Return to Transcripts main page

CNN This Morning

Interim Agreement Under Strain As U.S., Iran Exchange Fire; Urgent Rescue Operations Underway As Death Toll Soars; Thousands Of Haitians Legally Living And Working In U.S. Could Lose Work Permits & Be Deported After Ruling On TPS; Mississippi Puts Its Difficult History On Display; Focus On High-Profile Georgia Races Ahead Of November Vote; More Than A Dozen Wildfires Continue To Burn Across Colorado & Utah. More Than a Dozen Wildfires Continue to Burn Across Colorado and Utah; Utah Restricts Fourth of July Fireworks Amid Fire Danger; AAA: Record Fourth of July Travel Expected as Gas Prices Fall. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired June 28, 2026 - 07:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:00:44]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN This Morning. Here's what you need to know today. In Venezuela, unfortunately, the death toll climbing. The search for the missing is not over. We'll take you inside the country as families are hoping their loved ones are rescued. That's coming up next.

And also in Utah, the state's most destructive wildfire is burning out of control this morning. But it's the fires that have not yet started that has officials concerned. Plus, America is getting ready to turn 250. One state is asking whether you can celebrate the country by skipping the hard parts of history. Why Mississippi is choosing to tell a fuller story of its past.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And we are officially in summer, and it is going to feel like it this week. A lot of heat alerts starting to pop. We'll talk about just how hot those temperatures are going to get coming up.

BLACKWELL: It's Sunday, June 28th, a brand new week. Thanks for starting it with me. I'm Victor Blackwell.

This morning, the fragile interim agreement between the U.S. and Iran is starting to show some strain. In just the last few hours, Iran's foreign minister threatened to delay the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz if there are any continued interferences on what he calls Iran's exclusive management of the waterway.

Earlier, Iran said the 10 U.S. strikes on Iranian military targets violated the ceasefire memo of understanding. That memo was signed just 10 days ago. U.S. Central Command said its strikes hit hard Iran's military infrastructure, air defense sites, drone storage facilities. The U.S. military says it was in response to what it called an Iranian attack on a commercial ship in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran retaliated for those 10 U.S. strikes by launching missiles and drones against U.S. facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait, and Bahrain's government shared these images of the damage to a residential building in that Iranian attack.

CNN's Paula Hancocks has more. Good morning.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Victor. Well, it was a sleepless night for many residents in both Bahrain and Kuwait, as once again they found themselves bearing the brunt of the Iranian retaliation. We heard in Bahrain that there was damage to a residential building. No deaths were reported, though.

But what we are seeing is this the tit-for-tat strikes, really the most serious escalation we have seen since that MOU, the memorandum of understanding, was signed. And we are also seeing both sides, both the U.S. and Iran, accusing the other of violating that memorandum.

Now, the key issue at this point is the Strait of Hormuz, I should say, one of the key issues. But this is what has sparked the most recent escalation. We have heard from a Revolutionary Guard spokesperson saying that this is a violation, what the U.S. has done, also saying it will result in the complete halt of all diplomatic processes, suggesting that they may not go back to the talks.

But what we have seen certainly is that vessels in the Strait of Hormuz have, for the most part, been taking the southern route closer to the Omani coast, and Iran says they have to go in the Iranian route, which means they have full control of who comes through. And this is what we heard from Abbas Araghchi, the Iranian foreign minister, who just gave a press conference a couple of hours ago in Baghdad, saying that the number of vessels could be back to pre-war levels in 30 days, but Iran has to have exclusive control over the Strait of Hormuz.

Now, clearly that is not something the U.S. or the Gulf nations, frankly, will be agreeing to. Let's listen to more from what we heard of a Revolutionary Guard spokesperson earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOSSEIN MOHEBBI, ISLAMIC REVOLUTIONARY GUARD CORPS SPOKESPERSON: (Speaking Foreign Language)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[07:05:09]

HANCOCKS: U.S. Central Command saying that Iran had the opportunity to respect this ceasefire. It chose not to, but the commercial vessels are still trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz, and we do see that as well from data from marine traffic, for example. We do see a number of ships trying to get through the Strait of Hormuz, but, of course, it is a lot more tenuous with those threats coming from Iran. We heard that the security status level is substantial, according to the U.K. Maritime Agency, in the straits at this point. The U.N. evacuation of seafarers stuck there since the end of February has also been halted. Victor?

