Return to Transcripts main page

The Story Is with Elex Michaelson

UK Agency - Tanker Hit By Projectile Near Strait of Hormuz; Sources - U.S. Planning Iran Strikes As Soon As This Weekend; Reflecting Pool Work Botched, Vandalism Case Dropped; New Russian Campaign Targets Ukrainian Gas Stations; Trump Defends Blanche, Controversial Fund In Cabinet Meeting; Democrats Face Split Between Progressives And Moderates; Cyberattack On Water Systems In Multiple U.S. States; Camp David, A Rustic And Historic Meeting Place, Refuge; Aired 1-2a ET

Aired August 01, 2026 - 01:00   ET

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

[01:00:00]

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: This type of jet, by the way, costs around $102 million each.

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: I'm Elex Michaelson live in Los Angeles. Coming up, "The Story Is" Middle East on edge. Sources tell CNN that the U.S. is planning a new strikes on Iran as the president says, "All they do is make me angry."

"The Story Is" botched. The justice department drops its case against a former Olympian accused of damaging the Washington reflecting pool who the administration is blaming now.

And "The Story Is" new danger, Russia's deadly new tactic for sowing chaos in Ukraine, bringing the war to civilians far from the front lines.

We begin with this just in to CNN. An unknown projectile has hit a tanker off the coast of Oman near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz. That is according to a report received by a British maritime monitor. It did not say who was responsible for that attack. Meanwhile, we are learning that the U.S. is planning to launch fresh strikes on Iran as soon as this weekend. That comes as President Trump gathered his cabinet at Camp David, while the administration tries to find an off ramp from the war.

Two U.S. officials say the scope of the strikes and potential targets still not clear, and they could be called off altogether. President Trump signaling that the fighting is unlikely to stop anytime soon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Iran is doing very poorly. Just in case you read incorrect stories, they're doing very, very poorly. They're having a hard time. We'll be hitting them very hard. And, at some point, they're going to say, we just can't take it anymore. All they do is make me angry. They just make me angry. I'm losing faith in them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: A senior Hamas official tells CNN the militant group has agreed to give up its weapons, but only if Israel upholds its obligations under this October ceasefire agreement, which includes withdrawing its forces in Gaza and the so called yellow line. Israel says it will not pull out its troops before Hamas disarms. Despite all this uncertainty, President Trump is calling that deal a breakthrough.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I don't have an understanding with Israel. Israel is very happy about it. Israel helped us, and they've been very good. They've been very good about it. Most people said that would be a deal that would be undoable. Now will it go through its ups and downs? It's a very complex situation over there. The people are very complex and difficult. Many cases, wonderful. In many cases, not so wonderful. But that will be a, it's a great breakthrough. Nobody's ever thought that would -- nobody thought that would be possible to disarm Hamas.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: CNN's Jeremy Diamond is in Tel Aviv following the latest. Jeremy.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: We haven't heard anything from the Israeli Prime Minister about this, and a source familiar with the matter tells us that we're unlikely to hear the Prime Minister publicly disagree with this deal that has now emerged. But that being said, we've seen across the Israeli political spectrum and certainly within Netanyahu's own government concern about this agreement, a belief that it doesn't go far enough in terms of putting Hamas truly out of power and disarming, Hamas.

Israeli officials had previously said that they wanted to see any weapons bought from Hamas taken out of the Gaza strip or destroyed entirely, not stored away under the control of a Palestinian technocratic government as is the case in this plan. And what's important to note here is that any progress on Hamas' disarmament has agreed to in this agreement is contingent upon Israel taking steps first to move forward and allow for that disarmament to take place.

I spoke with a senior Hamas official who told me that they're not going to begin the process of disarming until Israel first abides by its commitments under this ceasefire agreement. That includes stopping the near daily air strikes that we have seen in Gaza, since this ceasefire came into effect nearly 10 months ago, killing more than 1,200 people. It also means pulling Israeli troops back to the yellow line as agreed to in October.

