Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

NASA SpaceX Crew-11 Returns To Earth; Trump: Iran Not Planning Executions, Military Action Still On Table; Reports: John Harbaugh To Join NY Giants As Head Coach. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired January 15, 2026 - 07:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:32:50]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: After a 10-hour journey the four-man NASA crew splashed down safely to Earth early this morning, landing in the Pacific Ocean after their monthslong mission in space. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On behalf of SpaceX and NASA, welcome home Crew-11.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: SpaceX Dragon. It's so good to be home with deep gratitude to the team who got us there and back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: So we're going to show you the moments that the astronauts actually emerged from the side hatch of the Dragon capsule. You can see them there. It is standard issue for them to be put on those medical stretchers when they are going to then go in -- once they get back into gravity, obviously. These are their first breath of fresh air that the crew has had in 167 days.

They're set to undergo routine medical checks, but this is now a central focus in a new way as it's been a mystery which crew member is experiencing a medical issue that led to them leaving the International Space Station a month early.

Ed Lavandera is tracking this one for us, watching all of it early, early this morning for us. Ed, what are you hearing from them?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we do know that all four of those astronauts were taken from that capsule, which landed and splashed down in the Pacific Ocean just off the coast of San Diego just before 4:00 a.m. Eastern time -- just after midnight on the -- on the West Coast. That all four of those astronauts were then flown to a hospital in San Diego where they will remain for the remainder of today. And then we're told -- NASA officials say it won't be until tomorrow before those astronauts make their way back here to Johnson Space Center where the astronauts work out of.

But we're looking for clues. As we watched the livestream and the footage of the astronauts being removed from the SpaceX capsule, no real clues as to who exactly was affected by this ailment. All four of the astronauts seemed to be in very good spirits, smiling, waving, and cheering with the other crew members that were there on the ship helping them out of the capsule. The NASA administrator simply said about an hour after the splashdown that the astronaut in question was "doing fine."

[07:35:08]

This is all part, also, of kind of standard procedure for NASA astronauts -- NASA astronauts that any kind of personal health issues -- because of health privacy reasons that is usually kept under wraps unless the astronaut wants to divulge it themselves. So it's very likely we might not know exactly why this mission had to be cut short by -- with this medical evacuation almost a month early. But from what we could see Kate, many of those astronauts looking very good this morning.

And if you are on the West Coast, just after midnight you got quite a show as the space capsule streaked across the sky before it splashed down in the ocean -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: Hmm. Very happy they are back safe, which is the first and most important part.

Ed, thank you so much -- John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Overnight there was no U.S. military action against Iran. There had been some rumblings that perhaps it was imminent. The president said Iran is backing down and has no plans to execute protesters.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham openly disagrees, writing, "Every indication that I've seen says that the Iranian regime's killing of protesters is still very much in full swing. The death toll is mounting by the hour. Hoping that help is on the way."

With us now, Congressman Josh Gottheimer, a Democrat from New Jersey. And Congressman Mike Lawler, a Republican from New York. I know what you're all thinking -- it's amazing we could bring members together from across the Hudson. They are both on the Problem Solvers Caucus. Thank you so much for being with us, gentlemen.

Let me ask you first, Congressman Gottheimer, what's the goal -- what's the goal in Iran and has it been achieved by the regime simply apparently telling the president somehow that it's not going to kill protesters?

REP. JOSH GOTTHEIMER (D-NJ): Well, I think what's very clear is you see the people in Iran are saying to their leadership time's up and no more of your dictatorial crushing of the economy, of the people, and of human rights.

So, you know, it seems to me that the pressure is continuing to mount. I think if President Trump can get assurances, I'm -- you know, I think that we'll see what the evidence is of that in terms of them backing off of going after and killing their own people.

But in a broader sense, what's key is Iran and the government of Iran is our enemy. They are close to our other top adversaries. And their proxies are terrorist proxies, which they have funded for years -- have not only killed Americans and attacked our bases but gone after out allies. And Iran -- and the government of Iran is our enemy, and I'd like to see, of course, a change there as quickly as possible.

