Return to Transcripts main page

CNN This Morning

Federal Warrant Served In Nancy Guthrie Case, No Arrests Made; Rubio Reassures Europe: "Our Destiny Together Awaits"; Zelenskyy Ramps Up Pressure On U.S. For Peace Deal; European Nations: Navalny Killed By Toxin Found In Poison Dart Frogs; Severe Weather Brings Flood Risk Across Southeast U.S.; Obama Hails Anti-ICE Protests As "Heroic"; DHS Shutdown Enters Day 2 As Paychecks Stall For Thousands; Jeffries: Democrats Are "Going To Finish" Redistricting "War". Day Two of Partial Government Shutdown, Trump Pushes Voter ID for Midterms; Stephen A. Smith Isn't Ruling Out Presidential Bid; Mikaela Shiffrin Looks to Secure Another Gold. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired February 15, 2026 - 07:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[07:01:04]

STEVE LIPPMAN, NANCY GUTHRIE'S NEIGHBOR: I think it's difficult for law enforcement, and I can keep saying, incredibly difficult for the family.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: Nancy Guthrie has been missing for more than two weeks now. We're hearing from neighbors following that flood of police activity Friday. Sources tell CNN that U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will be in Switzerland this week for another round of talks with Iran, but President Trump has not sounded optimistic about where those talks are heading.

The government is in a partial shutdown as Democrats and Republicans spar over DHS funding and ICE protocols. Both sides are dug in. So when will this end?

Plus, could Stephen A. Smith go from sports broadcaster to presidential candidate? What he's saying about jumping into the 2028 race.

Welcome to CNN This Morning. It is Sunday, February 15th. I'm glad to have you along. I'm Victor Blackwell.

We're now entering the third week since Today Show anchor Savannah Guthrie's mother went missing. Police confirmed they executed a federal warrant Friday night. No one was arrested.

And we saw a similar outcome from an overnight operation into Saturday morning. The police swarmed an area a couple miles from Nancy Guthrie's home, but left after about four hours. Neighbors tell CNN they sympathize with investigators.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LIPPMAN: The neighborhood has been portrayed as being really remote and isolated. And, you know, we're 10 minutes from downtown Tucson. Just it's spread out. It's desert landscape. So it's very difficult probably to find any type of clues as opposed to if you're walking down a city street and buildings on are on all the sides and right next to each other. So I think it's difficult for law enforcement and I can keep saying incredibly difficult for the family.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: CNN's Rafael Romo joins me now. He's been following the latest what we know about this search. What do we know about the execution of this federal warrant?

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that is a crucial question and the most significant thing that authorities have done so far. And what we know about this warrant, Victor, is that it was based on a lead that investigators received. The federal court order search warrant was carried out at a residence Friday night in connection with the investigation into Nancy Guthrie's disappearance.

Officials have also said that no arrests were made during the search. What we have so far more than two weeks after the 84-year-old woman went missing, it's a physical profile of a suspect. The FBI released doorbell footage showing a masked figure outside Guthrie's front door describing the suspect as a male approximately 5'9 to 5'10 tall with an average build.

The FBI also said the suspect was wearing dark clothing, black gloves, sneakers and a black 25 liter Ozark trail hiker pack -- backpack. Part of the challenge for investigators is that they are sifting through more than 30,000 tips that they've received since the case began. Investigators have found some evidence, including DNA found that Guthrie's property in Tucson Arizona that doesn't belong to her or those close to her.

They also found gloves as far as 10 miles from her home that are also being tested. Earlier today, former FBI agent Scott Curtis told CNN one of the main avenues of investigation should be cell phone signals that might have been detected in Guthrie's neighborhood starting weeks before her abduction. This is how he explained it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT CURTIS, FORMER FBI AGENT: They're trying to identify cell phones that could have been in that area not only on that evening of the abduction, but at any points during the last 30 days in a period between probably midnight and 3:00 a.m. where people may have been casing that location.

(END VIDEO CLIP) ROMO: And Curtis also says investigators should be able to geo locate those signals hitting cell phone towers at that time of night in order to identify who the cell phone users were to identify someone who shouldn't have been in that neighborhood.