As you know, over the last several months, Israel has been slowly taking over more territory inside of Gaza. And in the latest indication of how difficult this process is going to be moving forward, one Israeli official telling us that Israeli troops will not move in Gaza, will not withdraw away from the current version of the yellow line until Hamas disarms. That's putting things the opposite way that Hamas says this agreement should move forward.

And also, frankly, U.S. and Board of Peace officials making clear that there are a number of steps that Israel must take in order for this disarmament process to begin.

MICHAELSON: Our thanks to Jeremy Diamond in Israel. Now to an embarrassing climb down by Donald Trump's justice department now admitting that the $14 million renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was "hasty and botched."

[01:05:00]

And the criminal case against former Olympian David Hearn is now dropped. He had been charged with vandalizing the landmark. President Trump has insisted publicly over and over again for weeks that vandals are responsible for the severely damaged pool lining, chronic algae blooms, and green queued water.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: We caught some people, vandalizing our beautiful reflecting pool. They tried to destroy it. They cut it up with a box knife and tried to destroy it, and it's in great shape now. They're terrible. They're vandals. And these people went in and cut it up, and they got caught.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: For more on all of this is Law Professor Jessica Levinson from Loyola Law School. Jessica, welcome back to "The Story Is."

JESSICA LEVINSON, LAW PROFESSOR, LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL: Great to be here.

MICHAELSON: Why would the DOJ drop this case now?

LEVINSON: Well, what they're saying is we have new information. They're saying it wasn't us. It was the Department of Interior. We got information from them indicating that all of the problems with the reflecting pool were not the result of vandalism, but in fact were the result of essentially a botched job, a problem with the contractors who rushed to get this done by the America 250. And what they're saying is we have a duty essentially to drop the case. I think it's an acknowledgment that there's new information and they don't think that they can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that there was any vandalization particularly in this case.

MICHAELSON: How unusual is this kind of admission, especially from the Trump administration? LEVINSON: So I will say we, of course, always have to look at the difference between admissions that happen in court and outside of court. This is an admission in court, and prosecutors do have certain duties, particularly when it comes to exculpatory evidence. And that in and of itself is not hugely unusual. I mean, prosecutors throughout the country say we have new facts. I can't move forward with this case. What is unusual, I think, is that they're saying very clearly there was another government agency that had this information. We didn't have it. We now think this is not the result of vandals. Instead, again, it's a result of the contractors who didn't do a good job. And so, again, the fact that prosecutors say new evidence were not moving forward, not hugely unusual. The fact that this department of justice is saying not it, it's the department of interior unusual.

MICHAELSON: And a reminder, if anybody hasn't seen it before, watch online video of Donald Trump testifying under oath. He's a very, very different vibe than the guy who's so boisterous on camera talking about vandals and being so convincing that that was the point of all of this. So he went from the highest office of the land, and there were criminal charges against David Hearn, who now they're basically saying, yeah, that was much ado about nothing. Can he or anybody else charged now take legal action against the government?

LEVINSON: So potentially, but this is not a slam dunk. Now when it comes to the prosecution, what they're saying is we did nothing wrong. We brought the case based on an incomplete factual picture. We now have more facts and so we're deciding to drop the case. In addition, as we know, prosecutors particularly when it comes to filing a case, have significant immunity. Now, when it comes to other government officials, again, maybe members of the Department of Interior, could there be charges against them? You would have to show that there was some sort of willful wrongdoing, I think, as opposed to just we should have found this information, we didn't find this information.

There could be attempts at making claims against members of the government who are part of bringing this particular case by Hearn and potentially others in similar situations saying it's damaged their reputation. But, Elex, as you have to remember many of these government officials do enjoy some immunity. So it's not a slam dunk to bring a case against them.

MICHAELSON: And, of course, the United States Supreme Court gave President Trump immunity from all official acts as President, and so that is something that I'm sure is top of mind for him all the time. Jessica Levinson, host of the Passing Judgment Podcast, Professor at Loyola Law School, and one of my favorite guests. Great to see you. Thanks so much.

LEVINSON: Thank you.

