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Soon: Senate Grills Hegseth, Caine As U.S. Ramps Up Attacks In Iran; Soon: Man Accused Of Throwing Incendiary Device At NYC Federal Building Expected To Be Arraigned; Secretary Hegseth Faces Lawmakers As Admin Seeks Billions For Iran War; Chairman Of The Joint Chiefs Of Staff Testifies On Capitol Hill; Administration Officials Testifying Before Senate On $87B Funding Request. Aired 3-3:30p ET

Aired July 21, 2026 - 15:00   ET

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

ALEXANDRA SKORES, CNN TRANSPORTATION REPORTER: Now, all these changes don't actually go into effect until next year but it's going to be -- it's -- we're going to have to wait and see whether or not these airports actually buy in and we'll see more of this not just at Tampa.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: All right. Alexandra, really interesting we'll be watching to see if this catches on other places. And a new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Facing lawmakers, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth about to make the case for more funds to fight Iran. But does he have the answers that these senators are looking for?

Plus, in an exclusive interview, a Jeffrey Epstein survivor shares her story, recalling years of abuse and why she believed officials would never stop him.

KEILAR: And later, a Cuba-bound flight carrying $100 million in U.S. aid is taking off. How the State Department is planning to get that aid directly to the Cuban people.

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

We are moments away from hearing from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and also the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Dan Caine. They're on Capitol Hill. They will be testifying before the Senate Appropriations Committee as they're seeking 10s of billions of dollars in additional funding for the war with Iran. It's a hearing that just got underway a short time ago.

SANCHEZ: Yes, this will be the first time that lawmakers will get to ask questions since the U.S. and Iran have intensified attacks in recent days and since four U.S. service members were killed over the weekend. Let's go to CNN's Brian Todd.

Brian, the secretary expected to face some tough questions from these Appropriations Committee members.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Boris and Brianna. This hearing is just underway as of a few minutes ago, and just a short time ago we heard Senator Patty Murray. She is the vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, basically just going off on the Trump administration for the way they have prosecuted the war so far. That's to be expected. Senator Murray is a partisan Democrat.

But the point is that Secretary Hegseth is going to be facing some very pointed questions from Democrats, for sure, possibly also from some Republicans on that committee, about the Pentagon's request for additional funding for the war in Iran. And by our calculations, they're going to be asking for -- somewhere between $60- and $73 billion more for the war in Iran.

And, of course, he's going to be facing questions about, you know, what is that going to be spent on? There are questions about depleted munitions in the U.S. military as the war has progressed. Other issues as well. Is there an endgame? That's going to be a key question here.

They want $60- to $73 billion more, but what is the strategy? What is the endgame? That is what Democrats are going to be pressing him hard about, in addition to the reporting over casualties, which has become an issue in recent days.

Reports this week from CNN and other outlets say that the Pentagon has been slow to disclose injuries to U.S. troops. These -- these -- these are the nonlethal attacks on U.S. troops in recent weeks. CNN reported Monday that Central Command has not been regularly disclosing nonfatal attacks in recent months, leaving those figures to a website which itself has experienced delays in reporting some of those figures.

Now, the Pentagon spokesman, Sean Parnell, said on X yesterday that nearly 100 service members have been injured since July 7th, and he described those -- most of those injuries, as, quote, "minor concussions." But Secretary Hegseth is certainly going to be asked about the slow nature of the Pentagon reporting on injuries in this conflict.

And this comes, of course, as there are going to be new questions also about casualties, given that we are now reporting that there are three and possibly four recent deaths of U.S. service members in recent days in the Iran war. Three of them have been identified as Lieutenant Tyler James Feehan, Private Isabel Gonzales, and Sergeant Michael Emmanuel Swinton.

Just getting those three people confirmed today, and you see their pictures there. A fourth person, an unidentified service member, has been listed as missing. We're going to be getting some more information about that person very soon, we hope. Guys.

