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CNN This Morning
Pentagon Revokes Milley's Security Detail & Clearance; Judge Temporarily Blocks Part of Trump Federal Aid Freeze; Another Round of Snowfall, Gusty Winds in the Northeast Today. Aired 6-6:30a ET
Aired January 29, 2025 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KAYLA TAUSCHE, CNN ANCHOR/CORRESPONDENT: It's Wednesday, January 29. Right now on CNN THIS MORNING.
[06:01:12]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN BOLTON, FORMER U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: This problem really is quite live. And -- and I think should -- should be concerning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: Security stripped. The defense secretary pulling General Mark Milley's security detail and opening an investigation into the retired general.
Plus --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): This decision is lawless. It's destructive. It's dangerous. It's cruel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: Not so fast. After the White House's federal funding freeze stirs a frenzy, a federal judge presses pause on the president's move, for now.
And --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bobby himself is a predator.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: A scathing warning: JFK [SIC] -- RFK Jr.'s cousin sounding the alarm. Why his own blood is calling him a predator ahead of his confirmation hearing.
And then -- (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The drones that were flying over New Jersey in large numbers were authorized to be flown by the FAA. This was not the enemy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: Case closed. The White House, shedding a light on the origins of the mysterious drones over New Jersey.
Six a.m. here on the East Coast. Here's a live look at the Washington Monument in downtown D.C.
Good morning, everyone. I'm Kayla Tausche in for Kasie Hunt. It is wonderful to have you with us today.
Donald Trump's retribution tour continues. The Defense Department stripping retired General Mark Milley, the former joint chiefs chairman, of his security detail and his security clearance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But I was really going to talk about the -- the level of -- you know, what's going on? Why are we doing this? Why are we trying to help a guy like Milley? Why are we doing Milley? He was pardoned. What he said, terrible. What he said.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: It's unclear which remarks President Trump is referring to there, but Milley, who Trump nominated to lead the joint chiefs in 2018, has in recent years made several critical comments that seem to reference his former boss.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. MARK MILLEY (RET.), FORMER CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: We don't take an oath to a king or a queen, or to a tyrant or a dictator, and we don't take an oath to a wannabe dictator.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: In a statement, the Pentagon chief of staff saying, quote, "Undermining the chain of command is corrosive to our national security, and restoring accountability is a priority for the Defense Department under President Trump's leadership," end quote.
General Milley, just the latest in a growing list of former Trump officials who have had their protective details revoked or their security clearances stripped.
But this time, the Trump administration went further. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directing the Pentagon to investigate Milley's, quote, "conduct." The announcement did not specify which actions warranted review, but
Trump has previously attacked Milley for phone calls that he held with his Chinese defense officials during the last months of Trump's first term.
Milley has consistently defended those conversations, including in sworn testimony before Congress.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MILLEY: I routinely communicated with my counterpart, General Lee, with the knowledge and coordination of civilian oversight. I am specifically directed to communicate with the Chinese by Department of Defense guidance in order to de-conflict military actions, manage crisis, and present -- prevent war between great powers that are armed with the world's most deadliest weapons.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: Years later, as Milley prepared to retire, Trump attacked Milley on social media, writing that, if Milley had given the Chinese government a, quote, "heads up" on the president's thinking, then, quote, "This is an act so egregious that in times gone by, the punishment would have been DEATH!" Trump ending that message by accusing Milley of treason.
One of Joe Biden's last acts as president was to give Milley a preemptive blanket pardon, so Milley is not in legal jeopardy. But the investigation could result in Milley being demoted from his rank as a four-star general.
[06:05:12]
Milley was asked about Trump's treason comment back in 2023, and this is what he told "60 Minutes."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MILLEY: As much as these comments are directed at me, it's also directed at the institution of the military. And there's -- there's 2.1 million of us in uniform.
If we're willing to die for that document, if we're willing to deploy, to combat, if we're willing to lose an arm, a leg, an eye to protect and support and defend that document and protect the American people, then we're willing to live for it, too.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: Joining me now to discuss: Stephen Collinson, CNN politics senior reporter; Sabrina Rodriguez, national political reporter for "The Washington Post"; Meghan Hays, Democratic strategist and former director of message planning for the Biden White House; and Matt Gorman, Republican strategist and former senior adviser to Tim Scott's presidential campaign.
Good morning to everybody.
I mean, there are so many points of friction between Trump and Milley over the years that it's hard to pinpoint exactly which one this is coming from.
There was also, of course, the -- the time that Milley joined Trump when they walked across Lafayette Square during the Black Lives Matter protests. And Milley later apologized for appearing with Trump in that moment.
Then there was, of course, the fact that he testified to the January 6th Committee.
