings about Donald Trump Jr. I mean, anything's really possible. Yeah, I think that everyone's going to be waiting to see where exactly J.D. Vance's position is as they are getting out of these midterm elections. Whether he will kind of bear the brunt of any of the frustration relating to the Iran war, the economy. But there is a host of people who could decide that they want to challenge him. I mean, one person that comes up sometimes is Brian Kemp down in Georgia, the governor there who is backing Derek Dooley in the Senate race.

36:51So there's still a lot of moving pieces, but I think a lot of people will be watching to see where is J.D. Vance? So speaking of governors, you are going to be moderating with Caitlin Collins, CNN's big debate for the California governor's race. It's a jungle primary, meaning the top two vote getters from whatever party are going to be on the ballot in November. They could be two Democrats, could be two Republicans. Who has momentum right now, if anyone? The most momentum has been Javier Becerra, the former HHS secretary. Several polls show him gaining the most. Some show him in the lead. Steve Hilton, the Republican, seems to be doing very well as well.

37:27It looks like those two are the top two right now. Right behind him is Tom Steyer, who spent$140 million of his own money to try to get into that top two. He's got some momentum as well. But all of them are relatively close and within the margin of error of some polls, which is why this race is so interesting and why the debate is so pivotal. About four or five of them have realistic chances of being the next governor of California. What are you going to be looking for in their debate? I think trying to see if anyone is actually able to differentiate themselves in the pack. As he was talking about, this race is so splintered.

38:01Is this something that's going to end up with two Democrats at the top of this primary? or is there going to be a Republican that squeezes in? And really, this debate is one of their final chances to make this case to voters. Very exciting. Congratulations. Thanks, Jay. Alex, we're going to look for more tonight on your show. It's called The Story Is. It's tonight at midnight Eastern, 9 p.m. Pacific. And of course, we're going to see you in CNN's California gubernatorial primary debate next week. Alex and CNN's Caitlin Collins are going to moderate. That's Tuesday, 9 p.m. Eastern, 6 Pacific. We're going to carry that on CNN, on the CNN app, on CNN International.

38:34and CNN en Español. Do it all. Yeah, next here on The Lead inside the Pentagon's New Deal with seven big tech companies, what this means for global warfare and national defense, and later here on The Lead, actor Adam Scott, after playing Mark S. on Severance. We're going to ask him when the new season's coming out. We're also going to talk to him about his new movie, which opens today. Stay with us.

39:01A new government contract Tractops are series AI, friend or foe, which covers the impact of artificial intelligence today. The Pentagon announced a deal with seven major tech companies to use their AI tools in classified government networks. CNN AI correspondent Hadass Gold has the latest. Hadass, what companies are included, what are not included in this, and what are the terms of the deal? Jake, until recently, Anthropik's Claude was essentially the only AI model that could be used on the Pentagon's classified military systems. But then they had the disagreement with the Pentagon over whether Anthropik could put guardrails over its AI models use in autonomous weapons or in the mass surveillance of American citizens.

39:43The Pentagon slapped that supply chain risk designation on them. They are fighting that out in court. So in the meantime, the Pentagon was looking for replacements. They had already signed on with OpenAI for them to be able to use OpenAI's models in classified systems. And now they've announced deals with these other companies. They include Google, NVIDIA, Microsoft, Amazon, SpaceX as well, Elon Musk's company, and a small startup called Reflection. Last year's One Big Beautiful Bill included a lot of money for the Pentagon to be able to spend on things like AI and offensive cyber operations. So a lot of these tech companies have been jostling for this money.

40:17But I wanted to point out a bit of a cognitive dissonance happening with the administration, because on the one hand, you have the Pentagon calling Anthropica supply chain risk, essentially saying they're a dangerous company to work with. On the other hand, you have the White House regularly meeting now with Anthropica. Dari Lameday was at the White House meeting with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, the White House calling the meeting productive. that happened in the last few weeks, Axios is now reporting that the White House is even developing guidance that would allow agencies to get around the supply chain risk designation to be able to work with those models.

40:46So what is it? Are they a dangerous company or was this whole situation about something else? Now, as for those other companies that have signed onto the contracts, the Pentagon has said that they have allowed their AI model to be used for all lawful purposes. Some of these companies have said that they have commitments in their contracts around those specific issues Anthropic was worried about around mass surveillance and around autonomous weapons. But there has been some disagreement in the legal community about what do those commitments actually mean and are they legally binding and what could happen with that?

