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Search Warrants Executed on NY Backpack, Burner Phone; Suspect Due Back in Pennsylvania Court Dec. 23 & Dec. 30; Trump Transition; Trump Offers Inauguration Invites to Foreign Leaders Through Calls & Back Channels; Game Changing Restauranteur Making Vegan Food Sexy; College Advise Intl Students to Return Before Trump Takes Office; Anonymous Juror?. Aired 9:30-10a ET
Aired December 13, 2024 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:30:00]
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JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENTAND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: About this plot (ph). And on the, what was it? It was the grand jury, the search warrants --
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: The grand jury --
MILLER: And the extradition.
BERMAN: Yeah, we have court dates now. Two court dates for the end of December, I believe, on the extradition.
MILLER: Right. And on the extradition, the defense has two weeks to file their papers to oppose it. The prosecution has 30 days, which basically gives them two weeks to respond to the defense.
So it looks like at the earliest, we may not see him back here for at least two weeks, maybe three or four.
BERMAN: Will we learn anything more, John, either about the prosecution or the defense, if he continues with his idea that he's going to plead not guilty as part of these hearings?
MILLER: Well, the extradition hearing is a very narrow hearing. It is really related to are the charges valid, are the documents in order, and is this person the person that they've identified in the documents. The extradition hearing will have little or nothing to do with the actual evidence because that occurs once he's brought back to New York.
What he's held on in Pennsylvania is the gun charge, the gun he was allegedly found with at the time of his arrest.
BERMAN: All right, John Miller. On top of all of this for us, you can see right there, these court dates, December 23rd and December 30th. John, thank you very much, as always.
Kate.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: There could be more than one Kennedy in Donald Trump's next administration. The new name that the president elect is now floating for a role at the CIA.
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[09:36:15]
BERMAN: All right, new reports this morning that a Kennedy family member is in talks for a high ranking job in the Trump administration. The president elect is considering RFK Jr.'s daughter-in-law, Amaryllis Fox Kennedy, to be the CIA deputy director. CNN's Kristen Holmes is with us now.
So, what's going on here? I mean, what are the qualifications?
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, she was a former CIA official, but we don't know exactly what her tenure there looked like. Now, she ran RFK's campaign. Now, it's not that surprising that one of the loudest voices pushing for her is RFK Jr., her father-in-law, who has become quite a staple in Trump's inner circle, someone who Trump actually listens to, which we saw in that time interview.
He was very clear that RFK was a voice in his ear. Now, the other part of this that has been so fascinating is the relationship that the Kennedys have with the CIA, particularly when it comes to RFK Jr. who has long said that he believes the CIA was involved in the assassination of his uncle, President John F. Kennedy. Donald Trump also, while on the campaign, said that he would release any remaining files that were under seal around the investigation on the assassination.
So, that's just an extra little added part of all of this. The other thing about Amaryllis Kennedy, and I'm hearing this from a number of people who are more on the MAGA wing of Donald Trump's Republican Party, is that they believe that she would be somewhat of a disrupter, that she's a little bit of an outsider, despite the fact that she was herself a CIA official, that they believe she's not as mainstream as the person who has been tapped to be the leader of the CIA, John Ratcliffe. Now she has met with both Trump and Ratcliffe, but one other interesting part of all of this Is that she's getting some pushback from another Trump ally, and that is Senator Tom Cotton, who is going to be the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, so that's a pretty loud voice there, but as everything within Trump world, we're going to have to wait and see how this plays out.
Who in this small group of people who are in Trump's inner circle wins out the battle when it comes to the deputy director of the CIA?
BERMAN: Also we're learning a lot more about sort of the invitation list for the inauguration, which includes foreign leaders.
HOLMES: Yeah, and generally, foreign leaders aren't invited to the inauguration. The way it usually works is the bipartisan committee that works on the inauguration puts out these invitations to diplomats who come, but they don't invite foreign leaders. But Donald Trump, unsurprisingly, I would think to many, wants this to be a global affair.
