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U.S. Official Says Tariff Exemptions on Tech are Temporary; China's Xi Heads to Vietnam, Aims to Bolster Economic Ties; Suspect Arrested after Arson at Gov. Shapiro's House; Noboa Declared Winner in Ecuador, Gonzalez Rejects Results; 34 Dead, 117 Injured in Sumy After Russian Missile Attack; Bernie Sanders Urges Coachella Crowds to Fight Trump Policies. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired April 14, 2025 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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BEN HUNTE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello. Wherever you are in the world, you are now in the CNN NEWSROOM with me, Ben Hunte in Atlanta. And it is so good to have you with me.
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Coming up on the show, trade war whiplash. Donald Trump says tariffs on big tech are coming, and nobody is getting off the hook.
A man is now in custody after a brazen arson attack forced the Pennsylvania governor and his family to evacuate their home.
And President Daniel Noboa wins reelection in Ecuador, but his opponent is casting doubt on the results.
It is a new week, and so far, at least, global markets are looking up after the Trump administration appeared on Friday to exempt many electronics from its sweeping tariffs.
But comments from White House officials over the weekend are now adding even more confusion to all of this. The U.S. commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, says there's only a temporary reprieve for electronics like smartphones and laptops, and that new tariffs will be announced in a month or two.
And President Donald Trump took to social media to clarify his plan, writing, quote, "NOBODY is getting 'off the hook' for the Unfair Trade Balances" and non-monetary tariff barriers "that other Countries have used against us, especially not China, which, by far, treats us the worst!"
Many Democrats, including Senator Elizabeth Warren, are slamming the president for the confusion over his shifting tariff policy.
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SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA): You can't get an economy strong and moving forward when it's loaded with chaos and corruption. Investors will not invest in the United States when Donald Trump is playing Red Light, Green Light with tariffs.
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HUNTE: CNN's Kevin Liptak is following all of the latest developments.
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KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Uncertainty continued to be the word of the day when it comes to the president's tariff policy, and specifically, when it comes to these exemptions --
LIPTAK (voice-over): -- that we heard about Friday evening on high- tech electronic products coming from China.
And what administration officials said Sunday was that this was less of an exemption and more of a technical step as they look to investigate the national security implications of importing semiconductors.
Remember, those are those small computer chips that power smartphones, laptops, computers, all of those products that the Customs and Border Patrol said in their notice would be excluded from the president's reciprocal tariffs.
Now, the president's aides say that those exemptions are not permanent; essentially, that they're temporary and that new tariffs will be applied to those products once that national security review is completed.
Howard Lutnick, the president's commerce secretary, said this could take between one to two months. And he said this was all part of the effort to bring the manufacture of those products back to the United States.
Listen to Howard Lutnick.
HOWARD LUTNICK, U.S. COMMERCE SECRETARY: President Trump has called out pharmaceuticals and semiconductors and autos. He called them sector tariffs.
And those are not available for negotiation. They are just going to be part of making sure we reassure the core national security items that need to be made in this country.
These are included in the semiconductor tariffs that are coming, and the pharmaceuticals are coming.
LIPTAK (voice-over): Now, the president himself also tried to clarify these exemptions. He wrote on Truth Social: "NOBODY is getting 'off the hook'."
He went on to say, "There was no Tariff "exception" announced on Friday. These products are subject to the existing 20 percent Fentanyl Tariffs, and they are just moving to a different Tariff 'bucket'."
Essentially, his message and his advisor's message has been that this is all part of the plan. These carve-outs on the high-tech products are all part of this vision by the president to reorient global trade.
But I don't think you can discount --
LIPTAK: -- the uncertainty that is now hanging over the entire tariff program as the president applies tariffs, lifts tariffs, adjusts the tariffs' rates, announces exemptions, then goes on to say that the exemptions are temporary.
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If you're a business owner, a small business owner, a large business owner, it's a very difficult time to figure out where exactly to invest. But listening to the president and listening to his team, they say that this is all just part of the plan.
Kevin Liptak, CNN, West Palm Beach, Florida.
