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Hegseth Defends Vessel Strikes in Caribbean Amid Criticism; Ukraine Peace Talks in Miami End With Lingering Questions. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired December 07, 2025 - 03:30   ET

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

[03:00:00]

BEN HUNTE, CNN 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 you.

Coming up on the show, as pressure mounts, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will not say if the Pentagon will release more video from a controversial double-tap strike on a suspected drug boat.

U.S.-Ukraine talks in Miami end without a breakthrough deal to end the war with Russia. Ukraine's president will now meet with European leaders.

And two southern titans face off in Atlanta. Only one can claim the SEC Championship.

Welcome. The U.S. defense secretary says the Trump administration's controversial military operations in the Caribbean demonstrate the, quote, strength of American resolve. Pete Hegseth was speaking on Saturday at a Ronald Reagan defense forum as scrutiny over the operations mounts. He doubled down on the administration's efforts to combat drug trafficking, comparing the alleged traffickers to Al-Qaeda while saying the strikes will continue.

Hegseth also defended the administration's decision to carry out a follow-up strike that killed two survivors in September. This decision has led to criticism in Congress with the Senate Armed Services Committee vowing to investigate. When asked if he would release the full video of the strike, Hegseth was non-committal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, Mr. Secretary, you will be releasing that full video?

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: We are reviewing it right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is that a yes or no?

HEGSETH: That is for -- the most important thing to me are the ongoing operations in the Caribbean with our folks that use bespoke capabilities, techniques, procedures in the process. I'm way more interested in protecting that than anything else. So we're viewing the process and we'll see.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: CNN's Oren Liebermann has more on the secretary's comments.

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth spoke here at the Reagan National Defense Forum, and one of the key questions was how he would address the controversy around a double tap strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean from September 2nd.

Well, Hegseth didn't back down at all. He said these strikes would continue. To-date, there have been more than 20 strikes that have killed more than 80 people, and he said they were targeting what he got described as narco-terrorists and compared the drugs they were carrying to chemical weapons.

One of the key questions about that September 2nd strike was the timeline itself, and that's where we've seen shifting explanations from Hegseth himself. He'd initially said that he watched the strike take place, emphasizing the planning that went into it before backing off that and saying he watched the first of what was a double-tap strike and then went to meetings, he justified that decision as he continued to say the strike itself, met all the criterion of what he described as a legal strike.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HEGSETH: So, I was satisfied with the strike criteria, yes, saw the strike itself, which all of you have seen. There was probably 30 or 40 minutes is what I've been told of dust and it was on fire for a long time. After that, I stayed for probably five minutes or so after, but, ultimately, at that point, it was a tactical operation, and so I moved on to other things. I shouldn't be fighting tactics as the Secretary of War, so I moved on to other thing.

Later on, a couple hours later, I was told, hey, there had to be a re- attack because there were a couple folks that could still be in the fight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIEBERMANN: One of the questions about the fallout from the strike itself is, will the Defense Department release the video of the double-tap strike? President Donald Trump said earlier this week that he wouldn't have any problem with it being released. But when Hegseth was asked if he would authorize that release, he wouldn't give a firm yes. He said the department was reviewing that and would, at some point, make a decision when he was pressed. And whether that meant yes or no, he basically said the focus has moved on and is elsewhere.

So, the controversy around the strikes itself and the decision to carry out a second strike that killed the two survivors who were hanging onto the wreckage, that very much remains.

Oren Liebermann, CNN, Simi Valley. HUNTE: Well, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have been expressing their opinions on the strikes Earlier, CNN spoke with Republican Congressman Don Bacon about his view, and here's some of what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. DON BACON (R-NE): I believe that he did not give the order to kill everybody. We got that pretty well validated.

[03:05:00]

Whether or not we should have hit that both the second time, I think it's debatable. I think it's probably in a gray zone. But I do think it would be wise just to put out the video and be fully transparent.

Well, what I think that what has not been done is the administration's not come to the Congress and asked for authorization. It's one thing if you hit a few boats and you stop. But since these boats are going to be, continue to be hit, I believe it's their duty and responsibility to come to Congress, make the case and get authorization for continued hostilities.

