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Erin Burnett Outfront
Trump Lashes Out Over "Taco" Nickname ("Trump Always Chickens Out"); Court Blocks Trump From Imposing "Liberation Day" Tariffs; Rubio Speaks With Russian FM As Trump's Anger With Putin Grows. Aired 7-8p ET
Aired May 28, 2025 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[19:00:26]
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT next:
The crypto king. Trump, his administration and his family, all in on crypto, making billions while making sure that no rules apply. This as the president gets a new nickname TACO.
Plus, first, he took on Target. Tonight, announcing a nationwide boycott targeting an even bigger chain. The megachurch pastor who's confronting companies that roll back DEI is OUTFRONT.
And, quote, living in a war. Politicians wearing bulletproof vests, riding in armored vehicles with escape doors just to campaign for public office. We'll take you there.
Let's go OUTFRONT.
And good evening. I'm Erin Burnett.
OUTFRONT tonight, TACO. So, what does TACO stand for? It stands for "Trump always chickens out". It is an acronym that today got a lot of talk on Wall Street to describe Trump's tariff behavior.
And so, as that was all making the rounds, people are talking about it. Trump's with reporters in the White House and a reporter asks Trump to his face what he thinks about TACO and tariffs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: Wall Street analysts have coined a new term called the TACO trade. They're saying Trump always chickens out on tariff threats. And that's why markets are higher this week. What's your response to that?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I kick out?
REPORTER: Chicken out.
TRUMP: Oh, isn't that nice. Chicken out, I've never heard that.
We had a dead country. We had a country people didn't think it was going to survive. And you ask a nasty question like that. It's called negotiation. (END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Or the question was nasty or not. The term does come from a place of truth, which is that markets right now see Trump as a president who cries wolf on tariffs.
The facts are that Trump has backtracked on the trade war. His own trade war right, that he started at least 21 times so far. That's according to Forbes.
And it's really hard to figure all this out because there are so many ups and downs all over the place. But let's just take China as an example, because on the issue of China front and center, Trump slaps 145 percent tariffs on China and was adamant that he would not back down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: Are you open to pulling back tariffs in order to get China to the negotiating table?
TRUMP: No.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: All right. That was a definitive answer. It was very clear. Referring to the 145 percent tariffs on China. He did not though keep that promise. Of course, we all know Trump's 145 percent tariff was slashed to 30 percent without any negotiations with China at all.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We're not looking to hurt China. China is being hurt very badly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: He didn't get anything in return from China as of yet. But what he did get each and every time he backed down or flip flopped on tariffs, whether it was Europe or Vietnam or you name it, was a boost in markets, which is why Wall Street talks about it and may explain their nickname, TACO.
And I'm sorry we couldn't resist this. You got to have some humor. It is not the sort of TACO that he likes, which, of course, is a TACO bowl. Seen here from a post on Cinco de Mayo. So, we know he's a taco eater, but doesn't like to be called one.
While Trump was at the White House, his family and his vice president were in Las Vegas, and they made sure that the world knows that they are not pulling a taco when it comes to crypto.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm here today to say loud and clear with President Trump, crypto finally has a champion and an ally in the White House. And I still own a fair amount of bitcoin today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: So according to Vance's financial disclosure, a fair amount is up to half $1 million. Thats how much his disclosures he has in bitcoin. So, you've got the vice president of United States who owns it at this conference. And after Vance spoke, it was Don Jr. and Eric Trump's turn. And they could not stop raving about the digital currency that they also invest heavily in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERIC TRUMP, SON OF DONALD TRUMP: You have crypto which solves all the problems. I'm telling you right now, everybody in the world wants bitcoin. Everybody wants bitcoin. Everybody is buying bitcoin. The people that get in on the ground floors, I think are going to make an absolute fortune.
DONALD TRUMP, JR., SON OF DONALD TRUMP: Once we commit to something though, we go all in.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Your brothers there together. And the Trump family on this is all in to use the term that Don Jr. used. According to Bloomberg, the Trump family made roughly $1 billion in paper gains from crypto. So that's paper gains, right? They haven't sold it yet, but $1 billion. That is stunning when you consider that this is what Trump said about crypto in 2021.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Bitcoin, I -- it just seems like a scam. I don't like it because it's another currency competing against the dollar.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Fast forward to today, never mind the billion dollars, it's a very different sentiment from the president.
[19:05:07]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: That bitcoin is going to the moon, as we say. It's going to the moon. I want America to be the nation that leads the way, and that's what's going to happen.
I bought a hamburger with bitcoin. They said it was the first purchase ever made, I guess of a hamburger or something. And now, look, I'm a believer in staying at the top. This is a hot thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: That's been a hot thing. Trump seizing the moment. You know, he also has the Trump meme coin. Now a meme coin is a digital coin that does absolutely nothing. It's not like bitcoin. Another form. You can buy things with it. You buy it because you think other people will buy it, and maybe it will go up.
Now, to some that might sound a little bit like a Ponzi scheme, but that is how those things work. And Trump has spent time hawking his coin. Back in January, he posted my new official Trump meme is here. It's time to celebrate everything we stand for winning. Join my very special Trump community. Get your Trump money now.
