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CNN This Morning

Trump Pulls Support For Key MAGA Ally Marjorie Taylor Greene; Trump Orders DOJ To Investigate Political Opponents Tied To Epstein; Flooding And Mudslide Potential For California This Weekend; New Prosecutor Takes Georgia Election Interference Case Against Trump And His Allies; U.S. President Trump To Proceed With Legal Action Against BBC Despite Apology; Saudi Prince To Meet With Trump In U.S. After Weeks Of Tense Talks. North Carolina Braces for Border Patrol Agents; Protesters Arrested Outside ICE Facility Near Chicago; Hollywood A- Listers Meet Pope Leo at the Vatican. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired November 15, 2025 - 06:00   ET

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

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[06:00:30]

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello and welcome to CNN This Morning. It is Saturday, November 15th. I'm Danny Freeman in for Victor Blackwell. Here's what's new this morning.

First, President Trump is taking aim at fellow Republicans over next week's vote to release the Epstein files, calling Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene a lunatic. We'll tell you how Greene responded to that. And Trump now saying he no longer endorses her.

Plus, parts of California are on high alert this morning as a series of storms soaks the state.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know if I'm waiting to see dirt flowing downhill. And we are downhill here. So that's a little scary.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Life threatening flooding and mudslides are possible as officials warn some places will see a month's worth of rain in just a couple of days.

Also new this morning, President Trump says he feels obligated to sue the BBC over an editing blunder in a documentary about him. The astronomical amount he wants despite the broadcaster's apology.

Plus, one person, sadly, just one, sadly for us that is waking up a few hundred million dollars richer. We'll tell you where that winning Mega Millions ticket was sold coming up. But we begin here. Breaking up. Turns out not so hard to do. President

Trump has declared he is officially pulling his endorsement of MAGA Fire brand Marjorie Taylor Greene. The Georgia congresswoman has been demanding the release of the Epstein files and has criticized the president for spending too much time abroad.

The president, well, has apparently heard enough. Posting on Truth Social overnight that all wacky Marjorie Taylor Greene does is complain, complain, complain.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I think that her constituents aren't going to be happy. Already I have people calling me. They want to challenge her to a race in her district in Georgia. And, you know, that's too bad. She's lost a wonderful conservative reputation. But when she says don't go overseas, if I didn't go overseas, we might be in a war right now with China.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Meanwhile, President Trump is also upset with Congressman Thomas Massie, who also wants the Epstein files released. A Trump aligned super PAC is spending $1 million on ads targeting the Kentucky Republican. Massie says his constituents understand his position.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. THOMAS MASSIE (R-KY): When they're protecting pedophiles when they are blowing our budget, when they are starting wars overseas. I'm sorry, I can't go along with that. And back home, people agree with me. They understand. Even the most ardent Trump supporters understand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: And President Trump has now ordered the Justice Department to investigate companies and Democrats who he claims had dealings with Jeffrey Epstein. And Attorney General Pam Bondi was quick to oblige, appointing the U.S. attorney in Manhattan to handle that probe, even though four months ago the DOJ determined nothing in the Epstein files warranted further investigation.

This week, the president's name turned up repeatedly and just released emails from the Epstein estate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What did Jeffrey Epstein mean in his emails when he said, you knew about the girls?

TRUMP: I know nothing about that. They would have announced that a long time ago.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: A lot of moving parts on this story. We get more now from CNN senior justice correspondent Evan Perez.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Danny. Attorney General Pam Bondi says that federal prosecutors in New York are being tasked to launch yet another investigation of people associated with child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

This new investigation comes after President Donald Trump said that he was asking Bondi to investigate Epstein's ties to prominent Democrats. He named specific names, including former President Bill Clinton. He's yet an extraordinary turn in a political mess that has consumed this White House for months.