So, I think that's most important. And also make the case to the American people. I would say further, when it comes to Venezuela itself, we don't know what's going on. What is the president's mission? What's the plan? Once again, I think he needs to come to the Congress and make the case and to the American people, say, well, this is what we're trying to do in Venezuela.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to hold talks of European leaders in London this Monday to try to advance peace talks with Russia. It comes after a three-day meeting between us and Ukrainian officials in Miami ended without a breakthrough. That meeting included U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and the president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Zelenskyy said he had a long and constructive phone call with both men and agreed on the next steps for talks. Ukraine's Ambassador to the U.S. says there are still lingering questions over security guarantees and territorial concessions.

Let's keep talking about it. We have Sergey Radchenko, a distinguished professor at a Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. He's joining us from Doha. Thank you so much for being with me, Sergey. How are you doing?

SERGEY RADCHENKO, DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR, JOHN HOPKINS UNIVERSITY: I'm doing great. Thank you. Thank you, Ben, for having me.

HUNTE: It's good to see you. Let's get into that. The Miami talks ended with no breakthrough. What does that outcome tell you about the distance between what the U.S. wants, what Russia wants, and what Ukraine ultimately wants?

RADCHENKO: Well, Ben, it's pretty clear to me what Russia wants. Russia wants effectively surrender of Ukraine. It wants capitulation. And the Trump administration is hoping to achieve peace without giving too much away to the Russians. But the question is, what will the Ukrainians accept? Are they willing to basically surrender their country to the Russians?

It's not clear to me that Putin is willing to compromise on anything yet. He hasn't made any indication of that. Of course, we had that meeting in Moscow with Jared Kushner and Witkoff speaking to Putin, and that ended without results.

So, at the moment I'm fairly pessimistic about the outcome of these talks, but they continue, of course.

HUNTE: We have seen massive drone and missile strikes across Ukraine. How much leverage does the continued Russian pressure give Moscow at the negotiating table?

RADCHENKO: So, that's the big question. The question is, is Putin willing to have a negotiated solution? But that, of course, entails making some kinds of concessions, some concessions, right? Or is he just willing to, or does he want to continue fighting, increased coercion against Ukraine, strike it with missiles, strike it with drones? And, of course, the Russians are making progress on the battlefield. Not great progress, but there's progress nonetheless.

So, for Putin, the question is, is it something that he can basically solve militarily or does he want some sort of a negotiated solution? At the moment, I don't think Putin has fully decided, but it seems that he's more leaning towards a military solution. Otherwise, he would be making genuine concessions. We haven't seen any coming from him so far.

HUNTE: Well on that, President Trump does appear eager for a deal while Ukraine and European allies are worried that any concessions at all could weaken Ukraine. How dangerous do you think it is when one side seems more desperate for progress than the other?

RADCHENKO: I think it's not great if you're in a hurry to achieve peace. I understand. Look, everybody understands that Ukraine needs peace. The Ukrainians are tired. But if you push them to have peace at any price, which includes peace at the price of their sovereignty, at the price of their political independence, is that the kind of peace that the Ukrainians want? And, by the way, have they asked for this kind of peace?

The reason we have not seen breakthrough yet is because the Ukrainians are saying, look, we do not want to capitulate to Russia. And the Russians are making demands that are tantamount to a capitulation. They want the Ukrainians to withdraw from the territories that the Russians do not even control yet. So, it's a very, very difficult situation.

But, unfortunately, what I'm seeing now as well is that just this eagerness on the part of the Trump administration to push through a solution almost at any price is undermining morale in Ukraine. Because if you are in Ukraine, you're thinking, okay, is this -- you know, are we about to basically lose this? And is it worth actually continuing fighting dying on the frontline? Perhaps not. Perhaps that's the end.

HUNTE: Question, is Russia better off or worse off than in 2022? And how could that impact the negotiations that are taking place?

[03:10:01]

RADCHENKO: Ben, I think it depends on who you ask. Putin thinks that he's in a very good position because he feels that he has asserted through military force. He asserted Russia's position in Europe. Russia is trying to come out of this looking victorious. It has defeated Ukraine, or is trying to defeat Ukraine. And, of course, the, he wants to -- Putin wants to humiliate the Europeans. And at the moment he feels like it's coming his way. At the moment, he feels like he's on the verge of some kind of a victory.