Now, according to Bloomberg's Zeke Faux, Trump's sitting on about $10 billion worth of these coins, $10 billion. I mean, just to think about this, he's trying to pump up the price because again, they're only worth something if somebody else wants them. So last week remember that private dinner that he held for people who own the most Trump coins and people spent millions of dollars to gain access to Trump top ten holders got to go to the dinner. And then there's Melania Trump. Two days after Trump unveiled his coin, she came out with her own coin.
And it's not just these meme coins that only have value of someone else wants to buy them. This past March, the Trump family launched another coin, and just a few weeks ago, we saw eric Trump and Steve Witkoff's son, the real estate developer, negotiating the peace settlement in Russia, the son announced a $2 billion crypto deal in Abu Dhabi.
All of this could mean billions more for the Trump's. So, you can see why this full court press to prop up crypto is a family affair. And it's not just the public campaigning that's taking place. Trump is also making moves inside the White House to safeguard his billions. And this is where policy gets involved.
So last month, Trump's Justice Department disbanded the unit that was dedicated to investigating crypto-related -- cryptocurrency related fraud. So, get rid of the unit that's going to investigate it. And just today, back to that conference where J.D. Vance was talking about his own personal bitcoin holdings, he said this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Let me say it again, on day one, I will fire Gary Gensler. Whoa!
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Okay. Obviously, that was the wrong sound bite. What J.D. Vance said today, and I quote him, was, we're eliminating the rules, red tape and the lawfare that we saw aimed at crypto by our predecessors. Maybe the most important thing we did for this community. And he went on to say, we rejected regulators and we fired Gary Gensler.
That's who you just heard Trump talking about. Gary Gensler was the SEC chair who wanted to regulate crypto. As Vance said, we reject regulators, and we fired Gary Gensler. And that is exactly what has happened as the Trump family is profiting so many billions, it seems, from cryptocurrencies like bitcoin.
Kristen Holmes is OUTFRONT to begin our coverage outside the White House tonight.
So, Kristen, we see what's happening here how all in is Trump, his family and the White House on crypto.
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Erin, I don't think you can get any more all-in. I mean, Donald Trump has said he wants to make America the crypto capital of the planet. One of the things J.D. Vance said today when he was speaking was that the -- that crypto is here to stay. They want to make this a mainstream part of the economy. So, when I talk to a number of administration officials and allies of Trump's, they say that this is a no brainer.
One, it's a way to make a lot of money. And two, this deep pocketed industry has really started to grow in power. In fact, there are a sect of MAGA world who believes that Donald Trump was helped into the presidency by these, quote/unquote, crypto voters, something we heard Eric Trump say today that he didn't think the wind would have been as decisive as it was without him.
But one thing should be made very clear the money is only made, and the power is only grown through this loosening of regulations, which is not obviously done by the crypto industry, but instead by the administration. You name some of the things that Donald Trump's team has done. First of all, they have a crypto czar, which is David Sachs, a huge donor to Trump, very close to the family. He's been dealing with a lot of these crypto leaders.
But on top of that, the Securities and Exchange Commission under Trump, as you noted, has dropped lawsuits, investigations that the Biden administration opened. They established a strategic bitcoin reserve. And in addition to all, the investments that you talked about, both Eric and Don together announced that they were partnering with an existing crypto firm to start a crypto mining company.
So, every aspect of crypto now is being controlled, or at least having input by Trump administration and Trump family.
[19:10:01]
But one thing I want to make very clear, when you talk to the White House about this, they say separation of church and state. We -- you and I have talked about this before. They will not go there when it comes to anything that they say is not related to the policy or the White House, meaning that if you ask for a comment or if you want to talk about Don Jr. or Eric's business endeavors, they say take it somewhere else.
That has nothing to do with the White House. But obviously, these things are all intertwined.
BURNETT: Yeah, obviously, it has very much to do with it. As you just point out, just laying out the basic facts there. So clearly, thank you so much, Kristen Holmes.
And now, Katie Drummond is with us, global editorial director at "Wired". Dan Alexander, senior editor at "Forbes". And Dan Ives, veteran tech stocks analyst and of course, one of the most recognizable traders on Wall Street, Peter Tuchman.
So, Dan Alexander, let me start with you, because it's not just Trump's sons at this conference, as I said, it was J.D. Vance, right, front and center, which, you know, that that's the White House, right? It's the vice president of the United States who's there.
When we say crypto is a big part of Trump's fortune right now, you've done a lot of reporting on that. What does that actually mean?
DAN ALEXANDER, SENIOR EDITOR, FORBES: Well, if you look right now, you know, we have a worth about $5 billion and about half $1 billion are from his newest crypto ventures. So, the meme coin and World Liberty Financial. Then, recently, they've announced that the Trump media and technology group is essentially going to pivot toward crypto. That's worth $2.5 billion.
So, the majority of his fortune is now angled toward the crypto industry and obviously keeping up the buzz, keeping up the excitement is critical for Trump's fortune.
