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RFK Jr. Under Fire in Senate Hearing; Anna Wintour Names Replacement at American 'Vogue.' Aired 6-6:30a ET
Aired September 05, 2025 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BRIAN ABEL, CNN ANCHOR: Star quarterback Jalen Hurts led the reigning champs, the Philadelphia Eagles, to a narrow, 24-20, win over the Cowboys. But the Super Bowl MVP, he threw for 152 yards and scored two rushing touchdowns.
[06:00:14]
Here was the "but." One of the craziest moments came just after the opening kickoff, when the Eagles' Jalen Carter was ejected for spitting at Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.
Video later showed Prescott spitting in Carter's direction first.
Thank you for joining us here on EARLY START. I'm Brian Abel in Washington, D.C. CNN THIS MORNING with Audie Cornish starts right now.
AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Some Republican senators might be sick of RFK Jr.'s tenure as top health official, but not the only Republican that really matters.
CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.
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DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I like the fact that he's different.
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CORNISH: Will "different" help keep Americans healthy?
And get this: Republicans want gun control. Here's the catch: for trans people.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We want to be defensive, but we want to be offensive, too.
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CORNISH: And a rebrand for the Pentagon. President Trump poised to sign an executive order that changes the name of the Defense Department.
And the city of Chicago bracing for an unwanted ICE operation that is expected to begin within 24 hours.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Girl, if you have a job, keep it. Keep it. I applied for 3,000 jobs.
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CORNISH: And the job market in America. Why workers are hugging and bosses are hoarding.
And a new devil wearing Prada? Anna Wintour's hand-picked replacement for the top job at "Vogue."
It's 6 a.m. here on the East Coast. Here's a live look at Capitol Hill. Good morning, everybody. It's Friday, September 5th. I want to thank you for waking up with me. I'm Audie Cornish. And here's where we start.
Because even as chaos and firings and resignations consume his department, Health and Human Services secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is defiant. He claims it's all part of his plan to make America healthy again.
Now, during a three-hour Senate panel, Democrats called for him to resign or be fired, while some -- some Senate Republicans raised questions about the secretary's record so far.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN BARRASSO (R-WY): In your confirmation hearings, you promised to uphold the highest standards for vaccines. Since then, I've grown deeply concerned. The public has seen measles outbreaks, the leadership of the National Institute of Health questioning the use of mRNA vaccines. The recently confirmed director of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fired. Americans don't know who to rely on.
SEN. THOM TILLIS (R-NC): I do also believe that some of your statements seem to contradict what you said in the prior hearing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would say effectively, we're denying people vaccine. I -- Senator Cantwell.
ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR., SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: You're wrong.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Despite the lectures from many senators on Capitol Hill, the secretary seems to have the backing of the only person he needs to stay in the job.
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TRUMP: I guarantee a lot of the people at this table like RFK Jr. And I do. But he's -- he's got a different take. And we want to listen to all of those takes.
But I heard he did very well today. But it's not your standard. It's not your standard talk.
I like the fact that he's different.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Joining me now in the group chat, Eugene Scott, visiting fellow, Johns Hopkins University Agora institute; Rob Bluey, president and executive editor, "The Daily Signal"; and Lulu Garcia-Navarro, CNN contributor at "The New York Times" and also a podcast host.
All right, you guys, thank you so much for being here.
I feel like I need to play one more piece of tape, because you heard everyone talking about RFK. I want people to hear the man himself in terms of how he responded to some of this criticism.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KENNEDY: That you're just making stuff up. I don't even know what you're talking about. You're talking gibberish.
You're evading that question. You're so wrong on your facts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: OK, so hearings are often for the public, right?
ROB BLUEY, PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE EDITOR, "THE DAILY SIGNAL": Right.
CORNISH: to see this clash, but it's actually not all that common for someone to just really kind of be yelling back at lawmakers.
Rob, can I start with you about his performance? Because the president liked it.
BLUEY: The president certainly did like it. I mean, the president and RFK, I think, share a common mission to shake up Washington. And they're not satisfied with the health of the American people.
As RFK said, their chronic diseases are on the increase. Kids, particularly, have struggled with a lot of things that they haven't in the past audience.
