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President Biden Holds Phone Call With Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu; Arizona Becomes Fourth State To Indict In Fake Electors Scheme; FDA Found Traces Of Bird Flu In Milk; House Back In Session Monday As Speaker Faces Ouster Threat; SNL Comedian Roasts Biden, Trump At Correspondents' Dinner; "Death To America" Chants Heard During Iran Prayer Service. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired April 28, 2024 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:00]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: Candace Parker says she's retiring from the WNBA after 16 seasons. And she has racked up quite the list of accomplishments during that time. Three championships with three different teams, two MVP awards, and two Olympic gold medals. She recently became a commentator and analyst with our sister company TNT, part of Warner Brothers Discovery.

You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. Hi, everyone. I'm Jessica Dean in Washington.

And tonight, breaking news. The White House saying President Biden held a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier today. That call coming just days after the president signed an aid package that includes $26 billion for Israel and as Biden faces increased pressure to end the war amid massive protests at college campuses across the country.

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez is joining us now from the White House with more details on this.

Priscilla, you have new reporting on what this call really focused on.

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jessica, according to a source familiar with the call, this was primarily focused on a hostage deal. In fact, 75 percent of the conversation was about a hostage deal. This is something that the White House has been focused on that U.S. officials have seen as a priority of theirs in trying to get these hostages released while also trying to reach an agreement on a temporary ceasefire that would allow again for that those releases of hostages as well as for more humanitarian aid to get into Gaza.

This source saying that the conversation was, quote, "constructive," lasting only just under an hour. And of course, this also comes as Secretary of State Antony Blinken is headed to the Middle East where he is expected to also engage in discussions about the hostage deal, as well as humanitarian aid into Gaza. But this wasn't the only issue that the two leaders discussed. They also talked about Iran's airstrikes against Israel and Israel's airstrikes back at Iran. That was something that occurred earlier in the month and that the

White House and Israel had been quite tight-lipped about. But they also talked about Rafah. Another top concern for this White House. That is a potential operation that Israel has said that they would engage in in Rafah, an area that has over a million Palestinians displaced. The White House position up until this point has been that an operation at this point is untenable, just given how many civilians are in that region.

And according to a White House readout, it said, quote, "The leaders discussed Rafah and the president reiterated his clear position." So this clearly coming up, but the source telling me that while they did talk about Rafah, a lot of the focus here was on this hostage deal because, of course, the U.S. really wants to see a breakthrough here. They want to reach this agreement so that they can get the release of those hostages.

And I should also mention that in this conversation about this, they also discussed the videos of American hostages so this was all part of this conversation. Now what happens from here unclear. We'll be watching for that. But again, the focus of today's call between the two leaders is really on this deal, and again whether we will see a breakthrough unclear.

DEAN: All right. Priscilla Alvarez, from the White House tonight. Thanks so much for that reporting.

Let's get some more insight now from Aaron David Miller. He's the former State Department Middle East negotiator.

Great to have you. Thanks for being here. We have seen the president make these kinds of calls several times since October 7th. How effective are they in actually shifting policy, shifting Israel's policy?

AARON DAVID MILLER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: You know, negotiations succeed when both parties feel a certain amount of urgency. And right now, it strikes me frankly with the way that the president's phone call that the party that feels the most urgency right now is neither Hamas, who I believe actually uses time tunnels and hostages to bargain for a much better deal, or the government of Israel, which the Netanyahu government, which knows that if they exchange hostages, you're going to end up with an asymmetrical number of Palestinians, some with blood on their hands, accused or actually convicted of killing Israelis.

The Biden administration is in a hurry because they're in a strategic cul-de-sac. Without an agreement between Israel and Hamas, you cannot even hope to, on any sustained basis, surge humanitarian assistance into Gaza. There'll be no hostages freed and no de-escalation of Israeli military activity. I think it's really hard, Jessica, right now unless you're literally involved. And I would watch -- if I had to predict anything, I'd watch for the travel of CIA Director Bill Burns.

