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Judge Uses Defense's Own Words Against "Diddy" In Denying Bail; House Republicans Stall Vote On Trump's Bill, Path Unclear; North Korea Sending Up To 30,000 More Troops To Russia To Fight Ukraine. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired July 02, 2025 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:31]

ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT next:

Breaking news, denied. A judge ruling Sean "Diddy" Combs will remain in prison while he awaits sentencing after a jury found him guilty on two counts. The judge citing Combs's violent past.

The attorney for his former girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, a star witness in the case, speaks exclusively to CNN.

Also breaking, Trump's mega bill in limbo. The president working the phones, but the Republicans still on the fence are right now enough to block the presidents so-called "Big, Beautiful Bill".

And a special KFILE investigation. From using racist rhetoric to defending a Holocaust denier, Trump's pick for a top job has a history of making controversial comments and posts. Who is he?

Let's go OUTFRONT.

Good evening. I'm Brianna Keilar, in for Erin Burnett.

OUTFRONT tonight, breaking news. Sean "Diddy" Combs denied bail.

Just hours after Combs was acquitted of the most serious charges against him, the judge in his case keeping Combs behind bars until his sentencing for two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. Among the reasons the judge, citing the violence Combs unleashed on his ex-girlfriends. His attorneys speaking moments ago, calling it a victory.

In court, Combs kept his head down and his hands clasped, his bail denied just hours after the mixed verdict. The jury finding Combs not guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering, the three most serious counts that he faced, but convicting him on the lesser prostitution counts, each of which carry up to ten years in prison.

Now, today's outcome follows 28 days of graphic and dramatic testimony from 34 witnesses, including Combs former longtime girlfriend Cassie Ventura. She was a central witness in the case seen in this surveillance video. Combs violently beating and kicking her. In a statement, Ventura's attorney writing, Ms. Ventura believes that

Mr. Combs is likely to pose a danger to the victims who testified in this case, including herself, as well as to the community. Her attorney, just speaking exclusively to CNN. And you'll hear more from him in a moment.

As the verdict was read, Combs pumped his fist in the air. Then, after the judge left the room, he got on his hands and knees and appeared to pray.

Elizabeth Wagmeister is OUTFRONT live outside the courthouse.

And, Elizabeth, Combs' lawyers just speaking outside the court. What are they saying?

ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Look, they are taking their victory lap. And make no mistake, aside from a full acquittal across the board, Brianna, this was the best possible outcome for Combs and for his defense. He evaded the most serious charges, now no longer facing life in prison.

I want to read you a few quotes that we just heard right behind me. You see, it's very busy with the crowd of supporters and journalists, while his defense attorney, Marc Agnifilo, said, quote, it's a great victory for Sean Combs. It's a great victory for the jury system. He called today a win.

One of his other defense attorneys, Teny Geragos, thanked Combs for trusting that defense team, saying, he is incredible. I want to thank him. I want to thank the jury for putting such great care into this case.

Now, as you said, the judge denied bail. This coming as a surprise to many people behind me. Many people thought that since he was convicted on the two lesser charges and again acquitted on the most serious charges here, that the judge would let him go home with his family as he awaited sentencing.

But no, the judge, as you said, citing his violence, telling Marc Agnifilo his defense attorney, you literally said in your closing argument that he was violent with his girlfriends. He is a violent man. So, the judge denying bail, Combs is not going home with his family, who is here to support him.

He is going back to the MDC in Brooklyn, where he has been in custody already for about ten months since his arrest last September, Brianna.

KEILAR: Elizabeth Wagmeister, stay with me.

You also had an exclusive interview today with Cassie Ventura's lawyer that I want to get to in just a moment.

First, though, let's discuss what just happened.

OUTFRONT now, Terri Austin, a former trial attorney who has been in the court, in the courtroom there every day for this case. We're also joined by criminal defense attorney Mark O'Mara.

And Yoruba Richen, she is the co-director of the Investigation Discovery docuseries "The Fall of Diddy", which is streaming on HBO Max. And, of course, Warner Brothers Discovery is the parent company of both networks, as well as CNN.

[19:05:03]

Mark, how surprised are you that the judge is keeping Combs in prison?

