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Trump Sides With Mush in Supporting H-1B Visas; China Backed Hackers Breached Treasury Department Workstations; India Launches First Successful Space Docking Mission. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired December 31, 2024 - 06:30   ET

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

[06:30:00]

MAYOR ERIC ADAMS, (D) NEW YORK: So if you see something, say something, but most importantly, do something, notify any uniformed personnel that is in the area.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAULA REID, CNN HOST: Going live now to Times Square from EarthCam where tonight the famed crystal adorned ball is set to drop at midnight regardless of the weather. So what will that weather look like? Well, let's go to meteorologist Allison Chinchar. All right, Allison, how is it looking out there for all these folks who want to ring in the New Year?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: All right. So the good news is it's not going to be that cold. In fact, given comparison comparing it to other years, it's actually going to be on the mild side. But yes, we are going to have some showers to contend with, not just in the early end of the festivities, but really through most of them from 8 p.m. all the way through midnight. You do have those shower chances in effect.

But the chance the temperature itself is going to be in the upper 40s to lower 50s. When we compare that to other years, that's not too far from say the top five warmest of the New Year's Eve ball drops. So again, it could be worse. It could be a cold rain. At least it's going to be on the milder side.

Now, the rain itself is all coming from this system right here that's currently in the Midwest, bringing rain to portions of Chicago, Indianapolis and even a few rumbles of thunder across Cincinnati. That's going to continue to slide to the east as we go through the day today. Now, on the southern side, we also have some very gusty winds up around 40 to 50 miles per hour. That includes Knoxville and Lexington, Kentucky.

We also have the potential for some strong to severe storms today across the Mid-Atlantic looking at mainly strong wind gusts. You're talking Philadelphia, Washington, D.C. Baltimore, even Atlantic City, New Jersey. The system itself will continue to slide to the east again around the evening rush hour tonight, really starting to spread more of those showers into the Mid-Atlantic as well as the Northeast. And some snow starting to see that change over there across portions of Michigan as well as Wisconsin and Illinois. By tonight in time for the ball to drop, yes, we do have some rain unfortunately in New York also around Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, even around Hartford, Connecticut, also looking at some showers. So don't forget to take that poncho with you because remember, most places do not allow umbrellas.

REID: Good point, Allison Chinchar, thank you.

And it's New Year's Eve, so you know what that means. The boys are back for the biggest party of the year. Join Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen for New Year's Eve live coverage starts tonight at 8 on CNN.

And coming up on CNN this morning, redefining post presidency how Jimmy Carter's decades of humanitarian work away from the White House became his enduring legacy.

Plus, Donald Trump's change of tune on the visa program at the center of a debate between some of his staunchest supporters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT ELECT: What I want to do and what I will do is you graduate from a college, I think you should get automatically as part of your diploma a green card. You graduate or you get a doctorate degree from a college, you should be able to stay in this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:36:49]

REID: Welcome back. The holiday feud between factions of Trump's MAGA base over H-1B visas can came to a head over the weekend with the President Elect coming out in support of the program that allows the brightest foreign workers, many of them engineers and computer scientists, to live and work in the U.S. The broader debate reveals a significant rift in Trump's MAGA base just weeks before he is set to take office. CNN's Brian Todd has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The President Elect finally weighs in on a controversial issue that pits two of his top advisers against his MAGA base. Donald Trump now defends the H-1B visa program, which allows thousands of highly skilled foreign workers to immigrate to the U.S. every year to fill specialized jobs. Trump told the New York Post, quote, "I've always liked the visas. I have always been in favor of the visas. That's why we have them. I've been a believer in H-1B. I have used it many times. It's a great program."

WILL OREMUS, TECHNOLOGY REPORTER, THE WASHINGTON POST: It's one of the first signs of disunity or disharmony in the folks who support Trump and who are going to make up his administration. And this is likely to be an ongoing point of tension.

TODD: Trump is now siding with billionaires Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who Trump has tapped to lead the new Department of Government Efficiency. Musk and Ramaswamy have defended the H-1B program. Musk posting recently that it's the reason he's in America and, quote, "Take a big step back and blank yourself in the face. I will go to war on this issue, the likes of which you cannot possibly comprehend."

