By Mark Morales, CNN

(CNN) — A man who managed to slip past tight security at 30 Rockefeller Center and approach “Today” show co-host Craig Melvin was taken into custody Thursday morning, according to NBC News and a law enforcement official.

The person entered an unauthorized area in a vestibule near Studio 1A and approached Melvin, who alerted security, NBC’s “Today” show said in a statement.

“The individual was detained and taken into custody by law enforcement without further incident. There was no altercation, and no one was injured,” the statement said.

A law enforcement official told CNN the man allegedly lunged at Melvin and hurled a racial slur during the encounter.

Officers responded to a report of a disorderly person inside 30 Rockefeller Center at approximately 9:19 a.m., within the confines of the Midtown North Precinct, and placed the unidentified individual into custody, according to the NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner of Public Information. No injuries were reported, and the investigation remains ongoing, the NYPD said.

Investigators believe the man entered through a secured area, where he asked staffers for Al Roker, the law enforcement official said. When he didn’t find the longtime co-host, he turned his attention to Melvin, spotting him a short time later. That’s when the confrontation happened, the official said.

The man is expected to face burglary and other charges, according to the law enforcement official.

Investigators are trying to determine how the man was able to breach the secured area and are combing through surveillance footage. They are also reviewing body-worn camera footage from the arresting officers, the official said.

“TODAY is cooperating fully with law enforcement as they investigate the matter,” NBC said in its statement. “NBC and TODAY take the safety and security of our employees, talent, staff and guests extremely seriously. We are reviewing the incident and our security protocols and remain committed to providing a safe and secure environment for everyone who works at and visits our studios.”

Several NBC employees who spoke with CNN said they were shocked by the breach, given the level of security in place around 30 Rockefeller Center, where a World Cup Fan Zone event is being held. One person noted that their work badge must be swiped or inspected multiple times to enter the building.

The man is being held at an NYPD precinct in Midtown Manhattan, the official said.

Security was stepped up at NBC’s “Today” show in February as Savannah Guthrie’s co-hosts and colleagues covered the abduction of her mother, Nancy, two people at the network said on condition of anonymity.

The additional security measures were implemented out of an abundance of caution to help alleviate some of the stress the show’s hosts were feeling as they talked on air every morning about the mystery.

Major networks like NBC have security departments that support their hosts — from physical protection to online threat tracking — and liaise with local police.

CNN’s Brian Stelter, Brynn Gingras and Nina Giraldo contributed to this report.

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Por Aaron Blake, CNN

En su intento de vender la idea de la guerra con Irán a un público escéptico, el presidente Donald Trump ha recurrido repetidamente a un argumento concreto: que el acuerdo nuclear con Teherán de Barack Obama fue un desastre y que él logrará algo mucho mejor.

De hecho, Trump ha mencionado el acuerdo nuclear de Obama más de tres docenas de veces desde que comenzó el conflicto, según un análisis de CNN basado en las transcripciones de Factbase de Roll Call.

Una nueva encuesta de The Washington Post e Ipsos trae noticias muy negativas para Trump en este aspecto.

El sondeo revela que solo el 23 % de los estadounidenses cree que Trump logrará presentar un acuerdo con Irán mejor que el que Obama consiguió en 2015. Por otro lado, el 37 % —una diferencia de 14 puntos— opinó que Trump logrará un acuerdo peor.

Otro 12 % esperaba que los acuerdos fueran “más o menos iguales”, mientras que el resto no expresó ninguna opinión.

Incluso entre los republicanos, poco más de la mitad (54 %) creía que Trump lograría un acuerdo mejor.

Esta opinión provenía mayoritariamente de sus partidarios más acérrimos: el 70 % de los republicanos del movimiento MAGA afirmó que Trump conseguiría un acuerdo mejor. Entre los republicanos que no se identifican con MAGA, las opiniones estaban bastante divididas: mientras que el 27 % creía que Trump lograría un acuerdo superior, el 23 % opinaba que el de Obama sería mejor.

Solo el 13 % de los independientes creía que el presidente lograría un acuerdo mejor.

En muchos sentidos, este hallazgo ejemplifica el fracaso de Trump a la hora de justificar una guerra que se está convirtiendo en un lastre político cada vez mayor.

¿Cuántas de esas personas entienden realmente el contenido del acuerdo nuclear de Obama firmado en 2015, también conocido como Plan de Acción Integral Conjunto (JCPOA)? Es una pregunta válida. Trump rompió ese acuerdo hace nueve años, y se trataba de un pacto muy complejo.

Pero eso es, en cierto modo, secundario.

Para empezar, el JCPOA fue bastante impopular en su momento. Si bien algunas encuestas iniciales mostraban que la gente estaba abierta a la idea, un sondeo del Pew Research Center de septiembre de 2015 reveló que los estadounidenses lo desaprobaban por un margen del 49 % frente al 21 %. A principios de 2016, una encuesta de Gallup mostró que el rechazo de los estadounidenses alcanzaba el 57 % frente al 30 % de aprobación. Que la alternativa que Trump promueve inspire aún menos confianza es algo significativo.

En segundo lugar, Trump ha pasado los últimos cuatro meses y medio criticando duramente ese acuerdo en todo momento. Lo ha calificado sistemáticamente como una capitulación total ante Irán que ponía al país en camino de obtener un arma nuclear.

