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Trump Defends Pardoning Of Violent January 6 Offenders; Israeli Security Forces Launch Operation In West Bank City Of Jenin; Texas Town Fears Trump's Mass Deportation Threats; Trump Announces U.S. Withdrawal From World Health Organization; Bishop to Trump at Prayer Service, "I Ask You to Have Mercy"; Trump Threatens China: More Tariffs Are Coming On February 1; Trump: Putin Destroying Russia Over War In Ukraine; At Least 76 Dead, 51 Injured In Ski Resort Fire; Trump: Open To Musk Buying TikTok, Proposes U.S. Permit; Trump Administration Brings New Challenges For Global Leaders. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired January 22, 2025 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JOHN VAUSE, CNN HOST: A major campaign promise kept and a major controversy begins. I'm John Vause. Ahead here on CNN newsroom.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: They've served years in jail. And murderers don't even go to jail in this country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Outrage and concern over President Trump's blanket pardons for rioters who stormed the Capitol four years ago and what it means for the rule of law. And praying with the president for a little compassion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REV. MARIANN EDGAR BUDDE, BISHOP OF WASHINGTON: I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country. We're scared now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: At a church service in Washington, a direct appeal to Donald Trump with some empathy and understanding for those he vilified during his campaign.
And in Gaza, day four of a delicate cease fire is holding while violence now flares in the West Bank. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announces a major military operation to eradicate terrorism in the Palestinian city of Jenin.
UNIDENTIFIE MALE: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN Newsroom with John Vause. VAUSE: For many of his most loyal MAGA supporters, the U.S.
president's sweeping mass pardons. The nearly 1600 protesters who stormed the Capitol four years ago was the fulfillment of a major campaign promise, the writing of a grave injustice. But the move has been roundly criticized by former prosecutors, legal scholars and those who survived the insurrection.
On his first full day back in the White House, Donald Trump defended the pardons, saying the rioters are patriots who have served years in disgusting prisons. President also commuted sentences for the leaders of two far right extremist groups already. Stewart Rhodes from the Oath Keepers Militia is a free man. He was serving 18 years for seditious conspiracy and other felonies for trying to prevent the transfer of power to Joe Biden after the 2020 election.
And Trump admirer Elon Musk warning the new administration might prosecute officials who slow down additional inmate release. Many critics believe the mass pardons could have far reaching implications for the rule of law.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're a president who has long said that you back the blue. But aren't you sending the message that assaulting officers is OK with these pardons?
TRUMP: No, the opposite, in fact I'm going to be letting two officers From Washington Police, DC. I believe they're from D.C. But I just approved it. They were arrested, put in jail for five years because they went after an illegal. I am the friend of police more than any president that's ever been in this office.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: More now from CNN's Jeff Zeleny reporting in from the Trump White House.
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JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: One day after signing a series of executive orders and issuing a mass pardon of those January 6th defendants, the actions of President Trump is roiling the Republican Party. Several Republican senators and indeed House members, many of whom were on Capitol Hill on that day of January 6, 2021, when there was an attack on the Capitol, are disagreeing with the action of this White House, saying that they believe the violent offenders from that day should not have received mass pardons.
President Trump was asked about that Tuesday evening. He offered a defiant response and he said he's a friend of the police.
TRUMP: I am the friend of police, more than any president that's ever been in this office. They've served years in jail. They should not have served, excuse me. And they've served years in jail. And murderers don't even go to jail in this country. ZELENY: So President Trump saying a pardon would be appropriate, it's
hardly new. He's been saying it on the campaign trail for nearly two years. It's one of the things he indeed ran on. But once it became official, not drawing a distinction between the violent offenders and everyone involved in January 6th, that day, that is what sparked the controversy. But the president, for his part, showing no defiance or regret on that move.
It's an open question, of course, how long this will linger. The administration in its second day here at the White House issuing many executive actions and moving very quickly on the legislative front as well. But this is hanging over the Trump White House on day two. Jeff Zeleny, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: The new administration moving quickly on another campaign promise, a massive crackdown on illegal immigration. The deportation process is being fast tracked and new measures are in place to arrest undocumented immigrants in places once considered safe zones like churches and schools.
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CNN's Ed Lavandera reports now from Cactus, Texas. Population 3,000, where many who could be targeted in upcoming raids are also known as neighbors, family and friends.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good morning, Cactus Elementary.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Every school day at Cactus elementary starts like this. Moments of patriotism and reflection with a high energy dose of inspiration from Principal T.J. Funderberg.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why are we here?
LAVANDERA: You do that every morning?
TJ FUNDERBERG, Cactus Elementary School: Yes, sir.
LAVANDERA: When I looked out on the student body this morning, I mean, it's quite something to think that we're in the Texas Panhandle and that's what your student body looks like.