But Musk and Ramaswamy's stance is being slammed by Trump's MAGA supporters, like his former White House strategist Steve Bannon, who said on his podcast that H-1B takes jobs from American citizens.

STEVE BANNON, FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE CHIEF STRATEGIST: The program, from top to bottom, is a scam and a con. There is nothing in this program that should continue to exist. Nothing. These are coders that are going to work for a third of the salaries and work like indentured servants. That's not American citizens.

TODD: Trump's comment that he's, quote, "Always been in favor of the H-1B visas isn't true." He previously opposed those visas and restricted access to them several times during his first administration in an effort to curb legal immigration. But in the 2024 presidential campaign, Trump had changed his tune on skilled workers coming to the U.S.

TRUMP: What I want to do and what I will do is you graduate from a college, I think you should get automatically as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country.

TODD: Musk, who was born in South Africa, came to the U.S. as a foreign student, later worked in the U.S. on an H-1B visa. And it's his companies and those of other tech giants who've recently courted Donald Trump which stand to benefit from more H-1B workers in the U.S.

OREMUS: At least at this early stage, some of the tech leaders, including Musk, who bet on a Trump administration to deliver them policies that would be favorable to their industry and to their businesses may be seeing some return from them.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: All right. Well, my panel is back to discuss all this further. Stephen, I want to start with you because you had a big picture piece for cnn.com on this, where you write. In the coming weeks Trump's ability to reconcile the differing interests among conservative budget hawks. Hardline MAGA lawmakers and comparative moderates who may be vulnerable in the 2026 general election will dictate the fate of his aggressive legislative plans on immigration budget trimming and tax cuts.

[06:40:11]

So this is a test.

STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: Right. I think this issue does show the fissures in the new Trump coalition. It's very interesting this time around. It's not just the MAGA grassroots working class base. You've got this new tech Silicon Valley aspect to it. That said, you know, all presidents have to manage their coalitions. This is nothing new.

I think the question is going forward, will Trump side on more issues with Elon Musk and people, the millionaires and the billionaires in his cabinet who've got strong self-interests as they go into the government for their own businesses, or will he step back and be worried about alienating some of his most loyal supporters? In his first term, we didn't see many occasions when he was willing to get out in front of that core support.

REID: And Stephen, I want to start -- I want to bring to you this from the Wall Street Journal editorial board backing Trump on Sunday, writing Trump may be wrong in trying to save TikTok but he is right to endorse the value of H-1B visas in the dispute between Elon Musk and Steve Bannon. Mr. Trump is choosing the side of enlightened nationalism as opposed to the blinkered declinist version. So how do you square this with his America first mantra that arguably propelled him back to the White House?

MATT GORMAN, FORMER TIM SCOTT PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN SENIOR ADVISER: Well, I think this is goes to my point I made with -- with the -- talking about the Johnson where he's have to get involved. I think a little bit more deeply. A lot of this disagreement happened over the holiday when he really wasn't involved. And once he did it has declined some and even the people who are still opposed are attacking Musk, notably not Donald Trump. I think that's a very notable tone and message change.

And I think look, it's really important as we're also seeing, again, to bring it back to Congress. I think Republicans are very, very keen on the fact that their first priorities, they need to be things that unify. So look, H-1B is an important immigration part. I don't think it'll be in that first package, especially with this fissure. You're going to be seeing things that like whether it's border funding wall things that they know could pass relatively easily. I think it's a Trump's objective to get points on the board as quickly and as effectively as possible.

REID: And Meghan, it's some Democrats have called Elon Musk, quote, "President Musk", of course, during the spending fight. But what does this controversy, the visa controversy, tell you about Elon Musk's role within the larger MAGA movement?