So, is it looking good for Putin? You know, Russian economy is basically I wouldn't -- it's not in a meltdown, but it's not doing great. Russia has burned its bridges to Europe and to the west. Russia is dependent on China for Chinese markets so that it can sell energy to China, also for Chinese dual use goods. So, in many ways, Russia is worse off. Russia is not doing all that great. But Putin thinks that by scoring a military victory in Ukraine, he can reassert Russia's greatness.

And that's what it's about right for him. It's not just about. It's about how Russia looks in the world. And he feels that by delivering in Ukraine, delivering a victory in Ukraine. He will reassert Russia's greatness and also assure his place in history textbooks. I think this is what he's thinking.

HUNTE: Well, there's a lot going on. We'll see what happens next. So, thank you for now, Sergey Radchenko. I appreciate it.

RADCHENKO: Thank you for having me.

HUNTE: Okay. Still ahead, what was supposed to be a fun night out in India's Goa Resort Regent turned deadly after a fire broke out at a local nightclub. We've got the latest developments. See you in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:15:00]

HUNTE: At least 25 people are dead after a fire ripped through a nightclub in Western India. Officials in the resort region of Goa say at least four tourists and more than a dozen kitchen staff members are among those killed. CNN Affiliate News 18 says, the blaze is thought to have broken out after a cylinder exploded at the club. Local news reports indicate most of the victims succumb to burn injuries while others died due to suffocation.

Goa is a small state on India's western coast, known for its beaches. It attracts tens of thousands of tourists every year.

Venezuela's opposition leader, Maria Carina Machado, is getting a global outpouring of support amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and her home country. Across Latin America to the Spanish capital of Madrid, her supporters came out ahead of Wednesday's Nobel. Peace Prize Award, so many. The Nobel Institute awarded Machado the coveted prize for her work in promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela. It says, Machado will attend the ceremony in Oslo, Norway. But as CNN's Pau Mosquera reports from Madrid, doubts remain about whether Machado will even be there.

PAU MOSQUERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Flashlights and lit candles as if they were torches, banners showing their support to the new Nobel Peace Laureate Maria Corina Machado. This is one of the 23 marches that the Venezuelan opposition present in Spain has organized this Saturday in the country. This specifically is the one that took the streets of downtown Madrid.

An opportunity where the concentrated expressed their desire that after the prize is awarded to Machado, things might change in Venezuela.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANIELA GONZALEZ, VENEZUELAN RESIDENT: We're supporting our family and all the people living in Venezuela and living in different countries, and we are trying to fight for the democracy and the freedom of our country.

MARCOS PLANCHART, VENEZUELAN RESIDENT: For me, it's important to be present because is to send a message to all the people of the regime from their supporters and the whole structure of violence that they have enabled, that we are present, that there is a diaspora that will never take their eyes off what's happening in Venezuela.

MARISABEL GARABITO, VENEZUELA RESIDENT: This award puts our country in a public view, an important one. So I believe it's a huge step from -- step up from our country, for our freedom.

MOSQUERA: While the hope of everyone involved in the march is that Machado can receive the Nobel in person, there are still some doubts about it conducted by CNN. The Nobel Institute informed that they spoke to her this Friday night, and she assured that would attend the ceremony in Oslo.

Now, didn't know how and when she would get to Norway. That's why the doubt will only be cleared up next Wednesday when the Nobel is presented at the Oslo City Hall.

Pau Mosquera, CNN, Madrid.

HUNTE: Japan is accusing Chinese military fighter jets of locking their fire control radar on Japanese aircraft twice on Saturday. The system helps guide weapons and could signal a potential attack. Japanese officials say it happened over international waters near Japan's Okinawa islands and close to Taiwan. Japan's defense minister called the action, quote, beyond what is necessary for the safe flight of aircraft and is a dangerous act. A Chinese Navy official blames Japanese aircraft for repeatedly approaching and disrupting the Chinese Navy during carrier-based flight training.

