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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson
Iranian Strikes Hit Kuwaiti Oil Tanker Anchored in Dubai; IMF Warns Iran War Causing Higher Prices, Slower Global Growth; Sirens Wail in Northern Israel as Hezbollah Conflict Intensifies; FOX News Poll Shows Trump at 64 Percent Disapprove on Iran; Rising Oil Prices Spark Fears of Possible Global Recession; CNN Speaks with Fidel Castro's Grandson Amid Energy Crisis. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired March 31, 2026 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[00:00:00]
SHAY TAYLOR, RETURNING AS DOCTOR TO HOSPITAL WHERE SHE WORKED AS A JANITOR: -- for your family members if you can because that definitely helps.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: And the message of your story, for people who think maybe this is not for me?
TAYLOR: It's for you.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
TAYLOR: I mean, I show that the sky is the limit, as cliche as it sounds, and being in this country, I continuously show that if you put in the hard work, you can definitely do it and it's not where you start, it's always where you finish, and just keep going no matter what losses you take.
BLACKWELL: Shay Taylor, I've enjoyed this. This is the good news we needed tonight. Thank you.
TAYLOR: Thank you so much.
BLACKWELL: All right. That does it for me. "THE STORY IS WITH ELEX MICHAELSON" is next.
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Elex Michaelson live in Los Angeles. And this is THE STORY IS.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON (voice-over): THE STORY IS the price of oil. Near a four- year high as the war with Iran surges on.
THE STORY IS the politics of conflict. CNN's Jake Tapper on our set to discuss where President Trump goes from here.
And THE STORY IS Fidel Castro's grandson. He's a critic of the current Cuban government. And CNN sits down with him in Havana. (END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: Live from Los Angeles, THE STORY IS with Elex Michaelson.
MICHAELSON: Thanks for being with us. The top story is in the Persian Gulf, where Kuwait's state media is reporting that Iranian strikes hit a large Kuwaiti crude carrier anchored in Dubai. Officials from Dubai confirmed that response teams have put out the fire on board that oil tanker. No injuries have been reported. All 24 crew members are safe.
Kuwait's Petroleum Corporation says the tanker was fully loaded, and now there are concerns of the possibility of an oil spill.
CNN's Matthew Chance has more from Doha.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: This is exactly the sort of attack that the region and the global oil markets have been so worried about, because this is a really huge supertanker. It's a Kuwaiti flagged ship. It's about 300 meters long, which is about three football fields long. So it's an enormous vessel, carrying a maximum capacity of 1.2 million barrels of oil.
And we're told by the Kuwaiti News Agency, which is reporting on this, that it was fully laden. So this is an oil tanker that is filled to the brim with perhaps more than a million barrels of oil. It's been struck by a drone, according to the authorities in Dubai. Again, it comes as Iran strikes out, lashes out, at the surrounding Gulf Arab States in response and retaliation for the attacks that it's suffering from the United States and from Israeli strikes inside Iran.
It's lashing out, firing missiles in the past few hours towards Kuwait, towards Saudi Arabia, and drones, of course, which have hit this supertanker.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Our thanks to Matthew Chance. Meanwhile, we are seeing more exchanges of missiles between Israel and Iran. Video geolocated by CNN shows several large explosions in Esfahan, Iran. The overnight bombardment comes on the heels of Israel's wide scale wave of strikes across Iran's capital on Monday. Earlier in Jerusalem, smoke trails left by intercepted missiles could be seen across the sky. Meanwhile, the White House says talks to end the war with Iran, which now in its second month are, quote, "going well" despite Tehran denying that they're happening at all.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Anything that they say to us privately will be tested, and we will ensure that they are being held accountable to their word. When the president says more reasonable, again, these folks are appearing more reasonable behind the scenes privately in these conversations than perhaps some of the previous leaders who are now no longer on planet earth because they lied to the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Meantime, Secretary of State Marco Rubio doubled down on Trump's stance that they are dealing with more reasonable negotiators in Tehran. But he admitted it's not quite clear how decisions are actually being made in Iran.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO, SECRETARY OF STATE: Well, 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)
MICHAELSON: Now despite claims by the administration that it is making diplomatic headway with Iran, President Trump is threatening to obliterate Iran's energy sources if a deal to end the war is not reached and the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened.
Here's what the White House had to say about that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEAVITT: Of course, this administration and the United States Armed Forces will always act within the confines of the law. But with respect to achieving the objectives of Operation Epic Fury, President Trump is going to move forward unabated, and he expects the Iranian regime to make a deal with the administration.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[00:05:07]
MICHAELSON: CNN's Kristie Lu Stout is live in Hong Kong for us.
