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CNN This Morning
Three Secret Service Officials on Leave Amid Investigation; Vance Fundraising Text Goes Viral; Republicans Sour on Flock Cameras; Bill Gates Sounding the Alarm on A.I. Aired 6:30-7a ET
Aired August 27, 2026 - 06:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:34:21]
AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: All right, this morning we're talking about questions of misconduct within the Secret Service. So, CNN learning three Secret Service officials now on leave, and they've lost their security clearance amid a misconduct investigation. The officials are not law enforcement personnel. So, one is the director of communications, and he's been with the agency since 2022.
I'm bringing in Jonathan Wackrow, CNN law enforcement analyst and former Secret Service agent himself under President Obama.
So, I wanted your help on this because, like we said, they're not the law enforcement guys. And the chief of communications is among them.
[06:35:00]
He's been with them since 2022. Director of comms during the Butler assassination attempt.
Can you give me a sense of what people think this -- what is meant by misconduct at this level of the agency?
JONATHAN WACKROW, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Yes. Good morning, Audie. I appreciate joining you today.
It's really important to start off with is that the protective mission for the Secret Service really remains untouched at this point as a result of this incident. What I mean by that is that none of the protectees of the Secret Service have had any change to their security posture as a result of this action against the three individuals who, again, were non-law enforcement. They were on the professional group of the Secret Service.
But it's -- I want to note that this is not just some peripheral personnel issue that the Secret Service is facing. This is an alleged misconduct investigation within a very important group of the Secret Service. This is the communications office. They serve as the voice of the agency, really translating the leadership decisions and oftentimes the operational realities that the Secret Service is facing in advance or after an incident into very clear, and I want to be precise here, credible public narrative. They are entrusted with explaining and oftentimes defending the integrity of, you know, of the agency to the public. So now with this investigation, it's the credibility function that is being tested right now.
And final point on this, there's a striking role reversal here when we look at the reporting. The communications director and his team are now facing the very type of investigation they would ordinarily be defending the agency against.
CORNISH: Well, someone in that office told CNN in a statement, "the U.S. Secret Service is committed to upholding the highest standards of professionalism and integrity. Our critical work demands that our workforce maintain an unwavering commitment to duty, honesty and courage in all aspects of their job."
I'm trying to understand what's going on here because there's also been a lot of leaks this summer that people believe may have come from the agency. For example, one member of J.D. Vance's detail was put on leave, suspected of leaking information about his travel. Some in the agency were actually questioned because it leaked -- after it was leaked that Trump did not take the Qatari gifted plane out of Turkey, meaning he didn't travel on that plane. Is this a part of the general kind of leak hunting that this administration is frequently doing?
WACKROW: Well, I think when you have two separate investigations surrounding potential information disclosures in close succession to each other really raises legitimate questions about, you know, the culture within the Secret Service, not just the individuals that were doing it. And I think this is why the director and the deputy director of the Secret Service had to act very swiftly and publicly against their own communication leadership, you know, in this matter, which is really a signal to me of institutional self-policing.
The aim here is to reinforce, you know, trust and confidence in the Secret Service, not undermine it. So, yes, there have been, you know, multiple investigations, but this is why the Secret Service is coming out very strongly right now and trying to get ahead of this issue to contain any type of, you know, operational disclosures that, you know, may come out of this investigation and really try to signal, again back to the public, that the agency as a whole is worthy of that trust and confidence.
CORNISH: OK, Jonathan Wackrow, thank you for your insights. Really appreciate you waking up for us.
And next on CNN THIS MORNING, Vice President Vance actually built his political career around working class Americans. So, after a fundraising email goes viral, does the VP still understand affordability?
Plus.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL GATES, CO-FOUNDER, MICROSOFT: Over the last year, these A.I.'s have gotten dramatically more powerful, even faster than I expected. (END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Even Bill Gates sounding the alarm about A.I. Which political party will win over the voters who are worried too.
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[06:43:27]
CORNISH: OK, you might have seen this. There was this fundraising text signed by Vice President J.D. Vance, and it's going viral. And it reads, quote, "if you can't give right now, don't. Groceries cost what they cost." And the Republican National Committee is sending this to potential donors ahead of the midterms. So, it's an interesting moment from a VP who recently has received some backlash for this moment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Like, my life is, dude, totally transformed. I don't go to the grocery store anymore. People go to the grocery store for me. Most of my meals -- like, when I cook a meal it's -- like, I love to cook actually, a big baker. I like to cook for my kids as a special occasion, but I don't have to cook anymore because I've got an army of people who are willing to, like, cook me my food.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have they told you how much things cost now?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People can't afford groceries. And here he is bragging about taxpayers paying for luxuries. It's not the flex he thinks it is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: OK, group chat is back.