DEAN: I also --

(CROSSTALK)

MILLER: If Bill Burns come (INAUDIBLE), and in effect headed for the Middle East, I think the odds that this round might produce something go up.

DEAN: You're saying if he travels to the Middle East, that's -- that it goes up.

MILLER: It's what I think.

DEAN: Yes.

MILLER: But again, you know, you're doing a curious negotiation, right? The key decision-maker on the Hamas side, Yahya Sinwar, has gone somewhere in a tunnel under Khan Younis or Rafah.

[19:05:04]

How they're communicating with him? The Israelis are currently looking for him, but six months later, more than six months, the Israelis have not identified where the senior leadership or the vast majority of hostages are looking.

DEAN: And I'm curious to just with your background, what should we make of the videos that we've seen now of some of these Israeli- American hostage, that frankly, we weren't sure about their status? And we've seen these videos released. What do you think that's -- what's the message there?

MILLER: Maybe improve Hamas' images if that's even possible, given the fact that these hostages are being abused and of the 130 that remained the Israelis believed that 30 were either killed on October 7th, their bodies brought to Gaza to trade, or they died in captivity. I think that Hamas understands only too well, Yahya Sinwar was in jail for 20 years. He was part of an asymmetrical hostage traded in 2011. 1,079 Palestinians for one Israeli corporal.

He knows how much value the Israeli public and governments, Israeli governments, attached to the redemption of their own citizens dead or alive from the battlefield. So I think its psychological pressure, cruel as it may be, but the fact that these videos have been released maybe, just maybe, could point to -- in the direction that there might be some space here for a limited exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners, and a ceasefire.

DEAN: Yes. Yes. And we learned today that the Secretary of State Antony Blinken is going to go back to Israel this week. They're trying to get those talks moving again. What does that say to you? Obviously we're not Bill Burns, the CIA director going just yet, but do you think this round has any better chance than any of the other rounds?

MILLER: He's really -- I mean, I'm just guessing here. And nobody ever lost money betting against success in Arab-Israeli negotiations. Having done this for over 20 years, I can say that with great authority. It may be though, back to the urgency theme, that both Israel and Hamas now are under a bit more pressure. And I don't want to leave myself or you hopeless. I think it may well be that this round creates enough space for a limited deal. I certainly hope so.

DEAN: All right. Well, we will wait and see.

Aaron David Miller, we always appreciate your contexts and your analysis. Thanks so much.

MILLER: Thank you, Jessica.

DEAN: Protests against Israel's war on Gaza are rocking college campuses across the country today. Police arrested hundreds of protesters yesterday, with some universities calling in police to clear the protesters and their encampments.

Camila Bernal has been on the scene at UCLA's campus today.

And, Camila, after a kind of a quiet day yesterday, you've been reporting on just how active it's been there today. What have you been seeing?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and how different it was from yesterday because today we did see a lot of violence, a lot of altercations, a lot of passion on both sides of this issue, and eventually they were cleared by police. That's why it's so quiet right now. But I do want to show you behind this plywood is where the encampment is. So the students that were actually in the encampment, they stay there throughout the whole day during all of these protests.

And it was these security guards that you see here. They were the ones that were trying to keep the space between the protesters, the people in the encampment. And I think the problem that the university had throughout the day was trying to keep the protesters separate because you had the pro-Palestinian protesters and then you had the people that were here to support the Jewish students on campus.

And it was when they came together that you saw a lot of those clashes and you saw that passion. And I personally saw many people get pushed and shoved and there were a lot of arguments. You know, it was something that you knew that people were not going to come to an agreement, but they continue to scream at each other and push each other. And it was absolutely violent at times.

I want you to take a listen to what some of the students and the people who are here told me about where they stand.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THARWA KHALID, PROTESTER: We've seen it historically that when the students decide to unite, that the people will rally behind them. So this is no surprise to me. I know that the American public is not OK with their own tax-paying dollars going to fund Israel, and they're also not OK with students paying tuition and their money going to fund Israel for their funding their investments here as students.

