Return to Transcripts main page
CNN This Morning
Trump Reshapes America's Government & Alliances; CNN Poll: 62 Percent Say Trump Has 'Not Gone Far Enough' to Reduce Prices; Arctic Blast Sets New Cold Records Across the Central U.S. Aired 6-6:30a ET
Aired February 21, 2025 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: It's Friday, February 21. Right now on CNN THIS MORNING.
[06:00:32]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think right now, we're very popular.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Shock and awe. A whirlwind. A fire hose. Pick your metaphor. Just a month in, Donald Trump reshaping the presidency and the nation.
Plus --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It takes a little bit of time to build it back up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: What happened to "on day one"? The V.P. says it will take time to get inflation under control. New poll numbers say many voters are not interested in waiting.
And this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ELON MUSK, ADVISOR TO DONALD TRUMP: This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Living for the meme. Elon Musk touts big cuts to jobs and budgets. But is DOGE really saving billions? CNN digs into the receipts.
And later --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): I will not seek this honor an eighth time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: The end of an era. Senator Mitch McConnell announcing he will not run for reelection, but not before dealing with some unfinished business.
All right. It is just after 6 a.m. here on the East Coast. A live look at Capitol Hill on this Friday morning. We made it to Friday.
Good morning, everyone. I'm Kasie Hunt. It's wonderful to have you with us.
So, how much can you change in just one month? It turns out the answer is pretty much everything.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: The golden age of America begins right now.
From this day forward, our country will flourish and be respected again all over the world. We will be the envy of every nation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Just four weeks into his second term, President Trump has instituted radical change in nearly every sector of the federal government, and he's doing it with so much speed and so little transparency that it's really hard to convey just how much has been happening.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: This is January 6th, and these are the hostages. Approximately 1,500 for a pardon.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
TRUMP: Full pardon.
I signed an order creating the Department of Government Efficiency and put a man named Elon Musk in charge.
When you look at USAID, that's a -- that's a fraud. The whole thing is a fraud.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Since inauguration day, Trump has issued over 100 executive actions, many of them making good on campaign promises, resulting in hundreds of January 6th rioters walking free, and thousands of federal workers wondering whether they still have a job. At the same time, Trump has redefined America's relationship with its
allies, and he's looking to redraw the map.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip.
We're flying over a thing called the Gulf of America.
So, I think Canada is going to be a very serious contender to be our 51st state.
Greenland is a wonderful place. We need it for international security.
China is operating the Panama Canal, and we didn't give it to China. We gave it to Panama, and we're taking it back.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you assure the world that, as you try to get control of these areas, you are not going to use military or economic coercion?
TRUMP: No.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: America's adversaries now celebrating as President Trump questions the U.S. relationship with Europe and repeats Russian talking points.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I think it's true in Europe. It's losing. They're losing their wonderful right of freedom of speech.
I believe he wants peace. I believe that President Putin, when I spoke to him yesterday -- I mean, I know him very well. Yes. I think he wants peace.
A dictator without elections. Zelenskyy better move fast, or he's not going to have a country left.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: And then, of course, there's been President Trump's flirtation with defying court orders as federal judges halt some of his agenda.
Trump even going so far as to quote Napoleon, implying that, as president, he can't break the law. And to call himself the king, leading the White House to share an image of the president wearing a golden crown, smiling widely.
All of that just a fraction, honestly, of everything that has been done by the president and this administration so far. There is one month down. There are 47 to go.
Unless, of course, Donald Trump actually follows through on an idea that he has floated lately.
[06:05:05]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: And they tell me I'm not allowed to run. I'm not sure. Is that true? I'm not sure.
Should I run again? You tell me. This -- There's your controversy right there. There's your controversy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Four more years! Four more years!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Four more years! Four more years!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Four more years! Four more years!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: OK. My panel is here: Alex Thompson, CNN political analyst, national political reporter for Axios; Elliot Williams, CNN legal analyst, former federal prosecutor; Meghan Hays, Democratic strategist, former director of message planning at the Biden White House; Brad Todd, Republican strategist, CNN political analyst. Welcome to all of you on this Friday.
