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Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) On Ceasefire Teetering As Israel And Iran Trade Worst Strikes In Months; Mass Protests In Albania Over Ivanka Trump-Jared Kushner Real Estate Project; Jury Selection Begins In Deadly 2025 Palisades Fire Trial. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired June 08, 2026 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: CNN's Fred Pleitgen is in Tehran. We should note CNN operates in Iran only with the permission of the government but maintains full editorial control of its reports. Here's Fred's report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: On our rooftop position here overlooking Iran's capital Tehran we have been able to hear a couple of very loud thuds that could be explosions, and then also some smaller ones in pretty close succession that might have been anti-aircraft fire. Now that's not confirmed. It's not exactly clear what that is.

However, we do know that the Israelis say that they have been striking targets, as they put it, in Iran's capital Tehran but also on other Iranian cities like, for instance, Isfahan and Tabriz. That's also confirmed by the Iranians.

And the Iranians also say and the Israelis also confirm that Israel has hit a petrochemical facility in the south of Iran. It's very close to the Iraqi border and very close to the city of Basrah. The Iranians are saying that the staff of that petrochemical facility has been ordered to evacuate that facility.

And the Iranians are also saying that they are hitting back in a major way. They say in retaliation for the attack on that petrochemical facility that they launched ballistic missiles towards a similar facility, they put it, in the Israeli city of Haifa.

The Iranians also earlier saying that there had been a wave of Iranian ballistic missile attacks targeting two Israeli air bases and specifically, radar installations affiliated with those air bases.

The Iranians are saying right now their missile forces and generally their forces are in a state of complete readiness, and they are also warning the Israelis to stop their military action.

Of course, all of this coming as the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran continues to very much hang in the balance. Iran and the U.S. saying that they are trying to work towards a memorandum of understanding to end the conflict between Iran and the United States but also to then move towards broader peace talks aimed at achieving a larger peace agreement.

The Iranians are saying those talks are in a difficult state. They want some of their frozen assets to be unfrozen immediately. And both sides are acknowledging, of course, right now, that especially with these attacks going on it certainly seems as though that ceasefire and the general situation right now very volatile.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Great to have Fred inside Tehran at this crucial moment.

With us now is Congressman Jake Auchincloss, a Democrat from Massachusetts.

Congressman, we just got a statement literally seconds ago attributed to the Iranian military headquarters. They're saying that they are going to suspend this current round of offensive operations. The claim being that they achieved what they wanted to here. So the Iranian military officials are saying from their side this is now paused.

Your reaction to that?

REP. JAKE AUCHINCLOSS (D-MA) (via Webex by Cisco): I expect this type of on again-off again violence and purported negotiations is going to continue for quite a while because the president has no control over the situation in the Middle East.

And these conversations that are happening between the United States and Iran about nuclear enrichment, about proxy terror funding, about unfrozen assets, about the Strait of Hormuz for that matter, are conversations that could have and should have been happening before February 28. This war has accomplished nothing except for making gasoline prices expensive.

BERMAN: You say the president has no control. It's notable because yesterday, before Israel struck Iran anew, the president told Axios, "I'm going to call Bibi right now and tell him not to retaliate." They then did.

He also told the Financial Times, "I call the shots. I call all the shots. He (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu) doesn't call the shots."

Again, that was before Israel actually fired at Iran there.

So what does that tell you about the situation?

AUCHINCLOSS: One of my favorite presidents is Teddy Roosevelt and he used to say, "Walk softly and carry a big stick." This president has no stick, and he throws tantrums and brags all the time about how purportedly powerful he is. It's kind of pathetic.

And it undermines the safety of the American public because when our allies and when our enemies take us less seriously it makes it harder for the threat of retaliation to hold the kind of cold confidence that it is meant to.

This is not just a fight in the Middle East, by the way. The president promised to end the war between Ukraine and Russia on day one of his administration, obviously. But what's frustrating is that actually we could end this war between Ukraine and Russia. Ukraine, through its bravery and ingenuity and technological know-how with drones and counter-drones, has actually taken the upper hand. And we could drive toward the conclusion of that barbaric conflict, but because this president isn't taken seriously by Beijing or by Moscow it's going to be very hard to drive those negotiations.

[07:35:04]

BERMAN: Congressman, you're in Massachusetts. Now you're headed down to Washington where in the next few days you will vote on the $70 billion reconciliation bill funding ICE and immigration services. Not part of that bill -- and some senators, Republicans and Democrats, did want it over the last few days -- was an official ban on the president's political fund that could compensate people who feel they've been unfairly investigated.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche has said that's dead -- they're done pushing -- but listen to what the president said about it this weekend.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Me, personally, I think the weaponization fund is a great idea, and so do many other Republicans. You have to get it approved. If they get it approved that's great. If they don't get it approved, I'd be disappointed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: How dead does that sound to you, Congressman?

