Return to Transcripts main page
One World with Zain Asher
Trump: Iran's Last Chance to Make Deal Before "Decapitation"; U.S. Treatment of Haitian Migrants; 350K Plus Haitians in the U.S. Lost Temporary Protected Status; More Than 700 Structures Burned in Spokane Fires; Test for Democrats: Stevens, El Sayed Face-Off in Michigan Primary; Colombia Issues Orange Alert for Purace Volcano. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired August 04, 2026 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ZAIN ASHER, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: All right, President Trump says Iran has now a last chance to make a deal or face decapitation. "One World" starts
right now. As Trump pushes for a new agreement Iran is threatening to hit American warships if the U.S. doesn't lift its naval blockade.
Plus, we'll look at how some Haitian migrants in Ohio are reportedly being outfitted with ankle monitors. And voters in 5 U.S. states are headed to
the polls today in races that could determine who controls the House and the Senate. All right, coming to you live from New York. I'm Zain Asher.
You are watching "One World".
As Donald Trump talks up the chances of a diplomatic solution in the Middle East, Iran is taking a much different tone and threatening to strike the
U.S. Navy if its blockade of Iran continues. It is also moving to consolidate control over the Strait of Hormuz. On Monday, the U.S.
President said the critical waterway could open fully by today after earlier claiming an agreement to reopen the Strait and denuclearize Iran
was imminent.
Trump also warned this is Iran's last chance to make a deal or face, in his words, decapitation. But Tehran denies it's even holding talks with
Washington and says it's focused on discussions with Oman over the Strait, which has, of course, been a flashpoint in this five-month war.
Another tanker using the Strait was reported to have been struck on Tuesday as well. An organization that monitors marine traffic says it was hit by an
unknown projectile. CNN's Stephen Collinson joins us live now from Washington.
So, Stephen, when you have a situation where you have the president saying this is Iran's last chance to make a deal or it will face decapitation, the
problem is we've heard this kind of rhetoric so many times when you're in a situation whereby the president's words no longer carries the weight that
it's supposed to, you end up having adversaries that continue to test limits. And also, what does that do to negotiation leverage as well,
Stephen?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: That's right, because it wouldn't be surprising if Iran didn't believe Donald Trump's threats
because he's repeatedly made threats. He's also repeatedly said a deal is imminent, but he keeps going around in this vicious circle that's been
created by this war and the box that he got himself by launching it without a clear exit strategy.
It's difficult to tell whether the White House optimism is justified. The Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is predicting a deal today or tomorrow,
but he also started talking about how this could see prices for gasoline, energy, diesel, and fertilizer quickly come down.
Whether that was an attempt to talk to the markets and is also a sign that the administration really does want this done because of the punishing
economic and political effects of this continuing showdown with Iran are pretty serious. It's difficult to tell.
So, you know, who do you believe? Do you believe Iran or do you believe the United States? Unfortunately, the president's rhetoric over the last five
months means it's very difficult to tell which of these two belligerents is the most credible.
ASHER: And in terms of why the president believes that negotiating with Iran out in the open, making these sorts of threats publicly, whether it's
threatening to strike civilian infrastructure, for example, whether it's threatening to strike Pickaxe Mountain, for example. Why does the president
think that that type of negotiation, that style of negotiation, will yield results?
COLLINSON: I think it's the only style of negotiation that he knows and understands and has pursued his entire career. His political method depends
on applying great force and intimidation, and expecting the other side to capitulate. That does work, for example, in some showdowns with the
Republican Senators.
It's another matter with Iran, a country that has set itself up for 50 years to fight against the United States, and for which that battle is an
existential political struggle. So, it hasn't worked so far. There's not a great deal of reason to believe it will work in the long term.
Obviously, there are some benefits to Iran if the blockade is lifted of its ships and ports by the United States, and oil starts to move again. It gets
revenues, so there are interests on both sides.
[11:05:00]
What we don't know is whether the president will ever get serious about lifting the caps on his own actions. So, he's mostly targeted Iranian
military sites. If he were to try to coerce Iran by then going after energy targets, civilian targets, infrastructure. Would that change Iran's
behavior? Would he be prepared to do that?
The problem with that, of course, is that that would almost certainly result in a regional conflagration. Iran going after the same kind of
targets on the territory of U.S. allies, and that would make the war much worse, which is appears to be what Trump is trying to stop.
But in the absence of a real, genuine diplomatic operation in this White House, he seems to be going with this, you know, wield a big stick and
expect it to make results, even when it repeatedly doesn't.
