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Crowded GOP Field In Race To Replace Late Sen. Lindsey Graham; Trump Switched Planes In Elaborate Ruse Triggered By Iran Threat; Dem Socialist Hong Looks To Win Dem Primary In WI Gov Race; Now: Race To Rescue Survivors After Devastating Colombia Earthquake; Day 2: Jury Selection In Trial Of Man Accused In Tupac Shakur's Murder. Aired 3- 3:30p ET

Aired August 11, 2026 - 15:00   ET

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

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Now, he went on to add, "When trust is broken through deception, when an individual places himself above the collective that entrusted him with the authority, that duty has been abandoned."

Now, Infantino has apologized for his proposal to create the FIFA Forward Enterprise. Now, along with President Trump, Infantino does have some support. The Confederation of African Football has backed the President in recent days, alongside the Argentine and Mexican Soccer Associations. Infantino, he is up for re-election in March.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: All right, thanks to Andy Scholes for that.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Voters are hitting the polls in six states across America for several critical races. We're going to break down what you should be watching for tonight.

Plus, CNN on the ground in Colombia, as crews are racing to find survivors following a devastating earthquake hitting the western part of that country. We'll take you there in the race to rescue survivors.

And flying under the radar, how President Trump secretly switched planes in Turkey as part of an elaborate ruse prompted by an Iranian threat.

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

It is primary day across six states, and for Democrats, another key test for the left wing of the party. In Wisconsin, socialist Francesca Hong is looking to win her party's nomination for governor. She will have to get past David Crowley, though, who's been backed by the state's current governor, Tony Evers.

Meantime, in Minnesota, the state Senate primary is pitting moderate Congresswoman Annie -- Angie Craig against progressive candidate Peggy Flanagan, the state's lieutenant governor.

On the Republican side of things, all eyes are on South Carolina and the race to replace the late Senator Lindsey Graham. That is a race that's being closely watched because Graham's sister, Senator Darline Graham, has President Trump's support against a slew of other Republicans.

Let's discuss with Marc Short, former chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence. He's now the board chair of Advancing American Freedom.

Bit of a curveball here, Marc. Before I get to the primaries and the politics, I have to ask you about the story regarding President Trump getting on a different plane in Turkey, a bit of a switcheroo, a bit of deception. What did you make of -- of that story? What does it tell you about where things stand with Iran right now?

MARC SHORT, FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF TO VP MIKE PENCE: Well, a couple things. I think that Iran has targeted Americans before, obviously, and in significant areas, including former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. They've -- they've certainly threatened former Vice President Mike Pence, John Bolton. And so, they have -- this is not, in my mind, an idle threat. I think it shows the nemesis that -- that Iran is.

And I also thought, you know, that our Secret Service do an amazing job. And I know there's a lot of questions about the way that it happened, but their job is to protect the -- protect the President of the United States first and foremost, and they do an amazing job at it.

SANCHEZ: Does this incident, for you, sort of betray the notion that the administration has put forward that Iran's capabilities are totally diminished if thousands of miles away, Air Force One is potentially a target?

SHORT: Yes, look, I think that Iran has continued to be a threat. I do believe that the President's efforts have diminished it in many ways, diminished a lot of their capabilities, but it doesn't mean the threat's been eliminated. And I think Iran still poses a threat to much of a civilized world.

SANCHEZ: Now to the politics. Let's talk to -- let's talk about Wisconsin, the biggest battleground state, voting today. If Democrats nominate Francesca Hong, the state rep, does it really make Republican Tom Tiffany's path to the governor's mansion easier, given all the energy that we've seen around these more progressive Democratic socialists and adjacent candidates?

SHORT: I think absolutely. I think Tom Tiffany is a really strong candidate for Republicans to be putting forward in Wisconsin. Typically, in -- in a year like this, when one party's in power, the -- the average in recent history has been losing a lot of seats for that -- that party.

