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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson

Extreme Heat Affects July 4th Celebrations In U.S.; Swift And Kelce Tie The Knot In Star-Studded Ceremony; Argentina Defeat Cape Verde, Advance To The Round Of 16. Aired 12:30-1a ET

Aired July 04, 2026 - 00:30   ET

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

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ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome to The Story Is. I'm Elex Michaelson live in Los Angeles. Coming up, the top story is, 250 years of independence. President Trump says he is planning the most unforgettable birthday party any country has ever seen.

The Story Is, a love story, baby. Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are officially married. We'll get the scoop from New York City.

And The Story Is, Argentina advances in the World Cup after a hard- fought match against the underdogs, Cape Verde.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Los Angeles, The Story Is with Elex Michaelson.

MICHAELSON: It is 9:30 here in Los Angeles and 30 minutes past midnight in Washington, D.C., where it is officially the 4th of July. President Trump spent Friday evening at Mount Rushmore. His visit included an impressive fireworks display there. Look at that image. He says America's 250 will be, "The most unforgettable birthday party any country has ever seen."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No other country has done more good for this world than the United States of America. And we give thanks for these extraordinary blessings. We remember that what we have created in this country is not the natural way of the world. It is not the norm. It is the exception. It is rare. It is priceless. And it is truly miraculous.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Meanwhile, record high temperatures are already affecting celebrations in several cities. Late Friday, it was announced that the July 4th parade in Washington will be canceled due to the expected extreme heat. In Philadelphia, the Independence Day parade there was canceled due to extreme heat. And in New York, thousands of people who are without electricity because the power grid was overburdened. It's a live picture here of the Empire State Building.

All that, though, did not stop the Big Apple from marking Independence Day with an iconic Times Square ball drop you just saw live here on CNN with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen. Extreme heat in Washington, D.C., forced organizers to shut down the fair on the National Mall for about four hours on Saturday. CNN's Brian Todd was there and explains what all that was like.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here on the National Mall, it continues to be a pounding, relentless heat. And people are taking refuge and respite from it any way they can. And this is a pretty effective way to do that. This is called D.C. Fire Department's fan unit number one. It is here for this express purpose, to spray as much water on as many people as they can. You see some people just kind of standing underneath it just to get some relief.

You've got a huge fan there with at least 10 nozzles of water spraying out. And these are the lines of people to get back into the great American State Fair. The State Fair shut down at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday. It reopened at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. They pushed people out simply because of the heat. When people came back in after 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday, several of them still lined up to go onto the Ferris wheel. And you can see people on that Ferris wheel up there, even though those cars and the Ferris wheel have no air conditioning.

It is a heat box inside those cars. Not sure why anyone would want to do that. But we will see what the crowds are going to be like on Saturday, when people start to stream in here starting on Saturday morning. D.C. officials and law enforcement, White House officials telling us the heat is a real concern. They are really concerned that they're going to get a lot of heat-related calls on Saturday. And one official saying no amount of water can really fix this, not even this kind of water.

What people do need to remember are buildings like this. This is the National Gallery of Art. It is surrounded by a lot of other Smithsonian museums. We are told that the Smithsonian museums, as they always are on the Fourth, are going to be open from 10:00 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. So that's something that people need to remember. You can take shelter in a museum. There are large open spaces where people can take shelter, in addition to maybe trying to take shelter under these trees.

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But if there are hundreds of thousands of people on the Mall on Saturday, that's going to be a little bit difficult to do. There's also the security apparatus that we can tell you about. Officials telling CNN about some of the assets that are going to be used. You see the National Guardsmen over here. You see the D.C. Metropolitan Police. You see the dump truck blocking roads there. People are going to have to deal with a lot of blocked streets in the district, especially down here near the Mall.

What we're told is National Guardsmen will be deployed, in addition to D.C. Metropolitan Police, U.S. Marshals, Secret Service Police, Park Police, even outside deputized law enforcement will be involved. They will deploy drones. They will deploy counter drone systems. They're going to have snipers on rooftops. They will deploy a lot of different assets. In addition, there will be large structures.

When President Trump is speaking on Saturday evening, there will be large structures to kind of block the view of him from certain vantage points. That's for security. There will be bulletproof glass surrounding the President while he speaks. But again, the real concern on Saturday is the heat. Officials expecting a lot of heat-related calls, a key question that we'll only know the answer to when this is all done, how many people show up on the Mall on the 4th of July.