And it comes just days after Democrats had released emails from the late Epstein estate that mentioned Trump many times. Trump announced the directive in social media accusing the Democrats of trying to revive attention to his past ties with Epstein and contending that they are, quote, using the Epstein hoax involving Democrats, not Republicans, to try to deflect from their own disastrous shutdown and all of their other failures.

Bondi responded to the president's social media post by thanking the president and saying that she'd have U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton in Manhattan lead this new investigation.

[06:05:03]

This is the same office that led the earlier investigations of Epstein and of Ghislaine Maxwell, who worked for Epstein and was convicted of charges that she aided in the trafficking of girls. We should note that the Justice Department this summer did an assessment of documents that's in their possession, and they determined that there were no additional defendants that could be charged with crimes associated with Epstein.

And this new investigation also means, though, that Congress will likely have to wait much longer for any documents to be released because there's an effort right now gaining steam in the House to force the release of those documents. But during an ongoing investigation, the Justice Department generally doesn't release investigative files out of concern that would harm any possible prosecutions. Danny.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FREEMAN: All right, Evan Perez, thank you very much for that reporting. For more on this, let's discuss the Epstein case and where it all may be headed with Stephen Neukam. He's a Congress reporter for Axios. Stephen, thanks so much for waking up early to talk about a lot of developing things that happened overnight. Let's start here.

This breakup between President Trump and Marjorie Taylor Greene, Trump calling Greene a lunatic. It's all about Epstein, of course. What do you make of this? STEPHEN NEUKAM, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, AXIOS: Yes, good morning.

Thanks for having me. It certainly is about Epstein, but I actually think that the break between the president and Congresswoman Greene at this point is about more than just the Epstein files. I mean, if you go back to the middle of the shutdown, she was criticizing the president and Republicans for not having a plan to end the shutdown, for not for House Republicans not being in Washington, not having a health care plan to sort of counter what Democrats were proposing.

So it's sort of all encompassing. But yes, the breakup, it seems like this weekend has reached a new fever pitch and Congresswoman Greene seems not to be in the good graces of President Trump anymore.

FREEMAN: No, and that's well said. It really does feel like it's been a slow burn, certainly over the course of the shutdown, as you noted.

What's interesting, Stephen, is we've seen this pressure campaign, though, ramp up this past weekend. Republicans who are supportive of releasing the Epstein files, we think of Lauren Boebert, of course, Marjorie Taylor Greene. And Greene said in her tweet last night, quote, and of course, he's coming after me hard to make another example to scare all the other Republicans before next week's vote to release the Epstein files. He's coming after me hard. That's what she's saying. Forgive me there.

I guess my question to you, Stephen, is do you think this will scare any Republicans who are thinking about voting to release the Epstein files? Do you think this will scare them off from that vote next week?

NEUKAM: It at least has not at this point. It did not scare them from taking their names off the signature list of the discharge petition, which they needed to sort of circumvent House Republican leadership and Speaker Mike Johnson to get this to the floor. So we'll have to see next week if there is any change in the posture.

But at least when the president was sort of making these calls and in some cases even bringing, you know, Congresswoman Boebert to the White House last week, it did not get them to take their names off of that discharge petition. And now that Congresswoman Grijalva, who was sworn in last week, signed onto that petition, those signatures are frozen. There's nothing that the president or House Republican leadership can do to get them to take their names off or stop a vote from happening.

So now you're sort of at the point where, yeah, you're trying to whip no votes from Republicans and we'll have to see if the President and the Speaker are able to get any more Republicans on their side.

FREEMAN: Last question for you, Stephen on the Epstein story in particular, it seems like President Trump now going on the offense with this story telling the DOJ to investigate Epstein's ties to other high profile figures and Democrats. Isn't that just going to keep this subject in the news?

NEUKAM: Certainly. And I think you've even heard, you know, some reporting this week that there's Republicans who have told the President that he's getting bad advice on the Epstein sort of saga. And yes, this is going to prolong it. And I do think that, you know, it being an active investigation and not being able to release records because it's an active investigation is probably a feature and not a bug of this strategy.

