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CNN's The Arena with Kasie Hunt
New: Newsom Asks Court To Block Trump's Use Of Troops; Trump Speaks At Fort Bragg After Activating National Guard & Mobilizing Marines To Los Angeles. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired June 10, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:06]
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: The auctioneer though tells CNN the sculpture was so striking they decided to investigate it. Upon realizing it wasn't a fake and that it was in fact real. And date back -- dates back to a period when Rodin made a number of smaller sculptures. They put it at auction.
The winning bid. A young banker from the West Coast, according to the auction house. Quite a bit to get for that tiny Rodin. Rodin, Rodin.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Rodin?
SANCHEZ: Row, row.
KEILAR: Row, row to us.
SANCHEZ: Yeah.
KEILAR: "THE ARENA WITH KASIE HUNT" starts now.
SANCHEZ: Thanks for joining us.
KASIE HUNT, CNN HOST: It's President Trump versus the state of California. Will the courts weigh in?
Let's head into THE ARENA.
Breaking news, Governor Gavin Newsom asks a federal judge for a restraining order against the Trump administration. This as Marines arrive in Los Angeles.
Plus, President Trump warns that any protesters at Saturday's military parade will be met with force. This as he prepares to address troops at America's largest military base. We're going to bring you live remarks from the president, set to start in just a few minutes.
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HUNT: Hi, everyone. I'm Kasie Hunt, welcome to THE ARENA.
It's wonderful to have you with us on this Tuesday.
Right now, the state of California is seeking an emergency restraining order against the Trump administration's deployment of Marines and National Guard to conduct law enforcement on the streets of L.A.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If we didn't send out the National Guard. And last night, we gave them a little additional help, you would have -- Los Angeles would be burning right now. Last night, they had total control. If we didn't have the military in there, the National Guard. And then we also sent in some marines.
We had some bad people. We had people. They look in your face and they spit right in your face. They're animals. And these are paid insurrectionists. These are paid troublemakers. They're agitators.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Animals, troublemakers, insurrectionists. Thats, of course, the president's words.
The deployment of thousands of National Guardsmen and Marines to the streets of L.A. just one way that President Trump is leveraging the United States military to project an image of strength.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dragon three is all American three acknowledge, break.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: This afternoon, at the nation's largest military base, President Trump is kicking off a days-long celebration of the Army's 250th birthday. Today's display featuring flyovers, paratroopers, a simulated ground operation, all building, of course, to a military parade through the streets of Washington set for Saturday.
That day, flag day also happens to be Donald Trump's 79th birthday. At any minute, the president will speak at Fort Bragg and we'll bring you that live. And of course, we'll be listening for what he has to say, if anything, about the protests in Los Angeles, because that is where we start today with team coverage.
We're going to have our panel weigh in in just a few minutes. But we're going to get started with CNN's Kristen Holmes. She's at the White House. And Nick Watt, who is live on the streets of Los Angeles.
And that's where we're going to start.
Nick, I want to go first to you. What are we learning about this emergency order and what are you seeing today as this drama continues to play out?
NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, officials in this state, from the governor down to the mayor, do not want these troops here. I'm outside the federal detention facility right now. You can see some California National Guard members, some DHS officers, but most of the military personnel that have been deployed here to Los Angeles are being kept well out of public view.
The governor said, actually, only about 315 of them actually have a mission, which he says speaks to the fact that they are not needed, that local law enforcement have this under control. Now, right now, there is a smallish protest outside here. It has been very peaceful. A couple of hundred people singing music, talking, chanting. That has been it.
There has of course been violence and vandalism in Los Angeles over the past few nights. But Mayor Bass of L.A. made it very clear, she said, for a national audience, you got to realize this is just a couple of blocks of downtown. This is not the whole city.
She added, of course, violence and vandalism are unacceptable, and anybody involved in that will be arrested and prosecuted. She said that those people causing the trouble are not part of this immigration protest. They are agitators.
So, she calls the deployment of these troops a grand experiment. And she says, listen, maybe what the administration is trying to do is put the fear into everybody that the federal government that has traditionally protected people could come in to any city or town and take it over -- Kasie.
HUNT: All right. Nick Watt for us -- Nick, thank you.
Kristen, we are expecting to hear from the president at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. What do we expect to hear from him and what have we seen there throughout the course of the day?
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. And, Kasie, look, as you said, this is really the start of this 250th birthday for the Army.
[16:05:03]
So, expect a lot of praise of the military. Donald Trump is likely to take credit for the growth of the military. He's been doing this since his first term saying that recruitment is up. He always says that he saved the military, so expect a lot of that.
Obviously, we also saw him looking at that big demonstration that you mentioned, but it is also likely that he's going to talk about what's going on in Los Angeles as well. He seems to not be able to stop talking about it just in an event, right before he left for Fort Bragg, he took questions on the matter for at least 20 minutes, going into various aspects of what was going on.
Now, one of the things was that he doubled down on the idea that he had brought in the National Guard and the marines, essentially saying he had to because Los Angeles was under siege. He took on Gavin Newsom, Governor Newsom, saying that he had just talked to him on the phone, that he called him and told him to get his act together. Now, the two of them have been going back and forth over that online, having their own personal back and forth. But he also left the door open to use that -- to invoke the
Insurrection Act. And that is one thing we've been talking a lot about. We know that there are factions of the administration who are looking at all the different ways to address the situation, Los Angeles, that are short of or a little less aggressive than actually invoking the Insurrection Act. But Donald Trump himself left the door open and essentially said it would be up to him. And what he viewed as an insurrection for him to actually invoke that act. So, something that were keeping a very close eye on there as well.
HUNT: All right. Kristen Holmes, Nick Watt, thanks to both of you for that reporting. Really appreciate it.
