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Kennedy Center To Close For Renovations Starting July 4th; Some House Dems Support Government Funding Deal; Interview With Representative Seth Magaziner (D-RI); Minnesota Schools Grapple With Immigration Surge; Iran's Foreign Minister Hopeful About Negotiations Despite Tensions With U.S.; Trump Pick Kevin Warsh As Next Fed Chair; Massive Winter Storm Drops Historic Amounts of Snow On The Southeast. Aired 8-9p ET

Aired February 01, 2026 - 20:00   ET

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

[20:00:38]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

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

Breaking news as President Donald Trump says the Kennedy Center, which the center's board has deemed the Trump Kennedy Center, will close on July 4th for two years as it undergoes renovations. Now, Trump was elected to chair that board, a board that was handpicked by the president himself after he got rid of the previous board.

The president posting on Truth Social just a little bit ago, "If we don't close the quality of construction will not be nearly as good. The temporary closure will produce a much faster and higher quality result." He went on to say, and this is important, this is an important piece of it, that all the financing is already in place for this. But we don't really have a lot of clarification on that just yet.

Joining us now, CNN media analyst and media correspondent at Axios, Sara Fischer.

Sara, it is always good to have you on. Thanks for being here. Look, the Kennedy Center has been the source of a lot of attention, let's say, from the president since he got back in office. And now we have this news that he is closing it for renovations, and it comes as they, we know, because of the reporting that it struggled with ticket sales and getting performers to perform there. Walk us through what you're hearing.

SARA FISCHER, CNN MEDIA ANALYST: Yes, Jessica, I think that's a big part of it. You had a sort of one-two punch in Washington. First you had Philip Glass, the famous composer who was supposed to debut his new work called "Lincoln" at the Kennedy Center. He pulled out saying that some of the changes being made, including putting the president's name on the building, as you just displayed there, go against the values of the song. You had the Washington National Opera also say that they would no

longer be performing there. So I do think pulling out artists canceling is a big part of this. The other part of it is that if you zoom out, Donald Trump is just trying to put his mark on many big D.C. cultural institutions, whether that's renaming and reframing exhibits at the Smithsonian or tearing down the East Wing and trying to redecorate and renovate the White House.

This is just the latest in a string of places where he's trying to make his mark. Now, you mentioned he needs board approval. He chairs the board of the Kennedy Center, and the rest of the board is mostly his allies. So I expect this to break ground they're saying probably after July 4th.

DEAN: Right. And you're right. I mean, I think that you think about the East Wing, which they have demolished and re rebuilding, again, with private donations. And there are some questions around what that means exactly in terms of influence. And is there influence that is being gained from those donations? He wants to erect this -- the arch going into Washington, D.C. and then there's the question around this particular one.

Now we know it will close July 4th. But again, the financing around this, who will be a part of that and what kind of impact it might have long term on this institution.

FISCHER: It's a great question. And also, the Kennedy Center for years was a place that was considered nonpartisan. And it wasn't just a place for, you know, concerts. You also had big award shows and ceremonies that took place there. I'm curious where they're going to do the "Kennedy Center Honors" award show for 2026 and 2027, if it's going to be closed. It's a place where dignitaries have gone. It's a place where famous people want to go and perform.

So if this is going to ruffle the feathers with the creative community, the question becomes, does it still hold that impact? I will say, though, to Donald Trump's credit, you know, if you ever walk into the Kennedy Center, it's absolutely gorgeous. It's beautiful. You've got flags from state capitals and from all around the world, but there are parts of it that are dated, so I can see why he would be interested in renovating.

He was just there for the opening of "Melania," the documentary about the first lady. He probably took in some of the decorations and said, this needs a little bit of an update.

DEAN: Yes, we know he does like to renovate. We've seen things obviously at the White House, both big and small, and now this.

Sara Fischer, always good to have you. Thanks so much.

FISCHER: Thank you.

DEAN: Also tonight, some new details about the funding fight over DHS. Of course, that agency includes ICE. That has led to the partial government shutdown we're in right now. Sources telling CNN some House Democrats are voicing their support for the funding deal agreed to late Friday in the Senate during a private call with House Democrats tonight, where they were all sharing kind of their thoughts on this and how they'll move forward.