Qatar's Prime Minister warned at the Doha Forum that negotiations for the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire have reached a critical moment. He said Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, and the United States were getting together to push ahead and make it happen.

The Egyptian foreign minister accused Israel of daily violations of the ceasefire. He's calling for Israel to deploy a long yellow line meant to separate its forces from unoccupied areas. The Qatari prime minister outlined what he believes is necessary to move forward.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHEIKH MOHAMMED BIN ABDULRAHMAN AL-THANI, QATARI PRIME MINISTER: Now we are at a critical moment. It's not yet there. So, it's -- what we have just done is a pause. We cannot consider it yet a ceasefire. A ceasefire cannot be completed unless there is a full withdrawal of the Israeli forces, there is stability back and Gaza people can go in and out, which is not the case today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:20:07]

HUNTE: Israel says they are fired at or struck militants when and because they crossed the yellow line.

Also in Doha, Syria's president accused Israel of exporting crisis to other countries and, quote, fighting ghosts. He spoke to CNN's Chief International Anchor Christiane Amanpour.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AHMED AL-SHARAA, SYRIAN PRESIDENT: I believe that since we arrived in Damascus, we sent positive messages regarding regional peace and stability. And we've said very frankly that Syria will be a country of stability and we are not concerned in being a country that exports conflict, including to Israel.

However, in return, Israel has met us with extreme violence and Syria has suffered massive violations of our airspace and we've been victim of over 1,000 airstrikes and over 400 incursions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Israel captured the strategic heights of Mount Hermon when the Assad regime fell. It said the occupation was temporary, but IDF forces remained there today. Al-Sharaa said Israel should withdraw to the December 2024 lines and reinstate the 1974 de-confliction agreement that separated Syrian and Israeli forces. He warned against any attempt to alter that buffer zone.

The government of Lebanon is trying to reassert authority over former Hezbollah strongholds. It's facing pressure to ensure Hezbollah is disarmed.

CNN's Ben Wedeman traveled with the army deep into tunnels where the militant group operated.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): These are the mountains from which Hezbollah until a year ago fired missiles into Israel. But now, under the control of the Lebanese army who took reporters on a rare tour of parts of the south, normally off limits to the press.

We are entering a Hezbollah tunnel, well up a rugged ravine. It took a very long time to get here. This is a tunnel that the Lebanese army is telling us was not used for the storage of weapons, but rather was for personnel. Now it goes into deep, deep into this mountain.

The Lebanese army says it has found 74 such tunnels. As part of the year old ceasefire agreement that halted the war with Israel, the Lebanese army told reporters it has seized large amounts of weapons and ammunition and more than doubled its troop strength south of the Litani River, all part of an effort to reassert government authority in areas where Hezbollah operated.

This looks like it was the kitchen. There's still food here, tins unopened. This clearly was a serious operation. This was some sort of field hospital or clinic. These are hospital-type beds. We also saw other medical equipment in here, and there's a very unpleasant smell as well. We have ventilation pipes, a water pipe.

This tunnel appears to have been one of several in this area, which Israel heavily bombed.

And, of course, this is really how Hezbollah has fought Israel for decades. I've been to other parts of Southern Lebanon, where, during the 1990s when they were fighting Israeli troops inside Lebanon, they dug similar tunnels, had similar facilities.

But things have changed. Military technology has reached the point where it's very difficult to do anything without being seen by a side with superior technical abilities, and that's certainly what we know Israel has had.

Israel continues to target on an almost daily basis what it claims are Hezbollah members and infrastructure, saying Hezbollah is re-arming and regrouping. Hezbollah is holding its fire for now.

What matters is that Lebanon is under intense pressure from the United States to disarm Hezbollah before the end of this year. If it does not do that, the threat is that Israel will start the war all over again.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, South Lebanon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: Still to come, the U.S. president is celebrating the controversial changes he's made to the Kennedy Center, one of the country's most prestigious performing arts spaces. That's ahead. See you in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:25:00]

HUNTE: Welcome back. I'm Ben Hunte. Let's take a look at today's top stories.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is declining to say whether the full video will be released on a double-tap strike against an alleged drug boats in the Caribbean. He defended the military's decision to carry out a follow-up strike that killed two survivors of that attack in September. He also doubled down on the administration's efforts to combat drug trafficking, saying the strikes will continue.

