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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson
DHS Secretary Threatens To Jail State Election Officials; Admin. Wants States To Submit Sensitive Voter Data To DOJ; Trump Urges Sen. Darline Graham To Run For Full Senate Term; Burnham Named Head of Labor Party, To Become PM On Monday; Relief Is Coming From Wildfire Smoke Choking Major U.S. Cities; Cyclospora Outbreak Linked To Fast Food Lettuce; New Wave Of U.S. strikes As Iran Expands Gulf State Attacks; Aired 12-1a ET
Aired July 18, 2026 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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COOPER (voice-over): -- another example of the power of flowers.
BLACKWELL: It just really makes me feel good to see the pauci blooms blossom.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAURA COATES, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF LEGAL ANALYST: To learn more about his work or to nominate your hero, go to cnnheroes.com.
Hey, thank you so much for watching. Have a great weekend. "The Story Is" Elex Michaelson is next.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Los Angeles, "The Story Is" with Elex Michaelson.
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: I'm Elex Michaelson live in Los Angeles.
Coming up, "The Story Is" escalation in Iran. After a week of exchanging strikes, the top Iranian Military Adviser is warning that the U.S. could face a full scale offensive.
"The Story Is" election threats. Secretary of Homeland Security warns that they could jail election officials from battleground states who refused to hand over sensitive voter data. We'll host a live debate with my panel, Gloria Allred and Larry Elder.
And "The Story Is" hazy skies. Smoke from Canada's wildfires has taken over the U.S. Northeast. Ahead, I'll speak to a doctor on how you can stay safe.
We begin with this. The top story is the Trump administration doubling down on its push for state voter data, threatening election officials with jail time if they refuse to hand over sensitive voter records. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin repeating President Trump's claims that non-citizens are registered to vote in four states. But letters the DHS sent to those states acknowledge that the numbers are not actually verified. So far, the administration's efforts to seize voter information have been struck down in more than a dozen courts.
Despite those legal setbacks, secretary Mullin threatened state election officials with potential prosecution if they refused to comply.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARKWAYNE MULLIN, U.S. HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: The states have to do their part. I will tell you if the states that choose not to participate with the state program and they choose not to participate in securing the elections, we will make sure that we make those states a priority to look at who voted in their states and hold then the election officials accountable. If the election officials, once we gave them the information they need to secure their elections and they chose not to, then those individuals can also be held accountable by fines, by penalties, and even depending on how far it goes, prison time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Joining me now live on set, Democrat Gloria Allred, a victim's rights attorney, and Republican Larry Elder, Author and Host of The Larry Elder Show. Welcome back to both of you. Our original panel from night one of "The Story Is." Good to have you guys back.
GLORIA ALLRED, VICTIM'S RIGHTS AUTHORITY: Thank you.
MICHAELSON: So, Larry, should DHS cut off federal funding for states that refuse to comply with the Trump administration?
LARRY ELDER, HOST, THE LARRY ELDER SHOW: This whole business about election denying, it's a little annoying to me that Donald Trump is accused of engaging in it when in fact, every Republican victory since 2000, the Democrats have challenged the election. They did in 2000 after George W. Bush won. About 12 house members, Democrat house members challenged Florida during the certification procedure. Four years later, 30 of them challenged Ohio, including the Senator from California, Barbara Boxer, as did Benny Thompson who chaired the January 6th insurrection committee.
MICHAELSON: But not the principles in the election. Not the principles in election and so.
ELDER: And then in 2016, they challenged more states Donald Trump did four years later in 2020. A poll here at CNN that was discussed by your Politics Editor Chris Cillizza said 76 percent of Republicans believe there was widespread voter fraud in 2020. Oh my god. This is terrible. Our foundation of our country is undermined. Well, 78 percent of Democrats, according to Gallup, believe that with widespread fraud in 2016. My long way of saying a greater percentage of Democrats believe 2016 was fraudulent. The Republicans feel that way about 2020. Nobody calls them election deniers. It's just so incredibly, incredibly unfair. One last thing. Hillary for four years, to anybody that would listen to her, including a fence post, referred to Donald Trump as illegitimate, her word not mine, and said the election was stolen, her word not mine. She been interviewed many times including here. I never heard anybody refer to her as an election denier.
MICHAELSON: But there, I mean, let's not relitigate that election, but Hillary Clinton conceded the election, called Donald Trump, went on camera, conceded the election, showed up at his inauguration to wish him luck, and showed up at his inauguration again.
ELDER: Then for four years, the authority has asked.
MICHAELSON: In July 2024.
