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"No Kings" Protests Against Trump Underway Nationwide; Trump: No Tomahawk Missiles For Ukraine; Interview With Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor; George Santos Out Of Prison After Trump Commutes Sentence; Trump Says He Authorized CIA Action In Venezuela But Stopped Short Of Calling For Regime Change; Ballet Star Misty Copeland Empowering Kids To "Be Bold". Aired 5-6p ET

Aired October 18, 2025 - 17:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:00:36]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. Hi everyone. I'm Jessica Dean here in New York.

And happening right now, nationwide protests are underway all across the country. Big crowds turning out all day for the protests against the Trump administration and its policies with more than 2,500 events planned coast to coast for today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In America, we don't do kings. We don't do thrones.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Our nation's democracy is at stake.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The authoritarians divide and conquer, and they create an "other" and then they pick on it and then pick on the person and harass them, jail them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's all unconstitutional and precedent (ph). It's not -- it's not what I want for my country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In this moment in which we are seeing a president and an administration arrogating to himself power that doesn't belong to him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have somebody who, just like he said to Georgia, go find me 11,700 votes, he's trying to tell these states, go find me ten extra congressional seats or 15 seats or 20 seats.

And this could create a permanent one-party rule at the expense of black voters and black communities.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This country was founded by -- on a constitutional basis. And that constitution is being trampled by the present administration. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That the Declaration of Independence was about no

kings, about our personal liberties, about free press, about due process, about separation of church and state.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No thrones, no crowns, no kings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: These rallies are happening while there's continuing, rising tension over President Trump's immigration crackdown and his push to send more federal troops into American cities.

Rallies on the West Coast are just starting to ramp up. We are monitoring those live.

To that point, CNN has live team coverage from coast to coast this afternoon. We're going to begin, as I mentioned with CNN's Julia Vargas Jones. she is live in Los Angeles.

Julia, it is roughly 2:00 in the afternoon there, what are you seeing?

JULIA VARGAS JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's the time this rally is scheduled to begin, Jessica. For hours, though, we're seeing people arriving with their signs, costumes. I'm going to show you around a little bit.

This is the front of the march. Over here to the left is where everything will kick off in about 45 minutes.

At this point, there's a band playing. We are expecting speakers. We saw not long ago a group of indigenous leaders leading a circle dance to bless this rally and kick things off.

But a lot of what I'm seeing that I find interesting, aside from the funny costumes from the flow of costumes (INAUDIBLE) what we've seen around in Portland over the past few weeks, we're seeing a lot of Mexican and Mexican-American flags like this one right here.

I'm sorry. I'm just going to show you a flag for a second. Like right there. That is what we're seeing time and again. Thank you so much.

And Ecuadorian flags, half Ecuadorian, half American flags. A lot of people here saying that they are so proud of their heritage, whatever it is, from whatever country, from Latin America they are. But that they are also very much proud Americans. That this is an exercise in patriotism, Jessica.

They're saying they are coming out here today to defend American democracy from what they see is an authoritarian government.

Now, organizers here are expecting up to 100,000 people. So far, we've only seen a fraction of that number show up. We'll see how this crowd gets going in the next few minutes, and we'll make sure to give you an update.

DEAN: All right. Julia Vargas Jones, live there in Los Angeles. We are also looking at San Francisco. Thank you so much.

As we checked on the West Coast there, let's now go to the middle of the country where we have seen thousands gathering in Chicago, including the Illinois mayor (SIC) J.B. Pritzker.

We see CNN's Whitney Wild is there now. Whitney, of course, Chicago has become a flashpoint in a lot of the pushback against President Trump and his administration. What have you seen today?

WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: The message here in Chicago, I think, can be summarized in a word as "no". There are tens of thousands of people here in downtown Chicago who marched for about 2.5 hours, as you mentioned.

[17:04:50]

WILD: Illinois Governor J.B Pritzker, Mayor Randy Johnson was here who spoke. We saw actors, famous actors. I spoke with John Cusack earlier, who was in the crowd.

What is really striking, Jessica, is the range of people who are here. These are people who are from outside Chicago, who are from the city, who are from neighboring suburbs, who are all coming together because they are troubled by what they see coming out of the Trump administration.

And when I'm speaking with people, they say that they are here because this is something that they can do. They say simply, you have to do something.