U.S. and Ukrainian officials have wrapped up talks in Miami without a breakthrough on ending the war with Russia. The talks included U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and the president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had a long and constructive phone call with both men and agreed on the next steps for talks.

The prime minister of Qatar says his country is ready to push for the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire. He called it a critical moment for the multi-phase plan. He said, Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, and the United States were getting together to push ahead and make it succeed.

The U.S. president is touting all the recent changes that he's made to the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington, as he tries to shape it into a MAGA-friendly institution. Later today, Donald Trump will host the annual honors ceremony, which recognizes lifetime achievements in the arts, and he says he played a big part in choosing this year's winners.

CNN's Julia Benbrook has the details.

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: While the Kennedy Center Honors is a long time tradition, one that spans several decades, there are changes this year. The big one is that the sitting president, Donald Trump, is going to serve as the host for the main event set to take place Sunday night.

[03:30:02]

He announced that he was stepping into that role back in August when he announced the honorees. And as he handed out medals Saturday night, he expressed that he was confident in the job he would do.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I look forward to celebrating with all of you at the Kennedy Center tomorrow, and it's going to be something that I believe, and I'm going to make a prediction, this will be the highest rated show that they've ever done. And they've gotten some pretty good ratings, but there's nothing like what's going to happen tomorrow night.

So, I just want to thank you all. I want to congratulate you all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BENBROOK: Trump, who currently serves as chairman of the Kennedy Center, said that he was, quote, 98 percent involved in selecting this year's winner. The list includes Actor Sylvester Stallone, Country Music Star George Strait, members of the Rock Band Kiss, Grammy Award- winning singer Gloria Gaynor, and Actor Tony Award Winner Michael Crawford.

Now, during his second term, Trump has taken a special interest in the Kennedy Center and has been working to make various changes. Back in February, he dismissed a slew of Democratic appointees to the Center's Board of Trustees, and appointed several aides and allies, including Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, as well as Second Lady Usha Vance. Trump was subsequently elected chairman of the board. Just this last week, he referred to it as the Trump-Kennedy Center.

Julia Benbrook, CNN, the White House.

HUNTE: As we've been reporting, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Friday to rule on whether Donald Trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship is constitutional. The justices will hear arguments next year and could issue a ruling by June. It's the first time the nation's top court will take up the case. Since lower courts comprised of both liberal and conservative judges have ruled for the order violates the Constitution, the ACLU and other civil liberties groups have filed lawsuits to keep the order from being implemented.

Juan Proano is CEO of LULAC, the League of United Latin American citizens, one of the groups suing the Trump administration over the executive order. He's joining us from Bend, Oregon. Thank you so much for being with me, sir. How are you doing?

JUAN PROANO, CEO, LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN AMERICAN CITIZENS: Oh, very well. Thank you, Ben.

HUNTE: Thank you for being here. Let's get into this. How exactly could a ruling that limits birthright, citizenship change day-to-day life for the people your organization works with?

PROANO: Well, the first thing that I would do is risk creating a generation of stateless children ending birthright citizenship would literally leave tens of thousands of U.S. poor children with no legal claim and no other country to go to.

HUNTE: As a result of this news, what are you hearing right now from people in your community who are questioning their citizenship and the citizenship of their current and future children as well?

PROANO: Well, there's certainly been a lot of fear, Ben, you know, a lot of concern, not just in relation to this birthright citizenship claim, but all of the other immigration enforcement action that's basically taken across the country. And so, you know, we are continuing to fight and litigate these cases and we are happy that the Supreme Court is going to actually be hearing this, and we actually feel very strongly that they will support and uphold this birthright citizenship status in the 14th Amendment.

HUNTE: Well, while we talk about the 14th amendment there, I think we've actually got -- we've got it to show because where are the blurred lines within this? So, where do you see legally that things could shift in some way?

