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Johnny Jones is Interviewed about the TSA; Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) is Interviewed about the DHS Fight; Numbers on Congress Exits; HUD Proposal Sparks Concern; Emily Gregory is Interviewed about her Florida Win. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired March 30, 2026 - 08:30   ET

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

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[08:30:32]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Some relief this morning. Some of the tens of thousands of TSA workers say they are finally starting to see money hit their bank accounts again. They are owed weeks' worth of back pay from this partial government shutdown. Sixty-one thousand TSA employees have been struggling to pay for essentials like rent, food, gas and childcare. They have missed $1 billion in paychecks in total since mid-February. Lines have begun to ease at Atlanta's Hartsfield- Jackson International, where at least two TSA workers have told CNN that they did receive two full paychecks today. But in Houston, the lines remain long this morning.

Joining me now is Johnny Jones, the secretary-treasurer of the union representing TSA workers.

Thank you so much for coming on this morning.

Let me ask you this, what are you hearing from TSA workers who you represent? Are they all seeing their paychecks finally land in their accounts?

JOHNNY JONES, SECRETARY-TREASURER OF UNION REPRESENTING TSA WORKER: Well, some of them have. A lot of people -- you know, the majority of people were paid for the -- for the, like, I think it was the last month. Now, they haven't received all their back pay, but they have started seeing their payments. I actually just looked before I got on here. I did receive my salary payment earlier this morning.

So that -- but the workforce is still getting back to normal. It's going to take some days because they still have to reset up their childcare. They still need to --

SIDNER: Right.

JONES: There's going to be loan sharks knocking at the door looking for all their money, you know? So, as they get along here, it's still going to take a little time for everybody to, to revamp their finances and get back up in order. SIDNER: I do want to ask you about that, because it isn't as if you're

getting paid extra. This is what you have been owed and been waiting for while the bills pile up. Can you give us some sense of what your workers and you have gone through as you continue to show up for work, but you're not getting paid? And this went on, this time, for 42 days. And this isn't the only paychecks you guys have gone without.

JONES: Yes. So, a lot of people have incurred debts over the time. And, you know, like the late fees and all those things don't go away. So, you don't get compensated for those issues. That's the reason why we've been out pushing like, hey, everybody needs like a $10,000 bonus just so they can fix their lives because this has been a catastrophe. TSA officers have been used as political pawns in other parts of the department. And the damage to the TSA officer is not going to be magically fixed by just giving us our back pay. We have totally taken on tremendous amounts of debt on the behalf of the American people. The 88 percent of the people that show up every -- that showed up during the shutdown owe money to somebody additional to whatever they normally owe them, just because of all the fees and other issues that they had to endure during the shutdowns.

SIDNER: What is your message and the message of those that you represent to Congress, to perhaps the president as well, about having to continually go through this every time Congress is supposed to be passing bills that pay the bills?

JONES: Well, I have to say thanks to the president for signing the executive order to pay us. But I also have to say that there's other parts of the Department of Homeland Security that aren't being paid, right?

Now, let's talk about the legislative branch of our government. Our legislative branch of our government has failed the American people across all spectrums. They are at home packing up their easter eggs for their family and a lot of TSA officers won't have money, and a lot of the other people that work for the Department of Homeland Security aren't going to have the money to buy candy for their kids, and they're not going to go out there and get -- I'm going to go find some addresses and tell my kids, hey, go find some of those easter eggs, because they are the ones that got all your money.

So, there need -- there needs to be -- these guys need to be back on a plane, back in D.C., do their jobs, uphold their oath to the Constitution, just like all of us at TSA and other parts of DHS.

SIDNER: Johnny Jones, I know that it comes from a place of just deep frustration because you're also hearing it from those around you. What have you been hearing today from people who are finally, like you, like you checked this morning, seeing at least some of the relief? Are they relieved or are they still stressed because the bills have just piled up too high?

JONES: This is a natural disaster that was caused by Congress, OK. TSA officers' back pay is not going to address their systemic issues.

[08:35:04] This has caused -- the last five months we have been shut down 50 percent of the time. TSA officer's finances, the vast majority of them paycheck to paycheck. The vast majority are devastated. I hear from all my colleagues. They're like, our finances are ruined and they have every -- they are just in deep trouble. That's what I'm saying, like, we almost need a bailout for the front-line TSA officers. I know you saw some long lines. I know Houston's not together because those guys are not just getting paid, but they are deep in hole. That's the reason why they're not there at work.

