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The Lead with Jake Tapper

Wall Street Journal Reports, HHS To Link Autism To Tylenol Use In Pregnancy; Trump Again Calls Epstein Case A Hoax After Survivors Say It Isn't; Trump Says, Renaming DOD To Department Of War Sends Message Of Victory; Nearly 500 Workers Arrested In Raid At Hyundai Plant; Elon Musk Cuold Become World's First Trillionaire. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired September 05, 2025 - 18:00   ET

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

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: 2024, I'm sorry, but pregnant women are told Tylenol is a way safer pain reliever than Advil or Ibuprofen during pregnancy.

[18:00:08]

And you say 45 to 60 percent of pregnant women have used Tylenol. I don't want to be flip about this, but I mean, they also drank water while they were taking the Tylenol. I mean, it's just -- it's so omnipresent in terms of how many pregnant women take this. I mean, if it caused -- if Tylenol caused autism, there would be so many more autistic kids right now than there are.

So, what would you tell a pregnant woman right now who has pain?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I think the guidance that has been out there for a long time, because, again, we're not talking about something that's new. People have been talking about this issue for a long time. I'm not sure why it's getting this new enthusiasm, probably because RFK Jr.'s talking about it, but, yes, a fever is a bad thing to have as a pregnant woman. You need to control that fever, take the smallest dose for the shortest amount of time. That's been the guidance.

Also, I will say that part of this new reporting as well is he's suggesting that a B vitamin known as folic acid or folinic acid specifically might be a treatment for autism. As you know, Jake, you have kids, Jen probably was told to take folic acid when she was pregnant. So, my point being that these have been recommendations that have been out there for some time.

But your point about it being omnipresent, that's a really important point. There's this thing called the paradox of ubiquity. When you have something that's that common, it's very hard to start pinning it down to a, to causing a specific problem, like a neurodevelopmental disorder. As one of the researchers said who wrote the study, do not draw a cause and effect relationship from this study. They specifically said that. It would be like saying in the summertime, people eat more ice cream and there's more violent crime. Those two things have nothing to do with each other, but people may associate them together because they both happen in the summertime. TAPPER: I'm guessing more than 60 percent of pregnant women have pizza, and yet, you know, that's not an association, you know? But, again, I'm not trying to be flip about it, but it's everywhere, Tylenol.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, thanks so much. Let's talk now with an OBGYN, Dr. Veronica Gillispie-Bell, also vice chair of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee.

Dr. Gillispie-Bell, you're a practicing OBGYN. What do you plan to tell your patients about the use of Tylenol during pregnancy?

DR. VERONICA GILLISPIE-BELL, OBGYN: So, I will maintain the guidance that comes from ACOG, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, that Tylenol is safe. We have no studies that show Tylenol causes autism.

TAPPER: A 2024 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association looked at more than 2 million children born in Sweden between 1995 and 2019 and found no increased risk of autism in pregnant women who use Tylenol. But there's this also recent meta- analysis in the Journal of BMC Environmental Health that concluded there was strong evidence of an association, an association. What does that mean? And what is your advice to people who see these two different reports and don't know what to make of it?

GILLISPIE-BELL: Well, just as Dr. Gupta said, an association is not causative. And I think it's important for pregnant women to understand that. And as was also mentioned, when we think about the reasons women take Tylenol usually it's for pain. There is no safe alternative in terms of medication. Or they're taking Tylenol for fever. Again, there's no safe alternative and a fever is detrimental to a pregnancy.

And so for my patients, for other patients, I would just maintain that our guidance tells us that Tylenol is safe in pregnancy.

TAPPER: What do you make of the HHS's additional recommendation we're told is going to be in this report recommending that pregnant women use folic acid, which is a vitamin found in prenatals specifically to treat autism or prevent autism? What do you make of that?

GILLISPIE-BELL: It's been long recommended to take folic acid to prevent neural tube defects. And so I do think that the ACOG will still be making that recommendation. There is no data that shows that it's curative for autism. But we do recommend folic acid for the prevention of neural tube defects.

TAPPER: So, what do you make of this whole thing, because obviously RFK Jr. has been out there saying for more than two decades falsely that childhood vaccines are responsible for the increase in autism diagnosis? First, it was about thimerisol, which was a preservative used in some of the MMR vaccines, although it's not there anymore, and then he just has been disparaging childhood vaccines, so has President Trump for that matter with anecdotes that prove nothing about a kid who seems normal and then gets vaccines and then all of a sudden the kid has autism.