BLITZER: Paula Hancocks reporting from Abu Dhabi. Thank you.

More than 1,400 people are dead, 3,200 others hurt in Venezuela after the country was hit by those two major earthquakes last week, and the rescue efforts have been going on 24 hours a day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(BABY CRYING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: And there's been some success. You hear that baby crying. A rescue team from the U.S. actually pulled that nine-month-old along with the child's mother from the rubble. Both had only minor injuries. And although the 72-hour what's called golden window for survivors has closed, there is still hope as crews find survivors.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(Speaking Foreign Language)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The President of El Salvador shared this video. It shows the moment that a Salvadoran man, a rescuer, locates a woman trapped under the rubble, and the rescuer reassures her that help is on the way. And then there's this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(CHEERING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: I mean, imagine working for hours and hours, and then you get this. The Spanish rescue crew pulled that man by his legs from the rubble. The man was speechless. You saw him there. Just the expression on his face tells the story. It will have much more on the efforts to pull more of the people trapped there in Caracas and part that -- around that part of Venezuela out. We have that coming up in a live report.

More than 350,000 people living legally in the United States could be forced to leave after a landmark Supreme Court decision. On Thursday, the court cleared the way to end temporary protected status, or TPS, for Haitian and Syrian people who have come to America leaving war or instability.

CNN's Gloria Pazmino has more on the potential ripple effects of that ruling. GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. I think we can sum it up by describing the incredible amount of uncertainty that these communities are feeling now. Communities that are wondering how this is going to affect them, when and if, how this is going to be enforced and how it's going to be enforced, and what it's going to mean for communities that, frankly, have been here in New York and throughout the United States for many years.

Here in New York City, there's an estimated 160,000 Haitians who live and work in the city. And overall, 350,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrians who are currently under TPS could be affected by this decision, which means that the shockwaves of this are going to be felt throughout those communities and the industries that these people work in.

Now, TPS is given to nationals from certain countries that are experiencing either humanitarian or natural crises. The protection allows people to stay and work in the United States legally, but it's only valid while their TPS status is valid. And many of the Haitians who we spoke to here in New York City told us that it would just be incredibly difficult to return home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEAN BAPTISTE, MOVED TO THE U.S. 42 YEARS AGO: Haiti is not good right now. It's not good to let the people go send them to Haiti. You know, they know exactly what it is, you know? So I don't know why they took that decision to send them to Haiti.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAZMINO: The attorney who argued the Syrian TPS case before the Supreme Court said that this would be, quote, "The largest de- documentization event of people in U.S. history." And we've talked about the economic impact that this could have. You know, these are people who live, work and pay taxes here. There is so much data about the millions of dollars that they contribute to local and the national economies.

[07:10:11]

And we are told by employers that removing Haitian TPS holders from the workforce would have a major impact on their employers, on their industries and the economy as a whole. Haitians already make up a significant share of the service industry, as well as the elder care industry, particularly here in New York City, where there is already a significant staffing shortage.

Gloria Pazmino, CNN, New York.

BLACKWELL: Still ahead, the race for Senate in Georgia is one that could decide the balance of power in the body. We have the latest from the campaign trail.

Also, millions of Americans, maybe you, are going to hit the road for the Fourth of July celebrations this week. We have some good news. Mississippi has put its difficult history on display for America's 250th celebrations. We'll take a look at how this exhibit came together after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:15:39]

BLACKWELL: Mississippi is one of the many states celebrating the 250th anniversary of the U.S. by putting its own state history on display. The Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum together, called Two Mississippi Museums, created a special Mississippi-made exhibit to highlight its own homegrown achievements, like the invention of the household cleaner Pine-Sol and medical advances like the first human lung transplant.

Mississippi's history is also steeped in racial injustices, and that's also on display, from the Ku Klux Klan robes to a monolith featuring the names of more than 600 victims of racial killings. The director of the collection says instructions were simple from the people that they consulted. Just tell the truth.

The curator of collections for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, Jessica Walzer, joins me now. Jessica, good morning to you. And I want to actually read the quote, according to the Associated Press, from the director of your department. "Don't brush over anything. Don't whitewash anything. Just tell the absolute truth."