41:16And there was some resistance even from within some of these companies. At Google, there were employees who were publicly posting on X, signing open letters as well, trying to convince Google executives not to sign with the Pentagon. One of their employees even calling it shameful in a post on X. But obviously, Google moved forward, signed on, and said that they are proud to be part of this consortium of companies working to help with the infrastructure for national security. Jake. Welcome to The Lead. I'm Jake Tapper. This hour, President Trump rejects Iran's latest peace proposal, telling the country that it now has two choices.

41:52Make a deal he likes, or the U.S. military will, quote, blast the hell out of them and finish them forever, unquote. Meanwhile, the Strait of Hormuz remains closed. Gas prices are up 33 cents in the past week. And a new poll shows most Americans think starting this conflict was a bad idea. So what now? Plus, a rare moment of bipartisanship on Capitol Hill. There is a new push to ban AI chatbots for kids. But is this a decision the government should be making or should it be left up to parents? One of the lawmakers leading the charge joins me in moments. Also, So early voting was set to begin Saturday in Louisiana.

42:31Some ballots had already been mailed out, but now U.S. House primaries have been postponed after the U.S. Supreme Court threw out Louisiana's maps. One of the Democrats who could be affected by these changes will join us live ahead. And you surely know him from the hit shows Parks and Rec and Severance, the movie Step Brothers. actor and comedian Adam Scott is here to tell us about his brand new film out in theaters. Now, it might not be what you would expect.

43:05The lead tonight, President Trump says he's not satisfied with Iran's latest proposal to end the war. Trump warning, only two options are left. Take a listen. We want to go and just blast the hell out of him and finish him forever, or do we want to try and make a deal? Those are the options. Do you want to go blast the hell out of them? I prefer not. On a human basis, I prefer not. But that's the option. Trump also signaling he will not seek official permission from Congress to extend the war with Iran. He called the 60-day war powers deadline, quote, totally unconstitutional. 60 days ago was when President Trump formally notified Congress of the military action.

43:45But the Trump administration appears to be making some type of effort to comply with Congress by sending a formal letter. The letter notifies Republican leadership of changes to the U.S. posture when it comes to Iran as part of his efforts to keep the Congress fully informed, consistent with the War Powers resolution. All of this coming as a new poll shows just how unpopular this war is with the American people. The Washington Post, ABC News, Ipsos poll shows 61 percent of Americans say it was a mistake to use military force against Iran. That sentiment could get worse because gas prices continue to surge, jumping nine cents from yesterday.

44:23Now four dollars and 39 cents a gallon. CNN's Caitlin Collins is here. CNN's Nick Robertson is in Pakistan. And Nick, to you first, President Trump said Iran is asking for things he cannot agree to. what are your sources saying about what's in Iran's latest proposal? We don't have specific details on what's inside of it, but we got an insight in it today, meeting with a senior Iranian official. And at that time, a couple of hours before Iran dropped its new proposal, I asked him if they were going to drop a new proposal. And he said, I don't know. But within an hour or so of us getting out of that meeting, they did.

45:04So I can only view what he said in the sort of prism of this was his spin on how to interpret what they're doing. And he said, OK, how do we move this situation forward? And then he answered his own question by saying we need to have a simultaneous suspension of the blockades on the Strait of Hormuz. Then he went on to say, but who's going to guarantee that the U.S. Navy doesn't move in and take our places? So clearly, if that is the opening gambit here, it's also saying there maybe some conditionality on it. I asked him about the nuclear enrichment and he continued to say, we haven't got an agreement with the US to hand over highly enriched uranium.

45:43We would dilute it ourselves, he said, is the latest position on an enrichment itself, period. He says other countries in the region get to do civilian enrichment. We're entitled. There's a change on the Iranian position there. I asked him about the state of economy. He said, we're ready to continue suffering. And I also asked about what the president's talking about, this disrupted leadership. I said, are you able to speak to the supreme leader? Are you able to get messages to him and clear messages back? And what about all these different factions? He admitted there were different groups, but he said the supreme leader takes all these different views, and as he described, it takes the logical parts out of those different views, puts them together.

46:26And he said the Supreme Leader absolutely directs the big picture of how we negotiate with the United States. And as the Supreme Leader just yesterday said that they wanted to make money out of the Strait of Hamas. I mean, that position, we don't know if that's in the proposal, but it's all adding up to a picture there that would be deeply problematic for President Trump. And Caitlin, it was only one week ago, although in Trump years, that's a full year ago. One week ago, we were talking about Jared Kushner and Steve Whitcoff going to Pakistan for these peace talks. Now we're here. What are you hearing from your sources in the White House about how they view this current status of the war?