ELLE RAZZA, PROTESTER: We were pepper sprayed, we were pepper sprayed, and they also threw stink bombs at us. It was disgusting. Somebody stole my sign. They really, really believe in intimidating. They were trying to say, they were cussing at us and saying terrible things. I believe in protests. I do. But not like this. Not like this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[19:10:03]

BERNAL: And right now you are seeing just a very small group of people here behind me, behind these metal barriers. They want to be in this area. But again, campus security just not allowing them. The police did not get involved throughout the day. What we saw was the security guards essentially creating a barrier between the protesters and campus police that was at the end of the day when the protests were essentially coming to an end and the campus police decided that it was time for it to be over.

Then they started pushing those protesters out of campus and we did not see a lot of violence when it came with that interaction with police officers. No one on campus has been arrested and again now things are just a lot quieter, but it was a very active day with people just extremely passionate on both sides of this issue -- Jessica.

DEAN: Camila Bernal, on the campus of UCLA, in Los Angeles. Thanks so much for that reporting.

Arizona now the fourth state to charge former President Trump's allies including Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows with allegedly trying to overturn the state's 2020 election results. Are these new indictments could impact our elections moving forward?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:15:50]

DEAN: Arizona is now the latest state to charge Trump allies for their alleged part in a fake electors' scheme. The 18-people indicted are accused of interfering with the presidential election by submitting documents with a false set of electors to try and keep former President Trump in power. So what does it all mean in the push to protect your vote?

David Becker, the executive director of the Center for Election Innovation Research, joins us now.

David, thanks so much for being here with us. These indictments in Arizona are the latest in a string of states like Georgia, Michigan, that are taking action against people involved -- allegedly involved in these fake elector schemes. Do you think this is going to be enough to deter others as we head into 2024?

DAVID BECKER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR ELECTION INNOVATION RESEARCH: Well, by itself, it's probably not enough to deter any potential negative activity, any potential activity to subvert a valid election that's been certified over and over and over again. We should remember that when this was happening in mid-December of 2020, the election had been challenged literally over 60 times across the country by former President Trump, then President Trump. And every single time those challenges had failed. There is no

evidence at that time in December of 2020 that there was anything that would cause us to doubt the outcome of the election. And as we sit here three and a half years later we still are at the same point. There's still not been a shred of evidence produced to any court anywhere in the country. That there was any problems or fraud that would have changed the outcome of the election.

And so when those electors sat, those fake electors sat and swore that they were the duly certified electors, they were committing an alleged fraud on the United States and the voters of the state of Arizona, and three other states that have charged fake electors as well. So hopefully, this will cause people to think twice before they put their potential freedom at risk by swearing something that they know isn't true at the time, and they cannot prove.

DEAN: Yes, that's false. What's notable about these indictments, Arizona, Michigan, Georgia, those are all critical swing states, right? The outcome of the election in those states means a lot. That's not a coincidence, is it?

BECKER: No, of course not. I mean, these were states that the losing presidential candidate, the then President Trump, lost. And so he only challenged those states. You know, Michigan was the state that then President Trump had lost by 154,000 votes. That's a lot of votes. There were a lot of states that were closer in that, but there were other states like North Carolina that were decided by less than half that amount of votes, about 75,000 votes in North Carolina.

The difference is that former President Trump won that state. So of course there were no challenges or false electors coming out in North Carolina. This is just about the outcome of the election and someone who is so desperate to hold on to power that he was willing to do anything and his supporters who were willing to go along with it.

As we heard in the immunity cases just this past week in the Supreme Court, the president is alleging he's immune, but one of the challenges he faces is all of the people that he needs to support him to potentially put their own freedom at risk and commit crimes so that he can stay in office, they are not immune. And so it's really important for everyone to recognize no matter which candidate you support, if you attempt to subvert an election regardless of who you're working for, you may very well find yourself going to jail.