ASHER: All right, Stephen Collinson live for us. Thank you so much. All right, four days after the U.S. President unveiled what he called a
historic breakthrough in Gaza, we still haven't heard publicly from the Israeli Prime Minister.
On Thursday Donald Trump hailed an agreement that would lead to a complete disarmament of Hamas and the phased withdrawal of Israeli troops from the
besieged enclave. No word from Benjamin Netanyahu. But over the weekend, the IDF escalated its attacks on Gaza, killing at least 28 people. It's the
highest toll in weeks.
And on Monday, an Israeli official said that Israel would continue to thwart any threat from Gaza and would not pull troops back from their
present positions. Hamas insists that Israel halt its attacks before it lays down any weapons. Our Jeremy Diamond has more now on the Gaza strikes
and a warning that his report does contain some disturbing images.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Carried in men's arms or bundled in blankets, wounded Palestinians are rushed into
ambulances. Amid the mayhem, a boy cries out for his brother, before yet another casualty is hauled out on a stretcher.
This is Gaza plunged back into chaos, just as hope appeared on the horizon. Israel carried out this deadly series of strikes this weekend, just hours
after President Trump announced a historic agreement for the complete disarmament of Hamas, that deal called for Israel to first halt all strikes
in Gaza before Hamas starts handing over its weapons.
Instead, Israel ramped up its attacks, killing at least 28 people in the wake of Trump's announcement, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
The Israeli military said it had carried out targeted killings of Hamas commanders and militants, including some involved in the October 7th attack
on Israel.
For some in Gaza, the strikes were evidence that Israel cannot be trusted. This is the fate awaiting anyone who gives away the resistance's weapons.
We will be torn apart this man shouts, Israel cannot be trusted. Our weapons are what protect us. It would be a disgrace for us to abandon them.
Israeli bombs also left this enormous crater next to one of Gaza's largest hospitals, striking two warehouses where medical supplies were stored. The
Israeli military said Hamas had stashed weapons here, but provided no evidence. On the ground, only medical equipment like these dialysis
supplies can be found.
Why? What happened? What's inside it to be struck like that. Look what they did to the people this woman cries. I was optimistic yesterday and said,
God willing, a new government will come to take control of Gaza, rebuild Gaza. There will be reconstruction and peace, and we will live in safety.
Instead, those who had pitched their tents alongside this hospital in the hope of the safety it might provide are forced to pick through the wreckage
before starting over once again. The strikes prompted this rare missive from the board of peace's high representative for Gaza, who wrote the
strikes killed civilians and destroyed medical supplies before noting that both parties carry obligations under the comprehensive plan. Jeremy
Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: All right, Russia and Ukraine are trading blame after a drone hit a Black Sea resort area on Monday. A warning that the video we're about to
show you is disturbing. Russian officials say at least seven people were killed when a Ukrainian drone went down on this crowded beach.
They say four of the victims were children. A regional governor claims the casualties were caused when debris from a drone fell. Ukraine says the
drone was brought down by Russian air defenses. And in a separate incident, a man in Kherson, Ukraine, was chased by a drone.
We want to warn you that this video is also disturbing. Ukrainian officials are calling this a Russian war crime. The man survived with several
injuries.
[11:10:00]
Ukrainian officials say the man is a street vendor, not a combatant. Let's bring in CNN's Clare Sebastian, joining us live now from London. So, this
took place in the City of Kherson. You see this drone attack, basically targeting a market street vendor. Just walk us through what happened here.
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. So, the first thing to say, Zain, is that he survived. He was then talking about the incident several hours
later he was injured. He said, but he said that during that incident, he gestured to the drone to try and show it that he was only selling
vegetables.
And interestingly, he also said that this was the second time he had actually had to try to avoid a targeted drone attack. President Zelenskyy
has come out and said that this is an example of a tactic that we saw emerge around mid-2024. What he calls a human safari by Russia, essentially
drones seeming to target unarmed civilians out in the open.
Now, Russia regularly says, of course, that it doesn't target civilians. We have reached out to the Russian Ministry of Defense on this incident and
haven't heard back. Of course, this is a pretty disturbing incident. You can see the aftermath there video released by the Ukrainian authorities in
that incident, but again, look, the man survived a lucky escape here.
But I think this sheds light on the situation in Kherson. This is the really the biggest Ukrainian city that sits on the front line. It's
separated only by the Dnieper River from the Russian forces. They are under near constant attack. Drone nets cover the streets in the city.