AUCHINCLOSS: I think it's pretty dead. I think there's enough Republicans who are past their primaries looking at general elections and I think there's enough Republicans who have lose their primaries and have a newfound conscience that I find it hard to believe they would rack up the votes for what is a slush fund for friends, family, and felons for the President of the United States. It's just the most recent, most stark crystallization of the corruption of this administration.

Americans are seeing 40 to 50 percent increases in the price of gasoline. Diesel, fuel -- fertilizer, excuse me, are going to be spiking. Travel will be unaffordable for the middle class this summer. And meanwhile, this president is frenetically planning his ballroom, redesigning Washington, D.C., and doling out funds that the taxpayers have provided him to his own vengeance tour. BERMAN: In that interview with NBC's Kristen Welker, at the end of the interview the president walked off, and this was after Kristen continually pressed him for evidence on some of his claims. He said the election in California is rigged. He said the 2020 election was rigged. He said there were FBI agents on January 6, 2021, letting people into the Capitol.

Let me play a little bit of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: You know, elections in this country -- we're like a third world country.

KRISTEN WELKER, MODERATOR, NBC "MEET THE PRESS": But, sir.

TRUMP: Your elections are crooked, and you're crooked, and "MEET THE PRESS" is crooked.

WELKER: But Mr. President --

TRUMP: And so is ABC and CBS and CNN.

WELKER: But Mr. President --

TRUMP: You're a one-sided, crooked network. So let's call it quits because I've had enough.

Thank you, darling. Have a good day.

WELKER: Mr. President --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So what are the American people supposed to do with that, Congressman?

AUCHINCLOSS: I mean, Trump's gonna Trump, right? It's been a decade. We know who this man is. He's petulant, he's self-obsessed, he's immature. I don't know what else to say.

I don't know that Democrats really need to press further the nature of Trump's character. It's on full display. And those who have made up their mind have made up their mind to like him.

What Americans needs to hear from Democrats is not yet another round of look how pathetic that guy is; it's what are we going to do? If you entrust us with Congress, if you entrust us in '28 with the presidency, how do we deliver for you a new American dream for young Americans where you can get an excellent education? Where you can buy a home by the time you're 30. Where you can have a dignified retirement by the time you're 65. What are the bold ideas that we will deliver?

Because this country is exhausted by that kind of behavior. It's been a decade now. People are sick of it. And I think character matters and they want to see character on display.

BERMAN: Congressman Jake Auchincloss from Massachusetts. Thanks for your time this morning -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: So at least 19 people are reported killed after a massive 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck the southern Philippines. We're going to show you the extent of the damage even to large buildings there.

The quake hit around 7:00 a.m. local time just as public schools there were starting a new academic year. And we're going to show you the moment dozens of terrified elementary school children -- you can see -- are experiencing this earthquake. That canopy, if you will -- that overhang eventually collapses right where the children are. Fortunately, everyone was OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(Schoolchildren screaming during earthquake).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Those poor babies. Oh, those poor babies.

Other video shows entire buildings collapse -- this is terrifying to watch -- triggering obviously panic. And also the quake triggered tsunami warnings in the Philippines, Indonesia, and Japan. Officials do say that threat has largely passed but still urging people to stay alert, very clearly, as sea levels can still fluctuate.

The president of the Philippines has directed government agencies to act immediately to evacuate residents and begin rescue efforts to try to find those who could very likely be trapped under the rubble.

This video, though, as it's coming in more and more, just terrifying this morning -- John.

[07:40:03]

BERMAN: An obviously, a great concern because it happened and we still don't have great information from the ground if people might be trapped and quite how many might be lost.

This morning mass protests and backlash in Albania with people chanting "Albania is not for sale." This after Ivanka Trump revealed plans for a real estate project. It involves a protected natural area along the Albanian coast. The project, which is backed by Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner, includes development of a private, uninhabited island and an undeveloped beach that is home to endangered species.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Of course, I'm totally against it. Why would I want somebody -- a foreigner to come and buy my island? The land -- we've been here 2,500 years. So how can somebody, you know, claim that she found an island all of a sudden and pretend to be her home? (END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Let's get right to CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau with the latest on this. And this largely -- this reaction largely comes from statements from Ivanka Trump herself.

BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN REPORTER: That's right, you know. I mean, this is a very beautiful part of the world it must be said. This is, you know, right across the water from Italy. It's where the Adriatic Sea meets the Mediterranean Sea just up from Greece. It's really very, very beautiful.

And there have been rumors in Albania for quite some time now that there was a development of this island. You know, fences were going up, earthmoving equipment is going in, but no one was confirming who was doing it -- who was behind it. And then it started to be, you know, rumors that it was affiliated with the Trump family. And then it was Ivanka Trump herself who confirmed it.

Now let's listen to what she told the podcast.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

IVANKA TRUMP, REVEALED PLANS FOR REAL ESTATE PROJECT IN ALBANIA: We were on a friend's boat, and we stopped for a swim. Effectively, that's how we found it. We swam to the islands. We went on a hike barefoot all the way up to the top. And we were just captivated and it stayed with us ever since.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NADEAU: But, you know, when you listen to that it's as if they sort of discovered this island, which you heard the Albanian woman saying had been, you know, in the country for 2,500 years. And one of the reasons, of course, that this place is so beautiful is precisely because it's not developed. And it's not developed, as you said, because it's protected.

Now, Albania changes some legislation a couple of years ago that allowed luxury properties to develop it, but that is not sitting well with the people of Albania, and they are making their voices heard.

BERMAN: We're looking at some of the pictures right now. It is truly stunning.

Barbie Nadaeu, thank you so much for that update -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: So just hours from Apple's worldwide annual Developers Conference is getting underway in California and all eyes are going to be on the outgoing CEO Tim Cook. Cook is, as you remember, set to step down in September, which means this is one of his final, like, major events while leading the company. It's also a pivotal moment for Apple's long-awaited AI strategy just more broadly.

CNN's Lisa Eadicicco is joining me now. What are you hearing about this? What's the expectation? LISA EADICICCO, CNN TECH EDITOR: So the big thing that we're expecting from the conference today is a new version of Siri, and this is a really big deal because Apple has been thought to be behind rivals like Google and OpenAI in artificial intelligence. So this revamped version of Siri that we're expecting to see will hopefully bring Apple up to speed with ChatGPT and Gemini.

So we don't know exactly what's going to be announced just yet but based on reports from Bloomberg and some previous announcements that Apple has made we're expecting to see a new Siri that can kind of do things for you, and work across apps, and incorporate some personal context from your iPhone into the answers that it provides you.

And this is really critical because a lot of investors, analysts, and consumers have been watching to see what is Apple going to do in artificial intelligence. A lot of the features they've announced so far make it easier to use your iPhone and your Mac. It'll summarize text. It'll help you edit photos and things like that.

But we haven't seen a big, sweeping announcement from them in artificial intelligence yet. So that's going to be the big thing that we're watching today.

And then, of course, as you mentioned, this is expected to be the last major event where Tim Cook --

BOLDUAN: Right.

EADICICCO: -- is the CEO of Apple.

So I do think we're kind of expecting a peek at what the next era of Apple might be from today's event.

BOLDUAN: Just in general though it is kind of like a fascinating thing of thinking of Apple, which was so ahead of the times, right -- it changed everything -- is now seen as being behind -- being -- lagging and behind when it comes to, like, the next revolution and evolution in technology with AI. So it is a fascinating thing to see.

It's good to see you, Lisa.

EADICICCO: Yes, thank you.

BOLDUAN: Thank you so much -- John.

BERMAN: All right. New this morning the first interview with former "60 MINUTES" correspondent Scott Pelley after he was fired from the show. He had blistering criticism from CBS.

[07:45:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT PELLEY, FIRED FROM CBS "60 MINUTES": We can save this. It's possible to land this plane. But right now, CBS News, in my view, is on fire. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: In an interview with The New York Times, Pelley says CBS news editor-in-chief Bari Weiss should be removed, accusing network leadership of poor management and editorial interference. CBS rejects those claims, saying there is no political influence over its journalism.

We are standing by for jury selection this morning in the trial of a man accused of helping start the devastating Palisades wildfire. Prosecutors say he was obsessed with fire.

And a ritual, honestly, not always loved by sports fans at games -- the wave. An attempt at a new world record.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:50:08]

BERMAN: All right. Happening now, oil prices have been rising this morning as Iran and Israel exchange fresh strikes overnight. However, they're off their highs. This after Iran says this current round of offensive operations from its side is over.

That's the way things have been going, frankly, the last few months. Oil prices swinging wildly up and down with the Strait of Hormuz choked off. It remains so. But oil futures in general -- in general haven't risen to the sort of catastrophic levels that some people predicted they might. Why not? There might be an answer.