DEAN: And we are now -- we have the presumed nominees for each party, but the primary season is still playing out. People have been voting now over the last several months. What have you seen? And is there any evidence that the crackdown by prosecutors is having an effect? We haven't seen at least at this point anybody saying, oh, the election results in X state weren't correct or anything like that.

BECKER: Right. I mean, well, turnout has been fairly low in the primaries especially given the fact that, as you mentioned, Jessica, we are at a point right now where the nominees are largely set. So a lot of people who are interested in voting in the presidential primaries know that it's unlikely to change things as we head into the November general election.

[19:20:08]

But we should also note that there's a variety of people out there who are paying the price for the efforts to subvert the 2020 election, whether it's losing their law licenses, whether it's people like Rudy Giuliani, who's also had his law license suspended, but has also been held liable for defamation. There's a propaganda site that just last week declared bankruptcy because it had spread lies about poll workers in Georgia.

These do have effects and I think what we're going to see, hopefully, is that people who might otherwise be inclined to do anything to support their candidate, even subvert an election, they might think twice. We live in a democracy that's very narrowly divided. And so none of us should be surprised if our candidate loses. But to go that extra step and seek to subvert an election that voters have clearly spoken and that have been certified, that is a step that probably violates the law and could put your freedom at risk.

DEAN: Yes. No doubt about it. David Becker, thanks so much. We appreciate it.

BECKER: Thank you.

DEAN: Federal regulators are increasing their testing and tracking for bird flu in dairy cows after finding traces of the virus in one-fifth of our country's milk supply. What this says about the spread of the virus and why the FDA says you don't have to worry?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:25:50]

DEAN: New research shows measles are mounting a comeback. There's been an alarming spike in the highly contagious virus, even though it was declared eliminated in the U.S. in 2000. The World Health Organization says cases nearly doubled between 2022 and 2023. They're still running high. So far this year, the CDC says it's seen the highest number of cases in the U.S. since 2019. The CDC recommends children get their first measles vaccination between 12 and 15 months, and then a booster when they're between 4 and 6 years old.

The USDA wants more information and quickly after FDA regulators found traces of the bird flu virus in roughly 20 percent of retail milk samples they tested. It's now issuing a federal order to require more testing and reporting of the bird flu in dairy cows. Now scientists say it's not an immediate threat to humans. You don't have to throw your milk out. But it is troubling to find the virus so widespread in dairy cows.

Dr. Richard Webby from St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital is joining us now.

Dr. Webby, thanks for being with us. This does sound scary and kind of icky. Can we even get bird flu from drinking the milk? And it doesn't sound like it. And why is it not a threat to humans?

DR. RICHARD WEBBY, ST. JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL: Yes. I agree. It sounds a little icky but -- and some (INAUDIBLE) that's actually expected. So on some of these infected cow, there's a lot of virus in the milk. And so what we're seeing in the supermarket shelves is not actually the virus itself, but (INAUDIBLE) to that virus that have been destroyed through the pasteurization process. So, you know, as such, drinking the supermarket milk right now is now everything that's been tasted has come up the label where we would like it and no virus in there at all, which is of course a good thing.

DEAN: That's safe. Yes, exactly. I want to underscore that to people at this point, even though this is what they're finding. Help us understand what regulators are hoping to find out. They say they want to do further testing, increased testing. What are they trying to find out here?

WEBBY: I think there's a number of questions unresolved about this entire outbreak because this is actually a bird virus, so it shouldn't be in cows in the first place. So lots of people are trying to understand, you know, where this virus is, both in cows, where it is in sort of the food chain in terms of the milk. And again, just I guess putting the stake on the corner, just prove that there is no live virus in these commercial milk that people are buying at the supermarket.

And again, the only thing that's in there is traces of the virus that have been killed. So that's caught aware of people (INAUDIBLE) and trying to find out a little bit about this virus. So again, I think the more we can understand, the more chances we have of stopping it.