[18:05:09]

You must be asked about this all the time as an OBGYN. What do you tell expecting mothers?

GILLISPIE-BELL: So, I give patients the risks, the benefits, the alternatives. I let them know that there is no data that shows that vaccines cause autism. Of course, it is always going to be up to the discretion of that parent for how they choose to vaccinate their child. But I do let them know there's no data that shows vaccines cause autism. And we know that vaccines prevent diseases that can be fatal to children. And so I give them those risk and benefits and try to guide them to the best decision for them and their family.

TAPPER: Dr. Veronica Gillispie-Bell, thank you so much. I appreciate your time.

GILLISPIE-BELL: Thank you.

TAPPER: In our Politics Lead, President Trump is added again, calling the demand for all of the documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, calling it a Democratic hoax on Truth Social today, he said, quote, the Department of Justice has done its job. They've given everything requested of them. It's time to end the Democrat Epstein hoax and give the Republicans credit for the great even legendary job that they're doing, unquote.

This is just two days after several brave Epstein survivors spoke on Capitol Hill pleading for recognition, justice for the release of all of the related documents, and for the president to stop politicizing the issue. One of the most prominent Epstein survivors was Virginia Giuffre. She tragically died by suicide earlier this year. Her brother and sister-in-law are here, Sky and Amanda Roberts. They joined those survivors in D.C. this week as they continue to advocate on Virginia's behalf.

Sky, let me just start with you. President Trump says the department has done its job. They've given everything requested of them. Is that true?

SKY ROBERTS, BROTHER OF VIRGINIA GIUFFRE: No, it's not true. I think what we've been asking for and what all survivors have been asking for is, A, transparency, which, in a lot of words, in a lot of ways, it's just a word, right? We haven't seen a lot of action here with the slow roll of the document release. And we didn't ask for some of the documents to be released. We asked for all of the documents to be released. So, I don't believe that to be true. I don't believe the survivors believe that to be true as well, and we don't actually feel that transparency that is being put out there by the administration and a lot of various officials.

TAPPER: And, Amanda, what is your reaction to President Trump saying that people should stop paying attention to this and Democrats never cared about the victims? If they did, they would've been talking about it long before this. AMANDA ROBERTS, SISTER-IN-LAW OF VIRGINIA GIUFFRE: I think it's another distraction. It's, again, trying to make this a party issue. Survivors have been screaming about this for decades. And, again, we have asked to stop making this a political party tool for any side to use because it isn't about party, and, quite frankly, it's a continued insult by our president to continuously attack. That feels hostile towards survivors and family of survivors to continuously call this a hoax.

TAPPER: And, Amanda, some Epstein survivors two days ago said they wanted a meeting with Trump. Do you both want to be part of that? Should it actually happen? And if so, what would you say to him?

A. ROBERTS: It's a twofold thing. I will say, if you get the chance to sit down with survivors and families of survivors and you hear their stories, it really does provoke that human element of change. It really calls on the empathy that is inside of you. But I don't want to sit down and relive these horrific actions if there isn't going to be anything done about them, if it's still going to be continued to used as like a political tool for the administration or a photo op.

TAPPER: Sky, as of now, Republican Congressman Thomas Massey needs only three more members of Congress to sign his petition, which would force the full -- it would force a bill onto the floor of the House for a vote. And if that passes the Senate, et cetera, it would release all of the Epstein files.

Only four Republicans have signed this bill. 215 members of Congress have but only four of them are Republicans, Massie, Nancy Mace, Lauren Boebert, and Marjorie Taylor Greene. Some Republicans who won't sign it say that this is a personal rift between Massie and Trump, or they say the House Oversight Committee is already trying to get all the Justice Department documents and this doesn't need to be done. What do you think? And if you think Republicans should sign this petition, what's your message to them?

[18:10:03]

S. ROBERTS: Yes. I mean, I think, first, I would implore, you know, anybody out there that, and this would be just for the general American people, to reach out to your senators, reach out to your congressmen and women, and let them know how you feel. Because that, really, at this point, I am so tired of just talking about fancy words. I mean, we really got to start seeing some action here.

