Return to Transcripts main page

CNN This Morning

CNN Poll: Trump Approval Nears All-Time Low at 35%; Today: NASA Launches 1st Crewed Lunar Flyby in 50 Years. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired April 01, 2026 - 06:00   ET

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

[06:00:11]

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Just in to CNN: President Trump's approval rating on the economy hitting a new low. Tonight, the president is set to deliver a primetime address on the war with Iran.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We should get the prices down. That's the thing. It's too much.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Pain at the pump also hurting the president in polling. Why experts say it could actually be years before gas prices go down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: What happens in the Strait, we're not going to have anything to do with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: The White House telling other countries to, quote, "go get your own oil." But is it really that easy for the U.S. to just walk away?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Moon is a witness plate to our entire solar system's formation. It's a stepping stone to Mars.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Ahead, back to the future. Why NASA is returning to the Moon tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Maybe they were trying to defend him. I don't know.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: The White House brushing off the attack helicopter flyby at Kid Rock's house as Pete Hegseth steps in. CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Finishing the job. And I think within maybe two weeks, maybe a couple of days longer, to do the job.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: President Trump optimistic the war in Iran will wrap up soon, as Iran says it's prepared for at least six more months of battle.

Good morning, everyone. I'm Erica Hill, in for Audie Cornish.

Tonight, President Trump planning to address the nation for what is being labeled as an important update on the war, as new CNN polling shows Trump's approval rating is down 13 points from a year ago, flirting with his all-time low.

It's the economy where the president is losing the most ground, now at a career low of 31 percent approval. The report card from his base, even worse. Trump has lost 14 points with Republicans in just two months. A major factor? Gas prices.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Well, all I have to do is leave Iran, and we'll be doing that very soon, and they'll be -- come tumbling down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: It's actually not clear prices would, in fact, just come tumbling down. But what is clear: Those gas prices are a big problem for Americans.

Nearly all Democrats and independents disapprove of how Trump is handling the issue. Four in 10 Republicans say they disapprove.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a -- there's a lot of people hurting, because it's so expensive.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you ever paid more than $4 a gallon for gas?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. Never. Not -- not in my entire life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have to be honest. When we squeaked out a budget this year, we did not anticipate that somebody would start a war in the Mideast and run -- drive fuel and fertilizer prices through the roof.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Today in the group chat: Seung Min Kim, CNN political analyst and White House reporter for the Associated Press; Terry Schilling, executive director for the American Principles Project; and Sabrina Singh, CNN political commentator and former deputy Pentagon press secretary during the Biden administration.

Nice to have all of you here this morning.

So, when asked to name the most important issue here in this latest CNN polling, I want to just read what one Republican respondent told CNN in terms of this poll, saying, quote, "Prices! Everything is so expensive. It makes it very difficult to do

anything other than work and go home. Trips to the grocery store are ridiculous. Between gas and grocery prices, we are poor!"

Seung Min, how does the Trump administration, in terms of handling this, the talking appointments [SIC] -- points that we saw during the Biden administration of, hey, you should feel great. Things are great. Clearly, that doesn't work, right? It's about how people are feeling.

How much recognition is there behind closed doors within the White House, about just how damaging this could be?

SEUNG MIN KIM, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, the problem for -- or the challenge for this White House was that affordability was a major issue even before the war in Iraq began.

Obviously, the voters were going to the grocery store, still not satisfied with how much they had to pay. They were looking at housing costs and these other issues.

And now, the fact that gas prices are so on the --so on the front radar with the Middle East conflict is a major problem for the -- for the -- for the Trump administration.

This was -- this was a similar thing that went through the Biden administration. You know, White House staff is very aware that gas prices, what they cost. It's just like sticker prices all over, all over wherever you go. It is a reminder to voters just how much prices are going up. Because gas prices -- gas is one of the few items that you buy where you can just see the prices go up everywhere you go.

The White House chief of staff is very aware of this. Staff behind the scenes is also very aware, which is why you have Trump kind of being optimistic about how quickly this conflict will end and giving the giving the continuous timelines that he is.

[06:05:10]

But obviously, you know, when you're in a broader conflict, you know, the U.S. is not the only actor here. It's a lot more complicated.

