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Early Start with Rahel Solomon

U.S. Senate Holds Marathon Vote On Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill"; Judge Responds To Note About Juror As Deliberation Begins; France Expecting Peak Temperatures As Heat Wave Hits Europe; France Bans Smoking In Public Places Including Parks And Beaches; Latest GOP Provisions In Budget Bill Seek to Crush Renewable Energy. Aired 4:30- 5a ET

Aired July 01, 2025 - 04:30   ET

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

[04:30:00]

MJ LEE, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL ENTERPRISE CORRESPONDENT: -- vote-a-rama with Republicans and Democrats proposing new amendments to Donald Trump's sweeping domestic policy bill. As it stands right now, the multitrillion dollar Trump bill will lower federal taxes, pour more money into the Pentagon and Trump's border crackdown, and dramatically shrink safety net programs, including Medicaid. Officials estimate it will add $3.3 trillion to the deficit over the next decade.

Donald Trump has been pressuring Republican lawmakers to pass that sweeping domestic policy bill in time for him to sign. That's the Fourth of July. CNN's Kristen Holmes has more details from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Trump and his team say that they are still optimistic that this bill is going to get passed. I spoke to one White House official who said that they like their odds at this time despite the fact this is continuing to go on and we're not really quite sure where it's going to end up.

The White House, they seem pretty confident. And I spoke to a number of administration officials who say this has been a real full court press. You have had not only President Trump on the phone with various senators, congressional leadership, but you've also had members of the administration, allies of President Trump's, anyone who has a relationship with any senator, they are calling them, they are pushing them.

And that's really because this is such an important part of President Trump's legacy team, and he believe that this is going to be what really cements that legacy moving forward. Now, we heard from the press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, talking about this. Here's what she said.

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Republicans need to stay tough and unified during the home stretch, and we are counting on them to get the job done. The president is very well aware that this bill needs to not only pass out of the Senate, but it needs to go back to the House. And we need the full weight of the Republican conference to get behind this bill. And we expect them to, and we are confident that they will.

HOLMES: Now, you can hear her expressing confidence there, but also saying that Republicans needed to stick together and really try to work this through. Stay tough. Now, perhaps part of the reason that the White House has confidence in this hour is because of what we have seen from President Trump. We saw him on social media essentially kind of leveling some veiled threats at people who might try to stop this bill from being passed, saying senators who are cutting costs, you need to be careful, don't go too crazy. You still have to be reelected.

Of course, we saw him over the weekend essentially saying that he would primary North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis when he voted against the bill. Thom Tillis shortly afterwards saying that he was going to retire anyway.

But this is obviously going to be something that's on these senators' minds as they are working through this process. Again, we will be checking in with the White House as this vote progresses to see if anything changes. But right now they are feeling confident that they still like their odds. Kristen Holmes, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEE: The jury in Sean Diddy Combs sex trafficking trial will begin day two of their deliberations in the coming hours. On Monday, they sent several notes to the judge, including one raising concerns about one of the juror. CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Deliberations are underway in the Sean "Diddy" Combs trial, the rap mogul facing life in prison if convicted on the most serious charges.

Now just about an hour into deliberations, the jury sent a note to the judge saying that they had concerns that one of the jurors, juror number five, would not be able to follow the judge's instructions. We have no other information beyond that. But that is quite a stunning note to get from the jury soon into deliberations.

Now, deliberations coming after this 12-person jury has sat through seven weeks of testimony and closing arguments, the culmination to a nearly two-month trial. Now for Combs, the stakes are incredibly high. He is facing five different charges and if convicted on the most serious charge, which is racketeering conspiracy, the maximum sentencing there is life in prison.

Combs is also facing two sex trafficking charges, one pertaining to Cassie Ventura, his ex-girlfriend of more than a decade, and another sex trafficking charge pertaining to a woman who testified anonymously under the pseudonym Jane.

Each of those counts, those separate sex trafficking counts, and the jury was instructed by the judge to deliberate on those two counts separately. Each of those carries a major minimum of 15 years. So again, very serious for Sean Combs.

Combs was seen supported by his family in court as the jury received those instructions and as they headed back out of the courtroom into that deliberation room, his six adult children were in the courthouse with him in addition to his mother.

Now, of course, no word on how long these deliberations will take, but this is a very complex case. So this could go on for days and days. But there is the July 4th holiday coming at the end of the week, that could be an incentive for this jury to deliberate quickly. Back to you.