Other people I spoke with talked to me about what it feels like to be the children of immigrants in this moment. As you mentioned, Chicago has become a flashpoint for the Trump administration's immigration policies. There has been a very serious crackdown here in the city.

We've seen ICE actions throughout the city. We've seen protests against federal agents that have caused federal agents to use chemical munitions against protesters, members of the press, as well as members of the Chicago police department who were unprepared for those chemical munitions.

And when I'm speaking with these people, they're telling me how much their neighborhoods have changed.

Here's what one woman told me about it, what it feels like in this moment. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FATIMA PEREZ, PROTESTER: I come from immigrant parents. I have immigrant family members. And just seeing the fear in their face every day, having to go to work and then, hopefully coming back, it's just very scary.

I have a brother-in-law, actually, who was almost caught, and the first thing that he told me that he thought about was his daughter. So that's like very scary and sad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILD: What is so striking out here, Jessica is again, just really wide range of different types of people who are out here. All of the homemade signs we've seen people in costumes, blow up costumes like bald eagle you know, the -- it is the -- it is the range of experiences and the range of perspectives that people bring here but for one common goal, which is to send a message to the Trump administration.

Other people I spoke with told me that their message to the Trump administration is obey the law, obey the Constitution.

As you see, this rally began four hours ago. And there are still people here in Grant Park who want to make their voices heard and listen to -- listen to the speakers and listen to one another.

And then finally, Jessica, I'll just leave you with this. One man I spoke with said that when he sees some of these headlines and sees these policies, he says there are many times when he feels hopeless.

But it is here at rallies like this, surrounded by people who care, that gives him hope, Jessica.

DEAN: All right. Whitney Wild with the very latest from Chicago. Thank you for that.

And now we turn to CNN's Brian Todd, who is live in our nation's capital, Washington, D.C. Brian, what's been the takeaway from today's events there?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Jessica, it was a very energetic scene here just a short time ago. The program of speakers ended a short time ago. The crowd kind of started to clear out.

They're breaking down the stage here, just at the foot of the Capitol. And it was -- it was really packed tight here. There were tens of thousands of people on this spot just a short time ago, pressing forward, kind of crammed into a tight space here on Pennsylvania Avenue.

Right now, we're seeing large crowds in cities like Portland, Oregon and San Francisco that we can show you live. As we talk about kind of the motivations for why people wanted to come out to this event and to other "no kings" events across the country. There are more than 2,500 "no kings" events across the country, by the way, that we should talk about.

But here in Washington, all sorts of motivations for people coming out here. And a lot of it was political, but a lot of it was personal. A lot of people were protesting against the ICE raids and arrests of immigrants across the country.

Many people here were protesting against the National Guard deployment. We had an issue, of course, with that here in Washington, D.C., in August when President Trump launched his law enforcement crackdown here in Washington.

Of course, that National Guard deployment has been controversial in places like Chicago, where you just heard from Whitney, and in Portland, Oregon, and in other cities like Memphis as well. So a lot of people here voicing their displeasure with that.

But also the added component here in Washington, and we know it's not just happening here, just in Washington, but the idea of furloughed government workers. There are a lot of them here today talking about how tough it was to be furloughed, to be furloughed in this kind of divided political atmosphere.

And one of them we spoke to was James Kirwan. He was furloughed from the National Labor Relations Board. He's a counsel for board members there. He talked to me about how tough it was to be furloughed as we enter, I think it's the third week of the government shutdown. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES KIRWAN, FURLOUGHED FEDERAL WORKER: It has been tough. I'm a federal worker because I want to be a federal worker. I want to be working. I want to be serving the public.

And of course, federal workers want to be receiving paychecks. We don't want to have to rely on loans and credit card debt just to make ends meet.

But at the same time, I'm here, as are thousands of other federal workers, because we want Congress to hold the line.

[17:09:50]

KIRWAN: And we want them to pass a budget that will protect federal workers, protect federal programs, and protect health care for tens of millions of Americans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: James also told me that he actually does fear some retaliation, not only for coming down here, but he's also an active member of a government workers' union.

And he did -- he told me he did fear retaliation for coming down here and even speaking to us live on camera.

So a lot of people kind of putting a lot at stake not only attending the rally, but talking to the media as well. So you've got that kind of charged political atmosphere here in Washington as well, Jessica.

DEAN: Yes, yes. All right. Certainly makes it unique in Washington for sure in that way, being the home to so many federal workers.