DEAN: Sure. And it's interesting, you were saying that the bird flu is being found in cows. It kind of begs the question, can you find it in other animals also, maybe?

WEBBY: Yes. So, as I said, this is -- it's really a bird virus. But over the past couple of years since it's been sort of our part of the world here on the Americas, it's been trying out to these other hosts, so it's spilled over from wild birds into other mammal hosts. A lot of them scavenging host. You can think like a fox or a skunk or raccoon or bear that might stumble across an infected bird and have a chomp.

Also sea mammals. There's been some large die off of sea mammals, particularly in parts of South America as well. So this introduction into cows is really just the next stage into really the spring of a pretty worrying virus.

DEAN: And so just finally, I think I want to underscore for everyone watching, what would you say to anyone who is nervous about drinking milk? It sounds like based on what you're saying, it's been tested, it's OK. These are just remnants of this virus, but what would you say to anyone out there who's nervous?

WEBBY: Yes, that's exactly right. What we'll find in the milk is not the virus, but parts of it. You know, I have a jug a bit at home that I know has remnants of the virus and I'm still using it. I haven't told my daughter that yet. Again, the one thing perhaps we should note there that the one maybe risk activity is unpasteurized milk, which of course, you know, there is a percentage of the population that drinks. Right now, that's probably not a very good idea.

[19:30:10]

DEAN: Okay, good to note there. Dr. Richard Webby, thanks so much for spelling it out for us. We appreciate it.

WEBBY: Thank you.

DEAN: Republicans have ambitions of winning a bigger majority in Congress this November, but infighting among those already in office could stymie those plans especially with House Speaker Mike Johnson's job still in jeopardy as he looks to wrangle the fringes of his party. We will talk more about it.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:35:12]

DEAN: New poll numbers show President Biden and is campaign has more to do to win maximum of the coalition that elected him in 2020.

A new CNN poll showing former President Trump has an edge over Biden among registered voters in a head-to-head match. Again, that is a national poll there.

When it comes to major issues like the economy, Biden's approval rating with registered voters is largely negative and the numbers are worse among US adults when asked about how the president has handled the Israel-Hamas War. So we are getting some data points there.

Meantime, the House is back in session tomorrow, on Monday and Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson is facing an uphill battle as he returns to work with that very, very slim majority and the threat hanging over his head of potentially losing his job over that $95 billion foreign aid package that he helped pass earlier this month with wide bipartisan support.

The threat coming from Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who says Johnson "betrayed" voters. A vote to oust him could throw the House back into chaos in the middle of a pivotal election year.

And joining us now is congressional reporter for "The Hill," Mychael Schnell. Mychael, great to have you here with us.

Just first, they are coming back tomorrow. This threat that Greene has to vacate the Speaker has been looming over his head. How likely do you think this is?

MYCHAEL SCHNELL, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, "THE HILL": Well, it is still looming just to be sure, Congresswoman Greene, not relented on this threat to bring a Motion to Vacate, last weekend saying that Speaker Mike Johnson has to resign, if not, he is going to face this Vacate Vote, but the key question is when and if, regardless of her saying this.

We still don't have answers to that, Jessica. I mean, Congresswoman Greene, she has been asked time and time again, when do you plan to actually force a vote on this resolution, which would set in motion this potential ouster of Johnson. She has deflected every single time saying that she wants to provide more time, give time for her colleagues to talk about a potential successor.

She doesn't want to sort of have a rushed process like she says, happened in October most recently. She said she wanted her colleagues to go home and speak to constituents after voting for that foreign aid package, so that is of course going to be the same question we ask Congresswoman Greene tomorrow. When is this going to happen? When are you going to force a vote on this? Because that is the key question when we can get this process in motion.

DEAN: Right. And just to remind everybody, just like how we got here for a second, it is when Kevin McCarthy was trying to win multiple rounds to be speaker that he lowered the threshold to just one member.

SCHNELL: Right.

DEAN: And that is how we end up here.

SCHNELL: Actions have consequences.