SANCHEZ: Brian Todd, thank you so much for that report. As we await that portion of the hearing to begin, we will bring it to you live.

We do want to bring you some breaking news in New York City. The man accused of throwing an incendiary device outside of a federal building is about to face formal charges.

KEILAR: An arraignment is expected to begin soon. We have CNN's Brynn Gingras with the latest on this. Brynn, what can you tell us? BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Boris and Brianna, we do expect

that arraignment to happen within the next half an hour or so. We have a court reporter, my colleague Mark Morales\. He's going to be inside this federal arraignment, which, of course, we don't get any communications when we're inside the courtroom. But certainly, we should get more details of exactly what charges Andrew Arrabaca, 43 years old, will be facing in relation to this incident that happened yesterday at 26 Federal Plaza in New York City.

[15:05:04]

Of course, as we've been continuing to follow this story, you guys know just from looking at the video, but also just all of the evidence that we were hearing mounting in this case. It'll be interesting to see what they actually charge Arrabaca with. Also, in the court documents that we fully expect to get after the arraignment actually formally happens, we'll look -- be looking for any more details, possibly what Arrabaca may have told police after he was brought into custody.

We know that he was actually having conversations with authorities after his arrest, you know, talking about what his motive was, what his intentions were. So, possibly, maybe more to glean from that. So, we'll be looking through that court paper as soon as we get it.

Of course, we know in this incident, we've talked to legal analysts who, you know, there's no domestic terrorism statute, but there was certainly charges we were expecting to see in relation to this, in relation to domestic terrorism and the fact that government employees were injured through -- in this incident, in this attack yesterday. Also, just the fact that the statements he was making, anti-government statements they say he was making before committing this attack and afterwards, and all, of course, the evidence, like I said, not only the video, but what they found at the scene that they were describing in the news conference yesterday.

So, we do expect that arraignment to happen within, again, the next half an hour. And as soon as we get more details of what happens in the courtroom, we'll, of course, bring them to you guys.

KEILAR: All right, Brynn, thank you so much. We'll be looking for that.

And let's -- let's look now at some live pictures. We're seeing the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Caine, walking down the hallway. He is going to be testifying before the Senate Appropriations Committee, as well as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, as they are asking now, at about five months into this war with Iran, for 10s of billions of dollars to fund this war.

SANCHEZ: A lot of questions to be answered, not only about munitions and the state of U.S. capability in the region, but also end goal, what the administration is hoping to attempt with that $87 billion in additional funding. We'll, of course, bring you that as it happens, and plenty more news to come as well. President Trump's political clout facing another test today, this time in the key battleground state of Arizona.

KEILAR: His endorsed candidate, Congressman Andy Biggs, seeking the Republican nomination for governor. We're live in Phoenix with the latest.

SANCHEZ: Plus, gas prices rising again as the war with Iran escalates, further disrupting oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.

And later this afternoon, a Jeffrey Epstein survivor speaking publicly for the first time in an emotional interview with CNN, sharing her story of abuse and what she says happened even while Epstein was serving time in jail. That much more coming your way next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:10:31]

KEILAR: Let's go now to Secretary Hegseth testifying on the Hill.

PETE HEGSETH, DEFENSE SECRETARY: This request is an urgent, necessary injection of resources to address the immediate needs of our department. The supplemental funding request is not a substitute ...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) 90 million people. Your (INAUDIBLE) blood of 17 Americans (INAUDIBLE) ...

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R-ME): The witness will suspend until order is restored in the committee room. I know that individuals feel very passionately, but we must have order in the hearing room so that we can proceed. We're now going to move forward to, with our hearing, and Secretary Hegseth, please proceed.

HEGSETH: Thank you. The supplemental funding request is not a substitute for the President's full $1.5 trillion base budget request. $1.5 trillion ...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) stop bombing children in Iran (INAUDIBLE) this is illegal (INAUDIBLE) ...

COLLINS: Mr. Secretary, please ...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) ...

COLLINS: ... suspend until order is restored in the hearing room. We will begin the timing clock since you've been interrupted twice.