Kristie, what more can you tell us about that oil tanker in Kuwait? What do we know?
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Elex, this was a fully laden Kuwaiti oil tanker. It was hit off the coast of Dubai. And this is one of the most significant strikes on a vessel since the war in the Middle East began. And it comes after those threats being made by U.S. President Donald Trump threatening to target civilian infrastructure across Iran if Iran doesn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
And as if on cue, the price of oil just keeps rising and rising. In fact, U.S. crude settled above $100 a barrel for the first time since July of 2022. It was shortly after midnight, that was when this Kuwaiti oil tanker was hit off the coast of the UAE. There were many fears of an oil spill, some 24 seafarers were on board. They're reported to be safe. And we've been monitoring the Dubai Media Office that's been providing updates on X.
Let's bring up one of the updates. The Dubai Media Office saying this, "Authorities in Dubai confirmed their response to an incident involving a drone affecting a Kuwaiti oil tanker in Dubai waters with no injuries reported." I should add that the fire has since been extinguished. And this strike, this incident happened after U.S. President Donald Trump took to Truth Social and posted additional threats against water infrastructure, against energy infrastructure in Iran.
We have the post for you, and this is what the president sent out. He said this, quote, "If the Hormuz Strait is not immediately open for business, we will conclude our lovely stay in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their electric generating plants, oil wells and Kharg Island, and possibly all desalination plants which we have purposely not yet touched," unquote.
Now Kharg Island is tiny, but it has -- it's just a third of the size of Manhattan, but it has an outsized economic impact for Iran. It's Iran's economic lifeline. Some 90 percent of its oil, its crude exports flow through Kharg Island. So any strike on Kharg Island would represent a major escalation in this conflict. And any strike on a civilian infrastructure installation would constitute a war crime under international law.
Now meanwhile, we continue to follow events in the battlefield across the Middle East and Iran. At least two people were killed when, according to Iranian state media, an orphanage was targeted. The city of Isfahan, some dramatic social media video has been pouring out of there. That city is under bombardment right now. In Lebanon, three U.N. peacekeepers from Indonesia were killed in two separate incidents. And in Israel, an oil refinery complex was hit by debris from an intercepted attack.
So far this war, now five weeks in, has killed thousands of people across the Middle East and wreaked havoc on global markets. This as Iran continues and maintains its iron grip on the Strait of Hormuz -- Elex.
MICHAELSON: Yes, we're looking at some of that video from Isfahan right now. So you talked a bit about the global economy, the price of oil. Now the IMF is weighing in. What are they saying?
LU STOUT: Yes, the International Monetary Fund, Elex, is sounding the economic alarm. It's saying because of the war in the Middle East, it is causing rising prices and it's causing a slowdown in economic growth all over the world. In a blog post that was released on Monday, this is what IMF economists said. They said this, quote, "Although the war could shape the global economy in different ways, all roads lead to higher prices and slower growth. Much depends on how long the conflict lasts, how far it spreads, and how much damage it inflicts on infrastructure and supply chains," unquote. And Elex, Asia is vulnerable here. Elex points out you have two major
energy consuming regions in the world, Europe and Asia. And these two regions are bearing the brunt of this conflict because of higher energy prices. The IMF also adds, already there are a number of countries suffering from rising prices of fuel, food and fertilizer. Lower income countries are particularly at risk, at risk for food insecurity -- Elex.
MICHAELSON: Yes, and none of those countries had a vote in terms of going and doing this action.
Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, thank you so much for that.
France, meanwhile, is calling for an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council after several U.N. peacekeepers were killed in Southern Lebanon. The U.N. interim force in Lebanon says two peacekeepers from Indonesia died when an explosion destroyed their vehicle earlier today.
We look live in Beirut right now, where it is Tuesday morning. It's unclear what caused that blast. Two other peacekeepers were wounded, one severely. This comes two days after the U.N. said another peacekeeper was killed when a projectile exploded in Southern Lebanon. The French foreign minister says the attacks on peacekeepers are, quote, "unacceptable and unjustifiable."
[00:10:05]
Israel is ramping up its military operations in Southern Lebanon, expanding its so-called buffer zone against Hezbollah.
CNN's Jim Sciutto shows us the conflict from the other side of the border in Northern Israel.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF U.S. SECURITY ANALYST (voice-over): It's a fact of life on Israel's northern border that incoming Hezbollah fire comes frequently and without warning.