But yes, the pressure campaign is going to continue to go on and even if it gets through the House and the House passes it, that pressure campaign is just going to move to the Senate to put pressure on Senate Republicans and particularly Senate Majority Leader John Thune to put that bill on the floor in the Senate if it ends up passing the House.

FREEMAN: All right, well, before we go, I also want to make sure to ask you about health care and the shutdown. Meanwhile, the shutdown ending feeling like a million years ago now.

[06:10:03]

Senate Democrats said they got Senate Republicans to promise a vote on health care on these Affordable Care Act credits. Are we going to see Democrats continue to put pressure on Republicans, though, to keep this promise?

NEUKAM: Well, certainly. And I think the first thing that they need to do is negotiate amongst each other about what that product looks like next month that they get a vote on the Senate floor. We reported last night that those conversations will include Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senator Ron Wyden, who is the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, including some of the Democrats, the moderate Democrats that were involved in negotiations to reopen the government with Republican leaders earlier this month.

So, you know, they need to put together a package that they can get support not just from their entire caucus, but you know, they need the 13, 14 Republican votes that it's going to take to pass this through the Senate in December.

So they need to also start outreach to the Republican colleagues to see if this is something against all odds that they can get past the Senate.

FREEMAN: Yes. And certainly the Democratic base will be hoping for that vote to ultimately even come up again later next month. Stephen Neukam of Axios, thank you so much for joining us this morning. Breaking down a lot of moving parts. Appreciate you.

NEUKAM: Thanks.

FREEMAN: Switching gears now, beloved former football coach John Beam, who was featured in Netflix's "Last Chance You" has died. He was shot on Thursday on an Oakland college campus. Beam was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. He died from his injuries Friday morning.

Police arrested 27-year-old Cedric Irving. Police said the suspect was acquainted with Beam but did not have a close relationship with him.

And we have good news for college football fans today. Disney and YouTube TV has struck a new multiyear deal late Friday. That means Disney programming, including ESPN and ABC, will return to the streaming platform.

Disney leaders say the agreement shows their commitment to delivering exceptional entertainment as audiences shift how they watch. YouTube TV says it's relieved to restore full value to subscribers and apologize for the two week disruption.

And a Georgia lottery player is waking up a millionaire this morning after winning the staggering 980 million mega millions jackpot Friday night. The Georgia Lottery says it's the biggest win the state has ever seen.

The winning ticket was sold at a Publix in Newnan, southwest of Atlanta. The winner can take the full 980 million in annual payments or a 452 million lump sum option before taxes. Congrats to that winner.

Happening now. A strong Pacific storm is bringing heavy rain to Southern California and raising the risk of life threatening flooding and mudslides. Evacuation orders are in effect for vulnerable areas near burn scars in the Palisades.

The multi day storm has already dropped several inches of rain up and down the California coast. But the mayor of Los Angeles says her city is ready.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR KAREN BASS, LOS ANGELES: I encourage all Angelenos to stay safe and prepare for this weekend. Slow down if you're driving and plan ahead for the potential for longer travel times. And please, if you don't have to leave your home, please don't.

I do want Angelenos to know that the city is prepared and we are ready. Our emergency operations center has been activated and city crews are on standby to respond to any fallen trees or impacts to roadways.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Meteorologist Chris Warren is tracking the storm this morning. Chris, you know, I've been looking at some of my friends out in Southern California and they're a lot wetter than they normally are. What's going on?

CHRIS WARREN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, we're getting a big slug of moisture moving in from the south, Danny, So getting that tropical moisture. The action across the country here in California and in the Northeast, but it's here with that flood threat could eventually and potentially be dangerous.

And you see that tap of moisture coming up from the south, a little bit extra juice and there is a moderate risk for excessive rainfall. So too much rain essentially. Another way to look at this with the red one, two, three out of four here in the wrist. So we're getting up there.