HEGSETH: Thank you.

COLLINS: Please proceed.

HEGSETH: $1.5 trillion is what the President seeks and what we need to defend the country. The members of this committee understand better than most that long-term strategic dominance cannot be funded through one-off supplements.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) end this war right now. COLLINS: We will have order in the hearing room. Mr. Secretary, please proceed.

HEGSETH: Collectively, the budget proposals submitted under President Trump follow a simple logic.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) ...

COLLINS: I would ask that the Capitol Police (INAUDIBLE) remove those who are seeking to disrupt the hearing.

Please proceed.

HEGSETH: President Trump's following a simple logic, the military requires a generational investment to deliver on peace through strength. We know the best way to create peace is to prepare for war, to deter it, and that's exactly what the Department of War is doing, building a force so capable that it would be absurd for anyone to challenge it.

As the direct result of neglected priorities and -- and gross negligence that ignored threats left over from the previous administration, President Trump inherited a set of global and domestic crises, deferred maintenance almost across the board. Instead of steering the ship through gathering storms, former leaders let our military languish through social experiments and globalist appeasement, sheer weakness.

Under President Trump, we have built a different type of department. The Pentagon is no longer run by bureaucrats. Instead, it's led by combat-tested veterans and world-class business leaders who are running the department like a business, and tech titans who are bringing lethal innovation to the battlefield.

We're also at a different moment, and we cannot afford inaction. If we don't make critical investments right now in tech, in compute, in A.I., in autonomy, in space, our adversaries, who are already making these types of investments, could outpace us. Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls that threaten our ability to also simply pay our service members, rapidly replenish equipment and munitions, and sustain vital operations without disruption.

This supplemental request serves two purposes, sustain our military readiness to meet this year's new demands and accelerate critical capabilities to replace and augment those we have used in contingencies. But make no mistake, this is not a one-for-one replacement. We are upgrading and we are modernizing across the force.

[15:15:06]

On the readiness front, we requested $21 billion. This will fund military pay, replace much of equipment utilized during recent operations, sustain forward-deployed forces, and grow personnel and strength, while stabilizing mission-critical fuel shortfalls and supporting the National Guard. On the capability side, we requested $46 billion. These funds will

expand production lines and accelerate delivery of high-demand munitions. We're talking about solid rocket motors, JDAMs, hypersonics, and counter-drone capabilities.

Additionally, we will use this investment to secure digital and space dominance, including resilient satellite networks. Department leadership recognizes that appropriating those funds is just the first step. Once funds are appropriated -- apportioned, excuse me, to the department, we need to promptly execute on them. And that's why we're requesting targeted legislative authorities like transfer authority to prioritize our greatest needs and opportunities, multiyear procurement for weapons systems, revolutionizing the speed and scale of munitions procurement, and new-start authorities.

Rest assured that every dollar appropriated to the Department of War will be focused on building the lethality of our joint force and reinforcing peace through strength. As I have said before, not fully funding this department, the Department of War, and we know what that means, that, that means $1.5 trillion, given the world that we live in and the disaster of what the Biden administration budgets gave us, not funding this department at $1.5 trillion, I believe, is the greatest threat that our nation faces. Either we invest in our warriors at this moment of step change on the battlefield and growing threats, or this is all just talk.

I look forward to working with this committee to secure those funds so that our war fighters can continue to do their work every day to keep our great republic safe. Thank you very much.

COLLINS: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. General Caine.

GEN. DAN CAINE, C JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: Chair Collins, Vice Chair Murray, distinguished members of this committee, I'm honored today to appear before you with Secretary Hegseth and Secretary Rollins to testify on the Department of War's fiscal 2026 supplemental funding request. And I'll note, I fondly remember my time at USDA earlier in my career, where I had the chance to serve there. I'm also joined today by my senior enlisted adviser, SEAC Dave Isom. As always, I'm deeply grateful for this committee's continued partnership and support for our common defense.