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[04:35:10]

LEE: Europe's extreme heat wave is expected to peak in the days ahead. Players and fans alike were sweating at Wimbledon as the famous tennis tournament began on Monday with the hottest opening day ever. In parts of France, Spain and Portugal, the temperature is topping 40 degrees Celsius, which is over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. And those hot, dry conditions have triggered wildfires. Fires have broken out in France and Italy and forest fires forced the evacuation of 50,000 people in Turkey, which straddles Europe and Asia.

Let's get more now from CNN senior international correspondent Melissa Bell. She joins me live from Paris. Melissa, how are you holding up there? And how are Parisians dealing with the heat wave?

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'll tell you what, MJ, it is about 10:00 a.m. here in Paris and it is scorching already. This is the canal, some of them, where people have been diving in just to try and stay cool. You have to remember that here in Europe, these are not cities that are used to these sort of extreme conditions that have sadly become the new normal. And this is what Experts are saying, 2023 had broken records, 2024 as well. And it looks like 2025 is going to be the same, except that this time the heat has come early, MJ.

So you're looking at heat that we would normally experience in like July, August, which has come in June. And they reckon that June is about to announce that it has set its record for the month of June.

And you're seeing it all over southern Europe from wildfires in the Izmir province of Turkey, wildfires near Athens. There have been some reported here in France as well already fairly early in the season. And what we're experiencing now they call a heat dome. So heat gets trapped and you'll reach like 100, 104 degree temperatures over the course of the day in many parts of Europe. Many parts of Italy, Spain and France actually have warnings because of these extreme heat conditions.

And just to give you an example beyond the wildfires of the cost in human lives of these sorts of heat waves, we don't have the figures yet for 2024, but the ones for 2023 saw tens of thousands of people lose their lives in Europe because of these extreme heat conditions. And they are only likely to get worse.

So Europe trying to cope with temperatures it simply hasn't been used to. And this, I'm afraid, MJ, appears to be what we need to get used.

LEE: To all right, Melissa Bell in Paris, thank you. And stay cool.

France is ending its longtime love affair with cigarettes. The country's ban on smoking goes into effect on Tuesday and applies to many public spaces, including beaches, parks and sports venues. CNN's Saskia Van Dorn has more on the country's historic move on public health.

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SASKYA VANDOORNE, CNN SENIOR PRODUCER (voice-over: This is the country that turned cigarettes into high art. But lighting up under the Eiffel Tower or in the Jardin de Tuileries is now illegal. And it could cost you 135 euros. The government's aim at tobacco free generation by 2032.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel like it's a big liberty torn away from us, from French people because we smoke a lot and it's just because we like it. And I feel like it'd be pretty hard to enforce too.

UNIDENIFIED MALE: Why they smoke for the stress, maybe the stress or the ritual with the aperitif and so on. Let's go together.

VANDOORNE: Can we have a smoke free generation?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's never going to happen.

VANDOORNE (voice-over): And now France is making history, the first European country to ban cigarettes on all beaches nationwide. Starting July 1st, smoking will also be banned in public gardens and anywhere near schools/

A lofty goal for a country that a generation ago had children, staging tributes to Serge Gainsbourg, cigarettes and all. Jean-Paul Belmondo made it look cool in de bout de souffle, a cigarette hanging from his lips in nearly every scene.

Coco Chanel smoked 50 a day and Brigitte Bardot. But tobacco use in France has actually been on the decline in recent years. Smoking is at its lowest level in more than two decades, with 23 percent of the adult population lighting up daily.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Think about the freedom of those next to you. For example, there are children who don't want to smoke.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Actually, I can understand for the children and for health reasons.

VANDOORNE: Still, there's one sacred space the law won't the terrace. And French people, especially Parisians, are breathing a smoky sigh of relief because banning cigarettes there, that would be a step too far even for a changing France. Saskya Vandoorne, CNN, Paris.

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LEE: A new tax that's tucked into Trump's spending bill is taking aim at solar and wind energy projects.

[04:40:00]

Why some say this could kill the industry. And how these influencers are spreading the message of Robert F. Kennedy Jr's Make America Healthy Again initiative. We'll introduce you to the Maha Girls.

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[04:45:00]

LEE: And back to the breaking news we are following here in Washington, where senators have been working all night into the early morning hours now on amendments to President Trump's domestic policy bill. President Trump's former adviser Tesla CEO Elon Musk shared his thoughts online, posting that lawmakers who vote for the bill, quote, should hang their head in shame.

The President responded not long after suggesting the U.S. could save money by cutting subsidies to Musk's companies. He said, quote, perhaps we should have DOGE take a good hard look at this.