And he is reaching out and his team is reaching out either directly or through handlers to various foreign leaders to invite them to the inauguration. One of them being China's Xi Jinping, which in itself, is incredibly controversial because he's inviting this communist leader. Now, we don't expect Xi Jinping to come.
It sounds like he's going to be sending a senior ranking delegation from China instead, but it'll be interesting to see who actually shows up. And part of this is what I'm being told is a lot of these asks are informal. They're coming up in conversations on the phone.
He's talking about other issues. Then he mentions that these leaders should come to the inauguration. Another way that this might have come up and I'm told is that when he was in France, for the reopening of Notre Dame, that he was talking to world leaders, he dropped the inauguration with some of them as well.
It is so informal in some cases, not all, but in some cases that even his closest aides don't know who exactly he has invited. So again, something we're watching to see how this plays out because it's just not the traditional way that we see an inauguration and the invitations go out.
BERMAN: All right, Kristen Holmes, I know you will keep us posted. Thank you very much. Kate.
BOLDUAN: The next installment of Sara's series known as Game Changers is coming up. Why a brand called Slutty Vegan has everything to do with it?
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[09:44:38]
SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Alright, it is that time of year where food is the gift that keeps on giving. So, would you try a vegan version of your favorite holiday meal? For many of us, that doesn't seem so appetizing.
However, one entrepreneur and restaurateur is changing the game, making it her mission to make veganism not only tasty, but sexy. Pinky Cole's vegan restaurant business is booming. She's expanded across the United States, serving up great food with a name you just can't forget, Slutty Vegan.
[09:45:09]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SIDNER: How did you come up with the name, Slutty Vegan?
PINKY COLE, FOUNDER, SLUTTY VEGAN: I was in Atlanta in my two bedroom apartment. That is when Slutty Vegan was born. And I knew that it was special because I was fulfill, solving a personal problem.
And I'm like, okay, I want some vegan comfort food on the late night and I don't want to eat fries and a side salad. I wanna eat some like real good food at night. And Slutty Vegan was born in that bedroom.
And from that moment I went into the lab and I started doing the research and it evolved into something so beautiful and even today. Six years later, I sit back and I think about like, damn, I really created something special.
SIDNER: What did your community say when you're like, I'm going to start a restaurant called Slutty Vegan, and it's going to be vegan food. Because in the South, we like meat.
COLE: Yes. When I first started Slutty Vegan, there were a lot of people that were uncomfortable with the idea of me having a brain and saying slut. But what I've been able to do is reengineer word, in a way that you've never seen it before.
I said, okay, all right, I'm a former television producer, so I know what people pay attention to, I know what's going to make them watch it. I need to merge sex and food together in a way that you've never seen it before. And when I did that, it was a recipe for success.
All I'm trying to do is get your attention. Once I get you --
SIDNER: Get you in here?
COLE: Yes, when you walk into my restaurant, the first thing that we do is call you a slut. But it's a term of endearment. And by the time you leave this restaurant, you're going to be proud, excited, uncomfortable in the right way.
And then you're going to have this vegan burger and you are going to be pleasantly surprised like, wow, this is actually really good. And I can actually eat vegan food because I went to Slutty Vegan and I had a really great experience.
SIDNER: There is a health problem here in the United States. It's one of the unhealthiest places on Earth. When you look at where we are economically, socioeconomically, there are also food deserts.
Food deserts exist. You know, I know, and the underprivileged folks pay more for fresh food and often don't have it very close to them. What do you tell them?
What are they supposed to do?
COLE: You know, it's interesting, when I first started Slutty Vegan, I specifically went into underserved communities, and I went into areas where there were no vegan food, they didn't hear of vegan food, but I also realized that I had to create that healthy balance, because I was bringing my food into an area where they couldn't even afford it. And it was a sad reality, and I realized, like, oh, this is deeper than rats. I can't just open up stores in communities like this. I really gotta provide a safe space for them to be able to afford and tap in. So, I have reengineered how I elevate my brand and being more intentional about making it more affordable for people who otherwise couldn't afford it. That's important to me.
