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Inside Politics

Trump Again Threatens To Obliterate Iran's Power Plant; Iran Threatens To "Rain Fire" If U.S. Launches Ground Invasion; Trump: Iran Agreed To "Most" U.S. Demands; Iran Says It Hasn't; House GOP Rejects DHS Deal That Senate Passed Unanimously; DHS Is Shut Down, Workers Not Getting Paid, Congress Starts Process; Trump Criticizes Thune Over Filibuster: "You Have To Get The Votes"; Vance Wins 2028 CPAC Straw Poll But Rubio Gains Ground. Aired 12-12:30p ET

Aired March 30, 2026 - 12:00   ET

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

[12:00:00]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR, THE SITUATION ROOM: So, and I remember the similar situation Christian Laettner when he was at Duke doing that to Kentucky and we lost the game. I was a kid, and like, I couldn't believe it. You just saw it happen to Duke this time around. And wow, but I'm still in the game here. Final four have Arizona winning.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR & CORRESPONDENT: You're doing very well on our CNN anchor bracket challenge. I'm very jealous of you, and so as well.

BROWN: Thank you to Brian (inaudible), who filled it up for me. All right. Coy Wire, thanks so much.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN CO-ANCHOR, THE SITUATION ROOM: And to our viewers, thanks very much for joining us this morning.

BROWN: Inside Politics with our friend and colleague, Manu Raju, starts now.

MANU RAJU, CNN ANCHOR, INSIDE POLITICS: President Trump threatens to crush Iran if it does not agree to his terms. I'm Manu Raju in for Dana Bash. Let's go behind the headlines at Inside Politics.

We start with President Trump unleashing his most extreme warning yet to Iran. On Truth Social this morning, he wrote in part quote, for any reason, a deal is not shortly reached, which it probably will be, and the Hormuz Strait is not immediately open for business, we will conclude our lovely state in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their electric generating plants, oil wells in Kharg Island, and possibly all desalinization plants, which we have purposely not yet touched.

The president also claimed to be in, quote, serious discussions with a new and more reasonable regime. And when ABC's George Stephanopoulos, Press Secretary of State, Marco Rubio on who those people are. Rubio said this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MARCO RUBIO, SECRETARY OF STATE: I'm not going to disclose to you who those people are because it probably would get them in trouble with some other groups of people inside of Iran. Look, there's some fractures going on there internally. And if there are new people now in charge who have a more reasonable vision of the future, that would be good news for us, for them, for the entire world, but we also have to be prepared for the possibility, maybe even the probability that that is not the case.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: And I'm joined now by a terrific group of reporters, including Tyler Page, who covers the White House for the New York Times. Tyler, what is the president talking about doing next? Because there's been this escalating series of rhetoric. He's moving the goal posts. Maybe he's actually planning an imminent attack. Are you hearing from your sources that an attack this magnitude that could impact the entire Iranian population is actually in the works?

TYLER PAGE, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, THE NEW YORK TIMES: I mean, we've been reporting for weeks now that the president is considering a whole range of military options. Back in January, The New York Times reported that he could send a commando team in to secure the highly enriched uranium. Kharg Island has been a target that administrations have contemplated taking for years.

And so, we know that the president is continuing to review those options, and the military is positioning assets. Should the president sign off on any of those options? It's absolutely on the table and the president has continued to make that --

RAJU: What's does imminent mean?

PAGE: I mean, imminent, it's -- I mean, the other thing that we have to remember, Manu, is that the president is also trying to engage in negotiations. And there is an aspect here based on conversations I've had with sources inside the administration that the president is trying to assert leverage as he pursues the diplomacy path at the same time that he's pursuing military options. So, these things are hand in hand, and I think he is feeling some pressure to try to resolve the economic crisis that this war has created, and some of these military options are potentially give him leverage as they continue these talks.

But I think it's also important to note these talks based on sources I've had -- based on sources I've spoken to, are in a preliminary, these are not in depth negotiations, where they're hashing out all the details.