And, you know, reality here is that you need to break this down to a human level. This is not about party. This is not a -- and even if we want to call it political right now, okay, but this is a human issue. These -- you know, these women were children at the time.

And I know that there's some language in there. They said they were worried about redactions. I mean, Brad Edwards and Brittany Edwards were on the Capitol steps. That's the lawyer of many of the Epstein survivors, including my sister. And to be clear is that, you know, there's been a lot of work that's been put into it to make sure the safety and protection of the survivors are taken into account. And the reality is when you start saying things like hostile acts, this would be a hostile act towards the party or towards an administration, it's really a hostile act towards survivors and their families by not releasing these documents, right? There's so many more to, to be seen. And there really needs to be true accountability. There are names, very powerful names inside of there. But at the end of the day, this shouldn't be up to the survivors to have to come forward. It should be the Department of Justice, and it should be this administration that makes it happen.

TAPPER: Yes. A White House official said that any Republicans supporting the Massie bill would be engaged in a hostile effort against them.

Amanda, some Republicans said that they would be willing to read the names of alleged abusers compiled by survivors on the floor of the House where they would be immune from any defamation prosecutions. At the end of the day, would that be an acceptable way to at least bring some accountability?

A. ROBERTS: I think it would be acceptable if, again, they guarantee the safety and protection of the survivors and the people who are willing to come forward and name those names. I think it may be a start of the eye-opening, the global scale of this thing, because let's be very, very clear, there are Democrats and Republicans in these files that have been implicated. And I believe the American people do not care which side they are on. If you have been implicated in child sex trafficking, you need to be held accountable. And that is the phase that everyone is in right now.

TAPPER: All right. Sky and Amanda Roberts, thank you so much. And may your sister Virginia's memory be a blessing.

A. ROBERTS: Thank you.

S. ROBERTS: Thank you.

TAPPER: If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please dial or text the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, the numbers on your screen there, 988. If you or someone you love needs help, 988. There is love for you. There is help for you.

We'll be right back.

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[18:15:00]

TAPPER: In our World Lead, you're looking at video from inside the Pentagon this afternoon as President Trump signed his 200th executive order. This one renames the Department of Defense to call it what it was until -- what it was called until 1947, the Department of War. Unfortunately, for the White House, an official name change needs Congressional approval, but instead, this order allows Pentagon officials to use the new moniker on second reference in internal and external communications. Here's President Trump earlier today when asked if Congress will codify the name change.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We're going with it and we're going with it very strongly. There's a question as to whether or not they have to. But we'll put it before Congress.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Joining us now, Republican from Montana Congressman Ryan Zinke. He was the first Navy SEAL in Congress, no longer the only one.

REP. RYAN ZINKE (R-MT): There are six SEALs.

TAPPER: There are six.

ZINKE: Five in the House and one in the Senate.

TAPPER: One in the Senate. What do you make of this name change as somebody who actually fought in war? And do you think that there will be the votes to codify it in Congress if it comes to that?

ZINKE: You know, it doesn't change the mission. You know, whether it's Department of War, you know, 150 years of Department of War, it changed right after World War II, it doesn't change the mission, but it does change the tone. And what I expect is you'll see letterhead change. I think they probably do have to go to Congress and get an official change. But we'll see letterhead change, you know, for all intents and purposes.

But, again, it doesn't change the mission. It doesn't change the structure. But what it does change is the tone.

TAPPER: Tone of who? Because, I mean, it's not like Navy SEALs were arriving with flowers and chocolates before and now they're going to arrive with weapons. You mean the change of the tone of the president?

ZINKE: I think the change of tone of the nation and the Department of Defense itself. You know, we have a carrier battle group. We have a Marine amphibious unit in the Caribbean. We still have problems in Ukraine and Russia. We have an aggressive China. We have, you know, Israel and Iran still being threatened and all that. So, there's a lot going on in the world that is very contentious. And the U.S. -- you know, what's changed since World War II, as we came out of World War II, we were the unprecedented leader.

TAPPER: Right.

ZINKE: We didn't have a peer (ph). Today we do have a peer. It's China. And we have to take China very, very seriously. You see, all of a sudden, Russia, China and Iran, in many cases --

TAPPER: Iran, North Korea, Venezuela.

ZINKE: Yes, doing multiple nation organization, they're doing military exercises together. That's a threat.

So, do I agree with it? I don't think it makes a difference certainly on the structure or the mission, but it does tone as this president is very serious. Gunboat diplomacy, we're back in the Caribbean.