And in this social and political climate, that's risky. That's controversial. Talk to me about why that was Mississippi's approach.

JESSICA WALZER, CURATOR, MISSISSIPPI DEPT. OF ARCHIVES & HISTORY: Sure. Yes, it's never really been controversial for us here at MDH. That's kind of always what we're looking to do at all of our sites is we're looking to tell the whole truth of Mississippi's history. And so for all of our museum sites, that's no different. And that's something that goes through all of our work here.

BLACKWELL: And so what does that look like in practice? Walk me through some of the highlights of what you all have put together.

WALZER: Sure. Our temporary exhibit for America 250 this year is called Mississippi Made. And it features 250 artifacts that represent Mississippi's contributions to America's story. And, of course, you know, the exhibit is very celebratory about Mississippi history. We have a lot to celebrate in Mississippi.

But, yes, we do have a difficult history that is embedded in our past. And it comes through even in these kind of celebratory ways. It's shaped our history. And so it's kind of impossible to separate those things.

BLACKWELL: Yes, let me pull that thread, because there will be lots of celebrations across the country leading into the weekend. And what I'm hearing from you is that celebration alone is not enough.

WALZER: Yes, I think so. I think it's important to celebrate, and especially with Mississippi having having a difficult history and oftentimes a dark history, that it's important for us to also celebrate the things that the state has provided, the things that people have overcome to impact the nation. And so, yes, those things, I think, yes, are tied together.

But especially in this temporary exhibit, it's very celebratory in its themes. But in our permanent displays, yes, the -- especially in the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, that comes through a lot where we focus on that kind of year round. So the American 250 is giving us a reason to kind of highlight some of the more exciting.

BLACKWELL: Jessica, I don't want to put you in a difficult position here, but Mississippi is candy apple red. I mean, hasn't elected a Democratic governor this century. A Democrat hasn't won Mississippi's electoral vote since Carter. So we're talking 50 years now.

What explains the divergence between the administration federally and trying to maybe downplay some of the racial elements of America's history? And ruby red Mississippi that says we're going to show it all?

WALZER: Yes, so we, as a state agency, are subject to the federal regulations recently. But our state government has always been extremely supportive of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History's work, making the two Mississippi museums here. And especially with the Civil Rights Museum, the goal and objective from the state government has always been to tell the truth and to, again, like we said, not brush over these parts of history, but really spotlight them.

[07:20:11]

And I think it comes from, you know, we all want Mississippi to grow and learn from our past. And so that that's really important for even, yes, the state government here.

BLACKWELL: Yes. Jessica Walzer, thanks so much, I mean, especially in Mississippi, a state that acknowledges that it still has some growing to do, some developments to make on this front to show the fuller story. I appreciate the conversation. Thank you.

Still ahead, rescue teams are racing in Venezuela, hoping to find survivors after powerful earthquakes. They go live to Caracas as aftershocks complicate the rescue efforts.

And the wildfires ripping through Utah have turned deadly. They've claimed three lives of firefighters. We have the latest coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:25:26]

BLACKWELL: Rescue crews from all over the world are headed to Venezuela to try to save trapped survivors after the earthquake. The death toll from those two devastating quakes is now above 1,400. More than three days have passed since the earthquakes and chances of survival dropped rapidly after 72 hours without water. Temporary shelters have been established in some areas to house more than 3,000 families that have lost their homes.

Journalist Mary Triny Mena is on the ground for us there in Caracas. Mary, tell us -- I see the weather is pretty bad. What's going on there?

MARY TRINY MENA, JOURNALIST: Good morning, Victor. As you can see, it's raining in Caracas. It is important to notice that this could affect the work of rescue teams that are in the ground trying to bring more people, trying to save more people alive.

There's still hope to find more Venezuelans that are trapped behind the rubble. Acting President Rodriguez shown an image of a boy's refuge yesterday and he was alive. So authorities say there's still a chance, a little chance, but there's still a chance to find people alive.

They need silence and they need good conditions in order to listen if somebody is yelling or asking for help. Other things that we have witnessed is people living in tents waiting for approval to return to their buildings in large residential areas. That even though their buildings didn't collapse, they need to be checked by a specialist.

So it is -- those are hard conditions to work right now for rescue teams since the situation and the conditions on the ground is getting more complex as the hours goes by.

