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The Lead with Jake Tapper

SpaceX Launches Starship In Sixth Test Flight; Trump Still Weighing Who He Will Appoint As Treasury Secretary; Trump Not Backing Down On Gaetz As Controversy Grows; Rep. Mace Defends Bill Targeting First Transgender House Member; CNN Check With Trump Voters In Iowa After His Win; 1,000 Days Since Russia Invaded Ukraine. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired November 19, 2024 - 17:00   ET

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

[17:00:00]

KRISTIN FISHER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: This is the first spacecraft that's ever flown that's designed to take humans not just to the moon, but to Mars. And we're not just talking about taking a few people to Mars, we're talking about lots of people. Each Starship rocket can carry 100 people. So this is really the beginning of making humanity multiplanetary.

And why should we care about that? One, you know, just ask the dinosaurs. And two, if the U.S. doesn't do it, China will.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Yes, and we should just remind people that is about as tall as the Statue of Liberty. We're about 10 seconds away from launch right now. We're going to watch and be quiet.

MULTIPLE SPEAKER (Counting): Five, four, three, two, one.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Vehicle is pitching downrange

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Booster. Raptor chamber pressure nominal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Booster and ship avionics, power and telemetry, nominal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. We're just a little over a minute into flight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maximum dynamic pressure.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're about six miles away. So all the sound's still hitting us here. Hearing good call outs that power telemetry nominal. That's flying straight and true. We do see all 33 Raptor engines lit up on telemetry screen.

At this point, we've passed through that point of maximum aerodynamic pressure. That max Q now coming up in just a little over a minute from now is going to be hot staging. So we're going to see the six engines on the ship ignite while still attached to the booster. Just before that, we'll see all but three center engines on the booster shut down in what we call MECO. It's most engines cut off instead of main engine. And so while we continue to watch it go up, a lot of our flight controllers looking at all the systems around the tower. Again, we have to send a manual command just about 30 seconds away from hot staging.

TAPPER: All right, Kristin Fisher, tell me what I'm watching here.

FISHER: So you're watching Starship pass its first major test. See that indicator on the bottom left of your screen with all those circles and dots around it? Each one of those dots represents one of the 33 Raptor engines that has to fire simultaneously in order to get Starship and its big booster into orbit, or almost into orbit in this case. This is the moment of hot staging, a really critical maneuver. It's the moment when the booster separates from Starship itself.

And it's called hot staging because Starship lights its engines while still attached to that booster. And so now we're seeing Starship continue. That's Starship right there.

TAPPER: The Starship (inaudible) off to the right and up. And the booster was the little dot that we saw go down to the bottom?

FISHER: Correct.

TAPPER: OK.

FISHER: And so, these are some of the grid fins. And I believe right there, that's the booster. So, Starship continues off to the very edge of space while the booster begins its return to Earth. And we're now just about three to four minutes away from the next critical maneuver, which is what we've all been waiting for, the catch, the return to Earth by the booster where it will land back on the launch pad that it has just lifted off from.

And you know, Jake, for people who don't follow space and space exploration, I think it's so important to put into perspective just how insane this is. I mean, just a few years ago it was thought to be impossible to land a booster back on Earth at all. On Earth or you know, on a ship. But the fact that they're now attempting and have proven once that they can catch it midair from the launch pad that it just lifted off from, it's just wild. And what makes this so important is that in order to achieve SpaceX's goal of making Starship fast and cheap, you have to be able to catch it back on the launch pad where it lifted off from so you can, you know, rinse, recycle, repeat quickly.

So, that's really what's so key here with that chopstick catch just moments away.

[17:05:00]

TAPPER: OK. So what's on the left of the screen and what's on the right of the screen?

FISHER: The left is the booster returning to Earth. The right is Starship as it heads out into space. So, that is the edge of starship. That's one of those fins that's going to be used for steering Starship. Of course, that's Earth behind it.

And pretty soon we should see the booster heading back to Boca Chica or Starbase, which is where SpaceX is mass manufacturing all of these massive rockets, the biggest, most powerful rockets ever built.

TAPPER: So the craft itself is what this is and the booster is what was on the previous screen?

FISHER: Yes. So, this is the spacecraft. If you look at the bottom of the screen, Jake, you can see the booster on the left, the diagram.