PROANO: Well, I mean, you know, you've got 127 years, right, of precedent when it comes to actually, you know, this amendment of the Constitution. What Trump is really asking the court to do is reinterpret something that has longstanding, you know, rulings in support of it. And we don't necessarily think that that's actually going to happen, but it is possible in this Trump court, if you will, that things could potentially not necessarily go our way, but we are optimistically optimistic about their final ruling and outcome.

HUNTE: Even before the court does rule, which we're expecting next year, do you feel that the executive order has already created fear or misinformation in immigrant communities?

PROANO: It absolutely has. There's no question about it. You know, we field phone calls, hundreds of emails effectively every week with folks actually asking us, you know, are they still going to have, you know, children have birthright citizenship if they're born regardless of what their legal status is, if the mother is, for example, undocumented or the father is a U.S. citizen, those are ongoing persistent questions that we received.

HUNTE: As part of that being, because the executive order was quite broad, it was quite open to interpretation, right?

[03:35:05]

PROANO: Well, you know, it was challenged. You know, we filed our first case on January 20th. We actually won in the first district, but at every single point in this case and now up to the Supreme Court, Trump has actually lost. And the DOJ hasn't actually really been working to defend it aggressively. And so that's why way, like I said, we feel pretty optimistic that it will continue to hold.

HUNTE: How has your organization prepared for more anti-immigrant rhetoric? And have you already seen abuse against immigrant communities you represent?

PROANO: I've been traveling effectively across Oregon because there's a lot of fear in the community. This administration has over $160 billion at its disposal. And, you know, what we've seen, for example, in Los Angeles, what you're now seeing in Chicago and in basically New Orleans is really the tip of the iceberg. It's going to get a lot worse before it gets better.

HUNTE: I feel like in T.V. news, there's sometimes a tendency to almost remove the emotion from these things. We talk about it very factually. Can you talk me through how this actually feels that you are educating people on how to respond to these threats from their government?

PROANO: Well, what's happening then is that Latinos effectively are deciding and choosing to shelter in place. They're not going out anymore. They're only going from home to work, for example. They're not necessarily making any unnecessary trips. They're choosing to work late at night as opposed to regular day shift hours. And that really has been the biggest issue. We've seen it in the absence of school children not showing up to school. And whenever ICE is in town, people begin to disappear.

HUNTE: I mean, it's making me emotional just hearing you talk about that.

If the court does go the way of the Trump administration, and I know you said it, you're not expecting that, but if it does, what long-term effects do you see on community cohesion, trusting government and the willingness of immigrants to engage with wide (ph) society again?

PROANO: Well, it really, you know, breaks effectively, you know, what the idea of what this country's all about, which is equality. It literally would create a caste system where all of a sudden it's really about lineage and not necessarily about if you were born in the United States or to whom and which parents you were born in the United States.

And so, you know, we have 3.6 million children. Are they really going to check the legal status of 7.2 million people every single year? Just imagine what that's actually going to do to the process, the additional cost and the complications that will come from it.

And in the last ten years, Ben, the newborns in this country have been the net growth of our workforce. And when you begin to take that out, you begin to suck out of this economy all of the wages, all of the taxes, right, that these young children and young families effectively are adding to this growing economy. It would stymie our economic growth, and we would no longer be competitive in the world.

HUNTE: Well, this is just the beginning of the conversation, so hopefully speak to you within the next few weeks or potentially months about what actually concludes. But for now, Juan Proano, thank you so much. I appreciate it.

PROANO: Thank you, Ben, for your reporting. Thank you.

HUNTE: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control is facing a backlash after its newly appointed vaccine advisers voted to end universal hepatitis B vaccines for newborns, a major shift in U.S. health policy. The change in recommendation comes as critics accuse the CDC leadership of politicizing the agency. Many medical experts are advising parents to ignore the new guidance, warning it could put children at risk.

Earlier, CNN spoke with Dr. Debra Houry about the policy change. She recently left the CDC over concerns about what was happening within the agency.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. DEBRA HOURY, FORMER CDC CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER: What concerns me is now moms may not get their babies immunized right away, and that means their babies could go on to get liver disease. What the committee's saying is if a mom doesn't have hepatitis, her baby's safe. But that's not true. Babies can get exposed in daycare. You know, kids bite each other, nail clippers. So, babies are still at risk. So, I hope that parents will still opt to get vaccinated early for their babies but this can result in up to 480 new deaths from liver disease.

