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Trump Faces Political, Legal Challenges To "Weaponization" Fund; Blanche: Conduct Will Be Considered In Any Claim; Jan. 6 Protesters Seek Big Payouts From "Weaponization" Fund. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired May 21, 2026 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:00:46]
PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, billion-dollar fund backlash. The so-called weaponization fund is now facing swift outrage from members of
the president's own party as the acting attorney general says January six rioters can apply. And from the pit to Capitol Hill, why Actor Noah Wiley
is at a health care rally in D.C.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: And faster than expected. U.S. intelligence now showing that Iran has already restarted some of its drone production. We're
going to bring you the new exclusive reporting just ahead. Plus, bolstering military power, the U.S. Aircraft carrier strike group is now in the
Caribbean as tensions with Cuba escalate.
Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in The Situation Room.
Happening now. President Trump is facing new outrage and growing opposition. It's over his controversial fund to compensate those who claim
to have been targeted by a weaponized legal system.
This morning, critics are blasting the $1.8 billion fund because it's widely expected to benefit President Trump's allies. And that would
possibly include the January six rioters, even those who attacked police at the U.S. Capitol. Two police officers who defended the Capitol on that day
are suing to block it. We were the first to report this in The Situation Room yesterday.
The lawsuit filed by Harry Dunn and Daniel Hodges, call it, and I'm quoting them now, "The most brazen act of presidential corruption this century,"
end quote. And even some Republican lawmakers are breaking ranks with the president and vowing to kill it. CNN's Manu Raju chased down some of those
comments on Capitol Hill.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SEN. JOHN CURTIS, (R) UTAH: I will tell you, my first reaction was this doesn't pass the smell test.
SEN THOMAS TILLIS, (R) NORTH CAROLINA: It sends the signal, hey, go breach the Capitol, destroy the building, assault police officers. You may even
get compensated for someday. That's absurd.
REP. BRIAN FITZPATRICK, (R) PENNSYLVANIA: We got to unpack exactly what it is, what the source of the funding is in order to stop it and or reverse
it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: CNN's senior reporter Marshall Cohen is here with us in The Situation Room. Marshall, the acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spoke to
CNN and is defending the fund. What else can you tell us?
MARSHALL COHEN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: A full throated defense from the acting AG and the Trump administration for this very controversial fund.
Our colleague Paula Reid asked him point blank, will any money go to any of the people that violently attacked police? And he wouldn't rule it out.
Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TODD BLANCHE, ACTING ATTORNEY GENERAL: One of the factors the commissioners have to consider is what the claimant did, the claimant's conduct. Okay, so
in the hypothetical you just described, the claimant would have to say, I assaulted a cop and I want money. So whether the commissioners will give
that person money, that claimant, it's up to them. But that's one of the factors they have to consider for the very reason that was raised
yesterday, which should be, which should be raised, which is that President Trump, this Department of justice, does not stand for assaulting law
enforcement.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COHEN: This is a huge relief for the people in the January 6 community and the election deniers across the country that are hoping to get some
payments. We've spoken to January 6th rioters, folks convicted of felonies, including lawyers for Enrique Tarrio, the former head of the Proud Boys
that went to prison for seditious conspiracy. He says he will be applying for funds.
2020 Fake electors that tried to subvert the Electoral College process. They could be in the mix here, as well as prominent election deniers like
Mike Lindell and Tina Peters, who is serving the last few weeks of her prison sentence right now for an election breach in 2021.
Folks, there are also even pro-Trump media outlets like One America News, the far-right conspiracy channel that said they lost a lot of business
after 2020, and they might want to tap these funds as well. For a lot of the people in this space, this was a day that destroyed their whole lives,
in their view. They've lost friends. They've been ostracized in their communities, they've been debanked. Their retirement funds have been
emptied while they pay legal bills.
[10:05:12]
Let me just, before I give it back, read one more quote from one of the fake electors from Michigan who put her explanation forward for why she
thinks she deserves some money. Her name is Michonne Maddock. She was a fake elector from Michigan. Quote, "I faced the real possibility of prison
time, the trauma to my three kids, and the thought of being separated from my grandchildren. It took a lot out of us."
She was charged. Te charges were thrown out by a judge. And she says -- she says, now, look, I was vindicated. Now I deserve some payment.