[07:05:01]

Nancy Guthrie, the mother of NBC host Savannah Guthrie, was last seen the night of January 31st when her son-in-law drove drove her back to her secluded desert home around 9:50 p.m. as she hasn't been seen since. Her blood was found by investigators on the front porch of her Tucson home.

My heart just breaks for the family more than two weeks now, Victor.

BLACKWELL: Yes, starting this third week. Rafael Romo, thank you.

The U.S. and Iran will return to talks about a potential nuclear deal. Sources tell CNN the next round of talks will happen on Tuesday in Geneva, Switzerland. U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, President Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, they're expected to attend.

On Friday, President Trump warned that if Iran wants to avoid a potential attack, it should, quote, "give us a deal that they should have given us the first time." The president is sending a second aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, to the Mideast in case the talks fail.

A touch of relief, but still plenty of uncertainty for European leaders. After Marco Rubio's remarks at the Munich Security Conference, the Secretary of State's essentially told America's NATO allies that we love you now change or relieving you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARCO RUBIO, SECRETARY OF STATE: We should be proud of what we achieved together in the last century. But now we must confront and embrace the opportunities of a new one. Because yesterday is over. The future is inevitable, and our destiny together awaits.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: President Trump has been demanding that Europeans shoulder more responsibility for their own security. Here's the latest from CNN's Frederik Pleitgen in Munich.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: High stakes security conference coming to an end here in Munich, Germany. Of course, one of the highlights was U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his speech in front of the delegates here in Munich. And basically, the folks who are here breathing a sigh of relief after that speech.

On the one hand, the U. S. Secretary of State criticizing America's European allies, but also extending a welcoming hand, saying that the United States wants to continue to be an ally of European nations. At the same time, the U.S. is trying to move along that negotiations process to try and end the war in Ukraine.

The next round of talks is set to happen in Geneva in Switzerland in the next couple of days, involving, of course, the U. S., Ukraine, and Russia. Now, the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he showed some frustration at the way the talks are going. Here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRES. VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINE: The Americans often return to the topic of concessions, and too often those concessions are discussed in the context only of Ukraine, not Russia. Europe is practically not present at the table. It's a big mistake, to my mind.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: Now, when Zelenskyy speaks about concessions, he first and foremost, of course, means some of those territorial concessions the Ukrainians might have to make as part of any peace agreement. At the same time, another big topic here at the Munich Security Conference was some bold allegations by five European nations surrounding the death of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny.

He, of course, died in a Russian prison colony under mysterious circumstances pretty much exactly two years ago. And the European countries now say they have evidence that he most probably was poisoned. Now, I asked the European -- European Commission's foreign policy chief about all this. Here's what she had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAJA KALLAS, EUROPEAN FOREIGN POLICY CHIEF: It's not really surprising, is it? I mean, he's working like regular dictators are working. I mean, eliminate all the competitors and, you know, keep the power structures and oligarchs happy, and you stay in power, and you can do whatever you want, even if, you know, the people are not pleased.

PLEITGEN: It's a long way to go, though, to use dart frog poison, isn't it?

KALLAS: Well --

PLEITGEN: -- on someone who's in a prison colony anyway.

KALLAS: Yes, but I think it also shows how the Russians are thinking, exploring new ways to actually use. So this is the way they operate against their own people, against people in prison.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: Now, the Russians have since come out and categorically denied those allegations. They call all of the things that are being said around the death of Alexei Navalny and Russia's alleged involvement a farce.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Munich, Germany.

BLACKWELL: All right, Fred, thank you very much.

Headlines for you this morning now. Top Hollywood agent Casey Wasserman is selling his company after being mentioned in the Epstein files. In a memo to employees obtained by CNN, Wasserman calls the situation a distraction for the company. Wasserman has not been accused of any criminal wrongdoing. CNN has reached out to Wasserman's representatives for comment.

People wanting to honor those killed by federal immigration agents, including Alex Pretti and Renee Good, held a celebration of life yesterday. People in Minneapolis gathered at the memorial. They had a vigil for Pretti and Good. They also held performances and waved signs to honor their memories.

[07:10:07]

Thursday, White House Border Czar Tom Holman ended ICE's two-month- long immigration operation in Minnesota.