FUNDERBURG: It's always very eye opening to people that come here. We've got 13, 14 different languages, all these different cultures represented. And yes, we're up here in the heart of the Texas Panhandle. Everybody think it'd be farming, ranching country and kids in cowboy hats, and we've got just about a little bit of everything.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): The population in Cactus, Texas is about 3,000 people, but the diversity is staggering. There's an African restaurant, safari restaurant in Halal meat. There's an Asian grocery store. There's a Mexican butcher shop. There's a Guatemalan grocery. There's also an Islamic center.
LAVANDERA: What draws so many immigrants and migrants here to a community like this is the work. And it is brutal, backbreaking work. There is a meat processing plant that runs 24 hours a day. There are dairy farms that run non-stop.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): These are the kinds of jobs that the United States economy and food supply rely on every day. It's also the kind of work that only immigrants, by and large, are willing to do. There are towns like Cactus, Texas, all over the country. And with President Donald Trump promising to carry out mass deportations, a sense of fear and uncertainty looms over these streets.
LAVANDERA: What are you hearing specifically from people?
ELIZABETH OLIVEROS, IMMIGRATION ATTORNEY: They, well, they're scared. They don't know if they're going to be able to stay here. You know, a lot of them have been here for decades. They've built their lives here. Their kids are here. You know, everyone they know is here.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): Elizabeth Oliveros grew up in Cactus, the daughter of immigrants who became citizens and earned their living working in the city's meat processing plant. She went away to college, became a lawyer, and moved back to Cactus to work as an immigration attorney.
LAVANDERA: If there were to be mass deportations here in this city, what would happen to it?
OLIVEROS: It'd be quite empty. I think there's a lot of people here that don't have status, that keep a lot of the businesses, the smaller businesses around here running. So if immigrants leave, I don't know where they're going to find workers as hard working as some of the immigrants.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): As we walk the streets of Cactus, it was clear that most residents, regardless of their immigration status, didn't want to speak with us on camera, and especially didn't want to talk about President Trump's deportation dreams.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, I don't like politics.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): I don't like the fear among many in this town and other agricultural communities across the country is that vital food production would be paralyzed and communities torn apart. The meat processing plant here says it only hires people authorized to work under different management. In 2006, the plant was raided by immigration authorities. About 300 people suspected of identity theft or being in the country illegally were detained, many of them deported. Elizabeth Oliveros remembers the day clearly.
OLIVEROS: I was in elementary school, and I remember they had to keep us because they didn't know how many of us. Our parents were gone. And a lot of my friends, their parents were gone.
LAVANDERA: Wow. OLIVEROS: They got deported.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): The children at Cactus elementary are mostly oblivious to the political storms brewing outside these school walls. Principal T.J. Funderburg is bracing for whatever comes next.
FUNDERBURG: It's just the unknown that scares me to death.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): He says as many as half the kids in the school could have undocumented family members. These are the kinds of places where the reality of mass deportations could play out.
LAVANDERA: To the people who are going to be making these decisions about deportations, whether it's mass deportations just broad or targeted, what's your message to them?
FUNDERBURG: Just, I mean, come talk to me. Come, come meet these kids. Think, you know, I know there has to be -- there has to be rules, there has to be checks, there has to be balances. But it can't just be paper. This community of people that have come together, that are here now, from all these different countries, all these different places, we can do amazing things.
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LAVANDERA: Residents who lived in Cactus, Texas, back in 2006, when those first immigration raids were carried out say it took the town more than a year to recover. Fast forward nearly 20 years, Cactus is a different place with immigration cases that run the gamut. People who have legal refugee status are here on green cards, have pending asylum cases, and some who are here undocumented.
And it really speaks to the challenges that the Trump administration will be facing. And it's not as easy as waving a wand and just carrying out mass deportations. These are complex and serious questions that the Trump administration will be facing. Ed Lavender, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: And Mexico's president says when it comes to Trump's immigration policies, focus on what he signs, not what he says.
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CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM, MEXICAN PRESIDENT (through translator): It is important to always keep a cool head and refer to the signed decrees beyond the rhetoric itself, so what matters in the strict sense of the law are the decrees that President Trump signs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Claudia Sheinbaum is already dealing with the renewed remain in Mexico policy, which requires those seeking asylum in the U.S. stay in Mexico during their application process. Mexico's president says any asylum seekers who are not Mexican nationals will be sent back to their original countries on a voluntary basis.
Just hours after taking office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to pull the U.S. out of the World Health Organization. Trump has long been critical of the U.N. Health Agency. This is his second attempt to leave the organization. He first tried it during the COVID-19 epidemic, but the exit was ultimately blocked by the Biden administration. WHO says it hopes the U.S. will stay with the agency.
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TARIK JASAREVIC, SPOKESMAN, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: The World Health Organization regrets the announcement that the United States of America intends to withdraw from the organization. We hope the United States will reconsider and we look forward to engaging in constructive dialogue to maintain the partnership between the United States of America and WHO for the benefit of the health and well-being of millions of people around the globe.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Joining me now live is Dr. Simon Williams, a public health researcher at Swansea University in Wales. Thank you for being with us.