Brian Todd, thank you so much for that.

Tonight Russian forces are edging along the front lines of Ukraine despite new calls from President Trump for a combat freeze.

Plus, the president appears to be rejecting Ukraine's pleas for long range missiles to use against Russia for now. Why that decision could be pivotal for this war.

And a little bit later, the president says in his words, it was an honor to destroy what he calls a drug boat in the Caribbean as the administration ramps up its war on drug cartels. More on this.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

[17:11:04]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeared to leave the White House empty-handed Friday. Zelenskyy went to Washington seeking air support in the form of American Tomahawk missiles, which would allow Ukraine to strike deep in Russian territory.

But in an apparent shift, President Trump now says battle lines should freeze where they now stand.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They should stop the war immediately. You go by the battle line wherever it is, otherwise it's too complicated. You'll never be able to figure it out.

You stop at the battle line and both sides should go home. Go to their families. Stop the killing. And that should be it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: We're joined now by former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor. He's also a distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council -- at the Atlantic Council. Ambassador Taylor, thank you for being here with us. We really appreciate it.

Zelenskyy, in talking about these Tomahawks, says that the U.S. does not want escalation. What message do you think it sends to Putin at this moment that we now know that Trump has put the brakes on that?

WILLIAM TAYLOR, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE: Well, Jessica, you're right. You put the brakes on. But he hasn't taken the Tomahawks off the table.

The threat of President Trump approving Tomahawks for the Ukrainians is what spooked Putin. It's what spooked Putin, panicked Putin into asking for this latest phone call. So we know that Putin's concerned about this.

Now, you're right. President Trump did not approve it, but he didn't take the possibility off the table; the threat of sending these Tomahawks to Ukraine off the table. So President Trump, if he wants to use it, still has that leverage

over Putin to put pressure on Putin to agree to do what you just quoted him saying, stop the war, stop the killing.

DEAN: Yes. And look, that is the question. If he's going to use that leverage, he's suggesting Trump that he can make, he believes, diplomatic progress with this Putin meeting that they're going to have in Hungary in the next couple of weeks. What do you think about that?

TAYLOR: I think that is -- that is a way to go. You need a couple of things. President Trump needs a couple of things. He needs that threat of Tomahawks and broader weapons support continued reliable, persistent weapon support. That's number one.

The second thing, which he's talked about as well, is economic sanctions. And that -- the threat of economic sanctions is what spooked Putin back in August when he asked for that meeting that ended up in Anchorage, Alaska.

So we know that both the weapons that led to the phone call this last week this past week and the sanctions that President Trump did actually put on India for buying Russian oil, both have the effect of putting pressure on Putin.

The third thing is these $300 billion Jessica, in funds -- Russian central bank funds that can be sent to Ukraine. That would mean that Ukraine can last easily for three years.

DEAN: Yes. And as I'm hearing you talk about this, and as we've often talked about in -- when we discuss this issue, it's about the leverage the president has and if and how he wants to use it, right. If he wants to deploy it. And we just have to see if he's willing to go all the way, not just threaten these things.

TAYLOR: That's exactly right. It's going to take action if he wants to end the war, which, you know, you have to believe he does. I mean, there's all indications that he -- that President Trump really does want to end this war. If he wants to, he's got to put pressure on Putin to stop it, to do what Trump just said, freeze it in place.

Zelenskyy has said he's willing to freeze it in place. Zelenskyy will not formally agree, will not legally agree that Putin gets to keep that 19 percent of Ukrainian territory that he illegally occupies.

That's not -- that won't be a legal acknowledgment, but he's willing to de facto recognize that yes, those lines, 19 percent is the -- is what the Russians now occupy.

[17:19:51]

TAYLOR: Zelenskyy is willing to do that, but Putin is not. So Trump needs to put the pressure on Putin.

DEAN: And this week, Trump suggested now is not the time for the Senate to move on this bipartisan bill that would punish Russia with sanctions. What do you think about that move? And do you think diplomatically and just in terms of trying to get Putin to acquiesce here? How powerful would that be?

TAYLOR: It would be powerful. It would be a strong political signal. It would be a signal to Putin. It will be a signal to the Ukrainians that this pressure that President Trump and the Americans with strong bipartisan support, and what 85 co-sponsors in the senate, strong bipartisan support for putting pressure on Putin.