BLACKWELL: Yes. And what they don't need is another challenge as presented by that weather we see.

Mary Triny Mena, thank you so much for the report.

The race to this November's midterm elections heating up in Georgia. Incumbent Democrat Senator Jon Ossoff is facing Trump endorsed representative Mike Collins. My colleague Manu Raju spoke with Senator Ossoff about the race and being a target of President Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You have any thoughts on the nicknames Trump has given you?

SEN. JON OSSOFF (D), GEORGIA: I don't care about nicknames, but I think what is widely understood across the country and the entire world is that this President has humiliated himself through the failure of his foreign policy in the Middle East. His approval rating sits at 34 percent. While Americans pay more than they ever have for just about everything, he adorns his office in gold.

While cancer patients face down the prospect of losing health coverage, he builds a monument to himself. I think this is a failed lame duck President who has cemented his legacy in disgrace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: You can watch that interview with Senator Ossoff and his Republican opponent for Senate Representative Mike Collins. That's coming up on Inside Politics with Manu Raju starting at 8:00 this morning.

Three firefighters were killed overnight while battling fast moving wildfires near the Colorado-Utah border. Two others were injured, taken to the hospital. They were part of a crew responding to the Knowles and Gore fires in Mesa County, Colorado.

This morning, fires across western Colorado and parts of Utah are still growing. Colorado's governor has declared a disaster emergency. In Utah, some communities near the Cottonwood fire have been told to leave their homes. That fire has burned more than 92,000 acres and is still not contained.

Joining me now is Jamie Barnes, the director of Utah Forestry, Fire and State Lands. Jamie, good morning to you. The latest numbers on Cottonwood, is that still 92,000? And what do we know about expansion or containment?

JAMIE BARNES, UTAH FORESTRY, FIRE AND STATE LANDS DIRECTOR: Yes, that is still 92,000 acres right now. We'll receive new acreage counts today. Right now, that fire is 0 percent contained.

BLACKWELL: As I was reading it on the Cottonwood fire, there are so many fires burning. You've got the wild goose, the maple peak, the cherry. How many fires are active across the state right now?

BARNES: Yes, so right now we're managing five large fires. We have seen many, many small fires that have been started across the state, many of them recently due to red flag warnings that we've been in that have been from lightning caused. So, a lot going on here in Utah right now.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. The governor has said that it is as bleak as it's ever been. Less than a week out from Independence Day. A lot of people like to pop off their fireworks. Those have been heavily restricted across the state. Just help us understand the ingredients, the landscape there that's making these so hard to fight and so easy to start.

BARNES: Yes. So, overall, we're seeing, you know, erratic fire behavior due to dry fuels and historic drought conditions. We're seeing these fires make large runs. When we talk about the Cottonwood fire, we estimate that fire was making runs at about 1,000 acres per hour. So, really unprecedented behavior on that fire.

Some of these areas in Utah have seen little to no precipitation for at least probably 20 to 30 days now. We did see some storms try to push through the area the last couple days, but again, those produced some dry lightning. We're in drought, historical drought conditions. The fuels are dry. The fuels are actually combustible at this point. It's really like nothing we've ever seen before. You talk to veteran firefighters, they say, these are fuels that we've just never seen them burn like this before.

We've got low soil moisture. It's really lined up to be a really severe fire season. It started off quick. We've burned over 200,000 acres, which in some seasons we don't even hit that many acres in a full season.

So, Smoky Valleys, we've really been pushing that, you know, a lot of these fires have been human caused. We need to see a behavior change with that, hence the reason for the firework ban. We've been in stage two fire restrictions now, but we're really hoping for some cooler temps and some recovery on some of these so we can start to get some containment on some of these fires. As other states across the western United States start to see fires, we will be in competition for resources.

BLACKWELL: I've read that the winds there are actually making it tough to keep these water bombers in the air. What's the expectation for today if you'll be able to get these aircraft to just drop water where you can on these fires?

BARNES: Yes, I'm hopeful that today is going to be a better day. It was pretty crazy the last two days. We saw a little relief yesterday. We're supposed to get some relief today, and I'm hopeful today that with that relief we can get some containment percentage behind us and we can keep aviation flying. But yes, those winds we saw anywhere from 30 to 60 miles per hour in some areas of Utah yesterday.