DR. SIMON WILLIAMS, PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCHER, SWANSEA UNIVERSITY: Thanks so much for having me.
VAUSE: OK, so here's the executive order withdrawing the U.S. from the World Health Organization and among the reasons cited by President Trump mishandling the COVID pandemic, failure to implement urgently needed reforms, as well as political influence by other member states and one of his favorites being ripped off.
You know, the WHO is not without problems and the president has in a very broad sense outlined some of them. But are they so incredibly serious here, so unfixable, that withdrawal is the only option. And is that worth the harm to Public health in the United States as well as globally?
WILLIAMS: Well, absolutely. I think this is going to cause potentially considerable harm to public health globally. And of course, you know, we are interconnected as a world. And so, you know, what harms global health, harms American health and vice versa.
You know, the U.S., of course, is the primary contributor and donor to the WHO. I mean, it's $1.3 billion equivalent last year in '23. That is actually. And so, you know, a lot of this money goes into ensuring international security, right, from the COVID-19 pandemic through to potential other threats from H5N1 influenza through to Mpox. And so, yes, this is a really regrettable decision if indeed it does go through.
VAUSE: Well, you mentioned the COVID-19 pandemic. And now with regard to pandemic's future, here's U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders. He was speaking to CNN a little earlier. Here he is.
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SEN. BERNIE SANDERS, U.S. SENATE INDEPENDENT: I was chairman of the health committee. We had all the experts in front of us. When you ask them, do you think another pandemic is going to come? Their answer is, yes. Are we prepared? No, we're not. So the idea that you separate yourself from the rest of the world makes zero sense to me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: And to that point right now, the WHO is leading negotiations for a post COVID pandemic agreement, which means under this executive order, the U.S. will not have any role in that agreement, nor will it benefit from that agreement if all this actually goes through.
WILLIAMS: Well, absolutely. I think the pandemic agreement is very important. It intends to learn from the COVID-19 response to ensure that next time. And I agree with Senator Sanders, I mean, there will be a next time. Hopefully it won't be in the near future or even potentially in our lifetime. But the problem with of course, emerging infectious diseases, we just don't know.
And so the more prepared we are, the better. And it's crucial really that all countries and member states, including the U.S. contribute to that. And it's not really just about the financial contributions. I mean, it's about ensuring surveillance. And I think one of the key roles that the U.S. funding, as all donations have played is in low and middle income countries where they don't have the health resources and the kind of domestic resources to ensure that diseases are being monitored and the resources there to respond.
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And so that is a key concern because you could have indeed a virus in one part of the world that could kind of spread and eventually it ends up on the shores of countries worldwide.
VAUSE: Back in March of 2023, with regards to that pandemic agreement, Elon Musk, now best buddy to the President, posted on Twitter, countries should not cede authority to the WHO. And he's right, they shouldn't. But here's the point, none have because that's not what this agreement actually is seeking to do.
Is that kind of misinformed comment by Elon Musk sort of symbolic of a bigger problem for the agency and that many just don't really have an idea of what it's really doing, both good and bad?
WILLIAMS: Yes, absolutely. I think that is a key example of misinformation. Certainly the countries do not cede any authority or sovereignty to the WHO. I mean, it's more about international cooperation. And the WHO, as you kind of mentioned there does many things that is often invisible. Invisible particularly to us in higher income countries who are more fortunate in terms of our health and health systems.
But also invisible in terms of providing guidance and guidelines that really filter down through everything from tobacco control to HIV prevention to health insurance, safety in the workplace. There's a lot of expertise and knowledge that kind of feeds in across the globe, including the US.
I think the other thing, you're right, it is kind of symptomatic of a wider problem that we are seeing kind of sowing online, particularly on social media, some parts of social media, distrust in health and scientific authorities and institutions. We saw it similarly and do with the CDC in the U.S. and I think this is a concern.
I mean we see in the U.S., you know, trust in scientists has dropped by 15 percent. That's a significant drop since before the pandemic. We're seeing confidence in vaccines is going down. So I think these kind of claims around the lack of independence of the WHO, the control that it is claimed to have, the false, is problematic of a deeper problem around trust in science and health authorities.
VAUSE: Thank you being with us, Dr. Simon Williams in Wales. We should make this last point though. If the U.S. does withdraw from the WHO, it'll be the first member to do so voluntarily since it was founded in 1948. Good to have you with us. Thank you, sir.
Well, as Gaza wakes to the fourth day of a ceasefire. Palestinians in the West Bank now facing escalating Israeli violence. Details of an Israeli military operation just ahead.
Also, President Trump has missed his campaign promise deadline for bringing peace to Ukraine, but he did have a message for Vladimir Putin.
