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Trump To Announce New 25 Percent Tariffs On Steel, Aluminum Imports; China's Retaliatory Tariffs On U.S. Products Begin Today; Trump Says He Will Announce Reciprocal Tariffs This Week; Democrats Plot Strategy In Shutdown Fight Against Trump; Speaker Johnson "Fully Supportive" Of What DOGE, Trump Are Doing; Sen. Collins Says She Discussed NIH Cuts With RFK Jr; Philadelphia Eagles Dominate Kansas City Chiefs In 40-22 Win. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired February 10, 2025 - 14:30   ET

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

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[14:31:09]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: President Trump ratcheting up his expanding trade war. Today, he's promising to announce more tariffs, focusing this time on steel and aluminum imports.

The 25 percent tariffs will hit neighboring countries of Canada and Mexico especially hard, as they're among the largest steel exporters to the U.S.

And it comes on the same day that China's retaliatory taxes on billions of U.S. exports go into effect.

And this latest round of Trump taxes on imports could be just the beginning. The president says he'll announce reciprocal tariffs later this week, which could match other countries' tariffs on U.S. goods, dollar for dollar.

With us now to talk about these tariffs and their impact on you is Mark Zandi. He's a chief -- he is the chief economist for Moody's Analytics.

Mark, thank you for being with us.

First, on these 25 percent tariffs, tell us why Trump is targeting steel and aluminum.

MARK ZANDI, CHIEF ECONOMIST, MOODY'S ANALYTICS: Well, he did so in his first term. His explanation is for national security. I mean, clearly, we need steel and aluminum for lots of really critical things in our economy and for defense. So that's the explanation.

But, you know, as you pointed out, the tariffs that he's imposing will hit Canada and Mexico very hard. And of course, they're very close allies. So. But the explanation is national security.

KEILAR: And what do you think as you assess that? And -- and what does it hitting Canada and Mexico, as well as Brazil, but Canada and Mexico, two close American allies. What does that mean economically for Americans?

ZANDI: Yes. You know, Brianna, by themselves, no big deal, right? I mean, just to give you context, the steel and aluminum industry in the U.S. produce about $100 billion of -- of metal a year.

The U.S. economy, the GDP -- that's the value of all the things that we produce -- that's $30 trillion a year.

In terms of jobs, steel, aluminum account for 125,000 jobs. Obviously, I'm rounding. But if you look at the entire economy, it's 160 million jobs.

So, you know, by themselves, you know, no big deal. But, you know, if you put it into the broader context, obviously, this is just one additional step down the path towards a broader trade war and more universal tariffs. And so, you know, that has all kinds of implications.

The other thing I'd say is, even though the steel and aluminum tariffs, by themselves, no big deal. For the broader economy, it does create, you know, winners and losers, right?

The steel and aluminum industry wins. But those industries that use steel and industry that -- take construction or the vehicle industry or the machine tool industry, hand tools -- they get nailed. So, you know, somebody wins, somebody loses.

And of course, the other final thing I'd say is, look, you know, all of the -- every day, a new announcement, it's on again, off again, tariffs on this product, that product, this country, that country, this carve out, that carve out, this exemption, that exemption, creates a lot of uncertainty for businesspeople.

They just don't know, you know, where we're headed here. And until they get clarity around that -- and that could be a while given how this is playing out -- they're not going to make big investment decisions. People are going to be cautious. And clearly, that has broader implications for the economy.

KEILAR: So these additional import duties, these reciprocal tariffs that we're expecting to be announced here soon, dollar for dollar. Take us through that. What does that look like? What is the trickle- down effect of that?

ZANDI: Yes. I'm not so sure. I'm not sure that goes to the uncertainty. You know, the principle's kind of straightforward. It's intuitive. Look, if another country is imposing a tariff on a product that's coming into the U.S., then we would impose a similar tariff on that product.

You know, easier said than done. There's a lot of complications there. So for example, you know, India puts a 30 percent tariff on motorcycles that we ship over to India.

