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Powerful Winter Storm Slamming the Northeastern U.S.; Interview with Mayor Robin R. Christiansen of Dover, Delaware; Power Outages from Storm Mounting, especially in New Jersey; Violence Erupts Across Mexico After Death of El Mencho; American Tourists Stranded in Mexico Amid Violence; Trump Raises Newly Announced Global Tariffs from 10 Percent to 15 Percent; Poll on Key Issues Impacting Trump's Approval Rating. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired February 22, 2026 - 23:00   ET

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

[23:00:59]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: 11:00 p.m. in -- on the East Coast. And this is CNN Breaking News coverage.

A powerful winter storm that is sweeping across the northeastern United States, where heavy snow is accumulating. And we're now bracing for the potential of blizzard conditions in the coming hours. The storm prediction center is now warning of prolonged overnight whiteouts that are possible from New York City to Boston, where snow will fall through Monday morning, as you see that system via this radar.

Some heavy bands could potentially dump up to two inches of snow for hours. More than 40 million people across 11 states are under blizzard warnings, including in New Jersey, where power outages are now mounting and some areas have already seen more than a half foot of snow.

So what does it look like on the ground, especially here in New York City where authorities have been preparing?

Let's go to CNN's Gloria Pazmino, who continues our live coverage from midtown Manhattan.

Gloria, good to see you again. We are several hours into this. Has the city said, have they shared if there are any troubled areas right now, any areas of concern thus far?

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We have seen some accidents throughout the city in the last few hours, and that is part of the reason, Polo, why the mayor put in a travel ban as of 9:00 this evening. So we're two hours into it now, and we have seen the streets get more and more desolate. There are still people walking around and there are still some vehicles on the road but the mayor has asked New Yorkers that if they can help it at all to just stay home tonight. You're going to make it very difficult for sanitation and emergency workers to get around, potentially get into an accident, potentially get stuck. So if you can help it, stay home.

We've also watched as the city's plows have been coming around over the last several hours. More than 2,000 pieces of equipment are out in force tonight, making sure that the streets are cleaned. And for the next several hours we are expecting this snow to significantly pile up. We are on track now to potentially see some historic numbers by tomorrow morning. The last time we had significant snowfall here in New York City was January of 2016. We got 27 and a half inches.

And as I say that, honestly, I am just a little bit afraid for what the morning is going to look like because once we get over a foot of snow in New York City, it becomes very hard to get around. So that's part of the reason for the travel ban.

Listen to the mayor earlier today talking about why he wants New Yorkers to stay off the roads.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR ZOHRAN MAMDANI (D), NEW YORK CITY: We are declaring a state of emergency and instituting a travel ban starting at 9:00 p.m. this evening and ending at 12:00 p.m. tomorrow. The state of emergency closes the streets, highways and bridges of New York City for all traffic. Cars, trucks, scooters, and e-bikes, with some specific exemptions for essential and emergency movement.

We are asking New Yorkers to avoid all non-essential travel. Please, for your safety, stay home. Stay inside and stay off the roads.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAZMINO: Now, Polo, we've been talking about how these are blizzard conditions, we are under a blizzard warning here in New York City, and we haven't had that in a few years, and what that means is that visibility is severely being affected, and also that the winds are significant, between 30 and 35 miles per hours. All of those conditions sustained for at least three hours. That's what gives you a blizzard.

So the next few hours, if you do not need to be outside, it's getting late into the evening. We're going to go inside. And tomorrow morning when the travel ban lifts at noon, much of the cleanup is going to begin. The city does have some challenges ahead of itself. There was some criticism for the mayor a few weeks ago during the last storm. I will say that storm was much colder and that made conditions much more difficult, especially for people outside.

[23:05:05]

It's not as cold today, but still a very dangerous storm. The city also deploying outreach workers to make sure that anyone who may be vulnerable and may still be outside tonight is brought inside for their safety -- Polo.

SANDOVAL: You know, Gloria, it is so telling, too, that the snow is only covering one side of your hat. I think for viewers watching your report, if they're happen to be watching without audio, that tells you everything. The intensity and the direction of the snowfall. And because of that, we're incredibly grateful to you and your team as well for your reports all night. Thank you.

CNN's Gloria Pazmino with a live report from New York.

We want to go from there to Robin Christiansen. He's the mayor of Dover, Delaware, the state's capital. He joins me from Dover.

Mayor, welcome to CNN. Thank you so much for taking the time to update us.

