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Bail Hearing Set for 5 P.M. ET in Sean "Diddy" Combs Case; House GOP Pressing Ahead with key Procedural Vote on Trump Agenda; Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) Discusses About Trump Bill Aired 3-3:30p ET

Aired July 02, 2025 - 15:00   ET

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

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BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Soon, a judge in New York will decide whether to release Sean "Diddy" Combs, pending his sentencing. A jury acquitted Diddy of the most serious charges in his case. We'll take you live outside the courthouse for the latest details.

And a time crunch. We're following all these developments on Capitol Hill where House Republicans are battling it out over the President's mega bill.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Plus, he admitted it out loud. Bryan Kohberger saying in court that he killed four University of Idaho students who were found stabbed to death in 2022. Details on his plea agreement and other new information that we just heard in court about the crimes.

These major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

SANCHEZ: Major breaking news today, Sean "Diddy" Combs acquitted of the most serious charges he faced, but he was found guilty on two lesser charges. And right now, we're awaiting the judge deciding if Combs can wait for sentencing at home or whether he'll go back to a detention facility he's now been at nearly 300 days.

KEILAR: The prosecution and witnesses have sent letters to the judge saying that Combs is dangerous and should remain behind bars. But Combs' defense is pushing for him to be released since he was found not guilty on racketeering and sex trafficking charges.

Let's go to Laura Coates, who's live outside of the courthouse in New York.

Laura, what more is the defense saying as they're making this argument that he should go free while he awaits sentencing?

LAURA COATES, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF LEGAL ANALYST: This is such an important moment. Only was he found not guilty of the most serious charges, including RICO and sex trafficking. RICO could have been lifetime in prison. He still does have those two remaining counts under the so-called umbrella of the Mann Act, transportation to engage in prostitution, which could hold 10 years each.

Now, of course, they could be run consecutively, meaning back-to-back and not concurrently. And that would be the right of the prosecution to ask for that, because these two separate occasions which underlie these charges actually happened at very different points in time with respect to different people. And so, they could ask for that.

But the sentencing guidelines are going to factor in here in terms of how much time he would likely spend. It could be something like two years. Remember, he's already been in for about 10 months. So, part of that time served could be applied.

I say all this background here, you guys, because the judge has to consider that ultimate charge of what he was convicted of, not what he was not convicted of. Other factors include whether he posed a threat to the community or the safety of others. We've already heard from the attorney of Cassie Ventura on that very point where he has said that he wants him to remain in custody pending sentencing on the final decision by the judge. He will have to abide by conditions of release as well, according to defense attorneys, including handing over his passport, not having access to obtain drug testing and other things.

[15:05:00]

But there was really important moment, say, in a conversation from - with our own Elizabeth Wagmeister, who has been on top of this from the beginning of the investigation in case. And she actually sat down with Cassie Ventura's attorney. And he spoke about the closing arguments in this case, and he spoke about what the impact of this decision really was on not only his client, but more broadly.

Listen to this, because it might factor into what the judge thinks, too. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUG WIGDOR, CASSIE VENTURA'S ATTORNEY: Some of the comments that were made in the closing argument, I thought were repugnant, frankly, calling those sorts of behaviors as a modern-day relationship, saying that she enjoyed sex, you know, saying she was a gangster, things like that. I don't think even with the jury verdict that they would have given that any credit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Now, why that's important as a point is because this judge has to consider the impact on those who have been victimized. But of course, sex trafficking for Cassie Ventura led to a not guilty. Sex trafficking for the pseudonym Jane led to a not guilty. But still the judge must consider the overall safety to the witnesses and of course society more broadly.

Deonte Nash, who was a good friend of Cassie Ventura to this day and a stylist as well, he also informed the court that he had concerns about safety. This just speaks to the much broader issue, you guys, of what it takes for people to testify in these sorts of trials, the high- profile nature of it as well. So, what we're waiting for now, everyone's wondering, in about two hours from now, we're told there's going to be a hearing on what the judge ultimately decides.

Look behind me. You see these gold brass or whatever they are, doors. That's the front door of the federal courthouse. We've seen the families walk in and out of there time and time again. If the judge decides that Sean "Diddy" Combs should be released pending sentencing, he could walk out of those doors.

And there's a crowd of people who have been gathering and are awaiting that possibility. In fact, NYPD has lined the streets as if it were a parade with these sort of metal barricades up and down, preparing for what might be a very large crowd at 5 P.M. But suffice to say, with these two guilty verdicts and the top charges eluding the prosecution team, we don't know what to expect at 5, so you've got to stay tuned.

SANCHEZ: Laura, please stand by. Let's bring in for more analysis Clayton Davis, Chief Awards Editor for Variety magazine and court TV anchor and former prosecutor Julie Grant. Thank you both for being with us.

