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Pennsylvania Police Officers Killed in Ambush; Vaccine Advisory Committee Meets; Trump Meets With British Prime Minister; Jimmy Kimmel Pulled From Air. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired September 18, 2025 - 13:00   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: Suspension tension. Late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel yanked from the air following his comments on reactions to the murder of Charlie Kirk. The move stoking an already fierce debate over free speech and how the administration handles commentary it does not like.

Plus: a royal send-off, President Trump departing the U.K., but not before making a series of news, including new remarks about Charlie Kirk's death, the future of TikTok and whether the U.S. should retake a base it abandoned in Afghanistan. We will bring you the president's comments.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: And a meeting at the CDC today could decide which vaccines children get and when. Experts worry those decisions will be based on politics, instead of science.

We're following these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

SANCHEZ: Today, President Donald Trump and his handpicked FCC chair are offering different reasons on why ABC decided to pull Jimmy Kimmel off the air indefinitely.

First, here's President Trump speaking about Kimmel's ouster while overseas in England.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Jimmy Kimmel was fired because he had bad ratings more than anything else, and he said a horrible thing about a great gentleman known as Charlie Kirk. And Jimmy Kimmel is not a talented person. He had very bad ratings, and they should have fired him a long time ago. So you can call that free speech or not. He was fired for lack of talent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: We should point out Kimmel is suspended and he has not been fired, as the president said.

But then there's FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who recently threatened to -- quote -- "take action" against the network and its parent company, Disney, over Kimmel's comments regarding Republicans exploiting Charlie Kirk's killing.

The chairman saying explicitly -- quote -- "We can do this the easy way or the hard way." Here's how Carr explained Kimmel's suspension.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRENDAN CARR, CHAIR, FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION: The issue that arose here where lots and lots of people were upset was not a joke. It was not making fun or pillorying me or the administration or the president. It was appearing to directly mislead the American public about a significant fact of probably one of the most significant political events we have had in a long time.

We are in the midst of a massive shift in dynamics in the media ecosystem for lots of reasons, again, including the permission structure that President Trump's election has provided. And I would simply say we're not done yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Let's zero in on what Kimmel actually said, the basis for his suspension. Here's the late-night comedian on Monday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE": We hit some new lows over the weekend, with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Kimmel appeared to be making a point about alleged finger- pointing by the right-wing toward the left in the wake of Kirk's assassination. What he said did not appear to suggest that the suspect was a MAGA shooter.

Also important to note, ABC did not take action until days after this aired. In fact, it came shortly after the FCC chair threatened to pull ABC's broadcast licenses, also after the two largest station groups, Nexstar and Sinclair, said they would preempt Kimmel's show from their ABC stations. That's the same Nexstar that's currently trying to buy Tegna, another media company, a deal in which Nexstar would have to seek approval from the Trump administration.

Specifically, they would need the FCC and Chairman Carr to loosen government restrictions on broadcast station ownership.

I want to discuss this further with Ankush Khardori. He's a former federal prosecutor, also a senior writer for Politico magazine.

Ankush, thank you so much for being with us.

First, let's talk about the FCC itself and what jurisdiction it has, what authority they have.

ANKUSH KHARDORI, SENIOR WRITER, POLITICO: Well, the FCC regulates broadcast stations throughout the country.

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Their authority to regulate the content of what is on the airwaves is very limited, though, right? What they do is, they do things like issue licenses for certain competition rules, fines and sanctions when, for instance, there's maybe profanity or some sort of indecency on the air.

But the notion of just yanking licenses is not really within the sort of standard toolkit that they're supposed to be using.

SANCHEZ: Understood.

So talk to us also about the broadcasters -- or, rather -- yes, the groups that are pulling -- that threaten to pulled Jimmy Kimmel's show from their broadcast stations.

KHARDORI: Right. So these are the two companies that own a very large chunk of the affiliate, the ABC affiliates that were airing Kimmel's show.