So this is life up in the north. They say about 40 warnings like that a day. We just had two of them in the span of five minutes. A combination of rockets, sometimes anti-tank missiles, but also increasingly drones. And some of them can't be intercepted.
(Voice-over): The Kibbutz Kfar Giladi lies just about a mile from the border with Lebanon. After the October 7th, 2023 Hamas attacks, Israel evacuated communities like these. But during this war, they're staying.
NISAN ZEEVI, ISRAELI SECURITY SQUAD VOLUNTEER: You know, our children in the shelter for more than 29 days, in a shelter. Not allowing to go out. You know, all this, the economic ecosystem collapse.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): What's different now is that Israeli forces are pushing into Southern Lebanon. They say to push Hezbollah further back.
CAPTAIN "M", ISRAEL DENSE FORCES: At the hills, past the wall.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): This company commander, the IDF only allows us to identify him as Captain M, regularly leads operations inside Lebanon.
What leads you to go across? Is it a particular threat or is it just establishing a regular presence?
CAPTAIN "M": It's a bit of both. More often than not, it's a concrete threat that well get from the intelligence that we have terrorists that are trying to come near the border that we have ammunition that is stored somewhere, that there are tunnels that are still around, whatever it is.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): Visiting the north himself Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Israeli forces would push even further into Lebanon.
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): In Lebanon, I've just instructed to further expand the existing security zone in order to decisively thwart the threat of invasion and to push anti-tank missile far away from our border.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): It's a move that Zeevi and other northern residents welcome.
ZEEVI: This time, the IDF actually did what us, the civil society that settled here years ago, expect them to do.
SCIUTTO: Which is?
ZEEVI: To go in front of us, not behind us. We cannot be the first line with Hezbollah.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): The Israeli government now speaks of military operations all the way up to the Litani River, some 20 miles into Lebanese territory. To create this so-called buffer zone, Israel has now forced hundreds of thousands of Lebanese civilians from their homes in the southern part of the country.
And yet Hezbollah fire continues. Today the IDF is prepared to operate inside Lebanon for as long as they are ordered to.
CAPTAIN "M": I can tell you that when we get an order, we will do whatever we need to do. And I think, and I want to believe that the army will make decisions for what is best for the Israeli civilians that live here.
SCIUTTO (voice-over): The questions for Israel are, how much further into Lebanon and for how long? For now, Israeli officials leave those questions unanswered.
Jim Sciutto, Kfar Giladi, Northern Israel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: It's been 46 days since the U.S. Department of Homeland Security essentially shut down, at least in terms of the funding, and it will be at least two weeks until there's a possibility of reopening. There is growing criticism of lawmakers as both chambers of Congress are now on recess. They've gone home. They've been spotted at places like Disney World in Florida and Las Vegas casino as thousands of DHS workers go unpaid.
TMZ now asking people to send pictures of lawmakers on vacation. That's where we saw those. Lawmakers hit a stalemate after Republicans in both chambers passed competing proposals to fund the DHS. Senate Republican leader John Thune says he will not call senators back from recess until there's a deal with the Democrats.
There is one bright spot amid the shutdown. Security wait times have plunged from hours to minutes at some U.S. airports. CNN spoke with travelers who were pleasantly surprised when they arrived extra early for their flights. Others had thoughts on lawmakers being on recess.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mad at Congress is appropriate.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. And they're on their spring break right now, so, and getting paid for it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We got here four hours early, but we were pretty worried that it was going to take a lot longer than that.
RYAN YOUNG, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What worried you the most?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The TSA lines.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They need to get off vacation and get back to work. They need to pass everything and get moving again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[00:15:03]
MICHAELSON: Monday was the first time that about 61,000 TSA workers started getting paid since the beginning of the partial government shutdown. President Trump signed an executive order last week triggering that payout. Hasn't fixed the problem at every airport yet, but many major airports reported wait times of less than 30 minutes.
FOX News recently asked Americans if they approve or disapprove of the way President Trump is handling the war with Iran. 36 percent approve, 64 percent disapprove. In terms of his overall job performance, 41 percent of Americans approve of the job he's done, almost 60 percent disapprove.
Let's talk about this and more with Jake Tapper, anchor of "THE LEAD," weekdays 5:00 to 7:00 Eastern, 2:00 to 4:00 Pacific, right here on CNN. Welcome to the show.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR, THE LEAD: It's good to be here. Congratulations.
MICHAELSON: Great to have you.
TAPPER: I told you at the time welcome to CNN.
MICHAELSON: Thank you.
TAPPER: But it's nice to say it in person. You've been on my show several times. Nice to be on yours.