Julie, in the early days of this case, we went through some really horrendous testimony from Cassie Ventura. I wonder what you make of this verdict in light of what she revealed to the world.

JULIE GRANT, COURT TV ANCHOR & FORMER PROSECUTOR: Boris and Brianna, good afternoon to you both. Thank you so much for having me.

What I make of it is that the jury just did not find that there was enough evidence to find Sean Combs guilty of those crimes pertaining to Cassie Ventura regarding sex trafficking and Jane regarding sex trafficking, and the whole allegation of the racketeering enterprise. To be very clear here, a not guilty verdict does not equate to a declaration of innocence. It just means that for whatever reasons, the men and women on the jury did not find there was enough evidence to prove these crimes in that federal court of law.

That being said, it doesn't mean it didn't happen. It certainly doesn't mean that Cassie Ventura or Jane are not victims. With this huge legal victory for Diddy, I'm sure these alleged victims and others who testified as part of the case that they were victimized are very upset. And I think that the federal government should be commended for undertaking this noble and very difficult effort in prosecuting such a megastar.

Boris and Brianna, if we look at the letter of the law, and I've said this all along the progression of the last six weeks of this trial, if we really look at these crimes, strictly speaking, my legal opinion is that the government has legally proven all of the allegations they brought against Sean Combs. But I also recognize that every juror comes into that courtroom with their own experiences and may not see the enterprise. They may not see the sex trafficking for what it literally is by law. So certainly, with this verdict, we've got to respect it like we do everyone here in America.

KEILAR: And Clayton, Cassie Ventura's lawyer came out against Diddy's release and after the verdict, also said by coming forward with her experience, she has left an indelible mark on both the entertainment industry and the fight for justice. Talk a little bit about that. What mark has Cassie Ventura made on the culture of the entertainment industry and on hip hop?

CLAYTON DAVIS, CHIEF AWARDS EDITOR, VARIETY: Listen, we're in an era where visibility and accountability go hand in hand. And what Cassie Ventura did in coming forward and taking on power.

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And that's a conversation that we're going to need to continue and maybe even start for the first time for some circles. What do we do when we - when there's a system that values power over people, even if the power looks and feels like us? Thank you, Diddy was a symbol at one time of black excellence and saying to future black entrepreneurs that they could be something greater than what they are now and it didn't have to come at the cost of integrity or selling your soul like that.

The court of public opinion is going to be different, but what Cassie did here is hopefully keep inspiring people to come forward and speak truth to power, but the result, once again, becomes this tipping point in this moment that we all have to reconcile and talk about what is it that people have to do to be believed, even when there's video evidence that fully shows a guilty party.

SANCHEZ: And Laura, for Cassie, I mean, this is obviously not a position she wanted to be in. If she's sending a letter through her attorneys to the judge saying that she now fears for her safety.

COATES: This is part of an overarching theme for which she has testified about her feelings of not being safe. And yet the jury has spoken and I want to caution people, of course, two things can be true to the point that our colleagues have described.

On the one hand, they could absolutely believe the testimony of these women and also find that the prosecution failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt, according to the way the elements describe the charges here. And although we're talking about the finality of some of these charges in the criminal context, make no mistake about it, this is not the end of the road for Sean "Diddy" Combs. His problems in some respects might be just beginning. He has got dozens and dozens and dozens of civil lawsuits that are still pending. We've got no indication that those are going anywhere. There is a lower burden of proof in any civil context. Remember, in the criminal court, it's beyond a reasonable doubt. In the civil context, it's preponderance of evidence, which is a fancy way of saying more likely than not.

With that lower standard, defendants in those actions can often make different decisions than they would have in the criminal context. We don't know what will happen here or whether this testimony that came in from various witnesses, some of whom had pending litigation against Sean Diddy Combs in the civil context, whether it will impact what they do ultimately. Now, remember, from the opening salvo from this defense team, the words money grab came in. They wanted this to be a part of the consideration of the jurors, that there were these outstanding civil suits, and everyone was trying to get a literal money piece of Sean "Diddy" Combs. Well, that was their argument there. But in the real world here, those cases are still going on, and it's not the end for him.

Now, he has, in many respects, avoided the asset forfeiture part of that. That's a huge component of any federal case, where the government does not want you to reap a financial benefit from a crime that you have committed. With the RICO case going away, the asset forfeiture would be an unlikely, if at all, scenario. And so, he has evaded this in two contexts, but those civil suits, still ongoing.

KEILAR: And Julie, the defense did not call any witnesses. Is this verdict vindication of that strategy?