They have, as you just mentioned, some business before the government, and it appears that they are sort of bending on this issue precisely because they are concerned that the Trump administration will not give them what they want in terms of these other media deals that they're trying to broker, not because they actually think that they crossed some sort of improper line when Kimmel's show aired.

SANCHEZ: So in thinking about speech itself, was what Jimmy Kimmel said protected speech?

KHARDORI: Absolutely. It was absolutely protected speech. We may hate it, dislike it, right, or have our disagreements about what he did or didn't insinuate.

But a tossed-off comment like that, particularly in the context of a comedy show, it fits well within the core First Amendment protections as political speech. But it is also a form of comedy, satire, parody. And I think it's easy to sort of dismiss this -- or sorry -- diminish this episode because of that.

But it's actually in some ways more important because comedy, parody, satire, these are -- can be very potent tools for political expression in society and for expressing your political support or opposition. So it's not just a trivial matter.

SANCHEZ: Given the landscape of what we just outlined, does Kimmel have cause for a potential suit? Does he have legal options that he could potentially pursue? KHARDORI: Well, I'm sure he is in touch with his lawyers. It's

unclear. I mean, right now, so far as we know, he's just -- the show has indefinitely been suspended.

SANCHEZ: Right.

KHARDORI: We don't know that there's been any action taken against him, terminating him or reducing his salary, anything like that. If that were to happen, if they were to cancel the show, or if they were to yank him from the air, he may have protections in his contract, but it would depend on the nature of the contract.

SANCHEZ: Ankush Khardori, I appreciate the expertise. Thanks so much for joining us -- Brianna.

KEILAR: President Trump is now making his way back to Washington after wrapping up a historic whirlwind trip to the U.K.

Moments before leaving, the president, who was standing alongside British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, made news on several key fronts, including Gaza, a surprise announcement on Afghanistan and Ukraine, the president saying of Russian President Vladimir Putin -- quote -- "He's really let me down."

CNN's Kristen Holmes is at the White House for us.

Kristen, walk us through the big takeaways from this trip, so many headlines.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: So many headlines, but I really do think likely the biggest takeaway is that both men are breathing a sigh of relief that it went well.

You could really see them, even though their politics couldn't be more different, getting along when they stood next to each other during that press conference. At one point, President Trump was deferring to Starmer and letting him answer questions, put his hand on his back.

And you could tell that Starmer was clearly avoiding questions that would highlight any of the nonaligned types of politics that the two men currently hold. Now, in terms of what news was made, I will start with the non-foreign international news, which was really some of the big stuff.

But it was the investments. Both sides announced these major investments. We heard from a number of U.S. companies, including Microsoft, saying that they were going to invest $200 billion in Britain. We also saw British companies, including one pharmaceutical company, saying they were going to invest in America, so a win for both sides there.

But then, when it comes to the international news, much of which came out during that press conference, there were some key differences that we saw. But I will start with probably what is one of the biggest new pieces of information, which was, as you mentioned, at the Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan, President Trump saying that the U.S. was trying to get that back.

Now, he said they need stuff from us. No clear understanding right now as to who they is and what they need. But he also said something else interesting, which is that that base is needed for surveillance of China, saying that Chinese are developing nuclear weapons just an hour away from that base.

The other big point, Russia-Ukraine. Now, they both -- both men seemed aligned on the fact that they wanted a cease-fire. But how they were going to press Putin, that seemed to be where they disagreed, both pushing for more financial repercussions on Russia, but, of course, President Trump focused more on European countries stopping buying oil from Russia.

And here's what the president said about Putin:

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TRUMP: The one that I thought would be easiest would be because of my relationship with President Putin. But he's let me down. He's really let me down.

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Russian soldiers are being killed at a higher rate than the Ukrainian soldiers. But, yes, he's let me down. I don't like to see -- it's death. It doesn't affect the United States. We have -- other than unless you end up in a world war over this thing. You could.

