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Violence Erupts Across Mexico After Cartel Leader Killed; DHS Reverses TSA Precheck Suspension; MAHA Voters Criticize Trump's Controversial Weed Killer. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired February 23, 2026 - 10:30   ET

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

[10:30:00]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Let's get back to one of our major breaking stories we're following right now. Chaos in Mexico after government forces killed the country's most wanted drug cartel leader. A wave of violence has followed, especially in Puerto Vallarta on the west coast. American tourists have been told to shelter in place in parts of the country. Pamela.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: With us now is Roseanne Hope. She's an American staying just outside Puerto Vallarta. Thank you so much for joining us. First question is, do you feel safe where you are right now?

ROSEANNE HOPE, AMERICAN TOURIST STRANDED IN MEXICO: We actually do. We feel very safe. The Mexicans have really supported us and helped us, coach us what we should be doing. And we're staying in a condo. And our security guards stayed overnight last night with no sleep. And he's still here. So, we've been bringing him coffee. We feel very safe. But as you can see behind me on the beach, there's no one there. It's like nobody has left their house or their condo.

BLITZER: And Roseanne, what did you see and what did you hear in your area yesterday when this situation really exploded?

[10:35:00]

HOPE: Well, what happened to me personally, I was out for a long run. I was coming back and I stopped and looked in at the hockey game that was in overtime. And there were only two Americans there. And the Canadians were very sad. And I quietly cheered and continued my way home. And then I stopped to get some food. And all of a sudden, I got a text from my nephew. And he said, I think there was an earthquake. What happened? And apparently a car bomb went off right near our condo. And then everybody started running off the streets and saying, get in your condo. It's going under curfew. Hurry, hurry.

And so, I'm staying with some Canadian friends. And we ran up to the grocery store. And there were like 50 people in there just taking all the food off the shelves like you'd see in COVID. So, we got as much food as we could. And we have nine people here and made dinner last night. And we haven't left our condo.

BROWN: Wow. So, how much more food do you have to sustain you? Because it's unclear how long this is going to go on. And you had mentioned the Mexican officials had coached you what to do. What did they tell you?

HOPE: Well, it's more our condo is coaching me. My landlord is a wonderful person in Guadalajara. My yoga instructor is here. And they're all very smart and very well informed. So, they've been checking in on us and making sure we're OK. And they just said, do not leave. Do not go anywhere. So, right now we have enough food and water and --

BROWN: Say that again?

HOPE: Right now, we have enough food and water. But if we run out, we're going to send someone out to go fishing.

BROWN: Oh, my goodness. All right. And what about -- so, you said you haven't heard from the official -- government officials there in Mexico. But what about American officials, such as the State Department?

HOPE: We've heard from the State Department, but it's mostly Canadians here. So, we've really been following the Canadian news, which is probably similar to American. They just all say shelter in place. And I'm here with Julian Nelson. And she's -- oh, go ahead.

BLITZER: No, I just wanted to point out, Roseanne, your niece, Julian Nelson, is standing right next to you. And I just want to get her thoughts. Julia, how are you dealing with all of this?

JULIA NELSON, AMERICAN TOURIST STRANDED IN MEXICO: So, I was supposed to fly back to Minneapolis yesterday. And, of course, that flight got canceled. So, I've just been trying to figure out how to get home. But now I have a new flight on Friday. So, my vacation has been extended.

BLITZER: Yes, no school, at least not now.

NELSON: And it's really rough here. It's five degrees in Minneapolis.

BLITZER: Yes. Well, good luck to both of you. I know both of you are expected to be home by now, but your travel plan's very much up in the air and based on what's going on. Had you received any warning before you left the United States to go to Mexico that potentially there could be some problems there?

HOPE: Not really.

BLITZER: Nothing. All right. Well, good luck to both of you. Stay safe over there. And we'll be in touch. Roseanne and Julia, appreciate it very, very much.

