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Trump in Saudi Arabia for First Stop in Major Middle East Trip; Star Witness Cassie Ventura Expected to Testify; Senate Report Shows $2.7 Billion Cut in NIH Funding from Jan. to March. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired May 13, 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]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: President Trump receiving a big, royal welcome from the Saudi Crown Prince as he arrived for the first leg of this Middle East trip. All of it coming amid ethical and legal questions about his plans to accept a luxury jet from Qatar.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: A star witness set to take the stand today in Sean Combs' federal criminal trial day. One of testimony was nothing short of explosive and graphic with more to come today.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And Biden aides discussed using a wheelchair if he was elected to a second term, the first stunning revelations in the new book by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson.

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

SIDNER: All right. Breaking news this morning, President Trump arriving in Saudi Arabia on his first major overseas visit of his second term. Air Force One getting an escort by Saudi F-15 fighter jets and the president getting a royal welcome on the tarmac from the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Trump, then traveled by motorcade to the Saudi Royal Court for a more formal greeting. Saudi Arabia is the first stop in his four day swing through the Middle East. The trip giving Trump a chance to approve himself as a deal maker on the world stage.

He's set to speak later today after attending a lunch with some of the world's top CEOs, including Elon Musk and the leaders of OpenAI, Google, Boeing, Amazon, NVidia, and Coca-Cola.

Trump will also visit Qatar and the UAE on this trip, and it comes as he's defending his administration has planned to accept a $400 million luxury jet from the Qataris to use as Air Force One, a prospect that's raising all kinds of ethical, legal, and security questions.

CNN's Jeff Zeleny is traveling with the president and joins us now live from Riyadh. It had already been a really busy trip. What is the president focused on here as we see new pictures this morning of him and the leader of Saudi Arabia? JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Sara. President Trump arriving here overnight to a fanfare in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, exactly how he would like it, met with Trumpets, American flags, Saudi flags as well, and escorted all along the way by via Saudi Crown Prince of Mohammed bin Salman, who, of course, is a close ally of the United States, and indeed a good friend of this president and the administration.

This trip, which the president is setting off on, which is the first major foreign trip of his second term in office is actually quite brief, just about three and a half days or so. But today, he is focused exclusively on making deals, trying to increase investment in the United States.

He's coming with a large contingent of U.S. CEOs, multinational CEOs as well. They're meeting for a luncheon and then later having a meeting here in Saudi Arabia with Saudi officials as well. But this is much more about making investments in the U.S. or reaching deals rather than focusing on the geopolitics of the region, which, of course, is hanging over this administration. Many of the challenges facing the Trump administration, of course, and the world are not being discussed as much, at least in the opening hours of these meetings as the deals that are coming underway.

And you mentioned that airplane. The president of course, arriving here in Saudi Arabia on the old Air Force One, but the new controversy over a plane he would like to be Air Force One is certainly following him here. He is making no apologies about the idea of accepting a plane worth some $450 million or so from the Qatari Royal Family. Many things have to happen for that to fall into place.

So, many Republicans have criticized this. Democrats, of course, have as well, but the president is embracing that. He will actually visit a Qatar on his next stop here tomorrow before going to the UAE as well, but for today at least in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He's following in the footsteps of his first trip when he became president some eight years ago, he also stopped in Riyadh. But at that point, he was introducing himself to the world. Now, the world is well aware of him.

Of course, he is trying to cement some business deals, many of them also including the Trump Organization and the Trump family.

[07:05:04]

Since he became president, of course, the deals of the Trump organization and Trump family have increased some threefold. So, no doubt that is also a subtext to all of this. Sara?

SIDNER: Absolutely, he has become a richer man while in office as president. Thank you so much, Jeff Zeleny, great reporting there from Riyadh. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Also this morning, day two of Sean Diddy Combs' criminal trial set to begin in a New York courtroom, and we are expecting a star witness to take the stand. Combs' ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, she is the woman that he has seen attacking in that hotel hallway in surveillance video from 2016.

Prosecutors said yesterday that Combs coerced her and another woman to participate in what Combs called freak-offs. The prosecutor saying this, quote, he called himself the king, expected to be treated like one. He expected his inner circle to cater to his every desire, including his sexual desire and his inner circle made sure he got everything he wanted.