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VAUSE: Israel has launched a new military operation in the west bank city of Jenin, days after the ceasefire in Gaza went into effect. The Israeli military killed at least 10 Palestinians, including a child, Tuesday.
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The Israeli prime minister says the goal of Operation Iron Wall is to eradicate terrorism in Jenin.
Meanwhile, as the Gaza ceasefire begins a fourth day, hundreds of humanitarian trucks continue to make their way into the territory, bringing much needed humanitarian assistance. CNN's Jeremy Diamond has the very latest reporting in from Tel Aviv.
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JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Three days into the cease fire in Gaza, the agreement between Israel and Hamas does appear to be holding up. The people of Gaza are finally finding a renewed sense of safety after 15 months of war. Hundreds of trucks loaded with much needed aid have begun entering the Gaza Strip every single day. And Hamas appears poised to release the next four Israeli hostages this coming Saturday. But there are already questions about how long this agreement will
actually hold up and whether Israel and Hamas can actually get out of that six-week ceasefire, phase one of this agreement, and into a much more enduring ceasefire, perhaps even an end to the war and the return of all the remaining Israeli hostages.
You heard President Trump saying that he is not confident that Israel and Hamas will get to phases two or three of this agreement. And in Israel, there are already voices calling for the Israeli prime minister to go back to the war in Gaza as soon as those six weeks are up.
Now, as the prime minister is facing that pressure largely from the right wing of his government, he and the Israeli military are instead turning their attention to the West Bank, ramping up military operations. They're launching what's being described as a large scale military operation that has already killed at least seven Palestinians.
We've seen in videos from the scenes of armored vehicles and bulldozers entering the city. Israeli military vehicles, to be sure. And they are confronting Palestinian militants inside the city of Jenin, including members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad who said that they have been confronting Israeli forces as they enter the city.
Now, this operation comes amid the release of Palestinian prisoners inside the West Bank and as Israeli settlers have been carrying out attacks against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank, including setting fire to vehicles there.
Meanwhile, Israel's top general, Herzi Halevi, he has submitted his resignation to the Israeli prime minister, citing his responsibility for the Israeli military's failures on October 7th. This resignation will be effective early March and it marks the highest profile resignation in Israel stemming from the failures of October 7.
And interestingly, he is also saying that he believes a military investigation into the failures of the 7th are not sufficient. He says that there should be some kind of an investigative committee to look into the broad range of failures that led up to the events of that day, notably the Israeli prime minister who has faced these calls before for a state commission of inquiry. He is continuing to resist those calls. And unlike Halevi, he has not taken response responsibility for the failures of October 7th. Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: President Trump has for years told that he could actually end the war in Ukraine on day one in office. But more on that story come back. Also, a day of mourning in Turkey for a ski resort.
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[01:25:47] VAUSE: Welcome back, everyone. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN Newsroom. The outgoing and incoming U.S. president are facing criticism from police organizations for issuing pardons for those convicted of killing or assaulting law enforcement.
Joe Biden issued a confrontation to an activist convicted of killing two FBI agents 50 years ago. But President Trump pardoned or commuted sentences for nearly all January 6th defendants, about 1,600 people in all. He says they served their time in horrible conditions and deserve to be free because they love their country. CNN's Donie O'Sullivan reports now that some of the writers are already out of jail.
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UNDIENTIFIED MALE: You're a true patriot.
RACHEL POWELL, PARDONED JANUARY 6 DEFENDANT: I don't even know what to feel. I mean, I guess I should feel. I just, maybe I'm just shocked.
DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The end of a long road for Rachel Powell. Pardoned by President Trump and released Tuesday from a jail here in Washington, D.C. Rachel became known as the Pink Hat lady when footage emerged of her breaking a window at the Capitol with an ice axe during the January 6th attack.
A mom to eight and a grandmother to seven, I interviewed Rachel before she began what was supposed to be a years long prison sentence last year.
POWELL: How do I have time to plan an insurrection when my life is busy like this?
O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): On her release on Tuesday, she was met by activists who gave her new clothes, new boots and a new pink hat.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This man came from the Philadelphia jail. He got out at 3:00 that doesn't make sense. He's wearing prison shoes and Philadelphia's finest prison gear.
O'SULLIVAN: Pardon January sixers from elsewhere began arriving in Washington, like William Patrick Sarsfield III, who was convicted of a felony offense, obstruction of law enforcement during a civil disorder.
WILLIAMA SARSFIELD, PARDONED JANUARY 6 DEFENDANT: Well, I was heard through different apps and different programs and different phone calls from people that we still had brothers and sisters that were still locked up and haven't been released. And being somebody that's been in D.C. that everybody should be released. If it's a pardon for J6ers, it's for all of us.
O'SULLIVAN: You got out of prison last night?