MEGHAN HAYS, FORMER BIDEN WHITE HOUSE DIRECTOR OF MESSAGE PLANNING: I think he has a substantial role in the larger MAGA movement. You see that -- you saw that with the funding fight. You see that here. He's always normally the first person out. And it's interesting that you say that people are attacking Musk over Trump. They understand that attacking Musk is getting underneath Donald Trump's skin. As well as he put out a statement, he talked about it.

And so I do think he has a large part to play here. And I think that we will see how he impacts sort of some of the policies going forward. And to Stephen's point, is it going to be for the working class or is it going to be for the millionaires and billionaires? Because so far, it's for the millionaires and billionaires like Elon Musk.

REID: And the New York Times reports this. Federal data shows Mr. Trump's companies have received approval to employ over a thousand workers through the two H2 programs in the past 20 years. Mr. Trump's companies have applied for a dozen H-1B visas since 2019, but that most of these applications for quality control manager positions were subsequently withdrawn.

Currently, Mr. Trump's winery in Charlottesville, Virginia is seeking 31 foreign vineyard work -- work for -- workers under H-2A program offering them $15.81 per hour. So does Trump have a vested interest here? Is that potentially why he flipped?

GORMAN: I mean, I can't speak to that. It's a good winery.

REID: It is a good winery. It is a really nice winery.

GORMAN: Yeah, it is. Their cider -- their cider's name Donny Appleseed, fun fact. But no, look, what I would also push back is this dichotomy between the MAGA base, the millionaires and billionaires if siding the H-1B. For example, the Democrats support H-1B expansion, I mean, I don't know if you would characterize them siding with millionaires and billionaires over that.

Same thing -- almost everyone when I worked for Jeb Bush in 2016 primary, aside from Donald Trump and others, were in support of H-1B expansions as well, or at least keeping the status quo. So I would push back a little bit on this dichotomy that it's either MAGA base or H-1B is millionaires, billionaires, that that's not the case.

REID: All right, where do we see this going -- really quickly, I'm going to do a quick round robin. Where do you see this going in the next few days? Do you think they can resolve any of these issues?

GORMAN: But I think to what end? Right? I think this is a little -- it's a holiday disagreement because I think there's a slow -- slow stuff on X when we actually have the speaker fight going into the first 100 days, this will not be an issue.

HAYS: I agree. I don't think this will be in the top 100 days issue. I don't think this will be part of their major immigration package. I think this is just another food fight, that's like you said for the holidays. It just gives us all something to talk about.

REID: Everybody's fighting that way -

HAYS: Yeah.

REID: No matter what form that takes. How about you? What do you see in the next three weeks --

COLLINSON: They've been trying to fix H-1B visas since George W. Bush's immigration plan. So the chances that it's going to get done anytime soon are pretty slim. REID: Touche.

Up ahead on CNN this morning, the New Year down under.

[06:45:01]

Sydney, Australia gears up to usher in 2025 with their world renowned fireworks show in just a matter of hours.

Plus, how the legacy of America's 39th President extends far beyond his four years in the Oval Office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES EARL CARTER JR., 39TH U.S. PRESIDENT: War may sometimes be a necessary evil, but no matter how necessary, it is always evil, never a good.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

REID: It's 49 minutes past the hour. Here's your morning roundup. A federal appeals court has denied Donald Trump's request for a new trial in the civil lawsuit bought by E. Jean Carroll. The court also upheld the jury's verdict, which found that Trump sexually abused Carroll and awarded her $5 million for battery and defamation.

And China is denied the U.S. accusation that it backed the hacking of the Treasury Department. Officials are calling it a major incident carried out by a suspected agent for China. CNN learned that treasury workstations and unclassified documents were breached earlier this month. Treasury officials plan to hold a classified briefing about the hack next week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAN #1: (Speaking foreign language)

WOMAN #1: (Speaking foreign language)

WOMAN #2: (Speaking foreign language)

MAN #2: (Speaking foreign language)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: India has launched its first strong space docking mission using an Indian made rocket.

[06:50:30]

The launch was deemed successful after reaching an altitude of about 292 miles. India plans to test the docking technology around January 7th.

