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Soon: Trump Speaks On Economy Ahead Key Primaries In Michigan; Trump: U.S. Halted Strikes After Iran Sought To Renew Peace Talks; Zelensky: Drones Targeted Iranian & Russian Ships In Caspian Sea; Czech Republic Sends Black Hawks To Help Fight Wildfires In France; OpenAI CEO To Brief WH Officials, Lawmakers On Company's New Models. Aired 3-3:30p ET

Aired July 27, 2026 - 15:00   ET

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

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[15:00:32]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: President Trump is in the battleground state of Michigan just days before the state's primaries. Can he convince voters there that his economic policies are working?

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Plus, crews are battling raging wildfires in France and Spain. Hundreds of thousands have been evacuated as flames tear through entire towns.

And have you ever dreamed of becoming an influencer? Now a major U.S. university is offering a college degree just for that.

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

Happening right now, President Trump is about to speak in Michigan as we look at these live pictures from the stage in Milford where any moment the President will try to sell his economic agenda as the battleground state is now just days away from a crucial primary.

KEILAR: Just last hour the President enjoyed a drag race at the General Motors Proving Grounds as he soon tries to rev up voters near the motor cities. In just 99 days those voters will decide several key primaries including one for a Senate seat that could determine which party controls Congress. CNN's Steve Contorno is standing by live ahead of the President's remarks.

Steve, what are we expecting to hear?

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Well Brianna, I think you can expect Donald Trump to try to convince these Michigan voters that the tariffs that are hurting the pocketbooks of consumers all across the country have been a benefit to the automotive industry here in Detroit, here throughout Michigan and certainly at General Motors where he is speaking later today.

It's a difficult challenge because so many voters continue to say that the economy is their top issue going into this election season and the affordability problems that we are hearing about all throughout the country have certainly taken hold in Michigan just like everywhere else. In fact in some cases people have been -- been hit harder in Michigan than elsewhere.

The unemployment rate here is 5.0 percent. That is 44th in the country, certainly worse than the national average and it's even higher in Detroit. And some of the levers that Donald Trump have been hoping he could pull to ease the economic burden on people just haven't been moving the needle so far.

For example, interest rates on buying a house on mortgage rates are still high and he was asked today why this Fed under his newly installed Fed chair Kevin Warsh hasn't been able to lower rates yet and here's what he said.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He's got a board, you know? He wants to do the right thing. I know what he wants to do. But you -- you need the consent of some people that have perhaps bad intentions. Rates should be lowered.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CONTORNO: Now, Trump is also here to boost the candidates he has endorsed in the state's primary elections which are eight days away. That includes representative John James. He is running for governor against businessman Perry Johnson who despite Trump's endorsement has dumped millions of dollars of his own money into this race making it a very competitive contest to go against the Democrat. And then, also Mike Rogers. The representative -- the former representative who is Trump's pick for running for Senate. He should be coasting to nomination on Tuesday where he will face the winner of representative Haley Stevens and Abdul El-Sayed, the progressive doctor.

Republicans have had a challenge winning statewide races in Michigan without Trump. Trump has won here. He won here in 2024. You know who lost? Mike Rogers. He actually felt about 19,000 votes short. So, Mike Rogers one of those candidates Trump has endorsed in 2026, going to have to see if he can win without Trump on the ballot here.

SANCHEZ: Steve Contorno live for us in Milford, thank you so much for that.

Now, earlier today President Trump gave an update on the U.S. war with Iran. Strikes on Iranian targets were suddenly paused over the weekend ending nearly two weeks of American attacks. At a short time ago on Air Force One the President explained to reporters what triggered the suspension and military strikes.

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TRUMP: I have a lot of patience. I have plenty of time. Plenty of time. Their all shorelines' wiped out. The Strait is in very good shape and we're talking right now. You know, they wanted to talk.

