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Justices Say Trump Has Power To Fire Heads Of Independent Agencies; Rescue Teams Racing To Find Survivors Five Days After Earthquakes; Mother & 18-Day-Old Baby Rescued From Rubble In Venezuela; Iran Says No Talks With U.S. Planned In Coming Days; Millions Under Extreme Heat Alerts Ahead Of July 4th Weekend; Trump Speaks From The Oval Office. Aired 3-3:30p ET

Aired June 29, 2026 - 15:00   ET

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

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: As he says, he is working to redo that. On top of that, he's done so much work at the White House, including demolishing the East Wing and rebuilding that ballroom.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: And sometimes he offers to pay for things he doesn't actually pay for. New report out about that. Kristen Holmes, thanks so much.

And a new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: Expansion of executive firings. The Supreme Court adding to the President's power to fire officials, overturning a nearly century-old precedent. But two other cases have infuriated the White House.

On their own, Venezuela's earthquake survivors struggling after the disaster destroys homes. The window for rescue teams to save survivors is closing, but the hope stands strong. The death toll standing now at more than 1,700.

And prepare for a whole lot of heat this 4th of July. A dangerous, likely record-breaking heat wave will scorch millions of Americans over the holiday weekend and in the few days leading up to it.

We're following these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

A number of significant rulings from the Supreme Court today. In a series of opinions, the court handing President Trump a big win when it comes to his power to fire the heads of independent agencies. But in a separate ruling, the justices said that power cannot apply to members of the Federal Reserve. The court also snubbing efforts to curb mail-in voting, something, of course, President Trump has wanted to do for years. The justices decided not to take up President Trump's E. Jean Carroll appeal, so that means he does now have to pay her $5 million. CNN's Paula Reid leading us off this hour with more of what we got from the Supreme Court today.

A bit of a mixed bag for the president. Some really important rulings here, Paula. PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Erica, it was

a big day for President Trump. And while he did lose some of these cases, at the end of the day, he is really a winner because the Supreme Court weighing in today on one of the questions that's really been hanging over his second term, and that is what is the extent of his power to reshape the federal government by firing government officials.

And this question came before the court in the form of two different opinions. One, a question about firing an official at the Federal Reserve, another one at the Federal Trade Commission, and the Supreme Court said that he cannot fire the official at the Federal Reserve without proper process, without giving them a chance to respond and go through the appropriate steps.

When it came to the other case, they said that he can fire that official, and that's really the significant one because even though it's a win and a loss, really, it's a big win because they're saying that he has what is far more than we thought, power to fire officials through the executive branch.

Now, this is, again, significant because it expands what we previously understood to be the extent of his authority to fire officials without process or without cause in certain circumstances.

So, this is something his lawyers have been pushing, part of what is called a unitary executive theory, a real expansion of executive power. This was a big day for him on that case.

HILL: So, as we look at -- we look at all of that, there was also this big ruling when it comes to mail-in voting. That was really important as well.

REID: Yes, I'm really watching that one so closely because it surprised us a little that there, they said that in the state of Mississippi, where your ballot will be counted as long as it's postmarked by election day, even if it comes in a few days after election day, they said that that's okay, and that is significant because there are similar laws in roughly a dozen states that the RNC and the Trump Justice Department were seeking to invalidate as part of their effort to really restrict the -- the window in which votes are counted.

Now, this is all, of course, rooted -- deeply rooted in President Trump's false assertion that the 2020 election was stolen from him. But Erica, we were watching this case really closely because we know that the Trump administration is interested in trying to really get in there and get more federal power around how elections are conducted, but here the court deferring to those states to decide if those ballots that arrive after election day should be counted.

HILL: All right, Paula, appreciate it. Thank you. Jim?

SCIUTTO: We are also monitoring the urgent rescue operations currently underway in Venezuela. Five days after a pair of just punishing earthquakes devastated the country, search teams are looking for any signs of survivors. Today, more aftershocks rattled those efforts. The latest official death toll has risen again in just the last hour to more than 1,700 killed. Tens of thousands remain unaccounted for, many others displaced.

Despite all of that, glimmers of hope in these dark hours.

[15:05:00]

Over the weekend, a new mother and her 18-day-old infant son were pulled alive from the rubble. They're now in stable condition after surviving 23 hours trapped.

Joining us now, Joe English. He's an emergency spokesperson for UNICEF.

Joe, good to have you.

JOE ENGLISH, EMERGENCY SPOKESPERSON, UNICEF: Good to be with you, Jim.

SCIUTTO: First of all, if I could begin with just the scale of this, because the -- the death toll above 1,700, but -- but 10s of thousands still missing, and just the aerial shots of these -- these buildings pancaked. Can you describe the scale of a disaster aid workers are seeing there right now?