MICHAELSON: It is great to have you. It's a big -- it's a big night for us to have you here with the Philadelphia Eagle mug and all. So let's talk about the politics of all this because usually almost throughout American history, when there is a military conflict, you see the president's approval rating go up.
TAPPER: Yes.
MICHAELSON: Not in this case. Why is that?
TAPPER: I think there are a lot of reasons for it. One is we are obviously in a very divided time in American politics, where half the country is not going to like President Trump and the other -- I'm exaggerating numbers. About a third of the country no matter what President Trump does, they're going to be with him. About a third is going to hate whatever he does, period.
We are also now far past, I think, as a country, the idea of we always need to rally around the president during a time of war post-Iraq and post-Afghanistan. And I think one of the people that has caused that skepticism, which is not necessarily unhealthy, is Donald Trump.
MICHAELSON: Right.
TAPPER: By questioning the war in Iraq and Afghanistan continually. And then third, even if you support President Trump, even if you support his goals in this war, even if you're all in on everything he's done, it is very difficult to make the argument credibly that he has explained well what he is doing, why he's doing it, how long it's going to take, and what the specific goals are.
Everything keeps shifting. He's doing it the same way he does everything, which is kind of by impulse.
MICHAELSON: Well, and we've got sort of some tape to illustrate that point. Play this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They are begging to make a deal, not me. We have another 3,554 targets left, and that will be done pretty quickly. It's not finished yet. I'm not saying. It's sort of finished, but it's not finished. It's got to be finished.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: So even in the same speech, sometimes he'll say two very different things. I'm curious for you in terms of how do you cover that? How do you explain because you're kind of the cut through the BS guy. That's sort of your thing. How do you cut through the BS and try to get to what's actually happening?
TAPPER: Well, I mean, you cover the war, what's going on, the ramifications, what it means to the American people, what it means to the global economy and everything. But then also, you just have to point out the inconsistencies, which is not to say it's gotcha, it's just to say the American people are confused as to why we are in this war. Marco Rubio expressed irritation on "Good Morning America" today where he said, you know, write this down.
People don't seem to understand but the four objectives have been very clear -- destroy their navy, destroy their air force, destroy their missiles, destroy their capacity to make missiles.
OK. That's fine. What about the nuclear material? What about the Strait of Hormuz?
MICHAELSON: What about the regime?
TAPPER: What about the regime change? Like those are not in that list.
MICHAELSON: Right.
TAPPER: And those -- and one of the reasons is, look, if President Trump were as disciplined as Marco Rubio, maybe this would be a different thing. But he's not. He -- and he's gotten very far being who he is.
MICHAELSON: He beat Marco Rubio in the primary.
TAPPER: He beat Marco handily. Quite handily. So I mean, I think it is just what you get when you get Donald Trump is like message inconsistency, complete lack of discipline. And when it comes to selling legislation for tax cuts, that's one thing. When it's life or death, that's another. And one other point I think I should make is President Trump campaigned against wars in the Middle East, and now he's leading one.
And also, I think that he got, not lucky, but I think he got convinced because of the military operation against Iran's nukes last summer, and then what happened with Maduro earlier this year, I think he got convinced that things are always going to be quick and easy. He's the luckiest guy in the world. He's going to be able to do this, too. And I'm sorry, that's just not the situation.
MICHAELSON: Certainly not with the Strait of Hormuz right now as well. So that's happening. And then you've got this DHS shutdown situation as well. A little bit of relief for the TSA workers who apparently now are getting paid. We'll see.
TAPPER: For at least one paycheck.
MICHAELSON: We'll see how that goes. And if that's legally challenged and all the rest of it. But where, where is this going? I mean, is there any end in sight? Do you see any sign of any sort of deal on this front?
[00:20:06]
TAPPER: No, but it's not necessarily even Democrats versus Republicans.
MICHAELSON: Right.
TAPPER: It's the House versus the Senate. The House led by Speaker Johnson. He has no margin for error, right? And they are not going to take the deal that the Senate negotiated. The Democrats and Republicans in the Senate. Now, you and I could look at this or your viewers and think, OK, the Senate bill was funding everything except for ICE and Customs and Border Protection. You do that later. OK. That's a compromise.
Democrats didn't get anything, but we're reopening the government, and that debate will happen later. Republicans in the House say no, we're going to fund everything for eight weeks. And then, you know, both of them are compromises.
MICHAELSON: Right.
TAPPER: But now it's just this stupid fight between the House and the Senate. And this is -- there's an old story in Washington, D.C. about a House member saying, referring to the Democrats as his enemy, he goes, no, no, no, that's the opposition. The Senate is your enemy.