47:08I mean, they're basically making clear that we're nowhere near talks happening. Certainly not in person, certainly not in Pakistan. And the president today was saying it's far too long to get there and it's not worth sending people like Jared Kushner and Steve Wyckoff all the way there for these talks. And he was citing how disjointed the Iranian leadership is. He's saying, I don't like their proposal, but I don't even know the proposal's merits. He was talking about how, you know, they're hearing all kinds of things and how chaotic it is of the messages they are getting out of Iran right now.

47:35And he also said this in terms of where these talks stand in this moment. We had to cease fire. So that gives you additional time. I don't think that it's constitutional what they're asking for. These are not patriotic people that are asking. Many presidents, as you know, have gone and exceeded it. It's never been used. It's never been adhered to. And every other president considered it totally unconstitutional. And we agree with that. What's clear from the comment there about what's happening here in Washington is that there's no end game in sight or no end date, I should say, for this war right now.

48:11And so the president is pushing back on these limits by even Republicans here in Washington to at least kind of define this conflict. That's how Lisa Murkowski framed it yesterday in terms of wanting to vote on the authorization of force. And the arguments from the White House are simultaneously in the administration are simultaneously that it doesn't matter. The clock doesn't matter because it's unconstitutional. But also, if the clock does matter, it doesn't matter right now because they're in the ceasefire and there's no active war happening. But, I mean, you could argue there are hostilities.

48:40And when you read the War Powers Resolution, it's only three pages. It says if there are hostilities, that is something they need to go to Congress for. Yeah, they have a blockade. There's a blockade in effect right now. And obviously the Strait of Hormuz is also closed. But obviously the president is making the argument that a lot of his predecessors have also made. And so there's not, you know, this groundswell of Republicans demanding he come. There's a lot of them also saying, well, he doesn't really need to, which is what he's arguing, saying it's unconstitutional. Yeah, and also not a groundswell of members of Congress who want to vote on a war.

49:12They like to avoid that in general. Caitlin Collins, Nick Robertson, thanks to both of you. And of course, don't miss Caitlin on her show, The Source, with Caitlin Collins. Tonight, her guests include Democratic Congressman Jamie Raskin of Maryland. That's tonight at 9 Eastern on CNN. Let's bring in a Democratic senator, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. He sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Senator, what's your response to President Trump calling the 60-day war powers resolution totally unconstitutional? It is constitutional. Congress has not only the opportunity, it has an obligation to vote on whether to declare war.

49:51And the president saying that hostilities have terminated clearly is a false distraction in a war of delusion. Hostilities are continuing, as Caitlin Collins said so well. The blockade itself is an act of war, and it is continuing, along with other military operations and the president's own threats to destroy Iran's civilization, to bomb its oil wells and storage facilities. Clearly, hostilities are continuing, and the president's required under the law to come to Congress. Turning to a different topic, you're leading a bipartisan bill which would ban artificial intelligence chatbots for kids.

50:34It would require AI companies to implement an age verification process. The Senate Judiciary Committee, which you also sit on, unanimously voted yesterday to advance this legislation. Do you think Senate Majority Leader John Thune will bring it to the floor for a vote? This measure has overwhelming support, as you know from the excellent reporting you've done on technology. and you had some of the parents on your show, and they have been so powerful, so eloquent and credible. I think John Thune will put it on the floor. It is totally bipartisan. Senator John Fawley has said he will seek a unanimous consent, and I will join him if it's not put on the floor.

51:19And I think that this ban on companies, AI companies entering into toxic, false relationships with fictional machine characters is destroying lives. It is enabling and enticing suicides and other self-destruction. I'm done with the reliance on companies to police themselves. I'm done with trust us. And I think the majority of Americans are as well. and certainly my colleagues when I listen to the parents over the tech companies. So the counter argument obviously would be that this bill is invasive. It harms free expression. It keeps kids from all the positive ways that AI chatbots can help them.

52:06What would be your response to that? And also just the question about whether chatbots and AI companies, their services are protected under the First Amendment. It's an absolute ruse, Jay. It's the same argument that tobacco companies make. It's the same argument that companies make when they design a defective product. It is about safe product design. These machines that speak individually to children and create these relationships of trust with fictional characters or offer professional advice to non-minors, to adults, are not making public statements. It is a product that has been designed, in essence, to make more money at the expense of children's and other safety.

52:58So it is not about free expression of the First Amendment. And to invoke that shield is the height of arrogance and irresponsibility on the part of the tech companies. I'm exempting you and some of your colleagues from this criticism, so don't take it personally. But it really does feel like the House and Senate are way behind when it comes to regulating what's going on in the Internet and technology space. I mean, AI just in the last year has made such advances, some of it great, some of it really, really troubling. Why is the House and Senate, why are our legislators so behind? Is it too complicated?

