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Israel Tanks Deployed In West Bank For First Time In 20 Years; Trump Voters In Colorado On The President's Tumultuous New Term; New Push To Ban The "Tush Push" Quarterback Sneak. Aired 3:30-4p ET
Aired February 25, 2025 - 15:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[15:33:23]
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN ANCHOR: The 42-day truce between Israel and Hamas is set to expire this weekend unless an agreement is struck to extend it. Now as the clock ticks down on the Gaza ceasefire and with peace talks on Phase 2 yet to start, Israel is showing signs of preparing for more war. For the first time in two decades, the IDF is deploying tanks to the occupied West Bank.
Two days after the Gaza ceasefire began last month, Israel stepped up its military operation in West Bank cities, displacing tens of thousands of residents, and Israel says it's rooting out terrorists and their infrastructure. CNN's Jeremy Diamond takes a first-hand look at the destruction.
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JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: As the Israeli military expands its military operation here in the occupied West Bank, we are getting a first-hand look at some of the destruction that's been wrought in the Nur Shams refugee camp. You can see all around me, really, this entire area has been dug up by those D9 bulldozers, and we're also seeing evidence of powerful blasts that have ripped open, for example, the front of this residential building.
The Israeli military began its expanded operation in the West Bank over a month ago, but it expanded it here to Nur Shams about two weeks ago. And you can see here, for example, this used to be a pharmacy, and this kind of destruction is happening increasingly frequently in the West Bank, resembling the type of military operations that the IDF has been carrying out in Gaza.
You also don't hear any people around me. We haven't seen many civilians in the area, and that's because of the displacement that has been happening here in the Nur Shams refugee camp and Tulkarm and the Jenin refugee camp as well, where, overall, about 40,000 people have been forced to flee their homes.
[15:35:11]
We spoke to some of those people earlier today who said that they really don't know when they're going to be able to return home. That's because the Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has said this military operation could last for over a year and that until that operation is over, the residents of camps like this one, they will not be allowed to return home.
Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Nur Shams refugee camp in the West Bank.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
JIMENEZ: Jeremy Diamond, thank you so much for that reporting.
Coming up, it is a state he lost by 10 points in November, but Trump voters in Colorado seem to be all smiles with a few concerns when it comes to his breakneck first few weeks in office. We'll take you there, coming up.
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[15:40:32]
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: This just in, after days of little clarity about who was actually running DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, the White House is now saying the acting administrator is Amy Gleason. Gleason previously worked at the U.S. Digital Service, the office that was renamed as Elon Musk's DOGE. We will be following the latest on that.
In the meantime, it's been a busy first month for President Trump. Trump's voters are paying attention to his moves here, but do they like what they're seeing? CNN's John King's All Over the Map series takes him to Colorado to check in with some of the president's supporters.
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JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR & CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Spomer Ranch spans more than 100 acres, home to 60 horses and one last bison.
DAVID HAYES, COLORADO TRUMP VOTER: This little guy down here, his name is Trouble.
KING (voice-over): A bit ornery at times. Yes, Trouble.
HAYES: You know, it's like Trump. I really don't like him as a person. I think he's arrogant, kind of a jerk but --
KING (voice-over): David Hayes is a funny man.
HAYES: I tried farming for a while and I would rather get run over by a bison, you know.
KING (voice-over): The northern Colorado ranch has been in his family since the 1880s. The White House and Washington are far away.
HAYES: We got like hot dogs. KING (voice-over): Yes, Hayes wants the government shrunk. But he doesn't see a coherent plan. And he doesn't trust Elon Musk. Doesn't believe what he says. Doesn't want Trump letting Musk poke around Social Security or tax files.
HAYES: I don't know how many people he's fired. And, you know, Musk keeps saying, well, I found $1 billion of waste here. And Social Security, there's hundreds and hundreds of people that are collecting it that are between 100 years old and 150. Can you believe any of that crap? He can't substantiate it, but you can't believe it.
KING: Right.
HAYES: So that's a trust issue.
KING (voice-over): A blue-collar rural guy in one of the nation's most competitive congressional districts. A three-time Trump voter who calls the president unfocused and arrogant. But Democrats should hold the celebration.
KING: But if you had to do over tomorrow and you had to pick again between Trump and Harris, what would you do?
HAYES: I would still do Trump.
KING: So conservative, independent, is that fair?
ESMERALDA RAMIREZ-RAY, COLORADO VOTER: Very conservative, independent, yes.