[15:05:04]

Their people said please don't drop, don't shoot. Last night, the night before, two nights, don't do it. You know, we're having good talks. So, we'll see what happens.

I think there's a good chance that something could happen. And if it does, good. If it doesn't, we go back to doing what we were doing two days ago.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: With us now is Michael Allen. He was special assistant to President George W. Bush for national security. Also serving as the senior director for the Counterproliferation at the National Security Council.

Michael, great to see you as always.

Do you think that this pause is going to move talks forward?

MICHAEL ALLEN, FMR. SPECIAL ASST. TO PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH FOR NATIONAL SECURITY: Well, I guess it gives it a little bit of oxygen but it doesn't really feel like we're bargaining for something lasting. I mean, the Qataris over the weekend I think suggested that maybe we do a 10-day circuit breaker and, of course, it's better that we're not fighting rather than fighting but I hope this all serves some larger purpose.

If the ramp-up for 12-13 days was meant to broker or facilitate additional peace talks, then I guess it made sense. But for us to lurch back and forth makes me worried that we don't really have a strategy of what we're trying to achieve here.

Now, I know like the -- I know the President wants to be flexible and see what he can get in each type of situation but I'm looking for something a little bit more solid going forward.

SANCHEZ: So the question of what the President can get, is there a realistic alternative in dealing with Tehran other than pressure? Can something be achieved diplomatically as the U.S. sort of navigates the space of on again off again?

ALLEN: So, I don't think so. I think you've got to have pressure to enable diplomacy. And so, at the very least we'll continue a blockade even if that won't yield immediate results. I think part of this though is also going to have to be resuming some sort of facilitation of commercial vessels through the Straits of Hormuz. If that's not a full whole hog type of escort mission then it's what we were doing which is when we were, you know, quote unquote, "guiding ships" through the Straits, trying to take them down the routes that were the least explosive, if you will.

I think we have to be able to do that. We have to got to be able to negate this leverage that the Iranians have directly on this international waterway. And without it, I fear that we're going to be seeing the same movie over and over. SANCHEZ: The -- there is new reporting from CNN and the New York Times about the U.S. considering less of a response to Iran and less hostilities given the status of the U.S. munitions stockpile. There are concerns that it has been depleted. Should that limit what the President does next?

ALLEN: Yes. Well, it depends on how many we have. If we're truly in dire straits that we couldn't, you know, in a sense, live up to what our contingency operations might be in Asia or elsewhere, then that should begin to dictate what our diplomatic and pressure strategies are going forward.

But I think it's probably a classified number but by all accounts we don't have as many as we would like to have. Whether we have enough to go forward for a little while with a more intense bombing campaign to try and condition the Iranians to come forward and maybe reopen the Straits at a lower cost, then by all means let's do it. But it's hard to say unless we really know what's inside that black box and how frequently U.S. industry is able to replace the things we need the most.

SANCHEZ: President Trump, of course, denies that reporting. He says that the U.S. has enough. Though he admits that he would want to see more sophisticated munitions in the arsenal. I want to ask you about what is happening in the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Red Sea there, because the Houthis have recently targeted Saudi Arabian assets. They've restarted fighting after this years-long truce. Obviously, that conflict would threaten shipping in the Red Sea. How do you see that playing out?

ALLEN: Yes. Well, I'm worried about it because it would be the opening of a second front. Another geopolitical choke point that the world's goods, especially oil, would not be able to flow through. In particular, the way that the Saudis have been getting around the block in the Straits of Hormuz is to go down through the Red Sea through this particular passageway.

Now, if the Houthis are going to continue or begin again bombing commercial vessels, oil and gas, very large container ships, then we're going to have be in a lot of trouble where we are really under a serious stranglehold and that the number one alternative to the Straits of Hormuz then in and of itself will be blocked.

What this augers for in the medium term I think is for us to get the Europeans maybe to help us again with Bab al-Mandab while we try and deal with the Straits of Hormuz. I've seen diplomatic activity that they may want to get involved once they understand what the framework is going forward, but we need to get to a point where we recognize that that passageway, in particular, benefits the Europeans. And so, I hope they would be more willing to help out.