I always like to check in when the internet weighs in, because they're also often talking about grocery prices online. People are also criticizing. And I feel like J.D., just a few weeks ago, was defending people who were complaining about the $20 burrito. He was like, hey, Republicans, wake up.
MIKE DUBKE, FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Yes. Republicans do need to wake up.
CORNISH: So, does someone need to shake his lapels as well?
DUBKE: I think so. I don't know if sometimes when you go on these podcasts you think it's just a private conversation between you and the podcaster.
CORNISH: I know what gave it away, "dude."
MEGHAN HAYS, FORMER BIDEN WHITE HOUSE DIRECTOR OF MESSAGE PLANNING: Yes. Bro.
CORNISH: Dude.
DUBKE: I mean --
CORNISH: Hello fellow teens. Yes.
DUBKE: And then secondly, cooking is not the same as baking, but we can dive into that later. That's a -- that's a big -- that's a big difference.
CORNISH: Well that's because you're a man of the people. You know that.
[06:45:00]
DUBKE: I actually love going to the grocery store.
CORNISH: Exactly.
DUBKE: Much to my wife's chagrin, because she's like, you come home with too much.
CORNISH: Is this against his working-class populist image out of "Hillbilly Elegy," or is this what happens every time someone goes to the White House and you end up in the bubble?
ALEX THOMPSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Actually, I think what's interesting about this is that there's a little subtle tension between his messaging and Donald Trump's messaging on this.
CORNISH: Oh, say more.
THOMPSON: Well, because Donald Trump is out there being -- saying, affordability is a hoax. Democratic, you know, everything. It's the golden age of America. It's the hottest economy in the world. You know, declaring victory. In some ways declaring mission accomplished.
Whereas J.D. Vance, you know, despite that sort of odd, like, odd text, you know, he has been out there being like, we have a lot more work to do. We have a lot more work to do. You know, the -- there's -- we're making progress, but we know we have to do a lot more.
And -- so it's interesting that, you know, J.D. Vance is doing sort of what a lot of like the smart Republican strategists say, which is you got to meet voters where they are.
CORNISH: Acknowledge. Yes.
THOMPSON: But Donald Trump has never operated that way. His entire political operation has been sort of the power of positive thinking.
CORNISH: I wonder if that explains the message, because the text just says, groceries cost what they cost, which is not saying it's bad.
DUBKE: Right.
CORNISH: Or good. It's like a way of acknowledging it without going against the boss in the White House messaging.
HAYS: I mean, sure. I think J.D. Vance is looking to his political future here for 2028. But either way you slice it, they're not telling the American people we understand where you're coming from, and we feel your pain with you, and we're trying to do something about it.
CORNISH: Yes.
HAYS: It's just like, meh, groceries are what they are. We don't really care. Keep spending money.
DUBKE: You've got -- as a politician, you've got to stay on message. You cannot ever let your foot off the gas. J.D. Vance was doing the right thing, saying the right things for other Republican candidates there. And then you do this and it all blows up.
CORNISH: I know. But Alex is saying that Trump is putting the gas in a different direction.
DUBKE: Oh, well --
CORNISH: He's saying it's a hoax.
DUBKE: Let's --
CORNISH: My economy is great.
DUBKE: Let's talk about affordability versus cost of living. I think Republicans -- I think where the president is going with affordability, and he's talking about the lexicon of affordability, he's got a point. This is a word that the Democrats have been using against him in a much more global way.
Now, they can't make the same mistake Biden made which was saying, all the economists think it's great, we're OK. But if Republicans can acknowledge that the cost of living has gone up --
CORNISH: Yes.
DUBKE: That inflation at 3.7 percent is too high, that's going to be OK. But they got to stay on that message.
CORNISH: Usually what they say is the market likes it instead of the economy. They say the stock market likes it.
(CROSS TALK)
HAYS: I mean those are what -- what are the ads going to be like? To our earlier conversation, what are these ads and that Trump is going to say, because going out there saying affordability is a hoax, that's not going to win votes.
DUBKE: I -- again, I hope it's about historic tax cuts. I hope it's about no tax on tips and overtime. I hope it's on these Trump accounts. That's what --
HAYS: Well, we can hope.
DUBKE: Well, I have hope.
CORNISH: All right.
HAYS: OK.
DUBKE: I have hope.
HAYS: Did you vote for Obama too?
DUBKE: Well --
CORNISH: OK, let me turn to something else now.
HAYS: Hope and change, remember.
CORNISH: Oh, hope.
