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Trump Admin Signals It Will Back Off $1.8 Billion Anti- Weaponization Fund; Voters in Six States Head to Polls Today in High- Stakes Primaries; Survey Shows Only One in Six Americans Feel Financially Fulfilled. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired June 02, 2026 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: New this morning, what Punchbowl calls Trump's losing streak. New political defeats and pushback coming at the hands of his own Republican friends and allies, and a showdown could come today.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: It's also Election Day in America. Six states are voting. So, what message will voters be sending today about the November midterms?

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: And an explosion at a fireworks factory. New reporting on what caused this enormous blast, and the coincidence that kept the ordeal from becoming an all-out tragedy.

I'm Sara Sidner with John Berman and Kate Bolduan. This is CNN News Central.

BERMAN: And breaking overnight, this is what political retreat might look like. The Department of Justice paused the $1.8 billion fund the Trump administration established to compensate people who feel they've been wrongly prosecuted. The money was seen as targeted for Trump supporters. Two courts ruled against it, and there was growing angst and outright opposition among Senate Republicans.

Now, those Republicans, including some of the most powerful, want to make sure the fund is not just paused, but gone forever. All the administration said publicly is that, quote, the department will abide by the court's ruling. Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley was asked if that was enough for him. His answer, no.

Let's get right to CNN's Alayna Treene at the White House for the pressure they might be feeling and how they intend to respond.

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, John. This is very rare, what we are seeing play out over this very controversial anti- weaponization fund, as it is so-called, very rarely do you see Republicans on Capitol Hill signaling to the White House that they need to do away with something that, of course, the White House has made clear they want to push ahead with. And that is because this fund has clearly kind of rocked Washington on both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue. But the latest news is that the Trump administration has signaled to Capitol Hill that they are willing to at least drop the $1.8 billion weaponization fund for now. Like sources that CNN has spoken with said that, you know, they are at least considering it in the short-term. Unclear if this is going to be a permanent change.

And that does kind of line up with that statement you just read, John, from the Justice Department, that says they will abide by the court's rulings. We did hear the president. He did an interview with ABC News' Jon Karl yesterday, where he essentially said, we are subject to the courts at this moment. That is what it is, arguing that he is contemplating this pause on moving forward with pursuing this weaponization fund because of the courts, not necessarily because of the pressure that he is feeling politically from within his own party.

Now, we have heard from a number of Republicans who have been very critical of this move, and part of that is because it's being forced to be considered as part of this reconciliation bill, essentially a bill that Republicans are trying to force through to fund both Customs and Border Protection, but also ICE. And so this has really kind of upended some of their plans to move ahead with that.

I do want you to listen, though, to what we are hearing from Republicans about all of this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. BRIAN FITZPATRICK (R-PA): You know, I represent a very -- district in Bucks and Montgomery Counties, Pennsylvania, and they're going to get independent-minded representation. They don't like this fund.

REP. MIKE FLOOD (R-NE): I do not want $1 of that going to anybody who physically assaulted police officers, period.

SEN. JOHN CURTIS (R-UT): From all outward appearances, this doesn't pass the smell test.

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R-ME): I do not support the weaponization fund as it has been described.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This whole thing smells.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: Now to be clear, some of these Republican lawmakers, Don Bacon, Brian Fitzpatrick, Senator Susan Collins, they are people who are not always as afraid to speak out publicly when they don't agree with something that the president or the administration is trying to move forward with.

Then this is what we heard from Senator John Thune, the majority leader of the Senate yesterday. He said that the administration must shut it down themselves. That is very strong language from a leader on Capitol Hill signaling that to the White House.

[07:05:02]

All to say, again, it is very rare to see the White House ever back down for something that they had already announced and were planning to move forward with. I think that just shows how politically perilous this has been for the party overall, and I think people within the White House are kind of seeing the writing on the wall here.

So, we'll see whether or not this gets formally dropped, but for now, that is what the administration has been signaling. John?

BERMAN: And Republicans seem to want something unambiguous. So far, the White House hasn't given to them, buying them another day, I think, of this twisting in the wind.

Alayna Treene, great to see you this morning, thank you very much. Kate?

BOLDUAN: So, it is Election Day in America, friends. Yes, it is, John Berman, your favorite day of the year, especially when it comes multiple times a year. Six states are holding critical primaries that will shape the midterms, including California, which is grabbing a lot of the attention right now.

In the governor's race there, a crowded field of, yes, 61 candidates are competing to succeed term-limited Governor Gavin Newsom. In Los Angeles, a former reality T.V. star, Spencer Pratt, is really shaking up the mayor's race, as the incumbent mayor, you see there, Karen Bass, is fighting for another term.

And let's go to Iowa now, where two Democrats and two Republicans are competing for the state's first open Senate seat in more than a decade. This is after Republican Senator Joni Ernst announced that she is not going to seek re-election.

