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Trump Admin Dismantles Federal DEI Offices, Puts Staffers on Leave; At Least Nine Dead as Once-in-a-Generation Storm Slams South; Prince Harry Settles Legal Claim Against The Sun Publisher. Aired 7- 7:30a ET

Aired January 22, 2025 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking overnight, taking aim at diversity, equity, and inclusion. The Trump administration announces sweeping layoffs to take effect today.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: A once in a generation storm shattering snow records across the south and along the Gulf Coast. Just look at those pictures. Tens of millions of people remain under winter weather alerts still this morning.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: And a potential big break in the investigation into high-profile home burglaries. Authorities making arrests that might be tied to the break in at the home of Cincinnati Bengals Quarterback Joe Burrow.

I'm Sara Sidner with Kate Bolduan and John Berman. This is CNN News Central.

BERMAN: And breaking overnight, we are just hours away now from a major government layoff, or at least furlough, from the new Trump administration. In a brand new memo, the White House is directing that all diversity, equity, inclusion staff across all federal agencies be, excuse me, paid leave, effective immediately, that's 5:00 P.M. today, so not really immediately, but at 5:00 P.M. today, with DEI offices, trainings, and websites all set to shutter.

This follows sweeping executive action taken by President Trump after his swearing in to end these diversity efforts.

CNN's Alayna Treene is at the White House for the latest on this. What kind of numbers are we talking about, Alayna?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: I mean, look, there are expected to be hundreds of employees in the federal government who are part of this diversity, equity, inclusion, you know, an effort, an umbrella that they have now all being directed or will be directed, as you mentioned, at 5:00 P.M. today that they are no longer going to have a job.

I want to just walk you through some of this. And, of course, as you mentioned, this comes just a day after Donald Trump had issued that executive order on Monday just moments after being sworn in to the White House.

So, the memo says that, quote, no later than 5:00 P.M. on Wednesday that agencies should be, or agencies should be notifying these different employees that they are no longer going to be employed with the federal government and that they would be placed on administrative leave effective immediately, as you said, effective 5:00 P.M., and that the agency takes steps to close and end all DEIA initiatives, offices, and programs. Again, this comes after that order on Monday where Donald Trump essentially this order said, quote, dismantle the DEIA bureaucracy, and this includes environmental justice programs, equity related grants, equity action plan, equity initiative.

So, look, just to put this into context, as someone who covered dozens of Donald Trump's rallies and his campaign for the last two years, this is a promise that he had made repeatedly on the campaign trail. When I talked to Donald Trump's advisers behind the scenes, they did say that this was something he wanted to do immediately. It was going to be one of his day one priorities to end these programs.

Now, it's unclear really how this is going to impact some of these agencies. Obviously, like I said, there are predicted to be around hundreds of these different employees who fall under this umbrella. So, we'll have to see how that ends up working out long-term.

But this is a message that Donald Trump, I'm told, wanted to make clear very early on that he was no longer going to be supporting these policies, that he didn't believe they were effective way for real hiring.

BERMAN: You know, on the subject of inclusion, the president didn't seem to like the inclusive rhetoric from a bishop at the prayer service, Alayna. What's going on with that?

TREENE: That's right, and I was there yesterday outside during that, you know, final inaugural moment for Donald Trump when he was at the Washington Cathedral. But look this bishop, Bishop Budde, is someone who is very well known on the website for the Episcopal Church, that she is someone who welcomes LGBTQ issues, welcomes immigrants and refugees into the church.

It's not just her, I should say. The Episcopal Church, that is their longstanding policy, but she is someone who's been an advocate for it, the church says. And yesterday, we really heard her. She said during her sermon that she wants Donald Trump to have mercy on all of these different people, something that garnered a visible reaction from both President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance during that service.

[07:05:01]

We spoke with her last night on CNN. I want you to take a listen to what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REV. MARIANN EDGAR BUDDE, GAVE SERMON AT INAUGURAL PRAYER SERVICE FOR TRUMP: And I was speaking to the president because I felt that he has this moment now where he feels charged and empowered to do what he feels called to do. And I wanted to say, you know, there is room for mercy. There's room for a broader compassion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: Now, John, we did hear directly from Donald Trump, both immediately after the service, when he was asked by reporters, he said that he didn't think it was a great service, and that he didn't like what Budde had to say. And then he posted this overnight, early in the morning. He called Bishop a radical left hardline Trump hater. He later went on to say that she is, quote, not very good at her job. She and her church owe the public an apology.

And so definitely something else that's kind of really permeating this morning, Donald Trump really having this visible and now public reaction online to that service yesterday. John?

BERMAN: Right. Alayna Treene for us live at the White House this morning, thanks so much. Kate?