This is life here, and it's getting increasingly dangerous as Russia tries to push forward and, if not, take more territory. Obviously, it lost
Kherson when Ukraine liberated it in late 2022. It's trying to make life as difficult as possible for civilians still in this area, Zain.
ASHER: And also, another attack this time, Ukrainian drone apparently targeting a beach at a Black Sea resort. Just walk us through what
happened. We understand that about three children were killed in this attack.
SEBASTIAN: Yeah, I mean, big picture of these two incidents show together that civilians are increasingly paying the price for this war. This was
what the Russian authorities in the Krasnodar region, where this took place, are saying was debris from a falling drone. The toll is now up to
seven people killed, quite a number of injuries as well.
Four of them children, according to the Russian Children's Rights Commissioner talking about this today. The Russians are saying this is
terrorism by Ukraine. Point of fact is that they've spent most of the war calling Ukraine a terrorist state, so this sort of bolsters that argument.
But they do also say it was falling debris that caused this. And now the Ukrainian side, we've heard from the Head of the Center for Countering
Disinformation, part of the Ukrainian government, saying that this was the work of Russian air defenses. So, it isn't at this point exactly clear what
happened here, but this is in the context of Ukraine escalating long-range attacks across Russia.
This is a tactic that we've really seen building over the summer since they announced this 40-day campaign to try to turn around the war. Targets have
started evolving into different areas, and I think, look, it is clear as these attacks escalate, the risk to civilians is going up, Zain.
ASHER: All right, Clare Sebastian, live for us there. Thank you so much. All right, this just into CNN. The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee has just
advanced Todd Blanche's nomination for U.S. Attorney General to the full Senate, this despite Republican backlash over President Trump's anti-
weaponization fund.
It's worth noting that Todd Blanche essentially canceled; he sort of stood down on that $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund, which he sort of
introduced back in May, many people feared that that would mean that tax- funded dollars would essentially go to Trump allies. Particularly, a lot of people were concerned January 6th rioters.
So, you had two Republican Senators, Thom Tillis, John Cornyn, both of whom are leaving office in January, essentially holding up that vote, that is
why Thom, that is why rather Todd Blanche has been stated as Acting Attorney General, and he has reversed that anti-organization fund, and so
that vote is now advancing.
All right, still to come on "One World", playing the blame game after migrants overwhelm border controls at an outpost of Spain, neighbors and
allies trade accusations. Who said what? In just a moment. Plus, now the U.S. has been treating migrants from Haiti, despite ongoing brutal gang
violence in their country. What federal officials say about their temporary protected status, next?
[11:15:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: A Moroccan official says an immigration ruling by a court in Spain was the spark for a surge of migrants that overwhelmed the Spanish border
with Morocco last week. Tens of thousands of people took part in a massive rush to enter Spain's North African Enclave of Ceuta from Northern Morocco.
More than 80 people either drowned or were crushed in the confusion. The Spanish court ruling made it harder for authorities to quickly send back
migrants who reached Spain by sea. The EU held an emergency meeting to discuss the fallout from last week's incident.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAGNUS BRUNNER, EU COMMISSIONER FOR MIGRATION: Europe has not had this much control over illegal migration in decade. But of course, the events from
Ceuta, that's also pretty clear-show that dramatic images beat actually the best statistics, and that's also, of course, one of the learnings.
And as I said before, these past few days were a test of our European resilience, a test of the security of our external borders. And they showed
-- these days showed clearly that there are actors who have no regard for the safety, or even for lives, of innocent people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: All right, let's bring in CNN's Pau Mosquera in Madrid. I mean, it's interesting because the fallout against Spain, against the Spanish Prime
Minister, in the immediate aftermath of those dramatic images was really swift. You had a lot of EU countries essentially calling for Spain to be
suspended from the Schengen Free Movement Area.
Now you have this meeting with the EU ministers. Just explain to us what came out of it, because one of the sorts of priorities I would imagine is
for Europe to really have and develop a unified approach to migration here.
PAU MOSQUERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's why they have attempted during this virtual meeting, Zain, to have a unified position towards
migration. And as you were saying, we certainly have seen how several European Union partners have changed their minds from that initial
criticism to praising all the efforts that have been done from the Spanish authorities' side when it comes to Ceuta.
And to reduce these tensions it was vital this virtual meeting, according to the European Commissioner for Interior and Immigrations, Magnus Brunner,
like all the interior ministers that were participating from this call, showed solidarity with Spain.