When you really try to sit down and think about everything that has happened over the course of the last month, I feel like I was actually a little surprised to learn that it had only been one month since President Trump had been inaugurated.
But Brad, let me -- let me kind of start with you because, you know, I think really what has been on the table, especially in the last couple of days, that is the biggest of the big-picture things is America's place in the world.
As you know, we always call the president the leader of the free world. Right? And this morning, you know, "The New York Post" has this picture saying, "President Trump: This is a dictator." Putin is a dictator.
There's this news out of the G-7 that the U.S. is trying to remove the phrase "Russian aggression" from something marking the third anniversary of the war.
I mean, on the day that Mitch McConnell announces he is leaving the Senate, I mean, this used to be the party of, you know, Ronald Reagan, like, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall."
It really does feel like we are living through something momentous. Is it -- is it good for -- for us? For the world?
BRAD TODD, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: No. I mean, Vladimir Putin is a thug. He's a murderer. He is the menace to the world. He's the enemy of the United States. I think most Republicans are very wary of Vladimir Putin. And I think the long-term strategy is to make sure that his oil and
gas doesn't get him anywhere right now. John McCain used to say he was a gas station with nukes, and that's all it was.
Russian oil is currently selling for about $68 a barrel. It needs to sell at about 50 to put Putin out of business. American wells can make profit about 45.
And so, I think the policy of the Trump administration that is to contain Putin is to make America the energy capital of the world.
I think some of what you're seeing on the diplomacy front, maybe isn't it -- doesn't sit well with a lot of Republicans. But I think the long-term play here is to put Putin out of the gas business and out of the oil business and put American oil in its place. And that's how you break him.
ELLIOT WILLIAMS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: How do you -- how do you explain it? I'm curious to hear your thoughts on this. How do you explain Thom Tillis, senator from North Carolina, really going all in unequivocally on the sort of dictator and thug point that you were making before, kind of putting him at odds with the president.
Now, he's up for reelection this year. What does he gain from that? Because I don't think I've seen any Republican be that full-throated.
HUNT: We're trying to rally it, to play it.
TODD: With the exception of Tucker Carlson, I don't know anyone who claims to be on the right side who's -- who's a fan of Vladimir Putin.
WILLIAMS: Except the president.
TODD: No, he's -- he's clearly talked about how Vladimir Putin is a problem for the United States. He signed every sanctions bill against Putin.
He -- he certainly believes this war in Ukraine needs to come to an end. And he's no fan of Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as well. But I think Donald Trump is going to contain Vladimir Putin through - by shutting him down on the gas business.
HUNT: Let's -- let's watch Thom Tillis on the floor from last night, because Elliot's right. I mean, you can see the emotion. Watch.
WILLIAMS: Yes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. THOM TILLIS (R-NC): Whoever believes that there is any space for Vladimir Putin in the future of a stable globe better go to Ukraine. They better go to Europe. They better invest the time to understand that this man is a cancer and the greatest threat to democracy in my lifetime.
(END VIDEO CLIP) WILLIAMS: I have a hard time seeing that, not as a shot across the bow of the White House. Like explicitly.
TODD: Across the bow of Vladimir Putin. I mean, listen, we've had four presidents and their presidencies now bedeviled by this in George Bush. He let Vladimir Putin move in on the state of Georgia.
You see, Joe Biden struggled and wouldn't give Zelenskyy the weapons he needed when he could actually win the war.
Barack Obama laughed it off and let him go into Crimea.
And now Donald Trump.
I mean, Vladimir Putin has played a pretty good long game against a lot of American presidents. The answer, in the end, is to take away his ability to stay in power inside Russia. That's the answer.
