CBS Evening News Full Broadcast | July 1, 2026

Good to be with you. I'm turning to Kobo the breaking news right now. The Empire State spectacle seen live around the world. Two daredevils in mass scale the spire atop the Empire State Building and get engaged before getting arrested. The NYPD climbed the building to take the couple into custody. I'm okay. The fourth of July travel rush gets underway with an air scare and American Airlines flight forced to make an emergency landing. What happened? And a look inside President Trump's new ride that luxury Boeing 747 jet a gift from the Qatari government. Frankly we couldn't build a plane like this. Taylor Swift wedding watch new details leaking out tonight the dress code and the star-studded guest list. World Cup fever spikes the U.S. men's national team in a do-or-die battle tonight. And the good stuff America 250 partying like a patriot in New York City's oldest tavern. From CBS News headquarters in New York this is the CBS Evening News with Tony DiCoppo. Good evening. So about noon today two people in black masks scaled the Empire State Building scrambling the New York City Police Department and leaving everyone guessing about their motives. But it turns out they do this sort of thing for a living. They are stunt climbers or rooftoppers as they call themselves. They unfurled a banner about world peace before one of them got out a ring and proposed. Which means by the time they got down they were engaged and under arrest. CBS News correspondent Tom Hanson has more. Tom good evening what have you learned? Hey there Tony good evening to you. Well CBS News has learned the couple carried out the death-defying stunt by accessing a maintenance hatch on the 103rd floor. Now Midtown Manhattan came to an absolute halt as people watched the spectacle from the ground about four football fields below. This is all happening at the Empire State Building at the top of the spire. Two attention-seeking daredevils got exactly what they were looking for. This is an area off limits to the general public typically a highly restricted area. Today the masked duo Angela Nikolaou and Ivan Birkus scaled the Empire State Building's 1,454 foot antenna. These police officers have to make their way on a dangerous climb. Gawkers looked skyward as the NYPD shut down several streets and swarmed in. The cops knew right away so they locked down the building. They uh everybody was stuck in the 83rd floor I believe. He can't be up here. New police body cam video released by the NYPD shows the moment officers confronted the self-proclaimed Russian rooftoppers and apprehended them. I'm okay. It does appear that people have been removed from the observation decks. This family visiting from Scotland witnessed the ordeal from the observation deck. Probably hoping they didn't fall. For sure on me. Could you imagine? Once on top the couple dangerously climbed up and down the spire and held on with just one hand as they unfurled a banner which read when the power of love beats the love of power the world knows peace. Live streaming from the base the man dropped to his knee and proposed. Posting it on Instagram the moment caught the attention of an NYPD helicopter pilot. He just proposed to her. Minutes later the couple was taken into custody. What language you guys speak? Russian. And Tony this isn't the first time the couple has carried out a dangerous stunt like this. They're known on social media for climbing other tall buildings around the world and among their charges burglary and reckless endangerment criminal mischief and criminal trespassing. Tony. Tom thank you very much. Turned out of the roads and airports packed with millions of 4th of July travelers. Some are already running into trouble unfortunately. Here's senior transportation correspondent Chris Van Cleve. A scary start to the July 4th travel rush for passengers aboard American Airlines flight 1040 this morning. On takeoff we had a engine reported engine fire. Okay do you know which engine? Number one engine. The Airbus A319 with 100 aboard quickly returned to Miami's airport landing without incident. American says there was no evidence of an engine issue. That precautionary landing comes as the TSA is preparing for some of its busiest days of the year so far. The Halsey family left Denver for Alaska today looking to beat the heat. Kind of hoping to avoid some of the holiday traffic a little bit and be able to have a much easier flight with an eight month old. AAA expects more than 72 million to travel over the Independence Day holiday. A potential record but up only slightly over last year as the cost of taking that trip has soared 11 percent. What we're seeing is that consumers are still spending. They may be strapped, they may not like it, they may complain about it but a lot of travelers are still making those trips happen. Airfare is up about 31 percent compared to this time last year and the 61.4 million AAA expects to drive will find gas prices down nearly 50 cents in the