President Trump can do this now. He doesn't actually need that legislation. But the legislation would give him the kind of push and cover that he could use. It would be a strong signal.

DEAN: Yes. And Zelenskyy spoke to European leaders after his meeting with Trump. Where does Europe stand in all of this? And how are they regarding Trump's changing his tune here?

TAYLOR: Europeans, like the Ukrainians, want to keep the Americans on board. They know that the Americans have weapons and capabilities that they don't yet have.

So for the time being, the Europeans do want to have the Americans on board, and they do want to support the Ukrainians, but they also at the same time know that that American support may not last forever.

I mean, that's what they hear from President Trump. That's what they hear from the Americans. It may not last forever. So Europeans are stepping up. Both on the defense industrial base, but also in commitments to Ukrainian security.

A defense force that would go into Ukraine comprised of British and French and maybe Estonian, Lithuanian soldiers into Ukraine that would, after the fighting stops, that would be sure -- that would ensure, that the Russians don't come back again.

DEAN: Ambassador William Taylor, great to see you. Thank you for your time. We appreciate it.

TAYLOR: Thank you, Jessica.

DEAN: Tonight, former disgraced congressman, George Santos is out of prison after serving just three months of his seven-year conviction for fraud and identity theft. The political implications of setting him free.

Plus, what President Trump is saying about the thousands of planned "no kings" protests across the country today, demonstrating against his White House policies.

[17:22:29]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: Nationwide protests are underway as people take to the streets to rally against President Trump and his administration's policies. We've seen massive crowds gathering in cities coast to coast, and we're following the protests live. We're bringing you updates as they happen. Meanwhile, Republicans pushing their own message about today's events.

Here's what they said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. TOM EMMER (R-MN): We call it the hate America rally, because you'll see the hate for America all over this thing when they show up.

REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: It's all the pro-Hamas wing and the, you know, the Antifa people, they're all coming out.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): There's considerable evidence that George Soros and his network is behind funding these rallies.

SCOTT BESSENT, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: The farthest left, the hardest core, the most unhinged in the Democratic Party, which is, you know, a big title and no kings equal no paychecks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: CNN senior political analyst and Bloomberg opinion columnist Ron Brownstein is joining us now. Ron, good to see you.

We -- I wanted to play that because this is how Republicans are responding to this. This is what the picture they're painting. What do you make of their response? How do you think its landing with Americans?

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: First of all, I think it is extremely dangerous and it's extremely disdainful. I mean, it's dangerous in that you have so many voices like Trump equating resistance to his agenda with sympathy to communism or terrorism.

It is delegitimizing dissent. And that is a very ominous threshold to cross. And importantly, it's not just Trump who has long done this. You are now seeing this spread broadly in the leadership of the Republican Party in Congress.

Secondly, it's disdainful. I mean, you're talking about probably when all is said and done, there are going to be 6 million, 7 million people out on the streets today. And the Speaker of the House is saying they hate America.

This is his "deplorables" moment. This is Mike Johnson's deplorables moment. He is saying that a vast swath of the country is -- he's fundamentally reading them out, you know, of kind of mainstream America.

And, you know, in the media, we chewed over Hillary Clinton's deplorables comment for a long time in 2016. You know, I just wonder if the full implications of what Mike Johnson is saying here are going to get the same treatment.

DEAN: Yes. I mean, and we'll just have to see about that. And in the meantime, Democrats obviously are showing up. There are a lot of Democratic elected officials showing up at these various protests throughout the country.

But is it fair to say that this -- what we're seeing and we're looking at big crowds, converts to Democratic Party enthusiasm, or do we need to separate those things out?

There's the Democratic Party and the message they're going to try to push. And there are these protesters that are -- that are protesting against President Trump. How would you kind of explain all of that?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, look, I think the dominant feeling in the protests is that there is no institution in American society, not the media, not the Democratic Party, certainly not the business leadership that is grappling with the magnitude of the moment with all that we are seeing, with pardons for allies and prosecutions for enemies, deploying the National Guard into city streets.

[17:30:05]

And I think that, you know, the protesters are frustrated, I think, with all the potential sources of opposition to what is unfolding. You know, it's striking.

You know, you have Mike Johnson basically saying this is all bought and paid for and organized by people who hate America. The first sign I saw today at a No Kings rally, somewhat near, you know, where I live in California, was all you fascist bound to lose on a torn piece of cardboard, which, of course, is a quote from a famous Woody Guthrie song during World War II.