BLACKWELL: I know the work is exhausting. Jamie Barnes, thank you for your time and the work you're doing.

Let's turn now to CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar. I mean, not just the ingredients to start the fire, but the weather's keeping them from fighting it.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right, especially those winds, you talked about the airplanes. Now, she was talking about, you know, 30 to 60 mile per hour winds. Today, it'll be more like 20 to 50. So, they're still there, maybe slightly lower than they were yesterday, which I mean, at this point, any little bit helps.

But yes, a 40- to 50-mile per hour wind not only makes it difficult for those planes to get out there, but it also just fuels and fans all of those fires that are already out. So, that is still going to be a concern today. That's why you have all of these red flag warnings.

It's not just in Utah. You also have them across portions of Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico, because all of those states have those ideal conditions for the fires. We're talking low humidities, very gusty winds, and very hot conditions too.

Now, it's been on the cooler side the last few days out to the west. The heat has really kind of been just east of the Rockies, but we're going to start to see a little bit of a shift here over the coming days. You're really going to start to see a lot of that heat building across the east, but also more of that heat or the cooler temperatures taking over the west. That may sound like a good thing on the surface, but a lot of times what that can do is that can also kick up the winds. So, this is going to be a concern for them over the next several days.

And then finally, we start to see that cooler air and the winds begin to appease a little bit out west. However, the heat really actually continues to build into the east, and that's what you're seeing here. Look at all of these heat alerts across areas so far in the Midwest. You've got some in the southeast and even areas of the northeast.

And more and more of those heat alerts are going to start to fill in in the coming days, especially by Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of the upcoming week. That's because we're going to see those temperatures rise.

Take a look at Minneapolis, OK. Today, high temperature of 76, low 90s by the time we get to Tuesday. Chicago going from 80 to 94, and St. Louis going to top out just barely below triple digits by the time we get to Tuesday.

[07:35:00]

It's a little bit more of a delayed effect to the northeast. That doesn't mean it's not going to happen. It just means it's going to take a few extra days. So, take, for example, D.C. Look at this, 101, 104, 104. So, it's really that Wednesday through Friday that's going to be the key timeline. The concern here with Washington, D.C. specifically, you have a lot of folks headed there for the big 250th anniversary around July 4th holidays. So, you've got a lot of people that are going to be outside wanting to celebrate in that intense heat.

Other people maybe say going to New York City to celebrate as well. You're also going to have triple digits. In fact, it kind of peaks Thursday and Friday even as we head into the weekend. So, we talked about this earlier. Stay hydrated. Victor.

BLACKWELL: With water.

CHINCHAR: Water. Water is the key.

BLACKWELL: I'm going to be in New York for the fourth and it's going to be what, 95?

CHINCHAR: Get you some water. Lots of it.

BLACKWELL: I have to get myself a couple of popsicles.

CHINCHAR: That too. Yes.

BLACKWELL: All right. Allison Chinchar. Hey, the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library opened this week, but probably not where you think it is. And if you're heading out, remember, you can always stream my show from anywhere in the U.S. Just go to that CNN app. You can also go to cnn.com/watch.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:40:00]

BLACKWELL: Top stories for you as we head into a new week. Alex Murdaugh, the former South Carolina attorney accused of killing his wife and son is expected to appear in court tomorrow. It'll be his first hearing since his murder convictions were overturned on appeal.

Titans of the music industry will gather Monday to say goodbye to Clive Davis. Record executive died June 22nd. He was 94 years old. Davis founded Arista Records and signed artists including Whitney Houston, Grateful Dead, Barry Manilow, Bruce Springsteen, Alicia Keys, Jennifer Hudson. Just some of the artists expected to attend the funeral in New York on your screen there.

President Trump and all living past presidents have been invited to the opening of the presidential library near Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. The new library focuses on the former president's cattle ranching and cowboy days in the 1880s. President Trump is expected to attend. If you're traveling for Independence Day, expect lots of traffic.

OK. AAA expects, estimates that more than 60 million people will drive to their destinations between today and Sunday, July 5th. Some good news for you though, as CNN's Jen Sullivan reports, gas prices are coming down.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JENN SULLIVAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The one-week countdown to July 4th has begun and some Americans are already traveling for the big America 250 celebrations this year.