BROWN: All right. Well, more breaking news. More than 40 million Americans are under blizzard warnings as a bomb cyclone unloads on the Northeast. Five states, from Delaware to Connecticut, report more than a foot of snow on the ground. Central New Jersey has seen nearly two feet. Wind gusts have been clocked at more than 80 miles an hour on Long Island. And downed trees and power lines have left hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses without power. There are also widespread warnings to stay off the roads, and more than 10,000 flights have been canceled. Quite a mess there.

Let's bring in CNN's Jason Carroll, who is at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey. What's the situation where you are, Jason?

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Pamela, I can tell you, it's just still not looking great here. You can see, look behind me, it has been like this all morning long. Very few people here that we've seen. This is the reason why, part of the reason why. You look outside, and there it is.

We are still looking at whiteout conditions here in Newark International Airport. So, the problem is, folks still can't get here because of conditions outside. And the folks who are here simply can't get out. So, many of them that we've been talking to, Pamela, have had to stay the night here, overnight, due to all of these canceled flights. A lot of folks, you know, who had intended to get out yesterday could not get out, so they had to overnight here. Couldn't get out this morning. The board shows it all. So, many of these canceled flights.

Take a listen to some of the folks that we talked to about the travel experience that they had, still trying to get out, still unable to do so.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUNE CONKLIN, STRANDED TRAVELER: I was dropped off at 6:00 yesterday morning because who was going to ride you during the day? So, our flight was supposed to leave at 11.45. It got delayed twice. And then finally, I guess they fixed the plane, and they were sending a rescue plane, but they winded up -- we winded up going on the original plane that was delayed coming in.

CARROLL: Oh, boy.

CONKLIN: So, we got on the actual plane. They were de-icing it, and by the time they de-iced it, it was -- the winds, I guess, picked up.

[10:40:00]

CARROLL: And what time was that?

CONKLIN: Maybe around -- we were supposed to board -- we boarded at 6:00, maybe 6.30, 7:00. So, we all got off the plane and then winded up sleeping here. So, this is something I'll check off my bucket list.

GLORIA EVANS, STRANDED TRAVELER: Spirit promised me that my flight was going out today at 9.20.

CARROLL: A.m. this morning?

EVANS: A.m. this morning. They scheduled me. And I told them, please check it because I'm 80 years old, I'm on a cane, and, you know, I have problems and stuff, and I fell down, and I'm just -- I don't know what to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CARROLL: That poor woman still trying to get out. Well, let me give you an overview here of what some of the airports are looking like in terms of cancellations. JFK at 89 percent, LaGuardia, 98 percent cancellations, Boston, Logan, 92 percent, Newark, where we are, 83 percent, and Philadelphia International, 82 percent cancellations. Those are extremely dramatic numbers. Looks like the situation probably won't start to get any better until at the earliest this evening. Pamela.

BROWN: All right. Jason Carroll, thanks for bringing us the latest there. Appreciate it, Wolf.

BLITZER: Very disturbing indeed. Also happening now, reversing course. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security walking back its decision to suspend the TSA pre-check and global entry programs amid a partial government shutdown.

CNN's Tom Foreman is here with us in this situation. We're following this. What happened? What is the status now of TSA pre-check and global entry this morning? If you're coming back into the United States from overseas, there's global entry. You can speed up and go through the process.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Everything you've been talking about here, what an excellent weekend to insert a lot of chaos and confusion, but that's exactly what Homeland Security Undersecretary Kristi Noem did.

Yesterday morning, they suddenly announced that as part of this partial government shutdown that they were going to suspend these two programs. Now, these affect tens of millions of people. They're basically saying we have to rearrange our resources here.

Look at the numbers here, the number of people who have signed up for TSA pre-check or global entry. TSA pre-check costs somewhere around $80 to sign up for global entry, about $120. If you look at the numbers, tens of millions of people, 20 million active members TSA pre-check, global entry, 12 million travelers enrolled. And important to note, their enrollment fees are largely what pays for this program. So, saying, oh, this is a budget issue is a bit of a machination in that they're saying, well, we have to move agents around.