GRANT: I think it is, Brianna. I love that question, because that was somewhat of a stunning legal strategy to many of us. We thought, wait, what? They're not calling anyone. They're just introducing some exhibits. And it seemed to me that the way they tried this case was with the rigorous cross-examination. Some of them were brutal for some of these witnesses. So, it seemed that they were telling their side of the story through the government's witnesses.

And I said to myself, when they made that move and the decision made by Sean Combs not to take the stand himself, that that signaled to me confidence. I saw a lot of confidence. And when I was in the courtroom on Friday watching the closing arguments, I saw even more confidence from Diddy's attorney, from Diddy himself. And it seemed to me, looking at the faces of some of those jurors, they seemed to be in agreement with what the defense was arguing.

And so, I think that this will be something that perhaps brings back all of the confidence Diddy had before this case comes. I think he'll be largely emboldened by this decision. And we shall see if Diddy goes free this afternoon.

KEILAR: Clayton, talk about how he weathers the court of public opinion here. I mean, he's beat the feds. I wonder if there's kind of some street cred in that. But at the same time, the reputational damage that will affect him certainly at the mainstream level.

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DAVIS: This - in many ways, this feels like it's going to be a continuation of this precedent that were - that we've seen the last few years is that, you know, silence is the best way to go when you're trying to take on power, because what's going to happen now is that Diddy is going to emerge from this in whatever fashion. In many ways, he'll become a new cultural icon for people that just feel like he beat the system and was beating these lines, and they were anti-MeToo movement.

We're in this time where people are allowing people with power who they say are gaming the system and they get away with so many different things and watching them get set free and beating those systems that if they were in those positions, would never get the same treatment and they're revered now. This is just a continuation of that and Diddy may think that he'll have some great post career after this and people will love him.

But ask how Bill Cosby's, you know, career is going right now after he was set free. You know, not all the time will the love that seems like it's outside the courtroom when people throw in baby oil on themselves, that's not going to last forever. And people will have an opinion about what happened and know the facts of the case and then be able to go nowhere after that.

KEILAR: Clayton Davis, Laura Coates, Julie Grant, thank you, everyone. Really appreciate your insights. And still to come, Republican leaders rushing to get President Trump's so-called "Big, Beautiful Bill" across the finish line by the week's end. But we're hearing about some serious speed bumps here.

SANCHEZ: Plus, Bryan Kohberger admitting to killing four Idaho college students. We have new reaction from the families of victims coming your way on CNN News Central.

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SANCHEZ: The race to get President Trump's agenda over the finish line is on. Right now, Republicans in the House are inching closer to voting on the so-called "Big, Beautiful Bill" ahead of the president's self-imposed 4th of July deadline. Let's go straight to Capitol Hill with CNN's Lauren Fox, who's tracking the latest on this.

Lauren, where do things stand right now?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we are in a holding pattern here in the House of Representatives as there is a furious effort to try to secure the votes that Johnson will need on this first procedural hurdle, which is passing the rule that would govern the rules of the debate of this bill on the floor. Now, the reason that this procedural vote matters so much is it's an early indication of where your votes on the final bill might end up.

House Freedom Caucus members have been expressing concerns all morning long. A number of them went to the White House earlier, met with President Donald Trump. And we do know, according to Representative Tim Burchett, who's not officially a member of the Freedom Caucus, but is a conservative member of the Republican conference, that he believed that they did make some progress in that meeting. And yet the discussions are still very much ongoing.

Now, we heard from the speaker before this vote series got started that at some point members are going to have to understand that no one is going to get a hundred percent of what they want. Here he was.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): I feel very positive about the progress. We've had lots of great conversations, but we can't make everyone 100 percent happy. It's impossible. This is a deliberative body. It's a legislative process. By definition, all of us have to give up on our personal preferences. I never going to ask anybody to compromise core principles, but preferences must be yielded for the greater good. And that's what I think people are recognizing and coming to grips with.

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FOX: And obviously, the fact that this vote is still open tells you a lot about the operation happening behind closed doors. There's a number of conservatives who are in the ceremonial office right now having conversations. Obviously, we are still waiting to see whether more members meet with the speaker. But this is still very much a live action discussion. It's just not clear if they're going to be able to vote by the end of the day on this.

SANCHEZ: Lauren Fox on Capitol Hill, thank you so much. Brianna?

KEILAR: With us now, Democratic Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal of Washington state.

Congresswoman, thanks for taking time for us today.

You are hearing this opposition from a lot of House Republicans to this bill. Yet so often we will see that with a bill only for the President to twist some arms and ultimately get the votes. Do you think the Republicans are maybe going to scuttle this or do you think they'll get it through?