Good evening.

SANDOVAL: So I'm wondering if you can bring our viewers up to speed with what the situation is like there where you are, and what are your biggest concerns at this hour, as many people there are in for a rough night.

MAYOR ROBIN R. CHRISTIANSEN, DOVER, DELAWARE: So at this point in time, I want to commend, first off, all of our emergency services, our police, our volunteer fire department, EMS, all of my city workers have been mobilized to put every piece of equipment that we have on the street to keep emergency lanes open to our Bay Health Care General Hospital facility, which is the main hospital here in Kent County. And they're doing the yeoman's job.

So far we've had some minor electrical out outages because of the heavy snow on wires a couple transformers have gone out, and the fire department, the volunteers have responded out on at least nine calls that have come across via phone. Our big concern is the heaviness of the snow. The wind, it is not as cold as it was the previous storm that we had, but we did have a lot of residual snow piles left over from the previous snowstorm that we had, because it really wasn't snow. It was snow creek, which was a combination of snow and about an inch and a half of ice.

So that really -- we were still hauling snow away over the last week to get it off of our street corners where it had been plowed. Hard to believe that yesterday it was 56 degrees and sunny here in Dover. I didn't wear a coat to a basketball game that I went to. And here, about 24 hours later, we have blizzard conditions, coastal flood watch in effect, as well as a high wind warning. So we are prepped for it. We are going to do the best job we can in conjunction with AJ and the folks from the DEMA in the state of Delaware.

As you mentioned, there is a level two driving restriction, and I would just ask all my citizens, as a matter of fact, all the citizens of Kent and Sussex County, to pay attention to that, because it's important to have the people that are going to be moving the snow, our first responders and EMS and volunteer firemen, to be able to do their job. And the electric crews and the plow crews to do their job. So that's why those driving restrictions are in place.

SANDOVAL: Mayor, before we let you go, I'm wondering if you could just add some historic context here, a perspective. I mean, how do you think this storm will rank overall in terms of winter weather events for Delaware?

CHRISTIANSEN: Well, I think it's going to be probably up in the top 10. I grew up here. I remember when we had thunder snowstorms and lots of wind blowing snow and drifts that were 10, 12, 14 feet high and deep across the roads but this is going to be in the top 10.

SANDOVAL: That's extremely telling. And I certainly second the motion to thank all those just incredible folks out there, the first responders, the crews, who don't have the luxury of being able to stay at home to make sure that we're all safe. So thank you. Thank them and certainly thank you, Mayor, as well for your update and your time.

Robin Christiansen from Dover, Delaware.

From there, we want to get you now to Mystic, Connecticut. Check back with Steffen Reals. He's a reporter for WTIC. He's got the latest on the situation there.

Steffen, it's good to see you again. It looks like the snow accumulation has grown considerably behind you in the last couple of hours.

STEFFEN REALS, REPORTER, WTIC: Yes, it definitely has gotten a little more intense when we last talked. I think that was around 8:00 p.m. We really just had that nice little coating. You could still see the roads. Things were fine. Now it's added and gotten a little more intense.

[23:10:00]

Those gusts really started to get in the way while we were in our normal shows. It completely blew a lot of snow off, and I just kind of want to now set the scene. If you look right down here, you can kind of just see how deep things have gotten. We've been measuring it. It's about a few inches deep right now, but coming back up, I want you to just take a look at these hotel cars that we have been just pleasured with right now, because that kind of gives you a better idea of like, what kind of snow we're dealing with.

Not only is it, one, very easy to grab and hold itself together. I can throw it off. It stays in contact. It also shows you how deep it is. We got quite a few fair amount of inches. Unfortunately, that's going to run into the same problem that a lot of these roads out here in Mystic are going to run into as well. And the fact that even if you clear it out, we have so much snow coming down over the next few days that it's just really not going to accomplish a whole lot.

And just to give you a better idea of how heavy this wet snow is going to be, you can even just look up at these branches right here at our hotel, and you can see that the snow catching on to these branches is really starting to weigh it down and really, that is where a lot of danger here in Connecticut is going to be, because that could potentially hit power lines. And our utility company, like I said earlier, is already anticipating that there are going to be outages. But they said that due to these conditions, the big one being wind and how fast it could potentially get up to 55 miles an hour, that it could make things very difficult.