TAPPER: Yes.

FISHER: And then you see the countdown clock and then Starship on the right. So those are the two angles of where it is right now. You can see the booster on the left. It's now -- it appears to be a vertical trajectory and it's going to be igniting its engines again to slow it down from supersonic speeds to gently land back on that launch pad. Give it a hug, as Trump said.

TAPPER: OK. Let's listen in and hear what they're saying.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And the public and the pad itself are paramount. So, we are accepting no compromises in any of those areas.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly. And we're still going to get a lot of good flight data with booster even. But especially with ship, again we have an additional objective today to do an in space relight of a Raptor engine which again will help us set us up for being able to do deorbit burns which is --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ship chamber pressure phenomenal.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- which is important for orbital flights. And what you're seeing on your screen is a view from super heavy as it's making its way back down to earth.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Once again we are attempting an offshore landing of the super heavy booster. So we have seen this before and it is still very fun to watch. Watching it come down for a soft splashdown off the Gulf coast of Texas.

We can see it there reentering. We saw earlier those grid fins. There are four hypersonic grid fins. Oh, we can see that the landing burn has begun on the super heavy booster.

FISHER: Same pattern, 13 engines will light, gone down to three, just as we expected. And what an incredible view of splashdown that we got today. Super heavy.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I'm sure the buoy cam views will be pretty awesome once again. So we'd like to confirm a water --

TAPPER: So Kristin, so obviously something happened --

FISHER: Something happened. TAPPER: -- that was not --

FISHER: Yes.

TAPPER: -- planned.

FISHER: Something went wrong. So, instead of the booster being caught on the launch pad with those giant chopsticks, SpaceX made the decision to let the booster land or splash down into the Gulf of Mexico. They do it for safety reasons. If everything is not perfectly on target, they hit the abort button or they have to press a button that says, yes, this booster can come back and land on the launch pad. For whatever reason, the flight director did not do that this time and so it splashed down into the ocean.

Not what SpaceX wanted clearly here. This is not a repeat of its successful first booster catch with the chopsticks. But Starship still, you know, almost in orbit over Earth and they still have several other goals that they're going to want to try and pick.

TAPPER: Right. OK. So one, so obviously they have failed in one of their missions --

FISHER: Yes.

TAPPER: -- but there are many missions --

FISHER: Correct.

TAPPER: -- today and this is part of the process of progress, which is you try, it works. You try, it doesn't work. You're learning things.

FISHER: Well, and think about what would happen if you try to catch it with those chopsticks and something goes wrong. There's an explosion. With all of those VIPs there, you know, President-elect Trump, obviously they're back at a safe distance. But you know, there's a lot of people within a relatively short area. And unless everything is perfect, you know --

TAPPER: Right.

FISHER: -- SpaceX isn't going to risk it.

TAPPER: I want to bring in Greg Autry. He currently serves as the Associate Provost for Space Commercialization and Strategy at the University of Central Florida. He's been heavily involved in NASA.

Greg, give me your thoughts. And also right now, the first question I have as an ignorant civilian here is I'm assuming they can retrieve the booster from the ocean. Yes?

GREG AUTRY, ASSOCIATE PROVOST FOR SPACE, UNIV. OF CENTRAL FLORIDA: No, it's not designed to do that. I mean, somebody could retreat it as a museum if the depth isn't too great, but it's not going to be reusable. It's not designed to be soaked in salt water. So, the decision to not land on the chopsticks makes that booster non recoverable for operational purposes.

TAPPER: And what's your response to the fact that obviously the attempt to bring the booster back and have it grabbed by the chopsticks was unsuccessful?

AUTRY: I don't know what the decision making process was yet, or the failure mode, or maybe just want to be careful not to kill the president-elect of the United States by any chance, but it looked really good to me. I mean, if you watch the angle the booster came in, it was perfectly vertical. It hovered right before it landed. So it looked very much under control.

[17:10:16]

So I want to see what's going on. But I don't think they had a big anomaly because it looked really good to me. I think they were just abundance, caution.

TAPPER: Kristin, what do you think the decision making process is in a moment like this? I mean, obviously you're speculating, but what's your best guess?