[11:20:00]
But also praised the hard work that they have done so far. But besides showing solidarity, Zain, they also have agreed to continue working to
strengthen and reinforce the external borders, both in Ceuta and Melilla, and to do it so through a five-point action plan.
First of all, to keep preventing irregular migration from entering to the European Union by working more closely with the origin countries, also
speeding up the return of those irregular migrants. In third place, reinforcing the European Union external borders, including, if it's the
case, the deployment of more additional personnel where it is necessary.
In fourth place, introducing early warning systems to detect emergency threats, for example, monitoring better the social media. And lastly,
continuing the efforts to dismantle that migrant smuggling and human trafficking networks. But besides this plan Zain, it is important to say
that now Spanish authorities have the work of making return the 2,500 migrants that still remain in Ceuta, Zain.
ASHER: Pau Mosquera in Madrid for us. Thank you so much. All right; U.S. immigration authorities are placing ankle monitors on Haitian migrants in
Ohio who had temporary protected status. That's according to "The Washington Post".
Lawyers say about 50 migrants, quote, were called into I.C.E. offices on Friday, arrested, then conditionally released with electronic monitoring
devices. Federal officials say the protections, their protections, rather ended last month after the Supreme Court's ruling allowed Trump officials
to end humanitarian protections despite gang violence and political instability in Haiti.
More than 350,000 Haitians have been affected, and many of them will likely be sent back home. Let's bring in Immigration Attorney Raul Reyes. I mean,
obviously, for a lot of Haitian families who have been living and working in the United States, I mean, there's going to be a lot of fear and anxiety
this week.
Not just because their lives have been totally upended by this ruling, but it's really what awaits them back in Haiti, isn't it, Raul? When you think
about, we've covered it many times on this show, the level of gang violence, the massive humanitarian.
I mean, it's not even safe, I should say, for humanitarian workers in Haiti right now. That tells you the level of instability. Just give us your
thoughts on that. And also, on the fact that you're having now some Haitian migrants being forced to wear ankle monitors. Many people are saying that
you know they're being treated like criminals.
RAUL REYES, IMMIGRATION ATTORNEY: Right. Well, just as a quick recap, remember the TPS program was created by Congress to shield deep people from
being deported back to dangerous nations, places with natural disasters or civil unrest. And Haiti right now is a place that the State Department
tells people not to go.
In fact, flights cannot even land at Haiti's air, the Capital of Haiti's Airport, because it is not safe. So, Haitians in this country had
humanitarian protections from that situation back home. They were here lawfully under TPS. And then as of last Monday, when the government
stripped those protections away, they are not now all potentially Haitian TPS holders eligible for detention, deportation, and which very well for
many of them could result in death.
Now, the reason why what we're seeing now, where Haitian TPS holders are being called in and giving ankle monitors, that is highly unusual. Because
border patrol agents often use ankle monitors on migrants at the border who have just arrived, who are they want to prevent them from disappearing into
the country, or they use it on migrants, maybe suspected of serious crimes, who might be a flight risk.
But Haitian TPS holders have registered with the government. They have passed background checks. They have given all their information to the
government, so the government knows exactly where they are. That's why strapping ankle monitors on them seems unnecessarily punitive.
It stigmatizes people. And instead of being an alternative to detention, as we've seen, immigration officials use these monitors as a border for
Haitian TPS holders. These ankle monitors seem to be a prelude to deportation. So, in my view, this is very unnecessarily, very unnecessarily
cruelty. This strikes me as a cruel, a very cruel act.
ASHER: I want to read to you a statement from the Department of Homeland Security. They said temporary protected status is exactly that temporary.
For too long, TPS has been allowed to function as a De facto Amnesty program, despite Congress never intending it to be permanent.
[11:25:00]
What we would say now is it's closing time, which means you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here. The good news is that it's not too late
to get a $2,600 check and a free flight home. I mean, obviously, you know we have to be human about this.
You know, a lot of these people, maybe yes, you know the sort of the word temporary is in TPS, Temporary Protected Status, but a lot of these people
have belonged to these communities for many, many years.
I mean, they go to church in the United States, they have friends, they have work here. And so, just this idea that at the drop of a hat they're
going to have to be sent home back to Haiti, where they don't know what the future holds.
And you know we can all agree that Port-au-Prince specifically, maybe not all of Haiti, but Port-au-Prince specifically, is a very dangerous place at
this point in time.
REYES: Yes.
