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John Pistole is Interviewed about Air Traffic Controllers; Qualified Woman Out of the Military; New Details on Campaign Against Drug Boats; Armana Christianson is Interviewed about Tarif's Impacting Weddings. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired November 11, 2025 - 09:30   ET

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

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CRISTIANO RONALDO, PORTUGUESE SOCCER STAR: Definitely yes, because is -- I will be 41 years old and I think will be the moment and in the big competition that to, I don't know yet, as I've told you before, I -- I've enjoyed the moments. But when I mean soon, it's really soon, because I -- I give everything for football.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: He has had an incredible career. Ronaldo has scored 143 international goals, and he is the first ever male player to score in five World Cups. The 2026 World Cup will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, so, today, air traffic controllers will miss their second full paycheck, all because of the government shutdown. Yesterday was the worst day for weekday air traffic control staffing since the shutdown began. And the president also yesterday took to social media to chastise air traffic control staff, saying this, "all air traffic controllers must get back to work now. Anyone who doesn't will be substantially docked."

He goes on to say that controllers who don't take time off would possibly get a $10,000 bonus. And then this. "For those that did nothing but complain and took time off, even though everyone knew they would be paid in full shortly into the future, I am not happy with you."

And this morning, to that, the international president of the Association of Flight Attendants responded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARA NELSON, INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT, ASSOCIATION OF FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: Not only is it disgraceful, it is another way that we are making it unsettled for these air traffic controllers who have worked through this miraculously without getting paid. It also shows that the president does not understand where Americans are, living paycheck to paycheck these days. We are disgusted with those statements. They need to be rescinded. We will not, in any way, entertain those comments from the president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: And joining us right now to talk about where things are in America's airports in the midst of this shutdown, is former TSA Administrator John Pistole.

It's good to see you again, Administrator.

First, let's talk about the news at hand. The shutdown is likely soon over. From your experience, how soon after, and this is unprecedented how long it's gone on.

JOHN PISTOLE, FORMER TSA ADMINISTRATOR: Right.

BOLDUAN: But from your experience, how soon after does air traffic and TSA operations, do they get back to normal?

PISTOLE: Well, I think -- thanks, Kate.

I think people need to manage their expectations, that this is not like a light switch. That simply because the Senate passes a bill, the House passes a bill, whenever they do, the president signs a bill, it's not like the next day, or even the next several days, that everything's going to be back to normal. What people perceive as being normal. And that's the question, is what is the new normal?

So, I would say this is a good week, maybe even a couple week process. And timing is critical, obviously, as we go into the holiday period with Thanksgiving holidays, the ten days around that holiday, being the busiest travel time of the year, where nearly three million people a day on average, going through the 425 or so airports in the U.S. that TSA provides security for, and FAA, air traffic controllers provide safety for.

So, it's a long -- it's a longer drawn out process than just, OK, it's over, let's move forward.

BOLDUAN: And that's the thing. You know, and that's what anyone's going to want, right? They're going to want -- one, federal workers are going to want to have their paychecks paid in full right away.

PISTOLE: Right.

BOLDUAN: And anyone who's impacted in any way, they want to get back to normal. But because of how long it's gone on, it can take a while. And travelers are frustrated. Workers are frustrated. The system is -- at least does not feel like it's working, if anyone wants to call this working,

I mean, what do you think, from your experience, the long term impact and cost of this mess will be, maybe in terms of dollars, but also reputationally when it comes to this shutdown?

PISTOLE: Yes, great -- great points, Kate. It -- because the economic impact is significant and probably not fully developed in terms of what it has been and with this story about World Cup coming up, what type of image does it project to the world to say, OK, we are -- we and Mexico and Canada are hosting World Cup next year. And then, oh, by the way, the '28 Olympics in L.A. What kind of confidence does that give to people that things will run smoothly, as we are known for? And I would refer your listeners to what Geoff Freeman, the CEO, president of the U.S. Travel Association, on which I served on a blue ribbon panel last year, has done a, I think, a great job of articulating both the consequences, the physical challenges, but also the long term, both short term and long term. And so, I think we have that.

And then we have, again, the question of, well, what lessons have been learned from all this. Is there -- is this going to be repeated sometime soon if there's a continuing resolution that addresses a, quote, government shutdown, what's the long term resolution and what confidence can the traveling public have that there won't be these type of disruptions?

[09:35:12]

Oh, and by the way, that TSA and FAA employees won't go six weeks without being paid.

So, all those things that you raise are great points.

BOLDUAN: That's -- and that's critical. Just -- I do want to get your reaction to what I showed -- read up top that the president is saying at air traffic control staff. You heard the Flight Attendants Union president speak out, calling it disgusting. I'm just thinking, what if that was the president's message to TSA agents while you were administrator? What would you do?