ELDER: -- has asked illegitimate, said the election was stolen.
MICHAELSON: It's not --
ELDER: Jimmy Carter said that the Russia Putin there.
MICHAELSON: But Donald Trump still has --
ELDER: Had referred a Democrat to the legitimate.
MICHAELSON: -- Ever going to refer to him as conceded the election from 2020. But you're right that she has questioned --
ELDER: Double standard.
MICHAELSON: In terms of Russia, but it's not exactly the standard. Let's talk about what's happening right now, though, Gloria, in terms of the Department of Homeland Security.
ALLRED: Let's talk about what's happening right now and what this is a precursor to, because this is a dangerous situation. This is not just about past history.
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This is not just about the claims of President Trump about the past. This is not even just about January 6th. This is about what we can expect in November. He is flashing a red neon flashing light at us, and he is telling us what to expect. And what to expect in November is that he is going to make sure that his Homeland Security people, take action in this election, which he expects to lose. That's why he's so desperate, Elex. That's why he's saying, he's bullying people, because he doesn't have a good argument to win. He knows he's lost that argument of approval with the American people.
So what he's doing is saying, if you don't do this, if you don't give voter sensitive information, which by the way, a court recently said Georgia doesn't have to give. And if you don't do this and you don't do that, then then officials in the election could be, possibly prosecuted, could be sent to prison. Here's what's going to happen. This is dangerous, and we are going to have to have protests. He is going to try to provoke Democrats. He is going to try to hopefully not, but maybe he's going to declare martial law and say we can't have a full and fair election. He may seize the ballots, and he has said that that he may have to seize ballots.
He's tried to seize the ballots in Georgia and elsewhere. So this is a dangerous time, and we have to take action. The only real meaningful action is going to be having overwhelming votes for Democrats in November.
MICHAELSON: What Donald Trump likes to call too big to rig what he said last time around. But your thought, you're shaking your heads.
ELDER: There's a real easy way to deal with this. Let's go back to in- person voting, show an ID, paper ballots. If you can't make it because you're sick or because you're on vacation or because you're in the military, those are exceptions. That's how it was when I was a kid. Somehow, some way, people were able to figure out a way of leaving work and voting in-person on the same day instead of having voting season. It's ridiculous. That's what's undermining confidence. And even blacks and independents, Republicans, Democrats all overwhelmingly support photo ID to vote. Why don't we do that?
ALLRED: OK. Well, first of all, you talk about mail-in ballots and somehow that that's wrong. What about people in rural areas? You didn't mention them. A lot of people are not close to where the election headquarters are.
ELDER: How do we vote?
ALLRED: And there is no reason why --
ELDER: How did they vote before? Before we had mail-in ballots. How did it happen?
ALLRED: There's no reason why we have to rule out a certain class of votes and voters because Donald Trump is afraid of losing the election. Republicans are afraid of losing it. It's not going to happen. Courts are not going to let it happen, Larry.
ELDER: Right. Because you're not a --
ALLRED: You may wish to have it.
ELDER: He's not a kid.
ALLRED: The way it was when you were a kid. But this is 2026.
MICHAELSON: But what do you say the argument that more people are able to vote? It's expanded opportunities for people.
ALLRED: Yes.
MICHAELSON: It's more convenient. And when people have the choice between the two, most people are choosing both mail-in ballots.
ELDER: If you are concerned about election integrity, if you don't like the idea that you're having things like ballot harvesting where you can get somebody else's ballot and turn it in so days after the election, let's just go back to the way --
MICHAELSON: We can turn it in days after the election. That that is not legal.
ALLRED: You can mail it in and have it counted later, but not turn it in your right.
ELDER: -- 11 days of the election or somebody's --
MICHAELSON: It's got to be the postmark before by the day of the election.
ELDER: It's ridiculous.
MICHAELSON: Let's talk about the sort of reaction to the speech has been interesting as well. The New York Times has this headline in their paper --
ELDER: Shocking.
MICHAELSON: Which I don't know how in touch they are with the Republican base, but they're suggesting that it kind of went in. Trump's election claims land with a whimper among Republicans. And a couple of Republicans who are not going to be back in the senate soon, John Cornyn, and Bill Cassidy, said this about the speech today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX): We have a 109 days until the midterm elections, and I don't understand, talking about what happened six years ago in light of these upcoming elections.
SEN. BILL CASSIDY (R-LA): As a Republican, my concern is that is that it's setting up a democratic wave election. We should be talking about what matters to the people around the kitchen table. And right now, they can't afford their health care, their housing, their groceries or the gasoline.