FISHER: Sure. I mean, it can come down to two seconds, right? One second, if the flight director has one moment to make this call, if the booster is making -- is carrying out the correct trajectory to be caught by the chopsticks, if not, the flight director is not going to hit that button and it's going to do that splashdown. But in, you know, debriefs after that successful last catch by the Starship booster and spaceship, SpaceX officials had said it came down to just two seconds, that's really all it took.

TAPPER: And Greg, tell us how -- you know, broadly, talk more about how tests like this with SpaceX's Starship are changing the future of space innovation.

AUTRY: Yes, first of all, you're dealing with a volume and a mass of material that is beyond anything we've been able to lift before. The nine meter diameter fairing on this vehicle or Starship is, you know, basically as wide as a bus is long. And the thing is 400 feet tall, as tall as the Statue of Liberty as we mentioned. So we're going to be able to put way more stuff to wherever we want to go than we ever could before with way more control. So I think again, we demonstrated we can bring that booster back in a controlled manner.

I have no doubt, just like with the Falcon launches they do now that they're going to be able to reuse these things dozens and dozens of times. And that changes the economics of getting things into space, allowing for all sorts of incredible applications in space that we haven't seen before.

TAPPER: And what are the other missions for the starship right now? Obviously the chopstick part of it was one component that didn't work. But there are other components of this mission. Tell us more.

AUTRY: Yes, the most important part is actually getting the Starship part to where it needs to go, which is basically one full orbit of the Earth. But because the Earth is rotating and they want to land it in a safe place, they're going to bring it down in the Indian Ocean rather than bringing it back to Texas. That's the most important part.

The reentry part of that, super important, to get that down right and then demonstrate that it comes down exactly where they want it in the middle of the ocean. That should allow them, I think, perhaps in the next test or one coming up, to bring that Starship part back to Texas as well as the booster. And that'll be exciting to see one after the other come in at land, but we're getting there.

TAPPER: Kristin, what are your thoughts on the rest of the starship mission?

FISHER: Well, I think one of the really neat features that we have yet to see of this mission is for the first time, SpaceX is going to attempt to light one of the Starship's Raptor engines in the vacuum of space. Never been done before. And that's significant because in order for the future -- a future starship to actually go into orbit, actually fully circle the Earth and then do a deorbit burn to reenter the Earth's atmosphere and come back to Earth, these engines have to prove that they can turn off and then light again in space. So that's something really critical that we're going to be watching in the next few minutes when this live stream starts back up.

And then, of course, how much can this starship land or splashdown on target in the Indian Ocean? One of the reasons that we're seeing an afternoon launch from Boca Chica down in Texas, right, on the border with Mexico, is because Space X wanted to be able to see starship as it returned to Earth. All the other return to Earth have been at night. So this time they're going to be able to actually get some cameras in daylight on Starship. And we're also going to see starship returning at a much steeper angle.

They really want to push Starship to its limit. So, we'll see if it survives.

TAPPER: Let's bring back CNN Anchor Kaitlan Collins.

Kaitlan, as much as this was about Space Exploration, obviously there's a political dimension to it as well, with President-elect Trump there with Elon Musk.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, Jake. I mean, what you're watching is kind of an unparalleled relationship between Donald Trump and Elon Musk, two people who are not always closest of allies. I mean, you know, Musk was once skeptical of the age that Trump would be had he won a second term. But obviously that changed. We saw him come on board, spend so much money helping Trump get elected, and now he has really had this kind of relationship with Trump where, you know -- just watching those people who are watching the launch happen, Jake, I was thinking about this access of influence around Trump and how much that has shifted from when he came into office eight years ago. And Elon Musk is a really big part of that.

[17:15:01] Because the one thing that I, you know, have noticed in all my conversations that I've had with people is just how ubiquitous Elon Musk is in terms of that. Now, we have heard some skeptics of that relationship raise questions about what that looks like going forward because SpaceX, as we're watching this, has billions of dollars in contracts with the federal government already committed, more to come potentially. Tesla is obviously regulated and investigated by several federal agencies. There's a lot of competing interest here. And of course, foreign policy is also a major factor in all this.

So that is something that people will be watching when Trump does regain power in January, is how this relationship continues to develop. It's clearly one he prioritizes right now, Jake.

TAPPER: And back down to South Padre island, where we find CNN's Ed Lavandera.