ASHER: Just walk us through what this statement misses.
REYES: Right. Well, this statement misses a lot because that's the argument we're seeing from the administration in favor of ending TPS, not just for
Haitians but for over a million people from other nations. The problem with that is that TPS was a program created by Congress with specific conditions
for when the programs could end.
And the statute, as written by our lawmakers, says that TPS can end only when independent authorities found -- have found that the situation in
these countries like Haiti or Somalia or South Sudan have improved, and obviously they haven't.
So, what we've seen this year is a unilateral move by the executive branch to just strip away these protections. And the conservative majority of the
court agreed with them. And they are allowing this to go forward. This is - - this contravenes the letter and the spirit of the Temporary Protection Statute that Congress designed.
And just when we hear this type of rhetoric from Homeland Security, it's so important to remember that the Haitians, as you mentioned, they are well
integrated into their communities. They contribute 5.9 billion in taxes across the United States.
That you know their home is here, and sending them back to this uncertain face, uncertain fate in their country of origin, goes against all the
international treaties and humanitarian agreements that the U.S. is a signatory to.
But it also is a very -- it's a very politically motivated decision. Because the largest Haitian populations in the country are in places like
Miami, New York, Massachusetts, and yet we see Homeland Security and I.C.E. focusing on Springfield, Ohio, why?
It's because that is the city that both the vice president and the president have demonized frequently, falsely accusing migrants there of
eating pets, of eating dogs and cats. They're using this, in my view, to score political points with their base as the midterms approach and against
the larger contract -- context of the president's immigration agenda being unpopular with the majority of the American public.
ASHER: I mean, just speaking of the politics of this, since you bring it up. I mean it does sort of raise concerns about which nationalities deserve
protections and which ones don't. I mean, obviously, under the expiration of TPS, you've got Haitian migrants, Syrian migrants being forced out of
the country.
At the same time that you have this administration essentially doubling the number of white South African refugees that they do allow in. So, what does
that tell you about where this administration's head is at, in terms of the nationalities or even, dare I say, it races that deserve protection and
which ones don't?
REYES: Yes. Right. It's very hard to see the stripping away of humanitarian protections like TPS and the rollbacks of asylum rights. It's very hard to
see them as making sense unless you look at it through a lens of racial bias. The president has openly stated that he wants more immigrants from
countries, his words, like Norway and Denmark.
He has created special pathways for white South Africans exclusively. Those are the only group of refugees being allowed into the country. So, it's
very easy to look at the president along with his other comments from himself and people in the administration about different types of countries
like Somalia.
Referring to Haiti as a crap pole country, it's really very easy to see that as being motivated by incredible bias, completely unwarranted against
Black and Brown people. And that ignores the long and rich history of immigrants from all over the world, of all colors, all ethnicities, who
have contributed to this country.
[11:30:00]
It's just so unfortunate that a humanitarian program that the U.S. created and that was once the envy of the world in many senses is now being slowly
dismantled because the protections for Haitians are -- have expired now. But next will be people from Ethiopia, countries like Venezuela, El
Salvador.
More and more, we are going to see different countries as the protections expire, we will see more people caught up in this machine of mass
deportations. And from a human rights perspective, that is just an absolute disaster. It will cause so much unnecessary human suffering and
unfortunately loss of lives, in my view.
ASHER: Raul Reyes, thank you so much for that.
REYES: Thank you.
ASHER: With your perspective. All right. Still to come here, where the wildfires are raging in the U.S. Northwest. Were those fires started
deliberately? We've got the latest from Washington State. Plus, the weather outlook as well for the days ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: All right, welcome back to "One World". I'm Zain Asher in New York. Here are some of the headlines we are watching for you today. Five months
into the U.S. and Israeli war with Iran, and the Strait of Hormuz remains the key flashpoint. Another ship is reported to have been struck by a
projectile in the Strait.
It comes as Iran and Oman hold talks on coordinating traffic through the waterway under Iranian supervision. U.S. President Donald Trump insisted
Monday the Strait could reopen today. Todd Blanche's path to be the next U.S. Attorney General has just cleared a crucial hurdle.
The Senate Judiciary Committee has advanced his nomination along party lines. The vote had been on hold for a week over opposition from two
Republican Senators, but the two holdouts now say that they're on board. He must still be confirmed by the full Senate.
Emergency crews, supported by water bombing aircraft, remain on high alert in Greece where wildfires are starting to ease. Hundreds of residents who
had evacuated north west of Athens are now returning to find gutted homes and scorched farmland.