MARK O'MARA, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: I am surprised he was only convicted of the two lesser charges. Like was just said the least of the two of the five, and I thought that he was going to let him go home because he's been in jail for a while. And the idea that the judge has made a decision to keep him in is also quite telling, because we know that he's facing a couple of years somewhere between 12 and 24 months for the charges he was convicted of. And now that we know that there's this concept that the judge can consider sentencing, call relevant conduct, which means other acts that he was not convicted of, other acts he may not have even been charged, of which what are going to be considered by the judge in sentencing?

And as the judge said, today, his very own defense attorney said he was violent. And one of the conditions, one of the considerations, if you're going to keep him in. So, I was surprised. I thought he'd get out, but it is sort of some insight into the way the judge is looking at Mr. Combs.

KEILAR: Yeah.

And, Terri, Combs facing -- it's a max of ten years for both counts that he's convicted of. He is a first-time offender, already spent those ten months behind bars that Mark is talking about there. What do you think the sentence is going to be?

TERRI AUSTIN, FORMER TRIAL ATTORNEY: Well, it's interesting because I do think the judge is very careful and he considers everything, and I think he'll be careful with the sentencing as well. It is a maximum of 10. The judge has the option to do either consecutive or concurrent. I'm thinking that hell do the concurrent. So that would be the maximum. And also, the request from both the prosecution and the defense is much lower than that.

So, I'm thinking he'll probably maybe split it. I think 50 some months was what the prosecution was asking versus much less than that from the defense. Some 21 months. I think it was. And so maybe the judge will go down the middle as far as that's concerned.

He did mention that he wants to get that pre-sentencing report from the probation department. And Agnifilo, who is the lead attorney here, he made a great argument for that bail. But he did say once he lost that argument that he wanted to expedite the sentencing.

So, I think we will have a word at some point that the sentencing will come before the October 3rd date, which was the original date that the judge gave you.

KEILAR: Yoruba, you talked to so many people for your documentary who knew Combs or they were part of his inner circle. And I know you say that you're already hearing from some of them after the verdict. How are they feeling?

YORUBA RICHEN, AWARD-WINNING DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER: Well, I would say that the people who participated in our series, some of who testified at the trial, there is a feeling of shock for some, disbelief and resignation, but also going to the bail issue, a feeling of fear that you know, that this is a man who they allege had been physically violent towards them.

One of the people who participated in our series posted on Instagram, Jordan, the chef, she, you know, really pleaded with the judge not to let him out on bond because of her experience. Her alleged experience with him being violent. And I think you know, it makes sense that he wouldn't -- as the judge pointed out, he, his own defense attorney, said he was violent. So our participants, you know, they are definitely in some of them have definitely expressed fear about the possibility of Combs being released.

KEILAR: Yeah. I mean, Mark, as Yoruba says, the judge used the defenses own words against them to defend not granting Combs bail. It was a weapon against them today. But how instrumental was it in court admitting that, yeah, this guy was violent, but it wasn't racketeering. It wasn't sex trafficking.

How far did that go to convince the jury, do you think?

O'MARA: I just -- I think it went very well, because you do have to own up to what, you know, the government is going to be able to prove because you want to maintain that credibility with the jury, not just as the defense attorney, but as the defendant, as the client. And I think the idea of saying and acknowledging we will admit to this, but this over here, absolutely not.

And obviously, it worked because the jury was not convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that he was guilty of the more serious charges. And you have to give credit where it's due, even though a few words were used against him to keep him in today.

Overall, the defense did a great job presenting what they needed to present to acknowledge what did happen. Those two minor charges. But to avoid the most significant charges. So it is sort of hats off to the defense team.

RICHEN: I would also just jump in and say another reaction that one of our participants had is really wondering why some other folks were not called who could speak to the racketeering charge.

[19:10:03]

That was a question that they had.

So I think people are going to be, you know, wondering that as well, because seemingly there are other people that could have spoke to the racketeering charge who, for whatever reason, were not called. And people are wondering why.

KEILAR: Yeah, a question a number of people may be asking.

And, Terri, you think the prosecution heard its case by bringing that racketeering charge? Talk about that. And if they could have helped by bringing more people.

AUSTIN: Well, I do think that bringing the racketeering was a stretch. They did not have that conspiracy. They did not have that agreement.

And yes, they could have brought the chief of staff. Her name was Kristina Khorram. They could have brought the head of security D-Roc, they could have brought these people in. I think one of the reasons they did not do that is because they might be difficult witnesses on that stand.