But if Democrats keep putting forward Socialist candidates that -- that are very unpopular with the American public, it's going to certainly curtail what their gains would otherwise be. And I think that in Wisconsin, that's a great opportunity for Republicans to pick up a seat. SANCHEZ: Hong is putting forward a plan, the first thing that she says

that she would do as -- as governor, that -- is actually very popular. She said that she would call a special session for legislation on the moratorium of data centers. She's joined by Democratic governor Kathy Hochul in New York, Republican Greg Abbott of Texas. A majority of Americans are really weary of data centers, even though President Trump is pitching them as necessary to remain competitive with China in the A.I. race. How do you see that as potentially a wedge issue?

SHORT: Well, it -- it is a wedge issue, Boris. I think the reality, as you just said, it's not just Democrats that you've seen calling for moratoriums, which you're now seeing it with Governor Abbott in Texas.

[15:05:05]

Look, I think it is incredibly important to America's National Security to continue to build out the data centers. And I think President Trump is right on this. But I think that data centers as a collective have been behind the curve on the messaging. And I think there's a lot of Americans who are fearful. They're fearful of what A.I. is. They're fearful of what the data centers are doing in their communities to water supply and other things. And there's not been a -- a really strong rebuttal from a public relations stance to basically set the record straight.

SANCHEZ: That -- that's an interesting point. I -- I was mentioning South Carolina a moment ago, late Senator Lindsey Graham's sister Darline competing in a wide open primary, including Congressman Ralph Norman, Russell Fry as well, and former Governor Mark Sanford. Where do you see that race headed?

SHORT: Look, I think a lot of people believe that South Carolina is a ruby red, deep Republican state that belongs to President Trump. And there's some truth to that. But at the same time, South Carolina is a state that rebuffed the President's efforts for redistricting. It's a state that the President made an endorsement in the gubernatorial primary, and he lost in the Republican primary last cycle. Alan Wilson is now the nominee.

And so, I'm not sure his endorsement is necessarily going to carry it forward for Lindsey Graham's sister. I think she'll certainly make it to a runoff, but I'm not sure a lot of voters like the nepotism. And so I think it's going to be a very competitive race when you get to the runoff in a couple of weeks.

SANCHEZ: Minnesota, there -- Senator Amy Klobuchar expected to take -- take on MyPillow -- the MyPillow guy, Mike Lindell, in the governor's race this fall. Unorthodox is perhaps not the best way to describe Mike Lindell. He's -- he's out there, right, with conspiracy theories and -- and all sorts of stuff. Is that the kind of candidate you think Republicans should put forward?

I mean, it's not my position to say what they should or shouldn't do as far as the candidates. That's up to the voters in Minnesota. But I think, as you said, he's pursued a lot of conspiracy theories, particularly to the election of 2020. And I think Minnesota's a left- leaning state, so Klobuchar shouldn't have much of a challenge.

I think the other Senate primary there is going to be one to really watch, which, again, to your earlier conversation of the rise of the Democrat socialists and seeing the -- the Bernie Sanders and -- and left-wing endorsement for Flanagan versus Craig, I think it's really something interesting to watch in the Democrat Party.

SANCHEZ: Marc Short, great to get your perspective, thank you.

SHORT: Thanks, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Of course. Brianna.

KEILAR: Now to Colombia, where we are watching live pictures in Pereira where volunteers, you can see how hard, how quickly they're working here. They are joining this grueling search for survivors after the worst earthquake in Colombia in over a decade. The death toll rising to 224 people at this point. Hundreds more are hurt after buildings crumbled around them yesterday. And we are just watching these rescue crews, these civilians working through incredibly intense conditions, including these dozens of aftershocks shifting debris as they are hoping to find anyone still trapped. CNN's David Culver was at the scene a short time ago and he filed this report.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID CULVER, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They believe a little girl is still inside this building. That's the sense of urgency that has got dozens of folks now on top of what was an apartment building, four stories high on the ground floor, according to neighbors, with a drugstore and a restaurant. It obviously is now left in just total rubble and they're trying to clear a lot of that.

And this was a main street that went around this central square. That's totally covered. They've got a massive crane here and a lot of other resources that are coming in. And they've been fueling this by bringing tanks of gas to this location to keep it going over the past 24 plus hours so that this operation hasn't had to stop. But you can see there's a lot of focus now on one area in particular. And we've been watching this over the course of an hour or so.