TAPPER: Speaking of which, since you're a SEAL, I do want to get your take on this New York Times report that came out today on this failed top secret SEAL team mission into North Korea back in 2019.

[18:20:11]

The purpose of it was to put in a spyware in North Korea on Kim Jong- un, as Trump was engaging in these high stakes nuclear talks back in the first term. The article states, quote, the SEALs rehearsed for months aware that every move needed to be perfect, but when they reached what they thought was a deserted shore that night, wearing black wetsuits and night vision goggles, the mission swiftly unraveled, a North Korean boat appeared out of the dark, flashlights from the bow swept over the water. Fearing the day had been spotted. The SEALs open fire within seconds. Everyone in the North Korean boat was dead, unquote. The article notes that Congress did not receive any notification of this before or after the mission. Do you have any response to --

ZINKE: Deeply, deeply disturbing. World War II, loose lips sink ships. To disclose this type of operation and the leak had to come from somewhere, the details are too great. So, this is treasonous to disclose. Because what it does is that there's no doubt they had multiple operations since then, and there's probably will be. But when you disclose details of an operation like this, it puts at risk every SEAL, every warrior, every special operations, every soldier, sailor, airmen, and Marine on future operations, it incurs greater risk.

I think it was irresponsible for New York Times to publish such an article. And what I'm hoping is they go back to the source and they find the source and they prosecute it.

TAPPER: Just the Times story, just to give a little context, says that the sources came forward because, and the Times said they also withheld identifying details, specific details of the kind of what you're --

ZINKE: I bet they withheld their name. That's one detail. They absolutely.

TAPPER: They said it was because they didn't -- because there was an impression that every special ops mission is successful. And I think there was a concern about that, and that impression might actually put Navy SEAL's lives at risk if every time somebody thinks, oh, we'll just send the Navy SEALs, send the Green Berets, et cetera, et cetera, does that --

ZINKE: Well, there's a strategic interest when the SEAL teams fail. Because whether it's special operations, Delta Force or SEAL Team 6, their perception that's our nation's best, and they are. And if they fail, that means our nation's best fail. So, that's a lot different than a tactical failure of a normal maybe army unit, you know, that we lose army, sailors, Marines all the time. But when we lose our nation's best, that has a strategic implication that somehow our best has failed, so it does.

And there's been numerous operations from the SEALs that have failed, sole survivor being one of them. Morgan Lutrell's brother, Marcus.

TAPPER: Yes.

ZINKE: You know, that was a tragic mission, unfortunately not successful, cost of life of a lot of folks. But, again, it goes back to loose lips sink ships. And to disclose information about top secret information, what it does is it puts future operations more at risk. And it puts -- you know, those individuals that signed for the Constitution against all in enemies, foreign, domestic, it puts them at greater risk, and that I find deeply disturbing.

TAPPER: Former Navy SEAL, Republican Congressman from the great state of Montana Ryan Zinke, it's always good to have you here. Thank you so much.

ZINKE: Thanks, Jake. It's too long to see you.

TAPPER: Too long, I know. We'll come back soon.

Will it be no discounts for foreign diplomats? Why the State Department might keep certain people out of Costco stores from hostile nations, that's next.

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[18:25:00]

TAPPER: In our World Lead, attention Costco shoppers, if you are an Iranian diplomat, you might want to stock up while you can. Because ahead of a high level United Nations meeting later this month in New York City, the United States government is now thinking about banning Iranian diplomats from shopping at the members-only wholesale stores, such as Costco or Sam's Club, unless they first get permission from the U.S. State Department.

Let's go to CNN's John Miller. John, why are Iranian diplomats clamoring for Costco memberships in the first place? And what would this mean if this rule comes down?

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: Well, it's very hard because of all of the sanctions and all of the rules blocking imports to Iran or exports to Iran to get some of the things that people want there. And, you know, one of the coins of the realm are going to be famous American brands, whether that's Levi's jeans or North Face fleece. And Costco is one of the places where you can get some of these brands and get them at really great prices.

So, when they come to America for any diplomatic mission, which, because we don't have diplomatic relations with Iran, is going to be very rare, the U.N. General Assembly offers that one big chance to stock up on a lot of products that other people will want at home, and they come home as heroes. But it looks like that's probably not going to happen this time.