Here is a lot of rain that's moving in right now. And it's this right here that's going to be the wild, a couple wild cards actually. So the thunderstorms can make moderate rain turn heavy in a hurry. That can certainly cause some problems.

And we're starting to see the rain moving in more so now. Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. But on top of heavy rain and possible thunderstorms, there are these burn scar areas. You don't have the vegetation there. And burn scar areas are more likely to see debris flow. So flash flooding even more so here in some of these burn scar areas.

Now it might not look like a lot of rain if you live in Louisiana or Florida, but Southern California, Los Angeles this time of year in a month gets two to three inches.

[06:15:05]

So in a day we could be in that two to maybe even four inches of rain, especially with some of these thunderstorms continuing throughout the afternoon. Not really seeing a significant let up here, Danny, until late this afternoon and evening hours. And on top of all that, there's a slight, not a likely, but a slight chance there could even be a weak tornado today in Southern California.

FREEMAN: Oh, man. Hoping people stay safe out there because, yes, that rain again with those burn scars, it's not something to joke about. Chris Warren, thanks so much for that report. Appreciate you.

All right, coming up next, President Trump's Georgia election case is not over yet. Despite a stalled trial, the racketeering fight is far from over. We'll tell you what's next in this high stakes legal battle.

Plus, President Trump says he'll honor Saudi Arabia's crown prince at the White House next week. We'll explain what's behind that meeting and what's at stake in a live report.

Plus, sources say some Border Patrol agents, including the controversial top official, are leaving Chicago, headed to their next targeted city, Charlotte, North Carolina. We'll hear reaction from city and state leaders coming up after a quick break.

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[06:20:46]

FREEMAN: New this morning, the Georgia election interference case against President Trump will continue, at least for now. The head of the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia has appointed himself the lead prosecutor in the state case. He says it's because no other prosecutor wanted to take the case.

Now, the investigation, you might remember, was over Trump allegedly pressuring Georgia's secretary of state, a Republican, to, quote, find the votes to help him win Georgia in the 2020 presidential election.

Now, the former U.S. attorney for Georgia's Middle District spoke to CNN's John Berman about the prospects of this case moving forward given the Supreme Court's decision about presidential immunity.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL J. MOORE, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY, MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA: If there's any life being breathed into this thing, it's because it's on CPR. And I'll just tell you, this case is probably circling the drain.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Now, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis charged Trump and 18 other co-defendants with racketeering back in 2023. She was disqualified from serving, though, as prosecutor over her romantic relationship with the special prosecutor. President Trump has maintained his innocence.

And one of the world's biggest broadcast companies is bracing for a legal fight with President Trump. The BBC apologized to the president for how they edited the speech he gave on January 6th ahead of the Capitol riot for an October 2024 documentary. But the president says the apology is too little, too late, and he's now planning legal action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I think I have an obligation to do it. Look, I'm not looking to get into lawsuits, but I think I have an obligation to do it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: CNN's Anna Cooban is in London following this. And how big of a problem is this really for the BBC?

ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER: This is an enormous problem for the BBC. It's the worst crisis. It's faced in recent years. And we've seen in the past 24 hours that Trump has really upped his threats. He originally said he'd sue for up to $1 billion worth of damages. That's now been put between a billion and five billion worth of damages.

He also said he plans to call the British Prime Minister Keir Starmer this weekend to discuss the matter. Someone with whom he has a relatively friendly relationship. But taking a step back, this is something the BBC really cannot afford to engage in this kind of costly litigation and that's because it is unlike many other news organizations in that it is predominantly funded by the British public and therefore relies on its reputation on the buy in from that same public in order to operate its license fee model.

I do want to hand over to Donald Trump yesterday on Air Force One this is what he had to say about the matter.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) TRUMP: We'll sue them for anywhere between A billion and $5 billion probably sometime next week. I don't know what percentage is owned by the country but regardless if it's small or large or nothing, I can say this, the U.K. is very, very embarrassed by BBC what they did.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOBAN: So it really is up for debate. It's probably unlikely that the British public will be able to stomach this kind of costly litigation. And also whether or not Trump's claims would stand up in a court of law. It was broadcast in the U.K. and so there are many other challenges as to whether or not this would be successful.

