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Trump Prepares For Arraignment; Video Shows Moments Leading Up To Explosion In Russian Cafe; Finland To Join NATO In Historic Security Policy Shift; Massive Security As New York Prepares For Trump In Court; Biden Again Refuses To Comment On Trump Indictment; Trump Involved In Four Separate Investigations. Aired 2-2:45a ET

Aired April 04, 2023 - 02:00   ET

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

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[02:00:31]

LAILA HARRAK, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome to all of our viewers watching from around the world. I'm Laila Harrak.

Ahead on CNN NEWSROOM. A history-making moments set to unfold in New York City in a matter of hours. As former U.S. President Donald Trump prepares to turn himself in and face criminal charges.

New video captures the moments before the explosion that killed this popular pro-war Russian blogger. What we're learning about the woman now in custody accused of playing a role in the attack.

Plus, we're learning more about the Chinese spy balloon that drifted across the U.S. earlier this year. We'll break down what we know and what we still don't

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Laila Harrak.

HARRAK: We are just hours away from a historic moment as Donald Trump will become the first current or former U.S. president to face criminal charges. Mr. Trump will be arrested and arraigned at the Manhattan criminal courts in New York. The judge will not allow the arraignment to be broadcast live but will allow some photographers, some photographers to take still pictures before the proceedings start.

Mr. Trump is spending the night at his residence at Trump Tower where aides say he's been huddling with legal and political advisors. We've learned he's not expected to speak publicly on the case while he's in New York. Instead, he's planning an address from his Mar-a-Lago estate when he returns to Florida on Tuesday night.

All major security is in place in New York ahead of the former president's arraignment. Mr. Trump's attorneys say they believe it will be very difficult for him to get a fair trial in New York City and they're looking at every possible legal challenge to the case.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALINA HABBA, ATTORNEY FOR DONALD TRUMP: I think we do know what's in it. We know that this was based on Stormy Daniels. We know that this was dismissed by the FEC and this was dismissed by federal prosecutors seven years ago. We know what's in it. It's a bunch of garbage.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRAK: More now from CNN's Chief U.S. National Affairs Correspondent Jeff Zeleny.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump has seen it all and done it all including run for the White House from here in Trump Tower in New York. But on Tuesday morning, he does something new. He faces a judge for an indictment and an arraignment in a felony case here in New York City for an old hush money case involving Stormy Daniels. Of course, this was litigated during his first presidential run back in 2016.

But now the Manhattan district attorney has brought this up again and a grand jury last week indicted the former president. So, this will all come to a head really the first time in an historic moment where a former American president faces in arraignment in a criminal court. Now I'm told that the former president was huddling with his advisors as -- after he arrived here in New York City, after flying up for Mar- a-Lago on Monday.

Meeting with his lawyers and his political team as well. He is not expected to speak on Tuesday here in New York. He's going to save his remarks I'm told for on Tuesday evening at Mar-a-Lago when he plans to deliver a full-throated defense of this case as well as other cases before him. But now this legal case is front and center in the 2024 presidential race. It is essentially brought these early stages of the campaign to a halt.

He's raised some $7 million in the last few days alone with his supporters coming to his defense. Even his rivals have been standing on the sidelines, essentially defending him and watching this case unfold. But there is no doubt on Tuesday morning when the former President arrives at the district attorney's office and later goes into a courtroom. He is facing an uncharted territory, something he has never done before in his long years of entertainment and political life here.

He's standing in front of a courtroom in which she has very little control of. Jeff Zeleny, CNN, New York.

HARRAK: Well, joining me now from New York, civil rights attorney and legal affairs commentator, Areva Martin. Areva, so wonderful to have you here with us on this momentous day. There have been new developments on the eve of this -- of his arraignment. Mr. Trump made a last-minute addition to his legal team. What does that signal to you?

AREVA MARTIN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: It signals that Donald Trump understands the seriousness of the charges that he faces and the unprecedented nature of these charges. We know that he has been publicly making very bold statements about this being a witch-hunt, about this being political persecution, about him not really feeling as if this is going to damage him at all in his, you know, bid to be President of the United States again.