And it's gone from moments of total silence. Even the crowd around has been totally quiet and trying to allow them to listen for whatever sounds they might hear from beneath the rubble. We were told throughout the night they could hear some sounds, even yelling at times, according to one neighbor who was out here. That has stopped. And yet it hasn't slowed down their focus on this building.

I mean, this is a city, Pereira, that is one of the, if not the, hardest hit from this earthquake. And when we drove in from Bogota, it took us about eight hours because flights were canceled out of Bogota. And you go through a very mountainous, windy path to get here. And passing us at high speeds were several first responders and resources that were trying to get there as quickly as possible to bring aid and to assist in what is a massive effort here. I mean, this is one area of this city. You go block after block after

block and you will see similar scenes of destruction and similar efforts of search and rescue where they will go from one location to another with teams, K9 units, to try to figure out what they can do in that moment to potentially save lives.

[15:10:03]

When it comes to this building behind me, one neighbor told me that over the course of the past day, they were able to pull out seven people altogether. Three of them had passed away. The other four survived. And they're just hoping at this point that the little girl who they believe is still inside there, along with another older woman, that they can get them out safely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Our thanks to David Culver, who has been our eyes and ears there on the ground, providing us those exceptional reports.

Still to come, what we know about the secret plan to protect President Trump from an assassination threat by Iran, how he secretly slipped out of Turkey last month on an alternate military plane.

Plus, what we're learning on day two of jury selection in the Tupac murder trial.

And then later, Mark Zuckerberg shares his vision for the future of artificial intelligence as Meta unveils its own A.I. model. We have that and much more coming up on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:15:24]

SANCHEZ: We're learning new details about an elaborate ruse to protect President Trump from an apparent assassination threat by Iran. The deception played out last month as the President was leaving the NATO summit in Turkey. And you can see him here boarding Air Force One. This was around 8:30 at night.

And then a short time later, we want to show you this catering truck that's highlighted underneath Air Force One. A U.S. official tells CNN that minutes after boarding the jet, the President was secretly moved into that truck to protect him. All of this happening as journalists boarded the rear steps of Air Force One. You see them highlighted there, believing that they would be flying alongside with the President on the scheduled trip to England. It turns out the catering truck covertly rushed the President to a smaller military plane nearby, flying him to England where he arrived before the Air Force One decoy. Let's go to CNN's Alayna Treene, who is at the White House for us.

And Alayna, what are you learning about this, I guess, unprecedented security effort? I -- I'd never heard of anything like this before. ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: No. I mean, look, it's

not unprecedented that there are presidents in the past who have used decoy planes, but the nature of this and also just how they had never announced this and they've continued to say that the President had taken the old Air Force One plane. I mean, it's just a truly extraordinary story about the degree of the subterfuge and the kind of the shell campaign that the White House did this.

I also think it's very reflective, Boris, of just how serious and credible they believed the threats from Iran on the President's life were. And also raises questions, of course, about the capabilities that Iran has in order to target and -- and threaten the most secure airplane in the world in order for, you know, for all of this to happen, for them to put the President in a catering truck to not tell the press.

I do want to raise some things, though, that, you know, as much as I think the press didn't know this at the time, and again, I want to be clear, the President had said that he would be taking the older Air Force One plane, the White House never disputed that. They did not see the President leaving the plane at all, so I want to be clear there.

But there were some indications that raised suspicions at the time as well, one of them being that the staff on the plane had asked reporters traveling on Air Force One to lower and close their windows, something that is not typical of someone who has flown on Air Force One. I mean, we have a lot of colleagues here at the White House who have taken dozens of flights with the President. That is not typical.

And then you heard this, though, from the President. Once press rejoined him, once they got on the new plane, because the -- the -- what happened that day when he was leaving the summit in Turkey was that they said they were taking the old plane to the U.K., then he changed planes, got back on the newer jet, which was the jet that was gifted from Qatar, and that's when he talked with reporters directly, and this is what he said about the strangeness of closing the windows.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, yes, because you're probably on a dangerous flight because of the sleazebags that we have to deal with.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think that Iran was possibly thinking of (INAUDIBLE) ...

TRUMP: Well, I mean, if they asked you to close your windows, probably they'd feel that way. They didn't ask me to close mine, but if they did, I would have done it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Were you aware of any credible threat by Iran against Air Force One?