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HUNTE: Well, amid all of the in-between uncertainty, China's President Xi Jinping is headed to Southeast Asia with a message of economic stability and cooperation.
He's beginning his trip in Vietnam, followed by Malaysia and Cambodia, three nations targeted by Donald Trump with high tariff rates before the temporary pause.
Let's dig into all of this. We're joined live now by CNN's Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong.
Thank you so much for being with me, Kristie. Can you just talk us through the agenda and the significance of this visit, please?
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR/CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Ben, the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, is on a charm offensive during a very critical time.
In his first overseas visit since November, the Chinese president is making state visits to three Southeast Asian nations. These are state visits, high-level visits, visits that usually take weeks, if not months, to prepare and plan for.
But the timing is significant. It signals that China is not willing to back down to the United States, especially as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to forge ahead with his trade war.
Now, Xi Jinping is in Vietnam, again, for a state visit today and tomorrow, followed by state visits to Malaysia and to Cambodia.
Earlier today, the Chinese president issued a statement about his visit to Vietnam. It was published in Vietnamese media as well as Chinese state-run media. Let's bring it up for you. And this is what China's leader said.
He said this: quote, "Our two countries should resolutely safeguard the multilateral trading system, stable global industrial and supply chains, and open, cooperative international environment," unquote.
Now, Xinhua is reporting that the Chinese president will be meeting with top leaders in Vietnam today and tomorrow, including the Vietnamese president. Reuters, citing anonymous sources, is saying that Vietnam and China are set to sign some 40 agreements, including a deal involving rail links.
Now, political scientists are watching this very closely. In fact, one political scientist I spoke to, he said that Xi Jinping is going to show the trade love to Southeast Asia at a time when Donald Trump is showing trade animosity.
He told me this: "Xi is going to show them love, perhaps signing some new trade deals, some new upgrades in their strategic partnership agreement. All of these are ways for China to kind of show that I'm on your side. It's safe to hang out with China, especially if you're concerned about the U.S."
And they are indeed concerned about the United States. Southeast Asia is a deep trading partner with China, as well as in the United States. As all of us recall, some of these countries, like Cambodia, like Vietnam, were among the so-called worst offenders on that list that Donald Trump brandished a couple of weeks ago in the White House.
If you show up this data here, just a reminder before the 90-day reciprocal pause, you know, Vietnam was facing a levy of some 48 percent; Cambodia, 49 percent; Malaysia, 24 percent. All of these countries are pursuing trade talks with the United States.
But all eyes today and tomorrow on Vietnam as Vietnam rolls out the red carpet for Xi Jinping. Xi Jinping likely to bear gifts. But Vietnam being very careful here. They do not want to displease Donald Trump.
Back to you.
HUNTE: Oh, yes. Everything seems to be changing daily. Let's see what happens next.
STOUT: Yes.
HUNTE: Thank you so much, Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong for us.
STOUT: Thank you.
HUNTE: Pennsylvania police say a 38-year-old man is in custody in connection with an arson attack at the home of the state's governor. Although firefighters were able to put out the flames, the house was significantly damaged.
Governor Josh Shapiro's family was woken up by police and evacuated. The governor says the attack was targeted, but it won't deter him from his work.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GOV. JOSH SHAPIRO (D), PENNSYLVANIA: This kind of violence is becoming far too common in our society, and I don't give a damn if it's coming from one particular side or the other; directed at one particular party or another, or one particular person or another. It is not OK.
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HUNTE: The suspect hasn't been charged yet, but potential charges could include attempted murder, terrorism, aggravated arson, and even more.
Well, you know we want to dig deeper into this. So, we're going to speak to Steve Moore. He's a CNN law enforcement contributor and retired FBI supervisory special agent.
Steve, these are important titles. Thanks for being with me. How are you doing?
STEVE MOORE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRIBUTOR: Thanks for having me. Doing well.
HUNTE: Good. Well, let's get into this really shocking story. It's awful. Investigators say there was clearly a plan, and this attack was methodical. What stands out to you about this attack and the way that it was carried out?