(CROSSTALK)
HUNT: None of those presidents, though, tried to remove -- remove the phrase "Russian aggression" from a G-7 communique.
MEGHAN HAYS, FORMER DIRECTOR OF MESSAGE PLANNING AT THE BIDEN WHITE HOUSE: And add them back and make it the G-8 again. I mean, there is a lot of things that Donald Trump is doing that is sending a different message to the world and to the United States.
So, it's getting people like Thom Tillis to say those things. I don't think if your argument was what the president actually believed, people on the Senate floor would be doing that.
TODD: Every Republican would vote for the sanctions bills on Russia. I think we need to keep sanctions on Russia. I mean, that's -- I think that we will soon revert back to some sort of a Cold War mentality with Russia, once the Ukrainian war is over.
[06:10:05]
ALEX THOMPSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I mean, it has been fascinating that, basically, over the last 12 years, both parties have basically reversed their positions and their attitude toward Russia.
You remember that 2012 debate with Mitt Romney and Barack Obama. And Mitt Romney said that Putin was the greatest adversary. And Barack Obama was like, that's a Cold War mentality. Right?
And now, you basically have the opposite, being where Trump is like, actually, we could do a reset, you know, with Putin. We can get along.
TODD: That's a Hillary Clinton phrase. Wasn't it?
THOMPSON: Yes. It was. It was during the Obama administration. Obama and -- and -- and it's just been fascinating to see how much the parties have changed over just a short time. WILLIAMS: To come back to the big topic behind all this, I feel like,
whether we as a country embrace DEI as the official policy of posters on the wall at the Department of Education, or how many employees ought to be at whatever agency; the political fights to be had internally in the United States.
Fundamentally, there are questions about America's role on the global stage that have been upended in the last 30 days, whether we care to admit --
TODD: Before that. It happened before that.
WILLIAMS: You cannot credibly say that both the rhetoric and actions taken by the president since he took office, with respect to, one, our -- Canada, of all places, which is, I think, the largest trading partner of the United States, if not one of them -- we're upending a post-World War II order.
TODD: And yet, no, I may argue the post-World War II order upending happened before that.
We're now entering a phase where most of the United States's agreements are going to be bilateral. They're not going to be multilateral.
There's a belief by Donald Trump and by a lot of Republicans -- and a lot of conservatives, a lot of former Democrats -- that when you have a multilateral agreement, the United States has to compromise a lot of times. And if we have a bilateral agreement, we'll get the better end of the deal.
THOMPSON: But voters voted -- I mean, listen, the Trump view is Trump -- the voters voted for change, and they're going to get it.
And -- and to your point, like, maybe the world had changed, but the policy had not changed. You are seeing the most significant change of the relationship of the U.S. and Europe in a generation.
HAYS: I was just going to say, what's wrong with a multilateral agreement when we had over 50 allies against Russia and against -- backing Ukraine? What is wrong with that multilateral agreement?
I just don't understand how we are now the country that wants to side with Putin and just -- for the rest of the world.
TODD: Don't side with Putin.
HAYS: But that is the message that everyone is taking. That's the message that Europe is taking. That is the message that Ukraine is taking. I mean, he literally called Zelenskyy a dictator.
TODD: That was a mistake. He's not a dictator. He should hold elections, but he's not a dictator.
HAYS: That -- correct. But respectfully, you're not the president. The president went out there and said -- TODD: I'd be a pretty good one.
WILLIAMS: It would be a better world for all of us.
HAYS: But the president of United States called him a dictator and is not backing down from that. Neither is his staff and his team.
WILLIAMS: I just think when -- when the -- when the prime minister of the U.K. has to jump in and clarify what the West's role and relationship is with Ukraine, we've done something wrong as the United States with respect to our role in the global stage. We just have. You know, we ought not be --
TODD: We did. Did it start in Georgia, or did it start in Crimea, or is it starting now? I think this is a much longer -- we've -- we've given Vladimir Putin too much leash for too long over too many administrations.