TAPPER: And what might the rules actually be this time and how would they even enforce them?

MILLER: Well, the rules this time around are going to be what we refer to in the NYPD as to and fro. Now, we've always had problems with the Iranian delegation, often the Turkish delegation, sometimes the North Koreans stretching the envelope on what the rules were. One year, the Iranians came in with 137 guns with their security team and I think Chief Tom Galati from NYPD Intel cut them back to some reasonable number before he would let them off the plane.

But in this case, the to and fro rule means you can go to the U.N. from the hotel and then to the hotel from the U.N., but nowhere else.

[18:30:00]

So, they're going to be on, unless that changes, a very tight leash during the U.N. General Assembly.

And Costco in New York City and Manhattan is in East Harlem on 117th Street. So, to enforce that, they're really going to, A, I mean, when it comes to the foreign minister and the president, the principals, they're under the control of Secret Service, the State Department, they can't exactly sneak out, but you have all these security people and staff members who can sneak out, and they'll probably keep a very close eye on that hotel. And if one of the delegation is leaving and going somewhere that's not in that box, or they're not on duty, they'll probably get stopped.

TAPPER: All right. John Miller, fascinating stuff, thanks so much.

As President Trump reportedly prepares to send the National Guard to Chicago, we're going to talk to the Senator from Illinois, Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth. She says, Homeland Security officials fled from her when she tried to get for more information at a local Navy base in the Chicago area. We're going to talk about it with her, next.

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TAPPER: In our Law and Justice Lead today, Democratic lawmakers spent about 90 minutes at a naval station near Chicago the Trump administration may use during the expected deployment of National Guard troops as part of the president's crackdown on crime, as well as undocumented immigrants.

[18:35:10]

Among the lawmakers at this naval station near Chicago with Senator Tammy Duckworth, who joins us now. Senator, tell us about the visit. You say Homeland Security officials fled and did not meet with you.

SEN. TAMMY DUCKWORTH (D-IL): Exactly Jake, we requested a meeting with them and they actually locked up the building that they are borrowing from the Navy and gave all their people the day off and left. We have no idea where they were, not a single one, it was crickets.

The Navy did meet with us and answered our questions and really were very cooperative, but Homeland Security was not anywhere to be found.

TAPPER: What did you see at the base and what are you expecting the Trump administration to do? Do you think that they're definitely going to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago?

DUCKWORTH: I think it's a real possibility, but remember that this is all a distraction campaign from a president who is trying to scare Americans and trying to distract us from the failures of his administration. So, I would think that the next time, you know, bad economic data comes out, more Epstein victims testify, anything like that happens, then he's going to do something to try to distract us, and it's going to be something along these lines.

We do know that ICE is coming. That is who's going to be at Great Lakes, but they're only getting office buildings. They're not going to get the barracks or any facilities to detain individuals. And we made clear that -- we made it clear that that would not be acceptable.

TAPPER: You've called the possible deployment of the National Guard to Chicago, quote, unwarranted, unwanted and unjust move straight out of the authoritarian's playbook, unquote. Is there anything that you think Illinois officials or Democrats in Congress could do to stop it?

DUCKWORTH: Well, no, because this president does not actually listen to the rule of law, right? All that we can do is to make sure that we set the standards for how they can be deployed. We can certainly push back as hard as we can, but Donald Trump will go to red state governors and deploy these National Guard men and women into the streets of other cities.

And, frankly, what's ironic is that many of the National Guard troops are coming from red states that have cities with far higher crime rates than Chicago. If the president wants to help us with crime, then he should perhaps give us back the $135 million that he diverted from Illinois for crime prevention.

TAPPER: I want to play something that Trump Border Adviser Tom Homan told reporters yesterday about an immigration raid he launched in Chicago earlier this year. You're going to hear him talk about TDA members. I know you know this, but for viewers out there, that's Tren de Aragua. That's a Venezuelan criminal gang. Let's roll that tape.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM HOMAN, BORDER POLICY ADVISER: On the first day, we arrested like nine TDA members. We arrested like seven or nine sexual -- child sexual predators. We arrested two illegal alien that had homicide convictions walking the street. We arrested TDA members that were selling pistols with the switch, which means the pistol's all fully automatic now. We made Chicago safer in one day.