MICHAELSON: And so usually politics, there's got to be an incentive. There's got to be a deadline. There's got to be --
TAPPER: What's the incentive?
MICHAELSON: Right. At this point, what is the circuit breaker?
TAPPER: No, because both parties are being judged negatively by the American people. Republicans more harshly, negative 22. Democrats harshly, negative 12. But both sides think they're winning and the other side is losing. And it's just -- it's just very emblematic of the dysfunction of Washington.
MICHAELSON: Well, Jake, I wish we had better news to share on that front, but it is great to see in Southern California.
TAPPER: Well, then we'd be out of business if there was only the good news.
MICHAELSON: Yes. And we'll have you tomorrow anchoring "THE LEAD" from here in Southern California once again.
TAPPER: Yes. MICHAELSON: With exclusive reporting from California.
TAPPER: Yes, absolutely.
MICHAELSON: So that, of course, will be on as every day, 5:00 to 7:00 Eastern and 2:00 to 4:00 on the West Coast.
Jake, thank you so much.
TAPPER: Thanks, Elex. Great to be here.
MICHAELSON: Really appreciate it.
Still ahead here on THE STORY IS, the U.S. Army is investigating this video posted by Kid Rock showing what appears to be Army helicopters hovering outside his house. We'll tell you what an Army spokesperson is saying about that. Plus volatile oil prices taking their toll around the globe, sparking fears of a potential recession. Standing by right now, economist Ryan Patel here to talk about that, helps save you some money, when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:26:50]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEAVITT: These are short-term actions and short-term price fluctuations for the long-term benefit of -- of ending the threat that Iran poses to the United States of America, our troops and our allies in the region. And ensuring that this regime can no longer control the world's free flow of energy through the Strait of Hormuz, which is something the administration continues to tackle day by day.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt there, repeating the White House claim that the long-term gain will outweigh the short-term pain, but the messaging from the White House is not doing much to calm volatile oil markets. The global benchmark Brent crude topped $116 a barrel on Monday before settling at $112. You see it right now at about $113. The national average for a gallon of regular unleaded gas is up to $3.99 a gallon, according to AAA, and former or current Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is hinting at keeping interest rates unchanged in the short term.
Ryan Patel, senior fellow at the Drucker School of Management at Claremont Graduate University.
Ryan, welcome back. Good to see you. Jerome Powell, let's play what he said about interest rates today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEROME POWELL, CHAIRMAN, FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD: I think the situation like the present situation where, you know, there's sort of downside risk to the labor market, which suggests keep rates low. But there's upside risk to inflation, which suggests maybe don't keep rates low. You've got tension between the two objectives. And I think to try to expect unanimity at a time like that where it's really quite historically challenging, it would almost be misleading to be really confident in which way that should go.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: So I guess to translate that into English is we're fighting amongst ourselves on what to do because we have no idea, because we've never seen this before.
RYAN PATEL, SENIOR FELLOW, DRUCKER SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, CLAREMONT GRADUATE UNIVERSITY: Best case scenario, do nothing. That is the best case scenario right now for the, you know, consumers, central banks, because it keeps the status quo without kind of jeopardizing both sides. I can definitely tell you, decreasing rates is not even in the conversation as of right now.
MICHAELSON: So let's remind people why this even matters. So interest rates that determines the rate on how you buy so many things, right?
PATEL: Yes. And you know, you think about houses, credit cards, auto, right? It means that you can borrow and take, you know, money cheaply, right? You're not paying more for something that is a higher interest rate you're giving away. So your value, your purchasing power would be more, that you have a little more flexibility. When interest rates increase, things start to get a little more, you know, inflation increases is why they're trying to battle it. That means prices are starting to be a little bit higher than normal.
MICHAELSON: And there was some thought maybe about decreasing rates, but that's not happening.
PATEL: Hold on, hold on. Thought? All of last year we were talking about getting to where. The Fed was talking about getting to a soft landing. I don't know if you --
MICHAELSON: Right. Well, President Trump wanted to get rid of the Fed chair because he wasn't cutting rates fast enough. Right? And that's been this whole thing.
PATEL: And guess what? You can't do that now, right? Going into this year, getting the GDP back to the U.S. economy was to have a faster recovery. And because of this it's hard to do that. And those interest rate cuts that were promised maybe for the first half of this year has to be on pause. And you're now -- you're going to have to wait and see for the second half of the year.
MICHAELSON: And which impacts people that are looking at buying a home or buying a car or all the rest of these things as well. Now everybody has got to think about that, where maybe they were making plans in a different way.