We're joined now to talk more about this from Capitol Hill. Congressman, California Congressman Ted Lieu is with us. He, of course, serves as the vice chair of the Democratic caucus. And his district includes much of western L.A. County.
Congressman, I'm very grateful to have you on the show today. Thank you very much for being here.
One of your colleagues in the House, Congresswoman Yvette Clarke of New York, she said today that what we're seeing on the streets of Los Angeles, the sending in of the marines is impeachable, that the president could be impeached for that. I want to know if you agree with her.
REP. TED LIEU (D-CA): It's certainly un-American and as a veteran, it sickens me that the president wants to send marines against Americans.
And let me first say, peacefully protesting is an American right now looting, burning cars and destroying property are crimes. And people who do that will be prosecuted. People do have the right to peacefully protest, and state and local officials have said they have all the resources they need to handle the situation. There's no reason to send in the marines who are trained to kill the enemy.
What does the administration want them to do in Los Angeles? Shoot protesters? It is insane.
HUNT: Congressman, Republicans are, of course, claiming that they are the party of law and order in all of this.
And one Democrat, Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, had a warning, if you will, for those on your side of the aisle, I want to show you what he said, and then I'll ask you about it. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN FETTERMAN (D-PA): We should have learned the lesson back in 2020. Absolutely. There was righteous outrage over what happened to George Floyd, but that never mean that you can support or be quiet if there's destruction or rioting and destroying and looting and those kinds of things.
(END VIDEO CLIP) HUNT: So, he used the phrase, we should have learned the lesson. What do you say to Senator Fetterman?
LIEU: I think Senator Fetterman may want to look at the statements that the Democratic elected officials in southern California have been making. We have all been saying that the right to peacefully protest is protected by the Constitution, but no one has a right to destroy property, to commit violence. Those are crimes, and those people will be prosecuted. We've been very clear about that.
Now in terms of law and order, I just want to note the legal provision Donald Trump is relying on to deploy the National Guard under 10 USC Section 1406, he is violating the law because that provision very clearly says that the governors of the states have to give the order. And Governor Newsom clearly didn't do that.
And this is very important -- I ask every National Guard member to read their orders, read the law, and then decide for themselves if they're following an unlawful order.
HUNT: Congressman, do you think that Governor Newsom could have done a better job in preventing violence than he did?
LIEU: No, because Governor Newsom has directed the CHP to go on scene, which they have. The LAPD is on scene. And by the way, I have this very important point I want to make -- the National Guard's mission is to protect federal buildings and federal officials.
So let's take the burning of cars. Even the National Guard was all there, which they were not, there's nothing they could have done because that is not part of the mission.
So, of the 2,000 National Guard folks deployed, 1,700 are basically standing around doing nothing and then send additional marines to do nothing is a waste of $134 million of taxpayer dollars.
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The president needs to rescind both of these orders.
HUNT: Congressman, we, of course, have discussed and President Trump has, and those around him have suggested various things about the use of the Insurrection Act. How should Democrats respond if President Trump does invoke the Insurrection Act?
LIEU: If President Trump invokes Insurrection Act, he is doing it unlawfully. If you look at what's happening, these are situations that local law enforcement and state law enforcement are trained and can handle. You don't want the president deploying federal troops all over the place, simply because there might be some folks who are looting stores. That's something for local law enforcement to handle.
And you don't want all 50 states subject to Marines showing up in their local jurisdictions. That's authoritarian. Its un-American, and it would be illegal.
HUNT: So, what should Democrats do about it?
LIEU: We should do what we're doing right now, which is push back to sue. Governor Newsom has, in fact, filed a lawsuit saying that what Trump is doing is illegal. I agree with Governor Newsom, if you just read the law, the president is violating his authority, abusing his power and the situation really calls for local law enforcement. This is a law enforcement issue.
The United States Marines are not trained in law enforcement. That is not what they do. It's a total mismatch for the mission and a waste of taxpayer money.
HUNT: All right, Congressman Ted Lieu, I'm very grateful for your time today, sir. Thanks very much for spending some time with us today.
LIEU: Thank you.
HUNT: All right. Our panel joins us now.
CNN legal analyst Elliot Williams; the host of "Morning Edition" on NPR, Steve Inskeep, Democratic strategist Adrienne Elrod, and former senior adviser for the Trump 2024 campaign, Bryan Lanza.
Thank you all for being with us. I really appreciate it. I want to dig into kind of the political dynamics of this in just a second.
But Steve Inskeep, kind of big picture here. Can you help us understand? I mean, these Marines have gone in now to Los Angeles. What is the kind of historical echo of that? I mean, what does it say about where we are as a country?
STEVE INSKEEP, "MORNING EDITION" HOST, NPR: This has happened before, just as the guard has been federalized before, when there were riots in Detroit in the 1960s, active-duty soldiers came in and helped. There are questions here which we've already heard discussed, though, about the legality of it, and also the real question of what is the point? What is the mission?
I was interviewing a DHS official earlier today and asked, what is it that the guard can do that ICE can't do what the police can't do. And really, the answer was more numbers. Then my question was, what is the marines can do that the guard can't do? And really, again, the answer is more numbers.
But there's a real question about what the mission is. We just heard earlier that it appears that right now they're not doing a lot. I suppose those of us interested in peaceful situations in the cities would rather they continue not doing a lot, but it's not clear what the mission is, what the purpose is, other than being there.
You perceptively said at the top something about a projection of power. I suppose it does that, but what else does it do?
HUNT: Well, certainly I believe it's the second battalion, seventh marines who have been sent in there. They're trained to do to deal with situations that are considerably more violent than what we have seen, even with the violence that we have seen.
Elliot Williams, the legality question, who's on stronger legal footing here?