PISTOLE: Well, so -- yes. And, of course, the longer this goes on with no guarantees that it's going to be resolved today or tomorrow, the number of TSA employees end up calling out sick because they can't afford to pay their rent or their child care or their transportation costs to get to the airport, whatever it may be. Many of them are -- this is their first full time job.

And so, I think it's disingenuous to be critical of those over whom the president, the Senate and the House have responsibility to provide a budget that can pay the people what they are signed up to do. And again, these are people who -- it's public service. They're not doing this for the money just to get ahead on things. They are providing a public service, which the American people, even on slow days like right now, two million passengers a day in the U.S., are relying on for both the safety and security. And the analogy of the wings of a plane being the safety being one side, the FAA and the security being TSA. If both of those aren't working well together, then that puts things at risk. And that's not a high level of confidence for anybody. So, I -- and I just would hate to think that potential terrorists might try to exploit what they see as a vulnerability right now because there's not as much whatever going on as they would -- might be able to deal with.

BOLDUAN: Yes, the fear that people aren't keeping eyes where they need to be because people aren't able to be at work because they can't do their jobs if they cannot be paid.

Administrator John Pistole, it's always good to see you. Thank you very much.

So, there are new details coming out this morning on just how much firepower the U.S. military is putting toward the president's campaign against alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean. Got that for you.

And a police officer pulls over a driver who had a good reason for speeding. He was -- they were rushing -- he was rushing his very pregnant wife to the hospital. What happened next was all caught on the officer's body cam. And you will not want to miss this.

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[09:42:16]

SIDNER: This morning, CNN has exclusive new reporting about a female Navy officer who became the first woman to serve with SEAL Team Six in the role of troop commander. It is the most elite SEAL leaders selected her for the new command. But her command was abruptly canceled with little explanation. Some sources telling CNN that her command may have been pulled due to her gender and Secretary Hegseth's views on women in the military.

CNN national security reporter Haley Britzky joining us now from our nation's capital.

Haley, what can you tell us about this case? Can you break down what happened here?

HALEY BRITZKY, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, Sara. So, as you just said, I mean, this officer had a distinguished career from everything we heard from sources within the Naval Special Warfare community. She had served alongside SEAL Team Six. She is a Purple Heart recipient from an IED blast in a combat tour. And she was chosen for this command by Navy SEAL leaders who thought she was the most qualified for this position.

And just, you know, two months before the ceremony, invitations had gone out, inviting people in for the change of command ceremony. But roughly two weeks beforehand, we were told that this change of command was canceled with little explanation as to why.

And we had sent questions into the Pentagon regarding this situation specifically, and did not get any specific answers as to why this happened. But the impression that people in the Naval Special Warfare community have gotten is that this was because this was a command that would be overseeing the recruiting and training of special operations troops within Naval Special Warfare, including the Navy SEALs. Obviously, one of the most elite special operations units within the military, and that the secretary, Secretary Hegseth, did not want a woman fronting that role, Sara.

SIDNER: Do you have a sense of how much influence that Secretary Hegseth may have played in this decision? He has been very clear about not wanting women in combat roles as well.

BRITZKY: He has. And sources repeatedly pointed to those comments that he's made before he was secretary of defense, in his book, in podcast interviews that he had done, and certainly comments that he's made as secretary of Defense this year, saying that, you know, women don't meet the same standards as men. That they shouldn't be in combat roles. He's made his views on that very clear. And sources repeatedly said that that was a direct influence on this captain having her command taken away.

One Pentagon official, you know, said that he was not involved, that this was something made lower down the chain of command. But again, the Pentagon did not respond to specific questions about his involvement in this situation.

SIDNER: All right. I know you'll be following this up. Haley Britzky, thank you so much for the reporting this morning.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: This morning we are also learning new details about the U.S. military's campaign targeting suspected drug trafficking boats in the Pacific Ocean and in the Caribbean.

[09:45:01]

Sources are now telling CNN that most of these strikes have been carried out by MQ-9 Reaper drones, remotely operated aircraft armed with Hellfire missiles.

CNN's senior national security reporter Zach Cohen has much more on this.

Tell me more about the -- what you're learning with this reporting, because, I mean, this campaign, the U.S. military campaign, called for by the president, seems to just be getting bigger and bigger, bringing in more firepower.

ZACH COHEN, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, that's right, Kate. And to date, the Pentagon is not acknowledged publicly what kind of military hardware it's using to carry out these strikes against alleged drug boats.

But we're learning through our sources that the weapon of choice so far seems to be the MQ-9 Reaper drone. As you mentioned, this is a remotely piloted aircraft. It's one that's typically armed with Hellfire missiles.

We know that at least seven that have been pre-positioned at a military installation in Puerto Rico as part of this surge of military assets into the area that is being targeted at both the eastern Pacific and the Caribbean.

Now, the MQ-9 Reaper drone was originally designed to target enemy tanks. That speaks to the kind of firepower and punch it can pack. But it has really become a workhorse for the U.S. military over the last several years.