MICHAELSON: Now to this.

[01:10:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE (translated): I am going back. There's nothing to do here. Locals of Ceuta have treated us badly. We are hungry. Shops are closed. There was nothing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Broken homes and shattered dreams following a massive flood of migrants into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. Spain now says most of the 50,000 people who stormed across the border since Thursday have returned to Morocco. At least 57 died in the process, many by drowning. Spain has deployed troops to Ceuta, and it says it'll try to expel migrants who are still there as quickly as possible. The country's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has blaming the incident on misinformation on social media about a recent Supreme Court ruling which makes it harder to return migrants who arrive in Spain by sea.

For more, we're joined by Andrew Selee, the President of the Migration Policy Institute who's joining us live from Denmark. Good morning to you.

ANDREW SELEE, PRESIDENT, MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE: Good morning. Great to be with you this morning.

MICHAELSON: How did 50,000 people end up crossing into Spain so quickly? And then how do so many of them end up going home so quickly?

SELEE: It's quite a story, and this one is going to live on for a long time, because the visual images of people crossing was really traumatic. It was 50,000, 60,000 people within the space of 24 hours. I mean, it is -- it really is. The visuals are amazing. And yet in terms of actual migrant arrivals in Europe, very few are staying, right? This is a group that mostly went back within 24 hours.

What we know is two, maybe three things happened. I mean, one is there was a Supreme Court decision in Spain that said that people who got to Ceuta could not just be pushed back to Morocco, which is usually what the government does, just sort of is able to push them back immediately. That word got out. It also seems that the Moroccan government may have reduced for whatever reason, may have reduced a little bit their control on their side. Usually, they're pretty good about patrolling the shores to make sure that no one gets around security, tries to swim to Spain. There's some diplomatic friction between Spain and Morocco, so it looks like that may have played a part in this.

And then social media just took off, right? And as soon as people knew that some were going, as things happen in the modern world, it just took off word took off and what have been thousands of people became tens of thousands. But then the Moroccan and Spanish cooperation on migration kicked in again as the two countries, neither one wants to be a place where migrants are flowing into Europe. Morocco doesn't want that. Spain certainly doesn't want that, and they negotiated the return of the people that had crossed the border. And so they were mostly, I mean, they said they voluntarily returned, but we should assume that they largely, it was cooperation between the two governments that forced them back. MICHAELSON: What does this whole thing say about Europe's immigration system where it's at right now? Did it expose weaknesses or maybe some strengths?

SELEE: Yeah. Both at the same time, right? I mean, the net result is that very few people got in, if any at all. I mean, which, tells you there's a great deal of cooperation going on between some of the North African governments and the European governments, especially Morocco and Spain. And in fact, they're mostly able to control who comes across the border most of the time. But it does tell you when diplomacy breaks down, the countries in Northern Africa have a lot of leverage, and particularly Morocco does. And Spain had angered the Moroccan government. The Spanish President went to Algeria, Morocco's rival in the region a few days ago. There's some other things bubbling under the radar in that relationship. And the Moroccan government probably wanted to send a signal to the Spanish government that they were concerned.

It just took off in social media more than anyone expected. But it tells you in the end that the cooperation works as well. And where Europe is headed, this created a huge fire storm in the European Union. Of course, a huge reaction saying all these people are headed towards Europe. In the end, they're not. They're headed back to Morocco mostly, and the system worked. So I think you're right. It is -- it shows you the weakness. It shows you vulnerability, huge nerves in Europe that what was happening yesterday was, the beginning of a huge flow. But the bottom line is really that it didn't happen, right? That actually most people returned. What continues is the legal immigration from Morocco to Spain.

MICHAELSON: Yeah. It's so interesting to compare that with some of the images we saw in the United States during the Biden administration when so many people were coming into the country who have not been turned around, and are still in the country. And this is an incident that was very different than that.

Andrew Selee, thank you so much for getting up early with us and sharing your perspective. We appreciate it.

SELEE: Great to be with you. It's a pleasure. Thanks a lot.