Traditionally, there are hundreds of thousands of people who come here and they stay all day long. How many are going to show up? How is that going to affect the heat-related emergency calls? That's all to be played at on Saturday.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

MICHAELSON: Of course, if it's too hot for you, you can stay at home and watch it all live on CNN.

A different kind of celebration in New York where it's also very hot. Festivities still believe to be going on right now behind closed doors after Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce exchanged their I do's. The couple tied the knot in a star-studded ceremony in New York, Madison Square Garden, Friday night. There was reportedly a strict no phone policy at the event, but CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister still got details about that ceremony.

ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are officially married after weeks of speculation over whether they would really get married at Madison Square Garden. Well, they did it, and they pulled it off after the event was shrouded in secrecy. They got married in front of 1,000 people, according to sources who spoke to CNN.

And it was officially announced right behind me on a giant billboard that lit up that said Just Married. The just was spelled with T&T. That's, of course, for Taylor and Travis. And shortly after it was lit up on the streets of New York City, I received a press release from Taylor Swift's representative, Tree Paine, which divulged some of the wedding details.

Now, who was the officiant? Adam Sandler. Yes, that Adam Sandler. That was not on my bingo card. Their press release also announced that they didn't have any bridesmaids or groomsmen. Jason Kelce, of course, Travis Kelce's brother, was his best man. And Austin Swift, who is Taylor's brother, was her man of honor.

Now, we saw a lot of celebrities going in. Everyone from Benson Boone to Hugh Grant to Jennifer Lopez, and some guests even leaving early. Chris Rock was spotted leaving early, also Steven Spielberg, but who can blame them? The party was running late. Yes, our sources tell us that the party was set to go until about 2:30 a.m., but the space was actually rented out until past 4:00 a.m.

Now, it remains to be seen when we might see any footage or photos from the event, but that will, of course, be up to Taylor and Travis. She is a mastermind, after all. For all the Swifties who have been waiting for years and years and years to see her love story come true, Taylor finally had her fairy tale ending. Back to you.

MICHAELSON: Elizabeth, thank you.

For more now, I'm joined live in studio by Sandro Monetti, the editor- in-chief of Hollywood International Filmmaker Magazine. Sandro, welcome back to The Story Is. Great to see you.

SANDRO MONETTI, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, HOLLYWOOD INTERNATIONAL FILMMAKER MAGAZINE: I am happy, but a little surprised to see you, Elex. I thought you might have been among the thousand people invited to the wedding. What happened there?

MICHAELSON: Everybody, it seemed like, was invited to this wedding.

MONETTI: Yes, yes.

MICHAELSON: I mean, some people you would not expect.

MONETTI: Maybe it's like Blake Lively. There was a bit of confusion about where you were invited.

MICHAELSON: Yes, exactly. She was not apparently invited to this wedding. Adam Sandler, though, was as the emcee. What do you make of that decision?

MONETTI: From the wedding singer to the wedding officiant, I love it. It's my favorite detail of this whole thing. Now, of course, the connection here is that Travis Kelce appeared in "Happy Gilmore 2." And, of course, Adam Sandler and his family are big Swifties. But who knew he was an ordained minister as well?

MICHAELSON: I know.

MONETTI: So I now declare you married by Adam Sandler.

MICHAELSON: You know, I also am an ordained minister.

MONETTI: Me too.

MICHAELSON: I've done a few. Oh, you have too?

MONETTI: Who should we marry?

MICHAELSON: People who are looking for anybody. We're looking live at that picture of Madison Square Garden just a few seconds ago. It was up on the screen. This thing is still going. We see it's still lit up. Apparently, this is something Elizabeth reported earlier, that when people walk into that building, there's a sign that says, by walking in here, you agree to basically let us use your name and likeness, because filming is underway. Which gives us an indication that maybe, just maybe, this may be filmed for commercial purposes and released.

[00:40:18] MONETTI: Well, these weddings don't come cheap. So you have to monetize it some way. And yes, look for the movie and or the T.V. series, I expect. And that's very clever, of course, because putting that legal statement up, saying if you walk past this sign, you consent to filming, means that none of these stars can say, hey, I want a piece of the profits of this movie. Taylor Swift is an absolute genius.