I left because I was concerned of what was happening at the agency and under Secretary Kennedy's leadership, what was going to happen. And we've seen that on websites, we've seen that on information coming out. And even some of the people leading his science, like a realtor, an aviation attorney, I have concerns that we don't have the career scientists driving this information.

[03:40:07]

I agree. I would listen to the American Academy Pediatrics.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Two out of three escaped inmates have been recaptured after a jail break in Louisiana. CNN's Rafael Romo has the latest.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What we know is that out of three inmates who authorities say, escaped this week from a jail in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, located about 60 miles west of Baton Rouge, only one remains at large. The fugitive has been identified as 24- year-old Keith Eli, who was facing a second-degree attempted murder charge.

A second escapee identified as 24-year-old Jonathan Jevon Joseph, and who was facing several charges, including principal to first-degree rape, has been captured according to the St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office.

The third escapee, 26-year-old Joseph Allen Harrington, who faced several felony charges, including home invasion, killed himself after he was found as Port Barre Police Chief Deon Boudreaux told CNN affiliate KADN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEON BOURDEAUX, PORT BARRE POLICE CHIEF: Eventually were able to go inside the home and found Mr. Harrington. Of course, he was deceased from a single gunshot wound, a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: Regarding how the inmates were able to escape, St. Landry Parish Sheriff Bobby Guidroz said that the inmates discovered a degrading part of an upper wall area, and over time removed the mortar, allowing them to remove concrete blocks and provide their exit. The sheriff added that the inmates used sheets and other items to scale the outer wall, drop onto the first floor roof and lower themselves to the ground.

But St. Land Parish President Jessie Bellard disputed that statement saying at a news conference that the comment about crumbling walls is not true.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSIE M. BELLARD, PRESIDENT, ST. LANDRY PARISH: As you can see, the walls are not crumbling. Our jail's in good shape. We had structural engineers come in last year look at our jail for the possibility of expanding our jail. And the structural engineers came back with a clean bill of help.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: This latest jailbreak adds to several brazen escapes from Louisiana Prison so far in 2025. An inmate escaped from the same St. Landry Parish jail on October 23rd and was recaptured by the Opelousas Police Department only a day later, as KADN reported then.

Ten inmates broke out of a New Orleans jail in May in a stunning overnight escape using electric hair trimmers with multiple clipper blades to help cut their way through the cell walls, according to a source. The last of those 10 prisoners was at large for nearly five months before being recaptured in Atlanta.

Rafael Romo, CNN, Atlanta.

HUNTE: Okay. Ahead, archeologists are tackling one of history's greatest puzzles in the devastated ruins of Pompeii. They're putting the past of the ancient city back together with a little help from some cutting edge assistance. See you in a moment.

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[03:45:00]

HUNTE: Welcome back. The history of the ancient and devastated Roman City of Pompeii is in ruins, scattered across thousands of fragments. Putting the puzzle back together is a daunting task, but as CNN's Lynda Kinkade tells us, new high tech tools are helping researchers to figure it all out.

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LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR (voice over): A robot in Pompeii, Italy is helping reconstruct the past by piecing together two ancient Roman frescos. The war paintings were shattered not only from the explosion of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D., but also bombings during World War II and a building collapse in 2010.

The research project, which began in 2021, is funded by the European Union. It uses image recognition, A.I.-powered puzzle solving and precise robotic arms to speed up what is normally painstaking restoration work.

MARCELLO PELILLO, PROFESSOR, CA' FOSCARI UNIVERSITY OF VENICE: Very often yes, these fresco fragments come from different frescos. Because if a room collapses, and maybe there are fresco on the walls were on the ceiling, you have all the pieces that are mixed up. It's like you buy four or five boxes a jigsaw puzzle, you mix everything together, then you throw away the boxes, and then you try to solve four or five puzzles at the same time.

KINKADE: With no reference image and many pieces missing, solving the ancient puzzle is tough work for humans alone. Robotics teams and A.I. experts from research institutes across Europe developed algorithms that can match colors and patterns in the frescos that might not even be visible to the human eye.