[11:35:00]
Police say a man has been arrested, also with connection -- in connection rather to arson, with one of the wildfires raging in Spokane, Washington,
here in the United States. Crews are battling more than a dozen fires across the state, with more than 260,000 acres burned. Temperatures are
expected to climb this week, creating even more dangerous conditions.
CNN Meteorologist Derek Van Dam joins us live now from Atlanta on this one. I mean, you know, it's impossible to really sort of overstate just the
scope of these wildfires taking place in Washington State, especially because you have over thousand, as I understand it, firefighters really
trying to battle this.
And they're facing everything from heat to strong winds to just in terms of the humidity. I mean, a lot of conditions are really working against them
here. Just walk us through the latest, Derek.
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yeah. And Zain, some of those firefighters fighting the fires, their homes are also threatened and or
destroyed, right? And we're hearing these testimonies on the ground from people in Spokane County. This is in Northwestern U.S. where they're lining
up at checkpoints to get ushered or let back into neighborhoods.
Some people waiting to get back into neighborhoods, find out whether or not their house was actually destroyed by the wildfires. And it's too early to
let our guard down because the fires are still active. So, what do they do? They refer to local media, national media outlets to get some sort of
understanding.
And here are some satellite images that show the neighborhoods that have been destroyed. We're talking about before and after images of some of the
areas within Spokane County that have seen the destruction from the three wildfires surrounding the city. This is really telling right here.
You can see this image taken back in June of this year. We fast forward to the start of August, and the after image is very telling of how many
different structures here have been destroyed, but what really stuck out to me here is there was still an active firefighting effort here. That is a
fire engine.
You can see one of the hoses there, trying to extinguish whatever flames they can. And then there was this image too, right? This is the before
image of one of the communities and the neighborhoods impacted by the fires, and then the after images. You can clearly see the destroyed
buildings, but also this pink line here.
That's the fire retardant dropped from the large air tankers that swoop in, trying to prevent the spread, the forward spread of that advancing fire
season. So, let's step back. Let's talk about where we stand in terms of average.
We have already surpassed the 10-year average here across the United States. Over 5 million acres burned, and the number of wildfires has
surpassed that 10-year average as well. So, it's not just the fires near Spokane that we're worried about. We have several active, ongoing wildfires
across the Pacific Northwest.
But the ones that threaten immediately right now land with houses and people, there's 0 percent containment on these three largest fires. And the
bad news is that the winds that have been calm lately are going to pick up as we head into the second half of this week. That is going to make
conditions very challenging on the ground.
The temperatures are going to go up. There's no rain in this forecast, and we know just how bad the wildfire smoke has been so far this season? Well,
guess what? It's going to get that much worse here in the days to come. Here's a live look at Seattle smoked in. That is toxic air to breathe,
Zain.
ASHER: Yeah, we sort of -- I mean, not to the same extent, but we in the Northeast actually experienced something quite similar several weeks ago,
with the Canadian wildfires as well. And as you're right, it is very toxic air to breathe. And we will actually have the Governor of Washington on the
show in the next hour, and we'll be asking him questions on this. Derek Van Dam live for us there. Thank you so much.
And as I mentioned, the Governor is going to be joining us in about 30 minutes or so to discuss those wildfires in Washington State. All right,
still to come, a marquee showdown underway for Democrats in Michigan, where an establishment candidate is taking on a progressive. More on today's U.S.
primaries in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:40:00]
ASHER: All right, voters in five states are casting ballots in key races that could determine who controls the House and the Senate, and have
implications extending into 2028. At the center of it all is Michigan's Democratic Senate showdown.
Four-term Congresswoman Haley Stevens, a moderate, faces off against Abdul El Sayed, Former Public Health Official and politically progressive. One
way to understand the importance of this race is how much outside spending is flooding into Michigan. Make that more than $62 million. Most of that is
supporting Haley Stevens by about a 30-1 margin.
CNN's Arlette Saenz is at a polling station in Detroit, Michigan. Join for our international audience, I really want to break this down because you
have Haley Stevens, who's your sort of the more establishment Democratic candidate, run-of-the-mill candidate. Many people would say just what
Democrats would expect in a race like this.
And then you have El Sayed, who is much more progressive. Just walk us through their key differences and how this race? What this race could tell
us about progressive politics across the nation as a whole?
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. This Democratic Primary in the Michigan Senate race really is going to offer some major clues about the
direction that Democratic voters want to see their party take, not just here in Michigan for the Senate race, but also beyond that.