[02:05:09]

But we are learning that behind the scenes, his lawyers have been negotiating with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, trying to negotiate everything from whether a mug shot will be taken. So, I think the public facing Donald Trump is very different than the private Donald Trump and his legal team.

HARRAK: And what can you tell us about the New York judge presiding over Mr. Trump's case?

MARTIN: Well, we know that this judge was the same judge that presided over the case brought by this district attorney's office as it relates to the Trump Organization. So, Trump is very familiar with the judge. We know Trump has been very critical of this judge. We're learning that the lawyers for Trump plan to file a motion to have the judge recused from the case, to have the case moved out of New York City to argue that he can't get a fair trial.

So, we know that Trump has been very critical of the judicial process, particularly when judges make decisions or rulings that are not in his favor. So, I expect that he will continue unless he decides to listen to counsel. But we should expect him to continue to kind of vitriol towards this judge and we know towards this district attorney.

HARRAK: And that Mr. Trump is no stranger to record cases. As he gears up for this first hearing, what do you think his legal team's approach might be going by, you know, how he has managed other legal cases? I know this is unprecedented.

MARTIN: Yes. I suspect that this new addition, who is a former U.S. attorney, who has represented several of the individuals in Trump's orbit that they're going to tell him that he needs to be quiet, basically, that everything that he says, every statement that he makes, every comment that he makes can be used against him. I would suspect that they're telling him that these are very serious charges.

There are some reports that he's not going to make any statements while in New York, although he is planning this press conference when he returns to Florida. But he is for the first time being held accountable in a court of law. And I cannot imagine that his legal team is not trying to impress upon him the seriousness of the charges that he faces.

HARRAK: Now, the reaction from Mr. Trump and some prominent Republicans to the indictments has been very strident, very critical of the D.A. going as far as denouncing Mr. Alvin Bragg. Could this backfire?

MARTIN: Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. One thing that you don't want to do as a defendant in a case, ongoing criminal case is be critical. Either of the prosecution, or the judge, and definitely not the judicial system and the jury. And we know Donald Trump, his criticism has no boundaries, it has no ends. And all of the statements that he's making can potentially, you know, impact the jurors that are going to hear this case and could have a negative impact on those jurors.

So, that's why defendants are told not to give statements, not to engage with the press, not to talk about a case when they are facing a trial. But, you know, Donald Trump doesn't tend to listen to good legal counsel.

HARRAK: And final question for you, Areva. How will the numerous legal woes facing Mr. Trump affect his reelection bid, if at all?

MARTIN: Well, according to him and some of his most, I guess, avid supporters, it will help him that these charges are going to make him a martyr, that this indictment in any future indictments only strengthens the basis support of him, but I can't help but believe some of the reporting that's coming out that there are more independent voters, they're more traditional, what I'll call traditional Republicans who are very concerned about having a president or someone be the top candidate for presidency who is under indictment, who is facing criminal trials.

So, there are lots of folks, as experts who believe that these criminal trials are going to have a negative impact on his election and that they may cause him to in fact, lose the GOP nomination.

HARRAK: Areva Martin in New York. Areva, as always, grateful for your insights.

MARTIN: Thank you. Good to see.

HARRAK: Ahead of the historic proceedings, authorities have been on the lookout for any signs of trouble. Security has been beefed up with extra barricades and cameras. New York's mayor said violence and vandalism will not be tolerated and issued this warning to any Trump supporters looking to cause mayhem.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ERIC ADAMS (D) MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: While they may be some rabble rousers, thinking about coming to our city tomorrow a message is clear is simple. Control yourselves. Not a playground for your misplaced anger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[02:10:06]

HARRAK: U.S. officials say the online chatter around Mr. Trump's court appearance has been disorganized and sporadic. And there is no indication his supporters are planning any coordinated January 6-style violence. But we're told authorities are staying vigilance and not ruling anything out.

Do -- be sure to stick with us. We'll have much more coverage of Donald Trump's impending arraignment. Including a look at some of the other criminal probes plaguing the former U.S. president.