SIDNER: Yes, I think the whole country is watching this and they feel deeply the same way you do that Congress has got to figure this out and get it together and get their jobs done.

Johnny Jones, thank you for doing yours. Do appreciate you.

Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Joining us right now to talk more about this is Democratic Congressman from New York, Greg Meeks. He is the ranking member, he's the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Congressman, you heard from that union rep right there for TSA workers. I also want to play for you what one TSA worker who's been going without pay until now spoke to CNN yesterday and what they said.

Let me play this for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIMBERLEY FONDREN, TSA AGENT: We have a very serious job to, you know, protect the American travel, to protect the American people. So, our high stress job and focus is what we need to be doing, not worrying about if my light's going to be on when I get home. And so, we're thinking about that, coming to work every day, it is like a hostage situation because we're not being paid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: She describes it as a hostage situation. And if that hostage situation is now over, as she describes it, from the action that's been taken, "Punchbowl" put it this way, Congressman, "let's be abundantly clear, this record-breaking 44-day DHS funding impasse has turned into a political disaster for Republicans."

So, would you say Democrats have won this political fight?

REP. GREGORY MEEKS (D-NY): No, we -- nothing is won until each and every one of those workers are getting their money, caught up on their bills, including those with FEMA and the Coast Guard. You know, these are hardworking, everyday Americans. And so, my heart feels for them. And when I think of the situation, well, it's clear that the de facto speaker of the United States Congress is the president of the United States. You know, we saw the Senate step up, Democrats and Republicans, on a unanimous way, a compromise, which is how government is supposed to work. Then Johnson called the president to say, should we agree to this or not agree to it? The president, obviously, told him not to. And so, as opposed to wiping this out and making sure that the government does function the way it does, it seems as though Donald Trump and a number of the MAGA -- super MAGA Republicans, they are the ones that continue to do this.

So, you know, and -- but as far as I'm concerned, this is not about a Democrat or a Republican win. This is about standing up for the hard- working American workers. In this case, TSA, as well as with those that are in FEMA, those in the Coast Guard. We should and need to do -- and they do deserve better. And I would hope that my colleagues would come and let's work in a bipartisan way, as what did take place in the Senate.

BOLDUAN: It -- well, what we just heard from that TSA union rep is the person standing up for those hard-working American workers. Is the president, with that executive action that he took at the end of the week, they're now getting new money into their bank accounts finally again. Are you thankful that he did take that action?

MEEKS: Well, look, the president, as he's been saying for a while, that he could have taken some action so they would have never had this issue. He could have told Johnson, make the deal, but he did not. So, the president is the one that's been instigating behind this.

BOLDUAN: Yes, but he is the one who actually did take action, not the Congress so far. Do you support and are you thankful that he did take action, when you're saying that the hard-working American worker of TSA have been the people caught in the middle?

MEEKS: The president -- this -- they should have never -- you know, you heard that agent talk about how they are in debt. The number of, you know, extra interest and penalties, et cetera. That should have never happened. And the president could have prevented that from happening. He did not. So, this is another political, you know, presidential stunt. I'm glad that the people are getting paid in that regards. But it should have been where they were getting paid, there was no need to continue. We should have had a bipartisan deal that would put this thing to bed.

Remember when this started, there was a week or two that was -- that we were supposed to work it out in a bipartisan way, and the Republicans never came to the table. The president never came to the table. In fact, the president said, don't agree to anything unless you pass the -- what I call Jim Crow 2.0, the SAVE Act, which would have prevented individuals having the ability to vote.

[08:40:10]

So, this is all a part of the president's scheme who continues to do harm to the average worker. You know, look at what he's doing now and the cost of oil, the cost of food, his tariffs, all of that goes against those same hard working American people, like the TSA agents and others. This is what the president continues to do.

So, am I thankful to him for creating the climate that caused the hard workers to suffer in the way they're doing? No, I'm not. The only one that's been benefiting under Donald J. Trump is his billionaire friends and his family.