BLITZER: Marshall Cohen reporting the latest developments. Thank you very, very much. Pamela.
BROWN: And as Marshall just laid out, Wolf, many of the January six rioters say their journey with the legal system is now coming full circle. First,
many were charged and jailed. Then they were pardoned by the president. And now they're hoping to collect millions in taxpayer money.
CNN senior correspondent Donie O'Sullivan has their story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRANDON FELLOWS, PARDONED JANUARY 6 RIOTER: So the number I've put in is $30 million. You know, 21.5 million is for the wrongful imprisonment.
DONIE O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): People who took part in January 6th are hoping for big payouts.
RACHEL POWELL, PARDONED JANUARY 6 RIOTER: We endured a lot. Our, our lives are still not the same. So I don't know what kind of price you can put on
that.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): Even before the DOJ announced its so-called anti- weaponization fund this week.
O'SULLIVAN: How long were you in prison for?
FELLOWS: Jail and prison, I combined those numbers. 1075 Days.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): People like Brandon Fellowes had already begun making claims for compensation.
O'SULLIVAN: What's the reaction within the wider January 6th community to this fund?
FELLOWS: Some people are whining and saying it's not enough. And we're not even hearing numbers yet.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): Fellows was sentenced on felony and misdemeanor charges for entering the Capitol on January 6th.
FELLOWS: Yes, we went in there --
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): Seen here in a red beard costume. Fellows spoke to CNN's Ellie Reeve during the riot.
FELLOWS: But they were smoking a bunch of weed in there.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): The charges against him were dismissed after a pardon from President Trump. Now, Fellows expects compensation.
FELLOWS: According to ChatGPT and Grok and also my knowledge of January 6cases I'm in at least the 3 to 5 percent upper tier for how terrible and
also how strong of a case I have.
POWELL: It's like surreal to me. I mean, look how angry I look.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): Rachel Powell, a mom of eight and a grandmother to eight, spent three years under house arrest. We interviewed her before she
began her prison sentence in 2024.
POWELL: I don't deserve this and my kids don't deserve it. Like, have we not been through enough?
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): She was released last year after being pardoned by Trump.
O'SULLIVAN: What you say to people who are outraged and say people like you don't deserve a penny.
POWELL: A lot of people don't agree with what happened on January 6th. But when you step back and you -- you look at somebody like me, for example, my
major felony had to be struck down by the Supreme Court. It's my crime that day of breaking a window. Technically, that's a misdemeanor charge.
And yet I had three years of house arrest, then having to endure everything I did through prison, and getting a five-year sentence on top of that.
That's clearly weaponization.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): Brandon Fellows still believes the lies about the 2020 election and even believes that January 6th was a setup.
FELLOWS: But that's why I rationalize people, even violent people getting paid for that day because the government set it up. And also on top of
that, they stole the election.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): And both Fellows in Powell remain loyal to President Trump and thankful for the so-called anti-weaponization fund.
FELLOWS: And I feel like he has kept us in his mind despite all the other issues that he's got to deal with as leader of the world. Basically.
O'SULLIVAN: Are you thankful to the president?
POWELL: Of course, I'm thankful. If it wasn't for the president, I'd still be sitting in that prison.
O'SULLIVAN (voiceover): Donie O'Sullivan, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN: Some very telling interviews there. Donie O'Sullivan, thank you very much.
BLITZER: And we're getting some new CNN reporting this morning. We're learning that since the cease fire with the U.S. Iran has been rebuilding
some military capabilities at a much faster pace than initially estimated. That according to two sources familiar with U.S. intelligence assessments,
much of Iran's missile sites and military production facilities were hit by U.S. and Israeli strikes that started in late February.
BROWN: Zachary Cohen joins us now live in The Situation Room. So, Zachary, you broke this report -- reporting. Well, what else did you learn about the
U.S. intelligence assessment?
ZACHARY COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, guys, we're told by multiple sources that Iran is actively rebuilding its production facilities
and weapons capabilities that were largely destroyed by U.S. and Israeli strikes. That includes things like missile sites, launchers and just the
defense industrial base writ large, which the U.S. military says it destroyed 90 percent of.
[10:10:05]
But we're told that even just six weeks into this ceasefire, that Iran has already been able to start producing some of these weapons systems that it
uses to pose a threat to Israel and other regional allies of the U.S. that includes drones. They're already producing new drones to replace the ones
that they've lost. And one source saying that they could fully restore its drone attack capability in a matter of six months.