[14:35:00] But, you know, what would we impose the tariff on? I don't think we get any motorcycles from India, you know, imported back here. So a lot of complications around that. But it is intuitive.

But, you know, I think it would be better and more conducive to a well-functioning economy, our economy, a global economy, if we work to lower tariffs, not, you know, raise tariffs.

So if we're going to impose reciprocal tariffs on other countries, are going to respond and we get into this tit for tat, you know, trade war. And it does no one any good.

So you know, I think we want fair trade. We want other countries to treat us like we treat them. But I think the idea here, the principle here should be to reduce tariffs not -- not raise tariffs.

KEILAR: How do you see his objectives here as using these as a threat time and again against American foes, against American allies. And is there any positive coming out of this for the American consumer?

ZANDI: Well, you know, I think it just creates a boatload of uncertainty. We just don't know how this is going to play out.

And for American consumers, they don't know either. So, you know, complicates things for them in terms of their spending behavior and spending decisions.

You know, should I buy that car now or is it OK to wait, you know, because of the tariffs that might come -- that come down the pike here. So, you know, I think it's just very difficult to, you know, kind of gauge.

In terms of positives, you know, I'm hard pressed. I mean, there's individual potential wins here, I guess, I suppose.

But you know, in the grand scheme of things, the kind of the drama. And you know -- you know, I think just the chaos that it creates, much more downside here than any potential upside.

KEILAR: All right. Mark Zandi, thank you so much for being with us.

ZANDI: Sure. Anytime.

KEILAR: And next, Democrats have struggled to find their footing as President Trump ousts government employees, shutters entire agencies. But they do have one looming piece of leverage, and that is the upcoming deadline to avoid a government shutdown. Can they make their case to the public, though?

We're live on Capitol Hill right after this.

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[14:41:21]

SANCHEZ: President Donald Trump's second term is now entering a fourth week. And since Inauguration Day, Democrats have struggled to find their footing, watching the president and his billionaire ally, Elon Musk, systematically move to dismantle one federal agency after the other.

But there is one small bit of leverage, the March 14th deadline to avert a government shutdown. CNN has learned that House and Senate Democrats are now engaged in a fierce debate about what exactly to demand in their first big negotiation with the president.

CNN's Manu Raju joins us now live from Capitol Hill.

Manu, what are you hearing from lawmakers?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, uncertainty, and uncertainty about how firm of a line to actually draw when this critical vote comes.

And that's going to be, as you mentioned, March 14th. That is the deadline that Congress needs to pass legislation to keep the government open.

And this is why they have leverage. In the razor-thin House Republican majority, they will need Democratic votes to get that funding bill across the finish line.

And on the Senate side, you need 60 votes to advance legislation to overcome a filibuster. That means seven Democratic votes would be needed, at least to advance this in the Senate.

So now the Democrats are asking themselves, what are we going to exactly demand in this negotiation?

Now, the Democratic leaders in the House and Senate are acting cautiously. Chuck Schumer this morning tried to shift the blame more to Republicans, saying the Republicans need to get on the same page and work on a bipartisan basis.

And Hakeem Jeffries, a Democratic leader, also saying something similar. So there needs to be a bipartisan deal.

I asked Jeffries himself whether they would try to target Elon Musk's role in all of this. He suggested that that would be part of a separate effort, not be part of their demands here.

But there are a lot of members, particularly rank-and-file Democrats, a lot of them in the House, who say they need to fight now. There needs to be a steep price for their votes, including going after all of these efforts that the Trump administration is pushing.

But there's a concern among the top ranks of the Democrats, if they go too far, there could be a shutdown. They could get blamed for it, be forced to retreat and ultimately get nothing.

So a lot of questions ahead of this critical moment, which is coming up rather soon -- Boris? SANCHEZ: And as you know, courts have now become the front line in the

effort to halt some of these executive actions from Trump, a lot of them influenced by DOGE and Elon Musk.

We saw Vice President J.D. Vance tweeting out this weekend, seeming to question the power of the judiciary and the court system going up against the power of the executive. How are Republicans responding to that?