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MICHAELSON: Whether you agree with what he said or not, Larry, do you think it was good politics to make this a centerpiece right now? What does it make sense? And why do you think more Republicans didn't latch on to this messaging today?
ELDER: Regarding Mr. Cassidy and the other senator, they're both primaried by Donald Trump. They're no longer going to be serving, and they're a little bit heartburn over what Donald Trump did to them.
MICHAELSON: Yeah.
ELDER: So I wouldn't put a whole lot of story on what they're saying. As far as the speech is concerned last night, frankly, I expected to hear a lot more about Iran and a lot more about affordability than about the election denial, which is why I think it was so unfair.
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ABC, NBC, and to be fair, your network didn't show the speech. You didn't know what he's going to say, and we're in wartime. So how do you not allow a sitting President, Commander in Chief during a war not to air his speech when you don't know what he's going to talk about.
ALLRED: It's not just his speech. It's a bunch of lies.
ELDER: He said nothing about Iran, but you didn't know that ahead of time.
ALLRED: The problem is so much of what he said were lies. And Elex --
ELDER: Let the people determine if he's lying.
ALLRED: Here's the thing.
ELDER: Let the viewer determine if he's lying.
ALLRED: The people can determine it, because there are no facts. There's no evidence supporting many of his elevations.
ELDER: So air the speech and fact check it later.
ALLRED: Wait a second. Wait a second. His own CIA Chief John Ratcliffe, he issued a report and nowhere was there evidence there was actually election interference by foreign countries. There was election influence. They tried to influence it, but no interference in the election. And all of these figures about, oh, these unlawful immigrants voted, there's no evidence that that's any major concern or that that was in any past election. So I know facts are inconvenient things for you, Larry, and for Republicans, but there are no facts that support these outrageous crazy claims made last night.
ELDER: We know there was interference. We know the Chinese interfered. We know the Russians interfered. Whether it had an effect on the election is a whole different question.
ALLRED: And it's the most important question. Was there any impact on the election? The answer is rat sounding. No.
MICHAELSON: I need to wrap this up here.
ELDER: I know you don't want to get into this, Gloria, but Jeh Johnson, Obama's DHS Secretary testified under oath that the Russians attempted to change vote tallies, failed to change a single one. Two- thirds of Democrats, according to a YouGov poll, believe that the Russians "Change vote tallies to elect Donald Trump in 2016." That means two-thirds of Democrats are 2016 election deniers. I've never heard a discussion about any of that.
ALLRED: Well, because frankly, I don't care who's denying what. I care about what's going to happen in November.
ELDER: You're outraged.
ALLRED: That's the key.
ELDER: You have selective outrage.
MICHAELSON: Well, it just happened on CNN, thanks to you. You got it. So there we go.
ELDER: Two-thirds. Come on.
MICHAELSON: Yeah. We have a lot more to talk about, which is why we're going bring you back in the next hour.
ALLRED: Wonderful.
MICHAELSON: Together into what's happening.
ELDER: By the way, Gloria took limit in her Republican red. Is it her birthday today?
MICHAELSON: Yeah. Well, it's not her birthday today, but it's her birthday recently. We'll get into that.
ALLRED: And it's not republican red. It's power red. Is it working to intimidate, I certainly hope so, Larry.
ELDER: She has a birth month.
MICHAELSON: All red. And she is looking incredible for 85.
ELDER: Yes.
MICHAELSON: Happy birthday, Gloria Allred.
ELDER: Give it up.
ALLRED: Thank you. Maybe I can't be President, but I can still be on Elex's the issue is.
MICHAELSON: OK. Story Is and The Issue Is. We do them all. All right. We'll be -- let's get to some of the other headlines.
Now to a troubling new chapter unfolding in the war with Iran. Several Gulf states say that they are fending off new attacks, and the U.S. says it has completed another round of strikes against Iran for the seventh night in a row. A top Iranian Military Adviser is warning the U.S. could face a full scale offensive in the coming days if air strikes continue. Iranian state media reports that Tehran is also threatening key ports in the Persian Gulf in response to a U.S. attack on a surveillance tower near the Strait of Hormuz.