So, they were trying to prove it through text messages. They were trying to prove it through emails. Just those individuals consenting to what was going on. But they lacked the agreement, they lacked the conspiracy. So, I do think it hurt them as far as their credibility is concerned.

And I do think for that sex trafficking, they might have said, look, you overreached on the RICO. There was no sex trafficking. I don't think they had an option with the Mann Act.

There were escorts. They were transported interstate, they were paid, and there was definitely, you know, sexual activity, commercial sexual activity. And so, I think the jury listened to the law in that regard.

Frankly, I think they did a really good job. They paid close attention, and the judge profusely thanked them for their service.

KEILAR: Yoruba, Combs rose to stardom in the world of hip hop music. Do you think that the industry is going to welcome him back after today's verdicts, after all of this testimony and the video? And how much do you think this case has tainted his legacy?

RICHEN: Yeah, that's one thing that we talked a lot about on the series with people who had known him and worked for him for, for years. You know, Combs is somebody who has had a lot of lives, a lot of legal issues, allegations of violence on trial from his earliest days and to the trial, you know, the shooting trial in '99 to the beat up that he gave to Steve Stoute, an executive. And he's always come back in some way.

It's a real question how, if and how he'll come back from this. But there are people who never stopped being on his side and never stopped supporting him. So, certainly, I think that's going to be -- there will be a faction of those people and we'll see what kind of comeback he tries.

We've seen now in all parts of our culture, politics, sports, the comeback is, you know, the comeback happens, is attempted and I'd be surprised if it wasn't here. And it's a real question of will he be -- will he be welcomed back? I think some factions will welcome him back.

KEILAR: Thank you all so much for the conversation tonight. Really appreciate it.

And let's go back now to Elizabeth Wagmeister, who's at the courthouse.

Elizabeth, as I mentioned, you just sat down for an exclusive interview with one of Cassie Ventura's lawyers. What did he have to say to you about the verdict?

WAGMEISTER: Look, he said that, of course, he was hopeful for a verdict, that he wanted Combs to be convicted on the most serious charges. But he said that this is still a win. He told me that Combs has never been held accountable in his entire life. And now he said he is a convicted felon of two criminal charges.

He said that he spoke to Cassie right after the verdict, that she is feeling good, that she is comforted, that she is filled with gratitude and that she recognizes that many people have come forward against Combs and may not have done that if it were not for her.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WAGMEISTER: You were inside of that courtroom when this verdict was read. What were you feeling?

DOUG WIGDOR, ATTORNEY FOR CASSIE VENTURA: Well, I think there was a lot of mixed emotions in the courtroom generally speaking. Obviously, we would have liked to have seen convictions on the RICO charges and the sex trafficking charges, but Cassie prompted this investigation by the Southern District, and now, Sean Combs stands before the court as a convicted felon of two federal crimes. He faces significant incarceration.

WAGMEISTER: After Cassie filed her civil lawsuit in November 2023. Since, there has been roughly 70 -- that's seven zero -- suits that have been filed against Sean Combs. He denies all of these allegations. Egregious accusations of people being drugged at auditions, being drugged at his infamous white parties, not remembering a single thing after they were handed a drink, and then being sexually assaulted.

[19:15:07]

Given that none of these suits had come out prior to Cassie filing that lawsuit, does she feel like she has made a difference?

WIGDOR: Yeah, definitely. And that was one of her major objectives. Frankly, when she rejected an eight-figure settlement was not only to shine a light, but to give a voice to others who were suffering in silence. And she knew that there were others out there. And so, to now see, as reported, you know, numbers in the 50, 60, 70 or more allegations or lawsuits. I think that she's been vindicated in what she did.

WAGMEISTER: Was there ever a consideration that she wouldn't do this? When the government began investigating her claims and asked her to testify?

WIGDOR: There are certainly days where she didn't want to testify. She testified truthfully. But, you know, just having to subject yourself to cross-examination and ultimately, when you're done, have a lawyer say the sorts of things that were said in the closing argument about her. Thats not easy for anyone to endure.

WAGMEISTER: Is this something that she ever can fully heal from?

WIGDOR: It will always be part of her life unfortunately. I mean, you can -- you can heal, but you'll never forget. You know, the abuse that she suffered, that's something that one doesn't forget. And you watch the video, for instance, that was not an isolated event. You know, she has been compensated financially. She's in a good position, which certainly helps.

But she's not, you know, the winner as the defense lawyer said, you know, it's hard to call somebody a winner who has been physically abused.