So while plows do try to clear the roads, crews aren't going to be able to fix these power outages until they can actually get anywhere. So that's why a lot of leaders including mayors, including our Governor Ned Lamont, has been urging everyone, one, to stay inside. But before they do so, just get their cars out of the way so that they can help clear the roads at this time.

SANDOVAL: Yes, Steffen, and those visuals are really just incredibly telling. You see us, you show us the hood of the car and that accumulation. It's easy to visualize that on a roadway and how that could spell trouble. And then on the branches, too. Just like snow accumulates on the branches, it could accumulate on power lines. Hence the concern about power outages.

On that issue, Steffen, where you are, have there been any reports of power outages and what did utility crews do leading up to this storm to be able to respond when it's safe to do so?

REALS: So, yes, there have been a few power outages. I have been able to listen in to our team at back in Hartford, where it's nice and warm, and they told me that there are quite a number of outages even so far. So ahead of this, crews have been just trying to get everything in order. Eversource had their emergency response plan already in place because they were anticipating that they might get into upwards of maybe 130,000 outages over the course of the storm.

But they also brought in a lot of extra work. So while they do have every single lineman from the field stationed across the state ready to work in shifts so that they can address every problem as soon as possible, they also brought in a lot of external services just to help build everything up. And that adds, on top of what Connecticut lawmakers have been doing with the Department of Transportation. They have hundreds of these plows stationed across the state to help with everything.

SANDOVAL: Keeping that snow off the roadways and also off those power lines, some 115,000 power outages already confirmed throughout the country. All weather related at this point.

Steffen Reals, really appreciate you and your team checking in with us and that demonstration. It really is quite telling.

Well, still to come here on CNN, fires burn across Mexico after the killing of one of the world's most wanted drug traffickers in a military operation. We'll speak to an American tourist who may be stranded there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:15:58]

SANDOVAL: Welcome back to CNN and our ongoing coverage of a situation that's developing for millions of people throughout the northeast. Can't really see much with this shot. A live picture of some of the snow that's coming down. That really tells you just the blinding potential that comes with this storm.

More than 40 million people right now, they are under blizzard warnings along the East Coast from Delaware, all the way up to Maine. The National Weather Service predicting that the storm could bring snowfall of two to three inches per hour overnight into Monday. The Storm Prediction Center is warning that some of the heaviest bands will be producing blizzard conditions and also whiteouts. And that, as you can expect, will make travel very dangerous. In fact probably impossible throughout much of the affected region.

So we're going to check back on this story a little later. In the meantime, we do want to bring you up to speed on the situation across the border where violence has erupted across Mexico and this followed the killing of the country's most wanted drug leader, known as El Mencho, in a military operation on Sunday. Some of the smoke billowing into the sky and the Mexican resort city of Puerto Vallarta on the Pacific Coast.

A witness says that the fires were ongoing and the smell of burning rubber filling the streets. Officials say that suspected members of organized crime groups, they unleashed a wave of retaliatory violence after the death of El Mencho. He was a former police officer who was one of the worlds most wanted traffickers, one of the FBI and DEA's most wanted. He led the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel, or the CJNG that was recently designated as a -- as a terror organization by the Trump administration.

I want to go now to CNN's Valeria Leon for full details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VALERIA LEON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fire, smoke and chaos across several Mexican states. Cities brought to a standstill as criminal groups retaliate after Mexico's most wanted drug leader died following a military operation Sunday. Blocked highways, drivers forced out of their cars at gunpoint, trucks and busses set on fire.

Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, a former police officer known to most as El Mencho, was the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, wounded during a Mexican military operation and later died while being transported to Mexico City.

The U.S. played a role in Sunday's operation, according to U.S. Defense officials, though it's unclear to what extent. As fears spread, many Mexicans spoke out, calling for an end to the violence.

EUTILBERTO ROJAS, SINALOA RESIDENT (through translator): People are aware of this violence, and what they want is peace, to live in harmony and justice. Not in war.

LEON: Blockades were reported across various estates and classes were suspended in at least three states as officials tried to contain the violence and keep civilians off the streets.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I'm tired of seeing this continue every single day. LEON: Under El Mencho's command, the cartel expanded rapidly,

challenging rivals like the Sinaloa Cartel for control of territory and trafficking routes. According to U.S. and Mexican officials El Mencho managed to avoid capture for years. His detention and death is one of the most significant blows to organized crime in recent years, and the first high profile operation under President Claudia Sheinbaum.