And so that is really a shorter timeline than what the U.S. Intelligence community announced initially estimated. And the same goes for other
weapons components as well. Again, the missile defenses or the missile sites and the inventory of missiles took severe damage in those strikes. So
it may take a little bit longer.
But I want to play with Admiral Brad Cooper, who runs U.S. Central Command, what he said about the impact of the destruction of the industrial base has
on the timeline for how far Iran was set back and its ability to reconstitute.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ADM. BRAD COOPER, COMMANDER, CENTCOM: Operation Epic Fury significantly degraded Iran's ballistic missiles and drones while destroying 90 percent
of their defense industrial base, ensuring that Iran cannot reconstitute for years.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COHEN: So we're told that the US Intelligence community now says it's more of a matter of months before Iran would be able to reconstitute. And we're
also told that Iran still maintains significant ballistic missile and drone capability. Those are assets that were not destroyed in the U.S.-Israeli
strikes. And so all that together is really painting a picture, both about the threat that Iran Stood still poses during this moment where Donald
Trump is weighing whether to restart combat operations or continue this diplomatic track, but also the long-term view of Iran's threat it poses to
U.S. allies in the region.
BROWN: When did this assessment come out in relation to when we heard from Admiral Cooper there?
COHEN: This is something that the US Intelligence agencies have been consistently assessing throughout the conflict. And it's something that
they were also looking at beforehand.
BROWN: So when he gave his testimony, this was already in an assessment.
COHEN: Absolutely yes. And it's something that, you know, is being done by various parts of the U.S. IC, and the Pentagon obviously has its own
intelligence apparatus as well. But the consensus, according to our sources, is that Iran is ahead of schedule and is really restoring these
assets at a pace that is much more quick than what Admiral Cooper said.
BLITZER: It's one of the reasons the U.S. intelligence community has always warned that if there's a cease fire, that simply gives the Iranians an
opportunity to rebuild reconstruction and get their act back together.
COHEN: Absolutely. And that's something that we've actually heard Iranian officials say that they've been doing during the cease fire, they've been
using it to rearm. Ironically, we've heard from U.S. military officials that they've been doing the same, but a little bit apples to oranges
comparison there as the focus from the U.S. and Israel side is the threat that Iran poses and will continue to pose going forward.
BLITZER: That's one of the major reasons the Israeli military opposes these ceasefires as well, because they fear it'll just give Iran a chance to get
strong again.
BLITZER: All right, Zachary Cohen, thank you so much. Wolf.
BROWN: And there's more news still ahead. DNC Autopsy CNN has obtained the long private document detailing what went wrong for the Democratic Party in
2024. We're going to bring you that exclusive new reporting just ahead.
BROWN: Plus, apocalyptic video, a shocking look at the fast spreading wildfires in California as firefighters urgently battle the flames. You're
in the situation.
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[10:17:43]
BROWN: Breaking news, new exclusive reporting. First into The Situation Room. CNN has obtained the Democrats long awaited autopsy of the 2024
election, documenting what went wrong in Kamala Harris's loss to President Trump. After publicly promising its release, DNC Chair Ken Martin pulled
the plug on the elusive report last year, sparking fierce criticism within the party.
BLITZER: CNN's senior reporter Isaac Dovere got his hands, exclusive hands on all of this. He's joining us now in The Situation Room.
Isaac, this report you were a big part in, why it came out in the first place. Excellent reporting on your part.
EDWARD-ISAAC DOVERE, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Thank you.
BLITZER: After back and forth from the DNC chair, Ken Martin on whether or not he'd release it in full. So what's inside it?
DOVERE: Well, so first of all, that is an important part of this. The plan was not to release this report. The report was released to me after I had
obtained a lot of the detail and contents of what was in there. And the report that has been that we have published on our website is with
annotations from the DNC lawyers undercutting a lot of what is in the report.
That said, it gets into things about spending decisions and an organizing that was done by the DNC, ways to possibly improve it. But there are a lot
of things in that version that are incomplete. And also, it does not touch a couple of topics that a lot of people were very interested in and thought
were the reasons for this report not being out.