So, I think what RFK is trying to do is shake up the bureaucracy in Washington, D.C. That's going to be uncomfortable for members of Congress who are accustomed to doing things a certain way.
And by the way, I would also point out, as RFK did, funded by some of the very institutions that are resistant to those changes.
CORNISH: Yes.
BLUEY: Like big pharma. CORNISH: Though people, of course, immediately started asking about his funding in various ways, as someone who had run for election.
[06:05:04]
I noticed that they were asking very specific questions about whether he was lying in his past hearings.
So, here's an example, an interaction with him. And I think it's Senator Tina Smith.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. TINA SMITH (D-MN): Let me ask you, when were you lying, sir? When you told this committee that you were not anti-vax, or when you told Americans that there is no safe and effective vaccine?
KENNEDY: Both things are true.
SMITH: Oh, so more denial, more back and forth.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Both things are true. So, just underscoring that, you know, saying that he's not anti-vax, but also that there's no safe and effective vaccine. It just -- sort of all of this information is sort of slipping into the yelling, which I think would have been hard for people to kind of hear.
EUGENE SCOTT, VISITING FELLOW, AGORA INSTITUTE, JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY: Right. But what I think a lot of people heard was Republicans acting as if they are shocked by someone who built their name most recently by being critical of vaccines, now coming out to seem very unsupportive of him.
I don't -- I don't think Kennedy has been anywhere near as inconsistent as some of his critics have suggested.
And what's been frustrating to, I think, a lot of people is that these Republicans, who now have a problem with them, are many of the same people who got him in the position he's currently in.
CORNISH: Yes. And of course, there's consequences here. Already, the new guidance on COVID-19 shots, a lot more people will have to find another way to get the COVID vaccine if they want it. A lot of groups are excluded. Healthy adults younger than 65. Healthy kids. Adults without any kind of qualifying risk.
It won't be as simple to just go to your CVS.
LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: No, I tried and you can't get them.
CORNISH: Oh, you did?
GARCIA-NAVARRO: You can't get them here in D.C. at the moment. And that's true of many other places.
And I think that's the bigger point here. They've put someone in charge of America's vaccine programs, America's general health. And you're trying to conflate something like vaccines, which is very proven, has a long history globally, not just in America, but all over the world, of saving lives, with chronic health issues here in the United States. So, you know, those are two different buckets.
And the fact of the matter is -- is that, you know, Secretary Kennedy is an extremist on this issue. He is someone who is way outside of the mainstream on this issue. This is a 20 percent-80 percent issue. I know that Republicans often like to talk about this when they talk about Democrats, but this really is that the majority of Americans believe in vaccines and want their children to be vaccinated.
And so, the very idea that, all of a sudden, his own personal predilections are holding Americans hostage, who might want to have vaccines, want to engage in what is commonly believed to be good protocol for -- for your health --
CORNISH: Yes, that 20 percent is extremely vocal, extremely powerful, and has great purchase with the president.
BLUEY: And I'd say I agree with Lulu on the point that I do think many parents would want to follow that path.
What they don't like, particularly when it came to the COVID-19 vaccine, is the government mandating that healthy kids were required to get the shot.
When I think a lot of people, just using their own common sense, said, Why is that not a decision that I should be making with my doctor, as opposed to some government agency dictating to us what we need to do?
LULU-GARCIA: So, Audie, I think one of the issues here is that what happened during COVID-19 is one thing that, I think, is open for debate and discussion.
I think the other thing, though, is when we talk about measles, when we talk about polio. I mean, what you're seeing in Florida -- that's my home state at the moment -- is basically them saying, this is now choose-your-own-adventure. This is now optional. You get to decide if you are going to buy into what is proven science or not.
CORNISH: Yes.
LULU-GARCIA: And that puts everyone at risk.
Why do we take vaccines? It's not only for our own health, but also for the health of the community. You need to have herd immunity, so that the most vulnerable -- and those are children under 2 months old. Those are kids who can't get vaccinated, because they might have health conditions.
CORNISH: And I think that --
GARCIA-NAVARRO: That's why we do it.
CORNISH: -- the thing I'm going to be watching for now is insurance companies. There are so many parts of our vaccine system that rely on the CDC for guidance, and then others follow.