53:35Is it just there's so much to regulate? or is there just so much tech money heading their way? It's both. The topic is complex and challenging and it is fast moving as you have covered so well. But I will say there's been a lot of bipartisan support in the Senate. The Kids Online Safety Act, which Senator Blackburn and I, she's a Republican from Tennessee. I'm a Democrat from Connecticut. We agree on very little. Likewise, Senator Hawley and I on the Guard Act dealing with the chatbots. And if this measure is put on the floor of the Senate, it will pass like the Kids Online Safety Act did last session, 91 to 3.

54:21But the tech money, the armies of lobbyists and lawyers are very powerful. And last session, even after COSA passed, they were able to stymie a vote. In fact, there was no vote in the House of Representatives. I'm hoping that parents and kids advocates and others who form such a powerful argument and the more visibility we give it will carry the day this time around. But I'm not underestimating. I'm very clear-eyed about the power and sway of the big tech companies. And by the way, along with trust me, they say, oh, we're not against regulation. Just not that regulation. You know, I'm done with trusting the big tech companies.

55:13All right, Senator Richard Blumenthal, Democrat of Connecticut. Thank you so much. Appreciate it. My next guest could lose his seat in Congress after the U.S. Supreme Court decision this week. Congressman Troy Carter of Louisiana is here as Democrats are filing lawsuits trying to fight back ahead of the midterms. And this was the scene in Raleigh, North Carolina today as May Day protesters marched through town. CNN's teams attended events across the U.S. and the world. We're going to have those images for you ahead.

55:42Our politics lead votes already cast in Louisiana's upcoming primary elections will not count. That's according to the Louisiana Secretary of State, Nancy Landry. But some voters are now asking a state judge to block the order of Governor Jeff Landry, no relation, delaying next month's election. This was issued one day after the U.S. Supreme Court tossed out Louisiana's long-contested congressional map, opening the door for Republicans to redraw the map to their advantage. Joining us to discuss is a Democrat running for re-election in Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District Congressman Troy Carter.

56:18Congressman, what's your reaction to the news? Well, I think that it's unconscionable. The elections have already begun. We have servicemen and women who are serving at home and abroad who have cast their ballots. We have our senior citizens who have cast their ballots. These are potentially irreparable harms that can face them. Our military people, our senior citizens who every time at 80, 90 years old when they vote, it could very well be their last. And the thought that their vote won't count is unconscionable. You know, we've seen this test happen before. Four years ago, when Garrett Graves had a similar situation where his district was deemed to be unconstitutional, it was said that it was too close to the election.

57:06So we'd wait two years. Two years went by. The district maps were redrawn, which is what gave birth to District 6, where Cleo Fields now serves. That race was much further out than this one. This race is here. People have already begun voting, early voting in place. Early voting begins tomorrow at 8 a.m. It is a devastating blow to people who have cast their vote. And to have them nullified is just patently wrong. You and Congressman Cleo Fields, who you just referenced, the state's two black Democratic House members, could be affected by this redrawn map, either endangering your seats or forcing you to run against each other.

57:49Have you spoken with Congressman Fields about either of those potential outcomes? I have. We serve very well together. He's a friend. We represent the same state. We served in the state Senate together and we are working in. and the right for individuals to cast their votes. This ruling from the Supreme Court was a punch to the belly to the democracy of our country. When you look at a ruling that says it's okay to a partisan gerrymander, to singularly cut out people of your party and choose a district so it favors a party, But on the other hand, make it next to impossible to prove that you've been discriminated against.

58:40The notion that you would have such a difficult task of saying that you have to prove intent. Proving intent is a throwback to Jim Crow when African Americans had to look at a jelly bean jar and guess how many jelly beans were in that jar in order to vote. This is tantamount to the jelly bean jar test. How do you prove intent of someone that is attempting to draw a line that discriminates against you? People have a million ways to disguise their nefarious acts. We know this. When you start breaking up pockets of African American votes, you're discriminated against them because you're watering down their ability to coalesce and vote and block.

59:24but on the other hand, you allow them to use that same block with a party. That's just unconstitutional in my estimation and certainly unconscionable. What's your reaction to the Supreme Court's basic reasoning, the majority on the court, that the Voting Rights Act has served its purpose and black Americans now vote at similar rates or even better as the rest of the electorate and so it's not needed? If we were living in a colorblind society, if we were living in a society that was post the generations of discrimination where we no longer had race as an issue, perhaps that would be an acceptable premise.

