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U.S. And Ukraine Sign Minerals Deal After Months Of Tense Talks; Trump Adminisratin Proposal Would Cut Overdose Prevention Programs; Court To Resume Friday After Two Days Of Key Witness Testimony. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired May 01, 2025 - 07:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:30:10]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: The U.S. and Ukraine have now signed a closely watched deal over Ukraine's rare earth minerals. The agreement will give the U.S. access to some of Kyiv's most valuable natural resources in exchange for establishing an investment fund in Ukraine. Now, in announcing the deal Ukraine made clear it will keep full ownership and control of its territory and over what and where to extract the minerals.

And what this really solidifies is a lasting economic partnership between the two nations and also signifies a potentially big step toward ending Russia's war on Ukraine.

Here is the treasury secretary announcing it last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT BESSENT, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: Today's agreement signals clearly to Russian leadership that the Trump administration is committed to a peace process centered on a free, sovereign, and prosperous Ukraine over the long term.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Joining me right now, CNN global affairs analyst Kim Dozier, and CNN military analyst and retired Air Force colonel, Cedric Leighton. Thank you both for being here.

Colonel, what is your take on this deal? What does Zelenskyy get out of it? What does he not? What does the U.S. get out of it? What does the U.S. not?

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST, U.S. AIR FORCE (RET.) (via Webex by Cisco): Yeah, good morning, Kate.

So for Zelenskyy this is a big win as far as I'm concerned. And when it comes to the kinds of things that he is getting out of this basically what you're talking about is that security partnership and a commitment, as the treasury secretary just mentioned, that basically we're standing by a "free, sovereign, and prosperous Ukraine," to quote him.

So what that means is that the U.S. is now committed to providing Ukraine with an umbrella of protection. Exactly what that umbrella looks like is not specified in this deal. And I think one of the key things from that standpoint is that some of these details as far as protecting Ukraine -- those still need to be worked out.

What the U.S. gets out of this is access to all these rare earths. Ukraine has about 22 of 32 different rare and critical minerals, and that is something that is going to help really avoid the Chinese supply chain and that is a major win in that sense for the United States as well from a strategic perspective.

BOLDUAN: Yeah, and moving away from the dependency on China for those rare earth minerals is a huge goal of every president, current and past, when it comes to technologies that we're looking at right now.

Kim, a little bit more on I think the wording -- I think everyone would agree the wording matters here. Clearly, this is what they've been kind of fighting about for quite some time and disagreeing on.

The treasury secretary saying -- very clearly saying this deal is a signal to Russian leadership. And the statement put out by the Treasury Department in announcing this refers to Russia's full-scale invasion and also adds that no state or person who financed or supplied the Russian war machine will be allowed to benefit from the reconstruction of Ukraine.

Is it surprising hearing that coming from --

KIMBERLY DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST (via Webex by Cisco): Yeah.

BOLDUAN: -- this administration? I mean, what do you think the message is then that it's -- it is now sending to Russia?

DOZIER: Yeah, this signals a subtle but seismic shift in terms of the Trump administration's attitude towards Russia, starting to call it what it is, a war of aggression on Ukraine. And basically Kyiv did this by giving Donald Trump what matters to him. A minerals deal is good for U.S. business.

I talked to Trump administration officials in the past who tried to explain geopolitics to the president, and they say until they brought in U.S. business interests and showed him how much U.S. business goes through the Middle East, for instance, his eyes would glaze over.

So this is something that matters to President Trump. And while there were U.S. businesses on the ground back in 2022 when Moscow invaded, it wasn't the same sort of president in the Oval Office. Trump takes this seriously, so now if Moscow threatened his bottom line that's a problem.

This is also a victory for the part of the GOP wing that supports Ukraine, and I bet you're going to see a chorus of praise from GOP lawmakers. And also, you know, this is going to set the standard for future U.S.

aid in future wars. People -- Americans are going to ask, "What are you going to give me?"

BOLDUAN: That's an interesting -- that is a really interesting take, what precedent this does set.

Real quick, Colonel, does this amount to real pressure on Putin, do you think -- pressure that really hasn't yet been found in any other way?

[07:35:00]

LEIGHTON: Well, in some ways, diplomatically yes, Kate. But one of the key things to keep in mind when it comes to this deal is that right now, based on where the front lines are, a large portion of the rare earth and critical minerals is actually in Russian-occupied territory in Ukraine. This is something that is also going to be factor in how effective this agreement is and how much the U.S. and Ukraine get in front of it.

BOLDUAN: Very interesting.