[20:05:10]

That call coming after Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told Republicans not to count on House Democrats to help them reopen the government. A source on the call said the caucus was not totally united on how to vote for the underlying bill. But we do know that the current partial shutdown will likely continue until at least Tuesday.

Now, the federal operation in Minneapolis led the Senate to negotiating this deal to fund DHS. It pulled the funding for DHS out of the other funding packages. And it said, for two weeks, we will fund it as we work -- the lawmakers work to find a bipartisan funding agreement for that agency. And that's what they settled on in the Senate. It went over to the House, and that's where it is now.

Tonight, as a result of the partial government shutdown, CNN is learning about 10,000 employees will be furloughed, according to the FAA's shutdown contingency plan. Now, that does not include the tens of thousands of air traffic controllers who will continue working without pay.

Let's bring in CNN's Julia Benbrook, who joins us now.

Julia. Important to remember as you're looking a couple of things that make this unique. As you're looking at the House, House Speaker Mike Johnson has 218 members. That is what he needs to get anything passed by himself. And also, Democrats would have multiple opportunities where they could vote or not vote on various -- you got to go through a lot of procedures to get this done.

So tell us where things stand tonight both there and then the White House's role in all of these negotiations.

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're exactly right. There are a lot of pieces to this. And we'll start with the House. So House Speaker Mike Johnson, he is looking to push this Senate passed bill across the finish line. But the top ranking Democrat in the House has told him that he cannot rely on Democratic votes to do this. And Johnson has a razor thin majority. It's complicated to do anything without some help from the other party.

The Senate passed bill that we're discussing, it funds most of the government, most agencies, through September, but it only funds the Department of Homeland Security for very short amount of time. And this is as Democrats are pushing to see reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Now, Johnson was pressed specifically on NBC today on how long this would last. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): Well, let's say I'm confident that we'll do it at least by Tuesday. We have a logistical challenge of getting everyone in town. And because of the conversation I had with Hakeem Jeffries, I know that we've got to pass a rule and probably do this mostly on our own.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BENBROOK: And then that call that you mentioned that wrapped just about an hour ago, House Democrats were on that. They were discussing how to proceed as Jeffrey has warned, again, not to rely on votes from within his party. But according to sources familiar with the call, at least a few members on there were open to the idea of supporting this Senate passed plan in these next steps.

Then where does the White House come into all of this as the negotiations are taking place? Johnson said that there was a phone call that he was present for that involved President Donald Trump and involved Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. And there were discussions on what areas of the Democrats' demands when it comes to immigration and customs reform, that they could get behind, that the White House could back. Johnson says he believes that they are making progress there -- Jessica.

DEAN: It will be interesting to see, as is often the case on the Hill, there is a lot of procedure. If they -- if the Republicans can get through that procedural hurdle, it will be interesting to see then if that's when some Democrats will support this. We will watch it all play out.

Julia Benbrook at the White House for us. Thank you so much for that.

And as House Democrats appear to be mixed in their support about which direction they want to ultimately go, we're going to talk with Congressman Seth Magaziner about where he stands. That's next.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:13:48]

DEAN: Back now with breaking news on the current partial government shutdown, with sources telling CNN that multiple Democratic lawmakers are open to supporting a funding deal that passed the Senate on Friday. House Democratic leadership, however, has warned Republicans cannot rely on Democratic votes to get the government back open.

Democratic Rhode Island Congressman Seth Magaziner also joining us now. He is a member of the House Homeland Security Committee and other committees.

Congressman, thank you so much for being here with us on a Sunday night. We appreciate it. I know you, your caucus had a meeting earlier this evening to talk about this. It was described to me as just, you know, people being able to really voice their opinions and talk about where they are with this. What did you get from that call?

REP. SETH MAGAZINER (D-RI): Well, first of all, all Democrats and certainly all those that were on the call that I was just on are united in our belief that what is happening with ICE is totally out of control, that they are acting in a lawless manner and untargeted manner, that they are, frankly, ruining people's lives without reason and without consequence. They promised that they would go after the worst of the worst under this administration. That is not what they have been doing. They have been killing American citizens in the streets, locking up children. There need to be real deep structural reforms.