MICHAELSON: Now to this. An open revolt by soccer federations around the world has forced the sport's governing body FIFA to abandon a controversial $20 billion investment plan.

[01:15:00]

The President of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, pitched that proposal, which would have split off rights to future World Cup tournaments into a new subsidiary partly funded by private investors. Soccer leaders worldwide outraged. They said the sports very soul was at risk and some threatened to boycott future World Cups. The plan also led to the resignation and protest of Infantino's senior adviser. Infantino said he heard the reaction and as a result, that plan is not going forward.

Russia may have found a new way to get revenge for Ukraine's strikes on its oil refinery. Still ahead, Russian drones take aim at places that have become a lifeline for many Ukrainians. Our Nick Paton Walsh with the special report still ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MICHAELSON: The death toll has reached at least 9 people as multiple waves of Russian strikes rained down on Ukraine's capital. Officials say more than 20 others are wounded in the attack that partially collapsed a five story residential building. Fires and damage have been reported in five areas of the city, and firefighters are working to put those flames out. Kyiv's Mayor says Russia used ballistic missiles in this attack.

Russia has found another way to terrorize Ukrainian civilians, bombing their gas stations. Since June, there have been hundreds of Russian attacks on fuel stations across Ukraine. Some Ukrainians believe this is payback for drone strikes on Russian refineries. More now on all this from CNN's Nick Paton Walsh.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Even stopping for gas in Ukraine can now be lethal. More than 200 fuel stations have been attacked by Russia, since June. That's about three a day. In a country where the war has shut down commercial flights, they are a lifeline with a huge role in a vast country.

The pump's now a place to listen out for the buzz of drones and know where the bomb shelter is. In Zaporizhzhia, policeman Michalow ran in to help after a drone struck one station, but then he heard a second.

MYKHAILO TSYPLIAKOV, PATROL POLICE OFFICER (translated): When I heard the drone was already descending, I saw a flash, got up and saw injuries to my arm, legs. Maybe Russia is doing this to intimidate to saw fear and create panic.

WALSH (voice-over): We verified 30 of the estimated over 200 attacks in June and July. They fall across Ukraine, but most are close to occupied areas, the cities of Kramatorsk and Kharkiv worst hit, all in reach of Russian drones and intensifying fuel trucks and containers targeted. On a simple level, impeding the war effort by making it hard to get gas, but also sowing fear far away from the front lines. The growing range of Russian attack drones making one safe areas part of the kill zone.

YAROSLAV STAROVOITENKO, PRESIDENT, OIL AND GAS ASSOCIATION OF UKRAINE: Gas stations became these key points of refuge as people fled the war. Then Russia tried to cause an intentional blackout, cutting of electricity and heating to freeze us out in the winter. And gas stations became the first facilities to be 100 percent equipped with generators. These were places where people could drink hot tea, fill up their cars, warm up, and even prepare milk for their babies. WALSH (voice-over): And in Kyiv that hasn't always worked.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's always a risk. No one knows where the attack will strike.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was discharged from the army after being seriously wounded. If a strike comes here, what's the difference? It didn't kill me on the frontline, so it won't kill me here.

WALSH (voice-over): But many see this as a Russian response to the fuel crisis and queues imposed in Russia by Ukrainian drone strikes on refineries. Putin's escalation inflicting the same bag. Russia's elite drone units make up public points of their strikes on Ukraine, releasing a video here of nine being hit.

The damage is real, unexpected, and growing. Another sign, absolutely nothing is off limits in Moscow's invasion of choice. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, London.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Thanks, Nick Paton Walsh. Scientists have detected a so called super Earth Planet 49 light years away that could potentially sustain life. They say the planet could have an atmosphere and is about five times the mass of Earth. It orbits a star at a distance that could allow liquid water to exist. Since the 1990s, scientists have discovered more than 6,000 exoplanets. One scientist says this planet is a prime candidate in the search for signs of extraterrestrial life.