MICHAELSON: Yes, yes. Well, we have some images of the stars that were leaving their hotels and walking in early. We can put some of those up on the screen. It's been interesting to see all the folks who were caught on camera. But this whole thing was supposed to be so secret. It was, you know, a black tie only affair. And we saw some different folks walking in. What do you make of the guest list? This weird combination of the biggest names in pro football and the biggest names in pop music.

MONETTI: It is America's royal wedding. It is that big. And I'm more interested by the guests leaving early. So rude. Now, Andy Reid, the coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, I kind of expect to leave earlier. But, you know, Tom Brady leaving early, George Stephanopoulos. This is a walk of shame that's going on now. Because yes, the paparazzi catch you going in. But will they catch shade from the Swifties by walking out early?

MICHAELSON: Yes.

MONETTI: So Steven Spielberg's walked out. And so Hugh Grant as well. Plenty of others. That's bad form in my book.

MICHAELSON: Well, George Stephanopoulos hosts the morning show. So he gets up at like 2 o'clock in the morning. So maybe he can leave early. But I don't know.

MONETTI: I'm also waiting to see Harry and Meghan. But I don't see them anywhere there, so.

MICHAELSON: But why would you leave early? Think about it. I mean, this has got to be one of the craziest, coolest parties of all time. And you think about the potential musical acts going tonight. I mean, it could be these unusual duets that we've never seen before.

MONETTI: Well, Taylor is rumored to be singing with, you know, I think --

MICHAELSON: Stevie Nicks.

MONETTI: -- Stevie Nicks because on the 2010 Grammys, they did a duet of "You Belong With Me," which would be an appropriate song to sing to Travis Kelce. Paul McCartney rumored to be there as well.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

MONETTI: What have you got to do that you've got to leave early? Is there anything better than this? MICHAELSON: I know. I mean this is a once in a lifetime sort of thing. And so meanwhile, Travis Kelce had become famous before he was ever with Taylor Swift. He had this podcast where he put out into the universe that he wanted to meet Taylor Swift and then eventually makes this happen. He thought today was a great day to release a podcast with him and his brother and the future King of England.

MONETTI: Prince William as the guest.

MICHAELSON: Here's some of this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JASON KELCE, TRAVIS KELCE'S BROTHER: The Duke of Cambridge, the Duke of Cornwall, the Lord of the Isles, Prince of Great Stewart of Scotland, Earl of Chester and the Prince of Wales, 92 percenters, please welcome His Royal Highness Prince William.

TRAVIS KELCE, TAYLOR SWIFT'S HUSBAND: Let's go.

PRINCE WILLIAM, PRINCE OF WALES: That is quite an intro, guys. Amazing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MONETTI: I don't like that. I don't like that. Where's the decorum? He's not used to that.

MICHAELSON: He is not used to that. Nobody on the British side is doing that, right?

MONETTI: It makes me uncomfortable. I'm getting chills.

MICHAELSON: That's a very American thing, is it not? What do you make of the fact that he -- that first off, just sort of the change in culture. I mean, it's hard to imagine his father ever going on a podcast like that at all. Just this sort of moment in media and pop culture and sports and everything that that podcast is even happening.

MONETTI: I think that Prince William has learned a lot from Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce about how to exist in the world of modern celebrity. He's done a lot recently, and this is the latest example of it. And he also said on that podcast, an interesting titbit, that he would be coming to America if England get to the World Cup final. Your Majesty, Your Royal Highness, what you mean, if? It's absolutely guaranteed. England. England. I'm a dual citizen.

MICHAELSON: You're a dual citizen, and so it's America's 250.

MONETTI: Yes.

MICHAELSON: It's all about us celebrating leaving England. So where's your loyalty? How do you feel on this day?

MONETTI: Well, I am still a fervent monarchist. I love America as much as I love England, and if there's one thing I love more, it's Taylor Swift. What a great day for the Swifties, and what better way for America to celebrate. Happy birthday, America.

MICHAELSON: Bring the world together, and I love the American tie. Looking good, Sandro. Thank you so much. Happy 4th to you.

MONETTI: Thank you, and to you, Elex.

MICHAELSON: Let's talk soccer.