Obviously, you've seen the administration take smaller measures, such as dealing with the Strategic -- Strategic Petroleum Reserve and to deal with the gas issues.

But this is certainly a major challenge, a major political problem, and a liability for the -- for the Trump administration.

HILL: Yes, certainly. So, when we look at other potential liabilities, there are questions about foreign policy. Right? So, I want to play a little bit of what Secretary Hegseth had to say

yesterday. He was asked specifically about the support of the base as we're -- as we're watching what is unfolding in Iran. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I don't understand why the base -- which they have already, they understand-- wouldn't have faith in his ability to execute on this. Look at his track record of pursuing peace through strength, "America first" outcomes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: So, the president has actually lost when it comes to foreign policy a little bit among Republicans. How concerning is it that this could, if the war continues to drag on, this could further erode support for the president?

TERRY SCHILLING, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, AMERICAN PRINCIPLES PROJECT: Well, Erica, I think that's exactly right. I talk to a lot of GOP operatives, and they're very concerned about the longer this war drags on, the more support President Trump is going to lose.

If you dig into the -- this recent poll from CNN, you'll find that he's dropping mostly with Republicans and with younger Republicans. And I think that that's largely due to the fact that our economy doesn't work for young people anymore.

And it's not President Trump's fault. He's trying to play catch-up. This has been a problem that's been happening since 2000, the late 2000s since the financial collapse.

HILL: Right. But he has to own it now, right? He's been there. He's been there for a year.

SCHILLING: Right. And look, I think there's a huge opportunity for -- for either party. The first party to make an economy that works for young people so that they can afford homes off of one income again, so that they can start getting married and having children.

You know, the -- if you build a pro-family economy, we're talking like a New Deal era dynasty of political power. The first party that does that.

And I think that the sad thing for the American people is they're seeing this. In that poll, if you dig even further, you'll see that the American people are kind of giving up on the economy.

HILL: Yes.

SCHILLING: They're losing hope. And it's not Republican -- 74 percent, three-quarters of them say that they don't think the Democrats are the right party. The American people deserve better, and they deserve bold leadership.

And I think President Trump is doing all the right things. He's trying to get things done.

I don't think that the political party that's going to seize this opportunity is going to let something like the filibuster get in their way. We've seen that the Democrats do this all the time. They get rid of the filibuster or they -- they skirt the rules and push through their institutions like Obamacare. It works for them.

And I think Republicans need to get more comfortable with political power.

HILL: It will be interesting to see what they do with that.

Also, the American people, not really fond of those efforts in general and, frankly, not fond of Congress these days. Let's be honest, across the board.

When we -- if we continue talking about the war in Iran, I think something else that has been fascinating to watch, Sabrina, is the shifting message. Right?

So, the president sort of rewriting, I guess, the language or what regime change actually means. Yesterday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio was also talking yesterday about objectives, and something in that stood out that I want to ask you about. Take a listen to what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We are well on our way. We are on or ahead of schedule on each of those four objectives. And we can see the finish line. It's not today; it's not tomorrow, but it is coming. We are going to get to the point where our military will have achieved all of its objectives in this mission, and they're doing so with extraordinary efficiency.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: So, he's talking about all of these objectives. We're going to put up, again, the post from the secretary and from the State Department on X.

So, what's different here and the reason we're comparing them is on March 4, he mentions nukes but not the Air Force. Monday, he mentions the Air Force but not nukes.

So, you're the former deputy press secretary at the Pentagon. How important is it to keep the narrative straight in terms of the impact on the mission. The messaging and the mission really do go hand-in- hand.

SABRINA SINGH, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, one of the things that also wasn't mentioned that they set out at the beginning of the war was dismantling -- dismantling Iran's support to its proxy groups in the region. And that's something that we haven't heard mentioned, I think, from the very early days until, you know -- we haven't heard that recently mentioned. So, in terms of the messaging, I mean, it's very important for the

military to have clear objectives, but also for the American people. And they do go hand-in-hand.

Standing behind that podium before -- it's really clear -- it's really important that the message and the mission align. And when you don't have that clear message and mission laid out for the military, it can make tactical successes great.