ELLIOT WILLIAMS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST; Governor Newsom has a few different avenues in the lawsuit here. Number one, the law., as Congressman Lieu did say, plainly states that 1, 2, 4 or 6, the statute that's at issue here has to come through the governors of the states. It's plain language.
Now, there might be a basis for it. Maybe somebody is going to disagree with that reading of it. But if you read the statute, it's right there. So that's number one.
Number two, the statute also uses the words invasion and rebellion. Now, certainly, the president and his allies have made clear that they think this is an invasion of the United States. Now, there's some dispute, I think, quite reasonably, about whether that is actually the case.
However, absent an invasion, one can make the argument that one, two, four, six should not have been triggered. And finally, the president sort of put this catchall in the order saying that I am doing this pursuant to the authority vested in me as president by the Constitution. It's sort of this catchall notion of presidential power that certainly the Trump, President Trump and the administration have pushed, but it's not universally believed by courts across the country.
So, this idea that the president can at any time activate nationalized National Guard troops simply by being president may be shot down in the courts as well. So there's a few different avenues, and it'll be interesting to see what the courts stick with.
INSKEEP: The presidential memorandum used the word rebellion. I asked a DHS official today, who's leading the rebellion? Who is it? And it was clear that they don't know who is leading the rebellion that they've already declared. They were trying to find out, using the FBI and the IRS, interestingly.
WILLIAMS: And I think that language of rebellion is quite deliberate, because should the president wish to try to trigger the Insurrection Act, they will have to base it on some act of rebellion or insurrection against the United States and laying a predicate by saying, for weeks, it's been a rebellion. It's been rebellion. It's been a rebellion. Might be their argument, but it is pretty weak.
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HUNT: All right. So let's dig into the politics of this.
And, Adrienne Elrod, obviously, you heard what John Fetterman said there, right? Basically saying, hey, we should have learned some lessons here. "The Journal" put it this way in a headline, they said: Democrats make Stephen Miller's day. What are the pitfalls for Democrats here? Critics would say there's risk in seeming to defend people who are committing violence on the streets of L.A. You know, on the flip side of that, of course, the Democratic base is demanding something from their leaders right now as well.
ADRIENNE ELROD, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Yeah. Look, I mean, Kasie, I've been thinking a lot about this, and there certainly is some risk for Democrats because, number one, I think for the most part, many of these protests that we've seen have been relatively peaceful, but there has been some violence.
And so, when Democrats or when protesters are inciting violence, then it gives Trump, Trump more leverage to say, I'm sending in the National Guard, even though it is not legal. There are plenty of legal arguments, as Elliot just laid out, that Gavin Newsom is taking on.
But I do think we have to be very careful here. Look, this is a visual that Donald Trump wants. He wants the visual of the National Guard marines coming in to, quote/unquote, save the day. The bottom line is this is what he wants in the headlines, because he has economic issues, tariff issues that are driving the news that he doesn't want to talk about.
So, I think Democrats have to be very careful. But I think it's also important that blue state governors like Gavin Newsom are showing their power. They're coming forward and saying, I'm not going to sit back and just take it. I'm going to use my right to file a lawsuit because that's what I can do.
And I think the more blue state governors across the country can coalesce around issues and fight back against MAGA-ism, at the extreme version that is at the federal level, it's going to help Democrats a lot more.
HUNT: Bryan Lanza, it does seem clear that, you know, President Trump and those around him since he came into office, you know, this this has proven to be an opportunity for them to do something that many around him had spoken about. He was obviously asked about how he might use the military during the campaign. He left the door open to using the military in situations like this.
Is there any risk on that side of going too far for something that doesn't seem significant enough to warrant hundreds of marines on the streets?
BRYAN LANZA, SENIOR ADVISER, TRUMP 2024 CAMPAIGN: No, I don't think so. Listen, at the end of the day, when you see 4 or 5 cars burning, that's the only image you need. When you see Mexican flags flown in front of, you know, you know, in downtown L.A., those are the images you need that can counter whatever else is going forward.
You're right. At the top of this is a reaction with overwhelming force to make sure that there's no forest fire that starts. This is a small brush fire in downtown L.A. but what we know from L.A. is that the small little brush fires, they spread fast and far in L.A.
You can have a little brush fire in downtown L.A., in ten minutes, you're going to have another fire. You know, another potential riot in San Bernardino. That's just how it works. So, you need that overwhelming force in Los Angeles.
And the reality is I'm from California. I've worked in state government. You know, over the years. They have, you know, the legislature, the Democrats, they have done a job of trying to normalize illegal aliens in the system there. And it's just not a normal thing.
These are illegals, them seeking jobs in front of Walmart or them seeking jobs in front of a Home Depot, by the way, is a misdemeanor. So, they are committing crimes. So, this belief that they're not committing crimes while they're there, they actually are committing the crimes.
And then the ones that are being the ones that are being detained, some of these centers have moved out. Weve now seen the facts. You have rapists, you have murderers, you have sexual assault people. You have the worst of the worst that the left is fighting to defend. And that's the image that we want, and that's the image that will win --
ELROD: But we're not fighting to defend criminals. If you are a criminal, if you are a rapist, you should be deported from this country. You should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. But here's --
LANZA: What's a sanctuary city saying don't deport these guys.
ELROD: No, but here's where Trump is having problems because you are seeing grandmothers, you're seeing mothers, you are seeing innocent workers who are simply trying to provide for their families, who are being deported in mass. That is where Trump is seeing problems that we're seeing that reflected in the polling, that is not playing well for him at all.
And also, Bryan, you know this, LAPD is perfectly capable of handling this. They don't need the National Guard. They certainly don't need the marines coming in to deal with this. And that is why I think you are seeing some of this backfire, certainly on Trump. And that is also why Governor Newsom has a strong case going forward in the courts.