CORNISH: We're going to talk about other things we're focused on, law and order. You have got all of these Flock cameras out there. They're supposed to be solving crimes. Police departments love them. And then Republican Senator Josh Hawley sends a letter to Flock's CEO demanding more information into how the company's network of more than 120,000 cameras is collecting and storing data. So, this letter was first reported by "Axios" and demands that the information be turned over by September 8th. And then in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis just straight up said the cameras are out of control.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): When I see like a police officer using this to track like an ex-girlfriend, I'm like, you know, what the hell's going on, you know, with this. So, I think this has happened very quickly. I think people are right to be concerned.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: That's exactly what's happening. In Kentucky there's an officer who is accused of using the cameras to track the mother of his child more than 2,000 times over a span of five months in the midst of their custody battle.
I wanted to point this out because during the Black Lives Matter movement, the idea of abuses by local police departments was often dismissed as no, no, no, we need to support the officers. They need this or that to do their jobs. Why would someone like DeSantis or Hawley come out and be like, do you need this to do your jobs? Are these cameras a good thing?
THOMPSON: Well, because there's always been a tension within the Republican Party between the pro-law and order side and sort of the anti-big brother, sort of the libertarian-esque wing of the party that is very skeptical of like big government programs, you know, don't want, you know, you know, background checks because there will be a list of gun owners that the government could confiscate. There's always been that part of the Republican Party. And what you're seeing is that this company has become symbolic for sort of a larger --
CORNISH: Yes, it's the symbol.
THOMPSON: A much larger issue where people -- and the same way with data centers, that people feel like things are out of control. Like, they don't have control of their own lives. And you're seeing it become an issue on both sides.
CORNISH: Yes.
THOMPSON: Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan -- running for Senate in Michigan has also made this an issue in his campaign. So, I think this is the -- not the last you're going to hear about Flock cameras.
CORNISH: OK. You know who else is on the side of this? It's a bipartisan issue. I want to show you this San Diego City council meeting where an important political figure stood up to talk about Flock.
[06:50:09]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The emperor is a fan of Flock, and we must continue utilizing Flock technologies so that we can follow and surveil the rebel scum as they move from playground to playground, from playground to pool, from pool to gymnasium. Because we all know that the Flock cameras are not only following the license plate readers, they are following children. They are following children in parks and gymnasiums. And we need this. I need this so I can stop my ex- girlfriend.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: I mean, Darth Vader's into it. Who will join him, Mike, in supporting?
DUBKE: Well, I guess he started dating later in life that I missed because I thought his old friend died.
CORNISH: We love a second chance. You love second chances here.
DUBKE: I got to -- I got to go back into the "Star Wars" analogy.
That is fantastic. I love local government. I actually -- no, the fact that you're playing this on the air is great. But Flock cameras, on the -- on the -- on the right, and data centers on the -- on the left, we're -- what we're seeing right now is we're in this --
CORNISH: Well, Flock -- data centers on the right, I mean, if you think about Utah and Iowa.
DUBKE: No, no, look -- well, and data centers -- and data centers on the right. CORNISH: Yes.
DUBKE: We're in this age of anxiety right now as we're moving from the information age to whatever A.I. is bringing. And I think Flock cameras and data centers are just in -- an example of voters and other's anxiety over A.I. and where, you know, the economy is going, where the country is going, where, you know, your privacy is going. So, these are concrete examples that we can point to.
This is a much larger issue, and it's a bipartisan issue, and it's shared by voters to the left and the right.
And getting back to what you originally said, both parties are facing this right now, that there's a backlash against the institutions, a backlash against current politicians, I think, drawn from all of this anxiety that's in the -- in the country and the world.
CORNISH: Well, then, Meghan, let me ask you about this. So, Bill Gates has come out. He wrote this big essay, which he's done before. In 2023 he wrote a big essay saying, look, I'm excited about A.I. This is a revolution. Just like the PC rolling out and the internet.
And this time around, he's coming out with warnings. He's saying, there should be taxes on A.I. tokens. He's saying that, you know, there are ways that maybe we should set jobs aside for human beings and not have A.I. do them.
And then I found this really interesting. He's saying this about his own reputation, why he's coming out and speaking now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL GATES, MICROSOFT FOUNDER: I'm staking my reputation completely on the fact that, in terms of the impact on the job market, this is very different than any technology that I've been involved in or that has come across in human history.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: And he says, look, corporations, silent, academics, not in the conversation. It's a bunch of A.I. CEOs bickering, and no one's really doing anything. He's saying he's hearing silence.