A last minute addition to the bill is sparking fury. Senate Republicans revealed an entirely new tax on the solar and wind industries over the weekend. The bill already stripped tax incentives for renewables by 2027. CNN's chief climate correspondent Bill Weir explains why the proposal is so devastating to the clean energy industry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: The only explanation is really vengeance because it makes no economic sense. This language was inserted in the middle of the night. Everybody industry was looking at this language saying what is happening? It was written so haphazardly, there's big fears it'll destabilize more than just these industries.

But the best analogy I heard is imagine if when Henry Ford's Model Ts were just starting to crank off of the assembly lines in Detroit, President Taft had murdered that industry with taxes and subsidized horses. There are subsidies now in this new bill for coalition and meanwhile cutting off emergent battery technology in places like Georgia and Texas.

And there was a lot of thinking that because the Inflation Reduction Act was embedded intentionally into bright red Republican districts where people would see the fruits of this and see what clean energy could mean economically, it would be hard to rip out. But this new bill rips it out root and branch and then just salts the earth behind it. Meanwhile, the rest of the world is embracing these technologies. So,

it is astounding what this would do to an industry now that is coddling and energy sources which are the cheapest in human history, which ultimately will punish those Republican districts.

For example, the electricity bill in Oklahoma could go up $845 a year if this passes. That's just pocketbook issues. Without even talking about the climate implications of going the other way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: The White House says President Trump will attend the opening of what it calls Alligator Alcatraz later today. The controversial immigration detention facility is being built in the Florida Everglades. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt says the facility will have just one road leading in and that the only way out is a one way flight. She touts what she calls the isolated nature of the facility, quote, surrounded by dangerous wildlife and unforgiving terrain.

Protesters have denounced the facility, saying it's bad for the environment and that, above all, it is inhumane. After a recent Supreme Court ruling, the fight against President Trump's efforts to ban birthright citizenship has entered a new stage, and it seems to have raised more questions than answers. CNN's Paula Reid has the latest developments in a federal lawsuit that's seeking to block Trump's executive order.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: The hearings on Monday were significant because this is the first time we've heard judges weighing in on that historic Supreme Court ruling Friday limiting the power that judges have to block a policy for the entire country. In many ways, that decision was a lawyer Full Employment Act because it left open so many questions that now need to be decided by lower courts, like, all right, what now becomes a President Trump's executive order limiting birthright citizenship? Who can challenge it?

And, for example, the Supreme Court said that class action lawsuits may be one way to block these policies, with the Justice Department making it clear on Monday that they intend to oppose those kinds of legal maneuvers.

Now, in Maryland, we heard from lawyers representing clients and the anguish that they described that these clients are facing in the wake of all of this uncertainty. One lawyer described a client as quote, being afraid of bringing more life into this world and described the incredible stress, anxiety and fear that their plaintiffs are experiencing as this question remains open of who exactly will be a citizen at the end of the month.

Now, the Supreme Court put a hold on its ruling for 30 days. That's why I say the end of the month. At that time the Supreme Court appears in some form, could be letting this executive order go forward. So one of the questions that this judge really wanted to know was, when will they start deporting babies once this goes into effect? Now, the Justice Department gave answer that wasn't very clear. A

lawyer for the Justice Department saying, my understanding is that the executive order will not be operative for 30 days. She asked the judge, is that your understanding or the position of the United States? The lawyer just said, it's my understanding. I can confirm that, but I have a high degree of confidence in that understanding.

[04:50:03]

So this is a really big question, and the Justice Department could not give a clear answer. So the judge in Maryland demanding more clarification on that question. And it's just an example of how much more still needs to be worked out in and around this executive order. All the confusion about who exactly will be a citizen at the end of this month, but this is the kind of confusion that the Supreme Court invited with this decision. Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEE: Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been spearheading a new initiative to, quote, make America Healthy Again, also known as MAHA. One group of influencers, the MAHA Girls, want to promote the movement among their peers. CNN's Meena Duerson reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Should we say it together or say. I say like real food.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We try to say it together in sync.

UNDIENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. So we're going to walk.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Real food, packaged snack.

UNIDENATIFIED FEMALE: Hey, the first try.

UNDIENTIFIED FEMALE: Yay.

MEENA DUERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Grace Price and Lexi Vrachalus, with a little assist from Lexi's mom, are filming content for their new social media brand.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You like it?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's cute.

UNIDENTIFIE FEMALE: If you've ever struggled with depression anxiety, we created this account on how to live healthy in a world where we're told lies about our bodies. Please join the MAHA Girls movement today.

DUERSON (voice-over): MAHA is for Make America Healthy Again, the tagline RFK Jr. coined last year. The girls are trying to bring the movement to a younger demographic.