Let's take a live look at the traffic in that vital waterway, the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. military rejected earlier claims from Iran that two oil tankers were damaged after hitting mines while trying to pass through the strait. As the war intensifies, the U.N. now sounding the alarm. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FARHAN HAQ, U.N. DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON: The Secretary General remains deeply concerned by the continuing military escalation between Iran and the United States of America. He's particularly concerned about attacks on civilian infrastructure in Iran and across the region. Such attacks are unacceptable.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: A series of memorials has been scheduled at the end of the month for Republican Senator Lindsey Graham who died last Saturday at the age of 71. The first planned for July 28th in Washington D.C. The second will take place the next day in Columbia, South Carolina. President Trump is urging Graham's sister, Senator Darline Graham, to run-in the upcoming special primary to replace her brother on the November ballot. President Trump said she would have his complete and total endorsement if she runs. Darline Graham was appointed by the South Carolina Governor to finish her brother's current senate term.
President Trump is threatening to impose higher tariffs on Canada for what he calls the cost of the pollution from the Canadian wildfires. Smoke from hundreds of fires in Canada has blanketed major U.S. cities in the Midwest and Northeast. President Trump blamed, "Willful negligence by Canada posting, we are holding Canada responsible for the fact that they are not properly maintaining their forests.
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He said he'd call Prime Minister Mark Carney about that problem, but Canadian media report the government has spent almost $9 billion, since 2020 on foreign sustainability and fire prevention and urged the U.S. to help fight the outbreaks. The White House says President Trump's longtime teleprompter operator has been put on administrative leave without pay. Sources say Gabriel Perez is under investigation for potential insider trading by allegedly earning $90,000 in trades on the prediction site, Kalshi. As CNN's Tom Foreman reports, Perez has had rare and apparently profitable access to the President's words and speeches.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Where is Gabe? Is he here?
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Where is Gabe? Right now in hot water. Gabriel Perez has been a favorite Trump staffer for years. A teleprompter operator close at hand for many major speeches, neck deep and dead center for many final word changes.
TRUMP: The teleprompter just went out.
FOREMAN (voice-over): Trump complained when it seems Perez was not around.
TRUMP: I can only say that whoever's operating this teleprompter is in big trouble.
FOREMAN (voice-over): But now officials are looking into whether Perez used inside information to wager online in the Kalshi prediction market, betting on what Trump might say when Perez already knew what was coming. Trump's once glowing words --
TRUMP: Gabe is excellent.
FOREMAN (voice-over): Have dimmed considerably.
KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: He believes it's deeply unfortunate and frankly a disgrace.
FOREMAN (voice-over): Prediction markets allow people to put money down on almost everything from the outcome of a war to election results to how many acres will burn in a wildfire. Critics call it a toxic form of gambling which might spur people to meddle in the real world. Starting fires, for example. Numerous states are looking to regulate prediction markets. Some lawmakers want more.
MIKE QUIGLEY, U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: At the local, state, and national level, this has to be outlawed.
FOREMAN (voice-over): But the President and his team are embracing it. Donald Trump Jr. is an adviser to an investor in the multi-billion dollar business, and team Trump seems fully in line with the argument that this is not gambling at all. These are just like other financial investments such as corn futures, which only the federal government should control. It is a major industry, and we must protect it, the President has posted. Still last spring, the justice department accused a U.S. soldier of exploiting classified information on the capture of the Venezuelan President to make $400,000 on the prediction markets. He's pled not guilty. At the time, the President did express reservations.
TRUMP: Well, the whole world unfortunately has become somewhat of a casino. I was never much in favor of it. I don't like it conceptually, but it is what it is.
FOREMAN: Although these issues with the teleprompter operator were allegedly happening right under the President's nose, it was Kalshi that flagged this to federal investigators. And we should note that CNN has a partnership with Kalshi to use its data covering great big news stories and CNN employees are not allowed to place any trades on these sites. Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Our thanks to Tom Foreman. The U.K. is about to have its seventh Prime Minister in less than a decade. We'll have details on the man set to take the reins at 10 Downing Street.
Next on "The Story Is" President Trump mocks a major World Cup controversy involving a red card given to a U.S. star player. Listen to part of his statement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Probably the most unforgettable is when they gave a gentleman. Is it a red card?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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MICHAELSON: President Trump is revisiting the World Cup controversy over the red card given to U.S. striker, Folarin Balogun. President Trump attending a FIFA reception in New York on Friday where he and FIFA President Gianni Infantino lavish praised on each other. The U.S. President is expected to attend Sunday's final between Spain and Argentina.