A measles outbreak in Florida prompted Florida health officials to offer free vaccinations. The mumps, measles and rubella vaccination drive happened yesterday in southwest Florida. Ave Maria University reported 57 cases of the measles linked to the campus. Seven students are under quarantine. Firefighters helped with the vaccination effort there.

Mardi Gras, the revelers in south Texas, they braved heavy storms and rainfall to celebrate the weekend and that system moves eastward today, bringing the threat for severe storms across parts of the southeastern United States.

Back with the now CNN Meteorologist Allison Chinchar. Which we expect?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, so it's going to be more rain, the potential for more severe weather as we go through the rest of the day today. The focus is just going to shift a little bit farther east. So right now you can see a lot of this heavy rain extends from Ohio all the way down to the gulf coast.

We don't have any severe storms as of yet, but once the sun comes out starts to heat things up, that's when we anticipate a lot of that activity is really going to start to get going. As for the morning hours right now, some of the heaviest rain sliding out of Atlanta, heading up into portions of South Carolina.

You've got some strong lines of storms around Birmingham stretching down into Montgomery. Also some heavy rain around Nashville and Memphis. As we mentioned later this afternoon, that's when the best potential is going to be for some of those strong to severe thunderstorms.

You're talking damaging winds, some small hail, isolated tornadoes and even some water spouts, especially along Florida's coast. This is where the target point is going to be. So Jacksonville, Tallahassee, Panama City, but really any of those areas have the potential for those strong to severe thunderstorms.

Here's a look by lunchtime against some still some heavy rain across Tennessee, the Carolinas into Georgia. Then as we get closer into the evening, the bulk of that rain starts to exit out of the Atlantic and really then just becomes a concern for portions of Florida as we wrap up the rest of the evening.

Now I will note too, we have another system we're keeping an eye on. This is actually going to be the first in a series of systems to impact the west coast. Here you can see we've already got some rain showers across portions of Oregon and even into California, but it's really what's expected to come starting tonight and continuing for the next three days because we are talking significant amounts of water that are coming in.

So not just high rainfall, but snow that is going to be measured in feet. Yes.

BLACKWELL: All right, more to come. Allison, thank you.

Still ahead, day two of that partial government shutdown and Democrats are holding firm in their demand for reforms of ICE. Plus, former President Obama has offered his strongest criticism to date on ICE operations in Minnesota calling their actions rogue behavior. We'll have more of this pretty wide ranging interview.

And YouTube superstar Mr. Beast has branched out, bought a banking app. What we're learning about his move into the world of finance.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:17:46]

BLACKWELL: Former President Obama sat down for a wide-ranging interview with podcaster Brian Tyler Cohen. Former president criticized Immigration and Customs Enforcement action in Minnesota, where two American citizens were killed by ICE. He called their conduct dangerous and compared it to what he's seen in dictatorships.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT: The way that federal agents, ICE agents were being deployed without any clear guidelines, training, the sort of behavior that, you know, in the past we've seen in authoritarian countries and we've seen in dictatorships, but we have not seen in America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: You know, he also highlighted the community organizing and protests that have been happening in Minnesota really across the country in response to ICE.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: But we should take a moment to appreciate the extraordinary outpouring of organizing community building decency. That kind of heroic sustained behavior in subzero weather by ordinary people is what should give us hope.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: And last week, Borders are Tom Homan announced that the special operation in Minnesota is concluding with the drawdown of federal immigration agents there.

This morning, it's day two of a partial government shutdown. Lawmakers have not been able to come to a deal to fund the Department of Homeland Security. More than 250,000 essential workers, including TSA agents and the Coast Guard are on the clock, but they're working without a paycheck. Democratic and Republican lawmakers are trading blame for the shutdown.

Here's what Republican Congressman Tim Burchett had to say about fault.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. TIM BURCHETT (R), TENNESSEE: It's going to cause suffering everywhere, and I'm just disappointed the Democrats aren't at the table. They did this once before. I mean, it hurt them and it's going to hurt him again. This is just a power grab, ma'am, and there's no reason for it at all.