KING (voice-over): So would Esmeralda Ramirez-Ray. She smiles when asked about Trump's frenetic first month.
RAMIREZ-RAY: I voted for that. I love it.
KING: What did you vote for?
RAMIREZ-RAY: I voted for a president that was going to put America first. I voted for a president that was going to secure our borders. And I voted for a president that was going to make sure that we were respected throughout the world. And I believe I'm getting that.
KING (voice-over): Greeley is the northern edge of Colorado's 8th, a congressional district that is 40% Hispanic and has a significant undocumented population. Ramirez-Ray is a court interpreter for defendants who don't speak English.
She agrees with Trump that some who cross the border illegally are violent criminals. But she wishes he would add that the overwhelming majority are good people.
RAMIREZ-RAY: I was raised as a migrant worker working in the fields. Those are the people that are out there picking their crops. So even though I support Trump, I don't believe that he's the end-all be-all savior of humanity. Nobody is.
TODD WAUFLE, COLORADO VOTER: Now this one, we've had Canadian hoser for a long time before all this stuff came up.
KING: Right.
WAUFLE: All the fights with American and Canadian hockey players and everything.
KING (voice-over): Like Hayes, Todd Waufle says Trump can be arrogant and pompous. But like Ramirez-Ray, he's a fan of the early pace.
WAUFLE: I like him going full speed. Let's get things done. Let's find out if the policies work, they don't work. But, yes, this is the baby brewing system. Boil it up there.
KING (voice-over): Waufle started Satire Brewing seven years ago. Business is good and he constantly debates expanding. But a plan to boost sales by adding canning machines is on hold because of Trump tariffs on aluminum.
WAUFLE: When you fly enough, you understand, you know. Buckle your seatbelt, turbulence ahead.
KING (voice-over): Waufle's approach is a trademark of many Trump voters. Accept the things that make you cringe to get the things you want, like a better economy and a stronger border.
WAUFLE: Trump's going to say what he's going to say. And, yes, some of it's going to be exaggerated, some are not going to be true. But at the end of the day, I think you've got, you know, sift through all that. Is he going to get things done? Is he going to get the country moving the right way?
AUSTIN JENKINS, COLORADO VOTER: Let go right in front of your eyes. Just like that.
KING (voice-over): Austin Jenkins voted for lower taxes and less regulation. That would help his small businesses, including this cocktail bar and the Greeley Hatchet House.
[15:45:00]
JENKINS: He seemed like the lesser of two evils in my opinion.
KING (voice-over): But Jenkins finds the first month unsettling. Not a fan of tariffs or executive orders by the dozens, or Musk popping from agency to agency.
JENKINS: I thought there's supposed to be checks and balances somewhere.
KING: So where do I want to let go, shoulder height?
JENKINS: Right in front of your eyes.
KING: Right from my eyes, OK.
KING (voice-over): Plus, he sees fear in the Latino community. Wishes Trump would find a more compassionate way to improve border security.
JENKINS: I think there's a better way to go about it. I don't know if it's necessarily just force them out.
KING (voice-over): Trump, of course, won't be on the ballot next election. But this district will help decide whether Republicans keep their tiny House majority.
JENKINS: The cost of living is getting crazy here in Colorado. And I hope that they would have some kind of an impact of helping that.
KING (voice-over): The new Republican congressman won by just 2,000 votes. His 2026 re-election prospects will likely hinge on Trump's performance. On whether swing voters here see the president as focused on the big issues, or veering too far off target.
John King, CNN, Greeley, Colorado.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
JIMENEZ: Got to get some notes from John on the axe throwing. Now look, we want to get you to some other headlines we're watching this hour. For example, jury selection is now underway in the trial of the alleged gunman accused of opening fire on a suburban Chicago Independence Day parade back in 2022. Seven people were killed in the attack. Court proceedings have been delayed due in part to the defendant's behavior. At last check, eight jurors had been selected.
Also, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has settled his years- long saga with two Georgia election workers. The case centered on Giuliani's false statements after the 2020 presidential election. Lawyers for the women told a federal court that Giuliani satisfied the judgment that required him to pay them a total of $148 million for defamation.
And a Missouri woman has pleaded guilty to a federal charge accusing her of concocting a brazen plot to defraud Elvis Presley's family by trying to auction off his Graceland mansion and property before a judge stopped the mysterious foreclosure sale. Lisa Jeanine Findley pleaded guilty to a charge of mail fraud related to the scheme. She will be sentenced in June.