RAJU: Yes, some of the top Republicans are not saying whether or not the Trump administration should, in fact, comply with some of these court orders.

The House Judiciary chairman, Jim Jordan, I asked him directly yesterday about whether the White House should comply with that order from over the weekend, saying that the treasury department's payment systems records should not be accessed by Elon Musk and his top allies, and that they should destroy records that they had downloaded from those treasury systems. It's unclear whether they will comply.

And I just asked the speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, that same question as well, should the White House comply with that court order?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: Should the White House comply if the federal court orders them to do something, such as destroying the records that they downloaded from the Treasury Department?

REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): Well, look, there are appellate processes and all of that. I haven't followed the latest on the litigation. But obviously, we have systems that -- that have to work.

We're fully supportive of what the DOGE effort is doing and what the president is doing. It's a very aggressive agenda that was promised to the voters. Remember, he's delivering on campaign promises right now.

We are going to be codifying a lot of these changes. And what they've uncovered is, frankly, shocking.

This is a good development. I wish the courts would allow the executive and the legislative branches to work. But we'll see how all that develops.

[14:45:01]

RAJU: But some of these early actions by Musk and Trump's team have gotten the attention and concern of some powerful Republicans, including Senate Appropriations Chairwoman Susan Collins, about an effort to try to cap what are known as indirect costs from National Institutes of Health grants.

There are some major concerns that actually could cut into critical research funding.

In fact, she just put out a statement pushing back. She said that these were "poorly conceived cuts." And she said that, this morning, she called RFK Jr tonight, who, of course, has been nominated to lead HHS, the Health and Human Services Department.

She said she expressed her strong opposition to these "arbitrary cuts in funding for our vital research at our main institutions, which are known for their excellence."

She said that he promised that if he's confirmed that he will reexamine this initiative that was implemented prior to his confirmation.

She also went on to say that the -- the fiscal year 2024 spending legislation actually includes legislation to change how those funds are allocated.

But notably, noting his confirmation because, this week, Robert F. Kennedy Jr is facing a critical confirmation vote in the full Senate. The question is, can he get there?

And what will Susan Collins do? She has not said how she will vote. It will take at least four Republicans to break ranks to stop this nomination in its tracks.

But no question about it, some of these efforts causing some concerns among some powerful members of the GOP.

SANCHEZ: Yes. And we'll see. Collins is one of those powerful Senators. We'll see how she might vote to confirm RFK Jr.

Manu Raju, live on Capitol Hill, thank you so much.

Brianna?

KEILAR: Now to some of the other headlines that we're watching this hour.

Two people are now charged in the death of a Fort Campbell soldier who was killed last year. Private First Class Katia Dueas Aguilar was found stabbed nearly 70 times in her Clarksville, Tennessee, home last May.

Now, nearly a year later, a 35-year-old woman is charged with first- degree murder. Aguilar's husband is also charged, accused of tampering with evidence in the case. Both suspects were being held on unrelated federal charges and have since been extradited to Clarksville.

Also, Trader Joe's says it is now limiting the number of eggs that customers can purchase to one dozen per day due to the shortage caused by the avian flu. Other grocers are following suit.

Kroger says some of its stores have put limits in place. In the meantime, customers say some Costco locations have done the same. The avian flu has killed more than 40 million egg-laying birds.

And a mysterious portrait of an unknown woman has been found beneath a Pablo Picasso painting. This is the painting as we know it today. And here is what infrared and x-ray imaging uncovered.

You can see a woman in the top right there. Her hair appears to be in a chignon style, which was popular in France at the time.

Experts say they always believed something was lurking underneath, based on brushstrokes, but they weren't sure what they would find. Picasso abandoned that portrait in 1901, right as he began his famous Blue Period.

Coming up, boy, those Eagles flew. How Philadelphia dominated the gridiron last night.