We can come together and agree to what we agreed to in the beginning, but now it just seems to have changed all of a sudden, and it's very unfortunate. It's just politics at its worst.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[07:20:04]

BLACKWELL: Now, the change Burchett was referencing is the fierce standoff between lawmakers over immigration enforcement reform. Democrats are demanding reforms to ICE after agents shot and killed Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis last month. The negotiations essentially they're on pause while Congress is on recess. Some are overseas on CODELs and Munich. Some of them as well. Lawmakers are not expected to return to Washington until February 23rd.

CNN Anchor and Chief Congressional Correspondent Manu Raju is joining me now. Can we expect really any movement on this before the 23rd and maybe even soon after that?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, Victor, it seems very, very unlikely. There will be talks happening behind the scenes with White House officials and with Senate Democratic leadership staff. The question is going to be when will President Trump and Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, really get into the serious horse trading that will be needed to cut a deal to reopen the government?

We have yet to see this principle to principle negotiation high level negotiation happen. You know, there have been staff level discussions, and there have been some signs that the White House is showing some willing to give on the -- on some of the demands Democrats are making, but not going nearly as far as Democrats have been calling for and how to rein in ICE on a wide range of issues, whether it's ending roving patrols, requiring ICE agents to take off their mask, changing how judicial warrants to be -- for the ICE agents to obtain those warrants before moving ahead with immigration enforcement actions.

Several of those are just go way too far for Republicans and for the White House. The question will be, will there be some sort of middle ground that can be reached that can satisfy Democrats in the United States Senate, where they would need 60 votes to advance legislation. The Republicans control that chamber 53 47.

And can the White House compromise off of an issue where the president, of course, has taken such a hard line over his career? That's going to be a big question. But at the moment, this is -- we expect this to drag on for some time. Will it go as long -- as the longest shutdown, the full government shutdown back in the fall? That was 43 days. That's a big question.

But this is the third shutdown, partial or full government shutdown of President Trump's second term, which is unprecedented, Victor.

BLACKWELL: Yes. And some of those DHS workers are just getting the back pay that they waited for during the last shutdown in October, November.

Let's talk about your interview with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. You talked about many issues, I'm sure, but also redistricting and the midterm elections. What did you learn?

RAJU: Yes, look, this is a huge issue because this could eventually determine control of the United States House this fall. The issue of gerrymandering or redrawing district lines in the United States House, that typically happens at the beginning of a decade to reflect a new census.

But we saw what President Trump did last year, was that he called on and really pressured Texas Republicans to redraw their lines and make it easier for Republicans to pick up five additional seats in the midterms. As a result, Democrats responded in California, and the two parties have been engaged in this state by state gerrymandering war that could impact who controls the House next November -- next -- in the next two years after these year -- this year's midterms.

But I asked Jeffries about the how that fight is going, and he contended that this fight by the GOP is backfiring. And now Democrats, he says, have an advantage.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: Republicans started this redistricting war, and Democrats have made clear we're going to finish it. We're going to make sure that there is a fair national map. So at the end of the day, it's the voters who get to decide who's in the majority after the November midterm elections and not Donald Trump.

When they go low, we strike back. That's the Democratic approach, and the Republicans are feeling it right now.

RAJU: I mean, when they go low, you're going lower it seems like.

JEFFRIES: We're not going lower. We're striking back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: And we discussed some of the key fights that are happening right now, including one that Jeffries is having with his own party in Maryland, where they're trying to essentially eliminate the one Republican seat in Maryland. But the state Senate president in that legislature, a Democrat, is holding firm against that plan. And Jeffries has some choice words for him as they try to pressure him to back off.

BLACKWELL: Yes, when when they go low, he didn't say we go high. So --

RAJU: Yes.

BLACKWELL: -- yes, so you caught that. Manu Raju, thank you so much. And be sure to catch Manu's full interview with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Inside Politics Sunday coming up at 8:00 a.m. Eastern, right after this show.

Still to come, the attorney general was asked about survivors of child sex abuse. Her response was to talk about the Dow. We're digging into Pam Bondi's contentious testimony.

And it's the weekend for love. So from "Notebook" to "Wedding Crashers," we're looking at America's favorite romantic movies, some surprises maybe for your state.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:29:35]

BLACKWELL: Partial government shutdown, it's now in its second day. Only Department of Homeland Security is affected, and there are no signs of when it will end.