ENGLISH: Yes, Jim, it is absolutely huge. I mean, we estimate that 1.6 million people are affected, and that includes almost 700,000 children. And this is a huge, huge scale. And so, what we are doing is we're doing everything we can to reach children, to make sure that we're able to get the basic (INAUDIBLE) safe drinking water, whether that's shelter items, whether that's reaching them with -- with psychosocial support.

As you say, the aftershocks continue. And so, the -- the distress and the trauma that children go through, it is absolutely huge.

SCIUTTO: UNICEF, as I understand it, has now shipped in 70 metric tons of supplies. I mean, just amazing to imagine how much that is. Is there infrastructure in space? Is there -- is there support in place to get that aid to the people who need it?

ENGLISH: Yes, it's always incredibly challenging in these first, you know, days after this kind of humanitarian crisis, but we do this work all around the world. I spoke with you guys after the earthquakes in Syria, in Turkey, I was there. You know, seeing how even in the most difficult of circumstances where roads may be damaged or destroyed, where airports may be out of action, we find a way to reach the children and families who are affected.

Now, this takes time. It takes funding. We have seen huge numbers of -- of international experts coming in for the search and rescue. We now have our water and sanitation experts, our health experts who are coming in, who work on emergency response day in, day out. And so, we will be there.

I mean, UNICEF has been in Venezuela for almost 60 years now. And that's one of the things about this organization. We're there before crises, we're there during crises, and we will be there for the children and families in Venezuela in the days, weeks, and months, ultimately, that it will take to recover ahead.

SCIUTTO: I've spoken to a member of the Venezuelan opposition who says that many Venezuelans feel alone. They don't see, for instance, the -- the Venezuelan army doing very much to help them. Is an organization such as UNICEF getting the help you need from the government, from -- from the institutions there?

ENGLISH: We work really closely with local authorities on the ground, but also, you know, small groups, you know, coaching groups, and -- and with all of these kind of places, it's critical to know that ultimately, the first responders are always local (INAUDIBLE) them with that support.

And I really want to stress this micro-social support (INAUDIBLE) I think this is critical for children, for parents, allowing them this space to -- to breathe, to -- to just be able to process some of the things that they're going through. Many of our staff, the majority of our staff in Venezuela are Venezuelan themselves. They are of these towns, of these cities.

And so, the impact that it has to be responding to this kind of crisis, but also to be living through it, you know, it is huge.

SCIUTTO: Even before the quake, children were facing malnutrition, schooling interrupted. It must be even more difficult to respond to a crisis like this one when -- even prior to the natural disaster, there were already humanitarian needs, right? People in need. How do you -- how do you manage that?

ENGLISH: Yes, you know, that's one of the -- again, one of the great things about UNICEF is that we were providing support in every part of children's lives, whether that's supporting, you know, pregnant women and young babies, whether that's in support, whether that's helping kids get back into school.

There is not a part of a child's life where we cannot provide that support. But as you say, you know, in complex environments such as these, it can be especially complicated and it also takes long-term funding, and that's why support from government, but also just regular people out in the street. You know, if people are seeing these images and want to support unicefusa.org, I've seen the change and the impact that every single dollar, every single euro has for children who are affected by these kind of crises, and it can help them rebuild their lives.

SCIUTTO: Joe English, we certainly appreciate the work you and UNICEF are doing there. Thanks so much for joining.

ENGLISH: Thanks so much, Jim.

SCIUTTO: And still to come, following a new round of strikes over the weekend, the White House says that talks with Iran remain on track and that negotiators will still meet tomorrow. Tehran, however, says there are no meetings scheduled. We're going to have the latest.

[15:10:01]

Plus, President Trump must now pay E. Jean Carroll $5 million after the Supreme Court denied his appeal of a sexual abuse and defamation verdict against him.

And later, Brazil moves on to the last 16 after defeating Japan in what was a thrilling comeback at the World Cup. That and much more coming up on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:14:51]

HILL: We are following some breaking news on this fragile -- on the fragile peace talks, rather, between the U.S. and Iran. Moments ago, Iran announcing there are no meetings scheduled with the U.S. in the coming days.

SCIUTTO: Yes, not what we've heard from the administration.

HILL: No.

SCIUTTO: The new statement from Tehran contradicts President Trump, who posted this on Truth Social today, saying, quote, "Iran has requested a meeting. It will take place tomorrow in Doha," exclamation point. What we do know is that minutes from now, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to brief lawmakers on Capitol Hill on the details of a tentative agreement with Iran.

Joining us now, CNN Global Affairs Analyst Brett McGurk, former Middle East and North Africa coordinator at the National Security Council, his own many involvements with negotiations and other encounters with Iran.

Can -- can you describe from where you're sitting the status of these talks? And -- and are they actually happening? And when they happen, are they discussing the difficult issues or just the preliminary issues?