BOLDUAN: If ICE agents at airports are helping alleviate some of these hours long wait times, are you OK with them sticking around?

MEEKS: No. What are they doing there? That's not their job. You know, they are not trained to do what the TSA workers do. We -- and that's part of the crux of it. Are they going to walk around with masks and names and, you know, still have, you know, warrantless arrests or going into people's homes? That's what the American people do not want. They've seen him -- seen them arrest American citizens, killed two American citizens, and also those who are here, who are immigrants, who have not committed any crimes or anything of that nature. So, that's what part of the problem is. And this should be fixed again by the president and by the super MAGA Republicans who refuse to do anything in regard to that.

BOLDUAN: Congressman Greg Meeks, thank you so much for coming in this morning.

John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, a big surprise in the House of Representatives. The chair, the powerful Republican chair of the House Transportation Committee, Sam Graves of Missouri, announced he is retiring. One more Republican to announce his or her retirement.

So, what does that tell us? CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten is with us now.

When I say a lot of Republicans have announced their retirement or they're not running again for the House, I mean, how many would you say? How would you put that in historical perspective?

HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: You know, I would say that House Republicans are running for the exits faster than kids do on the final day of school. I mean, just take a look here. Oh, hello. Most House retirements since 1930. So far this cycle already 36. That is the grand record over the last nearly 100 years. My goodness gracious. That actually beats the former record in total, which was 34 back in the 2018 cycle. And that wasn't that long ago. And I do recall that was a very, very good year for House Democrats.

The bottom line is this, you don't run for the exits unless you know trouble is brewing. And House Republicans so far believe trouble is absolutely brewing.

BERMAN: OK, how do you know that? What does history tell us about these types of exits?

ENTEN: OK. So, you know, I say it's brewing and sometimes I just like to pontificate, but sometimes I actually have facts behind me. Let's take a look here.

OK, party with the fewer House retirements since 1982 in midterm cycles, they went on to win the U.S. House 80 percent of the time. Far fewer Democrats are retiring this cycle than Republicans. When one side runs for the exits, right, and I'm doing my best right here, my best Usain Bolt right here. When one side runs for the exits, they lose the House of Representatives. When one side stays put, it's because they think something good is going to happen. And House Democrats clearly think something is good going to happen and House Republicans clearly think something very bad, very bad is going to happen.

BERMAN: Again, we say this is basically a record since 1930. More than we've seen in 100 years. And that's just so far. I mean it's --

ENTEN: That's just so far. This is, I think, what's so clear, is this number is likely to climb ever higher.

BERMAN: OK. So, what are they looking at? Sam Graves, last Thursday, it was a surprise. It was a bit of a reversal. What might he have been looking at that that caused him to retire?

ENTEN: You know, some elected officials aren't so smart, but many of them are. And they're looking at the same numbers we're looking at. And what they're looking at is the president of the United States and his approval rating. So, why don't we just take a look here.

Why are GOP retiring? OK, when the president's approval is less than 50 percent, I went back all the way through the record books, all the way back since 1938 in midterm elections, when the House -- the president's party in the House, on average, loses 34 seats, loses 34 seats when the president's approval rating is less than 50 percent. Donald Trump isn't anywhere close to 50 percent. He's at 40 percent. The average, the House -- the House for the president's party, they lose 34 seats. The least, the least was just nine. That was actually Joe Biden back in 2022.

But guess what? House Democrats only need a pick up of one, two, three in order to gain a majority. So, the least, even the worst case scenario for Democrats is not anywhere close to what Republicans need to hold on to the House of Representatives.

And one little last historical anecdote as I go over to the blackboard over here.

[08:45:00]

The only two times that the president's party did not lose at least three seats was 1998 and 2002. You know what the president's approval rating was in those years? It was 60 percent plus. And Donald Trump, at this point, is just at a 40 percent approval rating. Nowhere near what House Republicans need. And that is why I said, they're running to the exits. John laughing over there.

BERMAN: No, no, I mean you have great form.

ENTEN: Thank you.

BERMAN: Harry Enten, thank you very -- this number very different than the president's current approval rating.

ENTEN: Sixty is very different from 40.

BERMAN: Thank you very much, sir.

Sara.