LANZA: I would point to the fact that, you know, today there are more people who want to deport these illegal aliens than when Trump first started. So, we're winning the argument. I don't see the argument where we don't support massive deportations.
You've now seen independents who support it. You now see Democrats more. We are winning that case and we're winning that argument. You can keep ignoring it, but you ignore it at your own peril.
HUNT: Elliot Williams, what does it say that one of the tactics that ICE is using is to pick people up at their hearings? Because I think it's worth reminding everyone that there has been a process for -- you know, a legal process for claiming asylum in the United States and the people that are showing up to talk to immigration authorities are kind of, by definition, trying to follow the rules.
WILLIAMS: Right. And a reminder that I worked at ICE for five years that, you know, I would note that this idea of sensitive locations, courthouses, hospitals, schools, churches is sort of a hot potato that changes from administration to administration and where arrests can be -- can be carried out, does change from time to time.
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Now, it has long been the policy of ICE, the Department of Homeland Security not to arrest people in sensitive locations like courthouse because it's good for society, for people to go to court. It is good for society, for public health, for people to go to the hospital or turn themselves in at the police. And it creates a chilling effect across areas of our lives. If people are afraid to do so.
So yes, they have the authority to walk into a courtroom to arrest someone as he's at a hearing. Does that sort of help the rule of law and the administration of justice? I certainly don't think so. And many Republican and Democratic administrations before this one also did agree with that.
HUNT: Steve, you said you had a conversation with a DHS official. Is there anything else that you would highlight from that as we continue to talk about this today?
INSKEEP: Well, there's a thing that I would highlight that plays off something that Bryan pointed out. Most Americans favor evicting, objecting most people who are here illegally. If you just ask the question straight up, is someone here illegally? Should they be deported? The answer is yes for most Americans.
But the details matter to a lot of Americans. And if you change the question or really change the circumstances, sometimes the polling changes depending on the type of person, depending on the situation. And so, it becomes a question for the future, a political question for the future of how this is executed, and also how the public sees it and the details with which they take it in.
HUNT: All right. Coming up next here, we are waiting to hear from President Trump, who is now on the ground at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. We're going to take you back live to the scene in L.A. and we're going to talk with a former vice chair of the National Guard.
That's all up next right here in THE ARENA.
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HUNT: Welcome back.
Here are some live pictures now of what we are seeing unfold in Los Angeles. It's now day five of those anti-ICE protests in the city.
CNN anchor Erin Burnett has been on scene in L.A. for the past several days. She's live for us now in downtown L.A.
Erin, tell us what you're seeing right now, how it compares to what you've been seeing and what you expect today and through the evening.
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST, "ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT": Yeah. So, you know, Kasie, look, were outside one of the other parts, you know, sort of a giant complex here of federal buildings. And that's why you see all the National Guard here. That's where they've been outside.
So, you can see them. I was just counting. We can see about, I would say about 40 National Guard standing here.
There are also Customs and Border Patrol police that we can see right now though. And you know, you're talking about 130 in the afternoon here in Los Angeles.
So, the crowds do build during the day. But there are I mean, if you take out media, there are as many protesters here right now as there are National Guard and Customs and Border Patrol. And I say that, Kasie, just to give you the context on the fact that the president is about to speak and, as you know, has said that he could deploy up to 4000 National Guard on the situation here, such that we have seen in the past 24 hours. It's not a situation where that would be merited.
Now, that could escalate it and add more fuel to the fire. And that's certainly the concern of the state of California, which, as you know, has just filed for an emergency injunction on a temporary restraining order to stop these National Guard troops from being here. They had had a 1:00 deadline, and it's 1:30 here in Los Angeles.
They have not yet heard from the judge, federal judge in northern California, where they filed that. But they're hoping to get some sort of an emergency temporary restraining order on all of these deployments of both National Guard as well as the up to 700 Marine Corps, which President Trump has said he is deploying here. And obviously, we expect on their way, you know, here at any point.
But it's hot. It's 1:30 in the afternoon. Crowds usually build. We'll see where this goes. You know last night, you could see it change as dusk fell, Kasie, and we started were starting to try to disperse the crowd and break up the crowd. That's when bottles were thrown, firecrackers thrown at the police.
That's what caused the rubber bullets. Some of the foam canisters and, you know, the back and forth that happened. Broken glass that escalated through the night. So, we'll see if the crowd continues to build today. We'll see what impact the president's words have to say.
But right now, as you can see, about 40 National Guard are facing off, and Customs and Border Police against the protesters that are here. And there are protesters. And obviously, a lot of people are here to document it, like ourselves in the media.
HUNT: All right. Erin Burnett, for us on scene, she has, of course, been doing -- Erin, you've been doing amazing work. And do not miss her show tonight "OUTFRONT", 7:00 p.m. Eastern. She's going to interview Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.
But now, let's take a minute to hear from President Trump, who is speaking live at Fort Bragg. Let's listen in.
TRUMP: Those foolish enough to challenge Americas army have been met with unyielding strength and unbreakable spirit and unstoppable, overwhelming force. Time and again, our enemies have learned that if you dare to threaten the American people, American soldier will chase you down, crush you, and cast you into oblivion. That's what happens, unfortunately, That's what happens.
Doesn't sound very nice. But its true, isn't it? The last sound you ever hear will be the chilling howl of Black Hawks in the dead of night, the thunderous boom of artillery fire, or the ferocious roar of a U.S. Army infantry brigade charging over the horizon. That brigade is going to charge like you've never seen before.
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And hopefully, I can keep you out of that.
But if I don't, you're ready. Is that right? If I can keep you out of it. If I keep you out of it, that's okay. But if we need it, you're ready.