Michigan is so important because this is a critical presidential battleground that has swung between parties in recent elections. So,
there's a lot of questions about the types of Democratic candidates that voters want to put forward, and ultimately who could win in a broader
electorate here in Michigan.
Now, El Sayed is the more progressive of the two candidates. He has really embraced Medicare for All, and also pushed to get outside money out of
politics. Haley Stevens is the more moderate candidate who has the backing of Democratic establishment leaders who believe that she has the better
chance of appealing to a wider electorate in a general election.
But one thing that a lot of El Sayed supporters we've spoken to today have expressed concerns about the outside money that has come into this race on
behalf of Stevens. She has seen more than $60 million from outside spending groups, with about half of that coming from APAC, which is the pro-Israeli
lobby.
But here is a bit of the messaging that we heard from both candidates as they rallied their supporters in the final hours.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HALEY STEVENS, DEMOCRATIC SENATE CANDIDATE, MICHIGAN: Here is a reason why Republicans are already spending thousands and thousands of dollars
meddling in this primary, trying to maybe get their preferred candidate. Look, when it comes to Michigan, I run through anyone and anything to stand
up for us.
ABDUL EL-SAYED, DEMOCRATIC SENATE CANDIDATE, MICHIGAN: This movement of ours has proven that it can come through $80 million of spending in lies
because we're willing to hold with us the truth.
(END VIDEIO CLIP)
SAENZ: Now this race could very well determine control of the U.S. Senate next year. Democrats have to hold on to Michigan, plus, flip four
Republican-held seats if they want to win the Senate majority.
[11:45:00]
So, a lot of attention will be paid on the type of Democratic candidate that's put forward. But really, this is a major test for the progressive
movement. They've seen success in very blue areas like New York City here in the U.S. but Michigan is much more swingy, much more purple.
So, there's questions going forward if a progressive El Sayed emerges from the primary today, whether he can win in November against the Republican
Mike Rogers?
ASHER: We will see. Arlette Saenz live for us there. Thank you so much. Let's take a closer look at the upcoming elections and beyond with CNN
Senior Political Analyst Ron Brownstein. He's also an Opinion Columnist at Bloomberg. Ron, always good to see you.
So, just talk to us about the differences between these two candidates, because when Mamdani here in New York was elected, a lot of people were
wondering whether or not that style of politics could work in other states across the country. And New York City is very different because it is
reliably blue.
Just talk to us about what this race means for progressive politics and actually the future of the Democratic Party, you know, across the country.
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Yeah. And that's why I think this Michigan Senate race is so important and has attracted so much
attention. You know, the left has definitely made significant gains in Democratic primaries this year.
But as Arlett noted, most of those gains have come in safely blue areas, like the three Mamdani backed candidates who won House primaries in
districts in New York City, where Harris won over 70 percent of the vote. In the swing House districts and in Senate races that will actually decide
the majority, the party is still has been still relying mostly on centrists.
Michigan would be the biggest exception to that. You have El Sayed, who is running very much in kind of the Bernie Sanders mode. He has taken what I
call the core four commitments of the left this year. A single payer government takeover of the healthcare system. A wealth tax on assets, not
only income of billionaires, abolishing, not reforming I.C.E. and ending military aid to Israel in his case, also an arms embargo on Israel.
Stevens is on the other side of all of those issues. But interestingly, she has really chosen not to fight it out on kind of ideological grounds or
contest those views, challenge those policies, but really to just center on the argument that she is more electable.
I mean, the problem is she is not a terrific candidate and doesn't scream electability herself, and I think that has kind of left her without much of
a lane to push back against the El Sayed argument, which is very much like what we saw in the Democratic Party in 2019, that because voters are
disenchanted with Trump, that means they are open for a sharp turn to the left.
Ultimately, Democratic voters rejected that in 2020. But I think it's going to have a lot of momentum here in the finals or the primaries in 2026.
ASHER: Yeah, I mean that was going to be my next question. I want you to expand on that. I mean, why is now the right time for someone like El
Sayed? Because he did run for Governor in 2018.
BROWNSTEIN: Yeah.
ASHER: And now he's really, as a Senate candidate in Michigan, he's really got a lot of momentum behind him. A lot of people are obviously talking
about him. What's changed in the past sort of eight years for this particular candidate?
BROWNSTEIN: Yeah. It's a really good question. I mean, you know, the Sanders camp would like to say that the voters have moved to the left, but
I don't think that's it. I think that what's happened in the past eight years is that the Democratic leadership has been discredited in the eyes of
their own voters.