Those fans in Buenos Aires thrilled and relieved after defending champion Argentina outlasted the fearless team from Cape Verde, winning 3-2 in extra time, but Cape Verde's fans have a lot to be proud of.

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The debutante team from the island nation of about half a million people have earned the love of fans across the world going much farther in the tournament than anyone expected. Cape Verde battled back to level the game twice before an own goal finally sent Lionel Messi and Argentina into the round of 16. Colombia won their game against Ghana 1-0, extending their unbeaten streak in this World Cup to four matches and advancing them into the round of 16.

Max Bretos joins me now to help break down these games. He's a play- by-play announcer for Major League Soccer on AppleTV. Max, this Argentina-Cape Verde game was about as entertaining and crazy as any we've seen. What did you make of it and the fight for Cape Verde?

MAX BRETOS, PLAY-BY-PLAY ANNOUNCER, MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER ON APPLETV: Elex, to me, I've watched World Cup games since 19, I don't want to age myself here, 1986, pretty regularly. This is at the top, top two, top three at any level because we couldn't believe what we're seeing.

When you're watching it, it's an underdog story of seismic proportions. It's Miracle on Ice. It is Leicester City winning. It's a 16-seed beating a one-seed in the NCAA tournament. And it was the fact that Argentina was a huge favorite. They took the lead. Cape Verde came back. Argentina took the lead in extra time. Cape Verde came back. Incredible goal by Sidny Cabral that they'll be showing over and over again.

And then at the end, had to succumb. But it was -- it's a result that got not just people in Cape Verde pumped. Everyone knows where it is on the map. Everyone wants to go visit it. Everybody wants a Cape Verde shirt. Everyone wants them to see back in four years. It's a small country, but they play big boy soccer. And they showed that. They were so brave and inspiring.

And I think we all win because we get to enjoy that experience. And we still have Messi and Argentina who have a lot of questions, by the way, moving forward in the tournament.

MICHAELSON: Yes, although we were not ready to say goodbye to Messi quite yet. Colombia, meanwhile, knocks out Ghana. Are they a real threat? What do you make of the Colombian team? BRETOS: I was ready to say Colombia was a threat, and I want them to do well, but there are some alarm bells. I mean, Ghana was tough. They scored the early goal. Once you score against Ghana that we're going to defend, you would like to see Colombia get two, three goals. They were taken to the very end here. James Rodriguez, their star player, was taken off at the half. Luis Diaz, their new star, also.

A lot of tinkering with Colombia. And while they will advance to the round of 16, they're going to play the Swiss. I kind of like Switzerland better in that matchup. I hope Colombia makes it. They didn't make the World Cup four years ago. They are a de facto kind of impromptu host because it looked like Medellin in Kansas City. It was all yellow and red, Colombian colors, and we like to keep them around, but they have a big test. The Swiss look really good. I don't think Colombia's right ready to make a deep run. I hope I'm wrong.

MICHAELSON: A day of exciting matches, including the Egypt versus Australia match, which was decided on penalty kicks. Egypt making history. Their first World Cup round, knockout round win ever. Walk us through that match and what you think of Egypt.

BRETOS: Well, this was more about Australia. Australia got to penalties and then they switched their goalkeeper. Then their first penalty taker was their center back, who you won't really think would be a good penalty taker. He skies it. Then their third penalty taker was the other center back and he skied it and it was over. But this was important for Africa. They had nine teams in the round of 32.

Morocco made it and we're waiting for a second team. Obviously, Cape Verde didn't win, but were inspiring. And with that result, and Egypt and their star Mo Salah making the round of 16, this was a success for Africa. Morocco's expected to continue their pursuit into the deeper tournament. They made the semis four years ago. But Egypt's interesting.

They're the next opponent for Argentina and I think they'll have a game plan based on what we saw in Miami versus Cape Verde, that Egypt, they're an underdog, but they're going to make that game interesting. So they might have another game left in them. Really, really good and happy that Africa had their moment.

MICHAELSON: In the hours ahead, we'll see Canada, Morocco, Paraguay, and France. Now the round of 32 is officially over. Sort of an experiment for FIFA. What'd you think? Did it work?

BRETOS: Well, experiment that went well. We're very critical of expansion. We were critical of everything FIFA did. But they are being, you know, they're smelling like a rose here. The ticket prices, we thought, I was on your show and I said, there's probably going to be half empty stadiums. I was dead wrong, Elex. Everything's been packed. The ticket demand is going through the roof from every people, soccer fans, newbies. So that is obviously a success.