last month but still about 66 cents higher than last year. So while Americans are spending roughly 300 million dollars less per day compared to where we were in mid-April prices are still leading Americans to spend 225 million dollars more every day compared to a year ago. The TSA expects more than three million people to pass through airport checkpoints tomorrow alone just as this heat is ratcheting up. That means extra crews will be working the ramp here at Washington Dulles Airport so United can keep its people safe and get its flights like these out on time. Tony. Chris, thank you very much. The politics front now, President Trump responding to new ethics questions on two fronts. The use of a luxury Boeing jet gifted by the Qatari government as a temporary Air Force One as well as his newly disclosed billion dollar crypto fortune. Chief White House correspondent Nancy Cordes is traveling with the president. It was a ride President Trump had been anticipating for months. His first flight aboard this luxury 747 that replaces the old Air Force One. Of course very little relative to what it would cost if we did it a different way. The jet may have been a gift from the government of Qatar but retrofitting it cost the Pentagon and U.S. taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars and it won't even be in service for very long. I said I'd like to use it for a period of time because the other ones as you know are under construction. They'll be here in two years. Trump traveled here to North Dakota to tour the new Teddy Roosevelt Presidential Library which opens on July 4th. He was trailed here by questions about his new 927 page financial disclosure which reveals he made at least 2.2 billion dollars in 2025. Nearly four times the earnings he claimed in 2024 before he returned to the White House. You know why I'm profiting because the stock market's going up. Everybody's profiting. That was not the case in the crypto market where Trump and his family made more than 1.4 billion dollars last year even as investors lost hundreds of millions after the value of Trump meme coins and tokens plunged. Democrats were quick to flag massive foreign investments in Trump ventures. That is corruption plain and simple. While costs are going up for you Donald Trump is cashing in. The documents show that an investment firm tied to the United Arab Emirates purchased half of the Trump family's crypto company for half a billion dollars just before Trump took office last year. Trump would go on to visit the United Arab Emirates during his first foreign swing of his second term just a few months later. Tony. Nancy thank you. The big question tonight after the office of government ethics revealed in a 927 page report just how much crypto money the president has been making is not only how did he do it but how is this sort of thing allowed ethically and legally. First the money the president acknowledges he made 1.4 billion dollars in crypto ventures in 2025. That figure includes more than 560 million from the sale of digital tokens and his ownership stake in the cryptocurrency venture World Liberty Financial. It also includes some 635 million from the Trump meme coin. What the president denies is that any of this is a conflict of interest but the White House admits quote President Trump proudly made the United States the crypto capital of the world. In other words this president has made the promotion of cryptocurrency a signature issue of his presidency and he and his family have been massively enriched by cryptocurrency. So when the president promotes the crypto industry who could be sure he's actually doing it in the interest of the American people. The honest answer is no one can be sure. Like many of you we wondered how could this be. How can the president of the United States make 1.4 billion on a side project. We called the project on government oversight a nonpartisan watchdog group which said that presidents have long been exempt from conflict of interest laws. But no president has used that exemption the way Trump has. Referencing his first term he recently said I found out that nobody cared and I'm allowed to. It seems he's still betting on that. To the World Cup now England advanced today with a late goal from its all-time leading scorer while the U.S. men's national team is a win or go home match situation tonight in the San Francisco Bay Area. Nicole Valdez is right there. The hallmark of this World Cup in the Harry Kane scoring both of England's goals in a comeback nail-biting 2-1 victory over DR Congo propelling England to the round of 16 where they'll face Mexico who's still celebrating its 2-0 victory over Ecuador. The U.S. also hoping to get a win and play on at home. Their secret weapon the fans. Just ask 21-year-old defender Alex Freeman. Would you say that that fan support pushes you further and makes a difference? Yeah I feel like it does you know I think this gives you that extra push that you need to be able to you know have that motivation