The fall of El Mencho may mark a major security milestone but with tourism, foreign investment and security for the 2026 World Cup at stake, the world is watching how Mexico handles what comes next.

Valeria Leon, CNN, Mexico City.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: And this recent rash of violence across parts of Mexico has left some American tourists who've been asked to remain indoors stranded.

Travis Dagenais from Los Angeles, currently stuck in Puerto Vallarta, and he joins us now to check in.

Travis, thank you so much for taking the time.

TRAVIS DAGENAIS, AMERICAN TOURIST: Thank you for checking in.

SANDOVAL: So, look, I'm so sorry that you and especially the local residents of Puerto Vallarta experienced what you did on Sunday.

[23:20:03]

I'm curious if you could just bring our viewers around the world up to speed on what you saw and what you heard.

DAGENAIS: A combination of a lot of noise happening very quickly, surrounded by a lot of uncertainty. We woke up this morning to a lot of what I thought was a building demolition, and it repeated a few times, and you started to get some reports from friends, start to get some reports from social media about what was going on, but there still was an information vacuum at that point. So a lot of it was anecdotal.

I'm on the third floor of a building unit that's in the middle of the romantic zone, which is the neighborhood of the city that's been under siege, or part of the city that's been under siege. And I was able to see quite directly, a little too visibly, you know, some of the tactics and some of the cars that were being set on fire, some of the looting that was taking place as local stores and buildings were being attacked.

So it was a combination of a lot of loud noise, a lot of chaos in the streets. There was a lot of uncertainty in terms of what will happen next, both in terms of what happens next in the next day or two, but also what happens next in the next few weeks. And of course, it's a tourist city. I am one of those tourists, and a lot of us are dealing with the travel uncertainty of, you know, how long does this lockdown, so to speak, last?

How long does the airport stay out of operation? What are some of the ways out? What some of those answers, or just some of the plans we can make? And again, it's really enveloped in a great deal of uncertainty and anxiety for everyone here. It happened relatively quickly. It is an unprecedented event, especially for the city of Puerto Vallarta, and I really feel immensely for all the locals who have to deal with this.

SANDOVAL: I mean, that is absolutely, incredibly telling the fact that you thought that there was basically a building being demolished, and then you look out the window and it turns out to be one of these possible cartel clashes. I mean, I think that tells us so much. I think we should -- it's important to also point out that, you know, Mexican cartel violence, it has been an issue for decades. We've seen it really throughout the country.

But just the unusual nature of seeing something like this happen -- happening in a relatively safe place. We know that Mexican security forces really go above and beyond to try to make sure that some of their tourist heavy areas remain safe to protect tourism, to protect locals, and certainly people visiting. I mean, what -- does this change perhaps your perception of your travel to Mexico especially to Puerto Vallarta?

DAGENAIS: Unfortunately the short answer is yes. And I say that as someone who's been visiting and loving Puerto Vallarta for years. And it's a city and in turn a country that I tell friends immense amounts of information about in terms of how safe it feels. I have had friends who unfortunately have had medical crises here, and they have reported back that the medical care in the hospitals that they have seen and dealt with have been the safest, cleanest, most professional services they've ever received.

And that has very much been my experience. So in the moment and it's been about a little over 12 hours of kind of processing this and just trying to stay up to speed on what's going on, in the very moment it is of course very unsettling. But that said, I really do believe that, you know, the Mexican people are so warm and generous, and this is such a beautiful city. This is such a beautiful country.

I don't want it to have to be something that is a long term anxiety. At the same time, I also understand that, for instance, the city of Acapulco has dealt with similar dynamics in the past and didn't necessarily have a productive ending. So it does wear on me, not just on a personal level, because, again, I love this city. I love this country. I -- it's a place I consider a second home. But to know and try to metabolize what's going on, what are some of the dynamics that we have information about, and what does it really look like long term, that's a little bit of where my mind is trying to go.

That said, the scenes that we have, the anxiety that's palpable, yes, in the very moment it does make me reconsider, is this a place where you would encourage your friends to visit?

SANDOVAL: And I'm curious, now that we have you, and certainly not to just dive into the ongoing politics of sort of back and forth of these countries, the U.S. and Mexico, and how they deal with cartel violence, but as a U.S. citizen visiting Mexico and essentially experiencing what you did today, and as well as so many other people did, too, what is your opinion also on the United States stepping in to offer assistance to Mexican authorities if the situation has reached this point, where even Puerto Vallarta may not be as safe as it may have been?