REP. PRAMILA JAYAPAL (D-WA): Well, I think, Brianna, that it's possible that they scuttle it for today. Remember that this bill got taken up one hour after the Senate passed it with a tie breaking vote from the Vice President. So, it was controversial there. It's going to be controversial here. And frankly, it's been a waste of time, incredibly inefficient to bring people back from all over the country when Republicans clearly don't have the votes.

Now, are they going to get the votes? My guess is probably because most of these Republican colleagues, they come out hot, but they're not actually fighting for their constituents. At the end of the day, 17 million people across America are going to get kicked off of health care. And these Republicans that vote for it, particularly ones in the tough districts, are going to have to deal with the fact that their constituents are not going to have health care, are going to have higher utility bills, higher nutrition assistance bills, all of that because they're - they potentially are going to cave to Donald Trump and his cult agenda instead of doing what's right for their constituents.

So, I don't know if they're going to find the votes today or if they're going to send us home today and then bring us all back on Monday. But if they do succeed today, Brianna, July 4th is going to be about apple pie kicking mom off out of her nursing home and health care for no one. [15:25:08]

KEILAR: If this passes, ultimately, will Democrats undo this bill if you win Congress in the White House in 2028? And which parts might you let stand?

JAYAPAL: I mean, it's hard to imagine letting much of this stand, because really, this is an unprecedented bill in terms of how much money is being transferred from ...

KEILAR: With the taxes on tips and overtime?

JAYAPAL: Well, those taxes on tips and overtime, Democrats have much better proposals that are wider and that actually help people. And remember, those small taxes on tips and some of those things that are in here, they have all kinds of barriers to getting into them. But they also only last for two years, whereas all the taxes on the billionaire tax cuts, those are permanent.

So, it's - again, it's hard - I think we'll have to reconstruct the health care system if this goes through, Brianna. I just can't emphasize how - I mean, I'm getting calls and in the airports, people come up to me when they recognize me and they're sobbing on my shoulder because they know that so many people, whether it's people who are delivering babies, 60 percent of births in Mike Johnson's home state of Louisiana paid for by Medicaid, or whether it's, you know, seniors in nursing homes or whether it's folks with disabilities. Those are the people that are going to be so incredibly hurt by this cruel betrayal of the bill.

KEILAR: The Spokesman-Review out of Spokane reported on a roundtable that you held earlier this week where you said that Democrats must put further checks on the executive once they return to power. What exactly would that be? What kind of check do you want Democrats to put on executive power?

JAYAPAL: Well, one of the things, Brianna, is that the founders, when they implemented those checks and balances, it's sort of assumed that people on both sides of the aisle, the majority and the minority party, would put first the Constitution. And what's happening now is we find that Republicans are not standing up to the President when he undermines Article I powers of Congress. They're not standing up to the President when he undermines the courts and does unconstitutional things against court decisions.

And so, we are looking to see how do we strengthen what a lot of Americans got complacent into thinking we had checks and balances, but this fundamental assumption is broken because Republicans don't seem to be willing to stand up even for their own powers here in Congress. And I think that's the whole set of things we're looking at.

I don't have anything specific, but we are looking at how do we bring accountability with a party - a minority party, a majority party that is refusing to stand up for the Constitution.

KEILAR: Also, you posted on social media that, quote, "ICE is acting like a terrorist force." And the White House told CNN that your, quote, "disgusting comments warrant an immediate apology." They called ICE officers heroic. They're saying they're, quote, "simply doing their jobs in enforcing immigration law with the utmost professionalism and the dangerous smears by," this is their words, "deranged leftists like Jayapal radicalized their supporters to violently attack and obstruct federal law enforcement because of comments like Jayapal's, assaults against ICE agents have increased 500 percent this year. And that number will go even higher if Jayapal doesn't stop with her smears."

What is your reaction to that?

JAYAPAL: What is deranged, and cruel and outrageous is that literally we are seeing ICE agents - I assume they're ICE agents. They say they are. They don't have any identification. They're wearing masks. They're in plain clothes. They are coming and kidnapping and disappearing people on the streets of the United States. I never in a million years thought that that is something that I would see here in America.

And so, I think it is the administration that has to apologize to U.S. citizens that have been rounded up, to legal permanent residents, to people with legal statuses across the country who are getting swept up - people who have been here for 20 years and committed absolutely no crimes getting swept up by masked men who are kidnapping them and deporting them. That to me is what is so outrageous. It's unconstitutional. It's illegal. And it is absolutely terrorizing people, including small businesses, farmers. The roundtable I had in Spokane was with people from the Growers League, farmers who are terrified, restaurant owners who can't have - you know, who are seeing their sales go down because nobody wants to come out and eat. Literally people are so afraid, Brianna. It's never something I thought I would see in the United States of America.

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The White House owes an apology to the American people for what they are doing.

KEILAR: Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, thank you so much for being with us.