BERMAN: So how do you get that change, Congressman Lawler, as quickly as possible? How far as you willing to go?

REP. MIKE LAWLER (R-NY): Well, I think the reason that the Iranian people are in the position they are in right now in large measure is because of what has happened over the last year-plus. When you look at the strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, when you look at what Israel did with respect to its air defenses and taking out its top military leadership, I think the fact is it has set the groundwork for the Iranian people after 45 years of oppression and tyranny to rise up and to demand better -- and hopefully, take their country back.

I think all of us here on Capitol Hill want a free Iran. We want this regime to come to an end. But, you know, the president is obviously taking caution. You don't want to necessarily escalate tensions. Obviously, you've seen evacuation of military bases. Airspace was shut down in advance of any potential strike at probably IRGC locations.

But the fact is that Iran is a brutal, murdering regime headed by the Ayatollah and they cannot be trusted. I certainly believe the president's objective is to stop the killing, to stop the innocent loss of life in Iran, and hopefully give the Iranian people the best chance to take their country back. And that is something all of us here on Capitol Hill, Republicans and Democrats, should want.

GOTTHEIMER: Great.

BERMAN: You both voted to extend Obamacare subsidies -- the enhanced Obamacare subsidies for three years. In the Senate -- and you worked together to do so, frankly. In the Senate right now Punchbowl is reporting this morning that whatever work they're trying to do to get it passed there is falling apart.

How do you feel, Congressman Lawler, this morning about that?

LAWLER: Well look, I spoke to Sen. Moreno yesterday. Last week when we voted on the three-year extension Josh and I, along with our Problem Solvers colleagues, sat down with a bipartisan group of senators. They are close, but as with anything it's just -- you know, it's complex and it takes good faith negotiations. That's what the Senate is engaged in right now. I am hopeful that we can get there.

[07:40:07]

I think there is broad understanding that addressing the issue of health care affordability in America is vital. The enhanced premium tax credit applies to about seven percent of the population. We want to tackle that, but we also want to tackle the larger issue of health care costs in America.

And I think that is something where if the Senate can come to an agreement on the short-term extension, I think the White House and others are looking to get a larger agreement on how to tackle the broader health care system, including expansion of HSA so that we can --

BERMAN: But --

LAWLER: -- actually put the money in the pockets of the American people --

GOTTHEIMER: Yeah.

LAWLER: -- and not the insurance companies.

And so these negotiations are ongoing, but I do think we've made significant progress. And the fact that we were able to get 17 Republicans to join together with 213 Democrats to get it out of the House speaks volumes to where the American people are and where we are as a Congress. We want to find a bipartisan agreement.

GOTTHEIMER: And, you know, I -- just to add to that, the key with any of these agreements -- and we've been involved in many of them -- is you just have to keep sitting at the table until it gets done. The goal is one that we can't back off of, which is getting people's health insurance premiums down. And they're getting crushed, right, and we have to do everything possible and stay at the table. And Mike and I will continue working with our colleagues in the Senate to do everything we can to get this across the finish line.

And I -- my conversations are listen; this is tough but we're going to get there. We've got to keep going and so we're going to keep encouraging them and sitting with them to do everything we can offering our support to get this across the finish line and get people's health insurance premiums down.

BERMAN: Three of your Democratic colleagues in the House -- Congressman Jason Crow, Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander, and Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan -- say they are being investigated now apparently for the video they put out telling U.S. service members that they can and should resist unlawful orders.

Congressman Gottheimer, how do you feel about the idea that they're being investigated?

GOTTHEIMER: I mean, I think that's absurd. You know, you've got members of Congress who have spoken out. Whether you agree or disagree with their position, that doesn't matter. The bottom line is our job in Congress is to speak out and to speak out when we disagree or agree, and that's what they did in this case.

And I think the Justice Department should back off immediately from investigating my colleagues and let's get back to focusing on the issues and stop attacking members of Congress because you disagree with them. And I think frankly, this administration should do so on many fronts.