RAJU: And then the comment about the new regime that they're talking about, Trump talked about this, this new and read more reasonable regime. He said this morning, this is what he said last night on Air Force One.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: It's a whole different group of people. So, I would consider that regime change, and frankly, they've been very reasonable. So, I think we've had regime change. I mean, you can't do much better than that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: So, Susan, who are these new people -- more reasonable people? It's the same regime, isn't it? I mean, this is -- this is the supreme leaders who's now been killed, this is his family that's still running the country, right?

SUSAN GLASSER, STAFF WRITER, THE NEW YORKER: Yeah. I mean, to the extent there's been regime change, it's that Donald Trump has managed to have what appears to be a more radical and extremist regime in place. So, you know, once again, you have Trump sort of trying to work, work the refs here, and to claim that his initial goal of regime change has been achieved just because he killed a bunch of people.

You know, Iran experts, and you know, I'm not one of them, but they will tell you, Manu, that, in fact, in every case where they have taken out the United States and Israel a leader, say, of the Revolutionary Guard or the Supreme Leader himself. The person who's been installed in their place has been someone who is perceived to be more of a hard liner and more radical.

[12:05:00]

I would also note that Donald Trump, in this social media posting this morning, has threatened, essentially, to undertake war crimes here. So, you know, again, I know that we don't have a congress anymore that's actually functioning. But, you know, you have a situation where the president United States is not only saying very contradictory things. On the one hand, I'm going to invade, on the other hand, I'm in very productive negotiations, but he's also actually using as his "leverage" the threat of a war crime.

RAJU: And to get rid of all the water supply. In fact, all the water supply for the entire --

GLASSER: Right. These are civilian targets. And, you know, have to say in many ways, you know, it's the kind of rhetoric that you're hearing from Donald Trump that's not at all dissimilar to how Russia has conducted its war against Ukraine for the last four years, by massive attacks, repeated attacks on civilian infrastructure.

RAJU: Yeah. And Trump keeps talking about -- talking in sort of happy talk about where these so-called negotiations are going. He says, been saying productive conversations. He says it in this post this morning, the Strait of Hormuz will be open. He expects it to be open, when he say, which should probably will be open soon.

OK. This what the Iranian foreign ministers' spokesperson said today about the U.S. 15-point plan. It says the material convey us under any title, such as the 15-point plan has mainly included largely excessive, unrealistic and unreasonable demand. So, Sabrina, who's right here, who's two different realities here are the actual negotiations happening?

SABRINA RODRIGUEZ, POLITICAL REPORTER, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: I mean, that's the open question. To what Tyler was saying, everything is preliminary at this point, but this is classic President Trump. This is classic Donald Trump to overstate where things are, to set these arbitrary timelines. I mean, we started this by talk. He was saying, you know, this is a four-to-six-week war situation, and we are already well past the four-week mark on that with no signs of this ending.

So, I think really for the American people, just from going out and being and I was just reporting in Texas, I mean, people are still just asking, why are we even doing this? Are asking, what exactly is the reason for doing this? So, hearing all of this back and forth, I think there's still just an open question --

RAJU: Yeah. And the objective clearly still has not been laid out. To your point, the American public, because it's been a changing set of narratives. And now the president said this to the Financial Times just yesterday. he said, to be honest with you, my favorite thing is to take the oil in Iran, but some stupid people back in the U.S. say, why are you doing that? But they are stupid people. So, is this the new objective here?

PAGE: I mean, one of the fascinating things here is the parallels with the Venezuela operation, right? It was that first targeted campaign against Maduro, and now the president praises the fact that the U.S. has access to Venezuela's oil. So, there's been consistency here in Donald Trump's desire to take other countries' oil.