And that to a greater extent than at any point since Lyndon Johnson in Vietnam, rank and file Democrats are alienated from their own party
leadership. I mean, I think the failure to stop the disintegration of the Biden Presidency in its final years, the failure to stop Trump from winning
again.
And the failure to create a more effective opposition to Trump, especially in his early months, really, I think has just fundamentally alienated many
Democratic voters from their leaders. You know, you hear I'm just back from Michigan, and you hear voters say, well, you know, they told us that Harris
was electable.
That you know that -- so like the idea that the party leadership is going to tell them who is electable and who is not? I think, is -- has really
been kind of diminished. And the left at this point in Democratic primaries, particularly here, I think is doing a better job at kind of
reflecting the outrage that so many Democrats feel about the last few years, not only at Trump but at the failures of their own party.
ASHER: Yeah, I mean it's interesting because just you know if you look at the Democratic Party, you know five years from now.
BROWNSTEIN: Yeah.
ASHER: If you're a sort of a standard Democrat candidate, you don't necessarily stand for anything new. You're not different. You're not a
change candidate like El Sayed. What does the future hold for you?
BROWNSTEIN: Yeah. Well, look by the way, you know the dilemma for Democrats is that in this case, the warnings of the established are probably right,
which is not that El Sayed can't win. I mean, Trump has -- his disapproval is over 60 percent in Michigan. In that environment, any Democrat can win.
[11:50:00]
But if you look at the limited general election polling that's come out already, I mean, he is struggling exactly where you would expect him to
struggle among black voters, older voters, non-college white women. It's not that he can't win, but it's going to be a more complicated path for him
than it might be for Stevens in a general election.
Look, I think Democrats, you know, as I said, I do not think that the lesson of the primaries is that you have to run far left in order to win.
But I do think there is a clear message that you can't just be status quo and expect to win.
For example, Stevens gave no ground to the criticism of Israel really, in the Democratic Party. 80 percent of Democratic voters have an unfavorable
view of the government of Israel in Pew Polling this spring. You know, Stevens I think you know again.
The mainstream Democrats have to show that they are, as I think, committed to change and as upset with the status quo as the left, because I think
that really is the lever, Zain, that's working for them. Not so much Medicare for All and abolishing I.C.E, as it is just an outrage at the way
they have to reflect that outrage among Democratic voters, and too many of the centrist candidates have failed to do that in these races.
ASHER: All right, Ron Brownstein, live for us there. Thank you so much. Appreciate it. We'll write back with more after the short break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: Archeologists and conservation experts have resumed work to preserve rather Libya's Roman heritage after a years-long interruption. The work by
a French Archaeological Mission is taking place at Villa Selene and the City of Leptis Magna, a UNESCO-listed site. Work initially began at Leptis
Magna in 1986, but was halted by instability in 2011.
In 2011, rather, following the revolt that ousted former Libyan Leader Dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Archeologists say this year they're focused on
restoring Leptis Magna's eastern baths and uncovering a pedestrian walkway.
And one of Colombia's most active volcanoes is now under an orange alert in case of an eruption. Increased volcanic activity began last month, with the
highest levels recorded since observations began more than three decades ago.
[11:55:00]
Colombia's Geological Service has warned people not to approach the volcano's upper areas, along with two other neighboring volcanoes.
And take a look at this, a Polish man is recovering after swimming for more than 54 hours. By the way, without rest, without a break, from Sweden to
Poland to raise funds for cancer care, according to CNN Affiliate TVN24. He is the first person to complete the 99-mile swim.
His Odyssey across the Baltic Sea. His fifth attempt at the crossing, by the way, began on Friday and lasted the entire weekend. This is incredible.
The epic journey has already raised more than $220,000 for the Cancer Fighters Foundation, and donations are still coming in.
And finally, before we go, after a thrilling World Cup run, Cape Verde's team captain and veteran goalkeeper Vozinha is taking his talents to Chile.
A look at that crowd that welcomed him in Santiago. He arrived over the weekend amid speculation that he was joining the country's largest club,
Colo-Colo.
The team officially confirmed Vozinha's signing on Monday following his medical inspection. The 40-year-old has locked down a six-month contract
with options for a one-year extension. Local media suggest he will make his debut on the pitch later on this month. All right; there's much more "One
World" after the break with my colleague Bianna Golodryga and myself. Stay with CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