HUNT: I just -- I keep thinking back to -- I have a lot of my -- my grandfather was wounded in World War II. And I have a lot of his old memorabilia.
And I just -- I've been thinking about it a lot in the past couple of weeks, because it really does feel like we are undergoing some sort of major shift, that, you know, was started with those heroic Americans. It really feels you know, it's -- it's -- it's difficult, I guess, is what I would say.
All right. Coming up next here on CNN THIS MORNING, lowering inflation on day one, a key Trump campaign promise. Why the administration now asking for more time to bring prices down.
Plus, in the name of cutting out government waste, even more Americans out of a job this morning.
And President Trump and Elon Musk have some questions about one of America's strategic reserves.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GERT FROBE, ACTOR: This is my bank: the gold depository at Fort Knox. Gentlemen, in its vaults are $15 billion. The entire gold supply of the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:18:36]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: So, when I win, I will immediately bring prices down starting on day one.
Starting on day one, we will end inflation and make America affordable again.
Prices will come down and come down dramatically and come down fast.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: So, do you think America is affordable Again? The promise from Donald Trump, made time and time again on the campaign trail, of course, put him back in the White House. He claims he's making good on those promises while speaking to Republican governors just last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: And everything is coming down. You know, the -- the eggs are coming down, and the bacon is coming down. Everything is coming down. And that's the biggest thing. The energy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: So, everything is not coming down. According to numbers released just last week by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, grocery prices jumped by half a percent from December. That is the largest month-to- month jump in two years.
A lot of that is driven by the cost of eggs, which leapt by 19 percent in a single month. It's spurred, of course, by that deadly bird flu outbreak.
But bacon prices are also up 2 percent. Flour, steak saw similar increases.
But after campaigning on immediately lowering inflation, Vice President J.D. Vance now saying the administration needs a little more time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VANCE: It's going to take some time to fix what Joe Biden broke over four years. And -- and we know it is -- it is easy, unfortunately, to burn the house down. It takes a little bit of time to build it back up.
We're going to make it affordable to live in this country again. That's our mandate. That's our goal.
And you're right, there's a lot more that we can do. But I think we've got a pretty good start after 30 days.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: New polling from CNN shows voters may be looking for the administration to step on it a little bit.
When asked about Trump's efforts to reduce the prices of everyday goods, 62 percent say the president has simply not gone far enough yet. Alex, it does -- it does seem like they've been doing a lot. Clearly,
there's a lot of bandwidth to do a lot of things. But honestly, the stuff that they have done has probably done more to raise prices than lower them at this point.
THOMPSON: I mean, Trump is failing at the standard that he set, which was day one.
Now, I think any economist would tell you that bringing down inflation in 30 days is not realistic. But he was the one that promised that. And American voters, you know, they're -- they're pretty demanding.
HUNT: I mean, Brad, like, do you think he should be focusing more on this than he is? I mean --
TODD: I mean, he's focusing on a lot of things, and he's delivering the kind of speed and pace of change that I think the people who voted for him wanted.
And I think most of his voters are pretty enthusiastic about what's happening. The key to bringing down prices is to bring down the cost of energy and make energy a lot more abundant and a lot more affordable, and to increase the horizon so that more investors get into the energy sector.
That's not something that happens immediately. And he did say he's going to start bringing down prices on the first day. He didn't say immediately, I'm going to take my hand off the Bible, and the price of eggs is going to drop in half. Let's be clear about it.
And I do think this has a comprehensive energy. I mean, the Biden administration deliberately pushed up energy prices. It was part of the playbook. It's going to take a while to bring them down. But once we do that other prices will go down.
WILLIAMS: Conversation you and I have had separately, and I -- and I was confounded by it. I -- how long can they keep blaming Joe Biden?
TODD: As long as it's his fault.
WILLIAMS: No, no, it's a sincere question. Because, you know, last week, "Biden inflation up" was the social media. J.D. Vance now.