WAGMEISTER: Her husband, Alex Fine, was in that courtroom during her testimony. I cannot imagine what that was like for him to hear about your wife, the mother of your children, who you love so deeply, going through these horrific, horrific moments of abuse and torment that she spoke about. What was that like for Alex?

WIGDOR: Yeah, very hard. I mean, he really has helped change her life tremendously when, you know, when Cassie was ready to take her own life, obviously, you know, she testified about, you know, wanting to just walk into the into oncoming traffic and, you know, Alex, obviously was there to, to help her. So, you know, having -- having him at her side has been enormously helpful for her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WAGMEISTER: Now, you heard me speaking with Cassie's attorney there about this mountain of civil accusers. He is still facing around 70, yes, seven zero, civil allegations.

Now, behind me, when Combs's attorneys just spoke, Brianna, I want to tell you, his defense attorney, Teny Geragos, said that she is saying since the beginning of the case that, quote, Sean Combs has not sexually assaulted anybody. She said today that was proven true in the media. Got it wrong.

I just want to fact check them for one second. That was not proven true. The civil allegations had nothing to do with this case. Around 70 accusers, their allegations did not make it into that courtroom, did not make it into testimony. That is not what the jury deliberated on.

So, he still faces a vast, vast amount of civil allegations against him, even though his team says that today was a victory because he did evade those most serious charges, Brianna.

KEILAR: Yeah, that's an important note. And that was a very enlightening interview. Thank you so much. Elizabeth Wagmeister.

And tune in this weekend for a one hour special, "THE WHOLE STORY" on the Diddy trial, "The Case Against Diddy". That will air at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on Saturday.

OUTFRONT next, breaking news, Trump's massive bill in jeopardy as Republican leaders are still trying to win over holdouts. But can they be convinced?

Plus, he's shared a 9/11 conspiracy theory called Trump's former U.N. ambassador and insufferable expletive. And yet Trump still tapped him for a top job. KFILE with a special report.

And the backlash over Elon Musk sending Tesla sales plunging. Can Musk turn things around?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:23:50]

KEILAR: Breaking news, President Trump's so-called Big, Beautiful Bill influx tonight. The president trying desperately to rally support for his massive legislation. Trump can only afford to lose three Republicans in the House. And the number of Republicans who are still on the fence right now is enough to block the bill's passage.

But all day, Trump has been working the phones, meeting with lawmakers, and we have got all sides of this story covered tonight.

Lauren Fox is on Capitol Hill. Kristen Holmes is at the White House.

Let's start with Lauren.

Lauren, what's the latest there?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this vote has been held open for hours now. It was just a procedural vote, ahead of a really important vote that could indicate what direction this bill was headed on the House floor. But so far, what we have seen is in and out of the speaker's office. A number of members coming and going as the speaker and his leadership team also is furiously trying to ensure that they have the votes that they need in order to pass Trump's agenda on the floor.

There are a couple of key challenges. There are some moderates who are concerned about some of the Medicaid cuts. You also, though, have a number of conservatives who have made clear they do not think that the Senate bill is any better.

[19:25:02]

In fact, they believe it's far worse than what the House had already passed back in May. And that is the challenge for the speaker. He is trying to impress

upon them that time is of the essence, and that they cannot be ping- ponging this bill back and forth, especially because there is a debt ceiling deadline that could come as soon as August on this legislation that would potentially make this even a more furious fight to get it across the finish line.

Now, I did speak with a key conservative representative, Warren Davidson, just a short time ago, and Davidson was a no on the House version of this bill back in May. He now says he is going to support this legislation as it is.

That is a key indication that perhaps some conservatives are moving closer to being able to back this bill. One of the discussions that's happening behind closed doors is how can they make implementation reflect what conservatives want to see in this bill, even maybe secure some victories that way rather than rewriting this bill and sending it back to the Senate?

I know that sounds weedy, but right now there just aren't a lot of options, Brianna, for what leadership can give members because their goal is to not change this bill.

KEILAR: Yeah, certainly is.

Lauren Fox, thank you for that.

Let's go to Kristen Holmes at the White House.

Kristen, what are you learning about Trump's thinking and all of the efforts that he is putting into arm twisting at this hour?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Brianna, it's not just Lauren who doesn't want this. Not -- excuse me, Lauren. It's not just the leadership, as Lauren said, that doesn't want this bill to change. It's also President Trump and the administration.