BOLDUAN: And also as promised, President Trump is shaking up the Justice Department, multiple sources telling CNN now that top prosecutors in the department have been sidelined. We've learned at least 20 career officials have been reassigned.

CNN's Evan Perez has much more on this reporting. It kind of goes along the line of what Alayna and John were just talking about, Evan. What are you learning about this shakeup?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Kate. Good morning. Look, elections have consequences and certainly the Justice Department is going to be one of the first places that will feel the changes that Donald Trump has promised to bring here to Washington. As you pointed out, there are about 20 there are more than 20 career, some of them very senior career lawyers at the Justice Department that have gotten instructions to essentially report to a new task force that is being set up now inside the Justice Department. It's seen as an effort to sideline these prosecutors.

These are people who work in the National Security Division, which traditionally is insulated from the political shifting winds, as well as lawyers who are -- who handle extraditions and immigration matters. All of this, of course, as the department really takes a sharp turn. You see this going beyond just the Justice Department headquarters here in Washington.

The Trump administration has also installed a number of loyalists at important U.S. attorney's offices. For instance, in the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office, Ed Martin, who is a an activist on the Stop the Steal movement, certainly a big supporter of the president, very public vocal supporter of the president, is now in charge of that office. You can see in some of his tweets that he has put out there on social media, you know, he is advocating for freedom for people who may have been arrested for protesting against pro-life facilities and things like that. So, those are the types of people you have. John Durham is being installed as the acting U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of New York. He's the son of the former special counsel by the same name. And Daniel Sassoon is now in charge of the Southern District of New York.

So, those are the folks who are being put in. There's also a close aide to Jim Jordan has now been moved over to the FBI. There's a lot of changes coming there. Of course, we're waiting for Kash Patel to have his hearing for FBI director. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Evan, thanks so much for reporting. Sara?

SIDNER: All right. Ahead, Florida just set a new record for snowfall. A record-shattering winter storm is wreaking havoc across the south. Now, new warnings from first responders as the death toll rises.

Plus, President Trump's crackdown on migrants has begun and fear is coursing through the migrant community. CNN on the ground in a small Texas town where as many as half of the children at the public school could lose a parent to deportation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: If there were to be mass deportations here in this city, what would happen to it?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It'd be quite empty. I think there's a lot of people here that don't have status that keep a lot of the businesses, the smaller businesses are on here running.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: And Netflix announces good news for its business and bad news for your wallet.

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[07:10:00]

SIDNER: This is unreal. A once in a generation winter storm is brutalizing the Gulf Coast, claiming the lives of at least nine people in a region known for heat and hurricanes. This is a winter storm that's wreaking havoc. There are delays and cancelations at airports and road closures as the bitter cold and heaps of snow descend.

There is also rare beauty in parts of Florida were it turned into virtual snow globe. It's usually white sandy beaches. You can see here in Pensacola, a white snowy scene. That city along with New Orleans and Mobile Alabama all broke snowfall records on Tuesday. Right now, New Orleans has seen more snowfall this month than Anchorage, Alaska.

CNN's Ed Lavendera is in Houston for us, and meteorologist Elisa Raffa is tracking the latest on this storm.

[07:15:05]

Ed, I've got to start with you. You've been in Houston for every single weather event that you could possibly think of from hurricanes to floods and now to snow. How's it going?

LAVANDERA: You know, actually, not too bad yesterday. I think for most people in the Houston and Southeast Texas area, it was a fun day, a rare day of being able to enjoy an actual snow event. And to kind of put everything into perspective, I was out at a hill yesterday watching a bunch of kids sledding down a little hill or what passes for a hill here in Texas, and it was interesting that there was no sleds involved. They were like pool inner tubes. So, it kind of gives you a sense of how kids here had to make do with that they had to enjoy the snow day. But the snow has stopped falling.

And the concern here, though, to get a little bit more serious is that there are still we're still well below freezing about 23, 24 degrees here this morning. And the concern and the urging from city officials and emergency teams all across this region is to continue staying off the roadways. All that snow that fell yesterday has iced over on many of the roadways across Southeast Texas region. And officials here are warning people that even though the sun might be coming out, just be aware of what the road conditions are still like as they wake up this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAPTAIN GREYSON WILSON, HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT: Essentially, they're going to be driving on an ice rink. So, the message is clear from us that please stay off the roadways, stay off overpasses. By driving on those roadways, you're not only putting yourself at risk, you're putting first responders at risk that have to go out there and other people that are unfortunately on the roadway.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAVANDERA: So, Sara, the good news is, is that by late morning, close to around lunchtime, the temperatures will get back above freezing and the sun should be out. So, if that happens, all of that will begin to thaw out and make the roads a little bit safer. But here, at least for the day, we're still seeing closed schools across the region, closed most part today as well. The airports here in Houston are slowly starting to reopen this morning. So, things starting to come back to normal, but the beauty of that winter day is starting to pass very quickly. Sara?