Thank you both so much. It's great to see you -- Sara.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Thank you so much, Kate.

Breaking moments ago, a new report shows April job cuts reached their highest level since the start of the pandemic.

CNN's Matt Egan is joining me now with more on this. What are you learning about these job cuts? It does not look good.

MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Yeah. Look, Sara, layoff announcements remain elevated. Now, U.S.-based employers announced 105,000 job cuts in April.

Some context. The good news is this is down from extremely elevated levels in March. The bad news is this is more than 60 percent higher than April of last year. In fact, this is the third-highest level for April since Challenger, Gray & Christmas, the outplacement firm that put out this report, started tracking back in the 1980s. The only two times that were higher were in 2020 during COVID and also in 2009 during the Great --

SIDNER: Right.

EGAN: -- Recession.

This shows the trend. OK, job cut announcements for this point of the year. Again, you can see it's elevated. Again, the only two times that are higher for this point of the year, 2009 and 2020.

The other thing here, Sara, is that Challenger says that hiring plans -- they've been slowed by the fact that there's so much uncertainty around tariffs and the trade war. SIDNER: And particularly, what -- how does the federal government play

into this?

EGAN: Yes. So the reason why layoff announcements came down in April is because federal government layoffs did slow a bit. But year-to-date we are not seeing that at all. Look at this. Government announced layoffs have increased almost eight-fold from the same point last year.

There's a number of other key sectors that have been hit particularly high. Retail, as there's been continuation of store closures. Non- profits up 200 percent --

SIDNER: Yeah.

EGAN: -- again, from the same point last year.

This is coming as Elon Musk and DOGE -- they cut federal grants.

SIDNER: Right.

EGAN: They paused research, so not shocking to see non-profits. And technology also.

I think the DOGE effect helps explain the map when we look at where across the country, we've seen layoffs because the east has been hit particularly hard --

SIDNER: Ooh.

EGAN: -- so far this year. Layoff announcements up 245 percent so far this year against last year. Washington, D.C. has been really, really hit. We've seen layoff announcements skyrocket there. In the south, layoffs up as well and the Midwest. But in the west, we've actually seen a dip in layoffs.

Now, all of this comes ahead of tomorrow's much more important government jobs report where it's expected to show that unemployment remained low. The question, of course, is how long will it remain low.

SIDNER: That's right. And a lot of people suffering when you look at those numbers. Wow, 245 --

EGAN: Yes.

SIDNER: -- all across the east.

Thank you so much, Matt Egan --

EGAN: Thank you, Sara.

SIDNER: -- for your reporting this morning -- John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. This morning President Trump acknowledging for the first time what economists have warned for weeks that his tariffs could raise prices on goods for everyday Americans. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Somebody said oh, the shelves are going to be open. Well, maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30 dolls, you know? And maybe the two dolls will cost a couple of bucks more than they would normally.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: All right, with us now CNN political commentator and former Trump White House communications director Alyssa Farah Griffin.

You ran communications. Fewer dolls, more expensive. How is that for a communication strategy?

ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFEN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: I can picture the White House press shop gasping when they heard that line.

Listen, that certainly isn't the message that the White House wants to be conveying. What they need to be leaning into -- because there's tremendous market uncertainty over these tariffs. Businesses aren't able to be hiring, investing, planning for years ahead because they just simply don't know what Donald Trump is going to do next.

But Donald Trump should be leaning into we haven't gotten to my congressional agenda yet. In Donald Trump's first term is biggest successes went through Congress -- the USMCA, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, his deregulatory agenda. And they're gearing up -- Congress -- congressional Republicans are gearing up to potentially deliver him some big wins.

So the message I'd give is if there is this short-term hardship, which we hope there isn't, I have major relief coming on the other side of this. Give me some time. You saw me do it in the first term. Let's see what I can do this term.

BERMAN: And just one more point on the whole doll thing. Let me show you what the New York Post headline is today. I can hold this up. It says, "Skimp on the Barbie" right now. And this is the Rupert Murdoch- owned New York Post.

[07:40:10]

How much of a disconnect is it when you're talking about dolls? When you're talking about Barbies and trying -- it makes it sound insignificant -- trite almost. Is there a disconnect with the real pain, or what kind of disconnect might there be with the real pain and sacrifice people have to make?

GRIFFIN: I'm skeptical that the White House is prepared for how much hardship Americans could feel in a matter of weeks because of these tariffs. We certainly are not yet feeling the full effects of them.

But Donald Trump, as CNN reported, just last week met with CEOs of Target and Walmart -- some of these major retailers who, by the way, can absorb some of these costs because they're huge.