And it's officially 2025 in New Zealand. Australia is next just a little over an hour from now. The city of Sydney will ring in the New Year with its world famous fireworks show.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAN #3: We see this every year, you know, watching it on the news, in the BBC and stuff. But this year we're going to make a special trip. Why?

WOMAN #3: Yeah, we've always wanted to come. And this year we both turned 60.

WOMAN #4: Happy birthday.

MAN #3: Thank you.

WOMAN #3: Thank you.

MAN #43: Thank you.

WOMAN #3: So this is our big trip.

MAN #3: Yeah.

WOMAN #3: So we're so happy to be here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: CNN will be live from Australia at the top of the hour.

And this morning the nation remembers a legacy that much like Jimmy Carter himself, couldn't be bound by expectations. Carter did not let his work be confined to four years in the Oval Office and he lived to see an age no president ever has. He was 100 years old. CNN's Phil Mattingly takes a look at Carter's work after his presidency.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARTER: I intend to give our new president my support. And I intend to work as a citizen as I've work here in this office as president for the values this nation was founded to secure.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CHIEF DOMESTIC CORRESPONDENT: For Jimmy Carter, a farewell address to the presidency that planted the seeds to a legacy reshaping four decades.

CARTER: Thank you all.

MATTINGLY: Focused in his work at the namesake Carter center, fighting diseases in developing countries and monitoring more than 100 international elections.

But enhanced by his unofficial as roving ambassador to the world, and unappointed and at times in the view of his Oval Office successors, unwelcome cause, one that put him face to face with dictators and rewrote the book for a former President as only the original political outsider could. A role he never seemed to shed, even within the most exclusive club in the world. But one Carter seemed to embrace, if not relish as he offered advice and at times pointed criticism.

CARTER: This administration has been the worst in his -- worst in history.

MATTINGLY: During George W. Bush's presidency, Carter was especially vocal in his opposition to the Iraq war.

MAN #4: You believe the United States under this administration has used torture?

CARTER: I don't -- I don't think it. I know it certainly.

MAN #4: So is the president lying?

CARTER: The President is self-defining what we have done and authorized in the torture of prisons. Yes.

MATTINGLY: Carter's 1994 trip to North Korea during a period of tension over their nuclear program put the Clinton administration in a difficult spot.

CARTER: The words that I used with President Kim Il-Sung was that in my opinion, the sanctions effort were being held in abeyance.

MATTINGLY: Carter cutting a deal with North Korea and then talking to CNN before President Bill Clinton.

BILL CLINTON, 42ND U.S. PRESIDENT: I don't know what he said and I don't know that you know what he said. All I know is what I said and what I said is the policy of the United States of America.

MATTINGLY: And yet, while Clinton was angry at the time, years later he awarded Carter the Medal of Freedom.

CLINTON: Grateful nation says thank you.

MATTINGLY: Carter once candidly responded to a question about whether President Barack Obama called him for advice.

CARTER: Unfortunately, the answer is no. President Obama doesn't, but previous presidents have called on me.

MATTINGLY: As for his relationship with President Donald Trump.

MAN #5: Does America want kind of a jerk as president?

CARTER: Apparently from his recent elections? Yes.

MATTINGLY: Phil Mattingly, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: My panel is back to discuss the life and legacy of Jimmy Carter. We're talking earlier about how legacy is complicated. There's always going to be some good, some bad -- bad, always a mixed bag. But what do you see Carter's legacy as? GORMAN: I mean, look, to put it mildly, again, I think man who was out of his depth as president, clearly. There were some bright spots. I think by and large, some bright spots after he left office, though, was controversial, I think in many ways.

I think again, I'll go back to it. I think his defense and literal embrace at times of Hamas was repugnant. And I think he put the, you know, current administration, whether they be Clinton, Bush, in a bit of a bind by going and meeting with some of these dictators in 1994 in North Korea.

But again, I think you also can't deny the good he did both around the country with Habitat for Humanity, around the globe with the Carter Center.

[06:55:02]

And also just being a genuinely good person by all accounts, whether it's plains or anywhere else, a good human being. So it's complicated.