The other thing Manu, just to go back to the statement from the Iranian foreign minister office. One of the things to note here is that the U.S. has put forth proposals that are very similar to the proposals that they tried to negotiate over before the war started. And now, four or five weeks later, when Iran has leverage over its closure of the Strait of Hormuz, Donald Trump and the Trump administration are trying to put forth proposals that are almost identical to what Iran did not agree to before the conflict started.

RAJU: Yeah.

PAGE: So, I think that is one of the challenges here for the U.S. is, how are you going to get Iran to agree to proposals that they didn't agree to before they had even more leverage over you, because of how this conflict has unfold.

RAJU: I mean, even some said he take the oil, is it just classic Trump bluster, because doing so would prolong this conflict. They said it would be done in four weeks.

GLASSER: Yeah. I mean, look, if Donald Trump right now is on, you know, the brink of a very major decision, which is whether he's going to send U.S. ground forces in one option. You know, when you talk about taking Kharg Island, which Trump has repeatedly suggested is an option, including in that conversation with the Financial Times last night. The reason is because that is a strategic gateway, first of all, to the Iranian oil infrastructure, but also to the Strait of Hormuz itself. You could take it, but unless you keep the boots on the ground in order to keep the Strait open, you know, that's a very long-term proposition, as even some Trump administration officials have acknowledged.

So this is -- this is potentially one of the more consequential decisions of Trump presidency that he needs to make right now, whether he is going to, you know, find a way to end the conflict, even if their actual goals have not been met, and sort of pretend and, you know, gaslight us, or he's going to do something that he promised his followers he would never do, which is start a new war with American troops on the ground in harm's way.

And I would point out by the way that there are already thousands and thousands of American troops in the Middle East who are in harm's way. Remember, we just had a serious incident at a U.S. base in Saudi Arabia over the weekend. I think ten more U.S. service members were injured. Major U.S. military equipment and facilities were damaged. This has continued throughout the conflict, so U.S. soldiers are already in harm's way, even if there isn't a ground invasion of some part of Iran.

[12:10:00]

RAJU: Yeah. And meantime, the American public is feeling the impact. The gas prices have increased by $1 entire dollar and one cent from a month ago. Now, 3.99 compared to 2.98 from a month ago. One big reason why the president and his party feeling a lot of pressure right now.

All right, coming up. While TSA works Congress bolts will tell you what did not happen on the Senate floor just now. Plus, they're a crucial voting block and worried about the country's direction. I'll talk to an expert about the impact of Gen Z on our politics.

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[12:15:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RAJU: The Department of Homeland Security shutdown is now the longest of any federal agency in history. 45 days and counting, and there is no end in sight. As Republicans are engaged in a bitter internal feud over strategy and tactics with both chambers of Congress gone until mid-April. Yet there is a sliver of good news for anyone heading to the airport today. TSA agents are starting to get paid after a presidential executive order last week, and security lines that dragged on for multiple hours in airports across the country are starting to shrink in some of the busiest travel hubs, like Atlanta, Houston and New York.

My excellent panel is back. So, this has now become a story about a Republican on Republican battle. This used to be, for the last 40- some-odd days, this was a Democrat versus Republican battle because Democrats insisted, they would not fund this agency unless there were changes to how ICE agents are being operated.

OK. So last week, the Senate, just as a reminder, passed this bill to fund the entire DHS, but not a ICE, not CBP that went over to the House. The House Republicans said, no way that now they pass a two- month bill to extend funding for the entire agency. And so today the Senate was in session, and the Senate Republicans didn't try to pass that bill. They had to get recognized unanimous consent required all hundred senators try to pass the bill. A Democrat could have objected to that. They would have planned to object to it, but there was no loud outcry from Senate Republicans over the fact that the House GOP plan was not moving.

This is what Mike Lee said on his X account, this Utah Republican senator. He said the Senate just completed a pro forma session. No attempt was made to pass DHS funding by unanimous consent. The Senate must convene now. Sabrina, how much anger is there within the GOP over this issue? I mean, have you seen -- have you seen a feud like this? I mean, there have been plenty of GOP on GOP battles, but this is something.