You know, it's called peace through strength, isn't it? Peace through strength. For our adversaries, there is no greater fear than the United States Army. They all fear us. And we have the greatest force anywhere on Earth.
You know, you read different stories that others are building and building and building. We have a force like no other. They said it would take five years to defeat ISIS. We did it in four weeks. Four weeks. We let them go.
Unlike other of your leaders, I let them go and we had General Razin Cain, who's now the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, because I liked him. He was a warrior. He was a great warrior. And now he's been rewarded for his incredible work.
But they said it would take five years. We did it in four weeks. Someday I'm going to ask him to explain that one to me. But it was the television generals that said that the real generals got out and fought, and nobody fought like them ever.
But for the American people, there is no greater pride because you are the righteous sword of American justice and the ultimate shield of American freedom. This week, we remember that we only have a country because we first had an army. The army was first. The army was even before the country. You know that, right? One year before the country.
After 250 years, we still proudly declare that we are free because you are strong. You are so strong. We're safe because you are brave. And Americas flag will never fall. Because America's Army will never, ever fail, never going to fail.
Every branch of the armed forces has played a critical role in protecting our nation, but no one has done more fighting, bleeding, and winning than the U.S. Army. Nobodys done that. The Army has earned more combat medals than more battle ribbons than any other service, and 70 percent of all of the medals of honor. We give away medals of honor all the time at the White House to incredibly brave people.
But you have 70 percent of them. Army soldiers, and especially our Army Paratroopers truly go all the way. You know that expression all the way. It's one of your beautiful expressions.
As president of the United States, let me express my undying gratitude to our nation. For every soldier here today, for every veteran and their families, those incredible families that are with us and all across America. And for every patriot who has worn the uniform over 250 years, can you imagine that?
We thank you from the absolute bottom of our hearts. Few places loom larger in Army lore than where we are gathered today. The one and only Fort Bragg, the one and only Fort Bragg.
But remember, it was only that little brief moment that it wasn't called Fort Bragg. It was by the Biden administration, not Trump. I had nothing to do with it. You know, we got -- we got it changed.
We said, you know, I came here numerous times and everybody -- they kept saying, Fort Bragg, Fort Bragg. I said, you know, it's not the name. But then I was making a speech. I said, what do you think I should call this place? Call it Fort Bragg.
I said, Fort Bragg, how are you doing? We won a lot of battles from this place, and that's the way it is. It wasn't even close when Pete and some of the generals came to see me, I said, not even close. Not even close.
This is the home of the Green Berets, the Sky Dragons and the all American 82nd Airborne. We know what 82nd Airborne Division.
This is where the GIs who won the Second World War learned to pack their parachutes and push howitzers and go right into those C-47s with lots of arms and push them right out those big, beautiful doors and wheel their bayonets and pry the enemy from the hedgerows of the French countryside. France needed us badly. We were there.
A lot of people needed us badly. They still do. Maybe worse than ever. It was here in this soil that the Army forged the metal that held strong at Bastogne. It was here the mighty paratroopers earned their wings before they rained down death from above to liberate Sicily, Normandy and even the Netherlands. That's right. We saved the Netherlands.
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Every inch of this space is steeped in the legacy of those warriors who have said with pride, sir, I trained at Fort Bragg, sir.
That was pretty cool. And that is why we restored the historic name of this very, very special place. I don't know if it could be the same place.
Fort Bragg is in. That's the name. And Fort Bragg, it shall always remain. That's never going to be happening again.
And for a little news for the fake news back there, the fake news, ladies and gentlemen, look at them. Look at them all. Oh, yeah. What I have to put up with.
Fake news, what I have to put up with. But they're all right. They've been very nice today. They were impressed with that display. I can tell you that.
I think it took them a little by surprise. But for a little breaking news, we are also going to be restoring the names to Fort Pickett, Fort Hood, Fort Gordon, Fort Rucker, Fort Polk, Fort A.P. Hill, and Fort Robert E. Lee.
We won a lot of battles out of those forts. It's no time to change. And I'm superstitious, you know? I like to keep it going, right?
I'm very superstitious. We want to keep it going. So that's a big story. We just announced that today to you for the first time.
They said, why don't you wait until Saturday? I said, I can't wait. I got to talk to my friends here today. This is a record crowd, you know, you never -- you never had a crowd this big. That's an honor.
You think this crowd would have showed up for Biden? I don't think so. I don't think so. I don't think so. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I'm wrong.
I want to thank so many great leaders here today, including Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who's been great.
By the way, Pete, thank you. Great.
And he went through the wars. You know, Pete went through the wars. He had to get through a very hostile group of people that I think really don't want to see America be great again, maybe or something. But he persevered and he got there and he's doing a fantastic job.
Great job. Pete, thank you very much.
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins, a fantastic man. Thank you, Doug. You're doing a great job. Doing a great, great job.
Way, way up from the last administration, veterans, the Veterans Administration. It's way up. You saw the recent poll. The people are happy. They weren't happy a couple of years ago. They were really happy five years ago.
But it went downhill from there. We did so much. We got you medical --
HUNT: All right. We've been listening to president Trump speaking to troops at Fort Bragg in North Carolina as he prepares for the military parade that is set to unfold on Flag Day here in the united -- in Washington, D.C., the nation's capital. That, of course, is coming Saturday.
Kristen Holmes has been with us listening to the president's speech as well.
Kristen, anything you would highlight that we just heard from the president? He did seem to be talking about the names of military bases, which have, of course, become something of a political issue, to put it mildly.
HOLMES: But it does it does appear that he is going to go back on some of the renaming of a bunch of these various forts. He said that they're going to be restoring the names to Fort Pickett, Fort Hood. It says Fort Polk, A.P. Hill, Fort Robert E. Lee. Those were some of them.