So, will all of a sudden someone say to you, We're not going to cover that, and not just about the COVID vaccine? So, hopefully, we can get some answers on that.
You guys stay with me. We've got a lot to talk about this hour.
Coming up on CNN THIS MORNING, the big stay. No hire, no fire. Job huggers, job hoarding, whatever you want to call it. People are scared to leave their jobs right now.
Plus, the NFL is back, and we're not in Kansas City anymore. The Chiefs and the Chargers go ahead -- go head-to-head abroad.
And Zohran Mamdani throws down the gantlet. Why he's bypassing his fellow mayoral candidates to challenge the White House.
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ZOHRAN MAMDANI (D), NEW YORK MAYORAL CANDIDATE: Let's cut out the middleman. Why should I debate Donald Trump's puppet when I could debate Donald Trump himself?
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[06:14:27]
CORNISH: It's now almost 15 minutes past the hour, and here is your morning roundup.
Ramped-up ICE operations expected to begin in Chicago. Local reports say Governor J.B. Pritzker was told it could happen as early as today.
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GOV. J.B. PRITZKER (D), ILLINOIS: Know your rights. Be extra careful. And know that there is the possibility that ICE will be on the ground and causing some mayhem.
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CORNISH: The Trump administration has not yet said exactly when they will deploy, but Governor Pritzker says he is deeply concerned about the impact this could have on Mexican Independence Day celebrations planned for this weekend.
And let's cut out the middleman. Zohran Mamdani says he doesn't want to debate former Governor Andrew Cuomo again in the New York City's mayor's race. Instead, he wants this.
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MAMDANI: Let's cut out the middleman. Why should I debate Donald Trump's puppet when I could debate Donald Trump himself? If Donald Trump is serious about this, he should come to New York City. We can have as many debates as he want about why he is cutting SNAP benefits for hungry New Yorkers just to fund tax cuts for his billionaire donors.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: While the president did not respond to that, he did say Thursday that too many people are in the race, and two people should drop out.
CNN has learned that Eric Adams met with a top Trump aide earlier this week.
And the NFL goes abroad tonight in Sao Paulo, Brazil. It's the second straight year the NFL is heading to South America. Coming off their Super Bowl loss, the Kansas City Chiefs will take on the L.A. Chargers.
The Chargers will be the home team. But for the first time in an international game, both teams' logos will be displayed in their end zones.
Last night, the NFL regular season kicked off with the Eagles beating the Cowboys.
And after the break on CNN THIS MORNING, who is to blame for stalled talks about the war in Ukraine? Turns out both President Trump and Vladimir Putin agree.
Plus, a new era of "Vogue." Anna Wintour taps her successor. But is she the one who is still running things?
And news fatigue? "Have I Got News for You" is the cure, and also the disease. The comedy quiz show returns with a new season on September 6 at 9 p.m. on CNN.
Guests this week will be Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett and comedian Dave Foley.
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[06:20:59]
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MERYL STREEP, ACTRESS: And it's sort of comical how you think that you've made a choice that exempts you from the fashion industry, when in fact, you're wearing a sweater that was selected for you by the people in this room.
(END VIDEO CLIP) CORNISH: For the first time in nearly four decades, there is a new devil wearing Prada. Chloe Malle is the new editor of American "Vogue."
Anna Wintour handpicked her successor after announcing that she's stepping aside. The 39-year-old was previously the editor of "Vogue's" website and co-host of its podcast.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHLOE MALLE, EDITOR OF AMERICAN "VOGUE" (via phone): It's like your birthday but times a hundred. I've gotten very nice messages, though, from everyone: from my dry cleaners, saying he hopes I'll have more clothes; to people from high school saying that they want to be my Emily and want to bring me "The Book" every night.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: That was actually her first time speaking since the announcement. Turns out this job runs in her blood. Her mother, Candice Bergen, played the fictional "Vogue" editor-in-chief in "Sex and the City."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CANDICE BERGEN, ACTRESS: This isn't "Vogue."
SARAH JESSICA PARKER, ACTRESS: Oh, you didn't like it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. No one is saying that.