BURNETT: I mean, it's really stunning. And by the way, when you think about it as someone who comes from a business of bricks and mortar and actual buildings, to be in, in the space of, of crypto, right? To talk about polar opposite.
Katie, more than half his fortune now coming from crypto. And you know, when you look at what you're seeing today and the bitcoin announcements and Don Jr. and Eric on that stage, how much do they all stand to gain?
KATIE DRUMMOND, GLOBAL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR, WIRED: I mean, this is sort of a monumental undertaking on the part of not only the Trump family, of course, but J.D. Vance himself. Right. So we're talking about billions of dollars in various financial entanglements on the part of the Trump family, but additionally, right, J.D. Vance, not only personally holding bitcoin, but of course, as we have seen, you know, they're holding these fundraising dinners, right.
That money with crypto investors is funneling essentially into a PAC that is designed to fundraise for future elections. So, this is not only financially expedient for the Trump family and Vance on a personal level, but on a political one as well.
BURNETT: All right. So, Dan Ives, you get the board. All right on this. Okay. The whiteboard. So, you know, when Vance says reject regulators okay. And we're talking about how the family is personally benefiting from that. But you had another way of looking at it, which is the market cap of bitcoin, which is basically just the value of all the bitcoin outstanding would be a basic way of saying it.
All right. You have that value at $2.13 trillion, right. That is a lot of money. And I think a lot of us could just be honest with we still -- we still don't understand exactly what that is because I'm putting it in dollars, but it's this -- you know, invisible thing.
Okay. So then let's just compare this bitcoin to Trump's favorite place these days, Canada. All right. The Canada GDP okay is what, 2.14 trillion. So that's basically identical.
So, you are talking about fire the regulators. We don't want regulation. Let's get rid of it on something where its value is equivalent to the entire GDP of Canada.
DAN IVES, GLOBAL HEAD OF TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH, WEDBUSH SECURITIES: Yeah. And look and I think the reality is that it is a bright green light in terms of the view on the markets going after bitcoin and crypto, because regulatory has been much more deescalated. Trump clearly is all in.
And you see this, you know, Katie talked about last week in terms of the dinner. You have the conference here. And investors are betting with Trump not against him. And I think it continues to be the guardrails are not there, as we've talked about even from a regulatory.
BURNETT: Well, when you set the rules and then you can play however you want to play.
PETER TUCHMAN, TRADER AT THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE: A hundred percent and look, and that's been his position for a long time. He tends to be -- no disrespect. He tends to be an opportunist when it comes to these things. And deregulating it -- look, you know, it is obviously something that's here to stay.
We've watched how it's grown, and it's had its bumps in the road and pebble in the shoe and, and its attempt to become something that's very mainstream.
And obviously one of the big things that he talked about in his campaign was, you know, having this strategic reserve, which was a big deal. And I think a lot of Wall Street was behind that, right? That made a big move. I think that took bitcoin up, you know, multiple percent at the time.
BURNETT: Well, reserve the government would be buying and would be building up a reserve and therefore --
TUCHMAN: And everyone needs to understand, there's a limited number of bitcoin. That number of 2.1 trillion is 22 billion.
[19:15:00]
How many bitcoin --
(CROSSTALK)
IVES: Yeah. But it also -- it speaks to also we've talked about it's like -- it's a bet to some extent against on the opposite of the U.S. dollar. And it's a separated -- in terms of how it's always really been uncorrelated.
BURNETT: And there is a macro question on whether, you know, the dollar eventually is replaced and if no other currency is ready. Is something like this
the way it goes? Is it -- is it important for the U.S. to control it? An important conversation, but that is separate from a family personally profiting and getting more of a half of its net worth. Now, his net worth from this, Dan.
So let me play something Eric Trump said at the conference today. Here it is, Dan Alexander.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
E. TRUMP: The whole system, guys, is broken. And now all of a sudden, you have crypto which solves all the problems. It makes everything cheaper. It makes it faster, it makes it safer, it makes it more transparent.
The people that get in on the ground floors, I think, are going to make an absolute, you know, fortune.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: So, Dan, when you hear Eric Trump say it solves all the problems, it makes everything cheaper, it makes it faster, it makes it safer, it makes it more transparent. Generally, when you say something solves all problems, that is a red flag. Just to state the obvious, I'm not trying to be too cute about it, but does this add up when you hear it from Eric Trump?
ALEXANDER: Well, no, it doesn't add up. But what it shows you is that Eric Trump has inherited the family gene for salesmanship. Okay. This is, you know, an industry where a lot of these assets don't have a lot behind them. And so, really, what props them up is salesmanship.
Now, Donald Trump has been successful in various ventures throughout his life, but he's never been a great operator. He's not a good finance mind. What he does is he sells.
And so, in a way, crypto is the perfect industry for the Trump family to lean on its greatest strength salesmanship. And that's what you saw from Eric Trump on the stage today.
BURNETT: And, Katie, now, you're seeing this deal from Trump's media company that it could close as soon as tomorrow. We were just mentioning could allow the company to buy $2.5 billion worth of bitcoin, which Dan was talking about, what that would do to their net worth. What is -- what is -- what more can you tell us about that?