The second one was on a piece of oak tag, you know, like you might take to a fifth-grade science project, and it read, I love America. And like my grandfather who fought in World War II, I hate fascist.

Now, you know, if you're basically going to equate that kind of political opposition with terrorism and communism and say that it reflects a hatred of America, you know, we are well down the road of kind of transforming the nature of the democracy that we live in.

And I think, as I said, that these protest goers feel that there is no institution, including the Democratic Party, that is fully met this moment.

DEAN: And look, we are looking at Los Angeles right now, a democratically led city in a democratic state with the Democratic governor. That is not to say they don't have a lot of Republicans in California. They certainly do. But right now, the Democrats are in control of California.

But what do you think Republicans are taking away from seeing these protests when it comes to just the pure politics of it? Maybe even as they look to the midterms.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

DEAN: Do they look at these blue cities and say, well, it's a blue city. I mean, these are happening all across the country, though, in red and blue cities.

BROWNSTEIN: Right. Well, you know, I think, yes, I think, by and large, Republicans, see, have moved, I think, in their -- in their kind of portrayal of this, even from earlier this year, much less from the Women's March in 2017, and it's kind of a reflection of how trumpified (PH) the entire party has come to kind of, you know, broad brush describe this as a hate America rally. It's just an astonishing escalation.

And the political strategy that reflects is that you can kind of run against, you know, these protests, the same way that you run against cities as a way to mobilize your base. But midterm elections, you know, when turnout is not nearly as high as in the presidential year, really is about a which side is energized.

Traditionally, it's the party that's out of the White House that has more energy. And I think, this -- these rallies are a reflection of that frustration. I mean, a lot of these people are unhappy with the Democratic Party. That doesn't mean they're not going to come out to vote against Trump in '20, you know, '26.

And I do think we'll get an indication of that in what, a little over two weeks in Virginia and New Jersey, which traditionally are the first tasks of kind of which, you know, after the presidential year, of which side is feeling more motivated. What are some of the trends in the way big voter groups are moving?

But the change in strategy among Republican and how they are dealing with this, I think, is very much of a piece with the overall way that they have allowed the party to be made in both Trump's image and to reflect Trump's political plan.

DEAN: It will be interesting. And especially, with Trump himself not on the ballot in the midterms, obviously, they have to run on their own.

OK. Ron, stay with us. I do want to touch on a different story.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

DEAN: Because also today, disgraced former Congressman George Santos is now a free man after the president commuted his sentence last night, releasing him from prison. Santos served in the House for less than a year before he was expelled from Congress in 2023, and he was convicted of and pleaded guilty to an array of federal crimes including fraud, theft, and money laundering.

Now, the president says he commuted Santos' seven-year sentence, because the lies allegedly told by Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, regarding his past military service were, quote, far worse than what Santos did. He said this earlier this month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have a young Congressman that's right now in jail for lying about where he went to college and other things. It was, you know, frankly, not good. That was pretty bad. But it was nothing compared to Blumenthal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: So, let's bring Ron back in.

Ron, it is worth noting. Not only did he lie about who he was, where he went to school, his entire resume, he misused funds that had been raised for his campaign, which is a federal crime. So, what do you think about the president doing this?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, look, there is a famous, or maybe infamous, saying attributed to a South American strong man in the 20th century that said, for my friends, everything, for my enemies, the law, and that is the kind of structure that Trump is imposing on our justice system.

If you are a friend or ally, he is sending a very clear signal that he will protect you no matter how serious the charge or how thorough the evidence.

I mean, we are talking, you know, this commutation, after he pardoned people who violently attacked police officers on January 6th. On the other hand. If he -- if you are someone that he perceives as an adversary, he is willing to turn the full might of federal prosecution against you, no matter how flimsy the case.

[17:35:11]

And, you know, we've talked about this before. Our colleague, John Dean can tell you, or you can listen to the White House tapes. Richard Nixon had the same sought thought -- sort of thoughts. He would express them in private, in the Oval Office, and they were fundamentally -- by his justice department, by the IRS that refused to go after his enemies.

Trump is very different. Trump is saying all of this in public, because he wants to send the signal that for my friends, everything, and for my enemies, the law.