ROBERT MORSS, PARDONED JANUARY 6 DEFENDANT: Well, I was locked up for three and a half years, and I was taken to the Halfway House on August 29th. O'SULLIVAN: Robert Morss says he was released from a Halfway House in
Pittsburgh late last night and came to D.C. to celebrate. Morss, a former Army Ranger, was found guilty of assaulting police officers, among other crimes, on January 6th.
MORSS: I had no intention of going anywhere near the Capitol that day. That's how crazy this got. So a lot of people were taken advantage of, and were lured into a lobster trap that January 6th was designed to be.
O'SULLIVAN: In terms of personal responsibility. Do you take. I mean, do you regret.
MORSS: Without a doubt. I said that in my sentencing speech. I said the words, Donald Trump did not force me or coerce me to do what I did that day. I did it on my own accord.
O'SULLIVAN: What's your message to people watching this who say, she shouldn't have been pardoned? None of these people should have got out of prison. They're criminals.
POWELL: OK, you know what? It's time to stop worrying about that and move forward in this country.
O'SULLIVAN: Folks there feeling very emboldened, clearly, by President Trump's pardons. And what we're expecting over the course of the next few hours and the next few days is as these cases continue to be processed, these pardons continue to be processed. We'll see people trickling out of jails like this one in Washington, D.C. And also out of jails and prisons all over the country. Donnie O'Sullivan, CNN at the D.C. Jail.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Earlier, I spoke with Andrew McCabe, CNN senior law enforcement analyst and former deputy director of the FBI. I asked him if there's any legal basis for Trump's pardons of the January 6th rioters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW MCCABE, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: I think it's important for people to remember that these pardons have nothing to do with what actually happened that day. We know what happened. You just showed video of it. There was a violent mob that attacked our Capitol in an effort to stop the peaceful transfer of power.
So the fact that these people have now been let off the hook doesn't change those facts. The facts are also perfectly clear about who received what types of crimes. Only about a third of the people were even charged with felonies. Most of the others were charged with misdemeanors.
[01:30:00]
And those folks served very little, if any, jail time whatsoever. The people who experienced longer sentences were those who went to trial on serious felonies and invading the capitol, or committing seditious conspiracy against the United States government. And those folks were sentenced within the law, right.
We have laws in this country that determine what sort of sentences go along with criminal violations. That's how those sentences were determined. It wasn't some political conspiracy to hurt Donald Trump or his supporters. It's simply an application of the law to the facts. And that's what we got.
VAUSE: Well, President Trump on Tuesday explained why he disagreed with his own vice president on granting sweeping pardons. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want to ask you about the Vice President, J.D. Vance. He said if -- this is a week ago -- he said, if you committed violence on January 6th, obviously you should not be pardoned. Why is your vice president wrong?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, only for one reason. They've been -- they've served years in jail. They should not have served, excuse me. And they've served years in jail and murderers don't even go to jail in this country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Under the constitution, the president has a broad but limited power to grant reprieves and pardons. According to the Supreme Court, the pardon power is intended as a tool for justice and mercy, an act of grace, and to further the public welfare.
A federal court has ruled that pardons must be in the public interest. So have Presidents Trump and Biden here simply abused or at the very least misused the power of the pardon?
MCCABE: You know, the use of the pardon by outgoing presidents often prompts questions and review about the appropriateness of the use of the pardon.
This is not new. I mean, even in my time as an adult watching these things just from the sidelines, everyone from President Clinton on forward has issued pardons and lots of people objected.
So I don't think that part is -- it's not good, but it's also not new. But what you're seeing here with the indiscriminate pardon of 1,600 people in one fell swoop, all of whom participated to some degree in an attack on our Capitol in an effort to overthrow the results of a free and fair election, we've never seen anything like that before.
And you can point to President Clintons use of the pardon, President Bush's use of the pardon, Joe Biden's use of the pardon and point out individuals or very small groups of people that maybe shouldn't have received those, but we've never seen anything quite on the scale of what Donald Trump did yesterday.
(END VIDEO CLIP) VAUSE: Our thanks to CNN's senior law enforcement analyst, Andrew McCabe.
Well, it's part of the inauguration tradition. Every newly sworn-in president attends a traditional interfaith service at the National Cathedral in Washington. And there came a direct appeal to Donald Trump to show mercy, especially for immigrants and members of the LGBTQ community and others who were often vilified during his campaign.
So with President Donald Trump and the First Family in the front row, the Episcopal Bishop of Washington, Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, talked about many of the most vulnerable among us now living in fear for their lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BISHOP MARIANN EDGAR BUDDY, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF WASHINGTON: Let me make one final plea, Mr. President. Millions have put their trust in you. And as you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving god.
In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: As he left the church service, Donald Trump had little to say about that prayer. But he's now posted a statement on Truth Social.
Here's part of it. "The so-called Bishop, who spoke at the national prayer service Tuesday morning, was a radical left, hardline Trump hater. She brought her church into the world of politics in a very ungracious way. She was nasty in tone and not compelling or smart."