Russian state media is reporting that a hearing is expected in the coming hours for the woman detained in connection with the blast that killed a prominent pro-Russia military blogger. Authorities in Russia are now calling it a terrorist act and suggest it was planned and organized in Ukraine.

CNN's Matthew Chance is following developments and has more now from Moscow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): These are the extraordinary last moments of one of Russia's most controversial military bloggers at a pro-war event in a St. Petersburg Cafe receiving an unexpected gift. It's a small figurine painted gold wearing a combat helmet in his likeness. Investigators believe it may have been the bomb that killed him just seconds later.

This was the devastation caused by the explosion in which more than 30 other people were also injured. Security cameras caught the powerful blast tearing through the building in central St. Petersburg. Russia's calling it terrorism, accusing Ukraine of orchestrating the attack. Something Kyiv denies.

This is Vladlen Tatarsky. The outspoken military blogger targeted and killed. With more than half a million subscribers to his telegram channel, he was notorious for extremist views in his support of the war. And for criticism of how it was being fought.

This is him at the Kremlin last year celebrating Russia's annexation of Ukrainian land with trademark vitriol.

We will defeat everyone, he declared. We'll kill everyone and rob what we need. For him, Russia was not being hard enough in its campaign.

Already Russian police have arrested a suspect. A woman who Russian investigators named as Daria Trepova spotted arriving at the cafe carrying a large box shortly before the explosion.

Investigators say the same woman was recorded inside the cafe after Tatarsky received the figurine. Interacting with the blogger moments before the blast. She's also on camera outside the cafe as the injured evacuated the bomb site. Russian officials say Trepova was once arrested at an anti-war protest last year. And they say she's an active supporter of the poison and jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny whose organization, the Russian authorities also accused of involvement in the bomb attack. Navalny supporters deny having anything to do with it.

But this is not the first time Russia has been shaken by the killing of a war advocate. This was the Moscow car bomb that killed Darya Dugina last August. The outspoken daughter of a prominent Russian nationalist. The Kremlin accused Ukrainian saboteurs of this too which Kyiv denied. But now a second killing. This time in Putin's home city of St. Petersburg shows how Russia's special military operation in Ukraine is reverberating at home.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.

HARRAK: And we're now getting more video from inside the St. Petersburg Cafe before the blast. This clip appears to show interaction between military blogger Vladlen Tatarsky and the suspect in the blast Daria Trepova. And she's returning to her seat towards the back of the hall. Tatarsky can be heard asking her to sit near the front, which she then does.

Finland is just hours away from becoming NATO's newest member. An empty flagpole now sits among the other NATO nations. Flags outside the headquarters in Brussels, where the Finnish flag will be raised Tuesday afternoon local time. NATO Secretary General says Finland joining is a big boost for the alliance.

[02:15:00]

CNN's Nada Bashir is monitoring this historic event for us from London. Nada, Finland pole position about to become a full-fledged member of NATO but without Sweden.

NADA BASHIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL REPORTER: Yes, absolutely. This has been months in the making. Finland initially applying alongside Sweden to join the alliance back in May of last year in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, ending decades of non-alliances. And we are expecting to see the Finnish President alongside his foreign minister taking part in that accession ceremony in Brussels in the coming hours.

And that is set to be followed by a bilateral meeting between the Finnish President and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg as well as a press conference later on in the day. This is a significant moment. Jens Stoltenberg spoke of the accession ceremony just yesterday describing this as a historic step for the NATO alliance. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENS STOLTENERG, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: This is a historic week. We will race the Finnish flag for the first time here at the NATO headquarters. It will be a good day for Finland security, for Nordic security and for NATO as a whole.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASHIR: Now, Laila, Finland initially joined -- applied to join NATO alongside Sweden over the last few months. We have seen intense negotiations between Finland, Sweden and Turkey and Hungary who had been the two final holdouts when it came to the ratification of Finland's application to join the alliance. At this stage Turkey's position on Sweden has not moved. President Erdogan has accused the Swedish government of harboring terrorist actors, including the PKK, the Kherson Workers Party, which the Turkish government designates as a terrorist organization. These are accusations, the Swedish government denies but at this stage, those talks between the two parties are still ongoing. But we heard from Stoltenberg yesterday saying that he is optimistic that Sweden will at some point join the NATO alliance. And in fact, just last month, Sweden's prime minister acknowledged the reality that it will look likely that Finland would join the alliance ahead of Sweden, but also said that it is not a matter if Sweden will join the alliance but rather when. Laila?