I'd like to begin by expressing my deep console -- condolences, and that of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the SEAC, for the fallen from this past weekend and their families. Today, we remember First Lieutenant Tyler Feehan, Sergeant Michael Swinton, and Private Isabel Gonzales, and note that the names of our last fallen will be released when we can.

I'm humbled daily by the profound commitment of the incredible 2.8 million Americans, just like these names that I've just mentioned, who make up our joint force and serve our nation every day. Also, on behalf of the Joint Force and the Joint Chiefs, I want to express my sincere and heartfelt condolences to the family of Senator Graham for their loss, and all of you for the loss of your colleague. The Joint Force remains grateful for his 44 years of service, both in and out of uniform. There is no doubt he made a difference to the safety and security of our nation.

On July 22nd, 1940, General George C. Marshall said, and I quote, "For almost 20 years, we had all of the time and almost none of the money. Today, we have all of the money and no time." His words resonate powerfully with me today, as we find ourselves in a somewhat similar situation. I've come to you today to request the necessary funds while in the window of opportunity, while time is still on our side.

The United States of America faces a global list of military challenges in the Middle East, in Europe, in the Pacific, both nuclear and nonnuclear challenges, and the continued threat of terrorism. We find ourselves living and leading in complex and dynamic times. Our adversaries are aligning in their interests, creating simultaneous challenges across multiple domains. They are sharing intelligence, combat capabilities, and technology, technology that is accelerating the speed of war.

[15:20:08]

Isn't -- it is an imperative that Americans understand that the character of war is changing. Advances in technology are fundamentally and irreversibly changing the way we fight, with -- which necessitates capital to properly arm America's military.

Rapid advancements in A.I. autonomous systems deliver critical technological advantages to our national defense and simultaneously introduce unprecedented strategic vulnerabilities and uncertainty across the world, to include right here at home. The low barrier to entry created by affordable, ubiquitous unmanned systems means our adversaries, rogue actors, state and nonstate actors, and violent extremists have access to disruptive and potentially lethal technologies at scale. We've seen this in Ukraine, and we must adopt elements of this fight for our future fights.

Conflict is never confined neatly to the land, sea, or air domains. The modern battlefield stretches from the seabed up to cislunar space and beyond, cyberspace and in the information domain, all at the same time. Our nation must be prepared to fight and win across all of them, all the time, all at once. In addition, the light speed at which information travels now has compressed our leaders' decision space, taking what was once days or weeks in World War II down to milliseconds.

Your joint force must be ready, because the United States military is America's greatest insurance policy. And I acknowledge us, all of us, find it difficult at times to pay for insurance before we need it, but we must have insurance before the storm comes. The Armed Forces of the United States of America serves as our nation's ultimate safeguard and our insurance policy to preserve, protect, and defend our national interest, security, and prosperity. To uphold this responsibility, we require predictable and consistent funding.

This will allow us to partner effectively with our defense and national industrial bases, building on acquisition reforms that guarantee our war fighters receive capabilities at scale before they are required in conflict or combat. I'm struck by this season of American history we find ourselves in, and I continue to ask myself, if not now, then when? And if not us in this room and the rest of the Congress and the nation, then who?

I acknowledge the environment we all serve in, but always remember that we are all Americans with deep and abiding love of our nation and our military service members and their families.

I've come today to ask for your help and your support. America's Armed Forces need $1.5 trillion to meet the military challenges of the future, this supplemental as a part of that, and to be allowed to use this capital to pay for military personnel, operations and maintenance expenses, and accelerate investments on critical technologies, as the Secretary just mentioned. It is critical that we stay ahead of our adversaries, and we must have the funds before out of time.

In closing, I ask all of us to remember our deployed service members around the world right now, especially our Army teammates who remain deployed after losing their friends and teammates this past weekend. And I again ask all of us here in the Senate and across the American people to never forget our fallen and their families, who continue to show us what courage, tenacity, grit, and commitment to the nation looks like. Thank you very much, and I look forward to your questions.