1:00:08But we know, particularly in the Deep South, that just isn't true. Hence the fact that we have never had an African-American elected statewide in the state of Louisiana. The last person, the first person, was John Willis Menard, an African-American from New Orleans who was elected to the first African-American elected to the United States Congress 150 years ago in the very seat that I sit in. But he was never seated because someone went to the well of the House of the Floor of the United States Congress and said, Congress is not ready for a Negro to be a part of this body. And summarily, they chose to not seat him.

1:00:48Here we are 150 years later facing those same battles, people having the right to be elected, but powers that be determining, no, you won't. Look at what happened here in Louisiana with Calvin Duncan, a duly elected person to serve as clerk of criminal district court. This governor decided summarily they would do away with his seat, even though the people of New Orleans voted him in overwhelmingly. His seat has now been eliminated. That's not democracy. That's not democracy. That's something else. Last I checked, this was still America. But if you look at the actions and what's happening, this is not demonstrative of a free country.

1:01:28This is not demonstrative of America or free and fair elections. Congressman Troy Carter, Democrat of Louisiana. Thank you so much. Appreciate it. Prosecutors releasing new images, they say, show the weapons that the suspect had on him when he tried to storm the White House Correspondents Association dinner last Saturday night. CNN's Tom Foreman is digging into how these new images help build this timeline of what allegedly happened.

1:01:54We're back with our law and justice lead and a closer look now at the new video showing the suspected gunman who prosecutors say tried to assassinate President Trump and members of his cabinet at last Saturday night's White House Correspondents Association dinner. CNN's Tom Foreman zeroed in on the actions captured on the surveillance video inside the hotel and the timeline that starts exactly one week ago today. Friday, April 24th. The FBI says this video shows the suspected shooter just before 9 p.m. on the day before the correspondent's dinner, walking down a hallway and gesturing in the host hotel where he was a guest.

1:02:32The man enters the gym, chats with an attendant, checks out the equipment, then leaves, once again glancing at doorways in the hall. For this investigation into what officials say was a plot to kill the president, these videos, the man's movements, his actions can all be critical evidence. To find out whether or not he had the intent to and whether we can prove he had the intent to kill additional people by name based upon what we determine from the investigation. Saturday, April 25th, the night of the dinner. The FBI released this video, which seems to show the same man in a long coat heading down the same hall.

1:03:12At the end of which, a third video shows law enforcement officers working on a magnetometer, a metal detector used to screen dinner guests. Investigators say that's the alleged gunman in the background, ducking through a set of doors. A police dog quickly follows the man through the doors. The dog's handler pulls him back. The dog returns to the man again, but is pulled away once more. Then the suspect rushes out and toward the security checkpoint with what appears to be a shotgun in his hands. It was immediate. It was right at the MAG checkpoint, which was just remarkable speed. When you talk about an individual who is determined to do what they do and that speed, you're talking almost about four seconds from start to finish there.

1:04:00A single officer draws his weapon as the man in the video appears to raise his gun and court filings say the suspect fired once, although that is not clear in the video. Those same filings and the FBI video show the officer fired repeatedly, never hitting the suspect nor, fortunately, any of his fellow officers in the background. The thing is, as much as there are questions about what the gunman did, a lot of this video raises reasonable questions about what the officers did, too. What did the officer with the dog see or not see when he was clearly right next to this man and turned away to have this man he had not taken three steps before that man started running this way?

1:04:44And just as importantly, Jake, this is a country at war right now. What if it hadn't been one gunman, but two or three or more? How far might they have gotten in that particular situation? Also, that one officer fired his gun in the general direction of other. Yeah, he's going right across the other officers there. I mean, I think there are a lot of questions here. It ended, I guess, as well as something like this can end. Yeah. But if it had ended differently, I think many of these questions would be very pointed right now. Again, just to underline it, the Secret Service has an impossible job.

1:05:16and the bad guys only need to be effective once. And the guy didn't even make it to the floor where the president and the team was. Still, we can learn from it. Tom Foreman, thank you so much. Across the U.S. and around the world, tens of thousands of protesters on this May Day. Our team of correspondents spoke with demonstrators about what they hope to change.

1:05:41International lead activists, workers, teachers, more. marching in today's May Day demonstrations, a global movement calling for world peace, higher wages, better living and working conditions. CNN's Whitney Wild is at the rally in Chicago. Whitney, tell us what you're seeing. Jake, thousands of people are coming to the heart of Chicago right here at Union Park to protest a long list of issues. There is not a single issue that is driving people coming out today. They are here because they're angry about the war in Iran. They're angry about what they're seeing from the administration. They're angry that there are people in the United States who are hungry and yet billions of dollars are being spent on a war overseas.