[20:15:05]

Now there's two different bills that are coming up here, funding bills. And I think it's important to understand the distinction between them because what you just referenced is a two-week stopgap bill that the Senate negotiated with the White House to basically fund DHS for two weeks while there is a negotiation around what kinds of reforms there should be.

And you're correct that, you know, I think some Democrats support that two-week stopgap, others don't. However, the more important and most important bill is going to be the one that comes after this two weeks is up because that would be a full year funding bill. And that is one where all Democrats, as far as I know, are united in saying that we are not going to support that bill unless there are real, deep, fundamental reforms, things like requiring a judicial warrant for ICE operations, particularly going into people's homes, things like getting rid of the masks, requiring ICE to act just like any other police department where officers can be identified and held accountable for wrongdoing.

Things like sending Border Patrol back to the border, where their mission should be. And so, the most important thing is going to be not the two-week bill that we vote on this week. Some members may vote for it, some may vote against it. I plan to vote against it. But the more important one is going to be the one that comes up in two weeks and insisting that there be real fundamental reforms built into that longer term funding bill.

DEAN: Right. And so you're saying you plan to vote against the one that's coming up now, which is what would be immediately in front of you. As we were talking about in our last segment, there's a lot of procedural votes that have to happen as well. So it can get -- it can get a little complicated if you're following along at home when you're watching that.

But in terms of what you're talking about with the negotiating over what you all would like to see in terms of changes to ICE policy, we've been putting up a graphic where people can see some of the things you were just listing there. And we can put that back up again so people can follow along. How confident are you that you all can get these things done?

MAGAZINER: I mean, I'm confident that most if not all of us are going to vote no on any funding bill unless we have significant reforms. Keep in mind, Republicans can pass a funding bill in a simple majority in the House. They don't need Democratic votes in the House, but they do need Democratic votes in the Senate, where it requires 60 votes to pass a funding bill.

DEAN: Right.

MAGAZINER: And you know, one thing that I will say, for example, is, you know, the Republicans have already said publicly that, you know, they're open to funding for body cameras. That is not nearly enough. You know, the killing of Alex Pretti was captured on camera from multiple angles, and we still do not know who the agents are, who committed that killing in broad daylight or if there are any consequences that are going to be levied against them for doing so.

So, you know, body cameras are not enough. This is about having real reform and saying, look, ICE needs to act like any other law enforcement agency where there are standards around use of force, where there's a need to get a judicial warrant to break into someone's house, and where there can be real accountability if there's wrongdoing.

DEAN: And one of these things is tightening these parameters around the warrants. There's administrative warrants, which are what are currently being used. Then there's judicial warrants, which you all are asking for, which is essentially put this through the courts first before you go into someone's home. Republicans that I've interviewed about this say that that's just, that's -- it's bureaucratic. It makes it too bureaucratic. It makes it hard for them to do their jobs. What would you say to that?

MAGAZINER: It's law enforcement. You know, one of the bedrocks of law enforcement in this country is that the law enforcement agency doesn't get to write their own warrants before they barge into someone's house. They have to go to a judge for that. And this is done in law enforcement contexts all across the country. You need to get a judicial warrant before you can go into someone's home.

You need to get a judicial warrant before you do a wiretap. This is a standard feature of law enforcement. And the reason that that exists is to make sure that there's a check in place because what's been happening under ICE and DHS under this administration is that they are violating people's civil liberties, locking people up oftentimes when it's not even the right person. There was an image of a, you know, an elderly man being pulled out of his home in subfreezing temperatures wearing only a bathrobe in Minneapolis a couple of weeks ago. And guess what? It was the wrong guy.

[20:20:00]

They knocked down this guy's door, this elderly person, pulled him out into the cold, took him to prison, only to find out afterwards that the guy that they purportedly were looking for was already in jail. I mean, having basic checks and balances like requiring a judicial warrant before you barge into someone's house, that's to protect, by the way, not, you know, potential criminals. That's to protect everyday American citizens from having their rights violated.

This administration has already admitted that they have locked up numerous people under cases of mistaken identity. And there need to be commonsense guardrails in place. Look, I myself, in good conscience, cannot vote for another Homeland Security funding bill even a short two-week one, while these conditions exist. But certainly we cannot support any longer term funding until there are real structural reforms.