There is nothing about Joe Biden and what happened in the debate. There is nothing about Kamala Harris getting the nomination without any kind of
primary process. And also, there is nothing about the way that voters were responding to Gaza and how the Joe Biden and Kamala Harris policies and
comments about it were hitting their minds.
BLITZER: So a lot was missing, missing in that report. I know you reached out to the current DNC chair, Ken Martin, who we noted earlier has come
under some fire for initially not releasing this report to the public. What's he now saying?
DOVERE: Well, he apologized in a statement to me for how he handled it, and he said that he was releasing it to me because he feels like this is about
getting back to some level of transparency. But he says in the statement that the report was not ready for prime time. That's how he put it and
that's why he chose not to do it, that it's full of a lot of problems.
And again, we are publishing the full report so that people can see it and read for themselves and make their decisions about what's in there.
[10:20:05]
BROWN: Because in the full report there's spelling issues, there's errors, and just basic facts. Why didn't they have a more polished put-together
report at this point in the game?
DOVERE: Well, look, and this was after a year of work on it. And the story that I have up that goes along with the publishing of the report goes
through the whole process of how this went down. Martin hired a friend of his as a part-time volunteer to be the person in charge of this report. And
that person, I get into a lot of the conversations that person was having, his name is Paul Rivera, that he was having with people, and how those
conversations went, but also a lot of conversations that he wasn't having.
For example, he did not speak to almost anybody who was in a leadership position on the Biden campaign or the Harris campaign. He didn't speak to
Joe Biden. He didn't speak to Kamala Harris. He didn't speak to Tim Walz.
He did not speak to when it comes to the Gaza issue, any of the leaders of the uncommitted movement, which was the protest movement, pro-Palestinian
protest movement. He didn't speak to Jewish groups or pro-Israel groups. So, he wasn't just leaving out one part of that conversation. He left out
all parts of that conversation.
And that has led to a lot of conspiracy theories about what was going on here. But I think when you see the full story of what's there and what this
process was and read the document, you will have a lot of, if not all of hopefully your answer, your questions answered.
BLITZER: And you've released the full document?
DOVERE: Yes, it's up on our website right now.
BLITZER: At cnn.com.
BROWN: All right. Excellent reporting.
DOVERE: In cnn.com.
BLITZER: Isaac Dovere, thank you.
DOVERE: Thank you.
BLITZER: Very, very much. Good reporter.
BROWN: Absolutely.
BLITZER: And coming up, we have breaking news out of a Virginia courtroom where an ex-assistant principal is on trial after a six-year-old shot and
severely injured his teacher. We're going to bring you the latest details. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:26:18]
BROWN: We have breaking news in the criminal case against a former school official facing criminal charges relating to a school shooting. Prosecutors
have argued Ebony Parker, the former assistant principal, ignored warnings from teachers that a six-year-old student may have had a firearm before
that shooting took place.
BLITZER: CNN's Jean Casarez has been following this case for us. Jean, so what's happening right now, I take it some dramatic developments.
JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this has just happened minutes ago. The judge in this case has dismissed the case outright. She believes that
it is not a crime what Ebony Parker, the assistant principal, did or her omission to do anything on the day in 2023 when a first-grade teacher
realized that her student had a gun. The teachers knew they kept going to Ebony Parker because one student saw the handgun in his jacket pocket with
the bullets. That inaction, that omission created this situation where prosecutors filed eight counts of child neglect, child abuse, endangerment,
as the judge called it, because she had a duty to the elementary school students as the vice principal and she didn't do anything, even though
people said the students are seeing a gun. But the judge has spoken.
Now we are at the point of trial where the prosecution rested yesterday. The defense was supposed to begin their case this morning, but they always,
as procedural matter, argue a motion for a directed verdict. In Virginia, it's called a motion to strike. And what it essentially is saying is that
the evidence does not warrant itself that this should even go to a jury. They are not showing that they have probable cause that any crime was
committed.
The judge agreed. She said, I do not believe that this was a crime. She dismissed it outright and she dismissed it with prejudice, which means it
can never be brought again.
Now here's the significance here. This was a case of first impression in Virginia. This was not a vice principal that was being charged with the
shooting as we have seen in some other jurisdictions. But she was charged with gross neglect of the elementary students, her omission to do anything.
And there was procedure in the school that if there is a crisis, it is the vice principal, it is the assistant principal that is in charge of that
crisis.