The prosecutor's plan to show the jury video of those drug-fueled days-long sexual performances. So far, the case seems to center on the question, was this consensual or was this coercion. Combs' attorney saying this, quote, the evidence is going to show you a very flawed individual, but it will not show you a racketeer, a sex trafficker, or somebody transporting for prostitution.

CNN Legal Analyst and Criminal Defense Attorney Joey Jackson is here. A lot happened on this first day, and you can expect it to be, as I was describing, an explosive in graphic for day two and in the days to come. What was your biggest takeaway from the first day?

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning, Kate. The videotape, right, so what prosecutors did is they started out with a bang as it relates to the tape right away. Why? I think what they wanted to do was to set the tone right at the outset and demonstrate he's a bad guy, right, from their perspective and dirty him up. So, if they can, prosecutors, get jurors to look at him from the lens of a person who is out of control, who is in a rage, who is degrading, who is disrespecting, right, it brings you to another place. Because if jurors are harboring that, how are they going to evaluate him as it relates to other evidence? So, I think that majorly a takeaway.

What else? Certainly, not only did they bring the security guard, who was involved with the tape, but they brought the male prostitute. And so a lot of discussions that we probably can't have in the morning concerning things that were elicited in evidence, in turning in terms of his sexual proclivities. I think, ultimately, though, Kate, from defense perspective, they're embracing that tape. And what they're saying is, hey, he may not have been a wonderful human being, he did some really terrible things there. Does it mean he was running a criminal enterprise? Does it mean he was doing things engaging in prostitution or in sex trafficking? That's the critical question.

We're not here, says the defense, and it's true relating to domestic violence, right? We're here relating to whether or not he engaged in these other activities. So, you can accept the tape, but in acceptance of the tape, does it mean you win the case, if you're the prosecutors? And from the defense perspective, the answer is a resounding no.

BOLDUAN: And there's more tape to come.

JACKSON: Oh yes. And it seems that's going to need to be out of necessity. That has to be the theme and the approach for the defense is just embrace it, but.

JACKSON: Yes, I think so when you laid it out, certainly when we talked about the issue of consent, right, the issue of consent versus coercion. And we've seen initially how. If you look at the male prostitute that was brought in, you heard, right, during particularly the cross-examination, this male prostitute who would join apparently Cassie and Mr. Combs in their sexual escapades. And with regard to that, the issue is going to be whether she was a full participant. Is this something that she was doing because she was controlled by him, or is this something she was doing because that's the freaky lifestyle they led?

And I think what's going to be important from a defense perspective is to say, look, we're not here to judge morality, immorality, right, what people do, how freaky a person is or not. We're here to judge whether they engage in criminality. You can be, right, not illegal to be a swinger, not illegal to do urinating in people's mouths and all that other stuff we heard about. The issue is, was I forcing you to do it?

And we heard on the cross from the attorney who was crossing that she was seemingly enjoying herself. She asked them to come back, right, meaning the male prostitute. And, in fact, she was a willing participant. Let's see whether they're able, the defense, to continue with that narrative. It'll be important.

BOLDUAN: It will be important, and that is just day one. We will now see what comes today.

JACKSON: Yes.

BOLDUAN: Thank you, Joey --

JACKSON: Always.

BOLDUAN: -- so much and handling it delicately because there was a lot there. John?

BERMAN: All right. Breaking this morning, $2.7 billion in federal funding slashed, the huge cuts to the National Institutes of Health the Trump administration has made in the past three months.

[07:10:02]

And then his movement was so impaired, his aides discussed, using a wheel share if there was a second term, the first of many revelations in a new book on the Biden presidency by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson.

And just minutes from now, Kim Kardashian will take the stand detailing the moment she was tied up and held at gunpoint while being robbed of millions of dollars in cash in jewelry.

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[07:15:00]

BERMAN: All right. New this morning, a Senate committee minority report says the Trump administration launched what it calls a war on science. It estimates the administration has slashed $2.7 billion from the National Institutes of Health in just the first three months of this year.

CNN Health Reporter Jacqueline Howard has obtained a copy of this report. So, Jacqueline, what does it say?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: John, the report really takes a detailed look at the research funding cuts that have happened so far under the Trump administration and also really taking a look at the funding cuts that have happened under NIH specifically. Some of the research funding cuts, according to the report, have impacted studies related to Alzheimer's disease, infectious diseases, maternal health and cancer research.