REID: Yeah, and it's always complicated. And, of course, President Biden is set to eulogize Carter at his funeral next week. The New York Times Peter Baker writes this about the parallels between the two Democrats that Mr. Carter would depart the scene at this particular stage of Mr. Biden's president' -- presidency, however, evokes a certain sense of seja vu. Another one term Democratic president whose aspirations for another term were damaged by inflation and struggles to win the release of hostages held in the Middle East before he leaves office.

Mr. Biden and Mr. Carter, of course, are different in many respects, too, and the circumstances of their departures from the White House vary in important ways, not least that Mr. Carter was just 56 when he left office, while Mr. Biden, at 82, is departing, trailed by doubts about his capacity to have even served another four years. What do you make of that assessment?

HAYS: No, I think there are a lot of parallels. I think one of the big parallels that we haven't really touched on a lot is they are both men of faith. They take -- they're both served based in their faith. And I think that is something that should be noted with Jimmy Carter's legacy as we move forward He, you know, he always returned back to his faith. He taught Sunday school, and that was like a big part of his -- who he was and will be part of his legacy.

REID: And he actually talked about his faith with Wolf Blitzer, talking about how it was a very important part of his marriage. Let's take a listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARTER: The last thing we do every night is read the Bible aloud. Rosalynn reads sometimes and I read sometimes. And when I'm overseas or when she is, we read the same passage in the Bible and we kind of, you know, communicate silently. We might be on opposite sides of the world, but we still know that we share the same Bible passage. (END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: What's your reaction to that?

COLLINSON: Well, clearly his faith gave him solace in the later years of his life, during his period of serious illness and the fact that he lived a lot longer than a lot of people thought. But he's also a Democrat from another age, an evangelical Southern Democrat. He won States in 1976 like Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and South Carolina. That's impossible to imagine.

The 1988 -- 1980 election, Reagan took away the evangelical vote and made that part of the Republican coalition. So when America says goodbye to him, next week, it's closing a chapter of Democratic Party history as well as American history.

REID: Yeah. And looking forward, I mean, he really redefined the post presidency. Do you think any future former president could have -- could top his post presidency career?

GORMAN: We'll see. I mean, look it certainly leaving office age 56 gave him a long run. Right?

HAYS: Yeah.

GORMAN: And you're seeing in a similar sense, though not as long, but Bill Clinton having a long post presidency runway. Obama will have the same. And, you know, even though we have an era of kind of older presence right now, maybe not as long of a runway, but you're right. I mean, I think there is something to be said for when you reach the highest office in land, how do you continue, how do you top it or at least continue to serve

HAYS: And I think President Clinton really probably took notice of what Jimmy Carter did and probably modeled his the Clinton foundation and some of what they are doing from that. And I think that that will show -- you know, they do -- do that but I do think with these older presidents, like Joe Biden's just not going to have the runway. Donald Trump's not going to have the long post presidency in their lifetime.

REID: No. And it's also interesting just we were joking about fighting with family earlier, watching the former presidents, Jimmy Carter sort of off on his own. What do you think it will be like at the funeral next week? Presumably they'll all attend. I mean, what do you think the vibe will be?

COLLINSON: It'll be a fascinating dynamic because you'll have all the presidents together. The funeral will almost coincide with another massive state occasion and inauguration. So it's very rare to have this. So, you know, you talk about post presidencies. Donald Trump's post presidency will be a new presidency. He unusually has a chance to start again. And that is the most unusual thing of all of this.

REID: Yeah, of course the focus will be on Carter, but watching that that row will be -- will be fascinating. Now, we also want to tell you about a new CNN film examining the storied career of one of the most influential artists of all time, Luther Vandross. Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAN #6: Like from out of a Dream. And in this dream, there was a major diva in the wings waiting for me. Oh, yes, she will appear out of somewhere.

WOMAN #4: I was so nervous because I had never probably played in a place that big before. It's the beginning of the performance and Luther's like, I'm seeking out a diva and she's here and she's there. And I really was honored when he brought me out to sing with him.

MAN #6: My love, there's only you in my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)