Ed, tell us about the launch from your vantage point.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, the intensity of this massive rocket bursting off of the launch pad is really something else to experience. I mean, you can feel it in your body just vibrating just about 30 seconds after you see the rocket launch off. It takes a little while to feel the intense vibrations.

But this one was very different from the first one that we saw back in April of last year. The rocket climbed much more vertically than I remember from the last time we were here. And at one point after that super heavy booster had separated, it felt like it was falling very quickly back toward the water. So I don't really -- and there was something else kind of like dangling from below it. So I don't know if something detached or what that was.

But the experience of watching this one, very, very different from the one we witnessed back in April of last year.

TAPPER: All right, Ed, thanks so much. And Kristin, before you go, your thoughts, your big picture thoughts here.

FISHER: Well, you know, from a national security perspective, you know that China is also watching this. They have seen what Elon Musk and SpaceX has done. They are trying to replicate and make something that looks almost identical to Starship, where you even catch it with chopsticks as well. So, you know, from a national security perspective as well, you see General Saltzman, the head of the Space Force there as well. Not only is this something that Elon Musk is watching, but -- and the president-elect, but everybody in the Space Force and our adversaries as well.

TAPPER: All right, Kristin Fisher and everyone else, thanks so much. Great stuff.

The breaking news, you just saw SpaceX launching Starship and a major change of plans. Obviously the booster landed in the Gulf of Mexico instead of back on the landing pad. Still, either way, an incredible engineering feat as the Starship spacecraft itself is still in orbit. SpaceX is bracing for that landing next.

In just a few minutes, we're going to bring that to you. We're going to squeeze in a quick break. Stay with us.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pretty awesome once again. So we'd like to confirm --

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:21:41]

TAPPER: Back with our national lead, just moments ago, President-elect Trump was watching the launch of SpaceX's Starship with Elon Musk in Texas. Back with me is the panel.

First, let's just start with the obvious. This is a big moment for President-elect Trump and as political ally Elon Musk and also just a big moment for technology and science and progress, even if they didn't have the result with the booster that they wanted. What was your reaction?

ERIN PERRINE, FORMER DIRECTOR OF PRESS COMMUNICATIONS, TRUMP 2020 CAMPAIGN: My first reaction is, man, space is scary and that's a lot of money to spend to send something straight into the ocean.

TAPPER: And I'm glad I wasn't on that booster.

PERRINE: Yes, right? Like there's a lot. But you know, the more we explore, the more we're able. We were kind of talking about this, the government kind of outsourcing this research and development portion before we can get people back onto the moon. It's a good way to save money.

TAPPER: Yes. What do you think?

NAYYERA HAQ, SENIOR DIRECTOR OF CABINET AFFAIRS, OBAMA ADMINISTRATION: It's such a fascinating thing to see, right? The idea that generations ago people were just looking at the stars and now we're touching them. We're in the midst of space. And that kind of hope and optimism, we certainly need that right now, along with some government efficiency. I just wish it wasn't that the person who's getting the government contract is also now trying to run that part of government. But the -- seeing this moment of possibility and what it means to not give up after a technical failure, right, to keep using the brains and the resources to improvise and improve for the human condition.

TAPPER: Yes. Let's talk about some of the other news of the day, some of the appointments. One of the big top three appointments Trump has to make is who he's going to tap to be the Secretary of the Treasury. It's usually considered the big three state, which is Rubio, Defense, which is Hegseth, these are just a point, they haven't happened yet, but that's who he wants. Treasury, we don't know who it is, although Trump has also said attorney general is one that he wants to be the most important position.

Today, the "New York Times" reports it's a challenge to fill this position because, quote, "Mr. Trump is seeking a Treasury secretary who will carry out his unconventional plans while still having the credibility to keep markets buoyant. That mix of qualities is not easy to find."

I think that's true because a lot of people on Wall Street are very skeptical and even supporters of Donald Trump on Wall Street, of which there are many, are very skeptical of the tariff solution to the problems of the country.

PERRINE: Right. Donald Trump's going to be looking for a Treasury secretary who will implement an aggressive tariff strategy. There are two things that the American people have shown in polling and conversations since the election, and that's that one, they expect immigration to be handled in the first hundred days and that first early stretch. And the second part is they expect economic work done in tariffs. And to your point, they do need somebody with Wall street credibility who can also be able to do the work that Donald Trump is asking be implemented.