BERGEN: Well, I am. I'll say it. I didn't like it. There, I said it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Now, as for Wintour, she is not retiring. She's now the company's chief content officer and Malle's supervisor.
So, is this a new era for "Vogue," or just kind of a symbolic change?
I want to bring in CNN's senior vice president of features editorial, Choire -- Choire Sicha, to talk about this. Good morning, Choire.
CHOIRE SICHA, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, CNN FEATURES EDITORIAL: Hey, good morning.
CORNISH: All right. So, people have been talking about this for a couple days, because you could argue the main plot of "The Devil Wears Prada" was that many other young editors hit a ceiling of Anna Wintour. Right? They couldn't get the job. There was no generational change. Extreme boomer behavior, perhaps.
So, tell us about why you think this is happening now.
SICHA: That's -- that's a really good point. Yes, for years people have sort of rudely wondered when Anna Wintour would retire. It's a little pushy of all of us, I think. Not really our business. And this was -- this did sort of catch us by surprise.
But -- and then she ended up picking someone, as you point out, who was, like, right down the hall all along. I guess she wouldn't really be the legendary Anna Wintour if she didn't have the perfect next candidate just sitting right there down the hallway.
CORNISH: So, is this a protege? A business strategist, a fashion darling? Where does she kind of rank? What is she known as, this Chloe Malle in the fashion world?
SICHA: Sure. She's -- she's all of those. She -- people who work with her say she's an in-office perfectionist. Sort of unlike Anna Wintour's maybe unfair reputation for directing that perfectionism outward, as you saw in that "Devil Wears Prada" clip.
She's sort of known for turning that perfectionism in on herself. When she was a young intern at "The New York Observer," which is the newspaper owned by Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law, she was known as an excellent reporter who would take any kind of assignment.
For someone who is the daughter of Candice Bergen, she was really humble and really willing to -- to put in the hours.
So, she's regarded very well and -- and is very smart.
And also, in this day and age, just being a magazine editor is a totally different animal than when Anna Wintour came into the business.
CORNISH: Yes. It's interesting. We were hearing from her, I think, biographer, about that, just sort of how different it is. She's known for bringing the magazine into a more cultural place, emphasis on celebrities. And here's how her biographer talked about that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AMY ODELL, AUTHOR, "ANNA: THE BIOGRAPHY": When Anna Wintour took over as editor-in-chief in 1988, this job was all about creating the perfect cover, spending lavishly on fantasy fashion shoots, which Anna could throw in the trash if she didn't like them, no matter how much they cost.
But her role is less about the glamor and more about the grind. She has to manage every platform. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, podcasts, the website, the print magazine.
She also has to juggle a tangle of revenue streams. He has to deal with declining budgets, a unionized workforce, constant existential threats to "Vogue's" business, like A.I.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[06:25:09] CORNISH: It's fitting that that was a TikTok, because I feel like that's a good example of a reason why we don't need "Vogue" anymore, right? Like, there are so many more places online to do the kinds of things the magazine did.
Can you talk about its role now? Like what this -- this job will mean, going forward?
SICHA: Sure. And what I think Anna would say to that and what Chloe would agree with is that that center of power exists for them on TikTok. They do have that influence.
"Vogue" is as much -- you see Anna Wintour's hair and sunglasses as much as you see the name "Vogue." And whether you're on Instagram or you're seeing an actual print magazine somehow like that's changed.
Editors are businesspeople now. Like, her job as the new editor of "Vogue" is to -- is to really conduct a business.
She said some actually really intriguing things. She said that she sees the print magazine as something that should be a collectible now, that that this is, like, a special thing for a special group of people instead of this mass market thing you would see at the supermarket.
And, you know, she's bringing change.
So, the job of an editor is just like a totally different thing in this day and age. And hopefully, she won't be spending all her money on photo shoots that she then throws in the trash, which was a very antiquated way of thinking.
CORNISH: Choire, thank you so much for talking with us.
SICHA: Great to see you.
CORNISH: Straight ahead on CNN THIS MORNING, a rebranding for the U.S. military. New details about President Trump's plan to turn back the clock and rename the Pentagon.
Plus, a rift in right-wing TV. Why Newsmax just filed a lawsuit against FOX.
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