FREEMAN: All right, Anna Cooban, thank you so much for breaking that down for us live in London. Appreciate you to this.

Now President Trump says he'll be meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House on Tuesday. Trump says the two will discuss the Abraham Accords. Now the U. S brokered Middle East agreement was signed back in 2020. It normalized diplomatic relations between Israel and Sunni led Arab countries. Here's what the President said he hopes to achieve in those upcoming talks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I hope that Saudi Arabia will be going into the Abraham Accords fairly shortly. We've had tremendous interest in the Abraham Accords since we put Iran out of business.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Let's go now to CNN's international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson. Nic, talk to us about the significance of this meeting coming up.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, I think the fairly shortly that President Trump refers to there are the key couple of words. Yes, he would like Saudi Arabia, NBS Crown Prince, the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to sign up to it. But that's been a long held ambition by President Trump and also long held ambition by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu here in Israel.

[06:25:07]

I don't think it's going to happen. There are a couple of reasons for that. One is that during the course of the Gaza war over the last couple of years, the crown prince MBS has become ever clearer in his public statements that there has to be for this normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel, there has to be a Palestinian state, an irreversible pathway to a Palestinian state. And you really get the impression listening to Saudi diplomats that they're getting frustrated that's not being heard.

Just a couple of weeks ago, a minister from the Saudi Foreign Ministry was speaking at a massive conference here in the Middle East in Manama saying look, and I'll quote you here, a Palestinian state is a prerequisite for national effort for regional integration. And then she went on to say that nobody really appears to be listening to us. So I'll say it again.

So there's a frustration in Saudi Arabia, even that the percept that perhaps the White House, perhaps here in Israel is not really understood the depth of frustration and anger there is in Saudi Arabia about what's happened in Gaza and the need to sort of get beyond that. And of course, this week there's expected to be a U.N. Security Council resolution dealing with President Trump's ceasefire plan. Those 20 other points, international stabilization force, police force, demilitarization of Gaza, weapons taken away from Hamas, all of that.

There's a lot of international concern and anxiety around the text there about what will come out of it, about how strong will be. All of that will be the backdrop to this meeting as well. And I think the Saudis for their part will be looking to get some key understandings from President Trump.

But look, MBS really comes into this wanting to get a lasting security treaty with the United States, something similar to what Qatar got a few weeks ago. They may not get that. They want F-35, they want nuclear civilian projects. A lot of that seems to have been well discussed and is going down the track in that direction. But the Abraham Accords, you know, that'll get conversation for sure. But will it move ahead? I don't believe so. Not this week.

FREEMAN: Oh man. Well, we'll certainly be keeping an eye on it. And Nic Robertson, as always, thank you so much for breaking down the stakes coming up on Tuesday. Appreciate you.

All right. Coming up next on CNN This Morning, protesters and police clash once again outside the ICE facility in Suburban Chicago. We have the latest on the arrests and the officers who were hurt. Stay with us.

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[06:30:00]

FREEMAN: A top border patrol official and some of his agents have left Chicago. They're now heading to Charlotte, North Carolina, though according to a source familiar with the planning. Local officials in Charlotte say they initially were not aware of the move.

The sheriff's office says they were later contacted by federal officials. Border patrol is expected to arrive as early as today or by early next week. While the news has left many in the Charlotte area on edge, North Carolina's Governor Josh Stein urged residents to remain peaceful.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. JOSH STEIN (D-NC): But we're going to do everything we can to keep people safe. We urge people, if you're going to be out there, be peaceful, follow the law. If you see something bad happening, record it with your phone, let local law enforcement know. Local law enforcement will be here protecting the people of this state long after these federal agents go on to the next place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Meanwhile, a largely peaceful protest outside a border patrol facility west of Chicago turned chaotic on Friday. Law enforcement arrested more than 20 protesters, and four officers were injured. It's the latest incident at what has become the epicenter of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown. Sherrell Hubbard has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHERRELL HUBBARD, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): What started as a peaceful protest in a suburb west of Chicago Friday, turned chaotic after protesters reportedly pushed past barriers. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, Illinois, has been at the heart of Operation Midway Blitz, and the site of repeated clashes between protesters and federal agents.