Joining me now for the roundup, journalist Malena Cunningham, senior editor for Bossip, Jason Lee, and lawyer Cody Randall. Welcome to you all.

Malena, let me start with you. And this DHS shutdown, we just heard from Manu Raju that this could go on for a while. Why? In many parts because the Smithsonian's open, SNAP benefits go out, air traffic controllers are paid. Because it's kind of limited to just a small department, maybe Americans won't notice and there won't be the pressure that we saw that ended the 43-day shutdown. What do you think?

MALENA CUNNINGHAM, JOURNALIST: I doubt it. You know, I'm beginning to feel like I'm responsible for some of this. I was here in October when we were in the shutdown. I was about to fly out. Now, here I am again. We're in the shutdown.

I think because that lasted so long and the effects of it, people are still feeling the lingering effects. And for those people like myself and you who have to fly again, we will feel it again at the airport. I was flying out two days after I was on your show in October when we were in the shutdown. The line at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport for security was to the door, which was ridiculous.

BLACKWELL: I mean, so one of the things is, obviously, at the center of this is ICE and changing the protocols. Democrats have a list of about 10 things here. Republicans say some of them go too far. Is there any compromise here? Is this something you think the president is willing to compromise on since this, he believes, is his top issue?

JASON LEE, SENIOR EDITOR, "BOSSIP": I would be shocked if he is. I mean, he seems very adamant about carrying out this agenda in this aggressive kind of way. I know that he's given hints that he may turn down the temperature a little bit in certain places. But I'd be surprised if he's willing to compromise, especially because in this particular shutdown, it doesn't seem like it's as wide ranging as the previous shutdown. So, I'm not sure what leverage Democrats will have to put pressure on him to be able to keep some of this agenda out.

CODY RANDALL, LAWYER AND SPECIAL COUNSEL, GEORGIE TRIAL ATTORNEYS: Well, I'm not sure why we're calling -- you know, following the Constitution or the laws of the country going too far. The list of requests that they want ICE agents to follow and DHS to follow is pretty basic. They want you to follow constitutional protections, the Fourth Amendment, unreasonable search and seizure, no warrantless acquisitions of going into people's houses, judicial warrants versus administrative warrants, right?

They're asking for proper training, proper oversight, and then proper response if and when something goes on, because there's always going to be an inevitably something's not going to go to plan. But what they're asking for is, why don't you just hold yourself to the same standard as every other law enforcement agency in this country? You don't just get to run rampage and, you know, do what you want. The requests aren't extreme. They're -- just behave.

BLACKWELL: Yes. What do you think is on the line for Democrats? Because the way the 43-day shutdown ended in November, they demanded subsidies for the Affordable Care Act to bring down some of those subsidies that were going to double this year and did, they didn't get that. And so, if they go into this again, they have to get something, do you believe, going into the midterms for withholding these votes?

LEE: It feels a little ceremonial from the standpoint of they have to stand on this business, right? This is what they're going to run on. The midterms are coming up. They can't really afford to give up on this issue. Whether they get anything or not, I don't know if the, it'll be interesting to see if the public holds them accountable for that as the situation goes on. I think people understand that this is a Trump doing. BLACKWELL: Let me ask you, Cody, about something that the president posted on social media. Republicans are fighting for the SAVE Act, which would require a proof of citizenship to register for a federal election. The president posted online that Democrats opposed the SAVE Act. He posted, quote, "There will be voter ID for the midterm elections, whether approved by Congress or not."

Now, elections are run by states. He followed up overnight, said it's going to be by executive order. Is this something that we should pay attention to closely, or did the president just bloviating here because this is not the way that laws are made?

RANDALL: The president is just complaining because things aren't happening the way that he wants to. Like, I've read my constitution front and back, right? The time, place and manner of elections is decided by the state. And while Congress does have the ability to create rules for that, I don't remember a section of the constitution that says laws are created by tweet, right?

A tweet is not a law, does not a law make. Neither is an executive order. The president can't just decree things. And the executive branch has nothing to do with how elections in this country are run.

CUNNINGHAM: But also, is it a way to try to start to intimidate voters before November so that they perhaps won't want to go to the polls to vote?