But the impacts that could come to small businesses, the impacts that are going to hit the auto industry, the agriculture industry. You heard it with Dana Bash this weekend. The secretary of agriculture basically saying we're almost gearing up to bail our farmers.

That's not like a winning first 100-day message. You don't want to put yourself in a position that you then need to bail out farmers. And if I may say just as a Republican, that's kind of remarkable that we're just advertising we're going to bail someone out.

So I think that there is -- there is a policy problem on the tariffs that the president does seem to be responding to, pulling some of these back and making them a little bit more targeted. But the messaging is also a disaster.

BERMAN: Some of the messaging has been -- and this is something that we've seen before in every administration -- blame the old guy. In this case, you know, I mean President Biden. Blame the guy who was in office before for the economy now. President Trump tried to do that and his Republican allies doing that very vocally yesterday.

How effective a strategy is that?

GRIFFIN: I think the American people aren't going to buy it -- even his supporters. Because we saw when Donald Trump was elected markets rallied. Wall Street was thrilled that Donald Trump was going back into office because I think they were anticipating he would govern like the first term. Free market base, targeted trade deals, cutting regulation, and making it good investment environment for businesses.

But he went a very different direction. He went the Peter Navarro direction of sweeping tariffs across the board, sparking an unnecessary trade war. And that's where we've seen all these market losses since Election Day.

So you don't get to claim that the market opened on one of their highest days -- the day after I was elected -- but then now what we're seeing is a result of Joe Biden. It just -- I don't think it computes with people.

BERMAN: There were -- there were -- there were a lot of people pointing this out on social media. Not only did President Trump wrap himself in the stock market after he was elected this time, he claimed that stock market gains under Joe Biden were because of him.

I could put these Truth Socials up -- these competing Truth Socials up. One of from January 29, 2024. He says, "This is the Trump stock market." And then April 30, 2025, when he's actually in office, he goes, "This is Biden's stock market, not Trump's." Sort of a before and after here, Alyssa.

GRIFFIN: Yeah, that's not going to fly with voters.

And I would also point to we've had this -- these GDP numbers, which are almost even more stark than the market losses, where you see Europe ticking up. Their economies are growing and they're coming back from this sort of global era of inflation. And for the first time -- we've been outperforming Europe for several years now -- we are the ones falling behind. We are the ones with negative GDP --

BERMAN: Yeah.

GRIFFIN: -- growth. And that's, right now, under Donald Trump as president.

BERMAN: A deal -- how much of a difference would a deal of any kind with another country, however real or comprehensive it might be -- how much would that help the president, do you think?

GRIFFIN: So it would help. And I think that there's a real rush -- some efforts underway, especially to get a deal with India -- a huge economy and something that would inarguably be beneficial.

The problem is I think the markets will rally and respond positively to a deal because it's a signal OK, maybe we are just approaching some targeted trade deals. I don't think it changes consumer sentiment and concerns, and I don't think it changes businesses planning long term for their investment in the United States. Because I still think there's so much uncertainty.

If you're not affected as a business by a U.S.-India deal that's not really going to change your plans for your bottom line going into the future projections you're making ahead when you're just simply planning to run your business.

So I think it's welcomed, but I certainly think it's a Band-Aid on a much bigger wound.

BERMAN: Alyssa Farah Griffin, great to see you this morning. Thanks so much -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: So new this morning several dozen lifesaving substance abuse prevention and treatment programs could be on the chopping block right now. This is according to a leaked draft budget proposal from the Trump administration -- by the Trump administration.

One of these programs distributes literal lifesaving Naloxone kits to first responders across the country. And Naloxone, you likely know it as Narcan, as the medication that has proven to be a gamechanger in the fight against the fentanyl crisis. I have seen this firsthand in my two-year-long investigation of the crisis.

[07:45:00]

And here is the thing. Last month the administration pledged to expand access to the medication. The head of the DEA was on with us on this show last month talking about how critical access to these medications is and now proposing budget cuts that would remove it.

CNN's Meg Tirrell joining us right now. Meg, tell us more about what we know and what we don't yet about what could be coming here. MEG TIRRELL CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Kate. So, of course, as you mentioned, Naloxone is as close to a miracle drug as many people have ever seen because it can work in seconds to reverse an opioid overdose. And so expanding access to it has been a huge priority in order to try to curb the overdose crisis, as you have reported so amazingly on.

So on April 1, the White House put out a proposal for a statement of drug policy priorities. And number one for their priorities was to reduce the number of overdose fatalities with a focus on fentanyl -- one of those very synthetic power opioids. And as part of that they said they wanted to expand access to opioid overdose reversal medications like Naloxone.