She makes the decision. She is the only one that can make the decision to pat down a child to see if they have a gun. The counselor, 18 minutes
before the shooting went to her and said, "Can't I pat him down? Can't I do a body check?"
They're saying he's got it in his pocket. She said, "No, his parent is coming very shortly. Don't do anything." And after that, Abby Zwerner was
shot straight in the chest. The bullet is still there. There was a second bullet, but the gun jammed.
But eight bullets altogether in that handgun that he had brought to school as a six-year-old first grader. And now the vice principal, Ebony Parker,
and that you're looking, that's the gunshot victim right there, the first- grade teacher. But she will never be tried again criminally. And it sets a precedent for Virginia and potentially the rest of the country.
BLITZER: All right. Jean Casarez is a dramatic development indeed. Hard to believe. All right. Thanks very, very much.
BROWN: Well, just ahead here in The Situation room, exploding wildfires. Firefighters are battling multiple blazes in California. Look at this
video. As you see, the fires are fueled by strong winds. So is relief coming anytime soon?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:33:51]
BROWN: Happening now. The Department of Homeland Security is now requiring any flights coming into the U.S. carrying passengers from Ebola-affected
regions. Land at Dulles Airport right outside of D.C. 10 staffers from the CDC are being sent there to help screen people. The agency still says this
outbreak poses a low risk to the general public.
And SpaceX is finally revealing its plans to go public. Elon Musk's company filed a lengthy report detailing its board members, its sales, profits,
expenses, and how it does business. All previously undisclosed information. SpaceX's IPO is reportedly expected sometime in June and is predicted to be
the largest ever.
And look at this video. One of the wildfires in California is now scorching a national park that's home to rare plants and animals. Some of the
wildfire there exists nowhere else in the world. The wild animals.
The inferno has scorched more than a third of the island. More than 17,000 acres. Just incredible video coming in. That fire is now 44 percent
contained.
And we're also getting brand new video into the Situation Room of the efforts to contain another fire in California. This is in Ventura County.
More than 17,000 people there are under evacuation orders.
[10:35:11]
So this fire right here is being fueled by high winds as firefighters battle this burning blaze. And right now, it is only about 20 percent
contained.
BLITZER: Horrible situation indeed. We're also tracking the fallout right now to CNN's exclusive reporting. We've obtained the Democratic National
Committee's so-called autopsy report examining Kamala Harris's 2024 election loss to Donald Trump after President Biden ended his campaign. The
document finds the party has steadily lost ground since President Obama's successes and blames the former Biden campaign and the White House for
failing to set Harris up for success.
The DNC report also uncovered a broader inability to define Donald Trump and criticizes the Harris campaign for taking too much for granted. It
urges Democrats to shift away from identity politics and move toward a middle-class appeal.
Joining us now here in the situation is Democratic Congressman Jared Moskowitz of Florida. Congressman, thanks so much for joining us.
Simply stated, this document that we just obtained, CNN just obtained, casts Republicans as just better at politics, better right now. What's your
view of these findings?
REP. JARED MOSKOWITZ, (D) FLORIDA: Well, I haven't seen it since it just came out, but obviously, like an autopsy is a medical procedure you do over
a corpse. And now it sounds like we need a malpractice attorney because we couldn't even do the autopsy correctly. So, look, we know how we got here,
right? Obviously, you know, it was the Joe Biden issue at the debate.
It was the switch over to Kamala without a process. And at the end of the day, Democrats weren't talking enough about affordability in the economy.
And that's what we need to be doing. And we've been doing that ever since the election.
And so look, we lost the last election. It wasn't close, okay? But the fact that we can't even tell people why, we're too afraid to tell them the
truth. They know the truth.
They saw the debate. They saw what happened. Right. And they saw that we got killed in the election.
We lost every swing state. So they can write whatever document they want. But Democrats know why we lost.
BLITZER: The report, as you know, is silent on several notable aspects of the 2024 presidential campaign. For example, it does not include any
judgment at all about President Biden's decision to run for reelection in the first place or the Kamala Harris campaign now infamous decision not to
do an interview with podcast host Joe Rogan. Has your party, the Democratic Party, sufficiently reckoned with its past missteps to succeed in future
elections?
MOSKOWITZ: I think we have, I, I think we have reckoned with that, you know, whether the DNC has reckoned with that is a different question.