HARRAK: Nada Bashir reporting for you. Thank you so much, Nada.

A Russian state media reports that detained American journalist Evan Gershkovich has filed an appeal against his arrest. No date has been set for hearing his appeal. He was arrested last week after Russia accused him of trying to obtain state secrets. An accusation denied by his employer, the Wall Street Journal.

Gershkovich is being held in a pretrial detention center in Moscow until May 29th. He faces up to 20 years in prison.

Reuters is his reporting several people have been injured in a train derailment in the Netherlands. Emergency services say a passenger train collided with a freight train in the western city of Voorschoten, causing the passenger train to leave the rails. At one point, rescue teams were also working to put out a fire that erupted at the scene. We'll bring you more updates as they become available.

Just ahead. We're learning new details about what intelligence the Chinese spy balloon might have collected as it flew over U.S. airspace in February.

Plus, the U.S. House speaker set to meet with Taiwan's president this week. Details on the talks and how Beijing has reacted.

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[02:20:43]

HARRAK: We're learning more about the technical capabilities of the Chinese spine balloon. It was shot down off the U.S. East Coast back in February. And the incidence further escalated tensions between Washington and Beijing. CNN National Security Reporter Natasha Bertrand has the details.

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: This suspected Chinese spy balloon that was hovering over the United States before being shot down off the coast of South Carolina back in February was able to take some images and collect some signals intelligence over sensitive U.S. military installations across the United States. Now, the U.S. government is saying that they were able to take steps to mitigate the kind of intelligence that the Chinese were able to gather.

But at the same time, we are told that the Chinese government was able to remotely erase the data on that spy balloon, making it possible that the U.S. government will not ever know for sure what the Chinese government was able to glean from that balloon. In other words, the Chinese government may have been able to wipe all of the data on that device before the U.S. government was able to get its hands on it.

So, the U.S. government does have some idea here of what the Chinese were able to gather, because they were able to determine that there were some pictures, as well as some signs that there were some signals intelligence gathered by this balloon. But at this point, the U.S. is saying that they do not believe that any of this intelligence that the Chinese gathered anyway, was more sophisticated than what Chinese satellites are able to gather as they orbit above the country on a daily basis.

Now, it remains unclear how much longer the FBI is going to be investigating this balloon. They have had it of course now for well over -- for about two months now. And they have gleaned some important new information about the algorithms that power the balloon software, for example, and how it is actually able to be maneuvered across its targets. So, what we're waiting for now, of course, is a fuller picture by the U.S. government about what the balloons capabilities actually are.

And of course, about the kind of intelligence it was able to gather about these sensitive at U.S. military sites. Natasha Bertrand, CNN at the Pentagon.

HARRAK: Australia is the latest country to announce a ban of the TikTok social media app on all government devices. Attorney General Mark Dreyfus says the move will go into effect as soon as possible. It comes amid a major push by the U.S. and other Western countries to keep the Chinese-owned app off state devices over privacy concerns.

TikTok tells CNN that it is extremely disappointed in the move, saying it's driven by politics, not by facts.

U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has confirmed he will meet with Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen in California this week. It's a historic event already raising eyebrows in China. Beijing says it's firmly opposed to any official exchanges between the U.S. and Taiwan, which China claims as its own.

Well, President Tsai will arrive in the U.S. after wrapping up a trip to Central America where she's been shoring up ties with Belize and Guatemala. Two of Taiwan's remaining regional allies.

CNN's Anna Coren joins us now from Hong Kong with more. Anna, last time, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi met with Taiwan's leader. That didn't go down well with Beijing. Her successor now House Speaker Kevin McCarthy equally unfazed by warnings from China.

