Completely and Totally Obliterated? - CNN This Morning with Audie Cornish - Podcast on CNN Podcasts
Completely and Totally Obliterated? CNN This Morning 49 mins
A new assessment of the damage to Iranian nuclear sites after the US dropped its bunker busters sheds doubt on the White House claim the strike "completely and totally obliterated" those facilities. Plus, at the NATO summit, President Trump questions the US' commitment to defending its allies. And the Middle East ceasefire enters a second day. Will it continue to hold?
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Politico
17 minutes ago
- Politico
Playbook PM: Trump tallies wins as he leaves NATO summit
Presented by THE CATCH-UP THE VICTORY LAP CONTINUES: President Donald Trump took center stage at the NATO summit in the Netherlands today, touting his brokered ceasefire between Iran and Israel that seems to be holding, as well as the defense spending commitment that he secured from NATO allies — a 'monumental win for the United States' as Trump called it. What Trump said: The president spent a large portion of a nearly hourlong news conference blasting the intel assessment reported yesterday that found Iran's nuclear capabilities had only been set back by months. 'We think we hit 'em so hard and so fast, they didn't get to move,' Trump said, while slamming the NYT and CNN for their reporting. 'We destroyed the nuclear. It's blown up … to kingdom come.' He even compared the attack to the nuclear bombs detonated in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, Reuters' Jeff Mason and Gram Slattery report. 'This ended a war in a different way,' he said. Especially upset: Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who's ordered a Pentagon investigation into the initial assessment leak per POLITICO's Paul McLeary. Hegseth said at the news conference there was 'low confidence' in the initial report on the damage, adding: 'If you want to make an assessment at what happened at Fordo, get a big shovel and go deep, because Iran's nuclear program is obliterated.' The damage: Iran's Foreign Ministry said today that their nuclear installations were 'badly damaged' but didn't provide many more details, Bloomberg's Dana Khraiche reports. Trump said in a Truth Social post that Israel backed up his 'OBLITERATED' claim. What comes next: Trump said he'll be talking with Iran next week, and he will 'probably' ask for a written statement that Iran won't pursue a nuclear weapon again. 'But they're not going to be doing it anyway,' adding that it's a possibility Iran signs an agreement. Asked whether the two sides could resume fighting, Trump said 'I think they're very much finished.' WORD PLAY: NATO allies cemented their agreement today to boost defense spending to 5 percent — but not all the allies, thanks to the language in the group's comminqué, NYT's Lara Jakes writes. 'The difference lies in a bit of mushy diplomatic language that lets the NATO secretary general, Mark Rutte, claim that he delivered on President Trump's spending demand. The brief and unanimously approved communiqué that NATO issued after leaders wrapped up their annual summit says that 'allies' — not 'all allies' — had agreed to the 5 percent figure.' Striking back: Trump lashed out at Spain, which didn't agree to the 5 percent bump, and signaled he's ready to retaliate for what he views as an ally not stepping up to the plate — threatening Madrid will pay 'twice as much' in tariffs in a renegotiated trade deal, POLITICO's Eli Stokols and Felicia Schwartz report. And yet, Trump 'declared outright that NATO allies' 'passion' for their collective defense had erased much of his long-held skepticism about the alliance,' Eli and Felicia write. ME AND Z: Trump also met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the summit, who 'couldn't have been nicer,' Trump said. Zelenskyy called the meeting 'long and substantive,' and it prompted Trump to consider sending more Patriot air-defense batteries to the war-torn country, per Bloomberg's Daryna Krasnolutska and Andrea Dudik. After talking with Zelenskyy, Trump told reporters that Russian President 'Vladimir Putin really has to end that war.' Mixed signals: Secretary of State Marco Rubio signaled that the U.S. likely wouldn't slap more sanctions on Russia, Eli reports with more of our POLITICO colleagues. But that softer stance from Rubio 'came as a surprise to the NATO foreign ministers Rubio met the night before,' who he told that the Senate would likely take up sanctions legislation soon. MOOD MUSIC: Rutte appears to have 'cracked the code for a successful leaders' summit involving President Donald Trump: Call him 'daddy,'' POLITICO's Felicia Schwartz and colleagues write from The Hague. 