(END VIDEO CLIP) TAPPER: Now, this is obviously different than deploying the National Guard. This is an ICE raid. Do you have an issue with the ICE raids going on in Chicago?

DUCKWORTH: I have an issue with ice intimidating individuals and arresting and showing up in mask and grabbing individuals off the streets and throwing them into unmarked vehicles. And, by the way, the Trump administration's own data says that less than 15 percent of the people that ICE has grabbed off the streets of our cities and deported have actually had any type of a felony conviction. So, the vast majority of people that they have grabbed and harassed are not people with felony convictions.

Again, I am all for finding violent criminals and getting them off the streets of any of our cities. But you know what, the way to do that is to actually cooperate with our law enforcement and not divert funds away from law enforcement. Heck, they even diverted, you know, over $130 million from child protective programs. So, if Trump truly wanted to fight crime, then he would work with the Chicago Police Department.

The National Guard is not trained to do law enforcement duties. In fact, they can't even -- they don't even have the authority to arrest people when they see a crime happening. So, this is absolutely the wrong thing that he's trying to do.

TAPPER: Very quickly, as somebody who was actually fought and sacrificed in war, do you have a response to President Trump changing the name as he is from the Department of Defense to the Department of War?

DUCKWORTH: Yes. I think this is -- again, this is a typical thing that Trump is doing. If he's going to be changing names of departments, maybe he should change it based on what he's doing to our country. How about the Department of Veterans Abandonment for the V.A.?

[18:40:02]

How about the Environmental Polluting Agency, which is what he's doing to the EPA? How about the department formerly known as the Department of Justice? You know, there's the Department of Worker Suppression for the Department of Labor.

This is exactly what Trump is doing. He's trying to distract us, Jake, he's trying to distract us from his failures as president, from the economic data that is not going in his direction, from the fact that he just watched, you know, the dictators that he want to be like do these great parades that he would like to have had. He couldn't get Vladimir Putin to do what he wanted to do. And now he's got protests against what he's trying to do. And so he's trying to distract us.

TAPPER: Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth from Illinois, thank you so much.

DUCKWORTH: Thank you.

TAPPER: Our panels back with me. We're going to get into these National Guard deployments in big cities right after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TAPPER: We are back in our Politics Lead. We got a lot of news on this very busy Friday and our panel's back.

So, Ashley, we just heard about this possible crackdown on crime in Chicago. That's how Trump is describing it anyway in terms of sending the National Guard possibly into Chicago.

[18:45:00]

There are, of course, constitutional questions about whether he has the right to do that.

I want to turn to another priority for the administration, that's the crackdown on undocumented immigrants. And we saw earlier in the show this largest sweep yet at a Hyundai plant. And it was mainly Korean nationals at that plant. What do you make of this happening in Georgia, of all places?

ASHLEY DAVIS, FOUNDING PARTNER, WEST FRONT STRATEGIES: Well, and you know, my background is homeland security. So, this is something near and dear to my heart. But what I -- and I looked into this because I thought it was interesting, because I thought they were going after Hyundai. They weren't. They were going after the subsidiary of the contractors, and also they were going after -- there's supposedly there's a lot of trafficking in regards to the labor world. And so, I guess this investigation has been happening for months.

TAPPER: Yeah. They said it was a criminal investigation, not just --

DAVIS: It's a criminal investigation.

So I don't think they were going after the company. I think that they were going after this second layer of individuals. But listen, it's interesting -- what they're trying to do is make sure that people stop coming across this border illegally, number one.

And number two, if you're employing people that aren't supposed to be here illegally, they're going to go after you. I mean --

SABRINA SINGH, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR & GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: I think what's interesting, though, to that point is Donald Trump wants to bring jobs home. He wants to bring manufacturing home. Here are plants doing that.

I think what I have been reading and what's being reported also, is that some of the workers that this plant is employing are the skilled laborers that they need that maybe is not available right here, right now.

So, this is also going to -- his -- his immigration policies are having economic impacts. And you're seeing that in some of the numbers that were seeing coming out of this administration, even though this administration might not like those numbers. The immigration policies are going to see direct ties to the economic policies as well.

TAPPER: What do you what do you make of that? Because there are obviously is there's an unemployment ticked up to 4.3 percent today. But there is a question about whether or not the legal citizenry in this country right now is prepared for all the jobs, whether or not they're skilled jobs, that we just don't have enough people trained or unskilled jobs that American citizens don't want to do.

