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Trump Suggests New Orleans Attacker was Migrant; Johnson Faces Narrow Majority; Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN) is Interviewed about the Speaker's Race; Alarm on Lone Wolf Attacks; Baldoni Sues "The New York Times." Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired January 02, 2025 - 08:30   ET

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

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[08:30:43]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: This morning we're learning new details about the man who killed 15 people and injured dozens in the New Year's Day terror attack in New Orleans. Officials confirming the 42-year-old was a U.S. citizen born and bred in Texas. He was also an Army veteran. He reportedly had fallen on hard times personally and financially, which debunks President-elect Donald Trump's suggestion that the attacker was an illegal migrant.

CNN's Alayna Treene is in West Palm Beach, Florida, this morning for us.

Has Trump or his team acknowledged this false accusation and some of the reporting that has come out since that this man is actually from Texas?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN REPORTER: They have not. We have not seen any other, you know, public reaction or response from Donald Trump since posting yesterday morning, weighing in on the attack.

Now, look, when I talked to Donald Trump's team about this, they said, one, that Donald Trump was getting real time updates on what was happening in New Orleans. But still, we did see Donald Trump weigh in on Truth Social yesterday morning, as we, of course, were still learning more information about who was behind this attack.

I want to read for you what he wrote. As you mentioned, he did suggest that perhaps the suspect was an illegal immigrant. This is what he wrote. He said, quote, "when I said that the criminals coming in are far worse than the criminals we have in our country, that statement was constantly refuted by Democrats and the fake news media, but it turned out to be true." He went on to say that his heart - "our hearts are with all of the innocent victims and their loved ones, including the brave officers of the New Orleans Police Department."

Now to be clear, and I know you said this, Sara, but we now know that the person behind this attack was a U.S. citizen. As you mentioned, the FBI identified him as a Texas man and an Army veteran. And that also he was killed in a firefight with police officers and that he had made videos before the attack in which he said that he had joined ISIS.

Now, again, when I also was, you know, chatting with some people close to Donald Trump around all of this yesterday, there was a video that was circulating and being posted and shared by people in Donald Trump's orbit, people like Charlie Kirk, that had suggested perhaps that the suspect had driven over the border. Again, that was not confirmed. And of course, we now know that that is not true, that this suspect was a U.S. citizen from Texas. All to say, you know, this was posted, I think, before we had all the information, but we have not heard Donald Trump correct himself or his team make any further statement on this.

SIDNER: All right, I do want to ask you about Trump announcing he's going to hold a rally in D.C. the day before the inauguration. What's that all about?

TREENE: That's right. So, they announced yesterday - they actually sent a fundraising text to supporters yesterday morning, inviting them to an event that they are dubbing a victory rally the day before Donald Trump is set to be sworn in. It's going to be held at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., home to the Washington Wizards and the Washington Capitals. And it can hold, we're told, about 20,000 people at max capacity.

But look, when I talked to Trump's team about this as well, they recognized that tens of thousands, if not more supporters, they are anticipating to come to the inauguration to go to Washington, D.C., for his swearing in. And really, we know that Donald Trump wants this to be a massive event. He has invited global leaders. He wants this to be a huge event as he is entering the White House. And part of that and part of this rally, were told, is really to try and energize his supporters right before that happens. And so, this is really a way to try to draw bigger crowds to D.C. and also kind of get them excited just one day before he is set to be inaugurated.

Sara.

SIDNER: All right, Alayna Treene, thank you so much for your reporting this morning.

Ahead, a new year, but same old battle in Congress. The fight over the House speakership is revving up. Now Trump has weighed in. Will Republicans buck him again?

Actor and director Justin Baldoni firing back against accusations of sexual misconduct by his former costar Blake Lively. Why Baldoni is now suing "The New York Times" for hundreds of millions of dollars.

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[08:38:52]

SIDNER: The 119th Congress begins tomorrow. No surprise here. Speaker Mike Johnson has virtually no margin for error to retain the gavel.

All right, here to run the numbers, CNN's senior data reporter, Harry Enten.

I feel like this is "Groundhog Day," that it is January 2nd, and we are back in the same speaker fight that we have been seeing for quite some time. Just how tight is the House race now?

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: Yes. OK. So, there are times when I see numbers and I feel like Joey from "Blossom" and go, whoa! This is an instance of it. OK, Mike Johnson's major potential headache. It's the smallest majority at the start of a first session in over 100 years because, keep in mind, a lot of people will try and say, OK, you know, back in 1931. But keep in mind, the first session then didn't start actually until I think December. And there were a ton of vacancies.