LEE: Well, it's interesting to me that he's so concerned with identification and legal status to participate in certain activities. It seems to me that he should have been concerned about this, I don't know, 38,000 mentions ago from the Epstein files of his palling around with Jeffrey Epstein. It didn't seem that identification and legal status were that important then, so it's interesting that he has this stance now.

BLACKWELL: Speaking of the Epstein files, many of the questions that Attorney General Pam Bondi faced when she was in front of the House Judiciary Committee this week were focused on Jeffrey Epstein, her handling of those files, the redactions as well. One of your stories you're following this week and other last week was her contentious exchanges with those members. Let's play a bit of that.

[07:35:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAM BONDI, ATTORNEY GENERAL: Excuse me. I'm going to answer the question.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Answer my question.

BONDI: No. I'm going to answer the question the way I way I want to answer the question.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

BONDI: Your theatrics are ridiculous.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I believe you just lied under oath. There is amble evidence in the Epstein files --

BONDI: Don't you ever accuse me of a crime.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I believe you do.

REP. JAMIE RASKIN (D-MD): I told you about that, Attorney General, before you started.

BONDI: You don't tell me anything.

RASKIN: Yes. Oh, I did tell you because we saw what you did in the Senate.

BONDI: You're not even a lawyer.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CUNNINGHAM: So, talk about theatrics, and it depends on who you're listening to. Of course, when Trump came into office and he got people in his cabinet, some of the MAGA folks were applauding this kind of behavior from folks who are intimidating Trump, but now you're starting to see some Republicans who are pulling away, like Nancy Mace, the congresswoman from South Carolina, who told CNN that she doesn't trust the Justice Department now after seeing this theatrics. And Erik Erickson, a conservative talk show person, is now calling for Pam Bondi to step aside because of this outrageous behavior.

You know, I think the American people, too, recognize what's happening here and don't want to see this from anybody, but it's even more challenging watching it come from a woman.

BLACKWELL: But if it is more challenging coming from a woman, I was about to say something else, but continue with that thought.

CUNNINGHAM: Well, you know, Trump, men seem to sometimes get away with things, and people will blow things off with Trump. With a woman, though, it almost looks like hysterical, not wanting to answer, trying to run away from things, and it just doesn't look -- and you know, I don't -- it just doesn't look professional.

BLACKWELL: But also, I mean, if this is for an audience of one, and that audience of one is the president and he's satisfied, does it matter what anybody else thought about it?

CUNNINGHAM: Well, he may be satisfied today, but anything could happen that she could get thrown under the bus if there are enough Republicans who say, well, you know, maybe we shouldn't.

BLACKWELL: And we've seen that before.

RANDALL: And the thing about this clip, if you watch carefully, right, as an attorney, you can tell that she doesn't know, she doesn't believe what she's saying. Because we have a saying that is, you know, if the law is on your side, you pound the law. If the facts are on your side, you pound the facts. And if you have neither, you pound the table.

This was nothing but table-pounding. It was direct, important question, well, what about the Dow Jones? But what about your actions here, or your agents doing this in Minnesota? Well, what about you, Senator, and that thing that you did in 1945? It's this whole concept of misdirection, or complain about anything you can to change the topic. She doesn't have the law on her side. She doesn't have the facts on her side. So, she's trying to talk about anything that she can that she thinks is going to be remotely positive for the president.

BLACKWELL: All right.

LEE: And to that point, I'm not even sure the table is on her side. Because when I saw this, it reminded me of a bit that Pee-wee Herman used to do on his show. I know you are, but what am I? And that seemed to be her whole agenda going into this hearing, is just to deflect and point back at people saying things. It was very juvenile. At one point, Congresswoman Becca Balint called her secretary. And she reminded her, I'm the attorney general. And Balint responded, well, I couldn't tell.

And it seemed that she was acting more like a secretary, not a secretary of state, but someone who was sent on an errand to fetch things for Donald Trump.

BLACKWELL: Well, I did not expect the Pee-wee Herman reference in the panel today. But --

LEE: Here I am. Here I am.