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SANCHEZ: There is a European ally that got sort of indirectly involved in the conflict with Iran recently, and that is Ukraine. It's stuck to Russian vessels in the Caspian Sea including what it says was a warship carrying military cargo from Iran. Iran says that a commercial vessel was also targeted. How significant is that supply route between Iran and Russia and what does it tell us that Ukraine is now targeting it?

ALLEN: Well, I -- I think it's a big deal because there are not so many ways that the Iranians can import everything that they need, you know, just to sustain them especially their weapon systems. I think we have the Russians and the Chinese that fly things in. But if we're taking away their maritime passageways and their ability to get goods to sustain some sort of pushback on us or worse to fund their proxies or arm their proxies around the region then that's all the better. And frankly, the Ukrainians have given us an all a master class in how to try and deny your adversary weapons and money and to take out their economic wherewithal. So, let's watch what they're doing closely and emulate as much as possible.

SANCHEZ: Michael Allen, thank you so much for the expertise.

ALLEN: Thank you very much.

SANCHEZ: Of course, still to come firefighters dealing with scorching temperatures as they try to contain wildfires in France and Spain. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced. We'll take you to the region live.

Plus, the ex-husband of Lindsay Clancy's testifying in her triple murder trial. He says she told him that she had, quote, "intrusive thoughts" just months before she killed her three children. That and much more coming up on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

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KEILAR: We're following breaking news on the devastating wildfires in Europe. The Czech Republic has sent Black Hawk helicopters to help battle the blazes in France. Video just into CNN shows the helicopters scooping water from a bay near Bordeaux. Similar efforts underway in Spain, where firefighter -- firefighting planes are bringing water from a reservoir near Madrid.

More than 300,000 people have been forced to flee their homes as the wildfires continue to spread in both countries. CNN's Pau Mosquera is near Madrid covering this.

So, Pau, are fire crews getting a handle on fires there?

PAU MOSQUERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely. And actually, we are constantly hearing and seeing how helicopters are flying overhead as to go to San Juan Reservoir to get water and drop it on the active fire fronts.

Actually, Brianna, you can see here behind me the impact of the wildfires that are raging in western Madrid. What you're seeing on your screens are not common clouds. This is the smoke that is coming from the blaze, and the authorities say that so far these wildfires have engulfed around 28,000 hectares of forest land and forced to evacuate around 31,000 people.

But there are other side effects to the wildfires, for example, road closures. We are now standing on one of the regional roads that connects the city of Madrid with the towns most affected by the wildfires. But as you can see, all this part is closed, so everyone that is getting and driving this way is being redirected and forced to take another route.

And it's important to say, Brianna, that the next few hours are going to be critical, according to the Spanish government. They say that on Wednesday weather conditions are going to worsen because we are expecting the fourth heat wave of the summer to impact the Iberian Peninsula, which means that the temperatures are going to rise again. And as you know, the higher the temperature, the lower the humidity, the greater the risk for the wildfires to continue. Brianna.

KEILAR: And, Pau, that is just so many people who have had to evacuate from their homes. Any word on when they'll be able to return?

MOSQUERA: They still don't know exactly when they will be able to get back to their homes. Some of those that I've been talking to over this Monday, they were expecting for some good news over the day, but seems like so far they haven't gotten the information that they were expecting for.

But the authorities are kind of optimistic, and they say that they expect some improvements over the next few hours, so maybe this kind of good news are going to happen over the next few hours. Brianna.

KEILAR: All right, we'll look for that. Pau, thank you for the report.