TAPPER: So --

HAQ: And also to be the communicator to the American public that's needed. Having worked a Treasury transition and been a communicator there, it is a really challenging position to be in to explain things like, well, the fundamentals of the economy, we need to, you know, fix those first. And jobs are a lagging indicator. Those are not things that anybody really wants to hear, but we do have a complex macro and microeconomic system, and Treasury is a key part of that. You did not see Janet Yellen out there as much as the public face of Biden's economic policy, but she was having serious negotiations behind closed doors and had the credibility of the folks at the Federal Reserve and the industry.

So, squaring that circle in this era of populist economic demand is hard for Democrat, let alone for the MAGA wing of the party.

[17:25:05]

PERRINE: But I think you're making a really good point there about the additional layer that's being added by the Trump transition team, which is whether or not they think that people can help get the message out there. They're watching clips, they're looking at old interviews and public comments. Being able to not only achieve an agenda, but have the American people understand and feel felt, like they get their emotions felt and they can relate to your success in that agenda is something that the government fails at in droves. And so people who can put that message up there, whether it's Treasury or the Pentagon or any E Commerce, especially with the Olympics coming up --

TAPPER: Yes.

PERRINE: -- that's really critical.

TAPPER: So one thing that's really interesting is this idea of Trump using the Justice Department for revenge, for retribution. Former Republican congressman, now Fox News Weekend host Trey Gowdy, a Republican, as I noted, had this warning for President-elect Trump. Take a listen. This is from today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TREY GOWDY, (R) FORMER U.S. REPRESENTATIVE: Do not use the justice system as a weapon. And the message for Republicans is don't do it on the other side either, with this absurd AG pick that you just made. Justice is different. It is a combination of policy, law, and also morality. You do not use our justice system as a political weapon.

Voters rejected it in November and they're going to reject it if Republicans try to do it also. Some things rise above the din. The justice system is one of those things.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: So, the other side of that argument is Elon Musk tweeted, "Matt Gaetz has three critical assets that are needed for the AG role, a big brain, a spine of steel, and an axe to grind. He is the "Judge Dredd" America needs to clean up a corrupt system and put powerful bad actors in prison. Gaetz will be our hammer of justice." Your thoughts?

PERRINE: I think that Trey Gowdy, there are few Republicans and especially with a prosecutorial background like Trey Gowdy, to be able to stand there and try to put a passionate case behind why he believes this is not the right selection. And you're going to see it. You're kind of seeing a little bit of that divergence right now where the senators are taking their role, especially the Republicans, very seriously on advised and consent. But you're hearing a lot more House Republicans who have more vocal dissent against Gaetz than you do on the Senate side at this point.

TAPPER: Last word.

HAQ: What you're hearing from Elon Musk, though, is very much the campaign rhetoric that is targeted for a particular audience and how they connect to government. That's not a governing structure or message. The idea of, you know, personal vendettas and that's what government should be about. And you know, "Judge Dredd," terrible movie, but all of these, you know, deep references to dude online viewing. And the reality is the Department of Justice is responsible for so much that impacts day to day lives of Americans. That's really the question of whether Matt Gaetz is up for that.

TAPPER: Let's be charitable and presume that Elon Musk was referring to the comic book and not the movie of "Judge Dredd." Thanks to both of you. Appreciate it.

Also today, swift reaction on Capitol Hill to a controversial bill brought by a House Republican. We're going to talk about that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[17:32:09]

REP. NANCY MACE (R-SC): I'm absolutely, a hundred percent going to stand in the way of any man who wants to be in a women's restroom, in our locker rooms, in our changing rooms. I will be there fighting you every step of the way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: That's Congresswoman Nancy Mace, a Republican from South Carolina defending legislation she introduced to try to change House rules to prohibit transgender women and girls from using women's bathrooms and facilities on Capitol Hill.

This is less than two months before Congresswoman-elect Sarah McBride, the first openly transgender person ever elected to Congress, is scheduled to be sworn into office. Congresswoman-elect McBride posted on X or Twitter today, quote, this is a blatant attempt from far right wing extremists to distract from the fact that they have no real solutions to what Americans are facing. We should be focused on bringing down the cost of housing, healthcare and childcare, not manufacturing culture wars, unquote.