Like, you've seen this, our military strike over 11,000 targets, but that does not mean that it's going to lead, ultimately, to maybe the end set -- end goal that they wanted, which was a regime change.

I mean, the regime is still very much intact. The leadership has changed, but the regime remains. And so, you're seeing tactical successes, but potentially strategic failures.

[06:10:00]

And so, you know, they continue to push out different messengers from this administration. I think the reality is that the messaging war has been lost. They have lost the narrative here.

And so, you're seeing shifting goalposts. So, tonight the president might come out and declare a victory. The reality is gas prices are still up. They're not going to go down for probably many, many months. The strait is still closed.

And on top of that, you have massive damage done to the region, including to liquefied natural gas facilities, that it's going to take years to repair. So, we're not going to see those costs go down for a very long time.

HILL: Yes, a lot to still discuss. So, I'm glad you're all sticking around for the hour.

Ahead here on CNN THIS MORNING, is Trump ready to throw in the towel when it comes to the Strait of Hormuz? The expert who warns that move would be a, quote, "catastrophic failure" joins the chat.

Plus, Tiger Woods taking a break from golf after his latest run-in with the law.

And President Trump at the Supreme Court today to hear arguments amid his push to end birthright citizenship.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE; As the 14th Amendment establishes who we are, that this is the soul of our country, and it unlocks all of the possibilities.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:15:40]

HILL: Fifteen minutes past the hour now. Five things to know to get your day going.

The Supreme Court sending a key case on conversion therapy back to the lower court in an 8 to 1 opinion. The justices didn't technically strike down the Colorado law which bans the controversial practice for trans and gay youth.

Instead, it ordered the lower courts to take another look with stricter guidelines. There is a chance those lower courts could throw it out.

American journalist Shelly Kittleson kidnapped in Baghdad, and it is unclear who is responsible. An Iranian proxy group, though, is suspected here.

The U.S. government is tracking her kidnapping and is also working with Iraq to secure her release.

Could this be the last dance for President Trump's White House ballroom? A federal judge temporarily blocking construction of the $400 million project, because proper procedures were not followed before the East Wing was razed last October and construction began. That's because the plan needs congressional approval, says the judge. The president, vowing to appeal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We know that congressional approval is not necessary to put up a ballroom, and many things have been built on the site. They've never gotten congressional approval, and especially when the money is all put up. This is all donations by people that love our country, that love the White House, and that feel it was very necessary.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Tiger Woods says he is stepping away from golf to seek treatment. That announcement coming after his rollover crash in Florida last week.

Woods pleaded not guilty yesterday to DUI charges. He was arrested on Friday after a field sobriety test. Woods refused a urine test after that arrest, which is a second-degree misdemeanor in Florida.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stepping in to reverse the suspensions of the Army pilots who buzzed Kid Rock's Nashville area home in their Apache helicopters.

The secretary also shutting down the Army's investigation into how this happened.

When asked about the incident, the president said the pilots probably shouldn't have been doing it, but then added, I'm sure they had a good time. After the break here on CNN THIS MORNING, NASA is now just hours away

from that return to the Moon. Why is this mission so important, decades after the first Moon landing?

Plus, could President Trump actually end the war in Iran without Iran giving up control of the Strait of Hormuz?

And how about a good morning to our friends in Santa Monica. Really early there: 3:17 a.m. But you've got the Ferris wheel lighting up the sky, live there on the pier.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:22:16]

HILL: Nearly all systems go in Florida. In just 12 hours, four astronauts are expected to blast off on the first lunar flyby in 50 years, on the Artemis II.

This is a critical step two in the ultimate mission to put humans back on the Moon. The focus over the next several hours here, well, keeping a very close watch on the weather to make sure it holds. In addition to all the mechanics, making sure that everything is working.

Joining me now, Jackie Wattles, senior writer for space and science at the -- and she's joining us from the Kennedy Space Center.

Jackie, so good to talk to you this morning.

So, when we look at what is happening here, this is such a big deal. Why -- why 50 years to start on this path back to the Moon? Why now?