[00:30:04] Speaking of cars, a lot of people, it's spring break for a lot of folks that are thinking of getting in their cars and going on a trip. We just showed the oil prices: $113 a barrel right now. It's been over 100 for, like, a couple of weeks now.
I mean, any signs at all of that changing anytime soon?
RYAN PATEL, SENIOR FELLOW, DRUCKER SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, CLAREMONT GRADUATE UNIVERSITY: No, I'm sorry to say that. I mean, just this past week, CEOs of oil companies, you know, thinking about when do we get back to $70? Like that's not even in the rear mirror.
And even if the war ended today, to get to that number over the next month or so is going to be pretty hard. What we're really focusing on is, like, how long does that number stay or increase and rise? Is this the new norm?
And to be able to, like you mentioned, you have to think twice about how much you're spending in your energy bill, as well. It's just not oil.
MICHAELSON: Yes. I mean, because when this thing started, we were talking about 70. And then, like, week two, we were talking at 80. And then last week, we were talking at 100, and now it's 113. So, every week it seems to be going in the wrong direction.
And so, what that means for the average person out there that's watching us right now, it's costing them more money. It's like a tax that they're now paying every time they go to fill up their tank.
What's your advice to people who maybe don't have a bunch of extra money to give to the oil companies right now?
PATEL: I mean, first off, you know, you have to include the core electricity bill. Your bills start to increase. So, you have to kind of adjust for the electricity and the gas bill was one.
Second, you've got to create, you know, decide where you get to save money. You have to decide things that you have to spend right now. What is necessary?
And those big purchase items, I'm sorry, those things are probably going to push them down the road. Even when you were mentioning interest rates. Do you want to keep more cash on hand over the next two to three months because of the uncertainty? Do you want that flexibility, or do you want to go down the other route?
And I think the -- the last thing I would say, you know, at the end of the day is how, you know -- don't be emotional right now, especially those that maybe have money in markets to that degree. You know, be fundamentally sound with the way that you are handling your money.
And, you know, be proactive. Please do not be reactive. Hopefully, this is a message, like you just mentioned. When you and I were first on, we talked about it was going to get to $100. MICHAELSON: Right.
PATEL: Right? So, are we -- are we just going to wait to react to that? Or are you going to try to get to that point to where you feel you put yourself in a better position?
MICHAELSON: Then you think about the impact that what you're saying has on the whole economy.
PATEL: Yes.
MICHAELSON: Because if people are now holding back on all those purchases, that means people that were depending on people making those purchases are now losing money, as well. And there's a domino effect, a whole cycle, and it's not good.
PATEL: Yes. You know, even saying that out loud, it doesn't -- it's counter-intuitive. The U.S. economy is on, two-thirds is on consumer spending.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
PATEL: But if you're asking me personally what I would tell the individual --
MICHAELSON: Right.
PATEL: -- you have to do that. And that's what other businesses are doing, right? They're keeping cash on the side. And it does have a cyclical effect, but it needs to have -- the markets also need to react, as well.
MICHAELSON: Ryan Patel, thank you for guiding us each and every step of the way. We need help right now. We'll take it whenever we can.
Now to this: the FBI says the attack on a synagogue in Michigan earlier this month was a Hezbollah-inspired act of terrorism.
Investigators say a man rammed a truck into the building, while more than 100 children were inside for school. The synagogue security officers exchanged fire with the attacker before he shot and killed himself inside the vehicle.
Authorities say the truck was filled with fireworks and gasoline, which were meant to cause a huge explosion.
The suspect was identified as a naturalized U.S. citizen from Lebanon. The FBI says he acted alone and was inspired by Hezbollah propaganda after members of his family were killed a week earlier in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon.
The FBI held a news conference earlier where they revealed some of the evidence they found.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JENNIFER RUNYAN, SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE, FBI DETROIT FIELD OFFICE: During the morning and early morning of March 10, he continued his online searches with specific search terms and phrases such as "the largest gathering of Israelis in Michigan," "Orthodox synagogues," "Israelis near me," "what time is the Trump rally in Michigan," as well as "a center affiliated with the Israeli embassy in Michigan." He later attempted to try and delete these queries, but we were able to recover them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Now, one of the synagogue security officers was hit by the vehicle and injured, but there were no other casualties.
Ahead, an exclusive interview with a new generation of the Castro family. What the grandson of Fidel Castro has to say about Cuba's government and the energy crisis, and why he's a sign of the changing times. Patrick Oppmann in Havana, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:39:22]
MICHAELSON: A Russian-flagged oil tanker has now reached the waters off of Cuba after President Trump allowed it to break a U.S. fuel blockade.