DRUMMOND: Yeah, this is fascinating. So, this move essentially positions Trump media, right. Which is the parent company of Truth Social. As what is known as a bitcoin accumulation stock. It positions the company alongside other stocks like it, whose share value rises or falls alongside the value of bitcoin.
Important to remember who is the largest shareholder in Trump Media, Donald Trump.
BURNETT: I mean, which, you know, I guess it boils down to just that, right? And that's where that value comes from. You know, when I made the kind of joking comment and I said he has not gone TACO on crypto, right? Crypto, they've said what they have said and so far they have stuck with it.
But Trump always chickens out that acronym. That kind of got a lot of buzz today that he got asked about. That was about tariffs. Put it another way, it's the boy who cried wolf syndrome which we have seen happening here. And the market has now called it out.
Let me just again play more of what Trump said today when he was asked about this TACO.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Six months ago, this country was stone-cold dead. We had a dead country. We had a country people didn't think it was going to survive. And you ask a nasty question like that. It's called negotiation. Don't ever say what you said. Thats a nasty question.
Go ahead. To me, that's the nastiest question.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Dan, it is though, also the reality.
IVES: The reality. I mean, look, it's self-created. And as we saw in terms of what we've seen with India, what we've seen with other deals, we haven't seen the actual deals and you could threaten. But look what happened with the E.U., when to Memorial Day and then look what happened two days later.
And I think that speaks to and Tuchman and I have talked about it, that is the concern of the market. What's the rules of the game and when do you actually have the reality of what these deals are going to look like?
TUCHMAN: You know what, for me, I think what's really fascinating about what happened with the E.U. is it's the first. So, let's talk about it. We had had sort of a quiet period around talking about tariffs, right? There was two weeks where it was not the center of attention. And then out of nowhere on Friday and we knew it was -- had gone away, but it was just in quiet mode.
And then Friday, out of nowhere, he woke up and decided to throw out this, the large blanket like he does negotiating tactics of a 50 percent imposition of tariffs on the E.U. for the first time. And I -- and I and I actually put it out in a tweet, I said for the first time, the president of the E.U. did not whine about it, did not go up against him, did not do the normal fight that countries and individuals have gone up against him when he does that negotiating tactic.
She called him on the phone and said, I'm ready to make a deal. I need a little bit of time. And she got exactly what she wanted. So, if I want to play the devil's advocate on this, he she played right into she was able to identify what we talked about here, the taco thing, which is what he does.
That is a negotiating tactic. We've got to give him -- give him that. But what she did was she went right at it in the correct way. She called him on it, said, I'm here to make a deal with you. I need time. He gave her a month and suddenly it all came back.
BURNETT: All right. We're just -- as we're talking right now. I just want there is some breaking news. I want you to tell me how important this is. And I don't know if either of you can even see futures. I was just trying to see if I could pull up futures in the market, to see what the reaction is to this, because a three judge panel at the U.S. Court of International Trade, just as were talking, has now halted temporarily but halted Trump's global tariffs.
All right. So that means -- that means the bulk of Trump's tariffs are put in a standstill. Now keep in mind, you have 30 percent on China I don't know what this means is already existing ones. Trump's tariffs though that 30 percent then would be gone, the 10 percent across the board, others, 50 percent.
TUCHMAN: Wow.
BURNETT: So, now, this particular court, I mean, what could this mean?
IVES: Look, I mean, this is -- and these are things that the markets been waiting to see is ultimately, do these actually get enacted? Do courts actually stop it?
Look, these are going to be more what I view as potential watershed moments to what the reality is. And especially as it goes back to do these tariffs actually come into play.
TUCHMAN: Do we know how the futures are responding to that news. Because that's major news. The bottom line is that, you know, it would be curious to see how they are, because it's amazing how the market -- look, we sold off heavily on Friday with that imposition of the 50 percent. The minute they made a deal with the E.U., right, the market then rallied back sizably. So, it's amazing how --
IVES: And the numbers, too, right. Like how much of China business they've essentially given to Huawei because of the restrictions.
TUCHMAN: Correct. That's -- and that's another thing that that Dan said before that, you know, we that we have that that Nvidia which came out with earnings tonight, which is obviously a big thing, right? Was that to give up a lot of their business to Huawei in -- on chips, right? And so, that's another huge thing.
But this is big because the market responded so favorably. Once the tariffs were pulled back about the E.U., right, which is they didn't go away. They were just postponed.
So, we've got this this the market is trading. BURNETT: And we've been waiting to see, right?
This has been so far Trump against Trump, right? A hundred forty-five percent. He lowers it to 30. This is a court.
Now this is this is a court and it's not a court on immigrant man from Maryland, whether they, you know, whether they have an option where they have been defying that right to go back and whether they're going to bring it. This is actually, this is something where you're controlling it at every single port. It is almost impossible, I would presume, to defy a court order like this.
IVES: The markets been waiting because it's going to take time. Right now, we're basically two months in for rulings like this to see how this game of high stakes poker ultimately plays out. That's going to be the key.