TOM HOMAN, U.S. BORDER CZAR: They got right to protest, have at it. But don't cross the line. I was watching the video before I came out here. When they put hands on law enforcement officers, they're getting arrested, going to jail.

HUBBARD: Immigration enforcement is a part of the Trump administration delivering on campaign promises, but the protests come amid a number of legal cases revolving around the facility. An attorney in Illinois filed a lawsuit last month in U.S. district court over the curfew that was imposed on protesters.

ROBERT HELD, ATTORNEY: What several federal judges have determined is that the predicate for Operation Midway Blitz is false.

HUBBARD: And amid legal claims by advocates that the center has, quote, "inhumane conditions", a U.S. magistrate judge and a small group of attorneys visited the detention center Thursday to investigate. The Department of Homeland Security has denied any claims that there are subprime conditions at the facility.

And in yet another legal battle, a top border patrol official, Gregory Bovino(ph), was rebuked by a U.S. district court judge over heavy- handed tactics and issued a preliminary injunction blocking the use of force against protesters and journalists. I'm Sherrell Hubbard, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FREEMAN: Meanwhile, CNN is learning exclusive new details about the Trump administration's latest immigration enforcement initiative. It's an intense effort to crack down on parents and guardians who paid for children to come across the border.

[06:35:00] Now, for months, senior Trump officials have focused on minors who

cross the U.S.' southern border alone, under former President Joe Biden. Well, now there are new signs that signal the Trump administration is doubling down on the targeting of those children and their caretakers. CNN's Priscilla Alvarez has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN REPORTER (on camera): The Trump administration has been hyper-focused on migrant children who cross the U.S. southern border alone, especially during the Biden administration. And over the course of the last several months, the Trump administration has launched multiple efforts and operations to -- they say, locate these unaccompanied children and in cases -- in some cases, arrests the people caring for them who are typically parents or guardians.

And what federal data has shown us is that those operations have yielded nearly 3,000 arrests. Now, a Homeland Security spokesperson said in a statement that the arrests are primarily a result of human smuggling investigations. But what this reveals is an intense crackdown on unaccompanied children and their so-called sponsors.

Again, who is typically a parent or family member, and who is typically undocumented. It also hits at the reality, which is that unaccompanied children are often having to pay to cross the U.S. southern border as any adult would who is doing so. And these unaccompanied minors, as they're known, are fleeing, deteriorating or dangerous conditions in their origin country.

So, this creates a population of people who are undocumented in the United States, and that the Trump administration knows where they are located, and for that reason, sources say that the White House has used some of these efforts as a way to ramp-up deportation because they know the whereabouts of these migrants who are undocumented.

Other Trump administration officials say that this is also a humanitarian mission, one that is searching for kids who may be at risk, which has happened. The Department of Homeland Security provided CNN a list where, for example, they had found a woman from Venezuela who sponsored three children and was in possession of fentanyl, as well as concerns in other cases of labor trafficking.

Now, a Homeland -- or rather a Health and Human Services official told us the following: "unless we put our foot down and say that we're not going to accept this as a nation, that we don't want kids smuggled across the border, it's going to continue unless there's a punishment for it." Now, advocates who work with these children say that the safety of these children is paramount.