AIXA DIAZ, AAA SPOKESPERSON: We over the years saw that people really either take off the entire week or they'll leave the weekend before.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): AAA spokesperson Aixa Diaz says more than 72 million Americans are expected to travel 50 miles or more between June 27th through July 5th. That would be a new record. Most travelers will drive with nearly 62 million hitting the road and there's good news when it comes to gas prices.

DIAZ: We are seeing some improvement there and that might motivate some people who maybe weren't planning to take a road trip to jump in the car and do it.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): As of Saturday, the national average for a gallon of regular gas was $3.88. Prices have dropped 58 cents in the last month, but they're still higher than a year ago according to AAA.

TOM KLOZA, CHIEF ENERGY ADVISER, GULF OIL: Gasoline prices are dropping and in the next 30 days you're going to see them drop.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): Tom Kloza with Gulf Oil says prices have dropped because more tankers carrying oil are starting to travel through the Strait of Hormuz.

KLOZA: It's open enough right now so that the next 30 or 40 days I think you'll see a lot of oil and you'll see generally weak prices.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): The Strait of Hormuz has seen more traffic in the last week than it has in the past three months. Since the war with Iran began, maritime traffic in the Strait had essentially halted, disrupting oil production and sending gas prices soaring.

It appeared the U.S. and Iran were close to finalizing a memorandum of understanding, but as tensions escalate with Iran again, there's fear traffic could halt again which could cause gas prices to go up as millions of Americans get ready to travel this week.

I'm Jen Sullivan reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: And according to AAA, the worst time to travel by car will be Sunday, July 5th between noon and 6:00 p.m. as people are coming back home getting ready for work the next day.

All right. Still ahead, World Cup fans came to the United States for soccer, but they're leaving with a taste of things unique to our beautiful country. From barbecue to big gulps, the local flavors are becoming part of the World Cup experience.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Buc-ee's.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is their smallest size. Oh, my gosh. America.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where's the mascot?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: You got to love Buc-ee's. All right. Tonight, the Battle of the Alamo becomes a rallying cry for the Texas Revolution reshaping North America and its balance of power.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My family's part of the original families that settled here in Texas. They came in under Spain. When I was a teenager, we learned about the Alamo. We grew up knowing Davy Crockett as a true American hero, but later on we found out that we had family involved in the Battle of the Alamo. And that kind of changed everything for us.

[07:45:00]

But later on, we found out that we had family involved in the Battle of the Alamo. That kind of changed everything for us. To think that my ancestors were here and fought to build this country and help change the borders of the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The new episode of the CNN original series, "This Land," airs tonight at nine on CNN and tomorrow on the CNN app.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BLACKWELL: Well, Messi started on the bench for Argentina last night, but he found a way to get it done.

[07:50:00]

Carolyn Manno joins me now. Morning.

CAROLYN MANNO, SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: As he usually does. Good morning, Victor. Even without him on the field for the majority of the match, the defending champs taking care of business in Dallas, sealing the top spot in their group with a perfect record.

There were nine changes to the starting lineup against Jordan in this match, but Argentina controlled the pace from the start. Giovani Lo Celso opening up the scoring in the 19th minute. Spectacular free kick. And then Argentina would double the advantage just passing half hour mark.

But Jordan really showed a lot of heart in this game. They scored in the 55th minute. They became the first team in the tournament to get one past Argentina. But you mentioned Messi. And after this moment, he entered the match as a second half sub and punctuated the win in his signature style. A late goal for the 39-year-old extending his World Cup total to 19 goals. He's now the first player in history to score in seven consecutive World Cup matches. And up next for Argentina, a meeting with Kate Bird in the round of 32 in Miami.

Miami was electric for yesterday's Colombia-Portugal game featured Cristiano Ronaldo. The match ended in a goalless draw, but there were 39 shots taken. So, pretty exciting. Colombia forcing Portugal's keeper Diogo Costa into six stunning saves to keep his team alive in this match. Both teams are into the round of 32. But because Portugal could not secure a win, their path a little bit more treacherous now. They're going to face Croatia on July 3rd in Toronto with a potential blockbuster meeting against Spain waiting in the round of 16.