The tanker is reportedly carrying nearly 730,000 barrels of oil. But experts say that may only offer limited economic and humanitarian relief as Cuba struggles with a deepening energy crisis.
The White House press secretary spoke about the tanker on Monday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: This is not a policy change. There has not been a formal change in sanction policy. As the president said last night, we allowed this ship to reach Cuba in order to provide humanitarian needs to the Cuban people. These decisions are being made on a case-by-case basis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Among the Cubans now dealing with frequent blackouts is the grandson of former leader Fidel Castro. Nightclub owner Sandro Castro is a critic of the current government. He sat down with CNN's Patrick Oppmann for an exclusive interview.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In this social media satire video, Donald Trump arrives in Cuba to buy the island. While this Trump is a fake, he's dealing with a real member of the Castro family: Fidel Castros grandson, Sandro Castro, an influencer and nightclub impresario who says he has no interest in politics. The very public face of an otherwise still mysterious family that has
held power in Cuba for nearly seven decades.
At an interview in his apartment in Havana, Sandro Castro says he is a sign of the changing times on the communist-run island.
OPPMANN: And what would your grandfather, Fidel Castro, say, that you're more capitalist than communist?
SANDRO CASTRO, FIDEL CASTRO'S GRANDSON: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
GRAPHIC: My grandfather was a person who had his principles like everyone else. But he also respected others' opinions. That's my way of thinking.
OPPMANN: But all the capitalists had to leave Cuba.
CASTRO: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
GRAPHIC: There are many people in Cuba that think in a capitalistic way. There are many people here who want to have capitalism with sovereignty.
OPPMANN (voice-over): When we arrive for the interview, the neighborhood Castro lives in is in a blackout, a near constant condition these days, with the U.S. oil blockade and power plants breaking down.
Sandro Castro's apartment is lit by an electric generator, but from his balcony, the surrounding houses are in near total darkness.
He shows me his one-bedroom bachelor pad, how he lacks paint for the wall. How his fridge is nearly empty except for the Cuban beer he's always drinking.
I point out that the appliance is a foreign brand that most Cubans could never hope to afford. His famous last name, Sandro Castro wants people to know, doesn't come with any special treatment in a Cuba, on the edge of economic collapse.
CASTRO: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
GRAPHIC: We have to fight, as we say in Cuba. It's tough, so tough.
OPPMANN: Even for a Castro? (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
CASTRO: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
GRAPHIC: Because you suffer through thousands of problems in a day, there might not be electricity, no water. Goods don't arrive. It's so hard, really hard.
OPPMANN: But being a Castro must help you.
CASTRO: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
GRAPHIC: My name is my name. I am proud of my name logically. But I don't see this help you are talking about. I am one more citizen.
OPPMANN (voice-over): Cuba faces unprecedented U.S. pressure to open politically and economically.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a Cuban American, has been reaching out to Cuban officials, including members of the Castro family.
In one of his videos, Sandro Castro pretends to receive a call from Rubio, who he then hangs up on. Rubio has said Cuba needs new leadership, and that could include Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel stepping down.
Despite Fidel and Raul Castro's support for Diaz-Canel over many years, Sandro Castro says he is no fan.
OPPMANN: Do you think President Diaz-Canel is doing a good job?
CASTRO: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
GRAPHIC: I would not say he is doing a good job. For me he is not doing a good job. There are a lot of things he should have been doing for a while now. And today that is hurting our lives.
OPPMANN (voice-over): Cuba's leaders reject attempts to blame them for the crisis, and Sandro Castro says officials have questioned him about his often surreal and critical postings.
As well, Cuban exiles regularly attack him online, he says.
OPPMANN: Why do you think there are people, though, that hate the Castro family so much?
CASTRO: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
GRAPHIC: It's complicated. Many Cubans would have liked to have been capitalist. I think the majority of Cubans want to be capitalist, not communist. That has created differences, a hatred which is not productive.
OPPMANN (voice-over): Sandro Castro says he supports Trump's calls to open the economy, if not his threats against the island.
At the end of his video, he takes the U.S. leader on a tour of Havana. Hope from at least one member of the Castro family that an historic deal with the U.S. and opening on the island are possible.
Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Our thanks to Patrick.
Dozens of people have been killed in Western Haiti as armed gangs attack civilians and burn homes. Haitian authorities confirmed at least 16 people were killed on Sunday in the country's main agricultural region.
Rights groups estimate the death toll had risen as high as 70 by Monday.
Thousands have been forced to flee the violence. The attacks come ahead of the expected arrival of an international force aimed at combating gang violence.