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HOLMES: Now, in addition to talking about Ukraine and Russia, he also talked about and he was asked about, both men were asked about Israel and Palestine. This is where you could see another disconnect between the two men, particularly when it came to recognizing Palestinian statehood, Starmer saying, "You know where I stand."

President Trump saying: "This is where we disagree."

Of course, the Trump administration has said it will not recognize Palestinian statehood.

KEILAR: All right, Kristen Holmes, live for us at the White House, thank you.

And coming up: Debate me. The head of RFK Jr.'s handpicked CDC vaccine advisory panel is challenging the agency's former directors to take him on publicly when it comes to vaccines. What we're learning about a key meeting under way today.

Plus: a deadly ambush in rural Pennsylvania. A man dressed in camouflage opens fire on officers as they were trying to serve a warrant. What we're learning about the investigation.

And just how smart are Meta's new smart glasses? CNN tried them.

Stay with CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

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KEILAR: Childhood vaccines could be on the line today as a key vaccine advisory committee meets on what to recommend regarding established immunizations like measles and hepatitis B.

The members here were handpicked by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., who is a known vaccine skeptic. He abruptly dismissed all 17 members of the previous panel in June. This new group has come under fire by former directors of the CDC, who called Kennedy's choices unqualified.

Today, the chair of the new committee defended the panel's credentials.

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DR. MARTIN KULLDORFF, CHAIRMAN, ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON IMMUNIZATION PRACTICES: False accusations that we and other respectable vaccine scientists are unscientific and dangerous anti-vaxxers, that just adds legitimacy to anti-vax positions, damaging both public health and the confidence in vaccines.

I suggest that you should only trust scientists that are willing to debate fellow scientists with different views. I hereby invite each of the nine former CDC directors to have a live public debate with me concerning vaccines.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Joining me now, CNN medical analyst Dr. Jonathan Reiner. He is professor of medicine and surgery at George Washington University.

First, Dr. Reiner, what do you think about that idea of a debate?

DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Wow, that sounds like a circus.

And at this point in the history of this country, I think the fewer circus events we have, the better. So I think if we're going to have debate, and I love debate in the public space, particularly when it's about issues concerning gas prices and taxes and reproductive rights, everyone in this country has a reference point from which to judge the arguments being made by both sides.

But when it comes to vaccines and microbiology, these are very nuanced, very detailed topics that the general public simply cannot decide based on scientists arguing. So it's -- that's really just a stunt and really a shameful one coming from Dr. Kulldorff.

KEILAR: As you're watching this meeting, what are you looking for?

REINER: Well, I'm sort of expecting what we have been told has already been predecided, that the guidelines for vaccines, particularly for COVID, will be curtailed.

There is a concern that the first dose of hepatitis B vaccine for infants will be eliminated and that these have already been predecided. I do want to stress that the ACIP committee used to be this anonymous group of subject matter experts, and they worked anonymously, not -- their names were public, but we never really -- the public never was told that they were meeting.

Experts knew that they were meeting. But now this has become this politicized show. And the 17 ACIP experts that were fired this past spring by Secretary Kennedy have been replaced by people handpicked to support various positions that Secretary Kennedy has taken over the last 10 years.

So this is not an independent, objective group of scientists looking at the data. This is a group of preselected people who support the policy of the only person that matters, which is RFK Jr.

KEILAR: The outcome of this meeting, do you think that Americans should trust these recommendations of this committee?

REINER: No.

I don't think Americans should trust anything coming out of HHS now. I mean, it's really horrible for me to say this. I mean, I have been a doctor now for three decades, and for me to say that Americans should not trust HHS, I do not say lightly. Americans should look to their doctors and their health care providers for information going forward.

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If you want to know whether you should get the COVID vaccine, the best person to tell you is your doc. If you want to understand whether your baby who's about to be born should be vaccinated for hepatitis B, talk to your obstetrician. These are the people you should trust. Do not trust what's coming out of HHS.