Now, we're also learning that other strikes have also been carried out by AC-130 gunships. These are massive gunships, adapted versions of a transport aircraft. They are armed with effectively giant guns that have been used in these strikes as well. And in another strikes, fighter jets have also been used.

But again, this is information that Congress has been pushing the Pentagon to disclose more details about. And, to date, they have not received really specifics about not only the aircraft or the hardware, but how much each of these strikes cost. Now, broadly, they've acknowledged each strike costs about -- in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. But they also can't say why they need so much firepower in this region if they're just blowing up small speedboats.

BOLDUAN: No kidding.

It's great to see you, Zach. Great reporting, as always. I really appreciate it.

Still ahead for us, saying I do is unfortunately going to cost you more than ever now. What the president's global trade war is doing to even the wedding industry.

We'll be right back.

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[09:51:41]

SIDNER: New this morning, the cost of happily ever after, not so happy. Weddings in America are already expensive, but the cost is rising. On average it's up 18 percent to $33,000 over the past five years according to data from the wedding planning website The Knot. President Trump's global trade policy, namely tariffs, are impacting weddings, from the engagement rings, the dress, chairs, even the cake. Everything for the big day is being touched by tariffs. And those rising costs are forcing business owners to try to rethink how they cater to their clients.

Joining me now is Armana Christianson -- sorry, I was taken by your beautiful cakes -- the owner and cake artist at A. Cakes Bakery in Phoenix, Arizona.

ARMANA CHRISTIANSON, OWNER AND CAKE ARTIST, A. CAKES BAKERY: Thank you.

SIDNER: Tell me first what has happened in your business. What are you seeing as far as prices fluctuating and going up?

CHRISTIANSON: Yes. So, I, at the beginning of the year I start to reevaluate my pricing, see how much I'm paying for everything. So, it's like pretty fresh. And then the tariffs started to get put into place and things that I spent a lot of money on, like chocolate, which I buy from Belgium, I buy Calvo chocolate, I noticed it went from $44 for five and a half pounds to $78. And I use a lot of white chocolate in a lot of my designs. So, I noticed that really impacting my profit almost immediately. That was -- that was a tough one. And I'm seeing a couple other things that I use just really regularly that are kind of hard to -- hard to deal with. So.

SIDNER: What kind of increases are you seeing and how do you talk to, you know, prospective brides and grooms and families about what you're having to do? What are the fluctuations look like for you and how badly does it impact you, never mind the brides and grooms?

CHRISTIANSON: Yes. So, cakes isn't a super high margin business. Food just generally isn't. So, for me, that's a pretty big impact. If I'm spending, you know, $44 for a bag of chocolate that I use for one cake, and now I'm having to spend, you know, almost $80, that's a huge chunk of -- chunk of my profit that comes out. And when clients book me six months to a year out, I'm not -- I haven't been changing their pricing. So, that comes directly out of my pocket. So, for clients, this last summer I worked with an attorney and I adjusted my contract for future clients that if it's more than a 5 percent like normal inflation rate, that I can add it to their invoice. So, I would have to basically renegotiate with my clients, which I really hate the idea of doing, but I have to be able to protect my business. So.

SIDNER: Yes. We're looking at some of the many things, including vanilla beans, which, from Madagascar, that -- that are going up in a big way.

CHRISTIANSON: Yes.

SIDNER: I'm curious what you anticipate is going to happen over the next year or year and a half in terms of what you will pay and these tariffs, the supply chain issues, the costs. What does that mean for you and your business?

[09:55:04]

CHRISTIANSON: Yes. I mean, honestly, it's really -- it's been hard to just figure out what's happening next week. So, for clients that are booking me six months to a year out, we're just kind of guessing. So, I'm just hoping that, you know, if it stays stable where it's at, then it -- this is where we're at. But if it doesn't, I've been -- you know, this year I've been reevaluating my pricing every three to six months just to see if I need to adjust it and change it, which I don't love doing that quickly either. So, I would prefer to just wait a whole year before I have to change pricing on people. But when things are changing this much and this often, it's just really hard to keep track. And then, of course, I just don't want to continually lose money every time. So, I'm having to make a lot of changes often.

SIDNER: Yes. It's hard to be a business owner and -- yes, and constantly lose money.

I just have a quick question. How long does it take to make one of those beautiful cakes? They're amazing.

CHRISTIANSON: Oh, my gosh, thank you. Yes, well I start -- it takes me a whole week from baking to designing. So, it's -- it's a full-time job.

SIDNER: Whoa, a whole week. It is.

BOLDUAN: They are beautiful.

CHRISTIANSON: Yes.

SIDNER: Armana Christianson, thank you so much. We appreciate it.

BOLDUAN: And thank you -- and thank you all so much for joining us today. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL. "THE SITUATION ROOM" up next.

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