So, I actually went further back into the record books and said, OK, when the first session actually started. And this is the smallest since at least 1917, if not further back, because we got 219 for the Republicans, because Matt Gaetz says he's not joining this Congress, and 215 for the Democrats likely tomorrow.

SIDNER: (INAUDIBLE).

[08:40:01]

ENTEN: We're talking about - yes, it's pretty tight. It's pretty gosh darn tight. We're talking about a difference of, get this, just four seats between Republicans and Democrats. Virtually no margin for error.

SIDNER: So, how easy would it be for Johnson to - lose on the very first ballot?

ENTEN: Yes, OK, so let's do some math. I like doing math right after New Year's, don't you?

SIDNER: No thanks.

ENTEN: Not like that we had anything in our bodies, you know, that might make our minds go a little bit crazy.

All right, GOP reps can sink Johnson's speaker's bid. If on a given ballot, at least this is scenario number one. Scenario number one is if two Republicans vote against him, of course assuming 434 voted Dems - no Dems vote for Johnson. Or, scenario number two, one Republican votes against him, votes against Johnson, and two abstain, i.e. vote present. So it's either two or three. The most likely scenarios of Republicans that can sink Mike Johnson. And at this particular point, either of these ones look like a real possibility.

SIDNER: And we know, because we just talked to Congressman Auchincloss, that no Dems plan on voting for Johnson.

ENTEN: Correct.

SIDNER: So, that is a scenario. These - it's either of these two if that holds true. ENTEN: Correct.

SIDNER: All right, recent history. We've been through this before. Like I said, it's kind of a "Groundhog Day." What are you seeing in the last couple of times this has happened?

ENTEN: Yes. So, the idea that Republicans might go against the speaker choice of the majority of the Congress ain't something that seems that crazy given the last two races. Ballots it took to elect a speaker. You go back to January of 2023, 15 ballots for Kevin McCarthy. The most since 1859/60, and the first multi ballot race since 1923.

And then in October we were like, let's do it all again. It took four ballots to elect Mike Johnson. It actually took more days for the Johnson one than the McCarthy one. We were talking over a week.

So, folks, look, we'll see what happens tomorrow. We don't know. But get your seat belts, buckle in, it's the new year, but it's the same old story when it comes to speaker races being quite nutty.

SIDNER: The fact that you quoted "Blossom," which I don't know how many people know that show.

ENTEN: Whoa! I love that show. A great TV show.

SIDNER: It really caught John's attention. I know that for a fact.

ENTEN: I get John's attention rather easily, just by looking straight into the camera.

SIDNER: Good times.

Harry Enten, thank you so much. I appreciate you.

ENTEN: Thank you.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: It just feels like a whole new year for Harry Enten.

ENTEN: It does, doesn't it?

SIDNER: What?

BERMAN: I see so many - so many changes, quoting Joey from "Blossom."

SIDNER: There's a lot of things happening here.

BERMAN: All right, Happy New Year to you both.

SIDNER: Thank you.

ENTEN: You as well.

BERMAN: With us now is Congressman Andre Carson, a Democrat from Indiana.

Congressman, thank you so much for being with us.

We were just talking about the speaker's race. It's tomorrow morning. What are you and Democrats going to do?

REP. ANDRE CARSON (D-IN): I know I'm supporting my good friend, Leader Hakeem Jeffries. I think he'll be a phenomenal speaker. I think he represents the change that is happening in our country. And I think he represents a new start.

BERMAN: What do you expect Republicans to do, and what do you think the larger significance of this uncertainty still is?

CARSON: Well, I think it reflects the fracture that is the Republican Party. They're divided. There's infighting. You have different groups with different ideologies, and they can't seem to get on the right page. I think most will coalesce around Speaker Johnson, but there are still some outliers who are very ambitious. And these outliers tend to keep trouble up to leverage this trouble to get a plum committee assignment or to get some other kind of chairmanship. But it's going to be - it's going to be a wild ride, but I'm with Hakeem Jeffries.

BERMAN: Democrats have been there before for Mike Johnson to save him. Not this time? Why not?

CARSON: Well, you know, Speaker Jeffries has been very clear. I think Democrats don't want to be seen as having supported this crazy agenda led by far right MAGA Republicans who intend to divide our country, who intend to take our country back to some mythical good old days. And speaker Jeffries has been very clear - or future speaker Jeffries has been very clear in this matter. And so Democrats will stand united while Republicans continue to be fractured.