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. This this meeting is going ahead despite China's objections. A few hours ago, Laila, we heard from the spokesperson of the Chinese Consulate General in Los Angeles. He voiced China's protest over the meeting. He said "disregarding China's solemn representations and repeated warnings the U.S. insisted on arranging Tsai Ing-wen's transit and plotting and supporting the Taiwan authorities pursued an independence."

China solemnly protests and strongly condemned this. Now as you say, Laila, President Tsai's office also confirmed Wednesday's meeting, her spokesperson told Taiwan state media, "It is the right of the 23 million people of Taiwan for a democratic Taiwan to have exchanges with other democracies. China has no say in this matter."

Earlier, McCarthy's office issued a statement confirming the bipartisan meeting.

[02:25:05]

It will be held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library just outside Los Angeles. McCarthy of course will be the highest-ranking U.S. official to meet a Taiwanese leader on American soil.

Now, we know that this meeting was long anticipated and it is also guaranteed to further inflame the fractured relationship between the U.S. and China. Beijing last week threatened to "Resolutely fight back if this meeting goes ahead." As you mentioned, Tsai has been in Central America for an official visit in Guatemala and Belize yesterday while addressing the National Assembly in Belize.

She said her country is facing expansionist threats from authoritarian regimes. Obviously, she's referring to China. Let's have a listen to some of that speech.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TSAI ING-WEN, PRESIDENT OF TAIWAN: The people will try one face concentrates and pressure on the neighbor on the other side of the Taiwan Strait. What Taiwan's relationship with democracies around the world have grown stronger in recent years. We continue to be excluded from participating in international organizations and serving as a productive member of the international community.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRAK: Laila, last week Tsai had a stopover in New York on her way to Central America. She gave his speech and said Taiwan's relationship with the U.S. has never been closer. As we know, China believes Taiwan belongs to it. It's refused to rule out the use of military force to bring Taiwan under Beijing's control. And while the U.S. acknowledges China's position, it has never officially recognized Beijing's claim to the island.

Just finally, the White House has declined to weigh in on this meeting thus far, Laila.

HARRAK: Anna Coren reporting. Thank you so much.

A U.S. strike in Syria has killed a senior ISIS leader who planned attacks in Europe. That's according to a tweet from U.S. Central Command posted within the past few hours. Defense officials say no civilians were killed or wounded in Monday strike.

Donald Trump is getting ready to turn himself in at a New York courthouse. And there's already heavy security. Details on that.

Plus, the judge's decision on cameras in the courtroom.

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HARRAK: Donald Trump is doing courts in the coming hours to face criminal charges after he became the first past or present U.S. president to be indicted. He arrived in New York on Monday for the upcoming arraignments with a huge security detail.

The Secret Service, New York police and court officers will all be coordinating security.

[02:30:07]

Mr. Trump is believed to be spending the nights at Trump Tower. But when he gets to courts cameras will not be rolling. The judge ruled that only still photographs will be allowed prior to the hearing. The district attorney is scheduled to hold a news conference afterward. And Mr. Trump is expected to speak upon his return to Mar-a-Lago. Joining me now from Los Angeles, Ron Brownstein is a CNN'S Senior Political Analyst and a Senior Editor at The Atlantic. Ron, always great to have you with us. When Mr. Trump's indictment was first announced it was huge news and it is even bigger news right now. We're just hours away from his arraignment. As anticipation builds, how would you describe this moment?

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: It's historic, it's sad and it may only be the beginning of the process. You know, I've said that obviously, the indicted criminal indictment of a former president takes the U.S. into uncharted waters. Well, we are not nearly as far from shore as we may be in six or eight months. I mean, there are at least three other serious criminal investigations underway. And we may see this scene repeated multiple times before anyone begins to vote in the Republican primaries and caucuses next winter.

HARRAK: What does this case do to Mr. Trump's reelection prospects and his approval ratings, is this going to help or hurt him with voters?