Anyway, the airlines didn't know much about it, so they were in chaos, the airports were in chaos, and it took very little time for all of a sudden, the department to come back and say, well, no, they're not suspended for now. They were under sharp criticism from travel groups and industry groups that are saying you are simply using passengers as pawns in a political fight. You're trying to defend your immigration money in this budget-fighting Congress, so you're trying to inconvenience millions of air travelers to make your point here, which, of course, they would say is not the case. In fact, they put out a statement as they changed this, basically saying, look, we're going to take it now on a case-by-case basis as we deal with this. There will be no change for the traveling public. However, they did say courtesy escorts, such as those for members of Congress, have been suspended to allow officers to focus on the mission of securing America's sky. So, like I said, terrible weekend for this to happen, and really all it amounted to was chaos, confusion, and a lot of frustration.

BLITZER: And so, frustrating, especially for travelers like me who fly a lot. TSA pre-check is so important. It speeds up moving through the security lines, and the global entry is so important when you're coming back to the United States. What about CLEAR? Because I have that as well

FOREMAN: CLEAR sort of folds into the whole big way, but that's private sort of operation in a way, and so it all folds into the confusion of it all.

BLITZER: But that's still around.

FOREMAN: Yes. Yes, it does. But the main problem with all of this, the main problem with all of this is just that. People buy into these programs not just for their convenience, but the programs exist for the convenience of the airports and clearance. Like, if you have somebody who is a trusted traveler, somebody who has been there, been through all the checks, why have all these resources? Checking them again and again and again and again when you might be able to speed up the process. So, this really seems to have hurt everybody.

BLITZER: When you go through CLEAR, they just look at your face. It's on record. And they say, go ahead.

FOREMAN: Yes. Global entry the same. You walk up to a kiosk, it quickly says, this is you coming back from wherever you were, Mexico, France, wherever, and it just checks you, and you're back in.

BLITZER: Tom Foreman updating us. Thank you. As he always does. Appreciate it very, very much.

BROWN: Thanks so much, Tom. And coming up, the Make America Healthy Again movement that boosted President Trump's 2024 campaign. Well, they're not happy about his controversial executive order. We'll speak to a MAHA mom next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:45:00]

BROWN: Happening now, members of the Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA, movement that boosted President Trump's campaign and his choice of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for HHS secretary are criticizing the administration after a new executive order. The directive boosts domestic production of a weed killer called glyphosate. The controversial chemical found in Roundup. Activists say the herbicide poses long-term health risks and they're threatening to revoke support for Trump's agenda in the midterm elections.

Joining us now is Zen Honeycutt. She is the founder and executive director of Moms Across America, a grassroots group that challenges food production in the U.S.

[10:50:00]

And I know you're very passionate about this, so we wanted to have you on and hear what you have to say. What went through your mind when you learned President Trump signed this order?

ZEN HONEYCUTT, FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MOMS ACROSS AMERICA: Thank you for having me on, Pamela. I was outraged. I was actually sick to my stomach when I saw this executive order. It was basically a letter to the president to glyphosate.

And, you know, as somebody who is optimistic, I had hoped because Kennedy was brought into the administration and fought glyphosate with, you know, Monsanto lawsuit and won, that perhaps glyphosate would be banned, as it should be, as there's over 700 studies showing that it causes harm. One recently that showed it causes over 10 types of cancer, particularly leukemia, in younger rats. This was done on 2,000 rats over two years. It was a very extensive study.

So, seeing the science behind glyphosate pointing to the direction that it should be banned, at least restricted, and then to see this administration come out with declaring glyphosate a national security asset was mind-boggling. And I have to tell you, it has caused the biggest uproar in MAHA or in all of the activism that I've been doing over the past 13 years.

BROWN: Yes, and I was doing a little bit of digging on it. So, the EPA has never come out and linked it to cancer. But the World Health Organization --

HONEYCUTT: No, actually they did.

BROWN: OK.

HONEYCUTT: They did in 1985. They had a study that showed that glyphosate was linked to cancer. The EPA had posted that out. And Monsanto then did another study showing what they did was they took skin from a cadaver. They cooked it, they baked it. They froze it and baked it again until that skin was like leather. And then they said, oh, but glyphosate could not cause cancer on the skin because glyphosate doesn't soak through the skin.