BERMAN: All right, let's talk about a few weeks from now when there is a speaker one way or another, how Democrats, you want them to interact with, not just the Republican leadership in the House, but also a President Trump on January 20th. Donald Trump will be back in the White House. There are questions about how Democrats should work with the Trump administration.

Tom Suozzi, who is your Democratic colleague from New York, from Long Island, who represents a Trump won district, has an op-ed in "The New York Times" this morning. And he thinks that Democrats should find places to work with the Trump administration. He says, "as a Democratic member, I know my party will be tempted to hold fast against Trump at every turn. That would be a mistake. As I see it, the results of the 2024 campaign were a mandate for border security, immigration reform, low inflation, economic stability and common ground on culture war fights.

[08:45:05]

Thats good for America," says Suozzi, "So, let's make that our shared agenda in 2025."

What do you think about that? He says you should find ways to work with Trump. CARSON: Well, I don't disagree. I think a lot of the bills that I've

had pass personally has been - they've been passed with Republican support. And so, I think where President Trump is concerned about job creation, I think where he's concerned about border security and national security, I think there are ways in which we can work together in a strategy that will help our collective districts, that will help fellow Americans, that will encourage economic stimulation, that will encourage job growth, that will keep our borders safe, but not in a way that will inflame existing hostilities between groups and entities that otherwise should be working together around the clock.

Look, Democrats aren't in unison. We have different caucuses with regional concerns. We have different groups, like the Congressional Black Caucus, which I'm a member, the Hispanic Caucus, AAPI, and so many groups. Also the Progressive Caucus, as well as New Dems. So, we have some philosophical differences, but we're always able to come together for the greater good.

And I think if our president, our future president, our soon to be president, Donald Trump, is on the same page, I think we can do what's right for our - our constituents. Now, we're trustees and we're representatives for our constituents. So, we're trustees over taxpayer dollars, but we also represent the interests of our district. So, ways in which we can work together, how can we deny the American people and taxpayers of that wonderful opportunity to do so?

BERMAN: Just one last question on the speaker's race, back to that, because it is tomorrow again. Any predictions? I mean how long will it take? How many ballots will there be?

CARSON: I sure hope it doesn't take as long as it did two years ago. You know, you had families come out. You had folks waiting. A series of votes that exhausted the larger body. I mean that's what a democracy is all about. But the American people are sick and tired of the pageantry. They want us to get to work and do what's right for their interest. And I think for us to think that it's OK to go on with this political theater, it's simply unacceptable.

BERMAN: Congressman Andre Carson from Indiana, appreciate you being with us this morning. Thank you very much.

CARSON: Thank you.

BERMAN: Sara.

SIDNER: All right, for months now current and former U.S. officials have been publicly warning about the risk from so-called lone wolf terror attacks, individuals acting alone, as well as attacks by smaller groups. Over the summer, former acting CIA Director Michael Morell warned that terrorism warning lights are, quote, "blinking red."

CNN's Katie Bo Lillis has more on this story from Washington.

What can you tell us about this? I - we all sort of remember, there have been several warnings by the FBI and others that terror attacks could be imminent.

KATIE BO LILLIS, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, Sara, there has been really this kind of drumbeat of warnings from both current and former U.S. officials that the system is blinking red and that the United States is at heightened risk of a potential attack, either by a small group or a so-called lone wolf attacker. And we've seen a number of really prominent terror attacks, both successful and disrupted, in Europe over the past year or so, to include that attack on a concert hall in Moscow early last year that killed more than 100 people. Of particular concern for U.S. officials right now is that the ongoing violence in Gaza that has continued to dominate international headlines since the October 7th attacks of 2023 could inspire additional violence here in the United States.

It's worth taking a listen to what FBI Director Chris Wray had to say about this in a speech last April.

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CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: We continue to be concerned about individuals or small groups drawing some kind of twisted inspiration from the events in the Middle East to carry out attacks here at home. The foreign terrorist threat and the potential for a coordinated attack here in the homeland, like the ISIS-k attack we saw at the Russia concert hall just a couple of weeks ago, is now increasingly concerning.

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LILLIS: Sara, the specific fear for U.S. officials now is a little bit different than it was in the post 9/11 era, when American officials were more concerned about groups like al Qaeda training operatives at camps overseas and then sending them to the United States to carry out a coordinated attack. Now they're much more worried about groups like ISIS-k, the Afghanistan-based branch of ISIS, leaning into its online recruitment and propaganda efforts to try to radicalize already vulnerable people inside the United States and Europe, and sort of inspiring or directing them to carry out attacks kind of under their own steam.