TUCHMAN: If tariffs were not -- and not something that was a reality, that that would affect the market in a huge way. I would imagine the market is responding in a favorable fashion at the moment.
BURNETT: Right. Dan Alexander?
ALEXANDER: You know, the interesting thing here is that it's just not only global markets. This also is going to affect Donald Trump's personal fortune. And also, somebody like Howard Lutnick. Both those guys saw significant falls in their fortunes when Trump first announced the tariffs. And so, although it's bad news for him from a presidential standpoint, from a financial standpoint, he'll be just fine.
BURNETT: All right. Well, thank you all very much. As we watch this and watch futures markets reaction.
Next, Trump covering for Putin, buying more time explicitly for the Russian president as Russians play a new mind game with Trump.
Plus, the megachurch pastor who's leading a boycott against target is now taking on another major chain, one with even more stores over watering down its DEI policies. Which one? The pastor's OUTFRONT.
And it's the shove seen round the world. If you haven't seen it by now, you're not living on this planet. And tonight, the French president and his wife are going out of their way to put any rumors sparked from this slap to rest.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:27:49]
BURNETT: Tonight, President Trump stalling, saying he's giving Putin another two weeks before Trump decides if Putin actually wants peace.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: Do you still believe that Putin actually wants to end the war?
TRUMP: I can't tell you that, but I'll let you know in about two weeks. Within two weeks, we're going to find out very soon. We're going to find out whether or not he's tapping us along or not. And if he is, we'll respond a little bit differently.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: So, Trump says two weeks. That is the same timeline he said he needed four weeks ago to know if he could trust Putin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: Do you trust President Putin?
TRUMP: You know, in about two weeks.
REPORTER: What is the actual date? What is the timeline?
TRUMP: Two weeks or less. And if it's a little more at the time, I say, but, you know, they're losing a lot of people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: So that was a month ago. And now two more weeks.
It comes just hours after a top Putin aide slammed Trump after he warned Putin that he was, quote, playing with fire if Putin does not end the war in Ukraine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YURY USHAKOV, PUTIN AIDE: We have come to the conclusion that Trump is not sufficiently informed about what is really happening in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian confrontation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: OUTFRONT now, Christo Grozev, the investigative journalist who is on Russia's most wanted list.
So, Christo, you know, when you see this Trump now saying he wants -- give me two more weeks, which appears to be what he says when he's, you know, not sure what's going to happen. And he wants to buy some time. Okay, fine.
He says Trump is not informed about the war in Ukraine. Thats what we're hearing from Russia and that Trump doesn't know what's really happening.
This came right after someone else in Putin, one other aide said that Trump was showing signs of emotional overload. Those were the words that they used just yesterday.
So, when you hear all that, what strategy is Putin using? CHRISTO GROZEV, INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST: Well, I don't think there's
been any change in strategy since the beginning of the administration of President Trump. I've said many times, including on your show, Erin, that Putin has no way to end the war and stay alive, stay in power, for sure.
So, the only, strategy they can have is just to ask President Putin -- President Trump said to tap him alone, to string him along, and perceived negotiations.
[19:30:00]
And I think that's continuing. And he's doing it very well by getting another extension.
I do hope, however, and as I predicted, including on this show, that the time will come when president Trump will understand that this is going nowhere, that there's no chance for Putin to deliver to president Trump what he wanted to receive, which is a sort of a -- let's say it, say it metaphorically, a Nobel Peace Prize for President Trump. There's no way for that to happen. And I hope that this time, when President Trump said two weeks and then there'll be a different response, he finally got it. Because I do think he's getting advised exactly, of this truth in this direction by the intelligence community in the United States.
And I do think that that advice is what the kremlin is now calling ill advice or misinformation, because the kremlin proves that Trump will continue with this perpetual game of delaying the response.
BURNETT: I just want to emphasize a word that you used a moment ago, Christo. You said that Putin feels a coup. He feels a coup, that he would literally be killed or removed from power if he agreed to a legitimate peace deal.
GROZEV: That is correct. There is no way for him to accept or even show a directionality of acceptance of a peace deal and remain in power. The best that he can do, the most that he can do is sort of offer a temporary peace truce, a temporary truce of several months. But he can do that only if he shows to his domestics to the generals that are bloodthirsty and to the 400,000 mercenaries or soldiers, whatever you call them, that have been, sort of sicked against the world, against Ukraine.
So, the only possibility for a short-term truce is if there's an additional significant gain of territory by Russia. Let's just call a spade a spade. Unless Putin achieves full control of the four regions that he calls Russian and he doesn't have, he's far from having that control. He cannot even go to a temporary truce.
He cannot go into a permanent truce or a peace deal at all, because that will be treated as treason. We are privy to messages, and actually I'm reporting on this later this week. Messages within the GRU, the military intelligence, the scariest of Russia's intelligence services, where they within themselves, they talk of the Putin administration as traitors of chicken. And he's aware of that. I'm aware that he's aware of that.