DAGENAIS: You know, overall, I really believe that we should be good neighbors with our North American neighbors. Both north and south. One of the dynamics is very interesting is Puerto Vallarta is a city that attracts a lot of Canadian tourists.

[23:25:03]

So over the years, I've had a lot of conversations with Canadian tourists about why would you choose to vacation here or would you choose to visit Mexico over the United States. Is it a comparison? Is it a either-or? And being able to, again, I don't know the inner workings of the diplomacy per se, but I think being able to support our neighbors, being able to have a fruitful exchange, being able to have each other's backs when you need it, I believe that is a part of our shared history.

And I, again, not knowing the details of this situation necessarily, I would aspire to see that sort of cooperation and collaboration because I think we are really stronger together in that way.

SANDOVAL: Yes, to make not just visitors, but also locals, the people who call that place home, to make them feel safe.

Travis Dagenais, again, thank you so much for taking the time. We're so happy that you're OK. We wish you a safe return home. It is, I have many fond memories of Puerto Vallarta, and we certainly hope that there's that sense of safety and security that will be restored for folks there.

Travis, thank you.

DAGENAIS: It's a beautiful city with incredible people, and I hope everyone is as safe as possible.

SANDOVAL: We do continue to track this dangerous winter storm as it slams the East Coast. The latest on what to expect overnight when we return. We'll leave you with some of these pictures of what's happening on the streets of New York City at this hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:31:05]

SANDOVAL: Welcome back. More than 40 million Americans are under blizzard warnings across 11 states. This live look from New Jersey. There was a red or pink colored bear that was actually there before. You can kind of make it out. It actually goes to show you just how much snow has been accumulating in that part of New Jersey.

And here in New York, we're under a state of emergency with traffic ban from the streets. I should say non-essential traffic ban until noon on Monday. Snowfall, that's ramping up in the -- with the heaviest snow bands potentially dumping one or two inches per hour after midnight. The Storm Prediction Center says the prolonged whiteouts are expected to -- are expected as wind gusts could reach 40 to 70 miles per hour. That's almost tropical storm force winds.

Parts of New Jersey have already seen more than half a foot of snow, and forecasters are saying that some areas could see well over a foot overnight, with isolated totals approaching possibly two feet by Monday morning.

Let's hear from some of the first responders. Joining us now is Lauri Volkert. She's the Connecticut State Fire Marshal.

Lauri, it's great to see you. Thank you so much for taking some time to check in with us.

LAURI VOLKERT, CONNECTICUT STATE FIRE MARSHAL: Thanks for having me, Polo.

(CROSSTALK)

SANDOVAL: So you and fellow first responders. Yes -- no, I'm sorry. Please, by all means. Please update us on the situation right now. What are you seeing?

VOLKERT: Yes. So severe weather brings a lot of different types of emergencies. A lot of people think of motor vehicle collisions, power lines down. But one of the risks that people don't put in their storm is the risk of residential home fires and carbon monoxide emergencies which we do see rising during severe weather. So I want to talk about three ways that people can stay safe at home.

Number one, focus on heating. If you're using space heaters to keep your home warm during the storm, make sure you've got at least three feet of clear space around those space heaters, plug them directly into the wall and turn them off when you go to sleep or leave the home. If you're using a fireplace or wood stove to keep your home warm, make sure you're disposing of the ash safely. Put it in a metal canister with a tight fitting lid outside and away from the home.

We've already seen a number of fires in Connecticut in the last few months due to the improper disposal of ashes. Never bring a grill or propane heater inside your home because it can cause carbon monoxide to build up in your home. And never use your stove to heat your home even if the power goes out.

The next way to stay safe is to think about power. If you lose your power, make sure and use battery operated lights or battery operated candles if possible. If you are going to use candles with an open flame, keep them at least a foot away from anything that can burn. Keep them out of the reach of kids and pets and make sure and blow them out when you go to bed. If you're using a generator, run it outside, not on a covered porch, at least 20 feet away from your home.

Be sure to don't back-feed power back into your home and use heavy duty extension cords when plugging appliances directly in. And finally think about access and emergency responder access. Keep your exits clear from every door of your home, all the way out to the street or sidewalk. This will help you get outside safely if there's an emergency, and also help first responders get to you if you need help.