DEAN: They sure do, and we are seeing them play out.

During an interview this morning, Democratic Congressman Jared Moskowitz suggested that some Democrats might be interested in helping the speaker out. He was essentially saying not because they want to help him so much, but because of their distaste for Marjorie Taylor Greene.

We have a clip of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JARED MOSKOWITZ (D-FL): The idea of allowing Marjorie Taylor Greene, someone who literally would let the world burn with her isolationist foreign policy, who has talked about states seceding from the Union, right, the idea of letting her sit in the Peoples' House, in the well of Congress, giving a speech, removing any speaker and having that powerful moment.

There is just no way Democrats are going to let her do that. I am not going to let her do that. We won't even let her name a post office. We are not going to let her -- we are not going to let her take out the speaker.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: And you know, Mychael, I don't have to tell you this, but other Democrats have also said, essentially, we don't want to punish Mike Johnson for doing what they consider to be the right thing.

What is the likelihood and what are you hearing about Democrats potentially stepping in here if that vote comes up?

SCHNELL: Yes, very likely. It is not just Congressman Moskowitz, it is a wide variety of Democrats, more liberal ones, more moderate ones. We are hearing them say that they would likely step in to save Mike Johnson and this is sort of multifaceted, right? There are a few layers to this.

A, Democrats don't want to be seen supporting Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who is sort of a Democratic boogeyman, somebody who they of course criticized on a number of occasions. B. A lot of this all hinge on what Mike Johnson did with Ukraine aid and with that foreign aid package, and after months of deflecting and pushing this off, a lot of delays, he ultimately put that foreign aid package on the floor that included concluded roughly $61 billion in Ukraine aid and it passed, and President Biden signed it and that aid is now going overseas.

So a lot of Democrats are thinking now, well look, Mike Johnson did the right thing despite the loud cries of opposition from members of his conference, he decided to put this aid package on the floor, it passed.

So for that reason, he doesn't deserve to be ousted. That is another reason. And then third, there was the three weeks of paralysis and chaos back in October when Democrats banded with those eight Republicans to oust former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a lot of Democrats just don't have an appetite to go down that road again.

So for all of those factors, it is looking likely that if Greene does bring this to the floor, Democrats would likely vote to table the Motion to Vacate, not exactly voting in support of him, but voting to push it to the side and that would essentially be quashed.

DEAN: That would be that.

And you know, just before we let you go, just the thought too that it is all happening in this election year and you see the former President Donald Trump, you see Mike Johnson going down to see him, him coming out, not -- he is also very close, the former president with Marjorie Taylor Greene, but also kind of giving Mike Johnson a little bit of cover there as well.

[19:40:21]

How does this have broader implications on Republicans' hopes, especially in the House in the fall?

SCHNELL: Well Republicans don't want to be seen as the chaos conference, right, which is something that Democrats have called them on a number of occasions. They want to be seen as -- you know, they were given the majority back in 2022. They want to go back to voters and say, you gave it to us for a good reason. We got A, B, and C accomplished when they have this chaos engulfing the conference at every turn. It doesn't help.

And a lot of conservatives are realizing that because Congresswoman Greene has said that she is going to bring this motion to vacate. She has support from just two other conservatives right now. A number of all of these hardliners are saying that they are not going to support this if it comes to the floor. A large reason why is because of that election that is around the corner.

Congressman Chip Roy, who has been one of the most critical of Johnson at this current juncture when he talked about Ukraine aid was on the radio just in recent days saying he is not happy with Mike Johnson's leadership, but folks are too close to the election year and this is just not the time to do it.

Congressman Bob Good, the Chairman of the Conservative House Freedom Caucus, who voted to oust McCarthy back in October, saying the same thing. This isn't the time.

So a lot of these conservatives are thinking, they don't want to be showing the country that they are full of this chaos so close to an election year. So look, they will bite their tongue, they understand that they are not going to win every battle. They will finish up the year with Mike Johnson.

