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Gen. Milley's Security Detail, Clearance Revoked in Unprecedented Move; Trump Admin Offering Buyouts to Millions of Federal Workers; Soon, Senate Confirmation Hearing for HHS Nominee RFK Jr. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired January 29, 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, the Trump administration sends 2 million federal workers emails with an option to resign. But is it an offer, or a threat. And is it even legal?

This morning, one of President Trump's most controversial Cabinet picks will be in the hot seat on Capitol Hill. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is facing -- is about to face questions, as another famous Kennedy is telling senators why they should reject her cousin as HHS secretary.

And scary moments caught on camera when one of the country's most highly advanced fighter jets spiraled out of control.

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

All right, there is an avalanche of breaking news this morning. 2 million federal workers offered or is it threatened to resign? We're going to get to that in just a minute.

But we begin with action taken against a single former federal worker, retired chair of the Joint Chiefs, General Mark Milley. Overnight, the Pentagon revoked his security detail and his security clearance. In addition, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed the Inspector General to launch an investigation into Milley's conduct. This could lead to an eventual demotion, even in retirement. Why? Well, General Milley, who was initially nominated by Trump himself, is seen to have stood up to him, including following the insurrection.

Trump later suggested it was treasonous that it, quote, time's gone by, the punishment would have been death this morning. It does seem the president is getting his retribution.

Let's get right to CNN's Oren Liebermann at the Pentagon with these overnight moves. Good morning, Oren.

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. President Donald Trump has long had it out for General Mark Milley and this. Through his new defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, on his second day at the job, looks like it's part of that getting back at him. Hegseth and the Pentagon put out a statement late last night saying that he'd ordered that his security detail and security clearance be removed.

Milley has had a security detail ever since the U.S. assassination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani. Milley was one of those under threat from the Iranians, as were several other former Trump administration officials. Milley has also been more openly critical of Trump, calling him a fascist, and in this final speech as chairman of the Joint Chiefs, offering this barely veiled criticism of Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. MARK MILLEY (RET.), FORMER JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: We don't take an oath to a king or a queen or to a tyrant or a dictator, and we don't take an oath to a wannabe dictator. We don't take an oath to an individual. We take an oath to the Constitution and we take an oath to the idea that it's America and we're willing to die to protect it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIEBERMANN: We have reached out to Milley for comment. It's also worth noting that Milley is not the only former Trump administration official who's had his security detail and clearance revoked. Former National Security Adviser John Bolton, former CIA Director Mike Pompeo and others have been through the same thing.

We should note, Oren, I do believe that General Milley was one of the people who received a preemptive pardon from outgoing President Biden.

So, this inspector general investigation, what could that lead to?

LIEBERMANN: Milley did receive a pardon in the final hours of the Biden administration. Now, that protects him from criminal prosecution and prosecution under military law. So, there isn't that much in the legal perspective that you can go after him for because of that pardon. But this inspector general investigation could try to strip Milley of rank, try to demote him after his retirement and his more than 40 years in the service.

The question is, what is the conduct here that's questionable? And that was not offered in the statement. No rationale was given. Trump and others have tried to go after Milley for a pair of phone calls with his Chinese counterpart in the closing months of the first Trump administration. Trump even posted on Truth Social that it would have been -- those calls were treasonous and would have been a reason for a death penalty in earlier times.

Milley has testified openly about those and they were coordinated with the secretaries of defense and the national security agencies. They could also try to go after him for the Afghanistan withdrawal. But, John, it's worth remembering that Milley opposed that withdrawal and it was only carried out because first Trump and then Biden ordered it.

[07:05:04]

BERMAN: These are important distinctions.

Oren Liebermann at the pentagon this morning, a lot going on there, keep us posted. Kate?

BOLDUAN: A lot going on is right. Let's get to the -- more of that, a lot going on. As John said, an offer or a threat this morning, millions of federal workers are faced with a choice. Stay in their jobs with an uncertain future or leave the government, leave their jobs with a buyout from the Trump administration. The White House made the offer in an abrupt email to employees with a subject line, a fork in the road, and the clock is ticking. Federal workers have just over a week to decide if they stay.

The administration is making clear their job still might not be there for long. It's part of Trump's push to dramatically shrink the size of government. One federal employee, though, tells CNN that people are stunned, pissed, baffled and a bit scared.

This is also only part of the latest episode of Donald Trump chaos. There's still mass confusion about what programs are really being impacted by President Trump's plan to freeze federal aid. Programs like Head Start, Meals on Wheels, agricultural programs, low income housing assistance, all in limbo. For now, that freeze, though, is frozen. A federal judge has temporarily blocked the White House move to halt all of these grants and loans.