SIDNER: Yes, it's almost like don't let the beauty fool you. There is some potential treacherous traipsing around there. Everybody needs to be really, really careful and that folks not used to those kinds of scenes there in Houston and across the south.

Let's get now to Elisa, who is tracking all of this. This is really bitter cold, and I keep seeing this video online from Florida. It's incredible to look at, but it's really dangerous. Tell us what you're learning.

ELISA RAFFA, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. So mind boggling to see snow next to the welcome to Florida sign, but we're going to deal with that melting and refreezing that Ed was talking about for the next couple of days. We hit records in Florida for the state. You could see Bourbon Street an ice skating rink right now. They don't really have the plows and materials to clean up these streets here.

So, for a place like New Orleans, we're looking at that refreezing potential in the overnight through the next couple of nights. We do get temperatures back towards average as we go into the weekend, temperatures back up to 60, where we'll find more of that melting. We had ten inches of snow for parts of New Orleans.

Here's a look at the cold alerts, a lot of the East Coast here this morning with these temperatures, dangerously cold. We're looking at that temperature right now at zero in Cincinnati, 15 in Atlanta. It's 24 in New Orleans, tack on the wind chill. And we've got these real feel values below zero in some locations, feeling like minus 19 in Detroit, only a wind chill of 4 in Atlanta, 18 in New Orleans, 20 in Houston. So, again, some of that bitter cold and that will keep that snow settling in for the next couple of days.

We do find the temperatures getting above freezing. We were headed 40 degrees on Thursday in Atlanta, still well below the average. New Orleans, 37 today, getting into the 40s by Thursday and Friday, still well below the average of 63. But, again, whatever melts during the day could refreeze that night, so you need to be careful through the next couple of days. Sara?

SIDNER: Yes. Normally, 40s in any of those places is like, everyone freaks out. This is an enormous, insane storm bringing both beauty and danger with it.

Elisa Raffa, thank you to you, and, of course, to our Ed Lavandera out there in the elements. John?

BERMAN: This morning, schools, churches, hospitals all stripped of their protective status. The Trump administration making sweeping changes on his immigration plans.

And breaking overnight, stunning news from the British royal family, Prince Harry gets a full and unequivocal apology for phone hacking connected to Rupert Murdoch's newspaper group.

[07:20:01]

We're hearing a huge payout as well.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: All right. We do have breaking news. Just a short time ago, a full and unequivocal apology to Prince Harry from Rupert Murdoch's newspaper group for hacking his cell phone and what they call unlawful conduct from private investigators. This is a stunning development just before this was all set to go to trial.

Let's get right to CNN's Max Foster in London for the very latest on this. Good morning, Max.

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it wasn't an easy apology to get, I have to say, John. It's taken years, and this is part of Prince Harry's wider issue with British tabloid culture, the way they gather evidence, he says, illegally and people just have to live with it because the newspapers are so powerful, that ordinary people, many ordinary people that have suffered in the same way as him haven't been able to carry out cases like this.

So, this was about him representing many other people who'd suffered in the same way and trying to change the culture. He wanted accountability, not from the reporters necessarily, but from the bosses of these organizations going right to the top, and that, in this case, does go to Rupert Murdoch and a sense of accountability that they knew about this culture of illegality and actually allowed it to happen. Obviously, there are specifics here which the newspaper groups would deny, but this is how he interprets it after this settlement outside of court.

So, this is the apology from news group newspapers, which is Rupert Murdoch's U.K. arm offering a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex.

[07:25:07]

So, the serious intrusion by the Sun between 1996 and 2011 into his private life, including incidents of unlawful activities carried by private investigators working for the Sun.

They also refer to Princess Diana and the invasions into her privacy as well, which is all part of Harry's narrative and his issues with how she was treated and how he was subsequently treated as well.

Let's hear from his barrister, David Sherborne.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID SHERBORNE, PRINCE HARRY'S LAWYER: Today, the lies are laid bare. Today, the cover ups are exposed. And today proves that no one stands above the law. The time for accountability has arrived.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: So there you have it, John. And what they want next is a police investigation. They want this to be a criminal case. So, they've gathered all sorts of evidence, which wasn't actually presented to the court in the end because it was over before it even began, but they got evidence they think show criminality and they want convictions.

BERMAN: Very interesting development, as we said, a very full and abject apology.

Max Foster in London with the latest, thanks so much. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Top secret access without top secret vetting new details on how the Trump administration is skirting the rules on security clearances now.

And paying for flights with Venmo, the beginning of a new era maybe, the first airline to now accept payment through the popular money app. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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