SIDNER: Was that good form? Because I'm thinking of running a long race. I'm --

ENTEN: Sara, we're going to run that marathon very much --

SIDNER: Are we -- are we -- OK, got it.

ENTEN: Together.

SIDNER: Oh, you're good.

ENTEN: Thank you.

SIDNER: You're good. All right, I'm taking tips. Thank you, guys.

Coming up, a student's heroic actions caught on camera. How he managed to help a driver suffering from a medical emergency. We'll take you to that story.

Also, goats on the run. The moment an officer corralled them back to their homes.

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[08:50:24]

BOLDUAN: There's new CNN reporting today. Many formerly homeless people in the United States, including veterans, could be back on the street now because of a policy change by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This plan being pushed out by the Trump administration. It could, and would, shift billions in grant funding away from long term housing programs to transitional housing. It's being challenged in court. Let's see where that heads.

But let's get more on this story and this new reporting from CNN's Brian Todd, joining us right now with this reporting.

What are you hearing about this, Brian?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kate, this is new reporting from myself and our colleague, Nicky Robertson. We've learned that tens of thousands of formerly homeless people across the country, many of them veterans, could be evicted from the facilities where they currently live because of a new initiative by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD. HUD wants to shift more than $3 billion in its grant funding from permanent housing for the homeless to shorter term housing, known as transitional housing. Now transitional housing is typically offered for up to about two years. But homeless advocates say the average length of time spent in transitional housing tends to be much shorter, only a few months, with many people returning to homelessness. If this plan from HUD goes through, up to 170,000 formerly homeless people across the U.S., including many veterans, could be evicted. That is according to the lead plaintiff in this case.

This initiative has been temporarily blocked by a federal judge as part of a lawsuit against HUD filed by homeless advocacy groups. Some key decisions in the case could come as early as today.

Now, if HUD's plan is allowed to go through, one place which will be affected is Alpha Omega Veteran Services in Memphis, Tennessee. It runs three facilities housing formerly homeless veterans. One of those facilities would have to convert to transitional housing, and more than two dozen veterans who live in that facility could be evicted. One of them is Jayson Carter, 78 years old, a Vietnam veteran who served in the Air Force. We spoke to him about what this would mean for him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAYSON CARTER, VETERAN AT RISK OF EVICTION: It would be just disastrous. I'd be back on the street in my old -- my old Buick with no air conditioning. And I don't mind telling anybody. Alpha Omega saved my life. I mean, I was -- I was out there homeless, completely, you know, and they gave me a place that was secure and safe, where I could rebuild my strength.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: Now, HUD contends that the current federally funded system for housing the homeless is broken and, quote, misguided, and says some homeless people who use the system are exposed to illegal drugs and sex offenders. A HUD spokesperson, in a statement to CNN, said, quote, "HUD fully stands by our objective to overhaul Americas failed homelessness system, which has relied almost exclusively on permanently warehousing the homeless at exorbitant taxpayer costs while ignoring root causes," end quote.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: Talk -- Brian, talk to me about how big the problem is, especially when we're talking about homeless veterans in the United States.

TODD: Well, Kate, according to a report published by HUD itself in 2024, there are nearly 33,000 veterans facing homelessness in the U.S. and nearly 14,000 of them are actually unsheltered. One homeless advocacy group says about five percent of all adults facing homelessness in this country are veterans. These are staggering numbers, Kate. And, you know, the way they're trying to deal with this is indeed pretty controversial.

BOLDUAN: And you'll be -- you're on top of it. And you'll be bringing us all the updates on this. I really appreciate your reporting on this, Brian, and staying there for us.

Sara. SIDNER: All right, on our radar for you this morning, a high school

student jumps into action, breaking a truck window to save a woman who looked like she was having a seizure. He was walking home after his baseball game in Philadelphia when he noticed people banging on the window of a truck in the road. He found a pole in a trash can, as seen in this Ring video here, and broke the back window to just get to the woman to help her. We don't know how the woman is doing this morning, but the teen said he stayed until the ambulance picked her up and drove her to the hospital.

All right, a Coast Guard rescue off the coast of Florida. A helicopter and boat crew tracked down an overdue boater six miles off Three Rooker Island. The 39-year-old was in the water, clinging to his fuel can when they found him. Crazy picture. He was brought back to shore safely and taken to the hospital.