CNN's Alayna Treene following all of this. John said it right, an avalanche of developments today. What is the very latest that you're learning, Alayna?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: That's right. I do want to start with what you first mentioned, Kate, which was this email that was sent to all 2 million federal workers last night, offering them a buyout. As you mentioned, I think you put it perfectly, with an uncertain future. They can quit their jobs and be paid through September 30th or stick around and figure out whether or not they will be forced to resign.

Now, this is just the latest stunning move we've seen by the Trump White House really to reshape the federal workforce in Donald Trump's image.

Now, one thing to be clear on, as I said, this was sent to all 2 million federal workers. But there are some exceptions, I'm told, by a spokesperson from the Office of Personnel Management, which sent this out. These are the exceptions that they noted that would not be included in this buyout. It includes postal workers, military workers, immigration officials, certain national security roles and any other roles that these different agencies deem as being necessary.

Now, another thing I'm told is that the Trump administration is trying to frame this buyout as being an off-ramp for people who do not want to return to work full time. We know that last week we saw Donald Trump issue a directive that said all people who have flexible schedules, remote schedules, have to come back to work full time. They're saying this could be a good option for that. But, again, this is being offered widespread throughout the government.

I do want to read for you just some of what was in that email that was sent to all of these employees last night. It said, quote, at this time, we cannot give you full assurance regarding the certainty of your position or agency. But should your position be eliminated, you will be treated with dignity and will be afforded the protections in place for such positions.

Now, as you mentioned, Kate, as well, workers have until February 6th, which is just a week from tomorrow, to decide whether or not they want to opt for this type of buyout.

Now, one other thing as well that's just, you know, can't be lost in this is Elon Musk's involvement. We are told that Musk had long been wanting to do this and he was very involved in the crafting of this effort. And the subject line that came on that email that was sent to all of these employees last night was a fork in the road, very reminiscent of an email we know he sent to Twitter employees in 2022 before we saw a lot of the firings that happened there.

So, again, a massive change to the federal workforce. We'll have to see how many people end up actually taking this and what could happen thereafter.

BOLDUAN: And is it legal? Because, as we know, a judge has put a halt on some -- on the freeze on federal funding, on federal aid, but it's a temporary halt. What are you hearing about this and what's the White House saying about it today?

TREENE: It is. I mean, yesterday, across Washington, D.C. and across the federal government, we heard people really across the country, questioning what was going on with that freeze to all federal loans and grants. Really a lot of widespread confusion over what was affected, what was -- who could be involved in this. And then we saw -- you know, it was supposed to go into effect last night at 5:00 P.M., but then we saw a federal judge temporarily halt it. We should see more of this play out in court on Monday.

But I do want you to take a listen because our colleague, Kaitlan Collins, pressed the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, on this yesterday, really asking that question of whether this is legal, specifically because a lot of these federal loans and grants was money appropriated already by Congress. Take a listen.

[07:10:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Who advised the president on the legality of telling government agencies that they don't have to spend money that was already appropriated by Congress?

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Well, as the OMB memo states, this is certainly within the confines of the law. So, White House counsel's office believes that this is within the president's power to do it, and therefore he's doing it.

(END VIDEO CLIP) TREENE: So, Kate, as you heard her say there, they believe that this is in the conf, within the confines of the president's power and within the law. But as we've seen with a lot of these sweeping executive orders and directives from President Donald Trump, a lot of them are going to be facing legal challenges. Clearly, this is one of them, others to come as well. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Alayna, thank you very much for that reporting. Much more to come, John.

BERMAN: Much more.

A quote, predator who is addicted to attention, the scathing new depiction of RFK Jr. written by his cousin just hours before he is set to appear on Capitol Hill for his confirmation hearing.

And we're standing by for a major decision from the Fed today on interest rates. Officials now concerned that President Trump's economic policies could throw a wrench in plans to bring down inflation.

And, quote, they are heroes to me, how one woman is transforming her home into a retreat for January 6th rioters who were pardoned by President Trump.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:15:00]

BOLDUAN: So, in just a few hours, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will appear before the Senate Finance Committee for his first of two confirmation hearings. He's getting set to make his case to be confirmed as Secretary of Health and Human Services. He's also one of President Trump's most controversial cabinet picks, all because of his long held and long known views on medical science. He's a known anti-vaccine activist and vaccine cynic. And if confirmed, he'd be in charge of America's public health, overseeing 13 agencies that include the FDA, the CDC, the Centers for -- he's facing tough questions, understandably so. Given that, Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski says she has not yet made up her mind. Something else standing in his way, his own family.

CNN's Sunlen Serfaty has much more on this. She's following it for us from Washington. What's expected today, Sunlen?