CNN's Lauren Fox is live on Capitol Hill for us. And Lauren, you've been talking to House members today. What are you hearing?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I mean, Nancy Mace is doubling down, saying that she is going to insist this is part of House rules, that if it is not part of House rules, she's going to fight this in a privileged resolution to ensure that members have to take an up or down vote on it.

But, you know, Democrats are irate at the fact that they feel as though Nancy Mace is going after an incoming colleague, calling her out and essentially making her welcome to Capitol Hill really uncomfortable. Meanwhile, Republicans are defending Mace. Here they are.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. HILLARY SCHOLTEN (D-MI): It is, you know, it's just disgusting. I -- I don't understand why Republicans are so obsessed with people's private parts. Who -- she's going to do these exams herself. I -- I mean, it is absurd. We have real work to do here in the --- the United States Congress.

REP. ADAM SMITH (D-WA): I think it's -- it's a very bigoted approach to the issue. Nobody in this place is threatened by whatever bathroom, our new member from Delaware chooses to walk into.

REP. MAX MILLER (R-OH): Men should use a men's restroom and that women should use a women's restroom.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOX: Now, Nancy Mace says she has talked to the Speaker about this and he has assured her it will be part of the House rules package. But earlier today, Speaker Mike Johnson made clear, he said, quote, a man is a man and a woman is a woman. A man cannot become a woman. In the same breath, though, he said that he wanted to treat everyone on Capitol Hill with dignity, Jake.

TAPPER: Lauren Fox on Capitol Hill for us. Thank you so much.

Also in our Politics Lead, as Democrats try to forge a path to recovery after President-elect Trump's second victory, the party's going to have to grapple with why some voters, particularly women, felt uneasy with Trump, but still voted for him. 2024 exit polls showed while Vice President Harris had an overall 8 point advantage with women. In 2020, President Biden had a 15-point advantage.

CNN's John King talks to voters in a state that sets the tone very early in the American election cycle in the latest installment of his All Over the Map series.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[17:35:07]

BETSY SARCONE, IOWA VOTER: OK, come over here.

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Betsy Sarcone is another now proud Trump voter who initially wanted something very different.

KING: What would you do if it was Trump-Biden again?

SARCONE: That's really hard, but I'd have to go Biden. Honestly, I -- I just, I -- I can't put my rubber stamp on Trump having more influence over this country.

KING: So how -- how did you get from I can't take it, I'll vote for Biden. To I'm going to vote for Donald Trump and I'm actually relieved and happy about it.

SARCONE: I think I've come to the conclusion that I don't love Donald Trump as a person. But I do think that he is right for the country right now and that he is going to chart a different course than we're currently on.

KING (voice-over): Sarcone lives in the Des Moines suburbs. Says her real estate business is slow and she hopes Trump somehow helps lower grocery prices, also high on her wish list.

SARCONE: I'm a mom, single mom of three kids. So, that does make a huge difference in my life.

KING (voice-over): Sarcone finds some of Trump's cabinet picks disappointing, but she frames it this way. She could not support Vice President Harris, so now she thinks she has to be patient with a president-elect whose calling card is unpredictable.

SARCONE: The Kristi Noem, the Matt Gaetz, not necessarily excited about it. Worried -- I -- I wouldn't say I'm worried. I voted for change, as did the majority of the people, and that's what we're going to get. So I don't think worrying about it every day is going to do me any good.

KING (voice-over): That Trump won the majority of the vote emboldens his most fervent supporters, people like Chris Mudd.

CHRIS MUDD, IOWA VOTER: And I think it's important that we round up every illegal and -- and ship them out. And we have to come -- we have to figure out a way to get them back to work. I -- I do believe that we do need immigration. A country needs immigration, just needs to be legal.

KING: What would you say to Democrats who say that they are literally fearful? They -- that they think that mass deportation is mean spirited, or they think his ads about, you know, transgender Americans were mean? What would you say to them?

MUDD: I would say get over it. You know, there's -- I don't believe that there's anything to be scared of.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TAPPER: And our thanks to John King for that report.