But the concern in this environment is that unaccompanied kids who have since been reunited with their parents may be ripped apart from their parents as part of these operations, and that other children who remain in custody are feeling the immense pressure of this, and worrying about the sponsors coming forward to retrieve them from government custody. The Trump administration, for its part, is continuing to build on its

effort, expecting to put up a call center for leads as well as this week, starting an operation in Florida, where they are partnering with local authorities to conduct welfare checks of these children. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FREEMAN: Priscilla Alvarez, thank you so much for that reporting. All right, to this now. Could portable mortgages unlock the housing market? Well, the Trump administration is floating that idea along with 50-year mortgages. But would it do more harm than good? We'll dig into both of these possibilities after a short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:40:00]

FREEMAN: We're learning new details this morning about how the Trump administration hopes to make home buying more affordable. Officials say they're currently looking into three possible options. First, a new 50-year mortgage, second, portable mortgages, and third, assumable mortgages.

Now, part of the hope here is that if homeowners who are locked into lower interest rates could perhaps move without losing those rates, more homes would ultimately go up for sale, thus giving more buyers a better opportunity. All right, joining me now to talk about all of this is Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com.

Good morning Joel. This has been the story that I've been wanting to talk about all week. Let's start with perhaps the most controversial one here, the 50-year mortgage idea. Now, this would essentially lower the monthly cost for the homeowner, but cost them more in the long run, an interest. Tell us what are the pros and cons here?

JOEL BERNER, SENIOR ECONOMIST, REALTOR.COM: That's exactly right. So, if you're right on the margin of being able to afford a monthly payment on a home purchase, a 50-year mortgage might look like a great idea. You know, on a $400,000 home purchase, this equates to about $200 to $250 savings over a 30-year mortgage each month.

And that's real money, and that makes a real difference. But if you step back and look at what you're actually paying over time, over the life of the loan, you end up spending 86 percent more on interest. It's over $400,000 more over the life of a loan on a $400,000 home. So, really kind of stepping back and looking at it, it feels a little less appealing, and that $200 seems pretty small compared to what the actual cost is in the end.

FREEMAN: Well, specifically, Joel, you were quoted as saying that this is, quote, "not the best way to solve housing affordability". As a senior economist, what do you see as a better alternative when it comes to this sphere of mortgage ideas?

BERNER: Yes, I think what's really holding people back in the housing market right now are high mortgage rates and high home prices. And high mortgage rates can be addressed by keeping inflation under check, leaving some room for mortgage rates to fall, and for financing to become more affordable.

[06:45:00]

So, I think if the administration focused instead on managing inflation and bringing interest rates down in a more natural way rather than through some creative long-term financing, it would help the housing market as a whole. And the other thing that's important is to encourage home building. In a lot of markets still, we're really undersupplied.

We estimate that there's about a 4 million home gap in the United States between the number of homes we need and the number of homes that there are. And in some parts of the country, the housing markets are really tight, and there's not much new construction activity happening. So, for the administration to really make a difference, they could walk back some of their tariffs on things like lumber, gypsum, and things like cabinetry and finishing for homes. They're making homes more expensive instead of more affordable.

FREEMAN: I want to get your opinion, though, on this other idea, though. The idea of a so-called portable mortgage. This basically would allow a borrower to transfer their existing mortgage and rate, crucially, to a new property when they move. How would that work exactly? And do you think that could shake this housing market a little bit?

BERNER: It could shake things up a little bit because of what we've called the lock-in effect over the last couple of years. So, when mortgage rates were really low a few years ago, people got in at a 3 percent mortgage rate, say, and now we're looking at 6, 6.5 percent mortgages and saying, why would I move?

I'm just going to end up spending more on financing, and not even getting more house for the same amount of money. So, that effect is real, but it's slowly been chipped away at over the last few years. It's not as strong as it once was, so, the problem that the portable mortgage is meant to solve is maybe not the biggest problem in terms of housing supply.

But essentially, what would happen is, you would take your low mortgage from a few -- low-rate mortgages from a few years ago, and apply the balance remaining on that to your new home purchase. So, you wouldn't get the existing rate that you have, let's call it 3 percent for the entire value of your new home purchase.