During the reception, he made light of his controversial phone call to Infantino before FIFA reversed Balogun's one game suspension.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: A tournament like no other filled with fierce competition, unforgettable moments yet, unforgettable moments like probably the most unforgettable is when they gave that gentleman, is it a red card? And I was forced to call Gianni and just make a recommendation. I said, Gianni, I'd like to make a recommendation. Let that guy in the game. No. I didn't say that. I said I'd like to wage a complaint. And, actually, I didn't -- I had no idea what was going to happen, but it's so much better the way it worked out because there's no controversy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: President Trump will be handing the trophy to the winning team on Sunday. Meanwhile, Spain-Argentina putting the final touches on their strategy before that big match. Match pits the World Cup title defender against the reigning European champion. They'll duke it out at New York, New Jersey Stadium, which is actually in New Jersey. But there is concern that this game could be affected by the heavy smoke that is gripping much of the Northeastern U.S.
Before that, France and England will play for third place in Miami on Saturday. In addition to the consolation title, the winner will go home with $29 million in prize money.
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For the seventh time in a decade, Britain will usher in a new Prime Minister on Monday. Andy Burnham will succeed Keir Starmer. Burnham confirmed on Friday as the ruling leader of the Labor Party. He returns to parliament after winning a crucial by election last month. Burnham is promising his supporters that when he moves into 10 Downing Street, it will not be business as usual.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDY BURNHAM, LEADER, U.K. LABOR PARTY: I will work to build a new politics. The country is crying out for it. We might enjoy the point scoring against others. The public don't. How can politicians point fingers when living standards are falling and politics as a whole isn't working for them? It infuriates them and makes them switch off.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Burnham has become one of the country's most popular politicians in recent years. CNN's Clare Sebastian reports, he's embraced social media to help create a political identity.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Britain's incoming Prime Minister belongs to a new generation of politicians, one that understands the power of social media. From campaign trail highlights to football skills to a viral roasting of the British opposition leader who called him.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A pair of eyelashes and a black T shirt.
ANDY BURNHAM, LEADER, U.K. LABOR PARTY: It's dark blue, actually.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): That video racked up over 5 million views on X. The strategy, especially with these signature selfie style videos, is really part of an effort by Burnham to present himself as an outsider here in Westminster, a regular guy despite, of course, his many years spent in parliament previously. His style is true to Andy, and that isn't going to change. A source close to his campaign told me, he's not trying to land a point with every post.
JAMES LYONS, FORMER COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR FOR KEIR STARMER: He feels comfortable. He feels relaxed. And to be honest with you, it reminds me of that famous phrase that Margaret Thatcher had about Ronald Reagan. He's engaged in the great because of cheering us all up.
BURNHAM: We're doing it to change labor, to make it better, to make it work for you, that's what we're all about.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): And yet optimism and hope don't always get the clicks.
EMMA CONNOLLY, FELLOW, UCL DIGITAL SPEECH LAB: He has got a harder job, in terms of his content compared to someone like Trump or like Farage.
BURNHAM: If you come to the U.K. illegally, you will be detained and deported.
CONNOLLY: We know that social media algorithms prioritize or amplify emotionally charged, polemic, kind of controversial content in any way. But I would look to someone like Mamdani, for example, who have managed to navigate that.
ZOHRAN MAMDANI, MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: I'm freezing. You're right.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): New York mayor Zohran Mamdani is emerging as a template for progressive politicians on social media, and the parallels with Burnham aren't hard to find. Using social to amplify grassroots campaigning, lighthearted ways to discuss major policies.
MAMDANI: Start spreading.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): Even singing.
BURNHAM: I left the North again. I traveled south again.
ANDREW BARD EPSTEIN, FMR. COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR FOR MAMDANI CAMPAIGN: I like when people take risks and try things out and aren't afraid of cringe.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): But says Mamdani's former Communications Director, Burnham's desire to unify may have come at the expense of clarity.
EPSTEIN: The agenda and the message is a bit more muddled than Zoran's was. And the risk that Burnham runs in being, sort of being all things to all people or not being totally clear on where he falls on particular issues or ideological debates, I think can risk reading to people as just being another politician.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): And that's exactly what Burnham is trying to avoid.
BURNHAM: I am going to do things differently.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): He's used social media to make himself accessible to regular people, facing criticism on the way for neglecting traditional media, something he denies. No questions allowed from journalists at this recent big policy speech. Instead, a few days later.
BURNHAM: Send your questions in.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): He took to Reddit for a public ask me anything session that was so popular, the site crashed midway through, the source told CNN.
BURNHAM: Right. Oh, thanks a lot. Cheers. All right. Better hit the road.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): The challenge now to strike a balance between running on TikTok and running a country. Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: There's nothing wrong with some cringe every once in a while here on "The Story Is." Be sure to tune in on Monday from 6:00 a.m. in New York. That's 11:00 a.m. in London, 3:00 a.m. here in Los Angeles when CNN will have special live coverage of the moment Andy Burnham becomes the British Prime Minister. Sticking in that continent, Irish lawmakers have approved the country's first public register of domestic violence offenders. Known as Jennie's Law, the landmark legislation honors Jennifer Poole, a 24- year-old mother of two who was murdered by her former partner in 2021.