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Now the round of 32 was the result of a 4018 World Cup. So you have 16 extra games. These 16 games were, except for a couple blowouts, all competitive. Most of them were interesting. You had the Cape Verde story. All three hosts, Canada, Mexico, and USA advanced. I think the round of 32 gave them a chance to do that. So it's hard to, it's hard to just, to argue with FIFA about expanding the tournament. And they'll probably expand it again next time to 64 teams. But I mean, where are they going to get any pushback? This was awesome. Everyone loved the round of 32.

MICHAELSON: And it was so fun to have all of those countries coming visit North America and to have that cultural exchange happening as well has really been great. Max, it's going to be a fun weekend of soccer. And of course, Monday night, the United States is playing as well. So I look forward to talking to you more next week. Great job all week, Max. Thanks so much. Happy Fourth.

BRETOS: All right. Get some rest, Elex. Sunday, Mexico, England also is going to be off the charts.

MICHAELSON: I'm not resting. I'm working all day tomorrow on July 4th. But I hope you get some rest. Thank you so much. Watch our coverage tomorrow on CNN.

Still to come here on The Story Is, Pope Leo's 4th of July trip, why he is spending the holiday on one small Italian island, even though, of course, he's the first American pope.

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MICHAELSON: Pope Leo XIV is spending his 4th of July on Lampedusa, the Italian island that's often at the front line of the Mediterranean migrant crisis. The trip highlights the humanitarian issues the Pope has put at the center of his papacy. Here's CNN's Vatican correspondent Christopher Lamb.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On a landmark Independence Day for America, Pope Leo, the first U.S.-born pontiff, is not taking part in big celebrations. Instead, he is traveling to Lampedusa, the front line of the Mediterranean migration crisis, where thousands arrive each year and many never survive the often-perilous journey.

While on the southern Italian island, the Pope will meet migrants, celebrate mass, and lay a wreath for those who died at sea.

DON CARMELO RIZZO, PARISH PRIEST, LAMPEDUSA (through translator): When migrants disembark, we make simple evangelical gestures. Sometimes we give a glass of water. Sometimes we give a smile. We ask for their name, a few words of encouragement. And these sometimes seem like insignificant gestures, but they are the gestures that give dignity to the person who, perhaps when they arrive, sees so many military uniforms. LAMB (voice-over): Supporting migrants is a top priority for Leo's papacy and a point of tension with the Trump administration. Leo has criticized the immigration crackdown in the U.S., calling it, "inhuman." And this week, Vice President J.D. Vance called the Vatican stance troubling.

LAMB: For many arriving here, the first help comes from the Red Cross. This crossing is one of the most deadly in the world, with more than 32,000 people either lost or missing over the last decade.

ROSARIO VALASTRO, PRESIDENT, ITALIAN RED CROSS: We don't know, actually, how many people died in the Mediterranean Sea and how many died during the old route from Africa to Europe. And I think that it's quite something to be ashamed to consider the lives of people like numbers.

LAMB (voice-over): Church leaders say the Pope's message reflects the history of America and highlights the contribution of new arrivals.

RONALD HICKS, ARCHBISHOP OF NEW YORK: The United States has always been a country of immigrants. Everyone has come from somewhere.

LAMB (voice-over): Leo is also following in his predecessor's footsteps, with Pope Francis making an emotional, high-profile visit to Lampedusa more than a decade ago. The Chicago-born pontiff wants the church to work on the front lines of the crisis, like this parish on the island. In recent months, Leo has shown a willingness to speak out, even in the face of criticism.

CARDINAL BLASE CUPICH, ARCHBISHOP OF CHICAGO: He's said before he's not going to be afraid of opposition. He's going to do what he's called to do in his ministry.

LAMB (voice-over): As the U.S. celebrates its 250th anniversary, the Pope's July 4th message comes from a place where people often arrive having risked everything in the hope of a better future.

Christopher Lamb, CNN, Lampedusa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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MICHAELSON: The funeral for Iran's late Supreme Leader is getting underway, with ceremonies planned across five cities in two countries. Our Fred Pleitgen is on the ground in Tehran. We'll check in with him next.

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