JACKIE WATTLES, SENIOR WRITER, SPACE & TIME DESK AT KENNEDY SPACE CENTER: Yes, it's a great question. I mean, everyone wants to know. We went to the Moon last time when we were still using rotary phones. So, why is it so hard this time around?

Well, the short answer to that is definitely budget. Back in the Apollo era, we gave NASA about 4 percent of our total national budget. Today, they operate with about less than half of 1 percent.

So, these -- this piece of hardware behind me, this rocket and spacecraft, they've been more than a decade in development. This has been a slow and steady process to fund these vehicles and get them out on the launch pad.

And today is all about testing them out, right? They've never flown with crew before. So, we're seeing how those life support systems work and how the spacecraft handles in deep space, because NASA doesn't want to go back just once to the Moon. The goal here now is to keep going back repeatedly and establish a lunar base.

HILL: You mentioned everything that's being checked today. We're about 12 hours away, right, from the planned launch. It's been a little bit of a road to get here over the last several weeks. Multiple delays. How are things looking this morning for the launch? WATTLES: Absolutely. I would say eerily calm. Mission managers are

tracking no major issues today, which is very exciting heading into this countdown.

But the real question, it will kick off later this morning that will start fueling this rocket. And it's really important to note that hydrogen is one of the fuels that's used to power this space launch system rocket, and hydrogen is the lightest element in the universe. It loves to kind of seep out of any container that you try to put it in.

And so, NASA has been grappling with these notorious hydrogen leaks that -- that can be quite dangerous. And they have to keep that leak rate below 16 percent to ensure for safe liftoff.

So, we'll be keeping a really close eye as they start loading it up with fuel, see if they're tracking any additional leaks. But everyone I've talked to down on the ground here is expressing just pure excitement and elation and -- and crossing fingers that there's no issues and we get off the ground tonight.

HILL: Crossing fingers; maybe toes, as well. What is going to be happening over the course of this mission? What are the astronauts doing while they're up there?

WATTLES: Yes. Well, they have a very busy to-do list over the course of the next ten days. And it all starts pretty much as soon as they get to orbit.

[06:25:02]

I'll highlight just three hours after liftoff. They're going to go through something called a proximity operations demonstration. And this is where they're really going to test that spacecraft.

The spacecraft, by the way, is the really small white part. It's hidden right now by some coverings at the top of the rocket. And once they're free-flying alone in that capsule, they're going to break away from the top part of the rocket.

And Victor Glover, the pilot of this mission, is going to manually control the Orion capsule and turn it around and kind of pretend to dock with the upper stage of the rocket. It's just a practice run. They're not actually going to touch anything while in space.

But it's an incredibly important demonstration there. They're practicing for docking with their future lunar lander and other spacecraft in deep space.

So, a lot of very important test objectives that NASA will be very anxious to check off.

HILL: You know, back 50 plus years ago, the first mission to the Moon, this was -- that was a space race with Russia. Today, the race is really with China. How much did China -- has China's own space race fueled this push to get back to the Moon? WATTLES: Right. Absolutely. I would say it's a major factor. I mean,

the reason that this is a race --and exactly whether it's a race is kind of up for debate -- but certainly. lawmakers have made clear, both Democrats and Republicans, that they consider us to be in a new space race with China. And it being a national security concern, if they leapfrog our deep space capabilities.

So, that's the goal here, right? China clearly has ambitions to build a base on the Moon. So, the United States is stepping up to that challenge and saying we want to build one, too.

The big question here maybe isn't who lands on the Moon first again, but maybe who gets to that lunar base and establishing a new lunar economy, as NASA likes to say. And China is certainly driving that.

HILL: Jackie, great to talk to you this morning. Appreciate it. Thank you.

WATTLES: Thank you.

HILL: So, if you have questions about this historic mission, well, we would like to hear them. Submit your questions to askartemis@CNN.com. It could be answered by host Brad Smith and special guests on CNN's all-access pop-up show tomorrow at 1:30 Eastern.

Still to come here on CNN THIS MORNING, President Trump signing an executive order that would crack down on mail-in voting. But can that order actually survive the courts?

Plus, why the University of Pennsylvania is now being required to put together a list of all the Jews on campus, and why the university says it will appeal.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:30:00]