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The online register will publish the names of people convicted of serious domestic abuse offenses. Authorities will only release an offender's name if the victim gives consent, and offenders can only apply to have their names removed three years after conviction. Eight women have been killed by domestic violence in Ireland so far this year, and Women's Aid Ireland says one in three women in the country have experienced domestic abuse. The group says the greatest threat is from someone in a woman's personal life, not a stranger.
Millions of people suffering under hazardous air quality from wildfire smoke just ahead, talk to a U.S. air force doctor about how to protect yourself if you live in one of these hazy areas. Plus, a major producer pulls its iceberg lettuce from the store shelves in the U.S. The latest in that investigation of the parasite outbreak just ahead.
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MICHAELSON: Europe's summer of extreme heat and wildfire rages on with flames breaking out as far north as Scandinavia. More than a 100 homes were destroyed on Friday by fire in Southern Norway. Rescue officials deployed helicopters to help combat the outbreak, which authorities say has spread to a nearby forest.
Meanwhile, a wildfire in Northern Spain has scorched more than 18,000 acres of land. At least a 1,000 people had to flee their homes as firefighters struggled to contain the flames. Relief is coming from people in the Midwest, Northeast, and Mid-Atlantic states impacted by the unhealthy air quality caused by thick plumes of smoke from Canada's wildfires.
More than a 100 million people in 18 states and the nation's capital are now under air quality alerts. The smoke is coming from some of the 3,500 fires that have burned more than 6 million acres in Canada this summer. The hazardous air quality stretches from Northeast Minnesota to Southeast Virginia. The smoke is expected to thin from west to east on Saturday. Rain, shifting winds, and a cold front should eventually help clear the smoke, but the air quality may not improve immediately.
Let's get some insight from Dr. Zaid Fadul in Scottsdale, Arizona. He is a U.S. Air Force flight surgeon and the CEO of Bespoke Concierge MD. Welcome to "The Story Is" for the first time doctor. You say that there are unexpected dangers from that smoke. What do you mean?
DR. ZAID FADUL, U.S. AIR FORCE FLIGHT SURGEON: Well, first thank you for having me. Wildfire smoke is really challenging, because it's invisible for the most part and it just gets inside of your body and it starts to wreak havoc in a variety of different ways. The key issue with wildfire smoke is the particulate matter is so small it bypasses your body's defense mechanisms goes right into your lungs, into your bloodstream, and then spreads out from there. Triggering, stiffening of your arteries, raising your blood pressure, and eventually leading to heart attacks for a lot of people.
MICHAELSON: So if you live in one of those areas that are affected right now, what should you do?
FADUL: I think the key thing for a lot of people just like GI Joe says, right, knowing is half the battle. And so the first thing I tell all my patients is to check the Air Quality Index or AQI. So the government runs a great website, airnow.gov and then you could look and they have a little meter and if it's green or even yellow, this is a you're probably in the clear. But for when it starts to get to orange or higher colors than that, at that point, you want to start focusing on curtailing your outdoor activities, staying inside and taking more protective measures as the risk goes up.
MICHAELSON: And so if for example you have to work outside in one of those areas, say wear an N95 mask?
FADUL: Absolutely, I happen to have one with me. So N95s are great, so I can demonstrate how to put one on if you'd like. The key thing with an N95 mask, if you, I've got my son here with me. The key thing is you want to put it. All right, turn to the side here. The key thing for patients and anybody out there is you want to make sure one strap is up here, one strap is down there. These masks need to be pinched off so that you close the gaps. So there's no gaps anywhere here and that will go ahead and protect most of the air that you're breathing will filter out most of it and that'll give you the best chance. Dose makes the poison so the longer you're outside, the more you're exposed to this air. That's the risk there.
MICHAELSON: What's your son's name?
FADUL: Hamid.
MICHAELSON: How's the mask feel?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's good protection.
MICHAELSON: Nice. I appreciate that. And who knew you had help? That's amazing. So we appreciate you helping out with that. Let's talk about for people that are in really, have respiratory problems and that are living in these areas. What should they do at this moment?
FADUL: There's actually two categories that fit that. So people who have respiratory problems like asthma and COPD, you really need to create a safe room in your house. So the issue is that this air can get in through windows or doorways.