BERMAN: Congressman Lawler?

LAWLER: Look, I think that video was foolish, I think it was ill- advised, and I think the message that they delivered was entirely political and wrong.

The fact is the president is the commander in chief. And in every interview any of those folks have given they have not been able to adequately explain what order they were referring to or what situation would warrant disobeying an order from the commander in chief.

Should it be investigated? From my vantage point obviously, as members of Congress, they certainly have the right to express their opinions. I don't think we should be curtailing that. But I do think that video was stupid, and I think it was dangerous.

BERMAN: Very quickly --

GOTTHEIMER: And I'm not going to have Mike investigated for saying that.

BERMAN: While I have you, I want to ask you both about one of the failed New Jersey football teams and rumors this morning that they're going to hire John Harbaugh as coach. I'm talking about the New York Giants.

Very quickly, how do you feel about that?

LAWLER: As a -- as a lifelong Giant fan, I'm ecstatic.

GOTTHEIMER: Me, too.

LAWLER: And I --

GOTTHEIMER: Thumbs up.

LAWLER: -- hope they close that deal out today.

GOTTHEIMER: I'm excited for him to move to Jersey and live in Jersey. So I'm happy to show -- I have a place to show him this weekend if he wants.

LAWLER: Just remember they're called the New York Giants for a reason.

GOTTHEIMER: They're in Jersey. That's why.

BERMAN: The two New Jersey football teams together won eight games this year.

Congressman Josh Gottheimer, Congressman Mike Lawler, thanks to you both for being here.

GOTTHEIMER: Yeah, we'll -- you'll see us at the game.

BERMAN: Very good -- Sara. SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: John, problem solved --

BERMAN: Yes.

SIDNER: -- from the problem solvers. Look at you bringing people together.

All right. Breaking overnight -- this is tearing a community apart -- chaos in the streets of Minneapolis. Eight days after ICE killed Renee Good, federal agents shot another person -- a man, they say, they were trying to detain and he -- they said that he violently attacked them while resisting arrest.

Now the same day as the latest shooting, a federal judge denied the Minnesota attorney general's request for an immediate restraining order to end the current ICE operation there.

Joining me now is Sarah Krissoff, a former prosecutor for the Southern District of New York. Thank you for being here.

Look, the federal judge -- federal Judge Menendez -- declined to issue a temporary restraining order requested by the A.G.

Does that give you any indication of how she might rule ultimately, or is this just a preliminary decision?

[07:45:00]

SARAH KRISSOFF, FORMER PROSECUTOR, SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK (via Webex by Cisco): Yeah, this is a hard case for Minnesota. No doubt they are -- they are forging new ground here.

But the judge was at least receptive to Minnesota's argument. She's going to hear them out. She's set a quick briefing schedule for the next sort of steps here. And she is -- she is interested in it but admittedly, skeptical because of these sort of constitutional grounds and the lack of precedent for Minnesota's case.

SIDNER: Yeah. As you brought up, she said it was a somewhat frontier issues and constitutional law, meaning that there doesn't appear to be precedent in this.

I do want to ask you about the way the A.G.'s lawsuit reads. It has got a lot of examples of what they see as ICE using illegal tactics in their state. And they're asking the judge to stop ICE activity linked to this new surge.

How have the courts generally ruled on issues like this where states are trying to halt or limit federal immigration operations?

KRISSOFF: So there are circumstances, of course, where judges do check, you know, federal authorities. They are not -- federal authorities are not, you know, without boundaries. There is some check on them and that check is often brought by the courts.

But sort of, the basis under which Minnesota brought this lawsuit, sort of, that is fundamentally constitutionally unsound for ICE to be doing these operations, that's really a different question. And I think what Judge Menendez was referencing when she said they are sort of frontier issues that Minnesota was raising.