And a sheriff's deputy in Tampa, Florida, respond to some unusual suspects who had run off. There they are, the naughty little things. A herd of goats that escaped from a yard. Body camera video shows the deputy taking an interesting approach to trying to round them up.

[08:55:03]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How'd you guys get out? Get inside. Go!

Thanks, goats. Appreciate your cooperation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: They listened. He thanked them. The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office joked that the deputy channeled his inner canine to bark orders. Apparently it worked because the goats, as you saw, they listened and they returned home safely. Not a baaaad day, John.

BERMAN: Oh, nothing to kid about, Sara.

SIDNER: Not bad.

BERMAN: I can do it, too. I can do it, too.

All right, while we're on the subject of Florida, a surprise win in a Florida special election getting attention across the Democratic Party. Emily Gregory flipped a state House seat in a district that includes President Trump's Mar-a-Lago home. She won by more than two points, you can see there. It's a district that the president won by 11 points in the 2024 presidential election. And State Representative- elect Emily Gregory is with us now.

Thank you so much for being with us.

I'm going to ask you the question that I know Democrats across the country have been asking you when they call you, and I know you've been getting the calls, how do you do it?

EMILY GREGORY (D), FLORIDA STATE REPRESENTATIVE-ELECT: Well, thank you so much for having me.

And I think it's not as complicated as maybe the political punditry class thinks it is, but I -- it was just talking to as many voters as I could. And I think that it started with just a small group. And it's the definition of grassroots. It grew from there. We'd have events with maybe four people. Whether it was four or 50 people, you know, we had these gatherings. And then a friend that I would meet there would invite me to the next one. And we just kept finding more volunteers and more meet and greet hosts. And that's how we got the word out. And just talked to as many, many voters as we could.

BERMAN: About what? I mean how big of an issue was probably the most famous resident in your district right now?

GREGORY: So, that's not what I heard. And that's not what I asked. I asked, you know, what are you struggling to, you know, make ends meet? Are you struggling to save for the future? Because I know we are, and my friends are. So, we talked about property insurance. It has skyrocketed over the last five, six years. It's really out of control and strangling many of us. It's keeping first time buyers from entering the market. It's hard for seniors to stay in their home. At the same time health care has just gotten more expensive and harder to maintain after the ACA tax credits expired. And lastly, public education has really come under fire in the state and we're really gutting it.

So, those are the things that I was talking about when I was knocking on doors and at campaign events. And that's what the voters wanted to talk to me about.

BERMAN: Yes, so, largely, it sounds like affordability, which is an issue that some Democrats have been talking about in other places, that seem like something that you think could be a successful formula for Democrats over the next several months?

GREGORY: I think affordability is an issue nationally, but you can't just plug and play what the affordability issues are here in coastal Palm Beach County. I don't know what the affordability issues are in Wisconsin or South Carolina. You will only know that by going and talking to as many voters as you possibly can and helping them inform, you know, your message and your policy solutions.

BERMAN: I was reading an article from a few days ago that said you had not yet heard from constituent President Donald Trump yet. Have you spoken to him by phone since your election?

GREGORY: No, but I would -- I would welcome the call, and I'm sure my phone number is not that hard to get. But no, I've not -- I've not heard from the president of the United States.

BERMAN: If you had a chance to talk to him, what would you say?

GREGORY: I would say, you know, I'm honored to be your state representative, and advocate for the things of -- that will better all of our lives in District 87. And, you know, open to any conversation with anyone in District 87, and really Florida at large. I'm -- my door's always open and I'm never afraid to have a conversation.

BERMAN: You talk about Florida. Florida went from a purple state to a decidedly red state over the last, I don't know, you know, eight, ten years or so. What do you think the chances are for Democrats in Florida in this midterm election?

GREGORY: I like our chances. I mean, I -- maybe I'm a half glass full kind of gal, but I saw the pathway forward for me in this district eight, nine months ago when I filed. And I see a different pathway forward for Florida. And I think that Florida Democrats are on the right side of the issues and we have the momentum. So, as long as we do the work and do the ground game, and I can't under emphasize how important my army of volunteers was.

[09:00:03]

I'm one person. I can knock on some -- a few thousand doors. But we got to as many voters as we did