[00:40:00]
So with a lot of my patients I have them seal up their windows and seal up their doors and install a HEPA filter. Ideally you want to pick a room in the central part of the house and you want to filter that room if nothing else. That'll catch most of the PM 2.5, the particulate micron 2.5 particles that are triggering the asthma and irritating the lungs and irritating the eyes. If you can set up that clean room in your house you can really minimize your exposure to the particulate matter or keep an N95 on all day, but that's not any fun.
MICHAELSON: Really good advice and visual explanation from Dr. Zaid Fadul and his son. Have a great weekend. We appreciate it.
FADUL: Thank you very much. All right.
MICHAELSON: Taylor Farm says it is pulling its iceberg lettuce sourced from Central Mexico from the U.S. market entirely after it was linked to a major Cyclosporiasis outbreak. Federal health officials are urging people to avoid shredded lettuce at Taco Bell locations in five different states. Maddie Gannon has the latest on all this.
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GRETCHEN PLEUSS, CAUGHT CYCLOSPORIASIS ON HONEYMOON: It feels like, your intestines are, like really tight or, like something is like, seizing them.
MADDIE GANNON, CNN NEWSOURCE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The cyclospora outbreak that has sickened well over 1,000 people in the U.S. have a link. The CDC and FDA announced they are looking into shredded iceberg lettuce served at some Taco Bell locations in Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia.
CHARLIE HUNT, DIRECTOR, JOHNSON COUNTY, KANSAS HEALTH & ENVIRONMENT DEPT.: This infection, generally speaking, is not terribly severe for healthy people, but for people with compromised immune systems, it can cause a risk for more severe disease.
GANNON (voice-over): Taco Bell responded in a statement saying it took immediate action to remove potentially impacted lettuce from a supplier in select states. Taylor Fresh Foods supplied the lettuce and said in a statement Friday, it's removing all of its iceberg lettuce from Central Mexico from the U.S. market.
DR. ASHISH JHA, FORMER WHITE HOUSE COVID-19 RESPONSE COORDINATOR: We see cyclospora outbreaks every summer. This is a much, much bigger outbreak than what we're used to seeing.
GANNON (voice-over): The CDC has confirmed more than 1,600 cases of the parasite that causes symptoms like diarrhea and nausea have occurred since May 1st. Another 5,100 potential cases are under further analysis, the agency said this week. Experts are urging caution when it comes to what you eat. For one small farm owner in Oklahoma, it's led to an uptick in interest in buying local.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our orders were up, so I'm suspecting a lot of people are trying to buy local because they're a little bit scared of the national chain.
GANNON (voice-over): I'm Maddie Gannon reporting.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: When we come back after a week of strikes between the U.S. and Iran, I'll speak to former Ambassador Ryan Crocker about what options the U.S. has going forward and whether the U.S. is winning or losing the war with Iran right now.
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MICHAELSON: Several Gulf states say they are now fending off new attacks as the war with Iran intensifies. It comes as the U.S. says it's completed another round of strikes against Iran for the seventh night in a row.
A top Iranian military adviser is warning that the U.S. could face a full scale offensive in the coming days if airstrikes continue. Iranian state media reports Tehran is also threatening key ports in the Persian Gulf in response to a U.S. attack on a surveillance tower near the Strait of Hormuz.
Joining me now live is Ryan Crocker. He's a former U.S. Ambassador to six different countries, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, and Syria. Mr. Ambassador, welcome back to "The Story Is."
RYAN CROCKER, FMR. U.S. AMBASSADOR TO AFGHANISTAN, IRAQ, PAKISTAN, SYRIA: Thanks for having me.
MICHAELSON: Is the U.S. now in a worse position than it was when the war started?
CROCKER: I think clearly we are. On February 27th, the Strait of Hormuz was open to all international shipping including U.S. warships. Now it is closed and under fire. So we are in a worse place. There's no question about it.
MICHAELSON: So at that time, the administration talked about potential regime change. They talked about stopping Iran's nuclear power. They don't talk about either one of those as much anymore. At this point, what can the U.S. realistically achieve?
CROCKER: At this point, I think we need to get back to the status quo anti February 28th in other words. An unconditional opening of the strait to all maritime traffic. And that is going to require, a combination of diplomatic efforts, economic pressure, and kinetic action as we're engaged in currently. The Iranians, I think, are possibly overplaying their hand. They know how to do war. We're going to have to show resolve here, indicate that to our Gulf friends and allies that were in this for the long haul, and that the end game here for this stage of this war is the reopening of the strait.