And so, while there's a lot that we still don't know at this point about the precise nature of the ties in between the suspect in the New Orleans - horrific New Orleans attack yesterday and ISIS, a key question for U.S. officials now is going to be trying to determine his pathway to radicalization, and in particular whether or not the attack was simply inspired by ISIS propaganda or whether it was directed and funded and supported by the group, Sara.

[08:50:25]

SIDNER: Yes, and whether there are any coconspirators. There is a lot of questions that need to be answered as people suffer through this.

Katie Bo Lillis, thank you so much. I really appreciate your reporting on this, this morning.

John.

BERMAN: All right, this morning, officials are assuring football fans in New Orleans they will be safe at the Sugar Bowl today, which is just blocks from the site of the terror attack that killed at least 15 people.

And ice cold water, a famous prison, and the promise of Irish coffee if - if you survive.

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[08:55:07]

BERMAN: Breaking overnight, police in New York are searching for multiple suspects after at least ten people, including minors, were injured in a shooting outside a nightclub in Queens. Officials say four men attacked a group who were waiting in line for a private event on New Year's Day, firing about 30 rounds before fleeing. The victims were all taken to area hospitals and are all expected to recover.

A huge fireworks explosion in Hawaii left at least three people dead, and more than 20 people injured. The Honolulu Fire Department says it is investigating the cause of the blast. Social media posts overnight showed fireworks being set off across the city, even though sparklers and fireworks are illegal in the state.

All right, a wet and cold start to the new year, intentionally so, for folks in San Francisco. The two-mile swim from Alcatraz to the mainland is a decades-old tradition there on New Year's. For those who finish, they are rewarded with an Irish coffee. Not sure what happens to those who don't finish. Maybe no coffee ever again.

Sara.

SIDNER: All right, drama on set spills into real life. Actor Justin Baldoni filed a libel suit against "The New York Times," saying its article on his feud with Blake Lively is, quote, "rife with inaccuracies." Lively filed a complaint in December, accusing her "It Ends With Us" co-star of sexual harassment and retaliation on set." Now, Baldoni alleges Lively created false accusations so she could take control of the film. "The Times" is standing by its reporting.

Joining us now is CNN legal analyst Joey Jackson.

Joey, I'm glad to see you as one of three tigers there. Raar (ph). I do appreciate you taking time on January 2nd to talk us through this.

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Always.

SIDNER: All right. So, this lawsuit is asking for $250 million from "The New York Times." "The New York Times" says, look, we believe in our reporters. We did our due diligence. What is it going to take in this lawsuit? Like, what are his chances here?

JACKSON: Yes, Sara, good to be with you. Happy New Year to you and to all, of course. You know, any case always turns on its facts. And it's not enough to sue a newspaper outlet or anyone else for that matter because you don't like the nature of the coverage, or that you were not necessarily presented in the manner in which you would like. The legal standard is that he would have to show, that is Mr. Baldoni, as we look at him there, and Blake Lively, that "The Times" published the article with actual malice. What does that mean in English? What it means is that "The New York Times" had knowledge with respect to the falsity of the claims that they were publishing, or actually disregarded the truth in a reckless way. And so, if he can demonstrate that that's what happened, then, of course, he prevails. "The New York Times" is indicating that they vetted the story, they exercised their due diligence, and they presented it in the manner that they thought was accurate and that they believe carries the day.

They also, "The New York Times" that is, indicated that they published the full statement that he and his team made adverse to the actual publication. And so, ultimately, like any case, it'll - it'll go to court. Whether there's a settlement or a trial. And the facts will be what they are. And to the extent that he demonstrates that they published it falsely and he suffered damages to his reputation, he'll prevail. If he cannot, Sara, he will not prevail.

SIDNER: "The New York Times," in its reporting, has text messages supplied to them by the claim that Blake Lively was making. I am curious as to if there were some text messages, for example, left out, which was something that - that initially his lawyers said. Would that make this a better case for him or not? And then, secondly, he's suing "The New York Times." Why is he not suing the person who he says is behind it, which is Blake Lively?

JACKSON: Yes, so, in terms of the text messages, those are important because they add context, right? In any type of back and forth and exchange, it's always more than meets the eye. And then he's claiming that there were certain text messages that Miss Lively had that were edited in some way, that were doctored in other ways. It didn't give the full nature of the discourse as between the two. And so, like anything else, you look and you'll examine the entirety, not only of the text messages, but the surrounding circumstances. And the truth will lie somewhere in there.

In terms, Sara, of why he's not suing Miss Lively herself, that's because "The New York Times" is the one who published the story. Yes, they published it predicated upon the nature of her story and the manner in which she believes things unfolded.

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