CNN's Matt Egan is here now with that.

MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Well John, look, this has been one of the biggest surprises, right, just how eerily calm the market has been for months about this historic crisis. It's really been stunning to see.

One of the theories is that perhaps the Strait of Hormuz, which is this really key waterway bringing crude out from the Gulf to the rest of the world -- that maybe it's not as closed as previously thought, right? So visible traffic on vessels it just at a fraction -- about 15 percent of pre-war levels.

But some analysts think that there's these clandestine flows that are very significant. JPMorgan estimating this should be 2.1 million barrels per day, not 21 -- 2.1 million barrels per day on tankers that have turned off their transponders and that they're trying to avoid detection. And then that's been a significant factor in trying to help the market kind of absorb this massive shock.

Now, this is perhaps not the biggest factor. There's other factors out there, including the fact that China has slashed its imports. That's huge because China is one of the biggest importers of energy.

And also, there's been workarounds -- there's detours. There's the East-West Pipeline that has allowed some crude to go from Saudi Arabia to the Red Sea and to the rest of the market.

If you put all this together it explains this is Brent crude -- it's well off the highest levels of the crisis and moving down even though, as you were just talking about -- I mean, a ceasefire does increasingly look shaky. It's almost stretching the definition of what a ceasefire really is. But the market has been very calm about it.

But some analysts -- they tell me they're worried that the way the market has reacted and these workarounds, it's kind of lulled traders into complacency where they're kind of underestimating the severity of the damage on the ground. Because you have oil inventories are plunging rapidly. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve -- it's quickly approaching the lowest level since the 1980s. And even if some oil is leaking out of the Strait of Hormuz, these clandestine flows -- obviously not reopened.

And so some analysts do think prices are still going higher from here. JPMorgan says even if the Strait of Hormuz reopens this month, they think that Brent crude will average $104 a barrel in the third quarter. Piper Sandler much more concerned. They see $130 a barrel.

And look, John, it all depends on what happens next, right? If the ceasefire doesn't hold then there's no deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. And if there's more fighting -- and we don't know that there will be but if there is and there's more damage to energy facilities in the region that's just going to exacerbate the supply problem.

BERMAN: It's very interesting to see where gas prices ultimately settled. They've been dropping but when will they stop dropping and how much higher will it be --

EGAN: Yeah.

BERMAN: -- than when this war began?

Matt Egan, thank you very much.

We can see prices -- again, oil prices still up some though not as much as they've have been today -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: All right. This morning in Los Angeles, jury selection is set to begin in the trial of Jonathan Rinderknecht. He's the -- he faces federal arson charges for allegedly starting the devastating Palisades fire last year.

The fire killed a dozen people. It burned thousands of homes and businesses to the ground. You will remember just how horrible these scenes were. It became the third-most destructive fire in California's history. A year and a half later so many people are still trying to rebuild.

And federal prosecutors say Rinderknecht intentionally set it all in motion because he was "pissed off at the world" and had a toxic anti- capitalist fixation on the accused UnitedHealthcare CEO killer Luigi Mangione. The defense team, though, calls the case woefully slanted.

If convicted, Rinderknecht faces up to 45 years in prison.

Joining us right now is CNN legal analyst Joey Jackson. So it all really is starting to get underway with jury selection.

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY, FORMER PROSECUTOR: Oh, yeah.

BOLDUAN: And as I said, it's happening in Los Angeles.

These fires impacted so many people. How much of a challenge will it be do you think to seat a jury in this one?

JACKSON: So Kate, good morning.

I think it's going to be overwhelmingly significant.

BOLDUAN: Yeah.

JACKSON: To your point, so much damage, so many people impacted. We're talking about 23,000 acres involved. We're talking about 7,000 structures, businesses, et cetera. We're talking about $150 billion worth of damages.

[07:55:00]

Why do I start there? I start there because you impanel a jury from a community --

BOLDUAN: Um-hum.

JACKSON: -- and it would be difficult to find people who were either not themselves impacted or related or have a friend or someone else. And when I say impacted there's a variety of ways.

Did you evacuate? Do you know somebody else who evacuated? Did you lose your home? Did you lose your business? Was somebody else impaired?

At the end of the day though, Kate, obviously when you're selecting a jury it's about selecting people who can put things aside and sit on the panel.

Now, to be clear, the judge will kick off anybody who has either a direct or even indirect connection. But even that having been said, just the general devastation --

BOLDUAN: Yeah.

JACKSON: -- and the impact, I think it's going to be a challenge indeed. They'll do it --

BOLDUAN: Yeah.