There is a concern that if this goes back to the Senate, they're starting completely over. They got it through the Senate. They want to get it through the House as is. They don't want any more question marks. They don't want to wait for any more votes.

And so, what we've seen here today is an incredibly quiet White House. We know that behind the scenes, they are having meetings. It's been a revolving door of not only just the holdouts, both conservative and the more moderate, but also people who support the bill because they are hoping that this will bring some pressure to those colleagues if they're all in the room together, talking it out.

As Lauren mentioned, a lot of this has been negotiations. How do we get this done as-is? What do you need talking to these various lawmakers? And the administration is making promises.

Now, the White House won't tell me what those promises are, but they're making promises to these lawmakers to try to help get them over the finish line. Again, this is critical for President Trump. Now, what we're hearing from White House officials who are incredibly

bullish yesterday, saying, we've been courting these House members for months. We're going to get this done.

They've been a little bit more coy today, but they still believe this -- they can get this done. And they're basing that off of the negotiations and off of the conversations that they're having. And actually, I was talking to Lauren about this before we came on the show.

One of the interesting things to watch for after, if this bill does get passed is what exactly the White House does to show these House makers, these lawmakers, what they wanted to give them, what they wanted. And that's going to be something to watch moving forward.

KEILAR: Yeah, we will be watching for that.

Kristen Holmes, thank you.

OUTFRONT now, Republican Congressman Tim Burchett.

Congressman, thank you so much for being with us this evening.

You voted yes on the House version of this bill. Where do you stand right now on this version the Senate sent over?

REP. TIM BURCHETT (R-TN): I'm firmly undecided. I've got a few more questions to answer. I'm concerned about the economic impact, of course, of this. I think the CBO -- they do not take that into consideration. And that's something that I think is kind of greatly underutilized in their score because, oddly enough, if you release America's energy potential and remove a lot of the bureaucracy, you're going to see our economy grow.

And of course, the tax credits that are there for business manufacturing, 100 percent write offs, things like that. And in Tennessee, if we don't pass it, you know, we're going to see over a $2,000 to $3,000 tax increase on families making $70,000 or less.

So, of course, I'm leaning in the affirmative. But I'm just waiting out to hear just exactly everything. We've been breaking it down piece by piece.

KEILAR: So, you're taking issue with the CBO estimate here?

BURCHETT: Yes, ma'am. I do have an issue with it. The office is very partisan. I mean, 85 percent of the people in their health care division identify as a Democrat, or they've contributed to Democrats or they're registered Democrats.

Their leading --

KEILAR: They --

BURCHETT: I believe their leading economist is that. We ought to do away with these organizations because we use them when we like them. We don't use them when we don't like them.

And you've got a bunch of bureaucrats in here that are on a lifetime gravy train. And frankly, we've got independent agencies that can do that. We have people up here with accounting degrees that can do the math.

So I feel like that is -- that is a waste of taxpayers' money.

KEILAR: So, in January 2024, there was a Republican who trusted the CBO so much that they reintroduced a resolution to require the House clerk to read the CBO estimate of any bill.

[19:30:03]

I believe that was you, sir. The third time you introduced that resolution. Is that right?

BURCHETT: That's correct, ma'am. Of course. And that proves.

(CROSSTALK)

KEILAR: You don't like the CBO now?

BURCHETT: Ma'am?

KEILAR: But you don't like the CBO now? You introduced that resolution over multiple years, but now you're dissing the CBO.

BURCHETT: Did the bill pass? Did the bill pass?

KEILAR: Your resolution?

BURCHETT: Yes, ma'am.

KEILAR: You introduced it, sir. It's irrelevant --

BURCHETT: They never passed because nobody wants any verification. It proves my point when it serves us well, we're for it.

KEILAR: You took a stance and you --

BURCHETT: But when it doesn't, we don't.

KEILAR: So, you're clear about where you are on the CBO? I just want to say. But just to get to where you said earlier, you said earlier that you were closer to voting yes. After speaking with the president, I saw the vice president sent you a nice put -- a nice tweet up that you responded to. What did the president say to you that made you feel maybe closer to voting yes?