Talk about a late library book. This volume of antiquities of Athens was finally returned to an Australian public library about 150 years overdue. Librarian Michelle Hudson said the person who returned it found it in a tea crate that was bricked into a fireplace during some home renovations. Adjusted for inflation, the late fine would be nearly $20,000, but it won't be applied. Records identifying the borrower have been lost, and the book won't be loaned out again, it'll be displayed in the library's history collection.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because I'm not just Peter Parker. I'm Spider Man. We're faced with a threat that can be anyone.

[01:25:00]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You sure you want to do this, Scorpion?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think I'm Scorpion?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: It looks like Spider-Man: Brand New Day is heading for a record premiere. Deadline reports the new comic book film is expected to make between a $167 million and a $173 million on its opening day, including previews that would top current record holder in the U.S. Also a Marvel film, Avengers: Endgame. Endgame made over $157 million on its opening Friday. That film, of course, stars Tom Holland, who is also one of the stars of the Odyssey, one of the other biggest movies of the year, which is also in theaters this weekend. It's a good time to be Tom Holland.

Thanks for watching "The Story Is." For international viewers, Quest World of Wonder is next. For our viewers in North America, I'll be right back with a field trip for the jury in the case of the mom who admitted to strangling her three kids. Where that case goes next from here when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MICHAELSON: Jurors in Lindsay Clancy's trial visited the Massachusetts home where prosecutors alleged that she murdered her three young kids in 2023. They also visited a restaurant in a drugstore where Clancy's ex-husband was the night that the children were killed. Jurors walked through the home while lawyers pointed out key parts of the crime scene. CNN's Brynn Gingras has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the home in Duxbury, Massachusetts where 35-year-old Lindsay Clancy fatally strangled her three small children in 2023. Jurors in her murder trial were taken by bus there on Friday, instructed by the judge to go inside as well as outside where Clancy was found semi-conscious in the backyard following a suicide attempt after strangling five-year-old Cora, three-year-old Dawson, and eight-month-old Callan.

Jurors were instructed not to touch anything, not to open any doors or drawers, but prosecutors and defense attorneys could point to various items inside the home for the jurors to observe. They were eventually taken back to court where they heard further testimony from medical professionals who described efforts to revive the children. Clancy sobbing throughout.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And about how long into your care of Callan did he regain a heartbeat?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Probably from the time that he got to the ER, maybe like 10 minutes or so, I'm guessing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At any point in time did he regain the ability to breathe on his own while he was in your care?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

GINGRAS (voice-over): Jurors were also shown graphic photographs of the wounds that Clancy had inflicted on herself to try to take her own life after strangling her three children. This marks the end of the first week of the trial, which included emotional testimony from her ex-husband, Patrick, and is expected to last about six to eight weeks as her defense team acknowledges that Clancy killed the children, but argues she should not be held criminally responsible and that she was in postpartum psychosis when she committed the crimes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Let's bring in Neama Rahmani, a former Federal Prosecutor and the President and Co-Founder of West Coast Trial Lawyers joining us live. Neama, welcome back to "The Story Is" here with us last night. This was the new development. Today, we see them out at the house. What's the purpose of sort of taking everybody on a field trip? What's the value of this?

NEAMA RAHMANI, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: So I like it as a lawyer, and I've done it. These site visits, they make the allegations, the crime that much more real. Now, obviously, this is such a serious case, but seeing the home where this horrific tragedy occurred, and importantly, seeing the restaurant where Lindsay Clancy sent her husband, Patrick, about five, six miles away, that's important. That's part of the prosecution's argument. This is plotted.

So I think it was very important for the jurors to go there. Prosecutors like this. Defense attorneys generally do not, but we've seen it in other high profile cases by OJ being the biggest example. But more recently, Nikolas Cruz, we saw with Alex Murdaugh. So this is something that's not unusual in these high profile cases.

MICHAELSON: Why did defense lawyers not like it?