This just in, sources telling CNN that Trump expects to name his transition co-chair, Linda McMahon, as secretary of education. You might remember Linda McMahon served in Trump's first administration as head of The Small Business Administration. And before her days in government life, she was of course, along with her husband, Vince McMahon, CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment. Stay with us for much more of the transition headlines as they come. We're going to squeeze in a quick break. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:41:35]

TAPPER: Topping our World Lead today. A clear message to the west from Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, on the 1,000th day of his brutal war in Ukraine. Putin lowered the threshold for Russia to use its nuclear arsenal. Updating Russia's nuclear doctrine to label non-nuclear countries such as Ukraine an aggressive threat to Russia if they use conventional weapons supplied by nuclear armed nations such as the United States.

This just days after President Biden green light Ukraine's use of American made longer range missiles to strike deep inside Russia. Ukraine used that new capability overnight, according to Russia, and fired six missiles toward Bryansk in eastern Russia. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh examines these dramatic twists and turns in this nearly three year war.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR (voice- over): When Russia invaded its tiny, unprepared neighbor, it was expected, warned off for months by the U.S. and its allies. But almost everything that followed was the unexpected.

Moscow felt it would overwhelm a nation of farmers and I.T. experts in days. But the west was unexpectedly more united and Ukraine fiercer than Putin counted on. And the aid that poured in. At first handheld rockets saved Kyiv. And Moscow's army showed that corruption, hubris and inaction meant it was not able to fight like it claimed.

This was a war that only one man wanted. The Kremlin head launching it after a long rambling thesis on post-Soviet history, but that many Ukrainians fought. The port of Mariupol in theory, an easy win for the world's third largest army, but where Russia endured its first heavy fight.

And then the most unexpected began to unfold. Moscow's army, ill equipped, low in morale and not adapting, crumbled, routed from around Kharkiv and then Kherson. Western help beginning to turn Kyiv's huge morale into practical success. And Putin's regular saber rattling the reminder Russia was a nuclear power that might one day snap, was slowly muted.

And his war became one of slow grind and horrific losses. Bakhmut, the first city to gain a fame it did not want, ground to dust through thousands of deaths. The Putin confidant who led that fight, remarkably so infuriated, he turned on the top brass in a failed and bungled rebellion.

Yet it was soon Ukraine's turn to see unexpected failure. It's heavily financed and planned counteroffensive in the summer basically going nowhere. Ukraine outgunned against an enemy dug in and ready. And then Western unity began to crack.

Republican Congress stymieing the flow of aid for six months, leaving Ukraine to do the unlikely yet again. Changing the nature of warfare itself, harnessing tiny disposable drones to swarm the Russians as they were out of artillery, a move that was mimicked fast by Moscow, who made their own and began again this year's slow grind across the Eastern front.

Months of advances that Western officials said cost them up to 1,200 dead and injured a day. Ukraine had one last surprise. Catching Putin's army unprepared and invading Russia itself in August, surging into Kurst, something last done by the Germans under Hitler.

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Ukraine is still there and now a thousand days in, Russia's superpower reputation is still crumbling, but so is Western unity as the likely overhaul of a Trump presidency nears.

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WALSH: Jake, it's not far until we're in this war's fourth year. And despite fatigue in Western capitals, it isn't going anywhere. And indeed, there may be diplomacy that may freeze the front line. But for years, Western officials, analysts, anybody with knowledge of the Kremlin's behavior has been warning that they're unlikely to settle for just a fifth of Ukraine.

They've endured just far too much loss domestically, overhauled domestically for that to be palatable to the Kremlin and even parts of the Russian political elite. So, it's a key moment, certainly with launch of U.S. supplied missiles into Russia by Ukraine and one, I think that suggests that there are very complex months ahead, Jake.

TAPPER: All right, Nick Paton Walsh, thank you so much.

Tough questions for the head of FEMA today and its response to Hurricane Helene, hear what the agency had to say about that employee who says she was instructed to avoid homes that had Trump signs.

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TAPPER: Our National Lead now, residents of Asheville, North Carolina finally, finally have safe drinking water as of yesterday, nearly two months after Helene struck the city as a tropical storm. The long recovery process continues across western North Carolina, but many have accused the Federal Emergency Management Agency or -- or otherwise known as FEMA of not providing adequate support.

CNN's Gabe Cohen has a look at today at how lawmakers questioned the FEMA chief about whether the agency purposefully avoided providing aid to specific Republicans in hard hit areas.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can I put you down as a yes that you do understand why so many people are upset?