Let's talk about all of it. Joining us right now is CNN Senior Political Analyst Mark Preston. I mean, you must love us. If people know you, you are not ready to wake up this early, so exactly. We get the curmudgeon Preston version.

My friend, you helped produce CNN's governor's debate in California last month. You spent time with all of the candidates as this was playing out. What do you think the California races kind of will give us big picture, in a kind of a broad look?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, what's interesting about California, Kate, is that it is a wide spectrum of the Democratic Party that is in this primary right now, and it has all these interesting little variables in it. Tom Steyer, who is the very wealthy businessman, ran for president, he has spent over $200 million just to win the nomination.

We've seen the likes of Steve Hilton, a Republican who many people remember from Fox News, who has been able to do well in the polling right now and might actually win one of the top two spots in order to get to the general election. And, of course, there's Xavier Becerra, who our viewers will remember as somebody who served in the Obama administration, somebody who spent a lot of years in Congress, who skyrocketed to the top of the polls once Eric Swalwell had to leave the governor's race because of sexual assault allegations.

So, you have this crazy field that's happening out in California right now. It really is about establishment, money, what is the future of the Democratic Party, and will Democrats fight amongst themselves so much that Steve Hilton, the Republican, will be one of the two people after tonight who will move on to November?

The reason why this is so complicated, Kate, is because they have what's called a jungle primary in California. That means that everybody runs regardless of your party affiliation, and the top two people move on to the November election. It could be a Republican and Democrat in California tomorrow. We'll just have to see what happens, but it is a fascinating race that is happening out there.

BOLDUAN: You mentioned establishment versus grassroots. What do you think -- what are you seeing with that? Because this is a theme, and an important one, in every election, and you really see it here, too.

PRESTON: Yes, you absolutely do. And let's go down a race when we stay in California. We look at what's happening right now, Kate, in California with Spencer Pratt right now, the reality T.V. star who all of a sudden has gone from forgotten to, whoa, he's in the race and he may win the L.A. mayor's race.

Now, the reality is California is an incredibly Democratic state. He's running as a Republican. Unlikely that he would even win the general election should he be able to place in the top three. But what we're seeing is that this fight against the establishment, whether it's on the Republican side, which we've seen with all the Trump candidates losing, or on the Democratic side, where we see the likes of Spencer Pratt, who has caught fire and is taking on an established sitting mayor, a former congresswoman, Karen Bass, and it's all based upon competency.

And this is the argument that's being made right now, specifically from the grassroots to the establishment. You have been incompetent in your jobs. It's time for a change. Spencer Pratt is saying that because, well, if you look at Los Angeles, you see the pictures, there's a lot of concern that the homelessness is out of control, and where was Karen Bass during the fires? And Spencer Pratt is running because his house burned down during those Palisades fires. Kate?

BOLDUAN: It's great to see you, Mark. Thank you so much. Big day today. Sara?

SIDNER: A lot going on.

All right, brand-new numbers out this morning showing a whopping 83 percent of Americans are living with financial stress and uncertainty.

[07:10:06] The main factors driving anxiety, that's ahead.

And breaking overnight, rescue operations are underway after Russia launches a large-scale attack on Ukraine's capital city, Kyiv. Many people trapped in damaged buildings. We will have an update for you from there.

And video from a doorbell camera show an out of control driver plowing through a fence and crashing directly, yikes, into the home. What happened next?

Those stories and more ahead.

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SIDNER: All right. Brand new this morning, new numbers painting a bad picture of what fuels the U.S. economy, us.

[07:15:04]

A new survey shows 83 percent of American adults are feeling financial stress, strain, or uncertainty. That economic anxiety coming as inflation hit a three-year high in April, and Americans burned through their savings. In fact, households are saving at the lowest rate in nearly four years.

CNN's Matt Egan joining us now. What else are you learning about these numbers? Because that is a really high number of Americans who are, if not uncertain, stressed out about their finances.

MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, Sara. Look, no wonder the economy is still the number one issue, right? Many Americans are stressing about money these days. So, just 16 percent feel financially fulfilled, right, where their finances are stable, and they feel confident. Far more, 51 percent, are considered financially conflicted. They're not in crisis, but they're not feeling confident in it either. And almost one in three, 32 percent, are financially stressed, where thinking about money evokes negative feelings, and they just, they feel overwhelmed.

Now, all of this is according to a new poll from Gallup and Edward Jones, and they found that among those who are financially stressed very few of them, 19 percent, say that they can cover a $10,000 expense without dipping into savings. Far more, about half, 52 percent, say finances are controlling their lives, and the vast majority, 73 percent, say that they've experienced actual stress when thinking about money.