Experts say that this technology does not signal the end of human archeologists but it could shift the work they do.

GABRIEL ZUCHTRIEGEL, DIRECTOR, ARCHAEOLOGICAL PARK OF POMPEII: Does this mean that we don't need archeologists anymore in the future and that everything will be replaced by machines and digital technologies? The answers obviously no. But what's going to happen is, I think, that the work of archeologists will dramatically change, and, in some way, I think we will get back to our origins, to the interpretation of artworks, of daily life, of social structures architecture.

KINKADE: Lynda Kinkade, CNN.

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HUNTE: Okay, a new chapter in a storied sports rivalry. Georgia finally beats Alabama in a crucial college football game. The masterful performance that made it all possible, that's next. See you in a moment.

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HUNTE: Welcome back. Here in Georgia, college football fans are celebrating after the Bulldogs beat longtime rival Alabama at a Southeastern Conference championship. The Bulldogs scored their first two touchdowns of stellar defensive plays, including this one, a blocked punt that set up a drive in the first quarter.

Georgia Quarterback Gunner Stockton put on a masterful performance, throwing three touchdown passes for 156 yards. He led the Bulldogs to a 28-7 victory and was named the game's MVP. It is the first time Georgia has beaten Alabama at the SEC Championship game.

Indiana knocked off top ranked Ohio State on friendly territory in Indianapolis to win the Big 10 Championship with a perfect record. The game was a nail-biter, but the Hoosiers took the lead with this touchdown pass from Fernando Mendoza to Elijah Sarratt in the third quarter. The Buckeyes missed a game tying field goal and the final score was 13-10. The win will likely give Indiana the top seed in the college football playoff.

For the first time ever, Texas Tech are the Big 12 champions. The Red Raiders dominated number 11 Brigham Young 34-7 under the bright lights of AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday. It is a once-in-a- generation win for Texas Tech. The school's football program hasn't won an outright conference title in nearly 70 years. And more good news for Texas Tech, the championship victory secures the Red Raider spot in the college football playoffs.

Some side news for Liverpool as Striker Mo Salah could be leaving the team, but happy days for Lionel Messi, David Beckham, and Inter Miami who have captured North America's MLS Cup.

CNN World Sports Patrick Snell reports.

PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Well, Liverpool Football Club have been making headlines this season for their poor form after a strong start to the Premier League campaign and now the reigning champions have been left reeling after star player Mo Salah spoke out after starting on the subs bench for a third straight match.

[03:55:10]

The Egyptian talking to reporters on Saturday after his team thrill draw with leads United, Salah saying in part, I don't know. It seems like the club is throwing me under the bus. That's how I felt it, how I feel it. I think it's very clear that someone wants me to get all the blame. The club promised me in the summer a lot of promises and nothing so far.

Well, Salah, who also admitted his relationship with Head Coach Arne Slot had broken down, is scheduled to play in the Africa Cup of Nations with his country after Liverpool's fixture with Brighton next weekend, a game Salah hinted could be his last for the club.

Here in the U.S., Lionel Messi and Inter Miami are celebrating winning the MLS cup for the very first time after the South Florida franchise beat the Vancouver White Caps 3-1. The Argentine superstar playing a key role in assisting his compatriot, Rodrigo De Paul, to put his team 2-1 up, Miami would add one more to seal the title scenes of sheer joy and elation for Messi and his jubilant teammates.

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DAVID BECKHAM, INTER MIAMI CO-OWNER AND TWO-TIME MLS CUP WINNER: It means everything. You know, obviously I started this journey over 19 years ago. And this was always my dream. My dream was to bring a club to this city and be successful, also bringing the best player in the world.

So, tonight has been pretty surreal. It's a moment that we'll cherish forever.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SNELL: Lionel Messi, a World Cup and a record eight-time Ballon d'Or winner, a Champions League winner too, and now sealing his Major League Soccer legacy. Back to you.

HUNTE: Okay. That's all I've got for you. Thank you so much for joining me and the team. I will see you at slightly earlier times tomorrow. I'm Ben Hunte Atlanta, and there is so much more CNN Newsroom just ahead.

Kim, over to you.

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