I mean, this is really, I think, you know, pardoning or commuting the sentence of Santos is the flip side of the coin of prosecuting Comey and Letitia James and even John Bolton. It is -- it is essentially warning everyone that the justice department is now not operating fundamentally on objective principles of the rule of law. It is an extension of his personal agenda.

And that is a world that I think is astonishing to me, that more Republicans, business leaders and others have not questioned whether that is a world they really want to live in. If you assume that power is ever going to change hands again, and there is a potentially different set of targets, is this the way we want justice dispensed in the country?

Because we are setting precedents that may not end with this administration, if there is, you know, change of power in 2028 or beyond.

DEAN: Right. And then that can all shift around, who might be on the other side of things?

BROWNSTEIN: Regarded.

DEAN: Ron Brownstein, thank you so much. We really appreciate it.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me.

DEAN: As the Trump administration ramps up its attacks on suspected drug smugglers in the Caribbean, the president says that they have plans for the two people who survived this most recent strike. We have new reporting on that. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:41:23]

DEAN: New tonight, President Trump says two survivors of a U.S. strike on a boat in the Caribbean will be returned to their countries of origin, Ecuador and Colombia. The U.S. military detain the survivors following Thursday's strike, which was the sixth known strike on both the administration says are trafficking drugs.

Tensions are rising as the president also threatened land strikes, and earlier this week, he says he's authorized the CIA to operate within Venezuela.

Joining us now, CNN senior military analyst and former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Admiral James Stavridis. He is also a partner at the Carlyle Group, a global investment firm.

Admiral Stavridis, great to see you here. OK, let's start first with this -- the tact that the president -- that the Trump administration is taking here. Do you think that's the most effective way to solve what the administration says is this real drug trafficking problem that we have that affects the United States?

ADM. JAMES STAVRIDIS (RET.), CNN SENIOR MILITARY ANALYST: Yes, let's back up a little bit. I spent three plus years as commander U.S. Southern Command, the job of controlling that transit zone.

So, anytime you go after and it's a worthy objective, stopping the flow of drugs into the United States, it's really a three-part challenge. Certainly, the transit zone is part of it. That's what you are seeing here. But you also have to stop on the demand side in the United States, and you have to stop on the supply side, which is not Venezuela. They are not making cocaine in Venezuela. That is Colombia Ecuador, and other places.

So, I think what the administration is doing, very aggressively at this point, is going after only a portion of the challenge. And secondly, Jessica, there are legal, legitimate objections to what's happening here, because no one's seen the evidence which would make these drug boats into unlawful combatants, which would then give the right to be blowing them up.

And a final thought, I certainly -- troops and sailors and coast guard under my command participated many, many times. What you're showing there is a semi-submersible submarine-like vessel, undoubtedly carrying drugs. That's the only purpose for something like that.

But here is a -- here is an idea. Instead of blowing it up, why don't we capture it? We have that capability. We know how to do that. Take the crew off and interrogate them and prosecute them, and follow the evidence all the way back to Nicolas Maduro.

So, while I'll conclude here, I'm surprised the administration is releasing the two people they took off of that, better would be to hold them, interrogate them, and get the further evidence could go after Maduro, not simply release them back to their countries.

DEAN: So, on that point, the president has also threatened land strikes on Venezuela. And I'm curious if you see that actually happening. And also, too, the Maduro of it, what kind of response can he mount to both anything potentially on the land, but also what's been going on sea?

STAVRIDIS: I think that the possibility of land strikes is on the table. Certainly, President Trump has alluded to that already. And look at the forces that are in place off the coast of Venezuela right now. Six to eight major warships, 5,000-plus marines and sailors. Tomahawk missiles, B-52 strategic bombers flying around, and Joint Strike Fighters.

[17:45:10]

The F-15 -- F-22 excuse me, these are very, very capable aircraft that are in the fight down there. So, the option to do land strikes is there. The question is, is that a good idea? I'd say at this moment, probably not. And what could Maduro do? He could defend he's got a reasonable military capability. I think, the F-35s that are down there would easily handle his Air Force, his navy couldn't handle our Navy, but he's got a lot of ground troops. He's got air defenses. He could overfly or even attack U.S. warships off the coast.

So, once you start down that path, you are in -- you are in kind of uncharted waters in terms of attacking and invading Venezuela.

DEAN: And I also want to back up to another point that I made earlier, and that you briefly touched upon, but the -- but the CIA, and the fact that Trump has greenlit them operating there. The CIA has a somewhat messy history. Let's call it. In Latin America, on the issue of regime change.