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kate, it certainly is going to be very contentious on Capitol Hill. He is, as you noted, one of the most controversial nominees. And ahead of this hearing today, senators from both sides of the aisle have been very vocal about their concerns. They're going to be questioning him over his past views on abortion, spreading disinformation, vaccines, food, safety, agriculture. Republicans, though, specifically making it clear they're really going to hone in on to get assurances on what exactly his stance is on abortion.

And over the last month, Kennedy himself, he has been making the rounds on Capitol Hill meeting with. senators behind closed doors, trying to shore up some support. But this week, we have heard from at least a handful of Senate Republicans who are still uncertain on how they'll vote, that certainly is a big red flag for the administration wanting to get their nominee through.

As we have been discussing in the last days and weeks, Senate Republicans have a razor thin majority on Capitol Hill, so he can only afford to lose three Republican senators, that's assuming that all Democratic senators oppose his nomination. So, it is a very close margin for him to be pushed through.

Adding into this mix, of course, in today's hearing is the fact that we heard from Caroline Kennedy, his cousin, a very scathing letter and video testimonial, really talking about his predatory behavior, talking about not only he has troubling behavior in the past, but she says is frankly disqualified.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAROLINE KENNEDY, COUSIN OF ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR.: He lacks any relevant government, financial, management, or medical experience. His views on vaccines are dangerous and willfully misinformed. These facts alone should be disqualifying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SERFATY: And she goes on to urge the senators on the committee to reject his nomination.

Now, in just under two hours, He will be -- appear before one committee. Then tomorrow, he will appear before another relevant health committee, of course, pushing towards potentially a nomination confirmation hearing, again, very little room for error here in his quest to secure this job. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Sunlen, thank you so much. This can all start up in just a few hours, so stick close. Thank you.

Also, coming up for us today, another big decision coming from the Federal Reserve, and also its first decision on interest rates under the second Donald Trump administration. And remember Trump's promise that he'd bring prices down immediately? Stand by.

And Leonardo Da Vinci's famous Mona Lisa painting is getting a new home.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:20:00]

BERMAN: All right. This morning, we are waiting to hear from the Federal Reserve as they need to consider their first rate decision since Donald Trump took office again. Last year, the Fed warned they plan to, quote, move cautiously with cuts going forward. But just days ago, the president urged the Fed to cut rates once again.

CNN's Matt Egan is in Washington overseeing all of this today. It's great to have you there. What are the expectations, Matt?

MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Well, John, President Trump wants the Fed to keep cutting interest rates. I think he's going to be pretty disappointed today because there's almost no doubt on Wall Street about what the Fed is going to do today, and that's a whole lot of nothing. Investors are pricing in a 99 percent chance that the Fed keeps interest rates steady, just a 1 percent chance of a cut. So, that's basically a done deal.

Now, this would be the first pause from the Fed since they started cutting rates last September, and it could be an extended pause, at least that's what investors think. Wall Street is pricing in just a one in three chance of an interest rate cut by March. That's the next meeting, low chance 50-50 at the meeting after that. It's really not until June that investors have any confidence that the Fed is going to start cutting interest rates again.

[07:25:01]

Why is the Fed pausing? Well, first off, unemployment is low. Inflation is still above the Fed's target. And there is so much uncertainty about policy in Washington, in particular President Trump's trade agenda. No matter the reason, the fact that the Fed is pausing, or likely to pause, is disappointing, right, to borrowers. Anyone who's trying to chip away at credit card debt, you're trying to get a car loan, a mortgage.

It is disappointing because even though the Fed has cut rates are still much, much higher than they were just a few years ago. They are significantly higher than when President Trump started his first term back in January of 2017. I think you can see that on the chart coming down, but still high.

And, look, Trump has not been shy about making his views on this issue clear. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: With oil prices going down, I'll demand that interest rates drop immediately, and likewise they should be dropping all over the world. Interest rates should follow us. All over the progress that you're seeing is happening because of our historic victory in a recent presidential election.

I think I know interest rates much better than they do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

EGAN: And he went on to say that he knows interest rates better than the one who's primarily making the decisions, alluding of course to Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, who Trump himself nominated back in 2017.

Of course, the president does not call the shots on interest rates. That's up to the Fed. And the Fed is an independent government agency that is by design. Sometimes the Fed has to make tough, unpopular decisions, and that's why it's supposed to be insulated from politics. But, John, look, the Fed independence is facing a new test starting today because it's colliding directly with what President Trump wants to see.

BERMAN: Independent, but they also do have ears. Matt Egan, it is great to have you there. We will see you today. Expectation is no cut, but I suppose anything could happen.

All right, the new warning from economists, it could be the difference between having a job or not, getting evicted or putting food on the table. What President Trump's funding freeze could mean for you.

And this morning, an investigation is underway after a U.S. fighter jet spiraled out of control, bursting into flames. New video shows the moment the pilot managed to escape.

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[07:30:00]