But, Matt, this is a general that Trump appointed to the joint chiefs. Do Republicans share his disdain for him, or is this -- is this a personal vendetta?
MATT GORMAN, FORMER SENIOR ADVISOR TO TIM SCOTT'S PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN: I think probably a little of both. I think Republicans do share his disdain for him. And actually, in some other ways, too.
One of the big critiques you hear among Republicans is Milley's leadership on Afghanistan was an absolute disaster, a total misreading of the situation during the Biden years.
And I think that is a huge point of contention, especially among people who did not serve with Trump.
I also think some of these actions by Trump dovetail quite nicely with, I think, more Republican priorities just in general, where I think you and I have talked about this a lot with you, Meghan, as well.
I think Republicans are keen to get back to a time where there is a more clear, civilian-led military control. With Mattis and Lloyd Austin, you had generals, like, had just recently come out of retirement, had to get a waiver on the ten-year, essentially, you know, cooling off period, for lack of a better term, before assuming the position of secretary of defense.
I think that is something they want to go back against.
And also, candidly, the over-extension of these security clearances is something Republicans have wanted to pull back for a long time.
So, personal might also dovetail with the political here.
TAUSCHE: Stephen Collinson, Hegseth has also ordered an inspector general to review Hegseth's [SIC], quote, "conduct," which is quite a broad mandate for an inspector general, and also ironic, considering that Trump recently just fired all of the agency inspectors general. So how exactly will this work?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Well, I guess inspector generals are great when they're doing something you want. When they potentially, you know, lift the lid on corruption or abuses of power, perhaps they're not so good.
But I take your point about the political generals, and I think that's a very good point.
But at the same time, it's hard to look at this and not see personal retribution on behalf of the president, especially when you view it in the context of the withdrawn security details for former secretary of state Mike Pompeo and John Bolton.
It's interesting that this, along with the executive orders and the transgender troops, that's the first thing that Hegseth presided over before -- as soon as he got to the Pentagon.
So, it does suggest that, clearly, he's going to spend his tenure perhaps advancing the president's social goals.
But one thing I would say is that China and Russia, those generals and grizzled defense officials that Hegseth is going to have to deal with, are watching this; and they see a Pentagon that's fighting against itself and not mustered against America's enemies.
TAUSCHE: Well, there was notably a very large chasm between Trump and his generals in the first term. So much so that there was a book written about it by Susan Glasser and Peter Baker.
And they reported that Milley actually threatened to resign, drafted a resignation letter that he then unsent. And that letter, according to Glasser and Baker, said, "It is my belief that you are doing great and irreparable harm to my country. I believe that you have made a concerted effort over time to politicize the United States military. I thought that I could change that. I've come to the realization that I cannot."
Of course, that was drafted by Milley and then unsent, reportedly.
But, Sabrina, how high are the stakes if you're a general in Trump's second administration and you see some of the actions that he's taken now?
SABRINA RODRIGUEZ, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, "THE WASHINGTON POST": I mean, I think there has to be huge alarm for generals right now in the military, for anyone in the military to see the politicization about this.
I mean, to be clear, though, this is not surprising. This is something that Donald Trump promised. I think a lot of what we're discussing this morning, and we will be discussing in the days to come, are things that Donald Trump said specifically he was going to do on the campaign trail.
[06:10:05]
And him talking about General Milley is one of those things where we knew there would be some type of retribution, there would be some type of, you know, review. The blanket pardon that former President Biden put in place did not come out of nowhere. It came from motivations and the belief that Trump would be going after Milley.
So, I think for generals right now, there is a question how to tow this line of supporting the president of the United States, and you're supporting the Constitution and you're supporting the American people. And how do you -- how does that dovetail?
Is there going to be, you know, this moment of saying those are not in line with each other? Or how do you navigate doing it?
MEGHAN HAYS, FORMER DIRECTOR OF MESSAGE PLANNING FOR BIDEN WHITE HOUSE: If you're President Biden, are you vindicated in issuing the preemptive pardon?
I think President Biden is like, I'm out, I'm in California. I'm not -- I'm not involved in this anymore. You guys did this. I don't know.
But I will say, I don't necessarily think it's vindication. I don't think that President Biden ever wanted to be in this situation, knowing President Biden's relationship with Milley and with the military, and how strongly he feels about the military.
I don't want to say that he feels vindicated in this. He should have never been put in this position.
And I appreciate the spin you're trying to put on this for Republicans being, you know, the political is dovetailing with the personal.
But let's be clear here. This is completely personal on Trump's part. And he is doing this to Milley for retribution, just like you were saying. We know this.
But to your point earlier and what we talked about on Monday a lot on this set, other countries are watching here. And this is just weakening America's place in the world with other countries, because we are just letting China and other countries know we have all these weaknesses, and this is how you can get to us. And that, I think, is what the biggest takeaway mistake is going to be.