DEAN: All right. Congressman Seth Magaziner, thanks for your time tonight. We appreciate it.

MAGAZINER: Thank you.

DEAN: After our break, how Minneapolis schools have had to adjust to support students and parents amid the Trump administration's crackdown there.

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[20:25:35]

DEAN: Five-year-old preschooler Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrian, are back home in Minneapolis after being released from a Texas detention center. Liam became the face of children caught up in the Trump administration's immigration crackdown when this image in particular showing a federal agent holding Liam by a Spider-man backpack sparked widespread backlash.

He was taken by immigration officials along with his father after coming home from preschool. Yesterday a judge issued a scathing opinion ordering Liam and his father's release. The judge writing that Liam's case originated in, quote, "The ill-conceived and incompetently implemented government pursuit of daily deportation quotas apparently even if it requires traumatizing children."

The Trump administration says it may appeal that decision now. So we wait for that to work its way through the courts. But joining us now is "Minnesota Star Tribune" education reporter Mara Klecker.

Thank you so much for being here with us. I know you've been covering how this surge of immigration operations has been impacting schools in the Minneapolis area. So explain to people what you found and how school districts there are having to shift the way they operate.

MARA KLECKER, K-12 EDUCATION REPORTER, MINNESOTA STAR TRIBUNE: Yes. First of all, thank you for having me. So I'm an education reporter here in the Twin Cities. And, you know, more than a year ago we started hearing that schools were really quietly preparing for kind of worst-case scenario here. You know, letting families know that federal agents would not be allowed inside of schools and kind of quietly preparing conversations with families about resources and rights that they had.

You know, fast-forward to the last few weeks, and many school officials feel that we are in that kind of worst-case scenario where families are really feeling the impact of the immigration crackdown and surge here in Minneapolis. And we know that, you know, Liam is obviously the face of kids that have been detained in the Twin Cities, but he's not the only one even from his own elementary school that have been detained.

And, you know, other kids have had parents detained and Columbia Heights, the school district where Liam went to school has really been the first school district to kind of publicly come out and say, this is what is happening to our kids. But we know that school districts are really feeling the impact of this across the board. Students are not coming to school because they're afraid. Their families are afraid to leave their homes. So attendance has dropped sharply, which means school officials are really doing this kind of dual work of trying to show up for kids that are in school and have all of the needs that school, you know, school students have on a regular day in the best of times, and then supporting, you know, the thousands of kids that do not feel safe coming to school right now.

DEAN: Yes. And I know you recently spoke with school employees who compared what's going on right now to the COVID era. From your reporting, you said, "In the COVID era, they said one could get outside and could wear a mask to shop for groceries and run errands. Right now, the families can do none of that. They have to stay so I feel it's worse than COVID."

Tell us more about that.

KLECKER: Yes, school leaders, teachers, parents and lawmakers are really worried about the long-term learning effects of this, right? We finally felt like we were maybe starting to come out of the learning loss of COVID and the learning disruptions of distance learning. But, you know, like that source said really well, like, that was a different time because we were all at home. So teachers were at home.

They weren't doing this kind of, you know, dual job, dual role of showing up for kids in class and kids at home. So they feel really stretched thin. And then kids don't have the opportunity to, you know, play outside or have the normalcy of going shopping. Yes, it was different and not normal because we were wearing masks at the grocery store. But the level of fear is completely different than COVID, I think.

DEAN: Yes.

KLECKER: Yes.

DEAN: And you have to think about, you know, both the students who are obviously range in age from really little preschoolers and elementary school kids to high school kids.

[20:30:06]

But then also the teachers and administrators and, you know, I think for kids, especially, routine is really important. And it makes them feel really safe. And I know school administrators and teachers want to provide that space where kids feel safe and can grow and learn. And it has to be so upsetting and frustrating to them that that is being disrupted.

KLECKER: It really is. And they feel the weight and responsibility and frankly the grief of all of that, of watching their students go through this after, you know, such tough years in the Twin Cities area already. And they are doing their best to keep that sense of normalcy and fun going. You know, I had the privilege of following one school social worker. Sorry. We're on automatic lights in this room.