Obviously, the fact that they, you know, wanted to worked on a document that doesn't tackle maybe the two or three largest problems in the last
election kind of tells you that like some of the folks there were in denial of what happened. The American people know that's why the election wasn't
close. We had never seen anything like this in our history.
Look, Joe Biden served for 50 years in Washington, right? He has an amazing legacy and he will -- he will go down as someone who gave his entire life,
right, to -- to the political process in public office. But the American people saw that debate and then they saw how we transitioned and got out of
it. We -- we were in a box at that point.
And that's not what the American people want. And that's why we got shellacked in the last election. I mean, we lost every single solitary
swing state. And so --
BLITZER: It wasn't even close.
MOSKOWITZ: Wasn't even close. Now listen, now we got a whole other problem as a result of that, right? We got 18 months of the Trump administration,
right? Gas prices in the mid $5.
Affordability is even worse. Inflation's even worse. Food prices are even worse. So those very issues that were going on in the last campaign, when
we were talking about Bidenomics and all of that, we were trying to tell people how to feel.
Donald Trump has adopted that strategy. He's telling people how to feel in really bad economic times. And that's also not going to work for him. And
so, Democrats now need to be going out and telling that story, which is he told you it was going to be better and it's worse.
BLITZER: I want to turn to another very sensitive political story. I know you're following very closely. The Texas Democratic congressional candidate
Maureen Galindo recently posted on her campaign Instagram account that if elected, she would turn an ICE detention center into, and I'm quoting her
now, "A prison for American Zionists and former ICE officers for human trafficking." End quote. Are members of your party, the Democratic Party,
doing enough to try to disavow these kinds of views?
MOSKOWITZ: Yes. Well, first, obviously, Wolf, the idea that we have a candidate on the ballot, a Democrat on the ballot talking about internment
camp for Jews in America. I mean, it just -- I can't believe we got here.
I mean, we got here so quickly. I mean, obviously, the language towards Jews in this country, you know, ever since October 7th, ever since the
propaganda online and the Democrat Party allowing some of this in order to try to figure out how to win. Win elections. But I didn't think we would
get here this fast.
I mean, you're talking to someone whose grandmother was part of the Kindertransport out of Germany, where they put kids on trains to get them
out so they wouldn't wind up in concentration camps. I mean, she's not alive. I can't believe that what she would think if she saw in America.
[10:40:13]
BROWN: She wouldn't believe it.
MOSKOWITZ: She wouldn't believe it. She'd probably want to leave, quite frankly, because that's what they had to do, you know, when she was a
child. And so, look, the Democratic Party, a lot of Democrats have come out and said, this is ridiculous. Even some of the most extreme folks on the
left have come out and said, this is ridiculous. So the good news is we found a floor, right?
The floor is, you know, we're willing to, you know, go after Jews with our language, but we're, you know, we're going to. We're going to stop it at
concentration camps. The problem is this is metastasized in the Democratic Party now because we didn't do enough. And the Republican Party is watching
what happened, and they're trying. They got problems on their own. Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, Megyn Kelly, all the other grifters that are trying
to make money off this.
I mean, we're 2 percent of the population, but apparently, you know, we're -- we're the problem. Right? We're always. We're always the problem.
BLITZER: And I know you forcefully and understandably spoken out against anti-Semitism, recently releasing some of the threats you face as a Jewish
lawmaker. And I want to play a bit of that and a warning to our viewers. What you're about to hear is disturbing, deeply disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "The U.S. Government needs to kill Jews. You kill these nasty Jews. Kill every single Zionist scumbag. Zionism is treason to we the
people in our U.S. Constitution. Kill Israel."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: And you've been getting in. Your colleague and friend, Congressman Josh Gottheimer, New Jersey. You've been getting a lot of death threats in
the process of what's going on. This is the first time you've been doing that, right?
MOSKOWITZ: No, this has been going on really since October 7th. I mean, I've been getting death threats. I had a constituent that had an
assassination plot to try to kill me. He's doing 25 years in prison. But every day on X, I could -- I could post a picture of a puppy, and it's
genocide, Jared. Kill all the Jews. You belong in a concentration camp all day.
Now, those voicemails say the same thing. Calls to my office say the same thing, people in the hallway, in Congress.
BLITZER: So you've had to increase your security?