CNN's Erin Burnett spoke with the Bishop. Here's part of their conversation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: All right. Reverend Mariann Edgar Budde, the bishop at Washington National Cathedral is now "OUTFRONT".
And Bishop, I appreciate your time.
And your tone there, so serious and genuine. You see him? He's stone faced. He then looks down. But he's listening to every word you say as you made that personal plea to him.
What -- were you looking at him in that moment? What kind of response were you perhaps hoping for in that moment?
BISHOP BUDDE: I was -- I was looking at the president because I was speaking directly to him.
[01:34:47] BISHOP BUDDE: I was also, frankly, as you do in every sermon, speaking to everyone who was listening through that one-on-one conversation with the president, reminding us all that in the people that are frightened in our country, the two groups of people that I mentioned are our fellow human beings, and that they have been portrayed in -- all throughout the political campaign, in the harshest of lights that wanted to -- I wanted to counter as gently as I could with a reminder of their humanity and their -- and their place in our wider community.
And I was speaking to the president because I felt that he has this moment now where he feels charged and empowered to do what he feels called to do.
And I wanted to say, you know, there is room for mercy. There's room for a broader compassion. We don't need to portray with a broad cloth in the harshest of terms some of the most vulnerable people in our society who are in fact our neighbors, our friends, our children, our friends' children and so forth.
BURNETT: So you spoke. I like how you used the word "gently" because it was gentle. I mean, it was -- it was intense and passionate, but yet it was gentle. It was not ugly or confrontational. Wouldn't expect it to be.
But, you know, these are hard things to talk about in that context.
BISHOP BUDDE: Right.
BURNETT: You spoke obviously about undocumented migrants, also the LGBT community, the two communities you're talking about.
I wanted to play a little bit more of what you said. And also again, the president's reaction at that moment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BISHOP BUDDE: There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and Independent families, some who fear for their lives.
The vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes and are good neighbors.
I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: What made you decide to say all that today?
BISHOP BUDDE: Well, these are the people that I know. These are not abstract people for me. These are actual people that I know. So I wanted to speak on their behalf.
I wanted to present a vision of what unity can look like in this country that is transcending of differences and viewpoints and acknowledging our common humanity.
I wanted to speak in such a way that reflected that dignity and respect, but I also wanted to bring into -- into that space the real humanity of the people that I was referencing.
BURNETT: Now, he was asked about that because obviously there was -- there were cameras in there, people saw that interaction and they saw it.
He was asked about your service afterward, and here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Not too exciting, was it? I didn't think it was a good service, no. They can do much better.
BURNETT: From him, honestly Bishop, it's tame. He could have said much -- he could have been much stronger than that.
BISHOP BUDDE: Oh yes.
BURNETT: But obviously he made -- you know, he made his feelings known in that context. But we know, right? He'll say what he thinks. And he could have said much more.
What do you -- what's your response to him in that.
BISHOP BUDDE: Well, I agree with you. It was a very it was a very muted response. I wasn't expecting -- I keep my expectations low whenever I preach, Erin. I don't -- and I don't always -- I can't always measure impact by body language or even what people say afterwards.
And so I have to let all of that go. I speak from what I believe I've been given to say and, and let it go from there. But I actually -- it was -- it was -- it was a respectful response.
He didn't like it. He said so. He said we could do better. Some of the other comments I've received haven't been as kind or has been as muted, shall we say.
And one of the things I was trying to get across is that we can actually have these conversations in a respectful way.
BURNETT: Yes. Yes. Well, I can only imagine. But thank you so much for taking the time to talk about it and to be so thoughtful about it. Thank you so much, Bishop.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Well, President Trump is threatening tariffs on China possibly by next week.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We're talking about a tariff of 10 percent on China based on the fact that they're sending fentanyl to Mexico and Canada.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How soon.
(CROSSTALKING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How soon on those tariffs?
TRUMP: Probably February 1st is the date we're looking at.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:39:49]
VAUSE: Just a day earlier, the president said 25 percent tariffs on Mexico and Canada would be imposed February 1st.
During his campaign, he promised tariffs as high as 60 percent on all goods imported from China. If he does follow through, it means he'll be imposing tariffs on America's three largest trading partners.
Wall Street, though, cheered the fact that these tariffs could be delayed by a few weeks. The Dow rose more than 500 points Tuesday, closing above 44,000.
Well, for years Donald Trump has insisted if reelected, he would end Russia's war in Ukraine on his first day. The deadline has come and gone and the war rages on unchecked. But the U.S. president was critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin for failing to make a deal to end the fighting.
CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has the view from Ukraine.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Neither Ukraine or Russia got a mention here. But hours later, Trump gave Reporters his most Stark criticism yet of Putin's war.
TRUMP: He should make a deal. I think he's destroying Russia by not making a deal. I think Russia's going to be in big trouble.