BURNETT: So, which is -- it's fascinating. I know we're going to be talking to you about that as you get even more reporting. When we look at the largest land border with Europe, its Finland, about 830 miles. And, you know, I was talking to the president of Finland yesterday, that border is where Putin has been bolstering, building up his military presence, right. It pulled troops originally at the invasion of Ukraine, but has since bolstered back up.
And I talked to the president of Finland yesterday. By the way, Finland is a NATO country now. And he said this about what Finland is doing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEXANDER STUBB, PRESIDENT OF FINLAND: We have obligatory military service, 900,000 men and women who've done it. We have over 60 F-18s. We just bought 64 F-35s. We have the largest artillery in Europe, together with Poland. And as I keep on saying, we don't have it because were worried about Sweden. We have it because we want to create a deterrent against Russia.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Christo, what are you hearing about Putin's buildup along Finland's border?
GROZEV: Again, that is from my point of view, it's messaging. It's messaging both international and domestic. And international messaging is Putin is trying to escalate the perception of danger of Russia going completely crazy and invading Europe. And that messaging is aimed at the electorate in Europe. So, that hopefully they tell their elected leaders don't -- don't get too confrontational. Let's focus on our domestic issues and not help Ukraine that much.
Domestically, there's a different kind of need for that messaging. Putin needs to accept a certain escalation again in order to appease the generals, in order to tell them, I'm on your side. I'm just as gung-ho as you are. And yes, let's prepare for an attack on NATO.
But of course, I don't think anybody in their right mind on the Russian side will take that risk at this point in time. And therefore, I totally agree with the Finnish position here that that would be a major mistake. And I'm sure Putin knows of that.
But again, I mean, this is a game of chicken. The messaging is important for Putin. He has people around him, such as his chief propagandist, Solovyov, and will be sort of scarecrow, former President Medvedev, who sent all of these nuclear threats and messaging around the world.
But again, that is mostly messaging just to scare the electorate of Western -- of the West into probably accepting a more pacifying position from their leaders. And I hope that doesn't work. I mean, I have a vested interest in hoping that doesn't work because not just for my sake, but for the sake of colleagues of mine who are getting much better protected when the West is aware of the of the threat of escalation, than not.
[19:35:05]
BURNETT: All right. Christo, thank you so very much. I appreciate your time tonight.
And next, the megachurch pastor who's leading the costly boycott against target, now setting his sights on another company with even more stores. He's next.
Plus, a high stakes election where the candidates are now having to wear bulletproof vests, travel in armored vehicles just to campaign. Our David Culver will take us there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: All right. Breaking news, markets are jumping in afterhours trading on that news that a court has halted Trump's, quote, liberation day tariffs temporarily. Dow futures rising immediately on the news by more than a percent 1.1 percent, 500 points, about 1.5 percent for the S&P 500. Even more than that for the Nasdaq.
The bulk of Trump's tariffs, now paused by a court.
[19:40:02]
Now, this is a three-judge panel, as I said, a temporary pause, ruling Trump does not have the authority to impose the tariffs.
Paula Reid is OUTFRONT.
Now, Paula, when we look at all of what's been going on with these tariffs, this is an outcome that many had not anticipated, a court getting in and said Trump could, saying Trump can't even do this to begin with.
So, what can you tell us about this ruling?
PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, we've seen across the country, Erin, various courts blocking Trump's policies, but this is one of the first times we have seen a court blocking his ability to impose these global tariffs. Now, this particular lawsuit, this was brought by a legal advocacy group that represents small businesses and claimed that they had been severely harmed by these tariffs.
And here, this is a very low-profile court, as you noted at the U.S. Court of International trade, they ruled in favor of a permanent injunction. So, this is a permanent it's temporary, but it lasts until this case moves on injunction.
So, this is effectively -- grounds Trump's tariffs to a halt. So, this is incredibly significant because we know that he uses these tariffs as a key part of his international trade, so-called deals and policies. So, to have this court block this with a preliminary injunction, this is surprising. And as you noted, this is going to have an impact not only on his policies but on global markets.
Now, we have also seen the administration rail against the fact that any courts can block policies put forth by the administration. So, we are waiting for comment from the Justice Department, from the White House in response to this enormous decision.
BURNETT: All right, Paula, thank you very much.
Let's go straight to Ryan Goodman, just joining us on the phone as this news broke.
So, Ryan, you heard Paula say like it's a court -- the Court of International Trade that many were not -- would not have heard of prior to tonight, coming out and in unexpected fashion and ending the tariffs for now. How significant is this ruling?
RYAN GOODMAN, JUST SECURITY CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: It's very significant. The court at the end of the ruling says we're not just ruling for this plaintiff, but we're basically ruling for everybody that would be covered by the tariffs. There are other cases that have been brought to the same court. So, it's in a sense ruling for all of those cases as well. By saying that the tariffs are not legal.
And in some ways the court's argument basically says this goes back to Congress. It boils down to the idea that there was always a poor fit for the tariffs being invoked by the administration, because the administration says they were operating under this emergency National Security Act. And the court says, no, you aren't, that the National Security Act was not built for something like this. It's really Congress's authority to give it to you and you don't have it yet.