DEAN: That's OK. We understand. There it goes.

KLECKER: All right,. You know, I had the privilege of following a school social worker around, and she was -- she spent her morning packing grocery bags for the kids at home, and then spent her evening with middle school kids at a winter formal dance in the lunchroom, you know, so they're really doing both.

DEAN: Wow. They're doing a lot.

All right. Mara Klecker, thank you so much for your reporting. You and your colleagues have been doing tremendous work in really tough, tough times. So thank you so much.

KLECKER: Thanks for highlighting it. Appreciate it.

DEAN: Still ahead, Iran's top diplomat says he's confident a deal can be made with the U.S. We have an exclusive interview for you. That's next.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:36:21]

DEAN: Despite rising tensions, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says he's confident his country can reach a deal with the United States on Tehran's nuclear weapons program. He says Iran has lost trust in the U.S., but that engaging messages -- I'm sorry, exchanging messages through friendly countries in the region has been, in his words, fruitful.

President Trump has increased the U.S. military presence in the region, but has not given any timeline on any possible strike when pressed by reporters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I certainly can't tell you that. But we do have very big, powerful ships heading in that direction as you know. I can't tell you, you know.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: OK.

TRUMP: But I hope, I hope they negotiate something that's acceptable.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Saudi Arabia's defense minister reportedly said that if the U.S. backs off the strike, that will only embolden Tehran. What's your reaction to that, sir?

TRUMP: Well, some people think that and some people don't. If you could make a negotiated deal that would be satisfactory with no nuclear weapons, that they should do that. But I don't know that they will. But they are talking to us. Seriously talking to us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: For negotiations to proceed, the U.S. is demanding Iran stop all nuclear ambitions, give up its ballistic missile program and end support for all Iranian proxy groups.

CNN senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen spoke with Iran's foreign minister earlier today. In a world exclusive, he got his reaction to multiple comments on Iran that President Trump made this weekend. Here's that interview.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ABBAS ARAGHCHI, IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: So I'm not concerned about war. What I'm concerned of is miscalculations and military operation based on misinformation and disinformation campaigns. It is obvious to us that there are certain elements, certain parties who want to drag President Trump into this war for their own benefits. And I think President Trump is wise enough to make a correct decision.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: How can a meaningful negotiations process be jumpstarted right now?

ARAGHCHI: A meaningful negotiation should be based on trust. And unfortunately, we have lost our trust to the United States as a negotiating partner. We need to overcome this mistrust. There are now some intermediators, some friendly countries in the region who are trying to build this confidence. It is difficult, but they are trying.

So I see the possibility of another talk if the U.S. negotiation team follows what President Trump said to come to a fair and equitable deal to ensure that there is no nuclear weapons.

PLEITGEN: So, if this confidence is built, if you get to that stage, you are ready and willing to sit down directly with the American side, with someone like Witkoff and talk?

ARAGHCHI: You know, the question of directly and indirectly is something else. That is the form of negotiation. And we have to -- we have to --

PLEITGEN: That's what they say they want that.

ARAGHCHI: Yes. But we have to take care of the substance of negotiation. And that is more important.

PLEITGEN: Yes, and President Trump says that negotiations are already going on. He has said overnight that there is negotiations taking place. How does that work right now with this confidence building with countries in the region also helping? ARAGHCHI: That is through intermediators. As I said, there are some

countries who convey messages and who are trying to build confidence and to prepare the ground for a meaningful negotiation, and we are working with them and we are exchanging messages.

[20:40:11]

PLEITGEN: Would you say that these talks that are going on right now are fruitful and can lead to a de-escalation of the situation to a point where real talks can take place?

ARAGHCHI: I think so far, yes, fruitful.

PLEITGEN: Things like enrichment, things like ballistic missiles, things like proxy forces in the region. I know that the United States has talked about wanting to negotiate about that as well. Is that completely out of the question for you, or is that something you could at least talk about?

ARAGHCHI: President Trump said no nuclear weapons. And we are fully agree. We fully agree with that. That could be a very good deal. Of course, in return we expect sanctions lifting. So that deal is possible. Let's do not talk about impossible things.