Specifically, the report says when you look at federal funding for cancer research, there have been cuts, about 31 percent, reduction from January through March of this year compared with January through March of last year. So, we're talking about research funding cuts have been cut by 31 percent by January through March of this year, compared with last year.

And this report, I should say, it's being released just a day before Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is expected to face senator's questions in a hearing scheduled for tomorrow. We can expect possibly the secretary may be asked about some aspects of this report in tomorrow's hearing. John?

BERMAN: What will he say if he's asked about it?

HOWARD: I know. That's what, listen, everyone's waiting to see what will happen. But I will say what we do know so far, Kennedy is spearheading a restructuring of HHS and he's spearheading a review of funding under the department.

I reached out to the department and asked specifically about some of these research funding pauses and terminations, and a spokesperson did say, quote, at HHS, we are dedicated to restoring our agencies to their tradition of upholding gold standard evidence-based science as we begin to make America healthy again. It's important to prioritize research that directly affects the health of Americans. We will leave no stone unturned in identifying the root causes of the chronic disease epidemic as part of our mission to make America healthy again, end quote.

So, the department is prioritizing a focus on addressing chronic disease, and that appears to be part of the research funding and restructuring as well, John.

BERMAN: We'll stand by to see if he walks that line tomorrow, if asked.

Jacqueline Howard, terrific reporting, thank you very much. Sara?

SIDNER: All right. Moments from now, Kim Kardashian set to testify in the trial of the men accused of holding her at gunpoint while they robbed her of millions of dollars in cash and jewelry. We are live outside court. And after President Trump's new trade breakthrough with China, experts say the likelihood of a recession in the U.S. has actually gone down, but the tariffs are still going to cost you. How much? We crunched the numbers. Those stories and more ahead.

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SIDNER: Right now, we're standing by for Kim Kardashian to take the stand in Paris. She's expected to testify in the trial the men accused of tying her up and holding her at gunpoint while they stole nearly $10 million in cash and jewelry during a Paris Fashion Week in 2016. This is the first time she will face those men in court. And you can see the crowds already gathering outside of the courthouse.

And that is where our own Saskya Vandoorne is standing by for us. Tell us a little bit about what you're seeing and what we can expect today in court.

SAKYA VANDOORNE, CNN SENIOR FIELD PRODUCER: Yes, Sara. So, we do expect Kim Kardashian to arrive any moment now. Journalists have been camped out here since 5:00 A.M. in the hope of catching a glimpse of Kardashian inside the courtroom. No cameras are allowed but we expect Kim Kardashian to recount what happened to her that night in October 2016 when she was duct taped and robbed of $10 million worth of her jewelry.

Now, it won't be the first time that she -- in 2020, take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIM KARDASHIAN, ROBBERY VICTIM: And before he had my eyes, he had -- he -- I saw, I mean, before he duct taped my eyes because that was the last thing he -- I saw he found my whole jewelry box and like held it up, like, aha, you know, like we got it. But I kept on looking at the concierge because I didn't know who he was. And I'm like, what is happening? Are we going to die? Just tell them I have children, like I have babies, I have a husband, I have a family, like I have to get home. Tell them take anything. I'll never say like, I saw them, like take everything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VANDOORNE: Now, she will be questioned by the judges, by the prosecutor, and by the lawyers. And inside that courtroom, she will be facing the ten people who are accused of planning and executing this brazen robbery, nine men and one woman. And they've been nicknamed the Grandpa Gang Here, because most of them are over the age of 60, many of them are battling serious health issues.

Now, this is the third week of this trial. We've been hearing the life stories of the accused. Many of them are repeat offenders. Now, two of the eight have pleaded guilty to various charges but the remaining eight said that they had no part to play in this heist. Sara?

SIDNER: Yes, it is a fascinating case and it's also fascinating to see the French people standing in line to witness this as well.

Saskya Vandoorne, thank you so much, live for us from Paris with the update there on the Kardashian case. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Coming up for us this morning, Cassie Ventura, the former girlfriend of Sean Combs, the woman he has seen attacking in surveillance video, is set to take the stand in his federal sex trafficking trial. What's expected day two of this explosive case.

And President Trump defending the lavish gift that he says Qatar is sending his way, the luxury jet, that even some Republicans on Capitol Hill are now questioning.

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BOLDUAN: So, this morning, positive news on the economy in the wake of the U.S. agreement with China to roll back tariffs for at least 90 days. Goldman Sachs is revising its recession.