'Add to that a significantly slimmed-down schedule that was long on praise for the president — Rutte's 'daddy' was intended as a compliment for intervening in the fighting between Israel and Iran — and short on existential questions like how alliance members will fund their most significant spending increase since the end of the Cold War.' IN THE AIR: Trump is on his way back to the U.S., per the pool. He's leaving what was surely nicer weather and will return to swampy humidity once he's back (stay inside, folks). Good Wednesday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Spot something? Send it my way at abianco@ 7 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW 1. IN THE HOT SEAT: Emil Bove, a top Justice Department official, and federal appeals court nominee testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee this morning for a confirmation hearing for his appointment to a federal appeals court. Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the panel, said Bove was in a 'category all of his own' in terms of controversial Trump judicial nominees, POLITICO's Hailey Fuchs and Erica Orden report. On the controversies: Bove said he 'never advised a Department of Justice attorney to violate a court order,' as a whistleblower complaint alleged. He also defended DOJ's controversial decision to squash the corruption prosecution of NYC Mayor Eric Adams and denied that there was any quid pro quo to get Adams' cooperation on immigration enforcement — though he did say 'policy reasons made it appropriate to dismiss the charges.' More from Hailey and Erica 2. THE VIEW FROM 1600 PENN: The White House is on a messaging push as the self-imposed July 4 deadline to deliver the megabill rapidly approaches. Stephen Miran, the White House's chief economist, said Trump's policies will reduce the budget deficit by up to $11 trillion over the next decade, Bloomberg's Skylar Woodhouse reports. Half the savings would come from economic growth and another part would come from tariff revenue, Miran said. Report card: It's part of an analysis by the Council of Economic Advisers sent to Congress today as the administration ramps up its efforts to sell the sprawling reconciliation bill, per POLITICO's Jordain Carney. 'The analysis is significantly rosier than projections from most other economists, who doubt that the Republican plan will do much for growth,' Jordain writes. Read the full report Clamping down: NEC Director Kevin Hassett is urging trade partners to get a deal done before the megabill, which could make the bill's controversial 'revenge tax,' which raises taxes on foreign companies and investors in retaliation, a moot point, Bloomberg's Emily Birnbaum and Lauren Vella report. Clicker: 'How much will you save or lose with Trump's 'big' tax bill?' by WaPo 3. MAMDANI MANIA: Just hours after Zohran Mamdani claimed the Democratic nomination in the NYC mayoral contest, Republicans are racing to turn the 33-year-old democratic socialist into their new boogeyman ahead of next year's midterms, POLITICO's Jacob Wendler reports. A host of prominent MAGA-aligned commentators 'launched xenophobic attacks' against the Mamdani's Muslim religion, POLITICO's Nicole Markus writes. But Mamdani's ascension marks a 'watershed moment for Muslim New Yorkers,' roughly one million of whom call NYC home and played a critical role in expanding the electorate that delivered for Mamdani, NYT's Maya King reports. Calls from Congress: In a pair of posts on X this morning, Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries — Democrats' top two congressional leaders who both hail from New York — offered guarded praise for Mamdani. Schumer congratulated Mamdani on an 'impressive campaign,' while Jeffries lauded it as a 'strong campaign.' Both applauded his focus on the economy and each said they had spoken to Mamdani this morning and planned to meet in person soon. But absent from both messages was a full-throated endorsement. Welcome to the general election: Eric Adams, who is now set to face off against Mamdani in November, went on Fox News this morning to preview his attack line. 'He's a snake oil salesman, he will say and do anything to get elected,' Adams said on 'Fox and Friends.' 4. THE REAL-WORLD IMPACT: Speaker Mike Johnson's state of Louisiana is 'uniquely vulnerable' to cuts to Medicaid and food assistance programs included in the 'big, beautiful bill,' POLITICO's Liz Crampton reports in a must read from Shreveport in Johnson's district. 'Louisiana is poorer, sicker and hungrier than most states, and the deep cuts to Medicaid have a growing number of Republicans in Louisiana worried that Congress and the White House are going too far,' Liz writes. 'More than 1.6 million Louisianans — roughly 35 percent of the state's population — count on it for health care.' 5. HOLD YOUR FIRE: Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) — the bullseye for many a Trump Truth Social post — wants a truce, WSJ's Olivia Beavers and colleagues report. The consistent attacks are 'not about changing my vote' on the megabill, adding that they are 'flogging me to keep the other horses in the barn,' Massie said. But he still wants to cool things down: 'I want a cease-fire. I survived the bunker busters. Let's call it even.' More on Massie: The Kentucky Republican has been a consistent thorn in Trump's side, and Trump-aligned GOP groups have already drawn up plans to oust him in 2026, POLITICO's Brakkton Booker and colleagues write. Things could get expensive, fast: 'Some Republican strategists estimate combined spending could reach as high as $45 million, an unheard of total for a primary contest in the 4th Congressional District.' Says Chris LaCivita in a text message to POLITICO: 'He has established himself as a contrarian for contrarian sake … He should be a man and switch parties instead of posing as a Republican.' 