What did -- what is -- what lessons do we have, and how might that impact today -- in the landscape today?

STAVRIDIS: Yes, messy would be a pretty charitable adjective. Certainly, if you look at everything from the Bay of Pigs, the attempts, over decades to overthrow the Castro brothers in Cuba, our efforts in Central America on multiple occasions to overthrow governments, generally speaking, it has not come out very well, trying to use the CIA in that role. If you want a positive story of regime change, you'd have to go back to 1989 and that was an overt direct military action against Manuel Noriega in Panama, not a clandestine operation. So, I'm pretty hard pressed to find a successful example.

And again, for the administration, not just council -- flashing yellow light, these things can go sideways very quickly in the region. I think it's a significant step if we go to land strikes against Venezuela.

DEAN: All right. Admiral, always good to see you. Thanks for being here on a Saturday night. We appreciate it.

STAVRIDIS: You bet, Jess.

DEAN: Still ahead, how the White House and President Trump's Republican Party are responding to today's widespread No Kings protest as they try and reshape the narrative around these demonstrations.

And during the Jim Crow era in New Orleans, black and white musicians were not allowed to perform together. So, black people created their own venues to celebrate black talent. CNN's Original Series "NEW ORLEANS: SOUL OF A CITY" continues tomorrow night with a new episode looking at one of the most famous black nightclubs in New Orleans. Here is a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL WHITE, MUSICIAN AND HISTORIAN: When I was coming up as a kid, I used to hear my mother talking a lot about going to the Dew Drop. The Dew Drop.

And later on, I found out that the Dew Drop was the most famous black nightclub in the city.

JARED PELLERIN, MUSICIAN: Dew Drop in played home to, like many, many artists that, like we know and love.

WHITE: People like you would never think. Duke Ellington and Ray Charles and James Brown.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: B.B. King and folk like that would come to the Dew Drop.

PELLERIN: Little Richard did first version on Tutti Frutti. They were highlighting some of the best and the brightest, even before their time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Be sure to tune in a new episode of "NEW ORLEANS: SOUL OF A CITY", airs tomorrow night at 10:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific right here on CNN.

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[17:53:31]

DEAN: Misty Copeland has captivated audiences and broken barriers in the world of ballet. And on Wednesday, she will take her final bow at American Ballet Theater. But the ballerina will still be working hard off stage at her foundation, opening doors for young dancers who might not otherwise have access to ballet through her foundation.

Anderson Cooper shares how Copeland is expanding the art form one P.A. at a time.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MISTY COPELAND, AMERICAN BALLET DANCER: With ballet, the reason I got into it was because of the joy that it brought me this beautiful escape.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Ballet star, Misty Copeland, broke barriers as the first black female principal dancer with American Ballet Theater.

Now, she is working to make the art form more accessible for the next generation.

COOPER: I started the Misty Copeland Foundation in 2021. Really, with the idea of bringing dance to under resourced, underserved communities.

COPELAND: I wouldn't be who I am if I hadn't been introduced to this incredible art form at a Boys and Girls Club. I just felt like we have to keep this going and give other children the same opportunity.

COOPER: Be Bold is a free after school ballet program offered a community centers in The Bronx and Harlem, serving more than 500 children of color, ages 5 to 12.

COPELAND: It's really with the idea of introducing them to moving their bodies. The vocabulary of basic ballet technique and live music.

[17:55:03]

What's different about this from just your traditional ballet class was that this framework was made with black and brown children in mind.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Majority of other kid is don't get to do this stuff like I do. I've learned how to respect myself and others, and I've learned to just be yourself.

COPELAND: It's not about creating professional dancers. That would be fantastic, but this is about creating future leaders. There is so many incredible skills that you learn by being a part of dance, but ballet, in particular. Its dedication, its discipline, its community, its empathy.

COOPER: Misty's foundation recently expanded classes to include people over 50, demonstrating that ballet is truly for everyone. COPELAND: Eventually, I want to have this program in community sites all over the United States and maybe beyond. You know, we say we want to take over the world one P.A. at a time.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: To learn more, you can go to CNNHEROES.COM.

Up next, we're going to take you back to Los Angeles, where people are gathering for one of several thousand so-called No Kings protests across the country today, all to push back against the Trump administration and its policies.

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