GORMAN: Well, let's be honest --
TAUSCHE: A quick final word.
GORMAN: Let's be honest. Also, honest. Milley is a political animal himself, right? That -- that letter didn't get to Peter Baker and Susan Glasser because it fell out of a window. Right? Milley leaked a lot of this stuff.
And look, that's his right. But there are also consequences if you're on the wrong side of this -- this stuff when it comes to elections. And he is now seeing that. Political, personal doesn't matter. It's all the same at the end.
TAUSCHE: We've got a lot more with our panel coming up later in the hour.
But straight ahead on CNN THIS MORNING, after weeks of unexplained drone sightings left residents on edge, the White House now saying it has answers about those lights in the skies.
Plus, today, RFK Jr. takes the hot seat on Capitol Hill. The tough questions ahead for Donald Trump's vulnerable pick to be the nation's next health secretary.
And Democrats dig in their heels to push back against President Trump's federal funding freeze. We'll speak live with Democratic Congressman Brendan Boyle.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To me, this is inherently corrupt.
GOV. TIM WALZ (D-MN): Not one person thought this through.
My words on this are going to be simple to the Trump administration: We'll see you in court.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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[06:16:37]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think the uncertainty, the chaos that has happened since last evening when we heard about this has caused a lot of grave concern on the part of older adults who rely on Meals on Wheels as a lifeline.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: Chaos and confusion unleashed. Earlier this week, the White House Budget Office ordering a pause on federal aid. The move could have potentially impacted trillions of dollars in government spending, including for some public programs that affect millions of Americans.
Now, part of that plan, temporarily blocked by a federal judge, but not before sparking intense backlash by Democrats.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCHUMER: This decision is lawless. It's destructive. It's dangerous. It's cruel. It's illegal, and it's unconstitutional. Donald Trump has done a lot of bad things in the last week, but nothing's worse than this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: Despite the short-lived confusion over the order, Republicans supported the move. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. ERIC SCHMITT (R-MO): I think it's appropriate to take a look at it and make sure there isn't some nefarious actions.
SEN. MIKE ROUNDS (R-SD): We think that some of the areas that could be restricted, if they are items that the executive branch has the authority to issue or to look at.
SEN. TOMMY TUBERVILLE (R-AL): He's not halted it; he's reviewing it. And in a certain amount of time, he's going to release it again. That's what he ran on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAUSCHE: So, Matt, I'll start with you. Republicans, they're broadly supportive, in general, of clawing back government funding. But when some of these cuts hit on the ground in red states -- Meals on Wheels, Head Start, Medicaid -- what do you think the response will be?
GORMAN: I think, in many ways, what we're seeing from Trump, especially as the transition started, is a reversion to businessman Trump, in a way. I think this is actually, in many ways, the first start of a negotiation. And I think that is how to look at this a little bit.
And look, I think one of the things that they -- this thing was very broad. And they need to be very clear to not kind of let a vacuum form where Democrats are defining what's not happening. And they seem to be a little bit caught off-guard by this, how Democrats are defining what's in this and what's not.
So, they need to be a little bit more proactive as they go and define exactly what this means and what it doesn't mean, too.
But I -- I think, in some ways, this is more of a negotiating tactic. Get things on the table.
TAUSCHE: Sabrina, do you think this was a strategy to just throw everything against the wall and then see what they come back with, with the understanding that some of these things are going to be challenged in court?
RODRIGUEZ: A little bit of that. Absolutely, yes. I mean, we saw that Trump talked about this again. This is something that on the campaign trail, he said.
You know, we know that the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to appropriate funds. The money, you know, gets allocated by Congress.
Trump is disputing that. Trump is arguing that he should have power, that he -- his agenda, if it doesn't align with what his vision is of the United States's future. If it doesn't align with his agenda, that this is something that he should be able to do; that he should be able to -- to cut funds and decide where money goes and where it doesn't go. I think the miscalculation that the Trump administration made here was
just the outrage, the chaos, the confusion that was going to happen. I think yesterday was defined for a lot of us as seeing on social media misinformation of what's on it, what's not.
And it's because this was a two-page memo that did not, you know, articulate extremely clearly what was included and what was not. And I think some of that chaos and confusion could be intentional, could not. But is the way that it is landing for a lot of people.
TAUSCHE: And against a fire hose of administrative actions, perhaps they thought that it would go under the radar.
But Stephen Collinson, you wrote a little bit about Trump's authority here. I mean, you note in your piece today for CNN.com that he's a bombastic disrupter, that he was elected with what he sees -- sees as a broad mandate here.
[06:20:11]
But you said it also reflects Trump's view that the presidency has almost unlimited power. And he can simply decide what is legal and what isn't.