6. IMMIGRATION FILES: The Trump administration has promised to target the 'worst of the worst immigrants,' but so far only 6% of known immigrant offenders have been arrested, NBC's Julia Ainsley and Laura Strickler scooped. Almost half those in ICE custody have no charges or criminal convictions at all. And exclusive reporting from CNN's Priscilla Alvarez reveals the Trump administration is preparing to dismiss hundreds of thousands of asylum claims to speed the deportations of migrants. Behind the curtain: 'Inside the Global Deal-Making Behind Trump's Mass Deportations,' by NYT's Edward Wong and colleagues: 'U.S. officials have approached Angola, Mongolia and embattled Ukraine. … The U.S. government paid Rwanda $100,000 to take an Iraqi man and is discussing sending more deportees there. Peru has said no so far, despite having been pressed repeatedly. … The Trump administration has spoken to at least 29 nations in Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia … Beyond that, the State Department has asked diplomats overseas to approach at least another 29 countries, most of them in Africa, for a total of at least 58.' 7. 2026 WATCH: Scott Brown, the former ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa and Massachusetts senator, is making another play for the Senate, hoping to replace retiring Democrat Jeanne Shaheen in New Hampshire, WMUR's Adam Sexton scooped. Brown becomes the highest-profile Republican to enter the race, which the GOP believes it can flip next fall. Asked if he has assurances of Trump's support, Brown said: 'There's no assurances in anything in life at all. I live every day as if it's my last — and certainly I would love the president's endorsement.' TALK OF THE TOWN SPOTTED: CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz dining at the Occidental last night. MEDIAWATCH — WaPo is launching a new program that will allow sources quoted in its articles to annotate or add additional information, NYT's Ben Mullin scooped. 'The program will allow only people identified by name in an article to comment on it, and the articles included for now are only those published by The Post's climate team.' OUT AND ABOUT — SPOTTED at a reelection fundraiser for Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) hosted by Lyndon Boozer, Fred Humphries, Steve Hartell, Laurie Knight and James Assey at Cafe Fiorello last night: Mignon Clyburn, Shashrina Thomas, Ashley Hayes, Katreice Banks, Lance Mangum, Jamie Gillespie, Erik Huey, Gerry Harrington, De'Ana Dow, Larry Duncan and G.K. Butterfield. — Thailand hosted a reception for the House Chiefs of Staff Association yesterday evening in Georgetown, where representatives from 10 Southeast Asian countries joined 70 chiefs of staff for karaoke and Asian food. Thai Ambassador Suriya Chindawongse sang 'Apt.' by Rosé and Bruno Mars as the first song. SPOTTED: Singaporean Ambassador Lui Tuck Yew, Philippine Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez, Mitchell Rivard, Heather Swift, Michelle Dorothy, Zach Weidlich, Mark Dreiling, Nikki Wallace, Mary Rosado, Jaryn Emhof, Rick Jakious, Tasia Jackson, Jeremy Marcus, Chloe Hunt, Drew Ross, Jo Stiles, Marcus Garza, Blake Nolan and Liz Amster. — SPOTTED at a 'YouTube in Session' event at Union Station bringing together policymakers and YouTube creators for discussions: Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Rep. Josh Riley (D-N.Y.), Emily Jashinsky, Hannah Akey, Nathan Brand, Cooper Reves, Michael Comer, Earnestine Dawson, Hunter Koski, Zachari Levy, Billy McLaughlin, Tizzy Brown, Stephanie Chambless, J.P. Freire and Hannah Eddins. — SPOTTED at a launch party for Alex Swoyer's new book, 'Lawless Lawfare: Tipping the Scales of Justice to Get Trump and Destroy MAGA' ($18.04), at Butterworth's last night, also hosted by Post Hill Press publisher Anthony Ziccardi: Mike Davis (who wrote the foreword), Harmeet Dhillon, Kenny Cunningham, Raheem Kassam, Jesse Binnall, Curt Levey, Chris Dolan, Stephen Dinan, Bradley Jaye, Matt Boyle, Charlie Spiering, Otto Heck, Dante Swallow, Brigid Mary McDonnell, Eric Branstad, James Rockas and Julia Pollak. TRANSITIONS — Hale Diamond is now creative director for Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas). She previously was comms director for Rep. Tim Kennedy (D-N.Y.) and is a House Transportation and Infrastructure Dems alum. … Robert Shapiro is now a partner in Dechert's financial services practice group. He was previously assistant chief counsel in the division of investment management at the SEC. … Eric Lipka is now speechwriter for Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). He previously was Pennsylvania deputy press secretary on the Harris campaign and is an Elizabeth Warren alum. … … Jonas Edwards-Jenks is now a VP with BerlinRosen's impact practice. He was previously comms director at End Citizens United. … Ariel Hayes is joining the Democratic Association of Secretaries of State as executive director. She previously ran the national political department at the Sierra Club. … Will Boyington is now associate administrator for comms at NASA. He previously was director of external comms at Blue Origin. Send Playbookers tips to playbook@ or text us on Signal here. Playbook couldn't happen without our editor Zack Stanton, deputy editor Garrett Ross and Playbook Podcast producer Callan Tansill-Suddath.