So, it sounds as though he's announcing this for the first time, that they're not going to change any of these, or they're going to go back to their original names. I'm not entirely sure which, because I know some of these have been renamed already, but some of them hadn't. So, clearly, we're going to have to look into which ones had and hadn't. He's going to go back to their original name.
He says it's because he's superstitious. Now, unsurprisingly, he talked about the military. He talked about how the military was happier, the perception of the military was better under him, all things that we weren't surprised about. But he did talk about that military parade.
And he has spent some time today talking about this pushback to the parade. We know that there are some, even Republican lawmakers who have said it's a little much, that they probably wouldn't have done it. We know it's going to be an entire evening of military equipment from every different era, every different war. Donald Trump is going to sit there, watch, take it all in from the clips where they've set up a viewing box for the parade to kind of go by.
But he said he acknowledged there was some pushback to that. He earlier acknowledged that there were some protesters and essentially said that anyone who protests --
HUNT: All right. Let me just push pause for one second. I think you and I both need to listen to what the president is saying. He's talking about what's going on in Los Angeles.
Let's listen.
TRUMP: -- Los Angeles be burning today, just like the houses were burning a number of months ago.
[16:40:03]
Generations of army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores, only to watch our country be destroyed by invasion and third world lawlessness here at home, like is happening in California.
As commander in chief, I will not let that happen. It's never going to happen.
What you're witnessing in California is a full blown assault on peace, on public order, and on national sovereignty carried out by rioters bearing foreign flags with the aim of continuing a foreign invasion of our country. We're not going to let that happen.
Remember, millions of people were allowed to come into our country totally unchecked and unvetted by stupid people or radical left people or sick people. But regardless, open border policy, the dumbest policy yet -- I would say even dumber than men playing in women's sports, transgender for everyone. Even dumber than that.
They're hurling bricks and cinder blocks at law enforcement. Did you see? They're breaking up the sidewalks and the curbs, breaking it up with big, strong hammers. These guys are professionals. These are not amateurs.
They're breaking it up because they took the bricks away from them. They came in with bricks, red bricks that they could throw at our military and at the police in L.A., who are very good. But they weren't aggressive like our soldiers. Our soldiers really were aggressive, but they all worked together.
But they came in with bricks. They were taken away, and they had hammers. Oh, wow. How did that happen? And they're pounding the sidewalk. I said, what the hell is he doing?
And he's breaking it up and making it into concrete bombs, in a way. And they're dropping them on our military. They're throwing them at our military. Pretty good arms they had, too, hits guys right in the face. Big chunk of concrete. Worse than a brick.
They're taking them up to the bridges, and they're dropping them on the cars that are going by. These are animals, but they proudly carry the flags of other countries, but they don't carry the American flag. They only burn it. Did you see a lot of flags being burned?
They weren't being burned by people from our country or from people that love our country. People that burn the American flag should go to jail for one year. That's what they should be doing. One year.
And we'll see if we can get that done. We're going to try and get that done. We're working with some of your senators. I know Senator Josh Hawley is very much involved, and I know the two senators from here.
I think you guys, are you guys in favor of it? Why would this be a bad time for them to say no? I got you. I got those two votes.
The agitators are throwing firebombs and Molotov cocktails, lighting vehicles ablaze. You saw all the cars that were burning, mobbing police officers and ICE officers who are there, the toughest people you'll ever meet. And they love our country. And they're getting really -- tried to. They want to stomp on them, but they're too tough. They don't allow it.
And attempting to infiltrate and occupy federal buildings wearing armor and face shields. The best money can buy somebody is financing it. We're going to find out through Pam Bondi and Department of Justice who it is. They're already on it. Who's financing all this equipment? Very professional.
Under the Trump administration, this anarchy will not stand. We will not allow federal agents to be attacked, and we will not allow an American City to be invaded and conquered by a foreign enemy. And that's what they are.
A lot of those people were let in here by the Biden administration. They just poured right in. They came from prisons. They came from jails from all over the world. They came from mental institutions.
They were the leaders of gangs. They were drug lords allowed to come into our country, their countries threw them out. Their countries would bus them or drive them right to our border and say, go in there. You ever come back? We're going to kill you. And we got them and were getting them out of here.
I want to applaud the courage and the strength of the incredible troops who are right now standing guard to protect federal property and personnel and uphold the supremacy of federal law. Thats what they're doing. They're protecting our ice agents. They're protecting the police in Los Angeles.
The head of the police in Los Angeles, a good man. I hear a good man. But he was actually saying, we really did need this help. It had gotten away from them. It had long gotten away, and we gave it to him.
Not only are these service members defending the honest citizens of California.
[16:45:03]
They're also defending our republic itself. And they are heroes. They're in there. They're heroes. They're fighting for us.
They're stopping an invasion just like you'd stop an invasion. The big difference is, most of the time when you stop an invasion, they're wearing a uniform.
In many ways, it's tougher when they're not wearing a uniform because you don't know exactly who they are. In Los Angeles, the governor of California, the mayor of Los Angeles -- they're incompetent. And they paid troublemakers, agitators and insurrectionists.
They're engaged in this willful attempt to nullify federal law and aid the occupation of the city by criminal invaders. That's what it is. They're invaders. No different.
Their position is that the rioting will not stop unless ICE withdraws from Los Angeles and ceases the enforcement of federal immigration law. In other words, they came in here illegally.
Many of them came out of prisons and jails. The most heinous people. They came from all over the world. They came from the Congo in Africa. They came from Asia. They came from the prisons of these places. They were put into the United States and allowed to stay here because
we had a grossly, grossly unfit president who listened to whoever was operating the autopen. And they allowed these people to stay.