MOSKOWITZ: Oh, yes, I've had, I mean, I literally have security at my house. I have security where I go. My kids have heard about all of this.
BLITZER: Other Jewish members as well, your friends.
MOSKOWITZ: Other Jewish members as well, both sides of the aisle. It's a real problem, and it's increasing dramatically in this country. But that's
why, like, a lot of people don't want to talk. They don't want to speak up because they're scared. They don't want to deal with the bullying.
Me and many of my colleagues feel like we have to come forcefully. That's why Josh and I put out that statement that, you know, if Galindo winds up
winning the election, we will immediately file a motion to expel her as soon as she is sworn in. And we will file that motion every single day
until she's expelled.
Putting people internment camps is not something that you misspoke on. Like that's not going to happen. We're not going to let that happen in the halls
of Congress.
BLITZER: It's hard to believe this is going on in our country right now. All right, Congressman Jared Moskowitz, good luck, stay safe. Thanks very
much for joining us.
MOSKOWITZ: Thanks, Wolf.
BLITZER: Pamela.
BROWN: Coming up here in The Situation Room, MAHA Anger why Congressman Thomas Massie's primary loss is prompting outrage from Make America Healthy
Again Moms. We'll discuss after this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:47:40]
BROWN: Happening now. Members of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again movement are speaking out against the ousting of Kentucky
Congressman Thomas Massie and his high stakes Kentucky Republican primary. Massie repeatedly broke with President Trump on several issues like
military action in Iran, the Epsom files, and the President's so-called One Big Beautiful Bill. He ultimately lost this week to Trump-endorsed
challenger Ed Gallrein in what became one of the most expensive primaries in history.
Joining us now to discuss is self-declared MAHA Mom Zen Honeycutt. She is the founder and executive director of Moms Across America, a group that
advocates for healthier Communities.
Zen, nice to have you back on the show. Explain to our viewers why you and so many other members of the MAHA movement are upset about Massie's defeat.
ZEN HONEYCUTT, FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MOMS ACROSS AMERICA: Oh, thank you for having me, Pamela. I'm here actually speaking on behalf of
the Moms Across America Movement, the 501C4. And we champion policy and public servants who put children, health, safety, and America's future
first. And that's exactly what Representative Massie was doing.
The irony is that he was running. He was championing the very issues that Trump ran on when he got elected, which is putting small farmers first, you
know, supporting health, and getting pesticides out of our food. And also, you know, you know, he put forth all kinds of issues for health and safety
that Trump said that he was going to do. So, we're upset because Trump promised that he would address these issues.
Massie was trying to do that with, like, the No Accountability for Glyphosate Act and supporting raw milk access, supporting local farmers,
and Trump shut him down. Despite the fact that Massie was being a champion for the American people.
BROWN: A lot in the MAHA movement, a lot of moms got behind Trump and voted for him. And I'm wondering where you are now with that. Do you think the
Maha movement has lost its way? And, you know, when you clarified earlier in this interview you're part of the Moms Across America movement, you made
a point to say that. I'm wondering why that is.
HONEYCUTT: Oh, well, that is because we felt it necessary to expand our network to a legislative arm, right, where we can talk and speak about
policy and public servants and where we can support candidates. So, it's very important now because moms actually have a lot of political power. We
are one of the swing voting blocs. And the MAHA movement brought in about 9 million votes underneath Kennedy.
[10:50:15]
So what I'm seeing now for the midterm elections is that this group of people who are extremely disgruntled, I'm seeing Republicans saying that
they feel marooned, that they don't have a plate. They're seeing where to put their vote. And so I'm seeing a rise of the potential for a third
party. And as a mom, I'm very excited because we are not beholden to a political party.
We vote for those who put health and safety first. The last election showed that. And unfortunately, this election with Massie, it got shut down by
three billionaires and foreign money that came from other countries. And that is not America.
That's not how we need to be working. That's not what we want to see going forward. But in fact, what's happening right now is Massie is freed up the
next seven months. He has nothing left to lose, right?
He is going to let it rip on the Hill, and he will. And I think Trump's going to regret that. And it frees him up to be able to run for president,
which his supporters are screaming for.
So we're actually excited about what the future beholds. We are not going to stop. MAHA is not crushed. We're not going away. We are going to
continue to fight for the health and safety of our children.