But nine days later in this budget document that came out that proposes a budget for the Department of Health and Human Services almost two dozen programs focused on substance abuse prevention and treatment were proposed to be eliminated. So that was including five focused on prevention and 18 focused on treatment.

One of those programs that people are really focused on here is a $56 million grant that appears like it's part of this proposal to be eliminated, focusing on providing Naloxone, both itself, and training on how to use Naloxone to first responders. This -- in 2023, they distributed more than 101,000 opioid overdose reversal kits and trained 77,000 people on how to administer them.

So the spokesperson for the White House told us that "No funding decisions have been finalized here."

And we should note that the Substance Use and Mental Health Services Administration that was part of this -- oversaw this grant has been folded into this new administration for a healthy America that HHS has proposed under Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and there is still funding for opioid overdose reversal programs.

But Kate, we are making progress, it appears, on opioid overdoses. You can see that drug overdose deaths have started to decline but they're still at 80,000 per year. And so access to this, experts say, is so important.

BOLDUAN: And that was part of what we found in the -- what we did for "THE WHOLE STORY" and our investigation was because Narcan and Naloxone has proven so successful.

There is now a new phase of the fentanyl crisis because people are living with these addictions longer and that needs to be addressed by society, and government, and more. But a critical piece of this is that people are being kept alive because of drugs like Naloxone. That's why those numbers are going down and we're seeing it now enter a new phase.

Thank you so much for reporting on this, Meg. Lots of important questions for the administration here -- Sara.

SIDNER: Troubling. All right -- thank you so much, Kate. Still ahead, riveting testimony in the murder retrial of Karen Read. This morning a key witness back on the stand and we're expecting blockbuster testimony about what Read said after her police office boyfriend was killed.

And breaking this morning, the huge price of tariffs. GMs CEO speaking out to our Erin Burnett this morning live at the top of the hour.

Those stories and much more coming up.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:53:15]

SIDNER: One of they key witnesses in the retrial of Karen Read returned to the stand for a second day of testimony on Wednesday, this time under cross-examination by the defense. Jennifer McCabe was questioned about the hours leading up to the death of John O'Keefe, Read's police officer boyfriend, and the moment the Boston police officer's body was found in the snow.

Read is on trial accused of backing her SUV into O'Keefe, killing him. But her legal team claims she's actually the victim of a police coverup.

Court resumes tomorrow.

Here now to walk us through what happened is CNN correspondent Jean Casarez who is watching every second of this trial. There were some really riveting testimony by Karen Read -- or, sorry, by the friend of Karen Read yesterday.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. But you're right -- it was Karen Read that allegedly made the -- said these words out at the scene.

SIDNER: Yeah.

CASAREZ: You know, Jennifer McCabe is such an important witness for the prosecution because in the law you say she's an eyewitness and she's an ear witness. She was right there at the scene when they found the body. Karen was there -- she was watching, she was listening. And her testimony right here is pivotal to the prosecution's case -- listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you her or do you remember the defendant saying anything to the first responder?

JENNIFER MCCABE, FRIEND OF KAREN READ AND JOHN O'KEEFE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What did she say?

MCCABE: She told the first responder, "I hit him. I hit him. I hit him." UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When she told the first responder "I hit him" how did you react?

MCCABE: I was, like, startled. Kind of like what are you saying? What are you talking about?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you saying anything to the defendant?

MCCABE: Um, I think after the second or third time she was saying it I was like, "Karen, Karen. Like, what are you saying?"

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why were you trying to interrupt her?

MCCABE: Because I thought she was just talking crazy and I'm saying why is she saying she hit him?

[07:55:03]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Were you trying to look out for her?

MCCABE: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Objection.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Hmm.

CASAREZ: And so the defense on cross-examination pushed back hard, saying when you had your initial interview with the lead investigator you didn't say that. You didn't say it all. It's not in his report.

SIDNER: Hmm.

CASAREZ: She said she did, and he didn't put it in the report.

But here is the thing, Sara. The defense is setting this up that it was a conspiracy because Jennifer McCabe is married -- her sister is married to Brian Albert, who owned the home, who is a police officer. His brother is a police officer. His other brother is on the police board. They all know each other.

And the defense is setting this up that Jennifer McCabe was part of this conspiracy to target Karen Read because they know that he was killed in the house by officers.

SIDNER: Wow. I mean, this case is like an endless information and endless, like, shocking testimony. We haven't really seen a case like this in a very, very long time.