BLACKWELL: All right. So, everybody stay with us. We've got more coming up in the next half. Could sportscaster Stephen A. Smith be coming to a campaign rally near you? Is he going to run for president? Coming up in the Roundup.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:40:00]

BLACKWELL: Welcome back to the Morning Roundup. It is NBA All-Star weekend. The game is tonight in L.A. Listen, it could use a shakeup. The ratings for 2025 were among the lowest since it's been televised. But is this a way to do it? Here's Nick Wright with a suggestion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK WRIGHT: We just have to say, you know what, PC headlines be damned.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know where you're going.

WRIGHT: White guys versus black guys. Luka, Joker, Flagg, Reeves, Knueppel, against Wimby, whomever. And I'm telling you right now, guys would play -- hard.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Jah, I don't know if he's serious about this. I guess if this is just a joke for the podcast.

LEE: The NBA All-Star game sponsored by Jim Crow. Like, that's basically what we're talking about. It's like the three-fish point contest and the Montgomery Brawl dunk contest. I mean, it's -- he's being tongue-in-cheek, and it is ridiculous. But it's also, I guess, a testament to how bad things have gotten with the NBA All-Star game.

BLACKWELL: How? I mean, you have the best players in the league who are playing each other. How are -- why are the ratings so low?

LEE: Well, I think some -- well, to your point, though, some of the premier parts of All-Star Weekend have been the dunk contest and things like that. And when the star players aren't the participants -- and we're used to Michael Jordan and Dwight Howard and, you know, people have been on LeBron James for years for not participating in a dunk contest. And so, when you have just, you know, guys participating who no one knows, really, or what team they even play for. It kind of loses the luster of the premier event of All-Star Weekend.

[07:45:00]

Now, to Nick Wright's point about black versus white, it kind of feels like turning the NBA into like octagon MMA boxing where it's very tribalistic and that type of thing. But I don't think this is the thing that NBA would participate in. The sponsors definitely won't go for it.

BLACKWELL: Yes. So --

RANDALL: It's a rage bait to me.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

RANDALL: They're trying to get clicks. Like to your point, I didn't realize like George Wallace was now the commissioner.

LEE: Right. Yes. That's what it sounds like based on this.

BLACKWELL: The morning one-liners and the Roundup do not stop. Not the SomeStars Weekend. All right. Malena, let me ask you about this. ESPN host Stephen A. Smith. He participated in an interview with CBS Sunday Morning in which the conversation was about a possible run for president. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Would you run as a Democrat?

STEPHEN A. SMITH, ESPN COMMENTATOR: Yes, because I couldn't see myself running as a member of the GOP. I'm a fiscal conservative. I can't stand high taxes. But I'm a social liberal in the same breath because I believe in living and let live. I pay attention to the desolate and the disenfranchised.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Do you think this is a real thing?

CUNNINGHAM: OK. Let's look at the qualifications. He's on television. He can be loud. And he has name recognitions. So, we have someone now in office.

BLACKWELL: We've seen this before.

CUNNINGHAM: We're seen this before. So, you never know. It's an interesting tease. Why would he even be suggesting it if he wasn't serious? So, it's something interesting to watch. And it also makes you wonder, what are the Democrats thinking if you have a person -- a personality, a well-known personality who's on television every day like Stephen A. Smith who is potentially talking about running?

BLACKWELL: Anybody else think this is real?

RANDALL: I don't think it's real at all. But I'm going to say this is going to be an unpopular opinion, OK? We've had a lot of outsiders run for office recently. We got media personalities, all these things. I think it's time for a career politician again. I'm sorry.

I am -- I think the qualification for a job should be you should be qualified for the job and maybe have some experience. So, if you're talking about being president, I would like for you to have been a senator or run a state as a governor. I'd like for you to have just a little bit of executive experience or a legislative experience, not watching it on TV and then talking about sports.

LEE: Well, the other problem is that he says he wants to run as a Democrat. I don't know if he's read the room lately, but Democrats are -- a lot of Democrats are wanting to move, especially younger Democrats, further left. And he basically just describes himself as a centrist. And I think that that kind of corporate Democrat politician isn't necessarily going to play in the same way that it might have played 15, 20 years ago.

RANDALL: He described himself as basically Republican-lite.