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MOORE: Well, the first thing that -- that hits me, Ben, is the fact that he got into a governor's mansion with the governor in residence.
I mean, this -- this is -- this is unheard of, at least as far as I can tell. There has to be much better security than that.
And for him to get in with incendiary devices shows that you've got a problem with security, because this guy was not, like, Doctor Evil. I mean, this is just a crazy guy, apparently. Or at least somebody who has some issues. But he got into the governor's mansion.
HUNTE: Gosh. And it literally took minutes for the suspect to carry out the attack and get out of the house. I mean, you sound surprised, but tell me more about the fact that this happened without him encountering law enforcement. Like what's going on?
MOORE: Well, what it appears to me is that they had security on the outside of the perimeter, on the outside of the mansion. I'm not sure I -- I am convinced that they have -- that they had security on the inside of the perimeter. At least the perimeter where the -- where the governor and his family were sleeping.
It sounds to me like they were searching for this guy as he got into the house. And that -- that's not a very good situation. Do you not have better cameras? Do you not have better electronic surveillance?
HUNTE: Yes, indeed. And the attack was targeted, but we still don't know what the motive, potentially, was. It's unknown. What do you think is the motive here?
MOORE: Well, Ben, as you know, targeted can mean various things. Targeted, in their mind, or in their -- in their usage means that this person was going after the governor, but they don't say why they were going after the governor.
The governor, in his speech, referred to political motives and to religious motives. And it may be both. It may be one. It may be none.
Which is why you're not going to see terrorism charges right away, because terrorism is one of those crimes where it's not just the act. It's the motive that has to be proven.
So, they may have more information than they're releasing. But right now, the -- the -- the reaction of the governor tends to lead me to believe that they believe it is either political or religious or possibly both.
HUNTE: Gosh. I mean, while targeting political leaders is becoming more common in the U.S., why do you think that is?
MOORE: Because there's no civility, in my opinion. There's no civility in the discussion between one side of the political fence and the other side of the political fence.
HUNTE: Yes.
MOORE: Between an attack like this, an attack at Nancy Pelosi's home, an attempted assassination of Donald Trump, the burning of Teslas all over the United States. We have a serious problem in -- in discussing, civilly, our political differences and not whipping the fringes up into -- into radical violence.
HUNTE: Yes, for real. And as officials carry out this investigation -- it's ongoing at the moment -- what sort of things will they be looking for going forward?
MOORE: Well, there's going to be two parts with it, Ben. There's going to be the what did -- what failures were there? And then there's going to be an investigation of him. The why.
They're going to go through all of his electronic signatures, all of his social media posts, anything like that, if he has those. There -- my guess is that he has some kind of manifesto or said something to somebody that he was going to do this.
They haven't discussed even this sophistication or lack of sophistication in the IED -- or the -- the incendiary devices. For all we know, they could simply be Molotov cocktails: you know, bottles filled with gasoline and a -- and a wick lighted and gone.
So, there's so much still out there that we don't know, but they're going to have to go after what -- what his motivation was. And he may tell him.
And then they're going to have to find out where the weaknesses are or were in their security.
HUNTE: Gosh. Well, let's see what happens next. Awful, awful attack. Thank you so much for being with me, Steve Moore. Appreciate it.
MOORE: Thank you.
HUNTE: Donald Trump brushes off claims of human rights abuses at El Salvador's CECOT Prison as he gets ready to meet the country's leader. More on the Trump administration's crackdown on migrants, that is ahead.
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The latest on the Ecuador presidential runoff is just ahead. Why the challenger is disputing the result after officials declared the incumbent the winner.
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HUNTE: Welcome back. In the coming hours, U.S. President Donald Trump will meet with El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele at the White House.
The Trump administration has deported hundreds of migrants it claims are gang members to El Salvador's CECOT mega prison.
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On Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced it had sent ten more alleged gang members there.
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a migrant in the U.S. with protected status, was mistakenly deported to El Salvador, and the Trump administration now insists it's not required to work with officials there to secure his return.
President Trump also denies that there may be human rights violations in CECOT Prison.