Keep your vents clear, especially with the heavy snow that we're seeing in the strong winds. You want to make sure that the drifts are not blocking any of your heating furnace or dryer vents, because that could cause carbon monoxide to build up in your home. And then also make sure your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are working. This is the time to replace any chirping batteries. Test them, make sure they work, and if they start sounding, get outside quickly and call 911.

Carbon monoxide, you can't smell it, taste it or see it. So the only way that you know it's there is with a carbon monoxide alarm. Treat it as a real emergency, get outside and call 911.

[23:35:02]

Blizzards are dangerous but the good news is that most home fires and carbon monoxide alarm emergencies are preventable so you can do your part to reduce your risk and the strain on first responders. Check on your neighbors and together we can get through this safely.

SANDOVAL: Now, each one of those bits of advice, Lauri, it is potentially life-saving so, so important that people throughout the affected region hear that, especially when it comes to power generators with power outages being such a possible scenario that's playing out.

Lauri Volkert, thank you so much for your time and for that important advice. And it goes without saying, appreciate what you and all the other first responders are doing into the night. Thank you.

VOLKERT: Thank you.

SANDOVAL: Well, the U.S. Treasury secretary will not be speculating on the possibility of tariff refunds after the Supreme Court struck down President Trump's emergency tariffs on Friday. Scott Bessent telling CNN that we'll simply have to wait to see what happens. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT BESSENT, TREASURY SECRETARY: The Supreme Court remanded it down to a lower court, and, you know, we will follow what they say. But that that could be weeks or months when we hear them. So the Supreme Court did not address refunds.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Well, the Supreme Court ruled that the president overstepped his authority by using an emergency powers act to impose tariffs. President Trump quickly scrambling to announce temporary new tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. And this is that new number. 15 percent, according to the White House, that says that it gives the president authority to impose that percentage but only for 150 days before congressional approval is needed.

So obviously there are ramifications legally, but also economically. For more on that let's go to CNN's Mike Valerio joining me from Beijing with more on how China is reacting to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

I mean, Mike, there are a lot of potential trade deals on the line here.

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And, you know, so it's just afternoon here in this corner of the world in Beijing, Polo. And it seems as though, based on all the reaction that we're reading from the past day and a half from China, is this that Chinese commentators seem to think that D.C.'s hand in all of this has been greatly weakened, while China's hand in the trade war and, you know, the back and forth has certainly been strengthened. To that point we have one prominent political commentator in China, Shi Jin -- Woo Shi Jin, who wrote notably, quote, "Trump has one less card to play, while China holds all the cards."

So one of the things he's getting at there is that this emergency suite of tariffs seem to be Trump's number one tool in the toolkit for the trade war, whereas China still has its number one Trump card, which is access to this whole suite of rare earth minerals, which can sort of turn off and turn on the spigot to those rare earth minerals and rare earth mineral refinements whenever it wants.

So one of the main questions that we're asking here now is, will the United States try to levy new tariffs on China using a different approach, using a different section of that trade law? Specifically we're talking about Section 301 for all the trade wonks at home.

Jamison Greer, the U.S. trade rep, spoke to that, sort of telegraphing that this could indeed be a possibility. He talked to Margaret Brennan on "Face the Nation" just earlier Sunday, East Coast Time. Let's listen to what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMISON GREER, U.S. TRADE REPRESENTATIVE: We try to resolve the unfair practices we identify. And if they're not resolved, you can take actions like tariffs or other things to try to resolve them. We have tariffs like this already in place on China and we have open investigations already.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALERIO: So what he means, investigate unfair trade practices, I should say alleged unfair trade practices, and after that investigation finishes the United States, in theory, could say, we have found unfair practice X, Y, Z, and now China, we are going to levy this percent tariff on so and so, such and such industry. So that's possibly another way that the United States could levy a new tariff or a new suite of tariffs on China.

But really we don't want or we don't see leaders in Beijing wanting to sort of rock the boat between now and March 31st, when President Trump is expected to touch down in Beijing for an April 1st and 2nd meeting with Chinese Leader Xi Jinping. So certainly there is the very fragile trade truce. And then the question, as you alluded to, Polo, what is going to happen with these other countries like South Korea and Japan that already have trade deals? A lot of these foreign ministries are saying, well, what happens now with this 15 percent global tariff? That question is still unresolved -- Polo.

SANDOVAL: Mike Valerio, with the latest there. By the way, thank you so much. I have rocked the boat in my head now.

[23:40:04]

All right. We'll check back with you, Mike.