DAVIS: One thing I want to say about these job numbers, which, by the way, I'm not going to try to put lipstick on a pig here. They weren't great. But also, there's more Americans employed now than they were. You know, over the last ten years. So, it's not like you're losing jobs or you're just not adding as many jobs.

And I think that's a big differentiator. But -- but there's still some softness in the economy. I'm not -- I'm not going to try to. But I think that this is the debate, Jake, that we've been having forever since the president ran on this is the -- especially the farm workers, I mean, are --

TAPPER: Yeah.

DAVIS: And so you see, some of these special programs that are in place to make sure that there are enough workers because it is going to it could potentially be an issue.

TAPPER: So there's -- speaking of job creators, some big news for the worlds richest man, Elon Musk, who could become -- could become the world's first trillionaire. The Tesla board announced an eye-popping pay package, giving the Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, 423 million additional shares of Tesla stock. If Musk is able to hit a series of admittedly ambitious targets, here's what Tesla's board of directors chair told CNBC about the offer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBYN DENHOLM, CHAIRWOMAN, TESLA BOARD OF DIRECTOR: If he doesn't hit any of the milestones, he gets zero. This is not a compensation package. It's a performance package. And so if he performs, if he hits the milestones, the super ambitious milestones that are in the plan, then he gets equity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: It's a lot of money. It's also -- it also comes obviously after I think it's fair to say there are people affiliated with Tesla who were concerned earlier this year that Mr. Musk wasn't paying enough attention to the company. But what does he have to do to --

DAVIS: Well, yeah, that's --

TAPPER: To become a trillionaire.

DAVIS: Well, first of all, it's over ten years, so he's got to, like, be here for ten years.

TAPPER: Oh, okay.

DAVIS: He's got to concentrate on the company for ten years, which is the main problem. But he has to grow the revenue from $1 trillion to $8.7 trillion. I wrote this down because 20 million -- make 20 million additional vehicles and sell them 1 million robo taxis and a million A.I. bots.

These are like big, ambitious -- I'm sure that there's details within there, but listen, if this guy can do it --

SINGH: I mean, I think there are incredible milestones that Elon Musk is going to have to, to meet. And he is also proven to be a very incredible, smart person. So I think he's up for a challenge. I think that is a lot of money.

And at the end of the day, you know, it is the company's decision. But I think, you know, looking at it from the outside that that was a shocking stat that even if it's over ten years for someone to become the first trillionaire. I mean, you know, we could -- we can go through all the things that this country is facing. But I think a lot of wealth being concentrated at the top. It's hard when people can barely make ends meet.

TAPPER: Yeah. We should also note shareholders have to approve the package in coming months. It's also, I mean, like, it's worth noting that Elon Musk spent a quarter billion dollars, $250 million of his own money to help elect President Trump.

SINGH: Right.

DAVIS: But, Jake, if you're -- if you're a shareholder, if I was a shareholder, big shareholder in Tesla, I would support that all day long. Because if he meets those milestones, that's just more money for the bottom line of the company. So, I mean, if you're a shareholder, you'll make more money.

TAPPER: One thing I wanted to ask you guys, as part of the country's 250th birthday celebration next year, is "The Wall Street Journal's" reporting there's going to be a UFC bout on the south lawn of the White House in June.

[18:50:03]

"The Journal" reports that wrestlers could likely warm up inside the White House, get weighed in in front of the Lincoln Memorial.

I guess this is of a piece of the Mar-a-Lago patio replacing the Rose Garden and Donald Trump putting a lot of gold in the -- in the Oval Office, UFC fighting.

SINGH: You know, not my choice, not my sport. This is the president's choice. It is -- it's clearly very performative. And, you know, the president, he comes from the television world. He likes these types of big events. It would certainly be a first to be done in the White House.

TAPPER: Your son would love it, though.

SINGH: Well, no, that's what I was saying. I have a really good focus group of one that I called when this was announced, you know, a couple weeks ago. And he's like, this is the best thing that's ever happened. I mean, this -- the Dana White movement, who I didn't know who he was either until the inaugural, but this is --

DAVIS: I didn't know who that -- okay. So, this is -- this is something the tickets to see. My son just went to a show or a match, not a show in Chicago. The tickets are like ten times the price of football tickets.

TAPPER: Yeah.