LEE: Yes, right. Yes. And so, what Democrats are you going to attract with that kind of campaign? I don't even get it.

BLACKWELL: Cody, your story of the past few days, Mr. Beast, this YouTuber. I should -- he's more than that now. I mean, he's a mogul. He's now getting into the financial app business with Step. Why is this one of the ones you're watching?

RANDALL: I find it just a bit dangerous in my mind, right? So, he's getting into the financial space, but his audience is primarily children. Like, his audience is, like, 14 to, like, 21-year-olds, and the 21-year-olds are people who have been watching them since he was 14. And now, he wants to get into the finance space in order to encourage people to start banking with Mr. Beast to give him access to their funds.

And once you get locked into a bank, like, once you start using financial services, the one you pick when you're a kid is the one you have when you're an adult. People don't, like, change around a lot. And it's just -- once again, it's just kind of nerve-wracking to me that he has that influence over people who may not know what the best financial decision is to make, and they're going to expose themselves to, I don't really like, an unknown banking space.

BLACKWELL: So, this is more concern than excitement?

RANDALL: It's mostly concern.

BLACKWELL: OK.

RANDALL: Like --

CUNNINGHAM: But I think the interesting thing is, though, you're getting young people motivated to want to learn more about finances. You know, we were growing up, you had a checking account. Does a checking account -- you know, we wrote checks. Nobody does that anymore.

RANDALL: Yes. But banking's supposed to be boring. It's not supposed to be exciting. I want my bank to be a big brick building that's not going anywhere with conservative values. And I know when I put my money in the bank, it's coming back out. I don't think that my money should be, like, dictated by a pop star or, like, the world's biggest YouTuber.

BLACKWELL: There should be no banking trick shot, is what you're saying?

LEE: Yes. And I think, also, we have enough tech bros with their hands on things that are important to all of us. I just don't think we need another tech bro Wi-Fi guy to come on and be responsible for banking.

RANDALL: Imagine trying to check your account and saying, like, really quickly, this ad from this video game.

LEE: Yes, right, right, right.

RANDALL: Right.

BLACKWELL: All right. We're wrapping it there. Malena, Jah, and Cody, thank you all for being part of the Roundup. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:50:00]

BLACKWELL: Alpine skiing icon Mikaela Shiffrin is about to hit the slopes. Of course, she wants to bring home gold for Team USA. CNN's Amanda Davies joins us now from Milan. What can you tell us? AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Good morning. Yes, this event, real high hopes for Mikaela Shiffrin for everything she has done and won in her World Cup career. There's a sense of disappointment. It says so much about her ability that in three Olympic Games, she's only won two gold medals and a silver. And she's been talking about a sense of redemption heading into this Olympic Games.

She and Breezy Johnson missed out on a medal in her first event here in Milan Cortina. But I can tell you, it's not been the easiest morning so far for her in the Giant Slalom. After her first run, she was a second off the pace. And she's about, got another 10 skiers to go for her second run. But we'll really need to pull something special out of the bag to make up time there to claim a medal. We'll keep you posted on that.

[07:55:00]

But of course, it's a week ago today, this morning, that we witnessed those awful scenes of Lindsey Vonn's crash in the women's downhill. But really good news this morning. We understand that she has now left Italy. Having been in hospital here in Treviso all week, she's now on her way back to the United States. As she revealed via social media yesterday, she's now undergone four operations. Still many more to come. But under a video of what she says was her final ski in Cortina before the race, her message was, please don't feel sad. The ride was worth the fall.

Potentially, we have more medals for Jordan Stolz to come in the speed skating after he claimed his second in two events on Saturday. But later on Sunday, Erin Jackson, the U.S. flag bearer, at the opening ceremony, who made history as the first black woman to win a Winter Olympic gold medal in an individual sport in Beijing four years ago. She goes for the defense of her 500-meter speed skating title today after that disappointing stumble in the 1,000 meters earlier this week. But by all accounts, she's got some stiff competition. It's going to be a great night at the rink, Victor.

BLACKWELL: We'll all be watching. Amanda Davies, thank you. And thank you for joining us for CNN This Morning Weekend. I'm Victor Blackwell. It's been a pleasure to have you inside Politics Sunday with Manu Raju is up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:00:00]