PLEITGEN: What do you think the consequences would be if there was a full on military confrontation between Iran and the United States? Because I know your military has changed its doctrine, that if there is a major attack, it would be considered existential for the Islamic Republic. What would that mean for the region here?

ARAGHCHI: If war starts, that would be a disaster for everybody. In previous -- in the previous war, we tried hard to limit the scope of war between Iran and Israel. This time, if it is between Iran and the U.S., since the U.S. bases are spread all over the region, then inevitably, you know, many parts of the region would be involved, engaged, and that could be very dangerous.

Our missiles were tested in a real war last time, and we were able to, you know, understand their problems, their weak points and their strengths. So we learned many lessons from those 12 days of war. And I think we are now very well-prepared. But again, being prepared doesn't mean that we want war. We want to prevent a war.

PLEITGEN: President Trump said he's also concerned about the rights of those who are in custody. As you know, he said that he believes that he prevented hangings from taking place here in Iran. Can you guarantee the rights of those who have been detained and whose cases are being looked into right now?

ARAGHCHI: Of course. First of all, there was no plan for executions or hangings, so there were no plans as such. And right now, I can, you know, affirm that the right of each and every person who is arrested and detained would be observed and guaranteed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Again, that was Fred Pleitgen. Thank you so much for that reporting. A world exclusive there.

Still to come, President Trump nominates Kevin Warsh for the next Fed chair to replace Jerome Powell. Could we see lower interest rates? What does this mean if he's confirmed by the Senate?

CNN global economic analyst Rana Foroohar weighs in.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:47:47]

DEAN: President Trump says he was joking when he told guests at an elite Washington dinner last night he might sue his recently announced nominee to replace outgoing Fed chair Jerome Powell. Trump told the group he'd fire Kevin Warsh if he didn't lower interest rates. Later on Air Force One, Trump was quizzed about his nominee.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: My Fed choice should get Democrat votes.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Do you have a sense of what he's going to do as far as interest rates are concerned?

TRUMP: I hope he's going to lower them. I mean, if you watch him on television, you know, because I watch interviews and statements, I hope he's going to lower, but he's going to have to do what he wants to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: CNN global economic analyst Rana Foroohar is joining us now.

Rana, it is nice to see you. What should we expect from Kevin Warsh and how tough is his job coming up?

RANA FAROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Well, Jessica, I cannot think of a tougher job in Washington at the moment. He is a very capable pair of hands. I'm actually very pro-Kevin Warsh, particularly given some of the other candidates that Trump had put forward. But he's got a tough job. I mean, we are at a very strange moment in the global economy where we've seen some signs of inflation.

But the Fed has a huge balance sheet. Warsh has said that he wants to get that balance sheet in check, which I actually agree with. I think that that's one of the reasons that overseas investors in particular have been worried about the U.S., worried about the dollar, because the Fed has had this ballooning balance sheet really since the great financial crisis of 2008. But a lot of people think that once the Fed starts to cut back, you may see long term borrowing rates begin to rise.

So, you know, I could keep going. But basically there is every possible vector in play right now. It's going to be very, very difficult even just looking at the data to decide what to do, let alone dealing with the political pressure of the sort that you just heard from the president.

DEAN: Right. And in theory, the Fed chair should be totally immune from any political pressure. But we know that is not the world that we're living in right now.

FAROOHAR: In theory.

DEAN: There is so much about this I think for the president certainly centers around interest rates. Will he cut interest rates? That's what that clip was that we played just before we came to you. Where do you see him?

[20:50:00]

How does he approach interest rates and kind of what do you know about his thinking, or have you learned about his thinking in watching him?

FAROOHAR: Yes, it's a great question. So two key takeaways for me. Warsh has said that he believes that A.I., that the productivity that we're all seeing some of us from using A.I., you see it, you know, really changing the labor market. He believes that that technology may actually allow the American workforce to become more productive without stoking inflation.

Now, if that's true, that could be an argument for lowering interest rates while the government tries to start trimming back that Fed balance sheet. But we don't know that that's going to be the case yet. I mean, we are in the middle of just a huge experiment, not just technologically with what may or may not happen regarding A.I. and the labor markets, but also how the heck we are going to shrink that Fed balance sheet, which has been growing, as I say, since 2008 onwards.