HAYS: Well, I think that's a lot to say about where our government is, too. We can't agree on anything until you have -- you have a very divisive government, and nobody wants to take a stand because this is -- it's already down the track, that we are already too late to regulate. And I think that there's -- you know, we're seeing Meta now have to pay all this money in a lawsuit. And they're being regulated.
But like the one thing that wasn't regulated is their A.I. feature in their -- in their app. So, it's just interesting that when they had a chance to do it, it didn't actually happen in this settlement. But I do think this is -- just goes to show, what you're saying, that everyone is very anxious of where we're going. People are anxious they're going to lose their jobs. No one really understands A.I. I think in that interview, Bill Gates also said, it's moving faster and it is much quicker than he ever imagined it being. So --
CORNISH: Yes. He said, "I really expected this last year as we crossed the threshold of danger, that society would get involved in this dialog."
And voters sort of agree with him in a way, that they feel like they're boxed out of the conversation about what comes next.
I want to play for you some Texas Republicans who have raised this issue as well.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM WEEKS, TEXAS VOTER PLEDGING TO VOTE DEMOCRAT: These centers, data centers and bitcoin mines, they're going to be able to just do whatever they please.
NIKKI MEADOR, TEXAS VOTER PLEDGING TO VOTE DEMOCRAT: This is not a red or blue issue. This is an American issue. It affects so many people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Any candidates out there willing to get in front of this movement or respond to it?
THOMPSON: I mean you've definitely seen, you know, sort of bashing A.I. rhetorically is now like a, you know, a basic -- practically like a side hustle for most of these politicians. But I would say part of the reason why the prospect for anything in D.C. happening that's significant is so limited is because these companies are pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into both the races and also lobbying in D.C.
You know, I'll be curious to see what Microsoft does, you know, because Microsoft was one of the companies, and they're partnering with OpenAI and a lot of these companies that are pouring money into stopping any real regulation.
[06:55:04]
Now, they'll say, you know, we want responsible regulation, but at the same time, it's slowing -- it's just basically been slowing it down.
CORNISH: I mean it's interesting because you have this moment where, he's no stranger to the idea that the tech you've created could cause major disruption to the economy. People thought the same thing about the computer. What he's saying is, there are stakeholders. And he mentioned corporations. There are people who could be involved in this, in a solutions oriented way, that aren't.
DUBKE: Well, listen, when it's -- when it's too late to regulate, the problem we have in Washington is then they tend to over regulate. So, we're going to -- we're going to have this kind of whiplash, I think, of adjustment within the political class.
The problem is, I think, even deeper than just dollars donated by A.I. companies. It's the fact that we got rid of -- in our government we got rid of any educational or knowledge base for elected officials of what this technology that's coming at such a rapid pace that it's surprising Bill Gates. But when a -- when an elected official goes and says, OK, tell me more about this to their staff, their staff has no clue either.
CORNISH: I disagree because Meta --
DUBKE: Oh, I --
CORNISH: Meta's in a courtroom right now because for decades lawmakers pretty much said, we want to be at the head of the market. We want -- we don't want to stifle innovation. We don't really want to regulate these countries.
DUBKE: They don't understand --
CORNISH: And where are they now? In a court. Because now, finally, the legal system takes over where there is a vacuum in the political one.
DUBKE: Because the political system doesn't understand this technology. And that is a problem.
CORNISH: Why don't they understand? They have nothing to do but think about things.
HAYS: But I -- because everyone -- but the thing is, everyone's said, if we don't have A.I. and we don't have data centers and we don't have this, we're not going to be able to compete with China. That will impact our economy.
DUBKE: Right.
HAYS: So, we can't have it both ways. And I don't think we're having honest conversations because people are too worried about being in their respective corners, because our government is so divided and no one trusts the government anymore. And so it's a whole problem.
CORNISH: I know. It's just -- the voters are literally saying out loud, this one's not political, guys, come together. They can't say it more plainly than they're saying it.
HAYS: But it is political. But it is political.
THOMPSON: But it is --
CORNISH: No, but I'm just saying, they're asking.
THOMPSON: To Dubke's point, there have been a few interviews recently where the older politicians clearly do not know what's going on. You had --
HAYS: That's --
CORNISH: The twoops (ph).
THOMPSON: Yes.
CORNISH: Yes.
THOMPSON: Well, you had Senator Markey basically say -- like asked if he uses A.I. And he's like, I use what's ever in the iPad. You had -- you had Jim Clyburn also talk to "Vox" and said that, you know, he's never used A.I. So, I do think there is a bit of like a sort of gerontocracy, you know, generational thing with lawmakers.
CORNISH: Drink. I'm glad you said gerontocracy.
DUBKE: I love that word. That is awesome.