LEXI VRACHALUS, MAHA GIRLS: and they have no added sugar or seed oil. DUERSON: How old are you guys?

VRACHALUS: 19.

GRACE PRICE, FOUNDER, MAHA GIRLS: We're both 19.

PRICE: Girls our age are looking for answers. They have this opportunity to take ownership of their health or they're going to fall victim to big pharma and big food. I was like, what if we, like, actually did a girl group, but it's for health.

DUERSON (voice-over): Price discovered and recruited Vrachalus from her grocery store videos, which have landed her millions of views and over 160,000 Instagram followers.

VRACHALUS: Cookies buy or bye?

DUERSON (voice-over): They met up in Austin last month at the launch of a wellness found for college students.

UNIDENIFIED MALE: If you all have not met the MAHA Girls.

DUERSON (voice-over): It was a chance to mix with some of MAHA's biggest stars. Fani Hari, the food babe.

VANI HARI, "THE FOOD BABE": When you try to change the food industry, they're going to unleash a gauntlet of attacks to try to stop your voice.

DUERSON (voice-over): RFK righthand man, Calley Means, whose sister is Trump's pick for surgeon general.

CALLEY MEANS, SPECIAL GOVT. EMPLOYEE, DEPT. OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: The President of the United States said, our food is toxic and we're going to figure out why. And I do not give I shit whether the lobbyists get mad about that or not.

DUERSON (voice-over): And longtime RFK ally Del Bigtree.

DEL BIGTREE, FORMER CEO, MAHA ALLIANCE: We're building an army. We're starting a revolution and we're going to change the world.

DUERSON (voice-over): Price was already in the MAHA inner circle. She's grammed from the inauguration, the Senate and the White House.

DUERSON: It's kind of wild. You have the ear of some of the people who are like making the biggest decisions for the whole country.

PRICE: Yes.

DUERSON: What's that like?

PRICE: It's crazy. At the White House and all of these different events, it's all adults. We're the only 19-year olds there. We literally are. So, what's the deal with that? Why is this not cool? Why is there not a Coachella for healthy food? DUERSON (voice-over): Much of the guidance the girls share is backed

by widely accepted science. Numerous studies have linked ultra- processed foods to diseases and health issues. But some MAHA talking points.

PRICE: So this toothpaste is not only fluoride and paraben free.

DUERSON (voice-over): Like the dangers of fluoride and seed oils are less clear cut and have sparked pushback from the mainstream medical community. Neither teen is a medical professional. Price self-produced a documentary about cancer and Vrachalus is a certified health coach.

PRICE: People be like oh, are we really supposed to listen to this 19- year old? And I'm not trying to claim any credentials. I'm just trying to bring you along with me on my learning journey.

VRACHALUS: Everyone is so bio individual so I think that everyone should take their information. Do your own self experimenting and see what works for you.

DUERSON: Where do you guys get your information?

VRACHALUS: I started researching ingredients about five or six years ago. I'm constantly listening to podcasts.

PRICE: I was on PubMed, ScienceDirect. There are studies in plain sight that you can find on Google or you can use ChatGPT if that's your main search engine to find the link to this article. Like the information is there on the Internet but you do have to search.

DUERSON: So how do you deal with misinformation?

PRICE: We are the number one BS detectors because our generation, I mean we get fed this stuff all day and if you're not being authentic with your audience, it's something that we can tell instantly.

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR., HHS SECRETARY: I'm honored to present you the MAHA Report.

DUERSON (voice-over): The White House released its official MAHA Report in May laying out the administration's priorities for addressing chronic health problems in children. Shortly after our interview, news broke that a number of errors had been discovered in the report, including studies that had been misrepresented or did not exist.

The White House chalked up the issues to quote, minor citation and formatting errors and has since updated the report. We reached out to the girls, but they did not respond.

PRICE: This is not a political issue. We're here because our generation is the number one target of these big food companies, and we're trying to stand up to them.

[04:55:03]

DUERSON: But the phrase MAHA is inherently political.

VRACHALUS: Of course.

PRICE: And I agree that like MAHA, it is unfortunate that it's so associated with other things. But what MAHA has done is given voices to people in the health space. They haven't been a part of the mainstream health message. And it makes no sense to not use that incredible traction in our own branding.

We are taste testing some ketones.

VRACHALUS: We all need real food. It's I don't think that it's that complicated or that it should be taken so controversial.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEE: That was CNN's Meena Duerson reporting. Thank you so much for joining us here on Early Start. I'm MJ Lee in Washington, D.C. More news after a short break.

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