Coming up, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman heads to D.C. this week. He's set to hold key meetings with lawmakers and members of the Trump administration. We have new details on his visit and a new battle in the world of A.I. next on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

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SANCHEZ: This week, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman will travel to Washington to meet with members of the Trump administration and top lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

KEILAR: He's expected to brief officials about the company's latest powerful models and their potential impact. CNN's Hadas Gold is with us now. All right, Hadas, what do we expect that he's going to be talking about during these meetings?

HADAS GOLD, CNN A.I. CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so he'll be meeting with the Trump administration, he'll be meeting with members of Congress, and he's going to preview OpenAI's new models. Likely going to talk about that crazy incident where an OpenAI test model escaped the lab, essentially, and hacked into a completely different company's systems. He's going to be talking with the administration about their efforts to try and sort of regulate A.I. There is -- August 1st is a deadline for the administration to come forward with a new framework for how they're going to review these new models before they're released publicly.

And then, they're going to get into the debate of closed-source -- closed-source versus open-source A.I. and whether and how the administration should restrict the use of open-source models from China, specifically. Big debate going on right now on that.

SANCHEZ: So, on -- on the debate over open-source versus closed, some of the biggest names and companies in A.I. over the weekend signed on to a -- a new alliance led by Jensen Huang of NVIDIA.

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GOLD: Yes, so there's a big debate over closed versus -- or closed versus open. So, just a bit of a definition. Closed-source A.I. is what you have from OpenAI and Anthropic. They own the recipe and you get to make very slight adjustments to the recipe, but they own the model. They control the model, how it works.

Open-source is where you get more access to the recipe. You get to customize the model to do more, which you would like it to do. It can be cheaper. And that's what we're getting a lot from China.

Now, what happened in actually that incident where the OpenAI model hacked the other company, that company Hugging Face ended up having to use an open-source model from China to defend itself from the hack because they said the closed-source frontier models from places like OpenAI and Anthropic didn't allow them, because of their guardrails, they guard the recipe, didn't allow them to use it in the way they needed to.

That prompted Jensen Huang to create this open-source alliance where they're trying to defend the use of these open-source systems because of this battle brewing. And what they want to do is they want to create tools that everybody will be able to use to defend themselves, develop new techniques to help safeguard the software and the agents, sharing the models, the tooling and the research all out in the open. And they've got some big names, big names signed on. They've got Dell, they've got CrowdStrike, they've got Palantir.

Of course, all the open-source A.I. models have signed on. But this is sort of the next big debate and what's coming. It is a threat to OpenAI's and Anthropic's business model, because when it's closed, they own it. You have to pay them to use their models. But open-source is cheaper. And for some companies and some enterprises, it makes sense to use open-source. That's what China is banking on. And -- but there is a question of sort of the threat of China and, of course, security and whether these types of systems are secure and safe.

SANCHEZ: On that note, am I being paranoid thinking that every day we ...

KEILAR: No.

SANCHEZ: ... creep closer to "Terminator"? KEILAR: No.

SANCHEZ: Is -- is that -- is that just ...

KEILAR: Absolutely not.

SANCHEZ: ... (INAUDIBLE) ...

KEILAR: To Hadas -- we're asking Hadas.

GOLD: I mean, Sam Altman did say we -- we've already reached the singularity where A.I. is smarter than humans. But I mean, A.I. is evolving at a very rapid pace, and a lot of things are happening very quickly.

SANCHEZ: John Connor, if you're out there, we support your mission, buddy. Hadas Gold.

KEILAR: You can come over to our bunker. We'll go to your bunker.

SANCHEZ: You've got a bunker?

KEILAR: No, I'm just kidding. I think we need one, though. We're all going to need one.

SANCHEZ: Not a bad idea. Not a bad idea.

KEILAR: Maybe we can crowdsource a bunker.

SANCHEZ: Thank you so much, Hadas.

GOLD: I'll learn how to garden.

SANCHEZ: A quick pivot here. We're following breaking news because Bryan Kohberger, the man accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students, is telling The New York Times that he's now seeking to take back his guilty plea. We have some new reaction in just moments.

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