MICHAELSON: So, essentially, what you're saying is the most realistic thing we can achieve at this point is to dig out of the hole that we're in and get back to where we started?
CROCKER: That's pretty much it, sadly. We are not going to get regime change. The regime that is now in power is harder aligned than the old one, if anything. We are not going to bomb them into submission. You don't win wars from the air alone.
[00:50:00]
So what we have to work to do is show resolve, perseverance here, set a reasonable goal, which is the reopening of the strait, continue to apply kinetic force to that end, exercise diplomatic pressure, as reassure our allies that we're in this until the strait is reopened, and shove everything else to the right. That's about the best we can hope for.
MICHAELSON: You have a lot of insight with the regime. You were there in Beirut in 1983 when the embassy was bombed. You've interacted with them as the Ambassador to so many different countries. Can you give us some insight in their thinking right now? And because of that insight, is that part of the reason why so many of the presidents that you worked for in both parties did not choose to get into a war with Iran?
CROCKER: Well, to begin with, it has -- it is a war. It's been a long war. As you note, I'm a survivor of one battle of that war when our embassy was blown up, with Iranian complicity in 1983. That's an act of war as was the bombing of the marine barracks six months later, another act of war. So this Iranian regime has been engaged with us in a war for over 40 years. We don't always appreciate it. They do. And that's what I mean about resolve. We've got to assure ourselves, assure our allies, and most importantly, make it clear to the Iranians that we recognize this is war, and we're prepared to fight it.
I would hope we'd fight it more intelligently perhaps than we have in the past. Again, Elex, it's something that Americans lost sight a long time ago, but the current Iranian leadership, they're all veterans of the Iran-Iraq war. 1980 to 1988, a vicious ground war, trench warfare such as the world had not seen since World War I. They know about war. Airstrikes are not going to dissuade them. So it's going to take a full arsenal of tools, again, diplomatic, economic, kinetic, alliances, international pressure, just to get back to where we were on February 27th.
MICHAELSON: Wow. Quite something, coming from you, Ryan Crocker, one of the longest serving and most respected ambassadors, in recent U.S. history. Thank you for joining us, and thank you for your long service to our country.
CROCKER: Thank you.
MICHAELSON: We'll be right back with today's top stories.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK) MICHAELSON: Thanks for watching "The Story Is." I'm Elex Michaelson, let's take a look at today's top stories.
The Homeland Security Secretary is threatening jail time for state election officials who refused to submit voter data to the DOJ. At a news conference on Friday, Markwayne Mullin repeated the President's claims that non-citizens are registered to vote in four states. But letters the DHS sent to those states acknowledged that the figures have not been verified.
President Trump is reopening a World Cup controversy involving a red card to U.S. star player, Folarin Balogun. He says that only recommended to the FIFA President to revoke the player's suspension and that there's no real controversy in all this. He spoke at a FIFA reception on Friday night ahead of his expected attendance at Sunday's finals.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio heads to the Philippines on Sunday for meetings with fellow ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Washington says Rubio wants to demonstrate the tangible results of the U.S. partnership with the alliance. Foreign ministers from ASEAN countries will meet in Manila.
Thanks for watching the first hour of "The Story Is." The next hour starts right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Los Angeles. "The Story Is" with Elex Michaelson.
MICHAELSON: Coming up this hour, "The Story Is" exchanging strikes again. Iran warns the U.S. of major retaliation after another day of bombing.
"The Story Is" turning up the heat. Despite recent killings by I.C.E., the Department of Homeland Security will be ramping up its enforcement. Gloria Allred, Larry Elder live on set to discuss.
And "The Story Is" wildfire haze. President Trump threatens Canada with sanctions over smoke now impacting a 100 million people across North America.
Welcome to "The Story Is" I'm Elex Michaelson. The Top Story Is new strikes on Iran. The U.S. completing another round of strikes a short time ago, marking a full week of non-stop attacks. U.S. military says it hit surveillance sites, military logistics hubs, and underground weapons depots. Iran is striking back focusing on American targets in the region.
Jordan reports intercepting 10 Iranian missiles. Kuwait says it repelled drone attacks while Bahrain and Saudi Arabia issued warnings for residents to shelter in place. A military adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader is warning, "If U.S. attacks continue for another two or three days, we will enter a phase of full scale offensive operations." No political border will be secure against Iran's offensive forces. For more on all this, let's bring in retired U.S. Air Force Colonel and CNN Military Analyst, Cedric Leighton. Cedric, the U.S. is expanding their involvement inside Iran right now. Why?