BURCHETT: He talked about the economic output that we would have that was not in the CBO scores. And, along those lines, he talked about other things that I'm not going to share, but because it was in privacy. But I think there are a lot of things that will probably be revealed when this is passed. And I think America will embrace it further. I think, again, once you do some things like straighten up Medicaid

and Medicare and you dispute a lot of the lies that are in the media about people getting kicked off, I think America understands what were up against in this. We're up against the people want to call it the swamp up here, but it's really just a sewer. It's a manmade thing that just -- it doesn't produce anything. And it fights us every step of the way.

And so, I think once you, you allow Americans to get out and work and, and actually force those to work and get them off the couch, that some of them are on, that are in the illegals and folks that are gaming the system. I think you're going to see that this this country will bust wide open economically. And I think that's going to be a great thing for this country.

KEILAR: Well, the CBO, which you put so much trust in for years and years that you passed a resolution wanting estimates read before bills is very clear about how many people are going to be kicked off of health care, until you were against CBO.

BURCHETT: No, ma'am, no, ma'am. Listen, listen, if you want to -- if you want to do the editorial, just go ahead. And you don't need me on here.

KEILAR: These are facts, sir. I don't have to editorialize.

BURCHETT: I would like to see what the economic output of every bill. You as a taxpayer should want that, too. And the CBO is the only organization we have. If I could allow a private accounting firm to do it, I would much rather that happen. But the reality is it would have to be the CBO.

And what do you have against knowing how much each bill is spent? Why is the media oppose that? Why do you all on the left always fight every chance in America knowing what's going on?

The problem you all have with this bill, ma'am, is that it gets government out of our way and lets Americans make some decisions and maybe hard working Americans would have a better choice and a better shot at life in this country without you all just telling us how bad things are going and trying to construct. And as you're doing with me, trying to trying to dictate what I've said.

And the reality is the CBO is a partisan organization, and the reality is America has a right to know how much were spending on every piece of legislation. I cannot believe you, as a member of the media, would not want open records. And that is exactly what that bill would do sir.

KEILAR: Sir, we have reported on what is in this bill. We do that time and again.

BURCHETT: Ma'am, you all are trying to scare -- are you talking about the Big, Beautiful Bill? You all just try to scare America by telling millions of people are going to be cut off this thing. You're talking about, the people that are on it illegally that are gaming the system, and that is --

KEILAR: No, we're not. The CBO is very clear.

BURCHETT: The bill does not -- it does not do anything of what you've said. And all you've done is scare America, and you're not doing a service to this country, ma'am. And you all ought to start talking -- you want to talk about transparency? And then there you are, attacking me on a bill where I'm trying to make it transparent to how much were spending on each piece of legislation. That doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

KEILAR: You wanted to have the CBO estimate, and you're now railing against CBO estimates.

BURCHETT: Because that is the only organization that is the only organization at our disposal to do that.

KEILAR: Good enough for you. And we are reporting on it.

Congressman Tim Burchett, thank you so much for being with us.

BURCHETT: Thank you, ma'am. It's been a real pleasure.

KEILAR: It has been.

OUTFRONT next, he is 30 years old, has just six months of government experience. And yet Trump still picked this man who also has ties to a Holocaust denier for a top job. So, who is he? We have a special KFILE investigation.

Plus, North Korea coming to Putin's defense. Wait until you hear just how many soldiers Kim Jong Un could be sending to the front lines.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:39:20]

KEILAR: Tonight, racist rhetoric, conspiratorial rants and ties to a Holocaust denier. That is just some of what a new investigation from CNN's KFILE has uncovered about the person President Trump has picked to protect whistleblowers and root out government corruption. That person is 30-year-old Paul Ingrassia, a Trump loyalist who's been nominated to lead the Office of Special Counsel.

And according to KFILE, Ingrassia has a long-documented history of inflammatory rhetoric, including claiming that, quote, straight white men are the most intelligent demographic group and should be prioritized in education.

KFILE's Andrew Kaczynski is OUTFRONT.

Andrew, first, tell us what you found.

[19:40:02]

ANDREW KACZYNSKI, CNN KFILE SENIOR EDITOR: Well, Brianna, Ingrassia is just 30 years old. He was just admitted to the bar last summer, and his only government experience is six months in this administration as a department liaison and an internship during Trump's first term.

Now, Trump wants him to lead this Office of the Special Counsel, which is really a role that is designed to operate independently from the white House and protect whistleblowers inside the government. And what we found was, while he doesn't really have very much government experience, what he does have is a very long track record of controversial and inflammatory public statements.