RODRIGUEZ: I mean, this one is against now the backdrop of this shutdown. This is not just some bill. We're talking about, as you said, the longest partial shutdown we've seen of an agency in U.S. history. And we're seeing, you know, for weeks, they've wanted to sell this. This is Democrats' fault and this has been the typical Democrat versus Republican blame game back and forth.

Now it is squarely on Republicans for not getting this done. I think a lot of us thought, you know, last week, there could be some potential progress, especially because we know that Congress famously gets things done before they head on recess that pressure them wanting to get out of Washington often results in them some type of movement. This is the next level for them to leave on a two-week break with nothing resolved and with them openly blaming each other.

RAJU: Yeah. The blame game is just something because it played out yesterday on the Sunday shows. Listen to what one of the top House Republicans, Lisa McClain, said about the Senate bill, and then one conservative Senate Republican Ron Johnson defending the Senate's action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. LISA MCCLAIN (R-MI): I'm not going to roll the dice on passing another reconciliation bill with our national security. We're going to fund it. But explain to me why the funding is at zero in the bill that we got in the wee hours of the night?

SEN. RON JOHNSON (R-WI): We fully funded ICE and CBP through the end of this fiscal year. So, the people rolling the dice right now are Democrats think -- Republicans in the House thinking Democrats will ever agree to anything other than what we've on the table got on the table, which is funding the rest of DHS.

(END VIDEO CLIP) RAJU: I mean, one of the big things that he points out there is that ICE and CBP, or ICE in particular was funded in the big, beautiful bill that was passed last year. So, Republicans in the Senate say, let's just reopen the government. Susan, how do you think this actually ends, though, given there's such a division over tactics?

GLASSER: I mean, Manu, you are the world expert on the divide --

RAJU: Typically, you can see an end game when you shutdown. There's no clear path on how this --

GLASSER: No. Sabrina is right. We saw the end game last week, and it didn't happen. It's a reflection, first of all, and foremost, I think, of just how narrow and ungovernable the House Republican majority such as it is, it is right now. You know, Speaker Mike Johnson is essentially hostage to any one or two people objecting, never mind Donald Trump, who has shown basically zero interest in resolving this impasse.

We all know that if Donald Trump had, last week, you know, put his foot on the scale and said, we need to go ahead and get this resolved --

RAJU: Yeah, he could have told Johnson, said, we got to pass the Senate bill. We have no choice here. This is the only option, pass it. And Mike Johnson listens to Donald Trump.

GLASSER: No, that's exactly right. I mean, the bottom line is for American people, not to mention the poor TSA officials who have literally been going without pay. It's first of all another reminder that Americans not that they need any reminders of how dysfunctional and broken they perceive our government here in Washington to be. They can't do their job, number one.

[12:20:00]

Number two, and I think this is really important. Republicans have controlled all three branches of government since Donald Trump was reelected in 2024 that has already resulted in the longest overall government shutdown in American history. Now the longest partial government shutdown in American history, and you have real Americans being essentially traumatized on their spring breaks for hours.

RAJU: Yeah, that's so such a good point. And it's also, Trump -- you to mention Trump's involvement, because, you know, he is the big deal maker, they say. So, why not try to cut a deal here? Instead of cutting a deal, what he's been trying to do is pressure Senate Republicans to change the filibuster rules in Senate. Remember (inaudible) 60 votes to overcome a filibuster in the Senate. He wants to blow that up, so Senate Republicans can pass bills along straight party lines.

John Thune, the Senate Majority Leader for months has told Trump he does not have the votes to pass this. And there are a lot of Senate Republicans who agree with John Thune. So last night, Trump was asked about it, and he told John Thune, get the votes. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I like him so much. He's a high-quality person. And he told me the same thing, we don't have the votes. Well, he's only a couple of votes short, but that's what being a leader is. You have to get the votes. You have to get the votes. And those people will not be able to withstand the onslaught, because Republicans and the country wants it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: I mean, it's, you know, slight criticism. You don't hear from Trump very much on John Thune, the way he might criticize his leader past, but saying that that's what being a leader is, you have to get the votes.