If your new home purchase was worth more than the balance on your original loan, whatever the difference is, you would take at a market mortgage rate, so, you'd end it up with a blended rate. But it still might be enough to get some people off the sidelines, get some people to move and open up a little bit of inventory.

But it'd be very difficult to handle just from a logistical standpoint with the way that mortgages work in this country, the way that they're used as collateral, homes are used as collateral --

FREEMAN: Sure --

BERNER: And the way that mortgages are packaged together and securitized, it would break a lot of pieces of that system.

FREEMAN: Well, listen, I just like that we're talking about this subject because, again, housing and affordability is so important for so many Americans. Joel Berner, thank you so much for getting up early and breaking it all down for us. Appreciate you.

BERNER: Thanks for having me.

FREEMAN: All right, coming up in a moment, Hollywood meeting the pope. Pope Leo, as we speak, is meeting with a number of celebrities this morning like Cate Blanchett and Spike Lee, look at that right there. We're live with details on this rare moment in just a moment.

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[06:50:00]

FREEMAN: Pope Leo met with A-list celebrities at the Vatican today. Now, the Vatican is trying to promote what they called human values in the world of film. He greeted actress Cate Blanchett and Director Spike Lee since both are sports fans. Lee presented the pope with a special jersey. I didn't -- I didn't recognize Spike Lee with a suit on there.

All right, for more, let's turn to CNN Vatican correspondent Christopher Lamb. Christopher, a really cool event today at the Vatican. No?

CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it was. And, you know, a star-studded lineup for Pope Leo to meet. We saw Spike Lee, Cate Blanchett, we even saw one of the actors from the movie "Conclave", who played one of the cardinals in that movie. So, life imitating art to a certain extent.

Now, I think this meeting was all about a desire for the pope to enter into a dialogue with the leading film stars, people from the world of Cinema. He addressed them and he said that, you know, cinemas needed to be supported and defended. He praised them for their work, saying that, you know, a great film can tell us something about the mystery of God.

So, he really gave a lot of praise to the world of cinema for its work. And of course, as the first American pope, he is someone who understands deeply how Hollywood shapes the culture. And before this meeting, he revealed his favorite films, which include, "The Sound of Music", and "It's a Wonderful Life" by Frank Capra, "Ordinary People" by Robert Redford, and "Life is Beautiful" by Roberto Benigni.

So, Leo, sharing his love of film before this meeting and during the encounter, meeting each of the actors and directors in the Vatican for this -- for this -- for this moment, for this encounter which was really quite a special one for the pope. I'm sure the actors were star-struck to meet the pope, but the pope also a little bit star- struck, too. Danny.

FREEMAN: Yes, I believe that. I'm reminded also of when the comedians came to meet with Pope Francis before he passed away. I like this integration of both. Christopher Lamb, thank you so much for joining us and breaking that down this morning. All right, she led her country through some of its greatest crises, and now she's looking ahead to her next chapter.

Take an intimate look into the extraordinary political career and life of New Zealand's former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in the new CNN film, "PRIME MINISTER".

[06:55:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACINDA ARDERN, FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF NEW ZEALAND: You'll be our future decision makers and leaders, and it must be quite daunting looking out at the challenges that are in front of us. There's so much change that we want the world to be simple again. And part of that over-simplification is that we're much more inclined to look at one another in binary ways.

Good, evil, bad, right. It's meant that we've got a hyper partisanship now that I think can be really damaging. It means we don't work together as much. It means we don't listen and engage in respectful debate that we need. And if we are to get back to doing all of those things because we won't solve the climate crisis unless we do, we won't solve the conflict in the Middle East unless we do, we have to re-humanize one another again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: All right, be sure to tune in, I know I will -- "PRIME MINISTER" premieres tomorrow at 9:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific on CNN, and next day on the CNN app. Thank you so much for watching, "TABLE FOR FIVE" is coming up next, I'll see you right back here at 8:00 a.m. for another hour of CNN THIS MORNING.

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