BROWNSTEIN: The answer is both. This is the dilemma for the Republican Party. There I think is no question at this point, that the threat of indictment is strengthening him as a candidate for the Republican nomination that there is a clear rally around the flag circling the wagons effect going on. Plus, all of the other Republican major possible Republican candidates have chosen not to use this to highlight potential vulnerabilities of Trump. But to really kind of hug him and to echo his complaints that this is a witch hunt or a political hit job.

So, on the one hand, I think it is very clearly the evidence, I think is incontrovertible that it is strengthening him for the Republican nomination. Simultaneously, it may well be weakening him as a potential general election candidate if he does win that nomination. I mean, Laila, this indictment resurfaces all of the issues that cause so many swing voters and independent voters to pull away from Trump over the course of his presidency. Even if they liked some of the policies that he was pursuing the chaos, the vitriol, the unpredictability, the scandal. CNN poll out today, 60 percent of Americans say the indictment is justified. And those who the favor of view of him have fallen to only 34 percent. It is in some ways, the most difficult possible situation where the Republicans skeptical of Trump. Because this is both strengthening him in the near term against his Republican rivals, but potentially weakening him if he does, in fact, win that nomination.

HARRAK: Let's turn our attention to President Biden. He has now repeatedly declined --

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

HARRAK: -- to comment on Mr. Trump's indictment.

BROWNSTEIN: Absolutely, and look, Trump wants to frame this and Kevin McCarthy. And even -- as I said, several of the other Republicans running against Trump in 24 want to frame this as a political contest. That it is the Democratic party going after Donald Trump and Trump's formulation. They're only going after me because they just stain and want to silence you. Biden is not going to do anything in his power to try to give that more oxygen. I mean, he is just not going to I think in any way, and perhaps maybe the most minimal way possible throughout comment on this. Because he does not want to give trump any further ammunition to present this in a political frame.

And frankly, you know, I think there's a broad view among Democrats after the 22 election, maybe this will be wishful thinking. But after the Trump fact, candidates perform so poorly in the states that the absolute tipping point of American elections, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Democrats generally believe that Trump is the easiest Republican for them to beat, in part because he's, you know, almost as old as Biden is. So, there's also an incentive for Democrats to stay out of the way, given the dynamic that we were just discussing that this may make it more likely that Trump wins the nomination. While simultaneously, weakening him if he in fact does become that nominee.

HARRAK: And Ron, final question for you. A historic event, and probably the most important part of that event is the unsealing of the indictment.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

HARRAK: How do you look at this?

BROWNSTEIN: Yes, I mean, you know, we've in the way -- the way the modern, you know, political and media world works. We spent a lot of time speculating, we don't really know what's in the indictment. We're going to learn a lot more about that tomorrow. I mean, there's been a lot of opinion and kind of chatter that this is potentially a weak case, it's a stretch. There's been a counter pushback against that from experts on New York Law. Who say that the kind of the underlying principles in this case have in fact, been applied and adjudicated and won by prosecutor's multiple times and the state of New York.

[02:35:24] All of that tomorrow will kind of, you know, move into the rearview mirror. And we will actually have a first sense of what the case is, we will not, however, probably for many months to come have a full picture of what the evidence is. And I would only say what you need to go back to where we started this conversation. That, you know, in six or eight months, this may be somewhat lower down on the list of legal challenges for the former president that we are discussing. If he is indicted by a grand jury in Georgia, over trying to overturn the election there, or if he is indicted by the federal prosecutors over his handling of classified documents, or his role and trying to block the certification of Joe Biden's victory. You know, this may be the first it may not be the most consequential of the legal challenges that he faces between now and when the first voters go to the polls next winter.

HARRAK: Ron Brownstein, thank you so much as always.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me.

HARRAK: Oh, as Ron mentioned, the alleged hush money case in New York is just one of several legal headaches for Mr. Trump. CNN's Brian Todd brings us the latest on all four criminal investigations.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): From the Stormy Daniels hush money case to the Mar-a-Lago documents probe, to the election interference grand jury in Georgia in the federal January 6 inquiry. Donald Trump is entangled in a web of investigations targeting him from many directions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's pretty remarkable that you have multiple different states, the federal government all investigating the same person at once. But that person is the former president of the United States.