New York Post
22 minutes ago
- New York Post
Trump calls out Putin as ‘misguided,' says US could send Ukraine Patriot missile systems
President Trump took a rare dig at his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, following this week's NATO summit in the Netherlands before telling a Ukrainian reporter that 'we're going to see' if Washington is able to supply Patriot missile systems and munitions to assist Kyiv in its war against Moscow's invasion. 'I know one thing: He'd like to settle, he'd like to get out of this thing. It's a mess for him,' Trump told reporters in The Hague before departing the two-day gathering of Western leaders. 'I consider him a person that's, I think, been misguided. I'm very surprised, actually. I thought we would have had that settled.' Advertisement Gray TV reporter Jon Decker had pressed Trump about whether he views Russia as an adversary or whether he believes that the Kremlin has its sights set on territory beyond Ukraine. 4 Russian President Vladimir Putin, pictured Monday during a meeting with the interim president of Mali. Getty Images 'It's possible. I mean, it's possible,' Trump replied to the latter question. Advertisement Despite some of his high-profile dustups with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Trump also admitted that Putin was the 'more difficult' leader to engage. 'Vladimir Putin has been more difficult. Frankly, I've had some problems with Zelensky,' Trump told reporters when asked about his campaign pledge to end the war in 24 hours. 'It's been more difficult than other wars.' Trump also showed empathy for BBC Ukraine correspondent Myroslava Petsa after she asked the president 'whether or not the US is ready to sell anti-air missile systems to Ukraine.' 'We know that Russia has been pounding Ukraine really heavily right now,' she added. Advertisement Before addressing her question, Trump asked Petsa: 'Are you living there, yourself, now?' 4 President Trump listens to a question from BBC Ukraine reporter Myroslava Petsa (below) following the NATO Summit at The Hague in the The Netherlands. instagram/saintjavelin 'My husband is there now,' she said. 'And me with the kids, I'm in Warsaw [Poland], actually. Because he wanted me to.' Advertisement The visibly moved Trump responded, 'wow, that's amazing,' before asking whether Petsa's husband was 'a soldier,' which she confirmed. 'Wow, that's rough stuff, right?' he told the reporter. 'That's tough.' Trump then went on to affirm that Kyiv wants to buy the weapons from the US — and pledged that 'we're going to see if we can make some available.' 'You know, they're very hard to get. We need them too,' the president said. 'We were supplying them to Israel, and they're very effective — 100% effective. Hard to believe how effective. And they do want that more than any other thing, as you probably know.' 'That's very good question, and I wish you a lot of luck,' Trump told Petsa. 'I mean, I can see it's very upsetting to you.' Trump has been growing impatient with Putin, lashing out in response to some of Russia's most brutal attacks on Ukraine — such as a barrage of 300 drone and missile attacks last month, which prompted the president to rip the Russian leader as 'crazy.' Still, the administration has been reticent about ratcheting up sanctions on Russia, despite a growing push from Congress to do so. 'If we did what everybody here wants us to do, and that is come in and crush them with more sanctions, we probably lose our ability to talk to them about the cease-fire, and then who's talking to them?' Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Politico in an interview on the sidelines of the summit. Advertisement 4 President Trump, right, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shake hands during their meeting at the NATO Summit Wednesday. UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/AFP via Getty Images Trump met with Zelensky earlier Wednesday, after which the the Ukrainian leader said he 'congratulated President Trump on the successful operation in the Middle East.' 'It is important that the US actions have weakened not only their nuclear program but also their drone production capabilities. We will continue to keep an eye on the situation,' he said. 'We discussed the protection of our people with the president — first and foremost, the purchase of American air defense systems to shield our cities, our people, churches, and infrastructure,' Zelensky explained in a readout. 'Ukraine is ready to buy this equipment and support American weapons manufacturers. Europe can help. We also discussed the potential for co-production of drones. We can strengthen each other.'