just have that confidence. At the heart of every cheer the American Outlaws the supporters group shows up in For super fans like Phil Lavas it's a calling. It's magic right this team is poised for success we've seen it we've seen it we're bringing the country together around soccer. And this is the kind of energy the Outlaws can bring all the marching fans you see behind me are hoping that the U.S. can keep marching on to the next round of 16 in Seattle. Tony. We're all over that Nicole thank you. Up next the Taylor Swift effect and the impact her wedding could have on brides everywhere. We are back with the Taylor Swift Travis Kelsey wedding portion of the show. The fan fever rising with every forklift bin box and prop that appears outside Madison Square Garden here in New York City. Our Jolynn Kent is right there. Madison Square Garden was abuzz again today as more trucks were unloaded for what's expected to be Taylor Swift and Travis Kelsey's wedding. I can't imagine a wedding in like an enclosed like arena but I feel like she could still make it beautiful. Just a few weeks after cheering on the Knicks courtside at MSG two law enforcement sources tell CBS News the couple will return to hold a rehearsal dinner for about 100 guests on Thursday evening. The larger celebration for 1000 VIPs is set for Friday inside the main arena where Swift has performed at least eight times. Cocktail hour kicks off at 4 p.m. on the concourse. The ceremony is expected to start at 5 30 on the garden's floor going for about an hour followed by a reception which could run until 2 in the morning. On Friday more than 100 NYPD officers will control crowds outside similar to the security typically provided at MSG events. Everything that Taylor does is intentionally grand. The wedding industry is bracing for a swift impact too. Couples more often brides typically want to replicate what they've seen so I expect that there will be a lot of couples who'll be looking to that for their 2027-2028 weddings. While so many Swifties online still believe all these plans could be folklore, People magazine is now reporting this is a black tie event. There's a strict no phone policy and we do expect scores of fans out here at MSG on Friday looking for Taylor Swift's getaway car. Tony, that's a safe bet. Jolene, thank you. When we come back, science in action. What happens when hot magma meets a whole lot of water? That's what happens. Stay with us. Victor Willis, lead singer of the Village People, has died. Willis co-wrote and performed in the cop or sometimes a sailor outfit some of their biggest disco hits including YMCA and Macho Man. Victor Willis was 74 years old. New images tonight from a volcanic eruption in the Philippines. Time-lapse video shows what looks like three individual explosions yesterday underneath what is a rare lake within the crater of a volcano. The mix of ash and steam reached more than 3,000 feet into the air. After the break, The Good Stuff raising a glass to America's founding fathers with a look at how they celebrated our nation's independence. This portion of the CBS Evening News is sponsored by Progressive Insurance. Round out your protection with life phone and pet health insurance. We're back with The Good Stuff, and if you think the founding fathers were a bunch of old guys, you're wrong. Alexander Hamilton was 21 in the summer of 76. Thomas Jefferson, 33. George Washington was 44, but that's a few months younger than Chris Evans, aka Captain America, is right now. And if you want to party like a founder, just come to Francis Tavern in New York City. The guy who runs the place, Eddie Travers, says the Sons of Liberty drank, argued, and celebrated right here. And Washington was here for 13 toasts the day British troops finally evacuated the city. The room where it happened. This is it. And by it, I mean a lot of drinking. Yes, yes. We've all seen the bar tab. He's not kidding. One tab from a different bar, same era, was the equivalent of $15,000 in today's money, more than 120 bottles of wine on top of whiskey and beer for just 55 people with Washington out on a Friday night. These were celebrations of freedom, but also survival. And you can feel it when you visit. I think it makes the history more tangible. You can touch it. Yeah, yeah, 100%. We feel it every day. You pinch yourself just to know what, like the conversations that, if you can imagine what had gone on here, like, you know, what they were talking about, like they were talking about what America is today. So raise a glass this 4th of July and toast George Washington and America, knowing that George Washington would approve. That's another day in America. I'm turning to Coppola for all of us here at CBS News. Thank you very much for watching. And another reminder, join us on Saturday, the 4th of July for our Great American Block Party, marking the country's 250th birthday with music and celebrations from Washington and all across America. We'll see you right back here tomorrow night. Good night.