The real question is, if Republicans are able to retain the majority, or even if they are in the minority, will Mike Johnson be the top Republican come next year? I think that is going to be the next battle for House Republicans.

DEAN: For sure. A lot to come on that. All right, thanks so much. Mychael Schnell, we are glad to have you here. We appreciate it.

SCHNELL: Thank you.

DEAN: Last night in Washington, journalists, politicians, and celebrities gathered for the annual tradition that is the White House Correspondents' Dinner to celebrate the importance of the free press.

President Biden was front and center as most US presidents have been for decades. No one was off-limits for "Saturday Night Live," comedian Colin Jost.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLIN JOST, COMEDIAN: Before I begin tonight, can we just acknowledge how refreshing it is to see a president of the United States and an event that doesn't begin with a bailiff saying, "All Rise."

(LAUGHTER)

JOST: The Republican candidate for president owes half a billion in fines for bank fraud and is currently spending his days farting himself awake during a porn star hush money trial. And the race is tied?

I was excited to be up here on stage with President Biden tonight, mostly to see if I could figure out where Obama was pulling the strings from.

It is also wonderful to be back in Washington. I love being in Washington. The last time I was in DC, I left my cocaine at the White House.

(LAUGHTER)

JOST: Luckily, the president was able to put it to good use for his State of the Union.

I am not saying both candidates are old, but you know, Jimmy Carter is out there thinking, I could maybe win this thing.

(LAUGHTER)

JOST: He is only 99.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Also last night, President Biden taking a moment to call on Russia again to release "Wall Street Journal" reporter, Evan Gershkovich.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Putin should release Evan and also immediately.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: Yes, we are doing everything we can -- we are doing everything we can to bring home the journalist.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Gershkovich's parents were also at the dinner. Last week, a Russian court rejected his latest appeal, meaning he will remain behind bars until at least June 30th. He was arrested more than a year ago for no discernible reason in March 2023.

Tough talk between Israel and Iran, have the White House and the world concerned about more conflict in the Middle East?

Ahead also, CNN is taking you inside Iran where anti-American rhetoric is also growing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:48:45]

DEAN: In Iran, the rhetoric grows harsher from hardliners as tensions escalate with Israel, and amid the ongoing war in Gaza, the US is being denounced for its continued support of Israel.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen reports from Tehran.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Iran's hardliners flexing their muscles, screaming "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" at Tehran's main Friday prayers.

The staunchly conservative prayer leader saying the Islamic Republic will not back down.

PLEITGEN (on camera): Iran has warned it will take an even harder line toward the US and toward Israel in the future, saying that, if Israel attacks Iran or its assets one more time, the Iranians will strike back from their own territory.

PLEITGEN (voice over): Tensions in the Middle East remain at a boiling point after Iran launched a massive drone and missile attack against Israel in retaliation for the bombing of its embassy compound in Syria, killing several top Revolutionary Guard commanders.

Israel, the US and other allies managed to take down most of the Iranian drones and missiles, but Israel then hitting back with a limited strike against an airfield in Central Iran.

The hardliners flying massive Palestinian flags, ripping into Israel's operation in Gaza and the US's support for Israel. The message here, Iran is ready for a confrontation.

[19:50:10]

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)

PLEITGEN: "In fact, we are even happy about," this man says. "We are praying day and night for a second and third attack."

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)

PLEITGEN: And he says, "We've had these threats for a long time, but the difference is now the people are strong. The IRGC is strong and the army is strong. And we have strong tools."

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)

PLEITGEN: And this cleric says, "If the Islamic Republic of Iran will have more conflicts in the future, it doesn't mean we are warmongering. We're just reacting to the bullies."

But on the streets of Tehran, concern the current tensions could escalate and even turn into war.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)

PLEITGEN: "I believe the situation will get worse," this man says, "as both sides are more combative and, in my opinion, it will lead to war and to calamity for people."

(UNIDENTIFIED FE MALE speaking in foreign language.)