TRUMP: Well, I have a threat all the time. I'm number one on their list before you, but if I go, you go, right?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) ...

TRUMP: So, perhaps -- perhaps someday you want to change professions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: If I go, you go, is what the President told those reporters, Boris. And again, now that this new reporting, we know that the President wasn't even on that flight to begin with, so just a remarkable story about the lengths that this White House went to try and protect the President from these threats.

SANCHEZ: Alayna, do we have any specific details on what the threat from Iran was?

TREENE: That's something that I know, our colleagues here at CNN, but also at these other media outlets who have been working hard on this story, are still trying to get a full grasp of. I will note that initially, the White House tried to downplay that there was any sort of threat at all. I'd remind you that the story they had been giving publicly to reporters, and the President had posted this on social media, was this idea that the reason he was taking the older plane, not the Qatari jet that they had flown over to Turkey on, was because there were U.S. service members who were at a refueling stop who wanted to tour it.

We, of course, have reported, other have as well, that there actually was a specific threat from Iran on the President's life, which led to this changing of planes. We also have reported, Boris, that Israel were the ones to brief the President's team on what this threat was.

[15:20:05]

But the specific nature of it, that's still something that we just don't have an answer to. But again, I think the degree to which they went with this kind of, you know, shadow campaign of getting the President onto a separate military flight shows that it was very serious and enough for them to try and do all of this, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Right. Alayna Treene at the White House for us. Thank you so much.

So, day two of jury selection is underway in the Tupac Shakur murder trial, 30 years after the hip hop legend was gunned down in Las Vegas. New details on that when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:25:15]

KEILAR: It's day two of jury selection in the trial of the man accused of orchestrating the killing of hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur. Duane Davis, who goes by the nickname Keffe D, has pleaded not guilty, but Davis is also the prosecution's star witness with key pieces of information in the case coming from his own memoir. Prosecutors say Davis was the shot-caller of the group that opened fire on Tupac 30 years ago on the Las Vegas Strip. Let's bring in CNN's Nick Watt for details on what is a really high-profile trial here.

Nick, how is the jury selection going?

NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's clipping along. You know, right now they're asking questions like, what's your favorite movie? Would you be prepared to look at gruesome crime scene photos? And would you be scared of any gang retaliation? The latest juror they were just interviewing said that he hadn't heard anything about the case, which, I've got to say, I was quite surprised by, because I think most people know something about the murder of Tupac, even though it was nearly 30 years ago.

People coming into the public gallery wearing Tupac T-shirts were asked by marshals to turn them inside out. The jurors have also, and the court, has also been read the list of 200 potential prosecution witnesses. On that list, again, this is potential witnesses. It doesn't mean they're going to show up. Suge Knight, who was driving the car the night that Tupac was shot, and also Sean "Puffy" Combs, both of them, by the way, are in jail right now, in prison right now, serving sentences for completely unrelated issues.

So, the other person, as you mentioned, that is kind of key to this is Keffe D himself. Will he, in fact, take the stand? You know, he told a local news station in Vegas, if I have to, I will. As you mentioned, Brianna, this case is pretty much hung on his own words, both in an interview with the FBI back in 2008 and also in his book and subsequent media appearances. He has detailed his involvement.

No one says he pulled the trigger, but he was the so-called gang shot caller. He orchestrated it. The belief among investigators is that actually Keffe D's nephew is the one who pulled the trigger, shot Tupac, who died six days later.

So, what we're expecting, Brianna, is that the jury will be seated by Thursday, 12 jurors, four alternates, and the trial itself will begin in earnest Monday. That is the timeline we're working with right now. Trial itself will last four or five weeks. And as you mentioned, there is going to be a lot of focus on this.

This is one of the most famous unsolved crimes in modern America. Tupac, such a goliath, a mammoth figure in the hip hop world. His death nearly 30 years ago. Finally, someone's going to be in court Monday, and they're going to try and figure out if Keffe D really is responsible for the murder of Tupac. Back to you.

KEILAR: All right. Nick Watt will be looking for that. Thank you so much.

Coming up, President Trump heading to Ohio to attend the Patriot Games finale. Why the youth competition is drawing comparisons to the Hunger Games.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)