1:06:23They are angry with what they have seen from immigration agents over the last several months. And, of course, the heart of this, the core of this, is a protest to protest for better working conditions, better wages. This is the heart of the labor movement. And so while these things seem disconnected, the people that I've spoken with say, no, it is all connected. And it is important to come out and make their voices heard in the city of Chicago. And let me just show you how people are doing that. You see a long list of different types of signs here. People very angry with the president. One sign saying Trump must go now.

1:07:02There is another sign with the photo of Alex Preddy, the man who was killed by immigration agents in Minneapolis. Again, it is not a singular issue driving people out today, but they say the solidarity that they feel here is giving them hope. Here's more from the people we spoke with on the ground. All these issues that seem unrelated, Iran and Gaza and ICE raids and all those, I think actually are related. They're about concentrating power and wealth in the hands of a few people. And that's not good for any of us. So I'm here to protest that. I've got grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and I see their way of life being stolen.

1:07:46This is, of course, Jake, a global movement. There are protests happening all around the world, but it is special in Chicago, and it is special this year. This is the 140th anniversary of the Haymarket Affair. That was the very first May Day protest. Thousands of people came out to downtown Chicago to protest for an eight-hour workday. That protest became violent. It became deadly. And it is not far from the memory of Chicagoans here. Today, they're reflecting on the 140th anniversary of that moment that really kicked off a new chapter and protesting for civil rights, protesting for better worker conditions.

1:08:22And so today, they are taking special pride in having been really at the heart of the beginning of a movement that continues, Jake. All right. CNN's Whitney Wild in Chicago for us. Thanks so much. Farther south in Havana, Cuba, rally goers are marching to celebrate the workers trying to just keep the power on. Cuba, as Cuba faces blackouts worsened by the cutoff of fuel imports after the U.S. military actions in Venezuela earlier this year. CNN's Patrick Oppmann is in Havana. Patrick, tell us what it's like there today. So May Day is usually one of the biggest pro-government marches you see in Cuba each year.

1:08:59This year, it's half to be stripped down. It's much less people than you usually see because of the severe energy crisis that is taking place on this island at this moment. The United States has been preventing, for the most part, all fuel from arriving to Cuba. So you see less cars on the street, longer and longer blackouts. And that is why instead of doing this march in the revolution square here, which could fit up to a million people, we're in front of the U.S. embassy because the government here has been calling on the U.S. to lift this energy blockade. For the Trump administration, though, it's quite a different story.

1:09:38They're saying that Cuba needs to open up economically and politically, that this island is being mismanaged and has been open to the enemies of the United States to set up a foothold just 90 miles from the United States. And so the tensions continue to rise here. What Cubans tell us, at least the pro-government Cubans here at an event like this one, is that they're willing to die to defend their country. and that no matter what the Trump administration demands of this government, that they are going to resist. Patrick Obman, CNN, Havana. All right, our thanks to Patrick Obman for that report.

1:10:13Is Pope Leo trying to send President Trump or anyone else a message with his latest appointment? Well, our political panel is here to weigh in.

1:10:27In our faith lead, Pope Leo just named a one-time undocumented immigrant who was smuggled into the United States in the trunk of a car as the brand new bishop of West Virginia. Bishop Avelio Mehvar Ayala, originally from El Salvador, became a U.S. citizen in 2006. He has publicly called for Catholics to speak out against President Trump's treatment and policy toward immigrants. My panel joins me now. Terry Schilling, welcome to the League. Good to have you. Is the Pope sending a message here, and what is it? No, look, I think there's something very beautiful happening in the Catholic Church, especially in West Virginia.

1:11:03The church is growing. We have a numerous number of converts entering the church. But I think what's hard for most Americans to understand about the Catholic Church is that it's timeless. We have outlasted empire after empire, especially the ones that persecute us. And it's easy to look at everything the church does in a political lens, but that's just not what's happening here. And I do think that Democrats are trying to create a wedge in the Catholic church. They see this resurgence happening. But the reality is, I think, is that Catholics know who our friends are. They know, they saw what happened under Biden with the weaponization of government.