And the question is, is it a month? Is it six months, a year? At a certain point, the Trump administration owns the economy. And I'm just wondering how long it is that they have to keep making --
TODD: We're in a unique political situation, where Joe Biden was elected as a reaction to Donald Trump, and Donald Trump was reelected as a reaction to Joe Biden. And so, I don't know that you can take these two men without putting the other one in the frame.
HAYS: I also just don't understand how things like tariffs are going to bring prices down. I think that -- and cutting all these jobs are really impacting a lot of these communities in places; 95 percent of the government workforce is out of -- out of D.C. So, I'm just curious how these two things are squaring. And I understand the energy costs coming down. But tariffs are going to drive prices right back up.
HUNT: All right. Coming up next here on CNN THIS MORNING, mass layoffs hit the IRS in the heart of tax season. Michael Smerconish here to talk about President Trump's first month in office. The massive cuts he's already made to the federal government.
Plus, the country shivering through an arctic blast. When are we going to warm up? Derek van Dam will be here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:27:25]
HUNT: So, I don't have to tell any of you that it has been an unusually cold winter across the country this year. We have all felt it. It's been punctuated this week by widespread snowfall, some of it pretty intense, reaching as far South as Mississippi.
Let's get to our meteorologist, our weatherman, Derek van Dam.
Derek, good morning.
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Kasie.
And you think that this weatherman would listen to his own weather forecast? It's story time, Kasie. I woke up this morning to frozen pipes.
So, at 4 a.m., here is this meteorologist taking a blow dryer and warm towels around his outdoor faucets to prevent them from bursting. That was -- that was me.
HUNT: You didn't turn them off on the inside? Derek!
VAN DAM: I did. I know better. But I got the little drip going now, so we got it all sorted. My wife can thank me later.
But look at the temperatures here. I mean, it's eight degrees where I'm located, and I'm not the only one who is in this deep arctic plunge. It's bitterly cold.
Seventy million Americans under this extreme cold alert for much of the South. These are the areas that don't typically get this type of weather. So, we're near record-breaking cold for many locations, some areas dropping below their record temperature for the morning, including Springfield, Missouri.
We'll continue with these record-breaking low temperatures through the course of the next couple of hours.
But there is some light at the end of the tunnel. I love to look at, you know, this life as a glass half full versus glass half empty. So, we get rid of the cold; we say hello to the warmth. Mild weather returns.
Look at the temperatures rebounding by the first parts of next week. We'll reach the 70s here in Atlanta where I'm located.
And for Kasie, I think we'll reach the 60s by next week, as well.
And speaking of Kasie, I've got to show this beautiful -- one of my favorite photos of you and I together. This is some of the most special moments I've spent with you on the desk in D.C. I loved getting breakfast with you and just sharing the morning with you and talking to you every single day.
The mornings are going to miss that smile. And we wish you all the best in your new time slot. I know you're not leaving the network, but wow, what a pleasure it's been to work with you, Kasie.
HUNT: Yes, thank you, Derek. We're going to wrap up the show. I'm going to be moving to 4 p.m.
But I have to tell you, I've really enjoyed having you as a big part of our version of CNN THIS MORNING. And I will very much miss seeing you every day. Thank you for everything. I really appreciate it.
VAN DAM: Same to you, Kasie. All right. All the best.
HUNT: Have a great weekend.
VAN DAM: I'll talk to you on TV.
HUNT: Thank you. We'll see you soon.
All right. Coming up next here on CNN THIS MORNING, billions, trillions of dollars saved? That's what the White House claims they have found with their DOGE cuts. CNN's taking a deeper look. Where are the receipts?
Plus, French President Emmanuel Macron heading to Washington. His message for President Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EMMANUEL MACRON, PRESIDENT OF FRANCE (through translator): What I'm going to do is I'm going to tell him, basically, you cannot be weak in the face of President Putin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