Because I realize that, like, people want to go vegan, and they want to eat the food. But they also have to have access to it, and that's financial access, that's informational access, and as long as they have the access to it, then they can partake in it more. And if they can do it more, then their kids will eat more of it, and their kids will eat more of it, and then you'll see, it won't just be like, oh, vegan is this new trendy thing.
It's just people just want good food that's healthier, even if it means vegan burger and fry.
SIDNER: I wanna talk to you about your, your personal life. What significant thing happened the day you were born?
COLE: The day that I was born, my father was being sentenced to almost 30 years in prison. So that wasn't a gift that kept on giving that I expected. So, while it was extremely difficult not to have a father figure in the house because of relationships and being a girl and just wanting daddy home, what I learned is, is that as long as your mind is free, there is nothing that could stop you.
So as a result of that, I wanted to be an entrepreneur. I wanted to make it. I wanted to be a star.
SIDNER: You've written two books.
COLE: I did.
SIDNER: On top of the restaurants that are growing all over the place.
COLE: Yes.
SIDNER: What's the name of your first book?
COLE: "Eat plants, bitch."
SIDNER: So we know what that's about.
COLE: Yes.
SIDNER: And the second book is?
COLE: "I hope you fail."
SIDNER: So I've looked at them both.
COLE: Mm-hmm.
SIDNER: And when I saw the name of the second book.
COLE: Mm-hmm. SIDNER: I was like, damn, rude.
COLE: Mm-hmm.
SIDNER: Like I'm not reading this.
COLE: Yeah.
SIDNER: But I listened to it.
COLE: Mm-hmm.
SIDNER: And you give some advice in there.
COLE: Mm-hmm.
SIDNER: And one of the bits of advice is, I hope you make a decision that ruins your life.
COLE: Yeah.
SIDNER: Why?
COLE: I fail every day. Every single day is a failure, but it's not a failure at all. It is finding the aspiration in the losses.
And I wrote that book because when I wrote it, I was in a season of my life where I was still overcoming the pain from my past, right? And I wanted people to know that I am real.
SIDNER: You said haters drive you.
COLE: Yes.
SIDNER: But that you also recommend that we talk to ourselves.
COLE: Yes.
SIDNER: What are you saying to yourself?
COLE: Girl, what's wrong with you? Get up. You can do it.
You the boss. You the sugar honey, iced tea.
SIDNER: I know that one.
COLE: Okay.
SIDNER: Sugar honey iced tea.
COLE: Yes!
SIDNER: Spell the letter out, you will see what she's talking about.
COLE: You gotta be aggressive with yourself. Like sometimes I have like, wait a minute, Pinky, what's going on with you? Like you are that girl.
It's in you. You got the je ne sais quoi. Like, everything about you is excellent.
Everything about you is top tier. Nobody can take that away from you. Money can't take that away from you.
Status can't take that away from you. You the GOAT, Pinky.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[09:50:38]
SIDNER: And get this in 2016, she had the absolute biggest challenge of her entrepreneurial life. Her entire restaurant burned to the ground. She did not have insurance.
She was starting from zero, but she said, you know what? When you hit rock bottom, it really tells you who you are. And here she is with all these restaurants across the country.
Had a great time in the food. It is good. All right.
New this morning. Top colleges and universities in the United States are urging international students to return to campus before President elect Donald Trump takes office on January 20th. They include Harvard, USC, Wesleyan, MIT, and Cornell.
Cornell warning that a travel ban is likely to go into effect soon after inauguration and likely will include citizens of countries targeted in the first Trump administration, and there could be more countries added, including China and India. Joining me now is Niels Frenzen. He is a professor of law at USC Gould School of Law and heads the school's immigration clinic.
First of all, what are you hearing from USC? Do they have the same concern for their students and, frankly, faculty?