JACKSON: -- but it's certainly going to be hard.

BOLDUAN: Because it's not a then. It's still impacting people -- JACKSON: Oh, yes.

BOLDUAN: -- in this very moment, right? So that's part -- that's kind of part of it.

JACKSON: Yeah.

BOLDUAN: So a question on the case to be presented.

JACKSON: Yeah.

BOLDUAN: I saw that after his initial arrest prosecutors had said that Rinderknecht had created these AI images --

JACKSON: Yeah.

BOLDUAN: -- that included one showing -- the way they described it is a dystopian painting showing, in part, a burning forest and crowd fleeing from it. I bring that up because the judge had said that it can't be used.

JACKSON: That's right.

BOLDUAN: So is that a problem for the prosecution? Like, what evidence are they going to need to try to show what they say is he intentionally set this --

JACKSON: Sure.

BOLDUAN: -- in motion?

JACKSON: So what happens is that there are all these pretrial motions, and pretrial motions in English set the rules of engagement for what the trial is going to be about.

Now, to your point, these AI-generated images -- the judge said no, it's a bridge too far. I'm not going to allow you prosecutors to use that. You can use plenty of else. I'll talk about that momentarily.

The defense also suffered a significant blow. Why? The defense wanted to blame this on the negligence of the responding fire department. There is mass tort litigation going on about what happened and could it have been prevented.

BOLDUAN: Um-hum.

JACKSON: And the defense said hey, this is not about my client who set a fire on January 1, right, at Lachman, which is different and wholly distinguishable from Palisades.

BOLDUAN: Um-hum.

JACKSON: This is about the fire department showing up, seeing smoldering things, and leaving, right? So what's that about? The judge is disallowing that.

Now in terms of the prosecution, they have plenty else to talk about.

BOLDUAN: Um-hum.

JACKSON: Though certainly there's no direct evidence. There's not people who saw him setting the fire. There are people -- apparently, he was operating as an Uber driver. They're describing him of, right, a guy who was mad at the world. He was fixated with Luigi Mangione. You know, we know him.

BOLDUAN: Yeah.

JACKSON: The U.S. -- the U.S. health care exec. He's the one who killed him allegedly.

And so they're going to talk about the issue of capitalism. His rants about how the rich have and we don't have. And then they found a lighter in his car.

The defense, for their part, says hey look, when he started this initial fire, he waited. He called the police. And so the prosecution to get this conviction is going to have to establish the one fire he set on January 1 and what is the connection, if any, to the fire in Palisades on January 7. That timeline is critical to the prosecutors building their case.

BOLDUAN: Fascinating. Thanks for laying it out.

JACKSON: Always.

BOLDUAN: I really appreciate it, Joey.

JACKSON: Thank you, Kate.

BOLDUAN: John.

BERMAN: All right. In Camden, Arkansas, a 100 mile per hour chase ended with an SUV flipping off the road and a 4-month-old baby being thrown from that vehicle. That is terrifying. The driver had four children under the age of six inside the car when he allegedly sped away from a traffic stop. Police did not know, they say, that children were in the car.

After the crash an officer spotted the infant in the grass, picked the child up, and then carried them to safety. You can see that right there. Again, just remarkable. Police say all four children survived with only minor injuries.

The driver now faces a long list of charges, including child endangerment.

In Dallas, a first responder had to call Waymo rider support as a driverless vehicle partially blocked fire trucks from getting to the scene of a deadly apartment fire.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You need to move this car ASAP, please. There's a fire around the corner. You need to move this car. You're blocking the roadway.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So the Waymo telephone operator on the other end was eventually able to get the deputy manual control of the vehicle so trucks could make their way to the fire. In a statement to CNN Waymo said the vehicle was in the process of completing a three-point turn to leave the area as other cars were also doing.

Thousands of people in Mexico City attempted to break the world record for the biggest wave in the world. That comes 40 years after Mexico really popularized the move during the 1986 World Cup, one of the most thrilling World Cups ever.

The U.S. holds the record for the largest wave of more than 157,000 people involved at a NASCAR event in Bristol, Tennessee in 2008. Japan holds the longest wave record with an impressive 17 minutes and 14 seconds.

I will say there are a lot of sports fans that don't like the wave at all -- just saying.

All right. The winners are in after the 79th Annual Tony Award. Grammy Award-winning singer Pink, who hosted this year's broadcast, kicked off the show with a new rendition of "Lady Marmalade" from "Moulin Rouge!" which is a fantastic song.

"Schmigadoon!" took home the top prize of Best Musical, with "Ragtime" winning Best Revival.