DAVIS: I mean, it's just an amazing movement that's happening. So, the president's smart. You're right. He's a media guy.

TAPPER: All right. Thanks to both of you. Appreciate it.

As we head into the weekend, one man's huge task trying to put a smart, comedic spin on some of the biggest headlines that flooded your social media feed.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:55:33]

TAPPER: Turning to our pop culture/politics lead for this one, comedian Roy Wood Jr. is here ahead of the premiere of his show "HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU", which is launching season three right here on CNN this Saturday night.

Roy, always great to have you.

So, your show, as people know, tries to put a comedic spin on the big news headlines of the week. A lot of crazy stuff going -- going on already. We have President Trump reacting to the to the rumors on the Internet last week about his imminent demise.

ROY WOOD, JR., COMEDIAN: Yeah. It's one of those situations where like, you kept checking your phone but you didn't want to tell anybody that you kept checking your phone. I've never seen a country more concerned about one person's health. But then what does Trump do? After everybody was doubting his health, come out swinging and put the troops in Chicago.

Well, I -- he seems to be fully, fully cognitive. Thats the Trump I know. He sends the military to cities that don't need it.

TAPPER: He did try to quiet the rumors on Sunday. He wrote in all caps on his social media app that he never felt better in my life. That's all caps.

WOOD: No. TAPPER: Trump is 79 years old. What do you -- what do you make of all this? And is this overcompensation, do you think, for the last president?

WOOD: Yeah, I believe so. But I also think we're in a situation now where Trump has created a pattern for himself, where he talks every day, he's seen every day. So if you want to go and hide and rest a little bit, and maybe you want to rest your swollen ankles or something like that, I don't think the streets are going to allow that.

This is a president who now, to prove that he's healthy, he's going to have to do a TikTok dance every single day. He's got -- you can't go from standing on the roof of the White House and then just being missing for four or five days.

That's not the Trump we know. If you okay, well then where's the stupid, pointless executive order? Where's that at?

TAPPER: So, President Trump had some rare praise for a Democrat after his federal police takeover in D.C. He told the D.C. mayor on his Truth Social, quote, congratulations to Mayor Muriel Bowser, but don't go woke on us. D.C. is a giant victory that never has to end.

She is handling him differently than the way other Democrats are, like Gavin Newsom or J.B. Pritzker in your in your hometown of Chicago, in Illinois. She is taking a more conciliatory work with him kind of tone. What do you make of it?

WOOD: I think it's a different strategy. I think Mayor Bowser is in a rock and a hard place, because if you talk trash to him, all he's going to do is let the troops sit there even longer. And the occupation lasts way longer than what it has to.

So, you almost have to placate him a little bit, just to try and get your city back to some degree of normalcy, rather than start arguing the statistics that we have already proven are flawed, that they are using to justify putting all of these troops and all of these cities. And it's the same thing that's happening in Chicago is starting to happen in Chicago, rumored, this week.

I think that Mayor Bowser is in a rock and a hard place, and I don't think that she does herself any favors by pushing back. But I also don't think she does herself any favors with, you know, with her liberal base by doing anything that remotely seems like, thank you, President, for saving my city. D.C. would have been nothing without you -- which we know is not the truth.

TAPPER: Lastly, President Trump is talking about giving the Medal of Freedom to Rudy Giuliani, who thankfully is out of the hospital after a car accident. What do you -- what do you make of Rudy getting the Medal of Freedom?

WOOD: I'm all for Rudy Giuliani getting the Medal of Freedom so he can take it and give it to them Black ladies who sued him down in Georgia because he owed them a lot of money. Give Rudy all the trophies. TAPPER: Roy Wood, Jr., don't be a stranger. Again, "HAVE I GOT NEWS

FOR YOU" is back this Saturday night, September 6th, at 9:00 p.m. Eastern, only here on CNN.

WOOD: Take that medal to the pawnshop, Rudy.

TAPPER: Coming up Sunday on "STATE OF THE UNION", Trump administration border czar Tom Homan and Florida surgeon general, Dr. Joseph Ladapo. That's Sunday morning at 9:00 Eastern and again at noon only here on CNN.

You can follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, and the TikTok @jaketapper. You can follow the show on X @TheLeadCNN. If you ever miss an episode of THE LEAD, you can listen to the show whence you get your podcasts.

"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts now. I will see you Sunday morning on "STATE OF THE UNION".