And, by the way, I've known this guy for a long time. He was never the sharpest bulb. But you know what he was? He wasn't a radical left lunatic. He never dreamt about open borders. He never said that when he was of sound mind, which actually was a very long time ago.
So sad what they've done to our country. I will say that without question, however, you're seeing --
HUNT: All right. We have been continuing to listen to President Trump, who has been talking about what's going on in Los Angeles. Weve begun to hear some of the same things from the president. So, we just want to bring Kristen Holmes back in here to kind of talk through what we've been hearing, offer a little bit of context here.
Kristen, he, of course, continually referred to people on the streets of L.A. as criminal invaders, and of course, referring to what's happening as an invasion, which of course, seems to, invoke the Insurrection Act, which requires the definition of something to be an invasion.
What else would you kind of highlight here? From what we've been hearing from the president, and if you have anything to offer in terms of what is accurate as to how he's characterizing this versus what isn't.
HOLMES: Well, Kasie, I mean, what you're saying is exactly my takeaway from this. He is making the case right now in front of the military, in front of Fort Bragg to invoke the Insurrection Act, should he choose to do so. And there are very specific terms that he was using that we haven't used, heard him use and go as far as, and I want to give you one of them -- infiltrate and operate federal buildings.
That is not something we have heard him go into enormous detail about. Now, that is a part of what would cause a president to invoke the Insurrection Act, is this idea of specific circumstances in which they are attacking the federal government, a rebellion against the federal government. He is specifically using very clear and definitive terms to say that these protesters are, quote, infiltrating and operating federal buildings, that they are being paid to go in there and do that.
And he also talked about that they had weapons. Now he is saying that they had bats, that they had bricks, that they had hammers, that they were looking at different kinds of rocks to throw and bricks to throw at the military. Another part of this talking about that weaponry.
The reason why this is so key is that we know that behind the scenes, there have been discussions about how far Donald Trump should take this. Is it just about bringing in the National Guard? Is it just about bringing in Marines, or is it about invoking the Insurrection Act? And there are people within his administration who believe that is a little bit too far, but he is clearly here making the case, not saying he's going to do it, but he's making the case that if he were to invoke it, these are the things that he would have to do.
Now, what we're hearing on the ground is very different here. I'm not sure what we have in terms of mob takeovers of various military and police. I mean, our sources on the ground have said that largely a lot of the military people have been out of the way for a lot of the different interactions. But he is saying that they are very much on the front lines here, that they are fighting alongside the LAPD.
And other interesting part of this is that he clearly kind of actually talked down about the police department in L.A., saying that they were not as aggressive as the soldiers, as the military kind of they're making the case that they needed to have the soldiers and the military on the ground.
I mean, to me, this rhetoric is an escalation in what we have heard from him.
[16:50:02]
Of course, he has been saying a lot of the same thing about the fact that there are people who are fighting that that LAPD needed them to come in, that Los Angeles was burning. But he's using very specific terms here that I haven't heard him use before.
The other part of this is what you pointed out, and he has said this, but he's really doubling down on the rhetoric. And we know that that's because the administration still views immigration as a key winning issue. They believe if they call this an invasion and they talk about people being illegal on the streets and criminals and the fact that this was all about deporting criminals, that they can still be on the winning side of this issue because of the fact that Donald Trump ran on immigration.
He has said he has a mandate to conduct these mass deportations. So you're hearing a little bit more escalation in the rhetoric, the doubling down of this, and then using very specific terms here in terms of paying attention to the weaponry, paying attention to what this means for federal property, the federal government, for the military, that the federal military that has been deployed by the Department of Defense.
I mean, those are -- those are key terms here as we work to see how far Donald Trump is going to take this and what federal levers he's going to pull.
HUNT: Right. And worth noting, you listen to all of the words that come out of Donald Trump's mouth. So, we're marking here, as you report an escalation.
Let's go to CNN anchor Erin Burnett, who is in Los Angeles and hopefully can shed a little bit of light on. Of course, Kristen was citing sources that we've talked to, Erin, about how the presidents rhetoric does or doesn't line up with what is actually happening in Los Angeles.
You have been there. You are aware of what's going on. You've seen some of it yourself. What is going on and what is an overstatement?
BURNETT: So, you know, I mean, as Democratic Chuck Schumer -- Senator Chuck Schumer said today, Kasie, right? There has been violence. It's outrageous and unacceptable when there is violence.
But to characterize the protests that we have seen as violent in their entirety is completely inaccurate. And just, look, we're going to give you a snapshot of what we're seeing right now, okay? This front line when Trump's talking about full blown assault on peace and public order.
So, these are the National Guard I'm just walking along here. They're doing their job okay. These California National Guard that Trump's deployed.
So if you're going to call it a front line I guess this is the front line, Kasie. I'm just going to back up and come along.
Tom, showing you. Okay. So you can see this now. You can see there's -- I'm just sort of back of my hand here. There's 50 or 60 of them right now.
There's also Customs and Border Protection officers here. But I'm just showing you this.
Now when we come around the corner, you can continue to see. And there's a barrier as you look down that will separate some of the protesters from these officers, again from CBP, as well as from the California National Guard.
But what we're seeing them do here is they're very professional. They're standing here and they're doing their jobs. They've been deployed against the wishes of the governor of California. But I just want to show, Kasie, in this moment in time, when you hear the president using the words like he's using a vicious and violent mob -- well, that's not what we're seeing right now. We're not seeing a vicious and violent mob, and we aren't seeing law enforcement actually fighting with them.
At night, when things, you know, escalate a little bit. Have we seen people throwing plastic bottles? Yes. We've seen glass bottles. Yes. Those things do happen.
That's what happens in protest. That sort of stuff is the stuff that's unacceptable. But to characterize this as a rebellion and an insurrection would of course be, as you can see from our images, it's a grossly inaccurate thing to say, but I can just show you what we're -- what we're seeing right now.