Let's bring in now CNN global economic analyst, Rana Faroohar. I'm so sorry, Rana. It's been such a long night. Rana Faroohar.

RANA FAROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: OK. Faroohar. You got it.

SANDOVAL: We've been talking about it all night, Rana. I appreciate your patience. Let's see if we can break this down and help some of us understand this a little better. What do you think will happen in the short term regarding tariffs? I mean, you heard from my colleague right now really discuss the delicate nature of what's happening here, especially with, you know, billions or trillions of dollars' worth of trade deals on the line. What happens next?

FAROOHAR: Yes. So, you know, let's start with what's happening in the U.S. The Supreme Court has knocked down Trump's ability to use the emergency tariff provision, but he's already using other provisions that allow him to put blanket tariffs on the entire world for as much as 150 days. There are also, as the previous correspondent was saying, there are sector specific means. You can say use the 301 provisions against countries that have been found guilty of non-market practices. China would be a good example there.

You know, one thing I'm watching carefully is that there was a -- there was a break in the 301 sanctions that were being placed on China and something like shipbuilding, for example. Are you going to see those coming back? You may also see the use of 232 measures in national security. I think national security is going to become an area where you're going to see a lot of action. That would include technology, that would include steel, that would include, you know, a lot of industrial sectors.

So by no means are tariff war is over. Now, what happens at home, what happens abroad, already you've got lawyers lining up for lawsuits in the states. It's going to take months and years to sort out whether money is going to flow back to importers. Who's going to get what, how long that's going to take, and in terms of what other countries do, I expect that some countries are going to be reluctant to possibly even move away from the higher tariff deals that they're paying right now, because they don't want to upset this president.

They don't want to deal with the capriciousness of this White House and the way in which the president will lash out at leaders, at countries that have fallen out of favor. On the other hand, you see some with more leverage, like, let's say, India, where you know, the U.S. is quite keen to have a trade deal with India, saying, you know we're going to watch and see. And you've just heard how China is getting more and more leverage. I mean China already had a lot of leverage when it came to trade issues with the U.S. and I think it does have more now. So in short, it's a mess and it's going to take a long while to untangle.

SANDOVAL: And I'm sure you heard from the Treasury secretary, Rana, who's really taking more of this sort of wait and see kind of approach when it comes to recovering some $175 billion worth of tariff collections.

Just tapping into your expertise here, is there perhaps a tried and true method of businesses in the United States to try to petition or request a refund essentially?

FAROOHAR: You know, there really isn't because where we are is pretty unprecedented. I mean we have not seen this level of tariffs since the 1930s. We haven't seen this kind of on again, off again tariffs, you know, week by week, day by day, really ever. So this really is uncharted territory. And, you know, as much as a lot of people, and I would say I fall into this category looking at this decision and saying, well, this is this is smart.

This means that the Supreme Court is saying, look, you know, we're apolitical. Would this may be a Republican appointed Supreme Court, but we're going to do what's in the interest of the American people. That's great. They're also, in some ways, creating more mess to unravel because the tariff situation was already difficult. It's going to get more so now as companies try and figure out how and whether they can get their money back.

I can tell you, most multinational companies are now meeting with their lawyers, and they're trying to figure this out and it's going to be a long process.

SANDOVAL: And it's just shocking. I mean, the Supreme Court opinion essentially may have offered the president an off-ramp when it comes to tariffs, especially in a midterm year. And yet he doubled down. And we have that 15 percent number that we just discussed.

FAROOHAR: Yes.

SANDOVAL: Rana Foroohar, thank you so much for your time as always and your perspective. Really appreciate it

FAROOHAR: Thank you.

SANDOVAL: And we'll be right back with much more breaking news coverage.

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[23:49:24]

SANDOVAL: And we are continuing to track the major winter storm that's maintaining a grip on the northeastern United States. You're looking at some of these live pictures from New York, where it's coming up on about 11:49 p.m. at this hour. More than 40 million people, they are under blizzard warnings across 11 states, at least 150,000 utility customers are already without power in the mid-Atlantic states, and that number is likely to climb as heavy snow and strong winds knocked down trees and cables potentially.

U.S. President Donald Trump, he is set to deliver his State of the Union Address to a dissatisfied American public on Tuesday. A fresh ABC News poll, along with "Washington Post," it's showing his approval rating at 39 percent, with 60 percent disapproving of how he's handling his second term.