COLLINS: Thank you, General. Secretary Rollins.

BROOKE ROLLINS, SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE: Thank you so much, Chairwoman Collins, Ranking Member Murray, and distinguished members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today. Let me begin with the bottom line up front. The United States Department of Agriculture is joining today the United States Department of War in a fight for America and for American flourishing.

After all, defending America's ability to feed and fuel and clothe herself is defending America, full stop. This can be easily forgotten. For centuries, we built farms and ranches and transportation that fed not only America, but the world. To, for a long time, that prosperity made America strong and made America safe.

[15:25:00]

But across the past 100 years, and especially across the last administration, we took that source of strength in war and peace, our farms and our ranches and the communities that surrounded them, and we hollowed them out. We made them weak, and we put them on the precipice of decline and extinction. We sent our food production overseas. In fact, 2023 was, for the first time, a significant net importer of our food for America. And in so doing, we replaced American production with massive amounts of imports. We allowed and even encouraged the consolidation of agriculture, seed production, processing, fertilizer, and beyond into massive industries at scale.

Today, nearly 85 percent of our meatpacking capacity is controlled by just four companies, including two that are foreign-owned. Additionally, our largest pork company in America is owned by a China company, or China. Four fertilizers in America now represents -- four fertilizer companies now represents 78 percent of the production, versus just a couple of decades ago that was in the dozens. And two seed companies now produce more than 50 percent of the seed for America. These are national security implications.

When President Trump returned to office, America's farm economy faced one of the most difficult economic environments in decades. Between 2020 and 2025, the cost of seed rose 19 percent, crop protection rose 30 percent, fertilizer rose over 50 percent, fuel and oils rose nearly 33 percent, electricity 36 percent, and repair and maintenance 27 percent. As these costs climbed, commodity prices plummeted. Farm income fell by more than $90 billion from 2023 to 2024, representing one of the largest single-year declines in history.

At the same time, producers saw not one new trade deal across the world, resulting in an unprecedented $50 billion agricultural trade deficit. American farmers deserve better, and our national security now demands it. As long as we are beholden to foreign and even hostile countries for our food and our fuel, our freedom is in jeopardy.

Since my first day at USDA, we've been committed to addressing this crisis head-on. In addition to implementing the historic working families tax cuts, thanks to so many in this room who worked so hard, moving $40 billion in disaster and economic assistance to producers across the country, securing 19 new trade deals, and decreasing that $50 billion agricultural trade deficit in one year by 42 percent.

This year, our corn exports are expected to be at a record-breaking 35 percent, ethanol up 11 percent, dairy up 15 percent, and tree nuts up 11 percent. We are making progress, but we have a ways to go. Administrator Zeldin has secured the strongest renewable fuel standard volumes in history, and the President continues to support year-round E15 for our domestic markets. We have led robust responses to animal health threats, including HPAI and the New World screwworm, and have reduced unnecessary regulatory burdens and partnered with producers to strengthen the domestic demand for American agriculture.

These are lasting reforms and will change the trajectory of American agriculture for the future. The trade agreements will take time to fully execute and generate even more exports. The biofuel investments take time to increase the demand for American crops, although we're already seeing a 10 percent increase since just an announcement a month ago.

And, of course, onshoring facilities like fertilizer will continue to take some time to build out. But we are confident that the direction of American agriculture is changing for the better. But many producers continue to face economic pressure as we build that economic infrastructure out. Specialty crop growers across the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic, the Pacific Northwest, and Florida suffered devastating freeze losses this past winter. Producers across the Plains continue recovering from catastrophic wildfire and events occurring while many operations are still working to catch up financially.

That is why our proposed -- proposal includes $10 billion in temporary economic assistance for 2026 row crop and specialty crop producers, and also includes $1.1 billion to help producers recover from catastrophic freeze losses suffered this past winter. [15:30:01]

Congress has taken similar action over many decades, and we're so grateful for that.