So, it really means that the White House has to go to Congress, unless, of course, they can get this ruling overturned.
BURNETT: Okay. So, can you walk through, though, the timing of all of this? I mean, we're in a situation where, I mean, this is a seismic shift. So, what happens now, I guess, in terms of how long it would take to have this actually work its way through the court, or where do things go from the Court of International Trade? I mean, what's the timeline and process here?
GOODMAN: Given the dramatic global implications, the administration in all likelihood will first ask the court itself just to put a pause on its own ruling. Yes, the ruling is one that is a permanent ruling. It's like its final decision.
But they can ask the court, can you just pause it while we appeal? This is one of these rare situations in which the court itself, even though it ruled against the administration, might say, okay, well pause our ruling so you can appeal it. If they don't do that, then the administration will appeal it. One step up to the first circuit, to the first circuit, and then the question becomes whether or not that court of appeals will stop this ruling from going into effect, while they decide whether or not they want to overturn it. So, we might get a pause quite quickly, which will obviously jolt
everything back into place as it was before this ruling, but its anybody's guess as to how that's going to go.
BURNETT: All right. Well, a very, very significant moment. Thank you so much, Ryan Goodman. As we see, try to digest the importance of that in this moment as stocks are jumping right now.
Next, the mega pastor leading the boycott against target now taking on another company even bigger in terms of number of stores. And he's next.
Plus, it looks like they're heading to war. Only this is what it takes to campaign. Bulletproof vests, armored cars. And David Culver will take us there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:47:53]
BURNETT: Tonight, boycott. The megachurch pastor who's been leading a boycott of target for rolling back his DEI programs, is now taking aim at another major chain, Dollar General.
Now, Dollar General is massive. It actually has triple the number of stores as Target and Walmart combined, 20,000 of them nationwide.
The pastor, Jamal Bryant, says the company is, quote, dismantled its DEI programs.
OUTFRONT now, Pastor Jamal Bryant, for his exclusive first television interview since announcing this protest of Dollar General.
And, Pastor Bryant, you know, just to start here, Target admitted that their sales were down almost 4 percent last quarter, and they specifically admitted that it was due in part to your boycotts over its rollback of some DEI policies. So why now zero in on Dollar General when obviously there are other companies out there, by the way, dime a dozen who have rolled back their diversity, equity and inclusion policies.
REV. JAMAL H. BRYANT, PASTOR LEADING DOLLAR GENERAL, TARGET BOYCOTTS: First, I've got to take note that this boycott against Target is the most successful boycott by Black people in 70 years since the Montgomery bus boycott. They lost $12 billion in valuation. Their stock tumbled from $145 a share to $93 a share. The CEO salary was cut by 43 percent.
And so, I just wanted to put an asterisk of what happens when our community mobilizes and stays focused. We have canceled Target with 13 weeks in and decided we shouldn't have to grovel for respect when we give $12 million a day.
We chose Dollar General because, quite frankly, as you just aforementioned, there are three times larger than Target and Walmart combined and have never given to any organization within the Black community. Dollar General is within five miles of 75 percent of Americans homes, and still no accountability.
They are a contributor to food deserts, not just in absence of food, but absence of fairness. And so, we wanted to hold them accountable.
[19:50:01]
BURNETT: Now, I know your approach is a bit different than what you did with Target. So, in this case, Target, obviously, it was a boycott of actual purchases. In this case, you're also asking people to inundate Dollar General with calls, with messages, as opposed to an outright boycott of its stores.
So, explain why. Why is Dollar General different than Target?
BRYANT: Because Dollar General has really done a predatory practices in rural communities. A lot of people, when they think about African- Americans, it's urban, but we forget about those who are in rural areas. And the inundation of Dollar General is in communities of 20,000 or less. And regrettably, they stand as the only portal for people to get access to food and vegetation.
And so, for those communities who that is their only option, we don't want to cause further damage. But in urban areas, we're asking them to stay away and everybody to call and to email and to use social media, just as we did with Target.
BURNETT: Well, and as you point out, you know, in some places when you're driving, you go up to a small town, right? Dollar General may be the only retailer, to your point.
BRYANT: Yes.
BURNETT: And different than in an urban setting.
Dollar General did share a statement with us, Pastor, and they say in part, quote, our mission is not serving some others, it is simply serving others, period. We're proud to serve millions of Americans from all backgrounds and walks of life in our 25,000 -- I'm sorry, 20,500 stores offering everyday necessities at affordable prices in other areas where retailers have chosen not to serve.
And then they continue to say, we're proud to offer our employees respect and opportunity in a work environment built on the dignity and differences of each unique individual.
What do you say to that?
BRYANT: That is just window dressing. The reality is that only 2 percent of Dollar Generals leadership is African American. The overwhelming majority is just part time with no opportunity for advancement. Furthermore, they've done no partnership with a Black farmers. They have a very limited window of partnership for black vendors.
And so, we want their actions to speak louder than their words. And we're hoping that through this campaign that they'll reevaluate and not just take a place in the community, but to actually be partners in the community.
BURNETT: Pastor Bryant, it's a pleasure to talk to you again. And thank you, sir.