“¿Saben lo que hicieron los iraníes?”, dijo Trump hace un mes junto al presidente de Egipto. “Se rieron de Obama y dijeron que era un estúpido hijo de p****”.

Durante una intervención el lunes en Fox News, Trump lo calificó como “el peor acuerdo jamás firmado por este país” e incluso pareció insinuar, sin fundamento alguno, que las motivaciones de Obama para alcanzarlo escondían algo mucho más siniestro.

Otro punto clave: pocas personas creen que Trump logrará un acuerdo mejor, a pesar de que objetivamente ha invertido mucho más esfuerzo en conseguirlo. Trump emprendió una guerra que costó la vida a más de una docena de estadounidenses, supuso un gasto rápido de decenas de miles de millones de dólares y sacudió la economía mundial. Además, no se vislumbra un final para el conflicto, dado que la toma del estrecho de Ormuz por parte de Irán ha creado un problema enorme que no existía antes de la guerra.

Sin embargo, el pueblo estadounidense parece preferir el acuerdo que Obama logró cerrar utilizando únicamente la vía diplomática.

En cierto modo, este resultado no so

By Marshall Cohen, CNN

(CNN) — The federal agency that regulates prediction markets is investigating President Donald Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator for potential insider trading, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

The sources said White House employee Gabriel Perez made trades on the prediction site Kalshi that were flagged for possible insider activity. The trades were on “mention markets,” where users can bet on which words and phrases that public figures, including Trump, will say at speeches and events.

Kalshi referred its findings to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the federal agency that regulates prediction markets. One of the sources said Perez made more than $90,000 in profits from the trades in question, but the profits have been frozen.

“Our surveillance team promptly flagged and referred these trades to the CFTC, and we are cooperating and assisting regulators,” Kalshi’s head of enforcement, Robert DeNault, said in a statement.

Perez has cooperated with the CFTC investigation, according to one of the sources.

CNN has reached out to the White House, CFTC and Perez for comment. In response to CNN’s inquiries, a CFTC spokesperson said the agency “can’t confirm or deny an investigation.”

This is the first known instance of a White House employee alleged to be involved in an insider trading scheme on prediction markets, which have exploded in popularity this year.

Earlier this year, the White House warned its staff against insider trading on prediction markets. The March 24 memo told employees that “the misuse of nonpublic information by government employees for financial benefit is a very serious offense and will not be tolerated.”

The Trump-era CFTC has championed prediction markets. But CFTC chair Mike Selig, a Trump appointee, has pledged to crack down on insider trading, including if it came from the White House.

Perez is Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator who has traveled and worked with him for a decade. He is one of the handful of aides the president trusts with his remarks and is often the last person to see Trump’s speeches before he delivers them. Given how often the president makes last minute edits to public remarks, he works extremely closely with Perez and has previously argued that he is the only person who can operate his prompter.

Perez is among the highest-paid members of White House staff. According to a report submitted to Congress, Perez’s 2026 salary is $175,000. His official title is “deputy assistant to the president and technical advisor.”

Trump praised Perez during an event in Reno on the 2024 campaign trail, saying, “I have a guy, Gabe. He’s excellent. I’ve had some real bad ones, but I have Gabe.”

CNN has a partnership with Kalshi and uses its data to cover major events, but CNN editorial employees aren’t allowed to trade on prediction marke

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By Samantha Delouya, CNN

(CNN) — Geopolitical tensions are rippling through America’s housing market, adding to the financial strain on homebuyers.

This week, the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage climbed to 6.55% — its highest level in nearly a year — after renewed strikes in Iran after renewed strikes in Iran rattled financial markets.

The increase all but extinguishes the optimism that defined the start of the spring homebuying season, when many economists expected falling mortgage rates to help thaw the housing market.

In February, the average mortgage rate briefly fell below 6% for the first time in three and a half years. But fighting that erupted in the Middle East days later upended that trajectory, pushing bond yields and mortgage rates higher as investors worried the conflict would keep oil prices and inflation elevated.

And there are signs elevated mortgage rates are keeping would-be buyers out of the market.

Pending home sales in June fell by 5.4% month-over-month and by 0.3% since last year, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors released on Thursday.

“The highest mortgage rates in nearly a year and the record-high national median home price together are contributing to a tepid housing market that is especially difficult for first-time homebuyers,” said NAR Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun.

Mortgage applications also fell 7% last week and were 2% lower than last year, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Mortgage rates tend to track the 10-year Treasury yield, which was volatile late last week and early this week as the US renewed strikes on Iran last week after a brief ceasefire.

The brief stop in fighting last month led to a drop in energy prices – and, in turn, cooling inflation at the wholesale level.

On an annual basis, the Producer Price Index slowed to 5.5% in June, compared to 6% in May. But renewed fighting has sent oil prices rising once again.

“Mortgage rates are caught between cooler inflation data and renewed energy risks,” Kara Ng, a Zillow senior economist, said. “Softer June inflation reduced the likelihood of a near-term Federal Reserve rate increase, but higher oil prices are keeping pressure on the inflation outlook and borrowing costs.”

Despite recent economic disruptions, Zillow still expects mortgage rates to drift lower, albeit not by much, to 6.4% by the end of 2026. That would still be higher than where rates ended last year, though.

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