KEILAR: One thing the committee will discuss is the COVID vaccine. And in yesterday's hearing with the ousted CDC Director Susan Monarez, Republican Senator Jon Husted of Ohio said that trust in the CDC eroded during the pandemic because it -- quote -- "allowed activism to override science."

And he was pointing to masking decisions, to school closure guidance specifically. There was a significant portion of the American public that is in agreement with him, Dr. Reiner. You know that. But, more importantly, there are also some scientists who think that scientists could have been -- science could have been better marshaled to allow children to go to school.

How should public health -- safely, I should say, to go to school safely. How should public health officials address the root of that distrust, some of which is certainly coming from conservatives? But I think broadly a lot of parents have that across the political spectrum that has resulted from COVID.

REINER: Well, I think there is a lot that medicine got right, public health got right, and there's a lot that we got wrong.

The -- what we got right was the vaccine. The vaccine was a triumph, period. It was Donald Trump's triumph. And he should really continue to take victory laps. What I think we were learning in real time was about lockdowns, how to do that and how to protect kids, how to protect multigenerational families.

I argued after vaccines came out that one of the first groups that should have been vaccinated were our teachers. And once our schools -- or the country's teachers were vaccinated, schools should have been open. And I think, in retrospect, opening schools sooner would have been a better strategy, particularly when our most vulnerable, the elderly and chronically ill in this country, were vaccinated. That would have been a right thing to do.

But to say that the public distrust vaccines, the public distrust scientists because what happened in COVID, a lot of the distrust comes from misinformation that has been propagated by people who are now running public health in this country. So, for RFK Jr. to say that the public distrusts the COVID vaccine, well, he was the misinformation disseminator in chief of that.

KEILAR: Dr. Reiner, thank you so much for being with us, obviously some key days here as we look to see what this panel comes up with. We appreciate your time.

REINER: Thank you.

KEILAR: Coming up, we are live from Pennsylvania at the site of a deadly officer ambush. What we know about the suspect who opened fire from a cornfield.

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SANCHEZ: Police have now identified the man they say shot and killed three officers outside a Pennsylvania farmhouse yesterday as the shooter lurked in a nearby cornfield dressed in camouflage.

A neighbor says at least 30 shots rang out. Court documents say he had been spotted a day earlier stalking the home.

CNN correspondent Gabe Cohen joins us now live from York, Pennsylvania.

Gabe, what do we know about the investigation?

GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, Boris, as we have been getting in new details, it is so clear that this is not just tragic, but an extremely disturbing story as well.

As you mentioned, today, we got the identity of the suspected shooter in this case, 24-year-old Matthew Ruth. We have learned from a law enforcement source that he was the ex-boyfriend of a woman who lives at this property and had been seen in recent days by the family here essentially stalking the residence, that he was seen lurking in a nearby cornfield, at one point seen carrying a rifle.

They called police, reported it. The authorities then issued an arrest warrant and a restraining order. And it was while they were looking for Ruth, they returned here to this residence on Wednesday. And that is when our source says Ruth was waiting in camouflage in this cornfield, emerged and ambushed them, opened fire, killing three of those officers and severely injuring two others.

I spoke with a neighbor who was driving by as it happened. Here's how he described the scene to me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVE MILLER, WITNESS: I heard the gunfire, and I stopped and pulled off the side of the road and just couldn't believe what I was hearing. And then I saw a body on the road. I pretty much saw it hit the ground. It seemed like a war zone. It sounded like a war zone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COHEN: And in a powerful moment late Wednesday night, we saw a procession unfold across York County. So many residents from this community lined the streets, many of them carrying American flags, some of them literally crying, Boris, on the side of the road for this procession for the officers as their bodies were brought back through the community where they served.

We still do not have an identity confirmed, the three identities of the officers who died in the shooting yesterday, still so many unanswered questions. We are, though, expecting a press conference from authorities around 3:00 p.m. Eastern time today -- Boris.