RAHMANI: Well, defense lawyers don't like it because it makes the crime that much more real tangible when you see where these young children were killed in the basement, and you see where Lindsay Clancy tried to jump to commit suicide. So, obviously, look, in a case like this, I'm not saying the facts are in dispute, but it makes it that much harder for jurors to return a not guilty verdict when they go to the scene of the crime. So this is something that prosecutors really like to push in these types of cases.

MICHAELSON: This case is so sad. It's being followed so closely. I mean, it's been sort of extraordinary, the interest online, TV ratings for this as well. People are really focused on it. What is next in this case? What do we expect next week?

RAHMANI: You're right, Elex. People are watching this case gavel to gavel. Obviously, a unique case where a mother takes the life of her three children. Obviously, it raises mental health issues. There's gender issues. Next week, I really expect this case to move to the heart of the case, because really it's about criminal responsibility, it's about insanity, and I want to hear from the experts, the psychiatric experts on the both sides. We've obviously heard about the bag of pills, all the prescription medication that was prescribed to Lindsay Clancy. The prosecution is saying that she's not taking them.

But we know that Patrick, the husband, has filed a civil lawsuit against doctors. The defense is blaming those same doctors. So really expect to see a battle of the experts next week, and we're going to learn a lot more about postpartum psychosis.

MICHAELSON: Because we know that she killed them. That's not in dispute. What's in dispute is why did she kill them and who basically should be responsible for that.

[01:35:00]

Meanwhile, there is no trial for the death of Nancy Guthrie. We are now approaching the six month anniversary of Savannah Guthrie, Today Show host's mother being taken from her home in Arizona. We have no idea where she went. Today, the sheriff put out the notes that were sent to the media. They got so much attention at the time and sent to TMZ, and Harvey Levin talked about this at the time that there were details that made Savannah Guthrie and her family feel like this note may be real.

Now you know what those details were. It said there was a white smartwatch on the floor at the foot of her bed and that the white floodlight in the back yard were destroyed. That's the first note that that which is asking for $4 million. The second note, which said that shortly after she's taken, she died. We believe it was heat related. She is buried in nature now. And then we never heard from them again. Sort of how do you read these notes?

RAHMANI: Yeah. I read these notes as genuine. I do believe, like you said, Elex, that Nancy Guthrie is unfortunately dead. It's been six months. I think there's no world where she's going to be found alive. But when law enforcement does something like this, when they release a key piece of evidence that leads me to believe that they're really out of leads. It's not something that they typically do. They like to hold this type of evidence close to the vest because it can help them determine whether, there's false confessions or false leads.

But even if they identify someone that was responsible, it can help flip them against coconspirators in case there's other people involved. So when they reveal something like this, it leads me to believe that they're really at the end of the road when they're asking for the public for help.

MICHAELSON: And if they are able to catch somebody, the fact that all this has been released, does that make it harder to prosecute somebody?

RAHMANI: It can be harder, but what makes this ransom note unique is that it's not, the old newspaper cut out letters. I mean, this is electronically sent to local news outlets. They're in Tucson, so there's got to be digital paper trail. I mean, obviously, this case is unique in so many ways. It's so rare for someone of an older, advanced age to be kidnapped and then for six months to go by with really no arrests, no real leads. It's really shocking. And again, I hope they find the perpetrators. But obviously, as days go by and when you see signs like this today, it makes all that a lot less likely.

MICHAELSON: I mean, talk about getting a lot of attention. It's amazing how the entire world was focused on this and yet still nothing. Neama Rahmani, thank you for your perspective. I hope you have a great weekend.

RAHMANI: Of course, Elex. Thank you. You too.