You take a look at their economy. You take a look at the inflation in Russia. So I would -- I would hope -- I got along with him great. And you know, I would hope he wants to make a deal.
WALSH: He said Europe should almost double its defense spend and he would meet Putin soon.
Trump's words, long-awaited and welcomed here in central Kyiv's fog (ph).
All the talk of peace deals, the conditions for it, of negotiations somewhat distant and theoretical from the real dangers people in Kyiv here go through every day.
The sirens sounding so frequently, and this vast sea of loss. Clearly so many Ukrainians desperate for peace, but also to see the sacrifice that's made yield some kind of future they can be happy with.
As the sea of grief spreads to fresh grass, hope is their only option.
Nazar is just back from the recruitment office.
"Perhaps even in the coming days," he says, "Trump should give more information about what he plans to do. But I don't believe in Trump alone. This is such a war that it will not be ended by the actions of one person."
Yulia is here to remember her son Yevgeny, who died fighting two years ago.
"Maybe well be given more planes and weapons to win faster," she says. "We really hope so. We have great hope that he will help Ukraine."
Ukraine's president, delivering a gentle dressing-down of his European allies in front of their elite in Switzerland.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The European leaders should remember these battles involving North Korean soldiers are now happening in places geographically closer to Davos than to Pyongyang.
WALSH: As his forces fought to hold back Russia, here in Toretsk, he reminded the European elite some of its governments were less powerful now than TikTok's algorithm. Trump baiting Putin, Zelenskyy baiting Europe day one and change of a less expected sort is here.
There is extraordinary hope voiced by people here in Ukraine, but you get the sense that underneath it, they perhaps feel they have little choice but to try and believe that Donald Trump, with the stark words he had to say frankly about the Kremlin's choices in this war, genuinely wants to put pressure on Moscow.
But they also know, too, that their situation on the front line is deteriorating, frankly daily, incrementally, yes, but in a steady way that suggests the curve of this war is working not in Kyiv's favor.
And I think it is that clock that is ticking in the background that would dictate so many of the choices ahead. But it was remarkable to hear Donald Trump exert rhetorically so much pressure on the Kremlin head in his first comments since coming to office.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Up next here, a fire at a popular ski resort in Turkey leaves dozens dead. We'll have the very latest on the investigation in a moment.
[01:43:55]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Turkey is now observing a national day of mourning for more than 100 people killed and hurt in a fire at a ski resort hotel. CNN's Jomana Karadsheh has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Shock and grief in Turkey after this tragedy struck early morning on Tuesday. A fire at a hotel in the popular Kartalkaya Ski Resort in northwestern Turkey claimed the lives of dozens of people.
This is a busy time in these resorts in Turkeys Bolu mountains. It is the winter school holidays and a lot of families from cities like Istanbul and Ankara would usually take their children for a break there. Many children are believed to be among the victims.
The fire broke out at about 3:30 a.m. This is a time when you would expect most people would have been asleep, and the flames just engulfed this 12-story hotel.
Officials say there were more than 200 guests staying there when this fire broke out, and survivors and eyewitnesses describe a truly terrifying scene of people desperately trying to escape the flames.
People jumped out of windows. And at least two of the victims, according to officials, died after jumping out. You can see in some of the footage of the aftermath that people strung bedsheets together and flung them out of the windows to try and climb out of the hotel.
According to eyewitnesses, the smell of the burning with the screams of guests filled the upper floors of the hotel. Others have said that the hotel fire detection system failed.
One eyewitness telling our affiliate, CNN Turk, that there were no fire extinguishers around. The government has launched an investigation with six public prosecutors overseeing it. And so far several people, including the business owner, have been detained.
On Tuesday evening, schools, as well as businesses began posting death notices for the victims of the fire.
Jomana Karadsheh, CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: When we come back, Donald Trump says he's open to his buddy Elon Musk buying TikTok. But as the tech billionaire's political influence grows, so too, concerns over conflict of interest.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:49:52]
VAUSE: The YouTube and TikTok star, known as Mr. Beast, a.k.a. Jimmy Donaldson, is part of a bid to buy TikTok, according to his lawyer. The investors group that includes Mr. Beast did not disclose the amount of the bid, which comes after a Supreme Court decision enforcing a ban on TikTok unless the platform is sold to a non-China company. The
app went dark for about 12 hours over the weekend. That was before Donald Trump announced he would sign an executive order delaying the ban by 75 days. Some analysts estimate TikTok's U.S. assets, without the crucial algorithm are worth between $40 and $50 billion.
And Elon Musk is another potential buyer of TikTok. The world's richest man already owns SpaceX and Tesla. And in recent months has become a key player in the president's inner circle, raising concerns of his growing influence with Donald Trump and potential conflicts of interest.
Here's CNN's Brian Todd.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: With his now trademark bravado, fist pumping and a primal yell, the world's richest person cements his position in President Trumps orbit.
Elon Musk, seen confidently striding into the White House complex.