England turned in a clinical 2-nil win over Panama at New York-New Jersey Stadium yesterday. And with his second half header, Captain Harry Kane scored his 11th career World Cup goal, officially becoming England's outright all-time leading goal scorer in World Cup history. England finishing the group stage unbeaten with seven points, which matches their best ever group stage points tally. It marks the first time England has topped their group in consecutive World Cups since 2010.

And from the high stakes drama of the World Cup pitch to the historic brass at Centre Court, the biggest stars in tennis have descended on South West London now for the opening round of Wimbledon, including none other than Serena Williams.

At 44, she accepted a wildcard entry to return to Grand Slam action for the first time since 2022. And she starts her singles campaign on Tuesday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) NOVAK DJOKOVIC, 24-TIME GRAND SLAM CHAMP: What she's doing is very inspirational and it's epic. And that's what I told her. For her to come back after years of being absent from the tour, you know, two children later, and to give so much effort to not just for her own satisfaction of coming back on the tour, but also to give all of us a pleasure of seeing her back on the court in singles as well as doubles is remarkable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MANNO: Praise, Victor, from one legend to another. She's going to kick off her campaign on center court on Tuesday against Maya Joint, who is a rising star from Australia. And as you just heard Novak Djokovic say, she's going to be playing in doubles as well, which will be fun to watch. But anytime she takes the court forever and ever and ever, she will always be a huge fan draw. It's great to see her back.

BLACKWELL: Yes, whether she has another Grand Slam win in it or not, it is just great to see her back, to see her back on the court and with Venus. So, I'm looking forward to that. Carolyn Manno, thanks so much. Enjoy the week.

So, the 2026 FIFA World Cup has brought millions of international fans to American cities, but something else is happening off the pitch. Tourists from Scotland, Germany, Brazil, really everywhere, they're pulling out their cell phones and not just to capture the goals, but to document American culture. We're talking shopping at Costco, Target, ranch dressing. They love Buc-ee's. CNN's Ivan Rodriguez shows us their viral reactions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN RODRIGUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Many soccer fans traveled thousands of miles to watch the beautiful game. And yes, there have been plenty of moments of magic, but scroll social media and you'll also find tourists losing their minds over every day American life.

SHAUN ALEXANDER, SCOTLAND FAN: Buc-ee's is like America in a box, a very, very large box. But you know, you go in there, it's very colorful. There's all this kind of gifts and all this different food and smells and stuff. And it's just fantastic.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): That sense of wonder has been playing out on social media as some fans encounter parts of America for the first time. German content creator Finn Agostinelli put it simply.

FINN AGOSTINELLI, WORLD CUP TOURIST: In Europe, we have a lot of rather negative news about the Americans in the last five years, let's say that. And I think we are all enjoying the fact that this country is so great to visit. People are amazing, so welcoming.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): Tourism expert Dr. Rachel Fu of the University of Florida says what's fueling all of this isn't just novelty, its authenticity.

RACHEL FU, UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA: And one of the many, many reasons those videos have become so viral because they present authenticity.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): Dr. Fu says every viral video of a fan falling in love becomes, in her words, a marketing person for America. But perhaps the most unexpected audience for all of this is us, Americans, seeing our country reflected back through someone else's eyes.

[07:55:00]

FU: For Americans ourselves, those videos remind us how kind we are. We should keep being kind people.

SULLIVAN (voice-over): I'm Ivan Rodriguez reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: Allison is with me now. And so, you've got this beautiful headwear. You went to a match?

CHINCHAR: I can see you have envy.

BLACKWELL: Yes, yes. We all want --

CHINCHAR: Actually, my husband brought this back.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

CHINCHAR: But no. Yes, it's been fun to watch the games. And I have to admit, I have watched games even that aren't -- that don't have the U.S. Granted, our bedtime is a little earlier than most people.

BLACKWELL: Very. Yes.

CHINCHAR: So, I only was able to watch the first half of the Columbia-Portugal game. But I find them just exciting to watch. You kind of get into the spirit of, you know, watching a lot of these games.

BLACKWELL: You know what I like more than watching the matches is really the reaction to American culture. I mean, the people who've come here and have fallen in love with ranch dressing.

CHINCHAR: Or Waffle House.

BLACKWELL: Or Waffle House. Yes, Waffle House as well. The portions of our food, like seeing the short ribs. Got to love it.

All right. Thanks for watching this morning. Inside Politics Sunday with Manu Raju is up next.

[08:00:00]