CORNISH: Love that word.
All right, what's in your group chats, Meghan?
HAYS: I am a huge fast food fan, as all of you guys know. And Chick- Fil-A has unveiled their chicken and waffle sandwich this week. And it was quite delicious.
CORNISH: Great idea. Is it two waffles with --
HAYS: Two waffles as like the bun.
CORNISH: Sure.
HAYS: And it has bacon and it comes with a side of syrup. It's quite delicious. But I also am very angry that McDonald's went back to their baked apple pie rather than their fried apple pie, which I know I've talked about.
CORNISH: I know (ph). McDonald's has enough problems right now. Get in (ph).
HAYS: I'm sorry. I just -- I'm just --
CORNISH: Meghan is jumping in.
HAYS: Can you bring back your fried apple pie, please, if you're listening?
DUBKE: I'm upset they didn't add the fried cherry pie --
HAYS: Oh.
DUBKE: Because that was an even better pie back in the '70s.
HAYS: That's right.
DUBKE: Now I'm worried, though, about the syrup on the side. What's the tariff on that?
HAYS: I don't -- I didn't -- I don't know.
CORNISH: The tariff on -- HAYS: I don't know if it's like real maple syrup.
DUBKE: Well, Audie, I'm sure it's coming from Canada, right?
CORNISH: Oh, my God.
HAYS: Yes, I don't know. I think it might be (INAUDIBLE).
CORNISH: Mike Dubke, what is in your group chat?
HAYS: Yes. Yes.
DUBKE: My group chat is actually a really feel good one. And we're coming to the end of it. But the county fairs and state fairs that are across America.
HAYS: Yes. I love that.
DUBKE: When we've got --
HAYS: Do you have a favorite?
DUBKE: I -- I do. It's the second largest county fair in America. It's the Erie County Fair --
HAYS: Oh, a county fair. OK.
DUBKE: In western New York. And it is -- I used to sneak into it as a child. I love -- I'd spend all day there. They have, you know, you've got the fried butter and -- but the unique ones now are the Kool-Aid pickles.
HAYS: OK.
DUBKE: And the fried ranch dressing, which I think you've -- you somehow flash fry ranch dressing and then get a bite of gooey ranch dressing.
HAYS: And this is why we love America.
DUBKE: But this is -- this is America.
HAYS: Because you can have fried ranch --
DUBKE: And then go to a Chick-Fil-A and get your waffle (INAUDIBLE).
HAYS: Yes. Yes.
CORNISH: It's protein, I think. Oh, my God. OK. I'm just going to be texting them heart attack emojis.
You?
THOMPSON: Well, this is a vibe shift because I'm obsessed with the rich owner of the 49ers being immersed in a prostitution scandal for -- HAYS: Oh.
THOMPSON: For --
CORNISH: What?
THOMPSON: Oh, yes.
CORNISH: Oh, my God. A mug shot and everything.
THOMPSON: For driving -- for driving to East Palestine to -- for --
HAYS: Ohio.
DUBKE: Palestine. Palestine.
HAYS: Ohio.
CORNISH: Palestine.
THOMPSON: Palestine, I'm sorry.
DUBKE: Why do we know that?
THOMPSON: Sorry.
DUBKE: And why do we know that name?
HAYS: Because it was a major (INAUDIBLE).
THOMPSON: Well, let's not make this political.
DUBKE: Exactly.
THOMPSON: Like, East --
HAYS: Yes, I (INAUDIBLE).
THOMPSON: East Palestine, for $140 prostitution attempt. There is now -- there is now body cam footage that just came -- that just came out. And as someone that hates the 49ers and has lots of friends that are 49ers fans, it's been a great week.
HAYS: What?
CORNISH: My God, this story has everything. Body cams.
THOMPSON: Yes.
CORNISH: Like --
HAYS: (INAUDIBLE).
CORNISH: Price inflation, I think.
THOMPSON: Yes. CORNISH: This is --
DUBKE: Train derailments.
CORNISH: Train --
THOMPSON: And it -- and it was in a --
DUBKE: Well --
CORNISH: What?
THOMPSON: It was in a mobile home park too.
CORNISH: Alex Thompson bringing us the reporting to the group chat. I really appreciate the work you're doing over there in "Axios."
THOMPSON: (INAUDIBLE).
CORNISH: And you guys also bringing me the live reporting from fast food nation and the county fair world.
HAYS: Yes, you're welcome.
[07:00:02]
CORNISH: I love it.
You guys, thank you so much for being with us. I know you can choose anywhere to spend your time, and I love that you choose to spend it with us. I'm Audie Cornish, and the headlines are next.