MARC CAPUTO, SENIOR POLITICS REPORTER, AXIOS: What you have to understand in Donald Trump's world, is that proximity to the principle is power. And Elon Musk has that almost more than anyone else.
TODD: An official tells CNN Musk received a White House pass and was expected to work in the West Wing. But when asked if Musk would have an office in the West Wing, the president said.
TRUMP: No. He's getting an office for about 20 people that we're hiring to make sure that these get implemented.
TODD: The "these" Donald Trump's talking about are his new executive orders. But when asked ten minutes later whether Musk would help implement those orders, Trump said this.
TRUMP: No, no, no, no, Elon -- no. He's -- Elon is very busy sending rocket ships up to various places with lots of satellites on them.
TODD: As head of the newly-created Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, tasked with slashing trillions of dollars from the federal budget, it's unclear if Elon Musk will be an official government employee.
If he does become an employee, he would be subject to disclosure and ethics laws that could complicate his role. But even if he doesn't, Musk would face conflict of interest questions regarding the businesses he owns and the billions of dollars in contracts those businesses have with the U.S. government.
CAPUTO: He undoubtedly has holdings that touch major aspects of the federal budget in different ways. These are things that are going to be difficult to disentangle.
TODD: Musk's initial partner with DOGE, Vivek Ramaswamy, is already out of the mix, planning to run for governor of Ohio. And the Trump administration already faces multiple lawsuits over DOGE, alleging that Musk's new agency violates federal laws on transparency and ideological balance.
Even with those hurdles, analysts say, it's Musk's personal influence with Trump that could dominate the narrative.
BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: He has the money to punish Trump's enemies and reward Trump's friends like almost no one else.
We are seeing Musk on social media act as the Trump News 24/7. You know, promoting Trump's agenda around the clock to millions of people. That is a priceless gift to Donald Trump.
But did Musk step in it with this straight arm gesture at the Trump parade on Inauguration Day? Democrats and other critics say it looks disturbingly like a Nazi salute.
Musk downplayed it, calling the criticism "tired". The Anti-Defamation League posted a statement saying Musk made an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm, not a Nazi salute.
Elon Musk has also gotten involved in the pardons of January 6th rioters and their releases from prison, dispatching one of his lieutenants from his private companies to help smooth the release of two brothers who were convicted of assault in the capitol attack.
Musk also posting that people should, quote, "Let us know if you encounter any difficulties with the release of your loved ones."
Brian Todd, CNN -- Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Donald Trump has promised a $500 billion investment in artificial intelligence. He made the announcement Tuesday alongside the heads of OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle. Trump says the three companies will partner on a new project called Stargate, which will build data centers across the U.S. to power the next generation of A.I.
Meantime, the U.S. president's foreign policy plans have become the focus at this year's economic forum in Davos, Switzerland.
CNN's Richard Quest explains the challenges Trump's proposals could pose to the global economy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD QUEST, CNN HOST: It's a wrist movement, isn't it? As opposed to a golf swing. Right.
So this mini course, it's all about ice hockey. It's perfect to exhibit the problems facing the global economy in the new era of the Trump administration.
So here we go.
This one, of course, is tariffs. Lots of tariffs and there's many different countries that could be tariffed. And that's going to be the goal of economic growth.
[01:54:51]
QUEST: So let's see. Can we do it?
Pull it back. And one -- and we've hit a tariff -- two, three. And -- oh, another tariff.
The problem with tariffs is once you have got in to the mess of tariffs you can't get out of them as you can see from this.
Do I go this way? But if I've got no leverage -- look, no leverage. Or do I go this (INAUDIBLE)?
So close. And yes, we have beaten the tariff war.
Let's go to Greenland. And this is Greenland. Now you see the problem. European Union, Denmark, Greenland.
The first thing we've got to do is get over this. So the temptation here is to give a good, solid whack.
Are you ready?
Hey, now to the Panama Canal. This looks like the Panama Canal. We're going to have one go. Yes, I got through.
Whatever happens, the challenges over the next four years are not going to be easy. But we'll get there. You ready at the other end?
Did it come out at great speed?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it did.
QUEST: Did it hit you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
QUEST: I think global politics is easier than this, actually. This is way too difficult.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Netflix has announced it will raise prices on most of its subscription tiers in the United States and Canada by $1 to $2 a month. That comes after the streaming giant reported 19 million new subscribers in the last quarter of 2024, bringing the total number of subscribers globally to 302 million.
Netflix attributed the success to the Mike Tyson and Jake Paul boxing match in November, which drew 108 million viewers worldwide. Subscriptions were also bolstered by the success of "Squid Games Season 2, the platform's biggest premiere to date, with 68 million views in its first week.
Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause.
Please stay with us. My friend and colleague, Rosemary Church is back with another hour of CNN NEWSROOM after a short break.
See you right back here tomorrow.
[01:57:14]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)