DEAN: Yes. And he's been called an inflation hawk. What do you -- how do you think that -- is that fair? And what do you make of that?

FAROOHAR: You know, I think that, you know, when people call Warsh an inflation hawk what they're referring to is the fact that he was concerned post 2008 that the country was relying too much on the Fed, you know, that policymakers were not really doing their job and that we were just simply looking to the Fed to put more and more money into the economy.

I was worried about that same thing myself. He believed that that might come back to bite in the form of longer term inflation. We haven't seen as much as we, some of us thought that we would. But that's where the hawkish reputation comes from. That said, I think he's going to be data driven and case dependent. I think that, you know, the fact that he's already talking about, well, maybe A.I. is going to allow us to lower rates without stoking inflation.

That's a different view. So, you know, I think that you're going to see somebody that is pretty data driven, but also under a lot of political pressure. And it's going to be interesting to see how that plays. DEAN: Quite a balancing act indeed.

Rana Foroohar, thank you so much. It's always good to see you.

FAROOHAR: Thanks.

DEAN: And the winter storm is gone. Parts of the south, though, still dealing with its impacts. More on that just ahead.

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[20:57:04]

DEAN: That massive bomb cyclone is moving on after walloping parts of the southeastern U.S., but the wintry weather is far from over. Frigid cold temperatures are expected to last for most of the week across Tennessee and the Carolinas. Places that are not used to these temperatures. Snowfall accumulations broke records and left behind a wintry mess that's unlikely to even start melting away before the middle of the week.

North Carolina officials are urging people to just stay home as they work to clear up roads and clean up from the storm. That storm blamed for more than a thousand traffic accidents, including two fatalities. In one incident, a man quite lucky to be unhurt after he lost control during the snowstorm and crashed into a pond. Fire crews were able to pull him out safely.

And we have some good news about a good dog, a police canine helping find a boy with special needs who went missing during the height of the snowstorm in North Carolina. The Gastonia Police Department says K-9 Bo, that's him right there, covered in snow, and his handler, Sergeant Roland, were called in to assist in a search for a 13-year- old who left home walking without proper clothing and was at serious risk due to dangerously cold and snowy conditions.

Bo was given a scent article and then began tracking while multiple agencies established a perimeter. And this is the good news. Police say that little boy was found cold, but unharmed, which is very, very nice.

We have our Dianne Gallagher, who's been in Charlotte, North Carolina, tracking all of this. She has the latest -- Dianne.

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DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The bomb cyclone may have said goodbye to the Carolinas, but its effects will be felt for days to come here. Record-breaking amount of snow fell all across the state. The governor said that every single one of North Carolina's 100 counties had some kind of snowfall. And here in places like Charlotte, it was again record breaking, the fourth highest amount of snow that has fallen in the history of the city, tied with a record set back in 1880. Eleven inches here.

Now, there are a lot of people out and about on Sunday enjoying themselves and the snow, but there are too many people doing exactly that. They are driving. According to the North Carolina Department of Transportation, there were plenty of people on the roads which led to, unfortunately, two fatalities as well as more than a thousand collisions that were reported to them during the storm.

And there were incidents like a train hitting a semi-truck, which thankfully no one was injured, and a 100-car backup that shut down an interstate on Saturday night. They warned that roads that look like this right now, part of it might still be packed with snow, some of it is melting. Look, secondary streets could take up to a week for them to get to, although they are plowing some of the main roads right now. And a lot of them do look good across the city of Charlotte. But this wet, mushy, slushy stuff, it's likely going to refreeze continuing to cause issues throughout the week here in the Carolinas, like black ice sleek, slippery roadways and potentially for some the inability to get out and around town.

Officials are asking you if you do not need to, please do not drive as they attempt to clean up the streets. If you can, on foot, go out and enjoy this rare and record-breaking southern snow.

I'm Dianne Gallagher. Back to you.

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DEAN: Thanks, Dianne.

And thank you for joining me this evening. I'm Jessica Dean. The CNN Original Series "1968: The Year That Changed America" is headed your way next. Have a great night, everyone.