MICHAELSON: An upcoming senate race illustrates the debate that is dividing the democratic party. CNN's Donie O'Sullivan sits down with both James Carville on the center left and Hassan Park Piker on the far left, opposite sides of the debate that's happening in the Democratic Party. We'll hear from both of them next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MICHAELSON: The senate judiciary committee has scheduled a meeting on Tuesday on a potential vote on Todd Blanche's attorney general nomination. The announcement comes after the President complicated negotiations on Friday by defending a controversial fund at the center of an ongoing standoff with two key Republican senators.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: It's dead, but, I wish it weren't, to be honest with you. Todd Blanche is a very, very good man, and he shouldn't be in the middle of this. He should get approved because you will never get anybody like him. And the man that lost, the man that I didn't endorse has become very angry, and that's OK. I mean, I understand that. I probably would do the same thing. You want to know the truth? I think I do the same thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: The senator he's talking about is John Cornyn of Texas and North Carolina's Tom Tillis. Both have been insisting they will not vote to confirm Blanche without written assurance that the $1.8 billion Anti-Weaponization Fund will not be resurrected. Blanche has given verbal assurance, but will not put that in writing.

We're less than a 100 days before the midterm elections, and states are still holding primary votes that will determine their choices in November. Five states will hold primaries on Tuesday. Among them, the swing state of Michigan, where representative Haley Stevens and Abdul El Sayed are competing to be the Democratic senate nominee. That contest also factoring into an ongoing debate between moderates and progressives. CNN's Donie O'Sullivan got perspective from two polar opposites who are very much influencing the discourse as part of a special report for CNN. Here's some of it.

DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Hey, there's a major fight happening in the Democratic party right now, really about how far left the party should go. We've been following this throughout the primaries, and, of course, there is a critical primary Democratic primary happening in Michigan on Tuesday. But we spoke to two people, one democratic party veteran, a legend in the party, James Carville, who very much says that democrats need to stick to the center, and Hasan Piker, who is a streamer and democratic socialist activist, who says the party needs to move to the left. Here's what they have to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HASAN PIKER, U.S. INTERNET PERSONALITY & DSA ACTIVIST: I think these guys have failed so publicly and so spectacularly that it has caused people to seek out alternatives.

JAMES CARVILLE, U.S. POLITICAL CONSULTANT & AUTHOR: I see challenges from the "progressive left." And these people are too hard headed to know that they're not popular. People don't like them. They don't win elections. They never run against Republicans. They just run against other Democrats. And their only message is we're going to blow everything up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'SULLIVAN: James Carville says this is all going to implode at the general election.

[01:45:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HASAN PIKER, U.S. INTERNET PERSONALITY & DSA ACTIVIST: Yeah. As opposed to previous neoliberal Democratic candidacies that have been spectacular successes so far, Hillary Rodham Clinton in 2016 and Kamala Harris in 2024. There are a lot of people who are just like, this is not working. Cost of living crisis is completely out of control. Democrats haven't done anything about it. Republicans haven't done anything about it. There has to be a different alternative.

JAMES CARVILLE, U.S. POLITICAL CONSULTANT & AUTHOR: I have one simple philosophy about politics. Winning is everything stupid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'SULLIVAN: So as you hear, there are two very different visions for the party. The debate, of course, being which strategy, what type of candidate will ultimately win a general election both in November at the midterms, but also, of course, crucially at the 2028 presidential election. Back to you.

MICHAELSON: Donie, thank you. This looks fascinating. I can't wait to watch this. The full report, The Whole Story, The Left Insurgency premieres Sunday at 8:00 P.M. Eastern, 5:00 P.M. Pacific on The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper. You can also find it the next day on the CNN app.

Water systems in multiple U.S. states have been targeted in a coordinated cyber-attack which forced some utility companies to actually issue water -- boil water notices and take their systems offline. CNN Cybersecurity Reporter Sean Lyngaas has more.

SEAN LYNGAAS, CNN CYBERSECURITY REPORTER: Federal officials have for the last week been scrambling to try to help secure the water facilities and to ensure that the safety of the drinking water isn't affected. No incidents of contamination have been reported yet. U.S. and state officials are treating Iran as one of the suspects behind the hack, but have not made a formal determination of who is responsible.

The first public sign of the cyber-attacks came from Minnesota authorities who said that hackers on Sunday night and Monday morning targeted about 30 water systems in that state.