BROWN: And just to follow up, you mentioned the midterms. I know you all won a third party, but the reality is that that's not really a huge factor
in this upcoming midterms. It's Republican or Democrats. You feel like betrayed, in a sense, it sounds like, by President Trump and some of the
promises that he had made.
So do you think that moms that are part of the MAHA movement are going to be voting more Democrat in the upcoming midterms?
HONEYCUTT: There's a possibility of that, but, you know, it's only going to be if the Democrats really. They have to lay off of Kennedy. You know, it's
continuing to attack. Kennedy is not going to work for the Democrats that voted for Trump this last time.
And the Republicans still have an opportunity to take action around pesticides in the food supply. There's still time for that to happen. So
what I'm seeing is a lot of voters who are very unclear about how they're going to vote. And there is an opportunity for the elected officials who
take a stand in the next couple of months and put out bills that are actually going to address the pesticides in our food, health, freedom, and
the issues that we care about.
The data centers overrunning our communities, geoengineering cell towers everywhere, pesticides in our food, plastics in everything that we're
eating. These issues need to be addressed, and they need to be addressed now. And we don't care what political party it is. Just get it done.
BROWN: So you clearly have frustration, but the last time we talked Zen, you know, you had talked about the controversial weed killer glyphosate and
that executive order on that. But it sounds like you're still standing behind RFK Jr. Despite being unhappy with some of these moves.
HONEYCUTT: Well, RFK Jr. Is not the head of the EPA, so he could not have any influence around glyphosate being, for instance, restricted or banned
or made into, you know, an executive order. So what we see is that Kennedy is really taking a stand and putting out some of the best policies that we
have ever seen in our country. This administration actually has done more for health through Kennedy and the HHS than any other administration has
ever done. However, they have not kept their word on pesticides, and that is under the EPA. That's under Lee Zeldin, who has completely not done a
single thing to reduce our children's pesticide exposure. And that needs to be reversed.
The EPA needs to step it up, and our elected officials need to take action to reduce our children's exposure to toxic pesticides, which is what Trump
said he would do on the presidential platform.
BROWN: Right. And Kennedy, though, at the time, as I recall, did defend Trump's reasoning on glyphosate, that, you know, it would be bad for the
business for these farmers if they. If they took that, because it would be a national security issue. So I just wonder what you say to that.
HONEYCUTT: Well, he understands why Trump did what he did. He didn't agree with it. He came out later also and said that he was disappointed or not
happy with it. And, you know, as somebody who sued Monsanto and knows exactly how harmful glyphosate is. He did discuss that on the Joe Rogan
Show.
So, you know, we all know where he stands. He is not able to do everything that we would like him to be able to do in the position that he's in. But
he is doing a lot of other great things, and we continue to appreciate him and Trump for allowing him to be in that position and get the things done
that he has gotten done. So you know, there's a lot of good that has happened, but right now, yes, what I'm seeing is there's a lot of upset
regarding Massie being elected, you know, not being elected.
[10:55:06]
But there's room for a lot of possibility and something bigger and greater. And we're going to trust in God and trust in the process that that's going
to happen.
BROWN: All right, Zen Honeycutt, thank you so much for your time and sharing your perspective. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: The Thunder Spurs series now tied as the NBA playoffs heat up.
BLITZER: Let's go live right now to see the sports anchor Andy Scholz. Andy, it's lively out there.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Wolf and Pam, I mean this Thunder spurs series, I mean it is certainly living up to the hype. Game two, another
awesome physical game. You know what a treat if we get seven games of this.
And it's been highlights galore through two games. It's the Fawn Castle, maybe the dunk of the playoffs, maybe the dunk of the season in the second
quarter last night, rises up, throws it down on Isaiah Hardenstein. I mean, look how he caught that ball back. Wemby, he was even impressed.
Third quarter, it was a tight game. Wemby misses this shot right here but gets his own rebound and throws it down. Then on the other end, Wemby
blocking Alex Caruso. So Wemby had 21.17 rebounds and four block shots in the game.
But it wasn't enough because Shea Gilgis Alexander, an MVP performance, scored a game high 30 points including this bucket with under a minute to
go to put the game away. Thunder end up winning 122 to 113 to even the series. But game two was rough for injuries for both teams. Jalen Williams,
he exited in the place.
END