BRETT MCGURK, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: That statement from Iran that just broke ...

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Yes.

MCGURK: ... is -- is very -- like, they will -- Iran will spend weeks on, let's set the agenda, where do we meet, who's there, what are we talking about. And so, like, the pre-negotiation to actually sit down at the table, very classic from the Iranians. There's multiple things going on here. Try to strip -- strip it down.

The MoU, the 14 points, is basically, Jim, an agreement in principle, it's a framework. And there's conflicting interpretations of what it says. Iran over the weekend, very clear. Article 5 says we control the Strait of Hormuz. It's up to us to get the ships through. The U.S. says something different. And you had that devolve into a military conflict. Lebanon, another area where there's a divergence of what it actually means.

So, I think what's likely to happen in Doha if they get together is let's focus on implementing the MoU, how are we going to make this work so that we can set the conditions for the hard stuff. The hard stuff is the nuclear talks, which this -- this MoU is supposed to be a gateway to a nuclear deal.

I am extreme -- I want to be optimistic and hope this can work. But I'm -- I'm very skeptical this will lead to a nuclear deal. I think in the best case, this will lead to some form of de-escalation. Hopefully the Strait of Hormuz remains open. But we're in a new normal of the contested domain in the Strait of Hormuz. And like what we saw this weekend, I expect we'll see these flare-ups from time to time.

HILL: Well, in terms of those flare-ups, to your point, before we can even get to the nuclear agreement, right? You have to get to a place where those flare-ups are perhaps not happening or certainly not on as regular a basis. Based on what we saw over the last several days, do you sense a shift in the -- in who's got the negotiating power in this moment?

MCGURK: Well, flare-ups with Iran and like Iran fighting and talking at the same time is very normal, unfortunately. What's different here is it's about the Strait of Hormuz. I -- I mean, I feel like I'm in a simulation, which we would like talk about a scenario like this. It's actually happening. Iran has -- has demonstrated they can basically shut down the Strait of Hormuz by firing drones at civilian ships. And that's what happened late last week.

Now, there's a lot going on here in the region. It'll take time. There's a diversification of, you know, pipelines to -- to lessen dependency on the Strait of Hormuz so that it doesn't matter as much. That's important. But right now, Iran has demonstrated, hey, if we don't get what we -- what we want and what we think is in the MoU, and that's Lebanon, that's sanctions relief, that's frozen funds, they will act to target ships. And then we responded with a counter. And right now, it seems to be back in a box for a time.

But that's what's so different. Iran always does this. Before talks, they'll take a shot at our troops or something outrageous. I've seen this pattern all the time. What's different here is the Strait of Hormuz.

HILL: Yes.

MCGURK: It's Iran saying we can actually hold the global economy hostage effectively. That's a whole new thing. And that demonstrates that whatever we wanted to achieve in this military campaign, this is not where we wanted to be.

SCIUTTO: Let me ask you this because the other player, of course, in this is Israel. And the defense minister, Israel Katz, reiterated today that his country will not fully withdraw from Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed. I spoke to a foreign policy advisor, Netanyahu, earlier in this program, and he said everybody knows that if Israel's national security is threatened, they will go back against -- against Lebanon.

I mean, I know Trump and Vance have scolded Israel and said, hey, don't mess with us here. But -- but you know that if Israel feels threatened, they will attack. I mean, is -- is that another weak point in this dynamic?

MCGURK: Well, you've been covering Lebanon for a long time. It goes back to when I was in the Bush White House in 1701, a security council resolution. Hezbollah is supposed to be north of the Litani River. A new ceasefire went into place in 2024 in the Biden administration that we negotiated. So, this is kind of what Israel -- so long as Hezbollah is coming back and creeping towards the -- the borders of Israel, Israel will act. That's what they're saying.

That's not new for Israel security doctrine, particularly post-October 7th. The MoU, which we were talking about, made this more complicated because it basically said ceasefire without any arrangements or rules of the road and seemed to give Iran a seat at the table in Lebanon for what that's going to look like. And then, what was fascinating, late last week, and I give the State Department real credit for this, and Secretary Rubio, Israel and Lebanon got together to sign a bilateral agreement, potentially historic, long way to go, basically saying we will sort this out.

[15:20:04]

And the government of Lebanon will assert sovereignty on its soil with Lebanese armed forces coming into these areas as Israel pulls back. That's the formula. Iran doesn't like that. Hezbollah doesn't like that. But this has been going on for many, many years.

SCIUTTO: Yes, to say the least.

MCGURK: It's about that -- that between Israel's border and the Litani River. Hezbollah has established military presence. They're not supposed to be there. There's now a new agreement that says Lebanese armed forces will come in, again, we'll see. This is going to take some time.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

MCGURK: Let's hope it works, and that is the formula.

HILL: Before we let you go, Secretary (INAUDIBLE) Secretary Rubio is set to brief lawmakers ...