1:11:38They saw what happened in those Senate hearings with Kamala Harris questioning about the Knights of Columbus. They know who their friends are and they know who their enemies are. And I don't think this is going to work. I don't think the Catholics are going to ditch the Republican Party or Trump for the Democrats over deporting illegal immigrants or MS-13 members. They're going to be much more fired up about all the other stuff that the Democrats do. May I assume that you're also Catholic? I am Catholic. I am very Catholic, practicing Catholic. And I will say that the Pope is very much sending a message.

1:12:06If you think about what bishops are, they're kind of like a cabinet for the Pope. That's why when a new pope comes in, you're seeing all these changes happening, right? In New York, the old comes out and new people come in. And by moving someone like this to a very white state, he is indeed sending a message. I think, first of all, the message is of universality, right? That it doesn't matter your skin color, it doesn't matter your story, that, you know, the church embraces all of that. But the second thing I think the pope has been very clear on is that immigration is an issue that the Catholic Church feels very strongly about.

1:12:41It is part of their canon. And that is not a left or right issue. You are right. That is a Catholic church issue. It started with Jesus, right? It started with Jesus. And the Catholic church and Catholic charities have always been involved on immigration. I'm a longtime immigration reporter. You go to the border there. The people that are actually dealing with migrants are often Catholics, nuns and priests, etc. So this is part of, I think, a refocus that he is doing in the church to move away from issues like abortion into issues more like immigration. You can look at that in a political lens, or you can say this is just the Pope being the Pope and maybe moving the church in a different direction.

1:13:18And we should just note, I'm sorry to jump in there, but the immigration issue is not just an issue here. It's a huge issue all over the world, but especially in Europe as well. Well, I just got to say that, you know, Pope Francis, his message has actually been to both sides. For Pope Leo? Oh, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, we just changed it. We just had our eighth kid, so a little bit fog in the brain. That's Catholic. That is Catholic. But a Jew just corrected you on the name of the Pope. That's right. Anyway, keep going. So Pope Leo just last week or the week before was talking directly to the immigrants and was very clear that nations do have the right to secure their border and establish the rules around immigration.

1:13:51He told the immigrants that are coming here illegally to stop doing that and to focus on rebuilding their own country. So I get it. But he is timeless. I don't think he's playing politics here. And I think the Catholic Church is really beautiful. I think we're seeing this resurgence and return to the beauty of the church. And by the way, happy Feast of St. Joseph the Worker today. It's a wonderful day. So just to keep talking about the Pope thing, because this is so interesting. One of the things, again, I'm not Catholic, but I grew up in Philly. Big Catholic community there. Big Catholic community.

1:14:20So, you know, I'm well aware of a lot of the teachings. And when there was tension between Pope Leo and President Trump about war in Iran, I thought, this is what Popes do. They oppose war. I mean, I understand this, the whole just war thing. But I mean, ever since I've been alive, like popes have been for life in every from from the moment of conception to opposing war, to opposing capital punishment, to wanting people to live as long as they possibly can. It always just seemed in terms of the universality that you're talking about. Yeah, I mean, that's absolutely right. And that's why sometimes that falls on the left of the political spectrum and sometimes that falls on the right of the political spectrum.

1:15:05But what I do think about that is different about this pope is, first of all, he's an American pope and he understands the American context. Secondly, you know, popes are political. They are. They are religious. Not Democrat, Republican. No, Democrat, Republican, but issues. They embrace issues. They push forward on issues. And when you look at this pope and what he is emphasizing, you can take some guidance as to his beliefs and where he wants to move the church. In the United States right now, there is a lot of energy around the Catholic Church. And actually, that energy is coming from the more conservative side of the Catholic Church.

1:15:40If you look at the priests, if you look at young members of the church, they are more conservative minded than perhaps more progressive, if you want to use that sort of lens. That said, you know, this pope has already talked about issues like LGBTQ rights. This pope has already waded into some of the most controversial issues in the church. And so I do think that he is trying to reframe this in some way. Well, to be clear, though, he's not he's affirming the dignity of all human beings, regardless of their identities. But, you know, he's not wavering on the Catholic Church's teachings on the right to life, starting from conception or or protecting children from gender ideology.

1:16:20and all of that going on. So he's not moderating. I think he's just emphasizing the issues that are coming up. And I do think that there's a lot of emphasis, more emphasis and coverage in the establishment with the more liberal stuff and the conservative messages don't always get out. All right. Well, thanks one and all. Congratulations on the eighth kid. Thank you. He made us laugh in Pawnee, Indiana and question everything at Lumen Industries. Adam Scott's here next to talk about his career in Hollywood, his new project that hits theaters today.