PLEITGEN: This woman says, "We are definitely concerned, worried. But what can we ordinary people do about it?"

Iran's leadership says its military is ready for combat even as they say war is not in their interest.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: All right, our thanks to Fred Pleitgen there.

We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:55:57]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JULIAN LIGHTFOOT, TRUMP SUPPORTER: The job of a journalist is to ask the questions, allow the person to speak, and just report the facts. What was spoken? Would you like for me to pull up the definition of journalists?

DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's okay. But thank you, Julia.

LIGHTFOOT: Okay. I have a God-given right to speak my own truth.

O'SULLIVAN: But there are facts, right?

LIGHTFOOT: The facts have shown that the election was stolen. Whether you're willing to look at that and accept that and really show what is going on, that's your issue, not ours.

We want the God-given freedom that our Constitution and our Bill of Rights is based on.

O'SULLIVAN: God-given constitutional rights.

LIGHTFOOT: Yes.

O'SULLIVAN: They are two different things.

LIGHTFOOT: No, sir, they are not. Read. R-E-A-D the Constitution. Read it out loud to yourself so that you hear what the words of the Constitution say.

O'SULLIVAN: God isn't mentioned in the Constitution.

LIGHTFOOT: Sir --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: On tonight's new episode of "The Whole Story" with Anderson Cooper, CNN correspondent, Donie O'Sullivan looks at how conspiracy theories and online misinformation are affecting this year's presidential campaign, and that includes the rise of Christian nationalism in politics.

And Donie is here with us now. We saw the clip. You went all over the country, what stuck out to you?

O'SULLIVAN: Well, I think really, as you saw in our exchange there with that lady, we have been speaking to a lot of Christian pastors across the country who are really worried about this pundits known as Christian Nationalism. This idea that Christianity has supremacy in the United States over other religions, which, of course, this country was set up very much so to separate church and state and to have freedom of religion.

So that was one thing that stuck out and that we go in to this in this documentary but really, I mean I think what quite kind of struck me the most was that, you know, you think about the -- you remember the Taylor Swift conspiracy theory on the Super Bowl?

DEAN: Right.

O'SULLIVAN: That Swift was somehow involved in rigging the Super Bowl in order to help Joe Biden.

DEAN: To win it until election, yes.

O'SULLIVAN: Yes, as I spoke to one man in Colorado, Joe Black who is also on the doc, and we were going through has his information dais as such and he didn't necessarily believe the Taylor Swift thing, but what he did say was that look, it seems plausible, after all, the Democrats did steal the last election, the 2020 election.

And I think, by convincing so many millions of Americans that the last election was stolen, and you know, just thinking about how grand an actual conspiracy that would have to be to pull that off, it has opened this kind of alternate reality where all of these other crazy things seem possible.

DEAN: It could be possible. Like a Pandora's Box of sorts.

O'SULLIVAN: Yes.

DEAN: And you also talk to this man named Derrick Evans who is a Trump supporter convicted for his role in the January 6 insurrection. He is now running for Congress.

O'SULLIVAN: He is. Yes, he is a Republican -- he is in the Republican primary for the US House of Representatives in West Virginia.

And look, I mean, I think it is just one of -- it is indicative of where we are since January 6th. I think most folks probably wouldn't have thoughts that after January 6 and all of that chaos that one, folks who were involved, and you see Derrick there, folks who were involved in that day would be running for Congress, but also that the man who the lie -- his lies brought them to the Capitol that day, Donald Trump would be --

DEAN: Would be running for president. O'SULLIVAN: Exactly.

DEAN: And it would really be a very tight race.

All right, Donie, we are going to be watching. Thanks so much.

O'SULLIVAN: Thank you.

DEAN: Good to see you.

And the all-new episode of "The Whole Story" with Anderson Cooper. It is a whole hour, one whole story is next right here on CNN, and you can watch Donie's full report.

And thank you so much for joining me this evening. I am Jessica Dean. I will see you again next weekend.

Have a great night.