Different type of scheme here. The tush push, the brotherly shove, whatever you want to call it. It's a nearly unstoppable play and it helped push the Philadelphia Eagles to their second Super Bowl title. Now, one team wants it banned. We'll talk about it coming up.
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[15:51:56]
KEILAR: In the NFL, the push to ban the tush push is back, and reports say those Wisconsin Cheeseheads are behind this.
JIMENEZ: And those reports are not coming from Bears fans, but after losing to the Eagles in the wild card round last month, the Green Bay Packers president called tush and push a no-skill play that is bad for the game. Sounds like a potential skill issue, but that's just me. It helped give the Eagles, though, a second Super Bowl title.
I want to bring in CNN World Sport Host Don Riddell. So, Don, explain why the controversy.
DON RIDDELL, CNN HOST, WORLD SPORT: Well, I mean, this is something that's been talked about for some time now, and the question really is, is it a case of sour grapes or maybe a serious question about player safety? It might be a little bit of both, now that we know the Green Bay Packers are the team who asked for the tush push to be banned. This is a play that's been used extremely effectively by the Philadelphia Eagles, who have perfected the art of shoving their quarterback, Jalen Hurts, forward to gain the yardage necessary for a first down or a touchdown.
This season, they tried it 34 times before the Super Bowl. They were successful on 28 occasions, and they also used it to score against the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. Within the last hour or so, the Eagles head coach has expressed dismay that anybody would want to outlaw a football play that, frankly, they're just so good at.
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NICK SIRIANNI, PHILADELPHIA EAGLES HEAD COACH: I almost feel a little insulted because we worked so hard at that play. The amount of things that we've looked into how to coach that play, the fundamentals, there's always -- there's a thousand plays out there, but it comes down to how you teach the fundamentals and how the players go through and do with the fundamentals. And you see it throughout the league. I mean, we saw it in the championship games that, you know, a team failed at it and ultimately didn't end up winning the game because of it.
BRIAN GUTEKUNST, GREEN BAY PACKERS GENERAL MANAGER: I know it's -- we're not very successful against it. I know that. But to be honest with you, I have not put much thought into it. It's been around for a while. We've used it in different fashions with our tight end. So, again, I think there'll be a lot of discussions about it. I got to kind of look at some of the information as far as injury rates, things like that to see. But we'll see.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIDDELL: So here's why you might want it banned. You're not very good at executing the play yourself, like apparently the Packers. You're not very good at defending it. Or maybe you think the play is just detrimental to the game because there's really nothing inherently good about it. Or perhaps it really is dangerous and nobody outside of the league's head office has seen any data on that yet. Football is just full of fun phrases like pooch punt, flea flicker, coffin corner and hail Mary. If the game doesn't want tush push added to the list, then at least 24 of the league's 32 teams will have to agree to ban it.
KEILAR: OK, I mean, is the play bad for the game, Don? RIDDELL: Well, I guess it depends who you ask, right? I mean, the Eagles don't think so and their fans don't think so. It's a physical game and they've come up with a method of advancing the ball that is very effective. And clearly, nobody else is as good at it as them or as good at defending it as maybe they should be.
[15:55:12]
So, I mean, that's why their head coach is really kind of miffed that they're trying to ban it. You know, it's a physical game and it's become a part of the game. Everybody else maybe just needs to do better.
KEILAR: No tush push? Shush!
JIMENEZ: There you go.
KEILAR: I really wanted to say that. Don Riddell, thank you. And from Eagles that run to Eagles that fly, the famous duo hoping for a three- peat of sorts.
JIMENEZ: Very nice. Very nice.
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JIMENEZ: All right, breaking news, people, from one of the most watched eagle nests in the world, viral love birds, Jackie and Shadow, are egg-specting triplets. You're looking at a live view of their love nest right now. Beautiful.
[16:00:01]
KEILAR: I see what you did there. So, last year, they were 0 for 3 on their eggs. It was so sad, but I think now as we are officially on what's called "pip watch," because they pip, that's when the eggs start to hatch.
I think they're going to do OK this year. I think it's really going to happen for them. And fun fact here, Shadow will actually try to lure Jackie off the nest with these treats, like sticks, so that he can take his turn on the eggs.
JIMENEZ: I'm already enticed.
KEILAR: Right? You know who loves the eagles.
JIMENEZ: I do.
KEILAR: And I mean, really.
JIMENEZ: Yep.
KEILAR: "The Lead" with Jake Tapper starts right now.