BRYANT: I'm honored to be with you.
BURNETT: Great to see you.
And next, the armored car is a bulletproof vest. That's what it takes to campaign for some politicians right now. And our David Culver has a special report for us next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: Tonight, breaking news, President Trump tonight pardoning several MAGA aligned criminals in a pair of reality TV stars. He says he's also considering pardons for the men convicted in the plot to kidnap Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: It looked to me like somewhat of a railroad job, I'll be honest with you. It looked to me like some people said some stupid things. You know, they were drinking, and I think they said stupid things.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: But prosecutors said the men planned to kill the governor, even surveilling one of her homes.
[19:55:03]
It comes as politicians are facing security threats like never before. And across the southern border, the danger is even more extreme, with political candidates wearing bulletproof vests, driving armored vehicles just to campaign.
And David Culver tonight is OUTFRONT in Mexico, where a national election is about to take place.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID CULVER, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What do you take out when everything comes out?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's going to be like this.
CULVER (voice-over): Across Mexico, fear is fueling a push for personal protection.
GADI MOKOTOV, OWNER, ETTS BLINDAJES: This is if you want to take a shot from inside and this door. It's like escape door.
CULVER: An escape door?
MOTOKOV: Yes. CULVER: For 16 years, Gadi Mokotov's company has armored vehicles for Mexico's police, military, government officials, VIPs.
MOTOKOV: This is the level five.
CULVER: But now, he says he's getting more and more requests from lower level politicians, and even from those who work for those elected officials.
So you're seeing staffers now say we need armored cars.
MOTOKOV: This is one of them.
CULVER: Oh, this is a staffer.
MOKOTOV: One of them.
CULVER: Spending tens of thousands of dollars not for status, but survival.
MOKOTOV: It's not nice to see a man coming here. And, you know, I need to protect my sons. But they're afraid.
CULVER: They're scared.
MOKOTOV: -- of the -- of the kids.
CULVER: What does that say about the state of security right now in this country?
MOKOTOV: The people, it's scared. It's scared to go to the streets.
CULVER: And it was here on this street where just last week, two close aides of Mexico City's mayor were gunned down. You can see they still have flowers and a memorial left behind for them. It happened just as the morning commute was getting underway.
Violent crime in the capital, including murders and kidnappings, is up more than 150 percent compared to this time last year that, according to El Pais, we've reached out to Mexico city officials to verify those numbers.
All of this comes on the heels of Mexico's most violent election cycle in history, leading up to the 2024 elections. At least 37 political candidates were assassinated, with more than 800 attacks on campaign staff, officials and their families.
And yet, this democracy forges ahead.
Have you ever run for office before?
CESAR GUTIERREZ PRIEGO, LAWYER AND CANDIDATE FOR JUSTICE OF THE SUPREME COURT: No, for anything. I always been in a private practice. So --
CULVER: So, this is all new to you? GUTIERREZ PRIEGO: Of course.
I don't know (ph).
CULVER: Cesar Gutierrez allows us in just after he wakes up, but before he suits up for the day.
Youve been wearing this for 45 days.
GUTIERREZ PRIEGO: Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And even that doesn't smell very good. But it's something that I needed to do it because I have to protect myself. I have two kids, and I don't want to be just another number.
CULVER: He knows the dangers. Years ago, his family was kidnapped and tortured by organized crime. At the time, his father was Mexico's top anti-drug official. Now, Cesar says he's running to fix the system from within. He's one of 64 candidates vying for a seat on Mexico's Supreme Court, now being decided by popular vote for the first time.
And that means meeting voters. So he's been walking this street here with a crowd that's kind of grown as he's continued along. But aside from his vest, Cesar chooses not to hire bodyguards. He thinks a heavy security detail can make you too insulated, out of touch.
GUTIERREZ PRIEGO: Because they don't know the reality that the people is living.
CULVER: And while more focused on combating corruption, Cesar believes the streets are actually getting safer.
You don't think it's as bad as it's being portrayed right now?
GUTIERREZ PRIEGO: I don't even think. I know.
CULVER: He's even praised President Claudia Sheinbaum's recent crackdown, which some say was triggered by President Trump, who's been pressuring Mexico to do more to secure this country and the border.
But many voters see it differently.
How's the situation? As far as crime is concerned, it's bad.
He says even with security, police all around us doesn't make you really feel any safer. Because criminal elements can seep in at any moment.
It's no surprise that so many are turning to armor, desperate for any sense of safety, and outside a line of cars waiting for their turn.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CULVER (on camera): There is a sensation of insecurity that extends well beyond politics. I mean, you talk to folks here and have had a few tell me that they don't even bother stopping at stop signs anymore because they could easily be robbed, carjacked, kidnapped, or killed. So, they just roll right through.
BURNETT: It's really incredible. And that image you had, you know, from the air looking at those cars lined up to get their armor put on that, that really brings it all home.
David Culver, thank you so much for that incredible reporting live from Mexico City tonight.
And thanks, as always to all of you for joining us.
"AC360" with Anderson Cooper begins right now.