[23:50:12]

The last time presidents -- President Trump's overall disapproval rating was that, at that number, that was shortly after the January 6th, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol at the end of his first term. A significant majority say that they disapprove of how the president is handling the economy, tariffs, inflation. Also on relations with other countries.

So joining me now is Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia.

Larry, thank you so much for staying up late for us.

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: Happy to do it. Happy to do it.

SANDOVAL: So, Larry, you looked at these numbers here and going over them, some 39 percent when it comes to his approval. Is that foreshadowing perhaps for the president or for Republicans in a midterm year?

SABATO: Well, you never know what's going to happen tomorrow. But the news today and this poll is one of many that have shown Trump's disapproval now at 60 or above, and his approval level now below 40. That's a terrible place for a president to be if he wants his party to retain control of Congress. So as I say, anything can happen. But Trump has been going down, down, down very steadily. And he misses obvious opportunities to improve his popularity.

He could have blamed the Supreme Court and walked away from tariffs, which most Americans don't like at all, and think those tariffs are responsible for some of the pressure on them financially, some of the additional $1,000 or $1300, whatever the experts say today that American families are paying annually because of these tariffs.

SANDOVAL: Let's look ahead to Tuesday, Larry, and what will be the first State of the Union Address of President Trump's second term. I'm curious in your view, what's at stake here? And what are the winning issues for Trump at his address?

SABATO: He'll probably stress border security because the southern border has improved dramatically. That may be his significant accomplishment, at least domestically so far. So I think that's true. He'll have to try to avoid too many arguments. Too many embarrassing moments, whether it's attacking the Supreme Court who will be sitting right in front of him, at least some of them will, or with the Democrats.

I don't know what they're planning. They would be wise not to go too far, but some of them may. All of these things will detract from what he's trying to get across. But, you know, Polo, one thing that people forget, it is very difficult for a president to change these kinds of polling numbers with a State of the Union Address. Why? Because most of the people who don't like him, a large majority, particularly of independents won't watch.

That is true for any president, Democrat or Republican. The people who tune in are usually supporters of the president. And that's why all the polls taken that night show 80 percent saying it was a great speech. That's because his own supporters are saying it's a great speech.

SANDOVAL: Right. The people who essentially should be hearing from, you know, in your view, are not the ones who are actually tuning in affecting some sort of political change here.

SABATO: Right.

SANDOVAL: What is your assessment also of this DHS funding lapse? It seems unless something materializes in the next 24 hours, that the State of the Union will happen as this funding fight over the Department of Homeland Security continues.

SABATO: I'm sure that Trump will use that, blame Democrats for it. But Democrats have an excellent answer, they've been using it. They should continue to use it, which is that people overwhelmingly are opposed to ICE's tactics and they want body cameras and they want real judicial warrants when ICE agents or other law enforcement invade somebody's home and on and on.

I think the Democrats are on the popular side of this, but they have to remember most people don't know why they're doing it. They have to constantly reiterate their message

SANDOVAL: And then, of course, there's the tariff element. And you touched on it briefly just now on what perhaps could have been a better route for President Trump. And that is after the Supreme Court handed down its decision to perhaps take that as a as an off ramp, given the vast unpopularity when it comes to tariffs.

I mean, why do you think that he did quite the opposite and instead doubled down and ordered this global tariff of 10 percent, which is now at 15. Percent?

SABATO: Because he is incredibly stubborn, Polo. [23:55:01]

Incredibly stubborn, and he has been arguing for tariffs for decades, long before he was even in politics. He really believes in it. The problem is, almost all mainstream economists including the very conservative ones, say tariffs are a tax and they're paid for by American corporations, businesses large and small. And then the American consumer. But Trump refuses to accept that.

So he's going to persist. And what he's doing, he doesn't seem to care that much about public opinion. His party does and they're the ones who will pay the price in November.

SANDOVAL: 64 percent, as we're showing viewers right now, disapproving of tariffs on imported goods. Perhaps some evidence that people, voters most importantly, are aware of what you just said.

Larry Sabato, really appreciate your time and your perspective

SABATO: Thank you, Polo.

SANDOVAL: Don't forget, you want to watch CNN's special coverage of the U.S. President Donald Trump's State of the Union address. It starts Tuesday at 8:00 p.m. the coverage from Washington.

And with that, we do want to thank you so much for joining us the last hour of news. I'm Polo Sandoval in New York. Our breaking news coverage continues with my colleague Ben Hunte in a moment.

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