Ahead, a first look at the plans for Donald Trump's presidential library.
[00:45:04]
We'll show you the latest digital renderings of the massive skyscraper said to be coming soon to Miami's waterfront.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MICHAELSON: Welcome back to THE STORY IS. I'm Elex Michaelson. Let's take a look at today's top stories.
Kuwait's state media is reporting that Iranian strikes hit a Kuwaiti oil tanker anchored in Dubai. Officials from Dubai confirmed that they have successfully put out that fire on board the vessel. No injuries have been reported. All 24 crew members are safe.
[00:50:12]
Kuwait's petroleum corporation says the tanker was fully loaded, and now there are concerns of the possibility of an oil spill.
The countdown has officially begun for the Artemis II mission, in what will be NASA's first crewed flight around the Moon in more than 50 years.
You're looking at live pictures from Cape Canaveral in Florida. Four astronauts will embark on a ten-day test flight to evaluate the Orion spacecraft's life support systems and pave the way for future Moon landings.
The launch is set for Wednesday evening from Kennedy Space Center.
The U.S. says it has formally resumed operations at its embassy in Venezuela after seven years. Consular service for U.S. citizens, though it is not yet available in Caracas, as repairs to the chancery building are said to be taking place ahead of the full return of personnel.
The move comes almost three months after the U.S. captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in a military raid.
Teenagers in France are criticizing a proposed bill that would ban social media for children under 15 years old. Senate lawmakers are set to vote on the bill Tuesday, but teens say that platforms like Instagram and TikTok help them communicate and make plans and share memories with their friends. Some parents see the ban as essential, raising safety and mental
health concerns.
The bill is backed by President Emmanuel Macron, who has asked his government to fast track the legal process.
A similar ban in Australia is now in effect for kids under 16. That went into effect back in December.
Authorities are investigating what led a 15-year-old student to shoot a teacher at a high school in Texas. They say the student shot and killed himself after the attack this morning.
The teacher's in the hospital. There's no word on their condition. The key question for investigators is how the student got the gun in the first place.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHERIFF MARK REYNOLDS, COMAL COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: During the -- and I'm never one that's going to back down from a difficult question. But during the reunification process, that student's parents and kin folks were in the reunification line.
And so, that's partly -- part of our investigation. And some of the questions were asked, of where the firearm came from.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: The school was put on lockdown, and students were taken to a nearby middle school to reunite with their families. No other injuries were reported.
The U.S. Army is investigating a video posted by the singer Kid Rock last week. Look at it here. It appears to show two Army Apache helicopters hovering outside his home in Tennessee.
Kid Rock captioned the video, saying in part that it was a level of respect the governor of California, Gavin Newsom, will never know.
Newsom jokingly banned Kid Rock from California earlier this year in a social media post.
Now, the U.S. Army says it's looking into why the helicopters were there and if the fly-by violated regulations or safety standards.
A spokesperson for the 101st Airborne Division told CNN, quote, "Appropriate action will be taken if any violations were found."
Take a look at this newly-posted video from Eric Trump. He says it's a first look at the proposed Donald J. Trump Presidential Library.
The digital renderings show a towering glass skyscraper with a gilded gold entrance in downtown Miami. Trump's name would be prominently displayed under the red, white, and blue spire. The building would feature a massive atrium, seemingly large enough to
hold Air Force One, a large golden statue of the president, and a big ballroom.
It would also include a replica Oval Office, with all of Trump's recently added gold trimming.
The library's foundation hopes to raise nearly $1 billion for that project.
Ahead, in our next hour, I sit down with social media influencer Hasan Piker to talk about his visit to Cuba, the conditions there; what everyday life now looks for the people of Cuba.
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[00:58:59]
MICHAELSON: Well, it is official that Celine Dion will make her long- awaited return to the concert stage later this year, and the Eiffel Tower is part of the splashy reveal.
In a video posted online, Dion confirmed that she has ten shows coming up in the City of Light. What a way to announce it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CELINE DION, SINGER: Over these last few years, every day that's gone by, I've felt your prayers and support, your kindness and love. Even in my most difficult times, you were there for me.
This year, I'm getting the best gift of my life. I'm getting the chance to see you, to perform for you once again in Paris, beginning in September this year.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: This follows her showstopping cameo at the Paris Summer Olympics back in 2024.
Dion had previously been forced to halt performing live due to her struggles with what's called Stiff Person Syndrome, an incurable autoimmune disorder. The singer first disclosed her diagnosis in late 2022.
Great to see her coming back.