TODD (voiceover): Trump now faces no fewer than four separate criminal probes. There's a history making indictment in the Daniels case in New York, where Trump reportedly faces 30 Plus counts related to business fraud. In Washington, a special counsel was appointed by the Justice Department to oversee a criminal investigation into whether Trump tried to interfere with the results of the 2020 election, and whether he incited the January 6 attack.

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're going to walk down to the Capitol.

TODD (voiceover): There's the Justice Department's Mar-a-Lago investigation into whether Trump illegally mishandled classified documents when he brought them to his Florida estate after leaving the White House. CNN now reporting federal prosecutors have obtained new evidence in the obstruction probe in that case, evidence like texts, emails and photographs. And in Georgia, Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis is overseeing a special Grand Jury looking into whether Trump and his allies tried to overturn Joe Biden's 2020 election victory in Georgia, by allegedly setting up fake electors and pressuring the Secretary of State to quote find more votes for Trump. Which of these cases might be the most likely to bring convictions against the former president?

JENNIFER RODGERS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: I think the case that poses the greatest threat of the former president actually serving prison time is the Mar-a-Lago documents case, that's being investigated by the Special Counsel. And the evidence, at least from what we've seen publicly seems quite strong.

TODD (voiceover): Conversely, which case against Trump could be the weakest?

RODGERS: I think the one that maybe isn't going to get across the finish line is the federal January 6 case. I don't think there'll be able to charge the former president with seditious conspiracy, and I don't know whether they're going to charge him with anything on the January 6 side of things.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (on camera): Donald Trump has repeatedly rejected the allegations in each of these investigations, characterizing them as facets of a witch hunt designed to take him down. He's called the Mar-a-Lago investigation, the weaponization of the justice system, and he slammed the Georgia in New York probes as being politically motivated. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

HARRAK: She has long been a vocal advocate for women's rights. Well, now this French Minister, appearing on the cover of Playball, Playboy magazine rather and some of her supporters are upset. Why she says she's doing it ahead.

[02:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRAK: With French in turmoil over present immigrant Americans pension reforms, the last thing it needs is another very public controversy. But a female minister who is a longtime advocate for women's rights is appearing rather scantily clad on the cover of an upcoming edition of Playboy. And that's stirring up a ruckus even among her political allies. CNN's Melissa Bell explains from Paris.

MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT: Here in France, one of the government's Junior ministers coming in for criticism after the decision she made not just to give an interview to Frances Playboy magazine, the French version of Playboy magazine, but also to appear on its front cover, that edition will come out on Thursday. It's been defended both by Marlene Schiappa herself, and by the magazine's editors been explaining that it's been changed quite a lot these last few years. This is an article about promoting says Marlene Schiappa, women's rights and gay rights and attracting attention to those causes.

Marlene Schiappa, rose to prominence when Emmanuel Macron was first elected and made a quality minister had been known as a feminist author before that. That is part of the questioning that's come around her decision to grant the interview and to appear on the cover, as has the forthcoming question of the reshuffle that we expect here in France on the back of the social protests that we've seen over pension reform, with many on her own site taking the opportunity to lay into her decision. It is a time of great political uncertainty here in France, but also people point out an ill-timed decision in terms of how it looks in the context of those ongoing protests over pension reform. It is on Thursday, that the unions will be back on the street for another day of mass strike action and protest. Melissa Bell, CNN Paris.

HARRAK: NASA has released the names of the astronauts who are scheduled to fly around the moon next year. The crew members will be Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Jeremy Hansen and Christina Koch. The diverse group includes the first woman, first person of color and first Canadian to travel so far into space. Well, Artemis II will be NASA's first crewed mission to orbit the Moon since the Apollo program. And more than half a century ago it is scheduled to blast off in November of next year. Thanks so much for joining us I'm Laila Harrak, "WORLD SPORTS" is up next. And I'll be back in 15 minutes with more CNN NEWSROOM. See you then.

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