MCGURK: Yes.

HILL: ... right this afternoon. What do you think are the top questions that he needs to answer?

MCGURK: Oh, there's a lot here. HILL: I know, I'm asking you to narrow it down.

(CROSSTALK)

HILL: Give me three.

MCGURK: Look, Iran is saying we control the Strait of Hormuz. Their foreign minister said it this weekend. There's a technical team from Iran, they've said, going to Oman to work out the arrangements for the future of the Strait of Hormuz. Are we going to accede to that or not? And if not, what are we going to do about it? What does that look like?

HILL: That's the plan.

MCGURK: And if we do accede to it, what does it mean for the Strait of Taiwan and this kind of ...

SCIUTTO: Yes.

MCGURK: ... this era of chokepoint sovereignty?

HILL: Yes.

MCGURK: What does it mean for the future of the world? Our national defense strategy as the United States. We help control -- we help protect international commerce. And if Iran is able to control the Strait of Hormuz, as it's saying it can do, under an agreement President Trump has signed, and we might not read it that way, that's how they read it, that has massive implications for the future of the world. So that'll be my ...

SCIUTTO: A lot of folks watching the dynamics here, right ...

HILL: Absolutely.

SCIUTTO: ... on how they can exercise that power.

MCGURK: Yes, right.

HILL: Brett, always good to talk to you, thank you.

Still ahead here, 10s of millions of Americans facing a dangerously scorching holiday week. This intensifying heat wave will be moving across the eastern half of the U.S. We're going to take a closer look is who -- at who is most at risk.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:26:35]

SCIUTTO: The death toll from soaring temperatures across Europe is skyrocketing. France's public health agency says there were more than a thousand deaths in just two days compared to last week because of that stifling heat. Here in the U.S., a dangerous, potentially record- breaking heat wave is coming to most of the eastern half of the country ahead of the July 4th holiday. And a fire weather risk has prompted Utah to now restrict fireworks celebrations. CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam, he's in the Weather Center.

And Derek, what strikes me about this is it's not just uncomfortable. I mean, this heat's dangerous.

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's oppressive. And we need to take it pretty seriously. Thirty-five, that's the number of states covering one in every three Americans that will be impacted by heat alerts right now. Some of these are valid for now, and some of them are into the future, extending through the weekend.

And, you know, you're looking at Virginia into the Carolinas. They're not under heat alerts just yet, but trust me, these things are coming because the heat wave is going to spread eastward with time. That's the kind of the underlying impacts here as we go forward.

I want to show you these forecast temperatures. So, these are feels- like temperatures. You step outside, you factor in the actual air temperature as well as the humidity, and it will be downright dangerous to step outside, just like Jim just mentioned. When you're talking about 112 for the nation's capital, 106 for July 4th holiday. So, many events planned on the National Mall, outdoors. So, many of us will be outdoors this weekend celebrating Independence, the 250th anniversary of our country. And you just need to be ready to be prepared for extreme heat.

So, that means staying hydrated, finding shade whenever you can, and staying out of the sun, finding ways to cool yourself and air condition at all possible. I want to show you this heat risk map because the heat really is moving from the Great Lakes, the Ohio River Valley, to the mid-Atlantic. And that shading of purple, that's a level 4 of 4. Notice D.C., the I-95 corridor, some of our most populated areas, that will be under that extreme heat risk category through the course of this heat wave event, kind of building into a climax right around Thursday and Friday. That's when we anticipate the most extreme heat to impact the nation's capital in the mid-Atlantic.

But it's all because of this heat dome. It's trapping the warmth from the sun, and it's going to set off a flurry of record high temperatures that will either be tied or shattered. All these black dots here, Jim, those are locations that will likely see record high temperatures this week. That is incredible.

SCIUTTO: Good lord, yes. I saw 112 here in D.C. on Thursday. I'm -- I'm -- I'm going to hide inside. Derek Van Dam, thanks so much.

VAN DAM: You bet.

HILL: This just into us here at CNN. House Speaker Mike Johnson has officially sent that landmark housing bill to the White House. So, this now triggers a 10-day countdown for the legislation to become law. This, of course, is the bipartisan bill that President Trump was slated to celebrate during a signing event at the Capitol last week. He, though, canceled at the last minute, insisting that Republicans had to pass his controversial voter ID bill first. It's not clear whether the President plans to sign the housing

legislation that is now on his desk, but if he does not, it will automatically become law 10 days from today.

We're also going to take you now to the Oval Office, where the President is taking questions. Let's listen in.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You have to be a -- a citizen of our country, okay? You have to show you're a citizen of our country, called citizenship. Voter ID by photo. Photo voter ID. And no mail-in ballots unless you're in the military, disabled, you're ill or you're away or even on a vacation.

[15:30:09]