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DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I think he's doing a fantastic job, and he's taking care of a lot of problems that we have that we really wouldn't be able to take care of from a cost standpoint.
And he's doing really -- he's been amazing. We have some very bad people in that prison, people that should have never been allowed into our country, people that murdered; drug dealers. Some of the worst people on earth are in that prison.
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HUNTE: Conservative incumbent Daniel Noboa has been declared the winner in Ecuador's presidential runoff election. He says there's no doubt that he won by a wide margin.
But challenger Luisa Gonzalez does not recognize the results. The leftist lawyer says she will demand a recount.
The race focused on rising violence across Ecuador, linked to rival gangs supported by drug cartels.
Well, for more, let's bring in CNN Espanol's Fernando del Rincon, who is live in Ecuador's capital of Quito. Fernando, thank you so much for being with me. Are these results surprising? And what is expected to be Noboa's main focus?
FERNANDO DEL RINCON, CNN ESPANOL: Hi, Ben, thanks for having me.
Well, it was expected to be a tight race, but with over 90 percent of votes counted, Ecuador's conservative incumbent, Daniel Noboa, as you said, will hold office for four more years after beating leftist candidate Luisa Gonzalez on this Sunday's runoff election.
Noboa will now have the opportunity to continue his war against criminal groups that turned this once very peaceful nation into the murder capital of Latin America.
Noboa has been pushing for help from the international community to fight the violence and is trying to change the constitution to allow the presence of foreign military bases. The big question is, will the ban be lifted, and will the U.S. troops return to Ecuador after exiting the country in 2009 -- Ben?
HUNTE: Yes. And has challenger Luisa Gonzalez actually accepted the results? Because it sounds like no.
DEL RINCON: As you said, Ben, shortly after the results started coming in, Gonzalez questioned the results, saying the polls had very different numbers, and said she will ask for a recount.
However, the numbers are clear. Noboa has over 1 million votes more than Gonzalez, according to official data from the country's electoral council.
Noboa is set to be sworn in on May 24th to serve his first full term, where he seeks to improve security and reactivate the nation's struggling economy.
Back to you, Ben.
HUNTE: OK. Well, Fernando, thank you so much for that. Appreciate it.
While the Trump administration continues negotiations with Russia, Moscow launched its deadliest attack on Ukraine so far this year. Coming up, the latest on the aftermath in the city of Sumy.
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HUNTE: Welcome back. I'm Ben Hunte. Let's take a look at today's top stories. The U.S. is warning that an exemption for many electronics from its
latest tariffs won't last long. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick says there's only a temporary reprieve for products like smartphones and laptops, and that new tariffs will be announced in a month or two.
Police have a suspect in custody after an arson attack at the Pennsylvania governor's house. Governor Josh Shapiro and his family were not hurt in the incident, which occurred early on Sunday morning.
Police say potential charges for the suspect may include attempted murder, terrorism, aggravated arson, and more.
Officials in Ecuador have declared incumbent Daniel Noboa the winner of Sunday's presidential runoff, with 90 percent of the votes counted. They say he had an irreversible lead, but his leftist rival, Luisa Gonzalez, is rejecting the results and says she will call for a recount.
U.S. President Donald Trump says he was told Russia, quote, "made a mistake" when striking Ukraine on Palm Sunday. The comments come after two ballistic missiles hit Ukraine's Northern city of Sumy, resulting in the single deadliest Russian attack since 2023. More than 100 people were injured, with at least 34 confirmed dead, including two children.
Amid the devastation, Ukraine's president is calling on the world to condemn Moscow's continued aggression.
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HUNTE (voice-over): A busy morning in Ukraine shattered in an instant by a Russian missile strike. Ukrainian officials say two ballistic missiles struck the Northeastern city of Sumy, at a time that would have been bustling with people going to church for Palm Sunday.
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The city center, now filled with burned-out cars, busses, and body bags. A place that would have been full of activity before the attack.
But one local official says Russia must have known that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): At that time, a lot of people were on the street. The enemy was hoping to inflict the greatest damage on people in the city of Sumy.