MICHAELSON: The recent incidents have renewed concerns about the security of U.S. water facilities. Despite Iran's history of such attacks, President Trump is blaming one of the states where the cyber- attacks occurred and not Iran.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I blame it on Minnesota because they're grossly incompetent. There was a cyber- attack of 30 water plants, and I would blame it on Minnesota and the Governor the corrupt governor of Minnesota. They like to say, oh, it's Iran. Iran should be so lucky. Iran's got bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: In response to President Trump's respond remarks, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz posted this, "Trump knows exactly who was responsible for this attack and knows that other states were hit too." This is what modern warfare looks like, and it further illustrates there's no plan to win a war with Iran.

Well, we just saw President Trump speaking, and he wasn't at Mar-a- Lago where he often spends the weekend. Still ahead, President Trump's rare visit there to Camp David, a historic refuge for past presidents that he doesn't visit very often. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MICHAELSON: When President Trump went to Camp David on Friday to meet with his cabinet, it was for him a rare visit to the historic retreat. This President generally prefers other places that he personally owns such as Mar-a-Lago. But as CNN's Randi Kaye tells us, past presidents have turned to the Maryland Hills during critical moments of their presidency.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At Camp David, Maryland Presidential Retreat, the chief executive bids welcome to members of his cabinet.

RANDI KAYE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Long before President Donald Trump gathered his own cabinet at Camp David, other presidents did the same.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Business of state discussions are followed by an outing, a sort of informal lawn party at which the Eisenhower's provide a relaxing period for the cabinet staff members and their wives.

KAYE (voice-over): The former federal employee campsite had been turned into a presidential retreat by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1942 during World War II. He called it Shangri-La, but President Dwight Eisenhower renamed it Camp David after his grandson.

KAYE: Before Trump took office in 2017, he described Camp David as very rustic. That may explain why he often opted to stay at his own properties like Mar A Lago here in Florida. Trump visited Camp David 15 times in his first term and now just twice in his second term.

KAYE (voice-over): Around the anniversary of September 11th in 2019, President Trump tried to host controversial secret talks with Taliban and Afghan leaders at Camp David. The meeting was canceled only after a Taliban car bomb killed a U.S. soldier and 11 others. The 180 acre site in Thurmont, Maryland has swimming, skeet shooting, log cabins, horseback riding, and more.

When President John F. Kennedy visited there in the 1960s, his daughter Caroline often rode her pony. President Gerald Ford played tennis there in the 1970s and swam with his dog, Liberty. Camp David has a storied political history.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kennedy found time on occasion to meet with his predecessor, former President Eisenhower.

KAYE (voice-over): President Lyndon Johnson met with his cabinet there in 1968 to discuss the Vietnam War. In 1984, President Ronald Reagan took British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher for a spin in his golf cart. President George H. W. Bush let Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev take the wheel in 1990. Perhaps its most famous diplomatic discussion, the 1978 negotiation leading to the Camp David accords. President Jimmy Carter spent two weeks there negotiating political agreements with Egyptian President Anwar El-Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin.

[01:55:00]

It resulted in the Egypt Israel peace treaty.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We went there as often as we possibly could.

KAYE (voice-over): CBS reported President George W. Bush made 150 visits there while in office, including 19 times with foreign leaders.

GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: We've got a lot of fond memories of Camp David, a lot. And, again, it's a place where Laura and I invited a lot of world leaders. Tony Blair's first visit to the United States, we took him to Camp David.

KAYE (voice-over): In 2012, president Barack Obama held the largest gathering of world leaders at Camp David when he hosted the G8 Summit. Nine foreign leaders attended. The camp is fully equipped with security and assets needed to run the country. On September 11th, it was activated for then Vice President Dick Cheney. According to the National Park Service website, Camp David's exact location isn't identified on maps for security and privacy reasons. Randy Kaye, CNN, Palm Beach County, Florida.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Monday on "The Story Is" I sit down with legendary actor Tom Selleck at Ronald Reagan's presidential library. We talk Reagan, Trump, the American Revolution, Magnum PI, Blue Bloods, and more. I'll see you then. Thanks for watching this week. I'm Elex Michaelson. Have a great weekend.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)