1:16:51And we're back with the politics lead and the panel. Terry, the new national average for gallon gas is$4.39 a gallon. It's a four-year high, nine cents more than you were paying yesterday, 33 cents more than last week. The president was asked today about the high cost of gas. He said gasoline's high. Other prices are weighed down, but gasoline is high. When this is over, you'll have a world without a nuclear weapon with Iran. That's been his message. which basically the price is nothing compared to the idea of Iran with a nuclear weapon. The American people don't seem to be buying it. Well, look, I think obviously these gas prices are hurting Americans, especially American families.

1:17:30You know, minivans cost$100 to fill up these days. I would know that. But I think what's important for them, for everyone in this country to understand, is that these price spikes with gasoline under Trump are temporary. This is a bug. It's not a feature. This is because of the Iran war. When that goes away, the gas prices will lower. For Democrats, though, high gas prices are a feature. They want it as part of their climate agenda. That's why the blue states have such higher gas prices. All right. Thanks so much. Appreciate it. Let's turn to our pop culture lead now. You might know him from the Emmy Award winning show Severance or his more lighthearted works in parks and recreation.

1:18:04Adam Scott now taking on a different role in the new supernatural horror movie, Hocum, which opens today. I don't know if you've noticed, but there are some oddballs walking around this place. There are worse things than strangers out there, Yank. One of the members of staff is missing. What about the honeymoon suite? It's always locked. So it's very scary. I saw it last night. Joining us now, Adam Scott. Adam, thanks so much for joining us. So your career, your careers expand a lot of different types of characters. First of all, you play a lot of good guys these days. You used to do bad, bad guys like in the stepbrothers, Walter Mitty era of Adam Scott.

1:18:52But you're you're you're more beloved characters now. This guy, Ome Bauman, he's a total douche. Is that fun? It is fun to play. And I always kind of feel like playing comedy or drama doesn't really make a difference. You're just kind of it's the context and the and the story that make it funny or dramatic. But that's not really true, because if you drop like the stepbrothers character into this story, it would feel off. So it's kind of a different type of douche than other ones I've played. You know, he's much more troubled and it's terrifying for a lot of your fans. who know you from Severance and Parks and Rec and some of the comedies, they might not know.

1:19:39You've been in a bunch of horror movies. You were in The Monkey, you were in Krampus. Do you like making horror movies? Do you like horror movies? Well, the horror movies I like, for me, they need to be a really good movie first and a good horror movie second. So my favorites are like Poltergeist and The Thing and Hereditary and stuff like that. And I feel that's why I wanted to do this is because it was a cool story and an interesting character first. And all the scary stuff for me kind of came second. But it does happen to be terrifying. Did you get scared, Jake, when you were watching it? I watched with all the lights on.

1:20:22I did everything I could to make it as unscary as possible. Good. Like I had a light here. Good. But I will say the movie also kind of want to spoil anything, but the movie actually takes a turn at one point and actually like kind of packs an emotional punch that I didn't seem coming, but makes it it almost good. It almost ends. Not as a horror movie. Yeah, yeah, you're right. I think it's and it also has light heart. It has some funny moments throughout. Like it's it's a real kind of full it's a full evenings entertainment. It's it's Damian McCarthy, the writer, director, is a really talented guy.

1:21:02So I do want to ask you about Severance because season three is about to start filming. We obviously were left at the edge of our seats last time, as you know. What do you have you read all the scripts for the next season? What can we expect? Yeah, I think everybody's going to be really happy. We start shooting very, very soon and we all can't wait. It's been a little over two years since we finished shooting season two. So we're all super anxious to get back. And meanwhile, you have three movies out this year. You also have like the of the of the three, the more the most mainstream one, if you will, has you, Michael Keaton, Robert De Niro.

1:21:42It's called The Whisper Man. It's going to be on Netflix. What was that about? What was that like? Yeah. It was, I mean, Robert De Niro is someone who I had like up on my wall in my bedroom at home. I had he and Scorsese taped up in my locker at school. Like this was a serious lifelong dream. I couldn't even believe it every day. I just, I couldn't believe he was right there. All I was trying to do the whole time was not annoying him with annoying questions. You're the only person I know that has seen The Irishman twice in the theater both times. Adam Scott, the movie Hocum is out today. It's scary.

1:22:26It's moving. It's fantastic. Adam, thanks so much. Good to see you again. Thanks, Jay. Good to see you. Come up Sunday on State of the Union. U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., Janine Pirro. Former Congressman Barney Frank, who's currently in hospice care. Republican Senator Tom Tillis. That's Sunday at 9 a.m. and noon Eastern, only on CNN. And Aaron Burnett out front starts now. I'll see you Sunday morning.

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