COLLINSON: Yes, it was interesting. Some of the administration officials that talked about this yesterday were saying, well, this law -- he has the authority to do this, so he's going to do it. We've decided he has the authority.
On the issue of firing those prosecutors, the argument was, well, this law is unconstitutional.
You know, the president has a mandate to change. A lot of his voters are disenchanted with government. He's trying to bend government to his will.
The problem is, if every president comes in and starts declaring, unilaterally, laws unconstitutional and saying that they're not going to honor what the Congress has passed, you don't really have a democratic system anymore.
You know, every law that's passed in the history of the republic is presumably under threat, because a strong-armed president wants to do exactly what he wants. That's the issue here.
And what it's going to do, we're going to have three or four, in one week, cases that are probably going to end up before the Supreme Court. And they're going to start defining what presidential power looks like in the 21st Century.
TAUSCHE: The judge who paused this funding freeze, at least until Monday, said that she doesn't believe that the administration actually knew which programs they were going to cut.
Meghan, some of the irony here is that the details and the plumbing of a program like this would be run by the Office of Management and Budget, with -- which the administration is largely trying to gut.
HAYS: Yes, absolutely. And I think that it was made clear they didn't know what was in that when they put out three different letters from OMB trying to clarify, because the narrative kept getting away from them.
I will give Democrats a lot of credit. It showed that we had a pulse for once. We were fighting back, and it only took a week to try to get some more movement. You got these groups together and, you know, there's an organization that filed the lawsuit. And we got a stay before the -- it went into effect, which I give the Democrats a lot of credit for organizing and doing something to show I don't think you can negotiate with people's lives.
And I don't think that's what they were trying to do, but that ultimately was what was happening here. And I do commend Democrats for finally standing up and being like, no, we are going to do something here.
TAUSCHE: We are going to talk about the potential buyout of federal workers a little bit later on this hour, which I know we all have thoughts on.
But for now, straight ahead on CNN THIS MORNING, a warning about President Trump's hardline approach on immigration. Pennsylvania's Democratic Congressman Brendan Boyle is here, and he says it could lead to massive global disruptions.
Plus, mystery solved? The White House insisting all those drones over New Jersey were not the enemy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:27:01]
TAUSCHE: Heavy snowfall blanketing the Northeast, creating scenes like this. Parts of Niagara Falls freezing over from the cold and snow.
I'm cold just looking at that.
The winter is not over quite yet. Let's go to meteorologist Derek van Dam. Derek, say it ain't so.
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Astonishing. That video speaks for itself. I think my job is done here this morning.
It's frigid across the Northeast. Everybody who's there knows it. Got my friends in New York City saying, Hey, what are you going to do about this cold?
Well, there is some relief coming, but I'll explain that in just a moment. We've got to get through another day of these frigid temperatures, strong winds, and also the potential for the snow squalls that we had yesterday. But this is a different system. What's a snow squall? It's that intense burst of snow that reduces
visibility at a moment's notice. It's all driven by winds that are gusting over 40 miles per hour at some locations across the interior of the Northeast.
So, here's a look at the visibilities right now. Look at Saranac Lake, dropping to just above a mile. But this could get worse as the morning progresses, because it's all about the cold front that will sweep through this region, bringing that banding of snow. And if it's driven by the wind, we likely will see those visibilities drop below a mile across the central portions of New York.
So, there's another storm system that's coming. This one is predominantly going to be a rainmaker, with the exception of the Northern tier of this, the higher elevations of New England.
It's also going to bring the round of severe weather potential, at least today, starting with central Texas, a marginal risk. But tomorrow, we see the potential for wider severe weather outbreak there across central Louisiana, something we'll monitor. Lots of rain associated with this.
Bottom line is there is warmer weather, but we have to flip that with the potential of rain, as well -- Kayla.
TAUSCHE: And ground -- Groundhog Day, of course, on Sunday, which will, of course, be --
VAN DAM: Yes, coming in. Will he see his shadow? Time will tell.
TAUSCHE: We'll be watching. Derek van Dam, thank you.
VAN DAM: All right.
TAUSCHE: Still ahead on CNN THIS MORNING, Donald Trump's choice to lead Health and Human Services faces a Senate grilling. How a last- minute account from one of Robert F. Kennedy's own family members might put his confirmation in jeopardy.
Plus, a blitz of executive orders allowing immigration arrests to happen in locations like schools, churches and hospitals. We'll speak to an ACLU lawyer about those changes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KRISTI NOEM, SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: We are picking up the worst of the worst in this country that are making our streets so dangerous. If you're an illegal, and if you're dangerous, we have a target on you. And you will not be welcome.
(END VIDEO CLIP)