That's the snapshot in time. As you see, all of these officers here. And that's what we can show you. Kasie, this is this is what it looks like right now. It does not match what you're hearing the president say.
HUNT: Erin, can I -- can I ask you -- you mentioned earlier that you are outside federal buildings because that was a big piece of what Trump said as well, that federal property and the protection of federal property, if he's going to go on to justify using the Insurrection Act. Can you explain a little bit of what we're seeing in that regard?
BURNETT: Yes. So he talked about infiltrating and operating federal buildings, right? Those are the words that I believe he used, among others. But as Kristen was talking about. So, yes, behind me, Kasie, federal building and you see them outside that now for the National Guard. That's where we have seen them.
We have seen them right alongside this is a complex of national buildings, including the detention center here in Los Angeles. That's where we've seen the National Guard.
We have not ourselves observed them beyond that, although obviously as part of the temporary restraining order that the governor of California is seeking to have them removed from this use. He's also talked about how they have been alongside ICE agents in roundups and arrests throughout -- throughout California.
So, but right now, you're just seeing them here outside federal buildings. And that is the only place that we've seen them, along with customs and border protection.
As the evening goes on, if the protests get. And, Kasie, that's when we have seen California law enforcement. So that state patrol, its highway patrol, its LAPD, it's L.A. county, and those are all the officers that we see doing the kind of divide and conquer to try to disperse the crowd.
We have not seen National Guard be a part of that. And we have not seen those 700 U.S. Marines that we know have been deployed here. Be a part of that either. We have not seen them yet.
So, these officers that you're seeing are here very explicitly outside a federal building, which is within the purview of their assignment as members of the National Guard -- Kasie.
HUNT: All right. Erin, stand by for us. It's been great to have you there.
I just want to expand our conversation to include chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst John Miller, who has done, of course, so much work with the New York Police Department, as well as, of course, on our air.
John, you've been thinking and talking a lot about what the insurrection act would mean. How the president has been talking about it. Our Kirsten Holmes just noted that the president seemed to significantly escalate his rhetoric in this speech at Fort Bragg, talking about what we're seeing in Los Angeles as being a criminal invasion. He used the phrase "criminal invaders" to describe some of the people who were protesting.
What would you highlight here as we continue to cover this? JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, a couple of
things. I mean, Kasie, one of the things he talked about was once the National Guard got on the ground, they restored order. Otherwise, L.A. would be burning like the wildfires again.
Really not the case. I mean, the National Guard was called in on Sunday after a dustup Saturday night between protesters and ICE agents who were bringing prisoners back at that federal building. And the result of it was, was that a protest was drawn to the building to face off with the National Guard. And then after they used pepper spray against some of the protesters.
Somewhere between 3,000 and 4,000 more protesters showed up. As a result of that, the LAPD literally had to restore order by separating the protesters and the National Guard because they were so vastly outnumbered. So, this idea that there was disorder in L.A. and that the National Guard came and straightened it out.
And I take nothing away from the National Guard. They're fine people. They do great work. It's just there's a little rewriting going on in terms of the chronology. And now, the idea that they have another couple of thousand National Guard people in reserve for this, and the idea of deploying 700 marines.
BURNETT: John, let me push pause, because there's something going on with our cameras --
MILLER: Yeah, sure, that's okay.
BURNETT: -- with Erin Burnett.
Erin, what are you seeing?
BURNETT: Yes, I am. So we just saw a lot of these. The National Guard just move out into the street. Police have been telling people to get off the street and onto the sidewalk. They had started to drip onto the street. So what you just saw was sort of a mass move. About 30 or 40 National Guard, Kasie, just quickly moved into the street. So Tom's just going to walk over and show you to try to push that crowd away. That had gotten closer.
You can see one protester. I think Tom's trying to zoom in. One protester --
(INAUDIBLE)
BURNETT: Okay, you saw one protester trying to get into a fight with a National Guard. You saw an airborne, as John Miller has called them. I know he's their plastic bottle being thrown. Then they fired a rubber bullet. I couldn't exactly see what it might be to try to dissipate that.
That appeared to work. Then they were also opening up the street so they could let these vehicles come in that you just saw. All right? So, that's -- now they're moving back. Tom can just show you they're moving right back to protect the line of the federal building and where those vehicles just came in.
That protester that had just sparked that incident that you just witnessed, that person is -- it's unclear exactly where they are. Theres another bottle that was just thrown.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are being under attack. We are under attack. We are under attack.
BURNETT: All right. They just fired rubber bullets there in response to these water bottles that are being lobbed in from some of these protesters.
HUNT: Are those protesters yelling, "We're under attack"?
BURNETT: Yes. Those are -- that's a protester right behind me that's yelling that, Kasie.
We can't tell exactly from here who's throwing those water bottles. But you saw the response from the police. That's when they fired the rubber bullets. Some of those foam canisters. And John Miller can talk to that more. What some of those explosive sounds were that they fire back with.
You can see right here, Tom, if you zoom in on this LOS 19 right there. Those -- those blue bullets that you see in the side carrier of that National Guard member, Kasie. Those are the rubber bullets that they've been firing. Those ones with the blue tips. Those are the ones they can usually put about three on to their weapon at a time. They fire those so you can see they've got a lot of those. They're ready.
All right. We are just watching. Hold on one second. I know you want to get it back from us. They are putting on their gas masks right now. All of the CBP.
And you can see right here some of these officers putting on their gas mask right here.
Kasie, I'll pass it back to you while were watching them do that.
HUNT: Yeah. Really dramatic scenes right now. Erin Burnett, thank you for being there for us.
We do have to turn it over to Mr. Jake Tapper. He's standing by for "THE LEAD" -- Jake.