This is what was revealed in the Monsanto papers during the trial that Monsanto literally cooked the science to say that glyphosate does not cause cancer when in fact the EPA had already acknowledged that there was a probable link to cancer. So, they have known this since 1985. And that is why so many are so angry that Monsanto manipulated the science and did advertising where your father could be, you know, in flip-flops or espadrilles on the front yard spraying roundup and would then end up with cancer unknowing that it was because he had roundup. BROWN: Right. Just making the point, and my team's looking at that, but there is no universal agreement, but the WHO did look into it and said it's probably carcinogenic to humans and says the general population is exposed primarily through residents, residences in near sprayed areas, home use and diet. This has made its way to the Supreme Court. It's a big issue. And RFK Jr. himself, as you pointed out, had fought against it and won in a lawsuit against the company.

Your advocacy and the work of your group, Moms Across America, really catapulted RFK Jr. onto the political stage. I want to play what he said just last month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The conspiracy theory that you believe in.

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR. HHS SECRETARY: Well, I believe that glyphosate causes cancer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So, he said that just last month. He is now defending the executive order, saying, quote, "It puts America first." Have you attempted to contact the secretary or his team about this apparent change in position? Has he lost your trust completely?

HONEYCUTT: Well, he just posted on X and I responded to that last night. And, you know, we have communicated in the past, but what I do know about this is that he wants to support his president in order to continue to be able to do the good work he's doing.

Let's be clear that this administration has put out more health advances than any other administration I have seen, especially around food dyes, vaccines, transparency. They have done a tremendous amount of good work. However, supporting glyphosate and instead of regenerative organic farming, which they are doing some of, but supporting glyphosate is the wrong direction to go in. And the explanation is that the farmers have come to them, which are primarily chemical farmers, and they have said that they will go out of business if they don't have glyphosate.

Also, 85.7 percent of the glyphosate that is produced is produced by Chinese-owned companies. And Trump does not like that. He wants to have any asset, any, you know, pesticide, herbicide, you know, probably chips, car parts, you know, anything that we absolutely need to have for national security, he wants to have it in the United States. I can understand that, but I would hope that this administration would keep their promise, which was addressing the pesticides in our food, childhood chronic illness, and autism on the presidential platform, shaking Kennedy's hand, saying he could go wild.

That's why Democrats and independents voted for Trump, for a Republican, for the first time in their life, and we expect this administration to keep their promise. BROWN: Yes, and just to follow up, there was an ad hoc committee that completed a review in 1985 showing it was carcinogenic to male mice and classified as Group C, possible human carcinogen classification.

[10:55:00]

But as it stands today, as we're speaking here, the EPA, under Democrat and Republican administrations, it has not officially come out, though you have seen the WHO and other studies that have come out and said it's partially carcinogenic.

I want to ask you, just as you point out the politics of this, based on everything you've seen out of the White House so far, are you planning to vote for Republicans in the upcoming midterms? And what are other MAHA moms telling you about how they're feeling right now?

HONEYCUTT: Well, what I'm seeing in the chat groups when our House representatives voted for Section 453, which was the pesticide immunity shield in the House of Appropriations, we did get that out, but when Republicans were voting for that, what I was seeing in the chat groups was, I guess I'm a Democrat now, right? So, there are a lot of people who are very upset about what the Republicans are doing. And what I have to say is that, is we shall see.

There is still time for the Republicans to turn this around, for Trump to turn this around, for the EPA to turn this around. There's 86 pesticides that are being used in American farming that are banned in China and Europe and other countries. Let's start banning some of those pesticides here in the United States.

Let's look at the real science that other countries have looked at. Let's start reducing our children's exposure to toxic pesticides, just like this administration said they would do. And then let's see at the midterm elections if people feel like voting for Republican and having this administration be in office is what they want to continue to support. It's really up to our elected officials to do their job.

BROWN: Zen Honeycutt, thank you so much for coming on. We appreciate it.

HONEYCUTT: Thank you.

BLITZER: And thanks for me as well. Also coming up, a massive bomb cyclone is pounding the northeast right now. This is a live look at the Bridgewater, Massachusetts situation. Folks there could see up to 19 inches of snow. We have our correspondence across the region as we track this monstrous storm.

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