CASAREZ: And here's the issue with the defense. Karen Read has said in many interviews about "Did I hit him? Could I hit him?" -- and even hindering on "I hit him" --

SIDNER: Wow.

CASAREZ: -- herself.

SIDNER: Jean Casarez, I know you'll keep watching and we will all be checking in with you -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: All right, some other headlines we're watching this hour.

Harvard University said Wednesday it has shared data with the Department of Homeland Security in response to the agency's request for information on illegal -- potentially illegal activity and disciplinary records of international students. That's according to new reporting from the school's student newspaper, the Harvard Crimson.

The Crimson quotes a Harvard official who says the university responded to a DHS request to provide information required by law. It is not clear exactly what records were shared.

But this comes as the director of national intelligence revealed that the White House has put Harvard grants on hold because the university would not provide information about students alleged criminal activity.

There is also this. A terrifying fall left a baseball fan now in the hospital and in critical condition. This happened at PNC Park in Pittsburgh last night. You can see the reaction from the players. They immediately called for help from the medical staff. This is after a man fell from the 21-foot right field wall onto the field. It happened during the seventh inning where the Pittsburgh Pirates were playing the -- playing the Chicago Cubs. Police are investigating the incident right now -- John.

BERMAN: You could see how scared all the players were.

BOLDUAN: You could see the reaction on their face, yeah.

BERMAN: All right. This Sunday Eva Longoria is back with a new episode of the CNN original series "SEARCHING FOR SPAIN." I got to sit down with her for a meal at a Spanish restaurant here in New York to learn about the delicious reason -- region of Andalusia.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: Hi -- cheers.

EVA LONGORIA, HOST, "SEARCHING FOR SPAIN": Cheers. (Speaking foreign language).

BERMAN: What am I drinking here and why?

LONGORIA: You're drinking vermouth, which is very popular. This was my drink while I was in Spain. It was very, very, very popular.

BERMAN: Is there a wrong time to be doing vermouth?

LONGORIA: No. I guess every hour is (speaking foreign language).

BERMAN: Andalusia.

LONGORIA: Yeah.

BERMAN: Where is that?

LONGORIA: In the south.

BERMAN: And?

LONGORIA: It used to be called Al-Andalus, which is the south of Spain that had the longest rule of the Moors. So when the Reconquista -- when Spain reconquered -- it started in Asturias and then they pushed the Moors out toward the south. That's how -- where they came in and came up from Africa. And so Al-Andalus is the south.

BERMAN: And this is jamon?

LONGORIA: Jamon.

BERMAN: Jamon.

BERMAN: And -- which is --

LONGORIA: Cured pig, yeah.

BERMAN: Cured pig.

LONGORIA: But it's a special pig and especially if it's pata negra -- which it means black foot. They're very spoiled pigs. They only eat acorns.

BERMAN: Is it a finger food or is it a fork food?

LONGORIA: No, finger, finger, yeah. You grab a piece like this. And it's cured for a long time. And you eat it --

BERMAN: Acorns?

LONGORIA: They eat acorns.

BERMAN: I think I just --

LONGORIA: Acorns are good.

BERMAN: Do you taste a little bit of that?

LONGORIA: Well, yeah. That's how you can tell if it's really good because not all of them are pata negra. Not all of them are of a certain pedigree.

So you wrap it in this little thing -- yeah -- and you do that.

BERMAN: It was so -- can I have another piece?

LONGORIA: Yeah, but clean your chin.

BERMAN: Do I have it on me -- my chin?

LONGORIA: There you go.

BERMAN: That's gross.

LONGORIA: No, it's great -- it's great.

BERMAN: I had one on my chin?

LONGORIA: But it's great. I mean, the greasier the better. The way --

BERMAN: That means I'm doing it right, then?

LONGORIA: It means you're doing it right. The way they test if this is good ham is that it wouldn't -- it won't fall off the plate. Well, this -- not the decoration but it has so much fat that it doesn't come off the plate. That's when you know it's good jamon.

BERMAN: You were saying this was the Moors region -- the region that was conquered by the Moors, and that the ham actually played an important historical role.

LONGORIA: In Spain it's hanging like this, and they'll have a lot of legs of that will be hung and hanging in the shop. And during the Spanish Inquisition it was to prove that you weren't Jewish.

BERMAN: Um-hum.

LONGORIA: You could hang pork, you know, in your storefront and that would keep the Spanish Inquisition away.

BERMAN: Well, you know what? I'm going to eat it anyway --

LONGORIA: Eat it.

BERMAN: -- even though I am Jewish.