DEANNE CRISWELL, FEMA ADMINISTRATOR: It is unacceptable why this one person made this direction.

GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): FEMA's administrator facing tough questions from Republican lawmakers on the agency's hurricane response. After a low ranking supervisor in Florida instructed her 11 aid workers to avoid homes advertising Trump.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you believe that the individuals with Trump signs in their front yard were treated fairly and impartially?

CRISWELL: They were not, which is why we terminated her.

COHEN (voice-over): But that fired supervisor Marn'i Washington tells CNN that the guidance came from her superiors.

MARN'I WASHINGTON, FORMER FEMA EMPLOYEE: This was the work culture there. I don't create policy. FEMA does. I just implement it in the field.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is she a liar?

CRISWELL: I have not seen any evidence that this is beyond her specific direction. We are currently investigating this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But that's not what you said. You said this isolated, reprehensible, hasn't happened. This is the only time. And they're saying nope -- nope -- nope. It's commonplace.

CRISWELL: I am saying that FEMA's mission is to help all people.

COHEN (voice-over): After Hurricane Helene pounded the Southeast, misinformation about FEMA's response spread like wildfire largely led by Donald Trump.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT-ELECT: The Biden-Harris team is also treating Republican areas. They're not getting water. They're not getting anything.

COHEN (voice-over): FEMA workers reported widespread harassment and intimidation from people repeating the same claims.

WASHINGTON: Everything we did was out of the focus of safety. It was only selected areas where there were teammates felt uncomfortable.

COHEN (voice-over): But FEMA contends that singling out Trump supporters is against federal law and has called on investigators to review Marn'i Washington's actions. The state of Florida is suing Marn'i Washington and FEMA's administrator. Claiming this was a conspiracy with senior FEMA officials to violate the civil rights of Florida citizens.

CRISWELL: This was unacceptable and it is heartbreaking --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know. And I --

CRISWELL: -- for three and a half years to put people first.

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COHEN: And this all comes as the Biden administration is asking Congress to pass an additional $100 billion in disaster relief, including 40 billion for FEMA. And Jake, today we heard these Republican lawmakers repeatedly raising concerns about how FEMA functions, their confidence in the agency and how it spends money. So we will see if that request hits some roadblocks here in the coming weeks.

TAPPER: All right, Gabe Cohen, thanks so much.

[17:54:20]

Just moments ago, President-elect Trump was asked about former Congressman Matt Gaetz's controversial pick for U.S. Attorney General. Is he thinking about rescinding that expected nomination? Hear what he said, next.

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TAPPER: This just in. President-elect Donald Trump was just asked about Matt Gaetz, the former congressman who he picked to be his U.S. attorney general. Gaetz, of course, facing scrutiny over that House ethics investigation into alleged sexual misconduct, which Gaetz denies. Let's take a look.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, are you reconsidering the nomination of Matt Gaetz?

TRUMP: No.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Well, there you have it. No. Trump succinct on the record statement mirroring our reporting that he is all in on Gaetz.

We have some breaking news for you in our National Lead, live images right now of the SpaceX Starship as it reenters Earth's atmosphere and prepares for a splashdown in the Indian Ocean. In just a few minutes, the starship successfully separated from the booster, laid its own engines and soared through outer space. However, the booster, of course, did not return to the launch tower's massive metal arms called the chopsticks. Instead, it splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico. Look for more coverage next in The Situation Room.

Before we go, I want to bring your attention to a special fundraiser we're having. There are only a couple days left in Our Homes for Our Troops celebrity auction. You can bid on items and experiences. All the proceeds will go to building specially adapted mortgage free homes for wounded veterans through the top rated charity, Homes for Our Troops. There's some really cool items up for auction this year. Lunch with Henry Winkler, John Bon Jovi's guitar signed by him, VIP passes to American Idol. You get to meet Ryan Seacrest. A set visit and meet and greet with none other than Will Ferrell. A whole lot more online, more than 100 items and experiences check them out at ebay.com/HFOT, ebay.com/HFOT, that's Homes for Our Troops. The auction is open for two more days until Thursday at noon Eastern.

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The news continues now on CNN with Wolf Blitzer in The Situation Room. I'll see you tomorrow.