So, who is financially stressed right now? Well, this poll finds that it skews towards younger generations. About four in ten Gen Zers and Millennials are in this financially stressed category. Also, non-white households, about four in ten Hispanic, and a little bit more than a third of the black households are financially distressed. But, look, this is bipartisan, one in three Democrats and almost one in four Republicans. And this poll, this is not an anomaly, right? A CNN poll has found similar findings, where about half of all Americans say that they're dissatisfied with their financial situation. University of Michigan, consumer sentiment is at all-time lows. And look I talked to a 55- year-old woman from Montana who said that she's had to forgo her family vacation, delay buying a car, because her paycheck, it's just not keeping up with prices. And she said her cost of groceries and utilities have basically doubled in recent years. And so the financial pressure that she's feeling, clearly she's not alone here.

SIDNER: Yes, clearly, and then gas prices, just lump that all in, and you're going to feel some stress.

Matt Egan, thank you so much --

EGAN: Thank you, Sara.

SIDNER: -- for the numbers this morning. Thank you. John?

BERMAN: All right. It is June, mind you. It is June, and it hailed so much in one place, so much hail they had to bring in the Bobcat there to clear it away.

And with the New York Knicks headed to the finals, Mayor Zoran Mamdani repeals bedtime so kids can watch.

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BERMAN: Big time action on the red clay of Roland-Garros. Let's get to CNN's Coy Wire for all the latest action. Good morning to you, sir.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Hi, John. Good morning, sir. French Open gave us a blockbuster worthy of a primetime movie premiere. World number one Aryna Sabalenka, four-time Grand Slam champ Naomi Osaka in the fourth round showdown.

Osaka stealing the runway, arriving in dazzling gold sequin outfit, but once the match got started, Sabalenka took center stage, powering to a straight sets victory. And with former Roland-Garros champion already out of the draw the paths opening up, Sabalenka still chasing her first French Open title. We are guaranteed a first-time French Open champ, women's and men's this year.

The queen returns. That was the mega breaking news from Queen's Club in London after confirming Serena Williams will make her comeback next week in the doubles draw ahead of Wimbledon. No word yet on who her partner will be. But when Serena Williams walks back onto the court, the sporting world will be watching.

Here's the current world number one on the 23-time Grand Slam singles champ.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ARYNA SABALENKA, WORLD #1: She's a legend, and it's inspiring to see, you know, and I'm actually excited to see her play and probably face her. So, it's very cool. It's very good news for tennis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: Okay, two stars and two trades that reshaped the NFL landscape yesterday. Myles Garrett set the NFL's all-time single-season sack record, leaving Cleveland, heading to the L.A. Rams, one of the biggest defensive trades in league history. Browns will get Jared Verse and a 2027 first-round pick, and a second and third in subsequent years.

The Super Bowl is in L.A. this year, and that could be where John Berman's Patriots will be headed again after they landed three-time pro bowler receiver A.J. Brown, leaving Philadelphia for a 2028 first- round pick and a 2027 fifth-rounder. He'll reunite with former Titans Coach Mike Vrabel, where he played.

Now, New York City, they are running on Knicks fever. Mayor Zohran Mamdani giving students the green light to stay up late, encouraging parents to bend bedtime rules so the kiddos can stay up and watch the NBA Finals. The Knicks face the Spurs beginning tomorrow in their first finals appearance since 1999.

The city is wearing its team colors proudly. Iconic subway railings and posts have been painted orange and blue as excitement spreads from borough to borough. The Knicks haven't won it all since 1973.

The Women's College World Series final is set, and it's an all-Texas showdown. Texas Tech punched its ticket by taking down top-seeded Alabama behind ace NiJaree Canady, who collected her 11th career World Series win, second most all-time.

[07:25:09]

Waiting for them will be the Texas Longhorns, who powered past Tennessee, thanks in part to Hannah Wells driving in two runs in game one. And speaking of Wells, John, here's a fun one for you. She says every time she spots a ladybug, she eats it for good luck. It's a superstition she has had since childhood.

Some people have sports drinks. She prefers her secret ingredient as something that could be crawling on a leaf near you, John.

BERMAN: You said it's a fun one. I imagine it's not as fun for the ladybugs that, right, that are being consumed.

WIRE: Yes. Yes, Hannah Wells' opponents are studying scouting reports while ladybugs are looking for evacuation routes.

BERMAN: This is not a vegan World Series by any stretch of the imagination.

Now, Coy Wire, thank you very much for that.

WIRE: You bet.

BOLDUAN: The ladybug lobby is coming for you guys.

BERMAN: Yes. Although, you do appreciate a good bug eater, so --

BOLDUAN: What?

BERMAN: Please, take it away.

BOLDUAN: John, I'm backwards today. I hate when you do this. This is like his walk off homer. Hey, oh, he just like drops things and just walks away. And then it takes us 20 minutes to realize, did Berman just say that?

Let's do this, something very different and much more important. Right now, an urgent search is happening for survivors amidst the rubble of an apartment building after Russia hit Kyiv with a huge wave of strikes overnight, some of the biggest strikes in months.

And an incredible rescue to tell you about. A dog was trapped on an island after being swept out to sea. We'll be back.

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