22 minutes ago
Trump doesn't rule out sending Ukraine more Patriot missiles after Zelenskyy meeting
Following his closed-door meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the NATO Summit on Wednesday, President Donald Trump didn't rule out sending Ukraine monetary and defense aid as he voiced frustrations with Russian President Vladimir Putin. During his press conference at the conclusion of his trip to The Hague, Netherlands, Trump signaled a willingness to provide Ukraine with additional aid and sell or send Patriot air-defense missiles to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia. "They do want to have the anti-missile, missiles," Trump said of Ukraine. "As they call them the Patriots, and we're going to see if we can make some available." Trump's openness comes as Zelenskyy told ABC News earlier this month the United States diverted anti-drone weapons, previously promised to Ukraine under a Biden administration agreement, to the Middle East. "You know, they're very hard to get. We need them to. We were supplying them to Israel, and they're very effective, 100% effective. Hard to believe how effective," Trump said. "As far as money going, we'll see what happens. There's a lot of spirit," Trump added. Trump also appeared to shift his tone when describing his conversation with Zelenskyy, a relationship marked by many pivots. "He was very nice, actually. You know, we had little rough times sometimes. He was uh - couldn't have been nicer. I think he'd like to see an end to this. I do," he said of Zelenskyy. Zelenskyy offered similar praise of Trump, calling their meeting "long and substantive" while affirming he told him Ukraine is ready to buy more U.S. weapons. "With the President, we discussed the protection of our people — first and foremost, the purchase of American air defense systems to cover our cities, our people, churches, and infrastructure," Zelenskyy said in a statement on Wednesday. "Ukraine is ready to buy this equipment and support American arms manufacturers. Europe can help as well," Zelenskyy said. "We also talked about possible joint drone production. We can strengthen each other." During his press conference, Trump added Zelenskyy was fighting a "brave" and "tough" battle while putting pressure on Putin to show more willingness to end the conflict. "Look. Vladimir Putin really has to end that war. People are dying at levels that people haven't seen for a long time." Then, when pressed on why he wasn't able to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine quickly as he adamantly claimed while on the campaign trail, Trump again pointed the blame towards Putin. "It's more difficult than people wouldn't have any idea," Trump said. "Vladimir Putin has been more difficult. Frankly, I had some problems with Zelenskyy. You may have read about him, and it's been more difficult than other wars." Trump's public praise of Zelenskyy marks a shift in tone for the President, who has had public battles with the leader of Ukraine. Most notably in February, a public Oval Office spat between the two officials led to a scrapped bilateral mineral deal, which wasn't finalized for two months until the pair sat down together on the sidelines of Pope Francis' funeral. Then, in recent weeks, as Trump focused on negotiating an agreement between Iran and Israel, he left last week's G7 Summit in Canada early, skipping out on a bilateral with Ukraine. However, after their meeting on Wednesday, Trump displayed more compassion for the situation in Ukraine in a moment highlighted by his exchange with a Ukrainian reporter who said her husband was a Ukrainian soldier while she and her children fled to Warsaw for safety. "Wow, that's rough stuff, right? That's tough," Trump said, asking the reporter many personal questions before answering her policy question. "That's very good question. And I wish you a lot of luck. I mean, I can see it's very upsetting to you. So say hello to your husband. Okay?" Trump said.