And be sure to watch the CNN comedy quiz show, "HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU." It's back for a new season. Join Roy Wood Jr, Amber Ruffin and Michael Ian Black as they serve up a smart take on the news of the week. That will air Saturday night at 9:00 Eastern, and it streams the next day on Max.

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[14:53:40]

KEILAR: The Philadelphia Eagles on cloud nine today after soaring past the Kansas City Chiefs in a dominating 40-to-22 Superbowl win.

Philly fans flooded to the streets to celebrate the victory. Some even climbed poles and cars, I think, as Eagles fans do.

Yes, they greased the poles to try to prevent this from happening. Somehow, these Philly fans were able to get up there.

The Eagles' win puts an end to the Chiefs much sought after Superbowl three-peat, something no team had ever done before.

CNN's Coy Wire joins us now.

Coy, they are who we thought they we're. The Chiefs, they kept mustering up wins, unexpected wins throughout the season. They couldn't do much in the Superbowl.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes. Because nobody saw this type of beat down of the two-time defending champs coming. The Eagles disrupting the dynasty in dominant fashion.

And the -- the stars and the celebrities, they were out in full force here in New Orleans for the game. So was President Donald Trump, the first sitting president ever to attend a Superbowl?

Of course, we knew Taylor Swift was going to be in the house cheering on her boyfriend, Travis Kelce. But this Chiefs Superbowl Eras Tour didn't end well this time.

Defense, the rookie, Cooper DeJean, on his birthday, intercepting Patrick Mahomes, taking it to the house for a touchdown. Mahomes was sacked six times, running for his life all night. And Eagles quarterback, Jalen Hurts. He had his moment, two passing touchdowns, one rushing touchdown. He led the team in rush yards. A 40-to-22 smackdown.

It was star running back, Saquon Barkley's, birthday as well. What a way to celebrate.

Here's your Superbowl MVP, Jalen Hurts, after the game.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JALEN HURTS, PHILADELPHIA EAGLES QUARTERBACK & SUPERBOWL LIX MVP: It's been a journey of ups and downs and highs and lows. And I've always stayed true to it in the end. And having this vision of just being the best that I can be and that evolving over time into this desire and this flame inside to win.

COOPER DEJEAN, CORNERBACK, PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: It's crazy. World champs, best birthday ever. Best birthday ever. I think everybody in my family would agree, too. I'm just happy they're going to be here to be a part of it.

HURTS The defense played their ass off. They played how they played all year, you know, and I truly believe offense wins the game but defense wins championships.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[14:55:02]

WIRE: All right, Brianna and Boris, check out the scenes back in the Keystone State. In Philly, pure elation after watching their team take down the Chiefs.

And the party won't stop. The parade set for Friday. That's Valentines Day. So the city of Brotherly Love will be feeling all sorts of love, celebrating the Superbowl champions. As they say, fly, Eagles, fly.

KEILAR: And you have to love the plot line here for Jalen Hurts, right, Coy? I mean, he was benched in college, transfer schools. He suffered a Superbowl loss just two years ago.

And now, you know, he's at the top of the world. But he's been through a lot to get there.

WIRE: Oh my goodness, yes. For the Chiefs, this hurts. But for Philly, Hurts so good. He's the ultimate competitor, trusted leader and the ultimate never-give-up story.

After their Superbowl loss to the Chiefs two years ago, he said, "You win or you learn." He didn't say win or lose. He said, "You win or you learn." His tough times have made him tougher.

And he said -- just today, he said, "I had a purpose before anybody had an opinion." So take him to church, Jalen. Inspiration on and off the field. He finally had his big, big moment on the biggest stage of the sport.

SANCHEZ: It is great to see another never-give-up story. Flare jeans are back thanks to Kendrick Lamar.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Coy Wire, from New Orleans. Thank you so much, Coy.

And a quick programing note. Today, on "THE LEAD," Superbowl MVP Jalen Hurts is joining Philly superfan, Jake Tapper, for a live interview. Hear what Hurts has to say about how the Eagles pulled off a blowout victory. The interview airs live at 4:00 p.m. Eastern tonight.

We'll be right back.

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