SIDNER: I do want to ask you about the mother of three who was shot and killed by ICE. There is obviously a ton of video out there and everyone has their opinions. But Renee Good's family has now hired Romanucci & Blandin. That's the same firm that represented George Floyd's family. But unlike in Floyd's case, the DOJ -- even though the investigation has only gone on for a few days -- says they see no basis for a civil rights investigation into the ICE officer.

So how difficult will it be for her -- for the Good family to bring a case and be successful?

KRISSOFF: Listen, I mean, this is very unusual to hear from the DOJ right after a police-involved shooting that they are not conducting a thorough investigation. So generally, these investigations are conducted as a matter of course.

So Good's family has now hired these attorneys. They are going to do everything they can to investigate it on their own. There are ways for them to gather information from available sources, public sources, interviews, and things like that. You know, they may not have access to everything, but they can do work and do their own investigation and evaluate the evidence using experts and the available evidence to sort of draw their conclusions about what happened.

SIDNER: Yeah, and that would be if the case would go to trial in front of a jury that would decide one way or the other. You know, obviously, the family heartbroken and the community completely in chaos.

And this is going to likely continue, and we will likely have you back as this goes through the courts as well. Sarah Krissoff, I do appreciate your time this morning -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: YouTube is now making changes and making it easier for parents to stop their kids from doom scrolling.

And after 18 seasons in Baltimore, let's talk about what J.B. was just talking about. There's new reports John Harbaugh could have a new coaching gig -- a giant one.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:53:08]

BERMAN: We just got comment from two members of Congress from across the aisle on word that one of New Jersey's football teams, the Giants, are poised to hire former Ravens coach John Harbaugh.

Andy Scholes, it got a congressional seal of approval.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Well, yeah. You know, he's the number one guy out there, right John? And, you know, Harbaugh -- it's the first domino in this NFL head coaching cycle. He interviewed with the Falcons virtually. He was planning to meet with the Titans as well. But it appears like Giants are not going to let him get away.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Harbaugh and the Giants are finalizing an agreement to make him the team's next head coach. Harbaugh -- he spent yesterday at the Giants facilities. The 63-year- old had spent the past 18 seasons coaching the Ravens, winning one Super Bowl.

The Giants are certainly hoping he can turn them around. They've won just one playoff game in the past 15 years. And if Harbaugh does, in fact, go to New York, it would then leave eight head coaching jobs open across the league.

All right. In the NHL, meanwhile, Paul Bissonnette making his TNT debut, calling the Sabres-Flyers game last night. Bissonnette played for six seasons in the NHL. And the Sabres having some fun with his career stats, putting up that he scored .03 goals per game. He loved that and so did his parents who were there watching. They had a nice chuckle. Good times all around in Buffalo. They beat the Flyers 5-2. They have now won 14 of their last 16.

All right. And it was another wild night of buzzer-beaters in college basketball. Kentucky was down one to LSU with 1.6 seconds on the clock. They had to go the length of the floor, so they run the old Duke-Christian Laettner play that still haunts Wildcat fans in their dreams -- and they run it to perfection. Malachi Moreno at the buzzer wins it. The final was 75-74 Kentucky.

Meanwhile in Dallas, SMU was down two to Virginia Tech with 2.6 seconds left. They also had to go the length of the floor and Boopie Miller gets it and puts it up from half-court and it's good. That was his first made three of the game. He had been 0-5. Certainly good timing. The Mustangs get the fun win 77-76.

[07:55:10]

And finally, we've got the divisional round of the NFL Playoffs coming this weekend. Bears hosting the Rams in what is going to be one of the coldest games in Chicago history. So game time temperature expected to be around 16 degrees with wind gusts of 20 to 30 miles per hour. The windchill -- it's going to be minus-10.

But John, despite all of that, the get-in ticket price for an upper deck seat at Soldier Field -- it's still going for around 400 bucks. If you spend $400 to go sit in the upper deck for that game in those temperatures, you are a true fan.

BERMAN: And I'm sure people will be -- the dudes will be there with no shirts on, with like big bears painted on their bellies. It'll be great.