And I want to walk some of our viewers through just a few of them. Let's take last year, for instance, on the anniversary of 9/11. I want people to look at this tweet that Ingrassia shared. It's a video from conspiracy theorist Alex Jones pushing the false claim that the U.S. government either planned the attacks or allowed them to happen.

Now, Ingrassia also defended jones on several other instances, including a month earlier, where he wrote we all -- he wrote, we quote all stand with Alex Jones. In June 2024, he was commenting on a video of jones crying on his broadcast over fears that Infowars was going to have to be shut down due to the $1.5 billion judgment against Jones for spreading those false claims that the sandy hook conspiracy theory was a hoax.

Now, during the 2024 presidential primary, and this is really where Ingrassia first seems, from what we found to have gotten on Donald Trump's radar, he repeatedly and harshly attacked Trump's political rivals using racially charged and sexist language. He called Nikki Haley a, quote, insufferable bitch. He mocked her Indian heritage in tweets.

He shared a tweet that said Kamala Harris should, quote, seek a kitchen job, not POTUS. Posted that she decided to be Black in one speech.

He also repeatedly attacked Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and his wife, calling Casey DeSantis and a female spokeswoman harlots and referring to DeSantis in tweets as De-Satan, De-homo and De-meatball.

Now we also found audio of him saying that straight white men are the most intelligent demographic group, and he said they really should be prioritized in education. I want people to listen to this.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

PAUL INGRASSIA, TRUMP NOMINEE: You'd be focused on getting -- maximizing -- getting your top students in, and focusing on elevating the high IQ, you know, section of your demographic. So, you know, basically young men, straight white men in particular would have to be the focus.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

KEILAR: And, Andrew, you also found some ties between Ingrassia and Nick Fuentes, the white nationalist and Holocaust denier. What can you tell us about that? KACZYNSKI: Well, that's right. Nick Fuentes is a white nationalist.

He's a Holocaust denier, and he is probably the most prominent, far, far right figure in this country. In June 2024, Ingrassia was spotted at a rally for Fuentes, where Fuentes used harsh, antisemitic rhetoric. Now, Ingrassia told NPR and "The Intercept" that he had just stumbled upon this event by accident and that he left after a few minutes.

But I want people to see here what the video actually shows. It shows Fuentes walking up to a crowd that was chanting his name, and Ingrassia, who people can see there is in the front row smiling as Fuentes arrives in the crowd. He also can be spotted several other times in the crowd as Fuentes speaks, staying for about five minutes or so.

We also obtained a video that shows Ingrassia even there before Fuentes arrived. This shows -- that was another video we found. You can see him right there. He's also defended Fuentes publicly, including the day before he criticized the conservative Talking Points USA organization, which had kicked Fuentes out of a conference, calling it a quote, awful decision -- as you can see here in that tweet.

He also wrote a Substack post that was titled, quote, "Free Nick Fuentes" that argued Fuentes needed to be reinstated on X after he had been banned for antisemitism.

KEILAR: Andrew, what's the White House saying about all of this?

KACZYNSKI: So the white House and DHS are defending Ingrassia, a senior administration and senior administration official, called him a, quote, respected ivy league attorney, a relentless loyalist for the president. And they claimed that he has the support of, quote, many Jewish groups, though they did only send over a few of them.

So, it's going to be really interesting for all of us to see how this plays out and whether he does eventually get senate confirmation for this post.

KEILAR: All right. Andrew Kaczynski, great work. Thank you so much for that.

Next, a massive boost in manpower for Vladimir Putin. His close ally North Korea tonight, sending back up. The exclusive reporting, next.

Plus, Elon Musk ties to Trump backfire as Tesla sales sink. Will Musk's renewed focus on his car company turn it around?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:49:13]

KEILAR: Tonight, the Kremlin celebrating President Trump's decision to stop sending weapons to Ukraine, including air defense missiles. Vladimir Putins spokesman saying it will bring a quicker end to the war. This as an exclusive CNN report finds 30,000 North Korean soldiers are about to help Russia's war effort.

Nick Paton Walsh is OUTFRONT.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They brought near ruthless tactics, the rumblings of a war going global, 11,000 North Korean troops helped Russia expel Kyiv's soldiers from its border of Kursk, but that, it seems, is just the start.

CNN has learned up to 30,000 more may be headed to the front lines, according to Ukrainian intelligence, for use in a summer offensive, with Moscow hungry for manpower and Pyongyang keen to school its troops, in brutal trench and drone warfare.