PAGE: I mean, what's interesting about this is that Trump is the leader of the Republican Party, and he's unable to get the votes. And that is, I think, part of the deflection here. If the votes were there to be gotten, the president would exert the leverage that he has exerted to other members of Congress for years to get what he wants.

And I think that is the continuing challenge for this president and for the leaders of the Republican Party, particularly John Thune, who is caught in this place where it does not seem like he's going to get these people to Bush.

Manu, again, we defer to you have the expert on all things -- on all things, Congress, but I do think one of the other things to just put this in the larger context, is as Susan said, people are going on spring break. They're waiting in really long lines. And at the same time, everything is getting more expensive because of the international crisis with Iran and the oil and gas.

So, these things are all colliding in a year for Republicans that is already shaping up to be electorally difficult because of the historical trends of an incumbent party's first midterm election. So, I think there's a lot of political challenges that lie ahead, and the combination of the Iran war and this prolonged shutdown are just adding to their problems.

RAJU: And getting back to my initial point, there's no clear end game, because Trump is making a -- calling on something that's not going to happen to blow up the Senate filibuster. House Republicans have a strategy. Senate Republicans have a strategy, and Congress is out of town until after Easter.

All right, up next. President Trump says it loudly, publicly, repeatedly, Cuba is next. But what do Cubans think? CNN's Patrick Oppmann has a rare sit down with Fidel Castro's grandson.

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[12:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) RAJU: The GOP will soon have a choice to make. Who will lead the party into its post Trump era. It's an answer that last year seemed clear Vice President Vance. But at this year's annual CPAC gathering, Vance still won the straw poll for who should be the party's 2028 nominee, but by a far smaller margin than last year. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio won 35 percent of the vote, and that's up from just 3 percent in 2025.

My excellent panel is back. Sabrina, you were there at CPAC. I mean, look, the straw ball has taken grain of salt. You know, Rand Paul won a straw poll when, you know, many years ago. So, this is not necessarily indicative of where things are for the larger MAGA movement. But what do you -- there's still the numbers about Rubio interesting. The shift among the folks on the right flank of the party, the MAGA faithful. They're more of an acceptance to Marco Rubio, someone they -- a lot of them ridiculed just a few years ago.

RODRIGUEZ: 100 percent. I mean, this is -- this sort of shows the evolution of Marco Rubio. Marco Rubio has certainly had different lifetimes within the Republican Party and has had certain different iterations. So, this one is certainly that evolution where MAGA faithful are not liking him. In conversations with people there, I think what was interesting was this is, obviously, this is -- this is not -- they have not independently arrived here. It is the fact that over the last year, they have consistently heard Donald Trump's praise for Marco Rubio's performance.

They see Rubio often, you know, to the right of Donald Trump at press conferences, they see, you know, they see the president publicly touting the work that Rubio is doing. And I heard folks, that even our fans of Vance say, well, we often hear people say about vice presidents, I'm not seeing him enough. I don't necessarily know exactly what he's doing. It seems like Rubio is really involved in really getting all these things done.

People pointed to Venezuela, for example, and saying, like, you know, I was a skeptic about what was going on in Venezuela, but they did it quickly, and they did it fast, and they did it without, you know, like getting the military very involved. So clearly, people are looking at cues from the president, and that shows us that it's, you know, between the two of them.

RAJU: Just listen to how some of these CPAC supporters, the attendees of the conference, I should say what they said about Rubio versus Vance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As much as I would like to say someone like Vance, I just, I hate seeing the president and vice president run. I want someone new and different, someone younger.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't really like Vance, but I think Marco Rubio was the only person with the administration or I would support going into 2028.