SCHOLES: That would be dangerous on Sunday.

BERMAN: It's how football is meant to be played.

Andy Scholes, thank you very much for that.

SIDNER: Wrapped in fur. This is not a temperature they are used to.

BERMAN: The Rams and Bears --

SIDNER: Bear fur.

BERMAN: -- indoors in California. All good.

SIDNER: All right. Thank you, John.

On our radar for you this morning, crazy video of flash flooding in Australia. Cars submerged in high water -- some swept out to sea. This happened near Melbourne. Hundreds of people have been evacuated from a local campground. Emergency warnings have been issued for coastal towns in the popular tourist area. Six and a half inches of rain have fallen in that area since Wednesday.

And a scary scene in Indianapolis. An SUV plowing into an elementary school. Fortunately, there were no children in that classroom. Officials say a child was in the car and that child was taken to the hospital but had non-life-threatening injuries. The driver, her mother, was uninjured. All right. This happened yesterday morning a little before 9:00 a.m. We do not know yet what caused that crash.

Bye-bye birdie, almost. Florida deputies forced to chase down an unlikely suspect. This is wild. This emu, the world's largest flightless bird, escaped from its home making a run for it down the backstreets of the Sunshine State. Wait until you see what the officer ends up having to do.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POLICE OFFICER: Come here. Come on. Come on, come on, come on -- oh. Is this where you live? I'll be honest with you. I've never handcuffed an emu before.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: That looked more like feet-cuffing but whatever. That is so strange. And, of course, it happened in Florida. The big bird was non- compliant, kicking the deputies away before finally being lassoed down and placed, as you saw there, in feet cuffs. More like claw cuffs -- whatever.

The emu was returned to its owner without anymore incidents. The St. Johns County Sheriff's Office joked all criminal charges against the emu have been dropped -- a gift for the bird.

BOLDUAN: I mean --

SIDNER: Weird.

BOLDUAN: -- could the officers -- the sheriff -- the deputies be cuter? They're like uh, he got away from me again.

SIDNER: Did you hear him? He's like don't.

BOLDUAN: He was like --

SIDNER: That's a big --

BOLDUAN: -- I've never handcuffed an emu before. It was like the cutest thing ever. I think we need that today -- yes. Cuteness and emu on the lam, which is also very challenging to say.

SIDNER: True.

BOLDUAN: Thanks, Sara.

Let's turn to this now. YouTube rolling out new parental controls to help keep kids from wasting their day and night away watching YouTube shorts -- the platform shortform video feed. The company is now offering parents really this new tool over their kids' accounts -- the ability to set time limits.

CNN's Clare Duffy has the details. I am all ears on this. What is -- we -- what is it?

CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: Yeah. So these shortform video scrolling features that are across so many of the social media platforms have really raised concerns among parents who say that they make the platforms more addictive for their kids.

So YouTube is rolling out this new tool that will allow parents to set time limits or completely block their kids from scrolling on shorts. It could be anywhere from a two-hour time limit to a zero-minute time limit. And they'll have the ability to change this for different situations. So if your kid is doing homework, you can block them. If you're on a car trip and you want them to be able to scroll you could set that longer time limit.

This is part of a suite of new parental controls that YouTube is rolling out as we're seeing many of the social media platforms try to give parents more tools to help navigate their child's social media experience. This will also include an easier sign-up process where parents can more easily add a supervised child's account. If you're sharing a device, they'll make it easier to switch between accounts.

And YouTube is also rolling out new content guidelines for teens, and this is going to prioritize videos in their feeds. Things like videos that show how to build life skills or that involve curiosity or inspiration. YouTube already prevents teens from repeatedly scrolling on certain types of videos. Things like videos that include idealistic body image and that sort of thing that might be harmful for them if they view repeated videos of those categories.

So more efforts here from the platform to make things safer for their youngest users.

BOLDUAN: You also flag that Google received backlash this week from a viral post where a mom says her 13-year-old child received an email about -- with ways of disabling parental controls.