HUNTE (voice-over); Russia has previously denied targeting civilians, but the carnage in Sumy is unmistakable.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We live in the city center. There is no military base here. There are no soldiers here.
HUNTE (voice-over): The city is reeling after the worst single attack on Ukrainian civilians since 2023. Ukrainian officials say there are indications cluster munitions were used in the attack, which can scatter deadly explosives over wide areas. UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The first strike on the event
hall, we were more or less fine, but the second strike hit us more. Cupboards fell. We were lucky that our windows faced the side of the street. Here is their Palm Sunday gift.
HUNTE (voice-over): The attack on Sumy comes just days after U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in an attempt to speed up peace talks.
But Ukraine says Russia is intensifying its attacks as diplomatic efforts drag on, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says it's time for the world to get tougher on Russia for its duplicity.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Wars end only when criminal wars are not forgotten and when there is pressure on the aggressor. This is not happening now.
HUNTE (voice-over): U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the strikes horrifying, a sentiment echoed by several European leaders.
But so far, harsh words and criticism haven't been enough to stop the attacks on Ukraine's civilians.
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HUNTE: Houthi rebels in Yemen are claiming responsibility for two missiles fired at Israel on Sunday. The Israeli military said earlier in the day it had likely intercepted one of two missiles fired from Yemen.
It appears a military base and Israel's international airport were the targets. And as a result, the rebel group boasted the airport was shut down for an hour amid panic and confusion.
The Israeli airport's authority says an alarm was raised, but everything is now back to normal.
Six women are preparing to blast off into history. Blue Origin is scheduled to launch the first mission to space with an all-female crew in decades.
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HUNTE: Were back. The first weekend of the Coachella music festival in California had an unexpected appearance this weekend. Senator Bernie Sanders took to the stage to deliver a call to action for the thousands in attendance.
CNN's Gabe Cohen has more details.
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SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT): Well, we've got a president of the United States who -- (BOOING)
SANDERS: I agree.
GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): That's Bernie Sanders, making a surprise appearance at Coachella Saturday night, where festival goers booed the mention of President Donald Trump.
SANDERS: And the future of what happens to America is dependent upon your generation.
COHEN (voice-over): It was an appeal to younger voters.
The Vermont senator spoke ahead of singer/songwriter Clairo's set.
Sanders emphasized many of his long-standing political views, like economic inequality and universal health care, urging the audience to vote against Trump's policies.
SANDERS: We need you to stand up to fight for justice.
COHEN (voice-over): The Coachella appearance comes just days after CNN's town hall with Sanders, as the senator continues his nationwide tour of political rallies with New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
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HUNTE: A space mission like no other is scheduled to launch in just a few hours.
Blue Origin is launching a space tourism mission with an all-female crew. The passengers include singer Katy Perry, journalist Gayle King, and Lauren Sanchez, the fiancee of Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin's billionaire owner.
The mission is also notable because there are no professional astronauts on board for the ten-minute flight. NASA solar system ambassador Sarah Treadwell told me it sparked plenty of debate.
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SARAH TREADWELL, NASA SOLAR SYSTEM AMBASSADOR; Oh, man. And within the space community, I will tell you, even just today, going through my socials, it is -- it is such a huge debate about what the label should be.
Are you just a space tourist? Are you, you know, a -- yes, an astronaut.
But I think at this point, really, what we have to focus on is that the industry is changing tremendously, right? Suddenly, we have all these commercial flights that are happening that didn't happen even when I was a little kid. Right?
And I think back to when airplanes first started, and that was only for the elite and the wealthy, right? And -- and so, this is sort of a new generation of that happening, where now we're seeing commercial spaceflight being more accessible. Not for the average-day person.
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But it was just a decade ago. It was, you know, unless you were completely -- you know, fighter jet pilot person that trained with NASA, you weren't going to go to space.
So, the language has just not caught up quite yet. And I think we're still working that out.
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HUNTE: Well, there's much more of my interview with Sarah Treadwell in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM. So, come along, join me for that.
But for now, thank you so much for joining me and the team. I'm Ben Hunte in Atlanta. It's been very real. WORLD SPORT is next. See you in a bit.
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