PROF. NIELS W. FRENZEN, USC GOULD SCHOOL OF LAW: I mean, USC issued an advisory last week advising anyone who is an international student or an international scholar to be back in the country before Inauguration Day on January 20th. We do not know that anything is going to happen, but out of an abundance of caution, we're advising international students to be back.
SIDNER: I am curious what prompted these warnings from all of these different schools, when, you know, that hasn't been something that has been on Donald Trump's agenda, at least not spoken about this time around.
FRENZEN: I mean, history is what's prompted it. We know there is an anti immigrant sentiment that is going to be implemented. We know that there are going to be executive orders issued, if not on Inauguration Day, very, very soon afterwards.
And based upon what happened in January of 2017, with the first iteration of the Muslim travel ban, again, let's be cautious. If you're an international student and you're traveling, just be back in the country.
SIDNER: In 2017, as you mentioned, there was this what became known as a Muslim ban because most countries that were banned from traveling to the United States have predominantly Muslim populations. Can you remind our viewers of just how that affected students at that time?
I mean, it was chaos because it was implemented with immediate effect. So literally, there were thousands of people in the air flying to the United States who did not know about the ban until they landed at LAX or JFK, for example. And then there were likewise thousands of people outside of the United States who were denied boarding by airlines during the visa check, the preflight visa check process.
So it had tremendous ramifications. The Trump administration ultimately had to water down the ban as a result of the Supreme Court, as a result of litigation, but still there were thousands and thousands of people adversely affected.
SIDNER: Can you give me a sense of what you're hearing? I mean, after these messages go out to students, what you're hearing from students and faculty about all of this and if it's causing great concern.
FRENZEN: I mean, individuals who have the so called F1 or J1 international student or scholar visa, they know the drill. They know they're subject to vetting every time they travel. So, individuals from countries that were not previously affected by the travel ban are probably less concerned.
But what we're seeing with China, for example, and this also plays out with Canadians and Mexicans even, is we've seen this tariff threat that is going back and forth between President elect Trump and those three countries, China, Canada and Mexico. So, there's a concern that there could be some impact with airline travel from people coming from those countries. So again, even though they were not previously targeted, there's concern.
SIDNER: There's an abundance of caution. Professor Frenzen, thank you so much. Appreciate you coming on and explaining --
FRENZEN: You're welcome.
SIDNER: All that to us. John.
[09:55:01]
BERMAN: Alright, back by popular demand, a reminder that we all have to go to jury duty when called. Legendary Atlanta rapper Ludacris reported for jury duty. He tried to do it incognito.
He used his real name, Christopher Bridges. He wore a face mask and sunglasses. But after being dismissed, he is kind of almost blown by a fellow juror.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) LUDACRIS, LEGENDARY ATLANTA RAPPER: Jury duty. Jewel Bridges is excused.
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Mr. Nail Puffy is excused.
LUDACRIS: Woo, excuse us. Ha ha, (LAUGHTER) don't nobody know who the hell I am. Ha ha ha.
UNKNOWN FEMALE: You Ludacris?
LUDACRIS: Oh, what?
UNKNOWN FEMALE: You look like Ludacris.
LUDACRIS: I wish. I wouldn't be here. I'll tell you that.
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Yeah, sure. Ludacris from Atlanta.
LUDACRIS: Really?
UNKNOWN FEMALE: I think.
LUDACRIS: I think, you know, you might be right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: You know --
SIDNER: Nice.
BERMAN: You might be right.
SIDNER: Nice.
BERMAN: Look, the important thing is he went.
SIDNER: He went. He did his duty. I mean, good for him.
But also, I like that he's like, you might be right. You know, I would not show up if I was him. Good on you, Ludacris. (inaudible) --
BOLDUAN: He has one of those, like, iconic voices that like --
SIDNER: Yeah, I know. As soon as he spoke --
BOLDUAN: Like, that's what he meant to disguise --
SIDNER: I'd have been like, that's Luda.
BOLDUAN: Exactly. Thanks so much for joining us, everybody. This is CNN News Central.
CNN Newsroom, up next.
SIDNER: Have the best.
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