[19:50:16]

They were first seen here in October, but recently the routes used then could be active again. A troop-carrying Ropucha ship was seen here on May the 18th. The same type of vessel at the same Russian port used in transports last year, experts said.

Ukraine also assesses Russia will refit transport planes like the one seen on the tarmac here again in June at North Korea's Sunan Airport, to move so many North Koreans, likely air or rail, will take them across Siberia to the front line. Ten kilometers east of Kursk, this camp is enlarged in recent months, further evidence of North Korean build up.

CNN has geolocated to hear this six-minute video report from a part Korean, Russian correspondent. The report surfaced 48 hours after the Kremlin's first admission of the North Korean deployment.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (translated): Such a good bunker. Warm.

PATON WALSH: They're not only training, but appear to have new long term bunker accommodation and equipment. The tastes of home, red Korean pepper and homemade propaganda, it says, revenge for our fallen comrades.

This Russian instructor says his new trainees are aged 23 to 27.

RUSSIAN INSTRUCTOR (translated): They guys arrive in good physical condition. Their fighters are as good as ours. The enemy runs away first. And the enemy does run, because it's afraid of a gun fight.

WALSH: And there's a translation sheet to get over the language barrier, which meant the first units operated separately from the Russians.

State media has shown videos of both countries now training together.

Here, in the same training ground, a Russian shows how to use a shotgun to take down a drone. Others practicing clearing buildings together. More signs are open. Putin's top presidential adviser, Sergei Shoigu,

visiting Kim Jong Un here for the second time in a fortnight, announcing a thousand mine clearers and 5,000 military construction workers to rebuild Kursk region. Perhaps a sign Moscow is indeed short of the manpower it has sent mercilessly into the fight, but also that it is not short on allies who share their ruthless commitment.

Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: Next, Tesla suffering its worst year over year drop in sales ever. So just how bad is it for Tesla?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:57:26]

KEILAR: Tonight, another record for Tesla, but not one that Elon Musk will be celebrating. The company reporting its sales plunged 13.5 percent in the second quarter, nearly 60,000 fewer cars sold than a year ago. That is the largest year-over-year drop in sales in the company's history.

OUTFRONT now, Dan Ives.

And, Dan, you've long covered Tesla and Musk, other companies, as a tech analyst. How bad is this?

DAN IVES, GLOBAL HEAD OF TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH, WEDBUSH SECURITIES: Look, I mean, there's clear headwinds, right? I mean, some of that brand issues, especially in Europe and the U.S. and in China as well, competitions increase.

Look, I think it was a small step in the right direction, better than feared. But there's heavy lifting ahead on the delivery side. And of course, autonomous continues to be the key focus for Musk and Tesla.

KEILAR: Yeah, a silver lining for Musk actually in these numbers is that while down from a year ago, they're actually up 14 percent from the first quarter total. He's now though feuding with President Trump for a second time over this big agenda bill of Trump's.

He is though back focused on his company allegedly. How's that going?

IVES: Look, I mean that's a great point you make because it's our whole point that the biggest asset for Tesla is Musk. And now Musk is laser-focused in terms of what's happening on the core Tesla.

And that's important to turn this around. This does not turn around without Musk. And that's why Musk is just so, so important to this turnaround. And you want him focused on Tesla not in the political theater with Trump.

KEILAR: You've talked a lot on this show about Trump's trade war. And today, the president announced this deal with Vietnam. But at the same time, he said July 9th for all of these trade deals, dozens and dozens of them. It's hard to see that happening, Dan.

IVES: Look, the reality is they're going to have to kick the can down the road. I mean, well see what happens next week. I mean, probably toward Labor Day. But look, it's getting toward the time where you got to see what these deals look like. Vietnam. You know, obviously a small step, but it comes down to India, comes down to China, comes down to more and more of these deals.

And that's the game of poker that he's playing. But the street is basically reading through it saying deals that's going to get kicked down the road, but it's going to be an eventful summer. Get the popcorn out next week.

KEILAR: You think he'll suspend the tariffs again?

IVES: Yeah. I mean, I think some he could hardline on. Others, he'll continue to push back on as we go into Labor Day. That continues to be our focus.

KEILAR: All right. Dan, great to get your perspective on all of this. We do appreciate it. Thank you so much.

And thank you so much for joining us tonight.

"AC360" starts now.